Quote of the year

All this talk of warmer days got me thinking about the mile so I swiped this pic from Tony over at the Donuthole. I was talking to Tony Bag o Donuts today about getting me some stroker flywheels and the searcher build in general, I mentioned that the period correct bible is gonna get thrown at me and he said the best thing I've heard in a while.

"Fuck em, those boys won't be period correct until they start riding like Dick Allen"

I hope that nobody takes offense, it wasn't directed at anyone, it was just a broad statement but it ruled in so many ways. Tony is one of the few people that I can't log enough miles with, he holds the road dear to his heart in a way that so many fake it and I love him for that. Donuts we'll see you soon, Keep on truckin' pal.

Old Gold Garage Co......

..... is a place I've been meaning to get to since I met Dan Collins at the Mooneyes Christmas Show in 2008. I fell in love with his Singapore Sling and feel that he is building some of the classiest cars hitting the streets today. Although he is known for his custom cars and hot rods his also builds some great bikes as well and is a great Tattoo artist too. Actually there's not much he can't do and everything he touches turns to gold.

OLD GOLD GARAGE CO.





I stole this from Dan's blog. I rode up to Ventura to shoot this sporty that Dan helped his friend build. It's a sweet little blaster.

Winter blues

You can almost see the ache of their hearts. The only benefit of winter is that all the bikes get torn down and overhauled for another season while others come to life. Spring can not get here fast enough, I fear that somebody might actually lose it this year. There's a flock of new bikes coming out of the shop this spring to ride under the watchful eye of veteran machines. Some will stay and some will go but we will all be on the road again with true bliss being only a kick away. If your in the cold, keep your head up and your heart hungry. Close your eyes and let the warm wind bring you the familiar smells of fresh cut fields and oil soaked denim while you glance over to catch your pals smiling in the setting sun. Soon enough we'll be blazing new trails and telling stories of the lives we live with the very few in this world that understand us.

Each and every year we make more drastic decisions in order to live this life to the fullest. We lose relationships and care less and less about the comforts in life in order to spend as much time as we can on the road with each other. These are our lives and we will take care of each other to the end. Your 401k will be a piece of paper when you die but your stories will be told with big grins and heavy hearts by those who loved you.

Clayton Record......

.... debuted this bike at The Born Free Show last fall. I got the chance to ride with him on my last trip out to Chino. It's a super clean and to the point bike. The tank mounted in these photos is not original to the build..... it's only a temporary tank while the other tank gets a leak fix.... but is almost just as cool in my opinion.

Bakers paint

Moving on up

The Genius finally got rid of his ironhead and acquired the dough he needed to keep moving on his shovel project. He scored this moulded straight leg frame from Joe Momma for a steal and picked up his new flywheels from Fat Bob today. Good for you Eugene, you won't be missing that ironhead at all but remember the clock is ticking.

Arena jam

Seeing as how it's pretty impossible to have a bad time at any event with arena in the title, we headed out to the Burbs for arena jam which consisted of motorcross races and mud bogging. Pretty dynamite time with the missed landing knockouts, busted legs, tiny kid races and the mud drags. All this while being surrounded by Monster Energy t shirts and fox racing hats. A real American kinda Saturday night.

Jihad Pan

On my last trip out to Southern California I got to spend a good amount of time with Josh and the boys from Chino. I realized quickly that they are just great guys look'n for a good time. Yeah.... they have some sweet bikes but they don't pamper them and aren't afraid to fuck them up a bit. That's what riding is a about in my opinion and If you are looking for a party or some killer steak bites they can probably point you in the right direction on any given night.

Utility Board Supply

Slowly but surely

I had to redo the neck but finally got it on the ground to check the stance. Just a little more hot metal work before I start massaging the frame for paint and then the true hustle starts for the big inch motor. Jay, I'm using your tank for mock up but I'll send it out this week, I promise.

Speaking of Potholes.....

My bike went through a lot this past year. I rode the piss out of it.... raced it... crashed it... even jumped a shovelhead at 75 mph with it. The only reason I got an ironhead was because it was cheap. I just graduated college and wasn't making a penny but owed thousands. I always thought to myself... I'm gonna be "That Guy". That guy that everyone is waiting for cause he can't keep up. That guy that calls his only friend with a truck at two O'clock in the morning because his bike is broken down on the side of the road. That guy that everyone is waiting for because his bike wont start and that guy that can't walk for a week because his knee is all twisted backwards from trying to kick start the damn thing. Well boys...... the ol' girl surprised me. I took her to her limits and she loved every minute of it. She's a little battle scared right now but when she comes out to play again she'll be look'n like a prom queen.

Born Free II

Coulda, shoulda, woulda! No excuses, you've got a solid 6 months to wrap up the bike, save up the money and take the time off of work. If you were kicking yourself for missing Born Free 1 then you are gonna be a real sad sap if you don't make #2 come true. There are folks riding from every coast and flying in from all over the world for one of the very few bike shows on the planet worth attending. Don't be that guy two years in a row.

Cook's Corner........

.......... is one of those typical "biker" stops.... but hey.... it gives us a reason to get a good grip of guys together to ride some decent roads and grab a breakfast burrito. T-bone woke Wil and I up as if it were christmas morning. I rubbed the crust out of my eyes and we met up with Mike D, The Nash, Jason and Jedwards before hitting the hills. It's a pleasant ride with gentle curves and a pot of golden eggs and Bloody Marries at the end of it. Josh met us there.... minus Sean because he partied to hard the night before.


John Edwards on what everyone calls the "Perfect Pan"..... I concur.


Jason taking in the autumn colors


Mike D on his sweet Panhead




Josh ripping up the Knuck.


The Nash acting like he is having an important conversation with a real human being.



T-Bone found a set of his custom bars on a bike at Cook's Corner.



The Nash got nervous, popped to many pills and his swelled up......

Chris "Turk" Stopnik

This kid has my dream bike! Only 19 and do'n hard on a Panshovel.......... without the fuck you attitude..... the bike takes care of that for him.

Cycle Zombies

Roaches

Gilby Clarke

I'm sorry hear that our good friend Gilby Clarke was involved in a motorcycle accident on his way home from the Pomona Easyriders show. Our thoughts are with you Gilby.



Gilby checking out the Trophy I won at the Born Free show for Most Far Out Bike



I remember meeting Gilby on the El Diablo Run in 2007. We ran into each other a few times at some of the gas stops. When we got to San Felipe I asked if I could shoot his Panhead. So we found yourselves a sand dune and I shot the bike. We were bullshitting about this and that. He was talking about music so I asked what he did for a living. He said "well.... I'm a music producer and I've played in a lot of different bands. I used to be in a band called Guns and Roses I'm not sure if you have heard of them" very modestly. I said "No shit... who are they?" Gilby is a great human Being and has been in the motorcycle scene for a long time.






Get well soon Gilby!

Gilby's Website

Gilby's Blog

If at first you don't succeed

This picture was my original inspiration for the Searcher. The stance and dimensions bent me right over grandaddy's knee however the build has since taken a right turn and is heading in a completely different direction. Once again, I believe that they build themselves and when you fight it you end up with a bratty kid tugging at his Sundays best.

Duane Ballard and his Pink Taco....

.... not literally..... maybe just figuratively......

Funny he bought me a Taco that day.

mmmmmmmmm...... Pink Taco

Grab the new Street Chopper to see the Pink Taco and Duane's hairy legs on the cover..... and girls if you look really close you might even see little Duane on the cover too!

Yo dag... check his shit out.
Duane Ballard Custom Leather
and Duane's Blog check out what his son Wayne has got going on.

Girder Projects

On our way out to pick up the Shaker in Michigan we stopped in Portage Indiana and scooped up some parts. I nabbed these two girders. They need some love but I have a lot of it to offer...... well.... in the case of motorcycle parts anyway.

The Shaker Sings

After spending the day at Fat Bob's we made it back to the shop late. We planned on taking it to the show the next morning but we wanted to hear it run before we loaded it up. We had spark but it didn't seem to be getting fuel. We took the float bowl apart and found that the accelerator pump was clogged up. I had another one on the self so we threw it on quick and she started right up. While Bacon dicked with the carb I got out a syringe and some epoxy to fix up some spots where the gold leaf was starting to flake off.

Savage Pellucidar

Frank Frazetta painted this piece for the Edgar Rice Burroughs story "Savage Pellucidar". Pellucidar was this world that existed on the interior of our world -- in the earth's core.



Cool right? fuck yeah!


He did a few other paintings that were done for the other stories. these are some of my faves-


"At The Earth's Core"

and "Tanar of Pellucidar"