PETE ’ S PEOPLE
joy , a blue Ford Fairmont Station Wagon . Mark used to think he ’ d got away with it , but invariably one of Mike ’ s customers would report seeing young Mark behind the wheel , out at night , when he shouldn ’ t have been sporting the Ford around the traps . Mark could never figure out how he was being caught . Mike ’ s customers were fiercely loyal . But always at heart , Mark loved motorcycles , whether hankering for a Honda or jonesing for a Duke , and his formative experiences were exciting and fun . “ I think for my brother Paul and I , it ’ s in our souls to love bikes , because our Grandfather , Les James ( Pop ) and Dad , absolutely loved bikes . There are family stories of Pop and bikes that are part of James family lore – for example , instead of taking the car to drop the family off to the speedway on a Saturday night , he would ride up and take each family member , separately , on his bike . One after the other . He hardly ever drove the car , he was always on his bikes , and he had some real beauties too .”
A LIFE OF BIKES Mark is a signwriter by trade and has 38 years under his belt , but his early days were the ones that set his course . He worked at Sign On and he learnt to do everything . Whether welding steel , building things , and making all manner of what-have-you in innovative ways . He served his apprenticeship in MacKelvie Street and still lives within a stone ’ s throw of the area . Over the years he has married and raised two sons of his own , Asher and Arlen , both of whom have caught the family bug for motorcycling .
“ The bike I ride now is a 1993 888
Ducati which
82 KIWI RIDER