In 1990, I met and befriended an extraordinary African American biker who changed my life and whose story has since inspired thousands of people around the world. Her name was Bessie Stringfield. She was 79 at the time, a tiny and soft-spoken woman wearing a vintage Harley-Davidson cap. I was 35, an established writer in New York City but still a novice biker back then. So I hung on her every word.

Bessie Stringfield, born in 1911 in the southeastern United States, had spent 60 years in the saddle aboard 28 different motorcycles – one Indian, 27 Harleys – but still, she was an unknown figure outside her own neighborhood in Miami, Florida. Her hidden story was in danger of being lost upon her death.


In the 1930s and 1940s, my friend Bessie Stringfield took eight long-distance, solo rides around the country in the style of the old gypsy tours. Bessie dismissed the scolding of relatives who said that “nice girls didn’t go around riding motorcycles” and she became estranged from them. I recognized that Bessie went against expectations for women – and she went against expectations for Black women especially. Her travels took place during the era of segregation, when racial bias could make for tough situations, sometimes to the point of threatening her very safety.

Was Bessie Stringfield consciously championing the rights of women and African-Americans? Well, Bessie was never a marcher in the formal sense. She did her own thing quietly, as one woman determined to live life her way. Her chosen way was the motorcycle lifestyle.


In my view, Bessie Stringfield’s superpower was not necessarily her prowess as a rider; it was her unwavering faith and generosity of spirit. She showed as much bravery in keeping her faith, capacity to love, and ability to bond with unlikely people, even when faced with people like that menacing driver in the pickup truck. Because of her humanity, Bessie’s life was not defined by struggle, but rather in how she reacted to each situation.

As a result, Bessie had many positive and life-affirming encounters on the road. Speaking into my tape recorder in the colloquial manner of her generation, she told me, “All along the way, wherever I rode the people were overwhelmed to see a Negro woman ridin’ a motorcycle.”


Bessie was especially happy on Milwaukee iron. Her one Indian notwithstanding, Bessie said of the 27 Harleys she owned in her lifetime, “To me, a Harley is the only motorcycle ever made.” She could not understand why my starter bike in the early 1990s was not a Harley. I explained that the cost of insuring a Harley in Manhattan – and repairing it when I fell off — was not within my budget as a freelance writer!

Bessie went on to tell me that at 19, she began tossing a penny over a map and riding to wherever it landed. Using her natural skills and can-do attitude, she did hill climbing and trick riding. One time, disguised as a man, Bessie tried her hand at a flat-track race. She won the race but was denied the prize money when she took off her helmet.


It was still Bessie’s faith that got her through many nights. “If you had Black skin you couldn’t get a place to stay,” she told me. “I knew the Lord would take care of me and He did. If I found Black folks, I’d stay with them. If not, I’d sleep at filling stations on my motorcycle.” She showed me how she laid her jacket on the handlebars as a pillow and rested her feet on the rear fender.

In the 1950s, Bessie took a mortgage on a house in Miami, Florida and became a licensed practical nurse (LPN) to support herself. Later, in the mid-1960s, she founded the Iron Horse Motorcycle Club. They had group rides and gatherings at her house until they disbanded circa 1970 and then lost touch completely. Around the neighborhood, Bessie’s antics – such as riding while standing in the saddle of her Harley – earned her a couple of nicknames: “Negro Motorcycle Queen” and later “Motorcycle Queen of Miami.”

As an elder, Bessie lost a lot of weight and suffered from symptoms caused by an enlarged heart. Before she died in 1993 at the age of 82, Bessie said, “They tell me my heart is three times the size it’s supposed to be.” I’ve always felt this is a perfect metaphor for this amazing woman whose heart and spirited determination have touched so many lives.

Bessie Stringfield was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2002. https://americanmotorcyclist.com/hall-of-famer-spotlight-bessie-stringfield-

Okay,

I’m not a financial advisor. I’d rather build another motorcycle than chase the stock market. But take a look at my portfolio. I have maybe 20 motorcycles, one triumph, one Indian (I had two but traded my ’46 for a ’50 bobbed Panhead). What does that tell you? I’m a Harley guy. All bikers have a special relationship with Harley-Davidson. The question always is: Does the factory respect and embrace that relationship?

So, the final quarter, yearend financials surfaced, but they weren’t posted like they were in the past, you had to ask for them. However, the factory slipped into the mainstream media spotlight leading into 2023, in some troubling ways, and others indicate positive growth.

The boss professed going all electric. H-D planned to launch a Chinese built 350 cc model. The electric H-D component LiveWire took to its own platform and sales were down 30 percent. Ah, but this year is the 120th H-D Anniversary, which generally bodes well for sales. The M-8 seems to have issues on one hand with oil pump problems and cheap lower-end components. What about the new Sportster or the discontinued classic Sportster line, now being copied in China? Hang on 2023, there are two final thoughts: We are doomed and Indian is rising.

Where the hell do we start? How about the interview with Zeitz, the new CEO, who could be progressive or is he being bullied by the WOKE establishment? When the term WOKE surfaces, I think of a stir-fried Chinese dish. Hopefully, in the near future we will eat it and go about the business of riding free. In the meantime, the CEO announced that the iconic brand would go all electric in the future. “It’s just a matter of time.” You would have thought a tsunami of press and angry bikers would have stormed the iconic gates.

Let’s dig into the electric grid. The factory made the Livewire line of electric offerings a stand-alone business. What does that tell you, especially if all of H-D will ultimate be electric. Is Zeitz being smart and keeping the entities separate? If you study electric history, it’s had issues all the way back to Edison and Tesla. From time to time over the last 100 years, electric has been pushed but ultimately couldn’t do the job, like electric trolleys in the ‘30s.

The key to any business endeavor is an open and free market. Without it, we can’t test the true viability of any company. Governments, behind politics, will try to shove it down our throats until the money runs out. Then we might find discarded electric vehicles all over the country.

Here’s a comment from Greg Norman from Fox Business regarding the boss of Toyota:
Toyota’s president is questioning whether the push for the auto industry to phase out gas-powered vehicles and go exclusively electric is the right decision.

Akio Toyoda made these comments to reporters in Thailand, after the auto manufacturer said, around this time last year that it would produce 3.5 million electric vehicles annually by 2030, according to The Wall Street Journal.

“People involved in the auto industry are largely a silent majority,” Toyoda said. “That silent majority is wondering whether EVs are really OK to have as a single option. But they think it’s the trend so they can’t speak out loudly.”

Harley owns 89.4 percent of the LiveWire group. The company went public and they launched a new model in 2022 with supposedly 100 miles of city range.

“Today we are pleased to be opening reservations for the production edition of the S2 Del Mar – our second LiveWire motorcycle and the next step in the evolution of the LiveWire Brand,” said Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO of LiveWire Group Inc. “The modular ARROW architecture underpinning the Del Mar, developed in-house at LiveWire Labs, demonstrates our ambition to lead in the EV space and establish LiveWire as the most desirable electric motorcycle brand in the world. We’re excited about the future at LiveWire and look forward to the company creating the path to the electrification of motorcycling.”

So, what’s the game. Is he hoping LiveWire will take off and he’ll just shut H-D down? Bada-bing.

Maybe there’s another reason to keep the LiveWire group in separate buildings. This just in from Clover at Entrepreneur: Electric cars burst into flames, not every day flames.

In the days following Hurricane Ian, the saltwater flooding in coastal areas caused the lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles to combust.

Firefighters in Naples, Florida, needed to extinguish six blazes in EVs which had been submerged in seawater.

Heather Mazurkiewicz, a spokesperson for the fire department, said firefighters needed “thousands upon thousands” of gallons of water to extinguish the EV fires — much more than what a typical gas car fire would require.

There are serious issues with lithium batteries, and we won’t know the severity until the market grows or is forced to grow. I’m just an ordinary biker, but if someone hands me something the size of a dozen postage stamps stuck together and says it will start a 118-inch Harley, I get really suspicious and concerned about my shop and home. That’s a great deal of power crammed into a very small space.

•The Del Mar Launch Edition models will feature 3 unique colors; Pacific Gray, Nightfall Blue, and Asphalt Black at an MSRP of $16,999.

•Performance highlights include expected outcomes at production of output of 80 horsepower (59.6 kW), 184 ft-lb of torque, 75 minute 20%-80% recharge time using L2, and 431 pounds of weight, delivering projected 0-to-60 mph times of 3.1 seconds.

Issues will surface as the market grows but watch out.

Moving right along: I received a note from a brother a few months back about the new Chinese H-D. He was pissed about the model and taking the jobs away from American Workers. I hadn’t paid much attention, but we do have a very active Bikernet associate in India, so I get to hear about world markets. India generally can’t afford big Harleys, although they would love to own them. This bike will give dreamers a taste of Harley-Davidson all over the world without the cost or tariffs imposed on many imports.

The story of Harleys work with China’s Qianjiang Group started in 2019. In 2022 two production licenses were granted and two models approved. The Qianjaing group bought Benelli and modified their 302s driveline with a longer stroked 338 cc engine. They’ve run into some issues, but what new model doesn’t?

Now the joint venture – called Zhejiang Jisheng Motor Vehicle Co, Ltd – has been given a manufacturing license and two models have been green-lighted for production. The original 338R has morphed into the ‘X350’ with the same chassis and styling as seen on the original sketches, but now using a 353 cc version of the Qianjiang parallel twin engine.

The factory also has type-approved a second model, the X500, based on the same engine and frame used by the Benelli Leoncino 500. This one will purportedly be configured with H-D legendary styling.

The approval documents report specifications including the X350, designated the ‘HD350-10’, will only make (36 hp), weighs 429 pounds wet, with a wheelbase of 4 feet 7 inches. Top speed is just 89 mph. Its wheels, suspension and brakes all appear identical to those used on the Benelli 302S. The X500, is listed to be 47 hp, making it an ideal A2-license machine in Europe, with a weight of 456 pounds and a wheelbase of 4 feet 9 inches.

Although the bikes are expected to mainly target Asian markets when they’re officially launched, the smaller model already appears to be earmarked for the USA, although according to H-D Zeitz, they will, initially at least, be used purely as a Dealer Rider Academy training bike and not available for sale. A terrific way to test the motorcycle and the market.

A document filed by Harley-Davidson with the US NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration), listing production models for 2023, includes the ‘Harley-Davidson X350RA’. The document confirms the 353 cc capacity but cites a much lower power figure than the Chinese type-approval document, saying the model only has 23 hp. Might be an error, as it’s far less than the same engine achieves in other bikes.

These Chinese-built bikes could mean massive profits for the H-D brand worldwide, depending on a myriad of financial issues, from costs of manufacturing, shipping and the attack on the fossil fuel industry, which seems to be faltering.

The 350 will spring into world markets in 2023 and the 500 model is standing by for the first model test and sales results.

Zeitz is fortunate 2023 marks the 120th Anniversary of Harley-Davidson and all that entails including lots of publicity, events, anniversary models, apparel, anniversary bling and limited-edition iconic art, jewelry and memorabilia. I’m sure Scott Jacobs and Jeff Decker are hard at work creating masterful replicas and images of the iconic legacy.

The Four-Day Festival in Milwaukee Celebrates Harley-Davidson’s 120th Anniversary and Kicks Off the Annual Homecoming Event.

Harley-Davidson will celebrate its 120th Anniversary by launching the Harley-Davidson Homecoming event, an annual four-day festival filled with music, food and moto-culture. The inaugural event will take place at multiple venues throughout the Milwaukee area on July 13-16, 2023, and welcomes riders, enthusiasts, and fans to meet in Milwaukee for a huge celebration.

“We invite everyone, riders, non-riders and fans around the world, to join us in Milwaukee next summer for the Harley-Davidson Homecoming where we will celebrate 120 years of our incredible brand,” said Jochen Zeitz. “This will be the first in a series of unforgettable annual events in Milwaukee. Stay tuned for more details in coming months, and we look forward to celebrating with you in 2023.”

Harley-Davidson recently launched “The Road to Harley-Davidson Homecoming Challenge” where riders and non-riders alike can participate in chances to earn virtual badges, win daily and monthly prizes and enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win a grand prize trip to Milwaukee to participate in the Homecoming event. For sweepstakes Official Rules, program and prize details and more information regarding The Road to Harley-Davidson Homecoming Challenge, download the Harley-Davidson App, or visit H-D.com/ride.

This event and celebration alone makes the Harley brand appear strong and resilient for 2023, even if they killed the Sportster and developed a new Indian fighter. Here’s our take on the Sportster move:
https://www.bikernet.com/pages/story_detail.aspx?id=15170

Let’s play with the financials.

Harley-Davidson, Inc. (“Harley-Davidson,” “HDI,” or the “Company”), (NYSE: HOG) fourth quarter and full year 2022 results.

“As we conclude the second year of the Hardwire, Harley-Davidson delivered a strong finish to the year, with solid execution of our strategic pillars,” said Zeitz. “Since 1903, Harley-Davidson has pioneered American motorcycle design, technology, and performance – this year we’ll be marking our 120th Anniversary with a year-long celebration, at locations across the globe and our biggest event ever in our hometown, Milwaukee. We are excited about what is going to be an unforgettable milestone for the company, celebrating the history, culture and community of Harley-Davidson with our riders, families and fans, reaching new customers and bringing more people to the brand.”

2022 Highlights and Results

Delivered full year diluted EPS of $4.96, up 18 percent versus prior year.

Grew HDMC and LiveWire combined revenue by 9 percent behind higher wholesale shipments and global pricing realization.

Achieved 12% combined operating margin for HDMC and LiveWire, an increase of 3 points versus prior year as pricing and productivity offset cost inflation.

HDFS operating income finished down 23 percent and in-line with expectations as loss rates normalized throughout the year.

Completed carve-out and stand-up of LiveWire as a separate public company makes these numbers a conundrum. Are they throwing LiveWire, which is a separate company into the H-D mix to confuse the numbers?

Fourth Quarter 2022 Summary of Results

Delivered diluted EPS of $0.28 – up 100 percent versus prior year.
Grew HDMC global motorcycle shipments by 18 percent vs prior year as production levels rebounded from the Q2 production shutdown.
Achieved HDMC revenue growth of 14 percent behind unit growth and global pricing
HDFS Operating Income declined 32 percent due primarily to expected loss rate normalization

These numbers are significantly boosted by the death of the evil Covid plaque and its many economic impacts. Having the 120 Anniversary the next year is a major shot in the arm.

2023 Financial Outlook

For the full year 2023, the Company expects:

HDMC: revenue growth of 4 to 7% and operating income margin of 14.1 to 14.6%

HDFS: operating income decline of 20 to 25%

LiveWire: motorcycle wholesale units 750–2,000 and operating income loss of $115 to $125 million

Harley-Davidson, Inc: capital investments of $225 to $250 million

New Segment Reporting Structure

LiveWire Group, Inc. (“LiveWire Group”) became a separate public company trading on the New York Stock Exchange (Ticker: LVWR) on September 27, 2022. Following the close, Harley-Davidson has an equity interest in LiveWire Group of approximately 89.4% and will continue to consolidate LiveWire Group results with adjustments for non-controlling shareholder interests. Consolidated Net Income attributable to Harley-Davidson, Inc. and EPS calculations will now reflect these adjustments.

LiveWire revenue for the fourth quarter 2022 decreased by 28% and full year revenue increased 31% driven by higher LiveWire units and STACYC electric balance bike sales. LiveWire operating losses in both comparable periods were driven by increased product development costs and investments in talent & capabilities to support the new company.

The above answers the questions I had but points a finger at the reporting and Zeitz. Is he using the historic H-D legacy and fan base to build LiveWire and ultimately kill Harley-Davidson?

This year can be a boom to the H-D brand worldwide, unless of course we are doomed, attacked by Russia, given a virus from the Chinese or lose all of our rights to ride and build motorcycles by the WOKE Chinese stir-fry crowd. As Elon Musk recently said, “I bought Twitter because it was governed by the Berkley and San Francisco crowd and their ideologies hurt the country.” He wants to build a platform for the truth.

Yo, Bandit! That’s hep talk from the ‘50s daddy-o! Except for the yo. That’s….I dunno. That’s……I dunno.

So! Dig these smoke rings in my head right now! So, I was thinkin’ about, ya know, when I was cool? That was….what: ‘75? Not when I was 75. But when, like, the whole earth was ‘75? Or, 1975? Yeah. That was it. 1975. I was thinkin’ “I used to be normal. Now I’m all So Serious.

The Joker would be chastising me. ‘Why so serious?’ he would say. He yoosta say that. So, I was thinkin’ fuck this writing for whatever the “biker” audience thinks it is now: how about going back in time and being normal? And when BIKERS were fucking normal. This was me talkin’ to me. So, I said “Who even the fuck are you?” Haha, turns out it was me.

So anyway, here’s some, like, one-on-one talk with the gals. Guys don’t write advisories to women. Except in cards. That someone else writes. That ain’t right. What, they’re actually second class citizens? No, that’s OUR job.

They’re human beings. We need to actually talk to them like they’re human beings. Let them know that they are actually on our mind. Too many dudes today are all, “Oh well, I am too very manly to be talking to women like as though I am actually paying attention to what they are doing.” I decided to buck that crowd. This is for the gals.

Hi, could I just talk to the gals for a minute? I want to give you ladies some calming reassurance regarding cooking. Ya know what? I’ve spent a lotta time in kitchens. Worked in restaurants, had cooks in the family, coupla chefs in fact: here’s some calming advice about you maybe stressing that something might go wrong when makin’ the meal.

I know how it is, you are basically assembling, well, a creation. You are creating a final product from a step by step addition of individual items that at the end are supposed to cohere into a pleasant experience: not to look at or USE but to actually eat.

Cooking is a special art form: you eat the final result. That’s just its nature! But ya know what? sometimes things just plain old somehow go disastrously south. too much o’ this not enough o’ that, something’s sliced wrong, bad carrots, the fire’s too hot, the fire’s too cold, the pan was too full, too empty, too small, too big, too much water, not enough water.

I mean it’s endless. But not to fret hon! remember – and there’s just two things on this list: 1: it’s just food. toss it out and do it again. Shit, fucking happens. And 2: you’re a gal! no one expects miracles! I mean you give birth to new people! that’s miracle enough! competence with knives? fire? addition? subtraction? ounces? half ounces? cups? quarts? pinch? scoche? dab? tincture? and don’t get me started on the number of spices and flavoring containers inside that second home of yours, the Kitchen Cabinets.

But ya know what? we just love the way you don’t give up, DESPITE the fact that as far as us guys are concerned you couldn’t cook your way out of Guy Fieri’s kitchen with Gordon Ramsay and Wolfgang Puck cheering you on and doing most of the work. But hon? We don’t care!! It’s ok!! We’ll eat it! We just won’t like it! But we won’t say this fucking sucks. You’re out there in that darn kitchen making an effort. We love that!

Remember: you’re the only one who thinks you can cook. Everyone else knows you suck at it. But you know what? Whether you get all the ingredients right… and get all the cooking times right…and get the right amount of this and mix up just the proper amount of that for the proper amount of strategically balanced amount of time and ingredients…. we who are not you… and who have penises and not vaginas….. we know that no matter WHAT you do out there in that confusion and bedlam and in that concocted birthplace-of-horrors you’re “creating” that even a ravenous jackal wouldn’t eat…. no matter what you do out there in that nightmare of relentless incompetence that you call YOUR KITCHEN…we know you’re TRYING.

We know preparing good food for us is important to you! Why do you think we insist that you bring us beer with our meals? Because that first 12 ounce chugalug is gonna make that swill concoction of dog anuses and puke-scented fecal-splash that you blundered-into-existence out of innocent helpless ingredients, that beer will make that heap of still-writhing eel-ass taste a lot less specific and a lot more incoherent when we are done swallowing that first can of Coors.

Down goes the beer….. in goes the Dunwich Horror you call dinner….. and out comes the praise: “Mighty good, babe! First rate chow!!” You fed yer man a meal…he loved it……out come the nips. Down go the drawers, on go the kneepads…..life is good. Until the next time. Fortunately, that beer larder is always stocked. And for a reason! Because we love you!

Now, godarnit!…get back out there you little cutie, light that stove and do your thing! We’re hungry!!

–jj solari

 Biker Lives Matter continues to provide Accident Scene Management Courses with the American Legion in Florida. Crashes and collisions continue to increase involving motorcycles and one of the most effective ways for those involved to survive is to be treated at the scene by others until more trained people like EMTs arrive.

 The American Legion is a very large organization and each chapters can include a motorcycle group named Legion Riders. Working with the American Legion organization affords out teachers to reach a lot of people. The more people trained the higher the possibility of saving more lives.

The first-class Biker Lives Matter sponsored was at post 81 in Melbourne and it went very well. You can see the article on that class at https://www.bikernet.com/pages/story_detail.aspx?id=15130

 

 This led to having a class at the American Legion Riders Florida Summit in Orlando, Florida.

 

This class though open to any American Legion Member Free of Charge, was mainly for some of the officers as they would be the ones moving the process forward through the organization.

At this time the classes are being sponsored by organizations and by Attorneys like the Fran Haasch Law Group who are well known for helping motorcyclist in Florida

Bryan York is their event coordinator and was one of the people taking this particular class. By him doing so, he has first hand knowledge and a certificate of completion. Once someone takes the course, they can better explain to others how it would benefit them.

 Having a trauma kit is very important. There are many different ones of various sizes. But there are also items you may have with you just as part of your normal motorcycle attire that will further assist you. All this is taught in the class.

The class was taught by Dee MacLennan who is the Accident Scene Management Lead Instructor in Florida.

 

If you are in an American Legion Post and or any other organization you can have a class taught at your location.

For more information contact Dee MacLennan at secretary@bikerlivesmatter.com

 

Author: Mike Baron
Genre: Action Adventure
Publisher: Wolfpack Publishing
Publication Year: 2019
ASIN: B07VCG9RK5

Mike Baron is a biker and a prolific writer who is currently signed with Wolf Pack Publishing. He recently converted from Liberty Island Publishing to Wolfpack and this is book three in the series Bad Road Rising about a biker/private investigator. Wolfpack currently has over 100 authors cranking out adventure books, including biker novels.

A friend introduced me to Mike and I agreed to review one of his books. Since I wasn’t familiar with his line of Bad Road Rising, the title of the book caught me off guard, Not Fade Away. It didn’t seem to speak to anything, but if I read books one and two, I’m sure it would have clicked.

I don’t know if his other books are centered around the Rock and Roll music industry, but this one is. I tried to look up some of the groups mentioned and I’m not sure where fiction and reality meet. But if you’re a fan of ‘70s Rock and Roll, this puppy will keep you enthralled as Josh, the biker investigator finds himself chasing song rights. Here’s the book pitch.

Reformed motorcycle hoodlum Josh Pratt has had some curious cases, but this is the first time he’s been asked to find a missing song. After the late, great Wes Magnum wrote “Marissa,”‘ his band Cretacious rose from small-town Wisconsin to storm the world’s stages.

Marissa Yeager claims Wes wrote the song about her and gave it to her. But she’s never been able to prove her claim and now an insurance company is using it as a jingle. Marissa hires Josh to prove she owns the song.

Josh sets out to prove the impossible, embarking on a journey that will lead from the drug-fueled clubs of Hollywood to a tragic encounter with a ninja clan, and finally to a shattering discovery that will set the world of rock on its ass.

“Mike Baron scores big with this story!”

Author Mike Baron Mike Baron is the creator of Nexus (with artist Steve Rude) and Badger two of the longest lasting independent superhero comics. Nexus is about a cosmic avenger 500 years in the future. Badger, about a multiple personality one of whom is a costumed crime fighter. First/Devils Due is publishing all new Badger stories. Baron has won two Eisners and an Inkpot award and written The Punisher, Flash, Deadman and Star Wars among many other titles.

Baron has published ten novels that span a variety of topics. They have satanic rock bands, biker zombies, spontaneous human combustion, ghosts, and overall hard-boiled crimes.

Mike Baron has written for The Boston Phoenix, Boston Globe, Oui, Fusion, Creem, Isthmus, Front Page Mag, and Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine.

As I mention, he’s a prolific literary creator and his book contains a very readable style. Most chapters are less than three pages. It makes it a blast to skim through a chapter and return to your girl, a beer or working on your bike.

I’m about 2/3s the way through Not Fade Away and the story shifts from Wisconsin to Hollywood and back to Colorado. It takes you into mansions in Beverly Hills to hidden cannabis facilities in the hills of Colorado. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Editor’s Note: Presentations and panels at The Heartland Institute’s recently concluded 15th International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC-15) discussed the dangers of the pursuit of “net zero.” Net zero policies are an attempt by ruling elites in governments, bureaucracies, international agencies, and global corporations to force people to reduce their CO2 emissions to as close to zero as possible, with any remaining emissions being reabsorbed from the atmosphere. In the real world, with present technologies, pursuing net zero requires a sharp, near-immediate reduction or full cessation of the use of fossil fuels. A presentation by Heartland Institute Trustee Steve Milloy argued “Net Zero Is Unachievable and Will Kill People,” as the title of his speech put it. On another panel, three presenters discussed “Why NetZero is Impossible: The Continuing Need and Value of Fossil Fuels.”

There is no question that reaching a net zero steady state will require greatly restricting peoples’ liberties, impose huge economic costs, and probably have deadly consequences, both foreseen and unanticipated. Therefore, before embarking on such a wrenching societal transformation, we should be pretty sure the planet needs saving from climate change. If the science does not show catastrophic climate change is on the way, governments must seek other justifications for forcing people to change their lives radically to reach net zero.

So, is net zero necessary? According to a recent paper produced by the CO2 Coalition, the answer to that question is not just no but hell, no! The paper was written by two prominent, multi-award-winning physicists, William Happer, Ph.D., professor emeritus at Princeton University, and Richard Lindzen, Ph.D., professor emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with geologist Gregory Wrightstone, executive director of the CO2 Coalition, each of whom presented on science and policy at ICCC-15.

The remainder of this essay provides a lightly edited excerpt from “Challenging ‘Net Zero’ with Science,” plus quotes from its authors about the paper’s findings.

Reliable scientific knowledge is determined by the scientific method, where theoretical predictions are validated by observations or rejected for failing to conform with reality. Agreement with observations is the measure of scienti?c truth. Scienti?c progress proceeds by the interplay of theory and observation. Theory explains observations and makes predictions of what will be observed in the future. Observations anchor understanding and weed out theories that don’t work.

Net Zero—the global movement to eliminate fossil fuels and their emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases—is scientifically invalid and a threat to the lives of billions of people. Among the paper’s findings are:
Net Zero proponents regularly report that extreme weather is more severe and frequent because of climate change, while the evidence shows no increase—and, in some cases, a decrease—in such events.

Computer models supporting every government Net Zero regulation and the trillions of dollars subsidizing renewables and electric cars, trucks, home heating, appliances, and many other products do not work.

Scientific research and studies that do not support the “consensus” narrative of harmful manmade global warming are routinely censored and excluded from government reports such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the National Climate Assessment.

Conclusions of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that contradict the narrative of catastrophic global warming from fossil fuels are rewritten by government bureaucrats for public reports to support the false narrative of Net Zero.

The many benefits of modest warming and increasing carbon dioxide are routinely either eliminated or minimized in governmental reports.

Eliminating fossil fuels and implementing Net Zero policies and actions mean the elimination of fossil fuel-derived nitrogen fertilizers and pesticides, which will result in about half the world’s population not having enough food to eat. Many would starve.

The adoption of Net Zero is the rejection of overwhelming scientific evidence that there is no risk of catastrophic global warming caused by fossil fuels and CO2.
Net Zero, then, violates the tenets of the scientific method that for more than 300 years has underpinned the advancement of western civilization.

(To paraphrase Johnnie Cochran, “If the science don’t work, you must start again!” Net zero is not justified scientifically, ethically, or economically.—Editor.)

 

 

 Plan to be at  Daytona International Speedway For the 81^st Daytona Motorcycle Race – March 9^th to 11^th,

 

 

 For more information on tickets and the event – see the link below:

                           https://www.motoamerica.com/daytona-200/

 

The Legendary Boot Hill Saloon is celebrating 50 years, opening in 1973– and they ain’t goin’ nowhere!!! 

 

 

Cake and Photo provided by : “Fran Haasch Law Group, Twisted Tea, Beach 92.7, Camp Easy Ride, River City Wrestling Con, and Rider Now Magazine”.

 

 

Some things will never change….

 

 

And some things have changed……

 

 

To the shitter….!

 

But you’re are still better off there than across the street! 

 

 

I hosted Billboard on his road trip which started Oct 10^th 2020 and lasted a little over six months and covered 29 states. 20,464 miles became a new direction in life for the person who was so distraught over life, he was going to end his with a bullet.

 

 

We phone tagged over the weekend, as he was heading back to Florida for Bike Week. I told him to meet me Sunday at the Boot. When he got there – he mentioned wanting to try to find Grizzly who he previously met in Arizona during his Epic Quest. It was during Bike week 2021 that he introduced me to Grizzly at the Speedway. Needless to say,  Grizzly’s scoot just happened to be parked right outside the Station….. next door. Billboard has this Divine Intervention thing still going on in his life – he didn’t have any contact info for Grizzly but was hoping to find him this trip.

 

 

 

Billboard has documented his journey in a book, “The Epic Quest for Jesus”- and he included the photo of him, Grizzly and myself from the Speedway, 2021 in the book. 

He wanted to give Grizzly a copy – and was hoping to locate him this trip.

 

Mission Accomplished!

 Link for Book:

 https://www.amazon.com/Epic-Quest-Jesus-Encounters-Four-Corners/dp/B0B7RPGHGV/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2O2WCT2MHWYPZ&keywords=epic+quest+for+jesus&qid=1678164927&sprefix=epic+quest+%2Caps%2C112&sr=8-1#customerReviews

 

 

 

 

Asking for continued prayers and speedy recovery vibes for Moonshiner Josh Owens who sustained life threatening injuries during the Sons of Speed Race at the New Smyrna Speedway on Saturday, March 4^th.

 

Also, sending the same to Joe Orsini, who went down during the race at turn 2 – and is recovering from surgery.

 

Russell Carvalho walked back to the pits from his wreck during the race also… add him to the prayer chain as well….

 

Sons of Speed was an epic event with 63 racers participating! 

 

AHRMA Side Car Racing , SOS first timer Tim Joyce and returning  SOS racer Stephen “HotShot” Aretz 

 

 

And the Burn Out after Bike Week!!!!   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am writing this because I want people to know about the things Harold (Hal) Robinson went through in his life; things that led up to his greatness as a Cartoonist of the late ‘60s, ‘70s and the ‘80s. Hal Robinson did not have an easy life.  However, he called his own shots and did things his way.

He needed this freedom to think and do the magnificent works he created. I loved my husband, Hal Robinson. I loved his drawings also, and I loved him because he was a great human being. He was born in 1928 and passed away in 1984. He was 54 years old when this happened as a result of a burst appendix and oat cell carcinoma of the lungs.

Hal never liked school and was never told he had any drawing talent. He would rather stay home and take a walk in the woods and observe things he found in nature.He liked reading Boys’ Life. He came from a family of 7 children and it wasn’t easy during his early years.He started working real young and helped out at a place for working girls as a teenager.They were just trying to survive like I was, he told me. He helped the ladies at the house and ran errands for them. What he got for this was a place to sleep and a roof over his head, meals, and chocolate sodas from the soda fountain across the street when he went there on  refreshment calls for the ladies. They thought he had cute freckles and liked him a lot. They treated him nice, he said. Later on in his teen years, Hal manned barges in the Bering Sea.

Hal married and had 4 children after serving in the Navy during the Korean War. His wife divorced him because he quit his job at the pulp mill where they lived in Oregon. He had worked there for a while, then had a very close call with a heavy log and decided to quit and left. Then he started doing what he was meant to do which was drawing. He was not supported in this by his family and had difficulty getting enough money to buy the tools he needed like pen, ink, and paper. He was offered a job with Buzza Cardoza Greeting Cards in California after winning a contest for creating new ideas and drawings for greeting cards. Up until then the words on greeting cards were always on the front of the card.

His family was not on board with his dream to  be a cartoonist. They wouldn’t come to California with him. He would not leave Oregon without his family. He was finally forced out when the sheriff in town kicked him out of the house without even his wallet. He was picked up for vagrancy because he had no identification.

A few years down the road Hal entered another drawing contest in the mail and won a foldable Schwinn bicycle. He never owned a Chopper or any other kind of motorcycle, but he studied the  bikes he drew and the black and white photos sent to him by Easyriders Magazine. He traced many of the bikes first from photos and took off from there.  

He put everything he had into his drawings. He wasn’t a biker but loved having fun with the biker life stye in his cartooning. He studied people by drawing them at get-togethers and parties. People loved to have illustrate their picture and have him sign it.

He did sign painting and banners. He painted items featured on grocery store windows, etc.  He worked for GTE in the ‘60s and ‘70s as an illustrator for the Yellow Pages.  

Hal was a freelance cartoonist for different publications including Easyriders (Paisano Publications). He joined them in 1971 starting with the first issue along with Bandit, who founded this web site. Hal was discovered by a man named Lou Kimzey. Lou admired Hal’s masterpiece caricature of Seal Beach.

Lou asked him to join Easyriders Magazine starting with the first issue. Hal worked from home in Long Beach where Bandit grew up, and then Seal Beach, California, and Bellingham, WA. He mailed his work to Easyriders Magazine and was always accepted without any changes and that was because his works went way beyond great. He was the Cartoon Editor for Easyriders. Then Hal had a severe automobile accident. He was in a coma for a while but finally came out of it. He lived with lots of headaches. Hal said the accident made his drawings even better and more interesting.

I met my husband Harold, or Hal Robinson, for the first time through his far out cartooning in a publication named Trash. It was on a magazine stand in Long Beach in the ‘70s.

I couldn’t believe what I saw!!! His drawings certainly stood out from all the others displayed on the newsstand. They certainly had a definite edge! The panel jokes were hilarious as were the far-out illustrations; but the thing that stood out the most to me was his superlative drawing skills. There were so many flourishes, details, wonderful cross hatching, stippling, finely drawn lines, swirls and turns, hidden pictures that blended so you didn’t always see them the first time, surprises galore. I have been looking at his work for a long  time and  just found a bird in the cheek of  the Hal’s Hog drawing which is posted on Instagram and Facebook.

halrobinsondesigns.com  and www.bikernet.com.

I met Harold in person a few years later through a good friend who knew him.  Harold knew his worth as a cartoonist and laughed when he told me that he was blackballed by the Cartoonist’s League of America and considered it quite an accomplishment.  He too was an Outlaw Cartoonist of his own making with his cutting edge drawings. 

Hal was asked to teach Cartooning and Characterization at Cal State Long Beach during the ‘70s through their Free University. They ran out of money for this art effort but Hal was proud to be asked. He loved the thought of being a teacher to others who were interested in his cartooning (plenty were and still are). He was an intriguing person and knew and believed that he had to produce.

Now you know some more things about my husband, Hal Robinson, and some of the events that shaped him into becoming the very unique and exceptional Cartoon Artist he was. People in general loved Hal’s sensitivity, and of course his sense of humor.

Hal created a lot of great works for people to really enjoy, and they have brought much laughter into peoples’ lives. Characters such as Red Rider and Little Beaver, Miraculous Mutha, panel jokes and illustrations depicting the old school biker lifestyle, plus thousands of handmade drawings of customized Harley Choppers, which were shared with bike builders all over the world.

Masterpieces of a towns or cities (originated by Robinson): Seal Beach and Avalon.  When I first met Hal, he told me that he was going to live forever! I truly did believe he would live forever and that was 44 years ago! He certainly did know what he was talking about because what he said is happening. He knew the future of his work and he knew his worth. He wanted his work to live on and it is.

–Ann Robinson
(Hal Robinson Archives)

Editor’s Note: We are having some fun with the notion that bikers may become the cowboys of the future. So, we took liberties with a movie from 1974 with Burt Lancaster, called Valdez is Coming. Watch for the final chapter in April 2023.

The city from Laguna to Irvine and El Toro closed in on Trabuco Canyon like a concrete plague. Cook’s resided in the last remaining unencumbered scrub hills. Bruno tied his helmet to his bars and stepped up to the entrance. The door cried in pain as he pushed it open. The inside smelled of sawdust, tobacco smoke, and beer. The Four Tops’ “Only the Lonely” played on the juke. Straight ahead was the bar. In between, six Comancheros  M/C members kicked the shit out of someone on the floor. 

“What the fuck?” Bruno approached the melee on the slat floor scattered with cigarette butts, peanut shells and dust. He yanked one rider from the rat pack to see a black motorcyclists on the wooden deck bloodied and desperately trying to protect himself.

“That’s enough,” Bruno said. “Let the kid go.”

A big Hispanic with massive arms stepped up. Meaner than cat shit, he glared at Bruno and spit on the deck. “What the fuck is it to you? He stole a club bike. He pays.”

Bruno looked down at the battered kid on the deck, who shook his head tearfully through blood and spit and muttered, “I never stole a motorcycle.”

Bruno looked back at Pablo the club VP with tattoos running up his neck and one on his temple. “Did you get the bike back?”

“That’s none of your fucking business puto,” Pablo snapped as nasty as a stepped on rattlesnake.

“Pick him up,” Pablo ordered and the brothers hauled the black rider to his feet.

“I ride a sport bike,” the rider said through bloody teeth under a crushed nose.

Pablo spun in the direction of the young man in the darkened bar. He pulled a shiny 12-inch, straight blade and buried it into the abdomen of the kid just below his ribs and twisted the blade. The African American youngster gasped and stared wide-eyed. Pablo wiped the bloody knife on the kid’s t-shirt as he took his last breath. “Drop him, let’s ride.”

 Pablo stepped up, the knife reflecting from the dim barroom lights and neon. He wasn’t much taller than Bruno, but big and buffed. “That was your fault, don’t interrupt,” he muttered his voice low and gravely.

Bruno watched the knife. He was too close, but the big man put it away and then shoved Bruno hard. Bruno stumbled and knocked over a table as he hit the deck. Before he could get to his feet, he was surrounded by Comanchero brothers some reaching for weapons.

A tall white member sporting a Prez patch sewn over his leather vest pocket, stepped through the crowd and put his arm around Pablo as he stared down at the redheaded white boy. “You don’t want to mess with my brothers. As you can see, if some sonuvabitch steals one of our bikes, we don’t fuck around. Let’s ride brothers. Nobody messes with the Comancheros.”

Bruno quickly jumped to his feet as the members jammed to the parking lot, fired up their bikes and rode out. He made his way to the bar and ordered a Jack on the Rocks as the young girl dove to the side of her boyfriend weeping and holding him in her slender arms.

Bruno took his drink to her table, sat and watched for a moment. Other patrons tried to console the young girl. The bartender called 911. Bruno didn’t want to be there when the cops arrived.

Shaken, he downed the whiskey, stood and headed for the door. Outside, he unhooked his helmet and suddenly the girl was as his side. Mexican, she had warm features and he studied her for the first time. Under the vague, distant, parking lot lights, her features glowed like a camp fire, beautiful, partially because of her pregnancy. He look down at her stomach.

“What am I going to do now?” Sheila said and ran her slender hand over her baby bump. “He never stole anything. It’s my fault. My ex was a Comanchero.”

Bruno ran a gloved hand over his face and looked around the lot as if searching for directions or answers. “Get on,” he said and jumped on his motorcycle. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”

Bruno had to think, and the best place to accomplish that was in the saddle, cutting a dusty trail to nowhere.

They rolled through the canyon, onto 10 freeway, turning off on the highway leading into 13 Palms and the desert. He pulled up to a small concrete block house in the middle of no place and a Hispanic brother came out of the pad. “Ola, what the hell are you doing here?”

Bruno scowled. The two went inside and the girl sat at Diego’s dining room table. “Family?” Bruno asked her.

“I can’t go there,” Sheila said. “The Comancheros threatened my people. There’s no place to go.”

Diego’s wife brought chips and salsa, tea for the girl and whiskey for the men.

“What happened,” Diego asked.

“I can’t tell you,” Bruno said, “and neither can she. The less you know the better. Can she spend the night?”

Diego looked at his wife and she nodded. She wouldn’t say no to a young Hispanic pregnant woman.

Diego walked Bruno back to his racy-looking Sportster. “I’ve got to figure something out,” Bruno said.

“We’ll be here,” Diego responded, nodded and patted Bruno on the shoulder. They rode together back in the early chopper, Long Beach days. Bruno did Vietnam service time and rode with a couple of Port of LA clubs. He straddled his bike and rode into the night over the curvy pass and onto the freeway toward Los Angeles. All along the way he thought about the girl and her predicament.

Diego, his lovely wife Maria and Sheila sat at sort of a rickety wooden picnic table. They called it their dining room table, the only table in the two-room cinderblock pad. They dug into huevos rancheros, juice and coffee.

“Who’s the father?” Bruno blurted. “Was it the dead kid or the clubber’s.”

Sheila swallowed hard and followed the gulp with a swig of freshly squeezed orange juice. “The dead kid, goddammit,” she muttered.

“Then the bastards owe you,” Bruno spat and grabbed a tortilla off the plate, rolled it and stuffed it in his mouth. He snatched her cup of joe and washed it down. “Let’s go.”

“She’s not going anywhere,” Diego barked, unusual for him.

“Si,” said Maria, the resilience strong in one word.

“She’s pregnant,” Diego confirmed. If you’ve got a problem with them. It’s on you.”

Bruno looked at the girl, at Diego and Maria. “I’ll be back,” he said and bolted for the door.

Diego turned to Sheila, “He has a big heart.”

Bruno gassed up and hit the freeway. A soft-traffic Sunday, he peeled through mild congestion like a snake through weeds until he leaned onto the 605 freeway heading east toward no-mans’ land on the outskirts of Duarte, California, an industrial wasteland. Rolling off the freeway onto a wide boulevard he peeled passed manufacturing block buildings until he rolled up to the front of the Comancheros club house.

He continued past the chain-link fence surrounding the compound until he found a coffee shop where he parked his Sportster and made his way back to the compound on foot. Brothers patted him down and allowed him entrance into the asphalt grounds containing a small two-bedroom clapboard home and a large tin and steel industrial building. Old school industry surrounded by newer buildings in stages, stucco, block and finally concrete tilt-up structures.

He made his way through lines of choppers, Dynas and baggers to the front porch. As he approached the wooden slat deck Pablo burst out of the front door. ?“What the fuck do you want, except to die like that black punk?” He demanded.

“I want to talk to your boss,” Bruno said. Rapidly he was being surrounded by members of the club, all carrying some level of weaponry.

“You’ll talk to me or die trying,” Pablo said. A snarky bastard with a large fuzzy head of hair and a long jet-black fu man chu mustache, he ground his teeth and spit. With 20-inch arms and a 46-inch chest the imposing figure made an evil statement and Bruno knew what the sonuvabitch was capable of. “What the fuck do you want?”

“That kid didn’t steal a club bike and you know it,” Bruno snapped and stared at the club monster. “The girl was the problem and now she’s pregnant. What the fuck are you going to do about that, leave her on the streets?”

The ragged wooden-framed screen door on the bungalow burst open and out stepped the tall wavy-haired white guy carrying a cup of steamy hot coffee. “What’s up?”

Pablo stepped aside. “This punk came back.”

“Just want to know what you guys can do for the pregnant girl?” Bruno asked.

The club prez stepped up to the porch railing post and leaned against the 6 by 6-inch wooden post. He sipped his coffee. “What do you suggest?”

“I will put up a grand, if you will,” Bruno said.

“Why would you do that?” The prez said looking into his cup. “What has she done for you?” He snickered as if sexual favors passed between the two. Others grinned.

“Nothing,” Bruno said. “She’s pregnant and needs help, that’s all.”

“The bitch gets nothing from my club,” the prez said and smirked. “Unless she wants to come around and take care of the brothers.” He laughed a haunting tone and threw his remaining coffee at Bruno. “Don’t come around here anymore, if you know what’s good for you.” The prez nodded to Pablo. “Show him to the gate.”

Pablo singled-out two of his Lieutenants to assist Bruno to the gate.

“Just a grand to help the girl out…” Bruno said the coffee dripping off his vest. He pulled a black and orange bandana out of his back pocket and wiped his face and bright red mustache. His eyes frowning, he was struck by an aluminum baseball bat from behind. He dropped to one knee but recovered quickly and got to his feet. Another brother shoved him toward the gate and he stumbled.

Bruno turned to face his assailants and Pablo. He had only 25 feet to the wire gate, but he wouldn’t run. Another bother approached with a 4-foot two-by-four and pulled back for a swing. Bruno turned, stepped up to Pablo and grabbed his black leather and spun him as a barrier from the wooden plank. It hit Pablo and the brother froze. The massive weight-lifter wasn’t fazed.

“Just a grand muthafucker,” Bruno said gnashing his teeth as his eyes made direct contact with the VP. He shoved him hard into the other brothers, but more kept coming.

He fought off two more, but the bats were coming hard and fast and a machete barely missed his hand as he reached for the gate. It smacked the galvanized post with an eerie clang. Another bat hit his other hand while pushing the gate open and Bruno stumbled out the gate and fell in the sandy dirt at the road’s edge.

The members pulled the gate closed abruptly as Pablo approached. “Next time you won’t leave in one piece, punk.”
‘
Bruno got to his feet and turned toward Pablo. “How about $500. That’s my final offer,” he said clutching his bruised hand and smiled, turned and walked away. “Good for today only.” He waved his arm and walked away.

Sons of Speed has always been an enjoyable event for me to attend and cover. I really like that people have taken the time to keep these classic motorcycles running and even more to the point, actually racing them. This event is exploding

  I am not the only one who feels that way, the event was packed. Attendance was up and so were the new classes and number of riders racing.

Races have several different classes for types of engines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfNG48LwU6o

 

I ended up in Shelly Rossmeyer’s Pit watching Berry Wardlaw, Chuck Kennedy and Rebel Glover keep her bike running in top condition. Prior to the race Shelly’s bike went to Berry’s shop Accurate Engineering in Dothan, Alabama for tuning and runs on the new racing dyno he recently installed. They found some problems, when running on the dyno, fixed them and the end result is her bike ran the best it has ever performed.

While the races are the big thing, it was also a time to see friends and get to spend some time with them and catch up

Chris Callen, the emperor of Cycle Source was in the pits next to us. He’s gone from helping with the races to working the pits and this year entered a bike. He ran 28 second laps and won a couple of heats and made the main event. He’ll be back. 

In the final race of the day Moonshiner Josh Owens crashed coming out of turn 3 and received serious injuries and was taken to the hospital in an ambulance.

At the time of this writing he is recovering. Friend and brother racer Freddie Bollwage reported on his condition.

Josh has two broken legs, both kneecaps, ankle, broken neck and lower back injury. He had surgery and is alert and doing well considering the extent of his injuries. There was no head trauma or internal bleeding.

Freddie thanked everyone for their prayers. Please keep them coming.

There will be a Go Fund Me set up in the near future to help with the hospital expenses and recovery. We will keep you informed as we get more information,

https://www.facebook.com/thesonsofspeed/

I’ll be back next year, can’t miss it!