Daytona Bike Week One Report:

Bikers Ignore Hard Times, & Party Anyway!

Daytona Bike Week (dbw) is on it's way to becomming a two crowd rally. The earlybirds during week one, & as many return home, the second crowd arrives. We've seen this in Sturgis too, but so many bikers were on Daytona's Main Street the first Saturday, many vendors were sold out of some styles of shirts & hoodies, & that is a first.

One of my old radio dj friends had his Canadian buddy from Thunder Bay down to help him rip out the sheetrock from a project home, & he brought his '01 Fatboy, a nice bike w/a beautiful paint job, for which he gave about 13,000 bucks. (more on that later.) He was asking all of the usual "Rally Virgin" questions, like how to get there, (80 mi south on I-95 & hook a left!), where the action was, (everywhere, everywhere), & other questions typical of a person from another country. As the sun was falling, & I packed up to head back to the ABM compound, he couldn't bring himself to leave, & found a room for 100 bucks, south on Atlantic off Main, opposite side of the ocean, we got to try that. A plumber by trade, "Hulk" proudly announced his intent to move here as soon as he retires in 5.5 years. Great, more people moving here, like it ain't crowded enough now..

Destination Daytona's Manheim Auction & ABM's Basket Case:

You pay 100 bucks for the right to bid on tired iron. All makes, but mostly Harleys & a few Choppers, over 300 of these mostly repo'ed bikes from Harley Credit went for bottom dollar. How cheap? The dude from Thunder Bay went pale when he saw an '06 Fat Boy go for three grand less than what he paid for his '01 on EBAY! My dj buddy hooked himself an '07 Harley 1200C Sportster in blue for $6,000. That bike will bring $8700 retail. Yeah, we're saving the best for last. The day before the auction, ABM inspected every Night Train & Softail Standard in the lot, all 5 of 'em...that's right, they're that hard to find, because they're lightweight, fast, & offer a lot of bang for the buck. Had my heart set on either of two '06 Night Trains, but they went for around 14,000, way over the paltry ABM budget. Near the end of the auction, my nemesis appeared, an '06 FXSTI, that's a 2006 Harley Softail Standard in black, with a bald 200mm rear tire, new front forks, front wheel, dented gas tank, scraped pipes, bent right footpeg...gee, wonder how that happened. As luck would have it, I know the auctioneer has to state the case if there is frame damage. ABM WENT TO THE PROM & CAME HOME WITH THE UGLILEST GIRL! $8500 for a 13,000 bike. She needs attention, probably 2-3 thou, but we see potential. The handlebars are loose, the rear brake don't work but she tracks straight as an arrow, & the engine, transmission & driveline are strong. Can't wait to get her torn down for a rebuild. Listen for details on future American Biker Minute programs!

License Plates Seen:

Everywhere, from everywhere, but Sunday morning, more Quebec plates than you'd normall see in... well, Quebec! Also Carolinas, Tenn, etc, & tons of bikers from NY & PA. Lots of people opted to camp this year, & so far, the weather has been great. Almost no rain, with 70-80 degree days, 40-50 degree nights. Cold as it's been up north, believe me, they're eating it up, especially the Canadians. The combo of our cheap dollar (compared to their strong "Loonie" currency) makes everything they see a bargain at 30-40% off retail, & they're buying up everything in sight.

Today's another day, so we pack the tour bags with plenty of H2O, sunblock, and of course, our fine array of audio equipment, so you, the home listener may be treated to the smell of beer & burnt rubber!

Ride safe, spring's almost here, & check back soon for our next blog!