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ShopTalk Episode 321: Back Where It All Began (New Studio, Trans Am Recap, and Big Motorcycle News)

Chris Callen

Back in Pennsylvania, back at street level, and back on time. ShopTalk just fired up its 321st episode from Cycle Source Magazine’s brand new headquarters in Tarentum, Pennsylvania, and it felt like coming home. After a long haul from South Dakota and a blur of boxes, the crew rolled into a fresh studio with big windows, a railroad soundtrack, and a stacked lineup. On tap this week: Tom Banks and Kelsey Jackson with the inside story on the inaugural Trans American Motorcycle Endurance Run, a killer feature bike from S&S Cycle, a packed news segment, and a few road stories from a cold but gorgeous PA fall ride.

Welcome Back to Pittsburgh and the New Studio

The move back east was 1,100-plus miles of truck time and repeat runs, capped by two perfect days of riding through Pennsylvania’s mountains as the leaves started to flip. Western PA does fall like few places can. Cooks Forest, the Allegheny National Forest, the smell of wood smoke, and those rolling sweepers. It hits you in the chest.

The new digs sit in a historic building that once housed a Napoleon Pontiac dealership, then later served as a showroom for Gatto’s Harley-Davidson service department. Street level, great bones, and those windows. There’s still a room or two of boxes at the house, but the studio is up, live, and looking sharp.

A running joke from the crew: somebody learned how to clean windows, which is apparently a useful backup career if this whole motorcycle media thing goes sideways.

Shoutouts to Viewers and Crew

Live chat came in hot right from the countdown. Riders checked in from all over, with plenty of ball-busting and “good to see you back” energy.

The show streams to 15 different channels on the Dennis Kirk Motorcycle Studio Network every Sunday at 9 p.m. Join live, drop comments, and give your buddies a nudge to tune in.

What to Expect from ShopTalk

It’s 90 to 120 minutes of two-wheel talk, every week. Feature bikes, tech tips, new parts, rider stories, and the news you actually care about. The show’s back at Cycle Source’s new HQ, and the format is classic ShopTalk: real, loose, and packed.

Share with friends and neighbors, they’ll miss it if you don’t.

Gloating About the Studio Upgrades

The new setup looks clean and bright on camera. The team joked about the downside of a nice set, which is the need to wear pants on air. Then a train whistle cut across the audio mid-intro, because the building sits close to the tracks. If you hear that in the background, it’s just local color.

Motorcycle News Roundup

Polaris Separating Indian Motorcycle

Big headline: Polaris is separating Indian Motorcycle into a standalone company. The take on air was straightforward. The move reads like a handoff to an investment group. That raised eyebrows, because Indian has dropped some of its best modern bikes in recent years.

Diehard Harley folks who throw a leg over an Indian often walk away impressed. The irony wasn’t lost that for years Indian tried to look like Harley, and now some Harley models carry lines that look more like Indians.

The concern came through clear. Nobody wants to see strong bikes vanish from the market. Whether this shift gives Indian a kick or starts a slide is the question. Time will tell.

Bandit Back at Easyriders

K. Randall “Bandit” Ball is back in the big chair at Easyriders. He signed on with Ellen Teresi, and the vibe is hopeful. If you grew up on those magazines, this hits deep. There was a time when 25 custom mags shared newsstands. In 2018 alone, a banner from a Harley Editors’ Choice show still listed 18. If “Easyriders in good hands” is the line, this might be the best hands since Bandit left.

It’s awesome.

Royal Enfield Calls Women Racers

Royal Enfield is accepting applications for its Build Train Race program. The format is simple and the opportunities are real, but it’s competitive.

How to apply:

  1. Submit a two-minute highlight video showing your racing.
  2. Submit a short personal video explaining who you are and why you want in.

The program’s been rolling for a few years and it’s helped women racers get track time and visibility. If you’re a woman racer, this is your shot.

Team USA Hits the Podium

A quick congrats to Team USA for a podium finish at the 2025 FIM Motocross of Nations. It’s a world stage, and a podium as a group is a big deal. Super huge congratulations to the team.

Feature Bike: Charlie’s Modern-Twist Superglide

Charlie from S&S Cycle rolled in with a clean, fast classic that started life as a 1976 FLH. He reimagined it with a Superglide vibe and a handful of smart changes.

Build highlights:

The bike blends old school looks with functional modern touches. Charlie grew up in the industry, wrenching because he had small hands that could reach where others couldn’t. He jokes about holding flashlights wrong and fetching the wrong wrench, which is pretty much the official childhood of every garage kid.

This bike sat for four years, then spent six months on paper as he figured out what it wanted to be. The motor and transmission feel right. The headlight mount looks cool, but he might shift it to the lower tree for day-to-day use. Smart call.

The Trans American Motorcycle Endurance Run: Recap with Tom Banks and Kelsey Jackson

What It Was and Why It Mattered

The first Trans American Motorcycle Endurance Run is in the books, and it was a standout. Banks Brothers Competition Distributing pulled it together, with Tom Banks and Kelsey Jackson steering from the front seat.

This wasn’t about racing the next rider. It was about beating the machine, the mileage, and the day. Tom knows the grind from Cannonball singles and chose to take a different role here. He stayed on course daily, worked with riders, and focused on one thing, credibility. It worked.

Kelsey was the ringleader and handled the moving circus. Herding cats was the phrase, but once the group got tight, the trip flowed. First big signal they had something special, the town of Apex, North Carolina hung a welcome banner and turned out with a crowd.

4,000 miles on 100-year-old bikes is insane. Everyone felt the weight of that, and they rose to it.

How They Organized It

They built a board to help shape rules, settle disputes, and keep the event rider-first. Kelsey and the crew chased down meaningful stops, not just parking lots and dealerships. The team sourced riders, handled sponsors, mapped the towns, and kept the whole train moving west.

Key elements that made it work:

  1. On-course leadership, every day
  2. A rider-focused rule book and board
  3. Go-deep stops like museums that tied to motorcycle history
  4. Real support, from sponsors to sweep to media

Sponsors mattered. Legends came in strong. Brian at Sinless Cycles helped. Steve Klein contributed. And Indian Motorcycle supported in a big way, providing two Pursuits and a Roadmaster for support. Sean rode a Pursuit, and he was sold on modern Indian touring after the trip.

Stories From the Road

This run had characters. You could write a book from the first week alone.

Danger Dan deserves a special nod. He rolled a 1921 machine across 4,100 miles on time, after past failures by multiple riders. People assume he’s just the funny guy. He is. He’s also a serious rider with serious mechanical chops.

Kelsey’s favorite moment came early, rolling into Apex and seeing a real crowd. It proved that people still care about these old machines, not just as museum pieces, but as living, running bikes.

Winners, Big Fours, and What’s Next

Winner: Mike Buts of Minnesota on a 1913 Henderson. He made every mile, then slept like a rock.

The stars of the show, beyond the riders, were the Big Fours. The Hendersons and Aces carry a sound that turns heads. They’re rare to see in motion, and this run put as many as seven on the road some days. If you know, you know.

The future looks strong. Registration for 2027 is already open. The hard part will be topping the stops they nailed this year:

Tom also teased the next big build coming out of Competition Distributing, a Henderson that’s already moving forward in the shop. Sean’s leading the mechanical side, and if you’ve followed their work, you know it’ll be sharp.

Check event info and updates at the official site: Motorcycle Trans Am.

Ties To Competition Distributing and Culture

The run grew from a simple idea. Keep antique motorcycling alive in a way that matters. With past uncertainty around the Cannonball, someone had to carry that torch. Tom made it clear. This isn’t about a quick buck. It’s about the bikes and the people who keep them running.

Kelsey handled social, PR, video, and the live dance of a daily rolling event. Sean kept the machines moving and the technical side tight. Stops weren’t throwaway parking lots. They were experiences, like parking under the Spruce Goose. Photographers like Olivier, Edo, Cass, and Finanel captured it all.

A Proper Pennsylvania Fall Ride

Between the move and the show, the crew squeezed in a two-day fall ride on a Harley-Davidson Street Glide Ultra. Lake Erie. The Caboose Motel. Then a stop at the Drake Well Museum in Titusville, where the oil industry got its start. The site is known as the valley that changed the world. The docent was proud of the original hole and the push-button presentation, whether or not the button worked.

Cooks Forest and the Allegheny National Forest showed off hard. Crisp air, wide rivers, and long shadows. There was also a new best friend named Galado, a very social donkey who made the day better. No idea the oil industry started here. That’s the fun of slow miles and side roads.

Shoutouts and Community

Props to Mark and Brandon for stepping up on a big project to help a brother in need. Long days, little Eleanor as the on-site foreman, and a lot of heart. That’s the motorcycle world when it’s at its best.

Big thanks to the sponsors who keep the mics hot and the cameras rolling:

Next up on the show, a pile of catch-up from Sturgis and SmokeOut, plus a few straight-talk rants that need to be said out loud.

Upcoming Events You Can Ride To

Here are a few standouts on the calendar, pulled from CycleFish:

The Love Ride is returning, which makes everyone smile, even if it lands on a busy weekend.

Conclusion

Back in Tarentum, back at street level, and back in the groove. The new studio feels right, the bikes keep rolling, and the Trans Am proved that old iron still has miles left to run. The takeaway is simple. Keep showing up for the culture that shows up for you. Thanks for hanging with us through the move, for sounding off in the comments, and for tuning in every Sunday night. What should we cover next week? Drop it in the chat, bring a friend, and we’ll see you on the road.

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