Truthfully, I might love to not write this text, and I will offer you a warning earlier than continuing. We’re, sadly, going to have to speak about pedophilia, so if that is a topic that is uncomfortable and triggering, which it actually must be for everybody, depart now.
Why is RideApart overlaying this topic? As a result of a narrative lately went stay, induced a fully righteous firestorm, and was subsequently taken down by the proprietor of Easyriders Magazine on his private web site, BikerNet, and the following reporting by content material creators and stated proprietor’s completely shit-ass, half-hearted, horrendous apology.
It’s newsworthy in that we’re speaking in regards to the people who personal one of many oldest biker titles round. Easyriders is/was one of many cornerstones of chopper tradition.
However I imply, who of their proper thoughts within the 12 months of Epstein-This, Epstein-That, and everybody calling for anybody tied to that monster to get their heads chopped off would submit a goddamn Penthouse-style letter-to-the-editor about CSAM?
Apparently, the positioning owned and operated by Keith “Bandit” Ball, the proprietor of Easyriders Journal and BikerNet, who’s additionally a Sturgis Corridor of Fame Inductee. And, actually, we have to know who the fuck wrote it, so this particular person is rarely allowed to attend a biker perform once more. They most likely additionally must be investigated by the police, trigger this shit does not come out of 1’s creativeness.
Let’s begin with how this got here to RideApart’s consideration.
As you’d count on with a publication like (and a writer who owns) Easyriders, one thing of this nature shortly gained discover by the neighborhood. Nevertheless it started with Weems Motor Co, a bike builder out of Tampa, Florida, when Easyriders contracted a singer, songwriter, and freelance mannequin, Jasmine Cain, to seem with one among Weems’ customs for a shoot. Cain, nevertheless, was alerted to or in any other case found the aforementioned article and informed Weems that she’d completely not be working with anybody related to Easyriders and BikerNet attributable to their publishing one thing of this nature.
Once more, a warning proper now.
OK, so the title of the story was “An Outlaw’s Confession by Renegade,” and started with the skin-crawling sentence, “You bought all of it mistaken. Kathy was 13 and I used to be 23. I might fly to her elementary faculty…” I have never been capable of entry the remainder of the article, because it was shortly eliminated, and the Wayback Machine does not have it archived.
However YouTuber shadetree surgeon has seen it and put up a video in regards to the story linked beneath, as did Weems Motor Co., and Cain, who all state that it concerned “Renegade” selecting up a baby from her elementary faculty, taking her to Los Angeles, having her strip at dank golf equipment, after which assaulting her himself. My pores and skin is crawling simply writing that out.
The submit, which initially went up on February tenth, 2026, was taken down after the web rightfully flipped its collective shit on Easyriders, BikerNet, and Ball. The previous and latter of which then proceeded to supply essentially the most mealy-mouthed apologies round, the primary of which got here from the Easyriders Instagram web page.
“On February 10, a extremely offensive, despicable merchandise was posted on Bikernet,” the apology begins. “We need to state unequivocally that the Easyriders employees had no involvement with this submit, was not conscious of it previous to publication, and most actually doesn’t condone its contents. We share in your outrage and need to guarantee you that this merchandise had nothing to do with Easyriders. It was not revealed in our journal nor featured on any of our social media platforms. We respect those that have taken the time to succeed in out to us about this and we respect those that are standing with us in help. Thanks on your continued loyalty to Easyriders Journal.”
It was signed “Easyriders Employees.”
Photograph by: Instagram
OK, certain, Easyriders has nothing to do with it. BikerNet might have totally different writers and employees, but it surely nonetheless has the identical proprietor. Keith “Bandit” Ball, the proprietor of each, who publishes routinely underneath his byline on BikerNet, then proceeded to enter the apology tour with an absolute bullshit-ass mea-culpa.
In a press release dated February twelfth, 2026, Ball begins with “Wow. You may think about. I’ve had suggestions from everybody and their mom on tips on how to deal with this. We don’t help pedophilia in anyway form or type. I’m fully chargeable for the story and pulled it down instantly.”
He then provides this, “My mistake.” I am sorry, however what the precise hell are you doing right here? Your mistake? Your mistake to publish a pedophilic story? In 2026? When essentially the most dominant information story of our day is how this insane internet of pedophilia runs by way of each home of energy on the planet? Your mistake?!
Ball continues, “I’m not going accountable anybody besides myself. Not going to throw anybody underneath the bus. That’s in opposition to the code.” It is in opposition to your code to name out the author of a pedophilic story? That is your code? No, no, no. That is not a code. That is defending a heinous act. Mainly, you are Pam Bondi’ing the state of affairs and defending somebody who you completely should not be defending.
Photograph by: Instagram
The editor continues, however does so by attacking some lady named Amy, supposedly in his circle, who’s apparently retaining this story—which, once more, he revealed on his web site solely two days in the past on the time of writing—alive, saying, “However somebody has saved this error alive by way of her posts. She’s not proud of me, and I want her no hurt, however she is the one pounding the pedophilia drum and making an attempt accountable it on me…Amy wrote an anti-Muslim piece which I rejected. Am I flashing it all around the web to make her out to be a foul particular person? Hell no, she’s a superb author.”
Here is the place Ball’s apology, nevertheless, goes fully off the rails and principally cops to the story as high-quality, and relates it to much more minor felony offenses that completely do not embody the assault of youngsters. Ball continues, “We publish homicide mysteries, does that imply we condone homicide? We publish tales about stolen bikes. Does that imply we condone thievery? I don’t assume so.”
Ball then goes on to say he is simply making an attempt to “rebuild” Easyriders Journal, and that “We hope to get previous this… We’re additionally on a mission to rebuild the good bike journal, Easyriders, which is 55 years previous this 12 months.”
“We’re all about using free, using cool bikes and that includes the very best builders on the planet. What might be higher?” he provides, earlier than signing off the apology. What might be higher is for those who named the author, that is what. As a result of, in opposition to your code? Rattling the code, man. We’re speaking about little one sexual assault. It ain’t some petty larceny or one thing alongside the strains of narcing on a buddy to their partner for spending money they did not have. It is a horrifying fantasy piece [hopefully that’s as far as it went, though that’s more than disgusting enough. jj] written in regards to the sexual assault of a kid.
Now this is the place the motorcycling world wants to come back collectively proper freakin’ now.
I used to jot down for Easyriders again within the day when it went by way of its final rebirth. The parents behind it needed a extra inclusive journal, one which wasn’t as Hell’s Angels, brotherrrrrrr-adjacent. They had been good folks and had a great imaginative and prescient. However the publishing world is difficult, and that went underneath, sadly. Ball, apparently, then purchased it from the ashes, and is presently making an attempt to restart it in all its SAMCRO-wannabe glory. Nobody within the motorcycling world, nevertheless, ought to assist him try this till he says who wrote this shit.
They must be outed. There must be repercussions. The general public has a proper to know who this particular person is and to ostracize them from our neighborhood. Nobody deserves a protected area in the case of this. Nobody.
Trending Merchandise
