Sons of Anarchy’s Coates (left) and Boone with their Harleys, photographed Jan. 23 in Altadena, Calif. When the hit FX show launched, Coates and Boone were the only castmembers who could ride. "Now they all do," says Coates.
Coates and Boone
Coates and Boone goofing off with their Harleys inAltadena, Calif.
Sons of Anarchy
Coates and Boone astride their Harley-Davidsons.
‘Sons of Anarchy’s’ Kim Coates
The long-running popularity of Sons of Anarchy, which commences its seventh season in September, has been a godsend for the motorcycle industry, which was hard-hit by the financial crisis. U.S. sales, which topped 1 million units in 2007, clawed back to 465,783 units in 2013, which nevertheless reflected a 1.4 percent increase over 2012. (California accounts for 10 percent of the market.) Sons of Anarchy has been especially beneficial for Harley; the show has helped make the brand hip with younger riders to the point that Harley now leads the 18-to-34 market. (The maker provides the motorcycles to the show and has a deal with Marvel that has placed bikes in films including Iron Man 3.)
‘We Basically Saved Harley’
Last year, Harley's U.S. sales were up more than 6 percent over 2012. "We basically saved Harley," says Sons of Anarchy co-star Mark Boone Jr. (Bobby).
The Open Road
Motorcycling Hollywood players are as different as the bikes they choose to straddle, but they all have one thing in common: A desire to experience the freedom of the open road on two wheels, regardless of its potentially career-ending risks.