For years now I have dreamed of building and owning an FXR Chopper!  Around 2017 was the first time I saw the famous “Frisco” fxr photo, It dug a hole in the back of my mind to marinate.  Our Listeners of “The Fast Life Podcast” would probably tell you they have been sick of hearing about my desire to build one.  

the first inspiration

A few years later, Al Emerson @aechoppers (one of my favorite builders) started posting progress pictures on the gram of a De-raked FXR chopper he was fabricating for @soldiers_fullerton.  I have always wanted a full-on rigid chopper,  but my lack of knowledge within the vintage scene has kept me at bay. Over the years I have made progress in understanding the vast differences in choppers and have learned to appreciate the existing chopper scene for all the effort that has been put into the culture past and present.  The answer for me seemed to lie within building a Chopped FXR, something I’m very familiar with while dipping my toes into the unfamiliar chopper world. 

Al Emerson build from AE choppers

With countless other influences and nudges at going down this road.  The straw that broke the camel’s back to make this FXR Chopper a reality came in November 2022 at the Down South Campout.  Justin ( @mymachinist) expressed to me one night over some drinks the idea that would later evolve into “The FXR Tour”.  

justin and i at the down south making fxr plans

Justin and I felt as though the industry needed something that focused on the right attributes of building motorcycles.  Competition amongst the builders has been the common theme in pretty much all build-off-type events.  While competition is a major driving force, we felt that the competition should be building the most kick-ass fxr you can imagine and riding it 1000 miles from Durango Colorado to the Yellow Rose Canyon in East Texas. The tour became a 4-day riding event kicking off at Durango Harley Davidson on Monday, October 16th.  On Tuesday all 10 builders would ride the 450 miles from Durango to Tripps Harley Davidson in Amarillo Texas. Wednesday we would ride the 400 miles from Amarillo to Legendary Strokers Dallas for the Official Born Free Texas Pre-party.  Finally Thursday we would finish the 150 miles into Yellow Rose Canyon for the 4-day Born Free Texas’ second annual event.  The challenge is the build must be ridden the complete 1000-mile trip.  

As a result for the last 9 months, the 10 of us have been in a group chat helping each other from finding parts to sharing knowledge within our areas of expertise.  The idea is to see all your fellow builders make something they are proud of and complete the ride.  This is another important aspect of the FXR Tour that is not always present within typical competitions.  Comradery.

As Justin and I share the responsibility of creating this event and working out the details of the tour, we are also building our FXRs. The New Year kicked off and I had to find an fxr to build from.  I started with a 1985 frame, picked up from a local FXR guy Brooks Blanton out of Canton Texas.  The frame had seen better days but what I intended to do with it none of the damage was a factor for me. At $800 with a clean Texas title, it was a no-brainer. I already had a late model twin cam complete drivetrain laying in the shop which would make a perfect reliable power plant for this fxr Chopper idea.

85 fxr frame

I debated asking a few different fabricators to help create the look I was after with the frame,  initially I was thinking of asking Al Emerson to get the stance dialed for me since he was the main influence.  With AE Choppers being close to 1,000 miles away even if Emerson would have been able to fit me into his schedule, I wasn’t confident it would fit into my schedule of completing the bike for Octobers Born Free. Due to my work and travel schedule for the year.  

I can’t fully remember if someone brought it up or maybe it happened organically at a bike night, but Cory From MainDrive Cycle is local to me and ended up being able to fit me in alongside his FXR Tour build.  Cory’s work through my eyes always seemed to focus on a main attribute I find important on any type of bike build.  Stance!  Add in the cleanliness of his fabrication style which he refers to as “it’s not rocket science” and you get some very clean classy but impactful builds over the years!  Lucky me Cory needed some custom paint done on his build so a good old fashion barter deal was made! 

cory Maindrive cycle

My year was scheduled to be very chaotic,  I dropped my frame off to Cory in late March, just before I went to pick up a new Lowrider ST that was to be my travel bike for the year.  Late April was our 6th annual fast life campout, followed by my anniversary with my wife and a trip to Oklahoma to paint some motorcycles for Covington Customs in May.  Shortly after I had a rush to get the Lowrider painted and customized for the ride to Born Free in California in mid-June.  Once home from California, I had 6 days before heading back out on another motorcycle trip with my friends up and around the Great Lakes.  Once home I was only a few weeks away from heading up to Sturgis.  At this time I was able to make a trip up to see Cory so I could sit on the frame and get a feel for where we wanted the neck to be.  

We decided to go up 4.5” on the neck and keep the stock rake.  We decided this was perfect for me and my size.  Cory and I spent hours talking over what we felt was important to convey in this build.  While I came to him with a vision, Cory was able to refine my vision and bring it to life in ways I was oblivious to.  Along with reworking a few areas of my frame to restore it to stock,  Cory knocked it out of the park. 

Originally I was gifted a West Coast Choppers Villian tank from Frank at Speed Dealer Customs.  While the tank is the shape and look I was after on my build, due to the length of the tank and not wanting to stretch the backbone of the fxr, I had to find another solution.  For the better half of 10 years, I have had a king Sportster tank hanging in my shop.  By using the Sporty tank Cory reworked it to have the “Frisco mount” I was after as well as maintain a fair amount of fuel capacity since I intended to do some cross-country rides on this chop.

The Last big area of fabrication was making my idea of using the factory 2018 Fat Bob rear fender work with the much more narrow subframe rails of an FXR.  Over the last 8 months, I have spent many sleepless nights scrolling down the hashtag #Fxrchopper on Instagram.  What I noticed on 90% of FXR choppers, was they maintained a factory rear fender and pretty much all the other factory aesthetics on the rear.  I’m not saying this looks bad at all,  but with this build, I wanted to focus on the back half of the bike and create a new feel just as we had done with the front.  All in all, it gives the bike a new look and vibe.  Once again Cory was able to narrow the fender re drill mounting holes to use the factory fender struts.  I decided to stick with the factory frame rail dimensions on the off chance I need to run bags in the future and the factory mounting holes are needed.  

Sturgis rolled through and once we all got back in the shop this August, The FXR Tour updates started flooding in from all 10 builders.  The week after Sturgis Cory wrapped up the fabrication work on my chop and was ready to head back to the Fast Life Garage.  Years ago the Lyndall wheels from my first FXR build were acquired by Mark from Texas Performance Motorcycles in Austin Texas.  They spent the last 5 years in his shop collecting dust as he was looking for the right build to use them.  To add to the sentimentality of this build I was able to get them back from Mark at a fair price. 

With the FXR in my shop and sitting as somewhat of a roller I have been spending late nights staring at it from all angles and heights, something I have always done in the past.  I have a pretty vivid imagination which helps me envision colors, paint jobs, parts, etc. This process guides me in the next steps to take.  Now with Tons of parts on order and a few more tricks up my idea sleeve if you’re reading this the day it was released we have exactly 7 weeks until we have to be In Durango for the first day of the tour.   

One thing about building or customizing a Chopper-style motorcycle is the freedom.  Sounds cliche right?  Well maybe, I find it very freeing to customize such a bare-bones bike that doesn’t have a predetermined box it has to fit in.  There are rules, but they are your rules to make or break as you see fit.  On the grand scale, I hope that the masses like what we are building,  due to the massive skills within the Craftsmen I have asked to work with me on this project and how it’s shaping up in my eyes.  I love it and for the first time in my almost 20 years of customizing motorcycles, I feel like this one is truly for me.         

my sketch for my fxr chop build

Rain Rally 2023

I made the decision long ago to do everything in my power to attend the Sturgis motorcycle rally every year for the rest of my days.  Why?  I feel as though Sturgis is the Mecca of all things Vtwin, the gathering of so many different types of bikers and motorcycles alike and of course the amazing rides riddled all over the southwest area of South Dakota.  Lastly the rich history of the event dating back to 1938.  As you approach the black hills (hopefully on your motorcycle) from nearly any direction, your greeted with “Sturgis vibes” in some cases over 100 miles away.  Even if these small towns are simply trying to capitalize on the 1000s of bikers passing down their main streets,  as a biker myself it adds to the excitement and anticipation.  Which further drives home my point of Sturgis’ being a staple in our motorcycle culture.   

!Click on the photos to see the full resolution image!

On day 3 (Wednesday) of my trip to Sturgis I pulled into South Dakota by way of highway 85. Which brought me in from the south west directly into Lead and then the historic town of deadwood (probably my favorite place in the Black Hills).  

I have done Sturgis a few different ways over my last 9 visits.  From a hotel my first year to  camping 3 years and finally renting house’s all the other stays.  This time around I was invited to stay with some good friends from our Dallas bike scene Jake and his wife Lauren,  ( @swandive.28 & @lo.swan)  Jake went in on a house capable of hosting around 20 guests, In what I consider a prime location tucked in-between Sturgis and Deadwood off 14A.

As I pulled up to the house Jake and the rest of the guests were out on a ride enjoying what would be one of the few days we saw the sun.  I took advantage of the water hose and some cleaning supplies and got my Lowrider st back to a presentable condition.  I unloaded my bike, found my room, got situated, showered and prepared to head to Black Hills Harley to link up with my friends Jake and Millhouse from Thunder-max USA.  

Coming in too Black Hills HD I headed straight to the Thunder-max tent which is located on what a lot of us consider to be  “Performance Row” .  Performance Row consists of brands like Trask performance, Hoffman designs, SBC Performance and D & D exhaust to name a few.  I proceeded to make my rounds saying hi and catching up with as many as I could. Plans were made prior to Sturgis to stay with the Thunder-max team at their house on my first night so we could recored an episode for the podcast.    

The T-max crew and I pulled out of Black Hills HD around 6pm with our sights set on home cooked steaks courtesy of Millhouse and endless vodka red bulls, which I would come to completely regret the following morning.  After dinner Jake, Millhouse and I recorded an episode then hit the hot tub for some off air conversations.  Thunder-max has been a sponsor of mine for many years now our relationship actually began in Sturgis 2019 at a drunken night at buffalo wild wings. Although I had ran their products for many years prior to knowing them.  Since then we have worked together on many projects and events.  Now these guys feel more like family then anything else.  

Day 4 kicked off with a foggy daze and headache to remind me for hours to come on last nights decisions.  After some hugs and good bye’s, I headed out on one of the black hills main veins 385 which would take me from my current location in Hill City back into Deadwood.  It was early morning and the Thursday before the rally officially started, so very few bikes on the road and  South Dakota had not shipped in all the additional law enforcement yet. So I got to open up the lowrider and have a bit of fun.

I pulled into downtown Deadwood and headed to the Starbucks to fill this new itch I developed this past June, Coffee.  As Luck would have it as I pulled up and was completely oblivious to the fact that my good friend Kyle ( @foreverrad) was hanging out front having his morning fix.  It took a minute for me to realize his presence but soon after we were catching up over some latte’s.  

Our brief conversation was a great start to my day and start to what would be my only opportunity to ride any of the black hills this trip.  I pulled back up to the house and was able to to meet all the roommates I would be staying with over the next 5 days.  With the bulk of my obligations being Saturday and Sunday I was wide open to have some fun this Thursday and Friday.  The Crew had intended on riding Spearfish Canyon today, with a stop at the Boars nest for some beers.  

I decided to tag along as it gave way to a great opportunity to snap some riding shots of some of the homies.  As well as a chance to meet some of the other guests I had not met before.  The ride was comfortable although we did get hit with some light rain and wet roads.  I managed to keep my shoes dry and the Boars nest had Guinness which was a perfect thick beer to reset my pallet from the regrettable red bull vodkas.  Although my enthusiasm was pretty hight my body was worn out so I headed back to the house took a shower and crashed out.  5 pm ish to be exact. 

Friday morning started around 430 am for me, allowing me to get my bearings going well before the house woke up.  Later that morning I rode a street over within our neighborhood, linking up with some great friends.  Wenton and Scott have been big supporters of my brand and probably have collected the most custom painted Simpson helmets from me over the years.  Needless to say their friendship has been an added bonus to the paint opportunities they have provided me over the years.  

Every year these guys host a big party at their house and have always encouraged me to invite anyone I felt would bring good vibes.  More on this later.  Friday called for rain all day,  with short breaks long enough to allow the ground to dry, only to dump again if you attempt to get out on you’re bike.  Lunch came around and they took me to their favorite spot up on the hill in deadwood “the Lodge”.  This spot was a welcomed meal that I felt I had been lacking the last few days.  A couple more Guinness’s a proper French dip and I was full of energy and ready to let loose.   

Once I got back to the house the rain picked back up and was draining me of any and all enthusiasm.  Fortunately Tre’ (@tourqeduptre) and Zack two more Dallas natives wanted to drive to downtown Sturgis hit one eyed jacks and bar hop for the night.  Eventually the majority of the guests in the house found their way to one eyed jacks to party with us. We also linked up with many other friends from all over the country (honestly too many to list) the night ended in the legendary dungeon bar I had a great time and managed to stay fairly sober through the chaos. Mainly due to the inflated beer and alcohol prices commonly found on Main Street during the rally.  I didn’t take hardly any photos this evening just wasn’t feeling it.

 

Saturday began around 2 pm for me, I didn’t have a hang over it was just raining non stop and with the window cracked in my room it created a soothing sound so I just slept the morning away.  By the time I came down stairs I was surprised to see more close friends from Dallas at the house hanging out.  Marcus ( @drkhrs) and Cory (@maindrivecycle) had stopped by in their truck trying to make the best of the rainy day in South Dakota. I had an obligation that afternoon to attend the Motorcycles as art show at the buffalo chip.  Trying to figure out how I was going to make the trip in the rain, when Cory and Marcus offered to drop me off.  I took them up on the offer, in hopes that Tre’ or someone could come scoop me up once the show was over.  

Motorcycles as art show for the last 22 years was put on and curated by Michael Lichter, as I stated in my last blog this was his first year attending as a featured artist.  This Year the invited artists: photography and paintings were curated by Savannah (@themouseandthemoto) and the custom motorcycles were curated by @dunworth_ .  Saturday is the industry party for this event,  the first day where its invite only before being open to the public for the remaining days of the rally.  You’re literally rubbing elbows with the biggest names in the motorcycle industry, I found myself meeting some fellow photographers I admire too some industry friends I haven’t seen in a few years.  

I found Lichter and he took me under his wing, introducing me to many people from around the industry. At one point I was introduced to legendary Sugar Bear, then I was speaking with the team behind Progressive insurance, next thing I knew I was hearing stories from Dozer a builder from Kentucky as he spoke on some behind the scenes stories from the upcoming Movie The Bikeriders. An adaptation of the famous book from Danny Lyons. We also walked together looking at the photography on the walls.  Which tuned into more or less, lessons on composition, lighting and overall artistic expression.  The talks with Michael as I said before are priceless and as someone who talks for a living, I know when to shut the fuck up and listen.  Overall the experience at this event was great especially as a major networking event.  There is a chance I will be able to exhibit some of my photography in years to come.. 

As the Night winded down I started to contemplated my ride home.  With less then 20% battery on my phone I was getting a bit worried.  Tre and the guys decided not to get out in Sturgis but rather go to deadwood, forcing me too relying on uber, which is not very common at the rally.  Fortunately after about 30 mins a driver confirmed and was in route.  I was a bit worried but it worked out, I got home just in time to catch the Jake Paul & Nate Diaz fight with a few of the guys who decided not to go out that night.  Chuck and Zee from Georgia, as well As Beth and Josh from the UK! we had an awesome time and chat throughout the evening.

Sunday we finally had day of sunshine and honestly perfect weather.  The annual FXR show held at the big engine bar at the buffalo chip is another event I haven’t missed since my first go around in 2017.  Big Joe the Show producer over the years has asked me and a handful of other FXR aficionado’s to be judges.  With that honor I do my best to help provide a positive experience for the show goers.  Check out all the pics I snapped at the FXR Show.

Sunday evening kicks off the annual house party put on by my friends Wenton and Scott who I mentioned earlier.  Every year they load the house with BBQ endless liquor and margaritas all in the name of a good time.  I attended my first party with them in 2019 and haven’t missed one since.  I invited so many friends that evening I lost count, the night was truly amazing with amazing ppl. At one point one late in the evening when we thought the party was winding down Kory Souza a builder from Florida kicked on a stereo from one of his builds and gave the party a second wind. Creating a dance party in the garage, everyone was letting loose. This was probably my first time at one of these parties where 2 am things were still jumping.  Part of me felt like it was pent up energy that the rain forced us all to keep in over the last few days, regardless the night was amazing to say the least.  

As we all pealed ourselves outta bed Monday, I considered heading home as most of what I came to Sturgis for had taken place.  A quick glance at the radar forced me to spend one more day in the black hills.  Nebraska and Oklahoma was getting pounded with storms, leaving me with no other option but to stay and attend a few more shows.  Jake, Lauren and I wiped down the bikes and headed to Harley Davidson square in downtown Sturgis, for the V-Twin Visionary Performance Bike show.  

We pulled up early parked the bikes and b-lined it to breakfast.  Which was an $18 each breakfast buffet with very little food left before they transitioned to lunch.  I scraped down what I could then hit up the HD dealership a few blocks away to find my wife a shirt or two.  Upon returning to the show, bikes filled up the parking area with a ton of really cool customs.

Im not one to enter my personal bikes into shows.  Mainly because my bikes are not show bikes they are go bikes,  today I wanted a good parking spot so I played the game.  Jeff Holt the man behind the V-twin visionary brand had an award for a guy like me, a traveler.  I was honored with the kind words Jeff said about me and my work ethic within the moto scene. I hoped on stage to accept the award just as the clouds began to dump on us once again.  Both Jake and Lauren walked away with some awards for their bikes as well. This show brought a few friends out I haven’t seen in a while, Brian @HomieHimself on instagram has been a big supporter of my paint work over the years and has become a solid friend in the process we got a chance to catch up as we crossed paths during this show.

On down the road was one more show we decided to attend, the hard core cycles show.  We pulled up in the light rain only to just miss a heavier downpour moments later.  This weather and the lack of participants at this event (due to weather) made the rest of the afternoon drag.  As soon as the rain stopped and I felt the sun on my skin I hopped back on the bike and headed east on 34 into the rolling hills trying to soak up the sun and find a good vista of Bear Butte mountain. 

I pulled off on a dirt road hoping to find a less seen vista, about a mile in the road carved around a small hill opening to some amazing views of Bear Butte. I went to work shooting some shots of the filthy lowrider with the iconic mountain in the background! soon after a rad dude on a killer vintage panhead rolled up in search of similar views to shoot his bike, I snapped a photo with my film camera, and the guy offered to snap a photo of me with my bike.

The ride back home to dead wood through Sturgis was some what peaceful, the sun setting with some cloud coverage made for a visually dramatic evening .  As soon as I crossed interstate 90 and began carving the canyons in route to deadwood the temp dropped to what seem like a low 50 degrees.  My intentions were to get home, pack and crash asap too hopefully get up around 2/3 am and hit the road home.  

As we were all winding down at the house I found out that Jake and Lauren had space on their trailer,  It was close to 10 pm and the temps were going to be in the low 40s most of the morning, at this point I knew I wasn’t gonna get the sleep I needed and I also didn’t have the cold riding gear for the cold morning ahead.  So fuck it we threw the bike on the trailer and that was a wrap on my Sturgis 2023 experience.  

Over the years I have said a lot of things in regards to trailering motorcycles.  Most of which will lead you to believe I am not a fan of it. To be honest I am not, but obviously I understand why a number of people trailer, maybe its time off of work, maybe its the convenience of having more then one bike on the trailer and splitting gas amongst a few others. My recent take on this is you do you. While I try my best to keep my bike on the concrete I can’t deny, when it just makes sense to load it up and make time, Ultimately I understand that at some point we all find ourselves on a trailer.  I think my point has always been to push individuals to try and experience the ride. The highs and the lows and everything that comes with it. With this blog I hope my stories as they get converted to words help inspire you to get out and travel on your motorcycle. In doing so maybe you will meet a similar conclusion that I have in my time on two wheels, that it’s about the journey not so much the destination.

Hear are a few more shots from the trip!

 

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Like the 8 years prior, my journey to the black hills started hours before the sun came up.  This year with the intense heat we have had in Dallas Texas, a 2 am departure headed northwest on highway 287 provided the perfect start too my trip.  With cooler temps and a mostly empty highway besides the occasional 18 wheeler,  I was able to cover ground and put Amarillo on the horizon by sunrise.. . 

Back in 2020 on a similar ride up to Sturgis I stumbled across a rad little ran down filling station  covered in graffiti from the countless travelers leaving their mark on anything left standing on route 66.  Unlike many other abandoned structures you will find off 66 and I 40 west of Oklahoma this spot was unique, next to the deteriorating filling station was a row of half buried Volkswagen beetle’s similar to the Cadillac ranch only 30 miles further west on I-40.  With perfect golden hour light and my Lowrider ST not caked in bug guts yet,  I set out to capture some photos and see if I could find some unique compositions..  

As the sun got higher I got back on the highway this time interstate 40 headed west.  I laid into the throttle pretty solid to keep a steady pace above the average flow of traffic.  A bit of personal preference, I don’t like being passed by 18 wheelers especially on major highways,  riding faster then traffic tends to eliminate the majority of potential threats from behind.  Not too far west of Amarillo the route would take me off the main highway once again and onto 385 and eventually 87. 

Crossing into New Mexico, gaining an hour and seeing some faint mountains on the horizon provided a small dose of adrenalin.  I have always had a fascination with geography and one of the few cool things about the route I had been on was seeing the land change. The further west I traveled from Dallas the shorter and less abundant the trees were.  Opening up the sky and distant landscapes to some kick ass views.  

Raton was my next and only gas stop in New Mexico.  In years passed I have rarely made it over the raton pass into Colorado with out getting drenched.  Luckily this year the rain spared me, well at least for now.  

On this first day on my Sturgis trip, other then the planned 850 miles from Dallas to Boulder Colorado, I was to stop in Pueblo and record a podcast with the Barela Brothers.  Joey and Rueben attended my campout (the Fast Life Campout) back in 2021 and brought some amazing energy, enthusiasm and over all great vibes to the event!  All though I didn’t immediately jump at the chance to podcast with them,  in the years since FLC 4 (2021) both Joey and Rueben got into FXR’s and as of this year Joey completed a frame up restoration on his FXR, followed by a semi cross country ride to the West Coast FXR Jam.  

After a 12pack of bud lights split between the three of us we wrapped up the podcast, and Rueben hopped on his FXR and escorted me out of Pueblo, north on interstate 25.  If you have never ridden this highway which runs parallel to the rocky mountains,  it provides absolutely amazing views and equally insane weather conditions.  There always seems to be something brewing weather wise in the mountains along I-25, and once it hits the foot hills headed east, violent is the word I would use to describe them. 

Needless to say I had a hotel booked in Boulder, but this storm wouldn’t allow me to get north of Colorado Springs.  I waited for hours in soaked shoes to see if there would be a break in the storm providing me an opportunity to slip passed, but as luck would have it my day was cut short, and I spent the next few hours trying to blow dry the inside of my shoes at an Econolodge about 100 miles short of my already booked and paid for hotel in Boulder. 

Day 2 of my trip was equally exciting as it was nerve-racking.  Not because of weather or anything mother nature may of had in store that day..  but 100 miles north of me was Michael Lichter one of the most famous and important photographers over the last 40 years within the motorcycle world.  Michael and I had been trying to link up and do a podcast for about 3 years at this point.  With his schedule it can be next to impossible to nail this guy down for a day to record. As fate would have it this year was the first time in the last 22 years the Michale was not curating his show “Motorcycles as art” at the buffalo chip.  Which typically would have had him already in Sturgis setting up the exhibits and shooting photographs of the custom bikes.  

The ride up from Colorado Springs was riddled with slow downs. I tried to filter my way through Denver, managing to ruin a few commuters lives with my lane splitting, or at least that was the reactions I got from them as I slid past them.  All in all I was in a great mood but nervous to spend the majority of the day with Michael.  As a aspiring photographer myself, this opportunity to be around him and absorb as much as I could was priceless.  

When I pulled up to Michels home/ studio,  he was just loading up a collection of his iconic photos that were to be displayed at the buffalo chip throughout the rally.  As the courier drove off his attention was directed towards me and he began to give me a tour of his studio and home.  

I can only describe The Lichter residence as a place of inspiration and appreciation.  Every wall in his home had a photograph a painting or some memorabilia from our rich motorcycle culture.  As he gave me the tour, we talked photography past present and future.  Honestly I should have had him mic’ed up from the jump, but when you converse with ppl over the years you learn that not every conversation is meant for the world.  One thing that has really stuck out since my visit was his motto which is inscribed in a hand made bench in his foyer “Go out for adventure come home for Love”. 

Our day together included a ride up boulder canyon to Nederland for lunch and a beer along with more talk of photography and motorcycles.  The ride back to his home was through left hand canyon drive which did not disappoint,  a fair amount of curves and endless amount of beauty.  The route dropped us out of the mountains just north of bolder.  Michael had a prior meeting on his books so while he fulfilled his obligation I set up the microphones for our podcast together..

After a few hours, we wrapped up around 7pm and originally my plan was to ride 15 miles north too podcast and crash with “Charlie the traveling chopper” and wife Kayla at their home in longmont Colorado. Charlie is a avid motorcycle traveler, writer and photographer,  who has been an inspiration of mine over the last year with his travels and blog.  Kayla whom I met officially on this trip is an artist writer and traveler.  They both run a website called www.roadsareforjourneys.com where you can find a collection of blogs from many travelers of all sorts!   

While I was in my podcast with Michael,  a couple from Australia was having bike trouble after attempting to leave Charlie’s house.  They had spent the last few days with Charlie and Kayla regrouping and preparing to head back out on their American journey  Grounded with battery issues by the time Charlie and the Aussie (who you can follow on IG @thepacktrack ) made it back to his home, I figured a podcast with him was off the table.  

I met Charlie in 2022 when he made a stop in Dallas as he embarked on his ride around the world.  Yes! Around the world! I had hoped to bring some of his experiences and stories from that trip to our listeners, but I spent the remainder of the evening listening to the Aussies talk about their last almost 10 years traveling the world on their motorcycles.  Get this..  with their three dogs!  All in all I couldn’t have asked for a more amazing evening with truly inspiring passionate people.

Day three got off to a smooth start I departed from Longmont Colorado with my sights set on the black hills.  350 miles until I was officially in Sturgis.  Now back on i-25 just in time to catch the sun rise. I found my self at times looking east and taking in the golden hour light while forgetting about the north bound highway I was traveling.  As I Crossed into Wyoming I made a point to fill up in Cheyenne, due to the vast gas-less stretches between towns.  A lesson learned in one of my earlier Sturgis journeys. 

The plateau’s and valleys of eastern Wyoming can seem mundane compared to the towering Rockies I was just riding along side,  but as a frequent traveler of the great plains I’ve learned to appreciate the terrain for its beauty and history.  As I ride along side the ridges and within the valleys, I can’t help but imagine pioneers and settlers making the trek west for new opportunity over 150 years ago.  In a way my yearly pilgrimage to Sturgis is in search of new opportunities.

Sturgis is the Mecca for American v-twin culture. The congregation of enthusiasts and industry leaders make it a melting pot of opportunities for someone like me. You can simply have an amazing vacation on two wheels,  content creators of all sorts can live and capture the Sturgis experience for their audiences, builders can show off the latest creations to motorcyclists  from all over the world, and manufacturers can get their products seen by hundreds of thousands of potential customers.  Its the Mecca,  killer roads historic places, beautiful machines and the best riding weather..   Well maybe not the weather. this year..   

All Photos Were Shot with ( Digital-Canon R5) Film (canon A1 & Minolta Freedom point and shoot)