Jay Leno is a regular contributor to Popular Mechanics -- Jay Leno's Garage. Here's an article from the November issue where he talks about his Boss Hoss. With the recent talk of Wretched Excesses (Wretched Excess, Indeed and Good old wretched excess),  I had to include a Boss Hoss story.

Nothing Subtle
Pure essence of two-wheeled Americana, the Boss Hoss is a motorcycle for people who like 'em large.

BY JAY LENO

You know, when you look at certain vehicles, knowing nothing about them, you can just tell their country of origin. When you look at a Mercedes-Benz, it looks German. There's something about a Citroën or a Renault--they just look French. And when you see a 1200-pound motorcycle with a big V8 engine, it can be from only one country: the good old U.S. of A.

America has a surplus of V8s; we have more of them than we know what to do with. In other countries, a four-cylinder is sufficient, a six is a big deal. But a V8 is American power. When Ferrari first got a V8, the hot-rod guys said, "A Ferrari with a V8? You mean a Camaro?"

So, since we have so many V8s, why not put them to good use, like sticking them in motorcycles?

And that's what the folks at Boss Hoss have done. This is the American entrepreneurial spirit. Monte Warne, the guy who started Boss Hoss, was a crop-duster and an aircraft mechanic. He came up with an idea--building V8-powered motorcycles--in 1990 and turned it into a successful enterprise. He began with a small-block Chevy engine and has since gone large: My bike has a 502-hp, 502-cu.-in. big block. I tell people, "The 350's my wife's bike."

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