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2000 Harley Davidson Softail Deuce

Archive for April, 2009

Dirt Track

Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

Flat Track Racing

Flat Track Racing

I was re-reading my list of motorcycle heroes in the last blog, and lo and behold, most of them were flat track racers at one time or another. Geez, I used to love going to the races and listening to the thunder. My brother and I would drive all day, all night, and all day again just to see the Blue Groove San Jose mile.

So, I’m going to a race this year. It will be one of the AMA biggies, and here’s the schedule for this year’s Hole Shot Series. See you there.

AMA Racing Dirt Track Grand Championships Holeshot Series
For more detailed event schedule information, please contact the promoters

May 2: Short Track, TT
May 3: Short Track
Crooked Creek Raceway
Little Rock, Ark.
Steve Nace Racing
(270) 442-7532
snace@apex.net
www.stevenaceracing.com

May 9: Fayette County Fairgrounds, Brownstown, Ill., TT, Short Track
May 10: Bond County Fairgrounds, Greenville, Ill., Half-mile
Steve Nace Racing
(270) 442-7532
snace@apex.net
www.stevenaceracing.com

May 22: Half-mile
May 23: TT
May 24: Short Track
Eddieville Motorsports Park, Goldendale, Wash.
Mark Anderson
(509) 990-4854
mark@diamondamotorsports.com
www.diamondamotorsports.com

May 22: Short Track
May 23: Half-mile
May 24: TT
Lenawee County Fairgrounds, Adrian, Mich.
Boulis Racing
Ethel Boulis
(810) 686-7083

May 24: Shippensburg Speedway, Shippensburg, Pa., TT, Short Track
May 25: York Fairgrounds, York, Pa., Half-mile
Shippensburg MC
Darryl Baer
(717) 796-0294
candybaer@comcast.net

May 29: Short Track
May 30: TT
Salinas Sports Complex, Salinas, Calif.
California Motorsport Promotions
Jim Beck
(831) 970-3055
jimbeck72@yahoo.com
www.californiamotorsportpromotions.com

May 30: Short Track
May 31: TT
Jackpine Gypsies Short Track, Sturgis, S.D.
Jackpine Gypsies MC
Pat Schieffer
(605) 347-6374 or (605) 490-3222
racerboy62y@hotmail.com
www.jackpinegypsies.com

June 6: Half-mile
June 7: Half-mile
Pickaway County Fairgrounds, Circleville, Ohio
Keene Racing LLC
Thomas Keene
(937) 432-9515
pquik@aol.com
http://keeneracing.blogspot.com

The Most Beautiful Girl

Monday, April 20th, 2009

I was wading through the thousands of photographs I’ve taken over the years of motorcycle events, and I decided to put some of them up in this blog. Of all the girls I shot over the years, this girl is probably the most natural beauty of them all. She was working in the infamous Buffalo Chip Campground in 2006, selling insurance or some such thing. Actually, I think her task was to look pretty to attract potential customers—she was doing a great job. We chatted for a couple of minutes and she was a sweet and engaging lady.

I asked her if she’d mind posing on a Harley for me and she said, “sure, I’d love to.” I asked the bike owner if he’d mind if she sat on his bike, and of course he was delighted. I snapped a few shots and that was that. This one photo of her captured her personality perfectly.

I wonder how she’s doing these days. I hope she’s well and happy.
img_0187_edited-11

Daddy of us All

Tuesday, April 14th, 2009

book-pic1There are a few motorcycle riders who are my heroes, and you probably know their names: Kenny Roberts, Gary Nixon, Dick ‘Bugsy’ Mann, Chris Carr and Jay Springsteen. Some you may not know of like Emilio Scotto who took ten years to ride virtually every country in the world on a Goldwing no less. And now I add to that august list the name of Zoltán Sulkowsky.

Sulkowsky rode around the world on a Harley-Davidson and sidecar. Not a big deal as things go these days, but he did it in the eight year span of eight years from 1928 to 1936! Consider that for a moment. Mostly dirt roads, mostly hostile countries. “They experienced the riches of sultans, witnessed primitive cultures and extreme poverty in remote villages, traveled through wilderness with the ever-present danger of wild animals and bands of outlaws, and traversed roads of all descriptions. They dealt with mud, sand, unbearable heat, bitter cold, and rivers where the motorcycle had to be taken apart to cross in a small boat. They forged roads where no roads had existed and brought a whiff of exhaust-scented civilization to people who had never before seen a motor vehicle.”

Did I mention that he did this on a Harley? And did I mention that Mr. Sulkowsky was from Hungary? He started and ended his journey from his home town of Budapest.

This is a beautiful book of motorcycling adventure when riding a motorcycle and travel was truly an adventure, and I recommend it highly.

To find it, go to www.whitehorsepress.com.

P.S. Wordpress won’t let me put this picture in my comments but I can post it here:

The last public appearance of Evel Knievel in Daytona Beach

The last public appearance of Evel Knievel in Daytona Beach

This is More Like It!

Thursday, April 2nd, 2009

Well, looks like the stupidity from our new government concerning youth motorcyclists (see our blog a couple of weeks ago, Here come The Feds…Again) is attracting some attention. David Edwards, editor of Cycle World magazine devoted a column to it in the latest edition, and the venerable Malcolm Smith has organized some action.

This is from the Cycle World web cite:
To protest the ridiculousness of the CPSC’s ruling, Smith, many of the now-famous riders he inspired, and hundreds of fans and friends gathered last Thursday at his dealership, Malcolm Smith Motorsports in Riverside, California. As Smith tells it, he was standing in the store (recently named a Top 100 Dealer in the nation by Dealernews magazine) when a mom came into purchase a minibike for her child, “So the whole family can ride in the desert together,” she said.

Smith then found himself explaining to the woman how a law enacted to set ingestible lead-content levels in toys had been applied to child-size motorcycles, ATVs, parts, accessories and safety equipment—despite the fact that vehicle components that contain lead are nearly impossible to ingest!

“At that moment, I had had enough,” Smith said.

Out of this frustration, Smith and friends swung into action. To highlight the unfairness of the law’s interpretation, to draw attention to the ill effect it is having on motorcycle dealerships across the nation, they staged an act of civil disobedience. Smith simply sold two motorcycles and one ATV banned by the law.
One customer was multi-time Motocross, Supercross and most recently Supermoto champion Jeff Ward, who purchased a minibike for his son. Troy Lee, pioneering designer who brought custom-painted helmets to the peak of popularity, also bought a minibike for his son. The final purchase was by Bud Feldkamp, former race partner of Smith’s and owner of Glen Helen Raceway in nearby San Bernardino, who took home an ATV for his grandchildren.

Other supporters on hand included Supercross champ Jeremy McGrath, multi-time Baja winner Johnny Campbell, multi-decade-spanning off-road champion Scot Harden, Pro Circuit honcho Mitch Payton, and hundreds of other enthusiasts—all braved the 91 Freeway traffic to show their support.

So how is this law enforced, and what might the consequence be for breaking it? It is a bit of a mystery. As of yet, Smith has not been contacted by any member of law enforcement. Online research shows that a dealer can be fined $100,000 for every violation of the law, meaning Smith could be facing up to $300,000 in fines. But at this point, the legal repercussions of these actions are unknown.

What’s next? We don’t want to give it away, but Smith says he is planning a modern version of the Boston Tea Party. Stay tuned. More immediately, Smith says he is heading to Baja to enjoy the sport he inspired so many to try—and is now fighting for, to give even more the opportunity to experience the freedom that is motorcycling.