As motorcycle riders are getting older, the question arises am I getting too old to ride a motorcycle? That is a question as you get up there in age, you may need to ask yourself. Statistics show that many motorcycle riders give up riding from age 60 to 80. There are still many riders in this age range, but in general, riders sell their motorcycles or let them gather dust.
Why do older people stop riding? Physical, mental, and general health are big factors to consider when riding a motorcycle. Your body will tell you when you are too old to ride a motorcycle. The age varies; I have met guys riding into their 80s, while I know others who sold their motorcycles when they hit age 50.
Your physical condition significantly impacts your proficiency in riding a motorcycle. You cannot ride a bike, safely, if you have a serious medical condition that impairs your mobility, reaction time, and your vision.
Mental health plays a major role in your ability to ride a motorcycle. Riding under the influence of drugs or alcohol is a recipe for disaster. Dementia, lack of concentration, and age-related mental illnesses are clear warning signs you need to stop riding for your safety and the safety of others.
When is it time to stop riding, see if any of these apply:
This blog says it is about Trike Motorcycles, you are probably asking why I am being told I am too old to ride.
Let us say you are getting older, but you still want to ride. There is an option between two and four wheels, you can opt for three wheels. A Trike motorcycle can give you the freedom and feeling you had riding a motorcycle, but give you the added safety and comfort you might be looking for as you age.
A trike motorcycle is a 3-wheel motorcycle with 3 distinct wheel tracks. Some trikes feature dual wheels in the front, while others have 2 wheels in the back. Like a 2-wheel motorcycle, trikes will also have handlebars to steer and a saddle for the rider and passengers. The engine is positioned in the center of the trike under the rider. Most older motorcycle riders tend to choose a Trike with the two wheels in the rear. New riders, if interested in a trike, tend to pick a trike with two wheels in the front.
We will focus on a Trike Motorcycle with two wheels in the back. Harley Davidson offers three models of Trike Motorcycles. The Free Wheeler, the Road Glide 3, and the Tri Glide Ultra for those who really want added comfort and style. A new Harley Trike start at $30,000 and can go up to as much as $50,000 for the ultimate custom trike.
You have the motorcycle of your dreams and do not want to break the bank for a new Trike. You are in luck, most V-Twin motorcycles can be converted into a Trike Motorcycle. There are Trike companies who specialize in doing these conversations. The average cost, depending on the motorcycle being converted, can run you $10,000 to $20,000 to go from two wheels to three wheels.
The advantages of riding a Trike Motorcycle:
So maybe it is time to consider giving up two wheels, but three wheels open a world of new opportunities.
Start living the Trike Life!
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The golden age of rock music, in my opinion, was from the late 1960s to the 1990s. I was always drawn to the move heavier side of Rock, bands like KISS, Alice Cooper, UFO, AC/DC, The Scorpions, Deep Purple, Grand Funk Railroad, Ted Nugent, Aerosmith, Led Zepplin, Lynard Skynard, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, and others. These bands ruled the music scene of the 70's and some are still at in 2023.
If you were lucky enough to see some of these bands in their prime, you know that those concert experiences are etched in your memory for life. Fast forward to now, where are these bands today? Believe it or not many of them are still on the road touring. Do they really need the money, or just doing it for the love of the fans and performing? The answer is probably a combination of both.
Everybody gets old, nothing we can do to keep the years from rolling by. It is unbelievable to think that these bands are still at it 50-plus years later from their start. Many of the original members have left the band, some band members retired and were just tired of the life of a touring Rock band or the death took a founding member.
There are bands now that tour in name only they do not have one single original member in the band, at this point, they are a tribute band. Lynard Skynyrd, Foreigner, The Guess Who, Quiet Riot, and many others to name a few, not one performer who has been in the band since the beginning. They charge the ticket price as a headline act, not a tribute band.
You cannot expect a 70-year-old rocker to have the same energy and charisma they had when they were in their twenties. That rebellious spirit of Rock and Punk they were all about does not come across when the aging Rocker can barely get up the stairs to the stage.
Gene Simmons of Kiss had to play a show sitting down in Australia on their End of The Road Tour. You can look at like, the show must go on, great effort on his part, or you can say he should have hung up his demon costume years ago. Their Farwell tour was plagued with canceled tour dates due to Simmons and Paul Stanley's constant fatigue and illness problems during the tour. Many fans flew in from other cities, states, and even foreign countries to attend a particular show, only to find out the show was canceled and not to be rescheduled. OK, you will get a refund for the ticket, but what about your travel expenses? Basically, you are screwed out of that
So many bands have done their final tours over the last couple of years. When a band announces it is the final tour, a lot of them see it as their final big pay day. The fans see it as one last time to see the band live that was part of the soundtrack of their youth. Two or three years later, the band gets back together for another tour. To me, this is just bullsh!t, and one more money grab from their loyal fans. In most cases, the new tour is the exact same as the Farwell tour a couple of years ago that they charged you top dollar to see. Motley Crue is a perfect example of announcing they would never unite again a few years ago, only to come back and do a world tour this year minus one original member retired due to illness. Their singer, Vince Neil cannot sing anymore, forgetting and mumbling the lyrics. The departed guitarist accused his former bandmates of using backing tracks for the vocals, bass, and drum parts. There are videos online showing the drummer, Tommy Lee not even sitting at his drum kit and the drums for the next song already started. At this point, they are just going through the motions and ripping off their fans.
Aerosmith was charging big bucks for their farewell tour this year. They sidelined their original drummer a couple of years ago. The band said the touring was too much for him, but the drummer, Joey Kramer, said they kicked him out of the band. You spend over $500 bucks to see the Aerosmith final tour, to have it cancelled after only four shows. The singer, Steven Tyler injured his vocal cords while performing, and other band members said they are doubtful they will finish the tour.
AC/DC lost their founding member Malcolm Young, who passed a few years ago, but the band decided to continue. The tour ground to a stop when the singer, Brian Johnson, suffered hearing loss and left the tour. To give them credit, the band recruited Axel Rose to do the vocals for the remainder of the tour. I saw their show with Axel at Madison Square Garden in New York City and they blew the roof off the place. Brian Johnson got a state-of-the-art hearing aid and the rumor is they will tour in 2024. At 76 years of age, do you think this next tour for Brian is going to be easy?
Guns N’ Roses are out on the road, the singer Axel Rose, once the wild child of Rock in the 80's looks like a grandma these days. He can no longer hit the high notes he was famous for. The days of him running around the stage like a wild tiger are gone. These days, he is having a hard time not tripping and falling while on stage when he does try to do his famous moves from his youth.
The singer for The Who, Roger Daltry, age 79, recently forgot the lyrics to one of his band's hit songs, he apologized to the audience and left the stage not to come back. It is sad, but they should not be asking fans to pay for a performance of just two or three songs. No refunds were given.
The audience has also aged, the days of standing from start to finish of a concert are gone two songs in and most of the crowd is seated, to the frustration of the bands. "Come on get up, get your asses out of those seats,” said Rob Zombie. He continued "Go wild put your F@cking phones away". Rob Zombie was yelling this at his New York outdoor concert at Jones Beach Theater this past Summer. He got little reaction from the crowd.
Many of the aging Rock fans leave the show before the last songs to beat the crowd and get out of the parking lot. Something you would never do as twenty something concertgoer. You stayed until the very last minute of the show only to leave when the house lights were turned back on.
What Rock bands of your youth are still out there touring? I am sure I am missing some but these are bands with at least one original member still left:
Then there are the bands and performers you will most likely never see again due to death or they announced they were done.
There are many more bands of our youth who no longer tour, have broken up, or just faded away over the years. There are too many to list.
The bands that do tour are still able to put asses in the seats. Younger fans are being exposed to the music by their parents, but there is not a wave of new bands building a following like the bands of our youth.
Where will these bands be in 20 years, sad to say most will be dead or too old to perform.
Enjoy the music, and if you have the money, support the bands you grew up listening to by going to their concerts. Be aware you are not going to get the same performance out of these bands when they were at their prime, it is about having a good time and having a sense of humor. I hope I am running around like Mick Jagger when I am 80!!
Rock on!!
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Yes, there are drug cartels, who mostly operate in the North of the country, close to the boarder with their number one customer, the United States. Don't go to Mexico with the idea of doing drugs or buying drugs and you should have no issues. There are roads and areas that are dangerous at certain times, but with a little common sense and doing some homework before your visit, you should be fine. Just like the USA, there are places where you know not to go, same in Mexico.
Mexico City was a place I had heard was dirty, dangerous and run down. The Mexico City I visited was the opposite to any of those adjectives.
After almost a six hour direct flight from New York To Mexico, we arrived to a modern international airport, hoped into a cab for the 4 mile ride to the center of the city.
You can find clean hotels for as little as $60 US dollars a night and an average meal costing around $12.00 US dollars. You also have all the five-star hotels and restaurants that are found around the world, but still considerably cheaper than what you would pay for the same accommodations and food in the USA or Europe. You for sure get a good value for your dollar or Euro.
When we arrived, to our hotel that first night, our hotel restaurant was still serving food till 11pm. Grabbed some Guacamole and chips, why not add in some grasshopper for protein. The grasshopper, known as Chapulines are sold as snacks and often added to salads and dips. Insects are common food source around the world and only now starting to make it 's way into the diets of Americans.
The next morning, we where out to see what Mexico City had to offer. The answer is it has a lot to offer. The week we where there, Formula 1 car racing was taking place in the center of the city. Fans of the sport from all over the world had descended on Mexico City. One of the favorite Mexican drivers / pilot, Sergio Perez, was the crowd favorite for team Red Bull. The fans were camped outside the drivers' hotels morning and night to get an autograph or a photo. Formula 1 has come to the States, but does not have following as it does in other countries.
Tickets where sold out for the three days of races, so missed it this time.
Mexico City has a rich history. The city was founded by the Aztec people in 1325, an advanced people who built pyramids that can still be explored today. Originally Mexico City was built over a lake system. Today the buildings of the city lean and are cracked due to the unstable marsh / lake land the city was built on. In the early 1500's the Spanish invaded Mexico. The Aztec fought the Spanish, and at one point thought they had driven them out of their country, but they came back with more forces and ultimately defeated the Aztec people. The disease the Spanish brought to Mexico, soon killed off the Aztec people. Later the French, under Napoleon, invade Mexico City, for a couple of years to be driven out of the country. This quick history lesson in Mexican history can be explained further with a visit to the number of museums in Mexico City, with artifacts from all periods of the country's rich history. The Anthropology Museum and the Chapultepec Castle are a must visit, if you don't have time to explore the many Museums in Mexico City.
Having an art-based company, with skulls always front and center in our designs, the perfect time for me to come to Mexico was the first week of November. Why this time of the year? The celebration of the Dia de los Muertos takes place in Mexico. This is celebration of all those who have died and to celebrate their memory, in English you might know it as the Day of the Dead.
This is a week long holiday, starting on Halloween, where the whole country celebrates with parades, festivities and visits to their loved ones in the cemeteries. The whole country celebrates the Dia de Los Muertos, but Oaxaca City, Mexico City and Puerto Vallarta are known for their huge festivities.
Part of the holiday consist of making an "Ofrenda" to the deceased loved one. An Ofrenda is an alter made in the home, business or town center that usually has a photo of the deceased, flowers, fruits and things the deceased enjoyed in their life. Say a good bottle of Tequilla. The care and time put into the many Ofrendas was quite impressive. Trips to the cemeteries is unlike a visit to a USA cemetery. Many of the tombstones in a Mexican cemetery represent not only the person who died but their occupation and likes in life. example if you were a boat captain, your tombstone might be in the shape of a boat or anchor. The cemeteries are also decorated with flowers and handmade Catrinia's (female skeletons) and Skeletons.
People visit the Cemeteries at night doing candlelight vigils.
Around Mexico City where art exhibits of colorful painted skulls done by various artists. All preparing for the big parade thru Mexico City to take place on the first Saturday in November.
The parade started around 2pm on a sunny afternoon and wound it's way for two miles to end in the city's main sqaure, Zocalo. The parade lasted for three hours, with people 5 deep throughout the whole route. Savy Entrepeneur's where selling stools to stand on for $5.00 dollars to see over the crowds who showed up hours earlier to get a good spot. Over 1 million people attended or where part of the parade. Colorful floats, marching bands, dancers and basically everyone wearing skull make up, made for sure a unique experience. You could get you face painted for 10 bucks, which took about 15 minutes, to be part of the celebration.
A must have in Mexico City, is a taco. Any type of taco from shrimp to pulled pork is available at Taquerias around the city. A Taqueria is a place that sells tacos. Can be from a food cart to small restaurant specializing in tacos. Their hot sauce is no joke, so be careful!
My impression of Mexico City.....the people are friendly and always smiling, the food is top notch, the music and art scene rivals any big city, great value, affordable and just a great place to visit. Highly recommend a stay in Mexico City.
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Look, this is nothing new to bikers: We see our styles appropriated and twisted by trendsetters for a quick buck. Our culture is under constant burglary from fashionistas and corporate types trying to find something edgy for the masses. Yet, they never stick around to learn the history and meaning of those styles.
That's certainly the case with Vicla motorcycles, over the last few years. At Lethal Threat, our staff members have been immersed in biker culture for decades. That's why our shirts, hats and stickers are so authentic. We're happy to help you understand the history of Viclas, so we can show respect to the culture that created it.
California Cool
Have you ever seen the T-shirt or bumper sticker that says, "I don't care how they do it in California"? What's that all about? Forget about all the bad things California is known for. Just in case you don't know: floods, earthquakes, fires, crime, crazy traffic, high cost of living; the list goes on. One thing California always had going for it was being the birthplace of all things cool. When the weather cooperates, it's the perfect place to cruise down the boulevard, whether on two wheels or four, in or on the ride of your dreams.
In the motorcycle and car world, new looks and trends, 99% of the time originate in California. Once the latest thing goes mainstream in California, it bounces over to the East Coast of the United States and then eventually works its way to middle America and then the rest of the world. Once everyone has caught onto what started in California, the trend or style is old news in California and the cool kids are onto the next new thing that will take the world by storm.
Sometimes, something cool takes root and the fad or trend becomes a staple in pop culture and is here to stay. Over time this new movement, be it art, tattoos, custom paint jobs on motorcycles/cars, music, etc. evolves but usually stays close to its original identity.
Nothing exemplifies this idea like the Low Rider Culture and Lifestyle that started in California back in the 1940s. That's right, all things Lowrider started more than 80 years ago. Now, the appreciation for the culture has spread all over the world from Asia to Europe, as well as Central and South America. The Lowrider influence is so wide-ranging, that each segment deserves its own blog. This first blog, in a series about the Lowrider culture, will be about the Lowrider influence on motorcycles.
Vicla Victory
In particular, let's talk about Viclas. Up until recently, I had never heard that term. We use a photographer in Australia, @jimmyteephotography, for pin-up girl-style photo shoots. Nothing goes together like a beautiful woman and a sleek car or motorcycle So, whenever we asked Jimmy to send some photos of motorcycles the model could pose with, he always talked about shooting with a Vicla. I was like Vicla? what's a Vicla? After he sent me photos of the bikes, I said a Lowrider style bike? His response is the proper name is Vicla. You learn something new all the time. Currently, there is a huge Vicla motorcycle craze going on in Australia. A trend that started years ago in California has traveled around the world and is taking hold down under.
A Chicano Creation
So, what is the history of the Vicla, and what makes a motorcycle a Vicla? The Vicla started, sorry to keep saying in, in California back in the 1960s. Stock motorcycles were torn apart and customized to the rider's vision of what he wanted to ride. Change out the exhaust pipes, handlebars, seat, front end, you name it, the motorcycle would take a new life as a stripped-down chopper or go to the other end of the spectrum and create a Vicla.
The foundation of a Vicla-style motorcycle is a Harley Davidson. The most popular Harley models used to customize into a Vicla are Road Kings, Heritages and Fat Boys. Low Rider Motorcycle, Chicano Style, Gangster Style and Vicla are all names used to describe the same motorcycle style.
A Vicla is not just a customized motorcycle. Yes, a Vicla stands out from a stock Harley, with its candy-colored metal flake paint jobs, complex hand-engraved chrome parts and detailed airbrushed murals, but it is more than just that. The motorcycle is a reflection of the Chicano pride, passion, craftsmanship, culture, community and brotherhood. The builders of these Viclas are expressing their pride in their heritage as Mexican Americans with their motorcycles, creating works of art that can be ridden as a daily ride.
Appreciated Across the World
The appreciation for the Chicano style motorcycle is widely admired by non-Chicano bikers as well. Anybody who knows motorcycles can recognize the blood, sweat and tears that went into these two-wheeled works of art. The blend of Chicano, Cholo and motorcycle culture has reached a wider audience in recent years, with the popularity of TV shows, like "Mayans MC". A show depicting a Mexican American Outlaw Biker MC, who rides some sweet Viclas.
Chicano style has certainly left its mark on the motorcycle community around the world. It's not about race or ethnicity. Skin color has nothing to do with enjoying motorcycles. This generation of Viclas riders appreciates this style motorcycle's craftsmanship, uniqueness and heritage while staying humble, staying true to themselves and living in the wind with their ride. Viclas, however, steeped in Mexican American and Chicano influences - are much bigger than any one person or culture.
At the end of the day, Viclas are about enjoying the freedom of the road, expressing one's individuality and the passion and hard work reflected in the one-of-a-kind Vicla!
]]>So when we met the organizer of the The Tennessee Motorcycle and Music Revival, Buck Shaw, and he invited us to exhibit at his show, we where all in for the 15 hour drive South from New York. The event was held on the grounds of Country Super Star, Lorreta Lynn's Ranch, in her town of Hurricane Mills.
Located about a half hour ride from Nashville, you could not find a nicer place to hold a motorcycle event. Top name music acts, great motorcycle riding, camping, custom motorcycle shows, dirt track racing, vendors, a Wall of Death and a hill climb competition, there was no shortage of entertainment in this laid back setting.
Most attendees chose to camp on the grounds of the event. Some camped in style with their top dollar RV's, while others tied a tent and sleeping bag to their motorcycle sissy bar and set up on a patch of lush Tennessee grass. A stream ran thru the grounds to cool off in, watch out for those snakes, or head up to the redneck pool for a dip.
Non-stop live music could be heard between the rumbling of the bikes moving in and out of the festival all day and night. The day of music was topped off with Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top and the Southern Rock band, The Outlaws on both main nights of the revival.
That covered the music part in the name of the event, now onto the motorcycle part. Picture an outside shed lined up with some of the sweetest custom motorcycles this side of the Mississippi River. Choppers, bobbers and bar hoppers all were represented, while their builders where close by their bike to answer any questions about the builds.
Hourly shows, put on by the Ives Brothers in their Wall of Death, left the crowd wanting more as they both sped around on vintage Harleys in their 100 year old side show wooden barrel defying gravity. Show your appreciation with some cash tips , while they raced around the barrel and grab the money as you look down on them circling the inside of the barrel narrowly missing colliding with each other. Dizzy from following the action, slide up to one of the many bars set up around the grounds and throw back a cold one. Take a walk down vendor row, with everything for sale from Barbecue Smokers to Motorcycle Parts and Apparel.
Dirt track racing was going on all day with all sorts of motorcycle classes with non-stop thrills and spills. Unfortunately, Saturday afternoon saw a severe lightning storm move in with heavy down pours of rain prematurely shutting down the event. People retreated to their tents, RV's or any place they could find a safe shelter.
We tore down our Lethal Threat Tent in record time but still managed to get soaked to the bone. Mother Nature was the only force that could have stopped this show, and if you know anything about a storm in Tennessee, it's not something you mess with. When the tornado warning come across your cell phone, you don't ignore it. The last day of three-day show got washed out, cancelling the hill climb that was due to take place Sunday morning. The weather cleared up by Sunday afternoon, but the damage was done, severe flooding made the whole ranch a sea of puddles and mud. By noon Sunday morning the place was a ghost town.
The positive attitude of the organizers was for sure washed away with the storm, but they vow the show will be back in 2023. Overall, it was a good time not to be missed!
Story courtesy of Lethal Threat Brand - www.lethalthreat.com
Down-N-Out Brand - www.downnout.com
Photos courtesy - matt_keane / Instagram
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Well Mama did manage to put on one of the most prestigious motorcycle shows in the Midwest of the United States. The name of the show, "Mama Tried" of course.
So we packed our bags, sent our exhibit set up and boarded a plane for Milwaukee, Wisconsin to be part of this event this past March. Winters in Milwaukee are no joke, so luckily our hotel was right across from the event venue. We checked into the Ambassador Hotel, almost 100 year old art decor style hotel with it's own history worth mentioning. Stepping into the lobby was like something out a silent movie scene, old and dated but a very cool vibe. This hotel hosted the Beatles on their first North American tour. President John F Kennedy was known to have spent a night with Marlyn Monroe at the Ambassador and last but not least, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer killed and cut up his first victim at the hotel. How can you pass up staying at a place with such history!
The show took place at the Eagles Ballroom. Another landmark venue with a deep history, built in 1926, this three story venue has been hosting music performances from Elvis to Five Finger Death Punch and once a year host the Mama Tried Show.
The first question we ask when loading into an almost 100 year old building, is how big the elevators are? The answer, is not very big. So you are one of the 50 top custom bike builders, invited to showcase your bike in the grand ballroom on the third floor, and the elevator is 8 feet long, but you showing your 15 foot long chopper, what do you do? Answer is you and a couple of guys carry that chopper up the three flights of stairs, and when the show is finished same thing except this time it's down the three flights. So you have to not only respect the build but how they made it to the showroom floor.
The show was slated to start Saturday morning and finish the next day, Sunday around lunch time. Milwaukee is the birth place of Harley Davidson, so many attendees stopped off at the Harley Museum Friday and made a full weekend of motorcycle events by attending the Flat Out Friday Track Race event being held at the local indoor arena. For anybody into motorcycles this was and is the weekend to come to Milwaukee despite the cold weather.
The show featured over 100 motorcycles from builders of all calibers, flat trackers, hill climbers, choppers and bar hoppers. If it was bad ass, it was here! The crowd was lined up early Saturday morning, to get into the venue, and the party went on all day and night. Great bikes, loud music, pretty girls, the best beers Milwaukee has to offer, and no attitudes made for a killer event.
Many where nursing hang overs the next day. Sunday was bit more low key and for many, tear down and loading out the bikes was all that was on our minds. The guys with the choppers had a bit more work than all the rest, but the capable crew from Mama Tried was able to lend a hand a make sure the choppers made it back to street level.
Mama Tried has been going on for a couple of years now, and year after year it grows in attendance and notoriety in the motorcycle world. This is a show not to miss in 2023. Dates are set for February 18th and 19th, 2023. Book a room at The Ambassador. Room 507 for all you serial killer fans.
Story courtesy of Lethal Threat Brand - www.lethalthreat.com
Down-N-Out Brand - www.downnout.com
Photos courtesy - @matt_keane / Instagram
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Before we get into the glory days of pot smoking and free love, we need to lay the groundwork for how we got there. In the years preceding the counterculture movement, there were a number of different factors that collectively contributed to a sense of social and political unrest in the United States. Many European immigrants of the 20th century brought a reverence for nature and rejection of the conformist, industrialized world with them. The growing desire for an alternative to modern life in the 50s would be amplified by the Beat generation. Now famous writers like Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and William S. Burroughs pioneered schools of thought that were not only critical of America’s materialism and repression — but also expanded on what literature could be with experimental writing techniques that feel cutting edge to this day. Burroughs’ Naked Lunch (1959) and Ginsberg’s Howl (1956) both led to landmark cases that effectively combatted censorship in the United States. Because of the Beats, a whole new generation were exposed to beliefs that went against traditional American ones, and artistic expression was further liberated.
Conservative Americans labeled these men as “beatniks,” a term that you are likely more familiar with than “beats,” and as more and more people began to adopt the countercultural lifestyle, the more the name started to stick. The name was a play on Sputnik, the Russian satellite, as a way to try to lump the group in with communists. Most members of the beat generation rejected the term as their beliefs were separate from communism, but it continued into the 1960s, and became synonymous with the more artfully-minded youth of the counterculture. “Beatnik” began to morph into “hippie” in the mid to late 60s, when popular language began to change. Conservatives again came up with the name, making fun of how “hip” was used as slang for cool. Moral of the story; anything being made fun of by older generations will eventually be co-opted by young people, because it eventually became a label that they proudly self identified with. The important aspects of beat culture remained, like artistic freedom and a rejection of modern consumerism and politics, but these ideas were merely the foundation for what was to come.
By the 1960s, novelist Ken Kesey led the Merry Pranksters, a commune made up of now iconic figures of the hippie movement such as Neal Cassady (also of the beat generation), Mountain Girl, and Ken Babbs. Kesey’s novels One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1962) and Sometimes a Great Notion (1964) serve as enduring examples of literature that reflect hippie values — both in terms of the satirical subject matter, but also because of their experimental, often psychedelic writing style. In 1964, the Merry Pranksters traveled the United States in a van throwing parties, dropping acid, smoking weed, and preaching their values to anyone who would listen. Their cross country trip was instrumental to the popularity of LSD among hippies, and in furthering the conversation on recreational narcotics in the United States.
As literature began to reflect a new sensibility (and a use of psychedelic drugs), so did other forms of art. Perhaps the largest development artistically to come from the counterculture was the advent of psychedelic rock. Artists like The Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, and Big Brother and the Holding Company took the world by storm with music that adopted a more laid back, often improvisational approach to songwriting. This music was intended to be listened to while under the influence, and some people will tell you it’s the only way to enjoy it, but honestly we love it no matter our mental states. The Beatles even began to adopt more psychedelic influences on later releases, which shows just how popular the hippie movement had become by the late 60s. A resurgence of folk music was also happening in Greenwich Village, NY and Berkley, CA with artists like Bob Dylan and Joan Baez bringing hippie values and aesthetics to the genre.
San Francisco and Greenwich Village became focal points for hippies as their numbers grew. These two coastal hubs became saturated with drug-filled parties that encouraged open mindedness and free love. As amazing as all this sounds, being a hippie wasn’t just hanging out and smoking joints (although it certainly was a lot of the time). With such large numbers, protests erupted around the country, and later around the world. Of all the things that the hippies accomplished in the 60s, preserving the fight for economic and racial equality, an end to war, and freedom of expression was by far the most important. If a forest or park was being torn down to make room for a new mall, they would chain themselves to the trees and demand that nature be preserved. Hippies stood for days in front of corporate buildings, animal testing centers, and more in the name of supporting what was right.
While not every protest led to real change, many of them did. Without their anti-war marches, the U.S. occupation of Vietnam would have likely lasted much longer, and the draft would never have been abolished. Even when change wasn’t immediate, the dedication they showed brought awareness to issues that were otherwise unrepresented, which has led to slow change that can be seen and felt today. The changing laws around cannabis legalization, and environmental protection laws all trace back to the hippies of the 60s. Without them laying the groundwork for future generations, who knows what progress we would be missing out on?
By the end of the 60s, hippie culture had fully integrated into the mainstream. Massive music festivals like Woodstock emerged, fashion lines reflecting the changing values gained popularity, and left leaning politics underwent a progressive shift. In many ways, being a hippie had just become a fashion statement, as the social awareness they brought had run its course, and had been co-opted by corporate interests and popular culture at large. Naturally, like any major cultural movement, the bubble had to eventually burst, and that is precisely what happened in 1969. Both the Charles Manson murders, as well as the death and destruction at the Altamont Free concert showed America a violent side to hippie culture that even caused many peaceful members of the counterculture to reevaluate the movement. This “moral panic” of the late 60s shifted American values once again, and trends changed. The punk movement of the 70s took countercultural values to an even further extreme that better reflected the mentality of American youth, and hippies became products of a bygone era.
While it might be obvious to us, not everyone realizes how countercultural us bikers are. Sure we don’t exactly blend into a crowd, but in the conversation about hippies, you rarely hear anyone bring up Kustom Kulture in the modern day. Despite the fact that folks like Big Daddy Roth were clearly a part of the counterculture, films like Easy Rider (1969) showed that many hippies were in fact bikers. Traveling on the open road on a bike was an easy way to live an alternative life, remaining close to nature without ever being tied down to the rules of society. Really, being a biker is one of the most countercultural things you can be. While the movement eventually faded out in the mainstream, we still feel a strong connection to hippies here, and we will continue to keep their spirit alive as long as we can.
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If there’s one thing about badass mechanics that we know to be true, it’s that they’ll always find a way to make things bigger, better, and more powerful if given an opportunity, and the invention of monster trucks may be the greatest example of that. In the 1970s, mud bogging competitions and truck pulling started to grow in popularity. Always looking to get a leg up (and look cool in the process), many competitors lifted their trucks. This led to “biggest truck” competitions cropping up in the scene. Of course, in typical masculine fashion, bigger trucks meant that we had to start measuring them. This is where the monster truck as we know it today was born. From here. Mechanics would use whatever they could find to make their trucks as gargantuan as possible. Even if it meant finding old bus and truck parts in junkyards, if it worked, they used it.
In the early days, these behemoths weren’t quite as capable as the monster trucks we know today, and were mostly heavily customized pickups or sport utility vehicles. While they may not have been the safest, they were still impressively constructed and serve as a landmark of vehicle customization. The USA-1, Bigfoot, and Bear Foot were some of the largest of the era. To give you more of a concrete idea of the scale, these trucks were equipped with tires up to 48 inches in diameter. No small feat (pun intended). Bigfoot even went on to become the first monster truck to crush other cars in 1981, making it a massive event at the 1982 Pontiac Silverdome.
These enormous sport vehicles quickly grew in functionality to match their size in the 1980’s. Around the time that Bob Chandler was using Bigfoot to flatten automobiles, the term “monster truck” was coined by the motorsport promotion company now known as the United States Hot Rod Association. Looking to capitalize on the new trend, monster trucks got bigger and more robust, and their following grew as a result. By the mid 80s, a typical monster truck would have tires 66 inches in diameter, and would be an expected sideshow at any truck-based motorsports event. Mechanics would also start to decorate their trucks more elaborately, and the result reminds us a lot of our favorite counter-cultural artists for both the cartoony feel of it, but also for the craftsmanship. If they were around back then, we think the monster truck scene would’ve fit right in with 1950s kustom kulture. Newcomers like King Krunch, Maddog, and the iconic Gravedigger also emerged to add to the competition.
By the late 1980s, monster trucks had become a full-fledged event in their own right. Monster truck racing had gotten its own championship series, and the MTRA (Monster Truck Racing Association) was formed to create a set standard for safety and manufacturing. These years marked some of the most fruitful for innovation in the scene. In a typical monster truck of the time, leaf springs were usually paired with shock absorbers to achieve the levels of suspension necessary for the titanic vehicles to earn their namesake. New trucks like Equalizer, however, used coil springs to substantial effect, while Taurus boasted a solid axle suspension system created from four-link suspensions and coilovers. As incredible as some of these developments were, they were immediately put to shame by Bob Chandler once again when he unveiled Bigfoot #8 — with a full tubular chassis, and a long-travel suspension system made from triangulated four-link suspensions, bump stops, limit straps, cantilevers, and shock absorbers (with nitrogen gas to boot). This bad boy changed monster trucks overnight, creating the template for all others to come after it.
In the early 1990s, monster trucks were bigger than ever, and drivers wanted further opportunity to perform if they lost early in their respective races. This desire led to freestyle exhibitions. This would give the drivers the chance to really show off their skills, all while giving the fans more of what they want. In the year 2000, freestyle officially became a judged competition at events, and now has its own separate championship. Monster trucks had become so popular that they even had their own league in ProMT until 2004. Even though it didn’t last for financial reasons, we can still dream about its eventual return, right?
Today, monster trucks are still ubiquitous with motorsports, with so much pop culture currency that you can find countless toys, articles of clothing, and decorations themed after them. There was even a terrible children’s movie featuring them in 2016. While they may not be on the level of NASCAR, we still think that these motorized leviathans are not only exciting, but admirable. Despite potential safety risks and countless financial setbacks, monster trucks have endured; be it through D.I.Y. determination, or a pure love of the sport. With such a diehard community supporting them, it’s no surprise monster trucks have remained as popular as they are. Say what you will, but if your brand is so recognizable that even a generic kid’s flick is using it, that’s got to count for something right? If anything, we think that’s a sign you made it.
*Pictured Above: The Lethal Threat Stomper
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Let’s start with a brand you’re definitely familiar with, Harley-Davidson. Founded in 1903, they were some of the earliest to the marketplace, and it shows in their dedicated following. To many bikers, all other motorcycles become invisible in the presence of a Harley, and we can’t really blame them. Through a century of innovation, they still retain a classy and traditional feel that’ll make you want to grow your hair out, cover yourself in tattoos (if you haven’t already), and reminisce on the glory days. They’re also a great bike to customize, which has always garnered respect from us. If you’re looking for a classic cruiser, you can’t do much better. Fair warning though, due to their top-of-the-line nature, you can expect these to be pretty pricey.
Although founded in Bologna, Italy in the 1920’s, Ducati motorcycles are no joke. One thing that we love in a bike is powerful machinery, and that’s what Ducati is all about. The Ducati name is celebrated for engineering some of the fastest motorcycles you can buy. These babies are all about performance, and the brand primarily focuses on sports and adventure bikes because of it. If you’re just looking for a standard you can still find one here, but it’s going to be on the sleek, sportier side. Don’t expect the most luggage space in the world from these guys.
When you think of BMW, a fancy car owned by some stuck-up businessman likely comes to mind, but did you know that they make motorcycles too? Not only that, but good ones. The German manufacturer’s precision engineering that has made their cars world renowned applies just as much to their bikes. Design-wise, BMW produces everything from adventure bikes to basic cruisers, but generally have a high-tech and sporty feel. In this price range we definitely prefer the Harley, but if you’ve got some cash to burn and want to drive something on the fancier side, this is definitely the bike for you.
Speaking of car manufacturers; it’s hard not to respect just how many different kinds of engines Honda produces. In fact, their bikes are beloved by mechanical techies like us. While not the fanciest motorcycles in the world, Honda is known for accessibility, reliability, and affordability in the engineering space. This is reflected by the sheer customizability of these things. You can ride a Honda for years before it starts acting up, and when it does, it’ll only take a quick fix to get it back on the road. They manufacture most motorcycle types a person could want, and are a great brand for beginners looking to see how they feel about bikes without spending too much money.
In the same vein, there’s also Yamaha. A brand that manufactures everything from motorcycles to pianos, they are well known across industries for products that consistently bring quality and dependability. Their bikes range in style and feel, but all are exceptionally calibrated and designed for an express purpose. They aren’t the cheapest motorcycles out there, but they’re also far from the most expensive, which makes them perfect for any assured biker that wants something effective, but unpretentious.
Up next is Indian motorcycles, a brand we almost wouldn’t be talking about today if not for their acquisition by Polaris Industries. Founded in 1901, they are one of the oldest motorcycle manufacturers. While they were successful and well respected for much of the 20th century, they started to flounder toward the end and into the aughts due to an increasingly competitive market. It wasn’t until the 2011 Polaris acquisition that they were able to bounce back with quality cruisers. Indian motorcycles today have a classic, vintage design that traces back to their roots, but with modern performance and engineering.
Suzuki is another brand that’s been around since the beginning, with a varied selection of premium motorcycles for sale. Their sports bikes are some of the fastest in the world, their adventure bikes are perfect for off-road exploration, and their cruisers are great for the city and the suburbs. Suzuki bikes are creative and contemporary in their design, serving as a nice contrast to the more classic motorcycle designs of other tried and true brands. If you’re an experienced rider looking for something high quality with upper-mid range pricing, Suzuki is a company worth checking out.
On the less expensive side but also from Japan, there’s Kawasaki. They may not be quite as high tech as a Suzuki, but they’re far from cut-rate. These motorcycles offer reliable performance and quality at affordable prices in a way few brands can beat. While they are most known for their sport bikes, Kawasaki manufactures all kinds of fantastic off-road and cruising motorcycles. If you’re looking to get your money's worth out of a bike, Kawasaki is a brand that should be at the top of your list.
One of Europe’s oldest and most prestigious manufacturers, Triumph delivers superior craftsmanship with old-school classic designs. The name of the game for Triumph is variety. As long as you’re looking for something powerful, they’ll have what you need regardless of skill level. Sadly, Triumph fits into the stereotype of high end European motorcycles being on the expensive side, but most who ride them agree that the price is worth it. As far as classy motorcycles go, this is definitely one of the more comfortable and esteemed brands out there.
For fans of European powersport motorcycles, it doesn’t get much better than Austria’s KTM. KTM produces some of the very best of their kind, but without the exorbitantly high pricing that European manufacturers are often known for. These bikes also feature lustrous designs that are never flashy just for the sake of it. Each of their motorcycles is engineered with attention put into performance and consistency. Any rider looking to put their skills to the test — both on and off-road — would be foolish not to at least consider KTM.
Those were ten well-regarded motorcycle brands from around the world, each with their own quirks and specialties. While many companies just try to imitate each other, we think we did a pretty good job filtering out the bad ones to give you exactly what you want. If you’ve read this and you’re still not sure what kind of motorcycle you want, there’s only one thing left for you to do: go out and try them all for yourself! Happy riding from all of us here at Lethal Threat.
]]>While the lucha libre didn’t take off as a cultural event until the 1930’s, earlier forms of the sport have existed in Mexico since the 1800s. Around the time of the Second French Intervention in Mexico, Enrique Ugartechea modernized traditional Greco-Roman wrestling and became the first Mexican wrestler. From there, it evolved in a similar fashion to that of American wrestling, with small local scenes. Everything changed in 1933, when Salvador Lutteroth founded the Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (Mexican Wrestling Enterprise), and brought the lucha libre to the national stage. In the 1950s, Lutteroth brought his matches to television, where stars like El Santo and Gory Guerrero cemented their place in Mexican pop culture.
One of the main differences in the lucha libre compared to U.S. wrestling is in the showmanship. Where American wrestling became increasingly about brute strength, luchadores (Mexican wrestlers) focus on agility and aerodynamics. As the sport evolved in Mexico, luchadores would use the ropes to launch themselves towards their opponent. These theatrical takedowns originated in the lucha libre, but can be found in nearly any facet of entertainment wrestling. Another staple of the lucha libre is tag-team matches, when a team of three or more luchadores take on a rival team in the ring. For context, American wrestling rarely had more than four wrestlers in the ring during a tag-team, whereas a lucha libre match could have at least six.
Perhaps the most recognizable aspect of lucha libre showmanship however, are the masks. Inspired by culture dating all the way back to the Aztecs, these masks are rooted in Mexican history. At first they were simple, but as the sport evolved, masks have become far more elaborate, and each luchador mask reflects the persona of the wearer. A mask can represent different animals, gods, heroes, and so much more. Wrestling is all about creating overblown personalities on top of the fighting skills, and luchadores don’t reveal their true identity, so really it’s all about the persona. This is where the masks come in, to keep the identity of each luchador a secret. Some luchadors will even wear their masks everywhere they go to stay in character and keep the mystery of their identity alive. If it wasn’t already obvious, these masks are integral to the luchadores, and losing one to an opponent in the ring is a massive disgrace. That being said, some will voluntarily remove their masks at retirement, or when changing it for a rebrand.
As much as we love American professional wrestling, the lucha libre deserves a shout-out due to its unique cultural impact. Luchadores and their now iconic masks have become synonymous with Mexican culture, and can be seen proudly in works from well regarded Mexican artists like Francisco Delgado. Having broken down the origins and characteristics of the lucha libre, it should be clear that it’s more than just “Mexican wrestling” — it’s a proud declaration of stagecraft and Mexican culture in a league of its own.
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I’m sure this comes as a big surprise to you, but here at Lethal Threat, we think motorcycles are pretty cool. I know, shocking right? Jokes aside, our passion for motorcycles and everything related to them is massive. If you’re reading this right now, chances are you understand exactly what we’re talking about. A good motorcycle can be like an extension of your soul, but what defines “good” is going to depend entirely on you. Are you a speed freak like us? Do you like to ride low? These and so many more questions are going to need to be answered in order to know which motorcycle is right for you. Today, we are going to go through some of the different kinds of motorcycles out there; whether you’re a seasoned rider, or picking up a motorcycle for the first time, we hope that it helps you narrow the selection down.
The first type that we should talk about is the street style motorcycle, a perfect motorcycle for those who like to ride locally. This is going to be the most obvious choice for newcomers, but there is still plenty that someone with more experience can get out of them due to their reliability and simplicity. The street style motorcycle is a jack of all trades, master of none kind of motorcycle, in the sense that it’s suitable for most purposes, but likely isn’t going to be the fastest, toughest, or most unique. Still, it’s a customizable motorcycle. There’s a lot of variation when it comes to engine power, you can swap out the seat, and it can fit whatever luggage you could want. They don’t often come with any fairing to speak of, but when they do, it’s going to be small and unobtrusive. The main reason that the street style is so good for beginners is in the ergonomics. They don’t lean heavy in any one direction, and have a short to mid-height seat. In layman’s terms, it’ll be easier not to fall on your ass with this one.
For the more experienced speed demons out there, we have the sport motorcycle. This motorcycle is designed to be as fast as possible, with a lightweight body compared to other motorcycle. Unlike a motorcycle designed for casual riding, these are entirely performance driven, so customization isn’t quite as versatile, but there are still a few accessories that can be added without interfering with the motorcycle’s purpose. The sky's the limit for how fast you can go in a sports motorcycle. The seats are on the higher end so you can lean farther without scraping anything, and weight is shifted to the front to make high speed turns easier. This motorcycle is one of the most maneuverable, but also one of the most dangerous in the wrong hands, which is why we recommend that you know what you’re doing if you pick one up. For those who like going offroad but still want something sporty, look into dual sport motorcycles — they are similar, but with increased suspension and slightly less intensity.
Next up is a touring motorcycle. These motorcycles are decked out for long cross-country rides, with plenty of storage, and ergonomics designed to make riding for hours simple and efficient (with the widest, comfiest seats). Fairing plays a big role in touring motorcycles because they’re designed for long travel. You can expect the fairing to be large, with a big windshield to block out weather hazards and anything else that could get in your way. Engines are also usually on the larger side with these to accommodate all the luggage and long days. Motorcycle like these are especially great for an experienced rider traveling with a group, but these are reliable if you just want to travel solo too. For shorter trips, there are actually hybrid motorcycle with the sport, with mid size engines and less storage space than the standard touring motorcycle. These hybrids are the perfect motorcycles for people who travel on weekends, and aren’t looking for something quite as big.
The full off-road motorcycle is for the lovers of the great outdoors. If you live nearby a woodsy area or park and want to ride through it, this is the motorcycle for you. With high suspension and elevated seating, you’ll be able to ride these across all manner of rough terrain without an issue. Fairing on a motorcycle like this isn’t necessary, but you can expect some of them to have something there to stop dirt from flying into your face. Unlike the dual sport, off-road motorcycles usually lack turn signals, lights, and other staples of a road vehicle, so you’ll likely want to keep these off of the highway unless you want a ticket.
Now onto our favorite motorcycle, the chopper. Officially known as a cruiser, these are some of the most versatile motorcycles out there. Cruisers ride low to the ground, and really live up to their name because of it. Because of that low height seating, this is a motorcycle that’s perfect for casual use, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t put them to the test. These babies are incredibly customizable, with engines that range even wider than the standard motorcycle but with the same level of luggage space. There’s something about a chopper that feels like everything that we want a motorcycle to feel like when we’re riding it. Large fairing isn’t something associated with these, but you can certainly find some variation there. It might just be the fact that the Harley Davidson Low Rider (one of the most famous motorcycles worldwide) is a chopper, but even so, doesn’t that just prove that we aren’t alone on this one?
If all these seem kind of overwhelming, there are also mopeds and scooters. Now, I’m sure some folks will tell you that these “aren’t real motorcycles” or something like that, and while they definitely lack the power of the previous offerings, we don’t subscribe to that kind of gatekeeping here. They are a perfectly legitimate way of traveling around, especially in a city or more crowded area. Both are incredibly lightweight, and have easy maneuverability. Mopeds in particular are becoming increasingly rare in the modern day, giving the vehicle a sense of retro personality.
That about sums up motorcycles in all their forms. Ideally, you now have a better idea of what you’re looking for or feel encouraged to do some more research on your own. If any of these grabbed your attention, be sure to look into different brands of motorcycle too, because there are so many with different and exciting things to offer. All in all, we love every single motorcycle under the sun, and just want to share it. Hopefully, reading this rubbed some of it off onto you.
]]>Go to any car or motorcycle show across the U.S. and you will surely see vehicles painted with murals of pinup girls. A lot of the top-selling products here at Lethal Threat depict images of sexy pinup girls.
Who was the first pinup girl, anyway, and what is the history of pinup girls? We thought it would make sense to look into the history of these sexy and sultry babes. Read on to learn all the inside dope you need to know about these gorgeous gals.
The popular belief is that the first pinup girl appeared around the time of World War II. The truth is the rise of the pinup precedes World War I. An unlikely invention called the bicycle can be credited with the birth of the pinup.
Women were only too happy to embrace the invention and widespread popularity of bicycles in the 19th century. For a woman, the bicycle, offered a sense of mobility and freedom never available before.
Women's emancipation on two wheels was no easy ride, however. From the get-go, there was much resistance from doctors and ministers to a woman riding a bicycle.
Doctors said riding this new contraption would damage a women's delicate reproductive organs, while ministers alluded to the evils of sexual self-stimulation while riding a bicycle.
The brave, emancipated woman who would have none of this nonsense also faced other higher. hurdles. During the 19th century, women were never supposed to expose too much skin or show off their curves outside of the bedroom. In those days, women were expected to wear floor-length dresses for the sake of modesty.
Riding a bicycle changed all that. With the excuse of riding a bike, ladies started to wear functional and form-fitting pants.
Now the shapes and curves previously hidden under flowing dresses began to emerge. The shapely feminine form became an everyday appearance tolerated and no doubt in many cases appreciated by members of the public.
In 1895, Charles Gibson, an illustrator who drew for Life magazine, was credited with drawing the first pinup girl. His renderings of well-endowed women with hourglass figures and full lips became known as Gibson Girls.
Gibson based his illustrations on American girls he came across in his travels. His Gibson Girl illustrations would appear in every issue of Life issue for more than 20 years.
As printing technology advanced, more magazines came into circulation. To build circulation, these new publications also featured images of unattainable, idealized American beauties.
Around 1903, the use of calendars started to gain popularity. Along with days and months of the year, images of a pinup girl began to adorn some of these calendars. Pinup girl calendars ensured sell-outs. Thus was born the calendar girl, mother of the pinup girl.
What would become the familiar pinup began to take shape in 1917. A division of pictorial publicity had been created by the U.S. government during World War I. The job of the division was to create propaganda that would further the war effort.
Realizing that sex sells, the U.S. government started to use pinup girls on recruitment posters. When men started returning home from the war, the women of the roaring 20s were not willing to surrender the freedom they had acquired while their husbands were away fighting in Europe. The overall atmosphere of liberation matched the increasingly revealing clothing mirrored in the ever-opening society.
Calendar illustrators helped push along this new era of women's liberation by depicting women in a more sexual and sensuous way. Ever more teasing and flirtatious, the pinup illustrations now began to appear on every newsstand.
During World War II, pinup illustrations were used in recruitment posters to gather troops to fight overseas and calendars to promote the purchase of war bonds. The Golden Age of Pinups had arrived. The American military commissioned pinup artists to raise soldiers' morale with exotic, erotic images.
Soldiers during World War II were exposed to pinup art daily. This sexy, saucy artwork decorated their barracks and the walls of ships and submarines. Pinups were painted on fighter planes and bombers and taped inside soldiers' helmets. The lovely ladies depicted in this artwork were a constant reminder of what soldiers, sailors and aviators were fighting for and awaiting them upon their return home.
After the war ended in 1945, the most famous pinup was Bettie Page. She is credited as the first pinup to successfully transition from illustration to photography.
Before Bettie Page, all pinup art was in the form of illustrations based on unknown women. Page was different. She was seen as a living, breathing pinup. She had a unique personality and style as well as looks.
Page's popularity escalated quickly. Her images appeared in countless publications and calendars across the land. To this day, Bettie Page is considered the most photographed and collected pinup girl in history.
With the launch of Playboy magazine in 1953, Hugh Hefner successfully molded his own publication around the image of the pinup girl. Knowing the future was in photography and not illustrated pinups, he pushed the limits of acceptable nudity and morality further and further in the growing medium.
As retro design, art and products become interesting and inspirational for legions of people today, the pinup's popularity is on the rise again. Although her origins date back to the 19th century, it appears the pinup is here to stay.
The pinup model of today comes in all shapes, sizes and ethnic backgrounds. She will carry her proud tradition of liberation and beauty far into the future.
Check out our Lethal Threat pin-up decals, shirts, and embroidered patches!!
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How many people do you know that love clowns? The answer probably ranges from “very few” to “none at all.” No offense to anyone out there who loves clowns — we don’t have anything against them — but it’s hard to deny that as iconic as clowns are in pop culture, they aren’t all that well liked. In fact, clowns are more well known today as horror characters than anything else. There’s something about seeing a person dressed in something so stereotypically joyful and kid-friendly that has always felt off and creepy to us in the right setting, and we know we aren’t alone. Just type “clowns” into Google, and some of the first images that come up are unsettling, right alongside the jovial traditional clowns. Countless authors, animators, and filmmakers have taken full advantage of that feeling to give us nightmares for the rest of our lives, and today we want to shed some light on the most important evil clowns throughout history.
While the origins aren’t totally clear, some of the earliest examples of an evil clown in the zeitgeist can be found in the late 19th century. In Italy, Ruggero Leoncavallo’s opera Pagliacci (Italian for “Clowns”) featured a clown walking in on his wife having an affair and killing the adulterers. The grieving clown bemoans that it is his job to make the audience laugh, when inside he feels so devastated. The opera's use of irony demonstrates that the subversive nature of an evil clown was something that would be generally understood by audiences at the time. What’s more, a lesser-known French play from a few years earlier, La femme de Tabarin, also contains the same plot (playwright Catulle Mendès has accused Leoncavallo of plagiarism).
There were some small examples of evil clowns to follow, but there is really only one of note in their early cultural history. The Man Who Laughs, a 1928 silent film that is incredibly influential on the subgenre, despite not featuring a single clown. The film is about a cruel king who orders a disrespectful nobleman killed, and his son to have a permanent happy expression carved into his face. As the young boy grows into an embittered nobleman himself, he is filled with an all-consuming rage and bloodlust towards the king. He silently plots his revenge, but no one can tell because on the outside, all they can see is a smile. The look of the character is very clown-like, with scars reminiscent of makeup. In the tradition of creepy clowns, his smile also contradicts his true nature.
Despite being almost 100 years old, the image of the character is disconcerting to this day and is a major influence on the Batman villain the Joker. Whether you’re into superheroes or not, you’re likely familiar with the Joker, simply because he is so celebrated. While who created him, and when, is infamously debated by Batman’s writers to this day, his sarcastically chipper demeanor has perfectly contrasted the seriousness of the caped crusader since the early 1940’s. Believe it or not, the Joker was a completely comedic villain in earlier interpretations, an image that lasted well into the 1970’s. 80s writers like Frank Miller redefined Batman’s image with comics like The Dark Knight Returns, which revitalized the Joker as the sadistically acerbic antagonist that we are familiar with today. As Batman has become darker over time, we’ve seen some truly disturbing portrayals of the clown prince of crime, including Heath Ledger’s portrayal in The Dark Knight and Mark Hamill in countless voice roles. Who would've thought that the guy who played Luke Skywalker would make such a great evil clown?
After the Joker rose to prominence, evil clowns started to become more popular, purely as a piece of pop culture iconography. In the ensuing, decades horror related media centered around clowns became more popular. The two must watches from this era are Killer Klowns from Outer Space and Blood Harvest. The former is worth it just for its incredibly surreal production design and special effects, with some of the most imaginative evil clown antics ever put to screen. Blood Harvest on the other hand, is a grimy, low budget slasher about a series of murders in a small-town centering around a disturbed clown, the Marvelous Mervo. The film plays out like a standard slasher in every way, except for Mervo, played by Tiny Tim of all people. He brings a level of mesmerizing vulnerability to the role that makes it worth watching purely for his performance.
Of course, no discussion of evil clowns would be complete without the most well-known evil clown in all of pop culture, Pennywise. Stephen King’s, It took having a fear of clowns to an entirely new level with Pennywise, the alien who kills and eats children. Using their fears as a way to pray on them, he primarily takes the form of a clown to torment a group of children into their adult lives. While he takes on many different appearances throughout the book, the clown is the most memorable and the most frequent. More than any other evil clown, Pennywise is instantly recognizable, to the point that even people who aren’t normally afraid of clowns shudder at the thought of him. His legacy also lives on in both the performances of Tim Curry in the television miniseries, and Bill Skarsgård in the two-part film adaptation, both terrifying in their own ways.
In recent years, there have been a whole host of evil clown related media, especially in movies. Our personal favorite is Rob Zombie’s Captain Spaulding from the Firefly series, played brilliantly by the late Sid Haig, but there are so many more. The 2014 film Clown features a low budget depiction of a man whose clown suit fuses into his body, and Terrifier is a old school slasher done in the modern day, with an amazing killer clown performance from David Howard Thornton. Fair warning; these can get pretty grisly. Evil clowns have not only endured in the pop culture consciousness, but they are more popular than ever. There are countless more examples that we haven’t been able to mention here, and if you love evil clowns as much as we do, we recommend you check them all out as soon as possible.
If you are a fan of evil clowns or jesters, these items are just for you!
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The earliest examples of nose art on record are from the First World War. German and Italian troops would paint mouths and monsters on their jets to strike fear in their enemies, and naturally, the allies responded with their own. Usually, this type of nose art was military approved, and would feature some kind of insignia that would immediately allow for squadrons to be recognized. Even though it wouldn’t be popularized for another few decades, this also marked the start of shark’s face on a small number of British planes. Ground crews would work to create extravagance in these insignias, and even though they didn’t have complete creative control of what was on their planes, took pride in their efforts.
The 1940’s and World War II was where nose art really took off, becoming bolder and packed with personality. Soldiers would both commission artists to make designs on their planes, but many amatuer pilots would discover their passion for design through painting their birds themselves. Designs ranged from pinup girls on calendars of the time, to popular cartoon characters, to the famous shark face.
Perhaps the most famous designs are those of The Flying Tigers, a volunteer group of pilots that defended China from Japanese airstrikes. Not only did they popularize the shark face globally, but their insignia was designed by the Walt Disney Company — which explains why it looks so good.
In the military, there isn’t much room for a personal touch (that’s kind of the whole point), and nose art became a way for pilots to circumvent their lack of individuality. What the soldiers were doing to their planes wasn’t exactly allowed, so many artists remain anonymous to this day. Still, the effect that the illustrations had on troop morale was noticeable enough that most commanding officers let it slide. In true fringe-culture fashion, nose art was just as much about sticking it to military regulations as it was a personal expression. With the knowledge that the Navy banned nose art completely, it’s good to know that there were folks in the military that didn’t have their heads screwed on too tight.
As military technology rapidly expanded in the 50s and 60s, airships got bigger, and designs got flashier. During the Korean War, soldiers were able to fit even more lavish designs on their planes. However, the eclectic nature of nose art would begin to decline as politics changed. Representations of women as nude pinup models started to be seen as inappropriate, and stricter military regulations went into effect. These factors led to a decline in nose art as a pure creative declaration. That being said, this wasn’t the end of the artform. In Vietnam, planes would have specifically tailored nose art to fit the names of their aircrafts. Azreal, the Angel of Death was a popular piece of nose art, just to name one. Nose art has held onto some popularity in the modern day, but it’s still nowhere near the level that it was at in the golden age. Pinup girls were allowed back, but they had to be fully clothed (which basically defeats the purpose), and more often than not, nose art would be worked into a plane’s camouflage.
While the artform isn’t what it used to be, its influence is still undeniable on Kustom Kulture, and countercultural art at large. Ten years before the movement even began in the United States, people were discovering their love for having their machines customized, and going against authority through art. Many who would go on to become figures in Kustom Kulture likely participated in the war or knew people who did. While we’ll never know exactly who designed many of those planes, you can bet that at least some of them would go on to customize cars, motorcycles, and beyond. You can even see the genesis of the chaotic, colorful, and cartoony sense of humor that pop artists like Ed Roth would go on to perfect in some of the designs of old. Without nose art, who knows where we’d all be today?
If you love nose art or are a newcomer to this art movement, check out our Miss Danger Flying Tiger Pin Up Girl Embroidered Work Shirt / Shop Shirt Our goal with our embroidered work shirts is to offer killer designs at the best quality possible at a reasonable price. Enjoy!
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When discussing the founding figures of the Kustom Kulture movement in the 50’s, some are more recognizable than others. While artists like Ed Roth remain in a cult bubble, others in the scene have influenced mainstream culture in ways that are far more direct. One of the most important members to reach mainstream success, if not the most important, is George Barris. A one-of-a-kind talent by the standards of any mechanic, Barris customized countless cars throughout his career all the way to Hollywood and beyond. If you grew up watching The Munsters or Adam West’s Batman on TV, you probably remember his work and may not even realize it. Both the Munster Coach and the Batmobile are his creations, and the iconic vehicles barely even scratch the surface of his prolific career.
Barris always had a knack for cars. As far back as age seven, he was making models of his favorite automobiles, and reworking them in ways he found interesting or more effective. Fast forward to Barris’ teenage years — he and his brother Sam were given a broken down 1925 Buick as thanks for working at the family restaurant, and his inclination for tinkering was as strong as ever. He and Sam redesigned the car extensively and managed to sell it for a profit. They used the money to purchase a newer car, with the same goal of customization. This would only prove to be the beginning for the Barris brothers, as their work immediately caught the attention of California mechanics and car enthusiasts. Realizing he had found his community, George started work at a local body shop, and moved to Los Angeles as soon as he turned 18. It was then that he opened “Barris Custom Shop” in Bell, the start of his climb to becoming a legendary customizer.
If Kenny Howard was the one to popularize the use of the letter “k” in kustom kulture, then George Barris can at least be credited with doing it first. From his shop he made “kustoms” for private clients, and even built and drove his own race cars for a short while. After returning from the Navy at the end of the second world war, Sam joined George at the shop. The brothers eventually moved their shop to Compton, and soon after, to a larger shop in Lynwood. It was around this time that they managed to garner the attention of Hollywood studios, whose stars and executives wanted custom cars both for personal use, as well as in their shows and films. From there, Barris was thrown into the spotlight, and it didn’t take long for his style to become a signature that created a benchmark for custom vehicles.
In the 1950s Sam would leave the lifestyle to pursue other things, but obviously George’s star would keep getting brighter. Be it customizing cars that won auto shows, or being featured in Hot Rod Magazine, or even just having a close working relationship with Hollywood, Barris’ reputation grew. He eventually married Shirley Ann Nahas, who helped him run the business. Together, they managed to push Barris Customs into the next level of renown, turning it from a garage into a full-fledged company. At this point, Barris was so well respected, that model car companies like Revell were making deals on releasing his customs as novelty items.
Of course, the 1960’s would feature his biggest claims to fame in terms of having featured vehicles in popular media. Beyond The Munsters and Batman though, Barris would go on to create custom cars for The Beverly Hillbillies and The Green Hornet, just to name a few. Barris also customized cars for both Ford’s “Custom Car Caravan'' and “Lincoln/Mercury’s Caravan of Stars.” This would prove to be an important move for the longevity of Barris’ legacy, as the traveling car shows appealed to a younger generation of fans, introducing many of them to his craftsmanship for the first time. In the following decades, Barris would continue to make custom rides for the likes of Elton John, Sonny and Cher, and many more.
By the 2000s, Barris had achieved everything that an auto customizer could ever hope to in a lifetime and more. Motor companies from Honda to Chevrolet had commissioned custom cars from Barris, and at conventions it was clear from the droves of adoring fans just how celebrated he was. He loved his work so much that he continued to work out of his shop until his death at the age of 89 in 2015. Very few people go on to have the lasting legacy that George Barris has, especially in kustom kulture. When looking at how many impactful artists have faded into obscurity from our scene, it’s nice to know that there was someone out there with a passion for custom cars that the world will never forget.
]]>With the explosion of popularity for biker culture, we have never seen more of the Grim Reaper than we have these days. But the people who lift icons of biker culture without knowing what those icons really mean water them down.
That's one of the reasons true biker culture sticks around: It is rarely watered down. It is usually 100% concentrated, 200 proof.
What is the Grim Reaper to bikers? Only one of the most important tributes for our love of riding. Motorcycling is an activity that can be dangerous. Yet still we ride, because there is no other feeling quite like it. We dance with death, so might as well display the old boy proudly on our backs.
So kick back, grab a cold one and get comfy. This is your history lesson for the day, or week, or whatever. We'll dive into the meaning of the Grim Reaper, his origins and questions such as "What is the Grim Reaper?" and "Why does the Grim Reaper have a scythe?" We will NOT cover anything about the grim reaper here. That's something different, you perv.
Hundreds of Uses in Culture
Few images are as easily recognizable and widely circulated as the Grim Reaper. The shadowy, cadaverous being who comes to pluck the souls from the deceased has become so well known, that it is instantly associated with death in any context. It has been included in countless movies, comics, and songs, but its roots go further back in time than you might expect. Through centuries of evolution, the Grim Reaper has gone from a symbol of fleeting mortality, to a character in a stoner comedy.
Ancient History
Before we had the scythe-wielding, black-robed presence that we know and love today, there were precursors in ancient mythology.
Thanatos was the Greek personification of death, and would lead souls of the deceased into the underworld. In Norse mythology, the Valkyries would help guide the souls of fallen soldiers to Valhalla. Ancient religions such as these would form the basis for the Angel of Death in more contemporary theology. In the Islamic faith the Angel of Death even has a giant ledger to keep track of souls, both dead and alive, and is depicted with a scythe just like the Reaper.
The furthest that the Grim Reaper can be traced back to is 14th century England, at the peak of the Black Death aka the original pandemic. A fitting time for it to emerge, to say the least.
Works of art depicting death featured the Reaper wielding all manner of weapons as an unsettling reflection of the countless lives lost to the disease at the time. Believe it or not, the scythe wasn't originally the instrument most associated with the Reaper, but it was so fitting that it has endured as one of its trademarks. Just as a farmer would "reap" his crops with the tool, death would reap souls. Some artists also included an hourglass as a reminder that time eventually runs out for all of us, and that it will be waiting for us when it does.
Legends Grow
Through the ages, countless stories and folk legends featuring the Reaper have been told. Many of these were famously about attempting to trick or outsmart it to cheat death, always failing in the end.
"The Seventh Seal," a 1957 film in which a knight plays a game of chess against the Reaper for his life, is a prominent example of this. Although the embodiment of death isn't very bony in the movie, he does have a scythe and black cloak. The ghost face costume worn by the self-aware killers in the "Scream" franchise is also made to look like a spectral Grim Reaper, which just highlights how well "Scream" understands horror.
Sometimes, He's Just Chill
Currently, the Grim Reaper isn't always depicted in a foreboding way. It is often used in comedy as a way to deal with morbid humor. "Monty Python's The Meaning of Life" contains a scene in which death arrives at a small farmer's hut to take his soul, but the farmer reacts as if dying were only a minor inconvenience, much to the Reaper's chagrin. "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey" has a similar joke when the two accidentally die, but treat meeting the Grim Reaper like it's a casual occurrence, and end up playing a game of Twister with him for their lives. Even Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear the Reaper" is about accepting that death is an inevitable and natural process, and something that we shouldn't be scared of.
Because death is a constant that isn't going anywhere any time soon, the ubiquity of the Grim Reaper lends itself to limitless ways of staying intimidating, funny, or possibly even both. More than a few of our shirts feature the cloaked skeleton, both ominously and with a streak of gallows humor, if any of you are interested.
]]>Well folks, it’s that time of year again. The day after St. Patrick’s Day, where we all lay in bed with a collective hangover. At this point, we’ve all heard some version of a story about the patron saint of Ireland banishing the snakes from the country; but I think for most of us, it’s just a good reason to go out, drink, and celebrate the Emerald Isle. Regardless of how you celebrate, the history of the holiday has been largely overshadowed by parades, beer, and leprechauns. That’s not to say that there’s anything wrong with celebrating, getting drunk, or fictional mischief makers — in fact, we love all three — but how the holiday developed from an Irish tradition into an international holiday is filled with interesting detours that could use more exploring.
The truth of the matter is, that St. Patrick likely didn’t banish any snakes from Ireland, as there weren’t snakes to banish in the first place. Despite the story being older than the holiday itself, this was likely part of an Irish folk tale. With modern archeology, we know that fossil records don’t show snakes in the country at any point historically, likely because of the climate. Granted, maybe it’s just because St. Patrick did such a good job getting rid of them, but we’re going to go with science on this one. So, what did St. Patrick actually do to become so celebrated? Well, he brought Christianity to Ireland, with snakes likely serving as a metaphor for the paganism he aided in removing. The reality might not seem quite as exciting on the surface, but like any simple answer, what’s underneath is the interesting part.
Many people think that the patron saint was a native Irishman, but that actually isn’t the case. While little is known about his life, we do know that he was born in Britain in the late fourth century. According to his own brief autobiography, St. Patrick was kidnapped by Irish raiders and was sold into slavery at 16. The young Patrick had nothing but his faith in Christianity and prayed constantly. Eventually, his prayers were answered when a kindhearted sailor helped him to escape. He struggled, prayed, and managed to make it home, only to receive a vision telling him to become a Christian missionary and return as a free man. When explaining the Holy Trinity, he would use the shamrock’s three leaves as an example of God in nature, leading to its modern status as a symbol of Ireland. While his story has been contested by a few historians, and certain aspects are likely fictionalized or embellished, it’s the only account we have that isn’t rooted in speculation.
St. Patrick’s role in spreading the Christian faith across the nation was integral, so naturally the anniversary of his death became a holiday in Ireland. St. Patrick’s Day was celebrated as early as the 17th century, but at that time, it was a different celebration than we would think of now. The day consisted of churchgoing, and a humble feast of ham and cabbage afterwards. Believe it or not, it was a solemn day of remembrance, and to some, it still is. It wasn’t until the 1730s, when Irish immigrants in the American colonies marched on the 17th that a parade would become associated with the day. Corned beef was easier to procure in the colonies than ham at the time, so many immigrants adapted to what they could afford, making corned beef a St. Patrick’s staple. The festivities caught on around the country, and later the world, evolving into St. Patrick’s Day as we know it today.
So, the only question left is how leprechauns fit into all of this. Honestly, there isn’t really a good answer for that, other than the fact that leprechauns are deeply ingrained in Irish folklore. Right down to their trickster ways and pots of gold, stories of the small creatures have existed in Irish stories for centuries. They likely took off as being associated with the holiday after the Disney film Darby O’Gill & the Little People in 1959, which introduced many fantastical creatures from Irish folktales, including leprechauns, to a wider audience.
That about summarizes the history of St. Patrick’s Day, and nearly all of its mainstays. Whether you love March 17th for religious reasons, or just like to party, we hope that you were able to celebrate in whatever way means the most to you.
We're sorry about the hangover but, if you are really feeling the post St. Patrick's Day spirit, please spark up enough energy to have a look at our Clover Skull Embroidered Patch. Highly detailed embroidery, over three hours of embroidery machine time goes into this patch. Click on the picture to read more about this amazing clover patch!
]]>If you read our blog, you’ve probably seen quite a few stories about the interesting accomplishments of many different kinds of men throughout history. For International Women’s Day this Tuesday, we thought that we’d shine a spotlight on the badass women that are lesser known and deserve to be celebrated. From soldiers on the battlefield, to pioneering mathematicians, women have been doing crazy and exciting things for as long as men have, and sometimes in ways that are even cooler.
The first badasses we want to talk about today are a group of women that became known as The Night Witches. Led by Marina Raskova, the first women to become a navigator in the Soviet air force, The Night Witches were a bomber regiment in World War II that struck swiftly under the cloak of night. Even though women were mostly in supporting roles during the war, many wanted to get in on the action themselves. Realizing this, Raskova petitioned for an all-female squadron of fighter pilots, and her request was granted.
With hand-me-downs and leftover hardware that wasn’t being used, a group of 80 or so women formed the regiment. Flying at night was far more dangerous back then than it is today; the women would have had to deal with extreme cold and almost no vision, compounded by the fact that they had very little equipment and were being continuously shot at. Still, they chose to risk it for the surprise factor they knew would give them the upper hand. The squadron dropped more than 23,000 tons of bombs throughout the war and became infamous to the Axis powers. Their dedication paid off so well that the Nazis became fearful enough to give them their now iconic name. Honestly, we’re just glad they were on our side.
More locally, we want to talk about Buffalo Calf Road Woman. A fierce fighter in any situation, she is credited with being the sole person to turn the tides at both the Battle of the Rosebud as well as the Battle of Little Bighorn to help the Native American people. At Rosebud, her brother Chief Comes in Sight fell off of his horse and was left behind as the Cheyenne and Sioux retreated. Despite the advancing United States Army, Buffalo Calf Road Woman rode onto the battlefield and grabbed her brother amid the chaos, bringing him to safety. This heroic act bolstered the confidence of the retreating soldiers, causing them to turn around and fight, eventually winning the battle. What’s more, is that this wasn’t even the most badass thing she ever did. In 2005, the Northern Cheyenne finally spoke openly about the Battle of Little Bighorn. They credited Buffalo Calf Road Woman as not only a ferocious fighter, but as the soldier to administer the blow that famously knocked General Custer off of his horse, leading to their victory. Most soldiers are lucky to have one moment of glory, but two? No matter your thoughts on those battles, you have to admit that’s pretty awesome.
We’ve all heard of Albert Einstein, but what about Mileva Marić? While we can never know for sure, Einstein’s first wife is widely speculated to have been just as important to many of his early studies as the famed scientist himself. To us, that’s pretty badass. The two met while studying at the Polytechnic Institute in Zurich (Marić was one of the first women admitted) and quickly became inseparable. By the end of their time in school, Marić actually had slightly higher grades than he did, notably in applied physics. From letters that have been preserved, we know that Einstein credits Mileva as the person who kept him focused and grounded, helping him to understand complicated theory.
Through letters and anecdotal evidence, it is heavily implied that many of Einstein’s published articles were co-written by Marić but were signed in his name alone. While sexism of the time could have played a role, it is likely that this was done because he refused to marry her until he had a stable career and being credited as the sole author would accelerate that process. These articles include his work on special relativity (responsible for the equation) and the photoelectric effect, which eventually led to the 1921 nobel prize. In Marić’s first biography written in 1969 by Desanka Trbuhović-Gjurić, Einstein was even credited as saying “I need my wife. She solves for me all my mathematical problems.”
So, why isn’t she more talked about in the conversation about physics? Well, after Einstein’s affair and their inevitable divorce, his star grew and hers shrank. She did threaten to reveal the role she played in his writing on a few occasions, but ultimately chose not to out of modesty, and intimidation from Einstein. Maliva Marić sadly never got her due in life — but even though we’ll never know the full extent of her influence on modern science — at least we can look back now and give her the credit she deserves as a true genius. The engineering that went into the bikes we ride today traces back to her developments, after all.
Speaking of bikes, this list wouldn’t be complete without talking about some of the most badass women bikers to ever ride. We’ll start off with the Van Buren sisters, some of the first women to ever ride cross country in 1916. Their journey was heavily publicized and made media history for women everywhere. This eventually led to motorcyclists like Dot Robinson and Theresa Wallach proving themselves as formidable racers, opening the door for women everywhere to ride. One such woman was Bessie Stringfield, the first African American woman to ride across the United States. At a time when the deep south would have been a very unsafe place for her to travel through, her trips showed true toughness and actually contributed to the perception of bikers as rule-breakers (pretty badass if you ask us).
With so many impressive feats of strength, intelligence, and courage, we could only discuss a small few of the badass women that have impressed us in this article. Even though the world is more often than not a men’s club, hopefully we were able to show that women are just as badass as men are. If you know any badass women in your own life, be sure to show them some love this week. If you’re a badass woman yourself, you should have a look at our Untamed Flying Tiger Army Green Embroidered Button-Down Shirt. Click on the picture below to see the awesome embroidery work on this button down shirt!
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Let Lethal Threat tell you about Von Dutch's flying eyeball, how it became popular and the tragic story behind the creator's legacy.
We've seen it time and time again: Heroes come and go. People rise and fall. And that makes determining legacies complicated.
One of the key philosophies behind hot rod culture is independence. We are not going to tell you how to feel about things. We aim high when we are driving, and we take in everything around us. That means we'll stick to the facts about the key figures in the counterculture, so you can figure out how to feel for yourself.
And Von Dutch is certainly someone with a story. When you think of Von Dutch today, you're likely to think of the fashion brand you saw Britney Spears and Paris Hilton wearing in the early 2000s, but the company name actually comes from an important figure in Kustom Kulture.
Long before celebrities and movie stars were seen wearing trucker hats in the mainstream, mechanic and artist, Kenny Howard had coined the name Von Dutch in the 1950s. It wasn't until years after his death when his daughters sold the rights to his signature that the brand came to be. You've likely seen his influence in countercultural art and beyond without even realizing it, most famously, his flying eyeball logo, which has become a staple of hotrod culture to this day.
With a design that's become as commonly used and reused as the eyeball, it might surprise you that the eponymous clothing brand is more well-known than he is. Not to worry, we've got you covered with a brief history of the provocateur, his legacy as a cult artist, and the many ways in which that legacy has been tarnished through the years - both by corporate interests, and by Howard himself.
Von Dutch eyeball
If you've ever seen a classic car or motorcycle with a pinstripe design, and were taken aback by its sleekness, Howard is at least indirectly responsible. One of the pioneers of the Kustom Kulture movement, Von Dutch is credited with popularizing pinstriping vehicles, painting hundreds of motorcycles across the country in the 1950s that spawned a cultural movement. He also came up with the idea to use a "K" in the spelling of Kustom Kulture, an homage to German aesthetics (something that he and many other mechanics of the time were fascinated by).
To give an idea of the kind of person he was, his famous nickname "Dutch" was given to him by his parents because he was "as stubborn as a Dutchman." Ever the firebrand, he chose to add the "Von" at the end as a way to wear the nickname as a badge of honor in his art, and jokingly, so the name would translate to "By German" in English.
The flying eyeball can be traced back to the beginning of Von Dutch's career. According to him, the symbol is meant to represent an all-seeing and all-knowing power above, serving as a reminder that we are never truly alone in this world. As popular as it was at the time, the eyeball has become a piece of art that transcended the movement that birthed it. To this day, tattoos, shirts, and more feature the winged eyeball. You can even find a handful of designs inspired by, and even including the flying eyeball in our store if you feel inclined to look.
On September 19, 1992, Von Dutch passed away from longtime health complications due to alcoholism. Although he wasn't exactly a household name at the time of his death, Von Dutch carried enough currency in the art world that Ed Boswell would begin to use the name to sell apparel with the permission of his remaining family. Von Dutch was famously indifferent to his art and namesake being used, believing that patents were egotistical. This allowed easy access for people like Michael Cassel and Robert Vaughn to eventually purchase the clothing rights in the year 2000. With this purchase, the clothing brand as it is known today began.
Making working class high-class
Von Dutch Originals envisioned selling clothing that looked working class, but as high-end fashion. As seen by the pop culture effect of the brand in the early 2000s, they became far more successful than anticipated. While the corporate sensibility and cultural appropriation of the brand go against the late Von Dutch's values, as well as the values of the counterculture at large - we have to admit that it was pretty wild to see so many A-list celebrities dressing like they had a cross country shipment to deliver for a couple of years. As can often happen in the corporate world, a mixture of poor management and greed led to infighting within the company, and by the 2010s the brand had hit rock bottom. Even with new ownership, the company has never fully recovered to its former glory, although a slow but steady resurgence in popularity for the brand may change that.
While a backstabbing corporate fallout is certainly damaging to the image of any countercultural figure, this would prove to be far from the most negative association to make in regard to Kenny Howard. In 2004, multiple articles revealed that Howard was racist and antisemitic, specifically citing the hateful and offensive remarks in a letter that he wrote on his deathbed. This contributed to the clothing brand's failure and called Howard's potential cult status into question.
There is no denying that regardless of his intent (as many of his friends have stated, he may have been trying to shock people, or was really just a misanthrope) that the comments he made in the letter, as well as the intolerance he displayed in life, are unacceptable and need to be addressed as such. It is impossible to erase him from the history of custom mechanics, so the least that we can do is make sure that the whole truth is told, no matter how ugly it may be.
Although important outsider art was created by a man who expressed harmful beliefs, one of the most beautiful things about art is the way it has the potential to live outside the shadow of its creator. While many believe that art endures only because its associationwith who made it, the truth is, any work can stand independently of their respective artist. This could not be truer for the flying eyeball. Artists of all ages are still finding new unique ways to design it, and its popularity as a symbol dwarfs the man himself. This is why despite its dubious history, we look to find the value in the Von Dutch name.
From the eyeball with wings to that crazy bug-eyed rat, from the Grim Reaper to the devil himself, your bros at Lethal Threat are intimately familiar with all the key characters and icons that are part of biker culture. Our T-shirts, stickers and other gear are filled with them. Instead of trying to copy a trend, however, we set it: Because we live and breathe motorcycles and hot rods, our designs are loaded with high-octane authenticity. We don't pull punches or cut corners when making gear for your life.
]]>It's been almost 22 years since the first episode of MTV’s Jackass aired. While two decades is a long time (I feel old just typing this out), Jackass had such a large impact on the media landscape that it feels even longer. It’s hard to remember a world before actor Johnny Knoxville conceived the series with filmmakers Spike Jonze and Jeff Tremaine. Blending reality television with slapstick, crude humor, and the inherent fascination with seeing just how much the human body can withstand, the professional pranksters took the world by storm in the early 2000’s. The show inspired countless reality series and played an integral role in laying the foundation for the homemade pranks and general craziness of viral internet culture, something that would become a dominating force only a few years later.
Despite the best efforts of producers, television censors, and even politicians to keep the squad down, they’ve continuously returned stronger than ever. A movie series, TV spinoffs, and even radio shows are just a few of the ventures they pursued to remain relevant after the show’s end during its third season. With Jackass Forever on the way over ten years since the last mainline film, we thought we’d check up on the Jackass crew to see what they’ve been up to in recent years.
Knoxville, of course, went on to have success in Hollywood. His range has remained fairly small, sticking to comedies and the occasional action movie. Still, Knoxville has been in a steady stream of films and TV shows since Jackass left the air, even if you haven’t heard of many of them. He’s no Tom Cruise by any means, but you can’t call him a failure when he’s starring in films alongside Andrew Garfield either. Knoxville has recently stated that he will be ending his career as a stuntman with Jackass Forever, after years of bodily injury that he can no longer tolerate.
Steve-O, on the other hand, is having a renaissance. Despite being hospitalized at the start of filming Jackass Forever, he’s generally in the best shape of his life. Nearing 14 years of sobriety, Steve-O has pivoted from being a stuntman as his primary profession, branching out into stand-up with two successful specials. His new comedy podcast Steve-O’s Wild Ride has also found him a great deal of success. Even though he isn’t jumping to stick fishhooks through his face as readily as he used to be, Steve-O shows no signs of losing interest in crazy stunts. For that, we can all be thankful.
Outside of Jackass, Dave England returned to his snowboarding career in different ways, primarily through founding Skintight Magazine, and starring alongside Tom Green in the snowboarding film Shred. Otherwise, England hasn’t done much the last two decades in the world of film and television, excluding a handful of small roles. Honestly, if I had to eat the “vomlette,” I’d probably want a quiet life too.
Bam Margera has always had an eclectic and diverse career outside the world of Jackass, so it isn’t much of a surprise to hear that he was busy throughout the 2010s. Multiple Jackass style spinoffs, skateboarding partnerships, independent films, and two hard rock projects kept Bam busy through the years; and that isn’t even the half of it. Recently it seems that Bam is all but retired from skateboarding, and sadly his alcohol addiction has landed him in rehab more than a few times since 2017. In a heartbreaking turn of events, Bam was fired from Jackass Forever, and is currently moving forward with a lawsuit against Knoxville and director Jeff Tremaine.
Wee Man, whose real name is Jason Acuña, has had a successful career in reality television since Jackass. Most notably Wee Man starred in Armed and Famous and came in third place on the first season of Celebrity Circus. Preston Lacy, who often worked alongside Acuña, has mostly stayed within the Jackass sphere. Much like England, Lacy’s presence in pop culture really only rears its head when Jackass is touring, unless you’re interested in watching some hokey holiday themed movies.
Chris Pontius has gone on to have a career working alongside fellow Jackass members, as well as appearing in countless roles in film and television. Working on Wildboyz with Steve-O, Pontius eventually moved on, playing himself in an episode of Raising Hope on Fox. He has more recently appeared in Netflix’s Game Over, Man! as well as Action Point with Knoxville in 2018. After performing what has to be the grossest stunt in Jackass history in the second film (which we will have the good grace not to describe), it’s nice to see that he’s had a relatively easy go of things since then.
Ryan Dunn, one of the boldest members of the Jackass crew, had his life cut tragically short in 2011 after a drunk driving accident that resulted in his death. Despite his relatively short career, his influence as a founding member of Jackass has immortalized him in a way that very few people ever get the opportunity to be, and he is dearly missed. It’s safe to say that Jackass Forever will leave something to be desired without his presence.
Now you should be totally up to speed on the crew. With Jackass Forever coming out February 4 with no signs of another delay, there should be no ambiguity about the past eleven years in the lives of these deranged stuntmen. While not every member of Jackass has had the same level of success or personal growth in the years since, we still think it’s only right to celebrate the lives of each of these fringe culture icons, imperfections and all.
Written by Josh Sandler
]]>To the people who leave their radio tuned to Top 40, the differences between rock and metal are hard to hear. And to be fair, rock and metal nerds don't do themselves any favors by introducing so many damn sub-genres, from prog rock to nu metal. Still, the two blend in many people's ears.
And both figure in largely within biker culture. Hot rods and heavy guitars go hand in hand. Drums and V-twins do the same things to our ears. Unlike other appropriations of biker culture, motorcycle life has grown right beside rock and metal. Both have boosted each other and helped the other evolve.
Rock and metal musicians use icons and insignias of the riding life because they have lived it. And their music becomes the soundtrack of our lives.
So this subject is a worthy deep-dive. In the landscape of modern music, where rock and metal aren't seeing the same kind of mainstream success they used to, it might seem like the genres are dying. Despite the cultural shift, we know that couldn't be further from the truth. There are still millions of dedicated fans and musicians out there keeping the community alive. As much as rock and metal have integrated over the years, they are two distinct genres with different sub-cultures. If you're a lover of either, this article should cover exactly what makes each one so special; and where to draw the line between the two for those who are looking to see where they stand.
Rock of Ages
Rock music has changed a lot over the last seventy years, and naturally so has it's sound. Early artists in rock such as Elvis Presley were breaking ground by taking the sounds of the blues and magnifying them with electric guitars and bass, as well as keyboards. The genre quickly began to evolve, with new strains of rock emerging in the '60s from bands such as The Beatles and The Beach Boys.
By this point, rock 'n' roll was a worldwide sensation, introducing music and values into youth culture that were shocking and transgressive for their time. Of course, what's outrageous to one generation will be the status quo for the next, leaving the envelope to be pushed by someone new.
Metal Emerges
By the 1970s, Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden were two of the pioneering bands for what would go on to be called heavy metal, a genre that took the sounds of rock music to louder, and more theatrical extremes.
Metal instruments are often tuned much lower with an emphasis on heavy distortion, extended guitar solos, more aggressive vocals and intense rhythms. In contrast to the mostly clean and formal look of rock at the time, metal also featured darker imagery and bands were more comfortable wearing black leather and letting their hair grow out. Metal used pulp and horror movie aesthetics to achieve the dramatic effect they were looking for, some even dabbled in demonic symbols. For a long time, metal was considered a genre that would turn your kid into a Satanist by generations that didn't understand it, as funny as that seems today.
Both Get Stronger
Each genre grew in style over the ensuing decades, usually moving in a more energetic direction. In the 1980s, rock music had Queen and AC/DC, while thrash became the new popular form of metal with bands such as Metallica and Slayer. Thrash was much more fast-paced and propulsive than early heavy metal and the same was true of '80s rock.
The increase in heaviness would carry through to the '90s, when artists such as Nirvana and Pearl Jam brought grunge, a more distorted and edgy sound, to the forefront of rock music. Simultaneously, Pantera ushered in a more brutal, groove-based sound to metal - not to mention the increasing popularity of extreme metal subgenres such as death metal. Essentially, as rock got harder, metal got heavier every step of the way.
By the 21st century, rock and metal have become established musical genres to the point that they have been taken in nearly every artistic direction imaginable. With screaming more acceptable in music than ever before, metal is sounding at its most ferocious. Rock music ranges in style and tone to the point that even rappers such as Machine Gun Kelly have tried their hand at it (although we'd be lying if we said that artists such as him were a shining example of quality). Fashion in rock has become universal to the point that the overall look of an artist isn't necessarily indicative of their sound at all. Just look at a band such as Ghost and then give them a listen.
Still Evolving
It's almost too much to keep track of, but don't worry, this won't turn into a lesson on "pirate metal" or "medieval folk rock," although some of you may just want to google those for your own amusement. Regardless, metal has remained successful with bands like Slipknot, Five Finger Death Punch and The Strokes and Foo Fighters for rock. These bands, along with so many more, are still finding success with their audiences, even if they aren't topping the charts as highly as they used to. Even Judas Priest released an album in 2018 that got some serious attention.
For many, rock and metal are more than just styles of music, but also larger communities of people who have found common ground in liking something that often goes against the grain. This is best exemplified by data recorded by streaming platforms like Spotify, which shows that metal fans are some of the most loyal out there in terms of their listening habits. No one would listen to a single type of music with so much dedication if it was just superficial fun to them. Not to mention the sheer number of people with band tattoos, or that wear t-shirts with either a logo or metalhead iconography as a form of self-expression. Despite all the doomsayers in our current media landscape, the passion of rock and metal fans has proven that it can endure without the cultural reverence it once had.
]]>Across the centuries that tattooing has been practiced, it has seen countless evolutions in style, purpose, and cultural perception. Here in the United States, tattoos were once seen as a taboo, but those days have been over for quite a while. Roughly 145 million Americans have at least one tattoo, according to a Statista study from 2019. Of course, many of us have an uncle or grandma who still hasn’t gotten over that first tattoo, but at least you only have to see them during the holidays, right?
With tattoos more popular than ever, we thought we’d put together a guide of sorts, breaking down a few of the most common styles. After all, getting a tattoo now is different than getting one 10 years ago, let alone 60. With modern technology, tattooing as an art form has continued to innovate with no signs of hitting a creative ceiling any time soon. Having an entire tattoo sleeve would have been seen as transgressive as recently as the 90’s, but today? A hardcore tattoo enthusiast might have their entire body decorated. If you’re looking to get inked yourself, even if this isn’t your first time under the needle, this guide should tell you everything you need to know to make an informed decision.
American traditional — a classic style that is often associated with hippies and other countercultural figures of the 60s — originated in the 1930’s as a way for social rejects and those who lived on the fringes of society to express themselves. Also referred to as “old school” style tattoos, they are best characterized by a saturated use of simple colors and a lack of dimensionality in favor of a leveled, hand drawn look. Typical designs in this style include pinup girls, nautical iconography, or a tattoo with traditional lettering. Although artists will often put their own twist on a design, these requirements have to be met for your tattoo to be considered American traditional. If it isn’t instantly recognizable, then it’s not old school.
Speaking of “instantly recognizable,” the next style we’re focusing on is Japanese traditional. Japanese traditional dates back further than most tattoo styles that are popular today, originating about 5,000 years ago. Featuring a vivid and distinct color palette with imagery deeply rooted in Japanese art, these tattoos carry specific symbolic meaning to those who display them. Before getting a Japanese traditional tattoo, we’d recommend researching the details of the design that you’re interested in, both large and small. These tattoos each mean something distinct, right down to the colors chosen. You might also want some experience with tattoos before getting one of these, because this method takes the “traditional” part of its namesake literally. There are no electrical tools used in the process. If you can handle the procedure however, the singular beauty of this style is more than worth it.
Next on our roster is a tattoo style that can only be performed with the technology we have today, realism. In case you slept through art history, realism is the practice of making a work that resembles real life in an immaculately detailed way. It is a rigorous way to make any kind of art, and tattoos are no different. This style exists in two possible types; black/grey realism and color realism. Both require intense amounts of shading, and finely-tuned attention to all aspects of the design. If you choose to go color, be prepared for a formidably long series of sessions. Realist tattoos take a specific skill set that may be harder to find in a tattoo artist, so make sure that the artist you choose knows what they’re doing, and are the right fit for the design you want. If a realist tattoo comes out badly, it’s not going to be an easy fix.
Last but not least, we have new school tattoos. Given their name entirely for the relationship they have to their old school counterparts, new school tattoos blend some of the same stylistic techniques with new influences. Most sources would cite the new school tattoos origin as the late 80’s and early 90’s, and it was just as much a changing of mentalities as it was a changing of style. For years, it was very unusual for tattoo artists to share their particular craft with others, to prevent competitors from stealing their ideas. The new school saw this as a kind of stagnation, and supported a culture of sharing, as well as borrowing influences from across the cultural spectrum. They utilize hard outlines like the old school, but lifted restrictions on color, and overall subject matter. New school tattoos pull from more cartoony influences, as well as the cultures of hip-hop and graffiti art to name a few, to create designs that are far more embellished and eccentric. These are some of the most easily customizable tattoos on the market, and can generate countless possibilities.
With interest in tattoos continuing to grow and lockdown finally starting to end, we sincerely hope that this article was able to help break down some common tattoo styles, and inspire you to go out and get one (or for most of you, I’m sure, another one).
Written by Josh Sandler
]]>Take a moment to think about the iconography from hot rod and biker culture that holds the most significance. If Rat Fink wasn’t one of the images that just appeared in your head, you may want to reconsider your answer, at least if you’re in earshot of anyone in the Lethal Threat family. In fact, we love that gnarly little creature and the mayhem he represents so much, that he just might be our number one choice. Our love for the rat extends to a love for his creator, Ed “Big Daddy” Roth. His work as a custom car designer was defining in the Southern California scene, but it was his playfully malformed monster caricatures like Rat Fink that led to his now cult status as a pop-art iconoclast. You’ve more than likely seen shirts and patches indebted to Roth’s signature style, or even featuring one of his designs, including from us. If you don’t know the history of one of Kustom Kulture’s most underappreciated figures, just keep on reading. We’ll break it all down for you right here.
After selling airbrushed t-shirts for a few years at the end of the 1950s, Roth would come up with the idea for Rat Fink. The expansive pop culture effect of Walt Disney’s films was his primary inspiration. Life in a Disney movie is cheery, carefree, and upbeat, with any problem being easily solvable in the length of a motion picture. If this sappy, utopian portrait of life makes you want to barf, don’t worry. Seeing that poverty and suffering in the world were largely ignored by consumer culture, Ed Roth felt the same way. As a response to Mickey Mouse’s chipper demeanor, Rat Fink — the inverse of everything cutesy, sanitized, and family friendly — was born.
Rat Fink embodies everything that makes Roth’s style so simultaneously kooky and clever. Usually colored green or gray, the rat is known for having a dramatically exaggerated body shape to capture his depravity; including a twisted smile, eyes bulging out of their sockets, and rows of sharp, crooked teeth. While echoes of Mickey can still be seen in the ears and nose, this still comes across clearly as a new beast. He is usually drawn behind the wheel of either a car or motorcycle with the engine roaring, and even when he isn’t, you can tell by the look in his eyes that he’s up to some kind of mischief. No matter how feral Rat Fink’s design appears, the satirical edge of Roth’s intent is always there to serve as a self-reflexive wink, creating a sense of solace for the counterculture without ever pandering to a wider market.
Roth debuted Rat Fink with an ad in a car magazine in 1963, but that would only be the beginning. The design immediately caught on, and exploded. Soon enough, you couldn’t be a part of Kustom Kulture without seeing the backstabbing varmint on t-shirts, keychains, decals, and so much more. Rat Fink would be one in a series of unmistakable caricatures from Roth through the 60’s, including Drag Nut and Mr. Gasser, to name two. Each one was unique, but retained Roth’s love of absurdity (and flaming exhaust pipes). The most notable artwork of Roth’s post Rat Fink was the album cover for Junkyard, The Birthday Party’s seminal post-punk record in 1982. Just a side note: if you haven’t listened to Junkyard before, do yourself a favor and go do it! As soon as you’ve finished reading our blog, of course.
Long after his death in 2001, Roth’s accomplishments are still celebrated in the form of the Rat Fink Reunion, held annually in Manti, Utah. Hosted by his wife in the final city he lived in, it is the perfect way for those who still appreciate his incredible art to pay their respects. Even though Ed Roth will never be touted in magazines like Andy Warhol, his artistic contributions helped people in the hotrod lifestyle carve out a niche. Around the country, new Rat Fink reunions are starting to pop up for those who are passionate about his work. Rat Fink will forever be a symbol of alternative culture, and as long as we remember the man behind the rascally rodent, that is enough.
Ed Roth's artwork goes onto inspire even Lethal Threat's T-shirt designs, decals and much more. Here are just a few examples.
Written by Josh Sandler
]]>Well folks, it’s that time of year once again — late October to early November, the mark of a sacred holiday. Originating in Mexico, but now observed around the world, the Day of the Dead (or el Día de los Muertos in Spanish) is a festive commemoration of those who have passed on from this life. Unlike most holidays of this nature, the Day of the Dead isn’t just a melancholy reminder of days now gone. Instead, the day is meant to be a joyous celebration of the times spent with the deceased, and a way to continue paying respects to keep their memory alive.
Often, decorations are placed on an altar to those who are being honored, be it a personal belonging, or a hand-made ornament. One of the most common items are calaveras, or sugar skulls. Even if you don’t celebrate the Day of the Dead, these skulls probably look familiar to you as they’ve become a staple of the Halloween season, and have secured a place in the whole of pop culture.
Typically featuring a dazzling color palette and vivid designs, sugar skulls can be dated as far back as the 15th century, with production techniques remaining almost exactly the same across that time. Cane sugar is cast into a skull shaped mold, which is what gives them their name. Despite their material and candy colored designs, sugar skulls aren't meant to be eaten, just admired. Once the skulls are fully formed, a process that often takes anywhere from four to six months, they are then decorated with any combination of icing, feathers, beads, and a whole host of other art supplies. Some people even employ face paint to emulate the calaveras, a process in and of itself.
Beyond the traditional craft, some sugar skulls are made for eating, either with the established cane sugar, or from chocolate. There are also clay skulls made purely as a decoration, that while not hand crafted in the same way, still serve a decorative purpose for Day of the Dead functions. While the customary sugar skulls are less likely to be commonly found in the states, these more commercial skulls can be found in stores throughout the early fall season.
In popular culture, the distinctiveness of the sugar skull designs has been influential to film, art, and even the aesthetics of Halloween for many. Famous artist and political lithographer José Guadalupe Posada used calaveras satirically in his prints throughout the early 1900’s, that have since gone on to become incredibly influential in the world of cartoonists and political art at large. Possibly the biggest mark of sugar skulls’ influence on pop-culture comes from the 2017 animated Pixar film Coco, in which the visual characteristics of both the calaveras and the Day of the Dead are woven into the film’s imagery; many characters in the movie are even skeletons with decorative sugar skulls for faces!
This fall, whether you’ve participated in Day of the Dead celebrations before or not, consider learning more about the traditions. Who knows? Maybe you’ll end up with a sugar skull of your own to commemorate a loved one with.
Written by Josh Sandler
]]>The East Coastin' Crew is a badass group of guys who do some amazing stunts on Harley Davidson motorcycles. For the last five years, the East Coastin' Crew has put on an end-of-Summer party at their shop in New Haven, Connecticut, which is actually located in an old church. Year after year, their party's attendance has been growing. Last year, they had almost 10,000 bikers crowding the streets of New Haven's industrial area. With the event growing to this crazy size, the Mayor of New Haven was determined to make sure that the 2021 event was not going to happen. The boys from East Coastin' tried to work with the local municipality and get the required permits to stage the event, but they stonewalled them at every step. Without permits, the event was not sanctioned, and the Mayor held a press conference warning bikers not to show up. He warned people that law enforcement would be ready to make mass arrests, so basically the message was to stay away. East Coastin' posted on their social media that the 2021 block party was taking place, but you had to come at your own risk. The crowd this year was about 5,000 bikers, so some riders clearly did not want police problems and decided to stay away.
Usually, there's an event or show going on for us at the same time as the East Coastin' block party. This year, we made a point to be free so we could attend East Coastin''s 2021 event. Man, was I glad that we did.
The exciting event takes place in an industrial area underneath a major highway. We arrived around noontime, only to find that thousands of bikers had already arrived. The local Dunkin Donuts parking lot was filled wall to wall with motorcycles. Bikes of all types were everywhere we looked. The police had a huge presence, considering that this was an unsanctioned event. Road blocks were set up on the side streets, which is usually where the East Coastin' guys do their motorcycle stunts. There was a party atmosphere, but with all the police, there was a tension in the air as well - a feeling that things could go wrong quickly. The crowd just kept getting bigger. Stunt riders from as far as California and Las Vegas were on deck to rip up the streets of New Haven. As the crowd eagerly awaited to see when and where the stunts would start, the cops seemed to have the event on lockdown. Every so often, a stray daredevil would start burning rubber or doing a wheelie down the crowd-lined streets. Within seconds, they would be descended on by cops on bikes, who would stop the fun and issue the rider a summons.
The word was that everything would kick off around 3:30 p.m. With only minutes until showtime, the sound of screeching tires and smoke from burning rubber started rising from the road behind the church. Thousands of people started walking and running to where the action was. Police could do nothing to stop the throngs of people descending on the closed street. Burnout circles in the middle of the street, full bagger wheelies, endos, you name it - if a stunt could be done on a motorcycle, these guys were doing it here. The police would form a line with riot shields and police SUVs and slowly move the crowd, trying to take back the street. Once they cleared one street, the crowd and the bikers would shift to the next street. This game of cat and mouse went on for about three hours. Things quieted down around dusk, and the party moved to the surrounding hotels and motels, where the bikers started ripping it up in the motel parking lots.
For the amount of people at the event, we were surprised that we saw no fights, and basically everyone was having a good time and enjoying the action. The police's spin on the story was that there were thousands of out-of-control bikers taking over their town and it had to be stopped. So, word came down that they arrested the main guy from East Coastin' and charged him with inciting a riot and various other crimes. He had to post a $10,000 bail bond for his release, which he did. The town of New Haven is also suing him to pay over $100,000 in fines and restitutions for the cost of the police and other town agencies that showed up to control the event. No word on what the East Coastin' guys are going to do.
The big question is: will the event still take place in 2022? We know one thing for sure - if it does, we will be there!
]]>The 18th Annual Indian Larry Block Party: Our Review
We have exhibited at or attended a lot of great motorcycle shows and events around the world, from the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally to the Mooneyes Kustom Kulture Show in Japan, to name two. However, very few of them have the same raw energy and excitement as the Indian Larry Annual Motorcycle Block Party. The event was started 18 years ago by the legendary man and bike builder, Indian Larry. Even after his untimely death in 2004, this annual event is still going strong today. The event has moved over the years, but was always held in Brooklyn, New York. For the last couple of years, it has taken place on the same block as the Indian Larry Shop. It's located in an industrial area that has been slowly gentrified over the years, but the shop still has that grit and grimy feel of Brooklyn in the 1970s, back when New York was known as Fear City. The event takes place on the third Saturday in September, and usually the day is sunny and hot. This year held the tradition. Although there was rain on all the days leading up to the event, Saturday was sunny and temperatures were in the high 80s.
Locked and Loaded: The Riders Start Rolling In
The event went on last year, but with the COVID issues, we skipped being part of the 2020 show, which was definitely a hard decision to make. So, doing it again this year was something we have been looking forward to for months. The event's start time is noon, but riders were already rolling in by 10 a.m. After our 9 a.m. arrival, we began to unload our trailer, set up our tent, wheel out our car front end display, and set our products on their hooks to satisfy the early crowd that was ready to spend some cash. By the time it was noon, the block was lined on each side of the street with tents and vendors. A wide array of T-shirts, riding gear, motorcycle paintings and bike parts spread out on the sidewalk. Motorcycle after motorcycle was parked down the middle of the street. Once the main street overflowed with bikes, all the surrounding blocks filled up with every type of Harley and V-Twin, from stock to custom-built.
Excitement at the Wall of Death
Interestingly, the event had a first this year: Rhett Rotten had set up his wooden Wall of Death to thrill the crowd. It's one thing to see videos of a Wall of Death attraction - it's something totally different to see it live and in person. Rhett Rotten travels across the U.S., setting up this classic carnival attraction that was constructed in 1938. During the show, Rhett rides a vintage motorcycle up and around the vertical walls, performing cool tricks as he goes. Hold out a cash tip and it's gone in a blink of an eye. To see the show, you climb up a set of stairs to the top of the attraction and look down into this wooden contraption. Later in the day, an all-out brawl broke out among some spectators. One guy was trying to throw another guy into the pit, which was more than a 40-foot drop. Luckily, the fight was eventually broken up. That would not have been a pretty scene. At the very least, we got to see some excitement in AND above the Wall of Death!
Witness Skilled Stunt Riders
After we got our fill of the Wall of Death, the smell of burning rubber and the noise of revving motorcycles had the crowd running towards the next streets over, where the East Coastin' Crew was laying down some rubber. These guys are a motorcycle stunt group from New Haven, Connecticut, who perform on Harleys. From full-on Baggers to Dynas, these guys require an unbelievable amount of skill (not to mention big balls) to do the tricks they pull off. The crowd lined up on both sides of the street, as the East Coastin' boys tore down the Brooklyn asphalt doing wheelies, side-to-side burnouts and standing wheelies, really pushing the boundaries of their bikes. Some collateral damage is expected, so it was not a shock when they hit some parked bikes and cars. Occasionally an out-of-control bike would fly into the crowd of spectators - and everyone loved it! The grand finale was a six-bike tire burnout. The smoke was so thick that you couldn't see your hands in front of your, but getting hit with specs of hot tire rubber only had the crowd wanting more. After a quick tire install, the guys were back at it again. This stunting was going on all day, not only by the East Coastin' Crew, but by individual daredevils that pulled out any tricks they knew to get a piece of the action.
Motorcycle Artwork to Remember
If you wanted to take a break from all the action outside, you could head into the Grind House Art Gallery, which is set up inside the garage of Indian Larry. Motorcycle-related artwork was on display, along with an exhibit of custom-built bikes by talented motorcycle builders, both old and new from around the U.S. As always, it was amazing to see the Japanese artist Makoto Endo painting a portrait of an Indian Larry bike. He set up a white canvas on the floor in front of the motorcycle, and using knee pads, he kneeled on the canvas to apply his art. Makoto's one-of-a-kind technique is simple yet powerful. He flings India Ink onto the canvas, using bamboo chopsticks to create a detailed portrait of the motorcycle set up before him. Once you spend a good amount of time admiring the motorcycle-related art and custom-built bikes, you can go into the Indian Larry showroom to view some of his most famous motorcycles, along with photos and artwork of the legendary bike builder.
Meet Other Bikers and More
With stunt rider entertainment, custom bikes, killer artwork, music, food and the vast array of products from a large group of vendors, it's safe to say that this one-day show packed a pretty big punch. Our Lethal Threat booth was busy from the start to the very end. It's always great to reconnect with old friends and make some new ones. This is definitely a show that we suggest putting on your bucket list. Needless to say, there are plenty of stories and memories from the 18th Annual Indian Larry Block Party to keep you excited and looking forward to the next one.
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A relatively new motorcycle event that has grown in popularity over the years is the Born Free Motorcycle show in Silverado, California. Unfortunately, the show was cancelled last year due to COVID-19. When I heard the 2021 show was going to happen, I booked a flight out of New York and headed West. Founded by two motorcycle enthusiasts, Mike Davis and Grant Peterson, this show has been going on for the last 12 years. Their goal for Born Free was to showcase custom-built bikes by some of the best builders from around the globe. Without a doubt, I knew there would be some killer bikes on display, so I brought along our videographer and photographer, Matt Keane, to capture all of the fantastic sights. Once we landed in Los Angeles, we headed straight for the show. It was about an hour's drive South of Los Angeles, as the event is held at the Oak Canyon Ranch. The ranch is located within the Santa Monica Mountains, which makes for a perfect riding destination with plenty of twisties and a wide-open highway. If you wanted your bike within the showgrounds, you had to pre-buy a grass pass for your motorcycle, otherwise you had to park in the gravel parking lot. Both days of the show, the grass bike passes were sold out. While riding, we didn't feel bothered by the heat. Once we were off of our bikes, however, the heat was killer and the sun was blazing. I knew I would be lobster-red by the end of the day, even after slathering on sunscreen.
Regardless of the heat, there was a large turnout of riders. The walk-in entrance fee was $20 per person. Sunday was the second day of the show, as this is a two-day affair that's hosted on both days of the weekend. Once we got inside the gate, there was plenty to see and do. The first thing I noticed that is the people were much younger than the crowd you would typically see at other events, like Sturgis for instance. This younger group of attendees sets Born Free apart from most biker gatherings in the U.S. While there were some gray beards here and there, the majority of the crowd were in their 30s or early 40s. The bike of choice for this next generation of California bikers is the Harley Dyna Wide Glide. There were plenty on display, with custom parts, fairings and Metal Flake paint jobs. A large majority of the crowd were even riding them to the event. What is super cool about California is the wide variety of riders and style of bikes they ride. You will see the Latinos riding lowered, tricked-out baggers, with Kandy color paint jobs and ape hanger handlebars. Then you'll probably see a hippy style, 30-something biker riding a chopper he wrenched in his garage with whichever spare parts he had that worked for the build. On the other end of the spectrum, you'll find someone on an Enduro Bike wearing their full riding gear. Custom bike builders were invited from all over the country to showcase their rides, from 1970s style Choppers to tricked-out Baggers and Dyna Wide glides. We hardly saw any antique bikes that were older then the '60s.
All of the California aftermarket motorcycle brands had tents, like San Diego Customs, Moon Eyes, Loser Machine, Roland Sands, Cycle Zombies... and too many others to list. They were showcasing their builds and latest parts, and there was an array of custom bikes on display. Of course, Born Free had their own merchandise tent set up, with almost every shirt sold out from the previous day. In past years, Vans had a half pipe skateboard ramp showcasing some of the best skateboarding talent California has to offer, but this year they opted for the always-exciting Wall of Death display by Rhett Rotten instead. Music lovers will be happy to hear that there was a constant stream of bands performing on the main stage. Nobody was playing AC/DC or Lynyrd Skynyrd, though. This crowd wanted Hardcore and Punk, and they wanted it now. If you have ever been to the Mooneyes show in Japan, Born Free had a similar kind of vibe, except with a California twist. There were plenty of cool bikes, lots of biker-inspired artwork and just an overall relaxed, laidback atmosphere. With no burnouts, no motorcycle rodeo games, no drunks, this year's Born Free was pretty tame compared to your typical biker event in the U.S. Overall, I thought it was a good show worth attending. Here in the States, usually all the new trends for fashion and motorcycle styles start in California, bounce over to the East coast until they eventually move to the middle of the country. In New York, there are more choppers making a comeback, which is nice to see.
This next generation of bikers still have the passion to ride, but they sure do it differently than us older folks. Personally, I don't ever remember taking an all-day trip to a coffee shop or a vineyard, but hey, to each their own. As long as the younger crowd is living life on two wheels, then I say more power to them.
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What's the Best Pick-Up Truck?
Typically, businesses like to rely on some type of vehicle to get the job done. For Lethal Threat, a pick-up truck was always the go-to for both work and play. Throughout our 32 years of existence, we have used every brand of truck at one point or another. Some trucks were definitely better than others. For instance, I had a Dodge Ram SRT-10 with a Viper engine that was fast as f---, but not really practical as a work truck. With two-wheel drive, racing-slick tires and a top speed of over 150 mph, this truck was made for racing. It was like riding a bucking bronco! Driving in the rain was a white-knuckle experience, and if it snowed, the truck was garage-bound for the winter. Nothing against this truck - it just wasn't what I needed. I sold it to a guy for his 18-year-old son to use, which to me, felt like I was handing him a loaded gun. I figured it was too much truck for an 18-year-old, but the kid proved me wrong and is still enjoying the truck after a couple of years.
Honestly, I had no brand loyalty when it came to buying cars or trucks. If it looked good, had good consumer ratings and provided the performance I needed, I was sold. I know plenty of you are loyal Dodge, GMC, Toyota or Chevy fans, but in my opinion, the Ford F-150 is the best overall pick-up truck on the market. I know what you're thinking, but my company has no affiliation with Ford. The F-150 has just always delivered for me. Technology, styling, towing capabilities and performance have made it a best-selling truck in the United States for the last 10 years.
Finding a Ford During COVID
At the beginning of COVID-19, everything shut down in the New York tri-state area, and car and truck dealers were overstocked on inventory with little to no sales. I was always impressed with the Ford Raptor truck, since the first year I saw it at the SEMA show a couple of years ago. The Raptor was designed for off-road racing, so it's not the most practical choice for a work truck, but screw being sensible. During COVID lockdown, the only way to buy or trade in a truck was to do it online. I reached out to a couple of Ford dealers, and found one in New Jersey. He offered a great deal on our trade-in truck and dropped the price considerably on the 2020 Raptor. A year prior to COVID, no deals were to be found on a Raptor truck; many dealers were getting full sticker price or even above sticker. That being said, we had to strike while the iron was hot. We did the deal all over the phone and a couple of days later, the salesman showed up at our headquarters to drop off the new Raptor. No games. No hassle. All in all, it was a pretty straightforward transaction.
Journey to the Ford Raptor Assault Class
Soon after we took ownership of the Raptor, a letter showed up from Ford offering a two-day training program in Utah to put the truck through its paces. The class was free; you just had to pay for your travel and hotel accommodations. You had one year to go the class from the purchase date of your Raptor. This class was called "The Raptor Assault". No car or truck I've ever bought before came with a course to show you what your new vehicle is capable of, so I made sure to take Ford up on their offer. Almost to the one-year mark of the truck's purchase, I decided I needed to sign up for the course and make my travel arrangements. Next stop, Salt Lake City - then another 20 miles west to the town of Tooele, Utah. This was my first time flying in almost a year since the whole COVID mess started. Before COVID, I would average one or two flights per month, so getting back on a plane again felt strange. Once in the Salt Lake City Airport, I headed to the rent-a-car place, which had a huge line and one employee at the counter. The first night of the Raptor Assault featured a meet-and-greet dinner, with an overview of what would happen the next day. I would have made it on time for the meet and greet if not for the two-hour rent-a-car delay. A girl from Ford called to say that it wasn't a problem and to just be there the next day at the training course. Once I got to the town of Tooele, I checked in to the closest hotel. Tooele is a small town with views of the Oquirrh Mountains and the Great Salt Lake.
The next day started off with a bit of a surprise, unlike anything I've ever experienced. Around 5:30 a.m., I started to get ready for the day's Raptor Assault adventure. Still half asleep, I pulled out the ironing board from the closet and reached for the iron from its holder. I heard a thud, and looked down to find that the source of the sound was a 10-inch sex toy. As you can imagine, I was like, "What the f---!" What do you do in a situation like this? Call the front desk? Leave it on the floor? Put it back where you found it? I went with the third option, and no, I didn't touch it with my bare hands. I used a washcloth to place it back behind the iron for the next unsuspecting victim. It was quite the wakeup call.
Starting Off Strong at the Raptor Assault
Around 7 a.m., I arrived at the Raptor Assault center. Coffee and pastries welcomed us, and we were directed to a classroom. There were about 20 Raptor owners who would be taking the course, so we were divided into classes of 10. Each group of 10 was assigned two instructors. We started the day off with our instructor, Donny, going over Vehicle Dynamics, Cornering Theory and the different Driving Mode settings the Raptor is capable of. This course was the real deal. It will push your driving limits, and have you step outside your comfort zone. After about 45 minutes, it was time to partner up and head to one of the 20 Ford Raptors they had waiting for us. My driving partner was a great guy from Arkansas who was an adrenaline junkie. If it had wheels, he was all about it. He was into cross country cycling, mountain biking and was also a Moto GP motorcycle racer. We were assigned to truck #4, a black Raptor.
All communication with our instructors was done with a two-way radio in each truck. Our instructor was in the lead vehicle giving us driving commands via our truck number. We were instructed to drive as fast as we felt comfortable, as the Raptor can handle anything you dish out. First, we drove out to the driving course that Ford had set up. A series of cones were set up along a winding dirt path, with bumps, dips and 90-degree turns. We drove through the course with care, with the instructor telling us where to slow down and where to accelerate. Again, you drove the way you felt comfortable, but they wanted you to push your limits. My driving buddy was up first. He stomped down on the gas, and off we went. Both of us wore helmets and were strapped in with a racing harness. We each got in three runs, and both of us had a sh!t-eating grin after completing this part of the course.
Rock Climbing with the Raptor
Next, it was on to the rock-climbing part of the course. The Raptor has different driving modes that you can put the truck into by simply selecting the mode on your dashboard. Select Rock Crawl Mode, set your speed and the truck drives itself up and down the rocks. All you have to do is steer. Using the brake or gas disengages the system - that's pretty amazing technology. After that, we drove the truck on a 30-degree lateral angle along a rock wall. It felt like the truck was going to tip over, but not this Raptor; it was totally stable. My partner and I both got in a couple of runs at this, as did the other Raptors on our team. After an hour or two on this course, we headed up to Oquirrh Mountains for some off-roading.
While the trail was steep and treacherous as we climbed to the peak of the mountain, the scenery was beautiful. Once we got to the top, we parked the convoy of Raptors and had a boxed lunch with beverages supplied by Ford. We all got to relax a bit and reflect on this once-in-a-lifetime experience. From the beginning, a photographer from Ford was there to capture every moment of the day. While we were off-roading, he would race ahead of us on a motocross bike. After lunch, it was time to switch drivers again and head back to another Raptor Assault course. Its capability while descending mountains, along with its features and driving modes, really sets the Raptor apart from the competition. We had two exercises left with the truck: first, an all-out obstacle course, and second, jumping with the Raptor.
Kicking it Up a Notch: Jumping the Ford Raptor
Though this second course was more of a challenge then the first one in the morning, everyone was feeling confident. This time, our instructor climbed up to the elevated portion and gave us his directions in real time as we went through the course. Speed up, brake, bank, turn - the commands echoed through our headsets. It was a really great time. Finally, it was time to jump the Ford Raptor. A dirt ramp was built, with cones on each top corner of the ramp. From a standing start, we had a 100-foot lead up before getting to the ramp, so basically, slam down on the gas and when you are airborne, take your foot off. The instructor told us that if you are still giving the truck gas on the landing, you are in for a violent jolt. During my turn, I got some good air, took my foot off the gas and the truck came down as soft as could be expected. The Fox shock absorbers withstood the impact with no problem. An eight-hour day of the Raptor Assault had come to an end. We drove the trucks back to garage, where we got a USB with all the day's photos and a swag bag. Everyone said goodbye and started heading back to our respective corners of the country.
Overall, the Raptor Assault instructors and staff were awesome. The whole experience was well-planned, and really showcased the many features and capabilities of the Raptor. I don't think I would have figured everything out myself. I have no affiliation with Ford, so this is a very unbiased review of my experience. I highly recommend the Ford Raptor if you want to kick it up a notch to the next level of pick-up truck. If you do buy a Ford Raptor, don't miss out on your opportunity to take the Raptor Assault class. You will have a blast during this eye-opening off-roading adventure!
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At one time tattoos were banned in New York. From 1961 to 1997, tattooing was deemed illegal in all five boroughs of New York. The New York City Health Department alleged a series of blood-borne Hepatitis-B cases were attributed to tattoo parlors mostly in the Coney Island area of Brooklyn. So, for 36 years, all tattooing done in the boroughs of New York was considered illegal. Just like liquor prohibition of the 1920's, tattoos where still done in New York, it just went underground. Done from apartments, or in blacked out storefronts, nothing stopped tattoo artists from working. In the suburbs on New York tattooing was still legal. Growing up in the 80's, I could remember my first experience, as a teenager, entering a tattoo studio. Getting a tattoo today, is usually a good experience and the client is appreciated. Back then, it was a pretty intimidating experience. In my area, everybody went to one tattoo shop if you wanted a tattoo. I don't remember him having any competition from other tattoo shops in the area. That tattoo shop was the only option you had if you wanted a tattoo in our area. You walked up a dark flight of stairs to the second floor, you were buzzed in once you got to the top door. Back in the 80's, with the exception of banks, very few businesses used security cameras and buzzed door locks, but the owner had the place super secure. No appointments, you just showed up, you were either buzzed in or told to come back another day through the intercom. If you were let in, you walked into a big room, with tattoo flash designs on every wall from floor to ceiling. There was no custom work done, if it wasn't on the wall, then it doesn't get tattooed. The owner was a big guy, with a no time for bullshit attitude. There would always be some 1% ers hanging out to add to uneasiness of the whole experience. Besides the walls lined with flash, the owner, was a big collector of torture devices from WW2 and before, so this made for some interesting display items.
I went with a friend, who his Father died suddenly when he was 16. He wanted a In Memory tattoo of his Dad. Back then, a Jesus head was the tattoo of choice to coumarate this type of tattoo occasion. The price was marked next to the design on the flash sheet. This was the price if you wanted it on your arm, any other location placement would cost you double the cost listed on the flash sheet. Inking the words "In Memory of Dad" was another charge. Don't remember exactly the cost, but somewhere in the neighborhood of $100 for the whole tattoo. My friend was directed to a small side room, where the owner asked him if he was over 18, a simple yes would do, not proof of age required. Cash up front, tattoo given, now get the F@ck out, was pretty much the way it went. The tattoo was done exactly how it looked on the flash sheet, same colors, same design.
Fast forward to 1997, my friend served a tattoo apprenticeship under the owner, which was not an easy thing to get. In those days, the trade of tattooing was a guarded secret and only taught to a select few. There were no tattoo classes, or YouTube tattoo tutorials. The Tattoo ban ended in 1997, and my friend, with the blessing of his mentor, opened up a tattoo studio in Da Bronx. His shop had a welcoming atmosphere and offered custom work in addition to the standard flash designs. Always a creative buzz going on at his shop. He assembled and taught a good team of tattoo artists that soon gave the shop at top reputation in Da Bronx for the best tattoo artists around. The shop always had its share of characters hanging around. I remember a young guy who worked around the shop, not for money, but for tattoos. Part of the deal was, in exchange for shop clean up, he could pick what he wanted tattooed, but also it was up to my friend, every now and then, to tattoo what he wanted. My friend, Seen, who owned the tattoo studio, was always up for a laugh, inked everything from a winged penis to cartoon characters engaging in sex acts, but all done in good fun. For the employee paid in ink, he took the crazy designs as part of the deal with the ones he wanted.
With the success of the first shop, my friend opened up a second location, on Fordham Road in Da Bronx. Fordham Road is a very high crime area in the Bronx, the shop lasted about a year in the second location. The last straw was when the tattoo shop manager got stabbed one night trying to keep a bunch of rowdy stoned gang bangers out of the shop. His first location is still going strong some 30 years later.
Some interesting facts about the world of tattoos. The Millennial generation, those born between 1980 to 1994, have embraced tattoos more than any other generation. One out of every two millennials have a tattoo, 50% of this age group. The country with highest percentage of tattooed people, 48%, is Italy. Followed by Sweden, with 47% of its population tattooed, and then by the USA with 46% of its population tattooed. The countries where tattoos are not widely accepted are Denmark, Turkey, Iran, Japan, UAE and North and South Korea. Worldwide the top designs for tattoos are Dragons, Butterflies, Wings, Stars, Hearts, Skulls and Flowers. Some amazing tattoos are being done nowadays, everything from realistic portraits to motivational messages. Tattoos that have the look of stickers applied to your skin or an embroidered patch are just incredible.
TV shows like Ink Masters and Bad Ink, to name a few, have exposed the tattoo culture to a larger worldwide audience and making celebrities of the top tattoo artists. Clients pay big money and wait months or even years for a tattoo appointment with the most sought-after tattoo artists. Also, there are many people who have taken getting a tattoo to the next level. No part of the body is off limits for a tattoo. One 24 year old girl in Australia had her eyes tattooed blue, she went temporarily blind for weeks, she described getting her eyeballs tattooed like getting shreds of glass scraped across her eyes. Face tattoos, neck tattoos, hand tattoos, and full arm sleeves can be found at any tattoo convention. I remember a teardrop tattoo was the only face tattoos I had ever seen in the 80's, and these tattoos where only worn by a select few. Tommy Lee of Motley Crue, was the first well known celebrity who had full sleeve tattoos, back in the 1980's. When Anthony Kiedis, of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, got his upper back bird tattoo, it was like Wow. Nobody at the time had seen a full upper back tattoo like his. Times have changed for sure. Many extreme tattoo collectors have turned their fully covered ink bodies into a way to support themselves. Tattooed models are sought out for fashion photo shoots, hosts at night clubs, brand ambassadors, and sought after at tattoo conventions around the world.
The world is coming out from under the COVID lockdowns and a desire to get back to life in a new normal is happening. Tattoo shops are opening and the need for new ink is being satisfied. Tattoo conventions probably won't return till next year, but they will return. The sound of buzzing tattoo machines will be heard from New York to Amsterdam and all places far and wide soon enough.
]]>Meet One of Our Lethal Angels
Let's meet one of our badass Lethal Angels. This motorcycle-loving gal truly embodies the spirit of our company and our killer brands.
The goal for any brand is to connect with its customers to understand what makes them tick. We want to know their likes and dislikes, which helps us put our customers first.
Every product and design we create is something we hope our customers will love. We use the finest materials, top-quality craftsmanship and superior artwork in all our products. After years of crisscrossing the globe, meeting clients, finding the best factories and setting up booths at trade and consumer shows, Lethal Threat and Lethal Angel are now household names for our growing target clientele.
Our Brand Ambassadors
Over years, we've met all sorts of people around the globe loyal to our company - including brand ambassadors who love our apparel and send us photos of them wearing our kickass threads. We rely on these ambassadors to spread the word about our products in their community. To thank these awesome people for their loyalty, we'll be featuring a few stories about some of our brand ambassadors. Here's our first shoutout.
Estrella's Indian-Motorcycle Style
"Estrella" means "star" in Spanish - and it's also the name of one of our Lethal Angel brand ambassadors, based out of California's Central Valley, near Fresno.
Estrella's motorcycle of choice is the Indian. She appreciates the long history of the Indian brand and their distinctive lines. She was first introduced to motorcycles by her husband. Estrella knew she wanted her own motorcycle - and only an Indian would do.
Estrella's Indian Scout Bobber
She took a local rider's course on a Honda Rebel. After completing the course, she got her motorcycle license, then headed off to the Indian dealer. She rolled out of the shop with an Indian Scout Bobber, which is a perfect entry-level bike, with a low stance comfortable for shorter riders.
The 78 horsepower, 999cc engine cranks out an impressive amount of traffic-busting torque and plenty of highway speed (while still handing nimbly at lower speeds). Estrella rode her Indian back and forth to college for a couple of weeks, and on side streets as well, to build up her skills before hitting California's Highways. Smart move!
A Need for (More) Speed
Estrella has a busy schedule. She's the mother of three kids, a wife and a student working on her liberal arts degree. A ride on her Indian gives her a chance to clear her head and embrace the freedom of the road.
The need for more speed took her back to the Indian dealer. This time she rolled out with an Indian FTR 1200, which is a modern bike that still retains some of the Indian's classic lines.
But did she trade in her Scout? Nope. She loves her first bike just as much as her new one. Depending on her mood or destination, both of Estrella's motorcycles get plenty of use. Estrella soon met other gals online who ride and became fast friends with them, heading out together on weekend motorcycle trips.
Estrella - A Shining Star
Indian was so impressed with Estrella that they offered her a position as a brand ambassador. Along with promoting our Lethal Angel brand and Indian Motorcycles, Estrella has also caught the eye of several other gearhead brands.
Estrella adores the Rockabilly lifestyle and fashion aesthetic. Her musical tastes range from '80s New Wave to '90s Grunge to Emo. Heading to the Sturgis Rally, along with taking part in Las Vegas' Babes Ride Out, are both big events she plans to cross off her to-do list soon.
A big thanks to Estrella, our "shining star," for promoting Lethal Angel on the West Coast!
If you want to represent our Lethal Threat or Lethal Angel brands, we'd love to hear from you. Shoot us an email at office@lethalthreat.com.