Born Free 3: metal is the message at California’s coolest bike show

Hi, my name is Dave and I’m a concours-holic… Recovering, happy to say, but oh I had it bad, a certified carnauba-in-the-blood addict always with a Q-tip on hair-trigger, ready to banish that last offending fleck of dust. In the five years that I spent as a d’elegance devotee, I took home my share of hardware, including numerous bests-in-class and even a best-of-show. Then it all changed. I was seeing a lot of the same bikes, I realized, their only mileage whatever was accumulated by being pushed from the trailer to the showgrounds. I was hearing the same stories from the same people, and it was all getting a little stale. That’s why Cycle World started its Rolling Concours events — sadly now discontinued — where we all went on a three-hour ride, broken up by a nice BBQ lunch, before judging commenced. It’s also one of the reasons I love the Born-Free show.

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