Tim's blog

It does seem that everything I attempt takes not two, but three or four times as long to complete as it should. Enough wining – How to A/C Your Hot Rod, and Guitar Building Basics, go on press this week. Which means we will have advance copies in about two weeks.

More good news, Tattoo Bible - Book Two, is nearly finished as well. Like our first Tattoo Bible book, this new release is the collected flash art from Superior Tattoo, one of the world’s largest suppliers of inks, needles, machines and hygiene products.

Our next book project, Tattoo Bible, Book 2, is headed to the printer.

And as per Book One, Book two brings you high quality flash art broken down by category: Hearts, Skulls, Roses, Lower Back and many more. Perhaps the best thing, from our perspective, is the fact that the staff at Superior could not be any easier to get along with on the business end of this relationship. Their art arrives on time, and in the correct file formats so it’s easy for us to stitch the book together with minimal hassles.

Speaking of tattoo books, we have author and photographer Doug Mitchel starting work on a new tattoo title, more details to follow. Until Doug’s book is finished, our readers will have to settle for only four tattoo books on the ArtKulture and Wolfgang web sites.

Home Front
Back in the shop, the Henry J sits forlorn in the corner of the garage, waiting patiently for more attention, something the Henry J does very well. At least part of the reason nothing is being done in the J is the fact the hot rod’s garage mate, the Bagger, is fully functional, often luring me out onto a ride on an evening or weekend afternoon as a good temptress should.

What we’ve learned about tattoo books might sound too obvious, people like pages filled with images, images and more images.

The Donnie Smith Bike Show, held on about the 28th of March every year (Donnie’s birthday), is the biggest motorcycle show that’s worth a damn, in the Midwest. The main hall at the River Center in St. Paul, MN gleams from one end to the other with bright paint and sparkling chrome. Between the bikes there are people of every age and description. From tough looking patch-holders, to Mom and Dad with the kids in a baby stroller. For two days it’s all about motorcycles, motorcycles and more motorcycles.

Turnout at this year’s Donnie Smith show was very good. Vendor spaces sold out completely, and the aisles were filled with bikers of every shape from start to finish.

Neil Ryan, the man who gets everything done, added a new twist this year, music on Saturday evening. Instead of leaving late in the afternoon, Jack Knife and the Sharps gave all of us a good reason to hang out for another couple of hours, enjoying each other’s company and some great rockabilly tunes.

While a show like Donnie’s is all about the bikes, it’s also a huge social occasion. Consider the fact that it’s March in Minnesota, we’re all missing those Sunday afternoon opportunities to talk with motorcycle friends at our favorite hang outs and watering holes. The Donnie show is catch-up time.

A longtime fixture on the Minneapolis/St. Paul music scene, Jack Knife and the Sharps make great rockabilly with only two guitarists, one drummer and an occasional female singer.

For me, the show is a chance to talk with friends like Jason from the Boar House; and Drew, formerly of St. Croix Harley-Davidson; along with my Godson Jonah, his brother Kaleb, and their father, Bill. And there are at least a hundred people there who I know in a business context, from House of Kolor founder, Jon Kosmoski; to extraordinary airbrush talent, Steve Driscoll; and “Leroy Thomson” who is actually a holy trinity of guys who can definitely think outside the box.

Finally, the Donnie Smith show is very good for motorcycling in our neck of the woods. It gets everyone’s blood pumping for those warm days when we can ride with friends and experience once again those favorite roads. It’s a reminder that now is the time to do the maintenance that we postponed last fall. And after looking at all those beautiful bikes, the show generates a lot of lust. In this case, it might not be lust for that certain member of the opposite sex. No, this is lust of another sort: for new paint jobs, new wheels, and maybe even a whole new motorcycle.

I don’t know what the newest, tallest, thirty inch front wheels do for handling or the trail dimension, but they certainly do make for interesting-looking motorcycles, some of which look like a Disney sketch come to life.

Take a Softail, turn it totally upside down and sideways, and this is what you might get. This radical and very ride-able bike will be available soon, either as components or a complete motorcycle. Behind it the three creators: (L to R) designer Steve Lewis; manager and financier, Bruce Hanusosky, and greasy hands-on motorsicle guy, Scott Webster.

A few weeks ago I was explaining that one of our goals was to get the next two books: Guitar Building Basics, and How to Air Condition Your Hot Rod, to the printer. Well, we are STILL trying to get those two books finished and off to the printer. I just emailed my contact at the printer, located on the other side of this ever-shrinking planet, and explained that with luck we would ship the files to her on Thursday of this week.

Our first musical instruments book, Guitar Building Basics, is finally off to the printer.

Web Site Improvements

I’m also trying to update the web site for our little sister company/imprint, ArtKulture. Steve, our web guru, did equip the site with its own shopping cart. And customers can now order books from that site without any formal registration process. All that’s necessary is to provide a name, address and current credit card number. The site itself, www.artkulture.com, looks pretty much the same on the surface, but we plan to update the home page in the next couple of weeks - if I can just get those damned books to the printer.

Our new imprint, ArtKulture, is experiencing a much improved web site.

First Ride

The temperatures in Minnesota are finally above freezing. Which means the St. Croix River is at flood stage and the old lift bridge between Stillwater, Minnesota and the shore of Wisconsin, is scheduled to be closed due to high water. If the melting snow brings too much water, it also brings warm weather and roads suited to motorcycle travel. The mornings and evenings are still pretty cool, so rides are a little on the short side, but at least there are motorcycles on the road and the sound of V-twins in the air.

I kept my own first ride pretty short. Just up the highway a few miles with a stop at the local tavern to show off the fact that I was finally riding. Of course no one was there when I stopped so I might just as well have kept riding.

Anyone who remembers the Ice Road story from a few weeks ago will appreciate this photo of the gravel road leading down to the point where the true Ice Road begins (began).

Donnie Smith Show

This weekend is the Donnie Smith show in St. Paul, another sign of spring. I talked our part time helper, Dab Shade, and our super salesman, Rick Thompson, into helping me run the Wolfgang booth all weekend. The booth is a lot of work, but it’s also a nice chance to stand there and talk with old motorcycle friends from both near and far. So if you live anywhere near St. Paul, stop by and say hi. And be sure to check out the assorted Harleys, custom bikes, choppers, and vintage motorcycles.

The Pro Class bikes are positioned in the center of the show hall, the quality of these bikes is simply off the scale.

The Donnie Smith show pretty well fills the main hall at the St. Paul River Center.