Hello 2014. Putting old things to new use has always been at the pit of my subconcious. Suppose thats how how I fell into and old 4 cylinder yamaha 10 years ago. Put together, take apart, put together in a different order. Well this thing here fell together. I dreamt of a long bike with a 14 over girder, psychedelic paint on a wassell tank and tiny front wheel. Silly eh? But this thing was bound and determined to put itself together. While thinking I would repair a bent girder for use Duane loaned me a 35mm front end with a mag to roll it around the Dojo (our overcrowded workspace where shuffling bikes around to make room for others is necessary). From there parts just started appearing on their own. A tank from Bowles, a shifter assembly from Nick, a rear mag from the heavens, hand carved steal your face points cover from Alex, fender, seat and sissy from the dust in my shed shed. Nothing fit anything. But every piece that came seemed to want so badly to be ridden again. Everything was tired from use accept maybe the seat. Way off center sissy bar, toasted wheel bearings, leaking tank, ragged out forks and no first gear (the trans is currently apart in my living room). Cutting, bending, grinding, re-welding (thanks Austin and Duane) to make these old parts bolt together. When I finally rode it for the first time, the old metal parts seemed to radiate joy in a giant V shape from where the wheels met the pavement, upward towards the sky, like Moses parting a sea of doubt. This bike is three parts, gratitude for friendship, gratitude for those riders who first wore these parts out, and spirit of ghost parts returning from where ever they go to rest.
