Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128343
A M[)T[)RaI:LE FIT F[)R A KING ... B.B. KING! A two-wheeled testament to blues master B.B. King - the fully custom . B.B. King Bike, autographed by Mr. King - was unveiled in Chicago during the B.B. King Blues Fest on August 26. Snake Alley Customs designed, built and donated this one -of-a kind motorcycle for the special concert held at Chicago's historic Auditorium Theatre. The concert and all proceeds benefited the Children's Brittle Bone Foundation and Special Olympics Illinois. The B.B. King bike was the evening's primary live auction item and was successfullyauctioned to the highest bidder. Mr. Kingmet the builders and autographed the bike prior to his performance. The bike incorporates a B.B. Kingportrait and full-Scale "Lucille" Gibson guitar. The culmination of more than 1000 hours of labor and a significant investment in parts and finishing, the B.B. King Bike has a 2-inch backbone stretch with 4S-degrees of rake ; an inve rted fork; and a modified S&S 8B-cubic-inch, lOS-horsepower, dualcarb engine . The bike features many hand-fabricated components, including: custom front and rear fenders. custom handlebars. custom fishmouth exhaust, custom snakeskin seat and custom wheels. Snake Alley Customs painting partner MNK Custom Paintworks in Monkena, Illinois. completed the design for the B.B. King bike. Black custom paint with goldleaf flames and musical notes flow from the front fender to taillights. The life-sized replica of King's famed guitar, Lucille, is hand-fabricated from highgrade stainless steel with more than 6000 tig welds ; the guitar can be removed for display while the bike is on the road. "The bike is rolling art, but it is definitely roadworthy," said Snake Alley Customs founder Marty Behan. "Designing and building a bike like this is pure passion." Snake Alley Customs' fabrication work is based on old-world metal forming techniques; mechanically, the company is also experienced in building high-performance street machines . Before he began designing custom bikes in 1996, Behan and his team attained national success buildingchampionship race and muscle cars. "Bikers want their bikes to look cool as well as ride smooth and fast," Behan said. "The new owner of the B.B. King bike will get the best of both worlds. This has been a challenging and exciting project. We had a fantastic reaction from the crowd at the Chicago concert and are proud to have been part of making the event a success for both charities ." To cast yo ur vote, log on to www.cyclenews.com . WEb INSiYE Loris Capirossi wasn't punished after taking out five riders (including all the Americans) at the Japanese MotoGP race at Motegi. What should have been done? A. He should 've received a one-race suspension like John Hopkins did last season . Online poll results from last week Will anyone ever match Ricky Carmichael's pair of perfect 24-moto win motocross seasons in 2002 and 2004? Yes No Total Replies: B. Nothing , it was a racing incident. C. Bombs away! America should attack Italy, in protest. www.cyclenews.com 1266 (26.07%) 3590 (73.93%) 4856 CYCLE NEWS • SEPTEMBER 29,2004 93