the olde pro

Solidworks World Day 1 - Nest

2012-02-14T07:04:00.000-08:00

A "learning thermostat"? Yep. That's what Tony Fadell, the ex VP of iPod design is doing now. And its amazing.

NEST

yeah, now I want a new thermostat.

looking back on the end of the summer

2012-02-08T04:32:00.000-08:00

we are having one of the mildest winters that I can ever remember on the east coast....which is making New York City actually the best city in the world as of right now. If winters were always like this, lets not forget last winter though, this would be the perfect seasonal climated place to live.

Friday night I layered up and headed to Kickstart Cycle's Pothole Social in Lodi, NJ. We watched the screening of the EDR movie from last year's event and it definitely looked like fun. Maybe next time I'll have to muster up the time off and join the crew. ALSO, it was the magazine release part for Greasy Kulture's newest issue, so the party was a triple win for all! GK is one of my favorite biker mags right now. Content is always great.

The Social was at cool bar right of Rt. 80, only about 4 miles from the George Washington Bridge so I figured the ride wouldn't be too cold. And it was right. Sure, the thermometer read 38 degrees when I left Brooklyn, but with warm clothes, a nice leather jacket and the full face helmet, it was fine.

Of course, I reminded myself of the day that Malcolm and I rode up to the Seaweed Yacht Club though a few months ago. Same first half of the route, except instead of getting on 80, we headed up the Palisades. OK, I'll admit, that time of year is much better. Sweating through the manhattan traffic to be rewarded by the trees and the open road while riding along the Hudson River. Yeah, that was nice.

Pothole Social

2012-02-03T05:09:00.000-08:00

see you tonight Jersey...still deciding if I'm going to ride there or just drive the car where its warm. Walter, can I just stay at your place so I don't have to freeze on my way home? Thanks buddy.

watches

2012-02-02T04:15:00.000-08:00

Anyway, I saw this new limited edition release from Bell&Ross and its mighty fine. I will always love the BR 01-92. One day I'd love to get one, but I'll never drop the $5,000 on it. I've had knock-offs, but couldn't wear them.

This version is limited to 999 pieces and once they are sold, they are gone. So if you are a watchismo, pick it up!

Seeing it reminded me of one of the watches we made when I was at Nixon, the Murf, and now they have the Rubber Murf!. The idea behind the Murf was to be a follow up to the ever popular Rotolog. How do you follow that watch up?!? I think we did a pretty good job, not perfect in achieving this goal, but the features and the fact that you can actually read the time, made it a bit more functional.

I love watches. Always have, always will. The problem with once working for a watch company is that once you've "seen it all" it becomes hard to get excited about new watches. Nothing changes, its all recycled styling with someone's small tweak. And I'm cool with that. I'm not exactly a classic watch guy either, though, so I doubt you'll find me dropping $15,000 on the Breitling that I really love. I'm happy with a $100-$500 watch that says something about me.

and yes, I would consider working for another watch company one day...or at least helping out with the new line at my current place of employment, hmmm......you think?

cuppow - use those mason jars

2012-01-31T04:54:00.000-08:00

now that you have gotten your inspiration for how to decorate the hallway from dwell mag, picked up a few items on etsy, and scrounged through your local urban outfitters for the right oversized, yet understated hoodie, you can reach for your mason jars and use them on the go!

CUPPOW! from Paper Fortress on Vimeo.

I'm down with this idea. I like it. friggen smart....damn.....

buy them here.

and totally saw this posted over at the 10 engines blog a few weeks ago.

hardcore band from high school

2012-01-26T05:19:00.000-08:00

I played in a bunch of bands growing up. Mostly drums, but there was this one band that we put together for a show at my high school that was going to be held in the cafeteria. We then went on to play a few clubs in the NYC suburbs and after 3 or 4 shows it was done. Gone. Forever. Until pictures started surfacing recently.

Here's a pic of me singing/screaming in said band, Voltron.

We were a mix of heavy riffage, screaming, deftones softness and CB-4 rap lyrics. Yes, all of those. And that was the beauty of being 17.

4,613...

2012-01-24T22:17:00.000-08:00

...unread emails in my gmail inbox. This would drive Comp crazy if he knew. I've had this email address for a while, but wow, that's carazee. At this point, I'm not going to get to them. oops. Took a much needed day to handle some personal business and at the end of the afternoon decided to start the shovel up and take 'er for a spin around Park Slope in the 50 degree January weather.

On my way back to Manhattan to catch Nada Surf though, the bike stalled at a traffic light and wouldn't start. nothing. key off, kick 3 times, key on, twist throttle 3 times, kick. rinse, repeat with enricher knob up. rinse repeat. rinse. SWEATING. I even had a few passers-by stop and watch. Because that ALWAYS helps! Luckily for everyone around nobody was a "mechanic" and told me that it was probably flooded. They just watched and let me mumble to myself in peace knowing that this was going to be an easy fix.

the kicker/clutch started slipping again when kicked so that HAD to be it. broke out the tool roll and fixed that. Much better engagement now. BUT still no starting.

Even tried pop starting it down 15th street, but nothing. you know what? out of gas. yep. the low gas light didn't go on to warn me. dummy. the sound of the picture below was this: "shush, shush, shush, shush..." go ahead and say it either out loud or in your head. make that sound. the "shush, shush, shush, shush" of my front brake rotor rubbing slightly on the pads.

put a few dollars of gas in, and voila, gas filter filled up with gas, carb got some liquid gold and key off, kick three times, key on, twist throttle 3 times, kick...BAM WHAM NOISE! started right up. I'll say it again.....dummy. It's usually the easy stuff. Luckily I wasn't late to the show.

Orchard Street Sunday

2012-01-13T04:54:00.000-08:00

this past Saturday's weather was epic for January in New York. Warm and sunny, the city was alive with smiles, people eating outside at restaurants, post-holiday sales, and perfect riding conditions. Unfortunately, I chose to ride the subway all day, but that's ok, I made up for it on Sunday when it was 20 degrees colder, d'oh!

after hanging out with Cicero, I headed into the city to Selfedge to check out their goods and then headed up to watch the Giants game at Adam and Alina's place on the UWS.

But I had to snap a few pics of A.J.'s beautiful shovel parked across the street from where I stopped first. I swear, seeing other bikes that you like is like nothing else. If you're a bike owner you know what I'm talking about. Nothing else matters, you walk up to it, check it out, look at the details, don't say a word but just smile and then move on. maybe snap a few pics. But you can't NOT do that. You have to look.....and I love it.

so I did just that.....walked over, looked, squatted next to it, checked out the little bips and bops, took a few pictures and kept on my journey. Rode up 6th and 8th aves, and it was a fun few hour jaunt.

Godspeed 45/06 - in the neighborhood

2012-01-10T05:06:00.000-08:00

Cicero hit me up through the Facebook after I posted about tearing the shovel down for the winter. With a nice main seal leak and a tranny leak and the 70's paint wearing/chipping/flaking, OH and still no rear brake, something has got to give. BUT the weather isn't it...

We got together this past Sunday morning, chatted about bikes, life, jewelry, work, kids and he took some pictures while we were doing that. Just a couple of dudes, hanging at 9:30am...

check out his photography here.

and

check his quarterly Godspeed 45/06 photo collab books that are pure amazingness here.

thanks 'Ros! sunday funday.

Started

2012-01-09T08:32:00.001-08:00

I took my own advice and adjusted and tightened up a few things. Just in time to meet up with fellow brooklyn'er Cicero DeGuzman Jr.

Glad I did, sine we ran some loops around gowanus!

well look at that...

2012-01-05T05:22:00.000-08:00

little miles is growing.

He's already thinking about choppers, guitars, drums, and his first Eames chair....I know because he whispered it to me right after this picture was taken.

TightenUp

2012-01-02T08:26:00.001-08:00

It's a new year. Don't forget to check all those nuts and bolts. All the little things you may have rushed and forgotten to loctite. Take your time with this. I know I have a few to get to.

American made con't

2011-12-21T03:46:00.000-08:00

Today, I'll keep it simple.

New Balance. They have a separate link to their made in USA and assembled in USA products and a great little video about the town in Maine that makes them. Hey the official shoe of the hardcore scene can't be that wrong...

and I'll continue with Maine.

Quoddy. Chukka's, Bluchers, Oxfords, Boots, and more. All hand made to order. that's right, they start production on your shoes AFTER you order.

and yes, some of these products are STILL more expensive than you want to spend. But with rebuildable, re-craftable items like these that can actually be sent back to either the manufacturer to be re-HAND worked on by a cobbler in your town to resole or refinish, the value is there.

The truth is, I don't NEED 40 pairs of shoes/sneakers if the 4, 5, or 6 that I own fit right, are comfortable and last for years...

and that is coming from an ex-sneaker head(ish) person. Its not easy thinning out the herd of shoes that you want to keep around 'just incase I need them'. But they'll probably have more value and be more appreciated after being donated to someone in need of a SINGLE pair of used shoes than sitting in your closet collecting dust.

yes, this will continue. No, I'm not on a rampage. This is just the way I think.

buying/owning American made goods part 1

2011-12-20T04:49:00.000-08:00

Its no secret, we don't have to BS around it. there's no kidding anyone, seriously, its totally OK......If you're reading this blog, you're probably not part of the 1% that controls 90% of the wealth of this country or world. its fine. I'm cool with it if you are though. For me, I've thought very differently about consuming for a while now and when I can, I try to buy American. No, its not easy, Apple doesn't make a computer here, I'm also not a hypocrite, so I know that I buy things made in China. I work for a company that makes 95% of its products here in the USA. Almost 70% in NYC, Rhode Island and New Jersey. This is a personal choice that I'm proud of.

Here are a few things/brands/companies that are proud of it as well. And some don't even let you know up front.

LL Bean Belts. this was an interesting one. Just put Made in USA in their search bar.

164 results. If you can't find a gift there, you're crazy. and with their guarantee, its a win-win.

Room and Board

Furniture and Accessories

Obviously, I can go on and on, and that's not what I'm trying to do. All I'm saying is that I like to take the time to take a step back and if there 'might' be an option to go made in your home country, I try to do it. If it turns out the final cost of the product is just too much (because you know the labor cost is more, this shouldn't be a secret) then pass, and get something else. Note, I did not say YOU should do this. this is just how I approach things. And I thought I'd pass it along, that's all.

happy holidays. Happy Chanukah today. word up. more tomorrow......

Neck Ties not Bow Pasta!

2011-12-16T05:10:00.001-08:00

Accessorize. Can't lie, I love the little details. The little details in outfits, bicycles, motorbikes, furniture, mugs, cooking utensils, etc...

If you're not sure what to add to your list this season, hop on over to Steve and Co. and I bet you'll find a few little things that you never knew you needed...

Steve and Co. - Man Clothing and Accessories

another re-posted video DOG!

2011-12-15T04:47:00.000-08:00

while I wouldn't usually expect to find this over at hated of the world, they had it! and it is awesome. so here is; bizzle gets some dunkers....in HD. (not sure if its really HD)

is it bad that it makes me want to give up all other hobbies and become a muppet style puppeteer but with live animals? yeah it is....

Ice Cube x Eames

2011-12-11T20:27:00.000-08:00

...and.....a-mazing

I've seen it posted a few other places, but being that I love everything Eames and 90% of what Ice Cube has done and that I never would have thought I'd be able to post them together for 100% satisfaction, I'm doing it. I hope you enjoyed the video.

Bros

2011-12-06T07:56:00.001-08:00

Yeah, pretty sweet.

ready and waiting

2011-12-03T15:05:00.001-08:00

prepped the sportster for its final night here in the BK. the new owner is on his way from PA (you see that Kim!). He is coming with a friend that is actually bringing a frame for my buddy Larry who shares the shop with me...small world. and keeping the Lancaster to Brooklyn bike quota in check.

spin around the block, power washed, degreased the motor, cleaned out the carb, lubed up the throttle, detailed the tins, scotch brited the pipes and said thank you for always being reliable and never letting me down. godspeed sporty, godspeed....(whatever that means) .

Here's to a world without the reliability of a bike that starts with the push of a button and doesn't fall apart.

Pangea Speed new Streamliner Bars

2011-11-29T04:34:00.000-08:00

Received a nice little package from Andy over at Pangea Speed and decided it was time to mount up these beautiful little bars.

I've always like the rabbit ear bar look, but proportions never seemed right. The either stuck up too much or were way too narrow and straight back making them awkward to actually twist a throttle with.

Well, he made his slightly lower than the last round and wider....aka perfect!?! First thing after mounting them up was lopping 2" off each end of the bars to get the right feel. Then I threw on a gorgeous new brake caliper/master cylinder set up that came from Kim. (more on that on a later date)

re-bled the front brake pretty quickly, but will be putting on new brake lines and throttle cable once the season tells me it is time.

CHECK OUT:

Andy from Pangea Speed on the daily

Andy's Born Free 4 Build Blog

New York City November

2011-11-26T18:22:00.001-08:00

its almost december, yet the weather is holding in epic-ness for a few more days. I haven't ridden the shovel for a bit so I decided to go for a short ride around Gowanus, Park Slope, Sunset Park, Red Hook and then Soho before heading home.

Keino had a few pans at the shop. One of which is Gentry's with the coffin/prism tank. I really like this bike. Its not a 'pretty pan'. It isn't like every socal pan with the wassel peanut, 18" rear, 21" up front and a chrome springer. Its not flashy. And its not really my style, but every time I see it, I want it.

As with most rides I gave myself one goal, get a firewire 800 to firewire 400 adapter. needless to say after looking in a few local 'small businesses', and having no luck, I have decided to order it for $4.00 from a small internet company called amazon.com.

sold 52 telecaster for sale...be like The Boss this thanksgiving

2011-11-23T04:31:00.000-08:00

mid 90's

Made in America

Fender '52 reissue telecaster

butterscotch blonde

$900

incredible sounding and versatile guitar. I've used it in every band I've been in over the last 10 years, from power pop to the metal of Get Your Death On. This guitar can play rhythm grooves and reggae and also cut right through the mix for leads as well.

great upgrades:

Brass Compensated Saddles.

the stock brass saddles aren't angled at at all the bridge which makes it 100% period correct but unable to actually get intonated properly. The compensated ones take care of this without having to switch to a modern saddle set up.

4-way switch.

This was a cool upgrade done by Noll Guitars in Rhode Island. The front neck pickup now works and isn't the stock '52 bass only set up. The switch positions are like this:

front - neck pickup only, 2nd position - neck and bridge in series (like usual tele), 3rd position - bridge pickup only, then the 4th position on the switch actually wires the two pickups in parallel like a humbucker. yes, it works, output increases and totally beefs up the tone. I usually played the guitar with that set up, and then when I needed to play a lead, switch it forward one notch to just use the bridge pickup.

Includes the original 3-way switch, the original brass saddles, the original modern style bridge and saddles and the original chrome pickup cover. OH and the Fender Tweed Case as well. Yeah, I'll miss this guitar, but I'm not using it. And I don't believe that music instruments belong in museums.....the deserve to be played.

*no, my foot is not included with the headstock. that was just a bonus.

hit me up if interested: mattlandman@gmail.com

ahem, introducing....Miles Ray Landman

2011-11-15T04:20:00.000-08:00

Definitely the most amazing experience in my life. His Mom and Miles did great the first week of his life! Ups, downs, victories, frustrations, sleeplessness, 2 hours of sleep a night, learning. We wound up trusting our instincts and leaning on each other for suggestions when things weren't going as planned and with the teamwork of the great nurses and doctors I can say that it was/is an all encompassing joyous feeling. All worth it. I can tell we have some amazing times ahead of us, even if it is unconventional.

Without further adieu, a few iphone pictures:

this shot was taken during his first 6 hours of life outside of the womb....damn....he's a good lookin' boy.

he did a little bit of this sleeping thing when we were still in the hospital. Its pretty crazy/great that within 5 minutes after they are born, its like, here you go, all yours, have a good night, we'll be back in a few hours to check in on you!

they say that babies cry for a handful of reasons; hunger, gas, poop, pee, tired.

But I can tell you first hand that it takes a little while to figure out which one it is, because once they wake up from those short lived 1-2 hour naps of utter cute and cuddliness, comes this:

(yes, he is practicing his hardcore metal breakdown scream/face)

I had posted on facebook if anyone had a hookup for kids sized glasses to get Miles started as young as possible...I mean, if he's gonna be a Landman, glasses are a key feature. Kim came through with a pair of vintage Rivets. They are proudly displayed on the shelves with a few of the great prints that Leigh Anne picked up for his bedroom.

so precious. so incredible. This picture was taken when he turned 1 week and 2 days old. Here's what I keep doing; scroll back up to the first picture from a mere week earlier, then back down. It's crazy how much babies will change/grow in these first few days. Yeah, yeah, this may be old hat to some of you, but its my first time really sitting with it and observing it.

and finally for now. Yes, he loves his glasses even if he has to wait a few years to grow into them. Look at that baby smirky smile.

making bars from bars

2011-11-04T07:59:00.000-07:00

with no bike here and completely slacking on getting Chris's sportster running, I need some sort of project to keep the few hours (read:1 hour) a day of free time busy. I had talked to both Chris and Kim about using the bends and bungs from the 70moto Gentleman's Bars and changing a few things ever since the shovel was getting finished. brought some pieces by BCM and we've slowly worked on it.

so....some heat, some patient coping, some tacking, back to coping, tacking, welding, heating, smoking, yes, a good amount of smoke was coming out of the ends of the bars, bending, heating, bending, and mounting. Kim was on heat duty while I was on the bending duty and I will fully admit that we went with the "art, not science" style of fabrication which can get interesting when bending stainless steel tubing. tip:use some science with your bends. bend it once, bend it right. whoopsie!

they are not the right style for maximum Bob's bike, but it's what we had to make sure the bars were perfectly in line with the front end. that was my biggest want for these. oh and a nice tight radius in the vertical sections of the bars....I think that they will look quite mounted up, especially after I spend some time behind the polishing wheel!!!

now, back to waiting!!!!! almost there!

It's the weekend...

2011-10-30T22:46:00.001-07:00

Surfing is the best. It just is. Checking the surf report, picking the right board from the quiver, checking out the waves as you suit up, paddling out, standing on a floating log and traveling 100 yards down the line in the open sea, yeah, pretty much an amazing series of events. And following a few hours in the water with burritos is the topper.

Last few days were the 9' longboards. Today was a 5'10" twin fish kind of day. Caught a few with young Aiden and even ran into Gouldie and caught a few with him as well.

Swap Meet Finds 2

2011-10-27T23:21:00.000-07:00

picked up this great panhead brake set up. All original parts, but not sure if/when I can actually use it. The mounting plates for the master cylinder and brake pedals changed for the cone shovel motors and this one won't truly fit on my bike without modification. But the pedal got me thinking about how to improve my current set up.

Plust the asking price was way too good for everything you see below including the Wagner master cylinder. besides, if I don't use any of these parts on my bike, I now have the first few pieces of my new panhead that I don't plan on ever having...just in case though, I've started collecting these parts first.

some fun stuff right there. It looks great.

Swap Meet Finds 1

2011-10-25T00:24:00.001-07:00

very fun and successful day at the Long Beach motorcycle swap meet on Sunday. Seeing old friends, talking (be it talking the talk, talking shit, or just talking about nothing), and checking out all the great old parts.

Chris is working on a new build and has a few very distinct details in mind. The first of which, maybe second after the motor, was that he wanted to use an S&S L-series carb. Yeah, the ones no longer in production. Well, lucky him, he found it. and got it for a great price. After bringing the aged and dirty fella home, he immediately headed to the polishing wheel and here's the look after the first pass...

yep, it looks like a foghorn. awesome. Anybody know anything about that G.E.M. cast velocity stack? Let me know. (yes, it says GEM, not G.M.E.) share the knowledge, share the love. One man's junk is another man's treasure. One man's swap meet purchase can equal another man's monthly rent.

cast carb, cast velocity stack and came with the cast S&S air horn cover. He polished that up too.....not too much, just right.

Ok, I'm tired.

is it bad to miss a machine?

2011-10-21T19:05:00.001-07:00

maybe I'm just being sentimental here in socal, but I miss the shovel...all the way back in Brooklyn. (I'll be home soon enough, buddy...).

In the meantime, I'm slowly gathering little bits here and there that I've needed for it; new main crankshaft seal, UNI foam filter for my BCM air cleaner, spring for my brake pedal, and hopefully a straight kicker arm after the swap meet this weekend.

Also saw the *new and improved* Sreamliner bars from Pangea Speed and may have to pick up a set of those, and in some downtime going to work on some bars with Chris and Kim as well. You gotta have options and with the sportster almost sold, I think I need to move on from the modified window bar look alltogether...Lastly, looking forward to helping out some more with the Maximum Bob shovel seat set up!

Pannikin Coffee Run

2011-10-18T12:16:00.000-07:00

Took the truck down to Pannikin for a few double lattes and to meet up with Chris and Dustin for some good conversation. Ran into mr. Todd Richards and caught up on life, his morning 'drop the kids off at school' routine, (that's literal, not the figurative dropping the kids off at the pool style joke), and we each started on our first coffee drink of the day. We assured one another that we would run into eachother again throughout the next few weeks.

I think I've got the solution down for the coffee to go when driving this beast. Bag up the coffee cup, tie a knot in said bag, drive the key through the knot and into the ignition and voila! Coffee cup holder.

do it in the dirt

2011-10-18T11:57:00.000-07:00

Experienced a great pain in the knee on Saturday when Kim's high(ish) compression panhead kicker gear slipped as I was trying to start it. Yes, this is more of my fault than the bikes, as I didn't make sure it was fully engaged before putting 180 lbs of force straight down into an over etended knee, but I'll still blame it on the bike!

Either way we had a good time catching up and working on the pan shape for Maximum Bob's custom seat. check out a few photos over here at Kim's blog.

That night, I had dinner with Leigh Anne and her mom and then went back over to Kim's to watch the 2nd and 3rd motos in the big Million Dollar Supercross race. Wound up staying out late and got a text from Chris that we would be heading out early on Sunday to Barona for some dirtbike action of our own.

all loaded up

Aidan getting the hang of shifting from 1st to 2nd. (crazy iphone HDR processing effect)

Chris hopped on with Riley to get him comfy as well. (same iphone error....i mean...)

self portrait with the pro track in the background. yeah....I'm not quite comfy there yet...

Everyone rode in the morning. We took turns on the 450 and Duke geared up and shared Riley's bike for a few laps as well.

eventually a little after noon, we loaded back up and headed home. This is their Sunday family day....as I told Chris, Duke is a keeper.

A Chevy, a Bentley, and sunrise Surf

2011-10-15T07:16:00.001-07:00

In that order or not. Feels nice to be back on the left coast for a little bit. No motorcycle out here this time which is odd. But this truck I'm driving has the same thought provoking challenges and head turning style as an old bike would so that is keeping me busy.

Hamsa - for good luck

2011-10-12T20:34:00.000-07:00

While the Hamsa has many different sub-names, like the Hand of Fatima, Hand of Miriam or Hand of Mary, it still transcends most cultures and is an icon of great things. This one was given to me from my friend Shai. She ensured me that this one means 'good luck', so rather than having any other superstitious things on my bike, I decided to make it the keychain for the motorcyle so that anytime I'm on it, good luck is with me. So far, so good.

While I can read hebrew, I really can't translate or understand everything, but luckily Shai's parents are from Israel, which means that of course she can read the writing and ensured me, its all about good luck and fortune.

Read more about it here: The hamsa (Arabic: خمسة‎ khamsah, also romanized khamsa, meaning lit.

I'm not religious or anything like that. BUT, It feels good to have a little bit of goodness safeness on my side while riding. Plus, my grandma always wored a pendant with this one it so it can't be all that bad!

YC...the new MC

2011-10-10T04:12:00.000-07:00

Rode up to Stony Point for lunch on Sunday up to Seaweed Yacht Club. The first picture shows my dad and step mom's clubhouse. It's sorta like the one on that SOA show (that I watch every week). Well, at least its their version. I'm thinking about prospecting.

The Hudson River got hit pretty hard with sewage and general grossness this summer. I grew up along this river and can tell you that I've never had a problem swimming in it, especially up in the Stony Point and West Point / Bear Mountain areas. But there was a sewage spill, the hurricane, and then they opened up all of the locks around the river and it just destroyed the water. It still looks gorgeous though just a few miles outside NYC.

Riding home, we took route 9W all the way to the GWB. Nice riding weather, some twisties, but then the west side highway was crazy, so we decided to take a coffee break outside of the SoHo House on the way. Then headed back to Brooklyn, went to Brad and Viki's ate and watched the Jets game. Yeah, this city is pretty great.

Now, I'll go back to Saturday......this weekend was the annual Di Enda Run out to Montauk. It was a great time last year and I was looking forward to meeting up with the Jersey, Long Island, CT and Massholes for another ride and night of fun at the eastern tip of Long Island.

Instead, what I was met with was yet again, a 500 lb paperweight. Kicker was just spinning through the clutch. No engagement, full slippage. Finally got it started on an off kick and decided to gas up and start heading east. BUT, after getting gas, same issue. So I did what I had to. I stopped.

I stopped and sat down next to the bike and thought about what it could be, and wondering if this was a sign to stay in BK and finally figure this one out. And that's what I did. Went over to Nelson's shop and he told me the simple fix to it. Adjusting the clutch pushrod screw. DUH. then it was on to dialing in the tiny amounts of rotation so that the clutch pedal doesn't release too quickly. Either way, a few hours of huffing and puffing and trying to rush around turned into a Saturday morning and afternoon of satisfaction.

...and some Invitational love (a 2 post morning?)

2011-10-07T04:55:00.000-07:00

the gentlemen at Greasy Kulture did a little post on the bikes outside of the Brooklyn Invitational and the shovel and the sporty made it into two of them. I don't care whatcha say, its always fun to see when stuff you've worked on winds up on the interwebs somewhere. Or at least liked it enough to snap a picture and post it.

check out the post here: Greasy Kulture - invitational on the street

and the shovel in the 2nd picture is JD's. He is a true ruler and so is his bike. And so is his tank's paint job, oh and the seat.

yeah, I'm a nerd.

random living in NYC

2011-10-07T04:34:00.000-07:00

posts have been too far few in between. It has been a busy busy week at work, but all of this non-posting has given me time to think about things that I want to post. For now though, here are some random pictures I've taken around the city in the last week.

head to head iPad gaming action. No this is not a tricky subway mirror. check the shoes. (also note the dude stuck in the corner behind them. he was probably tweeting the same picture)

picked up some new ground coffee from eataly. My goal is to try all of their drip varieties to figure out which will be my jam...shouldn't be hard at the rate I drink the liquid gold.

I'm hardly religious in the traditional sense, and definitely not a baptist, but I liked this saying. Maybe replace religion with the word LIFE. you gotta love living.

tank badge from walter's shop.

well, the Yankees bats may have been sleeping, but Coors Light definitely made some great new pint glasses at least.

plenty more to come. I should be heading to Montauk this weekend. Weather is looking great. Need to fix the exhaust on the shovel yet again before leaving tomorrow morning, but also need to head to the burbs tonight.

Aidan has a posse and could still use your help

2011-10-03T19:49:00.000-07:00

Walter over at Kickstart Cycle is holding a raffle for an amazing, custom built and painted 24" S&M Cruiser bicycle. The benefit is for Aidan Seeger who has been diagnosed with having a rare brain disease called ALD. He is 7 years old. He comes from a great family and they all could use your help.

For info about Aidan, click here: Aidan's Story

Link to the raffle, click here: the bike

Aidan's parents own and run Indian Larry Motorcycles in Brooklyn. Local folks. Show them your love and who knows, maybe you'll be riding home and bunny hopping curbs the whole way...

$5 could help. thanks.

what a (little) dream

2011-10-03T07:18:00.001-07:00

Larry's new ride. If you add up the CC's of all of his bikes, you'd still be a few hundred away from an 883 sporty.

1972 CB350

2011-09-28T05:02:00.000-07:00

On Sunday night, I headed up to Nyack to have dinner with the rents. I've been watching my dad rebuild the carbs for some time now and it was finally ready for a ride! Bike started right up and without hesitation I looked back at him and said, "it'll be fine....."

About 5 miles into my ride, the rear started feeling squirrely, you know the feeling...FLAT TIRE! I slowed the bike down a few hundred yards from the nearest gas station and walked it there. brand new tires, must have pinched the tube or something. all good, added some air and rode back to their house.

I forgot how much fun it was to ride a bike like this. Sitting upright, suspension that works, nice and lightweight and the roads at night in the suburbs can't be beat. Dark, nobody on them, trees hanging over the lanes, just really beautiful.

the twins are the way to go if you're going to get a Honda. Now, if they could just figure out a way to eliminate one of the carbs and make it even simpler...

Kyuss Lives and the Sword Rules

2011-09-25T21:36:00.000-07:00

my Friday night. rock. roll. Kyuss. the Sword.

never thought I'd see Kyuss live. Sure, it wasn't the full original line up. But the music and the show was perfect. And the Sword, they just need to release a live album because you can't capture their sound on record/CD. At least not that I've heard yet.

photos for the future and from the show

2011-09-20T04:53:00.000-07:00

On Sunday I had the amazing opportunity to meet up with Michael Schmidt to have him take some pictures and shoot film of the shovelhead. He used to see it as a pile of parts back in california when he was filming/shooting Kim for his sportster build, and now got to see a complete motorcycle. We took a few laps over the bridges between Brooklyn and Manhattan and then found a great little wall to shoot the stills in front of on Flatbush Ave in Brooklyn.

We were losing the light very quickly so hopefully the pictures come out as planned. Let's just say we had a ton of fun with everything from locations to wardrobe...photos to be featured in an upcoming issue of Dice Magazine.

Go ahead and check out Michael's work here.

back to the invitational:

since I only carried my iphone, AND more importantly, there were people with nice cameras at the show, I didn't really take many pictures. Here's a few links to some great pictures of the bikes that were at the Brooklyn Invintational:

45 Degree

Chop Cult

again, it was a great weekend. Great to catch up with friends from southern california. Great to see Walter and the rest of the Kickstart crew and great to hang with the NYC/Brooklyn crew of supportive dudes and dudettes.

Amazing Weekend

2011-09-19T05:54:00.000-07:00

It was a very so-cal weekend in BK. And I mean that in a good way. It was also very East Coast autumnal, in a good way.

Brooklyn Weekend

2011-09-16T04:45:00.001-07:00

...So let's chopper! Picked up Kim from JFK last night and headed to the Kickstart Cycle party at Lone Wolf in Bushwick. It will be nice to have some company in town for the weekend.

Great times catching up with friends old and new, California and New York. Tonight is the Dice event and then tomorrow the Invitational. Oh and the temperature feels like fall all of a sudden. Time to explore Bear Mtn!!!

Yep.

2011-09-15T05:28:00.001-07:00

0 miles per hour. How do people do this everyday?

Fuck North Jersey

2011-09-15T05:27:00.000-07:00

There's a reason to live in a city without having to drive to work.

Scat Man

2011-09-13T04:07:00.000-07:00

1963 BTH Scat. Harley's 175 cc trail bike. Pure awesomeness. Remember that song scat man? Pure terribleness.

gyspy run - fail for me

2011-09-12T04:49:00.000-07:00

shovel ran shitty last week. Wouldn't start after last weekend. And the goal was to stay awake all night Friday in order to catch up with the crew for the Gypsy Run. Needless to say, I didn't make it. Very disappointing. Its a terrible feeling when the plan you had falls apart so quickly and the solution comes together so slowly.

so here's what went down:

New Points

Condenser failed so new condenser

Adjust timing plate

2 sets of new plugs - 1 set fouled within 5 minutes of installing

Re-jetted super E - main jet from 72 to 68

Oil Change from 50 to 60 wt.

Brass on/off valve to make up for failed petcock

Around 15 lbs of sweat loss

amidst the frustration, stopped over by Keino's shop to bother him and ask about my slipping clutch/kicker and pick up some tweaky knobs.

tons and tons of kicking went down this weekend in between good amounts of reading. Now my neck is really sore, maybe from riding on the BQE? Either way, I can't turn my head in any direction.

BUT, the bike is running.

Fashion's Night Out

2011-09-08T05:31:00.000-07:00

While the pretty and beautiful manhattan elite are out and about tonight I'll be messing with new points and condenser, getting my rear brake mounted and working, start a tail light bracket and get the bike running again.

My agent is not happy about this, BUT sometimes you need to make these executive decisions.

Plus IF things go well, we can crash a party after midnight covered in grease and gas, which I think is chic right now.

Viva Thoughts that Count

2011-09-08T05:24:00.000-07:00

One of my coworkers went on vacation and bought me this great little dish/stuff holder.

Picture This

2011-09-06T12:28:00.000-07:00

1975 XL-1000. Pretty and Perfect.

Hoboken Night

2011-09-02T05:53:00.001-07:00

decided to take the ferry over the hudson for some Thai food and then a few drinks after. It's pretty hard to beat the views from that side of the river.

Enjoy your weekend. Stare into the sunset. the weather outside is weather...

70Moto Black Power Pan

2011-09-01T21:20:00.000-07:00

I originally shot and posted this pic on August 4, 2010. It was a night at Hensley's in Carlsbad. Chris has since changed the bars on the bike. it was and still is a ruler.

Also, last night while walking the dog, my neighbor said to me, "hey, that's a nice bike you got there, I saw you kickstarting that thing, that's like old school, huh? Like some early 90's shit, right dude?" (referring to the shovel)

I said "yep, pretty much".

early 90's / late 70's....similar enough. we then started talking about dirt bikes. 2 stroke vs. 4 stroke, then the conversation turned to talking about people having strokes, and I finished it up by bringing up the band The Strokes, but he didn't realize where I was going...I was amused.

Eataly's Birthday and a Steak Dinner

2011-09-01T04:13:00.001-07:00

With Eataly being generally expensive AND in our building at work, I often overlook it as an option for food shopping outside of the quick coffee or snack. Their produce is always fresh and their cheese section is quite great I must note. And even though I don't usually go in with the intent to purchase dinner, there was quite the buzz outside. It is their big birthday celebration so I ventured into the aisles to see what the excitement was about.

I wound up picking up three 6oz filets for $2 each. They had great deals on a bunch of different products ranging from their fresh egg pastas to canned tomato sauce to Lavazza coffee...and even crazy deals at the wine shop.

I've decided to cook the 3 steaks three different ways. First up was blackened. Used some of my favorite spices* from Williams-Sonoma and prepped the little slab of beef. Then pan seared it for 5 seconds on the two main sides. After that, threw it on the grill for about 5 minutes per side. Done to perfection. And even Rufus watched patiently.

*I've come to learn that WS is no longer carrying their Blackening Rub. Bummer, it was good. Luckily its really easy to make your own.

they see me rollinnnnnn.....

2011-08-30T05:00:00.000-07:00

I admittedly have pretty eclectic taste in music and some of the weirdest hip hop songs in my ipod/mp3/CD collection. The other night when I was riding into manhattan, this Chamillionaire song came on in my headphones, and it just brought me back, reminding me of life right after college, living at the SLATCH haus in Narragansett, RI, basically on a permanent vacation. Not to say this was the ideal life. Definitely not at all, we can all admit that. We're lucky to be alive...

We all had jobs. We knew the liquor distributors by name. We watched the package store bump the price of a PBR 12 pack up from $5 to $8. We stole street signs. We lived on a lake, while also living at the beach on the ocean. We food shopped at Costco, sometimes under the influence, which is how you wind up with $200 worth of snacks, cookies, and no actual food. We saw more people fall down our stairs at parties than you could have imagined. We drank Cristal (more on that at a later date).

We knew every bar and what night they had what kind of food for free.

anyways, enjoy this track.

Ridin' (Dirty)

Yeah, the song is still pretty terrible, but in a GREAT way.

Streets of Fire Big Twin

2011-08-29T04:06:00.000-07:00

Very productive weekend. Hurricane prep, made a tail light, rode around a little bit, had some good times in Williamsburg, and of course talked about pictures of motorcycles. check saturday and sunday's posts for some info on the "xyzal light".

Speaking of that, here's Malcolm's bike as it is now. I'll let the picture say it all.

There's a lot more to come on this bike. With the change from the square shovel style swingarm to the round panhead style swingarm, the rear dropped almost 2" so now the fender that he cut up sits too low, just another thing to re-buy, re-work. Lots of parts to make, all the little stuff, and the race is on to make it for the Gypsy Run and Brooklyn Invitational.

xyzal light con't or cont'd

2011-08-28T20:17:00.000-07:00

I still don't know if the abbrev. for continued is con't or cont'd. Does anyone know this?

Got some mesh screen today and finished off the lens for the light. After these pics were taken, I found some proper M5 screws to fasten the cover, but I forgot to take pictures of that.

I wound up stacking 3 screens at different angles to get the final look I wanted. The heads of the countersunk screws were too big, so I hit them with the grinder to make them smaller and have a cool little handmade feel. I'll post pics at some point.

Thanks again to Chris for donating the remote float bowl and Kim for donating the LED cluster. (if they weren't meant to be donations, send the invoices)

tail light bandwagon - the xyzal light

2011-08-27T18:02:00.000-07:00

after all of the excitement around making some sweet little tail lights around the blogosphere, I figured I'd get started on one that I had been kicking around a bit. I had originally planned on working on it while I was in socal right before Born Free, but there were way too many other priorities and only so much Mt. Dew, Burritos, and time to get things done.

Cut, Grid, File, Clean, Polish, Prep, Cut, Make Gasket, Assemble. Now just need to get a small piece of metal mesh to cover the LEDs, some nice screws and some more polishing. Last step is to decide if it will go on the shovel (and if it does, a nice little mount for it) OR if it will get donated to someone else's bike.

Time will tell. But it was a nice way to spend the day prepping for the big hur-a-can-do.

let us bathe you in our heart

2011-08-26T04:59:00.001-07:00

I love this Easyrides centerfold. I'll be framing it, hanging it, or at least putting it somewhere other than in a drawer in my toolbox.

With the impending doom from the hurricane on its way, lets take time to enjoy our Friday calm before the storm. Go out and ride. Go out and be with friends. Go out and have a drink or two. Fuck it, go out and play golf. Just do what you want. Go to the beach, go surf, go fabricate something.

back to the shop

2011-08-24T04:57:00.001-07:00

maybe it was the 'quake...maybe it was the realization that I have had pretty extreme up and down days and have for the past 6 months or so. BUT last night it was back to the shop where I could get some work done and feel good about being productive!

Malcolm's new bike is coming along really well. He has carefully picked the parts that he wanted for the bike and last night it was finishing up the roller and getting his 96" S&S heart into the bike.

After carefully taping off the frame to avoid scratching up his fresh powder coating, the motor went right in (2nd try) and voila. He's on his way.

Last picture shows him sizing everything up. Looks pretty good so far. This new swingarm frame adds around 4 more inches of wheelbase than his old rigid but still looks tiny when you're a 6'4" gigantor.

Calm after the Quake

2011-08-23T12:11:00.000-07:00

That was pretty weird. Dreary feeling. But on the streets everyone got along. Everyone was so nice again. And so I snapped this picture. Because it felt good again.

speaking of Black (metal)...

2011-08-23T04:12:00.000-07:00

Kvelertak is officially my new favorite band right now. And while their lyrics are in Norwegian, it doesn't matter. Listening to them while either killing a spreadsheet at work or driving/riding fast on the roadways just feels great. Even walking around the streets, it doesn't matter. If I've inspired you to check them out, leave a comment here. Let me know what listening to this band makes you want to do. And I know they aren't officially black metal, but they are rulers.

And if you're one of those people who check the blog silently, quietly lurking, just know that listening to this band makes me want to punch you in the face. Like accidentally run into each other in a dark alley and realize that I'm the guy that writes about himself and stupid shit here and you're the one who's IP address and service provider constantly pop up in my analytics as a top follower.....not that I check that stuff. But if I did and this band was on in my headphones, we could see if the years of boxing actually have any use outside of the ring.

AND FURTHER.....I got this email that Filson is officially releasing some of their best sellers in ALL BLACK. Coincidence of the black metal and the All Black Top Siders? Maybe. Maybe not. But look how great the Greenwood Jacket looks:

check out the rest of the black collection at Filson's site here.

side note:....I'm not a tough guy, I'm just tough. like hangin' tough. like NKOTB.

All Black Everything...even Top Siders

2011-08-22T06:12:00.000-07:00

To the Nixon crew, yes I continue my trend of All Black whenever I can.

Thanks to Jon and Casey for the lookout on these Sperry's.

Gorilla USA - I love shoes and Fridays

2011-08-19T05:22:00.000-07:00

Its no secret that I love shoes/boots/footwear, etc...It used to be AirMax 90's, then Dunks, then Vans, then RedWings, then New Balance, and the list goes on. One of my new favorites is Gorilla which I still believe are out of Worcester, MA.

Made in USA shoes and boots that are built to last, be re-soled and stay with you for the long haul.

check them and their story out here.

these are the ones that I've been rocking. I mean, come on, everyone needs a pair of blue suede shoes. Especially with leather soles.

Other than that, its another Friday. The shovel is on its way to NYC and should be here by next Thursday, and I can't wait for that. Plans for the weekend? probably. maybe some jersey? some Hoboken to meet up with friends and then down to central jersey and Philly? sounds pretty good.

OH, and Saturday morning if you're in Brooklyn and you love cars, motorcycles and Rockabilly. (basically, if you love SoCal....haha), come and check out the Rumblers 11th annual show. WE'll be there.

the Great Salt Lake and Pangea Speed

2011-08-18T04:51:00.000-07:00

Looks like Andy has been up to some fun stuff lately, and with his Born Free build done, I'm sure he is looking for more work to do! One of these little projects being a facelift to our great friend Nate's big twin. The bike was originally bought from a great small boutique builder, but I'm not sure if Nate and the bike ever really gelled.

I know from first hand experience that the bike was impossible to turn at speed. It sat so low, that the floor boards would scrape through every traffic light turn. I'm pretty sure last time I was out in SLC, I fully skidded through a sharp turn on the floor board in the front and rear tire in the back....not a fun feeling.

Either way, some paint here, bars there, seat over there, lengthening the front end by 3" and a few other little secret tweaks and this bike is begging for a road trip.

Check out what Andy is up to over on his blogggggggg.

New Filson x Levi's Collection

2011-08-17T04:47:00.000-07:00

Must haves for this upcoming Fall/Winter season.

Check the Filson site here for the details of this all Made in USA Collection.

and I'm not just all over Filson because Rufus rides for them....

got it right

2011-08-16T06:42:00.000-07:00

I see this graffiti on my way to work everyday. I think Dano has something here. Unless, of course, you're suuuuper rich or bitches just don't stress you out. File under 'very classy'.

back from the weekend

2011-08-15T04:42:00.000-07:00

whew, made it out....still here....

I'll start it off with a picture from my "guess who dosn't live in NYC" set.

from there, Friday night started off with great Thai dinner and then out with Jose, Malcolm and Jose's crazy Australian friend on the lower east side and east village. Everybody knows that once you feed and Aussie booze, you never know what is going to happen. this held true.

Saturday was Rob's '32 is 23 in a mirror' birthday BBQ. Lots of this
and this

Sunday was spent out in Jersey. Some traffic, a lot of rain and then a little chilling in the 'burbs. Check out this license plate that I snapped a picture of. Had to be purposely done, right?

ahhhh, rockin' the suburbs.

finished it up with some time spent welding at the shop. Nothing fancy. maintenance work. still busy. and never really took the time to settle down and relax. maybe next weekend.

Kim's SR500....for sale!

2011-08-12T04:50:00.000-07:00

even though I'd much rather have anyone who reads this blog buy MY sportster, Kim is also selling his amazing SR500!!!

check it out over here.

THEN, head back to the olde pro and buy my sporty!

more pics from my work day

2011-08-12T04:41:00.001-07:00

with a work meeting being called at our site in Parsippany, NJ, it was a perfect opportunity to take the sportster out for a little spin. I love living in Brooklyn, and being in NYC, but nothing beats getting out of the city when the sun is out and enjoying the great roads of the east coast. wait, the highways actually suck for the most part....especially 78. Its like they installed ejector bumps every 30 feet! seriously, they need to take some notes from THE 78.

but once you're off the highways, the local roads really are unbeatable. Tree lined and covered streets, white picket fences, the smell of BBQ's and the sounds of nature are hard to beat.

back to reality and the highway of doom.

halfway over the Manhattan bridge looking at downtown/Fort Greene BK.

riding over DUMBO. the place not the elephant. although that elephant is pretty awesome too.

Workin Hard or Hardly Workin...

2011-08-11T06:29:00.001-07:00

Offsite meeting in New Jersey yesterday. Great day.

5K - your next bike

2011-08-09T18:40:00.001-07:00

that's it. 5 large? make this happen. you won't regret it. girls will think you are super cool. OR they will think you are lame. Dudes will be totally jealous, or they will think you are really weird and jumping on the bandwagon. Either way it doesn't matter. Fuck them all. Motorcycles are fun and dangerous.

that probably wasn't the best sales pitch. This bike is just fun to ride. And its waiting for you in Brooklyn.

romantic rights

2011-08-09T04:16:00.001-07:00

3 turns of her throttle to get the carburetor wet...

...and then get to work and start straight kickin' it!

The truth is, once she's ready to go.....she's ready to go. And you can't rush these things. She's a machine like the rest of them. Chris captured these pics on more than one occasion. Sometimes it was more kicking than I would have loved to admit. Like, strip down all your clothes off because you're sweating so much from kicking. But JD's method seems to be the way.

reading / guitar nook

2011-08-08T05:04:00.001-07:00

Spending time with Eames.

here you go buddy...

2011-08-05T04:50:00.000-07:00

...the anthem you need.

If this storm really comes through and brings waves, then we'll see where the weekend leads us. Montauk? Bel Mar? Slease Side? maybe even just Rockaway? All I know is that after last weekend's non-existent waves, something would be nice.

Happy Friday. its the weekend, baby....

old commuter - all black all day

2011-08-04T04:47:00.001-07:00

this was my transporter back in 06/07. loved this thing. Now she lives in Salt Lake City and I hope Bruns is still enjoying the ride.

will I ever get another fixed gear bike? probably not. I enjoy my gears way too much.

Who's World is This?

2011-08-03T07:23:00.000-07:00

Still one if the best albums. My Wednesday has started off on the right foot now.

Taco Tuesday

2011-08-03T06:49:00.000-07:00

Yum. Well now it's Wednesday, but still.

Picture Perfect

2011-08-02T06:21:00.000-07:00

I still think the next version of the shovel will wind up heavily influenced by this bike. OR we'll build another. One for Cali and one for NYC.

Once Chris smartens up and sells that slow pan, maybe he'll step up (down/back) into a cone.

welcome back to the working week

2011-08-01T05:00:00.000-07:00

the weekend proved to be nice and stress-free. hopefully it was the same for you. saturday started off with brunch with mom in Brooklyn. she trekked in from the 'burbs and it was great to catch up. then, it was off to Manhattan in the afternoon to meet up with the upper east siders in my life and had some good times at Vol de Nuit. If you're looking for a good spot for great belgian beers in the west village, head on over. Tell them I sent ya. Then headed to Plug Uglies for some tabletop shuffleboard and less-belgian-y beers....

saw this great van parked outside the apartment...

and even took the sporty out for a ride around the block, if you know what I mean...and you do. came across this 'first edition' benchmark points cover in my toolbox that used to grace my 06 sportster. removed before I sold it so that one day I could pawn it on ebay when Kim is famous.

oh and of course, I was at Rockaway to get some beach action in. No waves, but still got all sandy and swam a bunch. like I said, drama free and ready for action.

its the weekend....almost

2011-07-29T06:41:00.000-07:00

go spend some time over at Cay's blog. Great photos, quotes and general content. Waste your friday wisely.

and remember....

anything in there for breakfast? yes please....

cameron

2011-07-27T04:50:00.001-07:00

repost from someone else's repost. but she just looks great on Shinya's bike here.

He has had some great customers/photos of his bikes. reminded me of this old posting I did about Brad Pitt's hollywood moves. The days of cruising around LA and/or Venice Beach with the crew may not be here right now, but next time I'm out there we'll get a good little ride together...and Tony, you better have my jacket.

the Foothills Band

2011-07-26T20:30:00.001-07:00

a bunch of bandits....I miss playing music and hanging with this crew. bashing those drums is always so fun.

we had some great times. next time in the southern california state of mind or the actual state, we'll book a show and reunite....for now, I'll just listen to T-Pain and think about the good times.

yep. she's been getting plenty of rides...

2011-07-26T04:13:00.001-07:00

...but she's still available.

hmmm.....

a bit more info back on this post! accepting offers!

heat wave(s)

2011-07-25T04:30:00.000-07:00

the 5'10" fish has been getting plenty of love here on the east coast. This board loves the quick beach break waves like none other....it's definitely still weird grabbing the boards from inside the apartment, down the stairs and out onto the city streets, but I'm getting used to it. especially without hitting the walls in the stairwells or the spring loaded front door to the building.

While it was a bummer to give up the opportunity to see Daniel Tosh at the Borgata on Saturday night, it just wasn't the right weekend to head to Atlantic City. Especially when this is what awaits a mere 15 miles away from my home in BK.

after spending 3+ hours in the water, Jose and I headed over to Rockaway Taco to enjoy the best thing that you can do after surfing!

great seating arrangements.

first course, fish tacos, baja style. superb.

up next, carne tacos with guacamole. these were just OK. not carne ASADA. not as good as the fish option.

getting down on some tacos.

nights in Hoboken

2011-07-22T04:01:00.000-07:00

when we first arrived in Antwerp, I was surprised to see the trolley coming towards me with a Hoboken sign in the front window. It was like a case of deja vu. Did I just arrive back at Newark? where the hell am I?

But no, Hoboken is an area in the south part of Antwerp. So naturally since I've had some great nights in Hoboken whether it was going to shows at Maxwell's, going out to dinner/bars, or even just hanging out when my brother used to live there, I had to go check it out in Antwerp as well.

It was totally different. There isn't a ton of information but here's wikipedia's page about this little subdivision.

But it did remind me that I need to get back over there soon. With the Syndicate being right in Weehawken, I really should be making it over there more after work. And then also go down the shore for some surfing and beaching before jellyfish season kicks in.

antwerp-a-derp

2011-07-20T15:44:00.000-07:00

just going to start with a side note: for some reason, I can't get Skulls out of my head....was singing it in my head all night tonight. so go ahead and listen to it as well.

great day all around in antwerp today. started off meeting our diamond subsidiary folks and watching rough diamonds getting graded, measured, cut (sawed), shaped, polished and finished. unbelievable stuff. Just knowing that half of the carat weight is unused, removed, or polished away to get to that final little sparkler makes the experience of working with them that much greater. you should definitely go and buy yourself some. after that, went to visit a vendor that uses technology in a way that is pretty new in the jewelry business and had a very productive meeting talking about CNC machines, CAD/CAM, and mostly robots.
Did you know that Robots don't get holidays? I know that now.

after work, ran into this little 70's Zundapp on the sidewalk. I tried asking who the owner was in my broken french/belgian/german-ish (aka English), but I was unsuccessful.

walked past a thrift shop that was closed and saw these beauties in the window. I'm such a sucker for Eames chairs. I still miss the blue set of side chairs. But I don't miss the cat hair that burrowed its way into them.

oh and some Saarinen sneaking in the background? yes please.

an unexpected view of the Cathedral

we found a great little underground spot for dinner. place was definitely dungeon-y. All the food was cooked on a wood burning stove that was fully exposed. Not only was my beef cooked this time around, I still smell like it. *oh and I think this restaurant reminded me of the song London Dungeon by the Misfits which THEN made me think of Skulls......

and finished up the day with a bunch of these.

antwerp-ing

2011-07-19T14:25:00.001-07:00

sometimes the clouds look like ________ (mad libs)

couldn't believe that Easy Rider was a movie option on my on-demand, but it was....YES!

Mark Drews sighting on a magazine here in Belgium

you know, just the outside of the train station

oh, and the inside. they did such a great job of making everything look really old. They must have hired some REALLY good hollywood set designers here.

For lunch i wanted something Grilled Cheese-esque. I ordered from the section that had Croque Monsieurs. I ordered the one called Americain Cannibal. I thought it would be ham and cheese. Instead the picture below is what came out. Raw beef spread on bread with the sides like a lox and bagel situation. Yes, I ate it all. No, I'm not sick yet.

oh, and some beer.

Newark->Brussels/Antwerp

2011-07-18T14:57:00.000-07:00

Internash.

Last Turns

2011-07-18T03:27:00.001-07:00

Nothing like the last few moments on Rt. 3 / 495 before crossing the Lincoln Tunnel. 7 1/2 hours in the car from Canada and then no traffic through Jersey and into the city made for an easy ending to the trip.

Space Needle

2011-07-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

View from inside the stadium. We got to see the Yankees beat the Blue Jays after a few embarrassing games.

Classic Phil

2011-07-15T10:17:00.001-07:00

Plan was to meet in buffalo at 3. Looks like all 15 of us will be hitting it right at 3:30. Not too bad.

To Canadia

2011-07-15T05:32:00.000-07:00

First gas stop. Coffee kicking in. 1st major goal ahead: buffalo wings in Buffalo. Hours and hours away.

Gansevoort Rooftop

2011-07-14T09:15:00.000-07:00

Yep. Apre-dinner last night. Good spot.

it's like that man, it's like that...

2011-07-12T05:23:00.001-07:00

not a video, just audio, but this is what I'll be listening to today....and so should you be. with the new documentary coming out, I've been on quite the tribe kick. click it. turn up your headphones or speakers.

2001 Sportster For SALE - Brooklyn

2011-07-05T19:53:00.000-07:00

2001 Sportster 883

early 90's 2.2 gallon tank/pingel petcock

custom rear fender

custom made bars by Kim Boyle

Benchmark air cleaner

Benchmark breather bolts

custom formed, shaped, and upholstered seat

custom exhaust

chopped cam cover

chopped/polished/blasted front pulley cover

narrowed pegs

19"/16" shinko/avon tires

re-wired

new battery

super fun

reliable, starts with the push of a button.

email me for more info or if interested. mattlandman@gmail.com

clean california title.

ready to go.

a very NYC 4th weekend

2011-07-05T04:33:00.001-07:00

action packed. lots done. pictures. iphone. sun. rain. fun.

rode the cyclone, then watched the Brooklyn Cyclones. truth. although the cyclones blew it at the end of the game to the Staten Island Yankees, it was a great time.

Chris organized the group ticket purchase and since there was 20 of us, they included these orange Cyclones hats. Rob and I gladly rocked them, albeit mine with a tilt up and out.

it was too nice and sunny and the city was empty so we I decided to ride bicycles from Park Slope into Manhattan and do some holiday shopping. I re-stocked on some of my Kiehl's stuff and got to check out some fun old harleys there. I have a picture of the bike that's at the Garden State Plaza store as well somewhere.

riding down the middle of Lafayette. yes, the city was that empty.

Nice little visit to the Momofuku Milk Bar

DUMBO.

finished it up with Sunset, BBQ and then watching the fireworks from the rooftop.

drain your tank

2011-07-03T11:50:00.001-07:00

remember that when you're drinking all that beer, and think you can privately alleviate yourself, someone is always watching.....OR you're just getting 20+ years of rust and crap out of some old gas tank.

Pipes

2011-06-30T06:30:00.000-07:00

Flew back to NYC

2011-06-27T21:31:00.001-07:00

I'm back now. that's all I need to say.

Made it, still can't believe it

2011-06-26T19:43:00.001-07:00

This was an amazing ride. Casualties from the trip were a flat tire (due to the pin in the schrader valve coming undone, easy fix), the rear exhaust mount bolt stripping out and flying down the highway, a bolt for my PM rear brake doing the same, and some oil leaking. Other than that, not a bad 150 mile shakedown.

SoCal Week - Born Free - let's do this

2011-06-25T07:52:00.000-07:00

The biggest, most amazing, happiest, incredible Thank You to Chris Collins for making this happen. I'm still in disbelief that yesterday I kicked this bike to life and we rode up and down the coast. Today, we head to Oak Canyon Ranch.

While Chris may claim that this bike built itself, he made it happen, against what some would have seen as possible in a months time.