Archive for the ‘Motorcycle TV’ Category

CaptureI ran across a new motorcycle related TV Show, Velocity channels “What’s In The Barn”.  Evidently this series premiered last summer; I must have missed it while I was out riding.  LOL

Based on what I watched and what I read on their website the show is primarily about the “Wheels Through Time” motorcycle museum and it curator, Dale Walksler, search for vintage motorcycles.  I have not been to the museum yet myself, but it is on my list of things to do.

The first show I watched “A Motorcycle Crime Story” was quite interesting.  If you have ever been to a motorcycle rally or read a motorcycle magazine you are aware that the museum raffles off a motorcycle every year to help cover their operating costs.  This episode begins with the build of the 2013 raffle bike coming to a halt due to a lack of rare, vintage parts, in this case a cateye dashboard that Harley produced for one year only.Velocity

Mr. Walksler sets off to Illinois to get the part from a guy that has the barns full of old parts he purchased from a family whose mother and fathers were killed by members of the Outlaws MC, thus the title.  He also has a side trip that involves him getting an original 1970’s Arlen Ness chopper.

The most interesting show was “12 Hours and Running”, they started 120 vintage motorcycles in 12 hours.  There was some really old bikes in this bunch including Pierce, Excelsior, Henderson, Crocker as well as Harley and Indians.  It is cool and amazing that they have a museum full of running, functional old bike!

While parts of the show are “cheesy” over all it is well laid out and well put together.  I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

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Liberty Vintage Motorcycles

Liberty Vintage Motorcycles

We all have been wondering what is going on with Philly Throttle and my past couple posts (here, here) only shed a tiny bit of light.  But now we have some concrete information straight from the shop!

Apparently there is a good reason why Philly Throttle has not been no the air.   According to the Liberty Vintage Motorcycle Facebook page (here) Discovery Channel had sued the owner and star Adam Cramer and the shop.

Reading between the lines it looks like the producers of the show (Sirens Media) did not deliver enough product to Discovery (it looks as if someone was claiming not enough bikes were built?). But Mr. Cramer produced documents and footage showing that they had enough for six episodes.

Mr. Cramer faced Discovery in a Merit Trial in Silver Springs Maryland.  A merit trial is one at which a case is evaluated by a judge to determine whether it has “merit” to move forward or to dismiss.   The judge will render a decision after he has gathered all the fact and has evaluated those facts.   This trial was held in the District Court of Maryland, mostly likely because Discovery’s headquarters is located in Maryland.

The way I read his post is that he won, that Discovery did not have merit to move forward.  Not sure what that means for the future of the Philly Throttle show.  Mr. Cramer indicated that there was enough material to produce additional shows.

 

From the Liberty Vintage Facebook Site.

From the Liberty Vintage Facebook Site.

CaptureTurns out there is yet another Sturgis show on TV, Travel ChannelsSturgis Raw”.  This show follows the typical “Sturgis behind the scenes” format, similar to Full Throttle Saloon.  This show spends time at the largest bar in town “One Eyed Jacks” and at the Buffalo Chip outside of town for its saloon time.

Where Sturgis Raw differs from most other Sturgis shows is that it also follows the Sturgis Police Department for a cop’s point of view of the rally.  The view of the rally through from the cop’s eyes, I found, is really interesting.  A quick review of what I have seen, so far, with the Sturgis PD on the show include:

Motorcycle DUI arrest (not sure how he was even riding!)

Emergency call to a hotel about a guest with a gun

Rousting people “under the bridge” for drinking and drugs

Responding to and helping a guy who was stabbed seven times.

sturgis-raw-s1-ss-102-003_596x334Of course there are girls, girls, and girls, on the show.  An interesting spin on the girl theme was a bit about a body paint artist hired to make a girl to blend into a custom bike.  His work on her turned out well and she looked like part of the bike.

They have also covered a couple of bike shows that were judged by editors of major motorcycle magazines (American Iron, Iron Horse and a few others that I forget).  There were some cool bikes that were judged but the same bikes seemed to appear in each of the shows.  Not sure if that was the case or just how they edited the video.

Apparently there are at least seven episodes of Sturgis Raw with names like “Midweek Mayhem, Throttle Up and Chrome & Glory.  I have watched the first three and have set my DVR to record the rest. I was surprised to notice some café and sport bikes in the mix here and throughout the show, but you had look fast to see them. Over all I have enjoyed the show and give it five stars, primarily due to the unique aspect of the filming of the police effort.

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5star

08-the-devils-ride-625x450

Well “The Devils Ride” is coming back to Discovery channel beginning February 3rd.  This is the third season for the show.

I have not reviewed The Devils Ride in the past because I did not think it was going to make back on the air. But now that it is here is what I think.

It is a reality show that feels way too scripted with “characters” that are  forced.  These guys are supposedly real bikers in a real club but it just feels off, not that I have ever been in a MC.

Sometimes I get a feeling that some of the characters are not riding the bikes because I can’t see their faces when they are riding.  This pulls it even further from the “reality” concept.

If they are trying to make it a soap opera for men, SOA it is not.

I really appreciate Discovery Channel putting a lot of motorcycle related content on their networks, but, in my opinion, this is the weakest of all their bike related shows.  I give it 2 out of 5 stars.

2stars

hell-roads-1

While Discovery Channel’s “Hell Roads” is not specifically motorcycle related, it was close enough for me to add it to my blog. The show is about the roads, from around the globe, that are the most dangerous to travel.

Three of the roads are here in the United States the rest in South America and Asia. I have already ridden the number 7 road (US 129, Tail of the Dragon) and I am going to add number 2 to my bucket list, but I would have to get a dual sport bike to ride number 5 (Moki Dugway). Here are the top 8 “Hell Road”:

8. Camino De las Yungas, Bolivia

7. The Tale of the Dragon, US 129, North Carolina/Tennessee border

6. Guoliang Tunnel, China

5. Moki Dugway, Utah

4. Karakoram Highway, Pakistan

3. Chacas Road, Peru

2. Red Mountain Pass, Colorado

1. KG Pass, Afghanistan (more so for the chance of being blown up)

If you have not seen this show yet set your DVR or check You Tube, it is fun and interesting. I give Hell Roads 4 out of 5 stars.

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Liberty Vintage Motorcycles

Liberty Vintage Motorcycles

Well, Discovery Channel responded to my inquiry regarding the status of their show Philly Throttle.  Reading between the lines it does not bode well for  it coming back.  I base this opinion on the fact that if they were going to air new shows in spring or early summer the new shows would be in post-production and those airdates would be tentatively penned in.  (Disclaimer, I am not an expert in TV production/scheduling but I did stay at a Holiday Inn last night 🙂 )

Here is the response from Discovery:

Dear Viewer:

Thank you for contacting Discovery Channel.

We appreciate your enthusiasm regarding our programming and for taking the
time to write us.  Positive feedback such as yours is very important to us.
We want you to know we will pass your comments on to our program management
and executive producers.  Please know that each and every comment is read
and taken into consideration for future programming.

There are no new airdates available for Philly Throttle, but please
continue to visit www.discovery.com for updated information on this
program.

Thank you again for expressing interest in our programming.

Sincerely,

Viewer Relations
Discovery Channel

Liberty Vintage Motorcycles

Liberty Vintage Motorcycles

I do not normally look at the “Search Engine Terms” stats of the blog, but I did over the weekend.  Looking at that stat I noticed I have received more than a few searches looking for the status of the show Philly Throttle.  The typical search term was “has Philly Throttle been cancelled?” or something similar. Based on those inquires, I looked around a bit myself and, as I noted in this post, found no updates on the shows status.

During my “look around” I found a link on the Discovery Channels webpage for “Viewer Relations”.  I jumped in that rabbit hole and ended up making the following comment/question:

“First, THANK YOU for all the motorcycle related programing!  Your network has done wonders for the motorcycling world. I run a motorcycle related blog (ijustwant2ride.wordpress.com) on which I occasionally comment on and review motorcycle related TV.

I wrote a piece about your show Philly Throttle earlier in the year and I have received more than a few pokes about the status of the show.  Can you tell me if Philly Throttle has been renewed or cancelled?  If it has been renewed is there a time schedule for airing the new season?

Thanks in advance

Warren Massey”

After posting the comment/question, their conformation screen stated that they attempt to respond within one week of receiving the inquire.  So here’s hoping we will get an answer to the question soon!

 

I just ran across this show on The Destination America channel (part of the Discovery Network). Their anthology series Hidden in America “travels behind the veil of secrecy to explore a members-only world.” In their first season Hidden in America examined the Mongols MC.

Destination America logo 2012The original airing of the show as in December 2012 I saw a rerun a few weeks ago, I really like my DVR. Overall I think the show portrayed the Mongols as they are, 1%er’s. It did focus a lot of air time on the Las Vegas shootout between the Mongols and their rivals the Hells Angels, but that is to be expected due to the dramatic surveillance footage of the actual event.

If you want to see the show, search your TV or download it from Amazon.

I give this a 3 out of 5, if you are stuck inside and want a background knowledge of the Mongols this will do it for you.

 

3 out of 5 stars

 

 

motorcycle, sons of anarchyNot sure why, but I got this cool Sons of Anarchy sticker from Harley Davidson in the mail today.  It will look nice on my tool chest!

motorcycle

Café Racer TV

I just got around to watching the first two episodes of the new Café Racer. I love my DVR

I have to say I really like the new format. So far, they show two bike builds each week and they have been good.  In the second show, build number one was putting a modern Kawasaki Ninja engine into a Classic Honda CB750 frame.  Build two was the taking parts of a Harley Davidson Aermacchi and creating a café bike.  Both turned out fantastic!

If I had one complaint, and I really don’t, I would like to know how long it took to assemble the bikes, was it a week, a month, months?

5star