By Lulu

One of my favorite people on the face of this earth is Willie, owner of Tropical Tattoo. To look at him, you would pull your kids in the house if you didn’t know how sweet this man really is. Patriotic, veteran loving and just someone who lives and loves the biker community. He was one of the first businesses who took me under his wing and helped me navigate the bike world when the original owner, my boyfriend at the time 18 years ago, died. I have actually been to 36 Chopper Times! Thunder Roads Florida even gave a trophy this year! The band was also one of my favorites, Duval County Line and Paul Wane actually played a whole song on guitar with his tongue, Jimi Hendrix style. His wife must be a lucky girl! Yes, I just said that!

What everyone knows about Tropical Tattoo is they are one of the oldest tattoo shops in Florida and Willie even helped legislate some of the rules for cleanliness in the business. What some who don’t know about Chopper Time, is that this twice a year event helps fund the Veteran’s Support Fund. All the tips and alcohol sales go to this worthy charity. Mike Jones from A OK Guns auctioned off guns to help fund the kitty. This year the weather was perfect. The crowds were not as thick as Bike Week which makes getting around for photos easier.

Lots more photos are on Thunder Roads Florida Facebook. If you find yourself there, please share!! See you in the spring at Chopper Time! A special thank you to Twisted Tea, Rue & Ziffra, Guerrilla Fabrication, Cycle Source, Blings Cycle, J&P Cycles, B & D Customs, S & S Performance, Morris Magneto, Iron Horse Saloon, Prime IV, Harley Davidson, Broken Spoke, Spectro Performance Oils, Realty Pros, Choppers Magazine, Hogridin.com, OB’s, Only Choppers, Hardcore Cycles, Inc., Cochise Chops, F n A, Joker Cycle Works, Renegade Magazine, Rider Now Magazine, and Old School Biker Magazine for their sponsorship. OOPs and I almost forgot to mention Roadside Marty the infamous emcee that keeps the show moving.