Motorcycle created by Side Street Cycles honored by Hot Bike Magazine, completes recent Iron Butt Association Challenge


Bike created locally scores high achievements ... Kent Sweeney, owner of Side Street Cycles in Waukon, displays the motorcycle he created for a local cycle enthusiast, along with the Editor's Choice Award the bike recently received from Hot Bike Magazine. Standard photo by Bob Beach.

Side Street Cycles in Waukon has achieved the distinction of creating a motorcycle that was recently honored by Hot Bike Magazine with an Editor’s Choice award for the “Top Bagger” in the Hot Bike Power Tour. A “bagger” is a touring motorcycle designed for long-distance rides with luggage storage. Side Street Cycles owner Kent Sweeney said that he was approached by a local motorcycle enthusiast about building a motorcycle that he could ride all day but still be able to handle mountain-type curves with the ease of a sport bike, a request Sweeney called “a tall order.”
Sweeney and the enthusiast decided to start with a stock 2003 Harley Davidson Super Glide Sport, Harley’s best handling motorcycle produced to date, according to Sweeney. Initial modifications included an upgrade to the suspension package and the addition of oversized brakes to ensure safety and improve the bike’s handling. Sweeney said the suspension package was chosen with dual rate springs to give it a "Cadillac ride with Corvette-like handling". The oversized brakes were added to ensure that the rider would be able to stop the motorcycle safely and quickly, Sweeney said.
The lighting system on the motorcycle was upgraded next with high-intensity LED lights to help motorists see the bike and ensure that the bike could be ridden safely at night.
Sweeney and his client chose a Harley FXRT body kit which was discontinued in the 1990s, so a reproduction kit was used. Sweeney said that every effort was made to keep the work on the bike local, so Gordy’s Auto Body in Waukon was enlisted to paint the bike, while the graphics were designed by Lucky 7 Design Company in Waukon.
Sweeney said that the final product was intended for the type of person who wants to ride, but not necessarily a “show bike,” so the award from Hot Bike Magazine came as a surprise to both Sweeney and his client.
The Hot Bike Power Tour, hosted by Hot Bike Magazine, invites all the top motorcycle builders in the nation to ride with regular enthusiasts on a 1,000-mile journey to show their talent as builders. This year it started in Sprit Lake right here in Iowa and ended in Billings, MT. Baggers Magazine was on the tour and asked to take some professional photos of the motorcycle for a potential feature in that publication.
After the local rider completed the Power Tour, Sweeney challenged the motorcycle owner to complete an “Iron Butt Association Challenge.” The local rider traveled 2,000 miles in 48 hours to complete what is considered a top honor in the Iron Butt Association. This local motorcyclist was able to complete this challenge with no problems. At the end of the challenge, Sweeney said the local rider stated, “I was just really hungry and not physically wore out, like on previous Harleys I have owned.”
Sweeney said that his effort to combine touring comfort with sport cycle met and exceeded both his expectations and those of his client with the way the bike performs and the media attention the bike has received.