Skip to main content
Tag

Los Angeles

Mandate Madness: Latest Episode of Bandit’s Cantina

By General Posts

Bandit’s Cantina Episode 98: Mandate Madness
Trying Business Survival in Los Angeles
By Bandit with George Fleming and Jon Towle Illustrations

Between Covid and multiple mandates, the Cantina business model imploded. It was no longer about food and parties. It was all about survival. Every Monday morning the staff met to discuss how to get through the next week.

More and more young loners came to the Cantina to help or hide out. Walker’s Café on Pt. Fermin closed after almost 70 years as a coastal biker hangout. Between break-ins and anti-fossil fuel zealots Bikers were no longer allowed to ride along the scenic winding coast.

Brothers who needed cash sold extra parts in a small swap area in the Cantina garages. Some gave parts to the Cantina to sell to pay the bills, others brought stuff to sell and split with the Cantina.

CLICK HERE To Read Latest Episode of Bandit’s Cantina – The Series.

Join the Cantina to catch-up on this incredible journey.

Click Here to Sign-up before the 100th Episode Milestone.

New Biker Fiction: Rudy and the Women

By General Posts

Chapter 2 of Bonneville Run by K. Randall Ball

Chance rolled out of the Marina area relieved. A haunting pain had been lifted. It felt good to watch the Sunset over the Palos Verdes peninsula, while glistening off the calm harbor waters.

There was one biker who glared around the club’s floating galley, never smiled and only nodded to folks he knew.

It didn’t take Chance long to determine this biker’s self-induced destiny. He wanted to drink himself to death as fast as possible. He drank hard liquor like Rudy smoked Canadian cigarettes.

Read the new chapter Now by Clicking Here

Hang on as this book comes together before your very eyes, chapter by chapter.

CLICK HERE To Read all the Books written by Bandit – anytime, anywhere

Join the Cantina – Subscribe Today

New Biker Fiction: Chance 3 – Da Blues

By General Posts

The Latest Biker Fiction featuring Chance Hogan and his adventures on two-wheels

by K.Randall Ball with illustrations Tim Condor and images from Barry Green

Chance loses his Chinese love and is left alone in the harbor district in Los Angeles.

He needs to pull his grubby biker life back together near the struggling Port of Los Angeles.

Read it Now by Clicking Here

Hang on as this book comes together before your very eyes, chapter by chapter.

CLICK HERE To Read all the Novels written by Bandit – anytime, anywhere

Join the Cantina – Subscribe Today

Black Biker History

By General Posts

Here is a photo of Bessie Stringfield on her (from what I can tell anyways) 1940 61-cubic-inch Harley-Davidson OHV. Also known as the Knucklehead.

Recognizing Black History Month 2022
by Nick Resty and Mama Tried

I do not claim to be an expert on any historical MC stuff, but I have always found it fascinating.

Being a guy who tries to emulate what others have done in the past, I have always found it to be important and respectful to learn the history of the source of my passion.

One aspect of chopper history that has always fascinated me are the black chopper builders and motorcycle clubs. That being said, I’ll just spout off things that I have learned through my chopper years thus far.

CLICK HERE To Read this Feature Article from Nick Resty & Mama Tried

CLICK Here To Subscribe to Bikernet’s Free Weekly Newsletter

Gevin Fax Blazes Her Own Trail

By General Posts

by Emily Chavous from russbrown.com

Whether riding a motorcycle or challenging norms, Gevin Fax is no stranger to blazing trails.

She says, “I think this is the best, most wonderful country in the world, but we are not flawless. I want women to not sell themselves short. We are stronger than we give ourselves credit for. We are more possible than we could ever imagine.”

“Everybody kept telling me my life was going to change after I bought the Harley. Let me tell you something: Everything changed.”

CLICK HERE To Read this Feature Article on Bikernet.com

Get all motorcycle news, updates & tech – CLICK To Sign Up for our Free Weekly Newsletter

Clay’s Christmas – Blessings Come in Strange Packages

By General Posts

New Episode 97 in Bandit’s Cantina – The Series

by K.Randall Ball with illustrations by Jon Towle and George Fleming

The Cantina bustled and Bandit kept the holiday tunes blasting while he stared at his budget sheet. It didn’t look good. The positive cash flow from the Sturgis Rally dwindled. He knew his time in Los Angeles waned and 2022 would be a turning point.

He put on a smiling Xmas face and walked down the stairs to the dining room. Most huddled together over their presents. Brothers discussed bike modifications and upcoming projects.

Marko came out from behind bar and nudged Bandit. “Looking good?” Marko said and then steered Bandit’s gaze to Clay, his thinning head of sandy-blonde hair resting against the polish bar top.

Clay was a too-regular. He started drinking early and didn’t stop. His poison Corona beers held him in place between piss and smoke breaks.

A friendly, helpful sort he wanted to assist folks and started to rebuild outboard motors and handled dinghy repairs. Never said a bad thing about anyone.

CLICK HERE To Read the Follow-up to the 2021 XMas Story

Join the Cantina for more – including all of Bandit’s novels and Exclusive Features

If you sign up for a two-year Cantina Membership, you will receive a signed book and lotsa swag from the crew.

Click Here to Subscribe Today !!!

Custom LiveWire One Motorcycles Debut at Autopia 2099 in Los Angeles

By General Posts

SMCO custom LiveWire One

Reimagined Electric Motorcycles Launch the Future of Customization

LOS ANGELES, CA (December 9, 2021) – The customization potential of the LiveWire One™ electric motorcycle was on full display on Saturday, Dec. 4 at Autopia 2099, a new and dedicated EV event held at Optimist Studios in Los Angeles designed to showcase electric cars, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles, and other mobility solutions. The event featured more than 80 vehicles, from home-built and conversion EVs to brand new cars and trucks, plus a display of what the event organizers called retrofuturism. Two custom motorcycle builders, SMCO and Earle Motors, presented the first fully customized LiveWire One motorcycles, both of which originated in Los Angeles, a city rapidly becoming LiveWire’s most successful market.

“The custom bikes showcased at Autopia make a big statement on behalf of LiveWire,” said Ryan Morrissey, Chief Electric Vehicle Officer. “Personalization has always been an element of motorcycle culture, and this weekend SMCO and Earle Motors demonstrated the customization potential of LiveWire One. These custom bikes and components are early indicators of our intent to incorporate limited edition builds and accessories into the digital bike builder on LiveWire.com.”

SMCO: LiveWire One Hooligan Racer
Brothers Aaron and Shaun Guardado started racing as young teenagers, first in shifter karts and then in high performance import cars before they turned their attention to motorcycles. They founded SMCO in 2010 to sell branded T-shirts and started building custom competition motorcycles in their Long Beach, Calif., shop to back up the brand and feed their appetite for racing and performance. Now in their mid-30s, the brothers have built serious Harley-Davidson flat trackers and performance bikes for hooligan racing, and even converted a pair of Harley-Davidson® Street Rod® motorcycles into snow bikes for a winter hill climb at the ESPN X Games.

“When we got our hands on the LiveWire One, we immediately wanted to race it,” said Aaron Guardado.

This past July, Shaun and Aaron entered a pair of LiveWire One bikes in the Roland Sands Super Hooligan Championship at the Laguna Seca race course in California. The series is open to almost any motorcycle, and for the event the bikes were stripped of lighting but were otherwise stock.

“The bikes are so fast and so much fun to ride, but we wanted to find ways to improve on that performance,” said Aaron. “We started by reducing rotating mass with a set of carbon fiber wheels from BST. Then we removed all the stock bodywork and used it to make molds for our own lightweight carbon fiber body pieces. We also designed our own rear-set foot controls to put us in a more-aggressive posture for road racing the bike.”

The SMCO race-prepped LiveWire One bikes were displayed this past weekend at Autopia in the unpainted carbon bodywork.

“This project really pushed us into some new technology,” said Aaron. “We learned to use CAD and a 3D printer to create the rear sets, for example.”

All of the carbon bodywork created by the Guardado brothers uses the stock mounting points on a LiveWire One, and if there’s interest from other owners, the parts may show up for sale in the future.

Earle Motors Custom LiveWire One

Earle Motors: E/MULHOLLAND CUSTOM
When designer Alex Earle needs to unwind, he often does it on his LiveWire One electric motorcycle.

“I’ve spent a lot of time riding off road, but I discovered the LiveWire One was the perfect stress-relief street ride,” said Earle, who teaches powersports design at the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, Calif. “I live near the base of Mulholland Drive, a famous and very curvy road winding from Los Angeles up into the mountains. On weekends it’s nuts with cars and bikes, but on an evening during the week nobody is there. It’s like my private road. Unlike an internal combustion bike, the LiveWire One is quiet, and smooth, and cool. I can make a run up Mulholland, or Decker Canyon Road, stop at Old Place or the Rock Store. It’s a great escape.”

Earle Motors is more of an outlet for Earle’s creativity than it is a business, and he turned that creative design bent on his LiveWire One, in a very dramatic way.

“Initially this bike was intimidating, because it’s electric,” said Earle. “There’s no exhaust, for example, which is always an easy starting point for customization. And no fuel tank. I had two goals in mind – to consolidate the design and adjust the ergonomics for my own comfort. I want it to fit like a tailored suit.”

Earle replaced most of the bodywork with pieces of his own design, created in composite on a 3D printer, except for the “fuel tank” in front of the seat, which covers tightly packed electronics that can’t be reshaped. He removed the rear fender and lighting, and replaced the tail section with one he formed of welded steel.

“I painted the electronics cover, which looks like a fuel tank, in Synthetic Haze, a gray-to-blue fade developed during World War II to help airplanes appear less visible in the sky, which lowers the profile of the entire bike,” said Earle. “I filled in the space below that cover with a new finned piece that wraps around in front of the seat. The fins are the same shape as those on the battery case in the center of the bike.”

The part Earle removed incorporates air scoops to cool electronic components, and to replace that cooling capacity he created hollow galleries within the fins in which coolant might circulate. Two small hoses on the show bike would carry that coolant to a finned heat exchanger located between the forks. To create this part, Earle made detailed drawings, and had the entire motorcycle digitally scanned by Mimic 3D. His drawing and the scan was handed off to PROTOTYP3, a firm founded by two of his former students, who recreated it in CAD and then made the part in one piece with a 3D printer.

“It was amazing that when I got the part the holes lined up perfectly with the mounting points on the bike.” said Earle. “Right now, this is an idea, not a functional feature. I have no way of testing it, but I designed it so that I think it could be functional. The next step would be to 3D print it in aluminum.”

The lower bodywork behind the front wheel is shaped to be an air curtain to smooth flow around the battery case. Its bright orange color is meant to draw the eye down and lower the perceived profile of the bike. Earle removed the stock headlamp and its nacelle to fit three LED lights.

“The new tail section and a custom motard-style seat I designed raise the seat height several inches, which is perfect for my six-foot three-inch frame,” said Earle. “Saddlemen covered the seat in black leather, and it looks great. I also installed a chrome handlebar that’s lower than stock, chrome because it doesn’t get scuffed up when I transport the bike.”

A final custom detail can be found on a logo Earle created for a new charging port cover, which combines the number 23 – which he has always used on his competition-style customs – with an elk antler design that’s also used by the Old Place on Mulholland.

“Some of the inspiration for this project comes from my students, who show up in class with these computers they have built themselves, and they are liquid cooled,” said Earle. “People have been hot rodding motorcycles the same way for 70 years, but how will that happen in the future, when bikes are electric? How will this generation customize a bike? They can 3D print their own parts. They could liquid cool the electronics. I’m hoping this project gets on Instagram and some 17-year-old in Portugal sees it and gets a spark of inspiration. That will be the future of customization.”

###

About LiveWire
More than a motorcycle, LiveWire plans to redefine electric. Drawing on its DNA as an agile disruptor from the lineage of Harley-Davidson, capitalizing on a decade of learnings in the EV sector and the heritage of the most desirable motorcycle brand in the world. With an initial focus on the urban market, LiveWire will pioneer the electric motorcycle space, and beyond. With a dedicated focus on EV, LiveWire plans to develop the technology of the future and to invest in the capabilities needed to lead the transformation of motorcycling. LiveWire expects to benefit from Harley-Davidson’s engineering expertise, manufacturing footprint, supply chain infrastructure, and global logistics capabilities. Innovating by design and attracting industry-leading talent, LiveWire will be headquartered virtually, with initial hubs in Silicon Valley, CA (LiveWire Labs) and Milwaukee, WI.

For LiveWire career opportunities please see LiveWire.com/careers

For more information regarding LiveWire products visit: LiveWire.com

In 1917 Henderson Motorcycle breaks Indian Twin Motorcycle record

By General Posts

The Henderson Motorcycle travelled from Los Angeles to New York City.

The Henderson suffered just one flat tire, went through three sets of Champion spark plugs and used three Duckworth chains.

On August 26, in 1917, Alan Bedell left Los Angeles, California on his Henderson motorcycle arriving in New York City (3,296 miles) in seven days, sixteen hours and fifteen minutes later, breaking the record set by “Cannonball” Baker on an Indian Twin.

Click Here to Read this Article on Bikernet.com

Join the Cantina for more in the Antiques, Motorcycle History & Digital Discovery Section – Subscribe Today.

https://www.bikernet.com/pages/custom/subscription.aspx

Outlander’s Sam Heughan cruises on a Harley Davidson as he holidays in LA

By General Posts

by Kirsten McStay from https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk

Outlander ‘s Sam Heughan posted a picture of himself posing on a Harley Davidson as he holidayed in LA.

The 41-year-old actor has been enjoying some down time since Outlander wrapped back in June.

He recently travelled to Mexico and before heading into the US where today he posted a picture of himself riding around LA on a plush Harley Davidson bike.

He wrote on Instagram: “Been cruising in the California sunshine! Thank you @harleydavidson for the loan of these sweet wheels. Nothing beats driving on these awesome bikes, to some good music and an epic landscape! @harleydavidson_uk @westcoastharley #harleydavidson #motorcycle #motorbike #ad.”

Back in July, Sam posted a similar Harley picture but instead of LA, with the stunning backdrop of the Scottish Highlands.

The picture was for a new campaign for his Sassenach whisky brand.

Sam donned a leather jacket as he perched on the Harley – with the number plate ‘WH15KEE’, and over looked a stunning view of hills.

In August last year, the actor passed his motorbike driving test in Rutherglen after taking a lessons for over a year.

He has since been out and about in Glasgow on his bike and now he posted the new snap in the Highlands while visiting for a work shoot.

Outlander is a historical drama television series based on the ongoing novel series of the same name by Diana Gabaldon. Developed by Ronald D. Moore (the Battlestar Galactica developer), the show premiered on August 9, 2014, on Starz. The series has been renewed for an 8-episode sixth season and a 16-episode seventh season.

Outlander series of historical fantasy novels is written by American author Diana Gabaldon. Gabaldon began the first volume of the series, Outlander, in the late 1980s, and it was published in 1991. She has published eight out of a planned ten volumes.

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outlander_(TV_series)

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outlander_(book_series)