The Beachcruiser 2006-Review

Hey,

  It’s just about the end of 2006 and I have been thinking about the year in the rear view mirror.It’s been a very busy year, a very exciting year and it has pretty much just flown by.

  Train and I started this website in mid April.It started out as just a place for a few people to meet and exchange thoughts and ideas about the motorcycle industry and the people who make it happen.We started it because we couldn’t find anyplace that provided us with the kind of experience we wanted.Yes, there were a number of motorcycle websites but none that in our mind offered what we wanted.We are devout motorcycle enthusiasts and we loved the idea of meeting people like us.We are not 1%ers but I have been riding since the late sixties.I had gone through the ups and downs of the industry.I had experienced the life as I knew it and I was missing it.I missed the brotherhood and sisterhood the most and the friendships I had known.It just wasn’t the same.Motorcycles for me, was a lifestyle.There was a band of brothers and sisters who were different in a lot of ways but had one thing in common. The one thing was a passion for motorcycles.You rode with people,laughed with people, shared together,ate together,partied together and you could count on most to “get your back”.This was a golden time, a special time, a time full of friends.

  All of this changed for me later as I had to work,I had a family, and the life I loved just kind of drifted away. I found myself mostly amongst strangers with very little in common.I got caught up in “Making it” but I forgot what “making it” really meant.I had found some success but,I was lonely for what I remembered.

  I really started thinking about it some 10 yrs. ago and started to move closer to the place I wanted to be.The world of motorcycles had picked up and I was even more aware of what I was missing.I started reading everything again and riding when I got the chance.Then, around 2000 the motorcycle shows were just beginning.I met the Train and I was smitten.Train loved motorcycles which made it easy to indulge in my passion.I was divorced in 98 so, I was beginning my life again.I bought a Harley and it was great.It made me feel alive again. The rest just seemed to happen by itself.I started to want to make friends in the industry and friends who shared my passion.This was a lot harder than I thought it would be.The internet was just really starting and I was always searching for a way to get back into it.I found a number of places to go to but, I was always left frustrated,insulted,bored, or just plain angry.I didn’t like be put down, cursed at, arguing and defending myself against attempts at intimidation.I had my thoughts and ideas as do many.I thought it would be great to share that with a bunch of people.Well, that was hard if not impossible to do.I would say that out of every 10 people, there were very few that I respected or could ever imagine calling friend.There was a lot to talk about as the t.v. shows took off, the technology took off, the industry took off, more events started and some amazing new people and companies began. There were also the men and women who had spent the last 30 yrs. or so in the industry many of whom I respected and I wanted to catch up.I did meet some cool people and that was great.I still know a lot of them and many are part of the beachcruiser family.I am most grateful for that.

  So, me and Train started a little adventure to see what we could do.I had lived in Arizona,North Carolina, and Georgia. I love the west and had wanted to go back but, I ended up here.We started the beachcruiser for fun and from nothing.I mean nothing.Train knows technology and I can write a little so, off we went.Well, one thing led to another and after a couple of months we found that a lot of people seemed to want the same things we did.We started out with just a couple of hundred people and in a pretty short time we had 25,000 30,000 people a month visiting with us.We began to realize that this was more than just a small blog.It was a destination for many just like us.We began to spruce up our content and began to get noticed.It was crazy.We had people we never met writing to tell us what a great site we had.We were working 12-14 hrs. a day to search for everything we thought would be of interest to our family.We call it a family because that’s what it is.Our readership was doubling and tripling every month so, it inspired us to work harder.I don’t know how we got here really but, here we are.

  I met Rick Fairless about a year ago.I wrote to him to say we were enjoying his show Texas Hardtails.He wrote back the same day and told us he really enjoyed our website.He said he was checking it out everyday and that he hardly ever did that before.He said he thought we were good for the industry and that he enjoyed our slant on things.He said we portrayed the people in a personal way, a different way and that he really liked that.We have become good friends and when we decided to open our new venture” The Family Jewels” we wanted Rick as a partner.I had learned to respect Rick from the very beginning because of his caring, his passion, his sincerity,and his love of the industry.He is the real deal so, we asked him to partner up with us and he accepted.I knew from the get go that he was the right guy and he has proven me right in spades. We have a team that works both figuratively and in sweat labor.We are all determined to bring the very best to the industry in product,content, and delivery.The Family Jewels is only a couple of months old and we have already done 8 great interviews, several articles, photos, and we have much more planned.We are starting to do video which is exciting.Some people don’t like that we charge $12 a year for The Jewels but, it is a premium part of this website and would be cheap at 5 times that much.I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t believe it.If you broke it down to an hourly wage we’re working for less than a few cents an hour.The money by the way goes for expenses.It doesn’t come close to covering them but, every little bit helps.We are growing there as well and we appreciate everyone who has joined.We’re going to cover events, and continue to add to the library of interviews so, it is going to be amazing.

  It makes us very proud to recieve positive comments from those outside and inside the industry.We have a sampling of them on the home page and each is totally unsolicited.I mean when Roger Goldammer,Jody Perewitz, Scott Long,Rick Fairless, Doug Keim,Scout from Baker Drive Train, Jason Hart and many others write to compliment you, it’s a big deal.When Big Dog, Advanced Chrome Plating,and Strokers sponsor you it is a big compliment.We only started taking sponsors about 6 weeks ago and there is a lot of interest.

  We are also very grateful and humbled when Matt Hotch, Hank Young, Kim Suter, Eddie Trotta, Roger Goldammer, Dave Perwitz, Rick Fairless and Jason Hart take the time to sit down and share themselves with us and our family.They have all been totally open and we think our family will know them as never before.I know I do.That’s eight of the very best in two months.It’s just the beginning.

  Well, it’s about to be 2007 and I have a little time to reflect on the past as well as think about the future.The Beachcruiser is a player in the industry and we plan on getting better and better through hard work, innovation,expanded content, and ever better delivery.We have a lot of friends who want to take the trip with us and there is no limit to how good this experiment will become.Train, Rick, and myself are always thinking  more and better and we are committed to just that.All of our friends have offered to help get us there.It’s a dream come true for me as I am getting another chance to be with the people I respect and feel comfortable with.I am very lucky to have the opportunity and I am not going to let my friends, our members, or the industry down.

  You can count on that as all I have talked about has actually taken place in only 8 1/2 months.I can’t even imagine what a full year will bring.I am pumped and invigorated although, I do get a little tired now and then.We’re on a mission so please take the ride with us. We appreciate each and every one of you and we mean it.Write to us, talk to us, tell us what you think,what you want to know,what you would like to see and we will do everything we can to give it to you.

                                                         Happy New Year Family

                                                          Train, Rick, and me (Beach)