When Steve Drane attended the Vancouver Motorcycle Show late last month, he met a lot of friends.
After 47 years in the motorcycle business, Drane is a bit of an icon in the trade and even though he sold his Harley Davidson shop in Langford three years ago, his love of the motorcycle culture he helped build continues.
B次元官网网址淚 came away from the business with more friends than you can imagine. Way more friends than enemies,B次元官网网址� he explained with a chuckle.
B次元官网网址淥ld school guys like me are few and far between now, but thereB次元官网网址檚 one thing that never changes. When people get on a bike today, there is still that thrill B次元官网网址� a little bit of danger mixed with this feeling of freedom that you just donB次元官网网址檛 get in a minivan. ItB次元官网网址檚 like flying a plane, three feet off the ground.B次元官网网址�
RELATED: Tsunami motorcycle heading to Milwaukee
Drane attended the motorcycle show to man a booth promoting this yearB次元官网网址檚 induction of new members to the Motorcycle Hall of Fame. He is part of the team hosting the November event in Burnaby, and his attendance at the Vancouver show is part of his role to raise awareness and promote the event and the organization.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 here just shaking hands and kissing babies,B次元官网网址� Drane said with a laugh.
Drane also mentioned his foray into YouTube fame. HeB次元官网网址檚 one of the hosts of a show called Farkle Garage, an eclectic show on all things motorcycle, covering everything from street riding to racing to cruising.
Farkle has been defined in Rider Magazine as a term that combines B次元官网网址渟parkleB次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址渇unctionB次元官网网址� and refers to those modifications that bikers make to their machines to add B次元官网网址渂lingB次元官网网址� while still serving a purpose.
B次元官网网址淥ur show celebrates the motorcycle culture and is entertaining at the same time. We even have a house band,B次元官网网址� chuckled Drane.
The show is filmed on location at DraneB次元官网网址檚 home near Goldstream Provincial Park, where he still maintains a full shop and several garages full of all manner of motorcycles.
B次元官网网址淚 have about 50 bikes in there and itB次元官网网址檚 where I keep my hot rod, too. ThereB次元官网网址檚 everything from an old World War II bike (complete with rifle scabbard) to big, vintage cruising bikes, to customized racing machines,B次元官网网址� Drane said. And while Harley Davidsons tend to dominate, his collection includes other makes, sprinkled throughout the vista of gleaming paint jobs and chrome.
His love affair with motorcycles goes back further than most people realize. Drane started riding at the tender age of seven, and by the time he was 13 he was working in a motorcycle shop, learning the trade to which heB次元官网网址檇 dedicate his life. He was building his own bikes while still in his teens and went on to ride in just about every style possible.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e seen it all B次元官网网址� done it all,B次元官网网址� Drane said. B次元官网网址淢otocross, sidecar, hill climbing, sand dragging, asphalt dragging, asphalt road racing, speed trial events B次元官网网址� I wasnB次元官网网址檛 an expert at all of that, but I did it, and enjoyed it all.B次元官网网址�
That depth of involvement earned Drane a spot in the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2014 for his lifetime of dedication to the culture. That induction also recognized the fact that his hill climb record, set 37 years ago, still stands in the books with a time of 5.18 seconds.
B次元官网网址淸Setting that record] was the proudest day of my life. I was young and felt hard as nails and came flying over the top B次元官网网址� what a feeling. IB次元官网网址檓 older now, and thereB次元官网网址檚 a lot of grey hair, but the child inside me is still the same. I still have that bike and I took it out and did the climb again a while back. There were a lot of grey haired folks watching and, afterward, they came up to me and said they remembered when I set the record. They said the sound of the engine was exactly the same and they looked so happy. ThatB次元官网网址檚 what this culture is all about,B次元官网网址� Drane said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 hard to explain, but when youB次元官网网址檙e part of it, you understand.B次元官网网址�
Like us on and follow us on
