Dear American Flat Track, I Dare You

Posted on June 30, 2018 by motopsyco

Dear American Flat Track.

I have a dare for you, in fact I double dog dare you. Invite owners of original 1980s vintage Honda RS750s to pull them out of mothballs, remove the damn restrictor plates and race mano-mano against the Indians.

Honda RS750 Flat Tracker

Harley couldn’t beat them without the AMA crippling them. Guess why I’m not an AMA member & never will be. Damn straight I hold a grudge forever. I had actually quit following flat track racing after I realized that I really wasn’t the Harley fan boy that I was pretending to be, and realized just how harshly & unfairly the Honda teams were being treated so I kind of just said, “fuck this bullshit,” and walked away. Apparently I wasn’t the only one because the series ratings tanked and it changed hands a few times, and quite frankly became minor league single brand racing.

Then I think it was in 2010 when I opened up a copy of Cycle World & read that Joe Kopp had won a major flat track race on a Ducati of all things. Digging into the story it turns out the new owners of the series were allowing motorcycles built around street bikes to compete against the ancient but well developed XR750 Harleys. And even better than that the competition was fairly equal, well as equal as it could be with street based motorcycle engines & frames racing against purpose built factory racers. Even Bill Werner the famous Harley racing tuner was running the Monster Energy Kawasaki team tuning a Ninja 650R. Flat track was worth following again! I actually have to give Harley Davidson credit for moving to the Street based XG750 race bikes and retiring the outdated old XR750.

But then along came Indian and now Harley like all of the other manufacturers is stuck using a true production based engine to compete against what is a completely custom built factory racing only machine. For a while I enjoyed their misery but I still have to give them credit for using XG engine.

Now let me stick the cold hard knife of truth deep into the back of the entire motorcycling press and the American Flat Track advertising staff. Everyone of you keep pushing this whole thing as an Indian versus Harley rivalry. Not really. This is an Indian walkover and in the majority of races the first bike behind the Polaris single purpose factory built racer is usually a Kawasaki Ninja 650, with the occasional KTM LC8, Ducati or Yamaha FZ07 taking it’s place.

I realize you guys think playing up this ancient history will help your rating and magazine sales. How’s that working out for you? We watch Fans Choice or read the results on the web or in the magazines. We see the truth. You keep writing headlines like Harley & Indian are running neck & neck when nothing could be further from the truth. All the other bikes are just competing to see who has the fastest production bike based racer behind the Polaris Indian factory race bikes. All of you have lost credibility with us because the race records never match your stories.

A perfect example of this is in Cycle World issue 1 2018. Kevin Cameron interviewed Bill Werner about his time as a flat track tuner & never once mentioned his time tuning the Kawasaki 650 Ninja. No wonder the rag has morphed into a quarterly hipster art rag like Iron and Air. Same for the rest of the once great publications, no loyalty to their fan base and a marketing strategy stuck firmly in 1994.

Here’s a hint for you, the Boomers are checking out and Gen X is taking over. In high school we didn’t drool over Harleys, for us it Interceptors, GSXRs, and Ninjas that we dreamed of. We expected our Jap bike magazines to be Jap bike magazines. We didn’t mind you reporting on the heavy cruisers but leave the serious “Murican Motorsickle” propaganda to publications like American Iron & Easyrider. Also no more headlines about Indian Versus Harley where you don’t even mention the Kawis, KTMs, & Yamahas that usually come in between the two. It just makes you into liars plain & simple.

Here’s my final statement; I’d pay good money to see an old Honda RS750 pulled out of mothballs, the restrictor plates removed, tuned by the best mechanics & ridden by the best riders the Honda Racing Corporation can provide, running a few races just to show the world how it’s really done. I bet you a hundred bucks it would win.

American Flat Track meet the The Mighty RS750

PS Dear American Flat Track, I don’t want you to make the Indians slower, you just need to let the other teams make their bikes faster. Oh yeah the Fans Choice TV broadcasts are terrific. Thank you for them. Please don’t let it get too boring again.

The Rightsizing of the Motorcycle Industry

Posted on August 27, 2017 by motopsyco

Rightsizing of the Motorcycle Industry

As I drove around last Saturday to hand out flyers and solicit door prizes for the upcoming Rails and Roads Vintage Motorcycle Show (September 16^th 2017 in Winnsboro SC) I stopped at a few dealerships and a few independent shops. In all places the welcomes were warm, but I noticed something very strange. In most cases there was almost no one in the stores besides the employees. When I worked at my local Honda dealership, every Saturday was a madhouse; an empty store on a Saturday was unheard of. It must have been inevitable that after decades of main stream success that it may be time for a rightsizing of the motorcycle industry.

Of course the recent news that Harley Davidson was going to layoff some production workers was something no one could have imagined 10-15 years ago. Before that Polaris announced the shuttering of their Victory motorcycle brand. The one bright spot in the market for Polaris is the success of the Indian brand that merged the solid technology of the Polaris company with an old legendary American brand name.

It’s not just cruisers, sport bike sales are off too. All across the market things are not as exciting as they used to be. The big 4 Japanese manufacturers are fortunate enough to have the ATV & side X side UTV market to keep them going, but even that segment has been affected by the tightening of the consumers spending habits. And this seems to be a global slide as the Nikkei Asian Review recently published an article entitled “The Motorcycle Becoming Thing of the Past.” According to this article, motorcycle sales in Japan are only 11% of what they once were. It’s sad to think that motorcycling is going away in the country that proved to the world that it was possible to build reliable, oil tight, powerful & lightweight motorcycles.

The bright spot in the world market for motorcycles is the increasing demand in India where according to the Times of India demand for 500cc and up motorcycles has increased at a 23% calculated annual growth rate from 2014 to 2017. This has led to a number of large players building factories there to pry some of this lucrative business away from Bajaj & Enfield.

Another happy trend is the vintage motorcycle industry. Although it is in very real danger of falling victim to the same over-exposure & over-saturation as the “American Chopper” crowd from a few years ago, right now the demand for genuine vintage motorcycles whether restored or customized in either the “café racer or “Bratstyle,”is extremely high. Now when you buy that old Japanese 4 or even small displacement twin you have to pay real money for it, if you don’t someone else will. A lot of motorcycle manufacturers have noticed this trend and now offer ready to ride retro style machines to allow you to experience the joy of vintage motorcycling without the misery of actually restoring a vintage motorcycle.

But the motorcycle companies are not the only ones that suffer from a soft demand for motorcycles, the Touratech company makers of some of the finest accessories for the adventure touring market filed for bankruptcy protection this year. This is yet another symptom of the rightsizing of the motorcycle industry. According to the Touratech U.S.A. blog operations will continue as normal during the company’s reorganization.

Motorcycle magazines are another thing hit hard by the rightsizing of the motorcycle industry. The audience is fickle even when times are booming it’s tough for publishers. Two of my all-time favorite motorcycle magazines came & went during the nineties at the height of the motorcycling boom in the U.S. The Old Bike Journal was one and the other was Twistgrip. Both of them came and went pretty quickly, The Old Bike Journal lasted longer because it had a broader audience, but both of these publications came and went during relatively good times.

Recently on Facebook, Buzz Kanter the publisher of American Iron Magazine shared his thoughts on the state of the industry giving some examples of how tough it is to survive and thrive in today’s market. I am going to share his exact words with you in the succeeding paragraphs. (Yes he generously granted permission for all to share them.)

“Call it Industrial Darwinism if you wish. But the business world is really all about the survival of the fittest. I have questioned for a few years how the motorcycle industry could support so many manufacturers, distributors and magazines. I now believe we are about to have a serious shift and downsizing.
I predict a growing number of changes in the motorcycle industry in the next year or so.
Too many motorcycle-industry businesses are over finanically over leveraged and will not be able to carry the debt. Others seem to be poorly managed. But others look healthy, creative and sustainable.
I expect more consolidation of big name motorcycle industry brands, some companies going out of buisness, and a very significant reduction of motorcycle magazines.
Paisano (Easyriders Magazine, V-Twin Magazine, Wrench Magazine, Road Iron Magazine) has announced they are folding all their motorcycle magazines except Easyriders, which they are reducing from 12 to 9 or 10 issues a year.
Bonnier (Cycle World Magazine, Motorcyclist Magazine, Hot Bike Magazine, Baggers Magazine, Sport Rider Magazine, etc) has been cutting back on their magazines’s sizes and frequencies. They just announced they are folding Sport Rider, and I expect more radical cuts in staff and product there.
So what does this all mean? I believe the motorcycle industry is ripe for a “rightsizing” where there will be a rebalancing of supply and demand. As demand for motorcycles, motorcycle parts and motorcycle services continue to decline, so does the financial support of those who serve these markets.
We at the growing family of American Iron media (American Iron Magazine, American Iron Garage, American Iron Salute, and American Iron Power magazines, plus our growing on-line operations) are working hard to understand and react to these changes with strategic and creative ways. We’d like to thank everyone involved with the amazing world of motorcycles for your support as we move ahead into the future.
If you have read this far, I’d appreciate your reaction and suggestions, also please feel free to share this post.”

This is sobering stuff from an acknowledged industry leader. The cuts at Bonnier especially bug me because Cycle World is the only one I subscribe to and is the current home of my favorite motorcycle writer of all times Kevin Cameron, but time and the economy march on relentlessly so we must all adapt or die.

Now this all sounds like a lot of gloom and doom, but there could be a lot of positives to the rightsizing of the motorcycle industry. As motorcycling has grown and become more mainstream the many of the long time hardcore motorcycle enthusiasts (especially American motorcycle loyalists) have resented being taken for granted and seemingly being pushed aside as the dealers and motorcycle companies ran chasing after the hordes of trend followers who saw motorcycles as cool fashion accessories to be discarded when the next big thing comes along.

Another advantage is that the companies that survive the rightsizing will be more competitive and have a sounder financial footing for the future. I just hope the ones that do can produce products that I like and still stay in business.

Part of the problem with the motorcycle industry is enthusiasts like me, people with eclectic tastes in motorcycles that no one else but me really wants. The problem with modern motorcycling for me is there are so few motorcycles available that I would have. The short list in order by desirability is;

Triumph Bonneville Street Twin (Yes the 900cc version I’d never miss the other 300cc.)
Moto Guzzi V9 Roamer or Bobber (I prefer the Roamer with its chrome and 19” front wheel)
Honda CB1100 (This bike can do no wrong and would actually be my first choice for a cross country ride, it just blends into the background too easily.)
Honda Africa Twin (Only adventure bike I’d want)
Royal Enfield Bullet (Love the style, riding position etc. but I’d have to keep a Honda in the garage next to it, you know just in case.)
a real 2012 Royal Enfield Bullet

Look at this list other than the Triumph does anybody else want one? I must not want one too badly either, the newest bike I own is a scooter an 01 Honda Helix, the next newest one is a 1980 CB650, & the others are from 1964, 1971 & 1972. Too many people bitch on the internet about what they want but when someone builds it they don’t go buy it. I plead guilty as charged to that. Prices are too damn high, income is down, and my 37 year old ratbike is just as roadworthy & reliable as anything I can buy.

This friends leads to the real reason for the “rightsizing of the motorcycle industry”, the customers just aren’t buying. There are a million reasons why not. In my case personally it’s the value of what you get versus what you pay. I can sign the line and get any motorcycle I want, but quite frankly to me they’re not worth the cost. Others just simply don’t see anything new that they want even though they don’t mind spending the money. Plus many vintage bikes especially the Japanese ones are damn near as reliable as anything made today for a fraction of the cost once they get fettled properly. Combine this with a general decline in interest in the experience of driving by younger people it’s easy to see why the industry as a whole is downsizing. The customers just aren’t buying.

Destination Eustis 2016 Motorcycle Show

Posted on March 12, 2016 by motopsyco

Friday at the Destination Eustis 2016 Motorcycle Show

There wasn’t really a lot going on yet when I rolled into the Destination Eustis 2016 Motorcycle Show early on Friday March 4th. So I went ahead and set up my base camp for the weekend. To stretch my budget this year, instead of staying in a hotel I decided to sleep on an air mattress in the back of the enclosed trailer. This actually made a decent camping arrangement as a simple tent heater kept it nice and cozy on the cool early spring nights.

Afterwards I went digging around the swap meet just to see what was there. I didn’t take as many pictures this year because I had an actual shopping list of parts that are needed for two very different bikes, one a 45 cubic inch Flathead Harley and the other a Honda CT70 Mini Trail. Didn’t find much for the mini but there were a couple of vendors that had some good deals on parts for the Flattie.

One of the absolute coolest things there was this little Model T replica for sale. The seller drove it around all over the place, and I hope some happy person took it home.

Other than a little shopping I just hung around the main exhibition hall and offered my meager assistance to the really hard working folks in the VJMC who were getting everything ready for the show on Saturday. Once darkness had fallen and supper was over it was time to retire to my little campsite and knock back a brew before turning in.

Saturday at the Destination Eustis 2016 Motorcycle Show

Fresh perked coffee early in the morning, sitting in a chair outside while cooking breakfast over a camp stove. The only way it could have gotten any better would be if my lovely partner had been there with me, but alas she had to work.

After making myself reasonably presentable it was time to head over to the main hall again and watch as the neat old bikes filed in to register for the show. Rather than trying to post them individually I put a few of them in a slideshow for you.

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There were of course a few extra special bikes that really stood out and demonstrated that even though this may be one of the smaller “Bike Week” events it attracts some really high caliber machinery.

First up is an ultra rare Flying Merkel, who doesn’t enjoy seeing an old timer like this in good running order?

There have been a lot of custom cafe racer or muscle-bike style custom Goldwings showing up on the internet and it was great to see this wild ‘Wing show up to take home 1st place in the custom class.

No vintage motorcycle show is complete without at least one classic American racer, and the stunning Indian flat tracker fits the bill perfectly.

The Best Of Show award went to my friend Mike, who brought this absolutely immaculate 1975 Kawasaki Z1B. He restored this bike himself from a rusty derelict. Look for more pictures of this one in the next week or two.

One of the best things about going to a VJMC organized show is the fact that the judging is done by audience voting. This makes results almost completely unpredictable, and does away the bullshit & hurt feelings that result from selection by a panel of judges. I’d also like to acknowledge the hard work of the Vintage Motorcycle Alliance, they run the swap meet and set up the vendor areas and without them and the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club, this event would not be what it is.

Click here to learn more about the Vintage Motorcycle Alliance

Click here to learn more about the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club

Until next time, Peace Y’all

The 2015 Bull City Rumble

Posted on October 3, 2015 by motopsyco

The 2015 Bull City Rumble

Every year for the last 11 years during the Labor Day weekend holiday the club Ton Up North Carolina has been hosting a great multiday event for vintage motorcycle enthusiasts in Durham North Carolina. The main focus is on vintage café racer styled customs, restorations, competition bikes, and vintage scooters. Ever since I discovered this event three years ago the Saturday bike show has been permanently added to my calendar.

One of the great things I love about this event is the fact that every year at least one really oddball custom will show up. The top motor freak at this year’s show was a diamond plate covered Goldwing that had everyone scratching their heads.

This being a café racer club there was plenty of fine British & European iron on display including an original unrestored 1983 Triumph TSS with electric start.

<1983 Triumph TSS>

Numerous Moto Guzzi motorcycles were on hand such as this T3 and this old Ambassador

I can’t tell you exactly which one of the two it was but one of these immaculate AJS machines that won best of show, both look so pristine I don’t think it matters

Fellow VJMC member Mike McSween was showing his terrific pair of restored vintage Kawasaki road racers with his 1971 H1R 500, number 56 in the picture taking home first place. The other green jewel in the picture is his 1972 H2 750 triple.

Anytime I get within a mile of a Vincent I have to take its picture. Even though I am normally a Japanese bike fanatic, Vincents like this 1952 model really are my ultimate dream machine. Perhaps one day…

The award for the best Japanese motorcycle went to this highly detailed & wonderfully conceived CX500 Honda.

No matter what angle it is viewed from the artistry & talent of the builder is just amazing.

Until 2014 there was no class for American motorcycles and while this was still the smallest class it did attract some high quality equipment including a 1950’s vintage Indian and this fine looking Harley Davidson J model.

I must confess that when the American class was first introduced that I and a couple of others had mixed feelings about it. We feared that an influx of the so called American bikers would destroy the character of this event and make it into yet another chrome, mullet, & tattoo show for us (and our fat wallets) to stay away from. Fortunately this has not happened so far. I was there for nine hours this year and only heard one person make a disparaging remark about the motorcycles with superior engineering, handling & reliability. Since she was blonde I’ll forgive her for not having the intellectual acumen to understand that some of us view our motorcycles as something more than just a two wheeled “Members Only” jacket.

It was great having Rommel Harley Davidson there as a sponsor and I really enjoyed checking out the new Street 750 demo trailer that they had set up. Check it out on the video below at the bottom of the page.
Other motorcycles at the show that I really liked included this very tasteful black Suzuki café racer. These late 70’s & early ‘80s Suzuki cycles don’t get nearly the love from restorers or customizers that they should, even though they were probably the best all-around motorcycles of that time period.

If you love vintage turbo bikes there were a Yamaha Seca & a Honda CX parked side by side on the street.

Everywhere you looked there was a good selection of vintage & retro machines, fine people, good eats, and plenty of excitement, and I am already planning to return next year. Check out the Ton Up NC website at http://tonup-nc.blogspot.com/ for more information.

I took so many pictures at the 2015 Bull City Rumble that I decided to put the best of the rest into a slide show.

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Here’s the youtube video that I made of the event. Watching this is probably the best way to get an idea of the scope of this event.

2015 Carolina Classic Motorcycle Show

Posted on May 10, 2015 by motopsyco

Carolina Classic Motorcycle Show registration tent

The Triad Vintage Motorcycle club hosted their 9th annual Carolina Classic Motorcycle Show on May 2nd 2015. Mrs. Finch & I saddled up the old Suburban Assault Scrambler and rolled out of our driveway headed toward the N.C. Transportation Museum in Spencer N.C. Rather than running up on the super boring slab I plotted a course to Spencer that involved rolling up to Chesterfield, S.C. and picking up Highway 742 and rolling into N.C. and picking up U.S. 52 for the rest of the way into the Show.

Let me get started by praising the venue, the Transportation Museum is a very nicely laid out train museum with great parking for visitors and a really nice grassy area with paved pathways for the show grounds. Although you will see glimpses of it in the pictures the best way to see how nice of a facility they have is to watch this little video clip I made riding into the museum. Some of the show bikes are also featured in the video as well.

I have decided to make this mostly a pictorial post with random comments. There was something for everyone here.

Lets go ahead and start out with this 1929 Indian Scout!

Of course while our baby boomer parents have driven the collectible motorcycle market so far, I predict that as those of us in Generation X take over you will see the motorcycles that we lusted over in our younger days such as this pristine Suzuki Katana experience a surge in value & collect-ability.

No motorcycle show is complete without a couple of nice Harleys

The old FLH was nice but I really loved this Evel Knievel replica Sportster.

Is that cool or what?

Some really nice British iron was there also.

Some off road racers were being shown as well.

The cafe racer crowd was well represented.

A very tasty looking Yamaha RZ350 Kenny Roberts signature edition.

For once mine was not the only rat bike in the show, check out this XS400 chopper.

Great looking patina on this old Norton

Another Gen X favorite we couldn’t afford when we were 19, the Honda Interceptor

The trains rolling in and out during the day greatly added to the atmosphere of the event.

It’s time for me to stop writing now & let the pictures do the rest of the talking…

Yamaha Seca Turbo

Sears Puch 250 Twingle

1966 Honda Super 90

To see more visit the Triad Classic Motorcycle Club Facebook page

Peace Y’all

Scout Versus Sportster ??? Not Really

Posted on September 10, 2014 by motopsyco

Well it looks as though Polaris has the new Indian Motorcycle Company revival going full steam. The new Chief and its variants seem to be doing well as they have a truly beautiful retro styled engine slotted into a decent heavy cruiser chassis with fairly unique looks. Not my cup of tea but I hope they do well with them.
Recently they announced the coming release of the new Indian Scout model with a 100 h.p. liquid cooled engine. This was certainly enough to make me take notice. Ever since then the internet has been buzzing with discussion about it. All of the Harley haters (and some of the “Big Twin” snobs) have popped up on Facebook and all of the forums predicting the end of the Sportster.

Normally I would not write about a motorcycle that I do not have some personal experience with and having never sat on one yet will not comment upon its performance as a motorcycle, but just by looking at the available specs and pictures I can say with absolute certainty that this new Indian is no threat to Sportster sales. I repeat the new Scout is no threat to the Sportster. Sure it may be a more modern engine, in fact when I first heard about it I really had high hopes, until I saw the chassis it was slotted into.
There is not anything really wrong with the chassis if it is what you like, the North Star company has some of the best engineers in the world, and it looks really good and probably handles very well for a power cruiser. But you are locked into what you have, sure there are different footpeg and handlebar options, but the frame & suspension are finished. To put mid controls or rearsets on this motorcycle would require extensive modification, possibly a whole new frame. Ditto for trying to chop it, rake it or anything else. This is a completely finished motorcycle with a high tech alloy frame, there is really not much left to do to it, and at present time not much you can do with it.

The new Scout is a power cruiser. Don’t think Sportster, think V-Rod, V-Max, & the dearly departed Honda Magna, this is the market segment that this new Indian plays to, and quite frankly it’s a rather limited market. Harley knows what they are doing with the Sporty, and they know that a big h.p. Sportster will not sell. They already tried with the XR1000 back in the eighties and they frequently collected dust on the showroom floors because they were unwanted and unloved.

Now THIS is a badass Harley!

Motorcycle magazines are another source of the speculation; normally they tend to treat U.S. manufacturers with kid gloves but are getting a kick out of fanning the flames of this potential rivalry. If it sells magazines more power to them.
But I digress let’s get back the Scout versus Sportster. As mentioned earlier I have not ridden a new Scout yet, but I have ridden dozens of Sportsters & believe it or not really like the way they ride and handle with the standard size wheels & tires, and some reasonably tall rear shocks. At this point in time the Sporty is still in a class by itself, Yamaha has made a good go of it with the Bolt but it still lacks street cred in some circles. It’s a cool bike but all of the other road pirates will pick on you for riding Jap crap.
Remember I mentioned earlier that the Scout seems to be a completely finished bike? Well the Sportster is not, and that is a very good thing. Sure you can buy your Sporty and leave it bone stock and have a nice enjoyable ride which will run on reliably nearly forever. But what fun is that? Here is the real advantage the Sporty has over every other motorcycle on the planet including the Motor Company’s own big twins, it is the most versatile two wheeled customizing platform to ever exist on the planet. You can make it into a chopper, bobber, street tracker, café racer, dual sport adventure bike, add bags & fairing for a touring bike, throw a wad of cash at the suspension & engine & create a canyon carver or a muscle bike / power cruiser, you can even race the damn thing if you want to. The factory has realized this and the have created several variants of the Sportster to take advantage of those wimps that don’t want to bleed on a bike in order to make it their own.
The new Scout look ready to kick ass & take names right out of the box but the Sportster is still the ultimate blank canvas for the garage artist.
Advantage Harley Davidson…

You see a motorcycle, I see art waiting to happen!

Please note any pictures not taken by yours truly were listed as “free to use and share” by Bing image search. If I have inadvertently used your copyrighted image please let me know & I will be glad to replace or remove them.

Thoughts on a Good Weekend.

Posted on March 19, 2014 by motopsyco

Here is a little video I shot of the show in Florida on March 8th 2014 enjoy. For my thoughts about the weekend keep reading below the vid.

Last weekend I did a few live blog posts while I was at the VMAs swap meet in Eustis Florida. Today after I’ve had a week to sitback and reflect upon ago I thought I would share of you things I learned from the experience did take a few used items for sale along with the display of Rock oil products and the battery or two, but my main goal really were to help publicize this blog, and just get out and have a good time and made some people. I am a member of the vintage Japanese motorcycle club so I went for the show and to help support the group. It turned out to be really great show using my favorite judging system which is 100 percent people’s choice the winning bikes decided by audience vote and not by a judging panel. This did lead to a couple of interesting surprises, such as in the all custom motorcycle class a heavily modified Tomos moped took first place while a Harley Davidson V-rod took second. It’s just totally crazy and restores my faith in humanity when things like that happen.

T’was great fun and very educational for us meeting some of the other vendors and talking to them. I have a confession to make, I have made a point of deliberately avoiding large motorcycle rallies due to the snobbery of certain groups and types of ~~posers~~ riders and I had forgotten just how much fun it was truly hang out with a bunch of great old fashioned bikers who didn’t really care what you rode as long as you rode. I love old motorcycles of all kinds, hell I love most new motorcycles too, there are just certain styles of machine that I prefer and certain companies whose way of doing business leaves me cold. Motorcycling is about freedom, individualism & personal style not conformity to someone else’s expectations.

Mrs. ‘Psyco and I would like to thank the other vendors who were so helpful to us, especially the wonderful lady from Crazy Bob’s Biker Apparel who really helped us out with setting up our canopy.

everything I wanted growing up!

The show was actually very large but the swap meet area was not quite as big as I was hoping it would have be but it was still nice and there was a large variety of different motorcycles. Next time I go to a swap meet, especially if I’m selling I do want to camp out at the meet between the gas and the fact that I wanted to stay in a hotel this week’s profit was not existent but I had mainly went just to enjoy myself and have a good time. My beautiful financial manager said next time we should definitely camp out and she would have done it this time as she is the one who is hardcore where as I’m the old guy with the soft chewy center. In all honesty as far as taking used parts to a swap meet unless they are things that are really older and valuable from a strict point of dollars and sense you’re better off to sell them online, but you would miss the camaraderie the chance to stumble across the good deals or to find unique objects. Even so I have learned a few lessons and next time I won’t take any disassembled mid 80’s motorcycles project bikes and parts. Unless it is something that would be a really great deal to sell as a complete motorcycle those should be left at home, just pack & sell the things that are truly nostalgic. Almost all of my early seventy’s on the stuff was gone the first day I sold a few dirt bike parts, couple a spark plugs, & some points but that was pretty much it.

I should have bought this and installed an early GSXR1100 motor in it!

There were quite a few good deals to be had and next year I might have to leave room in the van so that I can do a little shopping myself. Since I returned home my day job has kept me wide freaking open so I have not even had the chance to fully unpack yet. At least I found a new owner for the Kawasaki that no one would even look at in Eustis, so it can be unpacked at its new home this week. Look for us at a few more events around the southeast this year.

euro trash makes for fun restorations

It was great time and I hope to see you all on the road out there, somewhere, someday

Peace y’all

early Sunday at Lake Eustis

I should probably go back one day just to go fishing…

A great variety of motorcycles!

Posted on March 7, 2014 by motopsyco

It’s still early on Friday and not everyone is here yet but there’s already a great variety of motorcycles present.

A nice line of Hondas.

How do you like this Indian Scout?

68 BMW

Triumph 3TA

More British iron

Do you need a monkey bike?

BSA !!!

Silent Grey Fellow

Panheads Forever

Time for a hot Italian beauty.

And last but definitely not least a 4 cylinder Indian.
Now if the sun would come on out.

Why We Ride Film Motopsyco’s October Website of the Month!

Posted on October 9, 2013 by motopsyco

It’s worth going to the website just for the great pictures like this.

Whyweridefilm.com

Let me be up front with you, when International Motorcycle Shows first posted the trailer for this movie on Facebook I almost didn’t click on it. So often these “documentaries” about motorcycling are so one dimensional that they seem to be written for a narrow group of riders and/or racers. While I have yet to see the movie itself I have watched the trailer about 10 times already! There are interviews with kids, moms, street riders, Harley aficionados, crotch rocket jockeys, & racers from a variety of two wheeled motorsports all talking about how much they love to ride motorcycles & trying to explain the feeling to the rest of the world. Those of us who already ride understand the passion that just overflows out with the words they speak. Hopefully some of the normal people that get dragged to this film by friends and family will feel it too, and if they don’t at least want to try it will at least get an understanding of what draws us to these machines that so many people mistakenly see as deathtraps.

another fantastic pic from whyweridefilm.com

I ride a motorcycle & I love it. When I was a skinny little nerdy kid it was my favorite escape. No matter how bad my days at school were, when I slid that two stroke Kawasaki around a curve in the woods behind the cow pasture & then jumped one of the hills at the side of the canal ditch I was the ultimate 6th grade badass and all was right with the world! Today most of my riding is commuting back & forth to work on my ancient Honda, but it is still my escape and when everything is just right, I still roll on the throttle exiting that last turn before a long straight and pin it to the stop, while the ghost of Hunter S. Thompson whispers in my ear, “screw it on you big pussy” as the speedometer hurtles toward that magic number that all the Ton Up Boys lived & died for. It has been approximately 37 years since I got my first motorcycle and even though age and injuries have made me more cautious it still thrills me. Just like the first time! Every time. Even when just putting around at slow cruising speeds like the old fart that I am becoming. Bottom line is, I’ll quit riding when I die.

whyweridefilm.com

Even if you don’t visit the website at least click on this line and go watch the trailer! Then come back here & tell me & the rest of the world why YOU ride in the comments section. I am going to close this out by quoting from the synopsis on the movie website.

“Your senses will heighten as the world rushes in, your heart will beat to the pulse of the engine, your mind will race and set you free. Once you let a motorcycle into your life, it will change you forever.”

Sums it up for me,

Peace Y’all

More Bikes from Concord Rare Stuff Here!

Posted on May 31, 2012 by motopsyco

This post will be almost all pictures there is some really cool stuff that I have never seen anywhere else. Check em out and leave a comment telling us your favorite(s).

(comments are moderated so please be patient, and once again please excuse the low res pictures)

Peace Y’all