Old School Riders Gunned Down

From Cherry Creek News: Old School Riders — Motorcycle murder in LA

Written by Staff

Three people were killed seven wounded Saturday in a drive-by shooting at a motorcycle club fundraiser in California, authorities said.The shooting occurred around 6:45 p.m. (9:45 p.m. ET) at a pizza restaurant in Pico Rivera, located about 15 miles east of Los Angeles, according to authorities. “We don’t know what type of vehicle was involved or how many,” said Sgt. Ed Hummel of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The event was being held by a group known as the Old School Riders. It is unclear whether the incident was random, Hummel added.The three people died at the scene. Their names are not being released pending notification of kin.Pico Rivera is a city about 15 miles east of Los Angeles. 3 Members of a group known as Old School Riders were killed by gunmen in vans as the were eating in a Pizziera in Los Angeles, Police have confirmed. Up to 10 members of the Old School Riders had gathered outside the pizziera to have a meal in what was deemed a party by the group. The Old School Riders is a renowned motorcycle riders group. Gunfire was opened from a moving van and accurately, almost everyone was shot. There were 3 fatalities and the van sped off fast as it had come. The motorcycle riders had gathered outside the pizziera to have a party when 3 of them died and others got seriously injured. Los Angeles County sheriff’s Deputy Keith Ho told Goldman News that 10 people gathered in the parking lot of the restaurant in Pico Rivera were fired at by gunmen in a moving van. The people were shot and seriously injured and 3 died from the shooting. Police officer Ho confirmed that three people died on the spot after the shooting. The other seven members were hospitalized and were stable condition. No one inside the restaurant was injured during the shooting. Police are investigating whether the shooting was gang related.

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Detailed coverage at Crime Scene Blog

Billy Lane Pleads No Contest, Faces Up To 9 Years

Lane pleaded no contest to one count of vehicular homicide this morning in a Florida courtroom.  Judge Robert Burger accepted the plea and scheduled sentencing for August 14.  According to the plea deal arranged, Billy Lane will face up do nine years of prison time and a lifetime suspension of drivers license.

The August sentencing will bring a conclusion to the nearly three year saga that began with a fatal crash that killed a park ranger on Labor Day weekend in 2006.  Lane was driving drunk and today was convicted of vehicular homicide.

Smog Checks in California Bite the Dust

The provision in the California state legislation that would require smog checks on motorcycles has been dropped out of the bill.  According to the Sacramento Bee:

The state Senate approved the legislation by Sen. Fran Pavley on Monday after she agreed to scale it back. It now goes to the Assembly.

Pavley, a Democrat from Santa Monica, wanted mandatory smog checks for motorcycles. She says they’re more polluting than cars and that owners often make them worse by removing the catalytic converters.

The latest version of Pavley’s bill drops the smog-test provision. It now merely authorizes law enforcement officers to fine motorcyclists who remove the converters.

Pavley is one of those lunatic socialist politicians who is known for introducing wacky legislation, but the smog check for motorcycles seemed to be a certainty.  I do not know if it was public outcry or just a lucid moment on behalf of the State Senate.  Perhaps someone realized that the basis of the bill, a claim that motorcycles were responsible for 10% of all vehicle emissions in California, was a big fat lie and thought better of it, but the issue is dead for now.

Radical Redesign of Harley Touring Models??

Read a good article at the Chicago Tribune this weekend by Bob Weber.  It talks about the 2009 HD Touring models and how “After 70 years of looking essentially the same, the touring family…has undergone its most radical redesign–under the skin.”

I guess you could say that, but the redesigns are necessarily for the better.  I wished the author would have mentioned that the frame redesign was precipitated by motors bouncing out of the frame and heat build up in the rear wheel well.  Sure the new models are vastly improved with larger rear tire and more rigid frame but please tell us why.

The rest of the “improvements” in my opinion seem to be emissions related, and well to put it bluntly, that ain’t no improvement.

Anyhow, any press is good press I suppose.  Here is a link to the article.  Give it a gander and decide for yourself.

Harley Thinks About Leaving Pennsylvania

Harley-Davidson May Move Pennsylvania Production Plant.
The AP (5/14, Strumpf) reports, “Harley-Davidson Inc. is considering closing its main motorcycle assembly facility in Pennsylvania and moving production elsewhere as it aims to lower costs and cope with a sales downturn, a company spokesman said Wednesday.” Spokesman Bob Klein said the Milwaukee-based company is “working with its union, the Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, as it conducts a review on the facility. He declined to say what other locations might be under consideration for a move.” Pennsylvania Sens. Arlen Specter and Bob Casey “sent a letter on Tuesday to Harley Chief Executive Keith Wandell, saying the facility is important to the local economy and calling on the company to protect the factory’s jobs.” Last month, Harley “reported a 37-percent decline in its profit for the first three months of the year. … The company has also seen a wave of turnover among its top leadership in recent months.”

North Myrtle Beach sees bikers roll in for rally

From myrtlebeachonline.com:

Businesses say new rules still hit hard

By Janelle Frost and Kelly Marshall Fuller – jfrost@thesunnews.com kfuller@thesunnews.com

Sunny weather and a feeling of easy riding lured bikers to parts of North Myrtle Beach on Sunday afternoon, the third day of the Harley-Davidson Cruisin’ the Coast spring rally.

Many of the rules enforced in Myrtle Beach and Horry County did not apply in North Myrtle Beach, which attracted riders to cruise and shop there.

Horry County has imposed a seven-day limit on vendor permits this year, but vendors at Barefoot Landing, which is inside North Myrtle Beach, got their permits from that city, which allowed vending the same as last year.

Business at Barefoot Landing is lagging this year, said Sonny Morabito, an employee of Xtreme Customs & Cycles. The crowd that usually appears on the first weekend was smaller this year.

“I would say our business is at least half off,” he said. “We’ll be back next year. I ain’t going to let it stop us.”

A subdued crowd of riders paused at The Dog House North on U.S. 17 Bypass. The bar is outside Myrtle Beach city limits but is subject to new rules passed by Horry County.

The bar was not allowed to have a band or people standing by the road to draw attention to the business, said manager David Ankin.

“Business is 50 percent down,” Ankin said. “The county is just as bad as the city. I’ve been here 10 years. We’ve bent over backwards to do what we can do. They don’t care about the businesses in this town.”

Customers also noticed the different atmosphere at the bar this year.

“I’m surprised that there is still support for bike week,” added James Farmer, a customer at The Dog House North. “This is a hot spot, but they don’t have a band. This is dead compared to last year.”

Some businesses reported a brisk trade in the sale of T-shirts and biker paraphernalia, despite the new laws this year.

“I don’t know how it is in Myrtle Beach, but as far as this end, there are quite a few bikers out there riding,” said Linda Lewis, an employee of Bargain Beachwear in North Myrtle Beach.

Numerous riders congregated at H.B. Spokes, a popular location on S.C. 9 in Longs.

A local band, Long Shot, provided the entertainment, while bikers chatted and sipped cold beer throughout the afternoon.

Riders shared information on how to ride without going into Myrtle Beach, and where to buy T-shirts to protest the new regulations, including the city’s helmet ordinance.

The change in the issuance of vendor permits has hurt the bar’s business this year, said H.B. Spokes employee Jeff Herring.

Vendors who usually set up in the H.B. Spokes parking lot were not allowed to set up shop until midnight Sunday.

“It hurts business,” Herring said. “The vendors keep a crowd longer.”

North Myrtle Beach officials said the city has been conducting business as usual during the first of two May motorcycle rallies.

“The bikers are just like any other tourists,” said Mayor Marilyn Hatley. “We’re expecting people to come and abide by the laws and enjoy themselves.”

The Harley-Davidson Cruisin’ the Coast rally kicked off Friday and lasts until Saturday, and the Atlantic Beach Bikefest runs over Memorial Day weekend.

“We haven’t changed,” Hatley said. “We’re going to respect the bikers, and we expect the bikers to respect us and treat our community just like they would treat their own.”

The city’s chamber of commerce sent out a message to its visitors’ database of about 90,000 people, saying all visitors would continue to be welcomed in North Myrtle Beach as long as they obey the city’s rules and laws, said Marc Jordan, president and CEO of the North Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce. The message was in response to early debates generated by new ordinances in Myrtle Beach and Horry County, and several calls the North Myrtle Beach chamber received from long-time May visitors, Jordan said.

“We have also partnered with our city’s public safety department and the property management officials to assure that property rules are prominently displayed in rooms and on site at all properties, and everyone understands the procedures that our public safety officials will follow in the event of any complaints,” Jordan said. “We are hopeful for a good May and the beginning of a successful season.”

By Sunday, there appeared to be an increase in North Myrtle Beach’s traffic compared with the same time in previous years, said William Bailey, the city’s public safety director.

“There’s more traffic and participants, especially in the Windy Hill area,” Bailey said. “We’re anticipating by Wednesday that all public safety employees will be working a shift that accommodates the heaviest times of the rally.”

Public safety officials also worked out a traffic pattern with the Harley-Davidson shop on U.S. 17 in North Myrtle Beach to make it easier for travelers to get in and out of the store and to make it safer for them to cross the highway.

The direct entrance to the store on U.S.17 has been blocked off, and motorcyclists and drivers are directed to use a traffic light to enter the store, Bailey said.

“We’re trying to keep motorcyclists heading north from crossing the southbound traffic on U.S. 17 [to get to the store],” Bailey said.

Hot Bike/Baggers Publisher Bankrupt

Media giant and publisher of Hot Bike and Hot Bike Baggers magazines, Source Interlink Companies, Inc. has filed chapter 11 bankruptcy.  Source Interlink Media LLC publishes more than 75 magazines including Motor Trend, Surfer, Lowrider, Dirt Rider, Street Chopper, Motorcyclist, and Motorcycle Cruiser, and manages about 90 websites.

In a statement to advertisers the company said:

Bonita Springs, FL., April 28, 2009 – Source Interlink Companies, Inc. (Nasdaq:SORC), one of the largest publishers of magazines and online content for enthusiast audiences and a leading distributor of DVD’s, CD’s, magazines, video games and books today announced it has reached a restructured agreement with its lenders to eliminate approximately $1 billion dollars of existing debt and privatize the company.

Under the agreement, the company’s lenders will cancel nearly $1 billion of the company’s existing debt and provide approximately $100 million in additional liquidity.  Source Interlink, in agreement with its lenders, will pay all of its vendors in full and on time if they agree to maintain current credit and payment terms.  To facilitate the restructuring, the Company filed a lender-approved pre-packaged Plan of Reorganization under Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The Company anticipates it will emerge within 35 days.

Source Interlink says that it will continue business as usual, but obviously there are some changes that have to be made.  As for right now the restructuring plan call for all of the company’s common stock to be cancelled. Company stock closed the day at $0.10, a 38% drop, and has been on a steady decline since last July when it was trading at about $2.50.

Source Interlink is based in Bonita Springs, FL and employs about 4,400 people.