March 29, 2008 - SPRING THAW BIKE SHOW
AND SWAP MEET
One of my favorite things about Spring-Time in
Middle Tennessee is the annual Spring Thaw Bike Show and Swap Meet put on
by my buddy Scooter over at
BothBarrelsPromotions.com.
Not only does it symbolically mark the start of the riding season but it
gives me a chance to check out some of the baddest bikes you will see anywhere.
I've posted a couple of my favorites in this RANT but if you click on the
link below you can see a lot more of my pics.
CLICK HERE
now to check out more pics from the Spring Thaw.
March 22, 2008 - SO NASTY FROM WINTER
RIDING THAT I HAD NO OTHER CHOICE
I actually took the hose (or as they call it down
here in Tennessee Hose-Pipe) to the Electra Glide today. I rarely just hose
down any of my bikes but the thing was so nasty from Winter riding that I
had no choice. I'm just thrilled that it was warm enough to accomplish this
task without freezing my rear off. I hope that Spring is here to
stay.
Dig the groovy shirt man! hahaha My wife refuses
to be seen with me in public with my old tie-die shirt... I think hideous
is the word she uses to describe it... so it has been reduced to activities
like this or mowing the lawn. But... I still think it's cool! I suppose that's
why she looks like she does and I look like I do!
March 21, 2008 - THE SAM DAVIS HOME...
A MOTORCYCLE TOUR
I have something for you history buffs out there.
Today I visited the Sam Davis Home in Smyrna, Tennessee. If you're not sure
who Sam Davis was CLICK
HERE.
March 19, 2008 - SIT BACK AND RELAX...
I'LL BRING THE STUDIO TO YOU
Did you know that I can bring my photography studio
to you? In fact it's one of the main reasons I'm able to keep prices so low.
Simple math says that when there's no studio rental to cover, YOU save big
bucks! But, you might ask, how is it possible to bring my studio to you?
It's easy... I have a portable backdrop and strobe system that packs right
into my vehicle and can be set up in a matter of minutes. So all you builders
and owners out there in the Mid-South that need pro images of your bike but
can't afford the typical $500 fees (and aren't to thrilled about hauling
your baby down to the local studio) call me now and let's set up an appointment.
Packages start at a mere $100 bucks and satisfaction is
guaranteed.
Oh, and BTW, I also do model portfolios on location
with the same system. In fact, this evening I used this set-up to shoot a
new ad for yours truly. The pic below was shot in the corner of my home office.
(See inset.) So what are you waiting for? Call me today, then sit back and
relax... I'll bring the studio to you!
March 18, 2008 - THUNDER ROADS TENNESSEE
- APRIL 2008
The April 2008 issue of Thunder Roads Tennessee
will be in the stores next week. If you are in Tennessee, be sure to pick
up your FREE copy at just about any shop in the state. Others can check it
out on-line at
www.thunderroadstennessee.com.
My column is on page 18.
March 13, 2008 - A GREAT RIDE WITH SOME
GREAT FRIENDS
I still love the looks of the Electra
Glide.
The weather has been pretty awesome the past couple
of days here in Middle Tennessee. Tomorrow however we have major storms moving
in that are apparently going to ruin any shot at riding Friday or Saturday.
Not to worry though... because a few friends and I got together this evening
for a nice ride. We clocked about 90 miles and had a great
time.
I got the pic above of all our bikes when we stopped
for a quick break. The pic below is kind of interesting. I was leading us
back home and got this shot backwards and over my shoulder. I was just guessing
on composition since I couldn't see... and got lucky. It doesn't really look
like it but we were traveling at about 70 mph at the time.
Anyway, another great ride with some great friends...
what a great time!
I got lucky with this over-the-shoulder, backwards
shot.
March 13, 2008 - A COOL 1959 TRIUMPH
TR3 WITH 40K ORIGINAL MILES
When the group I was riding with tonight stopped
for a quick break I spotted what looked to be an old Triumph in a nearby
alley. There was a nice gentleman nearby so I asked if the car was his and
his eyes lit up when he responded with a yes. He proceeded to give me a tour
of the vehicle and gave me the whole story... obviously thrilled to be sharing
his car with someone.
The car is an immaculately kept 1959 Triumph TR3
that he found in North Carolina with only 40,000 original miles. The elderly
man that owned it had kept it in storage for 10 years and just decided he
should give it up to someone who would take care of it and enjoy it. My new
friend was that someone. He said that after several email and telephone exchanges
he got a one way fight to North Carolina, handed the guy a check and drove
this beauty back to Nashville. It is quite the sweet little
car!
I'm a BIG Mazda Miata fan so it was pretty cool
to see one of the cars that inspired the Miata up-close. Way
cool...
March 12, 2008 - DUCATI SPORT BIKE
PERFORMANCE... BUT MORE COMFY
Our local BMW / Ducati
Dealership
I made my way to the local BMW / Ducati dealership
today. I wanted to see if they had the new Ducati Hypermotard in stock...
they did... I saw it... and I'm in love. (again) Man, what a sweet bike.
Ducati sport bike performance with a more comfortable riding position and
looks to kill. I took a quick pic of it which is just below the text here
but it really doesn't do it justice. Check it out at
ducati.com to get the
whole vibe.
I also got a pic of my favorite Ducati, The Monster,
and a quick shot of a vintage Norton they had on the sales floor. MSRP
on the 1100S Hypermotard is somewhere around 14K so I won't be getting one
soon but man it is nice.
The Ducati Hypermotard 1100S... a sweet
bike!
One of my favorites... the Ducati Monster...
"naked" bike perfection!
March 8, 2008 - OLD MAN WINTER JUST
WILL NOT LET IT GO
I had hoped to get a ride in this morning but Old
Man Winter just will not let it go! The rumors of snow in Middle Tennessee
came true and this is what I saw when I stepped outside at
7:00am.
On a positive note... I did pick up a couple
of Ducatis today... models, that is. I got these two 1:18 scale die-cast
versions at the local stuff-mart while my wife was purchasing a couple of
birthday cards. The black one is a Ducati Monster and the red one is
a Ducati 999s. $2.98 a piece.
I have been bustin' booty the last few days...
I just completed a rather large and complex Flash based website for a nationally
known client that has been a ton of work ... and to celebrate, I took a
motorcycle-kind-of-lunch-break. I hit three different dealerships in my area
and just wandered around for a bit, soaking all the cool bikes in. It was
a beautiful afternoon here in Middle Tennessee... too bad I was in a car
in all the traffic instead of on some back-road somewhere on two-wheels.
Still, I had a ball drooling over some new (and used) bikes.
Oh...
and I wanted to mention ... if you are a child of my generation and love
the power-pop, arena-rock bands of the late '70's and early '80's, you gotta
check out the new CD from Loverboy. That's right... Loverboy! The hitmakers
of "Turn Me Loose", "Workin For The Weekend", "Hot Girls In Love" and
"Lovin' Every Minute Of It" fame are back with a smokin' hot project called
"Just Getting Started" and it is great.
Mike Reno is singing as good as ever and his song
writing on this CD is superb. Take one listen and you'll be singing most
of these hook-laden songs the rest of the day. And of course there's Paul
Dean laying down some truly PHAT guitar parts. Back in the day when I was
a full-time musician I always loved his playing... and still
do.
Check out their website at
loverboyband.com
and you can hear bits of many of the new songs. I've been listening to this
project for a few days now and it is really good stuff!
March 2, 2008 - I HAVE AGAIN SOMEHOW
MANAGED TO SURVIVE THE DARK MONTHS
Every
year as October comes to a close we enter what I call the "Dark Months".
It's the period of time from November to February when temperatures are low,
the skys are mostly overcast, precipitation chances are high and good motorcycle
days are few and far between. Throughout the entire period I keep telling
myself that if I can just make it to March the first, everything will be
OK. March is when I can put the long underwear back in storage. March is
when I can put the Wicked Wear face mask away for the summer. March is the
start of a glorious eight month long motorcycle binge. I love March and it
has come! Now don't get me wrong, we still may have a day or two here and
there that remind me of January but all in all, in my mind March marks the
official turning of Winter to Spring. Ladies and gentlemen, prepare to ride
and ride a lot... Spring is here!
March 2, 2008 - THE BATTERY WAS COMPLETELY
DRAINED
Tonight I came home from the hospital early because
15 people from the riding group I am in are coming over for a meeting at
our place. Since it is about 70 degrees with sunshine here in Middle Tennessee...
I decided I'd jump on the SV for a quick little ride before the meeting.
I got all ready, rolled her out of the garage, turned the key on, turned
the kill-switch on, hit the starter and after barely turning a couple of
times the battery was completely drained. I'm not sure what is going on because
I just bought this battery. As I write this the charger is hooked up to it.
Hopefully a good charge is all it needs.
March 1, 2008 - SITUATIONS LIKE THESE
REMIND YOU OF WHAT'S IMPORTANT
About a week ago my dad had a stress test done.
The results were somewhat questionable so on Thursday they brought him in
for further testing. By Thursday evening they had determined that he was
in need of bypass surgery and scheduled it for Friday morning at 8:00am.
It all happened really fast and was a little mind-blowing. Thankfully, the
surgery went well (people from Nashville, to Tampa, to Dallas, to Colorado
Springs, to Kansas City, to Wyoming were praying), and as of this afternoon
he was off of all the machines, sitting up and doing quite
well.
Situations like these certainly remind you of what's
really important in life. My dad is the single most important man in my life
and I love him beyond words. And despite the fact that many times over the
years I have been less than lovable myself, he has always been there for
me providing the perfect example of unwavering, unconditional
love.
I have a great dad… and I'm looking forward
to his full recovery and spending many more years with him.
The Nashville skyline picture above was taken from
the hospital dad is at. I've spent a lot of time in this spot over the past
48 hours so I just thought I'd share it with you.
Did you know that I can bring my photography studio
to you? In fact it's one of the main reasons I'm able to keep prices so low.
Simple math says that when there's no studio rental to cover, YOU save big
bucks! But, you might ask, how is it possible to bring my studio to you?
It's easy... I have a portable backdrop and strobe system that packs right
into my vehicle and can be set up in a matter of minutes. So all you builders
and owners out there in the Mid-South that need pro images of your bike but
can't afford the typical $500 fees (and aren't to thrilled about hauling
your baby down to the local studio) call me now and let's set up an appointment.
Packages start at a mere $100 bucks and satisfaction is
guaranteed.
Oh...
and I wanted to mention ... if you are a child of my generation and love
the power-pop, arena-rock bands of the late '70's and early '80's, you gotta
check out the new CD from Loverboy. That's right... Loverboy! The hitmakers
of "Turn Me Loose", "Workin For The Weekend", "Hot Girls In Love" and
"Lovin' Every Minute Of It" fame are back with a smokin' hot project called
"Just Getting Started" and it is great.
Every
year as October comes to a close we enter what I call the "Dark Months".
It's the period of time from November to February when temperatures are low,
the skys are mostly overcast, precipitation chances are high and good motorcycle
days are few and far between. Throughout the entire period I keep telling
myself that if I can just make it to March the first, everything will be
OK. March is when I can put the long underwear back in storage. March is
when I can put the Wicked Wear face mask away for the summer. March is the
start of a glorious eight month long motorcycle binge. I love March and it
has come! Now don't get me wrong, we still may have a day or two here and
there that remind me of January but all in all, in my mind March marks the
official turning of Winter to Spring. Ladies and gentlemen, prepare to ride
and ride a lot... Spring is here!
