or over half a century the sun and sand of Daytona Beach, Florida, have drawn in bikers like kids to a candy store. The early weeks of March can be pretty dismal in many parts of the country, but along the beaches of Daytona the sun is shining, the sky is blue and the riding is, well…summertime normal. At first it was the races that were the big draw, and inside the walls of Bill France’s legendary International Speedway, the Daytona 200 is still a big deal. It remains the closing act of Bike Week. But these days that’s far from being the only act in town. Bike Week has exploded with things to do, places to visit, people to meet, new parts and new motorcycles to investigate–and seemingly non-stop parties everywhere. For 2005 all this was bigger, better and more spread-out than ever, and putting an exclamation point on all that the weather stayed just about perfect for 10 days!
     In the Harley world, Daytona’s Main Street is “Ground Zero,” and this year there were some serious eye-openers along that fabled strip. At one end of the street, down by the river and The Wreck Bar, Jesse James held court amid a nice selection of his West Coast Choppers. He had serious competition coming from just a couple of blocks away, though, with Billy Lane live and on-stage at The Full Throttle Saloon for the first stop of his “Blood, Sweat & Gears” tour, building motorcycles right on the spot. He had his full Choppers, Inc. shop with him, too–mills, lathes, the works–and the whole thing was being filmed for TV. Throw in a half-dozen more rockin’ saloons, vendors everywhere hawking everything imaginable, the sidewalks packed shoulder-to-shoulder from morning to night and the constant rumble of V-twin engines as a backdrop and you have Main Street, Bike Week’s revered epicenter.
     Savvy riders didn’t stay just there, though. Over the Halifax River Bridge, Beach Street, bracketed by Daytona Harley-Davidson at one end and Arlen Ness’s shop at the other, was home to what seemed like half the names you see in the FatBook. Call it Manufacturer’s Row. Here you could get that up-close-and-personal look at all the newest hardware, and have it all explained to you by the guys who make it. That V-twin parts-expo spilled over to the grounds surrounding the Speedway, too, just a few miles up International Speedway Blvd. Traditionally the sanctuary of the imports, this year Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha got a run for the money from the likes of Harley-Davidson, S&S and a host of other familiar suppliers and custom builders. And speaking of the Speedway, “Kickstand City” was set up inside the track with name bands taking the stage every night, culminating with John Kay and Steppenwolf. “Born To Be Wild” rocked that joint like it was a NASCAR weekend. Earlier in the week vintage race bikes rocked it just as hard, too, putting on a great two-day show. Seeing Jay Springsteen bend that No. 9 Harley through the corners was worth the price of admission. Always a thrill.
     Bike Week is no longer confined to the city limits of Daytona Beach, either. A ride north through “The Loop” is a must. It’s a trip through old Florida amid tree-covered canopy roads, ending back at the ocean and some of the best breakfast spots around. (We recommend the blueberry pancakes at Manny’s in Flagler Beach.) Heading south in the other direction, toward Port Orange, a stop at Miller’s will convince you that motorcycle shops don’t have to be boutiques to succeed. The “Old School Chopper Show” at The Last Resort is always a kick, too. This is where the young guns strut their stuff, and some of the bikes these guys build defy description. Cool stuff. A ride or two heading west belongs on the schedule, too. The town of Eustis always holds a great old-bike swap meet, and a little closer in at Stetson University in Deland the Jerry Woods Vintage Auction always turns up some interesting deals. This year you could have ridden away on a pristine Shovelhead bagger for something well south of $10,000. A restored 1919 Indian, on the other hand, would have cost you $21,000. Cyril Huze hosted a special exhibit at the Deland Museum of Art this year, as well. Two bucks got you into “Chrome and Leather,” and the motorcycles on display changed daily. And just for good measure, on the way back into Daytona you could have stopped off at the “Run What Ya Brung” drags. Some heavy hitters show up here. The action is hot and heavy and all side bets are strictly up to you.
     If all of this is beginning to sound like a hectic merry-go-round of fun, well, it is. Plus, we haven’t even mentioned the Rat’s Hole and Boardwalk Shows or ridden up Highway 1 to Ormond Beach and the Iron Horse, the Broken Spoke, the new Boot Hill, the Hog Pen and Smiley’s. These places are always fun-packed, and next year when Bruce Rossmeyer’s “Destination Daytona” opens up it’s all going to get even wilder. Centered by a brand-new Harley-Davidson dealership at the intersection of Highway 1 and Interstate 95, that place will have hotels, bars, restaurants, shops and vendors galore. Like the ads for this still-under-construction playland say, “It’s not just a dealership, it’s a city!”
     Bottom line: Bike Week has lots more to do and see than you’ll have time to fit in. But it’s sure fun trying, and if you haven’t rolled up at least 1,000 miles on your bike packing in as much of this as you can, you’re just not giving it your all! You’re missing half the fun, too. Take a look…

(bottom left) The cruising might be a little slow on this fabled stretch of asphalt but it’s still the place to see and be seen.

(bottom right) Main Street is always a sea of bikes, and it stays that way day and night for a solid week.

“Better in here than across the street,” they say. They’re right. It’s a cemetery over there. Boot Hill has a second location now, too, out on Highway 1 in Ormond Beach.

This sweet little flathead decked out in military colors, nose-art and a great fishtail exhaust hinted at what was to be seen at The Rat’s Hole Show.

Lined up at The Last Resort. The “Old School Chopper Show” is a ride-in deal. No trailers anywhere.

You’re never far from live music at Bike Week. Powered by a wicked horn section these guys had the “World Famous” Iron Horse Saloon in Ormond Beach rocking. One lady sure appreciated things…

Talk about a packed house! And this is the normal crowd out back behind The Iron Horse Saloon. There’s a burnout pit right under that bridge, too.

What’s Bike Week without some flowers? Peace and love and a cold Budweiser. What a deal!

The Last Resort in nearby Port Orange is a “must” stop. Saturday afternoon’s “Old School Choppers Show” never fails to draw in an eclectic crowd–and some definitely eclectic bikes.

Okay, so The Last Resort’s “Japanese Tree Garden” might not be politically correct in the age of metric cruisers, but it leaves little doubt that Harley-Davidson is spoken here.

Like it on TV, you’ll love it in person. Billy Lane had the full Choppers, Inc. shop set up on the outside stage at Main Street’s Full Throttle Saloon.

Samson’s Kenny Price brought some toys to the party. Nice platform to showcase some of those “Extreme Series” pipes.

A couple more in the 2005 Milwaukee Iron lineup. Modern power with an almost board-track look. Cool stuff.

Check out the twisted-steel frame on this pan. We spotted it at The Last Resort. So did Mike Lichter. It’ll be in Easyrider.

The guys at Milwaukee Iron brought some wild machines with them this year. The pipes and sissybar/backrest couldn’t get much higher.

Thirty-six years later and still looking great. Peter Fonda actually designed the bikes for his 1969 moto-western “Easy Rider.” Ever notice he’s wearing spurs? Captain America is the favorite, though, a biker icon.

The Harley show has moved into the Speedway now, too, evidenced by hundreds of bikes like this ultra-swoopy rigid. Used to be all metrics over there. Not anymore.

Curves everywhere, and notice just how low that seat is. We spotted this one out by the S&S setup at the Speedway.

Now for something completely different, as they say. These sport-oriented V-twins are out of Colorado, and don’t miss a trick. Check out the fork, frame, high-pipes and carbon fiber tank and fenders.

Eddie Trotta had his Thunder Cycles on Main Street this year. It’s a hot location, right in the middle of it all.

Performance Machine, Edelbrock and a host of major players are perennials on “Manufacturer’s Row” along Beach Street. Everything new is right here, along with the people who can explain it.

Samson has set up outside Miller’s in South Daytona for the past few years. Between these two crews–the guys at Samson and the wrenches at Miller’s–new pipes are sold and installed at a furious pace.

All those FatBook cover bikes, up close and personal. The Drag Specialties rolling revue is a Bike Week standard.

Two days of vintage road racing at the Speedway brought out plenty of machines like this. The rider here? Jay Springsteen, of course.

The guys at BAKER were on hand answering questions all week long. Along with all those sweet-shifting transmissions they brought along some good-looking bikes, too.

Spotted in the vintage road racing pits. The cool thing here is you get right into the action, and if you’re not careful someone’s likely to put you to work. And talk about work, try and bend something like this through a fast corner!

Put a face with the voice on the phone. Samson’s Nick Trumbo is the “man in demand” during Bike Week.

Halfway between Daytona and Deland the locals always set up a “run what ya brung” day of drag racing. That’s one of Carl’s Speed Shop’s 117-inch Dynas pulling the wheelie. The thing is a 138-horsepower monster, all H-D based.

Oops, hardly the way to win a race! Dave Robinson’s lifting it up for laughs, and where else could you do this and not worry about the cops? The “run what ya brung” drag racing day is a hoot.