THE REDNECK RUMBLE 2017
The 2017 edition of the Redneck Rumble took place on September 16th in Lebanon, Tennessee. Here’s a few pics for those who could not make it.
CLASSIC AUTOMOBILES AND VINTAGE MOTORCYCLES!
Two of my favorite things in the world are classic automobiles and vintage motorcycles. And when you combine them both into one event… well, that’s a pretty good day. Today I made my way to The Factory in Franklin, Tennessee for the 27th Annual Antique & Classic Car Show, sponsored by the Battlefield Region of the Antique Automobile Club of America. But it get’s better… this years show was held in conjunction with the Music City Chapter of the Antique Motorcycle Club of America. That’s right… a beautiful day filled with classic automobiles and vintage motorcycles…. all in the same place. I could go on about how heavenly that is, but I’ll just shut up and let you enjoy some of my photos.
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BRAGGIN’ ON NASHVILLE AND GUSHER CYCLES
Please allow me to brag on my hometown for just a minute. Widely known for county music, Nashville is much more than most people think and among other things, has a rich history in the hotrod and motorcycle culture. Those traditions continue today and there are a host of talented builders (of both the 4-wheeled and two-wheeled kind) that currently call The Music City home.
One of those talented individuals is J Ryan of Gusher Cycles. I first met J Ryan about 8 years ago at a local bike show and since then have seen him out and about once or twice a year. It’s to the point now that I look for him at any show I think he might be at… just because I know he will have something stellar on display.
Last weekend I attended a show at the Nashville Fairgrounds and sure enough, J Ryan was there with another one of his smokin’ hot creations. You’re going to have to believe me when I tell you that these photos don’t come close to accurately reproducing the gorgeous paint job on this bike (show lighting is always so awesome!) but even so, you can see that J Ryan has perfected his painting and fabrication skills to a level that most will never reach.
Take a look and then jump on over to gushercycles.com to see more of J Ryans creations. I’m jonesin’ hard to have him paint my Sporty project bike for me and if you’re looking for custom work yourself (paint, fabrication, bars, etc.) you should definitely check out what Gusher Cycles has to offer.
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A LITTLE SOMETHING TO WARM UP YOUR JANUARY
So… here i sit in the middle of January with next weeks forecasted temperatures below the freezing mark. It’s not a good recipe for people like me who enjoy wandering through classic vehicles in the heat of the summer. Fortunately, I just came across a few pictures from a show I attended in Nashville back in September. It’s not exactly the same but at least I can re-live warmer times and some cool rods with these photos! Care to join me?
By the way… Alexander King & Hatfield Bloodline were the featured band at this particular show. If you’ve not seen them, I highly recommend you do when they hit your town. They are great and Alexander’s guitar player is the one and only Kenny Olson of “Kid Rock” fame.
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GREASE MONKEY ISSUE #13
Issue #13 of Grease Monkey Magazine is in the stores now. Be sure to grab a copy and check out my photos of the DoMaCo Norton, as well as re-cap photos of the 2013 Spring Thaw bike and Rat Show. You can view the entire magazine here.
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DOMACO NORTON
I did a photo session with this cool hybrid Norton a couple weeks ago. It was built by local builder Lance Dodson, out of his Dodson Machine Company (DoMaCo) shop here in Nashville. Images from this shoot can be seen in the current issue of Grease Monkey Magazine.
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HARLEY-DAVIDSON SEVENTY-TWO REVIEW
In case you missed my review of the Harley-Davidson Seventy-Two last year… HERE’S A LINK TO IT.
CAUGHT MY EYE AT THE 2013 SPRING THAW
Every year in March, my good friends over at Both Barrels Promotions put on a great bike show in Shelbyville, Tennessee called The Spring Thaw. Each year it marks the onset of Spring for me…and more importantly , the end of Winter! Well, today was the day, and the event, as usual, was awesome. I took a bunch of photos but one bike in particular caught my eye. Check out this gorgeous 1976 FLH from Harlot Motorcycles.
Check out more of my pics of the Spring Thaw at swag.zenfolio.com.
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WHAT! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?
What! Are you kidding me? The Sporty has gotten out of the garage 2 weekends in a row now. It’s almost like riding season… and Spring is so close you can smell it in the air. Bring it!
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THREE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS
The Dark Months have been up and down here in Middle Tennessee. Ice storms followed by temps in the 60’s are probably why I’ve contracted 2 head colds already this winter. But, I’m not complaining. I’ll gladly tolerate some harsh weather if it calms down every few days. That’s much better than the extended periods of doom and gloom we’ve had in the past.
Today was January 26, and by all accounts right smack dab in the heart of the Dark Months. The good news is that and we were blessed with sunshine all day long and temps in the upper 40s. To make things even better, our local H-D dealership (Bumpus Harley-Davidson of Murfreesboro) held an indoor mini tattoo convention, so I drove Otis down to check out the festivities. I saw some fantastic artwork and got to combine three of my favorite things in the process, Old Trucks, Harley’s and Ink. I snapped the pic above of Otis in the parking lot.
I even got back early enough to get the Sporty out for a bit before nightfall. Put about 30 miles on it before returning to the house. Frankly, the cold was pretty painful! But, it was a blast and I’m happy to say, the Eagle is still Screamin’!
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SOMETHING WITH THIS FEEL AND VIBE WOULD BE COOL
So my Sporty Project has been on somewhat of a “hold” lately, due to a lot of work being done on the Stepside. But out-of-site, does not mean out-of-mind. There are still some things I want to get done and I’ve been thinking about it a lot this week. Vintage white grips (like these) are coming soon… and I think I may have found the answer to my plain tank. Initially, I had just planned on having a buddy do a little pin-striping but I found the bike pictured below on the Harley-Davidson “Dark Custom” website.
The bike is owned by a cat in Wisconsin who IMHO has really good taste! I freakin’ love this tank graphic. Something similar may be in order. Maybe not gold-leaf per se, but something with this feel and vibe would be cool. What do you think? I already have a couple ideas for what it might say.
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UGLY BIKES ARE COOL
Back on April 6, I gave you a behind the scenes look at my buddy Scooter’s latest project… a Yamaha Maxim 550. Well, he’s gone and chopped it all up and stuff. Here’s a before and after look at it. Took about a month and in the end, it just goes to show you… ugly bikes are cool!
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THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT NOTHING FELL OFF
This evening brought beautiful weather to the Middle Tennessee area and my “Sunday Evening Ride” was fantastic. I’ve been slowly pushing the Sporty further and further since I made all the changes and tonight I made a 100+ mile loop… by far my longest ride on it since the transformation. The good news is that nothing fell off… haha… and I’m really starting to get comfortable with the new feel.
On my way back home, I passed through the little town of Lascassas, Tennessee. I’ve ridden through it tons of times and there is a place there called Pearcy’s General Merchandise that I love… even though I’ve never been in it. It’s a small mom & pop style store that has tons of character. The kind of place that the big-box stores are slowly replacing across America. If I lived closer, I would buy everything from this place… regardless of price.
I’ve photographed nearly every bike I’ve owned in the past 5 years in front of this place, including this bike, pre-transformation (CLICK HERE) so I had to stop and grab a few of the new-look Sporty.
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A SUNDAY EVENING RIDE
I love riding on Sunday evenings. It’s that final stress reliever of the weekend before the work week begins again… and I look forward to it. Tonight the weather was exceptional, so I took a little longer than usual. Here’s a few pics and a quick video.
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THE PARTS WERE FLYING OFF
I got to hang out with a buddy today. He always has a cool project going and I caught him just as he was starting work on a Yamaha Maxim 550. The parts were flying off… and in a few weeks, this bike is going to look radically different. I’ll get some more pics when he is done.
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DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!
Well… tonight I decided I would create some faux white letters on my rear tire. I’ve heard this discussed on various forums and also have a buddy that has done this to his bike. It sounds simple enough. You get a Duplicolor paint pen in white, or whatever color you fancy, and go to town on the outline of the existing letters on your tire. No problem… uh, well, not really. It is incredibly tedious and takes forever. Then when you are finally done, it doesn’t look all that great. It’s nearly impossible to stay on target with your tiny brush… as you can see in these pictures! Seriously kiddies… my advice would be not to try this at home unless you are a lot more precise than I am. The good news is… the farther you get away from it, the better it looks!
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TOO MUCH CHROME…
Last night I painted the chrome air cleaner cover on my Sporty rattle-can-black. Too much chrome is a bad thing to me. The chrome oil filter went away with last weeks oil change as well. I think some other chrome parts might disappear soon also. Stay tuned.
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THEY CALL IT THE SPRING THAW
I made my way to a local bike show today. They call it the Spring Thaw and it represents the end of winter and the beginning of riding season for many of us here in Middle Tennessee. The show includes a huge swap meet as well, and for $30 bucks I scored what you see above. A low-profile mirror, a set of “coke bottle” grips, LED license plate bolts and a super-cool, old-school helmet! Of course the main draw of the Spring Thaw is the bikes… and here is one of my favorites on the day. Enjoy!
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TOOTIN’ MY OWN HORN A LITTLE
Just thought I would share some of my recent design projects with you. I did the layout on these show posters for my friends over at Both Barrels Promotions. They are GOOD people and know how to put on a great show. If you are anywhere near the Middle Tennessee area, you should attend all three of these upcoming events. (FYI: The illustration in the second poster below was hand drawn by Gary Mizar. He’s the best! Check him out at garymizar.com)
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