Long Time Away...Again...Plus Links to Articles!

Well, dearest readers (if there is actually someone out there), I have been away from this blog for some time. It was not by choice, let me assure you, but by necessity. Numerous hard drive failures and problems with the data contained on them have placed a significant strain on my finances and my time. I have been very busy writing, though, as that is my only source of income these days. So, without anymore excuses, here is a list of links to some of the work I have done lately. I am planning to keep this up as much as possible and I do hope to start the blog itself again soon...it all depends on whether I an recover my lost data in the next two weeks or so...

Macau Grand Prix

Charlie Mullins Wins AMA Rekluse National Enduro Championship

Motorcycle Fixtures!

Own Rossi's TT R1

Az Heyadri and Riders for Health

Yamaha World Crosser Super Tenere

ASV's F3 Holiday Pro Pack Deal

Telefonica Movistar to Return to MotoGP

Honda Announces New Color for VFR1200F ABS

Royal Enfield in California

Billy Joel Opens Motorcycle Shop

Althea Racing's Gensio Bevilacqua puts his Motorcycle Collection online

Josh Herrin Remains with Graves Yamaha

Honda's CBR250RR to be at EICMA 2010

Schuberth Returns to North America

Zero Motorcycles Gathers Another $2 Million

MV Agusta F4 Voted Most Beautiful on the Web

Scary Study Shows Black Riders More Likely to Become Fatalities

KLIM Supports Team USA at ISDE

Wayne Maxwell Secures Dream Moto2 Ride at Phillip Island

Saturday Morning General Moto News - A Show, A Man and a Bike

First we will start with the show. In Toronto at the International Centre during 15 - 17 January 2010, the International Motorcycle SUPERSHOW will have 7 halls dedicated to various motorcycle disciplines including cruisers, customs, racing, and much more. It seems to be a very large event which gets only basic press coverage here in the US. If you live nearby, though, you should go and check it out! All manufacturers should have a presence there and there will be vendors from all over North America and elsewhere.

http://tinyurl.com/y9g9mve

And, now on to the man; Julian Ryder, Eurosport MotoGP commentator and longtime motorcycle journalist, will be making an appearance at English dealer Tippetts Honda for a night of conversation about the MotoGP broadcasting experience. Tickets are only £5 and they are limited, so get yours quickly. Ryder is always worth listening to and he has a way with words...

http://tinyurl.com/ybzfkx5

And now on to the bike - it is the Buell 1125CR, believe it or not, and it is the hottest selling 1000c.c.+ motorcycle in all of the United Kingdom for December. I guess we can say that all of the dealers cutting the price in half have had an effect. If you can get yourself a Buell, this is the time to do it as they are dirt cheap and they are, in fact, full of great tech. You should also not have a problem with spares as Harley-Davidson has promised to keep parts stocked for a long while.

http://tinyurl.com/yedyuqh

Alex Gobert's Racing Insider - A Report on Motorcycle Racing Worldwide

Gobert is a well-known personalty to many of us who follow this sport closely, and he does have some great connections within the industry. So, when he prepares a wrap-up report about the various race championships around the world, we should read it. Have a look and get some updates on Australian Superbike, World Superbike and MotoGP.

http://tinyurl.com/ydnkhqe

MotoGP Commentator Charlie Cox Fired by BBC

He has faced criticism for his style of commentating, but he still got the job done. However, the suits at BBC have decided to send Cox back to his home of Australia. Steve Parrish may or may not remain, and no one knows who the BBC may replace Cox with...The BBC works like Fox TV - constant shake-ups for no obvious reason...

http://tinyurl.com/yz8vd4n

2006 Interview With Mat Mladin - Lost and Found

The interview linked here was supposed to end up on an online radio interview, but all they ended up with is a text document of the interview itself. It took place at Laguna Seca back in July of 2006 in Mladin's motorhome. Read some words from a man with few of them for the press...

http://tinyurl.com/yl9bnje

PR: GORE Announces New 100% Durably Waterproof Closure System

I had read about this a few months back; Gore asked some moto journalists to test their new closure system and it worked great. It is essentially a waterproof replacement for a zipper. This way, garments will be simpler to manufacture - no need for the rain flaps around zippers - and lighter. The new Lockout Closure technology also helps with the appearance of your apparel as well. It really is a revolutionary idea, and it will likely replace many millions of zippers in the near future - wow, that closure system has been in use for almost a century and is still going strong - before you know it. However, there is one caveat; it has yet to prove itself as durable as a regular zipper in race applications.

http://tinyurl.com/yhmmavl

Motorcycle Racer Magazine Has New Owner

Apparently, Motorcycle Racer magazine is the largest motorcycle racing magazine in the world. Well, they now have new ownership - in these days of acquisitions and mergers, it is not unexpected. The U.K. group Fourth Street Media Ltd has purchased the title from past owners, Mortons Media Group Ltd. It is all done and production of the magazine should not be affected.

http://tinyurl.com/ykrf49g

BBC Motorcycle Racing – Review 2009 Launches Next Week

BBC Motorcycle Racing –Review 2009 is a "bookazine" released from the BBC Magazines Bristol group and it will be available next week for £6.99 at WH Smith only. It covers all important motorcycle racing from the 2009 season - this includes MotoGP, World Superbike, British Superbike, and interview with Valentino Rossi and much more. If you can get a copy - please get me one as well; I will reimburse you for it!

http://tinyurl.com/y8qnuh3

Charley Boorman Is Now a Cult Figure

And why not? The man has been just about everywhere on the Earth. He's really a nice guy. He's pretty damn resilient. And, those great series, Long Way 'Round and Long Way Down, were both awesome in DVD, book, or TV format - everyone who loves motorcycles should watch them. Charley Boorman has gone around the world on motorcycles, raced in the Paris-Dakar, and is looking at even going into the Baja 1000 at some point. There is just so much this guy does...I wish I knew him. I bet he has some great stories that not many have heard yet...

http://tinyurl.com/ybqkbpe

Adventure Riding - Does Size Really Matter?

Well, yes, it does, but not in the way that you think. It turns out that when venturing into some of the wildest and most remote areas of the planet, Dr. Frazier (you may know him from Motorcycle Consumer News (US) or from his numerous books on motorcycling) says that sometimes a smaller motorcycle is best. Meaning that there is a replacement for displacement in this case. It turns out that you can be much more flexible and save some money by thinking smaller, not more power. Have a read - this is a very good article from which we learn about Dr. Frazier's experience in adventure riding all around the world!

http://tinyurl.com/yjze3ot

"Cafe Society" Premiers at Three Rivers Film Festival in Pittsburgh

You probably already know the "Cafe Racer: The Motorcycle" book and the magazine Cafe Racer from Mike Seate; well, now you can see the documentary by Pittsburgh moto-journalist Mike Seate. Cafe Society premiered on the big screen at the Three Rivers Film Festival in the Pennsylvania city and will be shown again tonight at 8PM local time at the Harris Theater in downtown - don't miss the 7PM cocktail hour and the Q&A session which follows the film! If you can't get to Pittsburgh tonight, you will have to wait for it to come to your town or DVD (already available!) like me...

Last section here: http://tinyurl.com/y9tqn8k

More Ahead of Valencia - Matt Roberts' MotoGP Column

You have read him before, probably without even knowing it. Well, Mr. Roberts opines on some very interesting situations ahead of tomorrow's race in Spain. So much is left to be decided - placement overall in MotoGP (except fro Rossi), the 250c.c. World Champion, and where will some of the not-yet-signed riders end up in 2010 - there may be announcements all around the Valencia round pertaining to this subject...stay tuned!

http://tinyurl.com/yezmjfr

Ian Falloon Releases BMW Bible Covering Boxer Twins

If you have ever been interested in classic or historic motorcycles - and have worked on them - you will probably already know who Ian Falloon is. If not, just search your local bookstore, library or Amazon and you will see that he has written books about Ducati, Moto Guzzi, Laverda and BMW. He is also a prolific moto-journalist and has written over 20 books and for magazines all over the world. Have a look at his new work...

http://tinyurl.com/ykcl3vc

Will Apple Be Able to Save the Motorcycle Magazines and Journalism, Itself?

If you read the linked article, you might find it possible that the iPhone and the applications sold for it just might have the ability to save modern journalism. But, what the author conveniently leaves out of the discussion is Apple's constant grab for profits; if they make the content too expensive, readers will not buy it. In order to keep themselves afloat, magazines would have to charge enough for their content - but, Apple will also want a slice of that pie - as they always do - and that just might push the price beyond what owners of the iPhone will pay - after all, the data service for the iPhone costs more than the phone itself when calculating annual costs...and, well, people do not have that much money these days. However, I hope that something can save journalism because I am tired of hearing what happened to Lindsay Lohan last night...

http://tinyurl.com/yhphlkj

The Taiwan Powersports Industry Gets Some Attention

The 4th Annual Taiwan International Motorcycle Industry Show (Motorcycle Taiwan 2009) organizers invited several world-class moto-journalists to the show. They were asked to come to see just how far the Formosa (Taiwan) two-wheeled industry has improved over the last few years. Many were very impressed, but they still feel that Taiwan has a ways to go on the world stage in the motorcycle industry...

http://tinyurl.com/ylqx2xu

David Edwards Leaving Cycle World...

Cycle World is doing some re-structuring of the management at the magazine. Most of it is to line up various people with 'branding' initiatives. This will, "maximize brand equity, integration, and strategic and revenue opportunities." Some great public relations-speak, no? Some of the reorganization will simply be title changes and some new responsibilities. However, David Edwards will be leaving the magazine for somewhere else...the question of why or where is not answered in this press release, so we may have to wait to hear it directly from Mr. Edwards himself...

http://tinyurl.com/ydg48kz

First Ride of MV Agusta Brutale 990R and 1090RR Tomorrow

MCN (UK) will be the first English moto-press magazine to report on their ride of the new for 2010 MV Agusta Brutale 990R and 1090RR tomorrow. Their senior test rider is in Misano, Italy, already and just waiting for the sun to come up...

http://tinyurl.com/ybou2ry

Yet Again, a Journalist Gets it Wrong on a Motorcycle Issue

Jason Sweeney interviewed several people for this article, but he failed to provide an interview with someone who disagreed with the opinions stated in the article, unfortunately. Lane-splitting is perfectly legal in California, and many motorcycle riders I know would like to see it that way all over the USA or the world. But, it can be dangerous just as all things have inherent risk. Training is not necessarily the answer, but a good class on when you should and when you should not split lanes would be useful - even posting signs designating certain areas as 'no-splitting' areas could solve many problems - after all, they do have plenty of 'No Passing' signs. Lane-splitting is amazingly useful in the traffic of California and it would be very nice to have up here in Portland where I live!

http://tinyurl.com/ybvhdnw

Women Moto-Journalists Take to the Streets on Selkirk Loop

From around the world come the 12 women who took part in this ride through British Columbia, Idaho and eastern Washington state. Harley-Davidson and the Idaho Division of Tourism put together the event and I only have to ask: why don't more states do this? Four days and 705 miles of some of the most beautiful riding in the world...lucky people...

http://tinyurl.com/y9ec9d6

A Blogger Goes to China's CIMAMotor 2009

I am slightly disturbed when he compares Guangzhou to LA or New York - if you've been there, you would understand. But, his insights on the show itself and his experience in Chongqing are worth the read. The show is relatively new, but it gets bigger every year!

http://tinyurl.com/l4buuv