There are a ton of bike events every summer, sometimes two or three on any given weekend. A few of these events are well established, such as Daytona, Laconia, and Sturgis. Other events are new while still others have a shorter history. Born Free III is as the name implies, a few years old. Nevertheless this year was the best one-day bike event/show we have ever had the pleasure of attending. As with each of the first and second Born Free Shows, a new venue progressed from a parking lot for number one to a closed off street for number two to the huge, tree-shaded park for number three. As with any event that grows from year to year there are compromises to be dealt with. The Born Free III show handled it magnificently; the promoters worked tirelessly from the close of Born Free II to make it happen at the new site located at Oak Canyon Ranch in Irvine, California.

What do you call a day on a well-groomed track with 500 or so like-minded folks? Some might call it heaven, but on a sunny day in SoCal it was called Hell On Wheels and it brought together a collection of ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s machines, mini bikes, a couple of great bands and a dozen pinup girls.

When I got word last year that Bill and McGoo were going to resurrect the El Diablo Run for 2011, I made damn sure to clear my plate for the first week of May. Having missed all the others due to broken-down bikes and deadlines, I was not going to let history repeat itself this year.

New Zealand Sidecar racing. What is it you ask? A bunch of crazies racing sidecar bikes? Well, yes and no. New Zealand Sidecar racing is basically a three-wheel bike, a speedway-style bike with a third wheel in a somewhat unconventional position. They are normally powered by a 1,000cc superbike engine that can put out in excess of 180 bhp. With NO BRAKES. Yeah, two people on a bike that can exceed 100 mph in a heartbeat with no brakes. So it pretty much takes a special type, and in this case, a pair of people to ride these things.

Since Dave Mann’s passing in 2004 I think he’d be happy to see the old bikes roll into the Ventura County, California, Fairgrounds for the David Mann Chopper Fest each December to pay tribute to the most famous biker artist to date. Old machines of all makes are primed then kicked over before setting out for a chilly morning ride with a destination about an hour north of Los Angeles. Folks come from all over the Cali and some of its neighboring states to remember Dave Mann. There are original paintings on display, prints available to buy, a swap meet, vendors, bands, and food all nestled next to the Pacific Ocean. We won’t bore you with more jibber jabber about it; for info on past and future shows, visit www.chopperfestival.com and we’ll see ya there next year for sure. SC

As we slid into the All Nippon Airlines germ tube to Yokohama, Japan, we knew pretty much what to expecttons of great bikes that are well thought out and meticulously constructed. These concepts alone kept the 20-odd Americanskis on the plane gossiping like eighth-grade schoolgirls for the duration of the flight, but we had no clue as what would really be unleashed upon our eyes less than 24 hours later.

I have witnessed more biker rallies than I can stomach. At every one of these somnambulant soirees, pomposity, posturing, and machismo hump and grind through their horny mnage trois like drunken dwarves in green suits on St. Paddy’s Day. Strip away these forces and the totemistic affectations left behindunisex chaps, 40-inch-wide apehangers, and neon engine lighting, for instanceseem vainglorious to the extreme, don’t you think?

Things in the chopper world have been changing over the last few years, if you haven't noticed. People are ready for a change-a change for the better. Bikes are getting more advanced and traditional at the same time; gone are the fat-tire circus bikes, frayed Levis, and tough guy second-mortgage choppers. Dudes are putting together old machines in their garages, building a mix of new and old in a friend's shop, or pushing the limits in their own space.

When was the last time you went to a bike show with over 2,000 killer choppers, walked or rode in for nothing, grabbed some grub and a drink for nothing, and hung out with your friends from all over the world with the chance to take home a 1950 Panhead chopper? Quite preposterous, right? Why would anyone let over 5,000 people into a show for free? Could it be about the bikes and not the money? No way-or way?

I flung the Bravetown door wide open to a wall of beards and teeth all grinning over at me. Phil Lynott was belting out about being a cowboy, and there was a funky familiar smell wafting about the garage. I looked around the room to see all too familiar scenarios of last-minute packing, late-night heckling, and a lot of people standing around playing that game. Not a sad face in the pack; everybody pumped, excited to see each other, and hyped for what tomorrow was about to bring. Laughing and joking about last year's 15-man rolling sideshow parading around like a pack of two-wheeled degenerates, and swearing "I'm taking it easy this year, man." It was like a high school reunion of all the sleezeballs you've come to know and love over the last couple years. It was Chicago. It was Bravetown. It was The Country Mile.

This past weekend we headed out to the Los Angeles County Fair Grounds, in Pomona, California for the Grand National Roadster Show. Why are we reporting on a bunch of topless cars you say? Well, since the 50's the GNRS also crowns America's Most Beautiful Motorcycle alongside its automotive title America's Most beautiful Roadster.

From the Fall 2010 issue of Street Chopper Magazine

We spent the morning of day four shooting bikes before we headed on over to the Full Throttle Saloon. After filling up on what the FTS had in store of us, we then trucked on over to the Buffalo Chip campground where we first saw the Michael Lichter installation. There were some of the top builders showing their latest and greatest builds and a ton of Michael's photos were on hand to be seen and purchased for the right price. From there we ventured out and visited Violent Choppers, the boys from Brass Balls Bobbers and a few other killer chopper builders. After some food, we checkout the bros doing burnouts the babes with their boobs out, and we then settled in for a concert by Germany's own heavymetal movers and shakers; The Scorpions!

This being our last day, we crammed in two more bike shoots and did various interviews with rally attendees to get a feel how the event was. All in all everyone said that there were more people in Sturgis than probably the last 5 years prior and we were glad to hear that. we love this event and even though it may be filled with baggers and grey beards, we still party hearty and root out all the good bikes, bars and babes so you can follow our lead the next year. See ya all in Sturgis for 2011 and keep an eye out on the newsstands and online for more Street Chopper Sturgis coverage

After getting some food in us we shot on over the Broken Spoke campground and saw the sites. We ran into Nash Motorcycle Co, Bare Knuckle Choppers, Led Sled, Garage Company Customs, Lock Baker, Court House Customs and a ton of the other Limpnickie lot locals. From there we ventured us to the Broken Spoke's pool area that was filled with half-naked people. We would like to lie to you and tell you they were all hot babes, but we would say the percentage of bad to good was 90/10. After having a few beers with friends, they sky turned black and we hi-tailed it out of there before the torrential down poor ensued.

We headed out to Main Street Sturgis and its surrounding areas and quickly became caught up in the heat and hunt for a few real choppers. While walking in the 100-plus degree heat, we stumbled across a few Evo and Twin Cam bikes on the road and then we decided to hit up the AMD show and awards ceremony. Inside the big tent there were lots of flashy Euro-Jobs but there was also a few nice choppers gracing our presence. Outside behind the event we saw even more bikes and fell in love with a dirty and patina-ed knuckle. On our way back from the AMD show we checked out what Barnett had in the clutch depertent and we snapped a bunch of photos of miscellaneous ladies which you can find on our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/streetchopper.

Editor Jeff G. Holt spent his first day at the Black Hills Harley-Davidson Dealership areas where there was no pre-twin-cam Choppers to be found. He did find some killer bikes from Jesse Roooke, RSD, Mikuni, and others. While he was loitering around the lot he had a Philly Cheese Steak, a Chelada and caught up with his pals from S&S, Trask Performance, Jaybrake, Ironbraid, Zippers, Ride Wright Wheels, Vance and Hines. After that he shot a bunch of photos of half-naked ladies that he blogged about on this very website.

We are hell-bent to bring you what you really want to see at Sturgis. Hot babes and cool bikes. Yup, we'll be posting up nothing but young hotties and old Harley's and whatever action that went down in our path of destruction.

Every winter Mooneyes USA has a, X-mas party, and the one in 2009 was all but rained out. Luckily for us, the staff decided to have a make up event at the same location six months later while the sun was bright and all the girls were scantly glad! Moon always throws a good party and this one was no exception. It was hot as hell, but the beer was flowing and the Kustom Kulture was rampant. There were also a lot of really nice choppers on hand, so in between the tomfoolery we ventured out into the parking lot and snapped more than a few photos for y'all.

We are having a release party for our Summer issue!

This past Saturday we ventured out to Lake Elsinore, California, to attend the Hell On Wheels M/C Motorcycle Rally, Races and Bike/Car show. The event was held at the MX park so we knew there was going to be some killer vintage bike racing.

So what do you do when you live in Southern California and the weather dips from a balmy 70-something degrees to a bone-chilling mid-60-something? Simple, you head for the desert. That's just what a bunch of us did a short while ago. I'd already been thinking about rolling out to Phoenix when I found out that Jeremiah was throwing a party. As it turned out, I didn't have to organize a thing. A few of my friends already had the trip all worked out. All I had to do was show up at a gas station off the 10 Freeway Friday morning at 7:30 a.m . On top of that, we had two chase vehicles! Chase trucks aren't exactly gonna earn you a lot of street cred, but being able to pack extra tools, gas, some warm clothes, and a sleeping roll without kitting your hog out like a garbage wagon is actually a pretty sweet fruit.

While in Laughlin for the River Run, I saw a lot of things both good and bad. If I was the punk rock Mr. Blackwell I could have been lamenting for days about bad paint, sky-high apehangers on Softails, and saggy juggs. Instead, I took a utilitarian look at what to wear while riding. Trust me, I am not trying to be the fashion police, but some of these people where riding it stuff that looked like it would more at home at the Spearmint Rhino or Chippendale's than riding down Casino drive.

Last weekend we hustled out to Hemet to check out Kutty’s Noteboom’s 2nd Annual Hippy Killer Hoedown. This car and bike show had a great turnout of bikes and a surprising number of Kustom cars. There were also plenty of bands, beer, and babes on hand. Companies such as Loser Machine, LA Speedshop, Old Gold Garage, Born Loser, FMA, and tons more were on hand to hawk their wares. Artists such as Sara Ray, E-Dog and Sonny Boy were also there selling and striping the day away.