DETOUR ISSUE NUMBER FIVE
B I K E S A N D B R E A K FA S T
ISSUE NO.
FIVE BIKES AND BREAKFAST
04 | OIL & ALCOHOL
After knowing the answers to my questions, I realised that I'm not looking for closure rather I’m looking for change. 06 | DIFFERENT
There’s a reason I don’t attend motorcycle related events that often. Once you have been to one it feels like you have been to all of them.
2 8 | B I LT W E L L G R I N G O
Custom motorcycles are all rage today. Most often, it’s not enough just to have one. You also have to look the part. 33 | CAFFEINE AND GASOLINE
Oil and alcohol will never mix, but maybe caffeine and gasoline will.
Cover: Turborat a motorcycle that is an extension of the persons self expression.
Detour Moto x Travel is an online publication under the No Barriers Just Horizons Moto Journal project. Motorcycles, travel and stories of people told in a humble and curious manner.
PHOTOGRAPHY DESIGN C O N C E P T U A L I Z AT I O N WRITING
by Marvin Geronimo
C O N TA C T
Facebook: @nobarriersjusthorizons Website: www.nobarriersjusthorizons.ph E-mail: no.barriers.just.horizons@gmail.com
Humble in tone, genuine in cur iosity.
ISSUE NO. FIVE | PUBLISHED MARCH 2018 C O P Y R I G H T 2 0 1 8 Š D E T O U R M O T O X T R AV E L , A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D
FOREWORD
OIL & ALCOHOL
4
by MARVIN GERONIMO
I got a text message from one of my friends late at night. He is one of those people that would only message you if it’s really important. I know that this is something that I should give attention to, I looked at my phone and read the message. It was short and direct and it said “JC is gone.” At first I was confused, there are a couple of JC’s that we both know and I was not sure who he was referring to and what he meant by the word “gone”. I decided to call him up to clarify what the message meant, after 3 rings he picked up and told me which “JC” he was referring to, then the call ended. There were no clear details yet, so I was left mainly in the dark as to what really happened. There’s a lot of questions during ones passing and somehow I’m not content to just know that he died. I want to know “how?” and even the “why?”. I was not really sure what’s driving me to know the answers to these questions, I know it is more than just curiosity, perhaps I’m looking for some closure. I arrived at the wake, one by one i saw familiar faces, people that we both spent our youth with. As I talk to them one by one, I slowly pieced together what happened that unfortunate evening. The story was very simple and quite common, they were riding their motorcycles going home intoxicated, then bad shit happened. There’s really nothing more to the story, only a loss of a young mans promising life. The sad thing is, this nothing new to me. Stories like these are quite common in different motorcycle circles that I have been in. Death by riding intoxicated is so common it feels like the norm. After knowing the answers to my questions, I realised that I'm not looking for closure rather I’m looking for change.
DETOUR
ISSUE NO. FIVE
BIKES & BREAKFAST
ISSUE NO. FIVE
DIFFERENT BIKES AND BREAKFAST There’s a reason I don’t attend motorcycle related events that often. Once you have been to one it feels like you have been to all of them. It usually goes like this, loud music in a small area with bored half naked women either sitting or standing beside a gorgeous motorcycle surrounded by sober to not so sober men.
B I K E S A N D B R E A K FA S T
F
riday night and I still don’t have a plan for the weekend. Bored to death from scrolling on my Facebook feed when an invitation suddenly popped up. I usually ignore these kinds of things as most events are just spams, people inviting you to events that clearly has nothing to do with you. But a quick glance made me decide to check this one out simply because theres the word “Bikes” on it. Followed by the word “Breakfast”. “That’s unusual” I muttered to myself, I checked the event details and found out that the event will be held at a cafe just 10 minutes from where I live. “A cafe and not a bar?” I wondered. The more I read about it, the more it became interesting. With more questions than answers I decided to click on the “Going” button.
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Had to wake up early, event starts at 7:00 am. I messaged one of the organizers to inform him that I will document the event. I packed my DSLR and went down to fetch my motorcycle, although there’s really no strict code as to what kind of motorcycle you should bring. I decided to bring my custom motorcycle Wander One so I could at least blend in. The cool breeze and the warm sun are the best combination for a morning ride. It’s so perfect that I told myself “If I end up not liking the event, I could just go out and ride.” As I rode through Marcos highway I saw three vintage scooters, that seem to be en-route to the event. How did I know they were going there? Half face helmets with bandanas to cover their mouths and a pair of sunglasses to protect their eyes from the wind is the typical outfit of those who ride vintage scooters and custom motorcycles. I tailed them until we got to our destination, Vintage Cafe Marikina. After we took our helmets off we smiled at each other, seems like we were the first ones to arrive as the parking is still empty. Then someone from the inside instructed us to park on the other side, there we saw a couple of cruisers their owners inside already having some breakfast. Were still early, there were still a lot of seats and the kitchen is still not busy. My bike is here, now on to the other part… breakfast.
DETOUR
ISSUE NO. FIVE
BIKES & BREAKFAST
B I K E S A N D B R E A K FA S T
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I had a couple of minutes to roam around as the venue was still not packed. It will be easy to fill up this space as it’s not that big. One motorcycle group could probably fill up the whole place, looking around a lot have actually done so. There are framed insignia of different groups a testament that this is just not your regular cafe. One by one the other riders arrived, it was a mix of vintage, custom, cruisers and standard bikes. Seeing that more are arriving, the organisers started setting up the table for registration, for what? A draw. They are going to give out prizes like helmets, caps and shirts. This is really turning into an event and not just a regular meet up which is something that really surprised me. Now I’m waiting for what will happen next. After the registration some went back to their tables while others went outside too look at the assorted motorcycles attending the event. Everyone had their own small group, both inside and out side the cafe. From time to time the members of the group switch up, some stranger would join in the conversation with the usual ice breaker… motorcycles.
DETOUR
ISSUE NO. FIVE
BIKES & BREAKFAST
14
B I K E S A N D B R E A K FA S T
Then someone arrived on a Husqavarna Terra 650‌ someone prominent i suppose as people started to whisper to each other. He paced twice before deciding to park, when he took his helmet off. Those who were whispering smiled, a sign of confirmation that their hunch was correct. It was Jay Taruc. At first I thought he was there to attend the event just like a regular rider, but apparently he was there to shoot the event and turn it into one episode of his upcoming motorcycle related show. He was with three other people a drone guy, a dslr shooter and another one who seemed like a producer. They interviewed the organizer and talked about the details of the event, where it started and how it came to be.
DETOUR
ISSUE NO. FIVE
BIKES & BREAKFAST
15
B I K E S A N D B R E A K FA S T
At first I thought that Bikes and Breakfast was an original idea of the Bikerbox crew, later I found out that it all started way back in 2013 back in the US. It’s main goal is to gather like minded individuals who are into vintage, classic and custom motorcycles. But it doesn’t discriminate, it welcomes any brand or style as long as it on two wheels or maybe three. The first event here in the Philippines was held at the Bikerbox Warehouse last February 12, 2017. Then the event attendees started to mobilize, they organized themselves into two rows and started moving out. The drone hovered waiting for them to come back, they rode very slowly as they approach the its field of view. After getting the nod from the drone operator that everything was captured they went on to park their motorcycles, that act might be very simple but the sense of accomplishment was very obvious in their smile as they took of their helmets.
BIKES & BREAKFAST
DETOUR
ISSUE NO. FIVE
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A sense of accomplishment.
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ISSUE NO. FIVE
BIKES & BREAKFAST
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Diversity creates identity.
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ISSUE NO. FIVE
BIKES & BREAKFAST
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“ “ B I K E S A N D B R E A K FA S T
"Almost." Because some still preferred to drink beer so early in the morning.
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Everyone was invited to go back inside for the awarding. It’s probably the first time this morning that I got to realize just how many came, the place was packed. Some of the riders were not even sitting at chairs anymore, they settled at the steps going the next floor of the place while others were content with just standing. They started giving away the raffle prizes, everyone was excited to hear their names called. The prizes are not just cheap give aways, they are branded shirts and caps and even an expensive helmet. One by one they approached Maki, the host, with big smiles on their faces accepting the various goodies. Last prizes were given the 3 best looking bikes of the morning. It was very hard to determine who would win the 2nd and 3rd place since theres a lot of awesome looking bikes. But we all agreed on who to take the first place, the Virago 750 made by Tokwa Party Garage.
After the mandatory group photos infront of the winning bikes, I was expecting for people to leave. Some did, but most didn’t, seems everyone is still hyped, still all smiles and very active. After all, for most of them the day is just starting. This event is a refreshing reminder that you don’t need alcohol to have a successful gathering of bikers. The stigma of bikes and booze going hand in hand is almost non existent here. (“Almost” because some still preferred to drink beer so early in the morning). Seeing everyone smiling and active without a trace of alcohol is a site to see… special thanks to coffee.
DETOUR
ISSUE NO. FIVE
BIKES & BREAKFAST
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R I DE , R E V I EWS A N D R EA L S TO R I ES. www.nobarriersjusthorizons.ph
REVIEW
B I LT W E L L GRINGO
29
by MARVIN GERONIMO
Custom motorcycles are all rage today. Most often, it’s not enough just to have one. You also have to look the part. Of course looking the part should start first with your brain bucket. There are a lot of options out there when it comes to retro-inspired lids but most of them are half-face. So when I found out that Biltwell has a full face retro inspired helmet, I immediately decided to get one to match my custom motorcycle Wander One. But after knowing one crucial detail, I held myself back. STYLE
It’s retro, that’s for sure. There are no bells and whistles in this model, just a straight up rounded helmet, with a little opening to accommodate some goggles and buttons to attach a sun visor. From the outside, it looks nothing special, but wait til you see the inside. It looks like a the interior of an expensive car, the lining is soft to the touch and the orange diamond stitching reminds of those expensive sofa’s you see on malls. Just looking at the details of this helmet you can immediately say that a lot of care and thought went into designing and creating this helmet. PERFORMANCE
I think our predecessors didn’t think much about the helmets that they are using, as long as it’s comfortable and can offer some form of protection they will use it. The gringo does that exactly, and just that. While the lining inside is soft and comfy it does get a little bit hot especially when riding at noontime traffic. There are no vents in this helmet, the only air passage is the narrow eye port and personally, I don’t think it gives enough air circulation for you to comfortably ride on a hot sunny day.
BIKES & BREAKFAST
DETOUR
ISSUE NO. FIVE
B I LT W E L L G R I N G O
Your peripheral vision is also lessened because of the width of the eye port and it becomes worse when you wear goggles, so make sure you do head checks whenever you are changing lanes. Keep in mind that it doesn’t come with any face or eye protectors, getting a bubble shield might be a good idea to get one before using it.
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The D-Rings looks really safe and secure and the chin strap is made out of some thick strong fabric, just make sure to adjust it properly and button up excess strap for a smooth safe ride. AFFORDABILITY
Overall the build quality is awesome and the attention to detail is admirable, so thumbs up to that Biltwell. But I just can’t get over the fact that they sell it for an absurd price of 15,000 php. I actually think that you don’t get what you paid for here, for that price I hope they would incorporate some form of modern feature. Personally, I wouldn’t shell out that amount of cash just so I can look the part. It seems brands are jumping on the custom motorcycle hype train and are pricing “retroinspired” products at a premium price without really adding anything into it. R E C O M M E N D AT I O N
I wouldn’t recommend this helmet at all. The price is just too high for something that is very basic, yes it does look good… like really good. But it just costs too damn much, I think at around 8-12,000 PHP would be an acceptable price for this. Also, you can get other brands that can give you the same look and feel without breaking the bank, some of them even have some modern features like vents and visors. You might be wondering, how come he has that helmet to review if he wouldn’t buy it at its retail price? I got mine pre-owned at almost half the price. The previous owner just sold his Ducati Scrambler and is disposing of his retro-inspired gear, luckily I got hold of the helmet which was just used twice.
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ISSUE NO. FIVE
BIKES & BREAKFAST
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CLOSING
CAFFEINE & GASOLINE
33
by MARVIN GERONIMO
I recently had a conversation with a friend that me and JC had, he is now working at the admitting section of a tertiary hospital, he told me that 94% of the motorcycle that they admit are caused by self accident. A huge percentage of that is due to alcohol intoxication while riding. I don’t know if it’s the testosterone filled motorcycle macho culture that’s driving riders to live the bike and booze lifestyle. One thing is for sure, it has to change. Motorcycle riding already has a lot of inherent dangers and adding alcohol into the mix is a recipe for disaster, everybody knows that but theres always a handful that ignores that. This event is a step away from that, it’s cultivating a culture that has all the typical biker ethos, yet none of the dangers brought by alcohol. As more and more attend this kinds of events, many will realise that alcohol is not a pre-requisite to having a good time. Oil and alcohol will never mix, but maybe caffeine and gasoline will.
BIKES & BREAKFAST
DETOUR
ISSUE NO. FIVE
Humble in tone,genuine in cur iosity. ISSUE NO. FIVE | PUBLISHED MARCH 2018 C O P Y R I G H T 2 0 1 8 © D E T O U R M O T O X T R AV E L , A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D