Winter in LA

After what's already been a long winter, it was nice to get out of town, in search of much better weather, and time spent with good friends. I had to make the biannual trip to the greater Los Angeles area for work related duties. And since I was already going to be out there, I figured that it would be nice to take a few extra days of vacation to soak up the weather and see some old friends.

I won't bore you with the details of my vacation days, but figured I'd share a few photos. These first few are from Garage Company. Most likely, anyone reading this, is familiar with Yoshi and his shop in Ingelwood California. He was out of town for the auctions in Las Vegas, but the mechanics were still busy in the back, and they were kind enough to let us have a look around.

Early Norton International in rough mock up state, after being unpacked from boxes. In need of a full rebuild, and I'm assuming a total restoration.

An early pre-featherbed Norton Dominator that I've seen in the back for several years now. I'm not sure what the story is, but it definitely needs some serious attention.

Unique fiberglass Norton tank that was likely on some sort of Commando special. For now, it's just a piece of art.

Shelves of Amal and Delorto carbs litter the place. I tried to buy a few carbs, but without Yoshi there to assign a price, I simply had to put them back, and move on.

I'm a Norton guy, and since finding a 500T will likely be impossible, I've always considered getting a Greeves. This isn't the model that I'd like to have, as I prefer the earlier type with Earls fork. Or better yet, a Silverstone. Either way, it's cool to look at.

After rummaging around and taking in all the details of mounds and mounds of vintage motorcycles and parts, it was time to head out. A really good friend of mine, was out of town, and offered up that I could ride his brand new Triumph Bonneville Scrambler. I'm generally not one to ride another man's bike, but we've been friends for a long time, and how could I really say no. So it was off to the canyon with another buddy. I think we put on 100 miles or more, and damn was it nice to get out and ride.

Stopping point to go to the bathroom, so I snapped a photo to remember the time. Scrambler with all the goodies that make an already nice bike, even better. The Arrow exhaust makes a big difference in performance, sound and shaves a lot of weight off the bike. My buddies 1965 Norton Atlas in the background. I'm not used to riding a modern bike, so it took a few minutes to feel comfortable. Shifting on the other side and just getting used to riding something completely different. It's a tall bike with the suspension travel set for riding on and off road and the riding position is much different than what I'm used to. But needless to say, we had a great ride. Thanks Matt, I truly appreciate it.