Skip Fordyce Harley Davidson Demo Rides

Skip Fordyce hosted demo rides today.  I had a chance to test out a couple of bikes, the VRod and Street Glide.

The VRod, wasn't anything that I'd run out and buy anytime soon.  Our demo route was a mere 16.2 miles through Riverside, Ca and I was so uncomfortable the entire time.  You are stretched out, reaching for the controls at your hands and feet, forming a V with your body - perhaps that's why it is titled VRod.  Oddly enough, my knee suffered the most on the ride.  Although my back was being tested, my aging knee wouldn't last long on that bike. The one thing that I can say about the VRod is I don't think I ever got out of 3rd gear.  Even at 55-60 mph, it never needed shifting into 4th.  This means there would be a lot more motor for those dangerous speeds.

The Street Glide was a dream.  I fell in love with it.  I think that one will be my next bike.  It was comfortable, had a stereo, and rode like it was on air.  The suspension was great, not allowing the rider to feel too much of the bumps in the road.  I do think that it followed the ruts in the street more than my Heritage does, and in some parts of Riverside, there are many.

I wish I had time to ride others, but there wasn't much time as I was in a hurry to get home and take the kids to the water park and Calico Ghost Town.  It would be a busy day for all of us in the Knight household.

Skip Fordyce Demo Rides this Saturday, July 31, 2010

I just discovered today that Skip Fordyce Harley Davidson is having demo rides this Saturday.  I look forward to taking a few different bikes for a spin - especially a VRod.  Hopefully they have one on hand.

Skip Fordyce is located in Riverside, California.  If you need more information or directions, you can find it on their site here --> www.skipfordyce.com.

Roadhouse Biker Church

Attended the Roadhouse Biker Church in San Bernardino for the first time tonight.  My nephew called me and asked for a ride to the church.  I agreed and ended up staying for the service myself.  I genuinely had a nice time.  The attendees were also very down to earth people and it was a great service.  I really enjoyed it and look forward to going again.

For information on the church you can check out their website at www.roadhousebikerchurch.org.

Exile Cycles Open House and Ride Update

Exile hosted their open house and ride today. There were over 30 bikes participating today in the event. Russell Mitchell was extremely hospitable, answering questions regarding the bikes in the shop, and just being a very approachable and personable individual.  Donuts, croissants, muffins, and coffee were provided to the attendees. There was also a raffle in which I took part - once again, I didn't have anything to bring home.

Russell herded the people out of the shop to begin the ride.  Not being one to enjoy having wild riders surrounding me in a group ride with some that I am not familiar riding with, I chose to lay back and let people go ahead of me.  This would be the first time such an event backfired on me.  I was stranded with a few others at the very first traffic signal - possibly the longest traffic signal in Los Angeles or California all together.  I had no idea where the destination was, although I did grab one of the provided maps on the way out.

Fortunately, the guy on the Street Glide next to me at the signal was familiar with the area and the destination.  I followed this stranger down the road and onto the interstate.  I typically ride fast, but this guy moved like a bat out of hell.  He sped through traffic, going in and out of lanes and lanesplitting where possible.  I managed to catch up to him off and on, performing a sort of yo-yo motion.

We made it to our first destination, The Rock Store,  a canyon biker hangout similar to Cook's Corner and Hell's Kitchen - of which I'm familiar.  The crazy rider I had been following introduced himself as Art Hall, a writer for the Quick Throttle magazine.

We hung out at the Rock Store, chatting and checking out the various bikes on the premises for a couple of hours. The few remaining of the group decided to ride to another local hangout, The Sagebrush Cantina in Calabasas.  Russell Mitchell, Art Hall, photographer Bart Mitchell, and others would be there enjoying the view and generally having a good time.

After a while, Art and I rode through Topanga Canyon and down to Sunset Blvd.  We took Sunset through Beverly Hills and into Hollywood where we would go our separate ways.

I had a great time, putting over 200 miles on the bike today and meeting some great people.  I look forward to seeing them all again.

I'll leave you with some images from today's festivities.

A view of The Rock Store in Calabasas from the street.

A nice pinkish chopper, using that doily technique for the paint.

Art Hall on an Exile Cycles bike outside The Rock Store. He might look familiar because he was the one that test rode and wrote a review of the new Harley 48 in Quick Throttle Magazine.

These lovely ladies are sporting some chaps that were being sold at the Sagebrush Cantina.  They put on a little fashion show.

Crestline Soaring Society Hang Gliders

This afternoon, we had a birthday party down in the valley below for my older son.  He turned 13 on Wednesday.

My younger son, daring and adventurous as he is, decided he wanted to ride down the mountain with me on the bike.  He had a great time and insisted on riding back up the mountain with me, not wanting to ride in the passenger car with the wife - I can't say that I blame him.  If you ever seen the way she drives....

After returning to our neck of the woods, we decided to check out the local hang gliding spot.  We discovered that there were many vehicles and their passengers preparing to take to the skies.  We rushed back to the house to grab my camera.  These are a few of the images that I managed to get.

This is a cool couple that we've been fortunate to chat with on more than one occasion.  The woman that's strapped into that glider, preparing to leave the ground behind, is actually 62 years old!

This is my eleven year old son that wanted to join me on the bike today.  He's overlooking the valley below, paying close attention to the many gliders out there.

Visit Crestline Soaring for informatin regarding hang gliding and paragliding in the San Bernardino mountains in Southern California.

Bike Wash

After going to the local car and bike show, my number one girl and I washed my bike.

I've been telling a friend about how I've been telling my wife how someday I'm going to get an attractive girl to sit on my bike while I take a picture of her.  I would then post the picture on my blog.  This seems to infuriate my spouse to no end.  Anyway, he told me to take a picture of my daughter on my bike and after teasing the wife with a story of how I got some cute girl to pose for me, I should reveal the real picture that I took.  Anyway, she discovered my plot before I successfully annoyed her.

Here's the image that was intended to piss of the wife.  Why do guys do such things?  I have no idea, but I don't think I'll ever out grow it.

VFW 4th Annual Crestline Car and Bike Show

Today, the VFW put on their 4th annual car and bike show at the ball fields adjacent to Lake Gregory.  There were many cars on display, cheap goods from vendors, but, unfortunately, only a few bikes were present.

Being a fan of cars and bikes, I still managed to get a few pictures to share.

Take heed.

I guess it would be an understatement if I indicated that I like flamed paint schemes.
Here's a 34 Plymouth with nice flames.

As much as I like flamed paint, I like lowriders.
This 1961 Impala was sweet.

 

There are many reasons that I love Arizona, but the ability to register just about anything to ride on the paved roads has to be number one.  I've seen numerous off-road vehicles with Arizona plates and this one is way cool.  Sure, you might think that this is just a modified VW, but it has a custom frame if you look closely - almost like a sandrail.

I believe the next one is a Chevy Biscayne.  Go figure...more flames.

Here's one last flamed vehicle for the road.  This one's an old Ford pickup.  Another thing that I love - old pickups.

This is a great example of a rat rod.  To top it off, it's an old pickup.  The only thing that I can see that is left to do to this one is to simply add those flames.

This bagger is one of the few bikes in the show today.  This one's tastefully done.

Here's a cool Japanese cruiser that was in the parking lot.  The guy that owns it is one of my fellow mountain residents.  Dig that custom suicide shift and clutch lever.  It must make riding the winding mountain roads something of a chore.

Here's the last pic from this event.  This one is a Volkswagen powered trike.  It was cool, but I'm not sure that it warrants the 15 thousand dollar price tag.

New Theme

Well, I thought it was time for a face lift and decided to change the design of the site, using one of the available themes.  I went through the various templates and settled on this one.  Somehow, it screwed up the text and cost me a lot of time in correcting the alignment of the descriptions to the images.  It still doesn't look quite right, but I'm too tired to delve into it anymore tonight.

Exile Cycles Open House and Ride on Sunday, July 25, 2010

Exile Cycles in North Hollywood is having an open house this Sunday. They are going to provide donuts and coffee, have an open house, and then follow it up with a ride to the Rockstore at noon.

I hope they still have that trike at the shop. I would love to see it in person. I plan on attending. If you can't make it, be sure to drop by this site sometime that evening to see some pics.

You can find out more at Exile Cycles.

L.A. Calendar Motorcycle Show 2010 Update

Today, I rode out to Long Beach for the L.A. Calendar Motorcycle Show.  The show had fewer bikes than last year, which had fewer than the year before.  The struggling economy is really taking its toll on these events.

The heat wasn't nearly as bad as it was on Friday.  As a matter of fact, it started out as a nice overcast day. It didn't really get hot until I headed back to the Inland Empire.

Although this year was smaller than the last two, it still had a bit to offer.  First of all, there were quite a few babes in attendance.  Second, there were still some bikes to gawk at.  Third, there were quite a few vendors to gain some valuable information. Last, I got meet Russell Mitchell of Exile Cycles and hear him give a seminar on bike building.

Here are some pictures that were taken on location:

Here's the assault weapon (they spelled it assalt weapon).

Here's a bike that was in the parking lot.  That big tire on the back reminds me of Batman's cycle from the new movie.

Here's a cool black bobber.

Someone really loves their chrome...

Here's an awesome blue bagger.

Another bobber.

Here's a brown Triumph bobber.  This one appears to have the modern Sportster rims.

Here's a very clean lowrider bike.  The bald guy in the back looked a lot like Goldberg, the wrestler, but I don't believe he was big enough to actually be Goldberg.

Here's a sports bike with some cool custom clown paint.

Here's a custom chopper that was in the show.

Here's a bike that appears to be used in salt flat races.

Here's a Harley Dyna modified by Exile Cylces.  This almost looks like a dual sport.  I like the way a lot of their bikes seem like they would be right out of a Mad Max movie.

A Harley Shovel was in the show and it looked great - old school meets new school.

This one's called Kamikaze and it was built by those beauties that you see in the background.  They represent AFT Custom Cycles.  On the back of the tank, you'll find the words "Do you have the stones?"

This is another bike built by the babes of AFT Custom Cycles.

Here's a nice Road King (I believe) that was found in the parking lot.

The Purrfect Angelz put on a dancing display.  I couldn't find any reason to complain.  This may have been the second time I've seen them put on a performance.

Here's a nice lowrider with springer frontend.  Check out those twisted fishtails!

Here's another bobber.

Can you believe it?  Another bobber...

Russell Mitchell is pictured below, leaning against his clean and modified Harley Softail.

This brown chopper was slammed and it really looked good.  I'm not sure how it would fare on the mountain roads where I dwell, though.  I tend to scrape my floorboards as it is. Maybe it has air suspension.

This is not something that you see everyday.  It's nice to take a break from the norm.

I believe that this originated as a Harley Fatboy.  A lot of time and, needless to say, money went into this one.

It's not often you see a sports bike with this much chrome.

Surprisingly, a lot of the choppers and bobbers on display were built on frames created by a Chassis Design Company.  It's not a very creative name, but their products were more than creative enough.

There was also a very attractive magician performing for the audience.  She was as entertaining as she was easy on the eyes.

Here are a few links where you can get more information on the products being hawked at the show.

Exile Cycles

Purrfect Angelz

AFT Custom Cycles

Chassis Design Company

L.A. Calendar Motorcycle Show 2010

Tomorrow is the Los Angeles Calendar Motorcycle Show in Long Beach, California.  It costs $25 and is more for those that appreciate the craftsmanship of some of the coolest bikes.  With the paid admission, you also get a ticket to board the Queen Mary and check out the old boat.

There are many cool bikes to ogle.  But along with the cool bikes, some of the celebrity bike builders are often in attendance.  One year I was fortunate enough to talk with Chica and get a photo with him - I love his bikes!

There are many custom built bikes, including some featured on the Biker Build-off Series.  Cooler than that are the ones built by your average Joe in his garage, shed, basement, or backyard.  There's some great mods that are done and I've taken quite a few pictures of some great ideas to borrow for a project of my own someday.

To find out more, you can check out the site here:

L.A. Calendar Motorcycle Show

Chica's Custom Cycles

Big Bear, yet again...

Today was a non-riding excursion with the family unit.

The little woman wanted to take the kids to Big Bear for a chili cook-off that was going on today. So, being the subservient husband that I am, I drove the cage up to Big Bear. This would be my 5th week in a row in that neck of the woods.

There were a few bikes present, but only managed to snap one pic of a very cool Big Bear Choppers bike. Witness it below.

Skip Fordyce Harley Davidson Bike Night Update

Just got back from the event and took only a handful of pics due to batteries dying.

The event didn't appear to have the usual number of bikes in attendance, but there were probably over 50.  Some of the usual faces were there, including a few mugs from the local Harley Owners Group chapter.

We had a good time.  The kids won a couple of t-shirts from the KFROG booth.  They occupied themselves in the lounge area, watching T.V. and playing some good old fashioned pool.

The local H.O.G. chapter had a fundraiser, selling miscellaneous baked goods.  I made my donation in exchange for some cookies and chocolate covered pretzels.

Skip's provided some food in the form of lasagna, bread sticks, salad, and drinks.  The food was great.

The only downside to the whole event was the heat.  Today was just awful.  It started to cool down as it got dark, but after being in the sun all day, I was beat.

Here are a few pics that I was able to get prior to the batteries dying in the old Canon.

This old Harley is a '42.  It was totally cool.

I believe the owner stated that this Heritage is a '99.  I liked what he had done to it.

I really dig the gold leaf on this bike. Attention to detail was added with copper-colored pieces here and there.

Vincent Thomas Bridge

Well, it was time for the periodic oil change for the 'ol bike.  I scheduled an appointment at Harbor City Harley Davidson, some 90 miles away.  The reasons that I chose to go to this store instead of my local shops were to take advantage of the special oil change price of $17.76 and to ride over the Vincent Thomas Bridge.

It's been some time that I've been over that bridge and I've been wanting to go there for quite a while now.  Last time I recall going over it, there was still a toll to cross.  That's right, a toll.  This is no longer the case, as I understand it, the toll was used to repay the debt incurred to build the bridge.  Once paid off, the toll no longer exists.

Here are a couple of pics of the bridge:

While out there, I was fortunate enough to see a small Homeland Security convoy.  There were a couple of black S.U.V.s with flashing lights, and sandwiched between them was an armored vehicle of sorts.

I'm not sure how you guys feel about Homeland Security, but I am thankful they are there doing their jobs.

I sped past them a couple of times in order to get some pictures.  They could have easily thought I was some loon and taken me into custody.  If they did, perhaps it would have been confirmed that I am in fact some loon.

Here are couple of images of the Homeland Security detail:

After riding out to Harbor City in the blistering southern California heat today, I stopped at one of my favorite fast food restaraunts to get out of the heat and let the bike cool off a bit - Miguel's Jr in Grand Terrace.

After putting on around 200 miles today in the heat, this is about all that I have to show for it.