I’ve been scrambling from project to project, but this feature always lingered in the back of my mind, like it haunted me. I picked it as the Long Beach Ultimate Builder Bikernet Editor’s Choice winner, and Peter Linney immediately shot it for a feature. Then he wanted to get paid. I had to take care of him, the owner and the builder. 

Then I picked up the phone.

“…exquisite, poignant, real…a sentiment that should be ringing from every rooftop in this crazy world.” Two-time Golden Globe-winner and four-time Academy Award-nominee, Ed Harris

Novelist, screenwriter, and director Jim Houck, a longtime contributor to Bikernet and feature writer for such motorcycle publications as, Easyriders, In the Wind, VQ,  and others, will be releasing his first independent feature film in 2014 entitled, The Writer. The story is about a young American writer, Walt Taylor, who goes to Paris in search of inspiration to write the next great American novel. He finds his inspiration not in Paris, but in a beautiful muse named Chloe. But upon returning to Los Angeles with Chloe, Walt is soon faced with an impossible choice; give up on his demanding new novel, or risk losing the very muse making his novel possible. 

The film: http://jimhouck1.blogspot.com

Whether banned from public beachside parks, private gated communities or acre after acre of public land, motorcyclists bristle when they see signs that say: "No Motorcycles Allowed."

Motorcycle bans are the focus of the American Motorcyclist Association's "Freedom Friday" on April 12 to raise awareness of discrimination against on- and off-highway motorcyclists related to access to streets and public areas.

"Motorcycle bans don't grab a lot of headlines, but they do exist," said Danielle Fowles, AMA grassroots coordinator. "We want to know about them, and we want to unite motorcyclists to block or overturn them."

The Freedom Friday effort is part of AMA Go Ride! Month during April. AMA Go Ride! Month encourages AMA members and riders nationwide to renew their passion for riding in the dirt and on the street. It's a month-long celebration of riding that features stories, photos, contests and more.

Freedom Friday is a special call-to-action posted on the AMA Facebook page each Friday to alert motorcyclists about important issues that pose a threat to motorcycling freedoms. Riders can take part in a contest related to the issue and win prizes.

Each week's Freedom Friday photo contest asks AMA members to send a photo of themselves, preferably with their bike, near a symbol of the current topic.

The winners in last week's contest that focused on health-insurance discrimination against motorcyclists were Jeffrey Goldstein of Pompton Lakes, N.J., a flight medic who submitted a photo of himself and his bike in front of the medivac helicopter he flies on; and Saken Aizhulov of Cary, N.C., who sent in a photo of his Triumph Tiger at the Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina headquarters in Durham, N.C.

The issue that kicks off today is access discrimination, which can be illustrated with a photo of a "No Motorcycles Allowed" sign, "Wilderness" sign or anything related to freedom to illustrate their concern as a motorcyclist. Even a photo of a "Welcome Bikers" banner or a trailhead sign indicating motorcycles are allowed would work, showing that proper efforts can gain motorcyclists access to streets and areas. Photo(s) and the AMA member number should be sent to the AMA at grassroots@ama-cycle.org to be entered in the contest.

Contest entrants have two chances to win. Each week, two photo Freedom Friday winners will be announced and each will receive an AMA gift bag and a $20 BikeBandit gift card. Contest entrants will also be entered in a month-end drawing with great prizes, including a Shoei helmet, Tour Master Intake jacket, and Cortech tank bags, courtesy of AMA partner Helmet House.

Submit your photo and AMA number to the AMA to be entered in the contest. For entry details, visit www.americanmotorcyclist.com/riding/goride/contestdetails.

Imagine city officials banning street bikes from public roads or parks. Impossible? It happens. City officials at one time even considered banning motorcycles from Chicago's Lake Shore Drive. The AMA, Motorcycle Riders Foundation, ABATE of Illinois and other state motorcyclist rights organizations successfully promoted federal legislation to specifically block cities and states from banning motorcycles from roads that use federal funds for construction or maintenance.

In the off-road world, riders have been shut out of millions of acres of public land nationwide. Every year, members of Congress propose designating millions of additional acres of public land as federal Wilderness. Once Congress designates an area as Wilderness, nearly all forms of non-pedestrian recreation become illegal, including off-highway vehicle riding.

The AMA recognizes that no single recreation type is appropriate for every setting. But there are certainly many places where responsible OHV use can exist in harmony with other uses while preserving important natural and cultural resources. The AMA supports appropriate Wilderness, as defined by the federal Wilderness Act of 1964, and backs the designation of lands that meets its strict criteria, including congressional oversight and broad public support.

Go to www.americanmotorcyclist.com and www.facebook.com/americanmotorcyclist for more details about Freedom Friday and the 2013 AMA Go Ride! Month.

Polaris Industries Inc. (NYSE: PII) today announced the acquisition of A.M. Holding S.A.S., which operates under the name Aixam Mega S.A.S., a privately owned company based in Aix-les-Bains, France which manufactures and sells enclosed on-road quadricycles and light duty commercial vehicles in Europe. The acquisition of Aixam Mega significantly strengthens Polaris’ existing small vehicle portfolio, which includes GEM and Goupil vehicles, and enhances the profitability and growth potential of Polaris in the EMEA region.

“Aixam Mega is an excellent fit with Polaris and offers a unique opportunity for us to expand our small vehicle platform and accelerate international growth,” said Scott Wine, Polaris Chairman and CEO. “We are committed to positioning Polaris as a global leader in the growing small vehicle market and this investment reaffirms Polaris’ commitment to building a global business capable of delivering long-term, profitable growth. Consistent with our recently announced plan to build a new manufacturing facility in Opole, Poland, the Aixam Mega business acquisition is indicative of our confidence in EMEA to be a contributor to Polaris’ pursuit of productivity, innovation and growth. ”

Aixam Mega designs, manufactures and sells both passenger and light duty commercial quadricycles under the Aixam and Mega brands. Aixam Mega’s quadricycles are four-wheeled, on-road enclosed vehicles characterized by their light weight, low speed and ability, in many countries, to be operated without a full automobile driver’s license. Founded in 1983, the company has a history of strong financial performance and profitable growth, achieving approximately $110 (US) million in sales in 2012 through a distribution network of more than 400 European dealers. The Aixam brand offers a range of diesel-fueled and electric passenger quadricycles including sedan, SUV and sport styles. The Mega brand offers electric and diesel-fueled light duty commercial vehicles.

“We’re excited about today’s announcement and the opportunity to work with a leading global company like Polaris,” said Philippe Colançon, Aixam Mega business unit President. “Joining Polaris provides us with technology, expertise and resources to make continued investments in our business, while accelerating profitable growth through new customer opportunities. We look forward not only to what we can learn from Polaris, but what we can contribute to Polaris through our expertise and experience.”

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed; however, the transaction will be funded through the use of Polaris’ cash on hand. The transaction is expected to be slightly accretive to Polaris’ earnings per share in 2013 after acquisition costs.

The name says it all. These hi-torque starters are made from nothing but brand new components; there are no rebuilds in the Rivera Primo product line.

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Valerie Thompson, owner/driver of Valerie Thompson Racing (ECTA), will return to Wilmington Ohio’s Airborne Park for the East Coast Timing Association’s Hot Rod Magazine Top Speed Challenge, April 27 – 28.

The Top Speed Challenge is the ECTA’s season opening event featuring 200 mph street legal cars and motorcycles with prizes and awards for the fastest racing time in only two classes – Street and Super Street. 

Thompson set three land speed records during ECTA’s Ohio Mile and Throttle Nation Top Speed Challenge events in 2012 with her BMW S 1000 RR. 

“Needless to say, I love ECTA racing in Ohio. We’ve set records here and always run well, but we just missed our goal of joining the ECTA’s ‘200 MPH Club’ last year by less than 2 mph. I’m confident we’ll break 200 at an ECTA event this year due to dramatic performance improvements we’ve made with HP Race Parts and MS Production carbon fiber race bodywork,” stated Thompson. 

Thompson has already earned membership to the ‘Texas Mile 200 MPH Club’ this year with a personal best speed of 212 mph.  “My BMW S 1000 RR was made for events like Hot Rod Magazine’s Top Speed Challenge. I only need to bolt on a license plate to drive this bike home to Scottsdale after the race. We appreciate the all the ECTA volunteers who make racing at the home of The Ohio Mile a wonderful experience,” added Thompson.

For event details and records, visit http://www.ecta-lsr.com.

Rock n’ Roll Hall-of-Famer Aerosmith and superstar Toby Keith will join Kid Rock as headline performers for Harley-Davidson’s 110th Anniversary Celebration in Milwaukee over Labor Day weekend.

Keith will perform Thursday, Aug. 29; Aerosmith will take the stage Friday, Aug. 30; and Kid Rock will round out the epic weekend of music Saturday, Aug. 31. Each headline concert is at the Marcus Amphitheater, located on the south end of Milwaukee’s Henry Maier Festival Park (Summerfest Grounds). 

“The variety of entertainment we’re bringing to Milwaukee for the 110th Anniversary Celebration reflects the broad appeal of the Harley-Davidson brand,” said Mark-Hans Richer, Chief Marketing Officer at Harley-Davidson. “With three legendary headliners and 60 bands at the Summerfest Grounds, there’s something for everyone. We’re expecting a rockin’ party throughout the weekend.”

Tickets for the three headlining performances go on sale to the public at 8 am CST Monday, May 6, at www.h-d.com/110tickets. A special pre-sale begins Monday, April 29, and is open to all those who purchase a 110th Anniversary Celebration ticket pack before the April 19 deadline. There are two 110th Anniversary ticket packages for sale on the website.

An array of active safety technologies are being released by automakers, but consumers shouldn't expect to see many, if any, on motorcycles.

Even though motorcycle fatalities increased 18 percent in Michigan last year, industry experts say the new technologies, which primarily use radars and cameras to help avoid an accident, aren’t practical for motorcycles.

“It’s completely different driving,” said Amnon Shashua, co-founder of Mobileye, an Israeli software company, during a media event at one of TRW Automotive's facilities in Farmington Hills. “I can’t imagine a motorcyclist all of a sudden has automatic braking.

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We've got it covered from Australia to Hollister, to the Diablo Run, to tech tools, riding apparel, reader comments, Illusions Open House, Baker Cabin Fever, JIMS locking nuts, and Gun Nut Report. It's all nuts, but there is a drive to keep freedom alive in this country. It's stronger and more convincing than any legislation, or regulations. It's the one element every soul on the planet wants, and seeks, yet our own government doesn't get it. 

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