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Two New Twins
from Milwaukee
Harley Davidson and Buell have uncorked a couple of new
models that have got the motorcycle world buzzing harder
than Peter Fonda on his way to the Kwik Trip. Harley
deserves a huge pat on the back for parting with its staid
tradition of pushrods and air-cooling. The new 1130cc
Revolution (read "Revo") motor uses fuel injection, chain
driven cams, four valve heads and liquid cooling to work
it's way up to 115 horsepower at the crank. Praise them
again for going out on a limb (for Harley anyway) with a
cool new look that, at a glance, reminds me of the BMW
R1200C and incorporates some genuinely cool looking parts.
Harley claims the $17,000 V-ROD weighs 595 lbs and should
top out in the upper 130mph range. Buell's new toy is the
XB9R Firebolt. The slightly new motor is an air cooled,
short stroke, 984cc 45 degree v-twin that's been put on a
diet to rev quickly and put out 92 horsepower, though I'm
guessing that figure is at the crank. The frame is for sure
out in right field, carrying the bike's fuel within its
aluminum confines and the oil being carried inside the
swingarm. With all that liquid mass lying in unconventional
places it should be interesting to see how the bike is
balanced out, though some thought has obviously gone into
the weight issue since the whole package weighs less than
385 lbs dry. The bike is supposed to carry a MSRP of less
than $10,000.
Sweet Little
Angels
The Hell's Angels rolled into Branson, Missouri for
their annual gathering in late July, prompting authorities
to bolster their presence by bringing in 80 state troopers
to assist local law enforcement. There was one officer on
the street for every 10 bikers at any given time. Don
Gannon, president of the Angel's Chicago chapter said,
"They're our paparazzi. If you want to be safe, just stick
with us because there's always a cop close by." Few tickets
or arrests were made and locals were happy to have the extra
business that a bunch of bad bikers bring. "They've been no
trouble at all. In fact, they've been extra nice." said one
local and an elderly tourist from Texas made this comment
"They're just a bunch of men who are now over 50 and are
yuppies wishing they were still hippies.''
HUNGRY?
It seems that prominent local bikers are being refused
drive through service at local fast food chains simply
because they're on motorcycles. In recent "incidents" at
Taco Bell and Culver's restaurants, bikers were told that
"walk throughs aren't allowed" and they were "welcome to
come in and order at the counter." Being a local biker I
decided to call around and find out what the official
policies were concerning motorcycles and drive through
service. Managers and restaurant owners from McDonalds,
Arby's, Hardees, Burger King and the two previously
mentioned establishments all said that they did forbid walk
through customers in the drive through for safety reasons
but agreed that motorcyclists would not be considered walk
throughs as long as the bike was able trip the vehicle
sensor. So if the dude with the headset at the window
refuses to give you the Chalupa you and your ST1100 are
craving, just ask to speak to his manager.
Peter Fonda
Peter Fonda was set to come to the twin cities for the
Maplewood Theater's showing of the classic Easy Rider.
Besides the screening he was also set to put in an
appearance at the Easyrider shop in Minneapolis and to give
MMM a one on one interview. Unfortunately just days before
the July 27th event Peter was put in the pokey after being
arrested for his 3rd DUI while driving his pickup truck in
Bozeman Montana and could not make bail. Still, the event
went on and fun was had, with all proceeds going to the POW
home. Organizer Jenny Crouch would like to thank everyone
who attended and especially the Plaza Maplewood Theater for
hosting the event.
COOL
The table you see here was created by local artist Holly
Vrieze and is on display through August at Moxie on 26th and
Lyndale in Uptown. It is the first motorcycle based piece
Holly has done but she says, "there's more to come." As with
most things it's for sale at the right price. For $3500 you
can take it home, kick back and plant your feet up on it or
plant it in the reception area of your high powered
corporate headquarters. If you're interested call Holly at
612-578-5461.
M.M.M.
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