New Additions at Top and Bottom for Motorcycle.com - Editorial
Former MO chief rejoins our team
We know you all want to see reviews of the latest motorcycles, as they consistently bring our largest influx of traffic. So it’s no surprise that our number-one goal at Motorcycle.com is to bring to your eyes tests of nearly every new bike that comes to market. And that won’t change.
However, we’ve come to realize that our focus almost solely on reviews has taken attention away from the clubhouse-y feel that was such a major part of the old MO. In an effort to bring that back into balance, we’ve decided to augment our content by delivering weekly editorials from our core group of editors. Each of us spends all day thinking of motorcycles, so there’s plenty of ground for us to cover on topics that will vary wildly from week-to-week. They’ll bring to light a variety of subjects and provide insight into the personalities of our highly experienced team.
This direction was instigated by a man that needs no introduction to longtime MO fans: Sean Alexander. He was a major force during MO’s early heyday, joining as Associate Editor in 2002 and rising in the ranks to become Editor-in-Chief and Publisher in 2003 through the end of his tenure in 2006 – an era when irreverence and a sense of fun were core principles at Motorcycle.com.
But then Alexander saw greener pastures and jumped ship to the corporate side of the industry, becoming the Kawasaki PR account manager at Freeman/McCue Public Relations in 2006. Although he was no longer an editor, we were occasionally able to catch up with him at Kawasaki events. Sean was clearly happy in that new role, but we always had the feeling he looked back fondly on his days in motorcycle journalism.
And we were right. I’m happy to share the news that Sean has been hired as the Editorial Director for all of VerticalScope’s (MO’s parent company) powersports publications. He’ll be overseeing several titles, but he’s most excited about rejoining his family here at Motorcycle.com.
“It feels a little like coming home, but my leathers don’t fit my fat ass anymore,” Alexander quips. On a more serious note, he adds: “I will primarily be concerned with the content generated by the editors of Motorcycle.com, Off-Road.com, ATV.com, PersonalWatercraft.com, Snowmobile.com and numerous additional powersports-specific publications owned by VerticalScope.
“In general, I will be working closely with each Editor-in-Chief to ensure our content exceeds the expectations of our vast readerships,” he continues. “I will also be working closely on the corporate side of things to help defend the sanctity of our professional opinions, uphold our journalistic integrity, and to consult with the sales teams and advertisers so those first two considerations are never compromised. Also, because it is my love, I will occasionally assist with multi-bike shootouts and perform the occasional bike test/review as a contributing editor to Motorcycle.com.”
Sean sums up his feelings with his characteristic humorous approach: “It’s great to be back at this esteemed publication. Wait, who am I kidding? It’s been too long and I’m ready to make up for lost-time… when’s lunch?”
And Sean’s not the only new face on MO, as veteran motojournalist Evans Brasfield is another recent addition to our team. He brings a deep background of experience, as he’s been writing about motorcycles for almost 20 years. He first gained notoriety as a staffer at Motorcycle Cruiser before splitting his duties with Sport Rider. More recently he’s been a regular contributor to RoadBike magazine, and he’s also a certified MSF/CSMP riding instructor. Brasfield is also a published author, producing “101 Sportbike Performance Projects” and “How To Modify Your Metric Cruiser” as both author and photographer.
“I’ve known all of the guys at MO for a number of years, and I feel lucky to be able to join a group of fun-loving, hard-working, motorcyclists,” Brasfield comments. “I hope the skills I bring to the team will make it possible for MO to deliver even more entertaining and informative content to our readers. After the first few weeks working with Kevin and the gang, I can’t wait to see what 2014 holds for us. You can bet it’s gonna be good.”
Brasfield also has an early connection to Sean Alexander, which illustrates their enthusiast backgrounds and fun-loving attitudes.
“The story I always tell to illustrate Sean’s personality comes from racing against him many years ago. We’d been having a race-long battle, swapping positions multiple times a lap. On the front straight at the Streets of Willow, as we crossed the start/finish line, Sean reached over and pinched me on the butt as he pulled alongside me. I don’t know how I made it through the next two corners I was laughing so hard.”
So, now infused with new blood and a transfusion of old blood, we’re ready to hit the ground running. Er, riding!
More by Kevin Duke
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Hurrah! Good to see Sean back. Duke & Co. have seriously upped the game in the video and content department. The site updates are welcome, too. The return of some old-time MO mayhem is a beautiful thing.
I was hoping the new comment system would bring back something like the insane (and sometimes inane) discussions from the old, decrepit single thread era. That was a hysterically good time.
Glad to hear Sean is back. The old MO was awesome. Honestly some of the clubhouse feel left when the web page was redesigned, it's a better page, but it didn't have the same feel where you knew the regular posters. Hoping Sean can bring that back.