Copy and photos by Steve Dye
For more highlights
of the 2004 Laughlin River run, see Laughlin Pictorial on
page 18.
Drag Specialties
Sales Manager Jim Matchette (right) and west coast sales
rep Gene Koch (middle) compare war stories with motorcycle
television show kingpin Tom Beers while shooting takes place
for an upcoming Biker Build-Off on the Discovery Channel.
Metzeler's Chris
Wall and Alberto Warberg, left, and
Parts Unlimited's Dave Fulkerson and Ron Bowen, right, flank
the tire-changing specialists from The Wheel Works (Dave
Newton, Matt Birgil) and Adam Payne, a valued Drag Specialties
dealer located in Garden Grove, CA. This group replaced
tires non-stop throughout the rally, accumulating piles and
piles of discards shunned in favor of Metzeler's
latest and greatest replacement rubber.
Metzeler had a few “converts” at
Laughlin.
The work didn’t
stop just because the rally ended. The very next day after
the Laughlin rally a contingent from Drag Specialties was
in Southern California to pay a visit to Edelbrock. From
left are Ryan Paine, Mike Daniels, Gene Koch, Jim Matchette,
Brett Moxley, Russ Patrone and Jeff Lerch.
 rganizers of the
V-Twin Expo by Easyriders have announced that they have secured
additional exhibit space in the Cincinnati (Ohio) Convention
Center to accommodate new exhibitors and expanded displays
at the 2005 Expo scheduled for January 29-31, 2005.
The Convention Center is in the midst of an expansion project and Expo organizers
expected the construction would eliminate some exhibit areas during the 2005
Expo. But the acquisition of new space means the leading V-twin industry show
will be able to welcome new exhibitors again next year.
“We worked with the facilities staff to secure an upper-level ballroom
for use during the 2005 V-Twin Expo so we project continued growth as we host
our fifth annual show,” said Executive Show Producer Jim Betlach. “We’ll
utilize this new ballroom for the 2005 event and will have an additional 40,000
square feet of space available for 2006 following the expansion work.”
The V-Twin Expo by Easyriders focuses exclusively on the V-twin motorcycle
market and has grown steadily over the past four years in terms of exhibitors,
exhibit space and V-twin dealers who attend the show.
Each Expo includes informative seminars for dealers, an industry reception,
custom bike displays and honors for industry leaders and their products. It
attracts dealers from all 50 states and several foreign countries and in the
past two years all available exhibit space has been sold out.
Dealers can register online now for the 2005 Expo at: www.vtwin-expo.com. To
learn more about exhibit space availability, contact Jim Betlach of Easyriders
at 952/443-4168.
For sponsorships and general information, contact Reaction Management at 623/551-1847.
Information is also available at the Expo website: www.vtwin-expo.com.
New Classes Added;
2004 Spotlight on Amateur and Up-and-Coming Pro Builders;
Top Winner Goes To Munich International Bike Show
Metzeler has released
more details on the 2004 edition of its Sturgis V-Twin Custom
Bike Contest. Last year’s show, Metzeler’s first
ever, was called the “biggest event of the 2003 Black
Hills Rally.”
New classes have been added for this year. There will again be four main ones,
but Metzeler will separate the professional builder’s Unlimited Class
into three separate divisions: Chopper (extended front ends), Custom and 240-16.
This last one will be open to those bikes featuring Metzeler’s 240/50-16
rear radial. “We wanted to feature this tire in some way because it kind
of got lost in all the hoopla over our 240/40-18, and later the 280/35-18,” said
Metzeler Marketing Manager Chris Wall. “It’s an awesome tire, perfect
for rigids and hardtails that want more of that taller-sidewall, classic old-style
chopper look. Ours is a full-on radial, super comfortable and rideable, just
like the 240-18 and the 280. We wanted to give it a chance to shine by giving
it its own class in the 2004 show, which we’re hoping will attract more
of the builders to it.”
Three of the contest’s four V-twin classes are devoted to bikes that
utilize one of Metzeler’s three stages of tire upgrades: Stage One, Stage
Two and Stage Three. These three classes are open only to amateur builders,
which means any V-twin rider with a creative flair. The fourth class, the Unlimited
one mentioned above, is open only to professional builders, so amateurs aren’t
competing against the pros.
Stated simply, “Stage One” bikes must retain most of the OE parts
and wheel sizes; “Stage Two” allows larger-size tires and wheels
but no frame, fork, or swingarm modifications. And “Stage Three” entrants
are permitted to have custom-size wheels, as well as fork and swingarm modifications,
but the stock frame must be maintained. As you’ve probably already figured,
every bike entered in the contest must have Metzeler tires front and rear.
Metzeler would really like to attract newer builders, along with the established
pros, said Mark Wilhelm, Country Manager for North America. “We really
want to showcase up-and-coming builders. There were a number of them in last
year’s show, and it was great to be able to give them the kind of media
and public exposure that can boost their careers. The bikes can be as mild
or as wild as you like, they each get their own class, based on our Metzeler
upgrade stages.”
At last reports, Metzeler says this year’s Best Of Show grand prize will
again be a trip for bike and builder to the International Motorcycle Show,
the largest show in the world, being held in 2004 in Munich, Germany. (The
show alternates yearly between Munich and Milan.)
This year’s contest is scheduled for Tuesday, August 10. Like last year,
it will be held in the parking lot of The Journey Museum, 222 New York Street
in Rapid City, just two blocks from Harley-Davidson’s Rapid City Convention
Center headquarters.
Full contest details, class rules and regulations and entry forms will be posted
on Metzeler’s U.S. website at www.us.metzelermoto.com. Or, you can write
to: Metzeler Motorcycle Tires, P.O. Box 700, Rome, GA 30162-7000, and put “2004
Sturgis Custom Contest” on the envelope.
The Hal’s
Buell and Kosco Buell dealer teams ran strong in front of
a partisan crowd of Buell fans during the Lockhart Phillips
USA Formula Xtreme race during the AMA Chevrolet Superbike
Championship Series at Road America in June.
Hal’s rider Mike Ciccotto qualified eighth and ran as high as fifth,
in a five-rider dog fight battling for the final podium spot before dropping
back to seventh halfway through the race when the experimental front brake
on his bike lost performance. Kosco’s Michael Barnes qualified ninth
but suffered similar trouble on the first lap with the experimental front brake
on his bike and battled through the race to come home in 11th position.
“We’re really proud of these dealers teams and what they’ve
accomplished in such a competitive class. This is exactly the kind of grueling
testing and learning that goes on in racing that you just can’t duplicate
in the real world,” said Erik Buell, chairman and chief technical officer
at Buell Motorcycle Company.
“We were doing great in the first half of the race,” said Ciccotto. “I’m
feeling really confident on the Hal’s Firebolt, and at one point I was
able to make an awesome pass of [HMC Ducati Milwaukee rider] Doug Chandler. I
was right there in the fight for third.” Barnes agreed, stating, “It’s
frustrating, but even with our problems, we were just outside the top ten. This
Kosco bike has a lot of potential.”
AMA Formula Xtreme is a class open to highly-modified motorcycles with 600cc
four-cylinder engines or larger-displacement V-Twin engines.
Factory Tuner Bill Werner Notches 150th Career Victory
Harley-Davidson-mounted
Rich King executed a perfect last-lap pass of Bartels’ Harley-Davidson
rider Jay Springsteen to win his third consecutive AMA Grand
National race at the Springfield Mile over the Memorial Day
weekend. The race, held at the Illinois State Fairgrounds,
was run on Monday due to poor weather conditions on Sunday.
“It was great to win at Springfield again,” said King. “I couldn’t
have wished for a better birthday present, and I’m really happy for the
team, especially Bill Werner.” King’s dramatic win served as a milestone
for senior technician Bill Werner, who notched his 150th career victory as a
Harley-Davidson factory tuner and formally announced his retirement. Werner,
a member of the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame, started working in the Harley-Davidson
race shop in 1966 and leaves a legacy of 13 AMA Grand National Championships.
King, along with former factory riders, Springsteen, Scott Parker and Jennifer
Snyder escorted Werner on a lap of honor as part of the Springfield Mile opening
ceremony. |
he Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines
drag racing team took control of the Pro Stock Bike class at
the 40th Annual Pontiac Excitement NHRA Nationals at Ohio’s
National Trail Raceway in mid-June. They set two track records
and claimed the top spot in qualifying before team rider Andrew
Hines powered his Screamin’ Eagle
V-Rod to a satisfying win in the final round of eliminations.
It was the Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines crew’s
second final-round win of the season. 
