Some birthdays are more memorable than others. Derek Spitsnogle's father won't soon forget his this year. Derek is the kind of guy every dad would be proud to call son. Awhile back he dropped us a line about the chopper he recently presented to his father, Gary, for his 50th birthday.
It seems Dad had a thing for Dodge Chargers back in his youth, when muscle cars were the thing to own if you were on four wheels. He bought a '71 R/T in 1976. Aside from a few custom options like side pipes and keystone rims, the car is completely stock, which is saying something since only about 3,000 of these classics were ever manufactured. It's an authentic ride, right down to the rim blow steering wheel, slapstick automatic transmission and 440 Magnum engine. There's even a bottle of Trouble Cologne and box of Tiny Tarts, vintage 1979, in the glove box. Five years ago, Derek's dad gave him the car. Now he rides around on the same seat, spins the same tires and listens to the same 8-tracks that his pop did 30 years ago. At the suggestion of his mom, Derek decided to build a custom chopper for his father's upcoming milestone birthday. After listening to his dad complain about how much he missed his Charger, Derek thought it would be cool to theme the bike off his dad's beloved muscle car.
The project was the kind of thing Derek could handle because building custom bikes and hot rods is what his company, Xotic Concepts, does for a living. In earlier years he worked for master builder, Jerry Covington, and some of his work has even been featured on biker build-off shows and in national motorcycle publications. Xotic Concepts fabricated the entire bike, including the frame, sheet metal, handlebars, air cleaner, exhaust and more. Amazingly, the paint job was done by the same friend who practiced on the Charger R/T three decades ago. He's been doing paint and body work ever since, and according to Derek, pulled off the candy paint perfectly, which added even more sentimental value to the bike. Some of the designs to match the vintage Charger include side pipe exhaust, raised white lettered tires, matching paint, matching graphics, NOS charger, R/T emblems, grille-shaped oil tank and louvered gas tank with matching side gills.
Last July Derek presented his dad with a chopper for his birthday, but it was a rat rod Yamaha, not the cool R/T. The family had decided to play a prank on him, and as Derek tells it, his dad was pretty bummed because he hated the Yamaha and didn't quite know how to tell everyone without sounding ungrateful. Dad finally got his real bike after what probably seemed like an eternity for him. The pictures tell the story. His reaction was exactly what Derek and his family had hoped it would be. Once more the guy was running a cool R/T, only this time on two wheels.
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By now you've probably heard that S & S Cycle will celebrate its 50th anniversary next year with an event that's expected to draw thousands of people to La Crosse next June. The interesting angle is that the company's first 50 motorcycle engines they assemble in 2008 will be sold to 50 of the top custom bike builders in the world. Those customs will be on display and judged during the June 27-29 event at the Oktoberfest grounds.
S & S CEO, Brett Smith, said he told members of his company's customer advisory council he thinks 2,000 motorcyclists might attend the June event. "They kind of laughed me out of the meeting a little bit ago," he recalls. "They seem to think that our event may exceed 20,000 people, so we are looking forward to it. Smith and S & S are asking everybody in the community to show their support and give them ideas for the celebration. If any Chopper Build readers have some thoughts, give S & S a shout. Even if you're not from La Crosse, we're sure they would welcome any and all suggestions.
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When it comes to showing their dealers and customers a good time that is also informative, no bike manufacturer, including The Factory in Milwaukee, has anything on Big Bear Choppers. Their annual Ride the Mountain event has become a fixture on the Southern California biker events calendar, and the Dealer Summit Expo this past July was a solid success. BBC hosted 40 of their 50 dealers as well as industry press members during the event, explaining what they're all about and where they're headed as a motorcycle manufacturer. Big Bear Lake's well known Northwoods Resort was the setting for the informational presentation, with a trolley ride to the factory for shop tours led by Kevin, himself, and test rides on a variety of bikes.
It was also the weekend for BBC to introduce its new GTX Bagger and the Paradox, another '08 debut bike that brings the manufacturer's total line to 15 models. The dealers and press representatives were chomping at the bit to get their hands on the new bikes and scoot around the scenic and twisty lake route. BBC designed the GTX as a pro-street style mutant bagger with futuristic lines, while the Paradox is described as the company's next generation bike rolling on 23-inch front and 20-inch rear wheels. Big Bear Choppers is also updating its venerable Venom Series with a new fuel tank, seat, handlebars and right side final drive, hoping the facelift will invigorate the former flagship model for them and come closer to matching the best selling Sled Series.
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