"imagine what it could do for a boring married guy with nothing interesting about him except the fact he rebuilds Nortons."
Ouch!! the truth is so hurtful! Though it is an interesting passion, old bikes, that is.

I would consider throwing $25 this way, if, and ony if:

Those who enter do so with the agreement that if they win, they donate the cash to a charity of their choice.

We have disabled (physically and emotionally) vets all by the thousands returning to the states, as well as the UK and australia. This train wreck (sorry cookie) of a world economy has marginalized millions of citizens, while those at the top hardly feel a pinch. One quarter of american children don't get enough to eat. The ice caps are melting. The beat goes on.

Sorry to be so blunt, but if those of us who with the means (and I'm no rockefeller) can do just a little, it can make a difference in a big way, especially now.

Cheers,

Don

Sorry for not editing my post well enough, though I'm sure you get the idea.
And btw, for my participation, it should be a recognized charity, unlike my own "Guiness, Pacifico, and Mark West Foundation"

The poll sounds great. How about finishing up entries and voting for the week of January 1st? Maybe submissions before the end of December? One member could volunteer to hold the Paypals and buy the trophy? I'm thinking about that time of year more of us are off work for a bit and closing the year of most improved in December seems natural.

I like Jerry moderating.
Seems fair to have a neutral.
I'm very interested and will vote.
Since the reality tv series idea received such rave reviews, I'll just wait and vote
The transformer Norton was a cool youtube video maybe a new line of Norton 961 transformer toys?
You know for the Pepsi generation
Oh well!!!!
Time to take my meds
Marshal

I think this is a great idea and would be happy to go along with the concensus but completion in the last 12 months might be a bit restrictive and cut a lot of good restorations out. Maybe a restoration in the last five years would see more bikes and more dollars [ and I could put mine in ]. Just adding my thoughts. You could even have 3 photos, before, after and now.
"Now" meaning a photo of the bike out on a ride or at a favourite scenic place.

Jerry Doe wrote:What a great idea. I think we need to make it a bit official.

You've got it, that'll get it done just fine.

Thanx, Jerry.

DonOR wrote:Those who enter do so with the agreement that if they win, they donate the cash to a charity of their choice.

My $25 commitment is happily available for that idea if that's the direction of the poll.

gregmac wrote:I think this is a great idea and would be happy to go along with the concensus but completion in the last 12 months might be a bit restrictive and cut a lot of good restorations out. Maybe a restoration in the last five years would see more bikes and more dollars [ and I could put mine in ]....

Since this is the inaugural year of (I hope) an annual tradition, I guess any bikes done up to this year is a good suggestion.

However, trimming them down to just 5 might be a bit tough...

another thought on that prize money: didn't BigStu have a couple of kids? most likely not tax deductable, but way closer to home.

roadscholar's bike turned out really nice, but I don't know that I saw a before picture

How about this one? You all were kept apprised of progress many times during the year.
Before:

And after:

Would be nice if there was extra credit for doing the work yourself. Anybody can just throw enough money at it. My vote goes to the "army" bike that was completed this year. He did most of his own work and it came out very unique and lovely.

I think the raffle bike will win hands down. It is an exquisite example.
What complicates this situation is should this be limited to an individual
or any 2009 build?
An organization has much more hands on and resources although a nice restoration
is still a nice restoration.
Other than a profeesional restorer, I think we should consider any groups as long it is not
their livelyhood. If a riders group builds a bike and raffles it well credit should be given where deserving.
It would give them some start up $ for their next project
Some of you guys have some projects I saw in the man/Debby castles that desparately need
finishing. Lets get crackin.
Marshal

The poll will be the deciding deal, as opinions will vary across the spectrum.

While I think the charity bike has VERY limited company in restoration to originality, the "before" picture of the really rusty bike that started this thread shows what is probably a more drastically neglected "donor" bike...

I second the notion of including the "Army" bike, too...

I'd lean toward a bike done by an individual. That chopper you unchopped would be in the running to me. There a couple of guys on the list who make their living doing bikes, fine by me. I say let the most improved bike win.