A Day with a Legend

© Michael Zoyes/Jay Allen

Indian Larry with the move that made him a legend.

"When something goes wrong, I get back on," the famed motorcycle stuntman known as Indian Larry famously said. Bryan Lahr, director of the documentary My Day with Indian Larry, says that attitude is at the heart of his film about the famous motorcycle builder and stunt driver. "I was inspired by Larry's determination and comfort with which he approached these life threatening stunts; when he was on a bike, he was home," says Lahr.

When the footage for the film was shot, nobody knew the significance it would soon take. Just weeks after shooting the day-in-the-life account, Indian Larry was killed in a tragic accident, performing the very same tricks he had done for the cameras, the very tricks that had made him famous.

Lahr explains that the documentary was intended to be a day-in-the-life interspersed with accounts about Indian Larry. When Indian Larry died, however, the story became more about what Larry stood for and the message he left behind.

Tricks of the Trade

Jay Allen, a longtime friend of Indian Larry's and owner of famous biker bar, The Broken Spoke Saloon, narrates the film. In the film, Jay spends the day with Indian Larry riding the wall of death - a circular wall about twenty feet high where stunt riders drive a go kart on the walls - riding their bikes along the open highway in Sturgis, South Dakota near famous Bear Butte Mountain.

One of the film's highlights is its spellbinding footage of Indian Larry standing up and balancing on his bike (otherwise known as "surfing bikes") as it travels over sixty miles an hour down the open highway- shot by camerman and producer Michael Zoyes. The film also features slower moments - candid takes of Larry smiling talking with friends. It is here were you see the man as his friends knew him - a free-spirited, genuine lover of life.

A Deeper Side of the Biking Legend

The film is not all lighthearted. The second half of the short film features interviews with Indian Larry's riding partners following his death.

Big Chris, one of Indian Larry's longtime riding partners, spoke about Larry's signature symbol known as the question cross, an icon tattooed on Indian Larry's left arm and often found on his branded t-shirts and memorabilia. "The way Larry explained the question mark to me is, basically, what is life all about?" If the symbol was a constant reminder for Indian Larry of the depths of life's mysteries, it remains one for all of those who follow the work of the man who lived big and rode masterfully.

All or Nothing

You might say that Indian Larry died at peace because he died pushing himself to perform at his very best. Indian Larry died while performing his signature move - surf biking - when he collapsed from heat exhaustion.

In the film, Paul Cox, a fellow riding partner describes Indian Larry as someone who gave it all or nothing, possessing an insatiable hunger for being the best. "He had a need to feed." And it's that - that need to feed - that Lahr captures so beautifully in his short film about the legendary rider and bike builder.