Sideburn presents Force of the Moto-Ninja

Sideburn: Force of the Moto-Ninja from SIDEBURN on Vimeo.

When the Moto-Ninja calls in at his local Sideburn stockist, Static Records, to buy the latest issue he manages to snag the last copy in the shop. This upsets the local literature-loving bikers and that spells trouble.

If you're in Wigan, or passing through, Static will be stocked up with Sideburn 24 before the weekend. G

Sideburn 24 Has Landed

 

At last, the biggest ever issue of Sideburn is here. A monstrous 116 pages, up from 100 pages (well, the first issue were 80). Makes sure your Yorkshire Terrier isn't asleep on the front door mat when this comes through the letterbox.

Buy yours at sideburn.bigcartel.com for the same £6 plus post

We have the regular black issue and a smaller run of 'white' though it's not really white. The covers were designed by Toria Jaymes of Stay Outside Studio. Both are identical inside, we just like making alternative covers, because we can't choose which we prefer. And because we can.

We also have high quality Giclee prints of the cover design on black or white heavyweight archival print. See the Clear Your Head prints and all other prints we have in stock in the Art Prints section of the new look Sideburn webshop.

What's inside the super, £6, 116-page Sideburn 24...

BIKES: Minotaur '55 Triumph 650, See See Harley XG750, Honda RS750D and more...
EVENTS: Snow Quake, Las Vegas Superhooligan, Hell on Wheels hillclimb
HOW TO: Get ahead in short track racing with Briar Bauman
PEOPLE: Mike Kidd, Dickie Brown, Stone, Guy Martin, Toria Jaymes
PORTFOLIO: Rafaelle Paolucci
ADVENTURE: British Columbia with Filthmode

 

 

What's that? You don't know where to get the goodness? 

SIDEBURN. BICARTEL.COM mate! G

Hells Race, Belgium - Entries open

Race entries are open for Belgium's first proper dirt track event, being held on 18-19 June, being organised by our mates Bram and Angelo.

Practice Saturday, race Sunday. There are classes for Newbie, Rookie, Amateur, Thunder, Vintage, Hooligan (presented by Harley-Davidson) and Pro.

Go to Hells Race for more information.

Here's a bunch of info on the event from the organisers...

▪ Track location:

Speedway Club Helzold

Helzoldlaan / Stadionlaan

3550 Heusden-Zolder

Belgium

▪ Campsite will be open from Friday afternoon. On Sunday you can’t arrive or leave the campsite during the entire race.

How to register for any class 

Step 1 : email to info@hellsrace.com with info and bike specs/photo and we'll get back to you ASAP. You can register for multiple classes as long as there are places available. Make sure you mention what class(es) you want to register for and if you will ride 1 or 2 days.

 Step 2 : after approval we'll send you the payment details so that you can complete your registration 

FINAL DATE WHEN PAYMENT MUST BE RECEIVED IS June 8th.

Race numbers will be assigned on a later date. If you are registered with an official flat track competition with a personal official number that you would like to keep (DTRA, Dutch Flattrack cup etc) you need to register and pay BEFORE 1st OF MAY. Make sure to mention your number in your email or comment box (first come first served).

 IMPORTANT : if you'd like to register for more than 1 class on Sunday you'll need to pay the extra 25€ cash for each additional class the day of the race itself. This due to the reason that we reserve the right to cancel a class when there are not enough registrations for that particular class and/or when the additional class is full. We'll make sure you can ride at least in one class.

Training Sat 18th June : 60€ (ride as much as you want)
Race Sun 19th June : 60€ for 1 class (+25€ cash for each additional class)
Training Sat 18th + Race Sun 19th June : 120€ for 1 class (+25€ cash for each additional class on Sun)
Day licenses are included

Contact us Website: www.hellsrace.com 
Email: info@hellsrace.com
Hooligan Series: info@dirttrackriders.co.uk

Guy Martin's Wall of Death

Don't forget to watch Guy Martin's Wall of Death tonight, 7.15, Channel 4. There are lots of Sideburn intersections in the Venn diagram of this attempt.

1. Guy is a long-time supporter of Sideburn and has agreed to write a regular column for each issue starting with Sideburn 24.
He also wrote about racing at Dirt Quake for Sideburn 23.

2. He will ride more than one bike on the wall (if all goes to plan). He has been practicing on, and will ride, an Indian Scout, that's been seriously modified by our mates at Krazy Horse. Guy has raced the Krazy Horse Sportster at the previous two Dirt Quakes and first met Paul from Krazy Horse at Rollerburn, our 2011 event.

3. Guy's mentor through the event has been Ken Fox, and one of the Fox family's Wall of Death is returning to this year's Dirt Quake. Get your Dirt Quake tickets now.

Good luck Guy! G

Japanese virtual horse racing

Just because. MP

Sideburn x Hebtroco Yorkshire Ride Out

We linked up with the good folks at the Hebden Bridge Trouser Co, HebTroCo for short, for a Saturday ride out on 7 May, starting out at 11am.
From The New Delight Inn, Blackshawhead, Hebden Bridge, HX7 7HT

Everyone welcome for this leisurely four-hour ride out in rugged West Yorkshire, with a memorable coffee/tea stop out in the wilds, then back to the New Delight (known locally as the Newdi) with camping available for those who fancy a boozy night. If you want to book camping, email hello@hebtro.co

See you there, I hope.

I know we've landed a lot of dates on you lately, so here are some reminders

30 March - Sideburn 24 lands
9 April - Sideburn 24 and DTRA season launch at Bike Shed London
10 April  - DTRA season opener, Rye House, Herts. Free to spectate
7 May - SB x HebTroCo ride-out
17-18 June - Dirt Quake USA
15-16 July - Dirt Quake V, King's Lynn

Stunning Moto Monster poster artwork by Menze Kwint. G

Sideburn Designer: Kar Lee

The new issue of Sideburn, #24, lands this week. This is the first one designed by Kar Lee. Kar is an old friend and colleague of mine, he's helped Sideburn since day one and came up with Dwayne the limping mascot that has been on every spine of Sideburn since issue 1.

Here is an introductory interview with Kar. G

Where are you from and where are you at? 
My folks are from Hong Kong, I was born in the mighty city of Liverpool and have somehow ended up in Peterborough, via London.

Is there a history of motorbikes in the family, if not, what attracted you to them? 
No history at all. A taz around the block on a twist-and-go scooter was the tipping point to a T-reg Honda SS50 in 1982. It cost £90 which was an awful lot of money to a 16 year-old back then and if I still had it today it’d be worth ten times that.

How long were you a courier (above second from right)?
After art college in London I worked a few jobs to pay the rent. Most were in retail on Oxford St but there was also a six month stint as a courier. I had probably the most unsuitable machine for the job, a peaky two-stroke RG250 Gamma. Sure enough it seized in a big way while maxed out on the A3. I hired a nice Honda Revere shaft drive thing after that, made just enough money to cover the rental cost then jacked it all in when a packaging design job came up in Camden. I designed gift vouchers and pizza boxes for Tesco for two years.

How did you become a magazine designer?
I used to park my bike – a Yamaha Turbo, outside the studio in Camden in a bike parking bay. It was a lottery whether it’d still be standing by the end of the day so I started leaving it on the pavement right outside then one day got a parking ticket. That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I moved to Peterborough and spent a decade designing RiDE, Bike and Performance Bikes, amongst other mags.

What bikes do you own and what do you enjoy doing with them most?
I have three bikes in the garage. A 2006 GSX-R which is modified for track use, though it’s still a road bike. It’s got 28,000 miles on it now, almost half of those are on track. I like to tour the Alps too, though that’s been on hold for a while now. There’s also a YammaGamma – a Yamaha 350YPVS motor in a Suzuki 250 Gamma frame (see below). Since getting it painted it hasn’t turned a wheel but looks nice in the garage. Well it would if it wasn’t covered in old bedsheets. The last bike is a 2015 Aprilia Tuono V4 Factory (above). It’s amazing. What’s even more amazing is that it was a gift from my wife for our 10th anniversary. I’m very, very lucky.

Who is faster, you or your wife? 
On two wheels, I am, but it’s close. In a car, she is, but it’s close.

Did you once have a Dainese logo shaped flower bed?
Haha… how on earth did you remember that? About ten years ago I had an overgrown lawn, it was like a jungle. I just mowed a Dainese Devil into it for a laugh. It’s a cool logo, well worthy of a conservatory window too...

Is your house named after your favourite race track?
I met my wife at Folembray circuit in France 18 years ago and we’ve been going almost every year since. Also, my house number is 14 and in Chinese 14 translates very negatively – it literally means death (tower blocks in Hong Kong very often miss out the 14th floor entirely) so we named our house after the circuit instead.

Are you a little bit obsessed?
Aren’t we all beautifully obsessed over something?

See Kar's work by buying the 116-page Sideburn 24. G

Dirt Quake USA 2016

DIRT QUAKE USA Round 2!! from See See Motor Coffee Co. on Vimeo.
There's so much going on with Sideburn it's hard to keep up with it all. The latest news is Dirt Quake USA is go! We're back for more teaming up with See See Motorcycles.

For this year the event is Friday and Saturday, 17-18 June, giving people Sunday to recover and get home. More details to follow.

Check out last year's fun in the video made by Dave English...

Don't forget, tickets for Dirt Quake V in the UK are on sale and you will be entered into a draw to win a Mutt Motorcycles custom street tracker, worth over £4000, just by buying a full price adult ticket in advance. Go to Dirt Quake V tickets.  G

Mees buys rights to Lima Half-Mile

This is such a great story. Two of the highest profile riders in flat track have bought the rights to one of the favourite races, the Lima Half-Mile. It's great to see riders like Jared and Nichole (both pictured above) moving into running and promoting races, while still being in their prime (though Nichole has recently retired from the GNC).

This from the website - Lima Half-Mile

2015 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Champion Jared Mees and wife Nichole entered the race promotion business for the first time today, buying rights to the historic Lima, Ohio Half-mile. Lima, which runs on the last Saturday in June each year, is one of the most highly attended and historic races on the AMA Pro Flat Track circuit, dating back to 1984. The venue has sentimental value to Mees, who won his first AMA Pro Flat Track GNC1 race at Lima in 2005. Mees also won Lima in 2007 and again in 2014, on the way to his 3rd Grand National Championship. 

“I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to buy rights to Lima,” said twenty-nine year old Mees who lives in Clio, Michigan. “It’s an old school fairgrounds cushion half-mile with a passionate, loyal fan base just a few hours from our house. Nichole and I couldn’t be more excited to take this on. Nichole is retiring from racing after this season and I don’t plan on racing forever. Promoting Lima is a business venture that will keep us involved in flat track for many years.”

“Lima is such a great event, I wanted to make sure I found the right people to hand the torch to now that I’m retiring,” said longtime Lima promoter Dean Gallup. “Jared and Nichole Mees are the perfect people to take over. They’re hard working and have a vested interest in the sport. I can now retire knowing the event is in good hands."

The next Lima Half-Mile is 25 June.

Thanks to Roger F for the lead.

Interview: Matt Wes

We have two new sticker packs out, each with five stickers and a custom-designed label. One is by Sideburn regular Maxwell Paternoster, the other from new collaborator Matt Wes. I met Matt when I attended the first Mama Tried Show in Milwaukee, in early 2014. He was the tattooing in the show and wearing an old Sideburn hoodie (before he got too hot). His illustration style is wild and soaked in colour, featuring chubby monsters, waxen skulls, heavy-browed panthers, multi-teated bats... Certainly no Winnie the Pooh with a balloon. I always thought it would make great stickers and finally got around to it.

Get these limited edition stickers packs from the New Arrivals section of the Sideburn shop. We've redesigned the shop, so have a snoop around.

Here's a quick interview we did with Matt. He wrote the captions for his photos too.

Who are you, where you from and where are you at? 
My name's Matt Wes and I came from hardcore punk, graffiti and skateboarding in Kenosha, Wisconsin. I'm currently living in Oakland, California tattooing at the best shop I've ever worked at FTW Tattoo Parlor. Still skating and going to shows as much as possible.

Do you ride bikes?
Yes I do. The weather in the Bay Area is great for riding motorcycles though I do miss riding my '89 YZ250 on frozen lakes with my Wisconsin buddies. Bikes I own: 1979 Yamaha XS650; 1972 Yamaha DS7; 1977 XT500 flat track bike; 1970s Yamaha RD350 in a champion frame.

How would you describe your illustration style and what influenced it?
What I try to do with art is take a traditional tattooing technique and apply it to not so traditional subjects. There are a lot of tattooers I'm influenced by. When I was 15 or 16 I saw an article in International Tattoo Art magazine about Jeff Rassier and that was sort of the beginning of knowing what I wanted to do with tattooing. There are so many names I could list, but mostly I like tattoos that look like tattoos. Aside from that I look at a lot of old action figures, toys, skateboard graphics and old D and D [Dungeons and Dragons] art and try to make tattoos out of it.

What do you miss about Milwaukee?
I miss my friends mostly. I was part of a great shop called The Valley where we all hung out and worked on bikes. I could also go to my hometown motorcycle shop Red Line Cycles and hang out with Tony Giorno and my buddy Don Lupi and shoot the shit about flat track racing. I haven't found a shop space here in California and my welder and other tools are in my closet at the moment. Also Milwaukee is the city where you can find an above average cup of coffee almost everywhere you go and I miss that.

Riding across the Hoan Bridge in Milwaukee on the XS. Photo by Death Science Dusty 

What's your dream bike?
Before I moved I was building a flat track bike out of a '77 XT500 using one of my dad's frames. That bike will be a dream come true if I ever finish it!

Motorcycle hero? 
My dad is probably my motorcycle hero. The first time I ever rode on the ice was when I was 3 or 4 years old. He'd sit me on the tank and we'd go rip around on a frozen lake somewhere. I've learned a lot about bikes from him and he's still racing and going fast in his 60's. A close second is Terry Vestal because he's a mad man and has given me more tips for racing than almost anybody else.

This photo was taken in 1982 or 83. At an ice race probably in Wisconsin but I'm not sure of the lake. Maybe Silver Lake, WI or Twin Lakes, WI or someplace further north. My mom took it. I was less than a year old. I may have only been eight months old. My dad still races that bike. It's a DT250 Yamaha I think (could be a YZ though). Brakeless. He's running a compression release lever on it these days, but I don't know if he was back then. I remember when I was 5 or 6 helping him stud his tires for the ice and also pushing this bike up the basement steps to get to the van by myself for the first time at 10 or so. I wish I knew more about photos from the time period.

Finish this sentence, Racing is life...
 ...go fast as fuck!

 My first vintage race at Wauseon Ohio two summers ago. On my friend Don Lupi's XT500. 

See more of Matt's tattoos and artwork at his website: pvzzledpanther.com or on instagram @pvzzled_panther

Shell TT500 on UK eBay

Gorgeous Shell TT500 on UK eBay.
The description is quite confusing, because it has a Buy it now price of £8000, but the seller is asking for details on the history of the bike. It looks pukka, right foot shift conversion, all the right parts and even an AMA scrutineering sticker on the headstock. And not an outragous price, if it is a bike built by the late Shell Thuet and the motor is good, but only if you've got the money. G

Thanks to Kev H for the link.

Alley Club Mod Radio

Is there anything more British than a mod taking his tidy Lambretta for a romantic punt down the River Cam?

This is DJ Revnix, Sideburn reader and Dirt Quake flag marshal on a leisurely day out. He and his mates from the Alley Mod Club have made a radio show of their favourite music to help you through your day at work (if you're lucky, like me and can listen to what you want and you have similar taste in music, which isn't a given).

Blues, ska, mod revival, two-tone, northern soul and even David Bowie (when he was lead singer of mod band, The Lower Third (by the way, is that the worst name for a band ever?))...

Listen to it at Cambridge 105 Alley Club Mods. G

Sideburn 24 - Pre-Order and much more...

It's a couple of weeks later than it should have been, so thanks for your patience, but Sideburn 24 is finally at the printers and available for pre-order now. This is the biggest ever issue of the magazine, with 116 pages (up from 100) for the same price.

There are features on:

• Snow Quake
• Thor's XG750 street tracker
• Hell on Wheels hillclimb
• How To be a Short Track bad ass by GNC racewinner Briar Bauman
• Dirty adventures with Canada's Filthmode
• Australian race mutants, an essay on the movie Stone
• Travis races an Indian Scout hooligan bike 
• A new column by Guy Martin

Plus there are the regular interviews, photo portfolio, Trophy Queen, blueprint features and more...

Buy the issue for £6 plus post or subscribe for eight issues and get a free Sideburn gaffer tape T-shirt. (retail price £18) 

We love the cover design, that was created by Toria Jaymes of Stay Outside Studio, so much we made a Clear Your Head T-shirt and high quality Clear Your Head Giclee art prints too.

Not only that, we have new sticker packs from Maxwell Paternoster and Matt Wes and a new issue of the French magazine, All You Need Is Ride. Check all the fresh stuff out in the New Arrivals section of the Sideburn webshop.

The official launch of Sideburn 24, and the launch of the DTRA 2016 season, will be held at the Bike Shed Motorcycle Club in London, on Saturday 9 April. It's the day before the first race meeting of the Dirt Track Riders Association season at Rye House, Hertfordshire (just outside the M25). It's free to spectate, there's going to be a massive race entry, so make a weekend of it.

Hope to see you there, Gary

Amaro and Walden's Joyride

Amaro and Walden's Joyride from The Line on Vimeo.
This is so clever. I originally saw a very short gif on the Death Spray Blog, but didn't see a link to where it came from, then found it via Le Container.

Joyride was made by a London-based collective of artist, designers and animators called The Line.
It has a mature rating, so if you're mature, then watch it before you share it with anyone.

Read how this great video was made at The Line Animation.  G

Guy wears Sideburn

I was chuffed to see Guy Martin wearing one of Sideburn's T-shirts during his hour-long F1 Speed special last night. The programme showed Guy on a Tyco BMW S1000RR, competing in a number of challenges against 13-time F1 race-winner, David Coulthard driving a 2012 (or 2013?) Red Bull F1 car, at Silverstone.

We have a limited number of the same blue Sideburn XR750 T-shirts, in sizes right up to triple XL, priced at £18 plus post. We also have XR750 blueprints, drawn for Sideburn by Mick Ofield, that the T-shirt art was based on. They are £22 plus post.

If you're in the UK, or can work out some special internet way around it, you can watch the programme at Guy Martin Speed F1 Special.

Finally, Guy offered to do a regular Q&A column for Sideburn. The first one is in Sideburn 24, out soon. More details in the next few days. G

Cloverdale Indoor Flat Track

Great footage of scrambling and indoor short track from 1960s Canada. Watch the wild lines and berm riding on the indoors.
Thanks to Norm for the link. G

Union Magazine #2 In stock

We stock a few harder to find independent magazines and fanzines from time to time. My old friend, and top photographer, James Cheadle is one of the co-founders of Union (not to be confused with the Japanese mag of the same name).

Union is a big, thick slab of features from the far reaches of humanity. The stories are written first person, James and writer Martin Pashley put themselves in the middle of stories, visiting dirt poor white squatter camps in South Africa and Bolivian tribal fighting festivals and the voodoo-like Santeria religion. Plus there's a report from the Salton Sea, Northern Soul clubs and Black Bike Week.

It's hard to sum up the magazine, because the subjects are so diverse, but it's fascinating.
You can get your copy, from £8 plus post, from the new look Sideburn webshop. Click on Magazine, from the drop down All Products menu. G

Sideburn and Dirt Quake Mailing List

If you're not already on our email mailing list, you can sign up by filling in your email address below the Dirt Quake poster on the right.
We have a new, much better mailing system and it's possible to unsubscribe in a click, if you want to in the future.

The mailing list keeps you up to date on Sideburn events, products and happenings.

We will NEVER share your email with other companies. Cheers, Gary

Sammy Tanner - The Flying Flea

Brilliant bit of history from regular correspondent, Roger F.

From Flattrack.com on Facebook, David Sites posting from the Bob Myers collection. Sammy was #59 before he was #7. He appears to be wearing a t-shirt over his leathers to promote his new record! 

Sammy Tanner was known as 'The Flying Flea', and a Kansas race promoter, was responsible for trying to turn him into a rock star, having Sammy record a 45 (rpm single record) by the same name.

Sideburn interviewed Sammy Tanner for our regular Trophy Queen slot for Sideburn 13. G

Icon Raiden on the Sideburn Morocco Tour

Portland-based motorcycle clothing company, Icon moved into the burgeoning ADV market with their Icon Raiden range. As part of the testing and marketing, they went on 2015's Sideburn Sunburn tour to Morocco. They shot this film when they were there.
The 2016 tour sold out in two weeks. If you're interested in going on tours like this with Sideburn, please drop us a line to dirt @ sideburnmagazine.com

Juno Calypso

Well off-topic Sunday. This is the work of award-winning British photographer, Juno Calypso. They are self-portraits, Juno in her role as her character, Joyce. The photographer's own website states...

'After 20 years of taking photos of herself in private, Juno Calypso began a series of self-portraits in which she stages herself as the fictional character named Joyce.  Confining herself to rented rooms and honeymoon suites, Calypso performs solitary studies into modern rituals of seduction and the laboured construction of femininity.'

See more at junocalypso.com

Remember if you just want motorbike, come back tomorrow when there'll be another post, or look through one of the over 5000 posts elsewhere on the blog. Why not investigate the carpet shoes label? G

Honda 500 by Ed Turner

Honda XL500 motor detailed by Ed Turner Motorcycles, France.