Colleen Swartz

When I walked into the lower level of Chicago’s McCormick Place on Friday, all I found was chaos. The space looked for all-the-world like one giant pile of used parts, partially assembled racks of T shirts, and miscellaneous motorcycles. In other words, one giant Cluster-F. Eventually I did find Colleen Swartz, of Cycle Source fame, and between setting-up a booth for bike-builder Dave Cook, she explained my duties as a judge for the custom bike show that runs in conjunction with the swap meet.

When I walked in on Saturday morning, the disorganized piles of stuff had somehow morphed into a series of neatly arranged racks of parts; both old and new. Vendors of every stripe filled the hall, and in the center a variety of shops and individual builders displayed their custom bikes.

Chief cook and bottle washer, Colleen Swartz kept the award ceremonies moving and on time.

Baggers were everywhere; and not a dog in the bunch. Among the bevy of beautiful two wheelers, Dave Dupor, owner of D&D Custom, brought his personal project: one Porsche-blue bagger that was simply over the top, complete with too tall one-off wheels, 8000 watt stereo, their own version of the H-D frame mount fairing – with Porsche headlight of course – and air suspension on both ends.

On the other end of the spectrum was an Ironhead Sportster with a twist. Instead of using the integral Sporty tranny, the builder, Mike from Twisted Spoke Bikeworks out of Savanna, Illinois, cut the case, eliminating the transmission, and fabricated a new rear engine mount. Next, he mated the Ironhead to a separate five-speed transmission.

The Porsche-Bagger from DD Custom Cycle, painted Porsche blue, with a Porsche headlight in the “Road Glide” fairing.

It’s always nice to see people who can think outside the box. And speaking of outside the box, Dave Cook brought his old skool four-cylinder creation. If you look close, it’s a Honda motor mounted north-south instead of east-west. Among other things, Dave had to build a bell housing from scratch so he could mate the Honda motor to a BMW three-speed transmission. Of course he somehow stuffed a four-speed gear set into the three-speed case. The list goes on and on. At the front of the bike is one of Dave’s unique fork assemblies. Stopping is by perimeter brakes, each rotor cut with a water jet from a bank of stainless steel, squeezed by small two-piston calipers neatly mounted inside the fork legs.

By Saturday evening, the neat racks and stacks of parts digressed back into their natural state and became piles of assorted motorcycle stuff, before being loaded into a long line of pickup trucks, vans and trailers. By that time though I was on my way to Milwaukee to stay with Colleen and JP, before driving the rest of the way home on Superbowl Sunday – just in time to see the Packers beat the Steelers.

The very one off four-banger of Dave Cook. Stainless frame, Honda motor mated to a BMW transmission, with Dave’s own fork and perimeter brakes both front and rear.

Among the many people who helped me shoot and assemble the Sturgis 70th Anniversary book, is Colleen Swartz from Milwaukee. A serious motorcycle nut and talented photographer, Colleen is also involved in the Chicago Swap Meet and Bike Show, scheduled for February 5th of this year.

When Colleen called a few months back and asked if I would be willing to attend the show as a judge, I was only too happy to say yes. Her offer of a lavish hotel suite with a fridge filled with expensive champagne, and a sizable cash stipend, was really only the icing on the cake – I woulda done it anyway.

If you live anywhere near Chicago, consider attending the one-day Swap Meet and Bike Show scheduled for February 5th.

Billed as the world’s biggest one-day swap meet and bike show, the Chicago extravaganza is somewhat similar to our local Donnie Smith show, at least in the sense that a huge swap meet combined with a high quality bike show is guaranteed to provide something for everyone. The show itself is sponsored by Cycle Source magazine, what owner Chris Callen calls a “grass roots motorcycle magazine.”

Now, I’ve photographed a lot of bikes, and I’ve certainly admired even more, but I admit I’m a judging virgin. When I told Colleen this, she said not to worry, “all you have to do is follow the check list for each bike, it’s pretty straightforward.” We shall see.

Show organizer and fellow judge, Colleen Swartz is the one who convinced me to give up my virginity.

It’s amazing what people can accomplish when they don’t know they can’t do it. With nothing more than enthusiasm for all things two-wheeled, Chris Callen built Cycle Source from a tiny little biker rag to one of the most successful motorcycle magazines out there. All at a time when even the biggest magazines are dying on the vine at an alarming rate.

So the afternoon of February 4th will find me behind the wheel of the mighty Ford Ranger, bound east from Stillwater down the super-slab highway 94. Chicago is a great city. It’s just about far enough that I feel like I’ve traveled someplace. Far enough away to make the trip a real trip and maybe a small adventure as well. The other good thing about Chicago is the large number of incredible music venues. Halsted Avenue is reminiscent of Beale Street in Memphis, with a blues joint on almost every corner. How can a guy not love Chicago.

Anyone within driving range of Chicago should take a look at the web site (http://www.chicagomotorcycleswap.com/BikeShow.php) and think about attending the WORLD’S BIGGEST ONE-DAY SWAP MEET AND BIKE SHOW. Follow my example and arrive the night before so you have time to carouse through downtown and check out a few of those famous waterin’ holes.

http://cyclesource.com/home.htm

I’ve said it a hundred times, the best thing about traveling isn’t the things you see, it’s the people you meet while you’re looking for all those things. Anyone who doubts the veracity of what I say need only go to Sturgis in August.

Bean’re
When it comes to the interesting folks I met this year, Kevin Bean’re would have to rate at the top. I met Kevin at Cincinnati this year, but it wasn’t until Sturgis that I had a chance to really get to know him.

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s really like to chuck the whole deal, the house payments, the car, the job and all the rest, just check with Bean’re. When I asked if he had a permanent address, he explained: “I have a post office box in Tennessee, before that I lived in Miami and before that I lived in the Virgin Islands for awhile. A real residence is just a base, a place for my stuff. But due to economy I have no stuff so I don’t need a base.”

Underneath the wild and crazy exterior is a very thoughtful and talented man. Clean and Sober for twenty-two years, Bean’re is a skilled carpenter. When funds get short he finds a job, often building and designing additions to some very nice houses. Once his part of the project is over, Kevin collects his money and hits the road again. The frequent travel gives Bean’re an opportunity to visit rallies like Sturgis, where this year he found a semi tractor with an empty sleeper compartment – his housing for the week.

We ended our little impromptu interview with a discussion of freedom and what it really means. Bean’re bought up Jack Nicholson’s little epistle on freedom from the movie Easy Rider, “they’re not afraid of you, they’re afraid of what you represent…..” (you can find the movie clip by plugging “Jack Nicholson, Easy Rider, freedom” into Google.)

Kevin Bean’re: biker, carpenter and traveler extraordinaire.

Colleen Swartz
Colleen is another free spirit, one with a bit of a split personality. When home in Milwaukee she spends her time photographing models, often in pin-up attire. But when it comes time for Sturgis or Daytona, she leaves the studio behind and packs her cameras in the RV. This year she spent much of her time at the Broken Spoke campground as the official photographer.

I convinced Colleen to sit on the back of my Bagger for a few hours one morning so we could take some in-the-wind pics. First we did a loop through Main Street, followed by a freeway run to Spearfish, and a ride down Spearfish Canyon as far as Bridal Veil Falls.

Colleen on her mighty Honda ready to tear up the track at Sturgis Dragway.

The photos from that morning are spectacular, and my own photos from the week in Sturgis aren’t bad either. The joy of the trip, however was meeting Colleen and Bean’re and Scooter’s brother Buck and the cute bar maid from the Firehouse and a dozen more.

I’m thinking the road to heaven must look a lot like the road through Spearfish Canyon, thanks Colleen.