**Holiday
Notice** VANEM will be closed between the 23rd
of December and the 10th of January 2009. For more
info please see the holiday notice posted on the
21st of December >>>>
Another
successful Yokohama Hot Rod
and Custom show has been enjoyed
by many! Getting yourself
to Yokohama for the show may
not be possible for all, but
if you would like to see what
all the fuss is about then
there are now plenty of pictures
being posted on the web for
all to see. We have a few
places on the web that will
get you all revved up and
wishing you had gone. To get
you started, here are a few
links to check out one of
the best shows in town.
Flickr:
always a good place to see
the action through the lens
of someone else!
Some
great Moto pics on Flickr
now being shown thanks to
Hummingburger.
Another
great place to start out is
at one of the best custom
pictorial sites on the web
"sparetime".
The sparetime website
provides some of the best
custom moto pictures on the
web while covering all of
the coolest bikes in Japan.
Most major shows in Japan
appear at the sparetime
website. So if its hot, its
on sparetime. This
site will always have you
enjoying some of the best
custom moto's and pictures
on the web. To introduce yourself
to the website, click
the pics below for the
action.........
VANEM
will be closed for a few
weeks over the holiday period.
We all need to recharge the
batteries and catch our breath.
We thank you for your understanding
and look forward to seeing
you all in 2009!
Wednesday,
December 17, 2008 22:01
Clip
quicky. Back in September we posted
some pics of a bike built by Kamakaze
chop shop (see pic 11 in Sept posts).
Recently a very short blurry clip
of that bike has shown up on Youtube.
That means you can now add the sweet
sound from the Peyton Place muffler
to the pics! Mmm, I don't know what
that will do for ya, but hey give
it a shot....
Friday,
November 21, 2008 7:28 PM
Site
check, Mooneyes Express blog site by
Shige Suganuma.
One
of our favorite blogs is Shige Suganuma's
Mooneyes
Express. This is not a dedicated
two wheel blog, but it does have plenty
of good moto articles and pictures (mainly
show write ups). The blog is updated
on a regular basis as Shige makes his
way to what seems like every custom car
and bike show in Japan and America! The
main focus here is old school cars and
bikes and also plenty of info about the
line of products that Mooneyes produce
and sell. Shige works for Mooneyes Japan
so that means there are plenty of behind
the scene photos and stories about some
of the incredible machines. If you scroll
down the page far enough you will come
to the list of entries (it goes back
quite a while). Here you will also come
to a list of categories including the
motorcycle
section which is well worth a look.
There are some classic pics and articles
not to be missed on this page! I also
suggest a stroll through the rest of
the categories especially if you are
a Hot Rod, American muscle car or nostalgic
auto lover. The write ups are in both
Japanese and English (good one Shige!)
so it is reader friendly to those outside
of Japan. While you check out the good
stuff, click through some of the links
to other blogs by Shige's friends and
associates (mostly in Japanese though!).
Like "Tank's blog", the one
time big boy now thinning down guy who
rides a very cool SR! (His SR chopper
is built by Brat style)
I
hope you enjoy the Mooneyes Express as
much as we do!
Photo:
Courtesy of Lightning / Mooneyes Express
(Hot 70's style W650 built, put together
for lightning mag)
For
a quite a while now many of you would have
seen a "coming soon"
notice up in the place of our features
page. It is a part of the site we always
planned to do, but of course some things
are easier said than done when juggling
a hectic biz from day to day! As the site
has slowly developed we are getting all
of the sections in place, and yes we have
finally got the first features page up!
It's a bit of a pictorial more than anything
else (with some average pics at that!).
So if you're looking for a gallery of pics,
then our feature pages will be the place
to look.
Next
month; "Park-up" We
will take a look at a few parking stations
in Japan. It might even help get some of
the good ideas out there for Australian
cities (and others around the world) to
provide better parking solutions for riders.
We all know it is time to get two wheel
friendly!
This
month we are going to be sharing with you
a few pics that date back to 2004. The
pictures are from our private collection
and were really just snap shots taken on
the day. At the time we didn't have any
thoughts to show them so... they are not
pro shots by any means... but if you are
a SR fan, we are sure you will enjoy the
show all the same!
Enjoy
the first of our features..... Rinku Town
2004 Sea side cafe, Osaka Japan >>>
Sunday,
November 16, 2008 6:28 PM
17th
Annual Yokohama Hot Rod Show 2008...
One
of the hottest shows on the planet takes
place in early December. This show has
a line up of custom bikes and cars to satisfy
all tastes and best of all, plenty of bikes
to our liking! (SR's galore, W650's, Brit
and US builds etc) Entries come not only
from within Japan, but also all the way
from the States! Some of the latest and
greatest show bikes and cars shipped in
from the US to add to the show's already
huge spectacle! This show now has such
a huge following and reputation in Japan.
It is the place for builders in Japan to
showcase their latest creations. Many of
Japan's top builders target this show to
try and take out one of the show's category
awards. Do that at Yokohama and you will
have customers wanting bikes built all
year long! With some of the most influential
builders on the planet at the moment residing
in Japan, you can be guaranteed this year's
show is going to be bigger and better than
ever! For more details check out the official
website and watch out for the post show
pics!
A
taste of what's on show at Yokohama for
2008
Last
year's show at Yokohama, 2007
Saturday,
November 15th, 2008 5:37 PM
The
SR500 Club of Australia has their annual
rally in Bethanga Victoria this coming weekend
so get down there and enjoy the weekend
from the 21st November to the 23rd of November.
Some members will be out for dinner and
brews on the Friday night at the court house
Hotel. The rally is not limited to just
SR riders, so if you are in the area and
want to see some of the action this weekend,
get to it! From all reports there will be
one of the best turn outs in recent years.
For
information and details check the club site
here >>>
HERE