This first poop is going to be a long one, as we will attempt to bring you up to speed on recent activities and a snapshot of what we’ll be looking forward to this year.
2009 was a milestone year for us, marking the 25th anniversary of Johnny’s Vintage Motorcycle Company. Our travels included AMA Vintage Days in Mid Ohio, as well as the 5th Annual Barber Vintage Motorcycle Festival in Birmingham AL, where my wife Robin and I exchanged vows right in the Barber Vintage Motorcycle Museum. We were thrilled to have Mr. Barber himself join us at the reception, during which The Aeroshell Team’s precision formation aerobatics demonstration drew two hearts in the sky above us. It was indeed a very special day.
As spring rolls in and the grass grows greener, we are preparing for the long-awaited riding season. It feels good to greet the majority of our customers who have been in hibernation for the last 5 or 6 months. We recently completed a beautiful restoration of a 1973 Kawasaki Z1 for our customer, RJ Hayden from St. Clair Shores, Michigan. This is his first 73 Z1, and we are sure he will enjoy it, as he is very enthusiastic. We wish him luck with his new, classic fabulous ride.
We’re also completing the restoration of a 1970 Kawasaki Big Horn, owned by Jason Reed of Mansfield Ohio. He is an avid collector of the Kawasaki singles, and it’s nice to be involved with someone who matches our enthusiasm. We appreciate his efforts for finding a connecting rod for my son Johnny’s KDX80 restoration project, which he proudly displayed at the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club booth at the Cycle World show at the IX Center in Cleveland Ohio.
We recently met up with Sergei Treycoff of Indianapolis Indiana, as he just picked up his 1972 S2 350. We know he’ll put the restoration on as he has with his other 1972 Kawasakis. Sergei is a top-notch restorationist on his projects and cuts no corners.
In March, we took a trip to Florida to purchase an inventory that went out of business in 1988. We brought back lots of treasures, including many obsolete hard parts, as well as a few handfuls of nice, used miscellaneous items. We are also in the process of having rear brake rods made for the 1973-75 Z1 and 1976-77 KZ 900A. If there is any interest out there, keep in touch with us. We’ll be updating this column from time to time, so keep posted for our latest “poop.”
We’ll have a limited schedule of appearances this year as we are participating with baseball, but we are planning on attending Vintage Days in July, and the 6th Annual Barber Vintage Motorcycle Festival in the Fall, the Mid America Auction in Las Vegas next January, as well as a few limited local meets and events in between. Both Johnny II and I plan to race at Western Reserve Motorcycle Club in Salem, OH and we plan to do some touring with my wife and my son whenever possible. Just call us the “Roving Bovas.” Ride safe, and check in again soon.