Hey,

We are flying through this year. Every Monday, I tell the redhead, “Hang on. This week will be exciting, and it is.”


The Bikernet Weekly News is sponsored in part by companies who also dig Freedom including: Cycle Source Magazine, the MRF, Las Vegas Bikefest, Iron Trader News, ChopperTown, BorntoRide.com and the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum.





Wall Street Journal reporter Jim Carlton says Lake Mead is shrinking because of climate change. Is it? We report. You decide.

First, the history of Lake Mead’s elevation is actually quite volatile.



And the elevation is relatively low now — about 1,070 feet.

But today’s elevation is not all that different from the low points of 1956 and 1965 (about 1,090 feet, shown in first graph), especially when you consider the increases in water use and human management of reservoir levels over time.

No doubt that drought is affecting Lake Mead. But Western drought is natural (the region is a desert, after all), and Lake Mead was comparably low more than 100 ppm CO2 ago.

--Junk Science.com






This one will be a tribute to Arlen Ness style by a fellow Hamster, Cabana Dan. It’s about to go to paint and check that seat.





“No gel,” Dan said of his custom seat. “I work exclusively with Adam at Pierce Street Seats in Wisconsin.”

--Bandit






BRAND New Bikernet Reader Comment!--

IT'S A WONDERFUL PLACE BIKERNET WEEKLY NEWS for June 30, 2022

https://www.bikernet.com/pages/ITS_A_WONDERFUL_PLACE_BIKERNET_WEEKLY_NEWS_for_June_30_2022.aspx

Too bad about Sonny, my wife had a picture of Sonny taken with her in Laconia. It was in her classroom when she was still teaching.

--Alex Jemery
Deland, FL





Ralph "Sonny" Barger, one of the founding members who helped grow and popularize the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, passed away last week at the age of 83. A representative for Barger, who revealed the news, indicated the cause as liver cancer.


Barger himself was investigated or arrested on charges ranging from drug trafficking to murder, though he later helped repopularize the subculture as an actor on the show "Sons of Anarchy."





LOWBROW CONFESSION-- We have more than 7,000 parts and gear on our site and all are Made in the USA

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When you take a break from riding, fireworks, camping, or whatever it is you are up to this month, come give us a visit...

We have you what you need for the road ahead!








PLANO, TX July 6th, 2022 – Cardo Systems, world leader in communication and connectivity devices for the Powersports industry, has opened the 'Cardo Sound Labs', a full-scale research and development facility in Straubing, Germany.

The new facility will focus on developing Cardo’s future generation of acoustics, speech processing, and sound solutions for its wide array of powersports, outdoor and professional communication devices. The Straubing facility positions Cardo as the only player in the industry with a dedicated, fully owned audio development capabilities.

With the opening, Cardo is bringing onboard a veteran team of scientists with 150 years of cumulative experience in automotive and consumer audio. The team has specialists in sound, physics, electronics, speech processing, and mechanical engineers and PHDs, and is responsible for more than 1550 patents gained through their previous work experience at Harman, Samsung, Nokia, NXP, and DSPG.

The 6458 sqft facility will lead Cardo’s future sound developments to maintain and increase the company’s edge and bring new generations of sound solutions to its riders, worldwide. To achieve this and support the team’s developments going forward, the new Straubing facility contains fully-furbished sound labs complete with anechoic chamber, ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) room, rapid prototyping lab, Automotive lab, NVH (noise vibration harshness) automotive lab, and office space.













It took more than 16 hours of negotiation to reach an agreement at the meeting in Luxembourg, but the result is crystal clear.

“The Council… agreed to introduce a 100% CO2 emissions reduction target by 2035 for new cars and vans.” The European Parliament also wants to outlaw sales of used ICE-powered vehicles, but that has not been decided on. Not that the idea is dead; further negotiations will take place, but the new vehicle sales ban is now written in stone.

Given the size of the European vehicle market, the ban on ICEs there means their eventual disappearance in all developed countries. The ramifications will go way beyond the borders of the European Union since it won’t be feasible for the likes of Volkswagen or BMW to develop ICE cars they won’t be able to sell in the EU. Internal combustion engined vehicles may, and probably will, continue to be manufactured and sold in developing countries after 2035 but even so, the end is inevitable.

Technically speaking, the 2035 ban calls for a complete reduction of emissions, without mentioning the combustion engine. This leaves the door open for ICEs running on alternative fuels such as the synthetic fuel being developed by Porsche, but it is interesting to note that most of the research and proposed manufacturing for that will take place away from the First World. And good luck affording a tank full of the synthetic stuff.


This decision will have huge consequences across the vehicle industry as manufacturers accelerate the switch to EVs even further. Serious as this is for automakers, motorcycle manufacturers will be affected even more because major companies’ shift to electric power is not as advanced.

There are also staged targets in 2025 and 2030 that will be difficult for motorcycle manufacturers to reach; once again there is no mention of bikes in the legislation, but automakers will have to slash CO2 emissions by 55 percent for new cars and 50 percent for vans by the end of the ‘20s.

Negotiations between the Parliament and EU member states later this year will determine the final shape of the law, but let’s not beat about the bush: with no more than a couple of exceptions, all motorcycles currently built by major manufacturers will gradually disappear from the market until they’re all gone by 2035.

German industry groups and other car lobby organizations have said the European Parliament’s decision is a blow to climate protection and consumer choice. Germany wavered on banning the combustion engine in 2035, threatening to derail the talks until it was placated with a vague promise from the Commission to look into future options for e-fuels.

Italy would also like to see changes, particularly concerning small-scale production vehicles from manufacturers like Ferrari, Lamborghini, Pagani, Ducati, MV Agusta and Aprilia all contribute not only to the financial economy of Italy, but also its cultural presence.

Despite that, Italy has also signed the death warrant.

--Advrider.com

--from Geno
Undercover investigator



Maybe they didn’t mention motorcycles for fear of the strength of motorcycle rights organizations. Maybe, someday the motorcycle rights community will demand Scientific Transparency and the planet will smile again. We will go back to living in the best of times and not doomsday. Maybe! --Bandit





Custom Indian Chief ‘GRIND Machine’ Revealed at Wheels and Waves Artride

Public debut of the custom Indian Chief by Tank Machine x Rise Designs
Awarded to the lucky winner of the prize draw on the main event stage

Indian Motorcycle, in collaboration with Wheels & Waves, commissioned four European builders in December 2021 to design their vision of an Indian Chief for the resurgent Wheels and Waves festival. More than 35 000 people voted for their favorite design and, in combination with a panel of Super-Voters, ‘GRIND Machine’ by Tank Machine x Rise Designs was announced as the top-ranked entry. Completed in just three months, ‘GRIND Machine’ made its public debut at the opening of the Artride exhibition during Wheels and Waves on Thursday, June 30 and was awarded to prize draw winner Fabien Orquin on the festival’s main stage on Saturday, July 2.

“I was honored to be chosen as one of four custom builders to submit designs for the Indian Chief,” said Molina. “As a specialist that loves working on bikes from Indian Motorcycle, I was really enthusiastic about the opportunity, only heightened by the partnership with Wheels and Waves, an event that I enjoy so much.”

Working from the brief to create a vision of an Indian Chief inspired by the past, anchored in the present, and looking towards the future, Molina teamed up with Antonin Bazin from Rise Designs to merge their “Board Culture” into the project and reflect the skate element of Wheels & Waves.

“We were really happy to win and have the opportunity to realize the design, even though it was a big challenge to complete the project in just three months for the Artride exhibition,” Molina continued. “But the process was so enjoyable, thinking about the bike, the details, working with different materials like skateboard decks, fabricating new parts and then fine-tuning everything. It’s a pleasure to reveal the completed bike at Wheels and Waves and to then hand it over to Fabien. It’s great to know he truly understands and appreciates the time and effort that has gone into the build. He is the perfect new owner for me – an engineer, an engine technician, and a really good guy.”

Randomly selected from the thousands of public voters, Fabien Orquin, an automotive engineer from the French city of Rouen, won a VIP trip to the 2022 Wheels & Waves festival to enjoy the event and be presented with his customized Indian Chief.

The Design and Engineering teams at Indian Motorcycle always had customizers in mind when bringing the Indian Chief to life. A key tagline being ‘Keep it simple so you can easily work on it and customize it’ and a feature of the Chief that Tank Machine took advantage of.

GRIND Machine’s unique look begins with the big block Continental TKC enduro tires wrapped around black Excel spoked rims that work with new bars, new rear suspension, and a one-off seat unit to change the stance and overall lines of the bike.

Tank Machine created new wider handlebars and lower risers for a vintage style that is echoed by the gaiters applied to the forks and rolled up poncho attached to a custom bracket by webbing straps. At the rear, Öhlins piggyback shocks with longer top mounts lift the bike slightly and add a color accent as well as providing a high-quality ride.

The one-off seat unit, all designed in house, features the names of the project’s partners discretely machined into the base and the seat pad enhances the retro bobber look with a brown leather top with waxed material sides. A bottle opener hanging from the right of the seat is a nod to the after-ride party atmosphere of Wheels & Waves and a detail that really connected with the new owner. “My hobby is brewing my own beer, and when I saw the bottle opener, it really made me smile,” said Orquin.

Keeping the stripped-back bobber look clean are hand-fabricated minimalist fenders, mini-indicators on the forks and seat unit, mini taillight and a LED headlight with ring running light. A secondary guarded PIAA yellow light adds a cool retro touch.

The ‘Board Culture’ of Ride Designs is reflected in the use of skateboard deck wood and grip tape adorning the center of the fuel tank and either side of the seat unit, which are mounted with metal brackets inspired by skateboard trucks. The influences of Wheels and Waves are further heightened with Vans waffle handlebar grips and custom-made foot pegs that take inspiration from BMX grind pegs.

Also designed in conjunction with Rise Design is the aluminium engine protection plate behind the front wheel in a brushed metal finish that is also applied to the exhaust heat shield, CNC machined fuel cap and engine parts to give an old bike look on a modern machine. Textured and matte finishes have also been applied to various covers and particularly the frame where the matte finish reveals the beauty of the shape and welds of the classic-style steel frame. Adding to the retro race look, the standard headers were wrapped and mated to shorter SuperTrapp silencers.

With a paint scheme from Rise Designs that features a brushed metal base and weathered green stripes with red accents, the finishing touches to any custom are the interesting details that are only noticed on a second or third close look. For GRIND Machine, these include the decorated red throttle valve inside the custom bell housing, the cut back primary drive cover, and the creator’s logos machined into the black pulley cover and engine covers.

To learn more, please visit www.indianmotorcycle.eu






--Adam Croft
Supreme Leader
Dime Bag Leather Company








My neighbor got a pre-declined credit card in the mail.

CEOs are now playing miniature golf.

Exxon-Mobil laid off 25 Congressmen.

I saw a Mormon with only one wife.

McDonald's is selling the 1/4 ouncer.

Angelina Jolie adopted a child from America.

Parents in Beverly Hills fired their nannies and learned their children's names.

A truckload of Americans was caught sneaking into Mexico.

A picture is now only worth 200 words.

When Bill and Hillary travel together, they now have to share a room.

Called to get Blue Book Value on my car. They asked if the gas tank was full or empty.

And finally...
I was so depressed last night thinking about the economy, wars, jobs, my savings, Social Security, retirement funds, etc., that I called the Suicide Hotline.

I got a call center in Afghanistan, and when I told them I was suicidal, they got all excited and asked if I could drive a truck.

--Sam Burns
Certified Librarian