Hotrod Hoedown, Philadelphia PA Sept 11-12 2010

September 11, 2010, A day for remembrance of the tragedy that took place 9 years ago in NYC, Central PA, and Washington D.C.. Also day to celebrate the the continued freedom we have here in the United States.

In Philadelphia, the long running Hotrod Hoedown held another of it's long running Autumn vintage-auto appreciation parties at the Simeone Auto Museum, located in the industrial wastelands surrounds the Philadelphia International Airport. A perfect location featuring the museums collection of antique and historic autos, surrounded by long stretches of vacant streets.

My good friend Alex wanted to come down from NYC to shoot the event, so I agreed to meet him for a day of hanging out, checking out Hotrods, motorcycles and do some people watching. I was also excited to see the vintage motorcycle exhibit Simeone had been showing since the summer.

I hopped on my Bonnie t100 and headed north up 95 on what may have been the most spectacular riding day of the year. High 70's, no humidity and sunny skies.

From a high speed race up I95 exited onto the desolated streets of south west Philadelphia. A few turns and the streets became alive with the roar of Rat Rods, muscle cars and vintage motorcycles. Cars were parked a half mile in either direction of the front gate to the event, but I found a nice spot right by the entrance next to two beautiful Triumph Bobbers. One OIF hard tail and another mid 60's hard tail. The menacing machines glared at my Modern Classic but I didn't care, I was there for a day of fun in the sun, if those bikes don't like it then tough.

I paid the entry fee and immediately ran into my old friend Mike McCann. Mike has a 60's Plymouth Galaxy that he recently had the engine rebuilt and the seats reupholstered.

Mike gave me the obligatory "homeboy posing in front of his ride" photo op. Mike is a crazy old hardcore kid from Virginia. While in high school, I used go to shows in DC a lot, Mike rolled with a crew that terrified me with their aggressive style of dancing and stagediving (they perfected a move called the head walk...). Mike moved to Philly in 1996 and we got to know each other pretty well and we remain good friends to this day.

My iPhone didn't really pic up the details of the rebuilt 8 Cylinder, but you can tell that it is shiny. It packes a punch as well.

We took a spin around the vacant streets and did some burnouts as par for a good hotrod show.

After our ride I met up with Alex for a bit and checked out the show. Lots of cars, a few motorcycles, but sadly, I discovered the motorcycle exhibit had ended. I kicked myself for not going earlier in the summer when I first heard about it.

Out of all the beautifully chopped and painted hotrods, I found myself more drawn to the home build rat rods as I felt they had much more personality. This car jumped out at me and screamed pure evil. The windscreen was barely visible with its low chop and sun guard, the hulking flat black body boldly stated "don't eff with me".

The decidedly rough body work was backed up with a simple statement. 10% car, 90% bondo. Clearly this was a big old one finger salute to all the high budget beauties parked nearby.

The pipes sat centimeters off the pavement. I bet theres quite a but of scuffing on the bottom of those bad boys.

Spark plugs which will emit flames when a button is pushed, diverting the spark from the engine, causing fuel to flush through the exhaust where a spark awaits to blow an impressive fireball to unsuspecting pedestrians. Pure evil. On a side note, while in college, my dad had this mod set up on Triumph Tiger Cub, which has a great back story involving, modification, troubleshooting, and the burning of eyebrows..... but thats for another post.

I saw a young lad roll in on this 60's honda. It rattled it's way though the cars and parked next to a Triumph Chopper. The rider removed his vintage Buco helmet, left it on the seat and went for a stroll through the fairgrounds. I snapped a picture of his bike. I felt that this kid got what it was all about.

Nice patina on this 60's lid.

Cool 70's inspired paint job on this Triumph Chop.

Choppers aren't my thing really, but I really appreciate the revival of this 60's/70's style that a younger generation is bringing back. Its a breath of fresh air in a stagnant chopper scene where contemporary choppers are more inspired by Television "kustom bike" shows than Easy Rider.

OK, cars are a bit of a mystery to me. They require a lot of space to work on them, money as well as car-knowledge, money to customize and even more money. Time, knowledge space and money, four things I don't have a lot to spare. Therefore I can't say much about the types of autos, or their motors. I can comment on cool aspects such as this semi finished open engine rod. It has green stuff on it which I like.

The bucket seats sit below the main drive shaft on a floor that sits inches above the pavement. There is no back seat or floor... or roof. You can literally drag your hand on the pavement if you wanted to!

Here's a cool simple design, again with open engine with a classic black, white and red color scheme.

Ok, I have less and less to say about cars. I like the red on the engine thingy?

All in all, I saw some cool stuff, hung out with some good friends, was disappointed to miss the motorcycle show, but happy to be riding my Triumph to the event, even though my mirror fell off during the ride.

The coincidental date of the Hoedown falling on 9-11 was bitter-sweet. Sad to reflect on all those lost on that horrific day, but reassuring to see people still enjoying an important part of American culture. Cars and motorcycles!

2nd Annual Phoenixville Bike Day aug 29 2010

After a week of cooler, rainy weather, the Northeast finally had a break with a weekend of mid 80's, low humidity and sunny skies. It also happened to fall on the same weekend as the Phoenixville 2nd annual Bike Day. I had a few friends who live in town who said they were going, so I hopped on my Triumph and rode through [what might have been] the perfect riding conditions of the year, up rt. 113 to the old steel mill town of Phoenixville.

I have to admit, I didn't attend the first years festivities, but I gathered that this would be a Harley Davidson type crowd. Nothing against Harleys, but I didn't see a whole lot of vintage bikes, mainly straight off the showroom floor, full dressers. There were a handful of old Harleys, but due to the tightly packed parking configuration, they were hard to photograph. The last thing I needed was to pull a PeeWee Herman and start a domino effect of falling chrome and leather fringe.

In a sea of American motors (some adorned with the bars and stars) this lovely little mid 60's Norton. Sadly this was the only classic Brit iron I saw in the sleepy little steel city.

Now something about this Sportster just seemed to sum up the spirit of cycling. Maybe it was the out dated custom paint job, proudly holding it's own against the pompous, wide-rear-tire, reality-tv-show inspired choppers parked nearby. Maybe it was the small Igloo cooler strapped to the sissy bar, fighting hard to keep its precious cargo (most likely a 6 pack) cool against the beating sun. I don't know, but I dug it.

Out of all the custom H-D's this Shovel Head (? - I'm bad with identifying anything other than knuckles pans and flats) was the tidiest. The teal wouldn't have been my first choice, but I found it worked well with the scalloped paint job on the tank, the extra wide, rounded fender and the white grips.

Unfortunately the shadow made it incredibly difficult to shoot. It was either too light or too dark - but you get the picture (no pun intended).

Now for the sight to be seen and what could and should probably be it's own blog post: The Dog Saucer.

You got it, its a trailer, shaped somewhat like a space ship... for dogs! I love oddball stuff like this. It combines a kitschy attitude, a good sense of humor and furthermore - functionality. dogsaucer.com was advertised on a sign mounted to the trailer, so when I got home i checked it out. The thing that really bowled me over, was not the pictures of the adorable dogs riding behind their dads bike (I'm a dog lover, and my dogs are children to me, so yes, I am their father and so is the inventor of this device... But I digress) there is actually a picture of a goat, yes a GOAT standing in the saucer. Can you imagine riding down the highway and seeing a bike hauling a spaceship shaped trailer holding a goat?! Well if you live around the Chester County area and the weather stays as nice as it's been, don't be surprised if that's exactly what you see.

Shop Stop: The Spare Parts Company

Saturday, August 7th, the dog days of summer. My wife, Kristen, and I took a trip to downtown Philly to have lunch and enjoy the long overdue break in the record setting hot weather. After some delicious Italian food and some window shopping, we headed over to The Spare Parts Company on 4th and Vine - a place where my late father used to frequent quite a bit. Over the years I've heard countless stories of the original owner, Franz and his infamous Motorcycle shop as well as his tube amplified radio collection. I also heard that I had a lot in common with the shop mechanic and current owner, Roland Sotello, who was just a few years my senior and had an alter-ego as a rock musician. I had never met Roland, but I figured we had mutual friends (my late father being one of them) so I decided that I should stop by and introduce myself.

We walked up vine looking for the shop, which wasn't hard to spot: a half dozen or so Moto Guzzi's and BMW's parked out front while a slightly salt and peppered, shaggy haired man, with black rimmed glasses carrying an air compressor, eagerly helped a young female rider with her front tire. This must be Roland... well his shirt said Roland so it was pretty obvious.

I introduced myself and my wife, explained who my dad was and he immediately invited us in to see the shop. Inside was just how I pictured it to be. The hundred-something year old garage had a musty mixture of oil and rubber in the air. An old Raleigh Golden Arrow bicycle leaned against a wall. Pictures of bikes and cars mixed with vintage shop signs and helmets gave the space an organic soul, only years of operation could create.

Of course there were plenty of standard items for sale, and plenty of motorcycles in various states of repair and restoration. Tires piled head high in the corner and an overhead loft filled with *ahem* lots and lots of spare parts.

We chatted about music for a bit. It turned out Roland played in quite a few garage rock bands, one of which had a record out on the very cool Get Hip Records. I recalled my dad telling me about a band Roland played in called Rockula. He laughed "I always hated that name". We traded band stories for a bit, before the subject shifted to Rolands other passion besides bikes and rock 'n roll; Citroen cars and vans. Every so often he travels abroad and buys up these odd but incredibly stylish little French cars and imports them into US. So obsessed about these cars, that it may have surpassed his love for cycles "I don't even own a bike, currently" he confided "people ask me what I ride and I tell them 'the bus!'"

But his love for vehicles of the two wheel persuasion shines through in his work. He's just currently like the cobbler who has no shoes (too busy making them for other people). I can relate as I am in the water filtration business and I haven't done one thing for my own water in the two years I've lived in my house - just no time!

Eventually the conversation shifted back to my pop: "When your dad would walk through the door, all wrenches would drop". Roland then ushered me to the back and pointed to the tool box, adorned with an "in memory of Snuffy Smith" sticker and picture of the old man with a friend looking at a couple of Guzzi's. "that picture is from '92 or '93 I think. Remember that Le Mans?" He was right. My dad didn't have his eyeglasses on, which he pretty much wore from the mid 90's on after giving up on contact lenses. The red Le Mans was definitely an early 90's acquisition of his.

After taking up way too much of Rolands time, we exchanged info and said our goodbyes. On my way out I noted a cool 1993 1000s Moto Guzzi cafe racer. "No more bikes!" my wife cried. I can dream can't I? Somewhere down the road my motorcycle collection will undoubtably shift, it has already - several times. Maybe a Guzzi is in my future... But with summer winding down, I have to get my riding in with the cycles I have before the bikes go back into hibernation for the long, cold North Eastern winter.

The Motorcycle Boy Reigns

it was just one of those afternoons...

Rock Stars, Anti Hero's and Classic Motorcycles

The king of cool, the king of style and of course "The King of Rock N Roll". Elvis needs no introduction and theres plenty of pictures of him sitting in the saddle of various Harley's. Look at that hat. The white star, the white brim. The same style of hat worn by Johnny in the Wild One. Purely iconic.

This picture of Bob Dylan riding his Triumph has been used plenty of times before...

...but this behind the scenes photo is a little more obscure. I love that Dylan rode a Triumph. It just makes him that much cooler, if that's even possible

KEEF! Keith Richards, whats up? I can't really tell what kind of bike you're sitting on. Almost looks like a Tiger Cub, but it could be anything, you're Keith Richards.

Mick Jagger crusin' on a honda CB350 (I'm pretty sure). Once again, I'm not the biggest Honda fan, but Mick makes anything look cool (even old age... tee-hee)

The Hells Angels once ran security at all California concerts. Rumor had it there was a plot by the Angels to off Mick for vowing never to use the Angels security again. This followed the death of an 18 year old fan at a Stones concert the Angels were working. This is of course all alleged and I'm just spitting back what I read on Wikipedia. Google it and see for yourself and always, ALWAYS support your local Hells Angels chapter.

Sid Vicious also riding a Cb350 although I'm sure it was given to him for the photo/video shoot for the day only, otherwise it would've been immediately hocked for horse. Someone had the decency to hook Sid up with a BSA for the "Something Else" video (which is great by the way.)

Fellow Pistol, Steve Jones, draped over his machine on the back of his 1987 debut solo album. Check out Steve with long hair!

These are two of Steve's latest customized Triumph Bonnies.

Punk Rock documentarian and Sex Pistol friend Don Letts prefers American bikes. Don't know who Don Letts is? Google him and feel ashamed.

Speaking of the "West Way to the World" producer, we can't overlook his documentary subjects in front of an unidentified bike (Looks like a Yamaha or Suzuki, but the Clash rule and I highly doubt that the bike belonged to them anyway).

I just saw the Runaways movie and one of the scenes was shot in California (via Harrisburg PA) bike builder Justin Kell's shop, Glory Sales. Joan (played by Kristen Stewart) throws down a sack of coins and bills and tells the clerk "I wanna look like that" pointing to a 59-club era Rocker/fellow store patron. The real Joan Jett is hot. If only I could be a lesbian and date Joan Jett.... Oh yeah, here's a picture of the Runaways with some sickles.

Not the coolest shot of John Lennon. But John was a revolutionary, changed rock music and changed the world. He also liked trikes apparently.

Ok ok, not a rock star by any stretch, but he could start a juke box with his fist, had an office in the mens bathroom at the local soda shop and rode a Triumph motorcycle!

Now this is a model I'd love to get my hands on. Fonzie AND his Triumph. Let me know if you have one you wanna trade.

Vintage Honda Cycle Jumble - Quakertown PA

British motorcycles have always been my main interest in the world of two wheeled vehicles, but I have a soft spot for 60's and 70's Japanese engineering. They made great reliable engines, the bikes have clean lines, and they are cheap and readily available to make cool custom Cafe's and Bobbers. My friend Justin took a trip to this spot and shared a couple of pictures. Looks like I'm going to have to investigate further....

Justin: (photos sent via iPhone:)

Me: Holy shit! Are the prices reasonable?

Justin: Dirt Cheap

Me: Are you still there? (thinking about some parts I could probably use on my CB 350 and 450)

Justin: Just left. I'm probably coming back in a few weeks if you're interested.

Me: hell yeah!