By Lulu

A favorite destination ride for a meal with a view is 3 Bananas in Crescent City on Crescent Lake. While in town for Biketoberfest or Bike Week, or any other time, get on your bike and take a ride out to the quaint city and find Pat and Anna Finley’s place on the lake. The couple took over operation on the bar in November 2021 and breathed new life into the place. Originally from Ponte Vedra they brought years of experience to this new endeavor having been in restaurant consulting, ownership, conference & catering director at a large resort and even director of training. Years of experience must have paid off as once again 3 Bananas has quite a following under their reins. The Finley’s now reside in Crescent City. Pat rode dirt bikes as a teenager but now they are into trail/beach cruisers and enjoy Bikes on the Beach. They enjoy golfing, fishing, and visiting hole in the wall establishments. Sounds like they are living the good life, although I know restaurant bar business is TIME CONSUMING! The Finley’s are community minded and the charity they are involved in is K9s for Warriors.

3 Bananas specials include Prime Rib Saturdays and are known for their seafood. Try their hand breaded shrimp or blackened grouper dinner featured in the photos. Personally, I LOVE their quesadillas. Try some of their famous banana-based drinks Dirty Banana, Banana Split or Banana Wreck. I bet any of them will go down so smoothly you may end up acting like a monkey! They are open Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday 11am-5pm,
With extended hours Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday 11a-8pm. They have live music Saturdays noon-3pm and Wednesday night they feature trivia.

Coming up on October 25th 5 pm is their Yappy Hour and Howl-o-Ween Parade. Dogs in costume with prizes! So, for you guys who ride with pups you might want to check this one out! The address is 11 S. Lake St. in Crescent City or find them on 3bananas.com.

By Lulu

Out in Satsuma a short hop from Crescent City is the old Hermit’s Cove, under new ownership and a new name. The Gartenders at the Gnarly Gar are happy to serve you with a smile! The new owners Jay and Tanya Steck, along with Marcin Grucela have had the helm of the Gar since November 2022. Tanya was born and raised in Florida. Jay was born in Michigan but raised in New Jersey. They now reside in Port Orange but have a place out in Satsuma where the Gnarly Gar is located. The bar is a great destination ride for ice cold beer, seltzers, and wine with a beautiful view of the water and sunsets! Jay and Tanya are also busy with businesses other than the bar. Jay works for a construction coatings manufacturer and together they have Saltair Properties Group which manages rental properties. Jay was in law enforcement in the past and Marcin was a Marine, “once a Marine, always a Marine”! Marcin does ride motorcycles and loves the biking community. The “fish camp” (home) they own in Hermit’s Cove made the former Hermit’s Cove bar their place to stop for a drink, and when Gary the owner passed away, he left the bar to Pamela Small, who ran if for a bit. When she decided to sell, the Steck’s bought it to keep it operating for the local community, the motorcycle riders and the boaters who love this place, as they do. In Tanya’s words, “We love the bar and continue to improve on it. We really decided to buy it because we were concerned that if we didn’t, someone may come in and change the bar to something else or would tear it down and put houses on the property. We love the bar, and we also love this community, which genuinely is what ‘makes’ this bar what it is today. We embrace the Gnarly Gar as a local’s spot and the support we receive from the community of locals, bikers and boaters shows in everything we do to keep it going.” Since Gary had the original Hermit’s Cove, the bar has added live music, occasional food trucks and other entertainment.

Ride out to find this gem in the country. They are open Wednesday-Sunday 11a-to sometime after 10pm. Tanya runs the show, Jay and Mancin are never far from the Gnarly Gar. Kim, Michelle, and Ana Mira are the GARTENDERS. Ride out and tell them you saw this in Thunder Roads Florida Magazine!

The address is 482 Cove Dr., Satsuma. Check them out at gnarlygar.com or find them on Facebook too. The phone number is 386-214-1863.

By Greg Perret

Greg Perret owner of Le Duck Motorcycles was kind enough to submit the story of Le Duck Motorcycles in Daytona Beach in his own words. He has a heavy French accent, so I asked him to answer questions in print not wanting to make any mistakes. He kindly wrote the following. These guys are really nice and hard working. Stop in and check out their business. Lulu

I’m Greg and purchased the shop Crank and Chrome with my brother, Sylvain last spring. We come from France, and I moved to Florida in February with my wife and my two children, each with 2 suitcases! Now that the kids are back in school, my wife is looking for a job. My daughter is 10 years old (5th grade), and my son is 8 years old (3rd grade). They love their new life, here in Florida, and made new friends at school. They both rode a little bit in motocross when they were in France.

I sold my business in France, and I was looking for a Motorcycle Business in the USA. We had the opportunity to buy Crank and Chrome from Barry Zenn. And we did! This year we built three bikes for our showroom, and we truly want to show people that we love the work we do. We specialize in Harley-Davidson and Indians. We do repairs and service, and are Harley certified. Le Duck also sells new and used parts.

I was 9 or 10 years old when I had my first bike, a Yamaha PW80. Then, we were riding every week on the MX tracks, and spent 10 to 12 years in competition. I bought my first Harley-Davidson, and customized different bikes for myself in France. We created Le Duck Motorcycles to purchase Crank And Chrome. Now we continue the same operations with the same team. Come in and meet our team; Philip, Craig and Hippie.We have a lot of ambitious plans for the shop in the next few months, to make it the place to be, to make it a concept store.

Le Duck comes from the movie Convoy, in the French version the main character Kris Kristofferson is called “Le Duck” so, nothing about motorcycles is the reason for the name. Although, we have a t-shirt with his effigy. Le Duck also is our clothing brand and we carry Renegade Babes too.
The address for the shop is 1533 Ridgewood Ave., Daytona Beach. Phone is 386-615-1449. They are open Monday-Saturday 8am-5pm so get on the schedule to get your ride ready for Biketoberfest.

By Lulu

In July, Born to Ride Magazine put on a custom ride in bike show and hot rod classic show at Tampa Bay H-D. The band Tommy Roxx was on the Fran Haasch stage playing their hearts out. Vendors and bikini bike wash girls gave the peeps something to look at and inside I saw at least one happy camper ringing the bell for his new Harley purchase! It was nice to get out on the west coast for a minute. Thanks for a good time Ron! You always put on great bike show.

By Lulu

We weren’t able to make it up for the spring Thunder Beach Rally, but T Rex and Tony stopped in and shot some pics on their way through heading to Sturgis and the Midwest. Bike Rack on Front Beach Rd was rocking with vendors, full bar, stunt shows, burnout contests, bike and audio shows and live music. This years lineup featured The Rock Mob, Black Eyed Blonde, Frank Fletcher, JoJo Bee, Scratch 2020 and Velvet Gypsy. Frank Brown Park was once again filled with vendors and live music while Bill Grotto and the Twisted Tea girls shared their brew. With the fall rally approaching in October, I want to remind you of a great destination ride out to the Red Bay Thunder Rally (see their ad in this issue). Their rally runs from the 21st through the 27th of October. The bar is called Hideout in Ponce de Leon. It’s a beautiful 30-minute ride out to the country for a fun day away from the traffic on beachside. Thunder Beach Fall Rally is from the 23rd to the 27th of October.

In the past we would take Letters to the Editor and publish them, but as the magazine has grown over the past 17 years, we simply haven’t had space. James had a beef with my Pony Tales in August 2024 and dared me to post his letter to me. So here it is with my response. In my response I forgot to take issue with the 250,000 deaths due to Covid he wants to blame Trump for. Every country suffered deaths. The left went crazy when early on Trump wanted to stop flights from China. The liberals let people with no vaccines flood into our country illegally. I also am subjected to CNN, MSNBC because T. J. watches all the channels to form our opinions. But common sense is something the liberals running this country the past 3.5 years do not possess. And we are stuck with their poor decisions on defunding the police, the border, the prices on gas and groceries. The uprisings in cities they want to call peaceful protests, even the new VP candidate allowed in his state. Weren’t those riots a crime against our nation? Police stations and courthouses damaged, police cars burned, police officers hurt!!! Then our current Democrat running for the White House raised money to bail the hooligans out of jail after the damage they did. Form your own opinions. After all that is all my Pony Tales was…mine. And here is Jim’s!

From James Mills
Have to take issue with the August 2024 Pony Tales article by Lulu.
Such a false narrative.

Trump is a convicted felon of fraud. Convicted of sexual abuse.

Responsible for the greatest treasonous crime in American history orchestrating the January 6 insurrection. He should be hung as a traitor. He set back 50 years women’s rights.

He continues to marginalize the LGBTQ community.

He has no respect for our military. Calling John McCain a loser.

Not wanting to be around the wounded cause “it looks bad”, doesn’t want to go to military cemeteries cause they are losers that they got killed. All of this is on tape. He’s a racist, bigot.

He’s a narcissistic, misogynistic, habitual liar.

Told more lies in 4 years than Clinton, Bush and the best POTUS ever, Obama for their administrations.
Don’t believe it, fact check it.

Fact check everything.

Failed business man. Bankruptcy of his various companies. Ask any contractors who worked on his buildings. He screwed everyone and ruined their livelihood. He is responsible for a minimum of 250,000 deaths in this country because he ignored the medical experts in regards to Covid.

Oh, “drink bleach, inject Lysol! “ WTF!!!

Get your info from sources other than Faux or the other conservative conspiracy outlets.

Try BBC & PBS or some news sources from other countries if you think all channels here are spewing nonsense like Faux.

In closing. If anyone still supports Trump after all the crimes he’s committed as well as being nothing more than a spoiled rich baby you lack a very important character trait and lack intelligence.

I know you don’t have the guts to publish this.

Thank you.
James Mills
Punta Gorda, Florida

Jim,
I appreciate your input and couldn’t disagree with you more. I do fact check and the fact is women choosing their rights over the right of an unborn child is morally wrong. So, you will not win me over on that one. The border czar you support has done NOTHING in her entire career and has had 3.5 years of open border policies that we will suffer the consequence of for years to come. The sexual “crimes” you accuse Trump of, are the normal course of life in politics if you followed the Clintons from Arkansas through the White House. Should I name them all or are you aware, talk about liars! And if it hadn’t been for the evidence of the blue dress, he would have let Monica go down as a liar. As far as business dealings I personally know of several New York business contractors who said they weren’t paid in full for jobs that were either not done on time OR of substandard quality who say he was ruthless, and yet they will be voting for HIM. So, in closing Jim, I will be cancelling your vote at the polls, but Florida has almost 1 million more Republicans than Democrats. Fact check that. It isn’t our state that will decide. It will be a close race. I pray that we don’t end up with the far-left female that absolutely no one respects, except for the liberals who are just thanking God it isn’t Biden who failed this country miserably. Trump isn’t a racist. He is a brash, egotistical, narcissist. And this country needs him. But the important thing about America is you have freedom of speech and so do I. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Beth aka Lulu owner of Thunder Roads Florida Magazine

By T. J. Costa

I was recently introduced to a small bike shop doing BIG things in Jacksonville. Hardcore Cycles tag line is “performance done right” and owners Hillbilly and Sammy take that mission very seriously. They have been operating their Harley-Davidson specialized full service and performance shop for ten years. Engine builds and repairs is what they do, as well as precision dyno tuning, extended warranty issues and comprehensive tire services. High performance is the goal, so if you want it done, these are the guys to get it done right the first time.

After riding and wrenching his own bikes all his life, Hillbilly decided it kind of made sense to open a shop since that was his lifestyle anyway, and Hardcore was born. He’s a cool, laid back, self proclaimed, born and raised Florida Cracker with three bikes in his personal garage. A ’05 Dyna that he bought brand new and has 300K miles on it. WOW! Also, a newer ’22 Road Glide and a Buell. His story is about a lifetime commitment to the ride.

Sammy is an Ohio boy that grew up racing flat tracks. Knowing at such a young age that he wanted to work in the motorcycle industry, he got on at an aftermarket shop, at 17 began Harley-Davidson Tech school and became a Certified Harley-Davidson Technician at age 18. He spent the next 10 years working at Harley dealerships in Ohio before escaping the cold winters and slow riding seasons. Eight years ago, Sammy moved to The Sunshine State and brought his skills to Adamec H-D before teaming up and partnering with Hillbilly. His early start and lifetime in the industry speaks volumes about his dedication and expertise. He currently rides a 2016 Road Glide with 150K miles, a ’07 Street Bob and a ’55 Panhead.

If you’re riding a vintage motorcycle, Squirrel is there to take care of your ride. I’m told he has 60 years of experience working on bikes. Sounds to me like he is overqualified. Old to new he has you covered. Cecil rounds out the lineup of technicians and Chris takes care of procuring the needed parts to keep the shop running.

Hardcore is also the home of the $65 oil change (conventional) and if you call ahead for your appointment, they will do it while you wait. To me, that’s great service! Their labor rates are $125/hr with a discounted rate of $110/hr for military, first responders and teachers. Professional pick-up and delivery are available, and they offer financing if needed.

Hardcore Cycles is located at 8625 Alton Ave, business hours are 9-5 Monday through Friday, closed on weekends. Phone 904-329-3649. Follow them on Facebook for more info.

Give Hardcore a call and tell them Thunder Roads Florida sent you.

By Lulu

A quick 30-minute ride from Panama City Beach and Thunder Beach Fall Rally is a really cool spot with friendly staff. The Hideout is known for great food and ice-cold beer. It is a great place to take a ride and get away from the traffic of Panama City Beach. They put on Red Bay Thunder from October 21-27 with bikini bike wash, bike games, contests, and live music! I have heard the food is good too, although when we were there in July, we had just had a big meal. But both large tables inside were full, and people seemed happy with their grub! Put this in your GPS and tell them you saw it in Thunder Roads Florida. The address is 8704 SR 81, Ponce de Leon, and you can find them on Facebook at thehideoutredbay.

By Lulu

It was a beautiful sunny day for the first Annual Memorial Day Ride in Deltona. Rue & Ziffra Law Firm hosted the run which was organized with the help of the City of Deltona and Veteran Enforcers Motorcycle Association. Sponsors included Lowe’s, Family Health Services, Naughty Hog Enterprise, Seminole Harley-Davidson, So Hoss Bar, Cigar Hustler, Daytona Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, Ram, Division Weapons, Deltona Firefighters, TD Pro Solution, and the Volusia Sheriff’s Office. This was an escorted ride that started at Deltona City Hall with a stop at a Veteran’s Park for services and laying of wreaths. A great Veteran’s Museum was open to the public. The ride ended back at City Hall with vendors, food trucks and great music by Whiskey Sunrise. The ride proceeds benefited the Deltona Firefighters Foundation as the ride was held to honor Veterans and First Responders.

By Lulu

As we all know who frequent bars in our travels, there are bartenders and staff that are a cut above others. Michelle at The Alibi in Geneva is one of those gals. Everyone who knows her, loves her. Recently she was diagnosed with an aneurysm which will require surgery and having to be out of work for an extended time. So, her friends, family and the new owners of Alibi came to her rescue with a fundraiser to help cover some of her expenses when the surgery is scheduled. The Whiskey Sunrise Band put on a great show to help make the festivities of the day well worth the price of admission, which was simply showing up and helping a friend in need! Take a day soon and ride out to The Alibi and throw a little extra in the tip jar if Michelle is still there slinging cold ones. Our prayers are for a full, quick recovery!!

By Lulu

Anyone who knows Ken and Colleen Wallace know they live life to the fullest. They are both fit, full of energy and love to have fun with family and friends. They both ride and live the motorcycle lifestyle. Colleen started riding as a 12 year-old on dirt bikes, her first road bike was a Honda 250, and her first Harley was a 99 Sportster which she still has. She also has had 2 Dynas. Currently she has an orange Big Dog Texas Chopper Trike and a recently purchased Harley trike. Ken sports a trike with “We The People” etched onto the windshield and also rides an Iron Horse Texas Chopper. Motorcycling, sports particularly football, concerts, boating at their lake house, going to the beach, and caring for their 10-acre farm complete with roosters, pigs, chickens, donkeys, and cows keeps them busy and entertained. Ken and Colleen both worked in distribution when they met. He was on the West Coast and Colleen was on the East Coast. She was born in Manhattan, lived in Queens as a young child then grew up in New Jersey. They started KCW Distribution in 2002. They married in 2003. They combined their two families and have 6 boys, and a granddaughter now. In 2009 when the economy was heading south, business was drying up a bit and Colleen put herself on a fast track through nursing school. She got her master’s at Florida Southern and is currently finishing up her doctorate. She is a nurse practitioner with her own office in Umatilla which she opened in 2020. Her specialty is primary care and provide spa services too. Including Botox & fillers.

Colleen and Ken are involved in Lake County charities and the biking community. They give to Shriners, American Heart Association, Toys 4 Tots, local needs, PTA, and she volunteers her time to do sports physicals for the local schools. These two are really good people!

Colleen’s love of staying fit, healthy, and full of youthful energy is an important part of her medical practice. She strives to have all her patients have the best quality of life possible. They do joint injections, treat ED problems and Biote for hormone replacement. All modalities that help with staying strong, agile and with a healthy libido. The practice is accepting new patients, and they are a Medicare provider. Her patients come from both coasts and many drive over from The Villages! If you are in search of a great medical care specialist, check out WallaceHealthCares4U.com, or call 352-747-0747. They are located at 287 S. Central Ave., Umatilla.

By Raven

The 11th Annual Boots on the Ground Poker Run and Concert was once again hosted by American Legion Riders Chapter 9, Flamingo Lake RV Resort and Dick’s Wings. LOCATION: 3640 Newcomb Road, Jacksonville to support K9s For Warriors, K9 Line, Inc., Operation New Uniform, American Legion Post 9 and Wreaths Across America. Over 909 registered riders, and 250 Jeepers came out to honor this Nations Veterans, their families and memorialize our Fallen Heroes while supporting this great cause. Live music by South Bound 41 on Friday Night’s Pre-Ride Party, Saturday there were performances by the Side Project Band Pipe and Drum, Rob Powell, Metal Mucil and closing out the night was Blistur. The event, after expenses, raised over $123,000 in support of the 5 Veterans support organizations. There were fifteen separate bike routes and a Jeep Party with a total of forty-four different poker stops to choose from. Over forty vendors and several food vendors participated. The bikes kicked up at 11am when the Dreamland Squadron conducted their flyover, that they do for this event every year. Thousands of military and first responder boots lined the RV Resort, each with a flag and a picture of a fallen military personnel KIA in OEF/OIF or a first responder that perished during 9/11. It is part of ALR Chapter 9’s “Boots on the Ground-America Remembers Memorial”. The bikes and the Jeeps paraded through the memorial as they left out. It truly is an emotional and humbling experience. This event is always the Saturday prior to Mother’s Day so mark your calendars for 2025. You will not be disappointed.

On the first day of my annual family vacation in Pensacola Beach, I was enjoying the Blue Angels Air Show feeling VERY patriotic in my Trump pin that Ken Wallace had given me earlier in the day. My family is 97% Republicans (a few young liberal minded relatives make up the 3%). They were all arriving when someone announced Trump was shot at a rally in Pennsylvania. Stunned, with no idea the severity of his injuries, we tried to get the TV on to find out what the hell was going on. By the grace of God and I do believe there was Godly intervention, he was grazed by a bullet. But the feeling of relief was short-lived when we heard a man in the crowd was killed instantly and another two had been rushed to the hospital in critical condition.

WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON AMERICA?! I am pleased that as I sit here to write this the morning after the attempt to assassinate Trump, that the DNC has taken down some of their most provocative ads on TV and in Milwaukee to try to deescalate the anti-Trump rhetoric, but it is obviously a little too late. I do not care what your political preference is, a billionaire is giving his all to try to help steer the country in a better direction, almost giving his life, and he has at least half of the country behind him… in my opinion, he has earned the right to have four more years to give it his best shot. Four years from now if his plan fails the left can have their chance. That is the way this is supposed to work. They have tried a false Russian collusion hoax, allowed Hillary to get away with the destruction of a computer with thousands of incriminating emails, two bogus impeachments, close to 100 indictments for bullshit, and finally getting a conviction for a paperwork crime that will almost certainly be overturned and now this!!! Well, I honestly believe God had a hand in the outcome of the attempt on Trump’s life. Less than an inch made the difference. Often, In the face of life changing events, wisdom is gained, I hope Trump will also turn down the rhetoric, I pray America can turn down the rhetoric on both sides and that as a country we will put on a unified face for other countries, both friends and foes, to see.

At least President Biden today sounded somewhat presidential, asking the country to bring down the temperature and calling for unity. We are a country that people flee their homelands to come to. United we stand. Divided we fall! Our enemies should not be each other!!

It is hot outside…drink lots of water, hang up a flag to show support for our nation and don’t forget your sunscreen.

By Lulu

This year Jan and the crew at Gator put up $1000 for first, $500 for second and $300 for third to crown Miss Gator Harley-Davidson 2024! Seven gorgeous girls were selected for the event. I was the emcee, and a panel of judges had the hard task of picking the winners based on stage presence, attire, with two appearances including biker wear and bikini, crowd approval, body and face. A special thank you to the sponsors that brought us this event Atlantic Site Development, Bruce Kirkley Remodeling, Inc., Midnight Movers, Wallace Health Care, Dropkick Customs, All Touch Inc., and Spray Mobile Tanning. Stage sponsor and one of the main supporters of all the great events at Gator is Fran Haasch Law. The girls spent an hour before the contest posing for the crowds on bikes provided by Dropkick Customs, Gator Harley and Angel, a contestant’s personal chopper she built. In the end Shelbie, Elecia and Nickie were the top 3 with Nickie a 37-year-old medic from the Air Force winning the crown!

By Lulu

John, Johnny, Jan and the entire crew at Gator Harley in Leesburg never fail to put on a great time. This year the rally brought plenty of vendors to the property, a tattoo expo upstairs in the dealership and 7 beautiful girls competing for the grand prize of $1000 and the title of Miss Gator Harley-Davidson. The bands this year included Barfly, Hypersona, Driven, Zack Denby Band, Kelly Jarrard McGowan, Bobby Blackmon, Sweetwater Groove, and Jeff Vitolo and the Quarter Mile Rebels. Look for their anniversary party in the fall and the fall rally dates in Thunder Roads Florida!!