Saturday, August 28, 2010

Track Side Pics

Thanks to the guys at the kick ass ZZ Chop blog for linking to us.




Stretch, parked across the street. I remember he owned a Sportster before this, and had broken the holy rule; he tried to Wide Glide an Ironhead...fatbob tanks, WG forks, bags, etc. He was eventually exonerated.


Dunno this guy, but how much you wanna bet that Invader has cracks at every weld, if it hasn't collapsed yet.
Sporty..can't remember his name. He was a quiet one.
Probably a repost, but this was Jim Ward, a Navy recruiter. Always called me "the Nose" and would try to bite mine off. Think of Jack Nicholson in "The Last Detail", and you got Jim Ward.
Big Jim Martin (again), probably supposed to be at home with his wife, Jean, but at the shop instead. He was a trucker, and would stop FIRST at the shop when he came in from a run. For some reason, this pic reminds me of the old "Wild Angels"  movies

What to say....

On August 20, 2010, Mike Donian Sr. passed away after a six month battle with brain cancer.  He was my hero, my teacher, my encyclopedia of HD stuff (and just about everything else) and my dad.

I think he's doing alright, now...


Be back in a minute...

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Engines

Just the start of a long and eventful love/hate relationship, I'm sure.

Slabbie

Box o' XLH

Something I'd like to have in my shed

Cone Shovel

Friday, August 6, 2010

A Dad Story

My dad, me and the '69 Yenko Camaro, at Lions Dragstrip, California


I had asked my dad to hammer out some stuff from his life a while back; these get a little harder for me to read with time..

"This is going to sound fictional—but it is the truth to the best of my recollection.—Chicago area--Michael—you wre born in in 1967—my  kick ass little guy—I was at that time a manager of Jodis drive in (chicago) working 7am till 1 am –6 days a week and Tuesdays off except doing deliveries from 11-to 2.—I used to come home from work and wake you up just to talk shit—you enjoyed the time with dad—but it pissed off mom—I didnt give a shit—that was our time---
at that time I had a 63 vette which I bought for $1800.00—we drove it to Lincoln Illinois to see Abes birth place—(that was just an excuse to get on the road—I had a few days off)—Sue met up with a priest that she knew from the orphange---he was (to me ) a pedophile—but she would not talk about it,
I sold the vette for $2100.00 cause I wanted a bigger car that was faster and would accomodate my family.—now I am a responsible family guy.
I bought a Buick 1968-GS 350—red with white interior.---within 3 months I traded it in on a 1968 –Z-28.
It was fast—but not exactly what I wanted—thought it was fast till I raced a 67 Z with a 4:88 gear—he left me.—times were changing civil unrest—MLK killing—time to get out of “dodge”--
sold the Z to a co-worker and bought a 69 Yenko.—your mom hated me now and what I was doing.
Told your mom we are moving to California—october 15* I packed everything we had (not much)—strapped some shit on the top of the Yenko –made a small space for you to sleep in the back and  left—about 6 am which pissed off your mom –but not me and you
we had fun on the road --had to stop in Iowa—(dana rear end burned up-they replaced it with the correct 4:10 gear over nite—love those Iowa boys—they get shit done)—
Raaced a dodge charger thru denver and beat his ass even with all the shit strapped on the top of the yenko-----he finally gave us a thumbs up and turned of the interstate—your mom was pissed with me as usual—but you were happy as shit just to be hanging out with me cause we hadnt had much time together—now you were becoming a free spirit.-I decided you were going to be with me spirtually for life—
Next is California---"

*Which, coincidentally, was my brother's birthday 12 years later.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Random Bike Night

Bounty Hunter

Can't think of the blue one this second, but that's Tate's pan again.

Cruiser

I really like the way this Sporty sits, actually, the whole damned thing considering I don't care for springer seats with a swingarm.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Stragglers?

Clean Sportster in FX trim at 'the Back Door"

Lanny Edward's? Check out that V1.0 shirt on the pipe side!

My brother on my dad's Sportster
Same guy a few years later.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

And, since were peeling back the past...

Walking around the Smoke Out, I'd say that this probably floored me more than anything else there. This if from 2006, about 20 years after most of the pics on this blog were taken!!

"YEAH! Haven't taken this shirt off since '98!" He's drinking the HIGH QUALITY BREW THAT CYCLONE WAS KNOWN FOR, which is anything under $2.99 for a 6-pack.





Remnants of the Past

I think this is the coolest key chain ever..my bike needs to step up before it can sport this.

Thermal shirt that's seen some action

Dad's old derby cover, engraved by RC, same guy who engraved most of the family at some point