In case anyone was wondering….

I sent Santa my wish list and I didn’t get what I asked for…

I think Santa has gone soft!! No Enertia Plus, no Empulse, no Brammo jacket! And I was good last year…..just wait until this year!!

Lady Godiva on wheels…… goin bad!!

This brings back memories….

I was reading Cyril Huse blog today and he had a story about the Fiber Optic Mohawk Helmets by Helmet Inc. He made it a point to indicate that the helmets work well for the younger crowd and not for we older biker bunch. I had to laugh a bit and remember that I had decided to “night ride” my Harley with an item that was really a blast from my past and not particularly mature! Let me explain….
How many of us just had to make our bicycles sound cool with a few clothes pins and a deck of cards? I was right there with ya! Later I fixed up my sisters bike with beads that glowed in the dark attached to the spokes… she thought she had the coolest bike on the block. Years later I put strobing spoke lights on my kids bikes so that I could find them on summer nights when they rode the cul-de-sac we lived on. Soon all the kids had them and I was back to standing in the front yard calling their names..
I was surfing the web and looking for ways to make me more visible on those dark moonless nights when I just had to go for a ride and I ran across a real blast from my past…  

The Nite Ize Spokelit LED light is meant to go on the spokes of your bicycle tire but, I just knew that with a little ingenuity I could adapt it to my Harley Road King or my little Brammo Enertia electric bike. And, for less than $10. Not once was I thinking about cool. What I was thinking was this….”Now lets see if that dumbass down the street in the Mustang pulls out in front of me and says, “Sorry, I didn’t see ya!!”‘.  A couple of the spoke lights and you could see me from the Space Shuttle!!

So, to all of you that might not think a 55-year-old grandmother should be rocking a LED mohawk helmet, think again. If it was your grandmother and she got home safe, would you want her to wear one? The easier it is to see me, the better. If they had a strobe light that would fit my butt, I might try it!! That might need to be one big ol’ strobe light..LOL. Ride safe, everyone, and light it up if ya can!!

Lady Godiva on wheels… rockin the LED

Dear Santa Baby,

I hope it’s not too late to send you this “wish list” but, I have been busy. After the tree was up, the gifts bought and wrapped, the house decorated, the community service events completed, the local food closet helped out, the local toy drives’ barrels stuffed, the family dinners are cooked, and I am finally finished, I realized that I hadn’t sent you this request. So here we go…
Santa, I know that you are all about being nice but, can’t you be a little naughty in an effort to be nice? ALL I want for Christmas is the new Enertia Plus from Brammo, and in order to get it for me, you may have to send a team of “Special Forces Elves” (like the ones that they showed on Tim Allen’s “The Santa Clause”) and pick up the one at the Brammo headquarters in Ashland, Oregon. Just go to the website and it will tell you the address and show you pictures of the bike. Just in case, I am sending a picture of one:
Make sure its the one that has the “+” on the body piece directly after the word “Enertia” and my preference would be the white one. Remember to bring the plug for the start button that will be on my old panels so that I can switch it out with the new panels. Once we get the pink Dorothy Robinson panels on the new Enertia Plus, we are home free!!

Now, while you are down in Ashland and the Elves are in the Brammo headquarters, if they happen to see a really hot

cafe racer looking bike called the “Empulse” and you have room on the sleigh, I know my daughter is really excited about getting her hands on one of those. Here is a picture… just in case.
 
You know that she has been a really good girl this year… really good! She is a full-time single mom, a full-time student going for her teaching degree, just completed her tax preparers classes in unison with her regular schooling, and cleans houses to give her daughter all the extras like band and cheerleading. 
I don’t know where she finds the time or the energy. And, if she rode an Empulse, she could save money on gas by going electric!
Well, Santa… that’s the request and that’s the plan. I know that if you don’t do this for me I will have to wait till next year and I’m not sure I can. I dream about that new bikes everyday and the fact that my own little Dorothy will go from my commuter to my little cruiser. That extra 40 mile possibility gets me all giggly!! You know those sugar plums that dance around ones head… with me, its Empulses and the Enertia Plus. PLEASE, Santa… you gotta help me!!

Oh, one more thing. While you are there at the Brammo headquarters, can you see if there is one of those Brammo jackets that Harry Mallin(aka @Brammofan on twitter) got from Jackie Chan’s JCAM. He gets all the cool stuff!!

If you could leave the Brammo guys something really nice, that would be really cool. All the guys down there work really hard. I was thinking that they could have constant massages while they work or plates that hold their favorite foods and replenish themselves anytime they get hungry?? I’ll leave that to you….

Thanks Santa Baby, you’re the best…
Lady Godiva on wheels…. hoping, hoping, hoping.

Daylight Savings Time and the end of my riding season..

It’s that time of year again, Daylight Savings Time, and we need to “fall back” and change all the clocks in the house. Here in the Great Northwest it means that the days will get so short that it well be dark at 4:00 pm and not light again until 8:00 am. I dread these days! If it weren’t for the holidays, I would lose my mind.

I am a California girl, born and bred and it’s this time of year that makes me long for my  childhood home in Huntington Beach. Of course, I’m not taking into account the long foggy days that come with late November, December, and January. I choose to forget those…

So, take the time to change those clocks because at 2 a.m. on Nov. 7, 2010 we gain an hour and proceed into the dark abyss of winter. This is a sad time for this little motorcycle rider. Guess I’m gunna have to take the Harley apart and clean it up for next year. Dorothy is going to have to sit and watch because there is absolutely nothing to do to an E-bike. I suppose I could wash her up and just sit and admire her. After Jason did the incredible paint, that is what I do anyway!! Thank you, Jason and Hellcat Customs…again…still!!

Lady Godiva on wheels…gosh I hate winter.

What a beautiful day and Dorothy was out in it..

I worked today but noticed that the day was shaping up from a slightly cloudy day to a day that I wanted to be riding out in. I was on my way home by three o’clock and just knew Dorothy would be anxious to get out and show off a little. She has turned into such a diva!!
Here is a picture I took on my way home so you understand why I was so anxious. November in Oregon is usually not this warm but, it was 67 degrees! Yesterday was 62 degrees and I thought I had died and gone to motorcycle riders heaven! Tomorrow promises to be 65 degrees.

As I suspected, Dorothy was sitting by the door looking gorgeous and ready to run! I got dressed and pulled her out of the garage. The day was beautiful and I couldn’t help but take a moment to take a picture of the colorful trees and Mt. Hood in the distance of my street. I had to dodge the construction traffic from the houses being built to the right of where I was sitting. In fact, a car nearly caused an accident because the gentleman inside just had to know what I was riding. He managed to get pulled off to the side of the road and we had a great chat about Dorothy, the new Enertia Plus, the Brammo Company, and how much he hoped his wife would consider riding one of the Brammo bikes. Some years back, he had convinced her to take up riding so that they could ride together and he wouldn’t have to have her on the back of the bike all the time. He bought her a small cc Honda but, the experience didn’t turn out to be a good one and she abandoned the bike. It turned out to be a little more intimidating for her than he had considered. I gave him my business card and told him that I would be willing to talk to her and even meet her at the local high school and let her try my sweet little bike .
I decided to stop for a coffee and when I turned to take my helmet off, there was a truck sitting parallel to me and about 2 feet away! I nearly fell into the driver side door!! Of course, it was about my bike… and a rather funny story. Inside the truck was a gentleman driving and a pleasant-looking lady in the passenger seat. The gentleman started like this…”I knew you were a girl riding that bike.” I reply, “Really, why was that?” “Well”, he says, “your bike is all pink! I told my wife you were a girl and I followed you just so I could show her”. I laughed, his wife didn’t! She finally turned to me and said, “He has been after me to ride for years and I keep telling him that girls don’t ride, then you come along and there is no way to say you weren’t a girl on that pink bike! Thanx!!” I laughed, again. Then she gets out of the truck, slams the door, tells her husband to go park the truck and wait for her and she will be right into the restaurant. Now, he smiles and drives away to find a parking spot.
I had a wonderful fifteen minute conversation with her.  Her name was Mary and she was two years younger than myself. It was a familiar story about her wanting to ride but the bike scared her, riding scared her, her husband irritated her, the bike was irritating her…and so on. And, you guessed it, I gave her my card! I might be wrong about this but, I do  believe I am seeing a trend. LOL
Well, I didn’t get as much riding done as I had planned due to the interested onlookers but, I did have a great time. The sun was going down and I thought I should get home and take the Road King for a little spin. When I took Dorothy out, he was pouting… poor Harley!! So, I changed a few of my clothing items and changed bikes. I needed different gloves because the wind sneaks up the sleeves of my jacket because of the ape hanger and I need the heavier boots so I can shift. I wasnt out long because when the sun went down, so did the temp! And, by the time I got home, the wind was moving the outdoor furniture around the yard! Ah, but it was worth it to ride in November in the Great Northwest and on a night with a full moon. HHHOOOOOwwwwllll….I mean, fabulous!! LOL

Lady Godiva on wheels, helpin out the girls in my area to get on a bike and ride!!

Dorothy and Hellcat Customs t-shirt give away for footshifted.com..

Of course, I have to brag a little about my bud, Jason Sarratt at Hellcat Customs, and add a little something about my beautiful E-bike, Dorothy, as well.
As you all know, Jason did the unbelievable job on my bike and he took the time to include her on footshifted.com, for the t-shirt give away. See it all right here
If you didn’t sign on and win the t-shirt, give them a shout on Twitter at @HellcatCustoms or @FieryPinkGirl and they have them for sale.

Lady Godiva on wheels… lovin my Hellcat Customs!!

“Dr. Dave” gives props to my little pink “Diva”….

Here is an email sent out by my field rep, “Dr Dave” Murray…

David L. Murray
Field Service Technician, Portland, OR
Brammo Inc.
From: David Murray
Sent: Monday, October 18, 2010 10:45 PM
To: Adrian Stewart; Brian Wismann; Danny Watson
Cc: Jennifer Rafiner; David Harvey; Hertz, Christopher
Subject: Judy LaParne’s ‘Dot’ customization paint job….

The wait is over… we now have a Pink Enertia. But the artwork Judy’s painter did to her body panels is phenomenal. This bike is destined for magazine cover art. I’ll send better pictures as I get them.

Enjoy…Dave M.

Ya know, I couldn’t agree with him more! Thank you, Dave Murray, for recognizing real art when you see it and taking great care of Dorothy. Thank you, Jason Sarratt of Hellcat Customs, for being an amazing artist and taking care of Dorothy’s body parts. Thank you, Brammo boys, for making me an exceptional ride. My little “Pink Diva” is really having a great time. So am I!! I hope Dorothy Robinson is sitting on a cloud up in heaven and smiling at us all….

Lady Godiva on wheels…. GO PINK!!

The big reveal…. Dorothy’s new duds!

How do you go from the box at the left to the first Brammo Enertia ever to have custom paint? Well, when you know someone like Jason Sarratt from Hellcat Customs, it’s really easy to do. Here is what Jason said about the job I put before him. He calls it “the story of the work” and I couldn’t say it better so, I didn’t!

“Ok, I’m not very good talking to large groups of people… I prefer to be a silent hidden force behind making things better. I’m also an artist, which means I’ve never done anything I felt was good enough and I’ve always completed things not with a feeling of accomplishment but the thought of how next time I could improve…a emotional flaw that tends to drive my loved ones nuts. I always do well, but, I never feel I did enough…an artist sickness I guess.
Judy asked me to help her do a tribute bike honoring a hero of hers… and now one of my lil girls as well. The subject matter was Dot Robinson, a woman who all you women in motorcycling should thank, for without what she did you all would still not be accepted in racing or being on the front seat.
God always has a funny way of testing me, pushing me and often just seems to laugh at me, this project was no exception. Judy and others helped get my shop back up and running after some of the speed bumps in life almost made me give up on the shop all together. When she asked me to do this I was honored.  Unfortunately, the shop not only came back but it boomed so much that I was working 7 days a week trying to fight to get deadlines met and Judy patiently waited. When Judy and I had our first phone conversation a few weeks back I agreed to make sure she had her finished parts back by the 15th for some promo work she wanted to do to support the fabulous company that created the electric scoot and my paint was to show the world electric bikes can be cool customs too. A storm came through AZ a week or so later, so quick and so unlike AZ weather…in 18 years I’ve never seen hail in Phoenix. At the shop there was more than 100 grand worth of damage done to some very high-end cars, but what I worried about was the lil electric bike. I did what I could to hide some of the lil flaws in the custom mixed pink paint but pearls are almost impossible to fix on the fly so I did what I could to hide it from the camera lens and your average onlooker. The parts looked like they would work so Kerry, my partner, made me pack and ship them. My kid helped pack them up and we sent them out FedEx. Pink is not a base coat color offered in color swatches. Judy asked me to match a pink envelope she received a thank you letter from Kelly in after she helped us so much. The letter meant something to Judy and the color she felt would be perfect.I decided to toss in some airbrushed highlights on the pink and covered it with a white pearl so that the bike would appear to glow, even when the sun doesn’t shine just like the bikes owner. Judy asked me to make sure to put Brammo back on the plastic, Brammo even sent me a letter with decals in several colors for the job. I will put one on my tool box I guess being I chose to not use them on this project. I decided I loved the “bull” logo the company started using, so in dark pink I put that logo on the side. The bull is a strong powerful organic image yet the symbol doesn’t tell you the name…I thought it would inspire folks to ask the owner what the symbol means and would make them learn about the bike rather than just reading a name and moving on. People need to know what it is… why it is and learn more than just the name Brammo. They need to have curiosity lead them to education from an owner and fan, not just a name they see in the news.On one panel is the free-handed image of Dot herself, with her leather pilot’s head-gear and goggles. I also wrote DOT above, just as Dot had on her sidecar racers. The next panel was partially taken from a photo of Dot racing her sidecar and had a man pushing her out of a rut…I deleted the man, cause she didn’t need a mans help. I also put her in a night wooded environment to show the unsure dangerous environment she powered through to become the godmother of motorcycles.The lower panel on the other side is a shield with the “Motor Maids Inc” logo, which I’ll prob get in trouble for using…This is one of Dots accomplishments. She helped found the female club which later turned into an Inc. Dot and her sisters changed the motorcycle world with small steps.The panel above that has the AMA logo, a checkered flag, and a trophy. Dot was a major competitor in a MAN’s sport during a time where the glass ceiling was a lot lower, women always wore dresses, and had nothing more to look forward to than to settle down and have children and a man’s house to care for. Not this one. She dawned leather boots and coats, straddled a bike and out rode the men who looked down on her over and over. She earned a place in AMA’s hall of fame and is an icon in the world of racing and american motorcycles…its really not enough considering all she did. 
To all you women out there!
When you see this lil electric bike I lovingly call a “Re-cycle” stop and look. Kneel down and look at the artwork. Stare into the eyes of the portrait I tried to do justice to and say “Thank You Dot”. Thank Judy for not only educating you on the future of two-wheeled transportation and environmental improvement, but also thank her for introducing you to Dot… Without Dot you wouldn’t be riding Harleys or racing with the boys. Judy is an inspiration all her own. That could be another story from me. But for now just know I did what I could to do Dot and Judy justice…even though I may not be happy because of the slings and arrows that caused me stress and flaw I pushed on doing what I could with what I had just like Dot! It’s not perfect just yet, but I beat the clock, won the race against time and Dot and Judy’s efforts were the inspiration behind getting it done and continuing to push for perfection in my craft.”  Amen, Jason!! Amen!
If you know someone like Jason, you can get the kind of work that will have my Enertia showing up in magazines and becoming a star! So… here is the big reveal…if you were here, it would take your breath away!

This is where Dorothy lives with the '06 HD Road King and the Honda dirt bike.

She is in some really good company!

"Dr Dave" Murray pulled her out into the driveway

He put on gloves and laid his coat on the ground for her.

He was nearly done but a good job can not be rushed

And then she was done! Absolutely gorgous!!

Dorothy’s first outing will be tomorrow night when we attend our club meeting for the TNC Motorcycle Club here in Beaverton, Oregon.  Everyone is very anxious to see the final result of all Jason’s efforts. And, I am anxious to show her off.

I want to thank everyone that followed this story. This isn’t the end but, just the beginning. Jason and I have more ideas and there may be more to tell. Dorothy will be going to the “Vegas Bike Week” in 2011 so Jason can show his efforts in supporting the new wave E-motorcycles. We will be showing the world that you can do custom paint on the new E-V’s as well as you can with the ICE bikes. If we can talk Brammo into allowing us, Jason is planning to do a GREEN custom modification, not just paint, on an Enertia, also for the “Vegas Bike Week”. We can show the world that E-motorcycles are closer to being like the ICE bikes than those doubters out there think!! So, stay tuned because there are lots more to come and we hope you will stay for the ride ahead.

A very special thank you goes out to Jason’s lovely pink haired woman, Kelly (@FieryPinkGirl on Twitter) and his sweet little daughter, the Monkey! You guys have been so wonderful and I love you like crazy! But, mostly to the artistic efforts of Jason, himself!

Lady Godiva on wheels…looking at my bike and swelling up with pride.  She is so beautiful!

The box is here and so are Dorothy’s pieces…

Man, my hands are shaking! In a million years, I didn’t expect the work to be so fine. Jason talked about flaws…I haven’t seen one. I held the pieces in my hands and still couldn’t believe what I was seeing. “UNBELIEVABLE”, is all I can say!
The biggest surprise to me was the following two pictures……
Can you believe this..the Hellcat Customs Logo on my bike and signed by the artist, himself! I will NEVER get rid of this bike, never!

I am so grateful to these guys for giving me the most beautiful motorcycle on the road!

Lady Godiva on wheels…”sniffle” lovin’ Hellcat Customs and the crew!

P.S.  “Dr. Dave” Murray, my Brammo field rep, will be at my house on Monday morning at 11:00 am. to do the install.  Stay tuned for the “big reveal”!!

Dorothy’s new outfit and the Monkey I almost got!!

The big moment I have been waiting for….drum roll please!! Here are some pics of Dorothy’s new body pieces getting packed up for shipping. The whole family took a part in it…Jason, Kerry (the newest member of the Hellcat Customs team), and the Monkey (my personal favorite). In fact, I almost got the Monkey in the mail. I could have lived with that…she’s a sweetie. I don’t think Jason could live with it though. That’s his “side kick” (and his sweet little daughter)!! And, his riding partner but, that’s another blog entirely! In fact, I have a couple to do on this crew…all about Kerry Robins, ect. Lots going on here and great stories to tell! But, you will have to wait for that..
Enjoy the pictures… I sure did. Thanx, Jason and “crew”.

Check out the “pink” Brammo logo… Craig Bramscher would have to giggle!! FYI, I am the first woman consumer to purchase a Brammo electric motorcycle. It’s only fitting that I get a little leeway with my custom paint and Jason did the job right!!

Here is how they very sweetly packaged it all up. Jason made sure that the clear coat was dry and seasoned before he would even consider packaging it up. He really goes the extra mile for the customer.

I want a shop like this one!! Nice, Hellcat Customs!!

Don’t forget that Jason was very uncomfortable about sending these pieces since the storm had done some damage to the paint and he wanted to do a COMPLETE re-paint. Artists!! Whats next? A left ear, Vincent?? FYI, Jason…you are so much cuter than Mr. Van Gogh but you still wont look good with one ear!

And, look what I almost got in the mail with my bike pieces..

Darn, Miss Monkey! We were so close!! LOL

So, later this morning I am going to the FedEx store in Lake Oswego, to pick up the outstandingly beautiful pieces to what used to be my electric motorcycle by Brammo, Inc. but, is now a going to be transformed into a work of art!! My heart is so happy to have a genuine original done by a true artist. Jason Sarratt is just such an artist. Dorothy should be in a museum…. after I’m dead, please!! LOL
Stay tuned and I will have more to say…………………

Lady Godiva on wheels, off to FedEx to pick up my works of art!!