Number of Women Riders is Growing

Recent Survey Shows Shift in Rider Demographics

 

Ivine, CA (PR Newswire)- According to a recent survey, nearly 1 in 5 motorcycle owners in America is now female, compared with 1 in 10 less than a decade ago, based on data accumulated by the Motorcycle Industry Council. In fact, the data suggests that women may soon comprise ¼ of total motorcycle ownership in the U.S., a major shift in motorcycling demographics.

 

Among all age groups surveyed, women riders now make up fully 19% of American motorcycle owners. The survey showed the greatest growth among the younger generations, with Gen X women riders up to 22%, and Gen Y (Millennials) up to 26% female ownership.

 

“As the number of Boomer and mature motorcyclists shrink and are replaced by newer riders, we could soon be looking at a solid 25% of motorcycle owners being female,” stated Andria Yu, MIC Director of Communications. “We’ve seen with our own eyes many more women riders- on the roads, on the trails, on the track, with families, at motorcycling events, forming clubs and just being a part of everyday group rides. Many people in the industry have worked some 30 years to achieve this, and now the data confirms it: More and more women are getting out there and enjoying motorcycles.”

 

The MIC polled 2,472 adults nationwide for the 2018 Motorcycle/ATV Owner Survey. For decades, the MIC has served as the census board for American motorcycling, and they have tracked this steady growth in women owners/riders over the years. In fact, major efforts to invite more women into the world of motorcycling dates back to the late 1980s, when manufacturers and distributors formed the “Discover Today’s Motorcycling” initiative in an effort to encourage and introduce new riders to the sport. Cam Arnold, an industry exec and organizer of the “Women in Powersports” event last week in New York, stated “Throughout the 1990s and on till today, the big brands have dedicated increasing amounts of attention to the women’s market, and we’ve simply seen more and more positive imagery on TV, in movies, and in many mainstream settings where women on motorcycles are just having fun.”

 

Despite some studies that motorcycle ownership seems to have declined overall in the past 10 years, the MIC report indicated that motorcycling has actually grown in popularity and acceptance in American culture in recent decades, according to their survey. They found that 66% of women riders say their family and friends have a positive attitude toward motorcycles and scooters. Good news, indeed.

For more information on the Motorcycle Industry Council, visit their website: www.mic.org 

  

ProRider Atlanta- The Ultimate Rider Course

It is widely understood and acknowledged that motorcycle police officers are among the best trained and most proficient riders on the planet, in any country. The extensive and strenuous street training they undergo challenges the limits of man and machine. Very few police officers undertake the vigorous course. Fewer still successfully complete it. Yet those who do possess a skill level in riding virtually unknown to the rest of the motorcycling world.
Ken Anderson is one of those elite riders. With over 30 years experience as a motorcycle officer, including hundreds of hours of intensive training on multiple levels, and a seasoned police instructor himself, Ken has now brought this training to the civilian motorcyclist. ProRider Atlanta takes main skills taught and drilled into motorcycle officers and translates these into civilian format, to benefit the wider rider world.

I had the opportunity to participate in Ken’s ProRider class back in October, and the 8-hour course was one of the most challenging and rewarding I’ve ever undertaken. I took the course on my 1998 Yamaha Royal Star, since it’s equipped with front and rear highway bars in the event of a drop (which didn’t happen, I’m proud to say). I’ve always been very confident on the big Yamaha, having logged nearly 16 years and 90,000 miles on it. By the end of the day, I would come to realize how much more I and my bike are truly capable of.
Led by Ken and aided by Ken’s wife Patty, we were coached through riding tasks as basic as the proper way motor officers mount and dismount their bikes (from the right side, never the traffic side), how to correctly lift a dropped bike, and the safety reasons for always staying in gear while at stop lights. Ken taught then demonstrated proper clutch/throttle modulation, with Ken asserting, “The power of your motorcycle is not in the throttle, it’s in the clutch. You can twist the throttle all day, but the bike won’t roll forward until you release the clutch.” So, learning your clutch’s “friction zone” and how to manage your throttle and rear brake in unison with it, is key to improving slow control riding, obstacle avoidance, and negotiating tight cornering without resorting to “duck walking” your bike through parking lots.

We worked on the skills of clutch/throttle/rear brake management all day through a series of increasingly difficult cone courses, from simple cone weaving, quick lane change, deep & wide corner negotiating, and performing a complete “360” within a tight circle of cones. As we drilled these over and over, Ken would stop and give individual observations and instruction, as well as group debriefs before moving on to the next exercise. We didn’t master the techniques fully in one day (moto cops take months, even years to master the skills), but we each dramatically improved as the day progressed.

Ken also taught essential skills such as braking in curves, keeping eyes up and looking where you want to go, “not at your front wheel” as he calls it, and rear crash avoidance. We ended the day with a nerve-wracking exercise in emergency braking and escape, as in hard front/rear braking that results in a controlled tire skid and stop. We practiced this from 20 mph, then 30, then 40 mph, seeing the evidence of stopping distance in our skid marks. My Yamaha is not equipped with ABS or Traction Control like most other class participants, but I found I could stop in every bit the same distance they did after numerous runs, and wasn’t intimidated by my screeching tires as I came to a straight, controlled stop. Wow, and whew!

By the end of the day, Ken and Patty awarded each of us an official ProRider certificate of successful completion, which my insurance company has promised to honor with some discounts. Nice.
In all, this class pushed me beyond what I thought my limits were. I saw how much more riding control I am capable of, and how much more my bike is capable of as well. My confidence in my riding skills certainly has notched up a level.
*Oh, cool feature of Ken’s class- you can return to keep practicing the skills with subsequent classes, free of charge, for up to one year (subject to space availability in the class).
I highly recommend Ken’s ProRider Atlanta motorcycle course. Every rider should seek to improve their street skills. In my experience, there simply is no better instructor than a seasoned motorcycle officer. And Ken is the best of the best.

*For more info on ProRider Atlanta, click here- www.prorideratlanta.com
*Check out their Facebook page- https://www.facebook.com/prorideratlanta/
*Photos by Phil Gauthier

Time Passages

 



Last month, my father did the unthinkable-he sold his motorcycle. It was a 2003 100-Year Anniversary Edition Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail Classic. Beautiful bike, and he took immaculate care of it. Best of all, he rode the heck out of it, often with my mother riding pillion. So to see it go was hard, to say the least. But it was time. He’d been struggling with ill health in recent years, especially 2018, and turned 79 years old over the summer. He quipped, “The older I’m getting, the heavier this bike is getting.” He asked me to help him sell it, and it went to a good home- a former H-D mechanic, getting back into riding, who has a great affection for Heritages. Very appropriate.
I was saddened myself, because not only was this the passing of an era for Mom and Dad, it was a sort of “time passage” for me as well. We had pounded out many roads and road trips together over the past 13 years or so, logged many miles, made many memories. Precious few, even in motorcycling, can say they’ve ridden much with their fathers (or mothers), but I can, and I’m thankful.

 Dad grew up riding motorcycles, back in the 1950s. He owned a stripped/bobbed 1954 Triumph Tiger 500, and was the hooligan of West Roxbury, Massachusetts on it. He street raced, blasted through town with the baffles out, rode with a pack of rascals, preened on it for the gawking pretty girls, but kept his heart for one- My mom.
When Pop left for the Air Force, he sold the Triumph to a friend, who apparently wrapped it around a tree outside town, barely living to tell the tale. No pictures remain of the bike. Pop rode Cushmans while spending a year on Okinawa, then returned home to marry my mom, settle into a career in the airline industry, and raise three crazy, “wild at heart” boys down in “God’s Country” here in the South. He left motorcycles behind for many years, even while supplying us kids with trail and dirt bikes.
I took up street riding in 1996, and by 2005 Pop caught the bug again too. We fixed up a 1982 Yamaha 550 together, and after test riding it some, Dad decided to jump back in, this time on a Harley. First buying a 2006 Super Glide, then swapping for the Heritage (more comfortable for Mom), they both went all-in, decking out in all the best H-D gear, adding a bike trailer and toy hauler to the collection also.

 We rode all over the southeast together, and many of the famous routes down here- the Tail of the Dragon, Cherohala Skyway, and Blue Ridge Parkway, to name a few. I’ve cherished every mile, every hour, riding with him across these years. He’s already experiencing “seller’s regret” understandably, grieving the steady passing of time, cursing the relentless marching of age. But it was time, they both acknowledge.
I guess I’m grieving too, selfishly, knowing our days of riding together are over. But I’m grateful to have ridden with them these years, and grateful my girls have inherited a love for riding, by the times they've shared with me on my bikes.
The guy who bought Dad's Harley? He told me how excited he is to take his wife riding with him, and hopes his daughters will fall in love with riding as well, on the back of that Heritage. As the saying goes- “One man’s sunset is another man’s dawn.”
Oh, Mom and Dad are talking about buying a golf cart now. A gas-powered one. With the big, knobby tires. Maybe raised white lettering. And an engine he can tinker with- maybe squeeze a few more horses out of? This could get interesting....

Taking the Long View

One of the skills we riders must consciously and constantly practice to stay sharp on our bikes is our situational awareness. Keeping focused while riding through ever-changing scenarios, constantly scanning our surroundings for potential threats, maintaining a “360 degree” awareness, are all vital street skills. Yet there are moments while riding that we can still experience a brief lapse in attention, can lose perspective for a moment in the saddle.

Nick Ianatsch of the Yamaha Champions Riding School trains hundreds of racers and street riders every year, and teaches an additional skill that I’ve added to my own survival arsenal. Ianatsch calls it “looking sooner, scanning back if necessary”. This entails periodically searching far forward while riding, casting your vision out as far down the road as possible, then drawing your gaze back to your immediate situation. This practice reorients the mind, resets focus, and broadens perspective while at speed.
 Kyle Wyman, MotoAmerica Superbike racer and YCRS guest instructor, describes the practice as “looking two steps forward, one step back...two ahead, one back.” Ianatsch further explains, “On the street, you look all the way through the freeway onramp to the traffic flowing or not flowing. You look not just around the canyon corner but skip your eyes to the road unwinding below you and see the radar trap on the next straight. You look past the green light and see the car leaving the gas pump and heading into your lane. Big picture. And then you bring your eyes back to the nearest probable issue.” 

Big picture. An apt descriptor. Every motorcycle riding instructor guides students to “get your eyes up”, “look farther”, and “go where you look”. All sound advice and good practice. But I’ve improved my “big picture” while riding by incorporating Ianatsch’s “look sooner” skill, which I’ve come to call, “taking the long view”. When I’m riding, I’ll force my eyes occasionally to look as “deep field” as I can, taking in every movement, every potential hazard and obstacle, every possible escape route, far out ahead of me. I certainly acquire a bigger picture this way. I find myself with a wider awareness, a calm centering, and a renewed concentration, as I ease my gaze back to the immediate. I often draw a deep breath and blow it out slowly in the brief process as well, adding to the reinforced control I experience.
Taking the long view certainly applies to life as well as riding. We can feel so overwhelmed in the course of our days, with events in the world as well as our own lives. Not only that, we often live soaking up a constant bombardment of information and stimuli, from which it is difficult to extract ourselves. Periodically “unplugging from the Matrix” as my wife calls it, and pushing our vision beyond our immediate to the distant to those things most important in the long run, can help us restore perspective.
 As a Christ-follower, I’m reminded of this frequently as I read the Bible. An example is found in Colossians 3:2- “Set your mind on things above (long view), not on things of this world (immediate view).” This helps center me in trying times, personally and when I look out at a crazy world.

So in riding and life, may we broaden our “big picture” and endeavor to “take the long view”. May you ride, and live, better for it.

Rob

 

Motus Motorcycles Closes Doors

 The most unforgettable bike I have ever ridden.

In a move that saw another American motorcycle company go under, Motus Motorcycles in Birmingham, Alabama announced their closure via Facebook over the Labor Day weekend. The announcement stated the company “is forced to shut down operations, effective immediately.”

The vision of building the ultimate American sport-touring motorcycle was birthed in the minds and hearts of Lee Conn and Brian Case 10 years ago, and Motus was born. The uniquely American notion of building a bike around essentially half a Corvette engine (their vaunted “Baby Block” MV4 1650) captured the imagination of the American motorcycling world, if not their wallets- the standard MST and sport MSTR fetching a rather whopping $30K-$36K, respectively.

The issue for any fledgling motorcycle brand is always cash to keep going and growing. Conn and Case wrote Friday, “This week, Motus financial backers unexpectedly informed management that they will not provide sufficient capital to maintain operations and grow the business.” After thanking their “Team Motus” for dedicating “so much of their hearts and souls to Motus”, the statement declared the founders “will work to quickly find a new path forward.”

Motus joins a litany of downed American brands in recent years, including Victory, Buell, and Brammo, among others. We at Born to Ride certainly hope Conn and Case can reopen the doors of Motus in the not-too-distant future.

The Far Side of the World

Motorbikes in Indonesia

 

My wife and I enjoyed a 12-day trip to Indonesia this past year. I've made the trip several times in recent years with a non-profit I help manage, 127 Legacy Foundation, and have always been fascinated with the culture of motorcycles over there. Some interesting observations from our trip abroad:

The largest displacement engine I’ve ever found in Indonesia was 250cc. It's an interesting contrast to the US, where, aside from scooters, a 250 is about the smallest you'll find.

The rider always wears a helmet, yet often passengers do not. Even multiple family members, including small children, will be helmetless, while the "wrist" will wear one.

*We spent a few days around Tokyo, Japan prior to continuing on to Jakarta. I was startled to find very few motorcycles, including scooters, in Japan, whether in the city or country. Ironic, that the nation with four of the top producing brands in the world (Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki), and yet so few of their own citizens actually ride.

 

During a traffic jam in Jakarta, looking back through the tunnel was astounding. There appeared to be hundreds rolling our way - one large, moving mass of "man and machine”.

 

The traffic was stopped in front of our hotel, but that did not prevent riders from throttling through and around, in a constant stream. 

 

A teen riding home from school with a parent, outside the city of Kupang, Timor. Amazing how often I saw multiple riders with no helmets or other protective gear for the passengers.

 

 

Often the only means of transportation for entire families, children are squeezed onto seats between parents and older siblings, often up to 4-5 on a bike and helmetless, as evidenced here.

 

These three-wheeled "motortrikes" are common throughout the cities as delivery vehicles on the surface streets.



 

Small-bore motorcycles and scooters clog the already packed streets of downtown Jakarta, Indonesia by the thousands, flowing through traffic by lane-splitting, curb-jumping, and red-light running.

 

 

Even out in the city of Kupang, near the far eastern end of the Indonesian island chain on Timor, scooters and small motorcycles are a way of life. Traffic is not as bad as in Jakarta, so streets are easier to navigate with two wheels or four. I'd feel more comfortable riding out here!

 

Taken from a transit bus we were on, the riders on these diminutive mounts, men & women, young & old, were fearless in traffic.

 

Several small motorbikes parked outside an orphanage we support on the western Indonesian island of Sumatra, in the city of Minas. They teach the boys how to repair them, to give them a means of earning a living upon graduating out at 18.

 

 

The shop behind the orphanage, where the kids practice their skills at motorcycle repair and maintenance.

 

 

A friend at our orphanage in Minas, Sumatra let me cop a ride on his bike. Without an international drivers license, I was not allowed out on open roads, but had a blast throttling around side streets and dirt roads.

 

 

This Kawasaki was about the coolest little ride I saw in Sumatra. When the owner fired it up, I discovered it was a howling, smoking 2-stroke!

 

McDonalds delivers in many parts of Jakarta, via scooters like these.

One of the doctors at a clinic we helped build near Kupang, Timor owned this Honda. And yes, I had to take a spin on it. Such a cool little bike! 
As with much of Asia and the Pacific Rim, motorbikes in Indonesia are a necessary element of life. As the 4^th most populous nation on the planet, the Indonesian archipelago of islands is among the world’s greatest purchasers of motorcycles and scooters. As a rider myself, it’s just another reason I enjoy traveling to the far side of the world. Many kindred spirits abroad!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

2017- A Look Back

 

2017 was an eventful year in American motorcycling. Reflecting over the previous 12 months, clearly much has transpired in the two-wheeled world. Its been both exciting and discouraging. There were a great many stories from 2017 in motorcycling, but these are a few of the ones I most readily remember-

The Demise of Victory Motorcycles- After 17 years, Polaris scuttled the Victory line, a JD Power & Associates quality-leading motorcycle brand. The move shocked the industry, and those of us in moto-journalism. The move was understandable, with Polaris planning to focus greater efforts on the highly successful Indian line, but I was stunned, nonetheless.
*Oh, and within weeks, Erik Buell Racing shut down operations...again.

The Death of Nicky Hayden- One of America's great motorcycle racers, Nicky was beloved the world over, not just here in the States. The "Kentucky Kid" was an AMA Flat Track champion, AMA SuperBike champ, and 2006 MotoGP World Champion. His cycling accident and sudden death in Rimini, Italy horrified the motorcycling world, as millions grieved his passing. I personally sat and wept at the news. Nicky will be sorely missed.

Harley Davidson's Sweeping Changes- Late summer, H-D announced and debuted radical changes in their lineup, dropping the venerable Dyna line completely after 27 years. The all-new Softail line saw several Dyna models redesigned and dovetailed in, as well as some brand new models- most notably, the Fat Bob, all with the new "Milwaukee Eight" powerplant. I had opportunity to ride a couple of them, the Heritage and Road King, and was very impressed.

American Flat Track & MotoAmerica- AFT exploded in popularity in its first year away from the AMA, and MotoAmerica dramatically expanded its reach in its 4th season. I'm very glad both are back, and I hope these signal a revival of interest in American motorcycle racing.
*Interesting note- the most talked-about American motorcycle of 2017 wasn't even a production bike- the Indian FTR1200, a factory-modified Scout based on their highly successful (and AFT-winning) flat track racer.

The Revival of Retro- All the major brands have trotted out spectacular bikes combining modern amenities with retro (60s-80s era) styling. BMW's RnineT bikes, Triumph's entire Bonneville line, Honda's CBR1000R Blade, Yamaha's XSR900, Kawasaki's Z900, Ducati's Scrambler line,...I could go on. Us old guys love the nod to the bikes we grew up riding and loving, and the younger crowd clearly revels in the nostalgia these bikes recall. Its a great time to be riding!

With all the concern over the flagging bike sales in America, and companies seeking new riders among the younger generation, 2017 was a year of reassessment in the industry. These are but a few of the events and developments of the past year, the ones I most remember. I hope 2018 will see even more in the way of good news.

Marc Marquez- Again

This young man is rewriting not only the history books in MotoGP, he's rewriting the technique manuals, doing things on a bike no one has ever done before. All by the age of 24. Amazing.
Watch this highlights clip above from the MotoGP final round at Valencia, Spain.
I'll just let this do the talking. I've never seen anything like this kid. The future of motorcycle road racing is here.

The Distinguished Gentlemen's Ride

Full disclosure: I lost a lifelong friend to prostate cancer in 2012. I myself am a two-time cancer survivor, so far. Recently an old classmate of my wife's committed suicide.

This is personal to me.

When I learned last year about the annual international Distinguished Gentleman's Ride, for men's cancer and mental health, held every late September, I knew I wanted to join in. So I went online, did my research, and signed up for the ride nearest to me in Greenville, South Carolina.

A great ride, among great people, for a great cause. It doesn't get much better than that.

The Distinguished Gentlemen's Ride was started 6 years ago by Mark Hawwa and several mates in Sydney, Australia, who conceived the idea of conducting a benefit ride for male prostate cancer. They found a photo of "Mad Men" actor Don Draper, astride a vintage motorcycle in full coat and tie, and the theme of well-dressed, "dapper" riders on classic motorcycles was born. Supporting the Movember Foundation for Men's Health, this year's DGR encompassed over 92,900 registered riders in 581 cities and 95 countries across the globe, raising over $4.5M USD. With the support of sponsors Triumph Motorcycles and Zenith Watches, DGR 2017 surpassed all expectations.

My friends at Hourglass Cycles in Buford, Georgia sponsored me by providing a bike, owner Kyle Campbell's own 2016 Triumph Thruxton R. Sleek and crazy-powerful, the Thrux served me well among all the vintage, classic, and "modern classic" bikes in the ride. In only it's second year, the Greenville event grew from 50 registered riders in 2016 to over 180 this year, a quantum leap in participation. Our ride began and ended at Trailblazer Park in Travelers Rest, just north of Greenville. With control riders, lead and sweep riders, plus full police escort, the whole entourage navigated through Travelers Rest, looped down through Greenville proper, then took a break under the tall oaks of Furman University before returning to Trailblazer Park for awards, recognitions, music, prizes, food and drink. A "splendid affair". 

In this age of division, animosity, growing intolerance, and even spreading violence, the DGR epitomized everything a society can and should be. Men and women, young and old, wealthy and working class, every ethnicity, every cultural and political persuasion, all riding together, sharing a common cause, focusing on our commonalities rather than our differences. We rode, we talked, we enjoyed the day together. It was a beautiful sight to behold.

For more information on how you can "support the gentry", check out the official DGR  website-

www.gentlemansride.com

 

2018 Harley Road King & Heritage

First Impressions

The quintessential American motorcycle company radically remodeled their Softail line recently, and shoehorned the Dyna line into it, introducing 8 all-new models. This, after debuting the brand new Milwaukee Eight 107ci last year in their touring line. With a new stiffer chassis, a monoshock suspension under the seat, and some models getting the bumped-up 114ci powerplant, fans of both the old Dynas and Softails should find much to love.

Harley-Davidson unveiled the new line Tuesday, August 22, and by Saturday, August 26, I was straddling one, blasting off into the central Alabama foothills, courtesy of our friends at Mt. Cheaha Harley-Davidson in Oxford. For comparison, I was also loaned a 2018 Road King, which had been among the models to receive the Milwaukee Eight 107 for 2017. It promised to be an abundantly fun day.

 

In the midst of Mt. Cheaha's 3rd Annual Rumble on the Loop, I first took off on the Road King, to sample the 107ci mill. Immediately, I was enthralled with this bike. Instant, head-snapping acceleration at the wrist-twist; thrilling, brutal power on tap up through each cog of the 6-speed gearbox. Granted, I ride a little more aggressively than some, being a sport as well as cruiser rider, so was a little heavy with the roll-on. But this bike delivers! Up through the hill country, the Road King dives into curves easily, brakes extremely well, shifts up/down solidly, and of course, that throttle! The bike felt like a comfortable touring cruiser with the heart of power cruiser.

 

Next, I took a spin on the newly remodeled Heritage, which actually wears the new 114ci motor. Thinking this bike would ride similar to the Road King, but with a power bump, I lit out hard like I had on the King. The Heritage quickly settled my raucous energy. Roll-on is more measured, spread out, and smoother. The 114 is clearly tuned for a more relaxed, laid-back ride, as I discovered while motoring along the same roads I had traversed on the Road King. Don't get me wrong- I completely enjoyed the new Heritage, once I synched with her vibe. Smooth, even power delivery, a solid yet compliant suspension, and gentle flickability through mountain curves, the Heritage was a dream to ride.

 

My one issue with the Softail- at every stop, I could not click into neutral, from 1st or 2nd. No positive neutral finder? Of course, the bike only had 3 mi on the ODO when I pulled out, so it's still early in the break-in period, which may sort the situation.

Harley-D has done a phenomenal job with these new 2018 models, and the Milwaukee Eight is another giant leap forward. I strongly encourage sampling these bikes. They do not disappoint.

Triumph Street Cup

I had a most unique opportunity last weekend to test ride a brand new Triumph Bonneville Street Cup for several days. I had made contact with the good folks at Triumph North America, located right here in Atlanta, and they agreed to sign me out the Cup for a long weekend. I picked the bike up from Triumph HQ on Friday morning, and was told to keep it until early the following week. In exchange, I would write an honest evaluation article for Born to Ride magazine, whom I regularly write for.
The weekend that ensued was one of the most exhausting, exhilarating ones I've experienced so far this year.

I logged over 300 miles on the Cup across the several days it was in my charge. I cracked the highways and interstates in and around the metro area, and flogged it down curvy country roads near my home. I rode solo, and with a group of riding friends. I rode morning, daytime, and late at night. The bike was an absolute blast to ride. It garnered praise everywhere I rode, often mistaken for much older than it is. The Street Cup is a 900cc twin power plant, but is light, nimble, and compact. I felt completely in tune with this bike.

Saturday, I attended the American Flat Track races at Dixie Speedway in Canton, with my friends Monte, Lynn, and Test. We rode over, across the top end perimeter and up interstates to the raceway. I was on a press pass for an upcoming BTR article, while my friends served as CMA representatives. For the first time in about 30 years, motorcycle racing had returned to Dixie. And the racing was spectacular. The highlights for me were the "hooligan" races, and the main event, the renewed Indian/Harley rivalry. More on that soon...
We rode home about 10pm, in the fast-flowing, at times treacherous Sat. night north Atlanta traffic. The Street Cup roared all the way back, giving me confidence across every mile. After Sunday church, I rode the bike some more, ticking off more miles in the beautiful, pollen-filled Georgia springtime. I coughed and wheezed- the Cup did not. At least one of us was unaffected.

Alas, all good things must come to an end. After a brief Monday morning ride, I reluctantly returned the Cup to its rightful owners, Triumph North America. I found myself falling in the love with the little Bonney, as the perfect blend of sport and classic. A new motorcycle genre, perhaps? The Sport Classic? Actually, Triumph has been running and ruling that road for years, with no end in sight. This bike just further establishes their dominance of moto-cool.
Full eval article forthcoming...

Alive Again



It's been a good 10-months since I aquired this '82 Honda CB750 Nighthawk, after it sat behind an auto shop in Suwannee for, well, God knows how many years. I've only been able to sporadically wrench on it, as time and money allowed, but today marked a milestone.

The bike is alive again.

I took it out for a short check ride, which was exciting for me. Yet it revealed several issues. The bike idles way too high, and I'm having difficulty dialing it down. The brakes need bleeding and adjusting, and the front fork seals are gone.

But the bike is alive again.

Hard to believe that I was 18-19 years old when this bike was built. It bears the scars from decades of  use and maybe abuse, and obvious neglect in recent years. So the thrill of getting it out on the road again was palpable.

Ansley's boyfriend wants to buy it, and plans to keep it here so he can ride with me until he's more comfortable getting out on the roads himself. That's fine- gives me reasons and opportunities to ride it more myself! Gotta keep it in good working order for the young man...

A Pair in the Basement

My basement make-shift shop is looking a little crowded these days, with two early 80s era motorcycles, and a 1954 JC Higgins bicycle. I've now had the 1982 Honda Nighthawk for 8 months, tinkering as I have time and resources. I also have been working on the 1981 Suzuki GS850L for a little over 2 months, in my rare spare time as well. The bicycle we picked up a few years ago at a bona fide barn sale, and I clean and polish on it in the winter months, after Lisa enjoys riding it around in good weather.

With my dad's help, I've been through the carbs a couple of times on both motorbikes, and worked on various other ailments common to old, neglected cycles. Good winter projects both, that I literally paid nothing for one, and next to nothing for the other. Hope to have them both running soon, for someone to enjoy in the Spring.

I'm learning much, every time I take on a new project. I've precious few natural or experiential skills mechanically, but the more I learn, the better I get, and the more confidence I build. The reward comes when they are back on the road, and in an enthusiastic new owner's hands.