Bikes & Gear
Evaluations & Recommendations
Freshen Up Your Riding Gear
Spring is definitely here. You know how I know? My morning rides are cold enough for a jacket and by the afternoon I’m cracking my visor at every stoplight just to breathe. It’s that awkward in-between where my winter gear suddenly feels like overkill, and my summer stuff still feels a little too optimistic. So how about some spring cleaning?
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Beautiful Bikes: Aprilia X 250th
Aprilia is actually producing a limited run of commemorative motorbikes, mostly for the American market, but a few to be offered worldwide. The Aprilia X 250th is a drop-dead gorgeous facsimile of the GP machines the Trackhouse Racing team are rolling, and for a cool $150K you can own one yourself. Of course, it’s not street legal, running a V4 65°, 1099cc mill with SBK racing specifications. It’s clearly meant to make the same technology developed in racing available to those who intend to compete at top levels in factory derivative series, or for those who want to own an RSV4 or Tuono V4 with top tier performance.
And who want to shout “‘Merica!” every time and everywhere they ride or display it.
First Look: Royal Enfield Classic 650
Studying up on this new machine, and talking with a few of my fellow moto journalist friends who attended, it seems that this outstanding powerplant has been refined even more, and placed within a beautiful, very traditional looking package in this Classic 650 model. The Royal Enfield R&D folks know better than to leave well-enough alone, fortunately.
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Life Saving Helmet Tech
Back in January, Fox 10 Phoenix covered a serious motorcycle crash in Arizona where a rider went down on a rural road and was completely hidden from view. He may not have been found in time if not for an automatic emergency alert triggered at the moment of impact. That same incident has since been featured in People Magazine, bringing national attention to how modern safety technology can step in when riders are compromised in a collision and can’t call for help themselves.
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National Cycle- Motorcycle Windshield Leaders
Willey came of age in the early 1900s, amidst World War I, the international flu pandemic of 1918, and the Great Depression. An avid pilot and motorcycle rider (clearly the adventurous type for his times), Willey saw a need among riders for quality accessories. He decided to start a company that would apply expert craftsmanship in manufacturing parts for use on motorbikes, and in 1937 he launched Nation’s Cycle Center in Maywood, Illinois, near metro Chicago.
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Beautiful Bikes: Ducati Formula 73
We recently wrote about some motorcycles debuting this year that caught our eye. Some we hope to ride, others are what we categorized as, “unobtainium”. Either way, all are beautiful, and we love beautiful motorcycles. This latest offering from Ducati is another example, both historic-looking and drop-dead gorgeous, as well as out of reach for the majority of us proletariat. Nonetheless, it caught our eye, so we felt compelled to share a little bit about the Formula 73, as the Italian motorcycle manufacturer has dubbed it.
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Bikes That Catch Our Eye for 2026
Every January, the motorcycle brands start debuting their new year models, with previews and “sneak peeks“ for the motorcycle media. Year after year, it kind of gets monotonous and boring- different colors, new paint schemes and patterns, some new tech in the electronics package, maybe a little tweak in the brakes, suspension or powerplant, and/or more farkles in the OEM accessory parts bin. So many of the motorcycle media outlets feel the need to kiss up to the brands, running glowing previews of every detail of a “new” bike, even if the specs were the same as last year, just wearing a new colorway.
Same pablum and blather, different year…
Winter Work: Harley-Davidson Super Reach Seat
After much meditation, thought, internal debate, posterior pain, and consulting with my witch doctor, I finally concluded it was time to find a touring machine, one with some built-in creature comforts. For me, this translated to a smooth, powerful motor and a seat that will stay comfortable for many a mile. Unfortunately, the 2012 Road King Classic I picked up came with an aftermarket saddle that was, as hard as it is to believe, too cozy.
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Top Five Fave Bikes of 2025
Looking back over the past 12 months, we decided to compile a short list of our favorite bikes this year. Everything we rode we absolutely enjoyed, but here are a few that we particularly had a blast with. Leave us a comment below on any of these you got to ride or purchase, or any others you may have enjoyed.
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