I was jolted out of bed the other morning by the “Bandit” phone ringing off the hook. Knowing I hadn’t done anything wrong, I picked it up without hesitation, “yea what’s up?

“I thought you were sending some words for all these tattoo expo pictures!” Someone screeched in to the phone.

While the cobwebs and Jack Daniel haze had not yet cleared, there was something different about this call, the voice wasn’t gravely and had a somewhat softer tone. Had the big guy finally been forced to attend that court mandated sensitivity class?

“Look, I got enough problems trying to keep this place going, with Bandit being gone on his new adventure and all the work still to be done around here. Send me the words!” Layla commanded and the line went silent. Didn’t seem like the time to point out that “A picture is worth a 1000 words”. So it was off to the fuzzy memory banks of my mind to recall the events of that weekend.

The Voodoo Tattoo Expo was a 3-day event held over the Halloween weekend, October 29 to 31 at the Crockett Center in Austin, TX. On hand were talented ink slingers from around the country, as well as some of the latest creations by several Texas area motorcycle shops. Whether you were in need of new ink, something covered, something pierced or even something sprayed on, this was the place. For those not so much into the fun and joy of having thousands of tiny ink holes carved in their skin, it was not.

And that was just inside the building, outside the main stage had bands like the Dirty Wormz, Baghdad Bombers and Pitbull Daycare to entertain the crowds. There was motorcycle stunt riding by Team XLR8 as well as Extreme half pipe skate board stunts performed by Skate Park along with all the standard vendors and munchie merchants.

Folks (guys mainly) never seemed to miss an appearance by Mary Carrey and Hannah Harper. These two ladies are famous movie stars; chances are you have not seen them on your local channels. However, they can be found at several selected stores in your area. Another crowd pleaser was Human Suspension by Cicatrix. Now if you are not sure what that may be, it involves, a guy or girl being lifted off the floor and suspended by the numerous piercing in their bodies.

The biggest event of each night was due to Steve-O of Jackass fame from MTV. One-way of telling someone’s age is to ask him or her if they remember when MTV played nothing but music. Seeing is how I would fall into that category, I had not a clue, to me a Jackass is usually the person in front of me, in the fast lane.

If you have ever attended a tattoo event, then you know these people are very passionate about their lifestyles, be it the ink, clothes or the cars they drive. It was interesting to watch the looks on the faces of the standard citizens that ventured into the expo just out of curiosity and see their expressions having an already eclectic group of folks partying on Halloween weekend just seemed to confuse them. I myself managed to make some new friends, along with getting plenty of options from folks more then willing to update my look with some new color and imagery.

How I managed to come out of a 3-day tattoo event with no new ink is beyond me? It is definitely not for want; you see my entire assortment of tattoo’s fall into the 1970’s military day’s category, except for a couple done by a friend when he decided he was going to start a new career as a tattoo artist. They apparently don’t make a surface to practice tattooing on once you have decided this is the vocation for you.

So you have to find friends, either really good ones or incapacitated ones that will let you practice putting a permanent mark on them. Good thing I indulged back then. Boy those were the days?

Till Next Time,

Rigid Frame Richard

The 25th annual run drew record crowds. When you have that highof a concentration of bikers in one area you would expect difficulties.Fender-to-fender traffic as riders walk their bikes through the over packedstreets as they try to spot an elusive parking spot. The streets would belined with the countless venders selling $10 water and hackneyed t-shirtsfor outrages prices. The bars would also be packed as people scrambled tocatch a glimpse of the latest creations of the master builders. The parkinglot of the local grocery store would resembles a tightly coiled maze as thepeople shuffle inches per hour for a chance to get an autograph from OCC.Camping should be at a premium as the locals charge $60-80 a night to stakea claim for a 6X6 chunk of lawn and hotel rooms easily fetching $200+ anight. These would be true if it wasn't for one thing, this is the St VictorBoogie and that's not the way we do things in Southern Saskatchewan.

For the last twenty-five years on the third weekend in June the small hamletof St Victor welcomes bikers to the campground just down the road. Whatstarted out as a handful of bikers has now grown to one of Western Canada'sbest rallies. Bikers from all over western Canada and northern United Statesmake the annual pilgrimage to the St Victor Boogie and this year was nodifferent. The organizers, the Southern Independent Riders or SIR as theyare known locally, have kept things simple and true to what a biker rally istruly about. The whole event has more of the feeling of a backyard Bar-B-Qthan of a biker rally such as Sturgis and Daytona. No RV's, four wheeledvehicles, or camper trailers are permitted into the campsite, as theever-expanding campground is ride in only. Once inside you are instantlyoverwhelmed by thousands of bikes nestled between the trees and tents.

If these hardcore bikers can't carry it on a bike it stays at home (SIR doesoffer a cart to haul supplies and people in from outside the grounds).

This year riders didn't let rain stand in their way as they started showingup early in the week to stake out their campsites in the luscious greenvalley of St Victor's Petroglyph Park.

The skies finally cleared for the weekend on Thursday as bikes continued topour in but it wasn't until Friday that things really started shaking. Thebeer garden opened and two of Canada's hottest up and coming bands took tothe stage cranking out tunes well into the morning. The huge fire pitsscattered throughout the campgrounds still served as meeting places forfriends as they gather to share road stories and to reminisce about the goodold days.

Saturday morning signaled in with the smell of hotcakes and sausageswhipped up in the steamy concession stand being manned by the Southern Rebelshockey team. That afternoon sunshine brought in the last of the hardcorepartiers and signaled the start to the biker rodeo. The crowds gather alongthe “street” beside the beer garden to watch as the riders were put throughthe paces in such events as hot dog eating, slow races, and the balloontoss. This year saw the addition of the newest event “Wife Hunt” in whichthe men were blindfolded and had to rely on their sense of touch to feel outtheir wives from a group of lovely ladies.

Many also took advantage of sun shine Saturday to ride the open prairiehighways to check out Saskatchewan's own Badlands where the original JesseJames and Billy the Kid are rumored to have hid out from the law. Theevening was capped off with the always-popular wet T-shirt contest as thebands again returned to the stage and play on through the night and wellafter the sun had rose. Sunday morning was announced with the continuousthunder as bikes rolled out of the valley to speed home while other partiersfinally grabbed a couple hours sleep after three days of hard living at theSt Victor Boogie.

So if you are looking for an escape from the deadening grind of mega bikerallies and are looking to have a good time, meet great people, drink coldbeer and listen to great music, find yourself on the open road the thirdweekend in June heading to St Victor, Saskatchewan for the annual St. VictorBoogie. That is unless you like posers, newbies, RUB's, $10 water, line ups,100's of venders selling the same t-shirt, RV surcharges, user fees, rallytaxes.

Dave Perewitz painted bikes when most riders were just a gleam in their pappy’s eye. He taught Arlen Ness how to tie his shoes, Ron Finch how to kiss a girl and Mondo how to weld. Dave Perewitz is the emperor of the Hamsters, the man, who in a drunken rage, forced his wife to draw Hamsters on paper plates and pin them to 13 Hotel room doors in 1974, in a gin joint hotel in Daytona.

As the story has it, Dave was beat flat by some gangster outlaws and needed back up, so he forced his wife, the lovely Susie Cream Cheese, to launch the Hamsters. The next morning 13 bikers, including Berry Cooney, Arlen Ness, Arlen Fatland and Donnie Smith woke up completely hungover with the dread Hamster logo tattooed on their chests. “Back my shit, brothers,” Dave screamed from the hotel courtyard. They were all too hungover to care for anything except a frosty Bloody Mary. Hence the Hamsters were formed and Dave survived. He continued to build bikes, paint bikes for the high and mighty, like myself, and create parts from his shop in Brockton, Mass.

Let me shift gears, for a second, from the absurd to the heartfelt. Dave is the self proclaimed President of the 275-strong organization, called Hamsters, the anti-club. It was made up of friends who were hardworking members of the custom bike industry. Most started working on bikes in their garages. If they have any wealth today, it’s because they struggled through nearly 40 years of the Harley Custom industry and now realize some success.

Dave’s an example of a man who never lost track of his dream, to build and paint bikes whether it made him a dime or not. This decade he’s doing all right, probably because his two daughters and son run his new shop. Yep, Dave’s had a family all these years while being a biker and they’re still all together, and now they all work in the industry. It’s a fuckin’ miracle.

Okay, so Dave scrapped enough coin together to open his dream shop near his home. Get this. His shop is located in the epicenter of two major warring clubs, so he was visited by one group, then the other and finally the cops. They wanted to know what the hell was going on from both camps. Even Hamsters can’t be snitches, so mum was the word. Dave was forced to go it alone, negotiating with both factions for a successful annual party.

This was the second since the shop opened and orchestrated by his daughter Jody. Hamsters and builders from all over the country flew in including one of the original Hamsters, Bob Clark. Bob arrived early and made sure most of the shots included his old mug. That wasn’t enough, he hit on Dave’s wife Susie. I was impressed with the colorful array of bikes in the lot.

That’s what Dave the Perewitz name represents to this industry, color. His bikes don’t hide behind the common black. They dance along the highways glistening in wild hues, glittering metal flakes and iridescent pearls. He worked with John Kosmoski, the master behind House of Kolor custom paints, when John was still mastering glitter mixed with candies.

You might not agree with Dave’s attack on the eye, but you can’t deny his style. Neither can the Discovery channel. He’s currently being filmed for a Discovery Channel build-off that will end in Sturgis for voting. You can bet his bike will shimmer all across the country from Massachusetts to the South Dakota Badlands and Jesse Jurren’s Rock ‘n’ Roll campsites.

So let’s shift gears once more and cover some of the aspects of the second annual grand opening. “Connie Cohan The female drag racer, showed off her bike,” Jody Perewitz said, “My father painted her bike.”

Music rocked the location by the Dan Lawson band. They’re from Cape Cod, but they play at all the local bike events. They are secluded to play Sturgis, at the buffalo chip, with Lynard Skynard. They are a great band.

Bear Air was here with artist Steve Leahy handling tattoos. He tattooed everyone from young to old.

”We had a number of vendors including Kryptonite locks, Lucas Oil, Racing America, Brockton Cycle Center,” Jody said, “and Full Throttle was here.”Kryptonite gave away a flamed Perewitz trash can!!

The local VFW catered the event.There was tons of raffle prizes and free swag for Perewitz, Lucas Oil, PPG, and others.

We had about 2,500 people here on Saturday on bikes,” Jody said. “The weather couldn’t have been better! We had at least 15 ground-up Perewitz customs on display. This was the 2nd Annual Open House. We’re already planning next year.”

–Jody Perewitz
Perewitz Cycle Fab
910 Plymouth St
Bridgewater, MA 02324
(508)697-3595
www.perewitz.com

WICHITA, Kansas (June 15, 2006) – Big Dog Motorcycles™, the leader in the high-style cruiser niche, the number two American V-Twin motorcycle manufacturer, and the largest manufacturer of custom motorcycles in the world, attracted over 30,000 motorcycle riders and enthusiasts to the streets of downtown Wichita for its second Tornado Rally, held June 10-11.

The first Tornado Rally, held in June 2005, brought 15,000 to the company’s factory. The dramatic increase in attendance was complemented with an equally substantial increase in exhibitors and vendors.

“We are extremely thrilled with the success of the rally,” stated Paul Hansen, Marketing Director, Big Dog Motorcycles. “Even more awesome is that numerous states and motorcycle types and brands were represented, making the Tornado Rally a true national event. Exposure to the Big Dog Motorcycles brand and our home, the city of Wichita, was phenomenal.”

While many riders and enthusiasts were from Kansas and the surrounding states, enthusiasts also came from states hundreds – and even thousand – of miles away: Oregon, Florida, Michigan, California, New Jersey, and more. According to the Wichita Convention & Visitors Bureau, the estimated economic impact was over $1,000,000.

The two-day rally required a full nine months to plan, a staff of nearly 150 Big Dog Motorcycles employees, and took place on a 20 square block site in downtown Wichita.

“It is impossible to adequately thank the employees for their long hours, hard work, and unlimited energy,” stated Sheldon Coleman, company founder and CEO. “I’m elated they take so much pride in Big Dog Motorcycles, the city of Wichita, and the Tornado Rally.”

The rally atmosphere was amplified by 100 vendors and exhibitors displaying their motorcycles and selling their wares as well as plenty of live music – including six regional bands; company founder and CEO Sheldon Coleman’s band, Dewy & The Big Dogs; and rock legend Eddie Money.

In addition, hundreds met custom motorcycle builders Rick Fairless, and Kim Suter; watched the Dodge Raminator monster truck crush cars, tested their talents on changing a racecar tire with the Dodge Pit Crew Challenge; were awed by motorcycle trials demonstrations; participated in charity poker runs; cheered for their favorite calendar girl in a bikini contest; and entered a custom/special motorcycle show.

One winner of the motorcycle show was the Big Dog Motorcycle with the most miles on its odometer: a 1995 Vintage Classic with 189,100 miles.

“One of our goals is to promote the city of Wichita and to show the motorcycle community our home,” Hansen said. “With the continued excellent support of local government, the Wichita Convention and Visitors Bureau, and surrounding businesses and neighborhoods, Tornado Rally will follow the trends of all motorcycle rallies and continue to grow.”

ESPN2 was on site to capture the event for a national television segment to air in late summer 2006. In addition, rally photos and more information about the Tornado Rally can be found at www.tornadorally.com.

The Tornado Rally was presented and hosted by Big Dog Motorcycles with the help of the following sponsors: Dodge, Budweiser, Jack Daniel’s, Coca-Cola, Castrol Motor Oil, and PPG.

Twin Club MC is one of the oldest and most respected biker clubs in Sweden. The club was founded in 1969 in the sleepy little sea side town of Norrtalje about an hour Northeast of Stockholm. These are the guys who chopped and built the bikes making Sweden world famous for their long bikes and Swedish style, no nonsense customs.

In 1974, Twin Club MC started to promote a local Custom Bike Show. Well, 34 years later the show has grown into the largest and most prestigious Custom Bike show in all of Scandinavia. Club president Ola, long time member Henkan along with the rest of the club members and local volunteers work tireless all year to get ready for the show. Gates open the first weekend in June each year.

This year's event marked the second year as an affiliate show to the American Motorcycle Dealer Magazine ( a prestigious industry publication) ProShow tour. The winners of the European tour get a place, all expenses paid, in the World Championship of Custom Bike Building finals at the Thunderdome in Sturgis during Bike Week.

Now this isn't just your ordinary Chopperfest. Riders and builders from Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway, Russia and all across Scandinavia and Northern Europe flock to the show to see just how radical their neighbors can get when it comes to innovative styles and techniques. This year over 10,000 people showed up at the Societetsparken (Peoples Park) on the waterfront to see the bikes and cast their votes in the Peoples choice show.

A jury of five representatives of the International Biker Press, including yours truly from Bikernet.com, was charged with the daunting task of picking the top 3 bikes that will go to Sturgis for the final world competition. With well over 100 worthy entries, this year was a bitch to judge.

Isto Kotavuopio of Tampere, Finland took first place for his mind blowing Omega Bike. A black Dr. Suess looking creation that just blew everyone away with its radical design and attention to perfect detail.

Second place went to another Finn, Petri Ruusunen for a Classic Custom Panhead given new life as a copper clad custom board tracker.

Not to be left in the cold, Ken Falkerhed of Ace Performance Customs outside Stockholm rode home with third place for his phantom of the Ace chopper.

An added highlight of Twin Club MC's Custom Bike Show is the traditional after-show party back at their club house outside of town. They have a huge clubhouse surrounded by a meadow and woods. About 3,500 bikers took advantage of their hospitality and attended the party and many camped out for the weekend. Man, I gotta tell you, I'm an old Gray Beard and I sorely miss the all night parties with the real deal ladies and hardcore dudes who graced the scene long before the Discovery Channel convinced everyone with a Gold Card that they too could be “Bad-Ass Bikers”.

With almost 20 Hours of daylight in Sweden in June, the bands, the bikes and the babes roared on late into Sunday afternoon.

A special thank you to my brothers and sisters at Twin Club MC for bringing me over for their event. I can't wait to get back there next year.

If you'd like more info the show check out their web site:

http://www.twinclubmc.a.se/start.html. They even have a link to an English language version.

For more info on AMD's ProShow, check their site:http://www.amdproshow.com

–TBear

Builders demonstrated expert “how-to’s,” bikes were an omnipresent shrine, babes inspired the crowd and the Bandit was unmasked, making the 3rd annual All American Motorcycle Madness the place to be in Santa Maria on May 19-21, sponsored by Bikernet.com.

Thorsen Motorsports, the local Suzuki and Kawasaki dealer, brought a new spin to the traditional American V twin show.

Johnny Chop, scheduled to help Mitch Bergeron build the giveaway bike at the show for the second year in a row, was sadly missed. His untimely passing sparked the idea for a tribute bike build in his memory. With a little help from his friends at S&S, Jims, Performance Machines, Drag Specialties, BDL, and Custom Chrome, he won’t be forgotten. The best part is that anyone can win this bike by purchasing a ticket for $30.00 and each ticket comes with a tribute t-shirt.

Mitch Bergeron, Kirk Taylor, Tom Foster, Counts Customs Crew, and Cole Foster all joined together at the show to get the project started and it was looking good on Sunday. After three days of work you could almost picture Johnny doing a smoke out with it.

With a surge in the number of vendors – two buildings full – and dozens around the park-like setting of the Santa Maria Fairpark, it was a record event for product sales.

The spotlight was on the $15,000.00 street chopper build off. Thirteen talented builders went head to head with their best bikes but it was Mike Stafford from MGS Custom Cycles who took the grand prize. In second place was Aaron Greene Paramount Custom Cycles, and third place was handed off once again to Cole Foster from Salinas Boys.

Dodge Truck stage became music central, filling the air with sound. Live bands rocked all weekend and this show has become famous for its steady beat of talented musicians that perform during the weekend for the three custom bike shows.

Seventeen categories were awarded to first and second place winners with Incubus Alloy one-of-a- kind trophies. The honors went to the top 15 bikes of the show, the pro builders novice builder competition as well as the Budweiser sweepstakes judging.

The dazzling Kerri Kasem represented the babes and bandit cateogry at the BMC Chopper booth, autographing photos and directing everyone at the show to sign up to win a BMC Chopper. Don’t worry if you were not at Santa Maria: You still have a chance to sign up for your chance to win at the Rose Bowl BikeFest June 24th and 25th and the Grand National Bike Show Oct. 14th and 15th . Some lucky biker fan is going to get one cool chopper for just being at a Horse Power Promotions show.

Keith Ball “the Bandit” was also on hand signing books, giving away Bikernet.com stickers and hitting on all the girls. Make sure you check out Bikernet.com for the latest news and goodies on the biking world.

From bike builders to Leather, from parts to Santa Maria style BBQ, All American Motorcycle Madness once again filled the appetite of bikers from near and far. For more information on the Santa Maria Fairpark event and more Horse Power Promotion shows, check out www.HorsePowerPromotions.com

NEXT HORSEPOWER SHOW–The West Coast motorcycle world comes alive on June 24th and 25th 2006 for this annual show in Pasadena, CA. Ride out from the stress of the city to the scenic hills of Pasadena is why The Rose Bowl is the perfect venue for this event. This site will be able to handle the steady growth of this show.

Builders from the California area such as Scott Long of Central Coast Cycles, Gard Hollinger from LA County Chop Rods will mix with talents from far away like the Martin Bros just to name a few. If you think the Incubus Alloy Custom ride in Bike Show will be showcasing all the hottest bikes around.

The Rose Bowl Motorcycle Marketplace, sponsored by Bikernet.com, will be filled with the industries top manufactures and vendors selling everything from custom motorcycles to the hottest apparel and more for the motorcycle enthusiast.

Glendale Harley-Davidson Buell will be crowning the most beautiful Harley at the show as well as showcasing their latest products from the motor company.

David Chaves European Trails rider will thrill the crowds both days with his trials trick riding. The summer heat should be just right for the Ultimate Bikini Contest and great live music playing all weekend on the Lifestyle Cycles stage. Don’t miss the Lifestyle crew replacing an 115,000 mile S&S Motor with a brand new S&S power plant. This all makes for a great ticket price of only $15.00 with free bike parking.

For more info visit www.horsepowerpromotions.com or call (805) 686-2007

Huge thunderclouds broiled over the North Hollywood, CA headquarters for Exile Cycles, but they were no match for the (gasp, hack, cough) fogbank of vulcanized smoke billowing up into the heavens. An impromptu I-got-more-horsepower/testosterone burn-out competition was in full swing, make that full throttle as the guys from Exile and Scott Long of Central Coast Cycleswere melting their Metzelers and Avons to the cheering crowd who showed up from near and far to congratulate Russell on a decade of masterful, show winning, customer pleasing custom bikes that bear his unique signature of “no frills, more thrills,” a minimalist industro-muscle approach to maximum performance biking pleasure.

We’re talking serious, work class, lung scorching smoky burn-outs. See photos. Yeah, it was way, way cool.)

Several hundreds gathered for the Saturday soiree complete with hard rocking bands and high kicking dancers up on the outdoor industrial stage, while indoors there was a massive display of the leading edge custom bikes brought to the event by Russell’s friends, the likes of which included Arlen and Cory Ness, Billy Lane, Cyril Huze, and Matt Hotch.

We wondered how many knew that the affable Englishman with the radical Mohawk haircut and tons of tats had a radically different “former” life back across the Pond. He was born on a small farming village in western England, was a skateboarding freak, then graduated college as a veterinary surgeon. (No wonder he can perform such miraculous custom bike surgery.)

But he was also partying big time and into the Glam-punk scene of the time and also building custom Lambretta scooters, a major trend in merry ol’ England at the time. His first “custom” in fact was a Lambretta chopper complete with coffin tank, twisted forks and foot-shift. That was in 1983 and his first official “Exile” so-named as he says, because it was “a short, tough, symmetrical word – and it had an 'X' in it!” Its styling broke all the molds and all the rules, a philosophy that would transfer to his custom Harleys including a kick-only Sporty that he transformed into a tough black hardtail in his veterinary surgery waiting room

One day he got “discovered” and began appearing on the morning telly as the TV Vet, and then entered the world of modeling which eventually led to a gig in Los Angeles, now some 15 years ago. In 1991 Russell came to the US and promptly bought a 1987 Softail. In 1994, taking the payment from a Marlboro commercial, he created two identical customs, designing his own parts, learning the skills of welding and machining to get it done. Oddly enough, a chance meeting with our fearless leader Keith “Bandit” Ball who at the time headed up Easyriders got him a feature story published in the mag. As a result of the response from the public, Russell starting building bikes in his garage under the Exile Cycles name.

At the 10th Anniversary celebration, it was obvious that Russell had realized the American dream. One look at his 20,000 sq.ft. facility, the herd of bikes under construction and his dedicated orange-clad staff , tells you that toil and dedication over the past ten years were well spent.

Today Exile Cycles offers a custom parts both line directly or through some 1,000 dealers. They also design and build some twenty complete custom bikes each year, many featured in mags around the world plus Russell and his “band of merry men” have appeared on several Discovery Channel “Biker Build Off” shows as well as the “World Bike Build Off” and Russell now hosts his own show, “Build or Bust,” on the Speed Channel.

The public was invited and the gates were open to each and all which also included several of Russell’s friends that flew across the country to share in the shindig, including a contingent of Sunshine State Master Builders, specifically Eddie Trotta, Billy Lane and Cyril Huze as well as West Coast industry luminaries Arlen and Cory Ness and Matt Hotch.

They were greeted by entertainment that included a series of first class bands including Johnny Day and the old school punk rock Numchucks revving up the sounds while hot barbecue and cold Pabst was served in abundance. “We’re good friends of Russell’s and full supporters of Exile Cycles and all they do,” said Johnny. “As far as making ten years, I think he’ll do 50.” That could be said about all those in attendance, Russell having accrued a large personal and professional following.

Inside the Exile “warehouse” a scintillating smorgasbord of bikes were featured in a special display including bikes by several west coast buildersincluding a pair of stellar bikes rode in by Arlen and Cory. Meanwhile Jesse Rooke rolled in on his radical 950cc KTM powered rocket sled, the bike weighing less than 300 lbs. Also on display were a small herd of Exile’s own bikes, each bearing the lean, clean and mean look and performance that has become Russell’s hallmark as he’s cut his own swath through the custom bike building world.

Russell also received special attention when the lovely ladies of Purrfect Angelz got him up on stage and danced up a storm around, over and under him that rivaled the thunderclouds roiling overhead. The Angelz (our kind of heaven sent versions) kicked high and slithered low much to the enjoyment of all, including Russell, and brought down the house with a smokin’ rendition of “I Love Rock and Roll!”

As the industry movers and shakers were in attendance, discussions included the effects on custom bike building created by the recent EPA impositions.Speaking to the wild mix of bikes, and nationalities represented at the festivities, Cyril Huze, himself French, commented, “I came here first because Russell and I are such good friends. It’s also great to see these new bikes before they even appear in the magazines. I also think we all enrich ourselves and the industry with our differences of culture and bike building philosophies. As far as the EPA concerns, I have been told they are reconsidering their position, and I think we are going to find the freedom we need to continue creating these works of art.”

A good cause clause was added to the event as the partygoers contributedto fight Juvenile Leukemia including forking over serious Benjamin’s forspecially autographed Exile shirts bearing the signatures of the manycustom bike “stars” in attendance. The first shirt, auctioned off by Russell himself (in great emcee form by the way) went for $200 thanks to the generosity of Gary Rowley, who happened to be from England himself. “I’ve loved Russell’s bike since day one! As far as ten years and his success, it’s the American dream come true and congratulations!”

Redneck Engineering’s honcho Vince Doll, in from South Carolina for the party, summed it all up, when asked what he thought of Russell’s tenth anniversary, “The Limey is doing okay. He’s done cool stuff, it’s different, it’s his own style.”

More info at www.exilecycles.com or phone 818-255- 3330.

Once again I was sent on a mission by Bandit. Ride to Scottsdale Arizona, spend a day at Myron Larrabee's Billet Bar and photograph the finest women I can find for “The Girls of the Billet Bar” article.

Let's review. Ride in Arizona, 85 degrees in April, go to a bar for a whole day (at Bandit’s expense), and photograph the finest looking female specimens I can find. I queried Bandit. At what point in our professional relationship do I get the really good gigs? Like hanging around a sweltering shop all day photographing some fat tattooed guy with a grinder trying to make the perfect fender strut for his old school project?

Bandit suggested that he could correct this horrible injustice, but being the kind of guy that I am and not wanting to make waves I bowed my head and headed off to do the masters bidding. I am very compliant that way.

I combined this trip with another assignment. I shot the Jail Break II, and old school chopper, for the The Horse Back Street Choppers with a stunning little lovely, Cindy. We finished that part of the day around 11am. I then moved into the Billet to do the extensive preparation required for my next assignment. i.e. … find an empty bar stool, park my ass down, order a beer and wait for the babes.

It was Bike Week in Arizona and Myron had let me know that the place had been jammed on a nightly basis and that I could stay very busy. With that in mind I decided to move about a little. You see some of the best looking women in the valley WORK at the billet. I set out on the arduous task of photographing each and every bartender and waitress in the place and I would not rest until that task was accomplished.

Not as easy as it sounds. Some staff members wanted their pictures taken over and over again, but there is always that one that hates to have her picture taken … and her name was Joy. Joy has been at the Billet for years but photos of her are as illusive and photos of the South American Slipper Lobster. I broke out my best telephoto lens so she couldn't see me coming, plus I look really cool carrying it around. My efforts paid off handsomely.

The added bonus of the day was the fact that from 4p.m. till 6p.m., Paul Yaffe, Jim Nasi and Roger Bourget were due for a little happy hour before they rode out to Arizona Bike Week headquarters to receive lifetime achievement awards … or something like that. I got to visit for awhile with Paul and his lady friend, Susan, for awhile while everyone waited for Nasi and Roger.

Also in attendance were Jay Allen of the world famous Broken Spoke Saloon and Mark from the also world famous Hideaway Bar in Cave Creek. Jay was in town to participate in the AHDRA races that weekend. I wanted to ride out with the couple hundred bikes that eventually left behind Paul and Myron, but alas, I had to be true to my original mission. Take pictures of the “Girls of the Billet Bar”.

There’s Paul Yaffe and a Girl of the Billet. We had several shots of Paul and girls. Didn’t know which one was appropriate.

I truly hope that all of you surfing through Bikernet.com realize what kinds of sacrifices are made by a few of us to bring you the best of what the biker community has to offer. I will keep taking these shit assignments to keep you informed.

–Scooter the Mutt

The owner, Myron, gets to ride once in a while.