Bike Shed!

We're at the Bike Shed London Show, with the DTRA from tonight (for the preview) till 6pm Sunday. Come say hello.
Loads of our friends have stands as well, too many to list.

Stay Outside Studio x Sideburn

Sideburn has worked with some great artists during its history and our latest collaborator is Toria Jaymes of Stay Outside Studio. The Yorkshire-born, London-based artist designed Sideburn 24's cover and the related the Clear Your Head T-shirt and Clear Your Head art prints and also a free sticker that is going out with current orders.

Then she had the great idea of creating a stunning, handpainted 12ft x 8ft version of the cover in time for the recent Sideburn 24/DTRA launch at the Bike Shed London. These are the process photos by Ava D'Antimo.

You can read an interview with Toria in Sideburn 24. She's a complete pro. Everyone needs a bit of Stay Outside in their lives. Thanks Toria! G

Sideburn 24 and DTRA Launch at The Bike Shed

Apologies for taking so long to post this, a full two weeks after the event, but it's here now.
The day before the Rye House DTRA season opener we were invited to have an afternoon event, the Sideburn 24 and DTRA 2016 season launch, at the Bike Shed's HQ in London.
A bunch of out of towners made a special journey to check out the recently opened bike-centric lifestyle hub for the first time. A steady stream a cool and quirky bikes arrived too. One of the Bike Shed staff said it was the busiest day they'd had.
Thanks to everyone who made it down, especially Team Co-Built for bringing their gorgeous race bikes.
And massive thanks to Toria Jaymes for the super-sized cover painting. More on that soon. G

Photos: Ian Roxburgh. Thanks Rox!

Bike Shed Today, DTRA Racing tomorrow!

Rye House Practice and BSMC Launch

The new DTRA season kicks off this Sunday at Rye House. It's free to spectate. Racing all day from 10am.
The club has attracted FIFTY new members this year. There are over 100 entries for this race, at a time when other motorcycle race series are struggling for enough numbers to continue.

These shots are my phone snaps from a practice at Rye House eight days ago.

Above, and at the top of the page, is Jon Bell's TT500. Jon raced in the Short Track UK series (forerunner to the DTRA) on a modern KTM a good few years ago and was very quick. He's come back with big-bore Yamaha XT/TT. It looks the part, with the aftermarket alloy swingarm and Jemco-style pipe. Jon converted it from dry sump to wet sump (not sure why) and it seemed to cause some problems on the practice day.

Darren and his Ossa Vintage class stroker.

Survivor Mike on one of the CCM road bikes he converts into race bikes. There will be four or five of these racing in the DTRA this year.

Guy and Norm Joss are sharing this gorgeous Trackmaster Triumph twin. They have two between them, so I think fastest rider gets to choose first. 

DTRA main man, Anthony Brown debuted his Death Spray village fete colours on his Honda 450.

Even my lad Max was out practicing on his XR100. 

Don't forget, Sideburn and the DTRA are having a launch this Saturday afternoon, the day before the first DTRA race. We've arranged with the track that riders can park within the Rye House track, get the train to Liverpool Street and visit the Bike Shed, then come back to the track to watch the Rye House Rockets Premier league speedway fixture, against Ipswich Witches, that night (adults £15, under-16s are £5).

The train takes 38 minutes and it means you don't have to take your van or trailer into London. 

Train times 

Return ticket is something like £20. 

Liverpool St to Bike Shed walking route. It takes 12 minutes. 

There will be :

A display of dirt track race bikes

DTRA organisers to talk to

Sideburn stuff to buy and editor to talk to

The impressive Bike Shed to look around

Good food to buy

Bike Shed's own stock of clobber or accessories

The chance of a good haircut in the on-site barbers

Drinks to be drunk (both acholic and non)

Great people to meet.

All the times and location details are on the poster. 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

Bike Shed Motorcycle Club

In just two and a half years Vikki, Dutch and Bike Shed crew have hosted four London bike shows and one in Paris. They are unstoppable. And now they have just opened their first full-time venue in the heart of Shoreditch. Behind a modest entrance, next to a small tattoo shop, a very impressive 10,000sq feet space filling three big arches under the East London railway line. Functioning as cafe, bar, restaurant, shop, gallery, barbershop and exhibition space.

There's nothing else like it in London - or Britain actually. Congratulations! BSMC is marinated in professionalism but with zero whiff of corporation, the attitude is very easy going. We wish them all the best. BP

Bike Shed Motorcycle Club, 384 Old Street, London EC1V 9LT

Bike Shed 2015

Sideburn is going to be there with a joint Sideburn/DTRA display.
There will be another 130 bikes, good coffee, barbers, art, interesting people...
May 23-24.
Find out more at The Bike Shed.

Romantic Weekend in Paris?

Imagine it, just you and the one you love, crossing the Channel, La Manche!, on your way to what is regarded as the most romantic city on the planet. Just an easy morning's ride from Calais, and into the French capital for cocktails and tepid horse meat before an evening carousing on the Pigalle.

You stare lovingly at your partner, having travelled over entwined in a firm embrace, not caring who looked on disapprovingly. Of course, there are hundreds of other fish in the sea, some of the most beautiful specimens in the whole of Europe are here for you to feast your eyes on, but you quietly mouth your commitment to your partner and try to not be caught staring at the newer models.

At the end of the night you share a brandy with your faithful, gorgeous other-half, before chaining her to a lamppost and going to bed. Tomorrow is going to be busy, it's day two of Bike Shed Paris!

This weekend! Get your tickets here.

Desmosedici by DSC

Death Spray Custom's latest is going to be on show at this weekend's Bike Shed Event in London, which sounds like it's going to be an absolute banger. You'd be foolish to miss it.

If we hadn't already booked our flights for the Springfield Mile by the time they'd announced the date, we'd have been all over it.  G

The Bike Shed Show III

Bike Shed Show Reportage

Nice photography of the Bike Shed show here by French photographer David Marvier. BP

Bike Shed Snaps

Thanks to Vikki, Dutch, Ben and the whole Bike Shed crew for putting on another great show in London over the weekend.

This is Benedict Radcliffe's crazy life-size wire-frame Gold Wing.

Great transformation of a Suzuki ST400 by Down And Out built in a matter of weeks. And (below) their well known CB450.

Marc Woodward's SRMaggedon.

Kingdom Of Kicks Honda.

My show favorite, the Shinya Kimura Fireball Sportster - an obvious choice. BP