The Legend of the Guardian Bell: A Story Every Motorcycle Rider Should Know
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by Damien Heenan
5 min reading time
Have you ever seen a motorcycle with a bell hanging on its lower frame? It may look like a mere plaything, but that little bell means far more than just mere decoration.
It’s called a Guardian or Gremlin Bell, and its origins are legendary – a story every rider should know.
One cold December night, a motorcycle cruised down a Mexican border highway. The rider’s untamed, silver-gray beard flapped in the wind, his eyes sparkling with joy as he occasionally reached back to tap his hand on the saddlebags.
The old biker was returning home from a long, pleasant road trip. He’d made a few detours the previous day in order to fill his saddlebags with gifts. He was taking those small treasures to the place he worked…
And it wasn’t any ordinary job, it was a special role that meant a lot to him... an orphanage, and he had taken on the responsibility of delivering gifts to the kids.
Just thinking about the looks on their faces made him smile.
As he rode, taking in the cool night air, the silver-bearded rider counted his blessings. He had a rich, fulfilling life surrounded by precious things: those kids at the orphanage, his loyal friends, thousands of miles on every road imaginable, and, of course, his motorcycle.
The bike he was riding had always been there, always reliable. It had become more than a means of transportation – it was one of his most trusted friends.
Even now, it carried the old rider over miles of highway without even a hiccup.
And for long into the night, the road was smooth and the terrain was flat and clear. But as he continued, the rider noticed a rogue piece of debris appearing in front of him every now and again.
What the biker didn’t know was that these seemingly random obstacles hadn’t gotten on the road by chance. He’d entered the territory of a particularly nasty breed of creatures - Road Goblins, which dwell near highways near and far, and live for one purpose:
To do harm to anyone who rides a motorcycle.
They would throw different objects on the road, spill fuel or oil, dig potholes, or even use magic powers that make an engine fail for no apparent reason.
And as soon as the goblins spotted the old biker, they began plotting his destruction. With his gray beard and road-weary motorcycle, they thought a few bumps on the road would be more than enough.
(This only goes to show that, as cunning as they are, road goblins aren’t all that smart – they didn’t account for the experience that comes with years on the road.)
The rider easily avoided their initial traps, frustrating the goblins to no end… especially as within moments their target would soon be out of range and long gone.
Determined to make one last stand, the goblins gathered at a single spot by the road, around a bend, where they threw everything, they had at the silver-bearded biker.
Caught by surprise there was nothing he could do. The biker crashed and skidded across the asphalt. His saddlebags tore open on impact, scattering toys everywhere.
Vile goblins swarmed from their hiding spots to surround the biker, whose first instinct was to jump up and fight - but he couldn’t move. So he started grabbing the soft toys around him, desperately throwing them at the goblins. But to no avail - the creatures were unfazed by this bombardment of plushies.
And the goblins crept ever closer – closer – to the fallen rider.
With all hope nearly lost, the old man’s hand latched onto something different… peculiar… a small bell. But instead of chucking it at his enemies, he instead chose to start ringing the bell, hoping someone would hear and come to his rescue.
The road goblins were stunned, mesmerized, by the clear, sharp tones that rang out – frozen in place.
And they weren’t the only ones who’d heard the ringing of the bell - two nearby bikers, camping after a long-day’s ride, came running to the old biker’s aid as soon as they heard the sound.
Within moments, they’d scared off the creatures – after all, goblins are basically cowards, unwilling to take anyone on in a fair fight.
As they fled, the old biker couldn’t believe his luck.
The two bikers came to the aid of their comrade, helping him up from the road and back onto his still trusty bike. He asked how he could repay them for their kindness, but they wouldn’t take any compensation. The old biker then took two pieces of leather, tied one bell to each, and handed the bells to them. He told them to carry those bells on their motorcycles always and to ring them in times of need.
To this day, bikers who know about the Legend of the Guardian Bells carry these small goblin-repellents on the lower parts of their motorcycles. It’s said that the bells have more power if received as a gift, just like what happened with the silver-bearded rider.
If you have a true biker friend, you can make sure they’re safe from road goblins during long rides. Find the perfect guardian bell at Eagle Leather and gift it to someone to let them know they can always count on your help.
Comments
I own 2 Harleys and have bells on both of my bikes, I’m a firm believer that they do protect us riders, I would tell any one who has a bike to put the protective bell on you machine,
Great story Mike!! I have always given bells to new bikers for their bike as a gift and a way to hopefully stay safe!
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