And that rather leads us to Barnett Magazine Online’s feature bike built by Stephen Galvin and the crew at Wikked Steel in St. Petersburg, Florida. This apparition in black just happens to answer that nagging question “. . . what do you do with it now?” When Jack Cofano shot this Batman theme bike at a show it was paired up with another recent Barnett’s feature bike by Wikked Steel, an Iron Man theme bike (you can see it here) that

Wikked Steel uses to entertain the kids at Children’s Hospitals.

 

   Like I said in the Iron Man story and I’m not trying to draw any attention in any way, I’ve spent time, serious time, in a Children’s Hospital. I can’t imagine how exciting it would be to have the kids see these two super hero bikes up close and personal. I assume some comic book super hero costumes are involved to add to the drama and whatever else Wikked Steel can come up with has gotta make the kids’ day. They probably can’t run them as it is a hospital zone as much as a hospital zone can get, but it probably doesn’t matter a lick to those tough kids.

 

    So anyway, you’re thinking, what does this have anything to do with where old show bikes go to pasture? Well Wikked Steel’s Iron Man bike is an obvious from the ground-up Iron Man theme build, but what about the Batman bike? Even though it’s crazy cool over-the-top, it looked familiar as anything like this seen once would. Back in 2012, Barnett’s featured it when it was on the circuit and called Battlestar after its F 117 Nighthawk-inspired stealth theme. Just to prove a point, check it out here. Nothing can be taken away from the crazy-cool build it was, but the über-show bike this dual-rear-wheeled extreme machine makes just that wee bit harder to find a taker with a handful of cash. So what did Wikked Steel do? Slap a couple of Batman stickers on it along with a crazy little gun on the bars and it’s Batman’s ride.

 

  Now I don’t know much about comics and comic book characters and it probably shows. I’ve never read any comic books or even seen a Batman movie, but from what little I know, it could have been in every movie as it looks liked something The Caped Crusader (I Googled that reference!) would ride. It’s one tough SOB of a bike featuring dual rear wheels for only Batman knows why and it’s dark as night, just like the B-man in his natural habitat.

 

 

  So maybe there’s not a lot of Batman that didn’t exist before when it was Battlestar, but it’s still a hell of a build. The best part about this ‘old’ show bike is that it’s found a new life and maybe even a better one than the original entertaining sick kids. Can’t ask for too much more out of a bike that’s done it’s time gathering admiring glances and surely causing a lot of spirited conversation. Now it’s doing the same thing, but to a totally new audience.

 

 For more info on Wikked Steel, punch up this wikked long home page address:  http://www.wikkedsteel.com/WikkedSteel/Wikked_Steel_home.html  or visit their Facebook page.