An Ironhead Sportster Just For The Salt

ne of the greatest things about attending Bonneville Motorcycle Speed Trails are the stories. The personal triumphs and even the defeat that come with reaching a lifetime goal. That one run, that special accomplishment that very few get to add to a list of their lifetime achievements. Sure, there are those who are fixtures at Bonneville, there year after year because once they make it they know, this is as good as it gets. Still, more are passing through, either only able to make it once or unable to give in to the dance that is a love affair with the salt flats. You can see the ones with the great stories, just waiting to share them, so full of the exhilaration of what they are doing that it brims over. A long stare as if they are gazing out to the edge of the universe itself, and in some ways, even beyond. This is a story just like that, a great story, of a great group of people doing a great deed in the name of an amazing man.

oIt all started with one man that was very well respected in the motorcycle community of Europe. His name was Zed, and from the stories of his friends and family, I got to know him during my time on the salt flats, although we never had the chance to meet in person. In France, when Harleys became popular in the early seventies, there were a few people who really shined through that time. He was one of the first guys in Paris that started to build choppers; he became a pioneer of custom

Article And Photos By: Chris Callen

Harleys in Paris. At that time, it was still very difficult to get aftermarket parts for American bikes in France, so he started to bring them in. After some time, he was done with the scene in Paris and moved to the South of France. In ’91, Zed opened a shop called “Street Drag” in Nimes. There, they started to build all kinds of Low Riders and performancebased customs. In 1994 they went to Sturgis and became the first Europeans to win the Rats Hole show with a bike called the “Street Dragoon”, a little yellow Ironhead. After that, he continued to build bikes and over the next ten years became very well known for his builds but also became a little bored. That’s when he was asked by the staff of Freeway Magazine to work for them.

In 2001, Zed signed on as the Editor in Chief, shooting bikes all over the world and writing editorials that would set the tone for the life and times around the motorcycle scene. Of course, this took a lot of his time, and he wasn’t doing as much shop work as he used to but in 2011 he was inspired to build a new bike, one that would be for the purpose of racing at Bonneville. Like so many stories, after watching the story of Burt Monroe and his quest for a run on the legendary salt flats, he began his pursuit. Three years were invested in the build itself. In 2014 he was finally ready to make the trip.

Along with his friend Bob, who would pilot a Triumph, the two men intended to reenact the Rocker vs. the Biker. Unfortunately, the race was canceled due to the rain that year which may have been better since Zed still had some details to work out on the Ironhead. 2015 came and only one week until the race, the bikes loaded on the plane, Zed and his wife and children were already in Utah, and the race was called once more. His son remembers

that his father even refused to go out on the salt without the bike but instead mentioned the experience in his editorial. His words explained that he imagined so many things about Bonneville and everything that he would see and do there, but instead he would discover another face of the United States through traveling with his family instead. The salt would have to wait for another year.

Sadly, as 2016 rolled around Zed fell ill and would be unable to make it back to the States. He passed away at only 58 years old in the beginning of 2017 having never completed his dream of running at Bonneville. The very day he passed his friends and family discussed plans to get everything together and complete this journey for him. They founded the “Till The Salt” foundation, and

Owner: Zed, Editor in Chief Freeway Magazine City/State: Les Cévennes, France Builder: Zed Year: 2014 Model: Ironhead Value: A Whole Life Time: “A hand is good for everything exept hold the time” Hindu saying

ENGINE Year: 1974 Model: Ironhead Sportster Builder: Zed Ignition: Dyna 200i Displacement: 1000cc Pistons: Harley-Davidson Modified Heads: VTM Carb: Mikuni HSR45 Cam: Shifton Air Cleaner: Carl’s Speed Shop Exhaust: SuperTrapp 2 inot 1 Primary: Barnett

TRANSMISSION Year: Make: Harley-Davidson Shifting: FRAME Year: 1974 Model: Modified Ironhead Rake: Stretch: None

Forks Builder: Zed Type: Moto Trial Montesa Triple Trees: Moto Trial Montesa Extension: WHEELS Front Wheel: Size: 19” Tire: Contitrail Attack 2 Front Brake: We Don’t Give A F#@k Rear Wheel: Size: 18” Tire: Avon Rear Brake: JayBrake

PAINT Painter: Odyssey Motorcycle / Daddygraph Color: Red Type: Metalflake Graphics: Chroming: ACCESSORIES Bars: Bottelin Dumoulin Risers: Hand Controls: Beringer Foot Controls: Zed Gas Tank(s): Peanut Modified Oil Tank: Inox Handmade Front fender: None Rear Fender: Sportster Modified Seat: Lady Coco Headlight: None Tail light: None Speedo: None as a group, they gathered under this cause. Some started to sell T-shirts, some ran fundraising events, while others went through the rulebook to get the bike in order. They were meeting people along the way to make that one great pass in Zed’s honor. They could never have imagined what this would bring to them by the time they made it on to the salt. A lifetime of memories, a whole new set of friends and family they picked up as they went, and one great accomplishment made in the name of a great man.

You would think that for a man that made as much of his life around motorcycles, his children may have been raised in the shop as well, but it was quite the opposite. Zed never mixed his family with his motorcycle world, so this was, in many ways the first time his family met people from the other life he led. So many people explained how much Zed meant to them, how his words helped them in their lives. Many claimed that much of the reason they bought Freeway Magazine was to read Zed’s editorial each month. He knew his subject matter, but like a great writer does, he was able to move people through the emotion his words conveyed.

The bike performed fantastically. Zed had built a very thin and very quick little Sporty indeed. Amazing since there was no place in France to test what the bike could, they literally traveled thousands of miles not knowing what would happen. The morning that we did this interview, that little Ironhead recorded a run at 132mph, which was a great run, but the bittersweet part of this story came at the end of one day on the salt, when the racing was over, and they all got together to let Zed’s Ashes loose to the winds of Bonneville. A special place for stories of love and triumph.... a special place indeed. RIP PierreJacques “Zed” Zanvit.

Article And Photos By: Xavier Muriel

hello Guys and Gals! Well, the dust has settled after Sturgis and life is somewhat back to normal, depending on your idea of normal. You know every once in a great while I get blessed to be a part of something that I feel is so amazing that I have to stop to pinch myself and make sure that it’s really happening. Now I’m sure all of you are thinking it’s ‘’In Motion” at the Lone Star Rally or Sons of Speed during Daytona Bike Week or even The “Passion Build ‘’ in Sturgis this past year. Even though those are all great experiences filled with awesome memories and people I call friends and family what I’m really talking about is getting out of myself and doing something for someone I’ve never met. I was part of an awesome show of love and support for the ’’Forever Family Ride’’ held in Loveland Co this past September. This is an annual ride held at Thunder Mountain Harley-Davidson in cooperation with Realities for Children, a non-profit organization intended to bring awareness to children that have been abused, neglected or are at risk in Larimer County to let them know that they are not alone.

The “Forever Family Ride” is just that, a fundraising event to help place kids in a Forever Family. Craig Secher, president of ‘’Realities for Children,’’ heads up a team of remarkable folks that for the past 18 years have been giving back to the community by helping less advantaged children get the chance they deserve to be in a loving and caring environment. Along with some incredible sponsors, the day was set for some awesome riding through the Colorado Mountains with a lunch and music at the final destination. Each rider was given a label with the name of a child you were riding for. I felt very humbled and proud to be riding for a child named “Future.” So off we went all 375 of us, led by a police escort through some of the most beautiful riding I’ve done thus far. You know that postcard you see with the guy fly-fishing in a river next to some massive boulders on a mountainside - Well, that’s what it looked like. There were so many times I wanted to pull over and take it all in. But there was a destination we had to get to. I was trying to stay in the moment and not get distracted by the beauty that surrounded me at every turn.

I found my self-thinking back to my own childhood and realized that I am very grateful for the family I had. I had been blessed with loving parents, who with lots of patience, love and support made me the man I am today. I wished that every child

we were riding for could get that very same opportunity. I know for me, there have been times that I took family for granted. As I got older I realized how vital it is to make sure you tell those people in your lives who you love, just that you do love them, don’t assume that they know. We wound up the 60 plus mile ride with some fantastic BBQ, and an auction that I’m proud to say helped raise much needed money for the cause. Yours truly even got a chance to sit in with the band that closed out the day’s festivities.

The sunny day had started to cool off as we all made our way back down the mountain. And as I drove into the sunset, just like a video on MTV, I felt so blessed to be a part of something so pure and honest, to be able to witness humanity at its finest come through for the children. Thank you, Ken, and Craig for the experience and for the smiles. Until next time my Brothers and Sisters be good to yourself and to one another. God Bless. X.