Reader Rides

A Designer's Story - Sergio Robbiano

In 2009 we saw the launch of both the RSV4 Factory and RSV4 R and Max Biaggi won one race at Brno. Then the first double win arrived at Portimao in 2010. Clearly the RSV4 has already started achieving the success Aprilia hoped for back in 2005. Robbiano started his career working on another legendary superbike though, the Ducati 916 under Massimo Tamburini. This is Robbiano’s story. 

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Best and Worst of 2009

Much of motorcycling here is seen as largely recreational, so like any non-essentials in life during hard times, the fun stuff has got to go, or at least gets dramatically de-prioritized.

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BMW Product Name History

On the surface, BMW bike names aren’t any more difficult to understand or remember than the alphabet soup employed by Harley-Davidson. But the process by which the names were formed from can be rather difficult to keep pace with as BMW added more models over the years. Sure gives us a new appreciation for Roadliner and Valkyrie Rune…

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Bud Ekins' 1938 Triumph Speed Twin

In the 1953 classic Columbia Pictures “The Wild One” Marlon Brando, aka Johnny, and most of his Black Rebels MC buddies trundled around on Triumphs and other Brit bikes while the “bad guys”, as represented by Lee Marvin (playing the part of Boozefighters MC co-founder “Wino” Willy Forkner), rode Harleys. Not so incidentally, and here’s a bit of trivia…what was the name of Marvin’s gang…give up? The Beatles. No kidding and some think the inspiration for the band name chosen by those four Mopheads who later made a few records. Adding fuel to the fire is the fact that the Beatles used the scene from the movie where Marvin introduces The Beatles at the beginning of The Beatles Anthology. Plus a photo of Brando as Johnny showed up on the cover of Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. (Want more trivia? Johnny’s last name in the movie was Strabler.)

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Bob Gill Jet Bike Project

It was a lopsided 24-7 victory for the Dolphins and their second Super Bowl win in a row. It was a good day to be a Floridian.

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Jack Lilly's 1939 Crocker

Having joined Indian in 1909, Al Crocker - credited for pioneering that company’s overhead valve racing efforts - became a Los Angeles Indian distributor in 1928. Then at age 53 he set out to design and build his own motorcycles, doing so one cylinder at a time, his one-lung short-track speedway race bikes (some 30-32 built) scoring well in competition.

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Matt Mladin: One Straight-Talkin' Racer!

This quick one-on-one gives us some great insight into what makes Mat such a great racer. We particularly love his straight-shooter style of answering. His attitude toward the testing process for racing is rather revelatory and seems like an open window into his incredible success in AMA Superbike.

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Marty Dickerson Interview

Getting naked gets you noticed. We’ve all seen the iconic image snapped at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on a Monday Morning, Sept. 13, 1948 where a guy wearing nothing but a Speedo bathing suit and tennis shoes is lying flat out on a Vincent itself going flat out. Rolland “Rollie” Free rode into legend that day on a specially prepared British built 1948 Vincent HRD. His achievement, and perhaps moreover that famous photograph, has left an indelible impression. But looking a bit closer you’ll find a photo also taken at Bonneville of another rider stretched out flat on a Vincent, though not in a bathing suit, himself a motorcycling legend who’s blasted his way to even more records...and is still making them.

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State-of-the-Cruiser Address

Motorcycling became more mainstream than ever, inspiring TV shows and spurring new manufacturers that specialized in high-dollar custom niches. In fact, biking became so popular that it hardly qualified a participant for rebel status anymore, despite closets of sinister black T-shirts.

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Old 97 Choppers

This story may sound like a train wreck…and it is. People go flying, trains go flying, Victory bikes get chopperized. And it all takes place in historic Danbury, Virginia. All aboard! Motorcycle.com's Twilight Zone travel bureau has got your reservation. Don’t worry about luggage.

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Roland Sands Interview

When the engine was finally killed, an appreciative roar rose up over the gathered crowd outside reminiscent of Romans cheering surviving Gladiators in the coliseum. The billowing clouds of tire smoke slowly dissipated, gradually revealing a young man sitting astride the sparkling green custom bike that was cradling one of Kenny Roberts Sr's GP powerplants. Sands was smiling slightly, with a kind of contented satisfaction. As is his nature he was quiet. Sharing the spotlight alongside some of the most revered custom bike builders in the business, his V5-powered custom creation had just spoken for him in tacit affirmation that he had, in fact, arrived.

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Women in Motorcycling

“When most kids are moving up to a bigger bicycle, I graduated to an engine,” Davidson noted of her introduction to motorcycle riding.

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The Future of the AMA and American Pro Motorcycle Racing

Josh Hayes rode 69 nearly flawless laps to finish ahead of 68 other riders in the 2008 Daytona 200. Hayes and his team gave a dominating performance on the track but lost the race in their garage, getting disqualified for an illegal modification to the crankshaft in the Erion Honda CBR600RR. In the same event, five-time Daytona 200 winner Miguel Duhamel had scrapped his way from last to fourth place in 54 laps, only to see a black flag calling him back into the pits. He had been disqualified for switching motorcycles after the race’s opening lap. Two more incidents were added to a list of tarnishes that have happened at America’s premier motorcycle road race.

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Scott Russell Interview

If you’ve heard of Scott Russell but aren’t too familiar with his career, here’s a quick rundown. He started racing in the AMA in 1987. In 1988 he was runner up in the 750 Supersport class and was named AMA Superbike Rookie of the Year. He dominated the old 750 Supersport class, winning it three years in a row (1990, 1991 and 1992). In 1991 he won every single race in the series. He was AMA Superbike Champion in 1992 with Muzzy Kawasaki and was named AMA Pro Athlete of the Year. The next year, he moved with Muzzy to World Superbike and became the third American to win the championship (still Kawasaki’s only WSB win). That same year he won the Suzuka Eight Hours with teammate Aaron Slight. In 1996, he took over Kevin Schwantz’s place on the Lucky Strike Suzuki team in Grand Prix racing. In 2005, he was inducted to the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame.

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Jay Leno's Garage

At the multiple workstations, vintage automobiles and motorcycles are in various stages of restoration. Among the shelves of fenders, pistons, crankshafts and wheels are newly arrived shipping crates from all over the world, no doubt containing difficult to find pieces that will facilitate the resurrection of some of history’s motorized treasures.

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Motorcycling in Tokyo

From our western-world perspective, it's easy to imagine that Japan's motorcycling scene will be a showcase of rolling-on-two cutting edge technology. Well, people here might use the most advanced mobile services, have microchip controlled toilet seat heaters (a real treat, really!) and hop on ultra high-speed trains on a daily basis, but their rides are a different story altogether. Need a quick identity-kit for the average rider in Tokyo? Deep into nostalgic/retro stuff; a low-tech lover; doesn't really ever gas it; and maybe worst of all, often has a very dubious taste.

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The Big Chill

So I took it upon myself to persuade my neighbor Matthew to buy a motorcycle the next day and ride with me 24 hours later. With a case of beer and a Georgia Cycle Trader magazine in hand, I drilled and pressured Matthew, refilling his drink and describing in painfully long-winded monologues the pleasures of riding and the life that comes with it. Two hours later, a phone call and an agreement to meet up with a seller the next morning, the cards were set in place. It only took $4,500 to scoop up a stunning 2003 Honda Shadow Aero Classic 1100 with a black-on-chrome finish and 4,000 miles on the clock. She was a beauty. Matthew named her Marilyn, and we drove her home that day.

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The Adventures of Riding in Korea

I began my odyssey of riding motorcycles in Korea in March, 2006. In need of alternative transportation as public buses/subways wouldn’t get me to my university teaching position within a reasonable amount of time, I returned to my childhood pastime of riding Honda 90s on the dirt trails of my Alaskan hometown and bought a used Hyosung 125cc cruiser.

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Around The Lake

“Okay,” my wife answered.

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Investing in Precious Metals

Glenn Bator of Bator International, an enterprise that deals with a wide spectrum of vintage, classic and antique motorcycles, the likes of Flying Merkels, Cyclones, four-cylinder Aces and Reading-Standards, made his pick a few decades ago, his first “investment” being a 1957 Sportster. It was the 99th bike to come out of the Milwaukee factory. Today you can find that very same Sporty on display at the famous Barber Motorsports Museum in Birmingham, Alabama.

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The Pyrenees - Paradise for Two Wheels

The roads in the Pyrenees, that big rock barrier separating France and Spain, reflect centuries of effort that began with the Romans to carve passages in rock precipices paralleling streams a hundred feet down from the stone rails marking the edges. The time it took, both geologic and human, to create these serpentine cliff hangers suggests we ride slower, look around, and expand our sensual intake. The motorcycle, however, tempts us to compress the experience to a series of slalom turns on asphalt slopes until, at the bottom where the road widens, we can exhale and relax.

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Go East Part 2

In less than an hour I cross the border to the Czech Republic and it's really another world. Right after the border, the road is lined with makeshift gift shops that carry everything: souvenirs, clothing, wooden statues and Chinese made TVs and DVD players. Another few miles and the landscape turns flat, and the villages by the side of the road don't look so merry. Plenty of little houses that have seen better days, and if that's not enough, the road's quality quickly deteriorates. This is the kind of thing that you'll never see if you take the plane straight to Prague. As if to prove the point, some 30 miles from the capital, the road turns into a proper highway again and, after passing the airport, huge banners line the road, trying to fool me into believing that I'm in the West again. But even these sharp passages can't diminish the impact of entering that diamond of a city: Prague.

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Baddest Bossest Hosses

Considering he’s built over 200 cars for the movie industry (and wrecked a bunch of them, deliberately of course), you could say Eddie knows not to look a gift horse in the mouth – unless it’s a Boss Hoss with twin blowers and a nitrous oxide system bolted on top of an already chomping-at-the bits Chevy V-8, the package good for 1,700 horsepower. “I figure it can go 300 mph, but I haven’t really nailed it yet,” says Eddie of El Segundo, CA, from his 35,000 sq. ft. design and fabrication facility.

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Go East Part 1

Another few dark junctions and flyovers, and I am riding along a wide boulevard. Now it’s Berlin’s huge telecommunications tower that takes over the task of leading me in, and just like the moon, it too is bathed in golden light. It’s been a very long day, nevertheless I felt secure and relaxed being accompanied by these huge lanterns. What a good start.

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Far-flung Reporter: Letter From the Isle of Man

But the Isle of Man TT has continued on and has become more than a championship. It soldiered into its 100th anniversary this month, full of crazy British nutters letting it all hang out with their elbows mere millimeters away from sturdy rock walls.

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MO Version 2.0

- BMW releases its F800 as a way to entice younger, sportier riders into its loving fold. Fonzie rides the sporty S and its touring-accented brother, the ST, around the Big Island of Hawaii. We'll let you know whether this bike is a smart marketing move or if it's priced itself out of the market.

- Through a special arrangement with an OEM, we'll bring you a sneak peek and riding impression of a new bike that will be coming to our shores later this year.

- Stay tuned later this summer for an oddball sport-tourer comparo in which we'll thrash them on the way to and from the MotoGP extravaganza at Laguna Seca.

Additionally, we'll be offering up plenty of relevant product reviews, interesting lifestyle pieces and lots of memorable rides - all with a regularity you can depend on.

MO:2 is gonna be good. Please trust us when we tell you with complete sincerity that you'll be glad you've been a member of MO, whether it's only been a couple of weeks or what must seem like an eternity.

Stay tuned as we bring you the best in motorcycling, delivered to you in the inimitable MO style. It's going to be an exciting ride, and we'll be thrilled to have you tag along.

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Scooters Vs. Motorcycles

Webster Dictionary Definition of Moped: a person who mopes or is given to moping.**

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Slow Down!... You Can't Win.

I attribute a good part of my callous exterior to the survivalist mentality I developed as a motorcycle courier. Frantic secretaries and attorneys routinely demanded, "You have to get there! Today is the last day!" All too often they were oblivious (imagine that!) of what it took to travel 15 miles during the heart of L.A. rush hour traffic with only 25 minutes before the courthouse closes. Hours and hours of preparation on a "Motion to Dismiss" were in jeopardy if I didn't make it. Wonderful.

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First Bike the Second Time Around: MSCuddy's Jawa

In 1973, I was in the 10th grade and a rabid Jawa-CZ freak. I wore a different CZ jersey to school each day. I had CZ stickers plastered on every textbook and folder. I sported a CZ "hot-hat." I drew the CZ emblem on everything, even dogs (cats wouldn't hold still). My hamsters were named Barum and Jikov. 

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When in Rome...

Ah, Rome. The Eternal City is full of romance, history and plenty of traffic, so          if you're a motorcyclist, you might think it would make a lot of sense to see the city by scooter or motorcycle, avoiding legendary Roman traffic jams as well as maybe fulfilling some kind of Gregory Peck/Audrey Hepburn fantasy.

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Scotland on a Triumph Sprint ST

Edinburgh's Royal Mile was a non-stop barrage of stimulation as I sat drinking a cappuccino with my nephew Robin last summer. Surrounded by stunning Georgian and Victorian architecture, a never-ending flow of tourists, locals, fire juggling street performers, double-decker buses, and even the occasional man in a kilt, the piece de resistance was the magical view through the buildings to the shimmering Firth of Forth at the bottom of town. Riding a motorcycle in Scotland for the first time in quarter of a century, I was enjoying a day in the saddle of the new Triumph Sprint ST with Robin and a chance to relax in one of the most beautiful cities in Europe.

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Water and Wildlife in the Sunshine State

American Road Classics in Fort Lauderdale has kindly provided one of their machines for a week but when I get there, no bike is to be seen. "Someone was supposed to return it yesterday but they called just now and said they will bring it back late," says Eric Lamb, who staffs the outlet. Fortunately the company has three locations in southern Florida and a fleet of 50 bikes so a replacement is en route. This turns out to be a Harley Davidson 2003 Heritage Classic Soft tail.

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One Thousand Miles of Solitude

But wet feet were the least of my worries. My faceshield and the wind screen on my Ducati 748 were starting to go opaque with the ice that was beginning to form on them. Hand and foot controls were developing a greasy uneasiness to them, as the Ducati skated along the interstate with a confidence-killing vagueness. Cars began to pull off the road. I began to consider the possibility that my Bike Week journey to prove the practicality of the superbike of the century might end prematurely, quite possibly painfully.

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Roaming Holiday: Touring Tuscany on a 2006 Vespa GTS250ie

Have you got a taste for good Chianti? Can't have a meal without an antipasti first? Do you have a preference for tight-fitting and/or mesh undergarments? Do you only obey traffic laws when it makes sense to do so? Does the sight of a swoopy, steel-bodied motorscooter make you swoon?

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Iron Heart 1000

The Iron Heart 1000 is simple in concept: ride 1000 miles in 24 hours. Its organizers, Bill Davis and Michael Moorhouse, first put the event together in 2004 as a fundraiser for cardiac research. Riders from Phoenix, Tucson, San Diego, and Ontario (CA) start out simultaneously on a whirlwind tour of the desert Southwest, stopping at a checkpoint in each city to verify mileage.

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Into the Cherokee Nation

This part of Georgia was all once part of the Cherokee Nation, an independent nation within the boundaries of the United States. The nation was established by treaty with the U.S. in 1819. In its brief existence, it included parts of four states. (The map is courtesy of cherokeehistory.com.) The Cherokee Nation (outlined in red) was less than a tenth of the lands that the Cherokees had once controlled (the larger grey outline). Their lands when the white man arrived had covered more surface area than many historical kingdoms that we now call "empires." Parts of seven states once fell under control of the tribe (eight, if you count West Virginia, which wasn't established until 1865).

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Central Cali Touring

Located on the rugged Central Coast on Hwy 1 in San Luis Obispo County and often referred to as "Slabtown" in the late mid-1800s, Cambria was officially founded in 1869. All manner of industry passed through this sleepy, oceanside village during this time; fishing, mining, dairy and beef ranching, lumbering and farming, to name a few. Today Cambria's primary industry is tourism.

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Longride's Southwest Romp
Milan to Barcelona to Milan

I wake up at 10:00am, the sun is shinning, and the rain is all but a memory. Guess the trip starts for real now. The descent from Gap to Aix-en-Provance turns out to be a fast and furious three-lane stretch with curves gently flowing along the Durance River. A good chance to open the throttle at last. The ST just loves this kind of fast stuff. It feels utterly planted while cranked well over, yet the light forward cant and very relaxed riding position means you can also dig the vistas around you. It's got this real Gran Turismo air about it. In Aix-en Provance I pull into town for a quick lunch of Quiche Lorraine in the main square.

I park the ST just in front of me and for the first time take my time to admire it and I have to admit, it looks good and quite original. In the mean time, the square is alive and kicking, Aix is one of Provance's pearls and the big university here draws a young and hip crowd. No time to watch the birds though, I have to reach Spain by this evening. It's time to gas it some in the AutoRoute, that's French for Autostrada or Autobahn.

The first 200 miles going west aren't that interesting. The river Rhone's delta is a vast and flat area and I switch to a 90-100 drone mode.

The actual speed limit is 85 so at that kind of speed, a quick dab on the brakes will put you back on the legal zone. To American ears this might sound fast enough but until a few years ago you could tear along France at 120 without many problems. Back in `98 I did a London-Florence-London run on a Superblackbird at an almost constant 120 mph through France. These days are long gone as French AutoRoute's are filled with speed cameras, and most people really stick to the 85 limit. In such tank-fill to tank*fill stretches you can really start to appreciate the special charm of the Triumph's big new Triple. Indeed, it doesn't buzz like an in-line four, doesn't throb like a twin, only a very light hum reaches the rider. Okay, it might not be as silky smooth as a VFR but it certainly has much more presence and character.

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Cafe Racers in Chile

Between my legs I have a beautiful red 1966 Motobi 175. The kick starter shows no interest in fulfilling its function so I engage second gear and run the Motobi down the street, let out the clutch and bump start it to life. As the engine catches, a little throttle turns the fragile sputter into a full-blooded Italian roar, revving harder to warm up the engine as I circle around back to the hotel.

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2005 Washington DC Tour

We here at MO love to ride anything, anywhere, so when I was offered an opportunity to take advantage of a rental Harley-Davidson from Eagle Rider in Chantilly, Virginia on a five-day trip to Washington, DC, I quickly incorporated a motorcycle into my travel plans. All in the interest of science, I was to take a three-day rental of a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy ™ and tell you, the MO reader, what it's like to rent a motorcycle in a strange city and use it to get around, see the sights, and have a good time with in general.

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A Year With the Triumph Speed 4

Most of the folks walking into motorcycle shops have never owned a motorcycle, or haven't owned one in a long, long time. When they are younger- from 18 to 30 or so- they want a sportbike. The older ones want standards or cruisers. They usually want one of the Japanese brands, as the common wisdom of car buyers dictates that Japanese = good value and reliability.

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2005 Oatman Arizona Tour

For $35 you can spend the night here, and for $10 extra, you can even have Oatie's old room. For you romantics, the Gable/Lombard "honeymoon suite" is also available, for a mere $45. I wouldn't suggest it, though, as nothing much has been changed in the room since 1939, and that may even include the sheets.          

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2005 Dolomite Ride

So then, 'why don't you move your sorry bottom over to Italy for some twisties?' says I. "Oh, yeah? Ha! That's only 700 miles just to get there, but listen, we could meet somewhere in the middle or at least nearer no?" Okay then, ever been to the Dolomites? "Well, it's not really midway, but I've heard about this train that crosses Europe north to south on which you can take your bike and it lands in Bolzano, smack in the mid-Dolomites". Brilliant idea, a deal!

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Blue Ridge Parkway

There are many natural treasures in the USA that few know about and even fewer have experienced. The Blue Ridge Parkway is one of these treasures. If you ride on two wheels, be it motorcycle or bicycle, you'd think you've died and gone to heaven.

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Postcards From Roads Less Traveled - The Magruder Trail

The 101-mile Magruder Corridor Road is a primitive dirt road that serves as the only passage for motorized vehicles through the largest wilderness area in the lower 48 US States. The Frank Church River of No Return/Selway Bitterroot Wilderness is situated along the Idaho-Montana border just

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West Marin County Loop Ride
I Coulda Had a V-8.... so I Did

...one motorcycle milestone that is rarely seen in other lists but was included among UK crew's must-haves, was another Italian exotic.

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The Ducati Monster Challenge Concludes At Ducati Day Daytona

After a nail-biting final we now know who has the coolest Monster.

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Beach's Classic Alpine Adventure

I began my motorcycle riding life in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, nearly 35 years ago. I believe it is fair to say that I cut my motorcycling teeth on mountain passes, and in the ensuing years I managed to ride (I believe) every single paved pass in the Rockies at least once, including those in Canada. During this same time I also managed to ride most of the best passes in the Sierras, Adirondacks, the Great Smokies and several other, smaller mountain ranges here in the US, plus some of those in Africa, Asia and South America. Yet, somehow, the legendary motorcycle Nirvana of the Alps eluded me. Three times in 15 years I made plans to ride through the Alps, and three times something happened in either my personal life or on the national scene (like 9/11), to force the cancellation of my trips.

At 56 years old, I began to think that perhaps it just wasn't meant to be--and then the call came from Rob Beach.

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The Ultimate Road Trip

After the El Chott, I was hooked. The dream of Dakar was almost within reach. All I needed was a big pile of cash. If you are considering the Dakar, and you are not a millionaire, my advice to you is to have lots of room on your credit cards, and have a very supportive spouse. Better yet, be single, since you'll need to be obsessed with the Rally for most of a year. I spent most of 2003 begging for money and selling everything I had around the house to pay the entry fee. In the end, including maxing out several new credit cards, I spent just over $41 grand.

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Lovin' the Laverda

Personally, I love the bikes. Maybe it's a musical thing. They make a sound somewhere between a Mona Lisa moan and a Harpy's howl. I know. I've listened to several of them up close and personal having owned both a 3C (1000 triple) and an SF1 (750 twin) and ridden behind a friend's SFC (the smell of castor bean oil in its wake). I miss that music; it literally throbbed through the marrow of one's bones and set the heart rate at "exhilarate."

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EBass Tours Sonoma Co. California

Timber Cove Inn acted as my base of operations for the day's journey. The posh resort occupies 26 acres of premium coastline. I don't want to know what it cost to purchase that real estate, but I'm guessing the owner isn't a retired motojournalist. You can get a room for as little as $78 on a weekday, but they'll be happy to relieve you of $590 per night to stay in their luxury suites, which come equipped with a private spa, fireplace and balcony.

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TZ750 STREETFIGHTER

In the remaining interstices of life, he's managed to rebuild one of the all time great works-based specials.

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1907 Curtiss V-8

Wearing a leather cap, a well-manicured moustache and a steely gaze Glenn Hammond Curtiss stares out of a time-worn black and white postcard-like photo. In the background frothy waves plash upon a beach, the very hard packed sands upon which his experimental V-8 powered motorcycle would transport him into the history books as "The Fastest Man in the World." The day was Thursday January 24, the year 1907; the place, Ormond Beach on the east coast of Florida. The record... 136.3 mph, an absoloute land speed record that would stand for eleven years and then only be surpassed by an automobile. The year would be 1930, before another motorcycle would best Glenn Curtiss's 1907 feat of daring-do and mechanical design.

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Italian Stallions

The following bikes showed up at one of the annual Italian and French Car Shows held in the Los Angeles area's Woodley Park. Well, make that ex-annual. The bikes were invited to join the four-wheelers for two years, then on the second and ultimately last year, the French car guys freaked when someone lit up an open piped three-cylinder MV one too many times. It probably shook off a couple toupees so the Italian bikes weren't invited back. The show's loss. So for those MO readers that didn't make that last show, here are the winners of the competition. Come to think of it, I think every bike there won an award, and damn rightly so.

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Napa Valley Loop Ride

I suppose all of this would make more sense if I had started this tale from the beginning rather than the end, but hey, what fun would that be? So let us flashback now to a phone call a long long time ago in a garage far far away in which intrepid MOron and incorrigible oenophile, EBass learns that ... 

"Woo Hoo! I'm goin' to Napa Valley! There's gonna be Chardonnay, and Cabernet, and Merlot, and Pinot. Mondavi, and Coppola, I'll drink all their vino!"

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California Dreamin'

John Steinbeck, Cannery Row

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Sport Touring in South Carolina
Touring With EBass in Southern Marin County

While the Stinson Beach Grill features an elegant indoor dining room, most everybody heads for the far larger and more popular outdoor patio. Heat lamps are on hand should the weather turn cool and the navy blue decking and tablecloths accompanied by white chairs and railing give a nautical feel to the 20 or so tables. At 2:45 on Saturday, usually a dead time for restaurants, the service still took awhile as they were nearly full up, always a good sign. The view of the mountains was already whetting my appetite. What a great staging area for an afternoon ride, but first I would be needing some sustenance. 
 

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