Did you know that Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach are credited with building the first motorcycle? It was a two-cylinder, 2.5 horsepower engine that was basically strapped to a bicycle, but it could go. In 1885, it was blazing fast with a top speed of around 28 mph. We now have bikes that can go over 200 mph, but it’s nice to know these motorcycle facts to get a better sense of the machines we ride.

9 Motorcycle Facts You Probably Didn’t Know

1. Harley-Davidson is the number one motorcycle seller in the U.S., but with only a 29.3 percent share of the market.
2. The median age for a motorcyclist is 47. In 1990, most motorcyclists were around 32 years old, and in 2009, most were around 40 years old.
3. Guess what, around 61 percent of motorcyclists are married. But the real question is, do married couples ride together?
4. It looks like around 72 percent of motorcycle owners have a college or post-graduate degree, so it would seem we are quite the educated group of people.
5. The Motorcycle Industry Council says that 1.2 million women ride motorcycles. That’s a 100 percent increase from 10 years ago.
6. Even though the number of women riders has doubled, they still only make up 14 percent of the riding population.
7. More motorcycles were sold in California than in any other state—78,610. Florida sold 41,720 and Texas sold 41,420.
8. Indian Motorcycles sales grew by over 20 percent last year, but it’s parent company—Polaris—only holds 4.4 percent of the U.S. market.
9. The motorcycle industry was worth $24.1 billion in services, taxes, and sale in 2015.

Do you have obscure motorcycle facts that you think others should know about? Head over to Facebook to share them. Don’t forget to keep checking in on the attorneys that ride here at the Metier Law Firm by visiting our blog.