We Can Rebuild It

Troy Nicholson has set himself a challenge: Build a bike in two days. The owner of Lightning Cycle Works in Haltom City, Texas, is putting two wheels on the road as part of the Military Bike Build Giveaway. This will be the second year Nicholson and his team will have built a bike on-site from scratch over the weekend, to be donated to a serving or retired member of the military. In 2007, former Staff Sgt. Marcus Jolly, a veteran of the Korean and Vietnamese wars, rode away on a custom wide-tired chopper. But Nicholson wants to improve on that. "We'll start building the bike on Thursday morning," he said. "Last year we did it in three days. This year, we're hoping to get the bike finished by Friday night and get it in the big parade."

Nicholson, who's been working with Harleys since 1979 and has run his own shop since 1990, will meet with fellow celebrity mechanics and customizers. Ami James of Love Hate Choppers (most famously of TLC's Miami Ink) brings some name recognition. Nicholson is looking forward to seeing several big talents from the Texas custom scene, like Rick Fairless of Strokers Dallas. "He's something else," he said. He'll also be keeping an eye on the winners of the Big Texas Chop-Off, where rising stars of the custom scene can make their rep and get a place as one of next year's celebrity bike builders.

So does Nicholson think he can beat last year's speed? "It's no biggie," he said. "We can do it."