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I’d like to start this article as an interview
since it seems I am always being asked questions
while I am riding The Big Vibe. So without
any further ado, here’s Kim Airs interviewing Kim
Airs about all things motorcycling…
So let’s start with the basics… Kim, how long have
you been riding?
I got my license by taking the MSF course
Massachusetts in 1995 to satisfy a need in me… I
didn’t get serious about getting a bike ‘til 2000
so I’ve been riding for 7 years now.
What were the bikes that you’ve owned?
I started out with a 1987 Yamaha Radian but felt
that, even at 5’10” tall, it was a little more
powerful than I wanted to start out with, so I
bought a 1973 Honda CL175 in pretty good shape!
What a fun bike! A great starter and I could get
around the city pretty easily. Rode that for the
rest of the summer from August ‘til the end of
riding season (in New England that until the end
of October). The next year I hopped on the Radian,
which I had for a few years. Then it was a BMW
R75/6 (an oldie – ’76). I was living in both
Boston and LA at the time so I needed two bikes. I
bought a new Honda Shadow Aero in 2004 (which
turned into The Big Vibe) and on the east coast, I
still have a 1999 Honda Shadow Ace.
Okay, so now you’ve said it. What’s with “The Big
Vibe”?
Well, since 1993, I have owned the upscale
sexuality boutique, Grand Opening!, which
is now on the web at
www.grandopening.com
(Grand Opening! get it?!), so I have been in the
adult industry for almost 15 years now. I had
joked around that I was going to customize my
innocent looking maroon, stock paint job by making
it a flashy gold and covering it with sex toys! I
got in touch with the most fabulous custom painter
for bikes in the world (in my humble opinion),
Robin Romaine, who is now based outside of Ocala,
Florida. Not only is she an all around great
person, but she’s also one of the original members
of my motorcycle club, Moving Violations MC, which
has been around for over 20 years. Check us out at
www.movingviolationsmc.com.
Robin has her own web site at
www.rcairbrush.com I
always knew she was a great artist (she even
designed our club colors) but was even more
impressed when I saw her work. She is a gifted
airbrush artist as well as freehand artist. Robin
laughed when I told her what I wanted and
exclaimed “Sure! I’ll paint anything!”
I had my bike
shipped down from Boston to Daytona for Daytona
Bike Week last year (2006) and then delivered it
to Robin, who uses a shop to break it down into
the components for painting (fenders, tank, and
side pieces). She did the paint job as I tooled
around on the other bike back in Boston.
I was pleased and honored to take the bike out for
the first time to the AMA Women and Motorcycling
conference in Athens, GA in June, 2006. It was
quite fun being there as I also was selling for G
Line, Hein Gericke’s quality women’s jackets line
(www.experience-g.com)
and I’d quietly mention to someone, “Hey, did you
see that bike with the sex toys on it?” and the
person would respond “Yeah! It must take guts to
ride a bike like that!” I would reply “Um, that’s
my bike!” The answer I got then is the one I still
get all the time: ‘BUT YOU LOOK SO NORMAL!” Well,
Kim, as a matter of fact, you DO look like Martha
Stewart! That’s where the comparison ends, that’s
for sure!
Tell me more about “The Big Vibe.”
Robin, the painter, always says we should name our
bikes. We thought of a few names and both settled
on “The Big Vibe.” When I moved to California at
the end of last year, I was delighted to find that
the license plates here use more letters than they
use in Massachusetts and felt like I hit the
jackpot when I got the plate “BIGVIBE.” You’d
think some other gearhead would have taken that
already!
What's the theme of the paint job?
The pleasure of sex, of course! The bike is in
order - first, on the front fender, you start out
with personal lubricant. Second, on the tank, are
the toys. But don't forget the safe sex option -
the condoms over the owner's manual/repair tools
section, and batteries over the, well, battery
cover (I used to work as a research assistant at
Duracell so it's appropriate). And last, BUTT not
least, butt toys taking up the rear.... fender. On
my helmet, well, you can't use a Hitachi Magic
Wand without a plug, so we added a cord and a
shiny plug on the back.
I am proud to say that I know about 80% of the
makers of these lovely products painted on the
bike. The Rabbit Pearl (which we all know and
love), the Hitachi Magic Wand (ditto), ID Lube,
Njoy Toys (www.njoy.com),
Doc Johnson, Cal Exotics, and many others.
The coolest thing, though, is the built in
vibrator that I have in my seat. Yep! It’s hooked
up to the throttle so the faster I go, the faster
IT goes. I have people try it out by telling them
they should sit in the Mustang seat I installed
because “it’s really comfortable.” Once they plop
down I flick on the hidden switch behind them
(it’s right where I drop my left arm so I can put
it on while I’m riding for “the ultimate
trip!”). They literally jump out of their seat!
Most of the time, the women say “Hey! Don’t
stop!” It’s like having a Honda 750 Joke Buzzer!
And who's that little doggie in the pictures with you?
That's Skippy,
my moto-mutt.
He rides my bike with me, securely fastened in his
pouch over my shoulders while he sits in front of
me. He's been great and truly loves motorcycles!
When we're out for a walk and a bike goes by,
he'll stop and follow it with his gaze. Once we
were stopped in traffic with my car and I pulled
up next to a bike. He looked out the passenger
window and started quivering and whimpering! He
loves bikes that much, just like Mom (but I don't
usually whimper when I see another motorcycle -
but then again, it depends on which one...)
So there you have it. My story in a nutshell. And
as for The Big Vibe – yeah, it’s a dirty
bike, but somebody’s gotta ride it!
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