Riding on the Edge: A Motorcycle Outlaw's Tale

Well written book about club history in the 60s

John does a great job of sharing his experiences and the reality of the culture.

There are several books available that detail the more sinister side of outlaw motorcycle clubs, but John Hall's story is not one of them. Rather than portraying a criminal history of the Pagans Motorcycle Club, "Riding on the Edge" reads more like a recollection of a roaming band of gypsies' grand adventure with a Jack Karouac or Charles Bukowski edge. While it does delve into some criminal activity, the tale parallels more with the rebellious nature of youth growing up in the turbulent 1960s than the organized-crime element associated with outlaw motorcycle clubs today.Hall presents the early days of the Pagan Motorcycle Club in Pennsylvania in somewhat of a romantic and innocent manner: a culturally-mixed band of local misfits hitting the road in search of adventure in the mid-to-late 1960s only to find trouble every stretch of the way. The entire book details a fleeting period of time when "outlaw" behavior consisted more of beer guzzling and barroom brawling with local fledgling outlaw clubs who violate Pagan "turf" ... not the RICO qualifying activities of today's outlaw clubs.Hall proves himself to be an intelligent and gifted storyteller as he tickles the reader's senses with such vivid detail. One can almost smell the grime on the greasy denim vests, taste the stale Iron City swill and clearly see the beauty and beast nature of the various women encountered along his journey. The experiences are exhilarating, raucous, dangerous and often humorous. With the Vietnam War, hippies and burgeoning drug use as a backdrop, Hall paints a last-gasp scenario of life being lived to the fullest before an anticipated end to all the freedom and fun ... more like sex, booze and brawling. Artistically woven throughout the book is the heavy influence of European culture (mainly Dutch and German) that colors the world of Hall and his fellow Pennsylvania Pagans. The constant reference of Dutch lore and colloquial words/phrases oddly tempers the stereotypical image of outlaw bikers being militant Aryan thugs. While Hall admits many fellow Pagans adorned swastikas, either painted on helmets or, like Hall, inked into his flesh; he admits the purpose is more for outlaw shock value rather than adhering to a radical ideology."Riding on the Edge" reads as a lamenting tale of times long gone. The locale of Hall's chapter is depicted more as a Pennsylvania version of Mayberry where the bikers were more or less treated as local nuisances than part of a criminal empire. The looming change in society becomes more evident the later-half of the book as the brawling gets more violent, law enforcement gets more serious and drugs become more prevalent. As the book draws to a close, there is definite sense that the fun is over as many of the colorfully-named characters that factored so heavily into Hall's life back then (SweetWilliam, Davey SuperMouth, Gums, the Mortician et al) drop-out, disappear, are imprisoned or die. With the final chapter Hall graciously treats us to an update on several of the individuals that survived the bulk of his adventure, but I was hoping for more details."Riding on the Edge" is old-school outlaw life, not the hyper-violent visage of the modern 1%er. It is a truly unique perspective of life during the infancy phase of arguably one of the more secretive outlaw clubs. The tumultuous and degenerate 1960s fueled the anything-goes lifestyle for John Hall and his fellow Pagans, setting up a myriad of wild adventures that Hall vibrantly recollects in his book

This is certainly the most well-written book by an ex-insider that was close to or at the top of one of the major 1% clubs. John Hall is a literate guy who seems to borrow some of his style from Hunter S. Thompson among others. Unlike some of the drivel that is being pumped out by some real and imagined ex-outlaws, Hall's work is superbly readable.The only knock I have on it, and it's a Catch-22 endured by all authors in Hall's position, is that he really isn't in a position to tell us what we want to hear about some of the more "outlaw" aspects of his life with the club. He isn't going to implicate himself or others. Doc Cavazos' book about the Mongols has the same issue - there are stories to tell, but what can he do without harming his brothers? In this vein, I would say that Sonny Barger's book "Hells Angel" comes the closest to getting at the "meat." But Sonny has a huge advantage because of the ability to allude to untold published articles, stories, books, truths, untruths, etc. about the Hells Angels. There is so much out there for Sonny to address that he doesn't run the risk of exposing anything new. John Hall doesn't have that luxury.In addition, Hall, like Cavazos, exhibits very little ego in this writing. This makes for what seems to be pretty honest, if a bit bland, account of the life as a club leader.Also, I would have to say that the knock Hall tosses in at the end about people like Yves Lavigne and Anthony Tait is a bit clumsy, because it is out of place. But he is dead on.This is your book if you want to experience real writing while getting an excellent account of the development of the Pagans as a club, and maybe a little history of the people and culture of eastern Pennsylvania thrown in as a bonus!

I think I've read just about every book written about OMC's (Outlaw Motorcycle Clubs.) The books tend to fall into two genres: memoirs from aging 1%'ers (Sonny Barger's  Hell's Angel: The Life and Times of Sonny Barger  and Ruben 'Doc' Cavazo's  Honor Few, Fear None ) and cops who managed to infiltrate the hyper-paranoid world of outlaw bikers (Jay Dobyns'  No Angel  and Billy McQueen's  Under and Alone )What strikes me in all of these (theoretically) true accounts is how proud the bikers are of their lifestyle beyond the social norms and how the cops admit that they're envious of the freedom that these outlaws demand.John Hall's book is somewhere in between. It's a recount of his life in the 1960's when, as a young twenty-something, he rode with the east-coast Pagans, eventualy rising to rank of Chapter President of the Long Island Pagans. In between riding with the Pagans and writing this book, he spent "time in the state pen, as well as Penn State, where he taught history, American studies, rhetoric and mathematics." John's obviously not your average outaw biker.The bulk of the story is set in the 60's when OMC's were a gathering of guys who liked to ride motorcycles, drink beer, engage in the occasional fisticuffs, and bed the women who found their anti-social antics a turn-on.John has a great way with words and he paints a vivid mental image of what he's describing. He also acknowledges how times have changed: "Today there are probably hundreds of normal middle-class Long Island kids who would s*** if they found out that back when grandma was their age, she used to h*** Pagans on the cellar floor in East Meadows."John's book is set in the time before OMC's (allegedly) became a major criminal enterprise. Growing up in Fontana, I spent a lot of time in the company of Hells Angels, who were friends of my Dad. John's book captures that feeling that they were just guys who chose to live a different way.

I have not yet finished but so far it is a highly enjoyable, witty and sober look back at the early days 1% MC's. The author was in the thick of it and takes you down a very colorful memory lane, but certainly represents one of the best books in this genre. Tackling the subject with an honest insiders view, you will find yourself laughing often and shaking your head as he describes the characters, the back-stories to events and ultimately what happened and why. A great read and well worth getting if you have any interest in motorcycle clubs.

An excellent book that looks deep into the whys and wherefores of the start of the Pagans MC from is beginins in the 60's from one of the founder members.Covers all the real highs n lows of being in a club, and goes someway to explain the history of the well know american club.This is well written, believable and most of the time enjoyable and a cut above many supposed 1% books. This is written by a member of the club not some self appointed expert who just uses speculation , hearsay and old news paper cuttings.A book written by the man that was there at the time.

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Be init to understand it.

Bought for a friend who loved it