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The 2008 edition of the Blackgold Rally begins today in tiny Goldsmith, TX (just a little northwest of Odessa) with registration (and the Beer Barn!) opening at 5 pm.

This year’s Blackgold Rally will feature that usual assortment of biker games as well as a bikini bike wash, a wet t-shirt contest and a wet boxer contest and entertainment from some quality, local bands as well as headliners D.B. Bryant Band (appearing later this year at Sturgis as well at the HD 105th Anniversary Party) and Back in Black (AC/DC Tribute band).

Benefiting the Bynum School of Midland, a local school school helping to educate youngsters with special needs, the rally is becoming a fixture in West Texas and a “don’t miss event” for bikers.

For more information, check out the rally site here or click on the thumbnail below for a view of the rally poster.

Blackgold Rally

Have just been informed that Beatnik Biker has been selected for inclusion within the motorcycle section of Alltop. You can get to the motorcycle section by followiing this link.

Here is how Alltop describes their site:

We help you explore your passions by collecting stories from “all the top” sites on the web. We’ve grouped these collections — “aggregations” — into individual Alltop sites based on topics such as environment, photography, science, Muslim, celebrity gossip, military, fashion, gaming, sports, politics, automobiles, and Macintosh. At each Alltop site, we display the headlines of the latest stories from dozens of sites and blogs.

Beatnik Biker should show up there within the next few days, so be on the lookout for us!

Alltop

Motorcycle Section at Alltop

We arrived in Austin late yesterday afternoon, our trip was delayed in Arlington due to some loose spokes on my rear wheel, and got checked-in. From there, we proceeded to downtown Austin to get ready for the annual bike parade that travels from the rally site to it’s grand entrance on South Congress Street.

Bikes of all shapes and sizes, traveling two abreast, were funneled down South Congress for well over an hour. Engines revving. Horns honking. Thunderous applause and shouts from the crowd at times. It was quite the show!

A good portion of South Congress and most of the famed Sixth Street between the interstate and South Congress were blocked off to traffic. That is, unless you were on two wheels. In which case you were free to continue to try to navigate the throngs on Sixth Street. Have heard one, unsubstantiated report that there was somewhere around 250,000 people at this ‘party’ last night!

Part of the fun was an outdoor concert with the stage set up at the intersection of South Congress and Sixth Street. The rest of the fun was in the many bars and clubs on Sixth Street and the surrounding area.

We actually made it to the legendary Maggie May’s to see a performance by Andy Macintyre and the Primal Groove. We have had the good fortune to have done some work with Andy in the past and thoroughly enjoyed his live performance. Very Stevie Ray Vaughn like.

We head back out to the rally site today to make our way through the fun and festivities there today and and to possibly see some of the great live entertainment that they have line up. Especially looking forward to seeing Joe Ely as I think he puts on a very good live performance.

Be safe in your travels and riding!

A recap of our experiences with the 2nd Annual Hawgs N Hills Rally can be found in the attached article, ‘Rally Wrap Ups’, which is in the June 2008 edition of Thunder Roads.

In addition to our recap of the rally, Thunder Roads also used a few of the photos we took.

Our recap of the Hawgs N Hills Rally begins on page 22, or the third page of the pdf file.

Rally Wrap Ups [PDF, 628KB]

A recap of our experiences with the 2008 Texas State H.O.G. Rally can be found in the attached article, ‘Rally Wrap Ups’, which is in the June 2008 edition of Thunder Roads.

In addition to our recap of the rally, Thunder Roads also used a few of the photos we took.

Our recap of the H.O.G. Rally begins on page 17, or the second page of the pdf file.

Rally Wrap Ups [PDF, 628KB]

The following is a recap of a ride through the Hill Country that Lisa and I took in early May.

We were fortunate enough to have the article published in the June 2008 edition of Thunder Roads, ‘The Oldest Motorcycle Magazine in Texas’.

In addition to ‘Riding the Hill Country’, we also contributed to Hill Country Faves. And Thunder Roads even used a few photos we took as well.

Riding the Hill Country [PDF, 240KB]

I have just about sworn off of 7-11’s for good now!

The reason, 99.9% of the time, that I stop (or rather stopped) at a 7-11 was for gas. And every one of those gas pumping machines had the capability of printing a receipt. However, it appears that there is no one employed at any of the local 7-11’s that is able to place the receipt paper in the pumps.

I wonder if it is a ploy by the owners of the stores to get you to go inside with the hopes that you will buy additional items such and a coke and a snack? The problem here is that it is awfully inconvenient to drink that Big Gulp while I am traveling down the road on my bike!

And on top of that, it seems that every time I go inside for a receipt, I get behind a guy who is buying a pack of obscure cigarettes that the clerk cannot readily locate and then said guy wants to spend the rest of his weekly paycheck on scratch off lottery tickets… And then proceed to stand at the counter and scratch them off… And redeem his one, winning $3 lottery ticket for more lottery tickets… So he can continue to stand there and scratch them off…
There is also a certain ‘in’-convenience store in nearby Big Springs that, outside of an emergency, I never plan to visit again.

I stopped there for gas earlier this week while riding my bike to Snyder. Pumped the gas, asked for a receipt and… Was informed by the machine that the cashier had the receipt. So I head inside and get treated so rudely by the clerk, WHOM I APPARENTLY INCONVENIENCED, by asking for a receipt which caused him to have to stop counting his money and visiting with his buddy ‘Bubba’ about who knows what.

In case that guy is reading this (very doubtful), here is a piece of advice. If you don’t want to be ‘bother’ by customers asking for a receipt for gas, then get off your butt and make sure there is paper in the printer on the pumps outside!

Motorcycle Bloggers International (MBI) 2008 Awards For The Motorcycle Industry

(PRWEB) March 19, 2008 — Motorcycle Bloggers International (MBI), announced the winners of the 2008 Riders Choice Awards. The awards, voted by thousands of motorcycle riders in 77 countries, recognize significant achievements and serious lapses in judgment during 2007 by motorcycle and related product manufacturers, persons and organizations. This years winners are:

MBI Riders Choice - Star Awards

- Object of Lust — Ducati Desmosedici RR
- Best Concept Motorcycle or Scooter — Honda Evo 6
- Best Manufacturer’s Website — BMW Motorrad
- Best New in 2007 Scooter — Piaggio MP3 400
- Best New in 2007 Motorcycle — Triumph Street Triple 675
- Most Environmentally Friendly Motorcycle - ElectricMoto Corporation Blade XT
- Wish We’d Thought of That — KTM Bread Toaster
- Women Riders Booster of the Year — Lois Pryce (20,000 mile solo ride, Alaska to the tip of South America on a 225cc bike)
- Thumbs Up — Ewan McGregor/Charlie Boorman ( Enhanced image of motorcycle riders)

MBI Riders Choice - Fallen Star Awards

- Most Disappointing Motorcycle - Suzuki B-King
- Thumbs Down — Loud Pipes Save Lives
- What Were They Thinking — Babecage
- Worst Manufacturer’s Website — Cycleport/Motoport

The Riders Choice Awards are unique in that the nominees and winners are chosen by every day riders around the world, not by professional journalists. The awards reflect the judgment of the motorcycle buying public, not motorcycle industry insiders.

Anyone could vote, there was no restriction on age, gender or country. Even non-riders could vote. No registration, nor email addresses were required. However, a system of storing and analyzing IP addresses was put in place to minimize duplicate voting.

About MBI
MBI (whose motto is “Riding and writing is what we do”) is a group of 161 international motorcycle weblog authors from China to Chile.

Membership is open to any motorcycle rider who maintains an active motorcycle-related Internet weblog or news web site with original commentary. With a combined readership over 5 million readers per month, the awards represent a true feeling what lives amongst the biker communities. The awards are not given by professional journalists, commercial publications or companies, but by the public.

More information about MBI, its members and the complete list of nominees will be found at the MBI web site http://www.mbiweb.org/.

MBI Website: http://www.mbiweb.org/
MBI Awards 2007: http://www.mbiweb.org/2008/
Interview Contact: Mike Werner
Telephone: +33-2-35297230
Email: mwerner@mbiweb.org

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Motorcycle Bloggers International (MBI) 2008 Awards For The Motorcycle Industry [via PRWeb]

If you are headed to Daytona this year, there is a last minute addition to the Builders Breakfast lineup that is sure to interest many. Vinnie Dimartino and Cody Connelly of V-Force Customs have signed on to attend the Builders Breakfast on March 4.

To get some of you up to speed, Vinnie and Cody recently left Orange County Choppers to form V-Force Customs.

Personally, I think Vinnie was a hoot on TV and will be sorely missed by the OCC gang.

For more information on the breakfast and other things V-Force Custom, see the link below.

V-Force Customs at Builders Breakfast [via Jeff at BikerDATA.com]

Here is your chance to vote in the 2008 Motorcycle Bloggers International Riders Choice Awards.

You can vote for the winners in over 13 categories such as:

• Best new motorcycle
• Best manufacturers web site
• Wish we’d thought of that
• What were they thinking?
• Women riders booster of the year

To place your vote, simply visit the MBI web site (link provided below) and enter your choices. No need to register, give your email, sign in blood, or the such.

Thanks for participating!

2008 MBI Riders Choice Awards