What a great way to spend the day. Shortly after 10:00 Barry wheeled up in a big old red Dodge with his sporty in the back, we shouted over to Bwano (Danny) Bailey "Lets Roll" and I kicked my old girl over and we were off, not knowing exactly what the day was to entail. We did know we were heading over to Brantford to drop off Barry's Sportster to replace a clutch and a throw out bearing. Seems the last guy who owned the bike, rode her like he stole her. Shock! When we got to Hipp's Cycle Johny took one look at that old Sporty and said "she needs a little TLC doesn't she ? " and I said "that's why we brought her here John". John's precise attention to detail immediately brought several points to Barry's attention and I could see Barry's eye's getting as big as 21" inch Rims. John did as well and said to Barry right away " Don't worry we can just fix the clutch and the throw out bearing for now to get you going down the road and we can fix the rest of the stuff later on, as Barry's sphincter began to relax. John pushed Barry's Baby back to the shop and got Barry going with a work order to be sure that only what Barry wanted fixed on his bike would be fixed. By then Bwano had already began to break out his gear. Cameras, lenses, lights, filters, stands, ect., ect., I mean he had them set up everywhere. That's the thing about a great photographer, he never goes anywhere with out his gear. By that time Jimmy (Hippy himself) had surfaced wondering what the f....ck was going on here but when he noticed Bwano stepping out, I think he new something was arie. That's when it started, just like puppets on a string, stand here, look this way, glasses on, glasses off, move this bike here, move that light over there. I could tell Hippy was being as patient as he possibly could as I am sure Hippy is not used to people telling him what to do or how to do it but, all the same he appreciates Dan's talent and just rolled with it as he has seen the finished product before and who doesn't appreciate it when a good man is able to apply his trade well. All this time Cory is flying through the shoot on this bike or another one doing test drives (Sucks to be him)and all the while he is keeping the show rolling inside the shop. It took a while before we could talk him into stopping for a pic, but we did eventually. In fact there is a brilliant almost magical shot taken by Dan that will be the Hips' Cycle Family Christmas Card. Keep your eyes peeled for that one. As we moved through the sequence of events, I had the opportunity to speak to Hippy about the back drop we were using for the shoot. He told me that the Garage behind us was an exact replica to scale and nail of the original garage used for the HARLEY DAVIDSON MOTOR CO. back in 1903. When the shoot was over, Jim took me through the inside, he has done this place up nice. man. He has even had an original period drill press installed and old tools placed in the shed just right and to top it all off he has an antique anvil there too that looked like they would use it to customise certain parts. It simulates to a tee just how it must have looked at the end of a typical work day for the Boys in the Garage. Everything in the shed was over a hundred years old. This place looks VERY COOL ! You will have to see this little piece of history when you drop in and see the guys down at the shop. You will be impressed with the authenticity that they put into this place. Jim told me that Jean Davidson herself (No, not my Mother) was almost around to personally sign the door, when she came to Port Dover one time to do a big signing for her book that she had written, however she got held up in the typical kayos and the grid lock traffic that day that always surrounds that event during Friday the 13th. . After I had the Grand Tour from Hippy and a couple of quick coolies (Crystal of course) we loaded up all the gear and headed directly for K-Town.
Thanks for the great day eh boys !, I had alot of fun just hangin out and readers, please remember to drop in to see Jim (Hippy), John or Cory at Hip's Cycle in Brantford Ontario Canada at 900 Colbourne St. should you need any repairs to your ride or wish to just have a look at the replica Harley Davidson Motor Company Garage. I promise "You won't be disappointed"
Oh yes and thanks for the great Pic's Bwano. (More to follow for sure)
RIDER 88's Editor
Mark T. Davidson
A.K.A. Harley
"Ride it like you stole it". Be safe
and
Have Fun !!!
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