#ChurchOfMo

Harley-Davidson’s V-Rod was supposed to be the answer to the nay-sayers who clamored that The Motor Company was stuck in the past and couldn’t produce a contemporary powerplant. Considering the engine is still around in H-D’s lineup today is a signal that, at the very least, Harley hasn’t given up on its first mass-produced liquid-cooled engine. In 2002 MO had the opportunity to throw a leg over the then-new VRSCA V-Rod, and in this week’s Church feature, we revisit that test to see what our editors thought of Harley’s rendition of a sportbike. 

Sometime during the start of the new millennium, the cruiser manufacturers made a push toward producing models that could best be described as “muscle cruisers.” These bikes packed big engines into minimal frames with big shoulders and mean street cred. The Honda VTX1800 featured in last week’s Church feature is one such motorcycle. These bikes were an attempt to appeal to current cruiser customers while also grabbing the attention of, say, a sportbike rider looking to hang up his or her leathers for something less committed. This week we bring you another in the muscle cruiser category: the 2002 Yamaha Road Star Warrior. Boasting over 100 lb.-ft. of torque and a front end inspired by the YZF-R1 sportbike, the Road Star Warrior was an aggressive attempt by the Yamaha/Star brand to bridge the gap between cruiser and sport buyers. What did we think of it? Read our first impressions below from the Warrior’s new model introduction.

If any category of motorcycling best represents the all-American “bigger is better” mentality, the cruiser segment is it. For 2002, Honda took this theme to heart with the introduction of the VTX1800, and for this week’s Church feature we travel back 13 years and revisit the 1800’s press intro in Santa Barbara, California. With a V-Twin engine so large, it was no surprise the central talking point revolved around it. That said, in typical Honda fashion, the rest of the machine received considerable thought as well. Read on to see just how the 2002 MO crew got on with Honda’s big, bad cruiser.

In this Church feature from 1999, we look back at one Australian company with a big vision. Hunwick Hallam was a partnership between Australian Rod Hunwick and engineer Paul Hallam, to create their own take on motorcycling. While Australian Superbike racing was what the company may be most known for in Australia, the thought of producing the Boss Power Cruiser was arguably a bigger goal for the company. Actual prototypes were eventually made, and the duo had sights set firmly on the cruiser-happy American market. The bike drew eyeballs, but not much funding as the thought of buying an new motorcycle from an unknown company was a tough sell. Ultimately, Hunwick Hallam faded away, its dream never fully being realized. However, Hunwick would later go on to co-found the popular motorcycle custom shop Deus Ex Machina. This report from contributor Ken Edwards provides a few details about the Power Cruiser.

With the news of Erik Buell Racing closing its doors, this week’s Church feature pays homage to one of Erik Buell’s most popular models: the Buell Ulysses. In this particular case, it’s the 2008 Buell Ulysses XB12XT. Separating the XT from the standard X version of the Uly is its sport-oriented tires and slightly tweaked suspension to suit riders who prefer twisty pavement to dirt roads. Penning this story is MO’s Pete Brissette, who might have left the MO crew a fews years back, but is always welcome along these parts. Read along as he goes for a ride aboard the new, sportier Ulysses. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did, and Erik Buell, if you’re reading this, we hope to see you back on your feet soon. Lastly, be sure to check out our photo gallery for more pictures of the Ulysses XB12XT.

For this week’s Church feature, we’re going to party like it’s 1999 with the help of the 1999 Yamaha Customs. You might recognize them now as Star Motorcycles, but even today we go back and forth with calling the Tuning Fork cruisers Yamaha or Stars. YamaStars, maybe? Anyway, here we look back at some new for ’99 YamaStars and take a ride aboard the Royal Star Venture, a bike still available – and largely unchanged – today. Check it out below, and if you’re a Royal Star Venture owner, tell us what you think of it in the comments section.

“One of my favorite cruisers,” is how MO’s own Evans Brasfield describes the Victory V92C, aka the first Victory motorcycle. His fondness for the V92C comes from a long road trip he took aboard the “other” American cruiser, which left a lasting imprint on our cruiser editor. Now, almost 17 years later, we’re revisiting the launch of the  1998 Victory V92C for this week’s Church feature. The words come from contributor Edward K. Randolph, and it’s interesting to note Polaris CEO W. Hall Wendel, Jr.’s comments about Victory’s existence and the desire to expand Polaris’ reach in the powersports realm. Of course, with Polaris now in control of Indian, one would think the investment in Victory has paid off. With that, enjoy this trip down memory lane.

Triumph’s Rocket III is a British interpretation of a classic American mantra: “there’s no replacement for displacement.” It’s huge 2.3 liter inline-Triple was a torque monster and ate up flat roads for breakfast. So for 2008, Triumph decided to civilize the Rocket III a tad by introducing the Rocket III Touring. Fittingly, Triumph chose San Antonio, Texas as the locale to host the international press launch for it, allowing the world’s moto-media to experience the expanse of Texas blacktop. MO’s European Correspondent, Tor Sagen, was at the launch, where he can’t help but compare the Rocket to a Harley big twin. Read his thoughts below and be sure to visit the photo gallery to see more pictures.

The Suzuki Bandit has been a staple in the company’s lineup for some time. From the 600, to the 650, then the 1200 and lastly the 1250, Bandits were unique in that they were surprisingly capable of handling daily commuting duties, yet were remarkably uninspiring overall. Still, if that’s the worst we can say about the Suzuki Bandit 1250 ABS all these years later, then Suzuki succeeded in producing a solid jack-of-all-trades street motorcycle. Here, we visit with MO’s European Correspondent, Tor Sagen, to get his thoughts on the then-new Bandit 1250 ABS for this week’s Church feature. Also, be sure to check the photo gallery for more Bandit 1250 ABS pictures.

Our old pal Yossef Schvetz is back for another edition of Church of MO. This time the year is 2007, and the bike? The Ducati GT1000 Sport Classic. At a time when the auto world was going crazy introducing retro-themed models, Ducati took a page out of the same book and released three retro-inspired bikes of their own: the Sport 1000, the GT1000 seen here, and the highly sought after Paul Smart 1000. The Sport and Paul Smart received a lot of fanfare, but the most practical of the three variants was this, the GT1000. Here, Schvetz gives us his take on the new-old Ducati. Also, be sure to check out the photo gallery to see even more pictures from this test.

This week’s Church feature centers around two people dear to MO: Pete Brissette and Erik Buell. Long time readers will remember Pete for his various escapades under the MO umbrella and his clever approach to jotting them down with (virtual) pen and paper. Buell, of course, needs no introduction, the American motorcycling pioneer staying steadfast in his quest to deliver an American sportbike. In 2007, however, he introduced what some, including myself, thought would be a fun take on his venerable XB line of Buell motorcycles. With the Buell Lightning Super TT XB12STT, Buell drew inspiration from supermoto and flat track bikes to create what was supposed to be a wicked urban assault vehicle and canyon carver. The bike didn’t quite catch on as well as Buell hoped and only survived for a couple years. Still, Pete was a big fan, and here he reflects on how cool a bike he thought the STT to be.

A quick glance at the MO front page will reveal an overload of sportbike-related material this week. From Chief Editor Duke’s third installment of racetracks he’s ridden, to my very own review of the game-changing 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 and R1M, I realize MO seems a little sportbike heavy. In response, let’s change gears and focus our attention at this, the Royal Enfield Bullet Sixty-5. Where the aforementioned Yamaha is entirely tech-focused, the Sixty-5 is firmly planted in the 1950s. One cylinder, two valves, pushrods and carburettors… tech that wasn’t particularly impressive even 60 years ago. However, these things run like tanks, and if you go to Royal Enfield’s Indian home you’ll likely see plenty of these running around. 

This week’s Church feature continues the Yamaha R1 love I started last Sunday with the Y2K Yamaha R1  and the all-new 2015 R1 and R1M posted Friday. Here, we have the first ride review of the 2002 R1, provided to us (with a fee) from one Sir Roger Daily after another freelancer bailed and left MO high and dry. Details aside, this piece was chosen this week because of the impression it left on the author. Yamaha clearly toiled to make this bike better than before and the result was a supremely confident street bike that could also earn its keep on track. After reading this, click on the R1 and R1M link above and you’ll understand the change in direction Yamaha has made in 2015.

On Friday, yours truly will be among the first journalists in the world to throw a leg over the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 at the Sydney Motorsport Park (formerly Eastern Creek Raceway) in Australia. Yamaha’s flagship sportbike is littered with tech derived from MotoGP and as such is one of the most hotly anticipated motorcycles of 2015. In fact, the MO crew equates the buzz surrounding this new R1 as being similar to when the first R1 was released 17 years ago. That’s the test we wanted to bring you for this week’s Church feature, but that story seems to have been lost once MO ownership changed hands several years ago. Instead, our review of the 2000 Yamaha YZF-R1 will have to suffice. A slightly more polished version of the original, the 2000 R1 loses none of the edge that made the original so wild. So while a trip back in time to the original R1 would have been nice, this 2000 edition should be equally as entertaining/informative. Here to bring you the deets, come along with Brent “Minime” Avis as he rides the R1 in Spain.

Our man Yossef is at it again. This time, our protagonist plops himself aboard a trio of Moto Guzzis – the 850 Griso, Breva and lastly, the California. The year is 2006, Guzzi’s parent company, Piaggio, had just acquired the Aprilia brand and many, including Yossef, wondered what impact that would have on the future of Moto Guzzi. As we know today, the two brands coexist just fine, and this 2006 launch of a slew of Guzzi models, including the then-new Griso and Breva, reaffirmed Guzzi’s place in Yossef’s mind as well. Read on to see what he thought of the three bikes, and the unique transverse V-Twins in each of them.