Bikes & Gear
Evaluations & Recommendations
2026 Triumph Tracker 400: Lean & Mean
I’m developing a serious problem with this new Triumph Tracker 400 motorcycle.
Only a few weeks in, and I’m already addicted to this bike. When I first got it back to the shop, before anything else, I threw my gear on and took it for a spin. What was only supposed to be a 15 minute check ride turned into a bit over an hour. Then the next morning after the wife left for work, I hurriedly scarfed down some breakfast, threw the gear back on and lit out again. “Research,” I told myself.
Sargent Seats- Ride in Comfort and Style
My butt knows seats. Having accumulated over 60,000 miles of riding on a wide variety of butt pans and piling up 7,000 to 10,000 miles a year on every seat from stock to Corbin to Russel Day Long, I can attest to the benefits of a custom motorcycle seat. When I got my new (to me) 2023 Suzuki GSX S 1000 GT I was again in the market for a custom seat. After giving the Suzuki’s stock seat a fair chance of 1000 miles, my hindquarters told me it was time to find another custom seat. But which one to get? Sargent Cycle stepped up and shipped me their custom seat for my sport tourer.
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Vespa Life
While I’m a dedicated and proud motorcycle rider, I usually keep a scooter in the garage as well, and it’s usually a Vespa. Currently, I have a 2014 Vespa GTS300ie Super, the hottest hot rod the company made at the time. I’m also President of Vespa Club Portland, a vibrant and active group of scooter enthusiasts—“scooterists”—who ride year-round in the often damp Pacific Northwest. And in case you missed it, 2026 marks the 80th anniversary of the Vespa scooter.
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Five Things We Love About the 2026 Royal Enfield Classic 650
It happens so often with this motorcycle, it’s become predictable. I’m in a parking lot with the Royal Enfield Classic 650, when this elder gent pulls up beside me in a late 80s Cadillac Eldorado. No apologies, no introductions, no initial acknowledgments of my presence, he just pulls up, stares agape at the bike, and declares, “That has to be about the prettiest motorcycle I’ve seen in years. What is it?” I give my reply, and when he learns it’s not an antique but in fact is a 2026 model, his look of astonishment and admiration only grows. He then regales me with tales of old motorbikes from his bygone years of riding, everything from Hondas to Harleys, Triumph Thunderbirds to Kawasaki KZs. Over and over he chimes, “I can’t get over how pretty that bike is. Just beautiful.” Phil arrives for a day ride we had planned, so my new old friend says goodbye and bids us safe riding.
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2026 Honda Rebel 1100 DCT SE- The Ultimate Commuter?
We all have to get to work somehow, but its more fun when you do it on a motorcycle.
Deciding to ride the bike to work is a simple choice when your bike is easy to ride, nimble, and attractive. A relaxing ride that can slice through traffic makes you more likely to ditch the keys to the cage and throw a leg over the motorcycle. Honda solved that dilemma for me when they dropped off a 2026 Rebel 1100 DCT SE at my garage a few weeks ago. Since then I have piled on hundreds of commuter miles and along the way discovered that the Rebel, while designed as a cruiser, just might be the perfect commuter bike.
Product Review: 3D Pro Series Bug Remover
The Pacific Northwest produces a multitude of wonders: thick forests, majestic mountains, abundant wildlife and bugs. Yes, bugs. I get more bugs on my motorcycle in thirty minutes of riding in the Northwest that I do in a week in California. Bugs populate here by the billions: giant bugs, tiny bugs, biting bugs, stinging bugs, green bugs and those yellow ones that taste like battery acid. I hate those. Ride here for an afternoon and you will get a grasshopper in the throat, a bee in your helmet or plow through a crowd of gnats like a boat leaving a wake. Or all three at the same time.
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Small Bore Mania: Grom Swapping
This year at the SMSBR I found a lot of people were doing a swap with the Honda CB300R engine into the most popular of the 125 Hondas, the Grom. I was camped at the rally next to a man who had done three of these conversions, and he explained to me the how and why of what he had done. These included the modifying of the frame to allow for the stock 300 intake, to the upgrade of the suspension, and 13 inch wheels.
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Harley-Davidson Revives The Super Glide
The year was 2005, and my aging father had caught the biker bug again. Having ridden motorcycles since he was about 14, through my own childhood years, it had been a few decades since Dad had owned a street bike himself. He had always wanted to own a Harley, so he visited a nearby dealership. He rode out with a beautiful 2005 candy apple red Dyna Super Glide that day.
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Introduction: 2026 Honda Rebel 1100 DCT SE
Honda must read Road Dirt and, unlike me in high school chemistry, actually listen and take notes. For 2026 they addressed the Rebel’s riding position, revised the dash with a new TFT display, smartphone connectivity and introduced a factory custom SE trim. The net effect of a series of small tweaks on a motorcycle can sometimes exceed their sum. Do the Rebel’s small tweaks improve the package? If so, how much? Would it be worth it to upgrade from the older model?
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