I Was born and raised in Illinois and I have been around motorcycles since I was born. I rode with my dad on his Harley since I was old enough to hang on. I started riding at the age of 5 and my dream was to be a Flat track motorcycle racer. I did get to live that dream. 1981 was my first full year of racing 100cc amateur class. I raced as an amateur through 1984. In those 4 full years of racing, I was the 1983 District 17 Illinois state champion in the 175cc class. I won numerous races and had a lot of fun doing it. In 1985 I turned pro ( novice ) and I lost a good friend, Randy Turbett, while he was racing at the Springfield, IL. mile. He lost his life in a crash.. Just two weeks later I lost another close friend while racing in White City, IL., (Mike Miller). The next weekend I crashed at the famous Peoria, IL. T.T. track breaking 2 vertebrae in my back, it was then that I called it quits. However the racing blood is in me and when the pain went away I decided to race again. Do to the fact that I was a father now, I had other responsibilities to take care of. Then in 1990 my old sponsor said he had a bike and "Do you want to race it?". Boom, it was on. So I raced the last half of 1990 in the 400cc amateur class and won the amateur national 1/2 mile in Henry IL. From 1991-1992 I raced the 500cc. amateur class and was again the District 17 Illinois state champion in the 500cc class. In 1993 I got my pro-am license and won several pro-am races that year. In 1994 Tim Coziahr of Coziahr H-D in Decatur, IL. offered me a sponsorship. I raced for Coziahr H-D from 1994-1996 and turned expert in 1995. At the beginning of the 96 season I once again had to call it quits on the track do to off track personal reasons. At that time I seemed to be lost, until I started painting for other racers. That is when I started painting Harley's and I found a different love and high by doing it... In all of my years racing I was the track champion at 5 different tracks, in 6 different classes. I also was the only racer that won the track championship in 2 different classes in the same year, 1982 (100cc & 125cc class) in Macomb, IL.

My first real job was at an auto body shop in Illinois where I started as a clean up boy. I worked my way up the ladder and began painting my own race bikes and helmets. Now I make other racers bikes look good. I have painted for some of the top racers in the country, like Joe Kopp, Kenny Coolbeth, and J.R. Schnable, which 2 of the 3 became GRAND NATIONAL CHAMPIONS.

I have been painting since 1990, and have worked for some of the big shops. Now I work for myself. I moved to California in 2000,and since that time I have been painting motorcycles for customers all over Southern California. I have also been flown to Texas to paint bikes for customers. One of the vespas I painted (the most recent one) won the anything goes class at the vespa build off in Las Vegas in March,2009. It was built by Johnny & Nile at Jettin Industries in Santa Ana, Ca.

Between my wife Renee and I we have 6 beautiful daughters, 2 granddaughters and a grandson! My love for painting now replaces my racing, they are both in my blood, along with riding Harley's. That will never end and I will paint, ride motorcycles , and enjoy my time with my wife, girls, and my family until I die. My mom and dad even have their own Harley's..Yes my mom rides too...

As of June 2010 my wife Renée and I have opened our shop in San Clemente. We are growing and will be in an even larger shop soon. So thank you to everyone who has had me paint for them, and future customers also........ Chris "SMOKEY" Links