#BrentJaswinski

Honda just stepped its game up big time for 2019, with the release of the ‘CRF Collective.’ There are three all-new models to look forward to including a CRF250RX, a CRF450RWE (Works Edition), and get this, a long-awaited and only dreamed of before, CRF450L dual-sport. (!!!) If that wasn’t exciting enough on its own, Honda just about completely redesigned its ‘King of the Trail’, top dog, Baja-dominating CRF450X. The rest of the CRF lineup got the full treatment as well, with significant upgrades and improvements to the CRF450R, CRF450RX, CRF250R and CRF150R models.

Just like anything else, motorcycles are continually evolving and getting lighter, faster and more powerful with each passing year. Despite improvements to how well bikes handle and perform, having an accident and crashing is always a looming threat that can never be eliminated, only mitigated – especially off-road. Fortunately for us riders, there are engineers working hard to keep our heads and bodies as safe as possible so we can continue to enjoy riding motorcycles – both on- and off-road – with confidence in knowing that we have the best chance in decreasing the amount of damage a potential crash can cause.

With Monster Energy Supercross having wrapped up two weeks ago, the Outdoor motocross season is upon us, and it all starts this weekend at Hangtown in Rancho Cordova, just outside Sacramento, California. There’s a lot to look forward to this summer. Can Eli Tomac defend his title? Or will Jason Anderson come out swinging fresh off his Supercross Championship? There’s also Ken Roczen to consider, how will he fare coming back from injury?

Hands down, Husqvarna has the most complete line of off-road bikes of any manufacturer. Whether you’re a track, trail or dual-sport rider, Husqvarna has a bike tailor-made to your needs. The company has already pulled the veils off its 2019 minibikes for the up-and-coming youngsters, and now they’ve just announced their 2019 big-boy lineup. Ranging from the 125cc TX 125 and the all-new 150cc TE 150 two-strokes, all the way up to the 511cc FE 501 thumper – these new Huskies are the most technologically advanced enduros and dual-sports on the market. To top it all off, Husqvarna just won both the 450 and 250 East 2018 Monster Energy Supercross Championships. Needless to say, Husqvarna knows how to build a darn good motorcycle.

Indian isn’t just in the business of building motorcycles anymore; the American motorcycle manufacturer is also making history and rewriting the record books, and the Scout FTR750 is leading the way. In its inaugural 2017 American Flat Track season, the FTR750 won 14 of 18 races, accounted for 37 of the available 54 podium spots and won Indian and Jared Mees the Grand National Championship. This year, the FTR has also proven to be dominant, leading the championship so far with complete podium sweeps in the last two rounds. No other bike in its class has been able to touch it.

There comes a point in every motorcyclist’s life when they reach a certain level and realize that tires aren’t all created equal. I’ve owned and ridden on just about every major manufacturer’s off-road offerings, but I never really gave too much thought to tire selection beyond condition type and price point. I always figured, if the knobbies still had a decent edge, I was getting about as much traction as I could get. I just chalked the faster guys up to being better, more skilled riders – which is true of course – but I didn’t realize how much of a difference a particular tire could make until one of my riding buddies, an ex-Factory Honda rider from the late ‘80s/early ‘90s, told me to check out the Dunlop Geomax MX3S.

Camping with your motorcycle, whether it be on- or off-road, is one of our favorite pastimes. Depending on where you live, some have the luxury of doing it nearby or right in their backyard, while others have to travel a little further. Depending on where you’re going or what you’re doing and how long you’ll be gone, your setup will be different. Some prefer to travel light, while others bring everything they need including big-screen TVs and even the kitchen sink. This past weekend we hit the road with our dirtbikes to attend the fourth annual Babes in the Dirt, an all-girls off-road campout, which you can read all about by clicking the link just below.

I think we can all agree, motorcycles are one of the coolest things ever invented. If you don’t ride in any way, shape or form, you’re missing out. Seriously. They provide you the closest sensation to what it’d feel like if we could fly, without ever leaving the ground. On top of that, they bring like-minded people together. If you’re able, or have ever been interested, do yourself a favor, and give it a shot. That’s exactly what hundreds of girls did this past weekend at Babes in the Dirt, a girls-only off-road campout here in Southern California.

Husqvarna, a company better known for its off-road bikes – or chainsaws, depending on who you ask – made big waves in the motorcycle world three years ago when the Austrian-owned Swedish brand announced it would enter the street bike market with concepts of its Vitpilen and Svartpilen models. Fast forward to EICMA last November, and there they were, in the flesh and on the floor – real motorcycles.

The Petersen Automotive Museum is one of the world’s premier car enthusiast destinations. Located in Los Angeles, the museum showcases automotive culture from around the world while celebrating Southern California’s rich history of automotive innovation, competition and design. The Petersen features exhibits primarily revolving around four-wheeled vehicles, but due to popular inquisition and demand, in addition to the vision and wealth of knowledge from the exhibit’s guest curator and motorcycle historian, Paul d’Orleans, the “Custom Revolution” exhibit was born.

Motorcycles are outlawed. Gasoline is $20 per gallon. Self-driving cars are becoming dominant. Silicon Valley tech firms and the U.S. Government have collaborated to push society toward a fully-autonomous transportation system and motorcycles are an easy first target in the campaign to ban human-operated vehicles. This is the plot basis for the first season of The Last Motorcycle On Earth, a new and dramatic fictional three-part series (so far) that takes a look into the future and the new world of technology that threatens to destroy a motorcyclist’s passion and way of life.

Us motorcyclists, we’re an interesting breed, you know? We’re all connected by our love of riding motorcycles, yet often times we butt heads and disagree on things – kind of like one big dysfunctional family, I suppose. Well, Sunday June 3rd, is an opportunity for all of us to set our differences aside and come together in unison by hitting the streets, trails and tracks to do what we love and raise money for those in need. Ride Sunday is a one-day charity event for all motorcyclists across the globe to unite as one, for a greater cause.

Building and customizing motorcycles is an art form with freedom of expression like any other, but there’s one catch: More than just something to look at, these rolling works of art have to function properly, too. Indian Motorcycles has created a totally unique custom build-off competition that celebrates undiscovered, small-time builders with big-time skills – The Wrench: Scout Bobber Build Off.

I pulled into one of my favorite breakfast spots one Saturday morning, and before I even had the chance to take my helmet off, some guy rushed out, leaving his table of friends, and had to talk to me about the motorcycle I just rode in on – a 2018 Kawasaki Z900RS. I stood there chuckling to myself for a moment as I pulled my earplugs out and composed myself, then happily proceeded to chat and answer his questions. This wouldn’t be the only time someone went out of their way to compliment or inquire about the bike, either. There was the guy on the freeway who changed two lanes just to get a closer look, followed by a big thumbs up seal of approval, then the random girl in a Hermosa Beach crosswalk who asked me for a ride across town – and she didn’t even see my face! – damn you, helmet laws. If only it were the ’70s, I could’ve gotten away with it…

Are you an American? Are you a motorcyclist? If you answered yes to either of these questions, then you absolutely owe it to yourself to go and visit the Harley-Davidson Museum. You could also be neither, and I would still encourage you to check it out. You will not be disappointed, I promise you that. By now, if you’ve read any of my articles, you already know I’m a big H-D fan. I grew up on and around Harleys and their chopper variants my whole life – it’s in my blood – so visiting the Harley-Davidson museum has been on my bucket list since forever, and I’m glad to have finally crossed it off.