March 2019

I look forward to March every year because I love spring! I love that the green starts creeping back into the landscape, the flowers start popping up, the birds start chirping, the temperatures start rising and most of all DAYTONA!
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Daytona Bike Week kicks off the Rally Season and it couldn’t happen at a better time! Being from the Midwest, I find myself hating winter more and more each year. Even after moving to South East Missouri from the Middle of Indiana, where I went from harsh, cold and snowy winters to little snow and not quite as cold temps (except this year), I still hate winter. I hate the dreary days, the shorter days, the cold wet weather, and I hate not riding. Now we do have a nice day here and there and some people get their bikes out and ride, I find myself stuck on a gravel road that is pretty much a soupy mess until the end of March, so I very rarely will get the bike out even if we have a couple of 60 degree days.

I have been infatuated with Florida since I was very young. I remember my Aunt moving there when I was little, she was a single mom who just up and moved from boring Indiana to exotic Florida,  and my whole childhood I looked up to her for it. I wanted to be like her. She was definitely the coolest!
I was about 6 or 7 when we visited my Aunt in Florida for the first time. We drove my dad’s 1956 Chevy from good old Lebanon Indiana to the sunny beaches of Daytona! My cousin had been visiting her Dad and other family in Indiana and we took her home to her Mom. It was my first big road trip and it was in my favorite car. I even remember listening to the Beach Boys on 8 track on the way down! We went to Disney and drove the 56 on the beach. Of course we went straight to the car wash afterwards, though!

My first Daytona Bike Week was in 2005 as “vacation”. It was anything but a vacation, as a matter of fact it was one of the worst times of my life. It was when I finally decided that I should not be married to my now-ex husband…. I won’t go into the harsh details, just know that it involved daily fights between us and we didn’t even hang out with our friends that we went there with. I really never cared if I ever went back. It was a horrible time and I didn’t want to relive it.
Fast forward to 2014 when was blessed with the opportunity to work Daytona Bike Week assisting photographer Michael Lichter. I had worked the Sturgis Rally with him in 2013 and was very much looking forward to changing my Bike Week vibe! Of course I didn’t actually ride there, or have a bike during the rally, but being Michael’s assistant I got to see a bit of just about every single thing that happens during the rally. The bike shows, Main Street, the events at the Speedway, the Cole Slaw Wrestling, the concerts, the Iron Horse Saloon, Destination Daytona, and the most amazing event of the week… Willie’s Chopper Time! I was able to actually enjoy Daytona and once again I was in love with Florida!

I have been to every Bike Week since, working for Michael until last year when I started photographing the rally for Cycle Source Magazine.  Which also means I am now able to ride! In 2018 I rode my Street Glide down, but on the trip home I the rain turned to snow and I decided that I didn’t want to do that again. SO, this year I had my bobber there. I had it shipped down in October for Biketoberfest and left it there for the winter.

Let me tell you, riding in Daytona was definitely what I needed. For some reason I had the winter yucks really bad this year.  I was chomping at the bit to get Florida and ride! I rode everywhere. I even arrived a couple days early so I could get my bike fired up and cleaned. There is something about that Florida air that just makes you feel good and add riding to the mix, and it just gets the blood pumping

The Cycle Source Crew took advantage of a slow Friday morning and we rode the Loop and stopped for lunch. It was a fun day riding my bobber along side a couple long custom choppers with my friends! You know, one of the best parts of Daytona Bike week is that it is one of the first times of the year I get to see a lot of my Moto-Family. I sometimes see a few here and there at some of the indoor bike shows, but the vibe is just different seeing them at the Rally. Everyone has been cooped up all winter and all are just happy to be in Sunny Florida riding their motorcycles!
In the midst of all the fun I am having, I am also working, doing what I love. Taking pictures of cool bikes and covering the Rallies. It really is hard work, but it is very rewarding and lots of fun!