Here’s a strange tale of a madman builder, an island event, a troubled blonde and the Girls of Bikernet. I’ll try to make some sense of this mixed bag of tricks. It’s all about the passion to do something, be somebody and build a community. Let’s see how well I do. You know the outlaw adage, “Time will tell and shit will smell.”
Deacon out of Honolulu, Hawaii, to celebrate his second island builder celebration, built this bike. He has a long history of wrenches, the wrong side of the law, winning VW drag races and moving from town to town. His saving grace is his wife Katy who rescued him from a San Bernadino courtroom. If you’re curiosity about the man piques, don’t stop here. Check out the Life And Times Department of the Cantina. He has a wild past.
Deacon, Katy and their three kids ended up in Hawaii. He works in a small performance shop on the outskirts of Honolulu, Pro Street (808) 236-0405, but has a Jones. He can’t build a bike, sell it and be done with it. He needed to reach out, so he built wilder bikes and started a campaign to meld all Hawaiian Island builders together in a one-day outdoor show and show off, to the world, the island talent. It sorta backfired.
Event promotion is a nasty carnie-like affair. All the heat, the pissed off vendors and spectators want to hang the promoter. If the event bombs, they laugh and sneer. If the event is a wild success, they scoff and accuse the man of taking advantage. He sold whatever wasn’t nailed to the deck to raise the bucks to make his third and last show a success. In the process of drawing as much custom industry from the mainland, so the world could see and covet island builders, Island builders were left behind in a show of Discovery Channel fervor. Indian Larry, Paul Cox, Peter Fonda, Billy Lane, Mondo, you name it, attended. Unfortunately the stateside celebs pulled the attention away from the goal, to promote Island Builders such as Darren Ho and Nuie. Deacon took the heat and he backed away from the show.
Ah, but that didn’t stop him from building Killer bikes such as this tough-as-nails Jack Daniels tribute. Deacon poured over the promotions of the show and worked days, nights and weekends to finish the bike in time for the event, a terrible goal. Promoters need to be promoters, not bike show competitors.
A Jack Daniels Licensee, Thrill Ride’s, Richard Miller, who developed a line of Jack Daniels apparel, picked up this bike. For almost a year the bike traveled with the western Jack Daniels display from show to show around the states.
The event is now the Paradise Bike Fest, July 4th weekend, and produced by the Steve Kalnasy, the publisher of Hawaiian Chopper Magazine. This is Steve’s first year at the helm and island rumors still fly leading up to Showtime. No matter who’s the boss, the date or the venue, a Hawaiian Island show is tops. The bikes are fantastic, no more beautiful than the island girls or flowers. The people are friendlier than two folks in love, and the waves cresting white sand beaches top off every evening. What in hell could be better?
I’ll tell ya–a blonde island babe who contains Deacon’s passion to reach out and be seen. This little morsel of island fever is dying to be featured in Easyriders and in the Girls of Bikernet. So Steve helped us make it happen with these shots with Deacon’s Jack Daniels tribute bike.
And for those who are intrigued about Paradise Bike Fest here’s the skinny on the show:
SHOP INFO
Pro Street Customs
94-084 Leokane Street #B
Waipahu, Hawaii 96797
(808) 236-0405
PARADISE BIKEFEST&BIKE BUILD-OFF– Join Pasha Hawaii, Budweiser, Pacific Rim Cycle, BMC Choppers, South Seas Harley-Davidson, Cycle City, Domenico’s, Mikey’s Speed Shop, Carr’s Insurance Agency, Big Fat Tatts, Rosa’s Ice Tee, and Island Tattoo on Sunday, July 2nd at Kapaiolani Community College for Hawaii’s biggest motorcycle rally ever.
Beginning with a press conference at 3:00pm on Friday, June 30th, at Honolulu’s Hard Rock Cafe motorcycle enthusiasts and fans of Discovery Channel’s “Great Biker Build-Off” series will join “The Big Schwag” from Discovery Channel’s Monster Garage, and Internationally celebrated motorcycle builders such as, Big Mike of BMC Choppers, the legendary Sugar Bear, Shannon Aikau of Count’s Kustoms, Puerto Rico’s Jose De Miguel of Caribbean Custom Cycles, and Shannon Aikau of Las Vegas’ Count’s Kustoms.
Sunday’s rally will begin with a memorial ride paying tribute to Jimmy Aikau (father of custom builder Shannon Aikau and cousin of legendary surfer Eddie Aikau), and custom builder phenom Johnny Chop who passed away earlier this year.
Beginning at 9:00am at Cycle City Harley-Davidson (600 Puuloa Rd), motorcyclists will ride to Waimea Bay for a short ceremony paying respect to two of the motorcycle cultures greatest motorcycle builders.
There will be no charge for the ride, but those wishing to enter the festivities at KCC will be required to pay an entry fee of $15.00 ($10.00 advance) at the end of the ride.
Once inside KCC, spectators and participants will be treated to Hawaii’s biggest motorcycle event ever! Along with some of the World’s top motorcycle builders and their bikes made famous on television and numerous motorcycle magazines, visitors to this year’s event will actively engage in the festivities by voting on the build-off bikes from Oahu’s own Nui Kauhane of Grumpy’s Customs and Noah O’Geen of Maui’s Hot Rod Alley.
These two builders have had just eight weeks to build their versions of the “Hawaii’s coolest” bike. Nui’s reputation as one of the top builders of the “Local Boy” style will be on the line when he takes on Noah O’Geen. One of Hawaii’s best up and coming motorcycle craftsmen, O’Geen’s creations has been featured on the cover of Hawaiian Chopper Magazine.
In addition to the featured bike build-off, a “ride-in” motorcycle contest offers local builders, owners, and businesses the opportunity to enter their bikes into the various categories offered for a chance to take home specially made, one-of-a- kind trophies, as well as other prizes to be announced.
Categories for the ride in show are, vintage (1936 & below), classic (1937-1965), shovelhead era (1966-1983), EVO era (1984-present), Custom Class (modified), Radical Custom Class (heavily modified), Rat Bike Class, Custom Metric Class, Street Bike Class, and Trailer Queen Class (bikes trailored into the event).
A bikini contest featuring some of Hawaii’s most beautiful women will be held on the main stage, with cash prizes being given to the top three. A registration party will be held at Panama Hatties (above Dixie Grill in Aiea) on Thursday, 29 June (7-10pm). In addition to registration party, Sensually Yours will put on a lingerie show, which is open to the public, and Bo Irvine’s Sharky’s Comedy Club will have great stand up comedy being performed.
For more information on the schedule of event, or how to register for one of the events, visit www.paradisebikefest.com, or call 808-780-2998.
PARADISEFEST BIG MIKE GIVE-AWAY– Big Mike of BMC Choppers will give a away a custom built BMC rolling bobber chassis at Hawaiian Chopper Magazine's Paradise BIkefest on Sunday, July 2nd. “Hawaii has a special place in my heart, so when Steve [Kalnasy] asked me to be a sponsor, giving away a rolling chassis seemed like a good way to get involved,” said Big Mike. Joining sponsors like Pasha Hawaii, Budweiser, Pacific Rim Cycle, Avon Tyres, all of Oahu's Harley dealers, and a host of other local and national sponsors, Big Mike will be on hand for Hawaii's largest bike rally.
You can subscribe to Hawaii's premier custom motorcycle mag by emailing the publisher at
