When you buy a used bike it's always a good idea to get it checked out - and it's also a good time to change the oil, spark plugs, battery, and let's see....hmmm...how about a dyno run? The boys at Devil Dawg, which is now Allen's choice maintenance facility for the Pitbull machine, measured the HP and Torque while it was at their shop today. Can you say 106 HP? How about 112 lb max torque? Yes, I thought you could. Check out the graph below and see how well the Super G carburetor is performing against the ideal (straight line) air/fuel mixture. No need to re-jet this carburetor!

Memorial Day Weekend got off to a great start up at the Hardcore Choppers 1st Annual Bike Show, at Hardcore Choppers in Sterling, VA. There were at least 200 people in attendance and lots of bikes in the bike show. Several WORMS made it up to Sterling - Allen was there so he could enter the new chopper in the bike show. Gary H. came by in the early afternoon, and then several of the WV gang (Mary, Stuart, Rebecca, John, and Kevin) showed up with Rose and Jim in the later part of the afternoon. These folks were there when they announced the winners of the bike show trophies - and you guessed it, Allen won 1st place in the pro-street chopper category.

We have lots of pictures from this event (over 200) but only so many will fit on a page! They had some Hardcore choppers on display, a few Lamborghini cars, and some guys were doing stunts on their bikes throughout the day. Oh yeah, I think there might have been a bikini contest too....

What dad can resist an offer from his family to take some pictures of him riding his new chopper? Better yet, what dad might suggest something such as this for his Father's Day gift? That dad would be Allen of course! It was a beautiful day and since there was no work to be done on this fine Sunday, Allen went for a little ride up the George Washington Parkway - with Sandra driving the Pontiac Vibe and the boys hanging out the windows - passing the camera back and forth. Chris and Tom were both hoping to get that one shot that you might remember in the Wild Hogs movie - you know, the one where the bugs hit the guys in the face, followed by a bird hitting the other guy! That didn't happen today. The photo shoot went well and here are some pictures to prove it....

Most of our riders try to get out for at least one ride each month during the winter season. Some of us get out more often - say once a week! It's been extremely cold lately in Northern Virginia but today (24 Jan) it reached 40F so it was a good day for a ride. Rose & Jim did a short ride from their house to a nearby restaurant and Allen did another ride along the Potomac - like last weekend on the Fatboy but this time it was on the chopper! Pictures are below to give you an idea about how beautiful the river looks even in the cold winter of January.

So the day finally came. This all started back in April last year when Allen convinced the WORMS members (including his wife Sandra) that it was the right time to procure a 50th birthday gift. Setting the details aside (such as being 9 months early for the birthday present and a little thing about Sandra paying for the gift) Allen decided that a certain 2004 Pitbull Chopper was just what he needed to deal with his mid-life crisis. And so it was. But on the 27th of January 2009, the gift became legitimate! No longer would Allen have to explain why he had the chopper months prior to his birthday. No sir, it's official now.

Several WORMS members and family came over to help celebrate the occasion. Sandra threw a big party with ribs, chicken and all the fixings. There was beer and wine. We had a fun time and luckily the weather was pretty nice. Check out the pictures and you'll see some possible future WORMS riders.....

The boys (Woody, Mike & Allen) needed a break from the wives today. We've been working off the honey-do list items all winter long and it was time for some fun. So the ladies found other things to do while we took off for a nice little ride down the George Washington Parkway. We started at our Clifton Starbucks meeting spot, rode up Route 123 to the George Washington Parkway, and then took in the view of Washington DC along the Potomac all the way to Old Towne Alexandria. A short rest and photo shoot (pictures taken by an young Irish lad on holiday) and we got back on the road towards Mount Vernon and George Washington's home. Further down Route 1 we ended up at the Hooters restaurant in Woodbridge. Yes, it was time for some hot wings!

A nice young lady came to our table and immediately realized we weren't just a bunch of tired old men. Nope, we were the WORMS and these WORMS wanted some chicken wings. She was so impressed by our styling that she dropped a drink meant for another customer! But alas, we couldn't stay forever admiring the view. It was time to return to our normal lives and the chores that are part of the package. Or was it? Allen rode to the next door gas station to fill the chopper while Woody and Mike headed up the Prince William Parkway. Suddenly a Hooter's girl came over and just insisted that Allen return to Hooters with the chopper for a photo shoot. Allen explained that he was married and this probably wouldn't be appropriate, but the Hooters lady said they wanted to have pictures of them on the bike, not me. Oh, well that's different but maybe we could work something out. A few minutes later just about all the Hooter girls were coming out for pictures while other guys who rode their bikes could only stand around with their mouths hanging open. When Allen left there were smiles everywhere and as you can see below, we have a few nice pictures.

One more thing. See that little boy in one of the pictures? His mom was taking his picture with the chopper and Hooters girls so she could send it to her husband fighting the war on terror over in Iraq. I'm sure the WORMS will be participating in several rides this year to support our troops. We are considering the 9-11 ride and of course we'll do the Rolling Thunder on Memorial Day Weekend.

We had a few new WORMS members on this ride - please welcome Linda and Richard. Richard has a Honda Shadow that you'll see below in the pictures and Linda rides on the back. We met at our usual Starbucks in Clifton around 1230-1300 and then headed south through Clifton / Manassas to arrive at the Manassas Hooters! Oh boy, Allen on the chopper and another opportunity to extend the 'round the world Hooter tour. As you can see we did manage to arrange a photo shoot with three nice ladies (Mindy, Megan and Sharon). Sharon was our waitress and she is the middle girl on the bike. Mindy is in the front and Megan is on the back. The manager, Damon Richards, was very kind and even suggested that we come back again for their bike nights that start March 26th (every Thursday night afterward). Sounds like a most excellent plan!

Easter Sunday was a lovely day - a bit cold in the morning but no rain in sight. Allen remembered how much fun the Fox Hunt was last year so this time he though it was time for an Easter Bunny hunt. So he set off on the George Washington Parkway, heading north from Mount Vernon all the way up to Route 123 and the CIA headquarters. A Harley rider rode along side for part of the ride until he turned off near Arlington but otherwise there weren't that many bikes on the road in the mid-forties weather. At the end of the ride an Easter Bunny was actually sighted - it was a big inflatable one on somebodies lawn, but it counts!

This should have been a nice ride after work. The temperature had risen to the high 60's and Allen headed over to the Hooters in Manassas using the backroads through Clifton. But the poor chopper started having ignition issues again. It quit running two times on the way over (yes, Allen should have turned back) but it restarted right away so Allen kept going and made it to the event. The pictures below show that a good number of bikes were present. On the way back it didn't take long before the Pitbull just quit running - it quit right near Sudley Road and Route 28. So as you see in the last picture, the bike is once again chained up to a pole and now it will need to be trailered up to Devil Dawg on Friday morning. Oh well, at least the bike made it back to Route 28! What makes this even tolerable is that Woody came down from his house and gave Allen a ride home. He had a home full of family but he took the time out to help a friend. Thanks Woody!

The gang from WV, Rose & Jim, Liza & Mike, Woody and Allen arrived at the Patriot Harley-Davidson Open House around 2PM. Parking your bike was difficult because as you can see below there were a few bikes in their parking lot - but there's always room for a chopper! There was live music, plenty of food and even Hooter girls on hand for keeping the WORMS entertained. The weather was beautiful - couldn't be better.

Later on, around 6PM, we met over at Rose & Jim's place in Arlington VA and then we used a few cars to transport the gang to the Cinema Draft House, also in Arlington, to see a movie while eating dinner. The movie was called, "I Love You Man" and it was pretty funny - especially after a pitcher of beer!
.

A few dedicated WORMS members (Mike and Allen) got their chores done early Saturday so they could ride down to see the Hooters Swimsuit Contest, at the Fredericksburg Hooters. This was another chance to see girls in swimsuits if you had missed the Blue Ridge Bike Festival in April, but of course both of these fine gentlemen did attend that April WORMS ride so this was a bonus event. The boys got there 30 minutes early and ate their fill of chicken wings before coaxing a few Hooter girls to pose on Allen's chopper. Then it was time for the swimsuit contest but wait a minute - the price was $25!!!! That's too much for these old boys, especially since they planned to stop by the hospital to see Mike's daughter for a brief visit before it was dark. So in the spirit of saving some money, the boys took off and didn't even see one swimsuit girl. We did see Mikes daughter (doing well) and then we rode the back roads to Catlett in Manassas. It was a beautiful ride and the boys arrived home just before sunset.
.

Just the boys made the ride down to the 17th Annual Big Damn Bike Show on Saturday, the day before Father's Day. The weather prediction was not good - severe thunderstorms and rain. So Allen rode his chopper anyway - this was a chance to get it into Waugh Harley-Davidson's bike show and no stinking rain was going to stop him. Woody, Mike and Allen met at the usual Starbucks in Chantilly at 0730 (early birds, WORMS, you get the picture). Mike and Allen put the rain suits on but Woody elected to take a chance. Woody's luck ran out a few miles down Route 28 when it started to sprinkle. The rain became more intense further down Route 28 but it wasn't too bad.

Once we arrived at the show you knew some work was coming - Allen needed to get the chopper cleaned up. Of course it started to rain again about 30 minutes later and this rain was pretty heavy. We took the opportunity to look at the new bikes inside the main building at Waugh Harley-Davidson. They sure have some nice bikes in there! The rain finally stopped so it was cleaning time again - would this ever end? Even Woody offered to help clean those "M's" in the exhaust pipes, since he thought it would look pretty cool. It did look cool too - much better than the green bike next to Allen's - he had the same pipes on a similar bike but Allen's pipes were just a tad nicer.

Woody had to leave around 1PM to get home for family stuff, but Mike and Allen were there until the bike show awards were announced. Around 3PM the time came and would you believe that Allen won 1st place in the "American Custom" category? Would you believe that shortly after receiving that award that he was presented with the "Best in Show" award? Holy smokes! This was truly an event to remember. Anyway the ride back home was beautiful weather and Allen was simply exhausted after putting about 150 miles on the chopper. But you know what? It was a heck of a way to start off the WORMS summer activities and this laid the ground work for a super Father's Day.
.

The WORMS (Rose, Jim, Mike, Woody and Allen) were big supporters of the "Rattle the Runway" ride this weekend. We met at our usual Starbucks location in Clifton around 0630 - it was still dark for most of us riding over there in the morning. The coffee tasted good and we gassed up our bikes in preparation for the ride over to Devil Dawg in Chantilly (only a few miles away). We arrived at Devil Dawg around 0715 and then we had some time to relax and look a bikes before we were off again heading up Route 28 to The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (part of the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum) near Washington Dulles International Airport. Our Devil Dawg group, consisting of around 60 bikes, got into the line early this time.

We spent some time at the museum, which opened up for us at 0900. There are so many cool airplanes and space vehicles in there that you could easily forget that there were hundreds of motorcycles outside getting ready for a big ride around the Dulles International Airport terminal. We departed around 1030 but not before Allen noticed the Covington Green Limo that he almost purchased back in March 2008. The owner (Terry) still had the bike and it was looking very nice. Allen showed Terry the 2004 Pitbull that Allen purchased instead of the Covington bike and Terry was impressed.

Once we were moving around 1045, we rode around the Dulles terminal and then headed down to the Pentagon along the Dulles Toll Road / I-66 under police escort. It was a very beautiful day for a ride and we all enjoyed it. At the Pentagon we parked our bikes and then walked through the pedestrian tunnel to see the Pentagon Memorial. Sandra wasn't on this ride today but she knew one of the people on the airplane that was crashed into the Pentagon. We found his name listed and the bench they build with his name on it. May he rest in peace. Finally, we walked over to a nearby Irish Pub and enjoyed a late lunch before heading home. Truly a wonderful day and an excellent ride.

Mike, Joe and Allen were planning to meet at the Hooter's in Chantilly, which is very close to the Dulles Expo Center (Route 28 near Route 50) on Halloween, but only Allen could make it due to weather concerns and other commitments the other guys had. But as it turned out, the rain held off today (yeah, it was wet in the morning) long enough for Allen to get over to the Hooters and enjoy a beer and some chicken wings. This was planned to be a photo opportunity because the Hooter girls were dressed up in Halloween costumes. Yes, I know. The Hooter outfits are just not enough anymore. There were a few Hooter's girls (actually 7 of them) that were dressed up and yes they wanted to participate in the photo shoot with Allen's chopper. So seven girls came outside for a few minutes, leaving the stunned customers wondering when their beers were going to be refilled. Before you know it though, it was over. The pictures turned out fantastic and we had a good time. There were some other guys there with cameras too so lots of pictures were taken.

The Chantilly Hooters have their own Facebook web site so please check that out and of course, if you are passing by their location, stop in for a few beers and chicken wings. They do taste great.

Many of the WORMS were able to enjoy a beautiful ride on 07 November but Allen couldn't make that ride and thus he was feeling the itch to ride on Sunday, 08 November. It was a beautiful day too. After the chores were done (3 hours working on the lawn and leaves), Allen coordinated with Mike and the boys met for lunch at the Hooters in Potomac Mills, VA. Jim was hoping to go but he had some painting to do and that had to wait for the warmer temperatures of the afternoon. So Mike and Allen had a tasty lunch comprising of chicken wings and beer. We watched the Redskins go down 14 points before it was time to depart and deal with other commitments we had for the day. The weather was just perfect at 73F with really no wind so you know the boys enjoyed the short ride.

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and Allen just had to take the 2004 Pitbull chopper out for a ride. This also was a good time to take some pictures of the bike in the hope that someday it might get featured in a bike magazine. So here we have a few pictures taken along the George Washington Parkway in Virginia - right along the Potomac River. There were three stops in total, the last one just north of the Reagan National Airport where people go to watch the planes land and take off. There were lots of people around so it was difficult to find locations free of distracting backgrounds. There must have been a dozen people asking about the bike and several of them took pictures too. With perfect weather it was an enjoyable ride.

It was another nice day in Northern Virginia and Allen decided that with the temperature at the mid-70's and the car washed, it was time for a ride. Today it was the chopper's turn to get out and stretch it's legs. What better place than to visit one of the local Hooters and grab some chicken wings & beer? Allen rode the back roads through Clifton (Henderson Road to Yates Ford Road) to the Manassas Hooters and while the scenery was great on those back roads, it was even better at Hooters. A lady named Savanna waited on Allen's table and wouldn't you know it? She was interested in posing for a few pictures on the chopper and there were a few other girls also looking forward to it. Things worked out nicely and these pictures are the result. This is the first Hooter photo shoot for 2010; there were four in 2009.

Most of the WORMS members that have been with us more than a year remember Jamie's General Bean - a coffee shop that closed over a year ago which was also our meeting spot near Routes 28 and 29. Well the place is finally open again, this time as Jireh Bakery Cafe. The address is 13848 Lee Highway in Centerville, VA. Allen stopped by on the chopper this fine Sunday morning and said hello to the new owner of the place, Sean Na. The food is excellent and the coffee is good, so Allen proposes that we make Jireh Bakery Cafe our new meeting spot for WORMS rides that are headed out west. As you can see below, Sean welcomes the WORMS and by the way, there is plenty of room upstairs for us to socialize while planning out the details of our rides.

The WORMS took advantage of the excellent weather this weekend and did a short Sunday ride to Manassas to partake in the Manassas Assembly of God (MAG) Church block party. We met at our new meeting spot (Jireh Bakery Cafe in Centreville, where Jamie's General Bean used to be) but only a few members (Emmett, Claudia and Allen) managed to make this ride. Woody was busy studying for a certification, Mike was busy getting his son Kevin to and from his job and Hal was down in Richmond (but he was hoping to make it back in time for the event). The MAG church was putting on a pretty good party today, with free food and salvation while you wait (it was a long line, just like the food line). We had difficulty finding the place because Map quest was in error, as we found out riding around Manassas. Emmett saved the day by looking up the church in Google Maps on his cell phone and we soon found the place about 5 miles further down Route 28 than initially anticipated. It was a good time overall. Lots of people asked about Allen's chopper and for some reason everyone just wanted to touch it. The WORMS understand of course - motorcycles have a way of drawing crowds and we enjoyed the attention.

The WORMS mostly all came together today for the Memorial Day Weekend and our annual pilgrimage to the Patriot Harley-Davidson Open House event. Mike, Woody and Allen arrived on time but the West Virginia gang rolled in a little later. Hey, we're glad everyone showed up and this is a first - the WV riders didn't get wet on the ride over. We checked out bikes and Rose even started talking to the salesman about making some type of deal for a Softail Deluxe but she didn't finalize anything. Maybe Rose really wants a chopper! Tomorrow morning is Rolling Thunder so we hope the WORMS don't party too late tonight!

Allen was excited this Saturday. He saw his chopper, which has been in the shop for exactly one month now, riding down the road yesterday (30 July), probably on a test run. The shop was trying to fix an ignition problem, and they were going to replace the ignition module. So Allen stopped by Custom Cycle Accessories to see how they were doing before he rode the Harley Fatboy over to Patriot for their Open House event today.

Everything seemed to be going well. The bike was just about done - they had the points cover still removed and they still needed to check the erratic speedometer performance but after 30 minutes the bike was ready. Allen rode back home to get Sandra to give him a ride back to the shop so he could ride the chopper home. Of course, the chopper broke down on the way home. It started bucking a bit and then just quit altogether. Allen coasted to a stop on the Springfield Parkway. Sandra was already home but things weren't hopeless. A lady pulled over and offered to give Allen a ride back to the shop, but Allen called the shop and they said they could have the trailer over to pick the bike up in about 30 minutes. Allen tried the ignition switch a few times, while waiting - no electrical at all. Then all of a sudden it worked again - the circuit breaker must have tripped. The bike started up so Allen wondered what to do - wait for the trailer ride or ride back to the shop? Before he could make a decision, the boys from the shop showed up (only about 20 minutes) so we put the bike on the trailer and Rich (the mechanic) gave Allen a ride home. Let's hope it's something simple - like a wire shorting to the engine or similar problem. This chopper has had it's share of electrical problems!

Once Allen was back home, he wasn't going to just sit and mope around. No sir. He got back on the Harley and rode over to Patriot for the Open House event. It was late (around 3PM) but surely a few bikes would still be there. And so it was to be. The band was packing up but several old bikes were still on display and the dealership was still open. A few pictures and then it was off to Hooters for some beer and chicken wings. There's nothing like some tasty wings after a long day dealing with the chopper or riding the Harley!

So the chopper was in the shop this past week (06 Aug made it 5 weeks total) but a call to the shop Friday night confirmed the bike was ready. The mechanic (Rich) found the ignition switch was bad so he replaced it. He test rode the bike and was confident it was running right. Sandra & Allen stopped by the shop around 1130 Saturday morning (after Sandra donated blood - thanks honey!) and just as Allen was about to ride away, he noticed the headlight wasn't on. Oh oh, it's always supposed to be on. So they rolled the bike back into the shop and Sandra & Allen drove home again. Three hours later the bike was ready - new light bulb installed and they tightened the housing so the bulb assembly wouldn't move around in the shell. Ok, Allen and Sandra drove back to get the bike at 1530 Saturday afternoon. The bike seemed ok so Allen rode it home with Sandra following him. Once Allen pulled into the garage he found he couldn't turn the ignition off - the key just rotated around. Allen used the kill switch and looked at the ignition switch - the outside nut was loose so the whole switch assembly was just rotating. A bit of Locktight and some tools got it tight and that was enough to consider this bike fixed again.

But as all WORMS know, the proof of a bike's road worthiness is taking it on a WORMS ride. So Allen called up Mike and the boys met over at the Fairfax Hooters for some beer and chicken wings. Naturally this made for a photogenic opportunity since both Mike's Road King and Allen's chopper were parked outside, and so we were fortunate to have four Hooter Girls pose with the bikes before we left to head over to Patriot (just before closing) to see a few new 2011 Harleys. Mike was hoping to see a trike but they didn't have any in the showroom. We did see an 2011 Ultra Classic touring bike but it was sold so we weren't going to sit on it. There is a picture of the bike below however. After our quick visit we headed down the road and back home to more chores. It was a nice Saturday after all.

Woody and Allen both had their bikes back from the shop and the weather was nice....sooooo....the boys met at the Starbucks near Devil Dawg in Chantilly to partake in a little ride this fine Sunday afternoon. Woody had actually been there a few hours, as he was chatting with some folks before calling Allen regarding the ride. Allen was up early this morning cleaning the chopper's wheels (2-hour job). Woody had his bike back from a total top end replacement and cylinder honing (meaning new rings were installed) so he needed to take it easy (keep it under 50 MPH for the first 500 miles). Anyway, the boys headed down Route 50, headed west towards Middleburg.

About 50 miles later, after taking some nice back roads between Routes 50 and 29 (like Zulla and Route 55), the boys were heading back home on Compton Road, just past Bull Run Park, when the chopper quit running. Yep, the old problem was back - shorting wires in-between the two cylinders. Woody had a pen on him so Allen pushed the wires around a bit (remember it's hot in there) and the bike was running again. It helps to learn from past experience. There were two more episodes with the wires shorting again and causing the bike to lose power, so Allen took Woody up on his offer to stop at Woody's house so we could look at repairing this problem.

The boys enjoyed a cold one (Sam Adams actually) and talked with Judy on the porch while the chopper's engine cooled off in the garage. About 45 minutes later the boys started pulling the coil and ignition switch assembly down and found the problem right away - the new ignition switch, installed last week, was getting it's wires fried by the hot cylinder fins. One wire was ok so Allen just wrapped it with some Super Tape (good for 500 degrees F) but the other wire, as you can see from the pictures, was partially melted way and totally exposed. This would need a more serious repair. Woody had some wire crimps (and the crimp tool), so we cut the wire, trimmed the insulation back a bit, and installed the insulated wire crimp to hold the two ends together. Then Allen wrapped the wires up real nice with lots of Super Tape before reassembling the coil and ignition switch assembly. The job was done and Woody escorted Allen partway back home to Springfield just to make sure there were no more problems. That's a good example how the WORMS help each other out! Thanks Woody.

Woody and Allen were on the road again; it was a fine and dandy Saturday afternoon and the boys were headed over to Whitt's Harley-Davidson for their bikini bike wash and demo ride event. Hal was riding with Vicki down to Colonial beach on his Yamaha so the WORMS were out and about. Allen's ride over to Woody's house was very nice. The chopper was running well and it appeared the shorting wire harness problems were behind us now. Woody was ready to go when Allen arrived so the boys headed down Compton Road and then south on Route 28. You remember Route 28 don't you? That's the street where the chopper has broken down twice before. Well, it appears the 3rd time is the charm because it happened again. A few stumbles from the engine and then no electrical power. Allen pulled into a driveway and Woody turned around to see what happened. The boys took the coil assembly apart but couldn't find any problems with the repairs made 2 weeks ago. But then we determined the short was happening in the wire harness further into the cylinder area, somewhere between the two cylinders at the bottom. We worked the harness around a bit, sometimes getting power but then losing it again. Finally we got nothing. No electrical power at all. This ride down to Whitt's H-D, only about 6 miles away, was not going to be. Woody came to the rescue by riding back home and coming back with his VW van - the one with lots of room in the back. The boys were able to line the ramp up pretty well thanks to the slope of the driveway we stopped in, so the bike was hauled back to Allen's place for further assessment. It won't be back on the road for a few weeks!

Further south, down around Colonial Beach, Hal and Vicki were having a good time looking at hot rods in a car show. Hal was riding his Yamaha this time so it was a bit more comfortable for Vicki than riding on the back of the V-Rod. The weather wasn't too back either, a mixture of sun and clouds. At least some WORMS had a good time!

Hal, Vicky and Allen met at the Jireh Bakery Cafe (our usual spot) this fine Sunday morning just before noon to enjoy some coffee and talk about the upcoming visit to the Chantilly Hooters just up Route 28. We met a possible WORMS new member called Robby, and being the fine gentlemen that we are, both Hal and Allen let Robby sit on our bikes to see how well she might like riding a V-twin motorcycle. Robby rides a Kawasaki 250 right now and it's a cool looking machine. Anyway, we headed up to the Hooters and managed to coax six Hooter girls outside for a brief photo session. The weather was great today and we don't expect too many more warm weather days so be sure to ride with us on the next event - sometime in early to mid November.

Allen arranged a deal with Devil Tail Designs ( http://www.facebook.com/#!/DevilTailDesigns ) back in September to have a WORMS logo made for the primary drive cover plate on Allen's Pitbull chopper. There was a lot of work involved, because Rob (owner of Devil Tail Designs) needed to fabricate the logo out of fiberglass resin and also build up a duplicate primary drive cover plate so Allen would retain the original plate. Rob ended up making the new primary drive cover plate out of fiberglass resin and a thin sheet of stainless steel, after deciding that painting a mock-up fiberglass resin primary cover plate with chrome paint wasn't getting the job done. So it took a little longer than anticipated but the end result was worth it! Allen picked up the new primary cover plate and an extra WORMS logo on 27 November and had the assembly mounted in about 30 minutes this fine Sunday morning (28 November). A little ride on the chopper was in order naturally, and the WORMS logo held up fine. Great job Rob! Any other WORMS members interested in a WORMS logo? Rob has the mold on hand now. Check out his Facebook site for more details.

The WORMS have supported Big Daddy Leather (BDL) for several years under their past management and the new management is pretty cool too. It looks like 2011 will be a most excellent year for BDL-sponsored rides down in Fredericksburg VA. Nothing starts the ball rolling more than entering your ride in a bike show. Most of the WORMS were busy on this cold (as in 50F) and cloudy day (threat of rain was there) but Allen rode the Pitbull Chopper down for the show and wouldn't you know it - there was another Pitbull chopper entered too! Oh oh...competition of the most direct sort. You can see the red bike at the end of the row, just one bike was between our two Pitbulls so nobody was going to miss that. It would come down to which bike was cleaner, better laid out, or what ever the judges look for. Fortunately for Allen the judge liked his Pitbull Dropseat S a bit more and Allen won 1st place! That makes 3 bike show entries and 3 1st place wins for Allen's Pitbull chopper. It don't get no better!

The crowd was a good group. There were lots of regulars to the BDL rides there and the show bikes were looking sharp. Allen met a guy named Mac and they spent a good deal of time talking about motorcycling, retirement and things of this nature. Mac is a cool dude and we hope to see him at other motorcycle events. Mac is a retired Fire Chief so you know he's a good guy.

The WORMS have lots of rides scheduled for this Memorial Day Weekend; for Allen and then later for Woody, these boys rode over to Patriot Harley-Davidson on a fine Saturday to enjoy all the bikes and talking to our fellow riders. Allen was so busy taking pictures outside he didn't even venture into the shop, but Woody managed to get in there later and he saw another one of those new Harley-Davidson Blackline motorcycles - like he saw at Waugh Harley-Davidson last weekend. The boys both left after about an hour since there were other chores to get done today before the rain was due to arrive. The Ride of the Patriots is the next day and these boys need their rest!

Several WORMS were able to support the Patriot Harley-Davidson open house event this year; this is the spring open house just prior to the Ride of the Patriots / Rolling Thunder, which starts early tomorrow morning. Woody and Allen met at the event around 1130, and Allen found Lise about the same time frame - she came to see one of the bands playing. Mike, Jim and Rose were at Winchester Harley-Davidson to meet the WV group (Mary, Stuart, John, Bob and Kevin) when they crossed the border. Those folks were late to arrive at Patriot Harley-Davidson because John's throttle cable broke. They managed to make it into town however and the service department at Patriot did actually have the extended-length throttle cable in stock because another guy had ordered it but hadn't yet picked it up. So it worked out well for the WORMS today and we hope the events tomorrow are a blast!

This is an Orange County Choppers bike being auctioned off for charity.

The band was really fantastic, that is really what I think.

Mike and Allen were determined to get out on the bikes today. Once Allen got the Pitbull chopper safety inspected - check out that Jaguar XK 150, the boys coordinated via cell phone and met at Patriot Harley-Davidson in Fairfax, VA. There were plenty of cool rides in the parking lot (besides our bikes of course) and the boys checked out some new touring bikes inside before determining it was time for some beer and chicken wings at the nearby Fairfax Hooters. Our waitress was very friendly and willing to get a few of her fellow Hooter gals to come out for a few pictures with the chopper. This turned out nicely, and after the photo shoot, the boys headed up Route 123 to the George Washington Parkway. From there we turned south and rode down to Mount Vernon VA, all the while enjoying a beautiful view of the Potomac River and many blooming red bud trees. The ride was over around 4:30PM but there was still time to do some chores before our wives came home!

Our Hooters waitress Anya is in front.

Sandra always enjoys the Metro rides.

The gang from West Virginia came out for the weekend and camped at Rose & Jim's place in Arlington. We initially met at the Patriot Harley-Davidson Open House on Saturday (25 May), where there happened to be a few Hooter girls (Fairfax restaurant, just down the road) hoping to sit on a Pitbull chopper! Allen was agreeable to the photo shoot of course, but the WV gang was held up in Winchester to get a rear tire installed on one of the bikes so they arrived kind of late. It was all good though as we all met on time at Rose & Jim's place to start Rolling Thunder. This year we didn't do the Ride of the Patriots as we wanted to get into the north Pentagon parking lot rather than end up in the south parking lot where the Patriot H-D group is assigned. We left from Rose & Jim's place at 0800 and got onto Route 66 before the police closed off the entrance (so the Patriot group wouldn't have to deal with more traffic). We got into that north parking lot in good shape so the plan worked well. After we rode through Washington DC with thousands of other bikers, we headed back to Rose & Jim's place to feast on baked beans, chicken, potato salad, and of course lots of beer! Overall this change worked out well for the WORMS.

These Hooter girls are in college and making good grades.

Relaxing in Rose & Jim's back yard after riding in Rolling Thunder.

The WORMS haven't been riding much this season due to various reasons, most of which involve tasks that must be done on weekends. Other reasons include lots of rain on otherwise nice weekends and so this day was an opportunity to get out and ride before the rains came our way in the evening. Mike and Allen met over at Whitt's Harley-Davidson for their bikini car wash and open house event in the early afternoon. Jim was hoping to make it but his work took longer than anticipated. After Mike's Road King was washed, the boys headed over the Hooters in Manassas for some chicken wings and beer. Allen's friend Andrew stopped by for a beer and the boys all talked about work and the need to keep our jobs if we hoped to continue spending money on beer and chicken wings. Allen decided to stop at Woody's place on the way back home and guess what? Woody did get that new 2013 Harley-Davidson Breakout bike from Patriot Harley-Davidson. He picked it up on Father's Day weekend, so it became his Father's Day gift. Nice going Woody. The bike already has over 1K miles on it too. Maybe we can all see it pretty soon at the Rattle The Runway Ride in early September. Overall, it was a nice day for a ride and the rain held off for once.

The Whitt's bikini girls.

Woody's New Harley - the Breakout!

The WORMS supported the Rattle the Runway ride on 08 Sept 2013. Three WORMS members (Woody, Mike and Allen) rode with fellow motorcyclists to show our patriotism by remembering the Heroes whose lives were taken on 11 Sept 2001 - twelve years ago! We met at our usual place (Jireh Bakery Cafe in Centreville, VA - near the intersection of Routes 28/29) at 0700 on a fine Sunday morning, then around 0800 we rode towards the nearby National Air and Space Museum - Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center to participate in the activities before the ride. There were Hooter girls there too, so naturally it was an opportunity for a photo shoot. Once we started leaving in groups, Allen again had some problems with the chopper - it stopped running. Allen pulled over and was able to start it again, but it died once more while idling after a minute. Playing with the petcock might have helped after that because Allen was able to ride it back home without further incident. We didn't finish the ride to the Pentagon because of this though. Both Woody and Mike were pals and escorted Allen back to his house in case the chopper broke down again. We had a beer at the end and spent some time checking out Woody's new Harley Breakout. Maybe next year we'll make it to the Pentagon memorial.

The Chantilly Hooter girls.

Woody's New Harley - the Breakout!

Allen rode the chopper over to this Fairfax HOG event to give the little ones a chance to get on a real chopper. The weather was nice (the whole month of September has been great) and we had around a dozen bikes from the Fairfax HOG group with their bikes on display. There was even a new 2014 Electra Glide Limited at the event and all the bikers were checking this beautiful bike out. We had a fair number of kids come out of the library to see the bikes and they sure had a good time.

Dad, I want this bike!

The WORMS planned for a fun-filled Memorial Day weekend series of rides and we were rewarded with perfect weather! It started with a Patriot Harley-Davidson Open House event that ran 2 days, Friday and Saturday. Several WORMS rode to Patriot to attend that. Then there was a ride up to Great Falls, VA on Saturday morning with the West Virginia contingent that came out on Friday to stay with Rose and Jim. Also on Saturday there was a Hardcore Choppers Bike Show / Open House on Saturday that Allen attended. The big event was Rolling Thunder XXVII that most of us supported on Sunday, and finally the Rose and Jim rode with the West Virginia contingent out to Winchester VA in an escort ride on Monday, Memorial Day. Lots of riding and plenty of good times!

Download our official WORMS Video of Rolling Thunder XXVII:

Thunder Alley 2014

Rose & Jim cruising down Constitution Avenue.

Patriot Harley-Davidson Open House

Hardcore Choppers Bike Show / Open House

Rolling Thunder XXVII

I bet this custom bagger won a prize at the Hardcore Choppers bike show.

Back to the WORMS home page.