Living The Life - QBall Photos - Santa's Helpers

“Santa’s Helpers” circa 199? from “Living The Life”, biker photography book.

Tis the Season to be? This time of the year brings out the best and worst in folks. Point in fact is Toy Runs. Here in our neck of the boon docks one local club blocks the main thorough fair to collect toys and money for local children in need. Some years it’s freezing cold and wet, while other times it can be quite balmy like this photo where the Club’s defense lawyer was dressed as Santa in flip flops.

Those trapped in this traffic ambush reacted in curios ways. The town’s newbie’s and uninitiated driving high dollar cages would roll their windows up tight. They wore faces of disgust and fright, dialed 911 on cell phones, and wondered if they could escape unharmed. The long time locals where prepared and looking forward to help. Some drove up in old ratty pickup trucks loaded with toys. Others dug deep into their worn out jeans and gave all they could. Friends would stop in the middle of the street to talk creating an opportunity for cub members to smile and offer candy canes to fearful cagers impatiently blowing their horns. Ya gotta love the holiday spirit.

Long May You Ride,
Q-Ball

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QBall's photograph of "Santa's Helpers" - Living The Life

Qball Photo - Living The Life, Cover Photo

“Ricky’s Beach” circa 197? from “Living The Life”, biker photography book.

I’ve been asked many times where the cover photo was taken, and what significance it has. Well here ya go. After a miserable, cold, wet, nine day ride, fraught with break downs, mishaps, and some damn good times we arrived at to Daytona Beach Florida. Most of us were dog tired and looking forward to just kicking back in the sun. Ricky on the other hand was like a kid at Christmas. Shortly after hitting the beach he was running his sidecar rig up on two wheels down the beach. I grabbed my camera and documented his display of youthful enthusiasm. Ricky was always in the fast lane, right up until the day he died. I never planned on selling or publishing any of these photos until recently when the pressure/encouragement from friends became more than I could bear. When going through my photos looking for a cover, this image stood out as the personification of why we all ride. It was also my way of honoring, and thanking Ricky for all he showed by example.

Long May You Ride,

Q-Ball

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Living The Life - The Infamous Photography of Doug Barber aka QBall

Life on two wheels just seems to be that much more fulfilling than sitting on the sidelines and talking about where our paths will take us. Ya gas up and go, its quite simple. People come and go in life and we have friends that are merely acquaintances, but the relationships we have with our machines and or those that have a similar mindset, form a bond that others can never understand. Events are planned around the next run or batch of trouble we can get into and those times are etched into the memories like a family photo.

These great times are consistently remembered by an individual such as Doug Barber or as we definitely prefer to go by, QBall. While looking at his book and photos in Living the Life, you can see folks living on the fringe and truly enjoying their time. Bikes and Hot Rods to all of us are a means of escape, not necessarily from a bank heist, but one in which are thoughts are allowed to run free and be passengers along the trip of a lifetime. While diggin' through his photos, that departure point is on every single page. This book is now forever sitting somewhere close by so we can look over and experience wander lust while grinding away through our daily workload. 

Qball is also taking things a step further for us, we asked him if he wouldn't mind contributing some photos and notes on the randomness that is life to post here on the blog and he obliged. Be on the lookout for more posts from him and in 2012 plan on all of us hittin' the road to numerous events or just idlin' up to a bar to shoot the shit.

In the words of QBall, "Long May You Ride."

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Living the Life - The Photgraphy of Doug Barber, aka QBall