The sun shines off the chrome of hundreds of motorcycles as Laughlin, Nevada, is once again the center of the motorcycle rally universe for five days in April.
The bustling enclave beside the banks of the mighty Colorado River known as Laughlin, Nevada, has once again been besieged. Only, this invading armada is welcomed with open arms, as the end of April marks the return of thousands of motorcyclists to the annual Laughlin River Run, now celebrating its 27th rally. Casino Drive is once again the center of the motorcycling universe for one weekend as the rally is continually one of the Best in the West.
On a positive note, as of yesterday, there have been no fatal accidents. Two motorcyclists did suffer a head-on collision on a twisty stretch of Route 66 just north of Oatman, and one rider was airlifted to a Las Vegas hospital, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office. Attendance is definitely down, based on my own estimates. But this is my third straight year covering the River Run, and it’s easier to get around than years past, lines to restaurants are shorter, and the parking hassles of prior years are non-existent. Jill McCoomber, Media Relations rep for Dal-Con Promotions, says that the amount of vendors is down, but is about equal to the number from 2008. But I’m not complaining. The atmosphere is more relaxed, it’s easier to get some quality face-time with people at their booths, and the fun meter is still on high.
Indian Motorcycles is at the River Run promoting its Phoenix dealership and providing riders on the West Coast an opportunity to check out their craftsmanship up close.
While there are some notable manufacturers that are absent this year,
Indian Motorcycles made it out with its full 2009 line, allowing many motorcyclists on the West Coast their first opportunity to see the iconic Chief in its renewed glory. I got to talk to Marc Pomerantz, Indian's Manager of Service & Marketing, about how the company is doing. He said that the company is doing well, even in the current market, and that they have 13 dealerships established. Roughly 200 riders are already the proud owners of the new Indians, and clothing and apparel sales are strong. The overall public reception has been nothing but positive, but he still runs into the question of “You guys are back?” Slowly but surely, Indian Motorcycles’ grass-roots approach is spreading the word that they are indeed back. Promotion of the company has been at the dealer level, at events like Bike Week and the River Run, and on the web. We discussed the possibility of getting our first ride on the new Chief at Sturgis, so we’re keeping our fingers crossed.
After we got our tongue back in our mouth, we discovered this hottie was promoting the tattoo contest.
And though attendance may be down, there’s no shortage of great looking bikes and new innovations. One such company aiming to revolutionize motorcycles is Bam-Ink out of California’s Bay Area. Bam-Ink’s head honcho, Rick Bedford, is offering interchangeable bodied motorcycles. The prototype is a beautiful, ground-skirting custom with a one-piece tank, seat, and rear fender that lifts hydraulically off of a modified Independent frame. It’s got a monster 121” TP engine with Weber carbs shooting off both sides that give it plenty of go. But the best part is, all you have to do is undo the top bolt that connects to the frame and loosen the bolt to the seat connection, pull it off, and choose from one of four other available body kits. From cruiser to bagger in only a couple of minutes. And surprisingly the body work is metal, though I thought for sure it’d be fiberglass. Bedford has a patent pending for his creative design, and is already working on a push button, adjustable rake system where the rider can choose between 35, 38, or 40 degrees, depending on what type of riding they want to do. He’s also in the process of building a bike for the House of Kolor that will debut at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas in November. At the show, he claims that
The prototype custom from Bam-Ink that has five interchangeable body styles drew plenty of attention.
his bike is in store for a little friendly competition between OCC and Jesse James. Bedford said that they are trying to arrange an arm wrestling competition with the other two custom builders, with $20,000 on the line. The money will go to charity, and is all in good fun, but Bedford is taking the chance to arm wrestle Sr. seriously. I’ve seen the pythons on Sr. up close, and I wouldn’t want any part of that, so I give Bedford kudos for even contemplating it.
Next I got to talk to the peeps at
Trask Performance. There’s something about seeing the 2009 Harley-Davidson Muscle with a turbocharger sitting off the right side of its Revolution engine that just makes me feel all warm inside. Maybe it’s the memory that I almost had the dubious distinction of being the first person to bin the Muscle with my first drag run on the new
V-Rod at Infineon during the 2009 H-D intro. But I was curious to find out how much of a power boost it gets from the set-up, so I asked if they had quarter-mile times with the turbo-charged Muscle. The Trask rep said that with it on, the Muscle could lay down a 9.5-second run. I know that most journalists at the intro were
Trask Performance has done a bang-up job adding more muscle to the Harley-Davidson Muscle.
hitting in the mid 12-seconds at the intro, and then NHRA drag racer, Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines’ Andrew Hines laid down an 11.3-second run on his first try on the stock bike, so Trask claims it can shave almost two full seconds off the quarter-mile. Impressive, indeed.
I ran across a
VMAX that Star Motorcycles had put the carbon fiber treatment on that looked smoking hot as well. The treatment included CF fenders, intake set, meter cover, top cover, and side cover set. It also had billet cam covers, a billet swingarm pivot plate, and a shorty Boulevard windscreen. The carbon fiber intake set was the spendiest of the upgrades, running for $999.95, and the full package lists for $4,361. But if I owned a VMAX, this is the setup I’d want for mine. Star did a great job tricking out an already hot bike.
As the sun went down, music started spilling from all the outdoor stages and the party level got turned up a notch. Motorcycle USA photog Tom Lavine ran across the ultimate tailgater who had a Honda-powered blender and was
The guys from Light it up Products were busy adding a little night-time glow to riders V-Twins
making frozen margaritas out of the back of his truck to go along with a full bar. I watched Ses Carney, the human freak show, drive a six-inch nail into his nose, then hang fish hooks on his lower eyelids. I’ve seen the show before, but it never gets old, and this time I shot video, so maybe some of Ses’ antics will make the final cut. The guys at Light it up Products were bustling installing LED lighting on V-Twins, which seems popular here. I admit, a little color lighting up a V-Twin as it cruises down Casino Drive is a cool sight. But Day One has drawn to a close, so we’re signing off so we can catch a few Zs before we do it all over again tomorrow.
