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There were not many people when the show opened; it was kind of eerie looking over the myriad of chrome and paint. But that changed rapidly as motorcycle enthusiasts began to pour in as ticket sales allowed. Soon there was a sea of leather roaming through the displays amidst the light show of camera flashes and the din of oohs and aahs. The Easy Rider Motorcycle Show had arrived and was in full swing.
I tried to make a plan of attack in my head; where to start, which way to turn to see the best of the best. I was attracted to the glitter of chrome in every direction. The saying was true: all roads lead to chrome. The sparkle took over my very being as I wandered aimlessly from bike to bike. My plan of attack ran amuck and I was under the spell of the chrome gods. I wandered for eight and a half hours, taking pictures, looking at dealer bikes for future purchase, pawing through leather items of all kinds, and visiting with the vendors. I was amazed at the friendliness and helpfulness of all the vendors and the show personnel. Everyone was very helpful and they all had a story to tell. (or two, or three…)
There were two bikes being raffled off at the show: one was almost sold out of tickets, and the other raffle was just beginning. The stock Harley raffle was almost over, having been run for many months, and was lacking just a couple of hundred more ticket sales to complete the raffle. The other raffle really got me excited. It was run by ABATE of Washington and was for a custom chopper; a hardtail made by Ultra Motorcycles called a “Groundbuster 330”. It had a Harley V-Twin and a 6 speed tranny, and the rear tire was so wide that you could use it for a small steamroller. It had a solo seat and a wild flame paint job. That one will be drawn on April 12th at the Mountain Jam Motorcycle show.
My back was hurting from all the walking and standing on concrete, so I bought an absolutely wonderful kidney belt from one of the vendors. It is so comfortable that I wore it all weekend. It really helped my back. Unfortunately, there are still my legs, knees and feet to deal with. Well, time heals all wounds. Just as long as I recover before the next show!
Overall, the show was exciting, the bands were terrific, the food was, well, edible, and the bikes were outstanding! If there was ever an event that showed off custom work and chrome, this was it. My only regret was that there was not the variety of bikes there that I had hoped to see. I would expect that there would be a greater variety of two wheeled sensations at a motorcycle show. The custom bikes were excellent, mind you; but there was still something missing without the other types of bikes represented there. Maybe at Mountain Jam in April there will be a better variety. Even with the lack of variety, there was enough glitz and glimmer to make me thoroughly enjoy myself. Way to go, Easy Riders! Ron Fryer
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