Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2022 i Back Street Heroes

Hello, and welcome to this, the new issue of BSH – the first one, perhaps, of the winter of ’22/23. I say ‘perhaps’ because, what with the way we’ve bolloxed the climate, no one quite knows, these days, where autumn ends and winter begins. The seasons’re so confusing nowadays – autumn used to be September and October, but now is just October; winter was November to the end of February, but now seems to be December ‘til mid-March; spring appears to be from mid-March to June; and summer’s now June ‘til October. As I write this in mid-October, the nights, and early mornings, are getting fresher (as in ‘feckin’ nippy’), the leaves on the trees in Thetford Forest just up the road from the BSH Editorial Hovel’re turning the most…

During lockdown, I managed to do two bikes for myself (a homage to the two-strokes of my youth: a Suzuki GT750 engine in a Yamaha FZR1000 frame with modern running gear, and the hand-built billet Twin Cam that won Best Engineering in last year’s BSH Championship), and towards the end of it I got a phone call from a bloke named Nathan who explained he’d got a bike he wasn’t happy with (it was leaking oil, and didn’t look how he wanted it to), and asked if I’d take it on. I went to have a look, and in his garage was this very sorry-looking hardtailed 883 Sportster that he wanted completely rebuilt to look like an old-school flat-tracker-cum-board racer. It’d originally been built in 2012 by Chris Woodage, and…

Indeed, with the exception of Radders’ Harley flat-tracker, all, or any, of the other Round winners in the Butchered Classic class (Roy Chappell’s stretched-n’-slammed turbo Gixer, Mick Tabb’s big-wheel EFE, Rick from NCC Lincs’ Izax-framed Kwak, or Brian MacGregor’s updated H2 twostroke) would’ve fitted in on SF’s hallowed pages perfectly, and so would this bike, the overall winner – Jason Hills’ (very!) modified RD400. Those of you of a certain age’ll remember the RD400, in its four varieties (C, D, E and F), especially the always desirable E as that was the one to have. It was a bike that evolved out of Yamaha’s RD250 and 350 two-strokes, and spawned the later, iconic (and loopy, often literally) 350LC and YPVS, and was, aside from Kawasaki’s legendary H2 750cc, the king…

Last year’s gathering was purported to be the last, but Andy and Anna Porter were swayed by popular demand for it to continue. After a few changes of venue, The Trip Out arrived in Euston Park near Thetford last year, and continued there this year. This new venue was very well received as the huge acreage of estate land available puts no restrictions on camping space, and it’s just a beautiful area to spend a few days even without all The Trip Out offers. The soil on the estate’s red Suffolk sand and any rain rapidly drains away and doesn’t form mud (the bane of many a motorcycle rally), and it’s now considered the best venue in the ten-year history of the event (even though the venue of the first…

The bike’s now got 2,500 miles on the clock (well, it’s got a wee bit more than that, but I’ve done 2.5k or so in my time with it), and although at first I wasn’t sure I was that enamoured of it due to its almost extraordinary competence (it does absolutely everything with such consummate ease), it’s now like an old and reliable friend – you can just jump on it and go… actually, that sounds a little dodgy doesn’t it, saying that about a friend… you know what I mean though. So, as I’m guessing you’re sussing as you read this, the GSX-S 1000’s easy to live with, but there’re two minor things that I’m having a little… umm, ‘trouble’ is perhaps the wrong word, with – the onboard…

Parking your bike up for winter, or for extended periods, usually results in your carb(s) getting gunged up by deteriorating fuel, so Anglo American Oils has designed a storage fuel to eliminate this problem. It’s called R Storage Plus, and is an alkylate fuel that promotes easier starting, and throttle response, and makes sure your fuel system remains in tip-top condition. It’s also higher 99 octane. It’s suitable for both carburetted and fuel-injected bikes, and’s available in a handy 10-litre can or 200-litre drums for bigger collectors. The company also does a leaded version, R Storage 5-Star, suitable for all old bikes that need leaded fuel, that has a minimum of 103 octane meaning old bikes, and high compression engines, run great on it. The RRP for R Storage Plus…

Just a few weeks now until the UK’s largest motorcycle show, Motorcycle Live! at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham. As well as the new bikes from all the main manufacturers, and all the best new goodies from accessory companies, us lot at BSH’ll be in Hall 3 where we’ll be running Custom Heroes – a grand celebration of the custom bike builders art with 17 of the best custom bikes in the land, including the six winners of the 2022 BSH Custom Bike Champs, as well as demonstrations from the likes of Flakey Dave’s airbrush work, Raw Steel Choppers’ metal-working skills, and more. Tickets cost just £22 in advance, and you can get them, or more info, from www.motorcyclelive.co.uk…

The Clarke CBB209C 28” 9 Drawer Tool Chest’s drawers have multi ball bearing runners for a supersmooth sliding action; a special push-lock feature that stops them opening accidentally if the unit’s tilted; full-width aluminium pull handles; a safety locking system when the top lid’s closed/locked; and two carry handles. It can be used as a separate unit or with the Clarke CBB217C 7 Drawer Tool Cabinet with its five-inch industrial-grade wheels; chromed side handles; heavy-gauge steel double-walls and reinforced base; and soft cushioned matting on top for a non-slip work surface. Both cabinets’re available from any branch of Machine Mart or www.machinemart.co.uk…

Though the A55’s a broad dual-carriageway, this section of it’s very picturesque so we chose its speed and convenience over the more meandering, and slower, coast road, as we were eager to explore some interesting sites on the island of Anglesey. Once over the Menai Bridge, we set our watches back to 1740AD, and got off the A-road as soon as we could at Llanfair PG (presumably Welsh for ‘one-horse town’), home to the famously named Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch train station (no doubt named by the last Anglesey resident with a sense of humour as they left forever by train in the early 1900s). Our goal for the morning was to visit some of the neolithic sites on Anglesey so, after failing to spot the turn-off for the Bryn Celli Ddu burial…

This, I will admit, amused me as this particular individual (stop asking, I’m not going to name them) is one of the great rebels of our generation, and for him to boycott a bike ’cos it’s a bit more minimal, a bit more impractical, just seems a little out of kilter. Mind you, he also rejected the bike that won Butchered Classic ’cos it didn’t have a rear mudguard so at least he’s consistent in his opinions, isn’t he? The thing is, these days, bikes, choppers, without front brakes aren’t anything out of the ordinary, and the new/old-skool chopper mob ride ’em many, many miles without issue and, besides which, this particular bike, while not having an actual front brake, does have, if you look, a front brake lever and,…

Trained as an aircraft tech before he joined the Royal Marines back in 2009, he’s worked on, and ridden, sports bikes for years but, as it says in the Epistle to the Corinthians in the King James Bible, ‘When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things’ – it was time for him to move on to more grown-up things (and, also, that rugby club in Leeds’ been around for a lot longer than I thought it had). He looked at various potential powerplants, and what people’d done with them, and came to the conclusion that an XS650 motor, Yamaha’s venerable Eighties twin, was probably his best bet,…

Yes, it’s that time again. While we’ve become accustomed to Christmas carols being played in shops and on the radio since before the clocks went back, the run up to Christmas can nonetheless be an extremely stressful time. In particular, in finding ideal gifts for your nearest and dearest, and the feeling of impending doom at receiving dozens of pairs of socks, outrageous aftershaves that smell quite unlike anything else you’ve ever experienced and enough chocolate and salty snacks to give your doctor heart palpitations. So, we’ve made your life a hell of a lot easier with our exclusive Christmas Gift Guide! Check out some of these must-haves and leave the magazine open on these pages for all your loved ones to see……

£4.95 EACH (inc p&p) For EU and ROW, please see www.classicmagazines.co.uk GO AS FAR BACK AS SEPTEMBER 2014 - ORDER YOUR COPIES TODAY VIA CLASSIC MAGAZINES April 2022 ▪ GSX-R Custom ▪ Blessing the Bikes ▪ Bullfrog Bash May 2022 ▪ Retro' Shovel ▪ ZED 1000 Kwak ▪ 350/650 Hybrid Triumph June 2022 ▪ Cut-down Valkyrie bruiser ▪ Iron Crows - east of Ipswich ▪ A Bantam bobber July 2022 ▪ Glorious XS 650s ▪ Engraved Harley - classic art ▪ Pure power at Santa Pod August 2022 ▪ A bobber with history ▪ Half a Beetle ▪ Warhammer Harley September 2022 ▪ Fastest Bobbers in the land ▪ How to make girders ▪ BSA Rat October 2022 ▪ Enfield on a dare ▪ Racing the waves at Brid ▪…

Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance’d like to say a big thank you to the hundreds of motorcyclists who took part in its annual Ride of Thanks ride-out. Approximately 280 bikers rode a 62-mile circular route taking in some of the most glorious countryside and villages across Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, and helped raise a total of £3,264, which’ll be split between LNAA, Lincolnshire Emergency Blood Bikes Service, and Nottinghamshire Blood Bikes. Plans are already underway to make the Ride to Save Lives 2023 even bigger and better so even more money can be raised to support these three life-saving charities, and you can find out more from the Facebook Page.…

Bikers Against Child Abuse, more widely known as B.A.C.A., is an international not-for-profit organisation, founded over 25 years ago by a registered play therapist in the USA, that now operates in 47 states of the USA, and 21 countries worldwide. It’s a body of bikers who empower children to not feel afraid of the world in which they live, standing ready to lend support by involving them with an established, united organisation. They’re not counsellors or therapists, just bikers, but they work closely with both, as well as child protection agencies, social services, and local councils. All members’re unpaid volunteers who undergo enhanced security and background checks, and undertake many hours of training to work with abused children, and’re committed to the principle that one of the basic rights of…

Funnily enough, it turned out that three of the six winners, when the information came to light later, were painted by the same person – Dave Bristow at Xtreme Paint Studio out in the Fens near Wisbech: the amazingly photorealistic Marvel superheroes paint of Steve Smith (round one); the very neat Sportster owned by Sharon Branston (round four – the Rock & Blues); and his own Fat Boy (round six). That’s not to say that the competition wasn’t strong. Frenchy’s Sporty, Malc from NCC Oxon’s Japanese-style GSX, and the quite stunning, incredibly involved AP Customs-painted Hayabusa of Matt Warner were all beautifully crafted, and all worthy round winners. As with Tony Black’s quite, quite stunning Lord of the Rings H-D last year, the overall winning bike isn’t, in the grand…

2021’s post-plague event’d sold out to its limit under plague rules so we wondered how it would fair this year? Well, we needn’t’ve wondered – so many folk were still keen to get out and about. There was talk of weather forecasts on Farcebook, and a few decided not to come, despite having tickets, because it might rain… and we had an enquiry post-event asking, because they didn’t come because of the weather, can they use the tickets for next year? Is this, perhaps, indicative of where we are these days with some of the biking demographic? The 99.99% of folk who don’t give a sh*t about the weather were rewarded with a beautiful day on Friday – as I’ve said for the 43 years I’ve been rallying, the best…

Upon arrival, at a new site in Kent, though, I soon found that the vibe’d changed somewhat; there were still a fair few old-schoolers, and there was also a new, monied crowd running largely stock Sportsters and bigger ‘Arleys. There was a skateboard ramp; a small bar that was continuously busy; a very professional large stage for the three artistes booked (the ‘70s-influenced The Grungers, Cottoneye, and rapper Badd Wolf); a good number of trade stands, including BSH’s old mate String from Raw Steel Choppers, and the crew from Gasoline Alley Speedshop with their HUC frames; an excellent coffee stand manned by a lady who had amazing dreads; and a very good pizza stand, and the new vibe, while different to what I was expecting, was still cool. It was…

IT’S CURIOUS THAT I DIDN’T RECOGNISE HIS VOICE, BUT I SUPPOSE YOUR SPEAKING VOICE IS DIFFERENT FROM YOUR SINGING VOICE. I MUST STILL HAVE HALF-A-DOZEN OF HIS ALBUMS ON VINYL, THE SAME NUMBER ON CASSETTE, AS WELL AS THE THREE-CD COMMEMORATIVE BOX SET. MY EX BOUGHT ME THAT FOR MY BIRTHDAY A FEW YEARS AGO. MUST HAVE COST A FORTUNE, THOUGH I GUESS I PAID FOR IT VIA THE DIVORCE SETTLEMENT. IT was a Friday afternoon, and I was thinking of calling it a day. The phone rang, and someone calling himself David asked if I could do him a top-class paint job on a Vincent Black Knight. Blimey, I’ve never done one of those before. “I’m doing the full monty,” he said, “nut, bolt, washer, and splitpin restoration. All…

Motor Bike Expo, in Verona in Italy, on January 27-29 next year, is probably the world’s largest custom event (more than 170,000 visitors, 700 exhibitors, and 100,000 square metres of space), and shares the love for motorcycles – a trade show to admire unique motorcycles customised by the best internationally renowned customisers, as well the latest models from the major motorcycle manufacturers, along with accessories and apparel for motorcyclists. There’re halls for customs, streetfighters, café racers, heritage, and touring models, and it’s often reckoned that you won’t get round all of them, and see everything, in the three days it’s held! Info at www.motorbikeexpo.it…

Advertise your events here for free and get them seen by everyone in bikerdom! Email the info to nik@backstreetheroes.com NOVEMBER 6th Nov: Ton Up Day England Expects at the Ace Cafe, London. More info from www.london.acecafe.com 13th Nov: Poppy Day Parade & Service Military Vehicle Meet at the Ace Cafe, London. More info from www.london.acecafe.com 13th Nov: Mablethorpe Sand Racing at Mablethorpe Beach, Mablethorpe, Lincs. More info from www.mablethorpesandracing.co.uk 18-20th Nov: Derbyshire 623 MCC’s Pheasant Plucker Rally at Lumb Farm, Derby Rd, Marehay, Ripley, Derbys (DE5 8JN). Tickets £20. More info from Facebook. 19-27th Nov: Motorcycle Live! at the NEC, North Ave, Marston Green, Birmingham (B40 1NT). More info from www.motorcyclelive.co.uk 20th Nov: Ariel O.C. Founders Day & Classic Bike Day at the Ace Cafe, London. More info from www.london.acecafe.com…