#BrentJaswinski

Why is the motorcycle industry in a rut? I understand that consumer demographics are changing as baby boomers are aging and aren’t really buying motorcycles anymore. Gen-Xers? Well, as the last of the analog generations, you guys have basically been passed over in light of rapid advances in technology over the last 20 years – consider yourselves lucky. Which leaves a large part of the burden to us millennials bailing our asses out.

Anything retro seems to be all the rage lately, and I’m okay with that because in a way, it pulls on our heartstrings. Technology is improving so quickly that it’s hard to keep up with all the latest and greatest. As soon as you think you have the best, something better comes along. But one thing that stays constant is the past, and this is where nostalgia comes into play.

As technology races towards the future, style is moving the opposite direction, regressing to the past. Fortunately for us motorcyclists, the two aren’t mutually exclusive, which means we can have it both ways. Take the 2018 Triumph Bonneville Bobber Black, for instance – it’s a juxtaposition between modern technology and post-WWII style. The bobber style, for those of you who aren’t familiar, harkens back to the 1940s when American riders would get rid of anything they could to shed weight by cutting and removing bodywork and ‘bobbing’ the fenders. The desired effect was to be able to keep up with the lighter, faster British and Japanese bikes that began to flood American shores.

Do you remember how boring and mundane going to a museum was as a kid? It was practically torture, but any excuse to get out of school was better than the alternative. It’s funny how things change as you get older. You start to appreciate and become more interested by the way things were, how previous generations lived compared to what we’ve grown accustomed to now. Shit, you could actually learn something.

We’ve all seen ‘Field of Dreams’ where Kevin Costner builds a baseball field into a cornfield, and while that was pretty neat, I think we can all agree building a motocross track into a cornfield is waaay cooler.

Motorcycles are awesome. I think we can all agree on that. You probably wouldn’t be reading this right now if you thought otherwise. Unfortunately, though, motorcycling is not the cheapest of hobbies, and that’s why most of us see it as more of a lifestyle. With the holidays around the corner, here are a few gift ideas that in most cases ought to make your two-wheeled life a little easier, and more fun!

Whoever said, “you can buy fashion but you can’t buy style” has obviously never seen or ridden Yamaha’s all new 2018 XSR700 Sport Heritage. While this statement usually pertains to clothes, I don’t think it’s far off the mark when it comes to Yamaha’s new middleweight. The threads you wear and motorcycles you ride don’t have a lot in common, but one thing they do share is that they both allow you to express yourself and make a statement. Just about anything retro is “cool”, or in fashion these days, but what the wearer (or rider in this case) does with it ultimately evokes their style. The XSR700 makes it easy to do so on both fronts. Allow me to explain…

With a long list of upgrades over the last generation of Multistradas, this year’s ’Strada is pretty much all new for 2018. It gets an upgrade with the new Ducati Testastretta DVT (Desmodromic Variable Timing) 1262cc engine, a new chassis, more advanced electronics, and an aesthetic update that includes new fairing panels and lighter, sportier looking wheels.

UPDATE: We’ve added a couple of shots of the Yamaha Niken from the Tokyo Motor Show.

A veterinary superhero by day and engineering extraordinaire by night, when Dr. Alan Cross isn’t performing orthopedic surgery helping animals, he’s in his garage at home in Atlanta designing and engineering his next creation. Pictured here is what he calls the ExoDyne. This is what you get when you cross a motivated doctor with an engineering degree and a passion for motorsports! And that’s not to mention the metalworking and fabrication skills he’s learned on his own.

This past Saturday marked the tenth installment of one of Southern California’s favorite vintage motorcycle events, the Venice Vintage Motorcycle Rally. Established in 2007, the Venice Vintage Motorcycle Club (VVMC) is comprised of a band of motorcyclists faithful to and united by the love of riding and maintaining old machines. They’re dedicated to the preservation and celebration of motorcycle culture and everything that goes with it.