Lisa Petrocelli took a ride on her cousin Vinny’s motorcycle when she was 15. She said she was scared but never felt such a thrill and vowed to do it again someday. That day came more than 20 years later, when she and her husband, Dino, bought a motorcycle of their own.
“I never forgot how I felt that day. … I never did it again until I was married and 40,” said Petrocelli, of Colonie.
Petrocelli has been fascinated with biker culture for just about as long as she can remember, but once she became part of it, she was hooked. When misconception after misconception about bikers was dispelled, Petrocelli said her “amazing” new outlook on the culture — and a little bit of guilt — drove her to begin what would be a 10-year book-writing adventure.
“After some time and meeting more of these people I thought someone should write a book about these people and tell them what bikers are really like,” said Petrocelli. “I was one of the guilty people who judged them before I got to know them.”
“The Gloves Come Off” was self-published April 24 and is available at barnesandnoble.com, amazon.com and booksamillion.com. The book aims to set the record straight on this intriguing and often misjudged community.
At first, Petrocelli said she was intimidated by the male bikers and assumed the women would be petty or unkind, perhaps judging her on her weight like so many others had before.
Instead, she found beneath the rough exterior and layers of black leather were some of the most “non-judgmental” people she’d ever met.
“We were treated so well and welcomed by everyone and I just realized after some time that the misconception I had was so far from the truth. … Every time I met someone I thought was mean or unapproachable it would turn out to be the total opposite,” said Petrocelli.
The habit of bikers to welcome newcomers with open arms is one of her favorite parts of being a biker, she said.
“The motorcycle community is less judgmental than other people, in my experience,” said Petrocelli. “Everybody is a brand new book and not judged on how they look but judged on how honorable they are, how respectful they are. Respect means a lot in the biker community.”
Speaking of new books, Petrocelli’s is 15 chapters, with each telling the story of a different rider, some local and some not. Scattered in between the stories are Petrocelli’s own tales, many of which appeared in “New York Rider Magazine,” which she’s the editor of.
“I’ve met and interviewed hundreds of people and the same thing happens over and over again. I’ll still be amazed at what I find out about these people, how compassionate they are,” said Petrocelli.
So what exactly do people think about bikers before getting to know them? Petrocelli said personally, her biggest assumption was that they were all “big, tough, mean, uncaring people” who worked in gas stations and were criminals.
“It’s totally not the truth,” said Petrocelli, who said many people also don’t know that a huge part of biker culture is supporting charities with fundraising rides and events.
She was afraid to approach one of the men portrayed in the book. But once she did, she discovered he was close to his family, an engineer, went to three colleges and grew up in her neighborhood.
“Everything I thought about him was shattered right as I was interviewing him,” said Petrocelli.
Another of her subjects turned her off initially, playing the part of a “show-off” at biker events and demanding attention by blowing flames out of the back of his bike.
“I thought he was really conceited … but I found out he was very, very sensitive and compassionate,” said Petrocelli.
In fact, Petrocelli is herself an example of a biker myth. When she’s in a sea of black leather she seems like any other rough rider, but in reality, she’s just a mother who likes to crochet blankets in her spare time.
When bikers pull on their riding uniforms (often black leather jackets, leather pants, leather gloves, dark sunglasses, bandanas) they expect “outsiders” to immediately attach stereotypes, said Petrocelli. What’s unacceptable, though, is the discrimination that frequently accompanies that, she said.
“They do not like the discrimination they get. At Americade, any biker gets stopped by the police and it’s only motorcyclists that get stopped. There are motorcycle-only checkpoints and they check for anything like if a helmet is not approved, pipes are too loud, not wearing the right sunglasses,” said Petrocelli.
Despite what the public may think, Petrocelli said she’s proud to be a member of the biker community that’s really just like everyone else: a group of friends.
“(Even) when I was a teenager I thought, ‘that looks like so much fun,’ and I just loved the fact that everybody was all together and they could participate in something like that and be together,” said Petrocelli. “The camaraderie fascinated me, I thought it was wonderful.”
