his year there was only one place to be on Tuesday of Sturgis Bike Week: the Journey Museum in Rapid City, South Dakota where Metzeler held its third-annual Sturgis V-Twin Custom Bike Contest.
Over 60 bikes competed in the five V-twin classes open to everything Metzeler-equipped with a proper waxing, to pro-built unlimited customs and choppers. The show was juried by all-star judges and featured drawings for prizes, introduction of Metzeler's newest ME880 300 tire, MetzelerÕs poster series honoring builders, and a reception for the Michael Lichter-curated motorcycle art exhibit. The dayÕs events attracted well over a thousand enthusiasts.
     Metzeler's Sturgis V-Twin Custom Bike Contest has rapidly grown since its inception three years ago and is proving to attract the best of the best bikes from new builders to known pros. The array of Stage 1, 2, and 3, V-twin, customized, home-built bikes made picking a winner painfully difficult. But the awesome display of pro-built bikes in the Unlimited Custom and Unlimited Chopper classes made the choices nearly impossible. Each year the bar is raised and each year more builders step up to have a hand in pushing, bending, welding, and chroming the bar to ever higher heights with wild machines that reinterpret old-school or reinvent the future.
     The judges facing the thankless task this year were Chris Maida, Editor at American Iron; Dave Nichols, Editor at Easyriders; Bob Cashwell of Drag Specialties, pro-builder Eddie Trotta of Thunder Cycles, and sculptor/bike builder Jeff Decker. Each class winner and Judge's Choice were awarded a trophy, with the top three in each class winning a set of Metzeler tires. Winner of Best in Show was awarded four sets of Metzeler tires and will be featured in Metzeler's 2006 ME880 advertising campaign.

Best of Show: Scott & Bonnie Barnett
Judge's Recognition: Jason Kangas
People's Choice: 1st - Ariel Alfonzo,
2nd - Hank Young, 3rd - Jerry Graves
Stage 1: 1st - Art Meisenbach, 2nd - Jim McGrath, 3rd - Mike McGee
Stage 2: 1st - Steve Smalling,
2nd - Angie Pickering, 3rd - Matt Hobbs
Stage 3: 1st - Greg Wick, 2nd - Mark Mooney, 3rd - Teresa Dattota
Unlimited Custom: 1st - Frank Acquaro, 2nd - Darrian Tefft, 3rd - Martin Ramirez
Unlimited Chopper: 1st - Scott Irvine, 2nd - Russell Marlowe, 3rd - Vince Doll
See the class winners and their bikes at:
http://www.us.metzelermoto.com/metzeler_world/events/sturgis/gallery.htm

he Full Throttle Saloon in Sturgis was jam packed with bikers during the Sturgis Rally, so bartenders Jeni and Summer didnt mind giving the new Icon Kitty Chaps a test ride. It was a great promotion by Icon. The girls mentioned that they got lots of questions from ladies about where to buy the chaps. The men surely were complimentary as well.

illy Lane and the Blood Sweat & Gears team were at it again in Sturgis this year. Joining Billy during Sturgis last August were: Kendall Johnson, Paul Cox, Aaron Greene, Jerry Covington, Arlen Fatland, Arlen and Cory Ness and Mondo. During Bike Week the Blood Sweat & Gears team built a custom ride and, in what has now become the "grand finale," started the bike, did a burn out and then gave it away. Chris Anderson of Colorado Springs, former Army Tank Commander was the lucky recipient of the chopper compliments of Billy Lane and the Blood Sweat & Gears sponsors including Dodge, Activision and House of Kolor. "To top the whole week off, House of Kolor offered to not only provide House of Kolor paint, but this time they even threw in Jon Kosmoski to paint the bike for Chris. I think Jon is planning a "Freedom" theme paint scheme," finished Lane.
     Lucky recipient Chris Anderson served the Army in Iraq in 2003 and 2004 as a Tank Commander. Finishing twelve years in service, his buddies talked him into to coming to Sturgis. He was hesitant to go because he had no bike, but they were persistent even offering him gas money to get there. And get there he did; he left the event with a Billy Lane Choppers Inc custom valued at more than $70,000! "I was shaking when he invited me up on the stage," said bike winner Chris Anderson. "I didn't know what he was planning to do, but was so nervous to be up there in front of thousands of people. Then Billy said, "Hey man, get on, the bike is yours." I couldn't believe it," said Anderson.
     Anderson continued "Billy's way of thanking service people is unbelievable. So many service men and women ride, people just don't realize how much something like this means to us. While we serve overseas, our dreams of riding and building bikes keep us going, to come home and get a Choppers Inc custom for free is crazy."
     "I can't do this on my own," said Lane. "Without the support of the Blood Sweat & Gears sponsors like Dodge, Activision, House of Kolor and Paisano Publications, and the guys that make it happen on stage, the Tour wouldn't happen," Lane summarized.
     For Blood Sweat & Gears Tour sponsorship information, please contact Chrome Marketing Inc at 612-940-6115. Blood Sweat & Gears Tour is owned and copyrighted by Psycho Billy LLC, affiliated with Choppers Inc and Billy Lane.  www.choppersinc.com

On stage following the giveaway at Sturgis are: (back row, l-r): Jennifer Scott, Aaron Greene, Paul Cox, Jay Allen and Jerry Covington. (front row, l-r): Winner Chris Anderson, Billy Lane and Mondo.

     The Motorcycle Industry Council's American V-Twin Committee met for the fifth time this year on August 31st in Irvine, California. Key points of discussion at the meeting involved progress on a potential EPA engine emissions certification program for on-highway motorcycle engines and the feasibility of developing an in-use, on-highway motorcycle sound test procedure.
     Last April, MIC spoke with EPA staff about their stated intentions to develop an on-highway motorcycle engine certification program. Currently, such an EPA engine certification program does not exist. Custom motorcycle builders and small volume manufacturers must certify the complete motorcycle even if they install an engine that is used in another motorcycle that has already been EPA certified.
     At EPA staff's request, MIC drafted provisions for a program that would allow small volume, on-highway motorcycle manufacturers and custom motorcycle builders to purchase EPA certified engines and install them without having to recertify the motorcycle. The MIC draft engine certification program was reviewed by the MIC American V-Twin and OE Technical Committees and presented in July to the EPA who is now considering the proposal.

     You've got to give Scott Stump credit for sticking to it. It took 11 years for the 35-year-old rider from Warminster, PA., to do it, but he finally won back the Harley-Davidson Sportster Performance Championship with a riveting victory in the season finale on the Du Quoin, IL. Mile on Oct. 1st. Stump, who won the championship in 1994, earned his second Harley-Davidson Sportster Performance Championship on the strength of three wins and three additional podium finishes in the nine-race series. He beat out arch-rival and defending champ Chris Hart in a winner-take-all finale at DuQuoin to secure the championship. Stump credited Lima Harley-Davidson and his mechanic Jeff Eibling for allowing him to have such a successful 2005 campaign.

rag Specialties is proud to announce the addition of two news sales reps. The new Northeast Region sales rep, Stephanie Feld, has worked in the parts department of Harley dealerships and independent shops since 1983, along with writing articles for American Iron magazine. A lover of American bikes, she has logged over 200,000 road miles and currently owns a 1990 FXR Police Special and a 1997 Buell Thunderbolt S3T.
     Drag Specialties has also announced the addition of Benny Harwell as a new Western Region sales representative. Benny joins Drag after working as a dealership parts manager, design engineer and serving in the military. He is a life-long motorcycle enthusiast.
Welcome to the team, Stephanie and Benny!