photos Joann Bortles of Crazy Horse Painting
The day was early, as the sun was streaming through the windows I would have expect silence but this is the busiest part of the day where we all got to hussel. I could just watch me co workers work after all that's the best part about being head of right? Instead I like to help them its a great way to get some exercise but besides that its just plan fun and a great way to know the patients. I like to work with the hospitalized guys at this time, I think I can get a more complete report to add to the charts. No criticals this am was is always welcomed, and only 5 surgeries expect to check so the day should be nice and smooth. Just as I was heading out the back door to take my friend out, the receptionist imforms me I've got a call, its from Joann and she says its important. I said can I call her back in an hour or so, since she never came back out I guessed I could. Well I called Joanna back, said yes to her and the journey begings.
Sometime in the late afternoon the receptionist came back and got me for I had a guest at the front desk with some important packages. I went to my truck and loaded the packages in to the the back of my old 4 runner, the delivery man said that Athena told him I was to give him gas money, enough to get backt down to Pompano as he had other delieveries. No, problem I was given the scoop by Joann handed hime the dollars and was asked on a date the next time he came back into town. Really? Someone I had to give gas money too? Please. I went back in and stepped the pace up to get done as fast as possible I get done at 5 pm Saturday and am not due back until Monday 7am. Once my shift is over I hit the door running and Jamm up A1A which I think is slightly slower than a snail's pace at this point. It takes a good 45 minutes to get to JTB then about 15 to 9A north, I hop off at Monument Rd and Cruise on down to me gehetto apartment. I change and grab soemthing to work in and my "beauty case". Out the door and back on Monument in less than 20 minutes.
I turn north onto 9A, Jacksonville traffic sucks ass really it does! Never in my life have I ever seen more one car accidents in my life, either they drive 10 miles under the limit or 25 miles over the limit, the citiy streets are 45 and 3 and 4 lanes witde yet the highways coming and going are two lanes go figure. Up and over the Dam's point and withing in minutes I was doing the 95 exchange. I was north bound 95. I think with in an hour I've crossed over into GA. I know that Joann had called so I called her back. She was relieved to hear that I was already on the road and making my way up 95. and we guesstamated that I would be there about 2 am. I can't be too much later for alfter all Joann had to ship everything out by Wed. and really this should have gotten to her last Monday for her to get the job done right. As it was she was going to ship with out the advantage of letting everything sitt for 24 hours.I crossed the South Carolina border with the large American flags flying and cauth 26 north bound to 77 crossing the North Carolina Border. I can tell from what I remember I was dog tired, but I just kept going this was important it needed to get there and the work needed to get done. It would be a freaking amazing for the woman involved in this project, and a boost to woman motorcyclisht everywhere.. I picked up route 9 took a few backroads, and wound my way past the little down town area of Waxhaw and pulled into her driveway about 2:30 or so. She ran out to greet me and pulled the frame and gas tank into her shop yelling for me to bring the fenders. She was babbling about starting, geeze I need a break I remember thinking. She was pissed cause Athena had put protective coating over all the metal and it needed to be sand blased off, and we just didn't have tome for that. Well do bad we can't do a dam thing that night, I can sleep thank goodness!
I think Zoey woke me wanting to go out side, and Joann was already on the phone trying to call in folks from nearby Charlotte. She found some guys that were will to open their shop and meet her on a sunday morning to Soda blast the parts for her so we jammed them in her truck and took off for Charlotte. She stayed with the parts and well I went for coffee, I'm seeing how this is going to go already right. Well they fishis soda blasting, and it didn't rough the surface like Jo wanted so we went to Tracktor Supply and got a small sand blaster and this black sand stuff which I guess will do the blasting. What do I know man right this ain't my field of expertice. We get home she dresses like an astronut and blasts away. I think some where around 11am we begin the work of preping for powercoating and spraying the parts. As we get everything out side Jo's student arrives and her friend's daughters arrive. I've all ready hand sanded the bike frame, and was working on tthe gas tank when, all reinforcements arrive.
The frame was up on a milk crate and I and Lindsy are sitting on oppisites of the bike our just was to have the frame flow like liquid smooth, OK what ever ya say. So I've got my sand paper hand and start she comes by and feels the welds and looks at me and goes good, good, slap she jams blue goop on to the area and rubbs it around a little and says body filler to hide the welds, remember liguid smooth. OK, Lindsy and I just sit and sand away, somewhere around 3pm Jum comes back and brouth pizza for us, we were only allowed to go and eat one by one. By this time she slapped atleast 4 coats of filler on and I've been sanding for hours but yet not done. I come back and dam if there wasn't more fill on the frame, WTF aman. She says are you going to help or bitch this is my name here. OK, I sit down and start sand as Linday is eating, the spot lights go on and finially some where around 8pm the dam frame is done YAY!, The frame is taken away I grab a beer from inside and shit the tank is in its place, it just needed a few touch ups, after the tank is taken away dam if that freaking frame didn't come back. Somewhere around 12 am I went to bed I was freaking down, my arms felt like rubber bands.
On Sunday I resand the primed tank and fenders as the frame was being powder coated in the booth, dam no coffee just sand hum. Her student would be doing the slave labor from here. Thank god it was like 2pm so Joann and I could do a little catching up at the Huddle House before I leave. I had to go there wasn't too much more that myself or Lindsy could contribute o this build. You see te bike wsa part of an all girl build that will be done in New York, so the paint was allowed to be done early. All the bikes parts had to arrive a few weeks before the build so the show could ensure that the ladies did it compleitely by themselves. The Chopper Chicks built a bike durning Bike week beating the guys build. So they were invited on the Today show to build a bike during their show. I feel so honored to be apart of this build, I mean it really is boost to all the ladies in the industry, riders, dreamers alike to get national reconition for all of their hard work.
I left the huddle house satisfied that I did a good job on the bike, happy that I could help a friend out and so proud and honored to be apart of the ladies build. Not one man touched this bike inoder to build it, ladies designed, painted it, picked all the woking parts and put it together. The big names behind the build are Athena Randsome, Vagabon Choppers, Joann Bortless CrazyHorse Painting, Jayme Gray Pussy Cats Choppers, Katie Putman Mitch Bergon's, Katie O'Shea Manatee River HD, Vivian "Gypsy" Charros Gypsy Highway Customs. I know I didn't get to ride this time which was a real bummer cause Jo and I have such a great time ridding but sometimes its about lending a hand and making anothers life a little easire along the way. I pulled the covers up over me and was so thankful to be home, may God if I had to sand one more freaking thing I'd think my arm would fall off. Now I know what its like to a teenage boy's arm.
I have a video posted of Joann and here work on the page but here some photos of the Today Show bike,
This video below was filed as a segment while the ladies built this bike
I'm going to post another buld the ladies did for Breast cancer its a link I hope it works and is able to say here. I want the ladies to get their due reconition. Congratulations Ladies.
A Helping Hand
Chopper Chick Crew Pink Ribbon Chopper Build A Huge Success
March 3, 2007—Daytona, FLA—The Chopper Chick Crew, a dedicated, all-female team of bike builders, built a chopper in seven hours and 13 minutes on March 8th and 9th at the Daytona International Speedway and donated it to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. The build was a complete success and the Crew couldn’t be happier about the results. The bike was shipped, courtesy of Harley-Davidson Shipping, to the foundation after it was finished. The Pink Ribbon Chopper will be used for fund raising, or any other medium that raises awareness and funding to help the foundation toward its goals. The Pink Ribbon Chopper is the second bike the crew has built for Breast Cancer, but the first for the foundation. Built in front of a live audience, the Pink Ribbon Chopper is a long lean hard tail in white with a pink ribbon painted on the gas tank and a pink rear fender in the shape of a ribbon. The chopper also has wheels with huge pink ribbons as spokes. “We are just so excited that the build went off as well as it did, but we couldn’t have done it without our sponsors. So many people gave their time and energy to this amazing project. We are very grateful. I was surrounded with the best crew any builder could have and I am blessed to have so many wonderful friends who are passionate about what we as BIKERS represent” said Athena Ransom, one of the Crew.The National Breast Cancer Foundation’s response to this generous act, “Bravo!!! This is a standing ovation for ALL you gals. You must be very tired after all that incredible work. It looks just GREAT! You could not have made us here at NBCF any prouder to be associated with such caring, loving, and compassionate people. Simply the best. You are loved.” The Chopper Chick Crew wish to give extra special thanks to the men who graciously treated us like queens while we worked; Don Ransom (Mr. Wonderful) of Vagabond Chopper Company, Chad (Kentucky) Booher of Vagabond Chopper Company, Berry Wardlaw of Accurate Engineering, Rogue (Media Extraordinaire) of http://www.bikerrogue.com/, Axel Froyd and Phil Petress, both of Vagabond Chopper Company, Charlie Bretchel of http://www.charliebretchel.com/, Don Little (Kate O’Shea’s Brother), Ken Conte of Rise Above Consulting, Contos of Crossroads Magazine and Jay Allen of The Broken Spoke Saloon. These gentlemen are heroes to us always and we love and respect them for the incredible men they are. Stay tuned to the website http://www.chopperchickcrew.com/ for information about the future promotions of the “Pink Ribbon Chopper” and remember, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month.
The sponsors of this event were Harley-Davidson Shipping, Bikernet.com, Leroy-Thompson Choppers, Manatee River Harley-Davidson, Cool Cat Tattoo, Crazy Horse Painting, Metzeler, Barnett Performance Products, Stinger Custom Cycle, Shortyinc.com, Vagabond Chopper Co, Jaybrake, RT's North Hills Cycle, Rise Above Consulting, Mitch Bergeron Customs, S&S, Paul Yaffee Originals, Redneck Eng, Motor Maids Inc., International Master Bike Builders Association, Detroit Bros, WomenRidersNow.com, Stevenson's Cycle, Gardner-Westcott Company, Lucas Oil, Custom Chrome, Bruce Rossmeyer Harley Davidson, Original KD's and Daytona International Speedway.
The Chicks Crew consists of Athena Ransom of Vagabond Chopper Co., who has been around motorcycles her entire life and riding since she was seven; Joann Bortles of Crazy Horse Painting, an award winning painter whose work has been featured in magazines like Easyriders, Ironworks, and American Iron; Jayme Gray from Pussy Cat Choppers, an avid motorcyclist with a degree from MMI and extensive V-Twin experience; Katie Putman from Mitch Bergeron's, an MMI degree holder with tons of mechanical and building experience; Kate O'Shea another MMI degree holder and builder from Manatee River Harley Davidson and Vivian 'Gypsy' Charros of Gypsy Highway Custom a creative, self taught, builder.
The NBCF mission is to save lives by increasing awareness of breast cancer through education, and by providing mammograms for those in need. The NBCF works with health care organizations in places like Los Angeles, New York City, and Puerto Rico to provide underserved women with access to information about breast cancer and free mammograms. The founder and president of The NBCF is Janelle Hall, a breast cancer survivor of twenty-five years, who relates to women with compassion, understanding, and inspiration as she conducts public educational programs across the nation. To learn more about the NBCF, visit them online at http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/.
Every twelve minutes a woman in America dies of breast cancer. This year more than 211,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 43,000 will die. One in six women either have breast cancer or will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. 1600 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 400 will die this year. If detected early, the five-year survival rate is 95%. Mammograms are the best early detection methods, yet 13 million women 40 years of age and older have never had a mammogram. Support The National Breast Cancer Foundation today and give the gift of hope to those in need.
Contact: Ken Conte
Rise Above Consulting
(970) 227-3588
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