Destination Harley, the World’s largest Harley Davidson Dealership and the World Famous Daytona Beach Main Street will host the 1st International Female Ride Day Event for female motorcycle enthusiasts. The International Female Ride Day, founded in 2007 by Vicki Gray of Motoress will begin its first annual celebration in the Volusia County area on May 2nd, 2008. It will start at 6:30 PM at Destination Daytona in Ormond Beach, FL, by a safety seminar, fashion show, bike show, raffles, giveaways, live entertainment and with a performance by the Daytona Harley Davidson Drill Team. From there a police escorted Moonlight Ride will leave at 9:00pm, traveling to Main Street via the Main Street Bridge for other attractions, live entertainment, food and activities. Attendees can register to win a 3 day/2 night weekend getaway. The first 250 women riders participating in the Moonlight Ride will receive Welcome Bags upon their arrival. More than 10 bars and restaurants on Main Street will be open for celebration into the night. Coverage of the event will be posted on The Biker Guide’s website.
Archive Page 392
International Female Ride Day On May 2, 2008.
Published by April 29th, 2008 in Editorial and Events.
Spring mounted Bobber solo seats are not necessary very comfortable, but at least you can make them look beautiful. I like this Gator style seat (as matter of fact, it’s embossed leather) sold complete with it’s steel pan to which are welded 4 mounting bolts (2 in front for hinge mount, 2 in rear for springs or just bolt to frame and rear fender. Comes in black and many other colors. Reasonably priced at $385.00. Anvil Customs.
She is a Spokesperson for Women in Motorcycling, a professional motorcycle test rider, a journalist that you have read, a stunt actor that you may have watched, on TV and a high-profile motorcycle enthusiast. But above all she is a very pretty woman inside and outside. I just learned that she is dealing with breast cancer issues, that she has no medical coverage and no family to support her personally and financially. She helped a lot of professionals of the industry obtain media coverage and for your enjoyment she featured many custom bikes and events in several national magazines. But at the opposite of what most people think, she was not making much money, a fact that she never disclosed. And to tell you the truth, I am revolted that in my country of adoption so many people cannot afford or cannot be offered correct medical insurance through an employer. It’s not a political message, but just my emotional reaction after hearing that somebody I know and respect is suffering without support and the necessary medical assistance that I consider each citizen deserves. Brenda needs continuing medical care that she cannot afford. She is overwhelmed, needs hope and the support from all of us. If you can give a little bit, even just the equivalent of the price of your lunch or dinner, please do it. Just go to Women Motorcyclists and on the left side you will find a button for a Paypal Donation. Brenda is beyond depression but would be furious if she knew that I request your help here in my Blog. Please, if you can support her, don’t postpone, do it now. Thank you so much. If you want to send a card of support to her, mail it to me and I will forward to her personal address. Mail to Cyril Huze, 17262 Boca Club Blvd # 2407, Boca Raton, Florida 33487.
Choppers Inc. Red Wings
Published by April 28th, 2008 in Accessories, Builders, Customs and Editorial.
In typical Billy Lane style, these new “Red Wings” are very retro-art-deco and made to be installed on your frame gusset. They are hand bent and very easy to install. Only $149.00 (hardware not included). Make your bike fly. Choppers Inc.
Indiana Jones Comes Back On A Harley Springer.
Published by April 27th, 2008 in Builders, Editorial, Events and Videos.
Always nice to see a motorcycle starring in a movie. Lucas Film and Paramount are about to release May 22nd the 4th Indiana Jones movie in the unforgettable series, “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Crystal Skull.” The movie stars are Harrison Ford, the young rising star Shia La Beouf and a heavily modified new Harley-Davidson Softail Springer. The motorcycle was customized to fit into the time period of the movie. To celebrate Harley involvement, each dealer will have the opportunity to obtain 30 sets of tickets to the movie at no charge. These tickets will be used in local markets to help drive customer traffic to the dealerships during the peak of riding season. The promotional period will be May 1-June 1, 2008.
Dealers will receive a pack of 30 uniquely coded, branded cards to hand out to qualified customers. Each card will have the value of two movie tickets.
Zanik Design Wants…To Design Your Custom Bike.
Published by April 27th, 2008 in Builders and Customs.
‘My name is Tim Turbett, President & Creative Director of Zanik Design – Kustom Motorcycle Konsulting and long-time motorcycle enthusiast. I feel I have created a very unique service that your readers would love to learn more about. Zanik Design is an exciting new and unique motorcycle design service based in the Chicago area. We have launched a new personalized design service I call “Kustom Motorcycle Konsulting”. I am not a direct builder or parts supplier, which means Kustom Motorcycle Konsulting is a unique client-interactive process which allows us to take advantage of the full marketplace of options when creating a design with the look, feel and style our customers are envisioning. Our process is similar to that of an architect. We start with a design consultation to explore our customer’s vision and budget without being constrained to pushing him in any particular direction. Then we tap into our substantial database of parts suppliers, painters, and builders to create a build plan including multiple concepts for design direction, a detailed list of component parts, and recommendations regarding qualified resources to implement the plan. We also act as the “General Contractor” with a lot of our clients to make sure the project gets done…perfect, on time, and on budget! Any make. Any Model. Zanik Design.
Orange County Choppers World Headquarters Grand Opening
Published by April 26th, 2008 in Builders, Customs, Editorial and Events.
It’s a big weekend for Orange County Choppers and for you, if you love the family trio. You are invited to join all the crew for the grand opening of their brand new World Headquarters in Newburgh, NY. Nothing personal against Paul Sr. and Paul Jr. but I thought that to have World Headquarters you needed first at least a couple of national headquarters in other countries. And I am not aware of any! Do you know? But I noticed that in their website they list 6 US dealers for the distribution of their new limited production bikes. So, I guess they are considering that each dealer in each US state is an OCC headquarter, and each state is considered a foreign country. And of course, Newburgh in NY is the center of the world. But I digress. The festivities started yesterday Thursday 24th and go all the way through till Sunday April 27th. The film crew for American Chopper will be filming throughout the weekend, so you may get a chance to have your mug shot seen on TV. Schedule of events is ribbon cutting, autographs, autographs, autographs, a local band, autographs, autographs, autographs, a local band, autographs, autographs, autographs, and so on during 4 days. Orange County Choppers.
Skate And Chop ‘N Roll At Sturgis Broken Spoke Campground
Published by April 25th, 2008 in Builders, Customs, Editorial and Events.
The Broken Spoke Saloon has partnered with Nash Motorcycle Company to welcome builders and motorcycle enthusiasts at the Broken Spoke Campground “Limpnickie Lot”. What’s that? The “Limpnickie Lot”. It’s a gathering of new and upcoming builders building old school bikes, riding dirt bikes, skate boarding, listening to high energy music featuring alternative rock ‘n roll, punk bands, etc… “The “Limpnickie Lot” is all about generation X & Y, the 2 next generations of motorcyclists doing what they love to do. “It’s more than just a place to hang out, it’s a place to get involved and have fun doing stuff” said Jay Allen, owner of the Broken Spoke. “The Limpnickie Lot” will feature builders working on bikes and cool projects that are changing the industry as a whole. “There are no appearance fees here, just us, our bikes, our crew, our skateboards, our dirt bikes- just us” explains Limpnickie founder and owner of Nash Motorcycle Company Taber Nash. The “Limpnickie Lot” is located inside the Broken Spoke Campground and is taking reservations now for RV spaces, cabins and good old-fashioned camping grounds. The campground and the Biker Pool will operate from August 1 -10, 2008. Special early reservations apply, only $99 per person until June 15th. You can book now by going to RESERVATIONS or call (866) 754-2526.
I know a lot of you love Hayabusa and me too. You can give your Hayabusa a more aggressive custom stance with these hot new Busa grab rails. These rails are a direct replacement for the stock rails. Available in a mirror like chrome finish, these rails are easy to install and will make an immediate difference in the appearance of your bike. By RC Components.
Michael Lichter’s Sturgis Art Exhibition Honors Late Johnny Chop
Published by April 25th, 2008 in Builders, Customs and Editorial.
Thunder Road will once again be home to the annual Custom Motorcycle Art Exhibition during Sturgis Bike Week 2008. Under the direction of Michael Lichter, and with the blessing of the late Johnny Chop’s family, this year’s exhibition, titled “Stay Gold,” is being held to honor Johnny Chop and will feature builders who approach their work with the same passion that Johnny demonstrated in each bike he built throughout his short life. This passion radiated from Johnny’s being and was enthusiastically expressed on his knuckles, which were tattooed with the eight letters – S-T-A-Y-G-O-L-D – that became the exhibition’s namesake.
Some of this year’s custom bike builders are widely known and some are hardly known, but they all share one thing, a passion that draws them into their garages over and over again. To participate in the “Stay Gold” exhibition, the builders must be living their passion of building custom motorcycles or making art about them, but they cannot earn a living off their endeavors. Some make their livings doing service work in bike shops, while others support themselves as tattoo artists, contractors or within the confines of a straight 9 to 5 job. Among the more then twenty bike builders participating are: Ben Jordan, Bill Steele, Jeff Decker, Kutty Noteboom, Michael Pugliese, Nik Pew, Skeeter Todd, Steve English, Tattoo John Surprenant and Tom Foster. Some of the artists included in the show are Anthony “Scout” Underwood, Armando Salbana, Cole Foster, Jeff Cochran, Jeff Decker, Nik Pew Seth Liebowitz and Tattoo John Suprenant.
“Stay Gold” will be on display in Thunder Road’s Thunderdome from August 1 through August 8, and operating hours will be from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Admission to the Thunderdome is $5, but there is free parking and Glencoe Gold campers get in free. Thunder Road is located 3 miles east of Sturgis on Highway 34, For additional information, please visit Thunder Road and Lichter Photo (painting Seth Leibowitz)
Men are not welcome as participants. Even men who act as divas because they have a cool bike will be turned down at registration. This bike show is only for ladies, only girls against girls and all men are accepted as spectators. It’s the “Diva’s Only” 3rd edition bike show and it will happen May 31 st at the Chesapeake Conference Center in Chesapeake, VA. Bike classes include: Customs, Sportsters, Foreign Sport Bikes, Foreign Cruisers, Chopper, Trikes and Stock Harleys. For more information about entering your bike in the show please call us at 757-428-3482 or e-mail Tami@DivaCustoms.com. If you are interested in sponsorship or having your business as an exhibitor, please contact Jodie Woodward at 757-222-2355 or e-mail at Jodiewoodward@cox.net This years special guests are Donnie Smith and Dawn Williams from Donnie Smith Cycles, Hank Young from Young Choppers and Brian and Laura Klock from Klockwerks. This is the largest woman’s only bike show in the United States! More info at Diva Customs
Indian Motorcycle Answers Your Questions
Published by April 24th, 2008 in Builders, Editorial and Events.
Chris Bernauer, General Manager of Indian Motorcycle wrote to me to answer your questions. Below I publish his email.
“Please understand that Indian Motorcycle Company is extremely busy addressing all of the concerns that the folks on your Blog frequently talk about. You have had the opportunity to see firsthand the attention to detail we are paying and the beautiful bike we are building. As we’ve stated, we much rather speak with the product than written promises that others can choose to believe or not. I will take a moment to answer the questions posted below”.
1. One question that has been raised on a number of forums by a number of people concerns the Safety Recall Issues, is whether The Stellican Group (Indian) has any responsibilities to the riders of the Gilroy bikes.
a. Answer – The Stellican Group has no legal responsibility to any of the Safety Recall Issues on the Gilroy era bikes. We will work closely with our dealers to encourage them to help and support the Vintage and Gilroy era owners as much as possible. There are a number of sources available for owners to get service and parts.
2. Has Stellican addressed these issues? And if so, how have they addressed them?
a. Answer – The KM Indian team has addressed every known quality issue with the Gilroy era Indian Chief bikes. The list is too long to go into detail. However, we understand the issues and have taken action to ensure the KM produced Indian does not repeat the same mistakes
3. Still some talk out in the Riders world of a few NDA settlements that Stellican has agreed to settle silently with Riders who have been affected by these issues.
a. Answer – I’m not sure what this question is referring to. I am unaware of any issues related to the question.
4. KM Indian has always stated that they would not rush their bikes to production. Now we see them hinting that they are close to accepting orders, and are close to production. Yet we also hear that the assembly line is not complete, and there are approximately 30 employees in the plant.
a. Answer – Cyril, as you saw, there is an assembly line and we are building bikes on it. The process to staff up for production is well on it’s way. We are still committed to not starting production until the bikes are ready. (Chris Bernauer, General Manager Indian Motorcycle)
Another High School Club Of Bike Builders
Published by April 24th, 2008 in Builders, Customs and Editorial.
Under the direction of Marc Mazerolle, another school is preparing teen-agers to become the next generation of custom motorcycle builders. The BMHS Bike Klub (Bernice Mac Naughton High School) is an after school program for “at risk” and “introvert” kids teaching them how to design, fabricate and assemble motorcycles. And parts being very expensive they rely on donations to accomplish their work and travel to bike shows. For example, they just received a FATSO 114” from Merch Engines to start a new project, and of course, a lot of parts are still missing…So, if you can help, please call Marc Mazerolle at 560-856-3469. Visit their website at: BMHS Bike Klub
Xtreme Charge™ is not the usual battery charger. It’s the industry’s first true Next Generation 12-volt battery charger, capable of evaluation, testing, charging and performing on-going maintenance, extending the life cycle of batteries by up to five times. It is safe and easy to use. It works with all types and sizes of 12-volt lead-acid batteries including flooded, fill and charge, Gel, AGM and Maintenance Free (from less than 10 Ah to over 150 Ah). Xtreme Charge includes a charger with fuse-protected quick-disconnect battery clamps and lugs, important safety instructions and a quick-start guide. It comes with a five-year warranty. Practically this battery charger has a proprietary computer-integrated system to determine and deliver the appropriate amount of charge from .1A to 2.5A depending on the condition of the battery by evaluating both voltage and amperage simultaneously (an industry first). It features a unique and patented PULSE technology to minimize the size of “sulfation’ buildup on battery plates, the reason why 80 percent of all batteries die. XTreme Charge.
Will Animosity Between Car Drivers And Bikers Ever Stop?
Published by April 23rd, 2008 in Editorial.
On behalf of Allstate Motorcycle Insurance. Directive Analytics has conducted an online survey of Connecticut Car Drivers. The results are quite depressing and I am afraid they would be about the same in each US State.
Connecticut Drivers consider motorcycles very unsafe. 80% of respondents think that motorcycles are more dangerous or much more dangerous than other vehicles. 20% of Drivers state that they have come close to hitting a Biker. 75 % said they would not let their child ride a motorcycle. If they could decide, Drivers wish they would never have to share the road with motorcycles. 25% would ban bikes from highways and parkways.
Bikers were surveyed at the same time and they wish Drivers to be more careful on the road. 80% of Connecticut Bikers think that they are safer on the road than car Drivers. Bikers state that car Drivers are careless and don’t pay attention to what’s going on around them. Bikers also found Car Drivers to be aggressive, trying to cut riders off, as well as impatient, with a tendency to tailgate. According to this survey, nearly 60 percent of men said they have come close to hitting a motorcycle while driving their car. One in three Bikers of those polled don’t want their child to ride a motorcycle. Furthermore, 50% of Bikers actually think motorcycles are dangerous. Although most Bikers consider themselves safer than Car Drivers, the survey shows that about 1 in 3 never received a formal training on how to ride a motorcycle.
Of those who ride motorcycles in Connecticut, 30 percent are women. (This is compared to the national average of only 9 % established by AMA ‘American Motorcyclist Association”). The survey revealed women were much more likely than men to become nervous near a biker. The research also reveals that more than 1 in 5 respondents think that motorcycles are more cause of accidents than other vehicles and that bikers’ recklessness was the main cause of these accidents. Let the riding season begin…Source Allstate Motorcycle Insurance.
Z bars are cool and give a lot of chopper attitude to your bike. Because each biker has a favorite riding position (hum…) and choppers come in all possible flavors, you need a wide range of options to choose from regarding diameter, height, width, pull back and rise. Also you must be able to choose between dimpled for stock controls or pre-drilled for internal wiring. Here is a good place to go to choose the set to please your style and your needs. Mammoth Choppers.
Cover Story Of AMD European Championship Of Bike Building
Published by April 23rd, 2008 in Builders, Customs, Editorial and Events.
You told me that you were a little bit frustrated by the size of my pictures when I published the first shots of “Open Mind”, the custom bike built by Thunderbike in Germany, winner of the AMD European Championship Of Bike Building.
“Motographer” and good friend Horst Rosler just emailed to me the cover he shot for Extrem Magazine.
An opportunity for you to see the bike from a little bit closer (notice the American headlight and Air Cleaner from Crime Scene Choppers) and under a different angle. And if you live in Germany, buy this mag. All top winners from all show classes are covered with superb photography..
Harley-Davidson Planned Staff Cuts Will Cost $20 To $25 Million.
Published by April 22nd, 2008 in Builders, Editorial and Events.
According to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Tuesday. Harley-Davidson Inc. is expecting to book between $20 million and $25 million in severance costs related to its planned staff cuts. Last Thursday, Harley reported a 13 percent drop in domestic sales and slashed its full-year guidance, blaming the lagging economy for slowing sales of its iconic bikes. Harley said it plans to reduce motorcycle shipments to its dealers. Harley is cutting about 370 unionized production employees and 360 non-production jobs. The planned reductions represent about 6.5 percent of the company’s North American unionized production employees and about 10 percent of its North American non-production staff.
Glass Design Parts For Your Custom Bike.
Published by April 22nd, 2008 in Accessories, Customs and Editorial.
You have seen some one-off glass parts used by some builders on top custom bikes, mainly oil tanks, velocity stacks, covers. I just discovered this company called Iron Glass Design, a studio dedicated to bolt-on custom glass inserts and covers. Why glass? Owner Ted will tell you that nothing compares to the beauty and depth of color in art glass. Light brings out the richness of the glass. Sunlight will reflect off the chrome behind the glass in a glowing ring.
Or you can add some LEDs behind the glass for an elegant lighting effect and side visibility. The glass used is 1/4″ thick, very strong and will last a lifetime. They use transparent glass, opal glass, textured glass, iridescent glass and dichroic glass in a variety of colors. Some interesting special effects shown in their website galleries. Iron Glass Design.
Give Your Bike Some Ego Tripp
Published by April 21st, 2008 in Builders, Customs, Editorial and Wheels.
You already know that if you had to change only one thing on your stock bike (or car) to give it the custom look, it would be the wheels. I like very much this new wheel design from Ego Tripp. Both simple and fancy (look at the facet cut spokes) and dressed in black anodizing to contrast with the polished facets, they will look very cool on any chopper or board tracker project. Of course, many sizes and widths are available. Call on my behalf 800-741-1814 or see them full screen at Ego Tripp Wheels.
The topic of the month continues to be welding. Adrian at Anarchy Motorcycle Company not only builds custom bikes like this “Devil” one but also writes a Blog with a few welding tips. Check it out at Anarchy Motorcycle Blog. (BTW, the “Devil” is an in house built 300mm super drop seat and single sided frame in which is fitted a 120 Ultima engine, with hand made bars and internal twist hand controls, rolling on Pro-One Goldfinger wheels)
“Cyril, I would like you to show the world what good welding, and quality construction looks like. We have also linked your blog site to ours in the hope of sharing important information to the end consumer. Our blog site will have a more tech oriented format. I will do honest reviews and detailed pictorial installs on current products. Our next product install will be this week on the new 360 Brake. We have done a lot of changes to this product before it could be installed on our front end. I would be more than happy to share this tech information with you and your readers when it is ready. Please let me know if you are interested in this information from an unbiased source, not company propaganda”.
After my visit to their factory I wrote a lot about the new Indian Motorcycle and the expected return of the Chief, if possible, during the next Sturgis Rally. Remember that they will postpone if all the facets of the relaunch are not perfectly in place. Here is a family picture of the team that I met in Kings Point, NC, all working hard at returning Indian Motorcycle to its rightful position as a premier motorcycle brand. Indian Motorcycle.
Harley Owners Competing with Harley Factory
Published by April 21st, 2008 in Builders, Customs and Editorial.
I heard it several times before and it made me think a lot. “Why would I buy a brand new Harley when there are so many used ones available with low miles, a long remaining factory warranty and sold at such a big discount?” And this remark was not coming from individuals hunting for a bargain on the used bikes parking lot of a Harley Dealer, but from people calling desperate Harley owners caught upside down in the 130% Harley-Davidson financing trap and real estate melt down. Except if you are a “buy only new” guy or looking for a model produced only in 2008, what would you not look for bargains in your classified or on eBay? In addition, most of those who can really afford a brand new Harley are going to customize it, and it always starts by throwing away some factory parts. So, why not let the seller pay for these unused parts? We are now in situation of paradox. Harley-Davidson main competitors are no more the other manufacturers, but Harley owners who are flooding the market with used bikes. Harley riders competing with their bikes manufacturer! Never seen before. The solution? As Harley did it, limit production. What else? Let the market absorb its excesses, and like for the US real estate, it will probably take a couple of years.
Kenny Price To Be Inducted Into Sturgis Hall Of Fame
Published by April 21st, 2008 in Customs, Editorial and Exhaust.
From his teenager years when he was trying to tweak more power out of his Vespa to his today’s Samson Motorcycle Exhausts empire, Kenny Price never stopped designing and manufacturing innovative motorcycle exhausts. As a matter of fact he is the owner of many patents of high performance exhaust systems. He has already a large collection of classic and rare motorcycles on display at the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum. Nicknamed the “Godfather Of Pipes”, Kenny will receive the 2008 Founder Award during an induction ceremony on August 6, 2008 during the Sturgis Rally. Congrats Kenny. Samson Motorcycle Products.
Rolling Thunder Custom Motorcycle Frames
Published by April 20th, 2008 in Chassis, Customs, Editorial and Frames.During these last weeks you commented a lot about frame welding and integrity. When talking about quality frames, you even mentioned Rolling Thunder Manufacturing as an example of a company producing strong and reliable frames. They use CMM which stands for “Coordinate Measuring Machine” , to verify that all of their products are accurate within 0.0005 of an inch. Rolling Thunder is a leader in the custom frame building motorcycle after- market and they offer dozens of options allowing you to uniquely customize the frame you want. On their website you can “build” your frame by type of engine, size of rear wheel, motor style, downtube and backbone stretch/bends, tube and axle diameter and even neck style. Quite unique in the industry. They also offer a wide assortment of accessories including oil tanks, handlebars, fender struts and a very cool Springer front end. All bases are covered. I found this little clip to give you an idea about the company, and if you are looking for a custom frame for your next build , I recommend you pay them an online visit. Rolling Thunder Frames.
Received an email from Jennifer Simpson, Blog Editor of Carmen Electrode. She tells me that there’s been a lot of talk about the welder shortage and a lot of talk about why women don’t become welders. In her Blog, she is knocking down some of the preconceived notions about what kind of work welding is, and what kind of women weld. She wants people to know that welding is not necessarily too dirty or physically demanding for women. And to prove it, she is featuring women doing this job, like Debra Montgomery who is running a fabrication shop with her husband, and Stefi Beck (picture), a steamfitter by day and also singer/song writer and guitar player at night. So, if you are a woman welder, Jennifer wants to promote you. And if you are looking for a new welder you should also visit her site at Carmen Electrode.
