AMERICAN CHOPPER: THE END

It's just been anounced by The Learning Channel that 'American Chopper', the soap opera about the Teutul family, their rows, their tantrums, oh yes, and their bikes, has been cancelled. The last episode will air in the USA next week (which means that we'll probably get it in the UK towards the end of the year).

TLC hasn't given a reason for the apparently sudden cancellation, but the fact that Paul Teutul Sr and Jr are currently involved in a legal battle over who owns the business may be a factor. In December 2009, Paul Sr instigated a lawsuit against his own son Paul over Orange County Choppers, and, according to many reports, the elder Teutul is seeking to buy his son’s shares in Orange County Choppers Holdings, Inc., along with claiming over $1 million in damages.

The show has also lost most of its main characters over the last couple of years - Paul Jr, Vinny, Mickey - and perhaps TLC felt that a series featuring nothing but the grizzled Paul Senior whinging a lot wasn't great television.

AT THE HUB OF THINGS

When Stellan Egeland unveiled his Harrier BMW last year, many people were sceptical as to whether it was practical, despite videos on YouTube and this blog showing proof to the contrary.

But now Swedish company ISR is offering the NS2 hub centre steering kit and, as ISR was responsible for the steering on the Harrier, it should know what it’s doing. There’s no details as yet as to which bikes the kit is designed to fit.

WOOTTON BASSETT RUN

On 14th March, thousands of bikers will descend upon Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire, in a mass ride to honour soldiers lost in Afghanistan. The run will pass through the town, known for its dignified repatriations of soldiers killed in action, and gather on the runway at RAF Lyneham. There, funds raised for the Afghan Heroes charity will be handed over; all proceeds raised from the Mother's Day ride will go to the charity.

Leigh Delamere services on the M4 (Junction 17 - eastbound) will be the meeting point for the mass ride through Wootton Bassett to RAF Lyneham. Each rider will pay £5 and receive a special commemorative Afghan Heroes wristband, which will be their entry pass to the RAF base. You can register at the AFGHAN HEROES web site, where you will need to provide your name and address in order to gain access to RAF Lyneham.

So far, an astounding 7891 bikes and 10,982 people have registered to take part.

OPEE THE MOTOCROSS DOG

Coolest dog of the week is Opee, the blue merle Australian shepherd dog from California, the first dog to ever take part in the Baja 500 motocross race as you can find out HERE. His owner explains;

"My name is Mike Schelin and I race Motorcycles with my dog Opee. We have started a motorcycle mentorship club. We have been teaching autistic and handicapped kids how to ride. Our first race was in November of 2005 at the Lake Elsinore Grand Prix. From November to now we have raced in 10 races. From California to Florida and even Mexico.

"Opee was the first dog in the history of SCORE racing to race in the Baja 500. Opee has had his photo in 20 magazines, on front pages of the 5 papers and a commercial. Opee and I can ride at over 120mph and take over 45 feet off some jumps."

SHOW AND TELL

The USA is known as the land of litigation, but an Idaho courthouse is currently hearing a particularly bizarre question as an Oregon man claims that police destroyed the mystical powers of a medicine bag when they opened it.

Craig Clark Show, 49, of Portland, was stopped on US Highway 95 while riding his Harley and arrested on suspicion of drink-driving. During the course of the arrest, the police opened the Native American bag which Show claims provided protection for him and had been blessed by a medicine woman. The bag had remained closed since 1995, but since the encounter with Idaho’s finest, had ceased to work, and so Show is suing the police force for $25,000.

ANOTHER CLOSING SALE

To anyone who lived in or around Accrington, Clarke’s bike shop was an institution. The Suzuki dealership had been trading in Whalley Road for more than fifty years until its sudden closure last month.
Now the business has been placed into administration and asset recovery group, Landwood, ordered to sell off the stock of helmets, clothing, spares and twenty-seven bikes. The former showroom will be open on Friday and Saturday (5 & 6th February) for bargain hunters, and the sale will finally close on 19th February.

TRIUMPHANT BSH 311

The new issue of BSH is due out in all good – and some dodgy – newsagents from next Thursday, and it comes with a definite added Triumph theme. From the cover shot of Pete Stansfield’s reverse-head 6T (a bike with huge custom provenance) to Grub’s cut down Strumpet Trumpet to a gorgeous Dutch hardtail 500, it’s Meriden’s finest that dominates BSH 311. But it’s not a complete coup for the Brits; we also feature Mr Marcel’s cool Suzuki GS550, acouple of Milwaukee's best, and, from ex-pat English bloke, Carpy, a very pretty caff-racered Honda 750/4. There’s massive coverage of the brilliant Custombike show, NCC Surrey’s first custom show and the 65th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge. Add to that, yet more bikes and the start of another epic journey by traveller extraordinaire, Nick Sanders, and there’s more than enough to keep you happy on these cold winter nights.

MOTO MORINI - FINALLY THE END?

Despite protests to the contrary, it appears that Moto Morini is to be consigned to the large pantheon of ‘lost great motorcycles’. According to a Milanese web site, the company needs to find 300,000 euros by tomorrow to stave off full bankruptcy, and a buyer by February, or closure of the Bologna factory is inevitable. Ironically, sales of Moto Morinis increased by over 35% in 2009, but it appears that this is not enough to stem the collapse of the company which already had 17 million euro of debt.

PICTURE OF THE WEEK

(c) AP.

SCRAMBLES CHAMPS AT BEAULIEU

On Saturday, 27th February, the National Motor Museum will be welcoming two great motorcycle champions, Dave Curtis and Mick Andrews, for what should be a lively and entertaining evening, while they are ‘interviewed’ by Mike Jackson.

In the classic off-road world the period 1950 to 1960 is widely regarded as The Golden Era; it was a decade when British riders and machines were almost unbeatable. A contributory factor was the intense rivalry between Birmingham-based BSA and Associated Motor Cycles (AMC) in SE London, both prime suppliers to the all important competition market in an age when trials and scrambles machinery still bore a close resemblance to the street models on sale in dealer showrooms.

Dave Curtis had followed Geoff Ward and Brian Stonebridge to head up AMC’s effort in trade-supported Scrambles events. Often outnumbered by a battalion of BSAs Dave’s masterly riding of the 350cc and 500cc Matchless saw him gain innumerable popular victories, winning the prestigious ACU Scrambles Star in 1958, and taking a brilliant 3rd overall in the 1959 World Motocross Championship.

Mick Andrews joined the AJS factory Trials team soon after he began; it was astride the beautifully prepared Ajays that he evolved into one the sport’s best-known competitors, in addition to gaining many successes in the ISDT and scrambles. Thanks to his internationally renowned Trials Schools Mick is still in the saddle today. Having won the Scottish Six Days Trial on five separate occasions he is affectionately known as Monarch of the Glen.

The evening, starting at 8pm, will take place in the Lecture Theatre of the National Motor Museum Collections Centre. Before, the Museum will open from 6.30pm for a private viewing. Tickets are £10 (with all profits going to the National Motor Museum Trust) and are available by contacting Theresa Browning on 01590 614792, email: theresa.browning@beaulieu.co.uk

Further information from:
Margaret Rowles
Public Relations Officer
Tel: 01590 614603
Email: pr@beaulieu.co.uk

THE NEW FORTY-EIGHT

Despite recording losses of something in the region of £30 million pounds last year, on Friday Harley-Davidson announced a new model, the latest in the Dark Custom range.

The Forty-Eight will have a black rubber-mounted Evolution 1200cc Vee, black air filter, clutch and brake levers, as well as a peanut fuel tank, sidemount number plate, chopped front mudguard and lowered suspension. It's pretty, but...

And there's the 'but'. While we quite like it here at BSH Towers, it's very little different than countless mild customs that we've seen people riding for years - and not actually done quite as well. It appears that Harley is intent upon pitching to the younger - 20-35-year old - market, although whether that market has the money or the will to spend on a new motorcycle is quite another thing, particularly with the growth of the hot rod scene showing the youngsters that customising your bike yourself is the way to go.

Harley, it seems, is to continue to promote its products, and, in particular, the Dark Custom bikes, through events like skate parks, wrestling competitions and viral campaigns. And, we hear, with direct product placement on TV series like 'Son of Anarchy'. For those of you who've yet to catch up with this rather fine series, it's a drama (now filming its third series) chronicling the goings on of a Californian backpatch club, which, given Harley's attempt to distant itself as far as possible from another backpatch club in the 1970s, is curiously ironic.

The Forty-Eight is hardly Sons of Anarchy material, but we're not sure quite who it will appeal to enough to buy it over a standard, cheaper Sportster. Because - much as we like Sporties - at the end of the day, the Forty-Eight is just a Sportster with a few cool accessories.

LIMITED EDITION VICTORY LAUNCHED

No, alas, it's not the Core. Victory Motorcycles has just unveiled what it says is the quickest motorcycles the company has ever produced. Launched in New York at the International Motorcycle Show, the Vegas Limited Edition is the first model in the Vegas range to boast the 106/6 Speed V-twin with Stage 2 cams, chucking out 97 horsepower. Production will be limited to 100 bikes (each of which will be numbered from the factory) and the order book is only open for three weeks until 15th February 2010.

FINAL LIQUIDATION OF BUELL MOTORCYCLES

Should you happen to be in Wisconsin this Thursday, then you can witness a little bit of motorcycling history as the liquidation sale of the Buell Motorcycles factory gets underway.

Over the following thirty days, anyone will be able to purchase a bit of Buell, whether it be a massive big rig or an office chair (and top marks to the person taking the inventory who obviously got bored at one point and just wrote for one lot, ‘oil suction thingy’). Included in the list of stuff up for grabs are tool boxes, compressors and other sundries (including, rather inexplicably, a bungee cord). In addition, there’s a KTM Duke, a KTM Dakar, a BMW 1100RT and a Triumph Speed Triple. No doubt, these were test bikes for evaluation against Buell’s own models, but the fact that the Beemer’s over ten years old shows that someone must have liked it.

Liquid Asset Partners, a Michigan firm, will be handling the sale of vehicles and factory equipment at the East Troy plant, and, just as happened at the Indian factory in Gilroy, California, it will run for a month or until everything is sold.

“The factory was a state of the art, small scale factory. It's the type of facility that many tools and items will be of great interest to the home mechanic and motorcycle fanatic." says Bill Melvin Jr., CEO of Liquid Asset Partners. "To make the sale successful we are prepared to deeply discount the inventory and sell everything in one month! It's stacked high and we're selling it cheap."

You can find out exactly what’s up for sale at Buell inventory.

EASTER EGG RUN CANCELLED

Havoc MCC has informed us that, due to the closure of the Disabled Children’s Charity group the Seedlings and Caleb's, its Easter event has been cancelled this year. The club hopes to reorganise another event for another local charity, and would like to thank everyone who's attended its Easter egg runs and custom shows over the last three years, and helped to raise a total of £3730.

HARDTAILING A NORTON FRAME

Stolen for your delectation from our friends over at Cycle Source in the US of A.

MEET PAUL SAMPLE

Further to our recent items on the auction of Ogri and other work in Shrewsbury, news arrives at the towns that fans will also have a chance to meet artist, Paul Sample. Paul has agreed to attend a special preview of the auction of some 300 lots on Saturday, 23th January, and will sign catalogues from 10.30am to 11.30am.

The auction itself of original Ogri artworks and other examples of Paul's art will be held on 27th January 2010 at Halls' Welsh Bridge salesroom in Shrewsbury.

MOTORCYCLE INDUSTRY CALL FOR SCRAPPAGE SCHEME

The motorcycle industry is to press the Government for a bike-scrappage scheme following a dip in sales in 2009.

The 'cash for bangers' car-scrappage scheme has had a very positive effect on car sales since it was introduced in May last year. Now the Motor Cycle Industry Association (MCI) wants something similar to boost bike purchases.

A total of 111,513 motorcycles, scooters and mopeds were sold in the UK last year - 20% fewer than in 2008. The MCI said that nearly half the reduction in new registrations could be attributed to the lower-capacity bikes up to 50cc. It said most of these machines were from the inexpensive unsupported, online brands, mainly from China and Asia, and were unsustainable in the current economic environment and, in the light of this, the overall market had fared well.

The MCI added that sales of naked bikes - standard or street bikes stripped down to the basics - held up well in 2009.

MCI chief executive Steve Kenward said; "We are extremely optimistic about the future. Motorcycling can clearly play a greater role in mainstream transport in 2010 and beyond.

"There are issues to manage, including appropriate implementation of yet more new European motorcycle licensing rules, but with the right Government support, we are confident we can rise to meet these challenges.

"The motorcycle industry also wants to see Government, legislators, local authorities and transport planners viewing motorcycling as a key alternative to the use of cars and public transport."

THE ULTIMATE BARN FIND?

On 25th April, auctioneers Bonham will be selling what could be the ultimate barn find in the shape of an 1895 Hildebrand & Wolfmuller motorcycle.

Based in Munich, Hildebrand & Wolfmuller was the first powered two-wheeler to enter mass production, and the first vehicle to which the name 'motorcycle' was ever applied. The bike was powered by a twin-cylinder, water-cooled, four stroke 1488cc engine and, despite only producing 2.5bhp, the bike was capable of speeds of up to 30mph.

The H&W motorcycle was patented in 1894 and the design was also licenced to a firm in France as 'La Petrolette'. However, neither venture was a success, with both companies collapsing in 1897. Opinions vary as to how many machines were actually built, with figures varying from 800 to 2000, but the H&W is still a very rare bike.

The machine that will be offered for auction at the Classic Motorcycle Show in Stafford last ran in the early 1930s, and has remained in the seller's family ever since. It's in original and unrestored condition, and the estimated price is £40,000-60,000.

WESTMINSTER PARKING CHARGES TO STAY

A controversial charge introduced for motorcyclists to park in Westminster has been made permanent.The £1.50 daily fee was first introduced by Westminster Council in August 2008, as a trial scheme allowing bikers to park in any of the borough's designated on-street bays. The charge was later dropped to £1, and now, despite receiving more than 3,000 objections to the scheme, the council has announced it will remain in place.
Parking for motorbikes will stay free in any of the council's car parks.
Angry bikers, who formed the campaign group No to Bike Parking Fees, have held several protests against the charge since it was introduced.
They have vowed to keep campaigning until the charge is dropped completely by the council.
Cllr Danny Chalkley, Westminster's cabinet member for city management, said :
"It is fair and reasonable that motorcyclists contribute to the cost of improvements and the maintenance of transport infrastructure. Westminster was one of the first councils in the country to permit motorcycles to drive in bus lanes and we continue to welcome open and constructive dialogue."
Presumably, as long as that dialogue is what Westminster Council wants to hear…

MASSIVE TRIAL PREDICTED IN CANADA

From Canadian station, CTV:

In what could become the largest murder trial in Canada's legal history, the prosecution in a Hells Angels case stunned the courtroom when it announced it was willing to try as many as 60 of the 100 suspects at once.

All 100 are collectively accused of the deaths of 22 people during the so-called "biker war" of the 1990s. A police raid last spring effectively shut down the Hells Angels in Quebec.

Some 130 members of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang appeared in court Monday to set trial dates for various drug and murder charges.

The murder case could prove groundbreaking.

"The courtroom can have 60 people at a time, so it's feasible," said prosecutor Madeleine Giauque.

Justice Andre Vincent told lawyers he would give them until April 23 to coordinate their efforts. If the trial is held with 60 defendants, it would likely take a year to prepare, and another year and a half to hear the case before a jury.

Defence lawyers say trying 60 suspects at once is unrealistic.

"I'm anxious about when my clients would have their trials," said defence attorney Claude F. Archambeault.

"The length of the trial would be unimaginable," added veteran criminal lawyer Claude Girouard.

In the last biker-gang-related mega-trial, 17 accused were tried at once before a jury. The mega-trial began in 2002 and was halted that year, but concluded in 2004 with nine members of Hells Angels and another biker gang convicted of 26 counts of gangsterism, drug trafficking and conspiracy to commit murder.