Choppers Only 2nd Annual In Hawaii

Hawaii was calling… not the thought of lazing under a palm tree on a sandy beach drinking Margaritas with beautiful Hula girls dancing and the setting sun a fireball in the distance. No, it was the 4th July – 2nd annual “Choppers Only Show” the promise of checking out the choppers, some ol' school, some new along with the bobbers that locals call “Old Boyzs”. Made my head spin. The real bonus was to be catching up with old friends and knowing I was sure to make new ones. Allan collected me from the airport, I chucked my bags in back of his pick-up and before I knew it we were at Deacon's shop “Pro-Street” to lend a hand. We helped out for the rest of the day and into the night when Jose (Caribbean Custom Cycles) and Larry (Big Kahuna Motorcycle Rentals) arrived. It was cool to finally meet Jose and to see Larry again and that's where the fun really began.

The next 5 days was an absolute buzz. Bandit & Layla arrived, Billy Lane, Indian Larry along with Paul Cox and his lovely wife Ann . I tell you that is a lot of biker talent for an Aussie bloke to absorb in one hit. Larry and Allan were perfect hosts, taking Jose and I around Honolulu. We also met with Roger from “KustomFab” and Dennis from “Comic Custom Air brush” .

Jose and I had the pleasure of spending an afternoon with 83-year-old Tiger Wong, a really interesting character with many stories to tell and he's still riding. At the moment he has a V Rod – unbelievable!! I'd like to be as fit as he is when I'm 83! There were BBQ's, bike rides, titty bars and a whole lotta fun. I got to meet Tom Prewitt, (painter – extraordinaire) Mondo (Denver Choppers)- and all this before the 4th July ride.

On the day of the show we all hooked up at Bandit's hotel and headed off in slight drizzle and overcast skies that cleared by the time we reached our destination for the start of the ride. It was early and there were plenty of bikers gathered, sipping hot coffee and shootin' the breeze. The place had a great vibe, all awaiting the arrival of the mainland bike builders, along with Peter Fonda. I know it sounds like I'm doing a lot of name-dropping but I'm tellin' it as I see it, and to be part of it, well what can I say; it was sensational!

The ride got under way and I was honored to be riding with the Allii's alongside Ed once again – they're one of the oldest clubs in Hawaii. Riding along Hawaii’s coastline is absolutely breathtaking with it's spectacular ocean views to the left and rugged mountains off to the right and me trying to take it all in, meanwhile riding on the 'wrong' side of the road made it more interesting, loving every minute of it.

We stopped halfway for a burger and a couple of cold ones before heading to the Kapiolani Community College where the bike show and entertainment started. We parked the bikes and man, what an impressive sight. I'm not sure of numbers but there were many, and the quality of bikes was really impressive. Deacon & Chris obviously put a tremendous amount of work into the “Choppers Only Show”. The local Honolulu bikers have some mighty fine machinery they enjoy showing.

I can tell you it was a fantastic day, I had a ball wandering around taking photos and checking out the bikes, listenening to the great music of Southern Draw, Big Dog and Henry Kapono. With the show drawing to a close, Bandit and I made tracks back to town where we hooked up with Layla for dinner and a couple of quiet drinks.

I had ten hours on the flight back to Oz to reflect on this fantastic week – and it was! Thanks to you all for a great time. I'm planning for the next “Choppers Only” show already.