Here are some video clips I took of the peaceful solitude that can be found at 6:30 AM at the 2008 Hollister Motorcycle Rally in California. This tranquil time of day is obviously BEFORE approximately   more...130,000 bikers and spectators arrive at the event!

The photos of the bikes and bikers that follow the video clips are ones I took at the Hollister Motorcycle Rally in 2003. The two songs I used for the video are “Solitary Man” by Neil Diamond and “Born to Be Wild” by Steppenwolf.

The Hollister Motorcycle Rally is known worldwide as “the birthplace of the American biker”, with bikers attending from as far away as France and Australia. The vendors at this event make Hollister the largest motorcycle marketplace in the west.

This event got its historic birth on the 1947 Fourth of July weekend, when approximately 4,000 motorcyclists descended on the sleepy little town of Hollister, California and created havoc. This invasion was the spark that eventually led to what is arguably the quintessential outlaw biker movie of all time, entitled “The Wild One” in 1953, starring Marlon Brando as “Johnny”, and Lee Marvin as “Chino”. At one point in the movie Johnny is guzzling beer and dancing with some of the ladies in the bar, and one female dance partner questions Johnny: “Hey, Johnny, What are you rebelling AGAINST?” While tapping out a jazzy beat on the top of the jukebox, Marlon Brando raises his eyebrow and drawls his amorphous reason for rebellion: “What’ve you GOT!?”

For more historical perspective on the 1947 biker riot, here is an account from the time from the San Francisco Chronicle: http://www.cestcop.com/chron1.htm

and a followup article from July 6, 1947: http://www.cestcop.com/chron2.htm

Here is an excerpt from the articles:

HOLLISTER. July, 5 1947

State Highway patrolmen tonight imposed informal martial law in downtown Hollister to curb the riotous activities of an estimated 4000.

Almost 60 persons were injured, three of them seriously. Several more arrests were made and a special night court session was convened to punish those charged with reckless driving and drunkenness.

The outburst of terrorism - wrecking of bars, bottle barrages into the streets from upper story windows and roofs and high speed racing of motorcycles though the streets - came as participants in the annual "Gypsy Tour" sponsored by the American Motorcycle Association converged on Hollister for a three-day meeting.

Armed with tear gas guns, the officers herded the cyclists into a block on San Benito street, between Fifth and Sixth streets, parked a dance band on a truck and ordered the musicians to play.

Hundreds of individuals who invaded the town yesterday for the motorcycle show, about 10 percent of them women, halted their riotous "play" to dance. Their formal ball at the American Legion Hall was canceled by police orders.

The dancers scuffed their way through inches of broken glass, debris of bottle barrages thrown during the day. The officers stood almost shoulder to shoulder along the curb.”

The "tour" brought the largest amount of transients in recent history to Hollister. Hundreds slept in "haystacks" according to police and in the city park and squares.  less

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First flights after a 6+ year hiatus.
Thanks to Rich for helping me knock the rust off.
Thanks to Mike for letting me fly his Falcon
Thanks to my kids for filming!

See where we "hang" out... http://www.hanggliding.org/
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Weekend Work-Revisited

Video slide show of pics from the last few months

Some video clips from a friends still cam put together for yet another friend.

A fine selection of star style clothes. Do your own fashion show, watch the show room of others or create a whole new style with the world´s most well known brand items

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