Hey,

I ponder the theme for the news every week. Sometimes it’s a no-brainer, sometimes a celebration. This week I had a conversation with a brother regarding the state of our government and my move to the Black Hills of South Dakota. I’m very fortunate to be here and experiencing the freedom fresh from our escape from Califa.

If you have lived here all your life, it’s just home. Locals don’t realize what this place means to the motorcycling community, to freedom lovers and to custom builders.

One other item dawned on me. It sometimes takes me awhile, ya see, I’m just a grubby biker. I was wondering why the reds in this state weren’t anxious to share the truth with kids all over the world and eliminate the doom. I said, “Perhaps they were being bullied or paid off.” Imagine if your party passed two bills which afforded you damn close to two trillion bucks. Each bill was over 1000 pages of programs to fund anything and everything.

You don’t think they could use those trillions to almost buy-off anything or anyone? Maybe that’s why we face this uphill battle. Hang On! Let’s hit the news.

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





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THE CODE OF THE GUARDIAN BELL—Legend has it Evil Road Spirits have been latching on to motorcycles for as long as mechanical motorcycles have ruled the roads. These Evil spirits are responsible for mechanical problems and bad luck along the journey.

Legend goes onto say by attaching a small bell onto your bike, the Evil Road spirits will become trapped inside the bell where the constant ringing drives them insane, making them lose their grip until they fall to the pavement (ever wonder where potholes come from?).

Legend also has it that the mystery of the Guardian bell carries twice as much power when it’s purchased by a friend or loved one and given as a gift.

Show someone how much you care. Offer them defense against the evil /road /agents. Give a Guardian Bell and share the Legend of Good Luck it offers to any motorcycle and its rider.

--the Keeper of the Realm



"If you buy any books from our shop, I will send you a Bandit stainless guardian bell as a gift, so you’re covered." --Bandit





BIKER FEATURE OF THE WEEK-- Deuce's Wild by Stevenson's Cycle, since 1969.







Stevenson's Cycle
4653 Wayne Rd.
Wayne, Michigan 48184
Phone: 734-641-2200



--Sam Burns
Feature Bike Editor
Bikernet.com™





THE PRISM GANG GARAGE ACTION-- My Garage

This episode of My Garage brings us to Laguna Seca in Monterey, CA where we rendezvous with Patricia Fernandez-West. This is the first episode we've shot at a "temporary" garage and one that happens to get set up for long weekends at racetracks all over the country.

Patricia is a professional motorcycle racer who competes in both the Mission King of the Baggers and Super Hooligan classes. But, she didn't end up there by accident - it took years of pouring everything she had into racing.

Sponsored by Saddlemen Seats.









BIKERNET GUN NUT REPORT--Biden Admin Oversteps Authority to Attack Law-Abiding Gun Owners, Again

NEWS
Biden Admin Oversteps Authority to Attack Law-Abiding Gun Owners, Again
Last Thursday, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (“ATF”) announced a new proposed rule on the “Definition of ‘Engaged in the Business’ as a Dealer in Firearms.” ­­--the definition that controls when individuals engage in sufficient commerce in firearms so as to need to be licensed under federal law as a Federal Firearms Licensee (“FFL”).

Under the proposed rule, Biden’s ATF would go well beyond statutory authority to fabricate presumptions of when an individual needs be an FFL, and the rule itself acknowledges its unlawfulness.

Arms Trade Treaty Sets Sights on Industry
After almost ten years of utter failure, the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) has shifted its focus. Once touted as the United Nation’s (UN) crown jewel in preventing and eradicating the illicit trade and diversion of conventional arms, last week’s Ninth Conference of States Parties (CSP9) served as an almost singularly focused attack on the global firearms industry.

Canadians on Canada’s Gun Control Measures: Expensive, Ineffective, Political Posturing

More than three years have passed since Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a ban and mandatory confiscation (“buyback”) of what he called “military grade assault weapons,” which was followed by a national handgun “freeze” and other gun control measures.

NRA Victory in Fight Over Ammo Ban
WASHINGTON EXAMINER

A federal court on Friday rejected a long-fought effort by environmental groups to force a ban on lead ammo in a national forest, providing a key win for hunters, the National Rifle Association, and the United States Forest Service.

NRA says Biden admin's proposal for more firearms background checks is an attack on law-abiding gun owners

FOX NEWS
The National Rifle Association responded this week to the Biden administration’s proposed rule requiring more background checks to combat rising gun violence, saying it was just another step to attack "law-abiding gun owners."

--NRA







LATEST FROM LOWBROW-- EL, VL, FLH, XLCH, FXDG.. If you are playing Scrabble, you're screwed.

However, if you are looking in your garage, you have fun modes of transportation dialed!

There is at least some rhyme and reason to the model designations assigned by Harley-Davidson over the years.

In this article, we dive in and try and distill it down so you can have a good general understanding that will help you identify bike models on the fly.

CHECK IT OUT

PS - if Triumphs pique your interest more than Harleys, check out our Guide to Triumph Engine & Frame Serial Numbers!







STRANGE BIKES OF THE WEEK—



--Sam Burns
Motorcycle Curator
Bikernet.com™







CLIMATE DOOM QUOTE OF THE WEEK--Sarewitz’s conclusion:

Indeed, with climate change being blamed for almost everything these days, the one phenomenon that seems to have escaped the notice of scientists, environmentalists and the media alike is that, perhaps above all, climate change is making us stupid.

Even so, I do have good news to report based on my interactions with people out in the real world who need to make decisions with consequences — many understand that narrative cannot rule — evidence, data and science must continue to matter, lest we make poor decisions. Scientific journals, university press officers and campaigning journalists who seek to enforce a simplistic narrative make it that much harder for science to find its way into the real world, which harms everyone.

Identifying a problem is the first step. It is time to break the narrative rules.

--Roger Pielke Jr.
The Honest Broker





5-BALL TEAM MEMBER ON CANNONBALL--
The Salt Torpedo pilot, Micah McCloskey finds a getaway on the Cannonball. He passed his inspection and is ready to rock.



"We made it to Virginia Beach!! CANNONBALL BABY!!" ~ Micah McCloskey

--from Wayfarer
Associate Editor
Bikernet.com™





BIKERNET READER COMMENT—The Last Crocker Ever Built

Click here to read the Crocker article.

Being a lifetime motorcyclist and resident of New York state (1954-2018), I attended the AMCA Empire chapter meet annually as it was a twenty minute ride to Brookfield's Madison county fairgrounds.

Forty-some years ago I recall a Crocker there. I would have taken a much closer look had I known it's rarity. Plus, there always seemed to be a large group around it.

--Robert Pickersgill

"They always drew attention." --Bandit





BIKERNET TEMPLE Wisdom Quotes--

"The highest reward for a person's toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it." ~ John Ruskin

"It is infinitely better to have a few good men, than many indifferent ones." ~ George Washington

"Believe in yourself when nobody else does." ~ Mary J. Blige

"Straight roads do not make skillful drivers." ~ Paulo Coelho

“Never fear shadows. They simply mean there’s a light shining nearby.” ~ Ruth E. Renkel

“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” ~ Ernest Hemingway

"The secret of your success is determined by your daily agenda." ~ John C Maxwell

"Experience is not what happens to a man. It is, what a man does with what happens to him." ~ Aldous Huxley



"The best mirror is an old friend." ~ George Herbert

"If you know how quickly people forget the dead, you will stop living to impress people." ~ Christopher Walken

"A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it."
~ Jean de La Fontaine

---Wayfarer







MOVIE OF THE WEEK—George Foreman Movie.

"Inspirational boxing movie about the history of George Foreman, don’t miss it." --Bandit

Refer: https://www.taijutsu.art/2023/02/life-of-george-foreman.html

YouTube Boxing Channel called "Rainy Day Boxing" has cool bios on many top boxing legends of the past. It is said that George was always a teddy bear but where he trained was also where people like Sonny Liston trained. Aspiring boxers wanted to be a mean bad@$$ like Sonny who spent his youth in and out of prison before becoming a boxing champion.

So, George developed a public personality of mean and angry person because -- who would pay to watch a "huge" (pun) "nice" guy fight the World Champion as a challenger?

George was very hurt by Muhammed Ali's insults which shows how sensitive and caring he actually was. Like Sonny, (his idol) George kept quiet and just gave death stares at opponents (or tried to).

"An Olympic Gold medalist and former World Heavyweight Champion, when he sees his community struggling spiritually and financially, Foreman returns to the ring at age of 45 years and makes history by reclaiming his title, becoming the oldest and most improbable World Heavyweight Boxing Champion ever."

"Sure the fight was fixed. I fixed it with a right hand." ~ George Foreman

Check out the video:

https://youtu.be/8zfpIkEylSg?feature=shared

--Wayfarer
Movie Reviewer
Bikernet.com™





NEWS FROM THE OTHER 5-BALL EMPIRE—

In Venice, California where the master tattoos and the new home of 5-Ball Leathers resides.



Check him out, if you dare go to Los Angeles.

--Bandit







CHOPPER HOBO COMES TO BIKERNET--

You got no idea how good it makes me feel to see you are still building bikes, a Knucklehead and your friend's '60 Pan. That is incredible. You are keeping your tradition and legacy going forever and you give me hope for the dismal future.

I also feel kinda funny even asking you to accept a book, cuz your chopper life has to be THE most exciting chopper life anyone ever had.

You were at the beginning of the Southern California chopper hey-day and you had your MC life. And if that wasn't enough, then you were the editor of the best magazine that has ever been printed since they printed on paper. If Chopperdom was a religion, Los Angeles would be The Vatican, and you would be the Pope.

My books might seem kinda goofy and cornball to you, cuz I was born a few years too late and 1,500 miles too far away in Dallas. The Wild Angels and Easy Rider movies and Then Came Bronson shaped my beginning, then Easyriders magazine honed it.

I turned 18 in 1973 and when I got outta school the first thing I did was ride my ol' used ‘67 Sportster up into the Canadian Rockies. And the cross country road trip bug bit me. I knew I was hooked for life on two wheels.

But a few days later, by the time I rode the Sportster back to Dallas I already knew the Sportster was kinda too little for me, cuz you and me are about the same height and we need some room to stretch out, right?

So, on July 11 1974 I got the Super Glide which I still ride and build on today. It was a fukkin turd built right in the middle of the AMF Strike. I was hanging around Shelby Withrow's bike shop Mid Cities Choppers. And that's where I met all the Dallas guys who were also building and riding choppers in the 1960s. I was the snot nosed punk kid and they took me in.

Shelby's main riding partners were Blue Jay Murphy, Stan Suttles and Harold Rhinehart. Through Blue Jay I got to meet Billy Tinney and Mister Tramp and Tiny and Animal and Jock-O from the Scorpions, and that was about the time your magazine was going around the nation holding those wonderful old swap meets with the MCs in different cities.

The Shovel I still ride today is made up of parts from those old swap meets and the old ABATE swaps, too.

So, I guess what I am trying to say is the books are sort of a diary of the same bike I been riding 49 years now. I've had it down to bare frame 7 times, and twice cut the front half of the frame off for more stretch. The back half is still the old 1971 D&D Jammer frame with the mechanical brake.

The 74 Shovel Chop is the main character in the 4 books, I'm just its caretaker and the monkey riding on top of it, hahah.

The highlight of the 74 Shovel's life was getting into your magazine. So, I'm hoping the book doesn't bore you to sleep.

Take care and keep on buildin',

--Dave

"Thanks Dave. I can’t stop building bikes, riding or writing." --Bandit