Bike at Dayco's First Swap Meet

While at the swap meet, there were many bikes coming and going. That surprised me as I would think if you needed to pick up something bulky, it would have been easier to fit it in a trunk or bed of a pickup. I did meet a guy who purchased a tire and strapped it to the seat behind him on his Electra Glide.

Out of the many bikes there, I only captured the one image below. This young man claims he has less than $3k into this bike and it was totally cool.  It's a Paughco frame hosting a Sportster power plant.

Daytec Cycle Center's First Motorcycle Swap Meet

Saturday started off looking like awful riding weather - clouds overhead, some mild sprinkling, and just miserable looking skies in my area. I got in my car, fastened my seat belt, and headed toward the high desert in hopes of some secondhand scores.

I arrived at Daytec Cycle Center in Hesperia, Ca. I walked through the lot of new, gently-used, and some overly-abused goods. There were many bargains to be had, including tires, rims, frames, rollers, helmets, miscellaneous parts.

I managed to score a few items: helmet, grips, tail light, and a small skull to be mounted to something I haven't yet decided. I felt I made out pretty good and left with money still in my pockets.

There were many cool people in attendance. I even ran into a former coworker that I haven't seen in quite some time. It was cool to see her and meet her husband.

All in all, it was a really good experience. I appreciated Daytec putting on the event and look forward to the next.

Yuma Prison Run 50th

This weekend was the 50th anniversary of the Yuma Prison Run in warm and sunny Arizona.

My friend Kris, his wife Donna, his cousin Janet, her friend Tara, and I headed out early Saturday morning.  We made great time and followed an unbelievable route through parts of California that reminded me of New Mexico.  I think the residents of the towns of Brawley, El Centro, and Salton City owe us big time for our efforts of reducing the population of gnats and other pests in the area - we were each taking time to clean our windshields, fenders, headlights, and other parts that had taken the lives of the flying insects.  The bug carcasses were event to be found all down our pants legs.

This was my first year attending this event.  I had no idea what to expect.  A mere $25 covers the entrance fee.  This allows you to camp at the fairgrounds, gets you a pin and some other small goodies, enjoy live music, includes BBQ, and much more.

The bikes weren't the glamour types you'd typically see at large events.  There were only a couple of choppers found at the site.  What you did see were plenty of VW powered trikes, Honda Goldwing Trikes, Harley Trikes, and some two-wheeled variety bikes meant to be ridden.  I even spotted a '78 BMW with side car.  There were a few side cars on display as well as plenty of tent and utility trailers being pulled by the many bikes.

The people were just people who wanted to get out and have a great time.  Some were obviously veterans of the Prison Run.  You can tell by the setups they had.  Bikes packed full of all of the necessary equipment needed for several days of camping.

There was a bike show, a traditional ride to the Yuma Territorial Prison, a stunt show provided by The Victor McLaglen Motor Corps, music provided by Sam Morrison Band, bike and trike games, and so much more.

The Sam Morrison Band put on a great performance.  They are a cover band with some real talent.  The band covered a wide range of popular music.

We didn't get there until after the bike games had been completed.  I heard rumor of a trike wheelie contest.  The best part was that one of the contestants of the wheelie contest was over 90 years old!

Another cool thing we were able to cast our eyes upon was the cool air vehicles leaving the nearby military facility.  There were jets, choppers of the aerial kind, and big propeller sporting birds making their way overhead throughout the day.

Well, I guess that's enough chatter.  Let me show you some of the things I was fortunate enough to witness in Arizona.

Unlike other posts, I want to take this time to represent some of the less-featured motorcycles and equipment.

Part Corvette, Part Bike

Not a motorcyle, but a cool barbeque!

What creativity!

Skip Fordyce's First Bike Night of 2011

Skip Fordyce Harley-Davidson graciously hosted their first bike night of the year Friday night.  What a bike night it was.  There were more bikes than I could count, a BBQ, burnout contest, and more.

I volunteered to take the Roadhouse Biker Church booth and equipment to the site of the event.  Therefore, I wasn't fortunate enough to have my bike present.

There were plenty of familiar faces on hand.  I spoke with many of the attendees and enjoyed the social event.  I felt it was the best one yet.

The burnout contest ended with the winner burning rubber until the inevitable "pop!"  That was the sound of victory and the contestant was given a new tire for his display.  There were a couple of others who had put on an awesome show, but they walked away with a discount on some new tread.

The bike show had a large number of custom painted bikes.  Some of these easily worth $40k or more. One guy owned 3 of them.  That reminds me - I need to get into the music industry.

Here are a few images from the event.  I hope you enjoy.

SlimsFab

Today was very exciting for me.  I dropped off my Sporty at Slimsfab for some old fashioned hardtailing.  It's been a long wait to get it over there and I'm sure it'll be a bit of a wait for completion.

I've been admiring his work for quite sometime.  I've read about Slim and his customs in various magazine articles and checked out his bikes at some events.

It was really cool to see some of the creations in person at his shop.  They are works of art.  It made me wish even more that I was capable of such craftsmanship.  Truly incredible.

I can't wait to get it done and back on the road.

Quaid Harley-Davidson Open House

Quaid Harley-Davidson of Loma Linda held its annual open house this past Saturday. The Black Sheep Motorcycle Ministry, San Bernardino H.O.G., ABATE, as well as a few vendors were present.

The H.O.G. chapter was supposed to be putting on a poker run, but due to the snow accumulated from the night before, it had to be canceled.  In lieu of the poker run, they held a poker walk.  Basically, you pay your five bucks and draw a hand, hoping to get the best or the worst.  With each paid hand, you also received a meal ticket for the catered In & Out burger.

Surprisingly, there were many in attendance.  I was fortunate enough to be one of the ones who rode in.  It was cold and overcast, with what appeared to be more rain coming in.  However, the rain never came and a nice day was to be had by all.

After the event, I rode out to visit with a man named Floyd, who operates a Harley shop not too far from the dealership.  It was nice to sit and chat for a while with a real good guy - the same that sold me my first Hog.

It was a good day of socializing and riding.  I managed to snap a few pictures from Quaid.  I hope you enjoy.

Saturday's Activities

The day started out with a Black Sheep breakfast at Rosa's Cafe Tortilla Factory in Temecula, Ca.  We met at the hideout around 7 am and headed toward the destination around 7:30.  I was amazed to see the turnout.

This was my first Black Sheep breakfast.  It was cool to take part in the event that brought together members of several chapters in the surrounding areas.  There were many bikes on hand to gawk at.  Being a motorcycle geek somewhat, I was doubly blessed.

Following the breakfast, the wife and I rode a block or so south to Slap N Leather.  We perused the goods for a bit, picked up a wallet with chain for my son, and headed out to Riverside, Ca.

On our way to Riverside, we stopped at Tom's Farms.  This place is a cool little spot with various food and crafts.  We walked around, eating junk food, just taking a break from the seat for a bit.

Bank of America has a promotion that allows members to visit specified museums on their dime.  You just visit their site and find a participating museum and get there.  This is only on the first weekend of the month, but it's free and a cool thing for them to do.  So, we headed to the nearest one in Riverside, the Riverside Art Museum.

After a nice walk around, checking out the many items on display, we headed toward home.  While on the freeway, I remembered this motorcycle photo scavenger hunt on The Underground Chopper Forums that left off with getting a picture of a dinosaur.  We had passed the transition of freeways that would lead us to a possible dinosaur photo.  So, we backtracked and made our way. Once the picture was taken we headed to pick up our kids and get to church.

The Roadhouse Biker Church was having their monthly Spoken Word event.  The night includes a special guest giving his testimony and a music provided by another special guest.  The music was performed by the Joe Jamez band.  These guys rocked.

Here are some photos taken throughout the day.

The pics pretty much describe our day.  It was great having the wife on the bike with me again.

I hope you enjoyed the pics and words.  Ride safe.

The WigWam Hotel on old Route 66 in Rialto, Ca

Today is a beautiful day, and a reminder as to why living in Southern California can be rewarding. To take advantage of the incredible weather we're having today, my friend Kris and I took a nice little lunch-time ride.

Our original intention was to stop by a GameStop to pick up a video game and just enjoy a break from the office. On our way to our destination, we spotted a wooden indian out front of the famous WigWam hotel and decided to stop on our way back for a photo op.

Here's what we captured. Once again, I was only armed with my lousy Blackberry camera.

You can almost make out that indian in the distant background.

Another image with the teepees in front of the bikes.

Taryn's Hope Ride

This past Sunday was the Taryn's Hope Ride.  This jaunt was organized to benefit those suffering from mitochondrial disease, such as young Taryn.

The ride left Skip Fordyce Harley-Davidson in Riverside, Ca at around 9 am.  There were more riders than expected, given the weather conditions.  The ride took the group on a short route to Boondocks Bar and Grill in Corona, Ca.

At the destination, there were some vendors that set up shop.  There were those that were hawking their goods, raffle booths, and the Roadhouse Biker Church.  Some young ladies looking for opportunities to earn some green while taking a picture with your motorcycle were also in attendance (I managed to steer clear after having quite a fight with the wife the last time I allowed a couple young ladies to pose on my ride).

My only regret of the day had to be driving the car.  I left my house in the mountains where one of my bikes is snowed in and headed down to the valley below where I found some light rain.  I figured the ride would be canceled but decided to drive out to the dealership anyway.  Once making my way into Riverside, I discovered that the rain had subsided.  It turned out to be a decent day with light sprinkling here and there.  I really should have ridden the bike stored at my brother's place a few thousand feet below my winter wonderland.

Here are a few pictures from the event.

This first one is the young Taryn that the ride is based.  She is seated between Pastor Denver and his wife Tracy.

Here's the group leaving the dealership.   It was quite the turnout.

The Boondocks lot.

A cool little 90cc Harley-Davidson.  The owner explained that he picked this one up as a basket case for a mere $200. He used his skills as a community college paint and body instructor to turn it into the cool creation that it is today.

I guess I would have one other regret.  That would be leaving my trusty camera at home and left with only my lousy Blackberry to take photos.

I hope you enjoyed the post.  Ride safe.

Sunday's Ride

Today was the day that I had set aside to clean the newly acquired Sportster.  It was in dire need of a bath, having sat a long time in a beach city where it had accumulated some rust and other surface anomalies.

I tried everything on this thing to give it a shine: Easy Off oven cleaner, some spray cleaner that I have no idea where it had come from, Cascade dish washing soap, etc.  Nothing really worked.  I'm kind of thinking some of the parts actually looked worse when I was finished.  Perhaps this is due to uncovering the streaks, rust, and other stains that would have otherwise been buried beneath the dust and grease.  It looks as though I will need to by a polishing tool to buff it out.

Finally, giving up trying to scrub this thing to a show quality shine, I headed out on the road.  I rode to my in-law's place, a couple of friends' houses, and here and there.  During this time I had managed to lose a glove - don't ask.  All said and done, I put on another 50 or so miles before the storm hits tomorrow.  I'm really enjoying riding this bike around.  It's a real kick in the pants when you twist that throttle back.

As promised earlier, here's a picture of the Sportster.  Check out those nasty fork legs.  I'll be putting some elbow grease on those things soon enough.

Ride safe.

Saturday's Events

Well, Skip Fordyce Harley-Davidson of Riverside had a big 70th anniversary party.  There were tons of bikes as well as a huge sale.  Given the current economy, this appeared to have worked out very well for the dealership.

I captured a couple images on digital to share:

This one had some interesting colors.  Overall, I think the low profile of this bike looked great.

Here's another cool looking Softail.  I sure do miss mine.

Following the gathering at Skip's, my wife, daughter, and I made our way down the treacherous 91 freeway to Sporty Specialties in Fullerton, Ca.  I was in search of some drag bars and found some on their site for a reasonable price.  I figured there might be a few other things there worth purchasing for the new project.

Unfortunately, after driving through traffic for quite some time, we arrived at the place to find it closed.  I spoke to several other shop owners nearby to find out that sometimes the guy closes to run an errand or go grab food, or who knows?  But, we didn't have much time to hang around for the guy as we had already made arrangements to attend the Roadhouse Biker Church in San Bernardino, Ca.  The wife had prepared a meal for the after church gathering and wouldn't want it to go to waste. So, we headed back.

Church that night was great as always.  There were a number of people present for the monthly "Spoken Word" ceremony that takes place.  I always enjoy the company of these fellow believers on motorcycles.

I suppose that'll be enough text for this post.  As always, ride safe.

Note:  As of this writing, the Sporty Specialty website was down.  It was up a couple of days ago, and I suspect they may be having a bit of trouble with the site.  I suggest giving them a call before you head down - a strategy I wish I would have used.

Sporty Ride

I know I haven't posted pictures of my new ride, yet, but I plan on getting some up here soon.

I have been enjoying riding the Sportster lately.  I got to ride it to work today.  I rode it to a friend's house afterward and let him take it for a quick spin.  After a couple of trips up and down the block, he brought out his bike for me to try out and we rode a little around town.

He has a Yamaha (I think) 650 cruiser that sits low and has a decent sound.  It seemed to have a decent amount of power for a small bike and was a blast to ride.  I think I left a little tire tread on the asphalt as I barreled down the road.

I am really appreciating this additional motorcycle.  It's fun to ride, quick, and gets decent mileage.  A Sportster is also the perfect canvas for something custom and I can't wait to get started with some drastic changes.

As always, ride safe and have fun.