By Billy "Kneecap" Braddock May is an interesting month. There are many days which honor many. We have National Nurses Day on the 6th, Mother's Day on the 12th and Armed Forces Day on The 18th. However, there is one day that is also important to me “World No Tobacco Day” on the 31st. I'm writing this article on April 15th (Tax Day's 100th anniversary). Eight years ago on this date I quit smoking cigarettes after 48 years. “World No Tobacco Day” brings awareness of the health and dependency issues of tobacco. Tobacco may be the most addictive legal drug we know. With all the aids to help you quit smoking, there is only one that really works. It's your “HEAD”. You need to make up your mind that you really want to quit and it will happen. I don't run around preaching about smoking, but the bottom line is if you smoke, you need to kick the habit TODAY. Your LIFE may depend on it. Smoking is not the only thing that can kill you. We’re in the middle of gator mating season and I don't mean the University of Florida cheerleaders. So remember, we live in a state (Florida) where you can be eaten by both alligators and crocodiles. If you need a hug, we also have boa constrictors. Then there are Sinkholes, which is Mother Nature's way to allow Florida itself to commit murder. Mother Nature also gave us mosquitoes, ticks and fleas that like to give you little love bites. Florida is one of the country’s top tourist destinations. The roads are flooded with people who don't know where they're going but in a big hurry to get there. If that isn't enough, we have blue haired, white knuckled, Buick drivers who don't use turn signals and have a tendency to turn left in front of you. When I was a kid, we would say the most dangerous thing you can see in Florida was a Northerner traveling south on I-95 in a U-Haul. There's been a lot of talk lately about legalizing marijuana (cannabis). Cannabis has a long history. The first direct reference to a cannabis product as a psychoactive agent dates back to 2737 BC. It was used as a medication for rheumatism, gout, malaria and oddly enough absent-mindedness. In 1545, the Spanish brought marijuana to the New World. The English introduced it in Jamestown in 1611, where it became a major commercial crop alongside tobacco. By 1890 it had been replaced by cotton as a major cash crop in the southern states. It was in the 1920s that marijuana began to catch on. Some say that was brought about by Prohibition. Marijuana was listed in the U.S. Pharmacopeia from 1850 to 1942, and was prescribed for such things as labor pains, nausea, and rheumatism. I grew up in the “hippie generation” where it was a symbol of rebellion. I can remember this nerd I knew who was going on vacation. He asked me, “Where can I get some marijuana to take with me? I asked him, “Where are you going?” to my surprise he said Mexico. After I stopped laughing hysterically, I had a visualization of a newspaper headline “Stupid gringo tries to smuggle marijuana INTO Mexico”. Until The Controlled Substance act of 1970, the majority of marijuana came from Mexico. After the Mexican government agreed to eradicate the crop in 1975, Columbia became the main supplier. So now, we advertise our easy giveaway of food stamps in Mexico. With this stupid “Zero Tolerance” climate, the so-called “War on Drugs” and mandatory sentences for possession the police prosecuted 848,408 persons with marijuana violations in 2009. 758,593 were charged with nonviolent possession only. Our jails are overflowing and with 224 million users in the world’s adult population, maybe we better take another look at our laws. Like they say, never let the truth or the facts interfere with the passage of a new law to control. Quote from the person who invented the Internet and global warming. “It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it”. Al Gore, Vice President See you on the shiny side of tomorrow… Read the rest of this entry »

By Amy Poole [autoviewer id="243" width="600" height="600" ] The World Famous Iron Horse Saloon sponsored our “Twisted” cover for Bike Week 2013 and rocked us off our feet featuring David Allen Coe, a known legend…Jared Blake, an awesome county singer…Mustang Sally, an all women country/rhythm/blues band and the many FREE concerts during the week!! The Horse has it “ALL” going on during the off season and during the rallies. Off season if you are out and about you can hit Bike Night the 1st Saturday of every month with live music and a bike contest, during the week play in tournaments for cash prizes either corn hole or horseshoe, eat inexpensive good grub and drinks, join in on the poker runs for great causes, etc. Throughout the rallies you can pretty much do all those things with extras like the Horse teamed up with J&P Cycles (the world’s largest retailer for motorcycles), and had a burnout contest right by THE STAGE until there was no rubber left!!! They even have a place for you to sleep…well, not at the Horse but at their campground called Moonshine… a short distance away. And then there is always the famous beef tip sandwiches and fabulous T-shirts! Everyone always makes a stop at this Famous site!! Check Thunder Roads Florida for all the Horse’s upcoming events!! Read the rest of this entry »

By Amy Poole [autoviewer id="242" width="600" height="600" ] IT’S CHOPPER TIME!!! I have to say that the BEST part of Bike Week is Willie’s Tropical Tattoo Old School Chopper Show…for a few incredible reasons! It’s quite simple how this all began. Willie’s bike show began about 12 years ago. Willie and a few of his custom builder buddies, such as Jeff and Donnie from Sucker Punch Sally’s, and Adam Chandler would meet up on Thursdays at the shop on their choppers to gear up for a night out. As this continued, many onlookers were aware of this and chose to ride their chopper in, park, shoot the breeze, and from there it just got bigger and that is how we got to the present. This year’s bike show was BIGGER than ever with 173 bikes on property and Willie and the crew’s choppers were not counted!! The eager crowd, getting inked or not, and the unique bikes were packed in tighter then a locked up wheel!! The builders were competing in many categories for some rare hand made trophies handed out by tatted babes and the Twisted Tea girls. Drink stations, like $2 beers, wine, cocktails, soda and water were set up all around along with snacks for lunch, if you got the munchies while listening to the non stop live music. An added perk too were the bales of hay stacked up in the sunshine so many of us parked ourselves on them! Another thrilling factor at Tropical was having celebrities Josh and Bill from Moonshiners TV show and of course Cutie Pie, Josh’s dog, on site selling shots of moonshine and boy was it tasty!! If you are not familiar with the show you fail to see the humor and the hard work they put into their stills, but sippin’ on some shine while doing so…makes it well worth it! The topper of the day was that ALL monies that were profited at the show from selling the beer, refreshments, food, moonshine; the gals and guys tip money, etc. ALL FUNDED the Arni Foundation Animal Shelter!!!! Raising $9,000.00!!!!! Arni is a nonprofit no kill shelter located here in town. They save 100’s of animals from other shelters that are in danger and find them loving homes! Arni has been onboard with Willie at Tropical’s bike show for the past 5 years. Nikki Lynn, founder of Arni, is an angel for these furry friends…she has a heart larger than life!! Here is their website if you are looking to give a 4 legged friend a loving home or to donate…arnianimalrescue.org A big thank you to Dave Perewitz, Twisted Tea, Spectro Oil, Big Rick and the Troublemakers, and to all who supported this event!!! Read the rest of this entry »

I met this month’s Bull’s Eye, Mark Manuel, at the Boardwalk Classic Ride In Bike Show during Bike Week. His creativity and passion for design is evident in his bike “Bad Sled”. In addition to being an extremely creative bike designer he also writes exceptionally, so I have asked him to submit his own story. Lulu By Mark Manuel My story, like this build, is a little different from most. I fell hopelessly in love at 19 years old … twice! First with my wife of 35 years and second, with my Suzuki…not necessarily in that order! Thirty-five years later, I’m still in love with both. The only difference is that I’m into the design and creativity of bike building as much as riding. Like any love affair, it’s been a love-hate relationship at times, but that’s okay, because I’m a clinical psychologist. I work with bad boys at the Florida Department of Corrections, but my true love is a nine-year build that started in Miami at New Age Motorcycle, and continued by builder/painter Jay Horton from Alachua. My bike began life as a 1982 GS 1100 in-line 4 cylinder 16-valve chain drive Suzuki Katana. When I got tired of gear-heading around Miami, I decided to build my own signature motorcycle. I wasn’t into sport bikes or conventional Jap cruisers anymore, but I didn’t want to build another H-D cookie cutter chopper, bobber, or bagger. I wanted to build a whole new breed … a high-end prototype, integrating the old school radical retro FLH design with a wicked drag bike engine. The original 1100 was bored out by Star Racing using a Stage One pro-stock 1200 cc drag bike kit featuring a race cut/heat treated tranny, competition cams, valves, rings, pistons, chain, clutch, 38mm Mikuni stacks, and two 30 pound NOS tanks. This “Bad Sled” claims a staggering 140hp and a heart–stopping 170hp + with the NOS engaged. As of the spring of 2013, ¼ mile and top speed are still unknown pending engine break-in. In terms of design, I incorporated Arlen Ness Tail Dragger fenders, prototype 7 foot side by side fish tail pipes, a functional suicide shift, “floating” suspension, air shocks, flame thrower (gulp!), and $5000 in chrome. Roping it all in, the west coast “True Fire” air brush paint job is designed to reflect the notion of riding and splashing through liquid fire. Not only is this thing crazy fast, it’s a Radical Metric 1000 cc+ show bike, having taken first at the 2012 Rat’s Hole show at Leesburg, 2nd at Rat’s Hole Biketoberfest 2012, 2nd at the 2013 Full Throttle Biker Build Off, 2nd at the Rat’s Hole Bike Week 2013 and 1st at the 2013 Boardwalk Classic Bike Week. That’s 5/5 shows guys… and the bike has been featured in several biker magazines as well. My ultimate goal is to win or place at Sturgis, the biggest and most prestigious custom motorcycle show in the world. I have “Bad Sled” priced at $50,000 and with all the hours, chrome, paint and design innovations, it’s a steal. Blending the past and present, I’ve taken an antique Suzuki and integrated H-D, Arlen Ness, and Indian influences, making this an awarding winning bike. Long… Low… Loud… Phat… and Fast … This is truly one “BAD SLED!” Read the rest of this entry »

By Lulu During Bike Week, I was wandering around the Speedway and ran into my friends from Rolling Thunder Chapter 8. They were showing me the coolest piece of art that someone generously donated to them (see photo). A bit later in the day I came upon that artist’s booth and had a chance to meet the artist “Dirt” (James Dorner) and see more of his creations. Upon hearing that I had a friend with lung cancer, he gave me a piece of art to auction at her poker run. This is one amazing and generous man. He didn’t know me or my friend. He wasn’t a local, and yet he insisted I take the pair of metal angel wings his hands had sculpted out of metal. His creative works are sold under the name Art by Dirt and he really creates amazing art made with American motorcycle pieces. From tiny rosebuds to huge eagles his mind and hands take metal art to a new height. So far he has given over $64,000 to his charitable causes, which he is very involved in veteran and children causes. I am keeping this Pony Tales short to make room for the photos. The artist has been featured in Easy Rider magazine and you can find him on his website www.artbydirt.com Thank you Dirt from Thunder Roads Florida, Rolling Thunder Chapter 8 and my friend Sam you are certainly a delightful man and I am impressed by your art and generous spirit! Read the rest of this entry »

By Amy Poole This year The Legendary Boot Hill Saloon and Strip Club Choppers joined together to make the experience of Bike Week even better! Everyone will stop in at the Boot at least once during the rally…it’s just a given…whether it’s to party, pick up a new t-shirt or to look at some eye candy at the Full Throttle bikini contest!! Even after the rally the party continues with live music, Wednesday bike night and free BBQ every 4th Saturday. If you don’t know, Boot Hill has an Ormond Beach location on US1… and it was utilized well this event!! Owner of Strip Club Choppers, Johnny Lange, teamed up to help organize and plan the events and I have to say he pulled it off!! Plenty of free bike parking was available along with the Wall of Death Shows at no charge! The Rat’s Hole Bike Show was impressive; seeing all that power roll up and some of them getting on it and smoking tires! The one feature that was my favorite, and if you know me you know it is, was the Jungle Habitat out of Tennessee founded 25 years ago. Their mission is to provide safe healthy long term care for unwanted or abused exotic animals of all kinds! They had an 8 week old Bengal Tiger named Sadie, (which Shane and I both got to hold and have our pic with her!) another tiger and 2 monkeys. For a donation you could do the same!! Check out jungelhabitat.org. Thanks Boot Hill for awesome experiences and another great Bike Week!! Read the rest of this entry »

By Amy Poole Bike Week wouldn’t be the same without riding down to Main Street and getting yourself engrossed in the activities at Dirty Harry’s. Most of the year it’s pretty quiet on the strip but during the 10 event it’s rockin’ with 2 big stages, the roar of engines, girls in their sexy attire and 100% amusement! The wet tee contest was slick as oil and is always a handful for Cowboy, known as the King of Entertainment, but he sure had a grip on it! Then there’s always time for a booty break! The booty contest is right smack on top of where the scent of food (and the booties) makes your mouth water! If you want to start the weekends off right Friday is bike night with $1 beer and the first Sunday of EVERY month is soaring with free bbq and live music. Each month has a different sponsor with pretty promo girls strolling around with giveaways. With spring and summer moving in on us, it only enhances being out in the courtyard for some fun!! Check Dirty Harry’s ad in Thunder Roads Florida for all they’re doing or their website at DirtyHarrysDaytona.com!! Read the rest of this entry »

By Amy Poole The Beaver Bar is a hop, skip and a cruise to many of the festivities during Bike Week. This was their first Bike Week open and I don’t think they were disappointed! Loads of bikers and peeps just out to see the sights lined up to get in the Beaver to chow on some great food by Grover and the boys, see some hotties from South Carolina and quench their thirst on $2 beers…that’s right $2 beers ALL year long!! Their band line up was phenomenal and if you haven’t heard Rebel Son…you missed a few rockin’ nights!! Or you could do something simple like chill in the rockin’ chairs, but just so you know… you can’t take them home with you! Thank you Leslie, Jeremey, and the whole crew for a GREAT rally and looking forward to many more!! Read the rest of this entry »

By Lulu [autoviewer id="241" width="600" height="600" ] This was our best TWISTED TEA Hot Thunder Bikini Contest ever! Not only was the weather fabulous, the Twisted Tea icy cold, the girls smokin’ hot, Big Engine was rocking the new White Eagle stage complete with a ramp for us to bring bikes on stage, the crowd was and they were incredibly generous. This year our judges included celebrity Don Wood from the reality TV show Moonshiners, artist Tom Ackley and his wife and entrepreneur Vicki-jo Lucky from Eternity Spa, pro bass fisherman sponsored by Twisted Tea Gary Coleman, Geri from GT Motorcycles in Pineda, photographer Miserable George and Twisted Tea drinker Choppers! They had an incredibly difficult task of narrowing the field down to decide who went away with $300, $500 or the grand prize of $1200! Our winner Jessica Renee is from Miami and has won our contest in the past. I think it must be those incredible “assets! During the event, artist Tom Ackley presented Don Wood with a wood burning likeness of him, and Don was just stoked to receive it. We brought in Sterling and Josh dressed in pink briefs to dance for the crowd to raise money for the Tracy Dillon Mammogram Fun, and incredibly, the generous crowd gave $632!! Gotta love those bikers! We want to thank the bike owners, Don, Irv, Ricardo, John, Tim and another John for the use of their bikes for the girls to pose on for the crowd. I particularly want to thank Don, Micah, Ricardo, A.J., Tim, Howie and Kim for going the extra mile to get the stage done just in the nick of time. We need to thank the White Eagle for hosting our event, Twisted Tea for being awesome sponsors each year, the participants in the game, particularly the deep throats who swallowed the whole thing! Finally I want to mention La Mesa RV on I-4 in Sanford who allow the girls to change into those tiny bikinis in the comfort of a beautiful air conditioned RV. You guys are the best! If you are looking for an RV of any sort visit our friends at La Mesa. And if you haven’t tried a Twisted Tea come to one of our Bike Nights and the Twisted Tea girls will hook you up! Read the rest of this entry »

By Lulu

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Each February Micah and I load up and travel to Leesburg for one of my favorite events. Known by the biker community for their great rally in the spring, they do Mardi Gras with equal success. We ride over for the day, although the street party doesn’t get into full swing until around 7pm when the parade begins. I love the stilt walkers and the folks that dress up in the garish boas and face paint. Being from Pensacola I love Mardi Gras and have even been part of the “Crewe of the Silver Slipper” back in the day. This is a nice ride from just about anywhere in the state and although the debauchery isn’t nearly as risqué as New Orleans…it is still a fun street party!

By Lulu We all love our heroes…firemen, policemen, military men and women. They spend their employment years protecting our families, homes, freedom and lives, often at great peril and sacrifice. Then there are extraordinary heroes! White knights that just can’t lay down the armor! And that is exactly what a bunch of old veterans in Volusia County, Florida are…EXTRAORDINARY! I have known and ridden with some of these guys and they are not spring chickens. The baby of the team is in his mid 60s and the eldest 70+! They aren’t spending their golden years on a boat, golf course or couch. Nope, they are spending their leisure time moving couches, beds, lamps, washers, dryers, coffee tables, coffee pots, dishes, TVs. Anything to make a house suddenly a home. Who are they doing this for? Homeless vets! Since November they have moved 57 vets into a place they can call “my home”. Some became homeless from medical issues, some drugs or alcohol, some just from loss of employment, but at some point all of them either ended up living in a car, the woods, the Salvation Army or the Haven. Once they get “clean” from their struggle that led them to homelessness, where do they go? That is where a newly form team called the Veteran’s Assistance Coalition steps in. The team with a mission statement of “to assist and support veterans of all wars, providing charity, education, relief and camaraderie while improving quality of life and well being consists of members from Rolling Thunder Inc. Florida Chapter 8, Disabled American Veterans, Marine Corp. League Detachment 658 and the Viet Nam Veterans of America Chapter 1048. Fast forward to moving day 8a.m.! 5-7 grizzly ol’ Viet Nam Vets show up in Ormond Beach at a storage facility to methodically fill the wish list of some guy or gal they don’t know. The excited new apartment dweller will go from owning only what fits in a duffle bag or shopping cart (we have all seen the homeless wandering the highway with their belongings they can carry) to owning all the essentials for daily living. I traveled with them on two of their moving days. The new tenants meet us just beaming, some with pets they obviously adore. None complain that the couch may be a bit worn or the bed a bit old. They all sit on “their” recliner and smile! They all hug and thank these ol’ heroes for helping them get started in a new course of life. They are not all old vets that are being helped. They are not all men. Some are from the current missions our country has faced. All have fallen on hard times and seem to have experienced things in their military career that make normal living difficult. Many are in school now. One of the vets they helped was a young mother of two small girls that was living in her car until the car was repossessed right before Christmas. They moved her and the children under a roof just in time for Santa to find them. The wives of these kind hearted men played Mrs. Clause and provided Christmas. I doubt there was a present under the tree that was as nice as a mattress under their little bodies. Another vet they moved in was injured in the Oklahoma City Bombing while on duty, but since it wasn’t a war he doesn’t qualify for things other vets would have been entitled too. On the second moving day, “Generation Arthritis” (my pet name for them) moved 3 people in! What kind of people does this on their leisure time? Joking the whole time about things like “having to do this to get away from their wives”; you realize when you see the tears in their eyes that they know it could have easily been one of them that was unable to cope with daily living. They don’t judge these guys they are moving in, not one bit! They simply try, in everything they do, to make a difference, one life at a time. Often during the move in previous vets that have been helped show up to lend a helping hand. Please call if you have household items they are in need of it all…pots/pans, mattresses, quilts. They also could really use a decent warehouse in the Holly Hill area if anyone has a building that isn’t being used. The wives of Generation X lovingly store the sheets, blankets, cups, dishes and silverware so that they can just grab what they need for move-in day. Their phone number is 386-290-8407 (Jim Kreinest) or their website is veteransassistancecoalition.org. Read the rest of this entry »

By Lulu

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The folks at Bar None couldn’t have picked a better way to kick off Bike Week. The day was crisp and clear. The parking lot totally packed. The Eager Beaver was rocking the deck, and the food which is always fabulous was plentiful.

Chris was showing off a sparkling diamond on her finger that I hadn’t seen yet and I have to say I am not sure which was sparkling more the diamond or the smile on her face! I know they appreciate all the regulars who make this a MUST DO each year and if you haven’t stopped in Bar None in St. Augustine you really MUST!