The Harley-Davidson Freedom Jacket travels the world

In August 2012 the fans Harley-Davidson from all over the world kicked off a year of great celebrations for the company's 110th anniversary. Millions of fans from eleven countries and six continents are commemorating the sharing of ideals such as freedom, expression of one's identity, epic adventures and great stories that unite.

As part of these great celebrations, Harley-Davidson invited riders from all over the world to wear and carry a special black leather jacket, the Freedom Jacket, on their on-the-road experiences and share their stories online. There Freedom Jacket it will pass from hand to hand and cross dozens of places in all corners of the globe collecting the stories of these enthusiasts, before returning to Milwaukee for the final celebration scheduled from August 29th to September 1st and finally for the exhibition at Harley - Davidson Museum.

“The Freedom Jacket represents one of the most basic but powerful symbols of what it means to be a Harley-Davidson rider – said Mark Hans Richer , Harley-Davidson Chief Marketing Officer -. A leather jacket is like the soul for a biker. Every pin, every mark, scratch and patch is a memory of the journey, of the experience and becomes part of your identity and the adventures you tell”.

The idea for the Freedom Jacket was born last August when Richer took a motorbike trip across the Tibetan plateau in China for the first preparations for the 110th Anniversary and was wearing an ordinary leather jacket. During a stop along the way, Richer asked a local Chinese man who was redoing the road signs on the roadway to paint on his jacket what the world of Harley-Davidson represented to him. The man painted the Chinese ideogram meaning “freedom”. Since then, the Freedom Jacket has been worn by enthusiasts on their trips around the world including Faaker See, the popular location at the foot of the Austrian Alps that hosts European Bike Week, on the roads of Mexico, in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil and finally on the NHRA Pro Stock Finals strip in Pomona, CA. In the coming months the Freedom Jacket will continue its long journey to other destinations both on and off the beaten path, including the official Harley-Davidson 110th Anniversary events scheduled in India, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Rome.

Harley-Davidson also invites enthusiasts to share stories of their journeys through the 110th Anniversary website. On January 22, a dedicated application will also be launched that will allow fans to create a personalized version of the 110th Anniversary graphic “110 years of freedom” with your photos and will be published on the official Facebook page and on all other online channels. The company is also offering fans the opportunity to create their own 110th Anniversary page within the site to share their experiences with the world.

“The 110th Anniversary is first and foremost the celebration of our fans, so it is natural that the content they generate is a priority for us”, Richer added.

Harley-Davidson will reveal many more details related to the 110th Anniversary in the coming weeks, including the great protagonists of the events in Rome and Milwaukee, as well as the new adventures of the Freedom Jacket. Tickets for Milwaukee's 110th Anniversary celebration are on sale now at www.ticketmaster.com.

Information on Harley-Davidson's 110th Anniversary

Harley-Davidson's 110th Anniversary encompasses a year of major global celebrations that connect millions of Harley-Davidson fans around the world with a bond and passion for ideals of freedom, individual expression and extraordinary adventure. The official calendar brings together 12 dedicated events promoted at international events which will continue until September 2013. The events will cross 11 countries on six continents and will culminate in two main events, in Rome, Italy in June and in Milwaukee during the Labor Day weekend .

Fans of the Harley-Davidson brand are invited to join the celebrations online thanks to Facebook, Twitter and on the website www.hd.com/110, where it will be possible to share videos, images and experiences.