Major Ranting

It ain’t no lie when I say custom motorcycles are on the rise. Everywhere from the shores of Japan to the desert sands of Beirut, as well as the sum of Europe’s nations, we have been seeing America’s finest V-twins getting the full-on tip-to-tail cut, weld, and chop treatment. Bikes both old and new have been going under the knife with staggering results. The mixing and matching of vintage parts with brand new componentry to configure a machine that can seamlessly meld classically good looks, stand out in a crowd, and actually be ridden is a feat not for the faint of heart, but one I will never tire of seeing.

I also genuinely appreciate the current crop of shops that are churning out killer high-horsepower, good-looking builds, as well as the one-man DIY garage builders that often rival them.

With all that said, I feel it is my job as the headmaster of Hot Bike to give you a solid cross section of what is currently the best in custom motorcycling with the features we pack into this magazine every month. Crazy big-wheeled baggers, long and lean choppers, pre-and-post war vintage iron, wild V-twin variants, and sick-as-hell Sportsters are all represented in Hot Bike with the only common denominator being that they are all shining examples of what a badass ride really is. Sure these bikes are continuously hitting different tunes with you, the reader, and your personal taste in motorcycles, but if you admire quality bikes that look great, are well thought out, and constructed at a top-notch level then you will for sure appreciate a different type of bike that may not have ever struck your fancy before. Who knows, with all of the amazing motorbikes we come up with every issue, you just may sell your chopper for a bagger or vice versa. Worse things have happened, huh?

On another note, the Hot Bike Power Tour is shaping up to be quite the event for 2013 with Geico Motorcycle Insurance, Amsoil lubricants, and a ton of other great sponsors supporting this rolling rally. The Power Tour is a five-day event that starts August 24 in Little Rock, Arkansas, heads through Jackson, Tennessee, Bowling Green, Kentucky, Anderson, Indiana, and ends up in Racine, Wisconsin, 30 miles from Milwaukee on Harley-Davidson’s 110th anniversary extravaganza weekend. This is an event for people who ride, put on by people who ride. Whether you ride the whole way, tag along for a day or so, or just hang out for the night, we are going to have a ton of fun riding through this great country of ours. We would love you to mount up, meet up, and join the Hot Bike, Baggers, and Street Chopper editors along with a ton of our motorcycle brethren for this historic ride! For more info, check out hotbikepowertour.com.

Whether you ride the whole way, tag along for a day or so, or just hang out for the night, we are going to have a ton of fun riding through this great country of ours.”