Fred Cuba's Red Wheel
89 images Created 12 Aug 2020
I started coming to Sturgis in 1973 to race flat track with my friends. After a few years, we stopped racing, but kept coming just to ride the hills. I was mostly building 750 Honda choppers until 1978, when Arlen Ness showed up in front of Gunners on Main Street with his Blown Knuckle. I loved it so much I built a number of “digger” style bikes myself.
My first customized Harley was a 1969 Bay Area Style Sportster I built in 1980. The very next bike was this red-wheeled Shovelhead. By this time, we were all hanging out in Spearfish and would blast back and forth through the canyon to Deadwood. Given our condition, the bike thankfully rode itself once it got over 5 MPH. We were pretty much the only ones riding what people called “show bikes”. I always looked forward to getting up here, and especially seeing Arlen to see what he was up to. What a great guy. If you had any problems with paint, he would tell you what he knew. He had no secrets. He was the King. Sitting over beers in the Stockade in Deadwood, Arlen would just pull a napkin out of his pocket and show me a drawing of the newest creation in his head.
After building “Red Wheel”, I swore I would never build anything I couldn’t clean in a car wash, and then there was powder coat! Over the years, I’ve gotten into FXR’s, Buell rigids & eventually flat-track inspired Evo-Softails that I’m still building. (I call them “Deceive-O’s” when people ask!)
From chopping bikes in my home basement in 1974 and starting my own shop in 1978 (after I quit the Honda shop for giving me a hard time for going to Sturgis) to now, I’ve turned out the best hand-built customs I can. Recently, a friend said to me, “if you count the hours you work, you’re not really making much money.” I can’t argue, but I love going into my shop, an old “Vess Cola” building. As an old Harley dealer friend said, “This ain’t a motorcycle shop, it’s a museum.” Sometimes, I find myself staring at the neon, the bikes, the posters… and then I’ll stare at a piece of steel, get an idea and bend it just to see how it looks. I may keep it, or I may throw it away. And then I’ll mess with a piece of sheet metal. The next thing you know, I’m at the bench working on a new bike, at least until friends show up after work and we break out the beers.
I’m getting to that age where people retire with great retirement packages, but then a lot of people live miserable lives at jobs they hate. So I won’t get that big check, but I’ve had a lot of fun and I’m still laughing. Me and my dog still love going into the shop and I still love riding, racing, and customizing. One of the best parts is all of the great people and great friends I’ve met along the way. And on this note, I want to thank the Ness’s, Gary Bang, Arlin Fatland, Michael and Rick Pew along with my customers and all those friends that keep dropping in. Thanks for the good times.
Special thanks to Jerry. Fred Cuba (2020)
My first customized Harley was a 1969 Bay Area Style Sportster I built in 1980. The very next bike was this red-wheeled Shovelhead. By this time, we were all hanging out in Spearfish and would blast back and forth through the canyon to Deadwood. Given our condition, the bike thankfully rode itself once it got over 5 MPH. We were pretty much the only ones riding what people called “show bikes”. I always looked forward to getting up here, and especially seeing Arlen to see what he was up to. What a great guy. If you had any problems with paint, he would tell you what he knew. He had no secrets. He was the King. Sitting over beers in the Stockade in Deadwood, Arlen would just pull a napkin out of his pocket and show me a drawing of the newest creation in his head.
After building “Red Wheel”, I swore I would never build anything I couldn’t clean in a car wash, and then there was powder coat! Over the years, I’ve gotten into FXR’s, Buell rigids & eventually flat-track inspired Evo-Softails that I’m still building. (I call them “Deceive-O’s” when people ask!)
From chopping bikes in my home basement in 1974 and starting my own shop in 1978 (after I quit the Honda shop for giving me a hard time for going to Sturgis) to now, I’ve turned out the best hand-built customs I can. Recently, a friend said to me, “if you count the hours you work, you’re not really making much money.” I can’t argue, but I love going into my shop, an old “Vess Cola” building. As an old Harley dealer friend said, “This ain’t a motorcycle shop, it’s a museum.” Sometimes, I find myself staring at the neon, the bikes, the posters… and then I’ll stare at a piece of steel, get an idea and bend it just to see how it looks. I may keep it, or I may throw it away. And then I’ll mess with a piece of sheet metal. The next thing you know, I’m at the bench working on a new bike, at least until friends show up after work and we break out the beers.
I’m getting to that age where people retire with great retirement packages, but then a lot of people live miserable lives at jobs they hate. So I won’t get that big check, but I’ve had a lot of fun and I’m still laughing. Me and my dog still love going into the shop and I still love riding, racing, and customizing. One of the best parts is all of the great people and great friends I’ve met along the way. And on this note, I want to thank the Ness’s, Gary Bang, Arlin Fatland, Michael and Rick Pew along with my customers and all those friends that keep dropping in. Thanks for the good times.
Special thanks to Jerry. Fred Cuba (2020)
