11 - 2019 - Road Dirt

Month: November 2019

S.O.S.- Save Our Sport!

Posted by Rob Brooks | Nov 26, 2019 | Industry & Racing |

Out for a fall motorcycle ride recently I stopped off at a old general store in a tiny town out in the country for some fuel and refreshment. Taking a seat near a window, I noticed in a stack of magazines an old issue of LIFE, dated July 20, 1967. Intrigued, I perused the pages, and immediately found something unexpected- two large ads for motorcycle manufacturers, one a full page Honda ad, and the other a half page Harley-Davidson ad. The common denominator, besides the obvious motorcycles, was the demographic these ads were clearly targeting. Both contained young people, enjoying life and astride their bikes, which also, by the way, were small displacement, affordable, and visually appealing…

A Weekend of Champions

Posted by Rob Brooks | Nov 20, 2019 | Industry & Racing |

Big News in the Worlds of MotoGP and NHRA

This past weekend heralded some big headlines in motorcycle racing. First, the “Marvelous Marquez Brothers” as we’ve dubbed them, made headlines twice, when both took the crowns in their respective classes in MotoGP. And then Repsol Honda announced that the Marc and Alex would race as teammates in the 2020 season, a first in MotoGP history. Also in that international race series, 5-time world champion Jorge Lorenzo rode his last race, having announced his retirement from road racing at the close of season this weekend at Valencia, Spain. In NHRA, Andrew Hines claimed his 6th NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock Motorcycle drag racing title, after a tough season and near disastrous mistake at the starting line of the final season race.

Riding the Iron

Posted by Rob Brooks | Nov 12, 2019 | Bikes & Gear |

The Sportster has been a staple in the Harley-Davidson lineup since 1957. In fact, the Sportster is the longest continually-running production model in the H-D universe, and quite possibly the longest anywhere in motorcycling. It has undergone many iterations, many upgrades, and a few pitfalls, but overall, the Sportster has always been and continues to be among the brands’ biggest sellers. It’s held a widely varying reputation, from entry-level Harley, to hooligan bike, and even racer. Like the famous Triumph Bonneville line, so many veteran riders see a Sportster and reminisce, “Yeah, I owned one of those, back in the day,…” as their eyes and voices trail off to chase some distant fond memory.

God Sent Us Road Baloney

Posted by Ted Edwards | Nov 6, 2019 | Ride Life |

“There are two things I can’t stand doing slow,” Mots softly says, “skiing and riding motorcycles.”
Having done both with him, I can attest that he is slow at neither. Mots was my speedy riding partner that day as he ran point, carefully dissecting eastern Washington’s rolling farm country with scenic cuts through green fields, red barns and brown cattle.