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Mid-Cal Cycle is a laid-back, mellow, miraculous motorcycle shop born out of necessity. Let me explain...
Bruce and Robert started D.Y.L. , a truck tractor and trailer service company, in 1994. Bruce and Robert
also rode. Bruce and Robert worked on their own motorcycles. As time went by, their friends would come by
and ask them to work on their motorcycles too. Now Bruce and Robert are working on their own motorcycles,
and, on the motorcycles of their friends. Their friends told their friends and soon their friends' friends
would come by and ask them to work on their motorcycles too. And now Bruce and Robert are working on their
own motorcycles, and, on the motorcycles of their friends, and, on the motorcycles of their friends'
friends. The word spread of the two dudes that were good at what they did and who were there to help you
and soon Bruce and Robert were having so much work to do on motorcycles that it was significantly cutting
into the truck repair business, so, the only thing to do was start a motorcycle business, and thus
Mid-Cal Cycle was born in 2004.
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... photograph by Russell Holder
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That covered the necessity, now let me explain the laid-back, mellow and miraculous work that happens at
Mid-Cal Cycle. You wander into the shop and find one or both of Bruce and Robert in the office or in the
back working on a bike. They will stop what they were working on to help you with your problem, even if
all you need is to B.S. for a while. They may be doing something as simple as a handle bar swap or a tire
change or something as complicated as an engine or transmission rebuild or something as fun as a custom
build. Your eyes may wander over the skeleton of a Road-Glide with bunches of wires hanging from everywhere
and a large empty space which was formerly occupied with a pair of barrels and heads; this scene reminds
me of when I have finished field dressing a deer and I stand up and look it all over - at both of these
times I find myself saying "man am I glad I don't have to put it all back together and make it work again!"
What's so miraculous about that? Well, when you see how many people come and go at the shop and you go
back a day or two later and the skeleton on the lift is "outta here" you wonder how do they do it? Are
they working between midnight and 6? It's a puzzler.
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... photograph by Russell Holder
I feel sure that part of the reason that they move the amount of work as quickly as they do is because they
are knowledgeable and see no point in selling you parts you don't need or shot gunning a problem and charging
you for a whole array of parts that got replaced before the part that needed to be replaced to fix the problem
was found. Consider the dude whose bike was leaking oil and was told he needed a new oil pump... nope... it
was the fault of the wrong gasket having been installed - problem solved for two bucks. How about this... a
dude on an 0-9 Ultra Classic is in OREGON and cannot get his bike to start; calls the dealership... "you are
too far away and we don't know what's the matter with it"... dude calls Mid-Cal... "what's your bike do?" "it
doesn't do anything" "well, what's it do when you try to start it" "nothing the turn signal indicators on the
dash just flash a lot" "pop open your key fob, rub the battery on your jeans, put it back together and try
again" "hey, it works!" Yeah, I know... you would have figured that one out. Well, maybe you would have and
maybe you wouldn't have, but nevertheless, if you get stuck, call these dudes.
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... photograph by Russell Holder
How about those clever bureaucratic big brothers that declared that motorcycles would be a lot safer parked
in garages with gas fired hot water heaters etc if there was a way to be sure that Johnny Biker's gas was
turned off whether he remembered to turn it off or not... and hence the vacuum actuated gas petcocks on late
carbureted bikes which render the bike non-functional in the event the vacuum line should come off of the
carburetor... didn't stump Bruce for an instant.
Mid-Cal Cycle services the West Sacramento Police Department Harleys, has insurance work referral from a
local Harley dealership and can give you full service, monthly maintenance, customizing, a complete custom
build, mounting and balancing tires, insurance work, and, parts?... you want parts... they can typically
have your parts there the next day by 10:30am! Want to buy a bike? Want to sell a bike? Check out the "FOR
SALE" page on their website: www.mid-calcycle.com. So, stop in Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm... you'll be
glad you did.
Article and Photos contributed by Russell "Raz" Holder
KNUCKLEHEADS FOREVER!
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