With the exception of today, there have been very few days to squeeze in a Street bike ride for the past several weeks, and those of us jones-ing for a street ride are starting to get a little cabin fever. No doubt that was taken into account when the date was picked for the Easy Riders Bike Show's Knoxville stop. It's next Saturday, February 5th.
This Show/Tour goes all over the country, so I'm guessing it travels with the same bikes (over 250 they say) with some locals adding to the show. I know for a fact that the invitation has gone out to some of the vintage guys in Knoxville. (guys with vintage bikes, not just old men.....You know what I mean)
Besides the Bike Show they have live music, stunt shows, the Purrfect Angels dancers, and a 5,000 foot Easy Riders Kids Zone!! This I find really interesting, because the best I remember, Easy Rider magazines were sold with a plastic cover to keep kids from looking at them. The first time I found one laying in the parts department at the bike shop I thought, "hmmm..... these aint Honda ads!", but I digress.... let's assume that the Angels will be on the opposite end of the building from the Kids Zone.
All kidding aside, there should be some fine examples of custom bikes. Even if Custom Bikes aren't your thing, you have to appreciate the the skill that goes into those machines. Plus, it may be better than sitting at home looking at your own parked bike. It's at the Knoxville Convention Center, 10am to 8pm. Tickets are $18 for adults, $10 for Kids 4 -10yrs. For more info www.easyriderevents.com
Jim's Motorcycle Sales in downtown Johnson City Tenn (1209 W. Main Street), is doing something that I have never heard of before, displaying a different vintage motorcycle each week for the entire year of 2011! That is just unheard of. I was able to catch the owner, Ken Hayes, last week and talk to him a for a bit. Ken and his family have a long history of not only selling bikes, but racing everything from flat track, to enduros, and even roadracing at Daytona and Laconia. His collection is going to be something to see.
The bike on display last week was an immaculate 1971 Kawasaki 500 Triple, that shows 1,059 original miles on the odometer. Besides just showing the bike in the "Classic Corner", Ken has some info about the bike. For this one he had a copy of some of the original literature on the bike, showing that it made a whopping 60Hp @ 8,000 rpm (still very respectable for 500cc's) and sold new for $995. Ken told me, "It's the BS behind these old bikes that makes them interesting", and I have to agree. It's always fun to hear who bought it, where they found it, and who previously owned it. When I asked if he bought the bike new he said no. "This bike sat in the guys living room for 25 years before I got it", Ken said.
If you are in Johnson City, you need to make a trip by Jim's Motorcycle sales just to see what he's showing. A different bike is put out each Monday.
