Accidental Tourist

Dave Perewitz

by Lydia Navatsyk

Head for the sidewalks, bike messengers. This weekend, bigger bipeds are taking over the town for Philly's first-ever Northeast Motorcycle Expo. Who's coming with them? Cycle guru Dave Perewitz, for one, who in 2003 was named "Best Custom-Fabricated Bike Builder" by Easyriders magazine. That same year, he was also inducted into the National Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame. Perewitz will be on the expo floor signing copies of his new book, Dave Perewitz: Chopper Master and King of Flames (Motorbooks), and because we don't want to see you get thumped, we figured we'd ask him the tough questions now.

How Philly Ranks as a Chopper Town: "A lot of my fans and customers are from Philly. Philly's gonna be one of the best."

Where To Find Good Eats: "My friend always takes me out places, but I never know where. I did go out with one of the Eagles last time I was there—Dhani Jones. We were doing a signing the next day together. I had filet mignon—it was great."

Speaking of the Eagles: "I was surprised. Everyone was surprised, weren't they?"

OK, Not That Surprised: "I'm a Patriots and Bears fan."

But Back to Bikes: "I've built bikes for a lot of cool people. [Aerosmith's] Steven Tyler and Brad Whitford. Hulk Hogan—he's a pretty cool guy. I built five for Ruben Brown, who plays for the Bears. The most I've built for a customer is 15, for a friend of mine by the name of Joe Pro."

Northeast Motorcycle Expo, Sat., Jan. 27, 10 a.m.-9 p.m.; Sun., Jan. 28, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., $7-$15, Valley Forge Convention Center, 1160 First Ave., King of Prussia, 978-688-8888