Gophers and Cheese

Well, I'm finally wrapping up coverage from the Donnie Smith Bike & Car Show from way back in 2016.  Unlike my prior posts you'll see a bit of the swap meet and car show here too.  If that's not your thing, don't worry, there are more motorcycles ahead too.  This year's show is scheduled for May 21-23, 2021.  It's a later in the year than normal so, if you're planning to go, mark your calendar.

Will I actually go back and clean out my archives?  There's a lot of photos from past shows I haven't posted.  I don't know... maybe one day.  For now, enjoy another big batch from Vintage Torque Fest 2019.

The 28th Annual Donnie Smith Bike & Car Show & Parts Extravaganza is this weekend in St. Paul. My blog posts from prior years are tagged Donnie Smith .  This will be my 8th consecutive year attending.  See you there!

I took over 400 photos at the 27th Annual Donnie Smith Bike Show back in March and I finally sat down to choose, edit, organize, and post the best of them so let's get started! The weather was decent for late-March so I rode my Road King to the show. The Donnie Smith show focuses on custom bikes and people define "custom" in vastly different ways.  It's a show where stripped down choppers meet over-the-top high-dollar customized baggers.  There are usually a handful of vintage motorcycles too but they're the only bikes at the show that are even close to stock. There's always a HUGE indoor swap meet. In total, I'll be sharing nearly 200 photos from the show over a series of 10 posts.  Non-Harleys are up next!

Winter came early this year and I'm not happy about it.  While it's possible we may see one last warm streak, I'm not holding my breath.  As riding season turns into wrenching season, I want to make sure you're aware of the swap meet November 23rd in Minneapolis, hosted by the EFMC .  Get some cool parts and get to work in your garage. Of course, if you're in the mood to shop right now, you can get these and many other fine stickers for your bike or toolbox in my store ( http://gophersandcheese.bigcartel.com/ ):

The 27th Annual Donnie Smith Bike & Car Show is only about a month away.  It is March 29-30 at the St. Paul RiverCentre .  This will be my 7th consecutive year attending.  You can check out blog posts and pics from the last few years on my Guide To Local Events page. This year will be quite a bit different as it is the first year where cars will be on display along with the usual custom bikes and massive swap meet.  It should be interesting.

The 9th Annual 2014 Rochester Bike Show and Swap Meet was held at the Mayo Civic Center in downtown Rochester in Saturday, February 1, 2014.  It was my third year attending the event and it was a lot of fun. There were quite a few rows of bikes featuring vintage and custom motorcycles. There was a decent sized swap meet there too. Both summer and winter tires were available for sale. This cat was very comfortable around all the rusty old parts. A lot of vendors were also set up including Relic Kustoms .  I've seen their blue Triumph before at various shows (which is awesome) but the 1973 CB350 Honda chopper was new to me. I have about 100 more photos from the show ready to post so keep coming back over the next two weeks to see them all!

EFMC Nordeast Swap-Meet National Guard Armory 1025 Broadway St. NE Minneapolis, MN 55413 9am - 3pm

The Rochester Bike Show and Swap Meet is a few weeks earlier than last year so don't miss it!  It will be held February 1st at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, MN from 10am to 4pm.  I went the last two years so check out my Guide to Local Events page for blog posts and pics.

In case you're looking for something to do on Sunday... Nordeast Swap-Meet Sunday November 24th, 9am-3pm National Guard Armory 1025 Broadway St NE, Mpls.

There are simultaneous swap meets going on next month at St. Paul Harley-Davidson and Wild Prairie Harley-Davidson in Eden Prairie.  The swap meets are both Saturday, April 6, 2013 (10am-3pm). I haven't been to a swap meet at either location before and it looks like you have to be a local HOG chapter member to have a table so I'm not sure what you can expect.

The 8th Annual 2013 Rochester Bike Show and Swap Meet was yesterday, February 23rd, at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, MN.  It was nearly a 2 hour drive south from Minneapolis.  I took a ton of photos (just over 250), and picked out the best of the best for a series of posts so let's get started... First of all, I don't know what the hell was going on in Rochester yesterday, but the parking lots and ramps around the Civic Center were full and I had to park a few blocks away.  It was a cold walk over to the building. Inside, there was a small setup by show sponsor Rochester Harley-Davidson and then you walk into the main area.  Bike show in front and swap meet in the back. According to Donorcycles (check out his blog for more pics), the turnout was hurt by Friday's snowstorm but there were still a lot of great bikes on display and the show had a good turnout. Among the very diverse group of people attending the show were families, riding clubs,...

The 2013 26th Annual Donnie Smith Bike Show is March 23rd and 24th at the St. Paul RiverCentre .  There's a big swap meet too. I have attended the last 5 years and definitely plan on attending this year too.  For lots of blog posts and tons of pics from prior years, check out my Guide to Local Events page.

The 2013 8th Annual Rochester Bike Show and Swap Meet is Saturday, February, 23rd at the Mayo Civic Center . I went last year and it's definitely worth checking out.  Visit my Guide to Local Events page for links to blog posts and pics.

Here's my last set of pics from the 2012 Rochester Cycle Show and Swap... I was really impressed by the quantity and quality of Sportsters at the show.  This is only a sampling of them. I like the raked out front-end: I'm generally not a fan of the pro-street style but I don't recall seeing many Sportster engines used in this style bike. This 2007 Sporty is showcasing a lot of mods including clip-on bars and Biltwell 10" struts.  This bike reminds me that I need to do something with the rear end of my Sportster as my fender sits too far above the rear tire. Lots of interesting mods on this one too.  The tan/brown color of the seat and exhaust pops. My favorite Sportster at the show (and second favorite bike overall) was this awesome 1959 XLCH.  Raked out springer, invader wheel, king & queen seat, metalflake paint, pike nuts, and so much more.  So cool. When the show comes to Rochester next year, I highly recommend checking it out! [UPDATE:]...