Episode 75 - Motoblot
For more than two decades, Motoblot has brought Chicago’s motorcycle community together in a way only Chicago could. What began in 2005 as Mods vs. Rockers—a small gathering of café racers and scooters outside Delilah’s—has evolved into a three-day celebration of motorcycles, hot rods, live music, art, film, and the people who make the city’s two-wheel culture special.
For this episode of “Driven to Ride,” host Mark Long heads to Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood to experience Motoblot 2026 and talk with the people behind the party. Founder Larry “Fletch” Fletcher and his daughter Tenley share the event’s history, its move to the South Side, and what it means to carry a family business—and a motorcycle community—into the next generation.
Mark also meets Morgan Michelle, the first woman invited to compete in MotoBlot’s Valhalla Custom Motorcycle Builders Challenge—and its first female winner. Her 33,000-tile disco chopper captured the six-foot Gungnir trophy and plenty of attention. Royal Enfield’s Jennifer Lewis also stops by to explain the company’s Build. Train. Race. program and why MotoBlot stands apart from other motorcycle events.
Part bike show, part concert, and part neighborhood block party, MotoBlot proves that it doesn’t matter what you ride. As Johnny Scheff puts it, “No jerks apply. Everyone else is welcome.”