THE SHOW ...
The television show's real name is: The Build-Motorcycle Television, but I like to think of it as Smooth Tv. The reason I like this name is because the Host and Producer's name is John Smotherman aka Smoothy i/e The Smooth. In fact, the show's email address is: thesmooth@peoplepc.com .
The Build ( Motorcycle Television ) is produced in the Lewiston area of Maine by John Smotherman, and is aired throughout Maine by Time Warner Cable Television.
The premise of the show is simple enough, "Everybody's building something ... Let's go see what it is?"
The shops and projects featured on (The Build, ) are not your ultra high end shops and projects, though, their finished work will run with the top of any pack any day. No, these shops and folks are much like the shops and folks we have known most of our Motorcycle lives. These are the kind of shops we have rode to ... to pick up parts, or we have entered into, to buy that new or used bike, or perhaps have headed to just to ask for advice?
In fact, give advice is just what many of Smoothy's guests do in their own sly way.
Much of Smoothy's show gives us the feeling as if we are standing there in the shop listening to old friends talk, and as Smoothy asks the questions, we grab the answers as they come over his shoulder. So we never have to ask any questions and we are never told any answers, we simply glean what we need from their conversation. This is the true Socratic Method of Education, where Socrates, The Philosopher, would enter into a dialogue with his students and all would come away the richer.
You can see this mode at work when Smoothy heads down to Main-ly Action Sports in Oxford, Maine and asks motorcycle expert Jim Boden the ins and outs of winterizing a motorcycle. Jim, from Maine-ly Action Sports, does not just stand there and tell us what we should do and how we should do it, but instead, he and Smoothy enter into a running conversation of what's good and what is not.
"That's not always a great idea."
"That's always a good Idea, Smoothy."
"These work well."
"Absolutely."
We come away from the visit at Maine-ly Action Sports a little richer for the visit.
We feel much the same when we head over to Ken's Auto Sales in Lisbon Falls with Smoothy to visit Jimmy Harris, Motorcyle Builder and Restorer.
"Let's take a run over to Jimmy's and see what new treasure Jimmy has dug up?" ... "Jimmy always has some new treasure to show us!" Smoothy tells us.
Jim Harris is the Epitome of the Kind hearted Bike Builder. I could change the name and the grin slightly, and he could be close kin to many of the other Bike Builders I have met through the years.
Jim is bright eyed and enthusiastic, he likes what he's building, and he likes talking about it. A 1932 Harley Flathead 74 with a long interesting Maine History.
The 32 was first bought by the Auburn, Maine Police Department, through, Shortz Motorcycles in Lewiston, and then sold to the Coffin family (circa 1938 ), for several years in the 60s it was raced at Old Orchard Beach and then it was parked under an apple tree for the next 40 years. Smoothy says that the Coffin Family tells of how at one time 'a snake lived in the gas tank, and whenever the lawn was mowed, the snake would stick its head out to see what the noise was?'
Today, the "Apple Tree Bike" is being restored from the ground up by restorer, Jim Harris and the staff at Ken's Auto Sales.
"Look at that engine," Jim Harris tells us, "Forty years under an apple tree and with a little kerosene and stuff ...' ( "and stuff," is most likely a Jimmy Harris and Ken's Auto Sale's and staff trade secret. ) 'and today it still turns over."
We come away from Ken's Auto Sales with no doubts that one day Smoothy will take us back to Ken's to watch the Apple Tree Bike fire up and see Jim Harris Ride it around the parking lot.
The Build - Mototorcycle Television is not just a one note concert, Jimmy shows us a Barn Fresh 25 Ford Model T Roadster parked in the front of the Ken's Auto Sales, " Picked this up Yesterday," Jimmy tells us. And if we look to the side of the T, we can catch a glimpse of a blue custom 49 or so, Chevy Fleetline parked beside the 25 T.
Besides taking us in and out of Custom Bike Shops and Local Motorcycle Dealers, in other show episodes of THE BUILD, Smoothy takes us to such other sundry places as the Vintage Ski Mobile Races. With Smoothy, there is always something cool happening.
( Please Note* )
The events described above were shot as part of show 20 of THE BUILD-Motorcycle Television. To possibly purchase the DVD of this show or for more infomation about THE BUILD Television Show, please email thesmooth@peoplepc.com .
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Jimmy Harris shows off the Apple Tree Bike's seat pan.