Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Bike show weekend!

The Minnesota chapters of the Antique Motorcycle Club of America and the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club assembled yet another fine gathering of people and machines at the State Fair grounds this weekend. The annual Vintage Motorcycle Show / AMCA meet / VJMC show / Largest Antique Motorcycle Meet in Minnesota continues to be a spectacular gathering of motorcycle history.



The featured model this year included examples from every year.



Some stock. Some not.


The mighty CBX. 

It was interesting to see the changes over the years. They must have had some issues with the alternator because year two on was completely different. The only thing missing was the big hondaline fairing, which for some reason I find attractive. 


Talking paint. One of the many Q&A sessions. 


The National Motorcycle Museum  brought out this period, unrestored bobber. 


Black and gold. Good motorcycle colors.


This original and unrestored CL350 had a hand full of "best of" credentials.


I know an RD took home a prize, I'm guessing it was this one!


Another fast and furious CB550. Well done sir!


Out of all the bikes, this was one of my favorite, probably because it took me totally by surprise.


The Sears catalogs have been lacking in recent decades.



Some old race bikes to inspire your next "Street tracker" project.




A beautiful Hustler (this comment will ensure this post Googles well)


Is it just an old bike or an unrestored classic? 


I spent so much time looking at the bikes in Kawasaki Conner that I forgot to take a decent picture. 



Some top notch Triumphs 



Kawasaki brought in a 550 and 750 version of the Zephyr in the early 90s, cool bikes if you can find them.


An example of the signage present for most bikes in the show. 



Light weight carbon fiber rims made of the finest Canadian maple! 


A swap meet AJS with some bits missing.



An early sportster, one of my favorites from The Motor Company


I don't know how this snuck into the parking lot, but it did. Ooo the sounds.


The Guzzi 1000SP Spada, so much to like.

- Ride North

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

AMCA/ VJMC motorcycle show this weekend!

Friday (8:00 AM to 8:00 PM) and Saturday (8:00 AM to 6:00 PM) at the Minnesota State Fair Grounds. The clubs do an excellent job of providing information on each bike and setting up all the period extras: advertising, sings, gear, etc. This is one of the most well organized shows I've been to. It's far cry from being just a bunch of old bikes crammed into a barn.

Link to the schedule: http://vikingmc.org/national/schedule.html

Pictures from last year's show:









Much thanks for all the hard work that goes into putting this on!
- Ride North

Monday, June 8, 2015

Support your local bike shop!


Being a former Moto Guzzi owner, I have had many excellent experiences with one of Lakeville Minnesota's finest, Leo's South. They take excellent care of their customers. One time, they even saved a cracked transmission housing. Me: "I have a problem..." the Service manager: "we've got a guy who can weld that, I've seen him weld a BMW transmission housing that was cracked in half." That bike had a ton of miles on it when I sold it and it shifted better than ever.

Now that my tire sizes are measured in archaic English units, I decided is was time to see someone who specializes in these unique measurements. Go Moto in Minneapolis had a more modern tire (measured in mm) that worked great with my XS500. The price was very reasonable and turn around was quick. I will be a repeat customer. 

To borrow a phrase from the bicycle scene: Support your LBS!

- Ride north