TRAVELING CHOPPER

      Unfortunately, I was the smallest of the three.  As this guy came charging through the gate he approached Michael first and immediately started swinging while yelling at us to give him whatever we had.  We had no intention of giving him anything, and nothing is what he got.  Michael had enough arm length to hold the lunatic off until he got bored and came after me, I was not so fortunate.  The fists immediately started swinging and crack!  He landed one square on my nose, breaking it and creating a facial blood geyser.  The moment this happened he turned and ran.  At this point, I'm standing there in the parking lot holding my nose with blood pouring out like a faucet.  While all this was going on, the driver of the car the nut followed in had called the police, they arrived quickly to assess the situation.  I explained to them what happened and that the guy ran off and was probably long gone by now.  Surprisingly th...

      December 24th, 2009, 6 am, cold, dark and rainy.  Motorcycles packed and ready.  Kickstands up and we were off.  The destination was Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  Typically, leaving the comfort of your own home at a time like this to embark on a motorcycle adventure would seem ubsurd.  But, knowing that our destination would provide us with a warm comfortable sun made it all worth while.        The idea for this trip stemmed out of an invitation from a mutual friend to come down and enjoy the new house he had just purchased in the little town of Bucerias, just outside of Puerto Vallarta.  Michael and I discussed everything from routes, time needed, date to leave, time to cross the border, safety measures and many other details.  We planned and prepared as best we could knowing we would be on the road for up to two months in a foreign country.  We acknowledged and promptly dismissed the warnings from family and ...

      Says hello with fists....that was the name my good friend Michael and I gave to the crack head that broke my nose the day after Christmas in 2009.  But this story isn't about that, this story is about the gentleman we met because of my broken nose.        Occasionally, an incredibly ridiculous situation like this leads to an amazing situation that you will remember forever.  As I stood there in the parking lot of the Hotel Blue in Albuquerque, New Mexico, nose pouring blood and the flashing lights of the local police fading away into the cold winter night, a white Cadillac Escalade rolls into the parking lot and stops in front of our motorcycles.  Out steps an older, grey haired gentleman full of curiosity as to what we were doing on our bikes on this cold night and why exactly my nose was broken.  We explained to him the situation involving a local junkie who was trying to rob us (with no success I might add), discussed boxin...

The bike that is...        As many of you already know the motorcycle is going through yet another transformation.  Last years travels across the United States took it's toll on it in more ways than one.  Not only did the appearance of it change from shiny raw steel to a rather disturbing shade of brown, thanks to the seemingly endless miles along the coast and camping on the beach, but the motor also took a beating.  As the summer went on, the miles racked up.  And, with the increasing average MPH, especially on the interstates, the motor was feeling about as responsive as a Vespa.  It was slowing down noticeably in fact.  I found myself downshifting at times where I wouldn't have before and holding the throttle wide open at times I shouldn't have needed to.   None of this was surprising though as the motor now has 132,000 miles on it, 90,000 since the last rebuild.        This new version of the bike will be dr...

"Hey, whats up man?"  "Nothn really, you?" "Nothn...wanna go camping this weekend?  Forecast said it's suppose to be a little warmer" "Yea, sounds good!" "Where do you want to go" "I don't care but we probably shouldn't get to high in the mountains, it'll still be freezing up there" "Agreed. Alright, lets meet in the morning at 9 and go figure it out" "Cool, see ya"      This was a conversation that took place between myself and my good friend Aaron a few years back, in March,in Colorado.  The forecast was looking great.  Temps in the 60's and sunny, couldn't be better especially on the tail end of a long winter.  So that next morning we met up, bikes loaded with our tents, sleeping bags and other essentials and hit the road.  Not really having a plan we casually worked our way over towards Morrison along Hwy 285.  Morrison is a neat little town nestled in the foothills of the Rockie...

         It was the summer of 2012 (I think), June, hot and humid.  Arkansas was the destination, the STFU Run to be specific, and I was riding with a '72 shovelhead.  Upon this vintage steed was a fine fellow by the name of Justin Cope.  Justin has been a very good friend of mine for a long time so when he told me he wanted to ride to Arkansas on his '72 I put my fears aside and agreed that it was a great idea.  Not only would this offer us the opportunity to crush some miles together but the destination would land us amongst more good friends such as Wes (the creative master mind behind the STFU and Ride party) , Zac, Jay and the other Oklahomies.  The fear I had was directed towards Justins motorcycle, certainly not his riding ability.  With an extensive background in professional motocross racing and freestyle motorcross there isn't any lack of riding ability.  In fact, I'd dare to say that he's got more skills on two wheel...

      I'll be honest, it isn't very often that I am truly impressed by something or somebody.  Kayla Koeune is an exception to this.  Kayla is not only a talented artist but also a truly genuine person, war veteran and avid traveller.   Her inspiration comes from personal experiences and the ability to reproduce others experiences.  Much of Kaylas art is motorcycle oriented but I have also witnessed her recreate wedding photos and other images dear to a customers heart.  What I personally enjoy about her work is the looseness of the painting, not to clean like a photo.   Kayla adds her own style that is unparalleled.  Her talent has given her the ability to travel to shows around the country where her art is displayed.  She will design the shirt, be a guest speaker and be the featured artist at the upcoming Steel Sisterhood womans riding summit in Loveland, CO this coming June.   Kayla has painted live at such shows as Sturgis,...

         Darksider:  The term commonly used for somebody who uses a car tire on there motorcycle       Car tires on motorcycles is nothing new but still one of great debate. Back in the '60s and 70's it was very common to run a car tire on the rear of a chopper, Goldwing riders do it on a regular basis and I've even seen BMW GS1200's equipped with this setup.  So why all the debate?  Using a car tire on the rear wheel of a motorcycle offers obvious advantages, in my opinion anyway.  Not only will it last 4-5 times longer then your average motorcycle tire it also rides smoother, stops faster, grips better and can handle a larger load when traveling.  In addition, they tend to be considerably less expensive.  The skeptics will tell you that the problem with a car tire is that because they are more square they don't corner well, that when you round a corner you roll up on the edge of the tire and have virtually no c...

      This wasn't my first time taking on a 1000 plus mile day, but it was by far the worst of them.  Going into these longs days there is always the question of "why am I doing this" in the back of my mind.  I know, without a doubt, that it is going to hurt, i'm going to want to quit a 100 different times and i'll be overly exhausted when I am finished. This time was no different.        The day, not the ride, started at 7am with with a typical work day.  I'm an electrician for those of you who didn't already know that, so most of my day involves climbing ladders and hauling materials.  Due to my work schedule I knew there was no way I could hit the road until 4pm at the earliest. This breaks my first rule of a 1000 mile day- leave at 4am.  Being Hell bent on getting to Milwaukee the next day I was willing to break this rule.         4:30 PM. Blue skys, temps in the 60's, not a bad start.  Here I go. ...