mostly uninteresting

Bad ass chopper helmet......

2012-01-25T14:23:00.000-08:00

heavy man . . . heavy

2012-01-18T12:35:00.000-08:00

Another good looking Shovelhead !

2012-01-12T07:37:00.000-08:00

Looks great Scott , I hope it sees many miles on your bike !

Thanksgiving , 2011

2012-01-05T08:51:00.001-08:00

this is what you get when you open a waxing salon in my neighborhood

2012-01-05T08:43:00.000-08:00

It turns into a peep show for 4 year olds !

If this is the taste of selling out then , yum .

2011-12-23T15:54:00.000-08:00

I've never actually bought a beverage from Starbucks ® until today , like for myself . I've given Amy $5 to go grab a coffee or some shit like that , or had the occasional tea bought for me by someone else , ( it was never this good BTW ) but up until today I've never actually thought to myself " damn I want to go into a Starbucks ® and buy something to drink " .

Well they have this black tea , that has this sweet shit in it . It tastes like sweet sun tea , kind of like the tea my mom used to make . My mom is from Mobile Alabama and she would fuck up some sweet tea , so I know what sweet tea is supposed to taste like .

At any rate , this tea is amazing and I'm not sure which is douchier , how much I like this tea or that I'm blogging about it . . . but fucking-a . It's pretty good !

Welcome to hell !

If you're like me at all , and you probably are ( at least a little ) . . .

2011-12-22T08:50:00.000-08:00

then you're bummed out that you can find good old timer 50's & 60's & 70's music on the AM radio anymore . It seems like they have all but gotten rid of that format around here , and it makes cruising in your oldie a lot less enjoyable .

Obviously with the advent of modern technology we have the internet and wireless this and that , and all kinds of awesome that can take the place of said AM radio loss , and fill that vacuum nicely .

Enter the iPod touch with wi-fi , then enter the cleaned out ashtray ( iPod dock / amplification system ) and viola ! We're cruising to the rocking sounds of AM gold . . . This is my buddy Dave's 1964 Dart station wagon . He says he's going to make a little iPod cozy to hold it in place in the ashtray For now the ashtray makes it sound pretty loud due to the chamber effect it has , but he wants to add an 1/8" audio in jack to the radio so he can amplify the tunes on his radio & crank the mono speaker in the dash and cruise in style . Good times keeping old shit relevant and up to the task .

Here's part 2 of my little knife story .

2011-12-10T08:41:00.000-08:00

My pal Fredo who owns & operates Star Leather here in San Diego & who let me use his facility to make my knife handle in the earlier post , made this slick little sheath for me yesterday . He knocked it out in about an hour & 1/2 only counting for a few " high-deas " and a couple mistakes it turned out awesome .

I wanted to be able to put the knife on or take it off my belt without removing the whole belt so he came up with this tricky little system . You just unsnap everything , pass it up & under your belt and viola . You're geared up and ready for some camping or urban warfare or whatever kind of shit you're into .

I also wanted a place where I could attach a lanyard to keep it from flopping around if I were wearing it on a bike and jamming out or climbing a rock face like David Lee Roth looking for adventure . He came up with this little utility tab . Bingo , keeps getting better huh ?

So if you need some sweet custom leather gear made up for you right here in the USA and you want it a certain way or color or whatever , Fredo is your man and Star Leather is where you want to go . (619) 302 4159 The website's not much to look at right now but the number is good and he will take care of you . I can't promise hell get it done in 2 hours , but we're tight bros and that's how we roll . You're experience might differ slightly .

What would Easyriders look like in the future

2011-12-09T10:56:00.000-08:00

Or I guess technically a long time ago , in a galaxy far far away . . .

This is a stolen picture . I found it on a blog called ATR .

2011-11-26T09:04:00.000-08:00

I don't know them but they took this picture of this nice motorcycle built by this feller named Grant .

The reason I'm posting it here , is because Grant was nice enough to buy one of my fancy iron cross points covers and put it on his bike . Hence I have it here for your viewing pleasure . Thanks Grant for building a pretty neat chopper & ATR for being awesome and not even knowing it .

Boom-shaka-laka .

If you now me personally , this little story will be no big surprise but will maybe shed a little light onto the kind of person I am and why .

2011-11-25T19:52:00.000-08:00

When my parents moved to Bonita from skyline in the late 60's , it was a case of " white flight " from a once beautiful young neighborhood in Spring Valley that was suffering the fancy new fangled plague called " urban gang activity and turf war " We had lived in Skyline for about 4 years and had just adopted my sister before it started to eat shit and become a life sized shooting gallery . My mom & dad decided it wasn't a going to be such a great place to raise their newly aquired young family .

We moved to a bigger house in a new neighborhood called Bonita . It wasn't too far from Spring Valley , but it was light years away from all the trouble and violence going on there . It was near a park and was new and clean and not engrossed in drug and gang troubles so it seemed like a good new start to a brand new life as a family man .

He was the first one to buy a lot and as soon as the word got out all of his newly retired Navy buddies all jumped the line and bought new houses on the same street . It was awesome . We had a family in every house on the block and new everyone in every direction . It was pretty much urban utopia .

One of the great parts about this new living situation was the constant roaming house parties . Being a bunch of retired salty dogs , these men liked to tear back on the cocktails and have a good time every once in a while . All the wives would lounge around on the patios with Mai Tais or Blue Hawaiians , smoking like smoke stacks while the dads would be huddled around a little a.m. radio listening to the ball game next to the pool drinking beers and getting sun burns and whooping it up like a bunch of drunk sailors .

To this end my dad decided to take it to the next level . We had a 4 bedroom house , and my dad knocked out one of the windows and made it into a sliding glass door , that led to a swimming pool . On the other side of that door he built the ultimate man cave ( at least that's what they call it now-a-days ) , complete with a sunken bar ( where the closet would have been ) a working sink ( plumbed into the bathroom sink on the other side of the back wall ) , hidden Hi-Fi speaker system and a keg cooler . All this sweat and work , to have a classy drink with his pals . . . who's that sound like .

I've tried to tell my friends who've never been to that house what the room looked like and how it hasn't changed in the better part of 35 years . I swear it has bottles of booze that have been there for that long .

Anyhow , here it is for the first time ever , photographic proof of the crazy story I always tell about my dad's bar-room . This is a large part of why I am the man I am today , because I spent a large portion of my youth hanging out in this room with the dudes , talking dude shit and making drinks for the old guys .

And this is the ceiling . . . black spray on popcorn texture , with sliver flake in it . Yes , my dad has a metalflake ceiling , in his bar , that he built by himself , in his house . I was fucked from the holeshot .

The venerable Banana Caliper

2011-11-21T09:07:00.000-08:00

I know more about this little feller than I ever thought I would need to know . Big thanks to Davey for motivating me , once we hit the garage and started scoping it out , he realized that the dust seal on the new caliper would work on the old caliper so we took them apart and put them back together with each others parts and we started looking good .

Oscar busted the piston a little when he put it back together for me the first time so the original seal ripped when we got it assembled and back on the bike . I had to take it all apart again do a little filing & dremeling & massaging to get it to be compliant , but it sealed up nice and solid . Big thanks for him finding me that damn caliper in the first place . I couldn't use it in the end because it needed a " Y " bracket instead of the " boomerang " bracket . Who would have thunk it . It did however have the elusive dust seal that we needed so it turned out great .

Well all's well that ends well , except that once it was all back together and looking like I was out of the woods , I find this under the bike . . .

yippy . . . . brake fluid , leaking from the master cylinder ! The chase for junky old ass motorcycle parts continues ( or at least a rebuild kit ! )

**EDIT** it turns out that my #1 bro buddy Davey who filled up the master cylinder , tells me after the fact " Oh yeah bro , I was a little messy when I topped it off , that's probably just left over dripping off there . " Well as it turns out , it seems that's the case . No mess under the bike for the last few days and the reservoir is full . . . all is well in old Harley town for now !

***NEW EDIT*** , no it's leaking . never mind .

So sad......

2011-11-17T15:56:00.000-08:00

I guess punk rock can be imported as a DNA thing

2011-11-15T08:27:00.000-08:00

Like at a genetic level , deep in your molecular structure .

That or being a spaz is just what 4 year olds do when they hear anything fast and silly . I like the first one better even though I know the last one is more likely to be true .

Finding things . . .

2011-11-02T08:43:00.000-07:00

Some of the most fun you can have for no money is just keeping your eyes open and seeing some cool shit that has been abandoned for whatever reason . I've been wanting a metal detector my whole life , but that's not what this is about , this time .

About 15 years ago I was at a party in the park down by my house . My neighborhood was pretty sketchy back then , you could hear drive-bys and screeching tires and buy almost any kind of weekend party substance right on the corner from some friendly entrepreneur . Seems like that was a long time ago . . . so I'm chilling & grilling at the park . We're all having a great time and I notice something pointing up out of the mud . It turns out that this crusty old knife is stuck in a mud puddle that had dried out and left the broken tip showing about an inch above the crust .

Being the scavenger that I am , I pick it out and clean it off and take it home . It was pretty messy , the tip was broken and bent and the leather handle was falling apart , so I just stuck it up on a shelf next to my stereo in the garage . Hidden back up perhaps for home invasion that never happened . Forgotten for the most part .

Anyhow , fast forward to a few weeks ago and I am thinking , " man I'd like a nice fixed blade knife for my collection , but they can be so expensive . . . " just like that . Eventually as I reach up to turn up the stereo I see my trusty crusty old shank and decide to save a few bucks & restore it into a usable tool .

After a few hours of wire wheeling , heating and rebending the tip and regrinding the point it's starting to look pretty good , but the handle is fucked . The leather rings that made up the grip are disintegrating and falling apart the more I mess with it . It only took about 10 minutes of Googling ® to find replacement parts for this type of knife and I'm off to the races . My buddy Fredo is an aspiring leather crafting master and he offers to help me rebuild the handle and with about an hour on a drum sander and a little burnishing and stain it turned out really nice . I blacked out the metal with gun blueing acid and put a nice new edge on there and it's turned out to be a pretty nice blade .

Turns out also that after I got all the muck & years of neglect off of it , it's a Camillus blade made in NY . They went out of business in the 80's but made blades for the military as well as cooking and plain old civilian type knifing . This one in particular is a Viet Nam era pilots survival knife . The original kit had a neat leather sheath with a sharpening stone in a pouch . That was no where to be found sadly . Fredo is however going to craft me a custom sheath that you can see in the picture . I made a cardstock cut out of what I want it to look like , and he said he could whip it out in no time . Back on the road with a whole new lease on life !

I wonder what kind of life this blade lived through it's long existence and in it's original owner's hands , and how it ultimately ended up in a mud puddle with a broken & bent tip , in the gutter 4 blocks from my house .

Have a great Halloween!!!!

2011-10-28T08:10:00.001-07:00

Time for some maintenance , apparently .

2011-10-24T09:44:00.000-07:00

Last week the old '77 started making a slight grinding noise when I would step on the rear brake . At first it was just a hint of a grinding sound so I figured I had a minute to scare up some parts and get to it . Well 2 days later it was grinding with no brake , just rolling it made this sketchy scraping sound .

One of my brown brothers Oscar tells me " hey man , I have some pads & stuff if you need them . Maybe even a rotor for you " , so I get busy and start taking things of .

This kind of stuff is relatively easy . I have a good copy of the original HD manual and it shows exploded views and all the tid bits and small parts . It came apart quick & painless . . . that's when I saw this .

Yee haw ! I guess when you ride like the wind and you ride to live , and all that good shit , you tear through gear like crazy . . . hmm . Anyhow new pads & new rotor and it should be good to go . Here's the rotor , ala Oscar all cleaned up and looking good . I even got between the spokes and got the wheel all prettied up too .

As it turned out when I put the caliper back on , the piston was stuck and didn't want to ease up on the pads . After a few initial miles , the rotor was super hot and it was obvious that there was more going on that needed attention . Oscar tells me he'll give it a shot and rebuild it for me real quick like , because he has a few parts laying around that I don't have and it should be a snap .

Well as it turned out it was not a snap and when we got it put back on , a seal was leaking all over the rotor causing me to not be able to stop on command , which is bad . It looked like the piston got a little goofed up when it got pressed in and I think it ripped the piston seal . No biggie though as banana caliper parts are falling out of the trees around here these days , and it should be back on the road in no time .

It's raining today anyhow , so whatever . I'll ride to live later .

Eric sent me this

2011-10-08T21:50:00.000-07:00

He said he's a faithful reader of my blog and thought I'd be interested in this , well yeah .

It pretty much rules !

Thanks Eric !

Things I love.....

2011-10-07T12:01:00.000-07:00

Stuff you see outside of a tattoo shop sometimes .

2011-09-23T16:02:00.000-07:00

Fip Buchanan's amazing 1940 mercury custom .

My friend Mikey is putting together this little store with the guys from Trophy Motorcycles

2011-09-23T15:55:00.000-07:00

It's going to be a sort of vintage clothing / record store / bike rider gear, type of shop . He has lots of nick-nacs and stuff in there already , but he's going to have a full line of Loser Machine stuff as well as his own swap meet pickings . It kind of has a punk rock boutique vibe from the early 80's .

Everything looks good so far . I'm happy to see him taking charge of his shit and trying to make his own way . Support your local pack ratts and spend your money on cool shit !

Pack Ratt Records , 4952 El Cajon Blvd S.D. right next to Trophy Motorcycles .

Soooo who ya votin' for next year?

2011-09-19T07:31:00.000-07:00

Big Sur......

2011-09-13T10:53:00.000-07:00

We took the roads less traveled on Saturday, short blast to Soledad on the 101 then on to Metz rd. down to King Shity, over the bridge to Jolone rd. and down to Fort Hunter Liggett to head up and over Nacimiento-Fergusson then to the 1 and back north to Fernwood to camp, play a show and party down. All in all it was a great time..

Goin' on a little putt this weekend..

2011-09-09T14:35:00.000-07:00

Gunna turn the one hour trip to Big Sur into a three hour tour. If you are in the area we'll be at Fernwood Saturday night....

Ya it is.......

2011-09-07T10:58:00.000-07:00

Things I miss some times....

2011-08-31T14:08:00.000-07:00

My 49 and my 65, not sure if I miss them or the times more......

We were on our way to a play date with Vaughn and Amy suggested we drive through Balboa Park . . .

2011-08-29T08:23:00.000-07:00

Glad we did . We discovered this impromptu lowrider show . Of course there were a few super whacked out cars and lots of really nice classic lowriders . Lots of kids running amuck and the grills were going off . We just rolled through and took a few snaps .

I really hate these guys...

2011-08-19T07:21:00.000-07:00

Mike it's been three years,

2011-08-08T07:49:00.000-07:00

don't you think its time for a visit?

San Diego Comicon 2011 was bigger than ever and Vaughn actually had a lot of fun this time .

2011-07-27T08:51:00.000-07:00

We decided to wait till Sunday this year which they say is " kids day " . Well I guess there were a few kids in the house , but it seemed like any regular day to me . Packed full of nerds & cosplayers & geeks & various good and bad guys .

Also we saw ( and I'm not sure why they were there to begin with . . . ) the Sons of Anarchy cast , signing autographs . Amy took a few pictures of those guys and I'll post them later when I get them off her phone . I know I know , F those guys and that show . . . whatever . I love it and you do to , so shut it .

This year I only spent $20 and I felt weird not having a backpack full of obscure fragile toys and junk that had to be spirited home . . . I got my son a Transformers toy , and 2 cookies . that was the extent of my Con experiance this year . I'd say the smiles on his face in the various pictures make up for the lack of money I spent this year .

Last weekend we went to Barona for the King of Clubs drag races

2011-07-20T09:28:00.000-07:00

Barona is a local indian reservation and they have an 1/8 mile drag strip . A few of my friends were racing and we like to go out and camp with them ( camping is free btw ) and support their efforts . By support I mean hang around and eat great bbq food and have drinks all day . . . but once the sun goes down it gets fancy at the compound . This is my buddy Dave's Silverstreak trailer all lit up in all its glory .

This should take you less than twelve parsecs to paint...

2011-07-11T15:43:00.000-07:00

Hey batter batter !

2011-07-06T10:04:00.001-07:00

Have a great 4th of July long weekend

2011-07-01T12:07:00.000-07:00

Barbecue it up ladies and bros!!!!

I finally managed to get someone to send me a picture !

2011-06-20T08:31:00.000-07:00

It looks good all painted up like this . . . freedom machine , knees in the breeze .

this party is coming up and these guys have something to say about it

2011-06-16T08:45:00.001-07:00

Real modern day , rough neck chopper hoodlums

Dice Magazine for Born Free 3 from Michael Schmidt on Vimeo.

This little guy makes sure everything stays cool & together in the garage

2011-06-13T10:20:00.000-07:00

The pride of Prunedale will be in Vista.....

2011-06-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

Little Jenny will be at Power Tattoo in Vista this Friday & Saturday tatty zappin' and what not..If you can't get all inked up come on by and get some of her new stuff, FTW (French Toast Wizard) shirts and/or prints, or just come over and hang out...... If you don't have the time to stop at the shop you can get these off her blog Hard Road Designs...

Here's a little gem from the past .

2011-06-06T10:02:00.000-07:00

My neighbor Shauna found these pictures that her mom took of her and her dad , when she was a kid . You never know when a stash of super cool pictures will turn up and tell you something about someone you think you know .

I guess he was a bit of a motorcycle enthusiast . . .

My buddy Dave Warshaw is a tattooer that I work with by day ,

2011-06-03T12:42:00.000-07:00

But he's also a crazy tweaker by night . Not the bad kind of tweaker , but the kind who will stay up all night drinking coffee drawing crazy detailed tweaked out images of monsters with a ball point pen , on a scrap of wood . His stuff is pretty nuttso and he just started a blog , so I added a link .

Check it out buy some of his shit and support local artists & craftsmen . . . and get your tweak on !

Urban Taxidermy

I use to be in a band...

2011-05-27T09:51:00.000-07:00

2011-05-21T14:48:00.000-07:00

Here's another one that makes you wonder , what are these guys thinking . . .

2011-05-20T09:31:00.000-07:00

I love Star Wars just as much ( okay way more than ) the next guy . Mix that up with a healthy dose of outlaw motorcycle inspired culture , after all Darth Vader is one of the baddest bad guys out there . He's a fucking outlaw for crying out loud !

I'm not sure if this is an actual Lucas Films ® endeavor and they engaged a team of copyright lawyers make sure this was different enough to not step on any toes , or if they just figured they had more or tougher lawyers than someone else . Maybe this is a tag team rip off and no one knew it was happening . That would make for 2 very pissed groups of people who both have very aggressive legal teams at their disposal . . . regardless it's pretty bad ass , on a nerdy / outlaw level .

I'm not sure if I would wear this out of the house as that could initiate some very awkward conversation with certain people who take this stuff very seriously . . . but it is a really interesting crossbreed of 2 very interesting and different cultures .

Once again the " outlaw subculture " gets a bite taken out of it by the mainstream .

The Weekend Gypsy

2011-05-16T21:57:00.000-07:00

Is the name of my wife's little pet project she's been working on for a while now . It's the name of her Etsy store and also what she sort of thinks of herself . Since she's a full time mommy and wife , she only has time to be a part time gypsy ! We've started making crystal jewelry together . The cool part is that the crystals are set in fired bullet casings .

Bullets that we shoot at the range together and collect , then polish them and make twisted wire hangers and set the crystals . Kind of artsy craftsy stuff , but I get to help with the more intensive ( dangerous ) aspects of it like the soldering and the polishing .

These crystals are all pretty cool looking and depending on the finish ( some of them are polished , some are wire wheeled and some are just raw brass ) they really take on different looks . They're all pretty awesome though .

Take a look at the few of them we have online so far and pick one out for your special lady friend . We can also make them personal with a certain caliber and particular crystal if you want to surprize someone special with a real treat , for no good reason .

Just remember . . . home made junk is the best junk , support your local junk makers !

The Weekend Gypsy

Not interested in American Idol this weekend ? Hanging out in So Cal with no plans ? Here's something you can do

2011-05-13T09:46:00.000-07:00

Caught up with these fellers on the 5 headed north near Pacific Beach on Mothers Day , Sunday 8th

2011-05-09T08:46:00.000-07:00

I'm guessing these guys were probably on the way back up from Mexico and the El Diablo ride . By the looks of their colours , they had a good long ride in front of them .

Support your local Death Traps MC , on the road again !

We're running away from Darth Vader !

2011-05-07T07:49:00.000-07:00

I'm so proud of my son ! I had to wait till I was 11 to fall in love with Star Wars . . . he gets to start at 3 !

Since when do high altitude jets make u-turns

2011-05-06T11:52:00.001-07:00

Sometimes all you need to make things better

2011-05-03T07:49:00.000-07:00

is a chocolate chip pancake . I wish life could stay this simple sometimes .

Was gunna go to Alderaan this weekend but it don't look good..

2011-04-25T09:20:00.000-07:00

Recent picture of the old heap , last seen relaxing in Germany somewhere

2011-04-24T06:34:00.000-07:00

Went and had lunch with Mikey & Inde , and then sat on his stoop for a spell .

2011-04-22T13:33:00.000-07:00

Go take a ride , even if it's a short one . get some wind on your face and the day seems to flow a little more nicely .

Last weekend.....

2011-04-20T15:46:00.000-07:00

It wound up being a good trip 800+ miles of hot, cold, wind 40+ miles of lane splitting (all at once after being on the road for 300 miles that day) good friends, lots of hugs and lots of smiles.. And a little work, Jason and I keeping Hemet safe for all the chopper bros and sweet mamas....

Random shots from the garage before work

2011-04-14T09:01:00.000-07:00

And this too.....

2011-04-14T08:57:00.003-07:00

Go to this, it's gunna be good.....

2011-04-06T13:15:00.001-07:00

So I'm sure everyone's tired of me talking about how awesome my wife is . . .

2011-03-30T10:00:00.000-07:00

Tough shit .

I had been talking about getting a new helmet for riding to work . Just a local around town helmet that was legal ( DOT compliant ) and wasn't some stupid grafix ridden abortion . I've been wearing my beanie style job since the helmet law was enacted for short rides around town , but it's pretty rediculous overall and I wanted to upgrade a little . I have a nice old full face that I wear if I'm going for more than a short ride or if I'm spending any amount of time on the freeway just because I'm pretty and I want to stay that way . I know how much it sucks to come off on the freeway at high speeds & it's not fun . I've been lucky in the past , but now days I'm not much of a risk taker with shit like that .

I'm always scouring the swap meets & eBay for that perfect Bell helmet from the 70's , gloss white , no flash or fancy , one that would actually fit me maybe . . . and then Biltwell starts making these novelty helmets that are pretty close to the old Bell helmets . Not a bad price either . Maybe this is what I need ?

Well Amy does her homework and figures out that Bell is remaking the famous 3/4 open face helmet in a limited quantity . Why own a copy when I could have the real thing she decides . A modern version and compliant in my DOT mandatory state I live in .

Long story short , I got one of these for my birthday last week . Real Bell 3/4 helmet , the colour I wanted , no old ass dead foam in it , wont have to fuck with it to make it fit my mellon . . . perfect right ?

No way . It was almost a full size too small . Enter the simple ball peen hammer . It has dozens of uses , but hitting things is among the top 10 , and I've had to do this dance before . I've worn and collected vintage / old / busted helmets since I was a kid on a vespa and NONE of them have ever fit me correctly . I have a huge head , ( size 8 ) and every helmet / hat manufacturer has a different idea of what a size 8 should fit like .

After about 1/2 hour of light taps inside on the styrofoam interior , I gained about a 1/4 inch all the way around my head and guess what , it fits like a glove . You want it to stay slightly snug because it will form to your noggan eventually , but as you can see , it fits and I'm safe & sound as well as stylish this morning .

Horray me .

Eye candy for a rainy thursday morning in San Diego

2011-03-24T08:48:00.001-07:00

This is coming up soon . . . a free knucklehead chopper ?!?!?

2011-03-09T09:48:00.000-08:00

Well it isn't actually free , but you can buy a raffle ticket for $25 and win it . . . Shut the front door !

My new iPhone rules

2011-03-04T15:36:00.001-08:00

It makes movies ! Awesome . . .

You know how a band will say " you know you made it when Weird Al does a parody of your song "

2011-03-04T10:58:00.000-08:00

Well there are lots of ways you can measure how far you've come in life and whether or not you've made it .

This is the " Mike's Mister Potato Head " breakfast special at the Antique Row Cafe here in my hood . It's right down the street from the tattoo shop and I eat there almost every day .

I guess I've reached status when they name a breakfast special after you , and especially when it's something this good .

A 1 lb. baked potato , covered in melted american cheese , chopped up seasoned chicken , chives and last but not least , bacon . Top it off with a big blob of butter . It comes with soup or salad on the side with a serving of garlic bread , but you want to lose the soup / salad idea because it will fill you up and you wont be able to enjoy the nap inducing feast of the potato . . . I get an extra side of garlic bread and you're in caloric / cholesterol / heart attack heaven !

I might not be rich or famous , but I have this !

So you might remember that Davey's nocal po~po cruiser was down with some trouble in it's guts a few weeks ago . . .

2011-03-04T09:08:00.000-08:00

Well after a few phone calls and a couple hectic weekends in the garage , a nice new Rev Tech 100 incher is calling the space between Davey's legs , home . It's a 4X4 motor ( 4 inch stroke and 4 inch bore ) and is supposed to be just about bullet proof . I guess there's new management or some shit going on up there with the Rev Tech crew , and the new motors coming out of the shop are solid and very nice .

That and the factory is 20 minutes away form Davey , makes this motor a good choice for him . strange noise ? Need a service call ? I'll be there in 10 minutes . . .

At a price better than having the broken motor rebuilt , he has a brand new / big inch / highway monster , ready to rock .

Good job Davey , nice work ! Can't wait to see you at Kutty's party .

$4000 , 2008 Buell Ulysses

2011-03-01T10:25:00.000-08:00

I think it's about time to send the Buell down the road . It's a 2008 Ulysses with a Lightning instrument cluster / fairing , Renthal bars , relocated plate . . . mostly stock otherwise , super fast and a good running machine . It has a simple exhaust issue that could be fixed with some of the money you save at this price . I just ride it too fast and don't need that hassle in my scene currently . Take it too a good home . . . email me if anyone has any questions

maquee@cox.net

Artsy fartsy - self indulgence

2011-03-01T08:40:00.000-08:00

Get out your hankies

2011-02-24T09:06:00.000-08:00

This is my wife Amy . . . if you have been following this mess of a blog for any amount of time you've seen that she can not only ride a skateboard drunk , cook an amazing array of meals , but she is the mother of my son , & can sell skateboards to anyone in the world . She keeps a tidy house , and can put a 9mm round center mass ( if you're standing fairly still or moving around slowly ) . She rides on the back of an old Harley & drives a slammed 2003 F-150 pick up truck to work every day .

In the past she's owned a 1964 Fairlaine with a HO 302 , a 1957 Ford , a 1963 Galaxie and they were all daily drivers . She never complained once when we went to Paso Robles every year for the shitty old car party we used to attend in my long list of drafty chopped up old heaps . We've been to countless early morning swap meets and flea markets and spent never ending hours digging through rusty old car parts trying to find that one gem in the piles of junk .

She usually has 3 different bags of candy in her purse for if you're a good boy and wears a knife in her boot for just in case you're not . She makes crafty things for her friends and would rather stay at home with her crazy family and watch a cartoon alien movie for the 30th time than go out and party on the town . She lets me get a little drunk with my friends but will also let me know when I'm getting a little too drunk and reels me back in when I try to flip a pool table over because someone said some weird shit at the bar .

She likes that I wear Old Spice and can ride any kind of motorcycle ever made and lets me work in the garage for hours without bugging me . She knows when I need a cold drink and even knows when to make it extra strong . She knows when to speak her mind and wont back down , but she ( mostly ) knows when to shut the fuck up too .

I've had a good long run with Amy . She started out as a customer at the tattoo shop , then became a friend , then a friend with benefits , then a full time girlfriend and eventually ( after a few trials and tribulations ) my wife .

I've made some good decisions along the way & I feel pretty lucky to be where I am in my life right now so I'm sharing .

Caught this old timer parked outside our local diner

2011-02-17T08:58:00.000-08:00

1924 Ford , tall "T" according to the owner who was almost that old himself . I love seeing old shit like this on the road tearing it up . When he drove off it sounded like a giant steam pressure cooker . Awesome .

Monday was Valentines day and I'm not one to be told what to do and when I need to be romantic

2011-02-15T10:24:00.000-08:00

But I do like to get the romance on every once in a while . No biggie . . .

So we go to diner at one of our favorite spots , Alexander's on 30th . It's this nice little Italian place around the corner from our house , walking distance . I made a reservation and everything . It was a festive / casual vibe we were going for . I had a shirt that buttoned up , so you know I was serious . Or at least I was trying to act serious .

About half way through our medium fancy diner , the area we were seated in started filling up . We got a spot outside , at our favorite romantic table outside on the patio in the back ( we eat there pretty often so they know us ) and Vaughn starts getting bored which means it's time for him to start getting frisky . Of course Amy & I think it's pretty cute that he's standing up on the seat telling us he needs to climb the wall and see the loud motorcycle that just went by . The couple next to us who brought their own bottle of wine didn't think it was that cute .

They weren't obvious about their bother , but again it was Valentines day after all and they were trying to have a romantic diner and all that & Vaughn wasn't having it .

This is where it gets good . Out of nowhere he decides to tell Amy " Mommy look at your boobies , that's so silly " . He isn't whispering either . I instantly bust up and Amy starts freaking out trying to shoosh him , which makes him start talking even louder .

Between me trying to high-five him & telling him " yeah mommy's boobies ! that's so silly " and the other couples nervous tension , he's putting on a show now . It was the perfect end to a perfect night . By the time everyone else's food was at the table we were asking for our desert to be put in a box to go and we made our escape .

If you haven't been I suggest you try it , romantic or just hungry . It's a great spot with great food and an easy atmosphere Alexander's on 30th

Sometimes , this is what happens when you " get on it " !

2011-02-11T08:11:00.000-08:00

This is the aftermath of our session last weekend . Davey knew something was going on with his motor so what does he do ? Baby his way home ? Add a quart of 90 weight ? Put the bike in a truck to keep it safe . . . heck no . He pins it and blows the fucker up .

After pushing through the party in Anehiem , he starts rolling back up the coast when it started making even more noise about a 100 miles outside of Paso Robles . He decided to perform the " roadside structural integrity test " at a gas & pee stop . This very technical & scientific procedure consists of putting your right hand on the throttle and pulling back on it , in a smooth fast motion until (1) it revs up freely and exhibits no sign of loss of integrity or (2) the motor makes a sudden violent sound and stops running with a huge cloud of white smoke .

I think you can see what direction the motor decided to go in .

The rebuild cost would be almost as much as buying a new motor apparently , so anyone with a line on a big inch S&S motor out there , shoot us a note . This bike needs to be back on the road by Kutty's party in April so shake those sheds and let's see what you got out there !

I'm not to proud to ride nuts to butts for my man Barker

2011-02-06T21:15:00.000-08:00

Two up , sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do . . . couple of men on the highway , living life my way . No biggie .

This is me , taking a picture of Jenny taking a picture of Davey's new tattoo

2011-02-06T09:54:00.000-08:00

Me and Barker and John all went for a ride up to Oceanside to see our BFF Davey who was in town to get tattooed by our other buddy Chris Yvon .

Chris is the mastermind behind Death Squad a local homegrown M/C clothing and accessory manufacturer . They make super buff risers and handle bars as well as cool tee shirts and leather vests .

As well as a budding young entrepreneur , Chris is also a pretty crackin' tattooer . Davey and his sassy little wife Jenny were down from their home in norcal , on Davey's fresh FXRP for a open house tattoo party in Anehiem and decided to come down a few extra miles to get tattooed by Chris .

The three of us all shot up the 15 and made it to Power Tattoo , Chris's new shop which is also the headquarters for Death Squad and we got the grand tour . It's a huge space with room for guest artists and a large office and stock room for the D/S gear . It was pretty impressive to say the least .

About 1/2 through the tattoo Adrian from Loser Machine showed up to see what all the fuss was about & he decided he was hungry too . Once the tattoo was good & done , we all got on the road and head over to Hensley's Flying Elephant Pub for some grub and yes , the curry chips are amazing . I've never been before even though I've known Matt for a long time . Great food and not too much cash involved made for a good refuel for the ride home .

The ride home was fast & following Barker through traffic was like pushing through a sea of drunken strangers at your local favorite bar . Traffic seemed to be driving in reverse as the three of us split through the light congestion and made it home in under 20 minutes from Carlsbad to North Park .

Did I mention that Barker likes to ride fast ? I was on the Buell so I had an easy time keeping up and even managed to get out in front a few times , only to see him in my mirror coming up hard & fast . . . but John was on his 100,000 mile plus 88 inch evo and had to whip the shit out of that bike keeping up with us . He was always right there though , we never lost him once .

All in all a great way to spend a saturday afternoon with good friends and good times .

I had a couple good buddies stop by the tattoo shop yesterday for a little motorcycle rap session

2011-01-27T08:29:00.000-08:00

My friend Mikey and our friend Rob , a local tattoo practitioner came by after a nice afternoon ride and we got to hang out for an hour or so and shoot the shit . Rob has a bitchin 1969 BSA that he actually found in a barn in Iowa or some shit like that . He's had it for a few years now and just recently decided to knock the dust off the old girl and get her fired up . It's pretty original , not a chopper or bobber , just a really neat old bike . While we were standing there enjoying the drips of oil that slowly began to appear under his motor , some old dude ( who actually had a grey beard ) stopped on his way into the guitar shop and I knew it was on . He had a twinkle in his eye that said he knew something about something .

It was awesome , he didn't even glance at my bike and turned straight for the BSA and went right into his Q&A with Rob .

Rob's no newbie to bikes or shit that goes fast , for what it's worth . His dad is a well known and respected racer and Rob has been going to dry lake meets since he was a slender pup . Apparently our new friend had also spent some quality time at El Mirage & the like , and did lots of crazy racing on old british bikes back in the day . Dirt track , speedway , lots of left turns as well as fast straight line stuff . He also mentioned that he used to sand cast his own big bore cylinders . . . it just kept getting cooler as we talked .

He was full of great stories and information and it's always a trip getting the low down from someone who was in it for the first time around . Old timers like these need to be preserved in a jar somehow , they're an official national treasure . I guess really though , if you take the time to hear their stories and actually listen to the way it was done and how they made the magic happen ( before there was an internet to lay it all out in front of you in a tidy easy to understand package ) , that's their legacy and that will keep them alive . It was super fun getting to know him and hear his tales .

Anyhow , these are some of my friends on some neat old bikes on a really nice day . Middle of winter . . . suck it rest of the world !

Learning how to drive

2011-01-24T08:45:00.000-08:00

Large & awkward , heavy & difficult to maneuver , bulky pointy metal edges , possibly dangerous to little fingers & toes . . . this is how you learn to drive when you're 3 and live at my house .

They say adversity builds character and as long as you end up in one piece when you're done , mommy doesn't have a problem and I get to live another day .

What I did on my Christmas break , by David Ketchum

2011-01-21T08:04:00.000-08:00

Well my FXR fever has turned in to FXR flu.. I've been gathering parts for a little re-do and got the time last month, I went from this,

to this.. Race Tech-ed out the front end ,440's out back FXRP fairing and bars, ChopperDaves new side covers, new style hand controls fixed/cleaned up some wiring and a little powder coating. It was about 68 here on Christmas day but for me it was a white Christmas. See ya out there...

Beep Boop Beep . . .

2011-01-18T07:31:00.000-08:00

Some more of the droids we're looking for !

Hippy Killer Hoedown III

2011-01-14T09:21:00.000-08:00

Kutty is having another party , and I think this one is going to be a show stopper . I've been going to these parties since the first one and that one was nuttso . Go back a few pages on here and you can see where I broke my toe flat tracking my bike with my bro Matt Barker . It's all fun & games till you wake up in an ambulance , or in our case in a pile of running motorcycles , lying on top of you , on their sides .

The second one was 95 times bigger and so it had to me moved to it's new location at this crazy western town arena . Tons of great bikes and awesome cars showed up as well as a ton of vendors . This is an event that you kind of have to go to . . . it's a super grass roots down home good time and since he's a good friend of mine I feel like I need to help get the word out for him .

Oooooh Weee , what's up wit dat !

2011-01-13T08:53:00.001-08:00

Where is she now ?!?

First day of the new year . 4000 feet / 28 degrees

2011-01-01T19:09:00.000-08:00

We stayed up at Warner Springs with Amy's family this weekend and it was cold as fuck . We had a good time but it was seriously chilly up in the mountains . On the way home we decided ( actually Vaughn decided ) that we should go the long way through Julian and up into the Cuyamaca mountains and as the elevation climbed , the temperature dropped , fast . We started noticing frozen puddles & ice on the side of the road and that quickly turned into snow . " I better watch out for black ice " I remember jokingly thinking to myself . . .

Well I actually hit my first black ice and lived to tell about it . That stuff is not to be fucked with . I was going about 30 through a 25 mph corner and as I saw it and called it out , my back wheels broke lose and got sideways for a split second . It was a left hand turn "S" turn with a steep hill on the right and an on coming lane to my left . I got loose coming out of the righty and swung my ass into the left hand lane . There was a car coming around the top of the corner and he was on the inside of his lane , and saw me break lose . Luckily by the time it would have been critical , I was hit dry ground and got right back into my lane and we passed with nothing more than a casual glance . I gleefully shouted " WHOA " and Amy cursing our predicament ( almost under her breath ) " fuck . . . "

She didn't talk to me for a few miles despite my attempts at small talk and levity till we actually made it to the top of the mountain .

We ended up at our cruising altitude and decided to stop into Paso Picacho , which is a nice little camp ground that we like to go to ( when the weather is a little nicer ) and actually got into Vaughn's very first snowy adventure ! It was 28 degrees and there was a lot of lastnight's snow & ice on the ground so it was hard packed but still a little crunchy .

We scraped up some slush and managed to make Vaughn's first snow ball & throw it at mommy , and wander around the frozen wonderland that is 4000 feet above San Diego proper . The nice ladies in the check in booth told me that the morning's temperature was nothing , that it got down to 2 degrees the night before and that this was warm & refreshing . . . uh yeah .

As we worked our way down the mountain at a decidedly slower and more careful pace , the temperature climbed dramatically and soon we were enjoying our sea level day time temp of 61 degrees and relaxing on our couch reflecting on the year past . . .

If the first day of the new year has any indication as to what it holds for us in the future , I'd say were off to a pretty good start .

Max Schaaf's super neat flat framed shovelhead

2010-12-29T08:55:00.000-08:00

I was cruising around in my iPhoto library and found these pictures I took a while back at a Sinners' 4th of July festival of debauchery up in the LBC .

It was the first time I got to see this bike in person up close , and it's trippy all the way to the bone . First of all , it's a mag fired generator shovel in a flathead frame , and if that's not enough to sizzle your sausage , there are tons of little tweaks and touches all over this thing that will give you hours & hours of enjoyment .

Lots of rad little tricks and neat details that make this bike stand out from the regular bike night crowd . . . it actually stands out from a lot of the bikes you see by people who build bikes for a living all day long .

This guy pulls off some pretty cool shit and I think this is a good example of his fucked up vision .

Santa is back.......

2010-12-21T14:12:00.000-08:00

And this time it's personal..........

Neat old timey points covers for sale

2010-12-17T15:53:00.000-08:00

I had these made by my dear friend Dave Freston , also known internationally as Chopper Dave . He does sand casting and is a real craftsman . I found this old pendant at a swapmeet a long time ago and had him cast it in thick ass aluminum . Never before seen till right now !

They're made to fit a cone motor shovelhead , & they're hand made and hand polished right here in the good old US of A ( Long Beach to be exact ) .

I only have 10 of these so if you want one , email me and I'll let you know if they are still available . If I run out before I get to you , you'll go on a list and I'll have a second run made asap . As soon as I get them made I'll get back to you and we can make the transaction .

They're $55 shipped to your door .

Screws not included , but I figure if you have an old ass Hoggly Fergalson like I do , you already have a cruddy old stock points cover & you can just use the screws you have . If not , let me know and I'll scrounge a few up for you .

I can't promise they'll get to you by Christmas , but I'll mail them off as fast as I get your email .

Please don't post on here to get one , email me at maquee@cox.net and that way I can give you my paypal info .

The Caliente Tropics

2010-12-17T10:35:00.000-08:00

This is an actual mid century motor lodge in Palm Springs and it sort of became our new , inexpensive " Vegas " for a while . Amy & I used to go to Las Vegas and throw away weekends like they were old newspapers . We went to Vegas together for the first time with my mom and Amy fell in love with it . So much so that we eventually got married there . . . that's another story .

So we discovered Palm Springs and the Caliente Tropics through the Tiki Oasis , which is an annual tiki party / seminar that celebrates tikis and the strange kitschy drunken culture that grew up around them . I never went to the Oasis while they were in Palm Springs but after seeing pictures from the event , that hotel was suddenly on our radar . We had to go check it out , and once we did we were hooked .

It's a survivor that made it through the 60's and 70's and the near death of Palm Springs as a living city due to it's out of the way location and old hermity population . It made it through the 80's when palm springs was a shit hole spring break dive bar and college kids ran rough shot over it's aging mid century facade and tired old bars , leaving piles of garbage and STD's in their wake . It survived the 90's due in no small part to the efforts of Sony Bono , who after a 4 year stint as mayor , actually resurrected the town and build the architecture of it's new success as a thriving community and in important resort destination that is now a thriving economic hot spot in the desert .

This place is a survivor and it's changed hands a few times , but we love it and we love the tikis that watch over it . . . if you are thinking about a little vacation or a quick weekend out of town that won't break your bank , try Palm Springs and try the Caliente Tropics . See if you can find all the different tikis hiding on the grounds .

I'll give you a hint , it's more fun after a few Mai Tais .

Caliente Tropics

7 PM , about 2 weeks before Christmas and it's a balmy 77 degrees out side

2010-12-12T19:19:00.001-08:00

Why not take a picture of my own bike , just for fun .

Got his motor running

2010-12-12T18:28:00.001-08:00

This is my friend Mikey and I ( everyone ) gives him a lot of ( good natured ) shit because he's Mikey and he thrives on it ( sometimes ) . . . but he built this bike by himself ( with the help of a few friends ) and it pretty much rules .

He rides it all over the place and somehow has managed to stay out of jail and stay a live on it , for twice as long ( more by some peoples accounts ) than anyone figured .

I'll be the first one to call someone out if I think they're blowing it but I'll also be the first one to give credit where it's due , and he deserves a high 5 for this one .

Great job MIkey .

Now get out on the highway !

Not only did Han shoot first ....

2010-12-09T16:00:00.000-08:00

He shot a girl....

I'm not going to be using these things anytime soon , so I want someone I know to have them

2010-12-02T08:54:00.000-08:00

The guy I got them from said they were more than likely older Sportster bags .

I was told they're smaller than FL / big twin bags and they look original , from what I can tell . I'm no expert but these are real nice whatever they are and will bolt right on , just in time for christmas shopping !

I think $300 would be a fair price . Let me know who you are and when you want to come get them !

So who knew , you could still ride in the front of the Monorail with the pilot . . .

2010-11-29T08:09:00.000-08:00

I did .

We went to Disneyland last weekend and stayed the night in the fancy Disney resort hotel . It was a lot of fun and everyone had a good time but Vaughn actually knew what was going on this time and he went out of his mind . We had one day of Disneyland and the second day at the California Adventure park . On the second day it was a rainy but we met some friends who were celebrating a birthday and we had a great time in the bad weather . It only rained for the first half of the day and it was actually super fun running from ride to ride , trying to find a ride that was long enough and inside enough to keep the rain off .

By about 3:00 it had dried up and all the rest of the birthday guests had arrived and we got to enjoy some cold but dry theme park good times .

That night we went to elecTRONica and saw robot dancing girls ( Vaughn's words ) and lots of neon lights and laser beams . So this was the last time we can take Vaughn to Disneyland for free , and we're thinking about annual passes for next time . I'm thinking now that he knows how much fun it is up there that he's going to be wanting to be going a lot more , and that will make it a little less painful in the wallet .

All said and done it was a little pricey , but the crazy memories that were revisited on me and the fun new memories that we made were worth it .

So yes , you can still ride in the nose of the Monorail . Amy had no idea and was impressed with my knowledge of the Monorail seating arrangements . . .

You can still find the exact physical center of the park , if you know where to look for it . . .

You can still drive around in a submarine . . .

And during the Christmas season , you can still wonder if the largest pile of gifts you've ever seen ( in your long 3 years of Christmases ) , contain anything that might belong to you . . .

Amy's boss bought us the room for her 15 years of working the sales department grind at Foundation Skate Co. Thanks Tod , it was a blast in no small part because of you . You're a good guy and a good friend . . . here's to many more !

Have a good weekend, or else......

2010-11-19T14:12:00.000-08:00

A gift from a friend

2010-11-17T10:37:00.001-08:00

I'll give you a hint , the numbers are proofs

more about this later . . .

I stole this picture from a different blog

2010-11-16T07:57:00.001-08:00

And I don't generally like to take other people's pictures that are already posted and repost them , but this one made me stop and think for a second . I've been riding scooters & motorcycles almost all my life , in one form or another . I've gone on " long rides " and been far away from home and had to put my trust in my machine to start and run and get me back alive . . . but this is some other kind of shit .

Being from the west coast and riding out to the east coast on a stripped down , purposely minimized motorcycle with everything you need ( hopefully ) strapped to your back in case you brake down or have to stop for a quick repair , man that's fucking cool . I've never done anything like that .

Personally I can only imagine the feeling of waking up in the morning that far from home and feeling those first few moments when you're still mostly asleep when everything's still calm & perfect . You have no problems and the world is right , then slowly you start coming too and realize , oh shit today I have to ride back home . . . to the other side of the country ! You get geared up and have some breakfast , load up the bike and then one more time you throw your leg over the machine and jump down on the kicker , only to feel the motor roar to life just like it should .

The sun is out , but air is cold as fuck that early in the morning . You can see you breath , and your face is starting to get numb , you wish you had a few more pairs of gloves , or some extra pants to wear under the ones you have on already but you also know that soon enough the day will warm up and the scenery will change and the coast will start getting closer , but now it's time to get going .

Fucking - a , that's some neat shit . To be that far from home and the one thing that can get you back safely , that you built with your own hands , that if it decided to could ruin the whole rest of the trip on a whim by not working suddenly for some mysterious reason . . . to put your trust in a machine that requires so much care and maintenance and love and urgency and to get on and stomp that motor to life at the beginning of the homeward half of a ride like that . . . that's awesome .

This picture made me feel all that stuff .

Taken from Kemosabe and the Lodge , the link is over there in the links part of the blog .

succulents

2010-11-15T09:22:00.000-08:00

Amy's new thing is succulents . Tiny little cactuses , kind of .

A friend of ours had to move out of her house and gave amy a whole shit load of these little guys and now she is succulent crazy , and trying to figure out where to put all of them . They don't really take up any room , but Vaughn loves to take them apart because well , they're fun to take apart . Try it sometime . You'll get yelled at by whoever owns it , but it's pretty cool regardless .

Anyhow , here's a few of Amy's succulents . Nice start for a monday I'd say .

sneak peak

2010-11-15T09:13:00.000-08:00

My friend Jay is going to be selling a basket case shovelhead here in a minute through me , we just need to take some pictures of all the stuff and make it more enticing .

This is the motor though and as you can see , the air cleaner will be worth the price alone . Stay tuned and get your piggy banks ready . It's titled HD and has just about everything you'll need to get your knees in the breeze , except for the skill to put it all together .

That's up to you I guess .

what's going on here

2010-11-15T09:11:00.000-08:00

7 of 9

2010-11-11T08:48:00.001-08:00

That phrase means different things to different people . Just a few numbers in no real order or code , you would think . When you're talking to someone like me it means this . . .

Because I'm a dork and I'm a trekie and generally a nerd of sorts . I grew up and made it work for me , but for the most part I have the mental state of mind of a 16 year old boy . Go figure .

However , I have a friend who is a skateboarder and he made a limited run of skateboards that have his original graphic , just like his old pro model from the 80's . I guess he only made 9 of them and it was kind of top secret stuff . . . .

My wife works at Tum Yeto where they made them and she was there when they showed up and asked Doug if she could have one for me . Guess which number she picked .

Who's more of a nerd . . . the nerd , or the wife who marries the nerd ( and then naturally , over the course of our relationship has become a nerd herself . . . )

I love my life !

1983 FXRT...

2010-11-08T09:11:00.000-08:00

If you have FXR fever let me say (as one who suffers from it) I feel your pain, it is a crippling ailment that has no cure, the only thing that helps is getting your knees in the breeze or to witness the FXR in all its glory. Me and the ol' lady took a ride down to our friends shop on Saturday, got a little rain but it was worth it when I walked in and saw this.... 83 FXRT with all the trimmings fairing, bags, trunk all the gauges and only 3174 on the odometer, truly a fine specimen. So next time it rains go ride around to your local shop it might just be worth it..

What did you do???

2010-11-05T11:04:00.000-07:00

More good times & urban camping

2010-11-04T08:24:00.000-07:00

Camping pretty much always rules . Even camping on a parking lot is fun if you have good friends and a huge beautiful ocean to trip out on while you're parked . We went down to Silver Strand state beach a few weekends ago and did some hobo style / gypsy camp / power parking .

We were about 20 feet from the beach and it was a real nice and quiet . A few families across from us were there for a birthday party for some kid so there was a medium amount of well mannered revelry going on . The only casualty was when Dave's son biffed it on his bike and bit his lip pretty hard . Luckily it was at the end of the bike ride / stroll and a few cookies and a couple hugs later and he was right as rain and ready to rock again .

If you've never been to the strand it's pretty amazing . The state beach is really calm and nice and on the bay side there's lots of great nature to check out if you're into leisurely strolls . After a bottle of cheap wine I was feeling pretty leisurely so off we went . A good view of Nasco and the shipyard as well as a bunch of destroyers and battleships & a few big carriers . Lots of paved trails and places to go and neat things to check out .

It was just a one nighter , we live pretty close to the beach so it was in & out . Over the bridge and into the strand . . . but it was really cool and left me wanting more . We need to get a few more mountain campouts now that the nights up there are starting to cool off , and maybe a desert trip in before it starts getting too cold . . .

Leia and Blutarsky.....

2010-10-29T08:37:00.000-07:00

Ummmm.............

2010-10-28T11:21:00.001-07:00

Much like the shirt a few post back......

I've been sort of partial to the '77 lately and have been ignoring the Buell

2010-10-28T08:47:00.000-07:00

I got this bike from a good friend a few years ago and rode the piss out of it for a good while . It was my go to bike whenever the '56 was down , which as it turned out was pretty often because I took it apart every few months and redid it .

Seemingly endless horsepower , comfortable , fast and quick ( and I'm no tiny tot ) and good old plain fun to ride . I need to get it tuned a little and there are a few things I want to clean up a here & there , but I'd like to go for a long ride on this one someday and just see where it takes me on a couple tanks of gas .

I might need to hook Amy up for christmas time . . .

2010-10-26T08:23:00.001-07:00

She loves Pink Floyd too . . . combo bonus !