Motorcycles of all kinds rolled into Pittsburgh Brewing Company for the annual Glory Daze Motorcycle Show on Saturday, September 21, 2024. The new location was a hit, allowing for more room and unique forms of entertainment throughout the day. Changing venues isn’t easy, and many people wondered how the vibe of past events would transfer to the new setting. Pittsburgh Brewing Company is the home of Iron City Beer, a presenting partner of the show since day one.

For 2024, the Trippy Ten helmet art show had a new home and presenting partner. The exhibit has moved to the new Glory Daze venue at Pittsburgh Brewing Company, taking over the impressive Brew House area of the event. Torc Helmets provided each of the ten selected painters with their choice between four popular models. The resulting lineup was the perfect blend of traditional and unconventional styles.

Most garage chopper shops get started in a very similar way. Someone gets hooked on old-school bikes and starts messing around with their own two-wheeled projects before things snowball. The next thing you know, they’re in deep with these wild machines, building bikes and making their own parts. Nick SanGregory, a piercer who runs his own body piercing and jewelry store in Pittsburgh, fits this story perfectly.

Some hobbies are more interesting than others. In the motorcycle world, vintage drag racing holds a unique place of the industry. Chasing time on a ridiculously custom bike with an engine that’s pushed to the limit just sounds like a thrill. When we were first piecing together the 2021 Glory Daze motorcycle show, one of the featured builders was Steven Skinner of Shadyside, Ohio.

Building a chopper is as much about the bike as it is about the experience. Dan Ford, a local Pittsburgh musician, was surrounded by motorcycles in his youth but only recently finished the custom XL1200 you see here. With the help of Uptahn Metalworks, the bike started to take shape and was finished just in time for Glory Daze last year. If you picture a classic Sportster chopper build, this is something that might come to mind. The flame tank, custom sissy bar, springer front end, and overall silhouette work perfectly for a first-time chopper build. The black and yellow colors scream Pittsburgh, so we met up with Dan at The Highline on East Carson to capture a fitting background for the Steel City build.

Yamaha changed the game when it released the RD250 models in the early 1970s. They were lightweight, fast, and sounded amazing. Maybe you were there firsthand, but if not, you probably heard stories growing up about Yamaha’s racing dominance at that time. Does the name Kenny Roberts ring a bell?