Last Update 11/15/2009

"Second Fridays" - Party at the IOOB Clubhouse

We invite you to come on down and party with the Old Bastards on the second Friday of every Month. We feature great live Las Vegas Bands, food, and good times. All at the IOOB clubhouse located near the southeast corner of Pecos and Craig right next door to Sinister Cycles. Parties start at 8:00pm. So, hop on your ride and come party with us on "Second Fridays!"

Kingman Daily Miner

Wednesday, November 04, 2009

They will protest businesses with ‘no colors’ policy

KINGMAN - More than 1,500 motorcyclists from around Arizona are expected to roll into Kingman this weekend.

The riders will be in town for the bimonthly meeting of the Arizona Confederation of Motorcycle Clubs (ACMC). The riders also plan on stopping by several bars that have recently instituted a "no colors" policy.

The riders will be equipped with forms that will allow them to document any incidents in which they are turned away because of what they are wearing, said ACMC Chairman Still Ray of Prescott.

Ray said members of the Arizona State Gang Task Force have been threatening to pull liquor licenses from bars and restaurants unless they institute a "no colors" policy.

"The problem is that the gang task force is using the state liquor board as a weapon and that's not right," Ray said.

Ray added that the riders aren't out to cause a riot but rather exercise their right to lawful assembly.

Bars and restaurants on the planned protest route include Mad Dog's, Chuy's, Cerbat Lanes and the Sportsman's bar. When contacted, some said they were aware of Saturday's activities.

Deborah Barry, owner of Mad Dog's, said she instituted a "no colors" policy more than a month ago because of the surveillance being conducted by police in her parking lot. Because the bikers were being watched and photographed, they were less likely to drink, which led to a drop in revenue, and ultimately, the ban on colors, she said.

Barry said she was never threatened to have her liquor license revoked if she didn't ban colors.

"Colors" are considered any patch or insignia on a vest that would identify an affiliation with a particular motorcycle club.

Ray said that riders are being tagged as criminals or gang members because of their association with motorcycles.

"It's a way of life," he said. "I resent it when I am considered a criminal because I'm in a motorcycle club."

Ray said up to 2,000 riders could roll into Kingman by Saturday. He said he was aware of a couple of groups of more than 400 riders coming from Phoenix.

Ray said the riders have been invited to take part in the Veteran's Day parade in North Kingman Saturday morning. The parade will begin at 11 a.m. at the corner of North Bond Street and Northern Avenue.

The ACMC meeting will be held at the American Legion Post on Oak Street at noon.

Kingman Daily Miner

Sunday, November 08, 2009

Businesses waive ‘no colors’ policy, serve hundreds of paying customers

KINGMAN - No major incidents or disruptions were reported Saturday after more than 500 motorcyclists rolled into Kingman to protest a "no colors" policy recently instituted by several local bars.

Bikers were even served at at least one of the bars they anticipated they would be turned away from. And one bar avoided the controversy altogether by closing.

"Why would they turn us away?" said Steve Musgrave, a member of the Desert Thunder motorcycle club and a registered motorcycle rights lobbyist for eight years. "Our money should be as good as everyone else's."

Musgrave rode 240 miles from Casa Grande to protest the move by several bars in Kingman to post a "no colors" policy. Colors are defined as a patch or insignia that identifies an affiliation with a motorcycle club, although several people have said they've been asked to leave several recent local events for wearing anything motorcycle-related, including Harley-Davidson T-shirts.

In July, motorcyclists in Kingman said they began to notice a visible police presence by the State Gang Task Force at their ride events, including the weekly Bike Night, where riders gather at a local establishment to eat and socialize.

Bike Night, which is sponsored locally by Performance Specialists, moved from Chuy's on Stockton Hill Road to the Sonic Drive-In on Andy Devine in early September after Chuy's instituted a "no colors" policy.

Riders wearing their club colors on Saturday expected to document people who were turned away from Chuy's for a possible class-action lawsuit. Those who arrived armed with discrimination forms, however, found no need for them after they were served, despite wearing their vests.

Bikers were also served at Cerbat Lanes but were asked to leave the Sportsman's bar. Police responded to the location at the request of the bar owner but no arrests were made.

The owner of Mad Dog's closed the establishment Saturday afternoon and posted a notice that as a business, they have the right to establish their own dress code.

Police had a highly visible presence around town and especially outside of the American Confederation of Motorcycle Clubs' meeting, which was held at noon Saturday at the American Legion Hall at E. Oak and Third Streets downtown. A police helicopter circled in the air after the meeting had adjourned, while several marked and unmarked police vehicles drove up and down the street.

Officers in at least one unmarked SUV were taking photographs and video footage of people congregating outside of the meeting. Police from Bullhead City also patrolled the area. Sgt. Bob Fisk with the Kingman Police Department reported no incidents by mid- afternoon.

Anecdotally, those inside and around the meeting traded stories about several riders who had been ticketed or arrested on their way to Kingman, including Sonny Barger, a founding member of the Oakland, Calif., chapter of the Hell's Angels. Barger, 71, was allegedly arrested at a gas station on Interstate 40 just east of Kingman Saturday morning. At least one law enforcement official confirmed the arrest but was unable to provide details.

Dan Balentine, president of the Kingman chapter of the Desert Road Riders, said his club was scheduled last year to host this month's ACMC meeting. It was originally scheduled to be held in Fort Mohave but was moved to Kingman so that riders could protest not only the "no colors" policy, but what the motorcyclists perceive as harassment on the part of police.

"We feel like law enforcement are the one who are trying to create a bad image of us," Balentine said.

Police have been tight-lipped about what prompted the surveillance by the State Gang Task Force in the first place, although Kingman Police Chief Robert DeVries has said previously that police aren't targeting riders as a whole but rather those involved in criminal and gang activity.

Musgrave said it is unfair for police to label motorcycle clubs as gangs.

"We are a club, not a gang. We have regular meetings and pay dues," he said. "Almost everybody here is a law-abiding citizen who has a job and pays their taxes, just like everyone else."