Church Of MO – Honda Shadow A.C.E. V. Yamaha V-Star 1100

Like their sportbike cousins, middleweight cruisers provide nearly as much pleasure as their big-displacement counterparts, but have the benefit of lighter weight and better maneuverability. Two middleweight cruisers that are reliable as a rock, though perhaps a little bland, the Honda Shadow ACE and Yamaha V-Star 1100 are solid mid-displacement cruisers that are just as fine today as they were back in 2004, when we pit the two against each other. On the surface they may look fairly similar, but dig deeper and the two go about cruising in notably different ways. Here’s the MO crew of 2004 to tell you more.  

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Church Of MO – First Ride 2007 Victory Hammer S

Due to Euro 4 regulations, this week Victory announced its European lineup would be reduced down to four models: the Octane, Gunner, High-ball and Judge (which, ironically, isn’t part of Victory’s 2017 U.S. lineup). After reading the news, it seemed fitting to make Victory the marque of choice for this week’s Church feature. Specifically, the 2007 Victory Hammer S, as ridden (and written) by MO alum, Pete Brissette. With seemingly just an appearance change and a swap of handlebars, Victory had turned the standard Hammer into something Pete couldn’t resist, going so far as to say “Victory got it right!” The collective MO staff have long been fans of the underdog Victory, and Pete explains in this review why that’s so. Enjoy. And, as always, for more pictures be sure to visit the photo gallery.

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Church Of MO – 2007 Suzuki GSX-R 750 Review

This week’s Church feature is special for a few reasons. First off, the MO squad are all fans of 750s, and the 2007 Suzuki GSX-R750 was a real riot to rip around on. Moreover, this story is amusing because its author, Brad Puetz, is now on Kawasaki’s payroll, his assignment to deal with the requests of media hacks like us. With that, here’s a Canadian’s take on what it’s like to ride sportbikes on a racetrack in California in the middle of December. And for more pics, check out the photo gallery.

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Church Of MO – 2007 Ducati Multistrada 1100

In our Top 10 Disappointing Motorcycles list, Tom nominated the Ducati Multistrada 1100 because he, like many (most?) despised its styling. But none of us could deny that, looks aside, it was a fine motorcycle. So for this week’s Church feature, our pal Yossef Schvetz takes the updated Multistrada 1100 of 2007 vintage for a spin and reminds us that, despite her, well, ugly appearance, the first-gen Multi has a heart of gold. For more photos of the Multi 1100, be sure to visit the photo gallery

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Church Of MO – First Impression: Honda Pacific Coast 800

The Honda Pacific Coast 800 is not a motorcycle I think about very often. In fact, I hadn’t thought about it at all until Tom Roderick nominated it as one of his choices for Top 10 Disappointing Motorcycles. Then, once a search result popped up after typing Pacific Coast into the MO search bar, I had a feeling the subject of this week’s Church feature was presenting itself. After reading the first impression below of the Honda Pacific Coast from the 1998 MO staff, I knew we had a winner. If you’re curious about the “Station wagon of motorcycles” then you owe it to yourself to check out the story below.

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Church Of MO – 2005 Victory Hammer & 8-Ball Intro

By 2005 Victory had been around for slightly less than a decade and in that time the company knew it had (and continues to have) a big mountain to climb in order to upseat Harley-Davidson, the king of the cruiser market. From the start, however, the company has put out strong challengers centered around a 92 cubic inch V-Twin we’ve long enjoyed. By 2005, though, the muscle cruiser craze had taken shape and Victory already had an engine to bring to the table – the same one it’s always had. And in these reviews of the 2005 Victory Hammer and 8-Ball, Big Dirty Sean Alexander  explains what made (and continues to make) Victory viable alternatives for those who want more performance and attitude in their cruisers. To see more pictures of both models, be sure to visit the photo gallery.  

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Church Of MO – 2006 Yamaha FZ-1

In light of the new Yamaha FZ-10 I rode a few days ago, let’s travel back 10 years to the intro of the 10’s predecessor: the FZ1. It, too, was a more comfortable version of the built-for-the-track R1, but in stark contrast to the new FZ-10 it’s styling can only be considered bland by comparison. Styled more for the gentlemanly set, it’s a bit strange Gabe Ets-Hokin was the one who got to ride this bike at the intro (zing!). Nonetheless, the FZ1 holds a soft spot in many rider’s hearts for being more than just a naked R1 with a handlebar – it’s a comfortable long-distance machine that can also handle the bends. Here’s Gabe to tell you more.

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Church Of MO – 2008 Moto Morini Corsaro Review

I’ll admit, I didn’t know Moto Morini was still in business. However, after a quick Google search, the company has a website that appears to be up-to-date, with five models. Unfortunately, none of them are coming to the U.S. Hence why I forgot about the marque. In 2008, though, contributor Yossef Schvetz hopped aboard the Moto Morini Corsari, in a review for the then-revived company. With a 1200cc V-Twin stuffed into a naked bike chassis, it appears that maybe MM should reconsider its decision not to bring bikes to America. This category seems to be all the rage these days (and the topic of a MO six bike shootout to come in a few days…). Read on to find out more about the Corsaro and Moto Morini. -TS

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Church Of MO – Nicky Hayden Interview

We’ve dedicated a couple stories this week to Nicky Hayden, The Kentucky Kid  and his World Superbike-spec Honda CBR1000RR competing this weekend at Laguna Seca. From Tom’s Top 10 reasons to visit Laguna Seca this weekend to this poll on Nicky’s chances this weekend, you’ll forgive us if we’re pouring out some love for the 2006 MotoGP champion. So for this weekend’s Church feature we’re keeping the love pouring, with this interview with Hayden shortly after he announced he was moving to the Ducati MotoGP squad. History will tell us that the move ultimately didn’t bear the fruit Hayden was hoping for, but ever the professional, he’s always been optimistic about his chances.   

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Church Of MO – 2009 Harley-Davidson Electra Glide Standard Review

Tomorrow being July 4th, which if you don’t know, is Independence Day here in America, where the MO staff is based. In celebration of this holiday today’s Church feature is all-American. And it doesn’t get much more all-American than a story about a Harley-Davidson and a trip to Sturgis. Today, we have a review of the 2009 Harley-Davidson Electra Glide Standard that George “Longride” Obradovich piloted 2500 miles to Sturgis. Obradovich, owner of a 2001 Electra Glide, notes the many changes between his old bike and this new one, and gives his (probably biased) opinion about how it all works. In short, he gives it a thumbs up. Read on to find out.

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Church Of MO – 2009 Yamaha XJ6 & XJ6 Diversion Review

Could it be that the Yamaha XJ6 and XJ6 Diversion were just slightly ahead of their time? Naked middleweights are making what appears to be a comeback in the form of Yamaha’s FZ-07 and Suzuki’s new SV650, but in this week’s Church feature, we take a look at a bike that could be considered the predecessor to the FZ-07 – the Yamaha XJ6 (and its half-faired sibling, the XJ6 Diversion). Two bikes that never made it to America, assuming you don’t count the XJ6’s slightly different cousin, the FZ6R. Here, our European Correspondent, Tor Sagen, takes the XJ6 for a spin and tells us all about it. As usual, for more pics, be sure to visit the photo gallery.

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Church Of MO – Leather and Protection

Monday, June 20 marks the 25th Ride to Work Day, an annual event created to show the general public that motorcyclists are their friends and neighbors and that there are lots of us out there sharing the roads with them.

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Church Of MO – '04 Yamaha RoadStar

This week’s Church feature brings you a review of the 2004 Yamaha RoadStar. More than that, however, this week’s Church feature brings you an example of Eric Bass truly soaking up a motorcycle press intro, complete with photos of the hotel room, EB making a duck face for the camera, posing in a bathrobe, talking to Brad Banister in said bathrobe, and lastly, sunbathing on top of the RoadStar. Oh, and there’s a motorcycle review in there somewhere, too. For more pics of E-Bass, be sure to check out the photo gallery. Enjoy!

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Church Of MO – Firebolts, Lightnings And An XB-RR: Buells In Bakersfield

Here in ‘Murica, where MO’s editorial staff is based, tomorrow is Memorial Day, where we pay our respects to those who gave their life in the armed forces protecting this country. So for this week’s Church feature we’re going all-American and paying our respects to Buell Motorcycles, the motorcycle company parent company Harley-Davidson killed once the recession was at its height. Specifically, we’re featuring the 2007 Buell model lineup press launch. Fortunately for us, company founder Erik Buell has resurrected himself with EBR, though many still hold the Harley-powered Buells in high regard. Penning the words for this story is none other than Gabe Ets-Hokin, a quirky human perfect for writing about quirky motorcycles. To see more pics, check out the photo gallery.

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Church Of MO – 2004 Kawasaki KX250F

Ostensibly, this is a review of the 2004 Kawasaki KX250F. But read a little more into the story and you start to see this is just the old-school MO crew having fun on a new dirtbike, getting themselves wholly out of their comfort zone and being genuine MOrons the entire time. This was MO‘s humble beginnings, folks – Ride bikes, make mistakes and bad decisions, then write about it in a fun and irreverent manner. I mean, check out that lead image above. I didn’t add those effects. That’s just the goofy MOron crew at work. Anyway, enjoy the “review” and see the rest of the pics in the photo gallery.

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