As 2019 draws to a close, many of us pause to consider the year gone by, with all it’s triumphs and tragedies. We at Road Dirt have glanced back over our shoulders as well, contemplating our first year as a motorcycle publication. And what a year it was.
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A confession: I’ve never been very mechanically-minded. I have always admired my father, who can build, repair, modify, or tear down just about anything with a motor. Still can, even at 80 years old. I however, was not blessed with the same skill set. Any abilities I’ve acquired have come by learning from him, teaching myself, and much trial and error (emphasis on error).
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Last year, I took a 3-day road trip on my Triumph Bonneville, packing light with only a backpack and a tail bag rig for the bike. I’d only had the tail bag a few months, having purchased it from a local motorcycle accessories shop. On the return trip home, up in the north Georgia mountains, one of the under seat Velcro straps ripped in half, and nearly sheared the second strap as well, sliding the whole bag immediately over to the right side of the bike. I felt the immediate weight shift, and quickly got off the road. With a fuel station (thankfully) right across the street, I pulled into the parking lot, bag still dangling off the right side, only to realize how close I had come to those ripped straps wrapping around my rear wheel or worse, tangling in my chain. That could have turned ugly, quite quickly. A kind old gent in a rusty pickup witnessed my dilemma, and offered a set of bungee straps to get me home. Very grateful for that Good Samaritan.
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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…
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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.
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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.
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Debate often arises in motorsports over the definition of a legend, and what constitutes legendary status. Is it the number of wins across a career? National and/or world titles? Is it philanthropic work, contributions to the sport and industry? Overcoming tragedy or adversity? Perhaps it’s personal honor, integrity, influence? By any definition-
Wayne Rainey is a legend.
The 15th Annual Barber Motorsports Vintage Festival kicked off in a heat wave, but concluded with a cool change. Here in the Deep South, we had experienced unseasonably hot and dry conditions to kick off our Fall, with temps tapping the triple digits, accompanied by drought. Yet the enthusiasm for this annual gathering was neither diminished nor decreased, as record crowds were still predicted based on ticket sales, we were told. I had wanted to attend this massive event for years, and this was the year I cleared the calendar to make it happen.
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Ever since the stunning debut of Indian’s flat track dominating FTR750 racer in 2016, riders have been clamoring for a street version. By the end of 2018, Indian delivered, unveiling the street FTR 1200 to much fanfare across the motorcycle industry. As their phrase declares, “Born in the Dirt; Built for the Street”, The FTR 1200’s DNA is clearly bred in racing. Tall suspension, tight wheelbase, flat tracker handlebars, trellis frame, even ADV on/off road rubber on cast aluminum rims, the bike screams hooligan, with a huge shout-out to its championship-winning 750 sibling.
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