Reno / Sacremento / Bay Area riders

Hey everyone - Roll call for everyone coming down from the Reno/Sacremento/Bay Area or somewhere further up north! We want to help organize some meetup points for people on other routes. If you're going to be coming that way post something up here or shoot me a message!

-Kris

Jesse Jordan's Build

Hey all - To help get you guys excited about Born Free 3 and our history-making journey we're going to show off some of the awesome builds people making the ride this year have been working on.

To start off let's take a look at Jesse Jordan's '79 FXE build...

What are you building?
It started life out as a 79 FXE and has turned into a chopper of some sort.

How long has the build been going for?
Its been on my mind for a couple of years but I tore it down last fall. I went for a full winter build (from the ground up).

What inspired you on this build? How did you get the idea for the build?
I grew up around old Harleys and have always wanted to put a shovel together. My dad and I picked up his bike from a friend that had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer (who has since passed). It was sitting in a pile of old blankets and rat nests, I was just going to build a “rat” bike but couldn’t leave well  Enough alone. Engine, frame, paint, I just kept at it. I just wanted to do it on the cheep and have been pretty successful. I have done most every thing myself including shooting all the black paint, it isn’t perfect but it’s pretty close.

Is this your first build? If not, what was your first build? How did that go?
No it’s not. My first build was a 47 Knuckle. I did not do the engine work myself and have paid for it ever since, 500 miles, 7 years and 2 pistons later I have to tear it apart and start from scratch (maybe next winter).

What's been the hardest part of the build?
My timing, I was painting the frame out in my garden in between the rain and 40 deg weather. My wife had to help me carry the frame out the garden gate, down the stairs and into the garage so I could hang it over the propane heater to cure (3 times).

What other builders inspire you?
I have met some cool people in the bike world Max Schaaf, California
Fritz but my father has inspired me the most. He always had the coolest bikes and got me into the blogger chopper world. The most important thing he has told me is, why buy it when you can build it. Those words have always inspired me in all endeavors, besides it’s way cooler to show off something you made.

What do you love most about choppers, building bikes, riding, etc?
I love the simplicity of the machine, lean, light, and cool. Every one
is different, even the flaked out sea of wassel tanked, bates seated, inline
springer choppers. Building and riding a dinosaur of a machine in a sea of new
bikes with owners who don’t even know where the drain plug is makes me a little
proud, but then you guys know how that feels.

Any thoughts about choppers, the state of the industry, BF3, etc?
I thought that the traditional bike scene was lost in the past. Stories I heard from my dad and his friends you know the good old days, old photos and grainy slides. I had the opportunity to go on the 69 Mile ride last fall and I just got back from the Deathtraps swap meet in Sonora. All the good old days aren’t gone yet. The 50k chopper scene has passed (I hope) and I like what I have been seeing on all of these blogs. There are still real bikes around and it’s good to see them.

I am looking forward to Born Free 3 and have even put together a group of old crusty bikers to go along with me. A couple of them have even dusted off there old junk to bring along.

Jess

That's a great build Jess - I love that you're keeping a friend's bike in the family and that you're keeping old iron on the road. I can't wait to see it in person! Thanks for sharing with us.

To check out more of what Jess and his buddies are up to go to choppedstockandjustplainfun.blogspot.com.

If you or anyone you know coming out to Born Free this year is riding a homemade machine and wants to share with the rest of us shoot me an email - ridetobornfree@gmail.com

-Kris

Wednesday Night in Utah

We'll be in or near Green River, Ut our first night on the road. Question is do y'all want to camp or get a motel? Vote on the right, and vote soon so I can make some reservations!

Thanks

Calling All Smartphone Owners...

In addition to all the people that are going to saddle up and make the ride this year I've also heard from a lot of people that wish they could make the trip but just can't this time. Fortunately there are lots of great ways to include everyone on our adventure. One of those ways is UStream.

UStream is a free web service that allows anyone with a smartphone to broadcast live video - anytime, anywhere. I've been working with them to setup a Born Free 3 channel where people at home can log in to see the action, both from the ride and from the show.

If you've got a smartphone and want to be part of the Born Free "film crew" hit me up and I'll get you setup on our channel and show you how to get started.

And, if you know anyone who isn't going be sure to let them know we're not leaving them out this year!

-Kris

East Coast Riders???

Steve Bennett's not fuck'n around this year... While some folks in So Cal are complaining that Born Free has been moved out the city ("it's too far to drive") Steve is preparing to saddle up and make the trip out from Pennsylvania!

So, is anyone else headed out to Born Free from the East Coast? Anyone out that way want to meetup with Steve as he journeys West?

If so, leave a comment or hit up the Ride to Born Free Facebook page and drop a line! You guys can be the group that starts Ride to Born Free 3!

-Kris

Update

Hey all - time for another update. The list keeps growing and it's looking like this thing could be HUGE! What ever lame-ass excuse your buddies are trying to give you, ignore it and get their ass on a bike!

We've got close to 60 confirmed riders so far and the blog site has been getting a lot of hits. 60 fuck'n choppers rolling through the Nevada desert??? Yeah, this going be bad-ass...

Worldwide people are checking in from Canada, Brazil, Japan, Russia, Hungary, Italy, Austria, France and more to see what we're up to.

For those looking to get a rough idea of the plan so far here's what it looks like:
- Meetup in Denver the night of Tuesday June 21st. I'm working on planning something for that night, probably just a lot of beer drinking while watching 'On Any Sunday', but we'll do something...

- Leave from Speedmetal's shop on Wednesday morning (5/22). Ride 370 miles to Green River, UT.

- On Thursday (5/23) we roll from Green River to Las Vegas, 412 miles. So far I've heard much from anyone in the Utah/Nevada area. It would be cool if we could meetup with some of those folks are party in Vegas for a night before the show. If you know anyone in that area give them a shout!

- Friday we ride to Born Free 3, a short 270 miles.

We're going to have a lot of old bikes, and probably a lot of breakdowns so I've tried to keep the daily mileages reasonable. If a couple 350-400 mile days are going to be a problem shoot me a message and we'll figure something out. None of this is set in stone yet, so if you have any ideas let's hear them!

Big News!

So there's this guy who takes pictures of motorcycles, you might have heard of him. His name's Michael Lichter and he'll be tagging along with us on the way to Born Free.

In all seriousness, if you don't know that name you should; it's a real honor to have someone like this on board. Michael has spent the last three decades producing the highest quality motorcycle images in the business. He's got an amazing talent for not just capturing the machines, but also the people, culture and events that surround them.

Cycle Matters did a great interview here (http://bit.ly/gT5pYY) and you can see more of his work here (http://www.lichterphoto.com/).

So there you go - one more reason to grab some friends, saddle-up and join this year's Ride to Born Free.

Image Source