Mr Softy - who would have guessed?

From Progressive Insurance:

MAYFIELD VILLAGE, Ohio — March 18, 2009 — Women: just picture a confident, artistic man who's charitable and embraces the romantic side of relationships. Hard to imagine? He's closer than you might think: just check out your local biker hangout.

A recent survey explored the "softer side" of male bikers and non-bikers and looked at their online habits, what they like to read, charities they may be involved with, what brings them to tears, and more. The result? The stereotype of the "tough, burly, hard-core biker" is just that.

For example, bikers are more likely to say "I'm a hopeless romantic" (40 percent versus 34 percent) when asked to describe their romantic side. And when it comes to what moves them to tears, most riders say it's having their heart broken, while non-riders say it's watching a dramatic scene play out on TV or in a movie.

But, the hearts of riders and non-riders alike are filled with the need to give.

Guys who ride motorcycles are only slightly more likely than non-bikers to be involved in a charity or cause (43 percent versus 39 percent). How they like to help, though, does differ: non-bikers prefer charities involving community and social services, while bikers are most passionate about those involving children.

"We know riders are passionate about their bikes, after all we've been providing motorcycle insurance for more than 40 years and many of our own employees are riders too," said Marcy Gray, Progressive's motorcycle product manager and a long-time rider herself. "But what's interesting about this survey is that it dispels some stereotypes about bikers, and shows they're more than willing to get in touch with their 'softer side.'"

There is one stereotype that did bear out: tattoos. Riders are nearly three times more likely than non-riders to have a tattoo (32 percent versus 12 percent).

But the types of tattoos they have might surprise you. Bikers are nearly twice as likely as those who don't ride to have a tattoo of their significant other's name (18 percent versus 10 percent). They're also more likely to have slightly "softer" tattoos such as hearts and flowers and some motorcyclists even admit to having unicorn and cookie monster tattoos!