Respect man, plain and simple! How fucking hard is that to understand?

For nearly a year now there has been something just gnawing away at my soul.  I have spoken to friends about this issue and each offered me advice of what they thought I should do, what they thought I should say as well as the advice of "fuck it man, leave it be" or "do nothing man, it will all work out in the end".  For the longest time I had done just that, NOTHING!  I had said nothing, I had done nothing and it has eaten me alive!  As you guys know from reading my writing, I have one very simple hard core belief that guides my life.  I live my life by four letters.  I wrote about them last night.  L, L, H & R, Love, Loyalty, Honor and FUCKING RESPECT!  For me, it just can't be any more plain and simple!  I can understand if all people don't live by each and every single one of these letters, it takes time to get the whole theory but I am appalled by those who can't seem to manage to live by any of them!  I am disgusted by people who are users, by people who put themselves above all others and mostly by PHONY people who will step on the necks of those who they pretend to be friends with just so that they can climb a few inches higher so that they can try and grab shit that they have neither earned nor deserve!  They just step on the necks of those around them because they see something that they want!  It is disgusting and it makes me fucking ill!

For one to be loved, one must give love!  For one to have loyalty from others they must first be loyal to someone, to anyone!  For a person to be honored he must first do something honorable!  Most importantly of all this, is for one to EVER be respected, that person must first show respect, to have respect to give respect and truly important is to have some SELF RESPECT! 

If you have been holding this in for so long Jack, what makes you finally spit it out tonight?  What was the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back?  Well humor me for a moment and you may understand.  I moved in to my new house about 18 months ago.  You guys have heard me talk about the neighborhood and the people who live here.  Directly across the street from me is an old couple.  He is 91 and she is 94.  Everyday this beautiful woman walks up and down the street holding on to her walker.  Most days, her husband is right by her side, holding her hand, loving her.  When she needs to stop, he does not get bothered by this, he RESPECTS her and waits until she has the strength to carry on.  He is loyal enough not to leave her side after 70 + years together and tonight as I watched the coroner wheel her out of the house on a stretcher to take her to her final resting place, I watched as he honored her by helping to hold the blanket over her as the Dust Storm tried to blow it off.  Once secured, as they placed her body in the van, I watched as in a final act of L,L,H & R, he placed one last red rose on her body.  At the same time that I was touched to my core to witness this, I was infuriated by the lack of respect of others, for others!  How can some people be so amazing and some people be so disgusting?

You guys know well and good that I have been away in Sturgis and I have only just returned.  The first time that I was invited to come to be part of the Spoke Family, Jay Allen told me that this was our home and we were to make each and every guest who walked through the door feel welcome and make them feel as if they were part of our family.  "Jack, I want these people treated with total RESPECT", that is what Jay asked me to do and that is what the Broken Spoke Saloon is based on, what it was built on, RESPECT!  These were my marching orders and believe me when I tell you, they were the easiest instructions that I have ever been given, I RESPECT everyone until the time comes that they have lost my RESPECT!

For so many, the Broken Spoke Saloon Campground is a sacred place.  The walls are adorned by the great ones who have come and gone before us.  On one wall above the stage, Indian Larry will forever watch down upon all who enter the Spoke, on another, the one and only Johnny Chop, a person that in my entire time around this life we have chosen to live, I've never heard one single person speak one bad word about the man!  On a third wall, the incredible Samantha Morgan is honored and this past rally on another wall we added the one and only Million Miles Squire.  The Spoke's walls are covered in greatness, they are covered with people for whom we could only wish to aspire to be like!  Also on these walls are personal belongings from Jay Allen.  Items that he chose to take from his personal collection of memories and share them with his extended family at the Spoke.  None of these items have ever been stolen and none have ever been defaced because everyone who enters the sacred walls of the Broken Spoke have enough RESPECT for this man, for his property and for his dream!  On the first morning after my arrival this year at the Spoke I entered the main building.  I had never before spent any time there and had never had the privilege of being able to walk every square inch of the place.  With each moment that I spent there, I became more humbled by the energy of those who have passed through the doors before me.  I looked at those huge prints of the names I mentioned earlier and I was moved! 

Over the years, for a great many years, Jay has been a huge part of our culture whether you knew it or not.  His generosity is overwhelming and while there this past two weeks I learned of more and more that he has done to help others.  This is a man who deserves to be treated with respect and his property deserves to be treated equally with the very same respect!  After some time touring the building, getting the lay of the land and trying to figure out how I was going to pull off the mammoth undertaking that I had gotten myself in to by hosting such a hallowed place, I needed to use the bathroom.  I walked in, stood at the urinal and took one hellified piss.  As I turned around, pulled up my zipper and looked up at the wall, my FUCKING HEART SANK!  For one of the very first times in my life, I was truly speechless.  I could not believe my eyes!

On the wall hung an original Discovery Channel Biker Build Off banner!  Now I don't care if you loved those shows or if you hated those shows, they have become a huge part of our recent history and showcased some of the finest people who have ever turned a wrench on bikes.  Now I'm not sure if this banner was from Larry or Johnny, but I know that it was special and it was hung on that wall for all to enjoy and share in.  It was there for all to know that Jay and the Spoke were also part of that history and it was taken from a personal collection and shared with our extended family to enjoy and because they were our extended family, it was there for them to take pride in as well!  Since the day that it had been hung there, it had been unmolested, untouched and unscathed because people understand RESPECT!  Well, some people understand RESPECT!  Why did your heart sink Jack?  Because when I turned around, this is what I saw.

Understand that this photo was taken at the end of the rally this year.  The large I AM DON WOOD was the only thing written on this banner when I arrived on the property.  As the week progressed, seeing that the banner had been written on, for the first time in years, other people added their names to it.  But on day one of the 71st annual Sturgis Rally, this banner had but one name, one thing written with TOTAL AND COMPLETE LACK OF RESPECT for our history, for others property and for the people who gave up everything to follow the life we lead and to follow the dream of what they love!  For me this is inexcusable, unforgivable and just shows the world the kind of person he is!  In the last year I have witnessed a total lack of respect for others.  For other people, for other people's old ladies for anyone in general who he did not think that he could get something out of that would move him up or to help him reach the "FAME" that he so desperately seeks.  Well you have done it Don, you are known now for exactly who and what you are.  For being someone who has a total lack of respect, a total disregard for anyone and everything around him.  You have no idea the world that you have snaked and deceived your way in to.  This Sturgis Rally, you have shown everyone just who you are, what you are capable of and proven to all that you have ABSOLUTELY NO FUCKING IDEA of the codes that we live by..... let me remind you again, L, L, H & R! 

While at the Broken Spoke, with no warning at all, Don walked back stage, then on to the stage, pulled the microphone mid song from the lead singers hand of the HEAD LINE BAND and stopped them dead in their tracks because he felt the need to make an announcement.  We have one strict policy at the Spoke, we don't stop the band, EVER!  Everything, EVERY DETAIL OF EVERY DAY is timed to the minute.  These guys were being paid a lot of money to play and entertain the guests of the Spoke and they were prevented from doing that.  The crowd was angry, the band was angry, the bosses were angry and I AM FUCKIN ANGRY!  This egomaniac was so afraid that he may lose a moment of camera time or not be able to stand on stage in front of a crowd and shout I AM DON WOOD, which is exactly what he shouted first!  The only smile that I was able to muster up was because the moment he shouted it in to the mic, someone from the crowd shouted, WHO GIVES A FUCK!  I share the very same feeling now!  You may be saying now, "but Jack man, you were running the show at the Spoke, how did you let this get past you in the first place"?  Funny, it was the same question my boss asked me.  I was tricked out of the building by being told that there was a big surprise birthday party for me up at the pool and all my friends in the world were up there waiting for me.  I had to go up there immediately if not sooner!  Oddly enough, as I walked past friend after friend on the way to the pool to quite literally find no one up there but two drunks, I was not surprised, I only assumed it was a practical joke.  On the way back I asked one of my friends and they said oh no man, Don told us 20 minutes ago that we were to be inside the main building, we were wondering why you were going up to the pool!  When I arrived back to the building is pretty much when Don pulled this scam to get up on stage.  He used the guise of Aidan has a Posse to do this.  He put on this bullshit, fake, caring, humble voice and whispered in to the mic, not one person there had a single idea of what he was saying and were shouting for him to speak up, but why would he listen, he knows it all right?  I believe the total raised by pulling this bullshit was a bit over $100.  In 15 minutes, I raised nearly 800 bucks for a titty contest and this guy could not raise shit for a deathly ill child!  So he tricked me, broke the number one rule at the Spoke and cheated a family out of desperately needed funds, NICELY DONE DON!  Your ego is writing checks that you can't cash man!  All you had to do is notify me or any other person at the Spoke of what your plan was and we would have made it happen, at the right time, in front of the right people and raised a shit ton of money, but I guess someone else may have gotten the attention rather than you.  That's what this was about right?  Drawing attention to yourself?  Well you got that attention now man!


This is but just a brief tale of the events that took place this year and believe me when I tell you and you know you can because I always tell the truth, there is so much more!  The bike community is done with you Don.  You have burned all your bridges faster than anything that I have ever seen and I have been around a long time now!  EVERYONE IS DONE WITH YOU!  Some have their 15 minutes of fame, you man, now have your 15 minutes of SHAME!  Look inside yourself man, become a better person or your life will suck forever!


I have never before in my life called someone out like this and the decision to do it did not come easy and I didn't take it lightly.  Like I said earlier, I have been sick over this for months about what to do, or say or to just leave it be, but this was the final straw, I could not just let this go any longer!  It was your actions that drove me to this. 


If there are any of you who disagree with what I have done than tell me so.  In return, I will share with you some of the other amazing and appalling things that have recently taken place.  I will no longer hold back, those days are now long gone.  I've tried my damndest to just let each and every incident go but what you did this week at the Broken Spoke is unforgivable on a great many levels! You should no longer be welcome on any Broken Spoke Property, anywhere!  Congratulations!

For all of the rest of you amazing people that share in our lives, I am sorry for even posting something like this but my head was about to explode and it had to be said.   Until we see each other on the road again,


Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!


Sincerely, from the bottom of my heart and with absolute brutal honesty, I AM YOUR FRIEND,
Jack Shit

NO BIGGER COMPLIMENT!

As you fine folks have probably figured out by now, I am a pretty humble guy!  I live my life by four simple letters; L,L,H&R!  LOVE, LOYALTY, HONOR AND RESPECT and to me, there is no other way to live it!  If you follow these four letters, to the letter, you will get the very same back.  Of course there is always the Classless Buffoon who feels that these letters mean nothing at all and that they are a "slogan" of sorts and don't apply to them.  They will soon find out that they apply TO ALL OF US!  You get back exactly what you put out in to this world we live in.  Sometimes it comes back on you in an instant and other times it takes a bit longer.  In some cases it takes nearly a year to the day, but I digress, that is a different story for another time.  I will say however, that when I get to see a person who puts themselves above all others have shit come crashing down on top of them, I do get an evil little smile across my lips and it reaffirms my faith in humanity and in the universe!

In this case though, what I am speaking of put a joyous smile on my face!  I believe that the universe puts people in our paths for a reason and what we decide to do in that moment forever changes the course of our lives.  Some of these choices bring us much joy and some of them bring us much heartache, but nobody gets them right all the time, so I say go ahead and make those choices because normally the good outweighs the bad.  I walk in the main bar at the Broken Spoke Campground and I immediately begin to see so many familiar faces and my heart warms a bit.  These are all people that I had the great honor to work with last year or to meet on the road at other events, good people!  Each of them walk across the floor to shake my hand or hug me and tell me how great it is to see me again and I am touched to the core.  Here I am thinking that this can't get any better, I am bubbling over with good vibes!  I hear my name called and I turn around and I get a smile from ear to ear!  What greater honor can there be than when the band that has shown up to perform, have shown up wearing I KNOW JACK SHIT t shirts?  If you want to speak of an experience that humbles you, this was one of them!  I don't believe a bigger compliment could have been paid to me!

Ryan Rolando who looks like he is 19 years old, has been playing at the Broken Spoke and has been part of the family for over 20 years now.  I can only assume that he began playing the guitar at the Spoke when he was one or two years old!  This guy is the epitome of class!  I knew in that very moment that my time at the Spoke was going to be amazing.  I believe that the universe sends you signs or signals and it is up to us to recognize them and use the information accordingly.  In this case, in this very moment, all my nerves calmed down, all the pressure lifted up off of my shoulders and I knew that I was not alone in my mission to make this, the 71st annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally a success for my Spoke family!  Each and every single one of us was a team and we all worked towards our team being victorious.  This my friends is one first class operation that is manned by first class people who all put the Spoke ahead of themselves and any petty bullshit that comes with working with so many people from different backgrounds falls to the wayside and everyone knuckles up, it is an incredible sight to see!

For all of those that welcomed me back to the Broken Spoke I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.  It was an honor and a privilege for me to work side by side with you and I look forward to doing it again, perhaps more than I look forward to any gig!

Jay Allen, you had the faith in me to watch over your baby while you worked your ass off down town at the Original Broken Spoke Saloon and I will forever be grateful for the opportunity that you afforded me!  You sir are nothing but class and I applaud you for it!   As I type this, you are hopefully breaking yet another land speed record up on the Salt of Bonneville and I wish you nothing but greatness!  Until we all see each other again at the Spoke, I wish you all nothing but the same feeling of joy and happiness that I got to experience these past few weeks.

Until we see each other on the road,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!

Your friend,
Jack Shit

There are times that you never forget, this is one of them!

The 71st annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is now over and I am home safe and sound from a 3 thousand mile bike ride! As with any thing in life that you put your entire heart and soul in, there will certainly be ups and downs. From the moment that I arrived at the World Famous Broken Spoke Saloon, it was non stop and at a break neck pace. The shortest day that I worked was 16 hours and that was day one, from there I became more committed and put in on average, 18 hours per day. We go to Sturgis, our holy land to experience the brotherhood, the fun and most importantly the bikes because after all, that is what this entire lifestyle we chose is about, THE BIKES. All the rest of it is just a bonus. We get to spend time with the people we love and would do just about anything for and for some of us, Sturgis is the only time we get to see each other. This was my first year hosting at the County Line Campground and it was the honor of my life to be welcomed back as part of the Broken Spoke family! Many of you have heard me say this but it bears repeating. The very first time that I met with the one and only Jay Allen about working for the Spoke I asked him what he expected of me, what did he want me to accomplish while there. I was fully ready for an hour long meeting and I had my sharpie and blank paper ready to take notes. What Jay said to me I will never forget, he said "Jack, I'm glad you asked". "I want you to welcome everyone in to our home and treat them like family". That was it, those were my entire list of instructions! This man is one class act!

The entire Spoke family is one class act. I know that I have not written much since I left for Sturgis and maybe now you understand why. One of the things that blew me away most was how they handled some very special guests. The Rolling Wall, the Vietnam Memorial, rolling wall has found its home at the Broken Spoke Campground and we were honored to have them. They will return next year and the Spoke will once again be honored to host this amazing tribute to the more than 50 thousand men who gave all in defense of freedom! When the opening ceremony of the wall begins, everything stops, EVERYTHING! The music stops, the party stops, the drinks stop and you can't so much as purchase a t shirt if you wanted to. ALL BUSINESS STOPS! I had the incredible honor and privilege to be part of this ceremony this year and it is something that I will never forget as long as I live! Being a biker, we all know a great many who survived Vietnam and returned home like so many from world war 2 and found the motorcycle and longed for freedom and peace and they found that through brotherhood and the open road! I didn't lose anyone in that war, shit, I wasn't even born until 68' but it made no difference, it touched me like I couldn't even understand. The dedication that these guys have for this memorial is second to none! On a side note, I want to mention another group of bikers that deserve credit and normally don't get it. THE WALL OF DEATH! Because of some insane weather this year it caused great delay in getting their own wall set up. They were far behind in its construction and until it is up and open, they are losing money. Every second that they are at an event and not performing, they are losing money. The time came for the opening of the wall and for the wall itself to be constructed and each and every member of the Wall of Death stopped what they were doing and went down and built the Memorial Wall! Because of the time that they spent, they were not able to even open up for business until the next day. THESE GUYS ARE NOTHING BUT CLASS AND TRUE PATRIOTS! The next time you see them, shake their hands and let them know that you appreciate the hardest working guys in the bike world!

Here is a short video that I managed to capture during the opening ceremony. The sound is not the best and the camera work may be shaky but I think you will see how powerful it was. When it came time for me to speak, I was terrified that everyone there would know that I had tears in my eyes and hear it in my voice! The Spoke was built on RESPECT and everyone involved with the Wall or who has ever given up everything to fight for this country deserves nothing less! GOD BLESS THE AMERICAN SOLDIER!




Until we see each other on the road, or at the Broken Spoke Saloon,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!

Your friend,
Jack Shit

Nearly Home Now

The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally has come to a close now and as I make my 1500 mile ride home it has given me time to think and reflect on the last two weeks.  I had said that in my free time while I was there that I would post some blogs.  As you can see by how many posts I made, there was not much in the way of free time!  I posted zero!  It was an amazing time to say the least and informative as well.  I was able to ascertain that there are some people that I thought were friends who turn out to not really be at all and those that I thought were perhaps no more than an acquaintance turned out to be so much more.  I guess when you get your nuts put on the hot frying pan, you see who has the no stick spray and the spatula!  I will tell you guys all about the event, the people and the madness the very first chance that I get.  If all goes well with the bike and the weather, I should be rolling in to my driveway by 8pm tomorrow night the latest!

For all of you who came to visit me, thank you!  I will never forget the 71st annual Sturgis Rally and in large part, because of all of you!

Till we see each other again,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and the Man off your ass!

Your friend,
Jack Shit

I nearly drowned!

.... or at least it sure as shit felt like it.  I know I have not posted much recently but I was getting ready for Sturgis and there was much to do.  Expect all kinds of stuff coming in the next two weeks!  I'm on my way there as we speak!  I left a half day early for the "just in case factor" and you know what, "just in case" has already happened!  In a day and a half, we have only made it 750 miles!  The rain tonight was non stop and visibility was near zero.  Each time we passed a truck, we had to wait until we knew we were in a straight away because as soon as you got next to it, a massive wave would over take you and you had to pound your way through it and pray that a bend in the road hadn't popped up!  I have no speedometer so I had no idea how fast I was going.  I thought maybe fifty or so.  We pulled off the road and a suggestion was made that maybe we could try around 60 or 65 and that they didn't think 75 or 80 was working all that well.  Well what the fuck do I know, I feel like Leonardo DiCaprio on the front of the Titanic leading the way!  Finally, after 450 miles, we just had to give up.

So now I sit in a Days Inn in Colorado City, Colorado, waiting on a pizza and blow drying not one, but two pair of boots so that I have something to put on for the ride in the morning!  Who knew it would take a week to get to the Sturgis Rally? 

As you guys know, I am the host of the rally at the WORLD FAMOUS BROKEN SPOKE SALOON CAMPGROUND, so if you are heading to Sturgis, you best come in and say hello and have a drink!  I look forward to seeing you guys there and if you are not going, I guess you will just have to keep up with my trip on here.  I have been on the road two days and have taken two pics!  I have to figure out the photo part of photo journalist!

Till we see each other again,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!

I am your soaking wet friend,
Jack Shit

Consider this!

So many of you have sent me messages asking me about Sturgis.  Questions ranging from where are you working, will you be working, where are you staying, are you hosting the Downtown Spoke again, what is going on with all the rumors I've heard and so many more.  In this post, I will try to answer as many of these questions as I possibly can for all of you. 

First and foremost, the questions of will you be working, where will you be working and where are you staying I can answer with one simple answer; THE ONE AND ONLY, WORLD FAMOUS BROKEN SPOKE SALOON CAMPGROUND County Line!  Once again, I have been welcomed back as part of the Broken Spoke Family and I will be the host of the 2011 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally at the Spoke.  Right now, many of you are probably scratching your head thinking, but you work downtown and Jay Allen is the host of the Campground, what gives with that?  WE ARE SWITCHING IT UP!  Jay will host the downtown Spoke and I will host the Campground for the 71st Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

To answer the questions about all the rumors that Jay is no longer with the Broken Spoke or no longer part of the Broken Spoke, nothing on earth COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH!  Jay Allen is now and will always be part owner of the Broken Spoke Saloon.  Jay built the brand in to the amazing business that it has become today, why would he ever leave that?  I've seen so many posts and gotten messages like Screw the Spoke, we are supporting Jay!  This makes the least sense of any statements that I have ever heard!  If you say you are supporting Jay Allen, then support the Broken Spoke, it is just that simple, Jay is still an owner there.  If you boycott the Spoke, then you are in fact, boycotting Jay.  Does this make any sense to you yet?  Let me put it this way.  There is a relationship between Jay and his other partners in the Broken Spoke Saloon and like any other relationship, emotions can run heavy when you are very passionate and care about that relationship more than most anything on earth!  I liken it to a couple that has been happily married for many years.  Some times in that relationship, you need a break, just that simple.  If you don't step back and step away for a brief period, you can ruin that relationship.  Like a husband and wife love each other, sometimes they can't stand being around each other.  They have ridden all of the ups and downs together for a long time and rather than throw the relationship away by making harsh decisions in heated moments, the couple decides that a break or "trial separation" may be needed.  They don't do this to end the relationship, they do it to save the relationship.  When you have a bit of distance between you, you realize just how very much you each mean to the other and you realize that although there are good times and bad, the good far outweigh the bad.  You realize that you love your other half more than you could ever imagine and come to the conclusion that neither of you can live without the other!  Separation makes the heart grow fonder and in this case, I believe it to be exactly what will happen.  EVERYONE NEEDS A BREAK EVERY NOW AND AGAIN, it is just that simple.  As relationships grow, you find that there are things that you just can't stand about your partner and there are just things about your partner that you learn that you could and would never want to live without.  You realize later that had you not stepped back and taken that much needed break, that relationship with the person, or in this case, with the "place" that you love with all of your heart and soul would have ended.  As far as I am concerned, JAY ALLEN IS THE BROKEN SPOKE and I am honored to be part of the family there.

This year at the Broken Spoke County Line, we are bringing it back to basics.  Old School biker party and camping.  We are making this event as it should be, about all of you, our extended Broken Spoke family!  It seems that over the last few years, every major company has come in to Sturgis and booked bigger and bigger bands and attractions, in my opinion, taking away from what Sturgis really is and that is about getting together to RIDE AND PARTY with dear friends that you have known forever or dear friends that you have just met and will know FOREVER!  The Spoke is going back to the way things use to be and making the event about YOU and not about us!  Go out for a ride and come back HOME to the Broken Spoke Saloon where you are always welcome.  We have so much planned for you guys this year that you won't have to go any place else.  So save yourself the DUI's and plant your ass at the Spoke and party your collective asses off with us.  The area around Sturgis has some of the most beautiful riding in America and you won't want to miss out on any of that and when that ride is over, come back, jump in the BIGGEST BIKER POOL ON EARTH and relax and get some rest because come sun down, we are going to show you the best party in Sturgis! 

Many have asked about how Jay feels that I am coming in and hosting the Broken Spoke Campground?  Let me assure you of this, Jay is my friend and I would never have taken this gig without his complete and total blessing and I HAVE THAT AND THEN SOME!  As a matter of fact, Jay was a big part in me getting the gig at the Spoke and I will be eternally grateful.  Come out and support the Broken Spoke and our friend, mine and yours, a guy who has done so much for our lifestyle, Mr. Jay Allen and don't forget to go downtown and visit Jay at the original Broken Spoke on Lazelle Street and tell em that your friend Jack Shit sent you!  You don't even have to worry about riding down and getting busted, you can take the SPOKE TO SPOKE SHUTTLE that runs from County Line directly to Downtown and drops you off right at the door of the Spoke!

For everyone who will be attending the rally, I can't wait to see you all!  There is no rally on earth like the Sturgis rally and we are all going to have a blast this year.  Even if you are staying at another campground or hotel, make sure you get your ass over to the Spoke and come say hello. 

Another question that I keep getting asked, "Jack", will I be able to pick up I know Jack Shit shirts at Sturgis again this year?  Yes you will!  I have an order that should be finished shortly and yes, I will be bringing shirts up to Sturgis, you can pick them right up at the Campground and yes, the money still goes to helping with the cost of Diane's MS meds and such!  Thank you all, I look forward to seeing each and every single one of you fine fuckers up at the BROKEN SPOKE SALOON!   

In the next few days, I will be posting event schedules and such to show you just what we have planned for you maniacs so keep an eye out for those.

Last year was my first time ever hosting at the Broken Spoke and when I arrived at the campground I immediately checked in with Jay Allen and asked him, "Jay, what do you expect from me"?  I figured I would have a 30 minute conversation with him about my duties there and so on.  That is not what happened at all.  His answer was five words!  JACK, TREAT EVERYONE LIKE FAMILY!  That was it!  Those were my duties and what Jay expected from me and that is just what I did and what I will continue to do this year!

The Circumcission of the Pickle Sickle!

As so many of you fine folks who actually ride those bad Murder Sickles you own know all well and good, sometimes you have to really get a good look at your machine before a big trip.  As you guys also know, that up until this FXRS came in to my life, my newest bike I owned was a 47' Knuck!  So you can imagine my surprise when I found all this new fangled shit on this "new" bike.  Well, this 19 year new bike!  When I came across this bike, the deal that I got on it was far too good to even consider letting it go to some one else, it just WAS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!  Unfortunately, the bike had sat outside for a year and who ever took this bike from stock, back in the day and "whored it up" cut a great many corners!  Some of those cuts could have been really dangerous.  In my experience and in my current physical condition, about 500 miles is the magic number for me to ride on that nearly 70 year old Rigid Bike!  This one however was made to just eat asphalt and shit it right back out!  So being in the business that I am in, you need to get around and to go on the road you need to be able to pack accordingly and when all you have is one tall sissy bar to tie shit to and handlebars to roll up a jacket, that just don't cut it.  So you have to have a bagger.  This Green Pickle Sickle is in the process of becoming just that.  But how do you turn an FXRS low rider convertible in to one?

With lots of tools!  Patience from your knowledgeable friends and a stack of parts!  It was on Bitch!  It was time to Circumcise the Pickle Sickle!

First and foremost you hook up with the most knowledgeable FXR guy I've ever known.  Mr. Keith Cole is that guy!  Then you call in some favors from friends and ask for help and then finally, "how the hell do I do this"....  Then you determine what is right and good and what is bad and must go.  That is what we began to do!  Start the chopping!  We were fully ready to torch, cut and weld to make this girl sexy and functional.  Here is how we got started!

As you guys know, one of the things you think about most with a new girl is "what's she hiding under that skirt?  Well I had to get a look and believe me, it was a big, long and thick skirt!  Because the bike began its life as an FXRS convertible, there are only one set of saddle bags on earth that fit the bike because of the angle of the rear shocks.  We had to remove the shocks, the fender, the struts, the rear pegs, the mid pegs and the forward controls the controls, the bars, front and rear pipes, tranny cover, cables and a shit ton of wiring  we found that we could not figure out for the life of us what it was and what it did, so we cut it all out?
The rear wheel is out of alignment, we snapped the plastic elbow off of the CV Carb and believe me that was a motherfucker to fix while the carb was still on the bike!  While riding in California near Palm springs I thought that the front end was just going to snap off or that I had two flats.  As it turns out, it was just horrible California Deathways, uhm, freeways!  So today I also drained and replaced the fork oil.  My God was that shit horrid looking.  I swear had I put it in two different containers to collect it, you would think it came from two different bikes, it was SO FUCKING BAD!  No matter what we did with changing the bars and risers, the clutch cable barely reached, 4 sets of bars and 4 sets of risers just to get it right!  That was about where we got to last night, here are a few pics from the tear down.

 We were afraid that we were going to have to cut, but upon removing the existing struts, we found all the holes that we needed were already in the frame.  What a time and work saver that turned out to be!  We had to remove the belt guard (permanently) because we relocated the rear shocks! 

 Brother Roadside, or Roadside Marty from Flat Broke Customs down in Florida was kind enough to donate these mother of all floorboards, the holy grail of fxr parts, mid control boards to my project.  I'll forever be grateful, thank you my friend.  You guys should check out Flat Broke too, Roadside puts out some sick scoots!

 In order to fit the Floor Boards to the bike and make them work, we had to first make the front exhaust pipe fit again.  So we heated that fucker up to glowing and took 3 whacks at it with the hammer.  We figured that would give us a good idea of what we needed to do.  Boy was I wrong about that!  3 whacks and it was the perfect fit!  So we cooled it down Arizona style by putting it in front of a portable swamp cooler and then test fit it.  IT FIT PERFECT!

 On the trip to Cali, the maiden voyage for the fxrs and I, I noticed a serious lack of power at the top end.  As you can see, the pipes were no where near being close to the same length.  I think that may have had something to do with the performance.  Like so many things from the 90's, they looked cool, it was form over function.  So Mr. Cole cut down an 11" piece of steel,

 We eyed it up, it looked right and he took it down to AZ True Wheel this morning and welded that bad boy up for me.  Now the pipes are nearly the same length and you can see all of the discoloring in the pipes and I love that shit!  We got a bunch of shit done today but we were at a dead stand still.  When you are making your own bagger, there are two things you need that you can't have missing.  Do you know what they are?  You guessed it, THE DAMN BAGS!  My buddy Milwaukee Mike was decent enough to pick up a bunch of fxrP parts for us a few months ago and he shipped some of it to me now to make this happen.  The box was delivered while we weren't there so we had to go and stalk the mail men down at the post office until they finally took it off the mail man's truck at 10 minutes to 5, as they were closing!  SCORE!  Now we were ready to get going.

 We had to get rid of the lovely Pickle's rear fender to mount the new shocks and re install the tail light and plate bracket.  Keith was kind enough to donate this fender to the project so Whiskey John spent the afternoon priming and painting it.  I'll always have a little of him in this bike to remember him by.  2 of his beard hairs fell off in to the wet paint and will be there for eternity!

 We got the frame rails for the cop bags all mocked up and began installing them.  This took some doing and another trip to the lowes for some more nuts and bolts!  But we were moving.  Tail light installed and re wired, with a quick connect for future removal.

 One down, one to go and then the rear rail, yes, the one every one always leaves off because it never, ever fits right.  Don't ask me how, but I got that fucker to fit right on the first shot! 

 The little woman was wondering where the hell her man had been for the last 3 days so even she came down to check on the project.  She was quite pleased.  She offered a hand here and there and even corrected me on a big mistake I was going to make!  THAT'S MY GIRL!

 We were doing so well, it was time for Brother Skoog who was installing a 3" Primo Belt Drive on to his fxr for Sturgis, to start cracking some beers.  I was so pleased with my progress that I too shared a beer with him and the lil woman!

Okay, I'm not being totally truthful there.  Let's just say it was time for Brother Skoog to open another beer and we will leave it with that!  It was ice cold and tasty for the record and it is really very rarely that I have beer at all, but this one was victorious and delightful!

With both bags on, we were really kicking ass.  All that is left to do is straighten out that rear wheel, tighten up some loose shit, put some washers where I forgot and install the lic. plate bracket and then she rolls off of the lift!  It was a lot of work but it was well worth it.  I look forward to installing the fixed fairing!

 Even the lil woman was pleased with the turnout!  Here she is sitting aside the bike that is going to carry her man and all his shit for about 3 thousand miles next month!  When I return home from Sturgis, this beautiful girl is going to carry both me and my beautiful girl on a much over due California trip for both of us!  I just want to thank;

Keith Cole
Ken Schmoldt
Roadside Marty
Milwaukee Mike
The boys from Foundry Moto
Diane of course
Whiskey John
Brother Adam (and you know why)
and anyone else that I am forgetting, hey, it's 3 am and I am really tired right now!

Till we see each other on the road, hopefully Sturgis,
Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass.

Your happy friend,
Jack Shit

It never ceases to amaze me!

One of the very first things that I noticed when I moved out to Arizona was that the Phoenix area has some of the worst drivers that I have ever seen in my life. I come from New Jersey and New York and although we have been accused of "allegedly" driving in an aggressive manor, at least we can fucking drive! The other thing that I noticed was that unlike back east, there are no such things as fender benders out here. When you have a car accident out here, YOU ARE LEAVING IN A HELICOPTER! It is damn near a guarantee. I don't think that it is because people are hurt so bad, I truly believe that it's only because they have these damn things sitting around and they have to use them so that they can make the payments. I mean hell, out here, everything is getting foreclosed on or repossessed. I think the average flight is 16 grand I believe. Anybody want to go in on a helicopter with me? Anyway, this is half of the video that I shot of just another "AZ fender bender" the other day. It happens all day long out here.

Until we see each other on the road,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!

Your friend,
Jack Shit

LADIES LOVE MY PICKLE!

Before you start writing me notes, messages and leave comments oh here, wondering what ladies are loving on my pickle, I'll tell ya!   I had mixed feelings on the whole sordid affair.  My guilt was eating me alive and it was getting harder and harder to keep the entire thing a secret!  Imagine if you would that guilty pleasure of having secret sex on the side with someone who is really unattractive but the best sex that you have ever had.  Typically, you would go to one an other's home, meet in dark alley ways or at the park in the woods, LATE AT NIGHT!  This was not the girl you took out to the clubs with you or out for an expensive, romantic dinners or God forbid, take them to meet your friends but that is just what I did and I have such fond feelings that are growing in to so much more!  I am coming clean to everyone, I may have strayed and be falling in love with another! 

Our relationship became so powerful that I didn't care who knew about us!  I took her out to meet my friends.  At first I could see them leaning in to each other and whispering, then pointing and I think my mistress knew it too!  Well she was going to show them!  That ol' girl performed so flawlessly and showed me things I did not know existed!  The other guys were no longer looking at her ugly nose or bad make up but looking at the way "she strut her shit" and I found myself being less ashamed and more proud, "YEAH,THAT'S MY GIRL"!  As you may or may not know, two weeks ago I took a last minute trip to California for Born Free 3, while travelling together we learned so much more about each other.  Believe me, I know you are thinking that we can become blinded by something we don't normally experience or something we didn't even know was missing our entire life!  On occasion, that something new you are only going to do briefly, then end it and keep it a secret grabs hold of you and it's traction is so amazing that you can't break it lose if you try!   Early on, you can't stop thinking about the girl you left back at home and what would she think, how painful would it be, if she saw what we were doing ?  The problem was that not only were there an incredible amount of people at Born Free 3, but a great many who knew me and knew that my partner for the weekend was not the sexy ass bitch I normally appear with.   2 weekends ago, we became a couple and there was nothing that I could do about it!  The whole world found out.  I could keep the time we were spending together a secret anymore, hell all kinds of people took pics of us together.  Most "friends" didn't address it, others did.  Nearly every conversations would start with "so what's the deal man"?  Where's your girl? 

Being good friends, some may not have agreed with what I was doing but didn't bust my balls about it too bad.  Others questioned my judgement or said "she don't compare" and things like that.  I took it in stride.  With each moment that would pass, I would glance over and shockingly catch others checking her out.  I could feel a little bit of pride well up in me.... "yeah, she's with me".... I would think.  I cut out of Born Free 3 and head back to the campground about 25 minutes earlier than everyone else.  We got there and we were totally alone.  Looking at her cooling down next to the lake, I realized that it was hard to betray my girl but what's a guy to do.  I'm not getting any younger.  We can all agree on that right?  Show me someone who is?

We came back from Orange County and snuck back in to Phoenix in the middle of the night, just shy of 4 am.  At first, I didn't say anything.  I just watched and waited.  I waited for the emails to come and the pictures to begin popping up all over the net, but they didn't.  I think the longer that this remained largely unknown to many, to bigger the toll it took on my gut, on my heart and on my soul, it was eating me alive and this is why right here, right now, I AM COMING CLEAN TO THE WHOLE WORLD!

Today was the final straw.  What took me by total surprise today was rolling up to an event and watching the girls go ape shit for her.  I mean wow, they walked right up and said how hot she was and were rubbing their hands all over her!  I stood there, mouth open wide, in shock!  She certainly wasn't fighting it, I really believe that she loved the attention she was getting from all of these ladies!  While I didn't say anything, I call could thing was "oh hell yeah", "this is going to be an interesting event".  I was only there for a few moments when I was asked if it was okay if they did a photo shoot with my new girl and all the pinup girls.  I was speechless.  "Yeah, I guess so", "really, are you sure, you aren't fucking with me are you"?  No, they were serious.  I grabbed a beer and those who know me, know damn well, I don't drink beer.  I guess I was just a bit nervous.  They took photos, hundreds and hundreds of photos.  Without exaggeration, there had to be at least 7 cameras flashing at the same time and a few cell phones capturing a few shots casually.   I stood just out of frame and that's when I heard, hey Jack Shit, c'mon man, you are missing out, don't you want to get in the mix?  C'mon man, get in "the group"!  HOLY SHIT!  This was worth all the trouble I was going to be in!  I mean honestly folks, if this was happening to you, would you even stop to think about your girl at home?  That's what I thought! 

The secret is out to everyone now!  So many photos were taken today and they are already popping up on line and on face book.  I may as well beat everyone to it and share a few myself! 

SO I'M COMING CLEAN, and I am going to break the news to the world myself rather than read about it here or see it on TMZ.  I love my FXRS!  To my knuckehead KOKO, I'm sorry.  Not only did I stray, but I enjoyed it, hell, I loved it.  To be quite honest, I am going to do it again and again.  Hell, I may not take you for a good, long, hard ride for sometime!  The way she performed on our trip to California two weeks ago, the way I could twist her and turn her and the way I could lay her over to either side was like nothing I ever experienced before.  I didn't know this was missing from my life but now that I know it was, how can I ever be expected to stop?  I just hope that our mutual love and respect will hold us together and you find yourself willing to now live in an open relationship, because I'm open to it!  I have gotten past how she looked and fallen in love with her soul!  It's a beautiful soul!  So friends, don't hate me for what I have done, just try to understand me for it.  Please, don't judge me!

While on the trip, everyone started calling you the pickle, then the green pickle and you just shook it off, you didn't let it bother you at all.  By the end of the trip, you were the Green Pickle Sickle and you earned it!  What I find shocking is how much the ladies love my pickle?  I still can't get over it.  What I am more shocked about is how many men admire my pickle.  It is still weird to hear someone ask, do you mind if I sit on your pickle?  HELL YEAH I MIND, I hardly even know you!

Everyone have a great weekend and until we see each other on the road,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!

Your friend,
Jack Shit

They are still out there!

Don't give up hope!  If you allow them to find you and open the door when they knock, there are still exceptional people walking this earth.  I know that with times getting harder and harder each day, the ugly in people is really rising to the top and rearing "its ugly head", so to speak.  With each day that passes, a feeling of sadness lay in the bottom of my gut.  Every day, I hear of another story of some one, formerly a dear friend, who has thrown that away for what seems like next to nothing!  It breaks my heart to hear stories of betrayal, lies and out right deception that people share with me!  Screw me once, shame on you, screw me twice then shame on me, should be the mantra that we go through each day with.  That being said, it is difficult to be that hard nosed, heartless monster that can no longer forgive and forget but what are you supposed to do?  At what point do you draw the line in the sand and cut that person loose?  At what point do you decide that you will no longer allow anyone in your life to hurt you?  AT WHAT POINT? 

I too have gone through periods in my life where betrayal and deceit were so crushing to me that it was hard to acquire the strength the raise my head and get out of bed in the morning.  I pulled up my big boy pants and moved on with each day but could not shake the "why" question that was gnawing at the back of my brain.  You know what?  In nearly every single case, you will never know why people do what they do and that sucks.  For some time, I swore that I was done, that I had enough people in my life that I loved and that loved me and they would never, under any circumstances hurt my family.  The problem for me was simple though, I love people!  I missed meeting new people, I missed hearing new tales around a fire, I missed learning from others mistakes, oh hell, I just missed widening the circle of people that I could give back to and pay it forward!  I answered a few knocks on the door and I can say that I am glad that I did.  In the last few years, opening that door has allowed me to open my heart and in return I have gained some friends that I would not nor could not imagine not having in my life for the rest of it!  Sure, maybe one out of 100 that you meet will be one of those people who remain friends till they hold your hand, or you hold theirs at the side of a death bed!  People ask me if I think it is worth the hassle of going through the 99 and it is no easy answer but I have come to the realization that it is!  How can it be you ask?  Well it has to be, otherwise we would never find that 1 in a 100!

In what is the worst economy and the worse times since the great depression and while so many people break your heart and disappoint you, others will step up and their actions will blow your mind!  I suggest that you give some one the chance to do just that.  You can't find the diamonds without first digging through layers of rock, and dirt and shit and so on and so on, you get my point, but the pay off is, THE DIAMONDS ARE THERE!  So I say do a little mining, the pay off will be worth it.  I also suggest that once you open the mine that you have a security guard there to protect your interests and have him carry a big stick and a reliable pistol!  HEY, YA NEVER KNOW! 

That is just a little JACKSHITLOSOPHY for ya this Friday night!  I hope everyone has a great weekend and stays cool and safe out on those murdersickles.  In life, like respect, friendship is never just given, it is earned, so give some one the chance to earn yours!

In the next day or so, I will be breaking some Sturgis news that will hopefully make us all happy!

Until we see each other on the road,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!

Your friend,
Jack Shit

Sometimes Mother Nature just full on kicks you in the balls!

I THINK THAT PICTURE SUMS UP MY FEELINGS ON THE EVENTS OF THIS EVENING!

Since moving to AZ. 6 years ago, I have seen some incredible storms.  I have seen snow covered mountains in Phx., in April, I have seen rivers form within moments in the middle of the desert and I have seen monsoons and lightning like never before in my life.  I have also seen dust storms or as I learned tonight, HABOOBS, before as well.  But never before have I ever seen anything like tonight's storm!  If you look at my earlier posts from tonight, you can see the video of the storm rolling in and striking like Chuck Norris' balled up fist!  I had to capture some photos and I hope you enjoy them.  Also, check out the national news, this time AZ, made the news for something other than immigration laws or shootings!  The shots and videos that were taken from helicopters are nothing short of spectacular!

 This photo is of Diane's windshield only a few moments in to the storm and this was parked in a carport covered and blocked on three sides!  Oh boy was there more to come.

It actually looks like it is snowing!  It was the blizzard of the summer of 2011

Holy Bat Shit!  We also had about 14 drops of rain to turn the dust in to cement, it was a nice touch!

This was the insult to the injury!  Doesn't it look like one of those bikes you always hear about?  THE BARN BIKE, found after 70 years under some hay bales and an old cloth tarp!  Problem is, it is a 2010!

Here is the real bitch of it all!  Instead of keeping my bike in the garage, I kept my buddies bagger in there.  He was kind enough to loan me the bike so I had to safeguard it.  I pulled it out, washed it, cleaned the shit out of it and then put a nice fresh coat of wax on it.  Diane had clients in town from Canada today, so I went with them to see some condos and figured when I got home I would ride the bike back over and return it.  When I got home, my buddy Jay was waiting in the driveway for me.  We bullshitted for a bit and were hanging in the back yard and I was showing him how nice the yard and the pool came out!  We had people over yesterday for the fourth and I actually shop vac'd the patio and the concrete decking all the way around the pool.  Really wise idea as it turns out!  As you can see, I didn't quite make it over to my friend Daryl's house tonight.  Had my buddy Jay not shown up, I would have gotten on the bike and ridden directly in to that storm!

Look at the bottle of wax and the rag still sitting on the damn tank!  Boy oh boy the universe sure has some sense of humor don't it?  If you think this looks like shit, take a look at the rest of this shit!

It looks like I just drove a thousand miles in a blizzard behind ice and rock salt covered tractor trailers!

Here is the view from inside my truck!  Tonight was just insane.  I am seeing reports and videos of horrible accidents from vehicles crashing at full speed in to stopped vehicles in front of them.  I hope and pray that everyone is okay out there and all of my friends and extended family have made it home safely to the ones that they love and those that love them!

I think that this photo above pretty much sums up my feelings on the whole thing.  I just once again hung up the phone with George The Painter, he is on Jay Kroll's Road King trying to ride back from California.  So in other words, he is driving directly, head on in to it.  The truly wild part is that rather than the storm hitting and getting smaller, it is truly "snowballing" and growing larger and larger as it rolls across the desert.  Once you get past Phoenix, it is nothing but open desert for hundreds of miles and he is now in a place called Desert Center.  It is a town that literally has died.  So that skinny prick is in a ghost town, hunkered down in an abandoned building wearing his helmet and glasses and he isn't even riding.  Like the saying goes, "there are no atheists in foxholes"!  I checked the radar and told him not to worry, he doesn't have to wonder what lay ahead.  DEATH AND DISMEMBERMENT LIE AHEAD!  So in that shell of a building he shall stay for a while!

The storm died down and Jay and I went outside and started shooting pics, we were stunned.  He leaned over the tour pack of the bike and blew hard and a huge cloud of dust flew in to the air.  This gave me a great idea.  I will just back the truck in to the street and tear off down the road!  Simple right?  That will blow the dirt off just as easily as it blew on.  Well, it was a great theory.  Did it work?  OF COURSE IT DIDN'T WORK.  I had forgotten about the 14 drops of rain that we got to go with the HABOOB!  That pretty much was the same as opening up a bag of quickcrete, dumping it on the truck and spraying it with the hose.  The truck is pretty much covered in cement now!

Now the truly amazing part is, I LOVE LIVING HERE!  I have never lived any place like the desert and I don't think that I would give it up.  I've seen things here that I have never seen before and each and every day brings something new.  This is now my home, so mother nature, the universe, bring it on bitches and throw at me what you will, you can not, you will not break us!  I'm not sure that my pool filter is taking the same position that I am, but hey, it's on its own!  I'll leave you with a few shots from around the valley.  First though, let me show you a shot of what happens when you just point the camera up in to the black sky, what you see here looks like a blizzard, it however is not snow, IT'S FUCKING DIRT!

It was brutal to stand outside.  You could not take a breath because you feel the weight of the silt like dust fill your lungs and you could barely open your eyes because the wind driven dirt felt as if you were being sand blasted!  I want you to keep in mind when looking at this above photo that we did not go outside to begin taking photos until the storm and its intensity had dropped by 95% at the very least.  I feel for those stuck outside in it with no where to go, GTP for example.... Here are some shots in closing....

If you have ever been to AZ., this photo above is a shot of OLD TOWN SCOTTSDALE!

Until we see each other again,
Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!

Your friend,
Jack Shit