One Hot Motor

I saw a bike in the grocery store parking lot today. It looked different, so I went to check it out. Small displacement vertical twin cruiser. From the styling, I'm guessing a Yammie, but I wouldn't say so under oath.
A few years old, but not exactly "classic" age - maybe five to ten years old, but all the logos and insignia lost to time, use and rust. I respect that.

I also respect modifying a bike to make it yours. Cosmetically. Structurally. Even modifying the engine is cool, if you know what you're doing.

But here's the problem.

There were two hoses leading down from the neck area of the frame, and they were capped off, with the metal pieces welded to the frame. There's only one reason I can think of for hoses like this to be routed up from the motor area to the neck region, then back down in front of the downtubes. A radiator. Now, there are good reasons to modify many parts of an engine, but I can't think of a single reason that makes it a good idea to remove a radiator from a motor designed to run with it, then use that motor in Central Texas in the summer.

WTF?

Ain't Superstitious

This is what my trip meter said when I parked at work last Friday. Yeah, I parked and went in, anyway. But it did make me wonder what the day held in store.

East Side Classic XS650

Another photo set from the East Side Classic bike show.  If I'm wrong about this being an XS650, please message me so I can fix it.

Just about the coolest mirror placement I've ever seen.

East Side Classic ATX 2012

East Side Classic ATX 2012, a set on Flickr.

More from the East Side Classic bike show in Austin, TX 2012.

I'm playing around with using Flickr to post photos. The posting seems to be easier, but I'm not sure how I feel about how it posts. We'll see what happens.

Heavily Customized Metric V Twins

I recently went to the East Side Classic bike show in Austin, TX. Unfortunately, it was way too hot for my kids and my lady, so we couldn't stay as long as I would've liked. Fortunately, I was busy with the camera the whole time. I'll be posting some bike pix I took there. I think both of these kick-ass customs are Honda Shadows. If I'm wrong, feel free to correct me in the comments section.

Cool-As-Shit fender struts.

Evidence that I do indeed drag my kids out in the heat so I can ogle purdy bikes

Attention Custom Bike Builders and/or Riders

I follow several bike blogs, and see a lot of custom stuff. Most good, some not so good. Some just not my taste, but probably good anyway.

Then, there are some real head-scratchers. Things that make ya go "Huh?"

Can someone please tell me what the current fascination is with the narrow-ass handlebars? Some of them aren't as wide as an old school peanut gas tank. It doesn't look like you'd have much leverage, and if you have any shoulders at all, it just seems like you're gonna look like you're grabbing hold of a pogo stick when you ride.


Seriously. Someone please explain it to me.

RUB Rallly

Well, it's 9:30 Friday evening, which means the party is in full swing in downtown Austin. They have 6th Street blocked off to any traffic other than foot or motorcycle. Yup, R.U.B. Rally R.O.T. Rally has begun.

Now, don't get me wrong - I have nothing against the R.O.T. A lot of my brothers and sisters do, because the smaller rallies/runs we go to tend to support a charity, where the R.O.T. is purely for profit. I don't mind that - hell, bike shops, bars and liquor stores are all operated for profit, too, and we spend enough money there.

No, my problem with what many Austinites have come to refer to simply as "The Rally" is something different. It's the element it attracts. You know; the wrong crowd. Yes - R.U.B.s - Rich Urban Bikers.

They're not the only ones who show up, of course. There are a few who actually ride motorcycles more than to go to Bike Night or to official dealership sanctioned events. It's just that so many RUBs are here.

My problem isn't with their money and success. It's not with the "urban" part, either. My problem is the fact that so many people think they can spend $30,000 on a bike, add a bunch of chrome, buy some Harley Davidson "apparel", and suddenly, they're "bikers". As if you can buy a lifestyle. They typically spend more time polishing their bike than riding it.

And what's with calling everybody "Bro"? Because they heard  bikers say it in some movie? We do that for a reason. Bro is short for brother, and if I call a man Brother or a woman Sister, that's my way of saying "Whatever you need, if it's in my power, I'll provide it, and I know I can count on you the same". In other words, I'm calling him family. Real bikers don't take the word so lightly.

I know not everybody can be "hard core", and believe me - I know many would say I'm not. But I don't pretend to be anything more than what I am, and that's all I ask of others. If you own a bike, and you just like to ride it when the weather's nice on a weekend afternoon, there's not a damn thing wrong with that. But it doesn't make you a biker. Just be yourself. You'll be accepted and respected a whole lot more for it.

So, two lessons:
1) Don't bro me if you don't know me.
2) 20,000 dollars and 20 miles don't make you a biker.