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2. motorcycles

April 2015
One Ton of Fun
Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited and Indian Roadmaster
Plus:
The One Motorcycle Show
We ride Yamaha’s SR400
Remembering Andy Sills
News, Clues & Rumors
BMW Motorrad
USA
©2015 BMW Motorrad USA, a division of BMW of North America, LLC. The BMW name and logo are registered trademarks.
Authorized Dealer
The Ultimate
Riding Machine®
ex-racer suits, barely
used to well worn, great
and not-so-great suits
for ladies and gents too.
All kinds of sizes and
colors. There might
even be some used
gloves and boots! They
need the space for the
previously mentioned
focusing on other stuff.
We’ve seen the suits in
question and there’s
some really cool stuff.
Volume XXXII, Issue 4
Publication Date: March 23, 2015
On The Cover:
DON’T JUST
SEIZE THE DAY.
LEAN INTO IT.
MAKE LIFE A RIDE.
Not everyone takes the chance. Even fewer have the passion
and the courage to make the most of it. But for those who can,
for those who do, there is the all-new 2015 BMW S 1000 RR.
For more information, visit bmwmotorcycles.com.
Not cruiser guys: Editor Surj and
Max K somewhere between imagination
and reality. Photo: Angelica Rubalcaba.
Contents:
NCR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
New Stuff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Andy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
One . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Ultra Omega . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Master . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Indians vs… ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Ess Arr Fo’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Doc Frazier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Maynard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Hertfelder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Marketplace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Tank-fapper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Two Weeks Notice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Find us online at:
CityBike.com
Facebook.com/CityBikeMag
CalMoto
BMW OF TRI-VALLEY
952 North Canyons Parkway
Livermore, California 94551
925-583-3300
trivalleymoto.com
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CALIFORNIA BMW
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650-966-1183
calbmw.com
CityBike Staff:
PO Box 18738, Oakland CA 94619
Phone: 415/282-2790
-Editorial: editor@citybike.com
-Advertising/Business Inquiries:
rftc@citybike.com
News ‘n Clues: Staff
Editor-in-Chief & Jackass of All Trades: Surj Gish
Senior Editor: Robert Stokstad
Contributing Editors: John Joss, Will Guyan,
Courtney Olive
Chief of the World Adventure Affairs Desk:
Dr. Gregory Frazier
Staff Photographers:
- Robert Stokstad,
- Angelica Rubalcaba
Art Director: Alan Lapp
Contributors:
Dan Baizer, Craig Bessenger, Blaise Descollonges,
John D’India (RIP), Dirck Edge, Gabe Ets-Hokin,
Alonzo Fumar, Will Guyan,Joe Glydon (RIP),
Brian Halton, David Hough, Maynard Hershon, Ed
Hertfelder, Otto Hofmann, Gary Jaehne (RIP) Jon
Jensen, Bill Klein, David Lander, Lucien Lewis,
Larry Orlick, Jason Potts, Bob Pushwa, Gary
Rather, Curt Relick, Charlie Rauseo, Mike Solis,
Ivan Thelin, James Thurber, Adam Wade (RIP).
Back Issues: $5, limited availability
Archived Articles: We can find stories and send you scanned
images for $5/page. No, we will not mail you our last copy for free
just because your buddy Dave was on the cover. Please know the
name of the story and the year of publication...at least! If you say
something like, “it was about this cool bike I used to see at Alice’s
and I think it was in CityBike in 1988...or maybe 1994” we will buy a
cheap latex adult novelty and mail it to your grandkids.
For back issue and archive requests, please mail check made out to
CityBike magazine to PO Box 18738, Oakland, CA 94619 or send
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CityBike is published on or about the third Monday of each month.
Editorial deadline is the 1st of each month. Advertising information is
available on request. Unsolicited articles and photographs are always
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©2013, CityBike Magazine, Inc. Citybike Magazine is distributed at
over 200 places throughout California each month. Taking more
than a few copies at any one place without permission from CityBike
Magazine, Inc, especially for purposes of recycling, is theft and will
be prosecuted to the full extent of civil and criminal law. Yeah!
CityBike magazine is owned by CityBike Magazine, Inc and has
teams of sleep-deprived, coke-addicted attorneys ready to defend
it from frivolous lawsuits, so even if you see Lucien Lewis doing
one of his wheelies on the cover and decide you want to do that too
and then you hit a parked car and your bike is wedged under a van
and it catches fire and the Vallejo FD has to come and extinguish
the resulting blaze and four cars and your bike are melted into
slag and you suffer permanent trauma including a twisted pinkie,
sleeplessness and night terrors, it’s not CityBike Magazine Inc.’s fault
and we don’t have any assets so just suck on it. You know better.
Photo: Angelica Rubalacaba
Pic of the Month: Cheese For
Real Riders
We’re nothing if not cheesy, and the Isle
of Man TT is probably the coolest racing
event in the history of motorcycles, so
cheese that says Isle of Man on it is pretty
cool. We hear that this is what Guy Martin
eats with that spot of tea when he pulls into
the pits. Get it at Trader Joes. Did we just
say that? Yeah…
No More Helimot Suits. No
Foolin’
Yeah, it’s April, and CityBike is not exactly
trustworthy the rest of the year
anyway, but we’re not
joking—if you want a
suit from Helimot,
you better get
your soon-to-bewell-protected
behind down to
Helimot HQ in
Fremont and get
fitted. Pronto.
We know this is unwelcome
news, so please don’t kill the messenger,
but Helmut and Linda told CityBike that
they’ll stop production of custom suits
in October of this year, to focus on glove
manufacturing and exporting.
Says Helmut, “Funny how things end
up… We started out, many moons ago,
importing Held gloves, and now we’re
exporting our US-made Helimot gloves.
Bottom line: no more Helimot custom
suits after October.” Supposedly, there’s no
changing their minds on this.
He’ll be speaking the “naked truths” about
102 years of adventure riding around the
globe, exposing some myths and fallacies
while addressing sensitive subjects like
“what’s the best motorcycle to use on an
adventure ride?” and “what is a modern
day adventure?” The good Dr. Frazier,
currently on an extended pit stop during
This is a rare
his sixth ‘round the world ride, says of his
opportunity for all you own wild adventures while promoting a
jokers who keep saying latest book, Down And Out In Patagonia,
stuff like “Some day, I’m Kamchatka, And Timbuktu, “I hate
gonna break open my
adventure that has anything to do with
piggy bank and get me sharks or snakes… and falling down while
a Helimot suit” to actually put that little
riding au naturel.”
pile of money where your mouth is. Plus,
Buyer, Buyer, Pants On Fire
remember how we said “no more suits?”
In recent years KTM has made strides to
So how big does that little pile of money
oust Harley Davidson from the “trinket to
gotta be? Sounds like there will be some
bike ratio” throne. Seriously. If you want
screamin’ deals—as low as $300, up to
a KTM branded wallet, toilet bag, garden
$1,200, maybe a bit more for the really
gnome, rubber duck, or toaster, you can
special stuff. Cash is king, but they’ll take
go to KTM’s website and pimp your entire
queens, princesses, and probably credit
world orange... Unless you want kids’
cards, too.
pajamas.
Get down to Helimot Saturday morning,
It seems that Austria and the US have
April 18th and get yo’self a suit with a
different takes on flammability standards
story behind it—even if that story is just
for children’s sleepwear. While the US is
“someone ordered it and didn’t pick it up.”
for such regulations, Austria must not be
Sure, the sale goes into Sunday,
as KTM’s entire line of kids jammies have
April 19th, too—but you
been recalled due to a lack of asbestos... or
know all the good stuff
will be long gone by
then.
Dr. Frazier
Talks Naked
The legendary Dr.
Frazier, our own Chief,
World Adventure Affairs Desk,
will be at Americade (Lake George, NY)
on June 4th, Bob’s BMW (Jessup, MD)
June 13th, Kawasaki Concours Owners
Group (Cortez, NM) June 19th, and
BMWMOA International Rally (Billings,
Montana) July 23rd through the 25th. Yeah,
we know none of those places are in the
Photo: Dr. Gregory W. Frazier
So if you have a custom-sized body, or just
want the best of the best, locally made to
boot, then make haste. This is your last
chance.
No foolin’.
And Since There Won’t Be Any
More Suits…
They’ve all got to go!
After we came to terms with the bad news
from Helimot HQ , we were happy to hear
that Helmut and Linda have a bunch of
suits hanging around. Old suits, new suits,
April 2015 | 2 | CityBike.com
greater Bay Area, but we also know some
of y’all travel now and again, and maybe
there’ll be a happy coincidence of being in
the right place at the right time. It’s not too
often that the Dr. makes these sort of (not
exactly) house calls stateside.
April 2015 | 3 | CityBike.com
BABY
ON
FIRE
whatever makes kids not spontaneously
combust in their onesies. Sad, as we’ve
always considered KTM to be the gold
standard in children’s sleepwear.
Too bad these things are too fat to split
lanes, since that’s supposedly what lane
splitting is good for—keeping hot-blooded
machines from overheating.
You might not know this, but babies are
constantly on the verge of nocturnal
spontaneous combustion. The only thing
preventing an outbreak of snoring infant
fireballs is flame retardant sleepwear. Both
KTM and now Thor seem to have been
asleep at the switch, as they’ve had to recall
their branded pajamas because they don’t
meet federal flammability standards for
children’s sleepwear, posing a risk of burn
injuries to children, in an event that will
henceforth be known as #pajamagate
-Max Klein
Rumor: CHP “Collecting More
Moto Data”
A certain CityBike editor may (or
may not—hard to say, honestly) have
recently been lit up for traveling at sorta,
kinda, extra-legal speeds on our Indian
Roadmaster test bike. His excuse?
“Ride Fast Take Chances,
occifer!” DUH.
The more legit, but still
not legally defensible,
excuse is the fairing and
windscreen on that thing
are so damn good that
there’s about the same
amount of wind noise
at 80 MPH as
there is at 10
Speaking of spontaneous combustion…
MPH. Most
In recent years, Can-Am has also taken
of us ride
aim at the Bar and Shield brand’s hold on
bikes with
3-wheeled conveyance with its Spyder. Just smallish
like KTM and their PJs, Can-Am has run
(or
into some flammability issues with their
broken)
2013 Spyder RT. By riding one of these
windscreens,
machines you risk not only being laughed
or no windscreen at
at but also an engine fire. According to the all, and we count on
recall, riding at low speeds when it is hot
the roar of the air
out increases the risk of skin burn from a
to keep us apprised
hot engine compartment—guaranteed fire of our speed.
if you are wearing your kid’s KTM pajamas. Generally pretty
It’s not surprising, really. Motorcycles
and everything associated with them are
obviously dangerous. Combined with both
KTM and Thor’s participation in extreme
sports, this was bound to happen. Honestly,
what’s more EXTREME than a baby
engulfed in flames, Ghost Rider-style?
foolproof. Even CityBike-proof, you might
say.
one thing we despise here at CityBike, it’s
bullshit (other than our own, of course).
“What officers recognized as a handgun?”
Anyhow, the H-D-mounted moto-officer
Why can’t we just say gun? And why do we
in this completely fictional story checked our
say “officer-involved shooting?” The officer
fast-riding, chance-taking hero’s papers,
involved wasn’t just hanging ‘round—he
which—surprisingly—didn’t reveal any
or she shot someone. Saying that in plain
warrants or other “issues” and pointed out
language doesn’t lay blame, or speak to
that 91 MPH is a bit much on the freeway.
wrong or right, but it tells the truth.
He was downright friendly about it, and
here’s where things got interesting.
On A More Serious Note, Trader
“Listen, CHP loves bikes. I love bikes,
obviously. Even the car guys (rolls eyes)
love bikes, for the most part. We
cut riders a lot of slack. But you
should know that we’ve been
officially instructed, from all
the way at the top, to collect more
data on bikes. You know what I
mean? So if you get pulled over
for 90+ again, you’re probably not
going to be sent on your way with a
smile and a slap on the wrist,
like I’m doing right now. So
take it easy, ok?”
The two riders
shook hands,
and went on
their way. No harm,
no foul, no fines.
We’re back,
small but mighty!
1445B South 50th Street
Richmond, Ca 94804
510-473-7247
addictionmotors.com
Featuring Ted & Tony of
Offering Motorcycle/Scooter Service & Classes on Repair and Maintenance
Join the Addiction Motors MeetUp Group to
stay informed of upcoming events!
Thanks again for all the support and well wishes.
Even the typical
CityBike writer / rider
is smart enough to know that
“collect more data” means
“write more tickets.” So keep
your eyes up and your speeds
down-ish on public roads—
Ponch and John aren’t
gonna be so lenient, at
least for a while. You’ve been
warned, as have we.
And Here’s Why You Better
Slow Your Ass Down, Son
Just kidding. We’re not actually saying
“because you’ll get shot,” no matter what
the title of this bit may imply. Actually, this
is no laughing matter, like that’ll stop us.
Apparently, Napa cops chased down a
known bad guy (history of narcotics, gang
affiliation, etc) on a motorcycle, who lost
control, crashed and pulled out a gun,
or what all the totally legit and accurate
mainstream media are labeling “what
officers recognized as a handgun.” Officers
fired three shots, handcuffed the dude, and
then performed CPR, to no avail. Meth,
cash, and a handgun—presumably the one
“recognized as a handgun”—were found
on the now-deceased bad dude.
There are a bunch of potential morals to
this story, but we’ll leave the painfully
obvious stuff like “don’t deal meth, kids”
to the after-school specials, and focus on
the moto-related stuff. We covered this
in NCR last month too—just because
motorcycles are awesome, that doesn’t
mean you should use them for crimes, at
least not serious ones that encourage the
fuzz to shoot at you. Traffic violations?
Sure, ok. But motorcycles are crappy
escape vehicles when you’re being shot at,
and even worse if you suck at riding and
crash.
One more thing—the level of bullshittery
in the language around these kinds of
events is just too much—and if there’s
April 2015 | 4 | CityBike.com
has therefore decided to exchange the
wheel flange with a more robust part as a
precaution.”
What happened to, “Sorry, you messed up
your bike, it’s gonna cost you?” How are we
supposed to learn personal responsibility if
BMW just gives us free parts because we’re
likely to break them with our cavemanesque repair techniques?
It looks like we’re supposed to believe
that BMW is going to replace more than
THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND
wheel flanges just in case, not because
the part is fundamentally flawed, but
because the people working on their
own (or customers’) bikes suck at basic
maintenance. Talk about doing a solid!
Joe’s Has Moto Gear To Go With
That Isle of Man Cheese
Sort of. Actually, not really, at all.
You know how they say the grocery store
is the best place to meet people? Lets say
you’ve stopped to pick up a few things and
you spot that special someone across the
produce aisle. Your eyes lock, you stroll
over and make some small talk next to the
sweet potatoes, they think it’s cool you have
a motorcycle (of course!), and you offer to
give them a ride. But wait, they don’t have
any gear.
Oh… they’re just saying that. This is
kinda like “officer-involved shooting,” but
in this case it’s “maintenance-involved
failure.” What BMW is saying—without
actually saying it—is that the flange cracks
sometimes, so they’re gonna replace ‘em.
And by the way, stop over-tightening
things, you idiots.
No problem! Walk over another aisle and
right next to the shampoo and deodorant,
you find helmets, jackets, gloves & boots.
Crazy talk you say?
Photos: Max Klein.
Turns out Aldi, Trader Joes’ sister store
across the pond, doesn’t think so. They’ve
come up with a line of gear they are proud
to call the CHEAPEST gear in Britain.
You could cover your newfound soulmate’s
body in budget textiles for the low, low
price of less than £200.
Here’s the actual language:
“Based on ongoing quality analyses, it was
found that in the case of incorrectly carriedout maintenance work excessive torque may
be applied to the brake disk bolts or to the
nuts when changing wheels… Cracks and
damage can occur in the wheel flange as a
result of excessive torques. BMW Motorrad
But wait, there’s more! It may be budget
gear, but it exceeds the pass zone for the
level 2 impact abrasion test, which means
your future spouse can slide for a full 13
seconds and still make it to your (nowdefinitely-in-the-works) wedding in the
same sexy shape they were in when you
met, five minutes ago.
Always skeptical, we took a look at their
Aldi website. While it is owned by the same
people as Trader Joes, they seem a little bit
more like Costo: house brands and special
buys, “when it’s gone, it’s gone” type stuff.
This moto gear is one of those special buys,
released on March 8, and going, going,
soon-to-be-gone. There are a few reviews,
mostly surprisingly good, except for the
gloves, which are single stitched & felt
“cheap.” You don’t say!
-An DeYoung
Life, Livery & The Pursuit Of
Happiness
Before every MotoGP season, many teams
do a grand unveiling of their new bikes,
leathers, and helmets. Usually it’s in some
exotic location and only the elite get to
participate in these celebrations.
Why should they have all the fun? Jim
and Nikki of Catalyst Reaction wanted to
change that, so they hosted an unveiling
party of their newly minted race team in
the spirit of the AFM.
For those of you that don’t know, the AFM
is America’s oldest racing club and damn it,
this club knows how to party. The Saturday
night race weekend festivities typically go
on until the very early morning and many
race fans (and photographers) wake up
that hold that mother on there. So don’t
ride behind him for a while, because his
rear wheel is probably gonna fall off at a
very inopportune time.
There’s obviously a
brake on the front
too, so it’ll be fine
wondering where the Advil is. Strangely
though, it is rare that an AFM team has a
pre-season bike unveiling. So rare in fact,
that the 2015 Catalyst Reaction unveiling
was the first in remembered club history.
About those helmets. Robin is not just a
racer for Catalyst, he is also their painter.
He customized each helmet to be truly
unique, and the rider reacted like kids
on Christmas morning (presumably not
wearing KTM PJs) when they saw them.
Since it is club racing, the exotic location
Yeah, even the team riders saw their stuff
for the event was Catalyst Reaction’s World
for the first time at the event.
Headquarters in beautiful San Carlos,
California, and the elite? They let me in, so In addition to showing off the new paint
that gives you an idea.
and custom helmets, Catalyst had a
BBQ , raffle prizes, and the best Kirkland
The Catalyst Reaction Racing team
margaritas I’ve ever had. I walked away
consists of four riders—two on 600s and
from the party with excitement for the
two on 250s—and while some of them did
upcoming season (and a Baxley Wheel
pit together, they were not officially a team
Chock from the raffle) and felt a little sad
last season. They all had ties to Catalyst
for those fancy MotoGP party-goers. They
Reaction and looked out for each other, but
won’t get to hang out in the AFM paddock
there was no symmetry when it came to
this summer where the real fun is.
paint schemes, leathers, or pit locations.
This year, #54 Robin Geenen, #230 Paul
Johnson, #436 Gordon Pull, and #713
Bobbie Wetterau will take things to the
proverbial next level. Instead of just acting
like a team, they will look like a team. Their
bikes all have the same theme and feature
their own personal accent colors. The color
scheme carries over into their leathers
(which were not at the unveiling) as well
as their hand painted Kali Protectives
helmets.
-Max Klein
BMW Wheel Flange Recall: It’s
All Our Fault
BMW has recalled over 300,000 K and
R bikes because—supposedly—people
working on these things don’t know how to
use a torque wrench.
Seriously. The real wheel flange on R and K
models produced from November 2003 to
April 2011—like Editor Surj’s R1200R—
may crack if you over-tighten the fasteners
April 2015 | 5 | CityBike.com
Who Needs A Rear Brake
Anyway?
BMW isn’t the only company with
rearward problems and resulting recalls. At
least Indian isn’t blaming its mechanics and
/ or customers!
806 of Indian’s Scouts are being recalled
because a problem with the rear master
cylinder may result in a “reduction in, or a
complete loss of, rear brake power.”
But wait, we keep hearing from people
who supposedly know what they’re talking
Community
Assemblyman Quirk’s AB 51, the
bill that would explicitly codify
’ve never liked the way the words
lane splitting, into something the
“riding community” are casually
community can live with. As part of
thrown around by everyone on a
this work, I attended a meeting of the
motorcycle. While we do all share a
United Motorcycle Clubs Of Alameda
common love of riding, riders are very
County—a gathering of probably 400
different people. It’s easy to say, “we’re all
riders, all in leather vests. I haven’t felt
brothers and sisters,” but quite difficult to
that out of place in a long time.
actually live it.
We were all on bikes, but I didn’t feel like
I’ve got a pretty substantial inventory of
part of that community.
tattoos, so I get lumped in with tattooed
folks a lot, and people often want to talk
Towards the end of the meeting, I was
to me about my “ink.” It used to be that
asked to come up front and speak a bit. I
tattooed folks
was sitting way
got lumped in
in the back. Talk
Photo: Angelica Rubalcaba
with ex-cons
about a long
and carnies,
walk—black
but now the
and yellow
general public
‘Stich, boots
seems to
a-squeakin’. But
think tattooed
after I talked,
people are
MC guys were
all grown-up
high-fiving me,
Limp Bizkit fan
and later on
bros. Neither
people were
of these apply
telling me how
to me, so I
much they love
don’t like to be
CityBike. It
lumped in with
began feeling
these groups.
like part of the
The fact that
community.
we both have
When I rolled
tattoos says
out on the FJR
nothing about
I was riding,
whether we’re
standing on the
gonna be bros.
pegs, people
waved to me.
It’s the same with the “community.”
Riders in the MC community talk
Maybe there’s something to this
about unification, while simultaneously
community thing. I’m not a joiner,
blaming “those goddamn rice rockets”
and I mostly ride alone. But there’s
for perception woes. Sportbike riders talk no denying that while we may be very
about how Harley guys don’t actually
different people, we all face similar
ride, while mostly riding to coffee shops
challenges on the road and in the
in t-shirts and armor vests. All haters,
state capital, especially if you’re in the
busy hating.
rider community and not the poser
community.
I’ve been working with a small group
of dedicated folks to help shape
Let’s ride.
I
about that the rear brake is meaningless on
the street and should not be used. So who
cares?
Oh, that’s right. That whole “front brake
only” thing is more uninformed bullshit.
The rear brake is actually pretty damn
useful, even important, on bigger, heavier,
longer bikes like the Scout.
The fix is new master cylinder, which will
presumably solve the problem, as long
as some torque wrench-challenged joker
doesn’t over-tighten the fasteners.
To Swerve and Impact
So back in February (yeah, it’s the April
issue—it’s print, what can we say?) a CHP
Motor officer was in hot pursuit—Roscoe
P. Coltrain style—of another motorcyclist
who was doing something worthy of a
performance award.
Some of our readers know that Editor
Surj also runs the lane splitting advocacy
website, LaneSplittingIsLegal.com. He
recently helped a reporter at the WSJ set
up a video shoot and interview with several
local moto-commuters—thanks Eric,
Aaron, Kurt and Gwynne! The video,
which went online in early March, featured
extensive and excellent interview footage
with AFM star and all-around good guy,
Eric Kondo, as well as splitting footage and
miscellaneous commentary.
The reason for our whining and the totally
accurate headline, is that the WSJ barely
mentioned LaneSplittingIsLegal.com, and
didn’t mention little ole CityBike at all.
As the red-headed stepchild of motorcycle
media and last-of-the-Mohicans print
zealots, more than anything, we just yearn
for acceptance and legitimacy from the big
boys and girls, and it broke our little hearts
According to local news sources, the officer that the WSJ didn’t show us even a little
somehow lost control and “laid it down”— love.
thanks to Channel 7 for the chortle. The
CHiPpie and/or his machine then slid
MV Agusta: Stepping Up
into another motorcyclist, who was able
MV Agusta has had a bit of a bad rep with
to stay upright (we assume due to loud
moto-journalists, who like to have access to
pipes). Further down the bridge another
whatever they want,
officer ticketed the malefactor for whatever
whenever they want
malefactory deeds he was innocent until
Photo: Jose Gallina
it. As a tiny company,
proven guilty of.
they haven’t had
Requests for more information about how much in the way of
the officer lost control have gone unstarted, regularly available
as we don’t want to get on some sort of list. press bikes, meaning
that checking out the
CHP spokesperson Vu Williams did tell
latest and greatest
local news that the downed officer only
(and these things are
suffered mild bruising as a result of the
great!) was difficult
crash. Good thing his ego was ATGATT.
to impossible, even
-Max Klein
for the elite CityBike
crew, who generally
The Wall Street Journal Hates
have all-access passes
CityBike
to anything worth
How’s that for another totally bogus
accessing.
headline? Like we said, we despise bullshit
other than our own. And it’s the April issue, That’s about to
change. The recent
so April Fools Day, right?!?
Mercedes-AMG
Sort of.
investment, while
widely regarded as
April 2015 | 6 | CityBike.com
just a vanity play, means that MV will get
to act a little more like a big company. The
first step this year was a meet-n-greet at
Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, where a
select group of moto-journos—remember,
we’re the elite—would listen to a
presentation on MV’s upcoming direction,
and then, most importantly, ride.
SPEED.” Valentino Rossi’s introduction to
this new book is testament enough.
Some readers have implicitly criticized the
book for being ‘only’ a photo collection,
as if that approach detracted from the
reading and viewing experience. If, as they
say, a picture is worth a thousand words,
this could have been a 1,000-page book of
words. Every page of photographs here is a
new and fascinating adventure. Indeed, the
only thing missing (what, no CD?) is the
sounds of the great machines. Oh yes, and
maybe a dash of Castor Oil for nostalgia
buffs.
There was a bit of rain the night before,
and a bit in the morning, but by the time
we completed the presentation (more
new models, very competitive pricing on
some bikes to help capture market share,
clarification on the parts availability
question, and most importantly for us,
It is difficult to overstate the thoroughness
press bikes!) the track had dried enough for
with which the book was created. Few
us to head out for some laps.
significant elements in John Surtees’ career
I rode most of the upright-with-handlebars
are omitted, starting with his NSU and
bikes there: Stradale, Rivale, and several
Vincent motorcycle racing through his
Brutales. I even put in a few laps on an
Norton and MV world championships,
F3. By early afternoon, most of the motoincluding his extraordinary record on the
journos had apparently had their fill, and
Isle of Man, and into his four-wheel racing
I had a Brutale 800 Dragster RR all to my
with Lotus, Lola, Cooper, Honda and
self. I’ll admit I had been pretty immune to
Ferrari F1, F2 and sports cars, and finally
the early PR on this bike—maybe it was the his own cars. Well, all right, one might
Dragster name, maybe it was the incessant
have hoped for a photo of John Surtees and
fawning by everyone over the photos, or
his father Jack in the tiny Hillman van in
maybe I’m just a slow learner. Whatever my which they would, memorably, bring race
malfunction, riding the bike instantly made bikes to the track.
me Dragster Fan Numero Uno.
More than anything, the book, co-created
Not only is the bike sexy as hell, it’s
with Mike Nicks, speaks powerfully to
immensely rideable, and the engine is a real the character of a great man who achieved
kick in the pants. I eventually had to give it magnificently. As nearly everyone knows,
up to a big name writer / rider from a “real” he was the first and almost certainly
moto mag, but not before I had thoroughly the only racer ever to achieve MotoGP
wrung its pretty little neck.
and Formula 1 world championships on
two and four wheels (Rossi comments
The other highlight of the day was
interestingly and insightfully on this
checking out an unfortunately nonepochal achievement).
running Turismo Veloce 800. If you’ve
been paying attention to the last couple
The book is much more. It enables
issues, you know I really liked Yamaha’s FJ- Surtees’ character to shine through: tough,
09, and the Veloce looks to be conceptually persistent and brilliantly talented, true, but
similar, but way higher-spec and almost
also humble, modest and fundamentally
impossibly beautiful by comparison.
decent in his approach to life, to his
MV has done a done a neat trick with the
racing and to others. In this he contrasts
sidecases, too—they’ve tucked big bags
significantly with admittedly great
way in, so the bike isn’t too wide, but the
champions from other eras, so driven, so
cases are still large. I can’t want to get on
consumed with the need to win that they
a running example of this when the newly
dealt unethically, even amorally, with the
launched MV Agusta press fleet is up and
competition. You know them. Surtees
running later this year.
never did that, or needed to.
-Editor Surj
New Stuff
John Surtees: My Incredible
Life on Two and Four Wheels
Words: John Joss
This great big book
is not a biography or
autobiography, which
perhaps may come later.
It’s a compendium of
thoroughly captioned
photographs spanning
some of the most
significant decades in
motorsports, from John
Surtees’ active racing
years from the 1950s to the
1970s and beyond. I was
privileged to watch and
report on his motorcycle
achievements at many
tracks and was flattered
that he quoted me in his
first book, “John Surtees
AGV Sport’s (Almost Grand)
Torino Jacket
Words & Photo: J. Brandon
The Torino jacket from AGV Sport
is a sharp-looking, warm, simple, and
affordable textile motorcycle jacket.
It comes with CE-approved armor at
the shoulders and elbows and a 10mmthick memory foam back pad. Rain
protection comes from a Reissa membrane
permanently integrated between the shell
and liner and claimed to be waterproof and
breathable. A removable quilted liner adds
substantial insulation.
I’ve been wearing the jacket on most of my
rides for nearly two months and have yet
to test it against anything wetter than a
light dew, so I cannot honestly vouch for its
waterproofness. I can tell you that it does
breathe fairly well, even with the liner in
place when a cold morning quickly turns
into a warm day—but that’s when the
Torino starts to come up short. This is one
of the few motorcycle jackets I’ve seen that
has no venting. None.
The book ends with a poignant words-andpictures tribute to Henry Surtees, John’s
talented racer son, who died so tragically
(and, basically, unnecessarily) while racing.
The appendix covers Surtees’ racing
When the weather gets warmer than you
record.
This is a very
were expecting your only option on this
important
historical
document
that anyone
interested in
two- and /
or four-wheel
motorsports
should
acquire.
$60 street,
Evro Publishing
Limited, 304
pages, 275
photos—color
and black /
white. Get your
copy at Amazon.
com.
April 2015 | 7 | CityBike.com
jacket is to unsnap the collar and open the
main zipper a bit. There’s an extra snap on
the collar to help hold it open and let some
air in. You could also open the zippers on
the lower sleeves to open up the cuffs a bit.
I did that on other jackets until I had a bee
fly up my sleeve at 60 miles an hour and
viciously attack my elbow. Now I always
keep my jacket cuffs snug.
2015 Aprilia Caponord
1200s now in stock.
Active suspension and side bags included for $15K +
fees. 2.9% financing for 3 years too. Call to reserve yours.
CALL 510.594.0789
© Piaggio Group Americas, Inc. 2014. Aprilia ® is a U.S. and worldwide registered trademark
of the Piaggio Gropu of companies. Obey local traffic safety laws and always wear a helmet,
appropriate eyewear and proper apparel.
The jacket has a few quirky features that
were somewhat annoying. The main
zipper has the pull attached to the left side,
Euro-style, opposite to what most of us
here in the US expect. Not a deal breaker,
but it does require a moment of thought if
you have more than one motorcycle jacket.
There’s a zippered internal chest pocket
that most manufacturers refer to as a map
pocket. I like to keep my wallet in there.
But the map pocket on this jacket is inside
the main zipper. That might make it more
waterproof but it means when I stop for gas
I have to open two zippers instead of just
one. And the soft, fleece-and-neoprenelined collar looks comfortable and feels
nice. But I ended up riding with the collar
snapped open whenever I rode without
separate neck protection. Somehow, that
collar just irritated me, especially when I
hadn’t shaved in a few days. Adventuring
and all that, you know.
little much while standing around in direct
sunlight but felt fine once riding. The
canvas exterior doesn’t offer much wind
protection, but with armor in place they’re
far from the coldest leg tubes I’ve cruised
around in.
Getting a good fit on the armor was tricky.
The pads that AGV recommends in their
catalog are hard to find / nonexistent.
After two wrong deliveries from a online
motorcycle superstore that will go unnamed
(cough), it made more sense to try some
armor that would offer higher-rated
protection anyhow.
My first attempt was a pair of Forcefield
NeT pads, but they were too rounded
to really get in the pocket. Next was the
Icon D3o knee/elbow pad. These felt
great but kept falling to one side or the
other—hinting at poor positioning during
a crash. The best fitting pads I found were
the unformed basic Forcefield kneepads
I picked up at Johnson Leather. With
the wide, loose cut of the pant, the flat
kneepads seem to float better, always
staying between my knee and the ground
in a reassuring way. Johnson will also sew
Velcro on them for about $10 if you really
want them to stay in place.
I do think the Torino would be a good
choice for short rides on cool days around
town or on the weekends. It might be
a really good choice if you have a short
commute in fairly moderate weather like
most of the Bay Area, and want good looks
and good protection on a modest budget.
$144. Get more info and buy at
motonation.com
The Pants Compromise: AGV
Sport Excursion Cargo Pants
Words & Photo: Same Devine
We are some dumb monkeys, lemme tell
ya. We’re all talking about knee surgery
while we leave our kneepads in the closet.
Even though we live in an illuminated era
of internets and synthetic fabrics, plenty of
people are still riding around in Batman’s
jacket while wearing Bruce Wayne’s pants.
th
Sunday March 29 , 11am:
MotoGPTM Live from Qatar
®
invention of the motorcycle and covering
every aspect of the sport
and lifestyle. Among the
millions of stories we’ve
amassed, many involve
the outlaw biker. Onepercenter clubs and riders
have a special place in
the history of Northern
California, and have long
since been elevated to
mythic status. Their lives
have been mined by writers,
filmmakers, television
producers and news outlets,
and their characters spun
into caricatures verging on
cliche.
131 South Van Ness Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94103
415.626.5478
d-store.sanfrancisco@dainese.com
dstoresanfrancisco.com
Pants are one of the last pieces of gear we
regularly put on. And it’s understandable:
padded pants are usually bulky and weird
looking. If you wear them to the movie
theater or a dinner date, you can hang
up the jacket but you’ll still look like an
astronaut from the waste down. So we
compromise, wearing jeans or work pants
from Carhartt or the Duluth Trading Co.
This is better than board shorts and flip
flops, but it’s still not much after about
35mph. Thankfully there are starting to be
a lot of good, affordable motorcycle pants
that won’t leave you looking like you jacked
Buzz Lightyear’s wardrobe.
The Excursion Cargo pants from AGV
Sport are unassuming but offer more
protection than those old hole-y Levi’s
you’ve been rockin’ on Sunday rides.
They look like regular cargo pants but
feel like pajamas thanks to the silky nylon
liner. And they accommodate a variety of
kneepads, saving your bacon in a fall but
also helping you out whenever you take a
knee—whether you’re checking your oil
or reupholstering an antique couch (true
story). And after you get ‘em all dirty while
kneeling in your garage, you can just throw
‘em in the washer and dryer like some old
t-shirt.
The only real downside is the heat that
builds up in the Kevlar lined seat and
thighs. The black model I tried (also
available in camo and khaki) got to be a
April 2015 | 8 | CityBike.com
Of course, nothing feels as solid as real
riding leather but let’s face it: this is a
compromise pant. It’s meant for the lower
side of things, about town use. They
offer some protection but shouldn’t be
expected to sustain a serious high-speed
disembarkation. This is not a race pant. But
it is comfy as hell. And the cargo pockets
are big enough to carry a set of gauntleted
gloves and/or a can of beer.
Also, after taking out the armor, the
pants made it through airport security
like champs. There was no wand
inspection because of the rivets like you
can expect with workin’ britches. They
also roll up without looking too wacky
while out hiking.
So let’s see...Magic pajama pants with
kevlar lining, spots for knee pads, and two
big cargo pockets? Pants you can throw in
the wash, take on an airplane or wear out
to dinner without a second look? Around
$180 (budgeting $50 for armor) after all
said and done?
Yes, please. In fact, all us dumb monkeys
with our failing knees could use pants
this comfortable and protective. You
never know when you’ll bang a knee on a
coffee table.
$109. Find your local dealer or buy at
motonation.com.
Staying Dry In Memphis:
REV’IT! Waterproof Riding
Jeans
Words & Photo: Jeff Ebner
By now we all know that jeans aren’t
much better than tissue paper in a serious
crash, but convenience, comfort, and
yes even vanity often trump the need for
more protection. Gear makers have been
trying to fill the void between fashionable
vulnerability and geeky safety for years
now, with many interpretations of jeans
meant for motorcycling. These products
have ranged from the dubiously thin to
It’s rare then, to find an
original story with any hint
of authenticity. Lucifer’s
Sword, written by Hell’s
Angel and ex-Gypsy Joker
Phil Cross, carries that
credibility to the last page.
Bloody, sexy, and swiftly
told, it demands to be read
in a single sitting. Ron
Sutton’s illustrations are
visually arresting, their stark
contrast and gritty ink-shaded texture
lending an appropriate mood to the South
Bay settings. Phil has fictionalized his
experiences from the time, but left intact
many of the details that sell the story.
The characters are well-worn if you’ve seen
a biker flick or two, and the dialogue drips
with macho fantasy (“That dick ain’t gonna
suck itself”) but that doesn’t mean it’s
inauthentic. The story is familiar too—our
hero joins up with the club and soon finds
his skills (“Kid really knows how to fight.”)
are needed to fight off the aggressive
Hermanos Satanas club from across town.
thicker than ski pants, with their protective waterproofing, but an “accidental” spill of a The LS MC are given all the justification
abilities spread along the same broad
glassful of water on my lap by my hilarious they need to seek righteous retribution,
continuum.
girlfriend left my undergarments unsoiled, which our hero fatefully carries out on the
or at least dry. Even the zippers have proper beaches of Santa Cruz, in between making
Rev’it’s Memphis H2O jeans are on
waterproofed seals.
love to a lewdly-drawn lady friend.
the safer side of the spectrum, with
commensurate compromises made to
After a few weeks in them, some of the
Saturated though we might be these
fashion. Putting them on, the familiar
crinkles have eased and the armor fits
days with Sons of Anarchy billboards,
crinkle and swish of abrasion-resistant
better than ever. Protection-wise they feel Hollywood revenge thrillers, and dark
material makes itself known. Once belted
just a half-step down from my other Rev’it graphic novels, the local and historical
up, though, they look surprisingly normal. textile pants I’ve used almost daily for five context of this particular story lends
Fit is excellent, with none of the bunchedyears now. Those pants don’t show much
it more weight than the fantasy fare.
up feeling riding pants can have. Walking
sign of aging, and I’d expect the same
Embellished though it may be, it’s an
around, the thigh fabric rarely touches,
from these jeans. Rev’it makes a very high entertaining yarn—told with the same
ensuring those swishing noises are kept to quality product and seems to pay attention raucous noise and momentum of an
a minimum.
to the “little” things more than the typical
gear maker. Touches like the recessed
Once aboard the bike, the Memphis jeans
faux-rivets and the adjustable armor
start to make real sense. The flexible
pockets make a difference when comparing
knee and shin armor stays comfortably
to other brands. They also have several
in place, while the padded seat eliminates
jean styles available, so if you’d rather do
the discomfort of standard jean’s hems
without the weatherproof Hydratex and its
and rivets. The fabric is a little slippery
associated “swish”, they’ve got you covered.
compared to denim, but gripping the tank
These particular models start at $ and are
confidently is still possible.
available everywhere.
Rev’it has gone beyond the usual
$320 street. Find your local dealer at
reinforced denim fabric and made
revitusa.com
these fully waterproof with a Hydratex
membrane beneath the cotton, polyester
When Comics Are Outlawed,
and polyamide shell. There’s also a nice
Only Outlaw MCs Will Read
polyester mesh interior lining that lets
your skin breathe comfortably beneath all Comics.
Words: Jeff Ebner
those layers.
With our interminable drought I haven’t
yet had the opportunity to test the
The Bay Area has a rich biking history,
spanning the century plus since the
April 2015 | 9 | CityBike.com
early Harley
knucklehead.
Sutton’s ink brings depth to the people
and places, with many pages worthy of
poster-size enlargements. The printing and
binding of the book itself is excellent, and
the price reasonable, making it an excellent
gift option for the local outlaw in your life.
$22.99, Motorbooks, 96 pages, 6” x 9”, 88
illustrations. Get your copy at
motorbooks.com.
Coming Soon!
A sample of the New Stuff we’re currently
abusing testing in the name of bringing you
the truth about motorcycle gear:
Sidi’s replacement for our beloved On
Road Gore-Tex boots. How does the new
All Road Gore-Tex measure up to the best
boots ever?
We can read! David L. Hough’s Street
Rider’s Guide: Street Strategies for
Motorcyclists.
The latest from Sena: Prism Bluetooth
(lights, camera) action cam and 20S
intercoms.
Plus new gear from Aerostich, Rev’It!
and more.
EVENTS April 2015
First Thursday of each month
(April 2, May 7)
6:00 pm: Bay Area Moto Guzzi Group monthly
dinner (Giovanni’s, 1127 N. Lawrence Expy,
Sunnyvale) Members, interested Guzzi riders,
persons disillusioned by their current mode of
transport and other motorcycle riders always
welcome. For more information, contact Pierre at
408/710-4886 or pierredacunha@yahoo.com.
Second Sunday of Each Month
(April 12, May 10)
11:00 am: Santa Cruz Scooter Club Monthly
Group Ride (Fin’s Coffee, 1104 Ocean Street, Santa
Cruz)
We meet at Fin’s Coffee on Ocean Street in Santa
Cruz, and depending on who shows, the weather,
and how much time folks have, we plan a route
for the day. Rides will be cancelled due to rain.
santacruzscooterclub.com
Third Sunday of each month (April 19, May 17)
April 18-19, 2015
Helimot Parking Lot Sale (45277 Fremont Blvd
#7, Fremont)
This is a rare opportunity to get a sweet deal on a
Helimot suit: old suits, new suits, ex-racer suits,
barely used to well worn, great and not-so-great
suits for ladies and gents too. Prices as low as $300,
up to $1,200, maybe a bit more for the really special
stuff.
Get down to Helimot Saturday morning, April 18th.
The sale goes into Sunday, April 19th, too—but you
know all the good stuff will be long gone by then.
April 24-25, 2015
Ride To Yosemite To Support National Park
Rangers of Mongolia (Java House Restaurant, Pier
40 on the Embarcadero, SF)
Join a hosted motorcycle ride from San Francisco
to the entrance of Yosemite National Park and
contribute to the purchase of motorcycles for Ulaan
Taiga National Park Rangers of Mongolia. All profits
from this event will help fund the effort to preserve
this natural wonder.
The reason for getting these events started
was to provide a fun, social atmosphere for
Ducati owners, folks that want to become
Ducati owners, and folks that don’t yet know
that they want to become Ducati owners to sit,
eat, talk, walk around and look at other Ducatis.
All brands and models of motorcycles are
welcome. Get more information at NorCalDoc.
com.
1st Monday: Mill Valley
Celebrating the Evolution of the Motorcycle, honoring
both pre- and post-war eras of the world’s finest
sports and racing bikes, The Quail features a gourmet
barbeque lunch with offerings from local wineries
and breweries, together with live entertainment,
leading motorcycle manufacturers, lifestyle vendors
and more.
Join us from 6:00 to 10:00 PM on the first
Wednesday of each month at Pier 23 Seafood
Cafe, Pier 23, The Embarcadero, San Francisco,
CA 9411. 415/362-5125
1st Sunday: North Bay
bluewavesmongolia.org/events/ride-yosemitesupport-national-park-rangers-mongoliafriday-april-24th-saturday-april-25th.
2nd Monday: South Bay
March 29, 2015
4th Annual Youth All-Moto (Del Puerto Canyon
Road, Patterson, 2 miles East of Frank Raines OHV
Park)
Hella
Strong
Art Direction,
Graphic Design
& Illustration
Pacific Dream Machines (Half Moon Bay Airport,
9850 Cabrillo Hwy, Half Moon Bay)
Motorized mechanical marvels from throughout the
20th and 21st centuries, featuring a mesmerizing
array of more than 2,000 ultra cool antique, vintage,
classic, custom and exotic machines on display.
Everything from hot rods to homebuilt planes,
world-record streamliners to SWAT vehicles, plus
motorcycle drag races (yeah!) and way more cool
stuff than we can fit here.
Sunday, April 26 , from 10 AM to 4 PM. Admission
is $25 for adults, $15 for teens and seniors,
free for kids under ten. miramarevents.com/
dreammachines.
th
May 2-3, 2015
Bay Area Motorcycle Superfest 2015
(Alameda County Fairgrounds, 4501 Pleasanton
Avenue, Pleasanton)
BAMS is back, and three times bigger than 2014!
62,000 square feet of bikes: big twins, euros,
exotics, sportbikes, vintage bikes and more, plus
6:00 to 10:00 PM on the second Monday of
each month at Pizza Antica, 334 Santana Row,
#1065 San Jose. 408/557-8373
3rd Wednesday: Emeryville
6:00 to 10:00 PM on the third Wednesday of
each month at Hot Italian, 5959 Shellmound
Street, No. 75, Emeryville. 510/652-9300
4th Monday: Sacramento
6:00 to 10:00 PM on the fourth Monday of
each month at Hot Italian, 1627 16th Street,
Sacramento. 916/444-3000
510-295-7707
www.levelfive.com
Saturday, May 16th, 10 AM to 4 PM. Tickets are $75.
signatureevents.peninsula.com/en/Motorcycle/
Motorcycle.html
May 16-17, 2015
Sheetiron 300 Dualsport (Stonyford)
If your pinky etiquette isn’t up to snuff for The Quail,
take your plated, actually street legal dual sport up
to Stonyford for a weekend of riding. The Sheetiron
is a two-day ride starting in Stonyford, breaking for
the night in Fort Bragg, and returning to Stonyford.
This is a non-competitive ride—riders of all
abilities are welcomed.
Applications will be accepted starting April
1st. oaklandmotorcycleclub.camp9.org/
event-1863205
May 30, 2015
The Sacramento Mile (Cal Expo, Sacramento)
5:00 to 10:00 PM on the fourth Monday of each
month at Sixto’s Cantina, 1448 Burlingame.
650/342-7600
Get your first taste of big time flat track action (flat
trac-tion?) early this year—the Sac Mile has moved
up a couple months in the AMA schedule, which
means the Sacramento heat won’t be so brutal.
There’s even free motorbike parking!
4th Friday: Concord
6:00 to 10:00 PM on the fourth Friday of each
month at Lazy Dog Café, 1961 Diamond Blvd,
Concord. 925/849-1221
4th Saturday: Novato
6:00 to 10:00 PM on the fourth Saturday of
each month at Boca Pizzeria, 454 Ignacio Blvd,
Novato. 415/883-2302
gear, accessories, demonstrations, an appearance by
Emilio Rivera and stunting by Tony Carbajal.
Saturday, May 2nd, 10 AM to 7:30 PM, May 3rd, 10
AM to 5:30 PM. Tickets are $20 for Saturday, $15 for
Sunday, or $30 for both days. MC packages include
admission for $15 per person, plus special parking
and more. bams2015.com
I’m Alan Lapp, a 25-year
veteran designer & illustrator.
Great work to follow.
The Quail Motorcycle Gathering (Quail Lodge &
Golf Club, 8000 Valley Greens Drive, Carmel)
4th Monday: Mid-Peninsula
Daily Commuter?
If you have a need for virtually any
kind of printed work, give me a call.
I’m experienced in publication design,
annual reports, catalogs, brochures,
menus, packaging, direct mail, fashion
advertising, collateral materials, logo
and identity work, stationery, or
anything else you may need.
BAMS vendors have first rights to space, otherwise
first come, first served. Advanced purchase of space
recommended, drivers license required. bams2015.
com/city-bike-swapmeet-on-sunday
1st Wednesday: San Francisco Ducati Bike
Night
Join us from 6:30 to 9:30 PM on the first
Sunday of each month at Benissimo, 18
Tamalpais Dr, Corte Madera.
Brought to you by the Los Gatos Motorcycle Club,
Watch the first round of MotoGP live from Qatar at the the Youth All-Moto includes flat track, hill climb, and
D Store. The party starts at 11 AM on Sunday, March hare scramble events. Event is open to kids ages 4
29th! Snacks, drinks and motorbike racing, oh my!
to 16.
Get more info at
losgatosmc.org.
dstoresanfrancisco.com/store-events.
April 26, 2015
Buy, sell, and trade your rust for gold! Get rid of
unfinished projects and find new ones. Find a new
home for your old gear that shrank in the closet.
May 16, 2015
Registration is $25. There are camping and hotel
accommodations—reservations are a real good
idea. You don’t have to ride, but why would you not?
Watch MotoGP at D Store SF
(131 South Van Ness Ave, SF)
CityBike Swap Meet at Bay Area Motorcycle
Superfest (Alameda County Fairgrounds, 4501
Pleasanton Avenue, Pleasanton)
Join us from 6:00 to 10:00 PM on the first
Monday of each month at The Cantina, 651 E.
Blithedale Ave, Mill Valley. 415/378-8317
9:00 am: Northern California Moto Guzzi
National Owners Club Breakfast (Putah Creek
Café, 1 Main St, Winters) MGNOC members and
interested Guzzi riders meet for breakfast and a
good time. The Putah Creek Cafe is located at
Railroad Avenue. More information contact: Northern
California MGNOC Rep, Don Van Zandt at 707-5575199.
April 25-26, 2015
Tickets start at $29; grandstand seats are $60.
sactomile.com
June 19-20, 2015
15th Annual National Antique Motorcycle Show
& Swap Meet (Dixon Fairgrounds, Dixon)
Fort Sutter Chapter of the AMCA brings you two days
of moto-goodness in Dixon. Gates open at 7:00 am.
Swap space is $45 for two days—must be an AMCA
member, but you can join at the gate. Additional
details: Jim 530/622-6531 or Mark 925/288-0174
Hey you! Want your event in our calendar? Send
a note to editor@citybike.com with details like
who, what, when, where, why and we’ll add it.
Weekend Rider?
Poser?
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April 2015 | 10 | CityBike.com
Remembering Andy Sills
May 3, 2015
Ducati Bike Nights!
By Gwynne Fitzsimmons
-Paul Lamb
T
he motorcycle community—Bay
Area and beyond—lost one of its
greats on February 25th, 2015: the
compact, kinetic, and fast Andy Sills.
Andy was a mainstay at the Bonneville Salt
Flats, comprising Hunter Sills Racing with
his also-accomplished wife Erin Hunter
Sills. Between the two of them, they had
a combined twenty years of land speed
racing. Andy’s accomplishments included:
❍❍ Fastest BMW motorcycle in
history—236 MPH
❍❍ Bonneville 200 MPH Club life member
❍❍ Bonneville Speed Trials 201 MPH
Club life member (Erin too!)
❍❍ Fastest One Mile Average 227.507
MPH
❍❍ AMA 1000cc MPS AF record 221.203
MPH (partially streamlined, fuel)
❍❍ FIM 1000cc Partially Streamlined
Record 221.045 MPH
❍❍ FIM 1000cc Non-streamlined record
189.862 MPH
❍❍ AMA 1000cc M AF Record 189.862
MPH (“naked”, fuel)
Bitterwater Road on our return to the Bay
Area. If you have ever been on Bitterwater
Road you know how isolated it is. I was leading when I realized I had lost part
of our group. I found them sitting on the
side of the road next to Paul’s GS. The bike
just stopped running. After 20 minutes of
unsuccessful attempts to fix the bike we
decided to bring it to a farmhouse about
two miles up the road.
Andy’s wife Erin released this statement in
an attempt to soothe Andy’s family, friends
and fans:
We decided it would be easiest if I push the
bike with my right foot on Paul’s left peg.
Because Andy was the smallest and the
Motorcycling is an extreme sport, and Andy lightest in our group, we talked him into
piloting Paul’s GS. We removed the seat so
of all people espoused this. For those who
may be comforted to know a bit more about that he was able to get a foot down. I think
he even enjoyed the ride like he enjoyed
what happened to Andy, we want to share
that Andy died of natural causes, upright,
while riding a straight, clean, dry, beautiful
section of CA route 88 near our home in
Kirkwood… a road he loved on the BMW
GS he loved. He moved on to his next
journey while upright aboard the bike. As
riders ourselves, we hope that gives you an
ounce of comfort from terrible visions that
understandably run through our heads.
Andy would want you to remember, “It’s the
journey, not the destination.” He made his
journey count by touching so many people
in so many personal and special ways. We
will miss him indescribably.
Riding with Andy was always a brisk
and memorable event. Andy had a deep
appreciation of the world around him and
was always willing to share California’s
best roads and amazing vistas. Those that
rode regularly with him will attest to the
fact that he rode with absolute focus and
dedication to his machine. He was a skilled
rider with a special sense for knowing what
the road would bring forth.
So when I got a call from a friend telling
me that Andy wanted to get a hold of me
because he heard that I was good friends
with Pierre Terblanche, I said sure. Tell him
to meet me at the Elite Cafe on Fillmore.
I decided to have a little fun with him. As
I was walking up to the street there is a
small-framed man dressed in leather from
head to toe sitting at the cafe with a black
BMW motorcycle parked in front of him.
I was sure this must be the guy. I sat at the
table next to him, ordered a coffee and
in a low deep voice I said, “I’d really like
for you to take me for a ride and I’ll hang
on real tight.” He looks right at
me and says, “Hey man, I know
this is a compliment but I’m not
into that sort of thing.” I said,
“How bad to you want to meet
Pierre Terblanche?” He laughed,
“You must be Paul!” We’ve been
friends ever since.
Andy and Erin, under the shoe tree, February, 2015.
Photo: Sills family.
all the other ones he was on. I think you
can even see him smile behind his helmet.
As far as I remember this ride was one of
Andy’s first BMW GS rides.”
-Wolfgang Taft, owner, Dubbelju Motorcycle
Rentals
“Andy and I talked all the time. We
had plans to lead a group across the
We’ve been hearing from so many people
Alps in 2016 post-Motorrad Days for
since Andy’s passing, and we’d like to share BMW’s 100th anniversary. Andy was
some of these stories, in an attempt to give incomparable. He’s left a gap in the time/
our readers a glimpse into the man that
space continuum.”
Andy was.
“Andy’s first ride on a GS… We spent
a beautiful weekend at Jim’s Song Dog
Ranch. Since we prefer to ride on small
backroads, that Sunday we ended up on
“Andy made quite an
impression on a distinctly
different, international
set of fellow speed
demons—Land Speed
Record participants—
at various Bonneville
trials and meets. Here
he truly came into his
own, setting numerous
solo—and, with Erin,
two-up!—records while
integrating himself
within that unique
community. Andy
became a leader on The
Salt, and an outspoken
On the salt, August 2013.
advocate of rational
Photo: Horst Rösler.
rulemaking. Recently,
this grew to involvement
wife, Erin, two-up. When I saw their photo
on
the
equity
side
of the beloved,
mounted at Rocco’s, my favorite place
motorcycle-only
meet.
for breakfast, I knew I had to meet them.
-Will Guyan, OTL Magazine
“I had heard of Andy Sills for years as a
man who had several world records at
Bonneville. One of which was with his
We went on many rides together
and I’ve ridden with fast riders
before but he was different. He
studied everything he did. The
more I got to know Andy, the
more I realized that this was how
he went about everything in his
life… thoughtful, enthusiast and
focused.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a couple more in
love than Andy and Erin. He once said over
a roaring fire with 25 guys around after
a full day of riding that he would give up
the whole day for just 2 hours with his girl.
What guys say that?
He got on a motorcycle for the first time in
his life when he was 50 and never looked
back. With literally hundreds of thousand
of miles under his belt, he touched lives
no matter where he went. He passed
away on a motorcycle coming back from
snowboarding. No other vehicle or person
was involved. As a motorcyclist myself, if
there was a check box that I could choose
to go... that would be on the top of my list.
Even with all that said, I sure miss him.”
April 2015 | 11 | CityBike.com
Sadly, Andy’s demise denied us the benefit
of his fresh approach to decades-old
problems on The Salt, as well as the simple
pleasures of his enthusiasm and joie de
vivre—Andy was “no ego and all GO!”,
so our riding colleagues experience the
emptiness of his passing with the fullness
of his impact on so many.”
-Curt Relick
to wait out the line—we would not
get in on opening night.
I like where my bike has ended up. There
is light. There is ample room for people to
walk around it, and it’s right by the stage
I returned Saturday morning and
where most of the show festivities will
spent some time photographing more
happen.
interesting bikes as they parked along
the street. There was an original early I end up missing Clive’s phone calls
eighties Katana 1100, with a few very inviting me to join him for a motorcycle
tasteful upgrades. A few bikes down, ride across the river into Washington, but
two guys roll up on a pair of badass
no worries. I’m happy again—my bike is in
looking bikes: a Confederate Hellcat a great location and I spend the morning
and an Exile Cycles Trike. Later in
trying to trick the loaner DSLR into
the day, I see a gorgeous, unmolested capturing a few decent images.
red Honda 160. More examples of the
For some reason Saturday night isn’t as
diverse selection of bikes at The One
crowded and we get in without any wait.
Show—and these were just the bikes
By night, The One Show is much more of
parked on the street.
a party atmosphere with live music, beer
flowing, and people in a very festive mood.
A Dirtbag Goes To Washington Portland
very bright lighting almost like being in a
high-end art gallery, but this year the space
was different. The building had apparently
once been an industrial machine shop of
some sort. It was dark and lighting was
poor. Everything seamed to have a layer
of oil and probably twenty years of dust
accumulation. To finish off the industrial
theme, right there in the middle of the
space was an enormous mechanical forging
press, probably two and a half stories high.
The space was absolutely perfect for my
Dirtbag Ducati!
By Julian Farnam
Photos by Julian Farnam
& Sam Devine
Part One: Getting To The Show
T
his story begins four and a half
years ago, with an email from my
good friend Willie Bullion, a very
creative artist and builder of super cool
custom motorbikes. He’d been invited
to show one of his creations at The One
Motorcycle Show in Portland and thought
I should check it out.
Unfortunately, it was very short notice to
prep bikes, do the logistical planning, and
get several days off work—so we decided
to fly up for the weekend to check out the
show.
The One Show turned out to be like no
motorcycle event I had ever seen before,
held in an old industrial building near
the waterfront in Northeast Portland.
The bikes on display were mostly
nice—a few not so nice—but what was
incredibly captivating was the variety of
bikes on display. There were beautifully
restored vintage bikes from many eras,
professionally prepped race bikes of all
types, café bikes, choppers, rat bikes, and a
bunch of nicely modified daily riders. This
show had it all!
Two years later Willie and I would make it
back to Portland with motorcycles of our
own to show in the fourth edition of The
One Motorcycle Show. There was now an
official invitation process, but no problem
for us—we were easily put on the list.
So I was off to Portland with my Dirtbag
Ducati. The drive is about 11 hours door to
door… and the door at the other end was
at Willie’s brother Clive’s house. He would
be my host for the weekend. (Thank you
Clive!)
Willie brought a super cool Ducati Monster
turned street tracker a la Dirtbag (there is
another story there). I decided to bring two
2-strokes: my newly completed Dirtbag
RD400 and my
forkless RZ350
experimental
prototype. The
show is supposed
to be all about the
“one bike” that
got you hooked
on motorcycling,
but I didn’t
care. I had one
theme (Yamaha
2-stroke twins)
and two bikes to
represent it, so I brought two bikes.
Part 2: Setup
Realizing the amount of effort it took to
get three bikes to Portland, I decided that
2015 would be my target year to come back
with more bikes. I also knew that each
year The One Show was getting more and
more popular, with some big names in the
custom bike world showing up, so I’d need
to make sure well in advance that I was on
the invite list.
I arrive around 7:30am, as a few other early
birds are also starting
to show up. I meet
Larry Romestant
and his wife Carol, of
Special Ks. They’ve
brought one of their
amazingly beautiful
BMW K-bikes. This
is their first show, so
I’m happy to be able to
share some insight as
to what to expect over
the weekend. Although
obviously a bit tired,
having just driven 17
hours straight from LA,
they were very pleasant
to talk with and they even
invited me
to join them for lunch. I can’t say enough
about what genuinely great folks they are.
In the fall of last year, just after finishing
Dirtbag 2014, I began sending emails to
show organizer Thor Drake, to enquire
about the invites. I was completely caught
off guard when I received an automated
reply with a message indicating that the
show was full and no more entries were
being accepted. My plans were crushed.
But something didn’t make sense—the
show dates were wrong. The auto-decline
I had received was from the previous year’s
show!
I still wasn’t sure how to get an invitation.
Finally, after several more emails, I
received a real reply from Thor. In his reply
he said he’d send me an invitation for one
bike, “The Ducati.” I was in!
The show setup goes something like this:
try to arrive early Friday morning and
sign in. Once you’re signed in with your
basic info and brief description
of your bike,
you get in line
for photography.
The One Show
has tried to
publish books
that document
every bike that
has participated
in every show
for all six years,
so this is an
important part of
the
experience.
Eventually, the doors open, I get through
sign-in and for the first time I see the
inside of the space. In the previous two or
three years, Thor has found buildings that
were used for commercial photo studios
and were very clean with white walls and
April 2015 | 12 | CityBike.com
Once photographed, I have to get the bike
set up. There are white riser platforms
throughout the space that the bikes are to
be displayed on. But you don’t set up your
bike without first being told by Thor where
he wants your bike, and of course I want
my Ducati to be displayed right in front of
the freakin’ huge machine.
Once I have Thor’s attention I point over to
my bike and ask where he’d like it. He sees
it in front of the forge press and says, “Oh,
it looks good in front of the machine. Why
don’t you put it there?” Perfect! Just roll the
bike up onto the riser and I’m done—and
very happy.
The show doesn’t start till later that
evening; so now is the time to walk around,
check out bikes and meet a few of the
builders. As I anticipated, the build quality
was extremely high. One of the bikes that
stood out was a vintage H-D Panhead with
a completely scratch-built hardtail chassis
so perfectly fabricated that the steel has
been left bare. The bike is an absolutely
gorgeous example of metal craftsmanship.
I would later meet one of the builders from
Sosa Metalworks, from Las Vegas.
As things are being set up, I notice
someone has placed two large tables right
next to the rear of my bike, really crowding
it. I head to lunch a bit irritated.
When
I return a few hours later, my bubble of
excitement is completely popped. My bike
has been moved. It’s no longer in front of
the mighty machine, but in a completely
different location several yards away and
adjacent to two very nice RD400-based
road racers. I like that my bike can now be
better viewed from all sides, but it looks
out of place with the two pristine vintage
2-strokes. Crap!
Outside in the parking lot area, most of
the vendors have closed up for the day,
but I finally get to see the intended use of
the plywood oval. It’s for mini-bike board
track racing! Oh my gosh, this is the most
hysterical thing I’ve ever seen. Two at time,
people take turns racing their buddies
around the track on 50cc motorbikes. At
first the concept may sound rather dull, but
consider that the oval is fit within a 20 by
40 foot space. Even 50cc minibikes are way
too fast this confined space. With adult
riders, these bikes don’t turn very well. And
lastly, add beer!
Part
3: Showtime
Another thing that was
different this year was
a parking lot area with a
swap-meet style format,
with vendors selling various
motorcycle-related items. In
the middle is a 20’ x 40’ tent,
where a couple guys are setting
up wooden pallets, hay bales,
and a big oval plywood surface,
like the type of track you might
race R/C cars on.
While struggling to get some
shots of a few bikes (with an
unfamiliar loaner camera) in the
swap meet area, I am approached
by a guy who is nice enough
to offer some suggestions for
camera settings that should work
better with the poor lighting
inside the show. The guy turns
out to be pro moto-photographer Gregor
Halenda, attending the show with several
of his personal bikes, including a crazy all
wheel drive KTM 990 Adventure.
We chat a bit about motorcycle projects
and discover we share several common
friends, including motorcycle engineer /
builder Chris Cosentino, who’d helped
with the engineering
and fabrication required
to install the Christini
AWD kit into Gregor’s
KTM. The bike has
been the subject of
several YouTube videos
and is famous for being
the first motorcycle
to do a burnout with
both wheels!
It’s non-stop, full contact racing with
crashes and riders flying off bikes into the
hay bales on almost every lap. The crowd
is cheering for the antics—it’s complete
mayhem on the mini-oval.
Track Day Special
hundreds of bikes to look at as we walk
over.
Then an “oh shit!” moment. We expected
a large crowd, but there was a line of
people that wrapped half way around
the block. The Portland fire marshal had
implemented a 700 person max capacity for
the show. Once 700 people were inside, no
one else could enter until someone comes
out. Clive and I were not willing
Once inside, I check on my bike to make
sure it isn’t covered in beer cups from the
night before. But wait, where’s my bike? It’s
no longer parked with the two RD400 road
racers.
Honda
Generator
Service
After a few minutes of looking, I spot it
at the opposite end of the space, next to
the stage, parked at an angle so it can be
viewed from about 270 degrees. There’s a
large rollup door at this end of the building,
open and letting sunlight in. Suddenly, this
end of the building isn’t so dark.
Did you know that the Honda
EU1000i, EU2000i and EU2000ic
generators require service every
100 hours of use?
Make your generator happy with our
$45.00 + parts as required service:
• Full Syn 10w30 Amsoil
• Spark Plug
• Air Filter Service
Later, Clive and I
arrive for opening
night. As we get
within a few blocks
of the show, there are
rows of bikes parked
along the street
and people from all
directions headed
toward the show.
We have to park
several blocks away,
but no worries—
there are literally
web:
www.nicholssportbikes.com
phone: 408-945-0911
address: 913 Hanson Ct,
Milpitas, CA 95035
April 2015 | 13 | CityBike.com
That night, awards were given out. I see
Larry Romestant accept one, and Christian
Sosa of Sosa Metal Works receives
recognition for his bare metal pan-head.
The top award went to Ronin Motorworks
for their limited production (total of 47
being built), Buell 1125R based custom
bikes.
Over the weekend, I spent some time
chatting with one of the Ronin builders,
Mark Hanchak. Like most of the builders
I met, Mark was very friendly and happy
to talk about details of the bike. I was
particularly curious about the radiator
being mounted to the girder fork legs. I’ve
never seen forks used as a radiator mount
before, and this seemed odd—it would
significantly increase un-sprung mass. The
water hoses would also need to flex and
bend with both steering and suspension
movement. Mark assured me that the team
at Ronin had done lots of analysis and
that there were no detrimental effects to
this configuration. Obviously they know
the bike better than I do, so fair enough.
Besides, the matte black bikes look cool as
hell and that’s what counts the most, right?
I always enjoy the show most during the
day when the lighting is best, the crowds
are smaller, and people are there more to
see the bikes than to be seen. On Sunday,
local Portland ska/rocksteady band, The
Sentiments, played a nice long set and folks
were swaying to their soulful rhythms and
beautifully harmonized vocals. It was a
perfect way to end to a great weekend at
The One Motorcycle Show.
By 4 PM Sunday, it was time to load up
the bike, stop at Clive’s place, and then
hit the road back to the land of sunshine.
Somehow, I also managed to get in a visit to
Powell’s Books (a must-do when Portland)
and rode Clive’s XR650 on some twisty
back roads. In all, an awesome weekend in
Portland.
Julian Farnam is a multi-Dirtbag Challenge
winner, mechanical engineer with a background in
industrial design, and most impressively, CityBike’s
January 2015 cover model. Send us an email if you
think we should make a poster out of that cover.
Repair & Service
The One Show, Take Two
By Sam Devine
Portland is a fine place to go to a
motorcycle show. The town’s loaded to
the gills with bars and strip clubs that
are stocked with great beer and legallyrequired food. After hitting a number
of these establishments Friday evening,
we’re following the sound of engines
through an industrial district to the One
Show. A line winds around the block-long
warehouse that was once a foundry for
wartime ship parts.
Inside, it’s a kaleidoscope of bikes,
art, bands, coffee, beer, pizza, clothes,
industrial architecture and a giant, green,
towering metal press, reminiscent of the
derrick at the Silver Legacy in
Reno. “It’s funny, says Thor Drake,
event organizer, about the megametal press. “I think it makes a
lot of the mechanically inclined
people feel relaxed. You know, and
the smell of old grease in here.”
There’s no shortage of styles of
bikes. Everything is represented.
There’s a Honda CBX, a BMW
logging bike, Joe Kopp’s flattracker, an electric off-roader,
a Triton (Triumph engine in a
Norton frame), a sidecar racer, and
a new Indian Scout customized by
Roland Sands.
“I like to have a little bit of everything,”
says Drake. “ And we get a lot of
submissions too, so I curate out of the
submissions that we get. But the number
one thing is that it’s a curated selection. I
want to make sure that there’s a cross-cut,
it’s not just specifically one type of thing.
Every year I kinda go with a theme, too
and I try to get a little bit more of that
style of bike.”
This year’s theme seems split between
scramblers and cafe racers – the
Scrambleigh Racer if you will. One row
of bikes that is almost entirely scramblers
and cafe racers, and several that blur
both lines. It makes sense. Portland has a
wealth of off-roading nearby, and also has
a thriving bar (read: cafe) scene. Any bike
that can do a little bit of both is a covetous
ride indeed.
Dragos Toma’s 1985 VT 500 has been
modified to use electronic fuel injection
and mounted with a turbo from a VW
TDi 1.3 liter. He figures it will kick out
about 80 horse power. It looks fantastic in
the custom frame, the turbo’s plumbing
weaving in and out of the bike like ivy.
The wheels are from a 2008 R6 mounted
to a custom-milled adaptor, set in a
custom swing arm.
H-D H2O: Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited
This year there are about 120 bikes. One
of the first to really catch my eye was
the Suavecito, which won the “Correct.
Period.” award. Built by Sosa Metalworks
out of Las Vegas, it looks like it’s some
strange vintage boardtracker. But it’s lines “I wanted a high performance bike with
are too aggressive, too gangster to be
old-school styling,” says Toma of his
vintage.
Strange Coast Moto custom creation.
Other than a motor and transmission
from a 1940 Indian Sport Scout almost
everything was custom made for the bike.
And it runs, too. Roberto Sosa fired it
up earlier that day but was told to turn it
off. Why? Too loud? “Nah, she’s like an
old gin-sipping lady, man,” he jokes in a
smooth vato style. “She smokes a little.”
He shows us around the ridiculous
linkage they hand crafted for the bike.
Levers criss-cross back and forth like a
Dr. Seuss cartoon, reaching through or
around the frame to manipulate some
far away function. The throttle linkage
is unbelievable. A random but explicit
mixture of bending, twisting, and sliding
rods and cuffs hooked directly to the
throttle body without an inch of visible
cable.
One of the strangest bikes is down the
wall of cafe-scrams from the Suavecito.
We Ship Worldwide
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US
FIRST!
Salvaged & New Parts!
Tue–Fri 10–6 Sat 9–5
April 2015 | 14 | CityBike.com
On Saturday, the local boys are racing
mini-bikes outside on an unadvisedly
small wooden racecourse. Drake races
friend Cody McElroy, who runs off the
high side of the course, crashing it
into a table full of helmets. Luckily
only a few beers are wounded and
the racing continues.
The booths outside are a
menagerie of outdoor wear,
motorcycle parts, and some
random musical equipment. Poler
Stuff will sell you a sleeping bag
with arm holes and a cinch so you
can wear your sleeping bag like
a big sweater and McElroy has
inappropriately awesome patches
for sale, including a popular one
that reads: “Spitters are Quitters.”
The Cycle Yard offers old parts and
Velomachi shows bags and really cool
gloves modeled after old trials rider’s
gloves, when they used to sew weather
stripping onto the knuckles for padding.
The awards are given on Saturday night
and on Sunday, the crowd is still lined up
around the block, but many of the bikes
are already gone. A few are being posed
with and pushed around. After talking
with the Busch and Busch guys about
their shiny, aluminum, award-winning
salt flat racer, we head out of town to hit
one of the plentiful hiking trails in the
surrounding mountains.
Before hightailing it back to the Bay,
we stop by See See Coffee and
Motorcycles. Several bikes adorn the
premises, including the same Roland
Sands Custom Indian. One wall is
lined with artsy helmets, vinyl records
with motorcycle imagery, and old
cylinders and piston heads that I’m
surprised haven’t disappeared. The
espresso machine has an airbrushed
wizard painting that should be one the
side of a classic van and the corners
of the counter are supported by the
head tubes of repurposed motorcycle
frames. If time allowed, we’d buy a
breakfast sandwich and a cup of coffee
and curl up with one of the many
distributor catalogs they keep on hand
for ordering from.
But we’ve got promises to keep and
miles to go before we sleep...
Sam Devine lives in SF, teaches motorcycling
and kitesurfing during the day and tends
bar at night. In his “spare time” he writes for
magazines and newspapers, plays music, and
draws. He showers at least once a week whether
he needs it or not and even sleeps sometimes.
By Surj Gish
Photos: Angelica Rubalcaba
T
here’s just no way to win with this
review of Harley-Davidson’s Ultra
Limited touring motorcycle.
Some of the CityBike faithful were
undoubtedly already cursing us for putting
a Harley-Davidson on the cover; from the
moment they laid eyes on the brilliant
green Ultra Limited peeking out of our
rusty red racks. We await your letters—this
oughtta be even better than the (totally
made-up) “National Sidecar Month” issue
(February 2015).
On the other side of things, none of the
CityBike crew are what you might call
cruiser experts. We certainly haven’t ridden
enough American Iron on the regular to
speak at length about the various virtues of
different versions of American V-Twins, so
it’s understandable if the die-hard Harley
guys scoff and dismiss our feedback on this
bike. We obviously don’t get it.
Just being honest here, folks. Good thing
we love hate mail, right?
Twin-Cooled piece, no mention of liquid.
Here’s what they say about the TwinCooled Twin Cam 103 engine:
“103 cubic inches of air and precision
cooled Harley-Davidson® V-twin engine
power. Twin cooling cools the heads
around the exhaust ports to deliver at
or near peak performance under all
operating conditions and temperatures.”
That’s it. There are some other mentions
of Twin-Cooling, but nowhere is there
mention of liquid, water, or anything other
than air and precision. I was previously
unaware of the utility of precision as a
cooling agent, but like I said, we’re not
Harley guys.
The liquid in the twin (cooling) is equally
well-hidden on the bike itself. In fact, when
I told a one rider that the bike was liquidcooled, he turned on the flashlight app on
his phone to get a closer look. In daylight.
Speaking of that disguise, the radiators
are hidden in the leg fairings. If you’re
not an inquisitive moto-journalist
looking to shoot off your mouth, they’re
easy to miss. Again, not invisible, but
definitely not the clumsily executed,
“let’s put a weird fairing thingy on this so
no one will notice it” abominations that
are present on lots of other bikes, cruisers
and otherwise. For reals: why is it so hard
to make radiators un-ugly?
Beyond that, it’s fairly straightforward
Harley-Davidson business. The 103-inch
motor is plenty torquey, so the ankle-level
redline is a non-issue. The transmission
shifts easily via the beefy heel/toe lever,
although I had a hell of a time finding
neutral when stopped. It doesn’t help that
the gear indicator only shows on the dash
when the clutch is out.
Creature comforts are extensive, but not
perfect. The seat is broad and plush, and
passenger accommodations are firstclass—if you’re “riding bitch” as I believe
it’s called in this context, it’s hard to find a
better spot to place your bitch ass than the
Anyhow, the level of effort that has
back of this beast. You even have control
apparently gone in to not mentioning liquid
over the stereo!
is evidence of the typical Harley buyer’s
aversion to such changes, so high fives to
Speaking of the stereo, the Boom! Box
the folks at H-D for making a liquid-cooled infotainment system is pretty impressive,
H-D that looks like a proper Harley.
and excessive. Bluetooth, voice activation,
GPS, controls on the switch pods… it’s
Classic Cycle Events . com
But here’s the thing: we like motorcycles.
Like Agent J. said to me, after a few minutes
on the Green Giant, “All motorcycles are
awesome!” And he’s right. But they’re
awesome at different things, of course.
Before I get into what’s awesome about
the Ultra Limited, let’s talk tech. The
most important thing here is the presence
of water, excuse me, Twin Cooling. H-D
goes to great lengths to not use the words
“water” or “liquid” on their website. In
fact, I couldn’t find either word under
“Key Features” or specs. Heritage? Check.
Project Rushmore? Yup. But under the
It’s not like the radiators are invisible—
although they are well-disguised—he just
didn’t believe it.
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loud as hell and just as slick. There’s even
a little place in the dash for your phone,
called the Jukebox, where you can plug
in your device so it can join the voiceactivated party.
spending a few days on a Moto Guzzi V7
Racer, but for weekend trips and beyond,
the Ultra Limited is a hell of a bike.
Choosing the Ultra Limited is expensive,
though. These things start at just over
Wind protection is ok, but not great—
$26k, and if you want two-tone paint
but let’s caveat that. “Not great” in this
(and why wouldn’t you?) you’re into the
context mostly means that it’d be better
mid-$27k range before taxes and all the
if the windscreen was adjustable, but
other financial annoyances that come with
keeping the classic look of that low shield buying a new vehicle. And don’t forget to
took priority. This means that there’s a fair budget for a Termignoni pipes. Wait… I
amount of buffeting at helmet level, unless mean Screamin’ Eagle pipes. Whatever. As
you’re small enough that your head is low long as they’re loud.
behind the screen. Passengers told me
And that’s where I ended up, actually. I’ve
the buffeting was pretty unpleasant back
been a “stealth” rider in recent years, with
there, too. That’s what you get for riding
no desire to increase the volume of my
bitch, I guess.
exhaust noises. I mostly slip through traffic
The Ultra Limited’s luggage makes up for
unnoticed. But I now understand the loud
the whining from your pillion, though—
pipes, constant brapping behavior that so
there’s almost room for an actual kitchen
many “Harley guys” exhibit.
sink. While I prefer a wider sidecase,
Actually, I don’t really understand it, but
the long, narrow sidecases on the Ultra
I’ve totally done it. It just happens. Never
Limited make lane splitting a breeze.
mind the disconnect between this
And the side-hinged topcase is the motobrap-havior and the typical weekday
luggage equivalent of the Grand Canyon—
behavior of someone who can afford a
better bring food and water, because you
$26,000 motorcycle. The Ultra Limited
can get lost in there.
had me splitting lanes, brappity-brapping,
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All his luxury comes at a price, and you pay
by the pound. We all had misgivings about
the weight of this thing—we hang out with
people who call 495 pound motorcycles
“fat” so nearly 900 pounds is, well, doublefat. This is a big, big, bike—it takes up
pretty much the entire bed—long bed,
mind you—of my F150 dirtbike hauler.
with the stereo at a very disrespectful
volume, at least as loud as the ridiculousyet-awesome green paint, and when Rocket
From The Crypt’s “Dick On A Dog” came
on, it all made sense. I regressed to my
youth, cranking punk rock cassette tapes
from the shitty speakers in my shitty truck,
attitude on eleven.
People love to say stuff like “the weight
disappears once you’re rolling,” and while
that sounds great, it’s never really true,
especially here. I never forgot that I was
riding an almost half-ton motorcycle, but
it does get very easy to ride as soon as you
get past a couple miles per hour. Pretty
amazing, actually.
Get out of my way, motherfuckers. I’m on a
bad boy (touring) bike.
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Max Says: Good To Go
By Max Klein
As I sat there in in front of CityBike World
Headquarters, I wondered what I had just
gotten myself into. Thanks to Editor Surj’s
sick sense of humor I was sitting on another
I didn’t ever really get comfortable really
Harley-Davidson. Unlike the Livewire
throwing it around, but by respecting the
weight and wheelbase and being deliberate I wrote about in late 2014 (“Hotwired,”
November 2014), this thing was huge. 890with my inputs, I found I could ride the
ish pounds huge. For those of you trying to
Ultra Limited plenty fast enough to put a
figure out if that’s heavy or not, let me point
smile on my face.
out that if I was to put my Ducati 1000DS
But honestly, that’s not really what this bike Supersport into my KLR’s milk crate, the
is about—it’s a mile-eater. Fill the luggage, whole mess would weigh only 833 pounds.
pick a route (or don’t) and hit the road. Go,
At first, I didn’t believe I was sitting on
for a long time. Do it again.
a Harley. Sure it had HD styling, but
There’s no way in hell this could be my
it was Kawasaki green (give or take a
daily rider—as my wife says, it’s “too much Pantone shade). Everything looked a
bike for civilization”—and I haven’t hated little too modern. What the heck do all
/ not trusted a kickstand this much since
April 2015 | 16 | CityBike.com
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April 2015 | 17 | CityBike.com
CityBike-sponsored swapmeet May 3rd
only. Vendor spaces are first come first
serve, however BAMS vendors will get first
choice for space in Swapmeet area.
Open to motorcycle-related parts,
accessories, and apparel only. No vehicle
sales except salvage-titled. Absolutely No
Guns, Weapons, or Animals Allowed
of these knobs and buttons do? LED
headlights? Touchscreen dash with
navigation? Hell, for a second there I
thought I saw coolant hoses...
Then I thumbed the starter.
There it was. The signature “potato,
potato” idle and the shaking dental work
that comes with it. With a massive weight
shift I got the Kawi-Davidson off the
side stand...and almost on its side. Did I
mention this thing is close to 900 pounds?
I seriously almost fell over before I started
rolling. I have minimal experience riding
motorbikes of this size, and I knew we were
headed for some twisties—thanks again,
Surj. Was I totally screwed?
Nope.
I dropped it into first, eased out the clutch,
and the beast was tamed.
Seriously.
Once rolling, this 900 pound gorilla turned
into a nimble, tightrope walking ballerina
(but still hairy). If the Ultra Limited
was a meal, it would be a well balanced
breakfast...with extra bacon and sausage
patties. It was still a big bike, but it did
exactly what I asked of it... sometimes with
a floorboard on the ground. It was not
difficult to throw this not-so-tiny dancer
through the canyons, and lanesharing was
surprisingly drama-free as well.
I’m as surprised to be saying this as you
are to he hearing it from me, but I really
enjoyed riding this bike—during the
day. The audio system was easy to use
and LOUD. Pairing with my phone via
Bluetooth was a breeze and let me sing
along with Neil Diamond at excessive
decibels. Heated grips, cruise control,
and I’ve had couches less comfortable and
closets with less storage space.
April 2015 | 18 | CityBike.com
At night, all that stuff still works quite
well, but it’s a shame the headlights
don’t. The HD DayWalker DayTripper
DayMaker LED headlights are extremely
bright. There is no doubt in my mind
that people could see me, but I couldn’t
see anything that was very far down the
road. Navigating unfamiliar backroads at
night? No bueno. I was impressed by the
brights, but oncoming
traffic was not, so
those were reserved
for short bursts of
“deerspotting.”
This motorcycle is not
my style, or so I keep
saying, but I couldn’t
help but giggle every
time that I rode it. It’s
the proper blend of
ridiculous overkill and
usable motorcycle, in a
package that’s equally
happy plodding along
on the freeway or
cruising up the coast. It is the stereotypical
American in motorcycle form—porky,
loud, and excessive in just about every
way. If I had to choose one bike, the Ultra
Limited would not be it. But if I could have
three (more), I would disappear on this
thing for weeks on end.
astride the Indian Roadmaster. We had a
broment.
Soon, we were sitting in Southern
California commute traffic. I was,
frankly, afraid to split lanes in unfamiliar
conditions, on a massive bike I had only
been on for a few minutes, after we had just
ridden more than 1300 miles in a day and
a half, and had another 450 miles ahead of
us, in the darkness. So we paddled along,
propping up these half-ton beasts with our
left legs as our right legs slowly roasted
from the exhaust heat. And I tried to
imagine picking this thing up in LA traffic
when I inevitably dropped it. If I didn’t get
run over by a car first.
of the miasma. He did. The Indian moved
out like a ballistic missile submarine, I
followed like a hunter-killer on the Harley,
and we made our escape between unending
miles of stopped traffic. A 900-pound
motorcycle is much less likely to fall over
when it is moving at 25 miles an hour than
at less than walking speed.
We left the Los Angeles basin, climbed
over Tehachapi Pass and rode the most
boring length of the most boring highway
in the US in darkness for hours. The Harley
was awesome. Comfortable, smooth,
reassuring. I felt confident. Found myself
singing inside my helmet. If I wanted to
pass I truck, I did. If I wanted to sit back
and surf the interstate on this chrome
Barcalounger, I did. When we needed
to make a U-turn in a gas station and
I couldn’t find the big, rubber-padded
rear brake pedal out somewhere in
the darkness at the far end of the right
floorboard I thought I was finally going
to actually drop this bike. But I didn’t and
we rode on. A beer started to sound pretty
good and when we got back to the Bay
Area at 2 am, woke up the neighbors, and
had the bikes safely stowed until dawn, I
had one.
The next time I ride the interstate from
LA to Northern California, in the dark,
I wouldn’t mind doing it on a HarleyDavidson Ultra Limited.
This sucked.
J. is CityBike’s high desert adventuring
correspondent, hailing from Nevada. Like Max,
I raised Surj on the intercom and asked him he’s coming to terms with bikes that weigh twice as
to carefully look for an opening between
much as his trusty KLR.
the lanes of crawling traffic and cautiously,
conscientiously, see if he could lead us out
We mostly keep Max quarantined in the basement
here at CityBike HQ , but he sometimes busts out
for moto-commuting, trackdays; and he somehow
got on the AFM board.
J. Says: Limited, Mostly By
Preconceptions
By J. Brandon
Right, so I’m not really a “cruiser guy.”
And, if I’m honest, my general impression
of Harley-Davidson motorcycles and the
people who buy and ride them has been,
at best, neutral. As Editor Surj is quick
to mention, my everyday bike is a welltraveled KLR650 that was designed in
the previous century and sometimes has
trouble getting out of its own way. So I’m
definitely not a “Harley guy,” whatever that
means to you.
But within five minutes of straddling the
Harley-Davidson Electra Glide Ultra
Classic—all 896 pounds, gleaming candy
green paint, and Boom!™ Box 4.3 Radio
of it—I was grinning ear to ear and ready
for the next seven hours of overnight I-5.
At the first traffic light I opened the chin
bar of my modular helmet and yelled at
Surj, “All motorcycles are awesome! And
this one is a ton of fun!” At the time he was
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April 2015 | 19 | CityBike.com
demonstrates the infamous EPA-mandated
lean surge at highway RPM. What’s
amazing is how short—and fixable—this
list is: everything else works nicely.
Indian Roadmaster: The Real King Of The Road?
By Surj Gish
Photos: Angelica Rubalcaba
I
’m not a cruiser guy (if you’re
wondering exactly how many freakin’
times we’re going to say that this
month, keep counting) but I’ve put a lot of
miles on two of the biggest, best cruisers
/ touring bikes that exist in the last couple
weeks. It’s official—I get it now. Am I
gonna fire-sale my R1200R and get a
Roadmaster? No, of course not.
Well, maybe.
I’ll get this right out of the way—I love this
bike, and no one is more surprised by that
than me. Let me explain.
seem to accept that dragging the boards
through corners is part of the deal.
even dysfunctional bikes with all kinds
of baggage (and I don’t mean sidecases)
look like a good deal in the right light. In
And that’s basically what I end up doing.
this case, though, it’s easy. I have enjoyed
The Roadmaster is long and low, and I drag
riding the Roadmaster in a way that is hard
the boards pretty frequently. It’s also very
to match, and if one of these goddamned
stable, so not once does this bother me.
lottery tickets I keep buying (retirement
plan, yo!) would just pay off, I’d be at the
I should probably share some facts about
the bike, lest you believe I’m a paid shill for Indian shop tomorrow, and the very next
day I’d point my new Roadmaster towards
Indian, running my mouth all breathless
the horizon and go.
about how lovely and amazing the
Roadmaster is. So here goes.
I got on the Roadmaster after doing
a Saddle Sore 1000 the previous day,
mounted on a Kawsaki Concours (a very
capable mile-eater in its own right—stay
tuned for that story next month) and
then hauling ass around El Lay in the rain
all morning. I was exhausted and fully
expected the slog back to Oakland to be,
well, slogenly. Sloggish. Sucky to the max.
Boy, was I in for a pleasant surprise.
The Roadmaster is easy to ride far, and
actually does far and fast quite well as
long as you’re not goat-trail bound. It’s
not a sport-tourer, and it’s kind of silly to
compare it to, say, the aforementioned
Connie, but I daresay that given the
choice, I’d do my next Iron Butt ride on
the Roadmaster, over anything I’ve ridden
recently. Maybe ever.
Why? In simple terms, it’s incredibly
comfortable, and I have yet to feel like
riding it has worn me out. Airflow
management is excellent. The adjustable
windscreen means faceshield-up riding at
80 MPH is a-ok, and the barn door-sized
fairings sculpt the wind away from the
rider effectively.
The no-foolin’ real leather seat, while a
little slippery, is all-day (and then some)
comfortable—and it’s heated. Speaking of
heated, there are of course heated grips.
There are two wings in the fairings on each
side that can be closed to keep cold air from
sneaking in too.
All this means that even though J. and I
were both wearing heated liners, I was
warm, while he chilled on the Harley.
Which reminds me, I was going to tell you
about how easy it was to ride the Indian
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back from SoCal, even after 1,300 miles in be a huge demographic for Indian. I guess
the previous 36 hours. So back to that story. I’m uniquely cool. Or something.
Beyond the excellent wind protection,
the expansive ergos make it easy to move
around and refresh your riding position.
The dance-floor sized floorboards offer
lots of places to put your tootsies, but be
careful—too far back and you’ll toast the
leg of your ‘Stich, like I did. This assumes
you’re the kind of guy that wears a black
and yellow Aerostich on a big American
cruiser, which come to think of it, may not
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April 2015 | 20 | CityBike.com
Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, comfortable.
So I’m cooking up I-5, simmering my buns
on the heated seat, and my paws on the
heated grips. We stop for gas, and I start
running my mouth about how surprised
I am at how much I like the Roadmaster.
It doesn’t make much sense to me—but
I’m smitten. Back on the road, I’m killing
time by daydreaming (even though it’s
nighttime) about riding the Roadmaster
across the US.
In Oakland the next morning, the physical
reality sets in pretty abruptly. The
Roadmaster is even heavier than the Ultra
Limited. Moving it around takes a pretty
serious commitment and some even more
serious grunting. But this only matters
in the garage, in the driveway, and other
places that I have to be when I’m not riding.
I ride the bike in and out of SF, I ride it to
Sacramento, I ride it down to Helimot.
I ride it everywhere. The battery on my
Beemer dies as a result, poor neglected
R1200R. I get very comfortable riding the
Roadmaster pretty fast, although in classic
Surj fashion, I have some issues keeping
it upright at a standstill. Fortunately, the
crash bars don’t let it fall over very far, and
all is well.
Al and I have a discussion about big
cruisers, and he tells me that he’s never
figured out how to ride them fast, how
when he’s done press events, he’s in awe of
the guys who can. Says he thinks of pegs
and other hard parts touching down as a
warning, but that guys who ride these fast
It’s heavier than the Ultra Limited by 34
pounds, coming in at 930 pounds wet.
Forget about the difficulty of backing this
behemoth out of a poorly-chosen, nose
downhill parking spot for a moment—it
kinda doesn’t matter that the Roadmaster
tips the scale at roughly the weight of four
KTM 350 EXC-Fs, because that beautiful,
ostentatious Thunder Stroke 111 motor
puts out a whopping 119 foot-pounds of
torque. Claimed, of course, but still…
Take Two: Ultra Chrome Couch
Beast
By Alan Lapp
I’m not a cruiser guy, so it’s always a new
experience when I get to ride one. Surj
asked if I wanted the Roadmaster for a
couple days, so I sucked it up and braved
the perfect spring weather to put about 100
miles on it.
five, grooving to jazz. And… you just know
you look good on it.
Another trait the Roadmaster shares with
Christine is that it’s not without it’s flaws.
On our test bike, there were a couple of
issues which—if it were my twenty-seven
large—would need to be fixed, pronto.
The drive belt makes very loud chirping
noises for the first 10 miles of every ride.
The fairing rattles when using the stereo.
And, the fuel injection ever so slightly
When I was in my early 20s, I dated a girl
named Christine who earned a track & field
That grunt is available any time, and makes scholarship on her hammer-throwing skills.
the admittedly ‘bout-time-to-start-dieting I was 6’2”, she was 6’2”. I weighed 225 lbs.,
Indian a blast to ride. It sounds good too.
she weighed 225 lbs. I bench pressed 275,
she bench pressed 275. She and I were solid
Speaking candidly, Indian has pretty much
& statuesque, a striking couple. She was a big
out-Harleyed Harley-Davidson with the
girl, to say the least, and she really enjoyed
Roadmaster, if the formula used for our
ball room dancing. Nothing with lots of
analysis employs variables like over the
fancy footwork, however.
top-ness, grin factor, brap-happy quotient,
and touring ability. Like the Ultra Limited, In a nutshell, that is exactly what riding
this bike makes no sense as a daily rider,
the new Roadmaster is like: a really big
and as a daily rider myself, that kills the
partner that likes to slow dance. Like
deal for me.
Christine, it is surprisingly nimble, but
not terribly precise. Also like Christine,
But there’s so much unquantifiable
the Roadmaster is loaded with hedonistic,
awesomeness lurking around the edges of
visceral appeal: the curvy bodywork and
this picture. If I were getting ready to do
chrome are easy on the eyes, the lusty, wellserious touring… if I was gonna ride more
balanced throb of the 1811cc air-cooled
with my now-retired dad… if I could get
V-twin enticing, the seat is plush and wellmy wife to ride with me more… so many
shaped, the stereo with MP3 hookup lets
stories waiting to be created.
you spin your best playlist, the infinitelyPutting those stories into motion requires adjustable windshield gets the airflow just
so, and I’m just weak for a heated saddle
a few things I don’t have, though. I don’t
and grips. There is nothing that says
have the stomach for plunking $27k on
“comfort” to me like a warm butt on a cold
a bike that is too much of too much for
San Francisco night.
my daily commute. I don’t have a garage
that’s big enough to accommodate this
There is something fundamentally sweet
beast along with the other bikes I can’t
about riding the big Indian at the right
get myself to let go of in exchange for the
speed on the right road. It is just dreamy
Indian. But if I did…
on the highway, gliding along in the slow
The test we use to measure ultimate value lane. It will cruise easily at 85—however,
of a bike here at CityBike is “would you buy it’s about as aerodynamic as a hay bailer,
so probably not much faster. It’s also quite
it with your own money?” That’s often a
really hard question to answer honestly— wonderful rumbling along a twisty country
road at your own pace of speed-limit-plusmotorcycles are so freakin’ cool, that
April 2015 | 21 | CityBike.com
And, Christine, err... Roadmaster, it’s
not you, it’s me. I was hyper-vigilant
moving at a walking pace because it’s so
very heavy that very precise balance must
be maintained or the bike threatens to
capsize like the Costa Concordia. While
I can’t say I’m surprised, it’s NFG in
The City. It’s
too wide for
confident lane
sharing, and it
really doesn’t
like pavement
irregularities.
The real-leather
seat cover is
slippery: I like
to ride upright
in the saddle
like Teddy
Roosevelt, but,
I find myself
sliding down
into a semi-fetal
curl like Al Bundy on the couch. Lastly, I
was never able to just relax as I was fiscally
responsible for a bike that costs 1/20th as
much as my house.
The Roadmaster is a great dance partner, if
your dance moves are simpatico.
Al is a serial “almost finished in time…” Dirtbag
builder and CityBike’s long-suffering Art Director,
which means he spends a lot of time whipping
Editor Surj. Into shape, that is.
Indians Versus… Cowboys? Pirates?
CityBike First Ride: Yamaha SR400
It’s nearly rush hour, and everyone starts
side from a few borrowed bikes and bunching up. The brakes offer excellent
owning a couple of mid-80’s Honda power and feel as we decelerate. The slim
SR slips between 1 & 2, nimble on it’s
V4s, I have no particular classic/
retro/old bike fetish or wisdom. That said, nineteen-inchers. A box truck wanders in
its lane, closing the gap ahead and I chirp
I’m still a juicy target demographic for
the front tire coming to a stop. I’m on retro
the SR: born in the eighties, bearded, and
rubber, I remind myself. Later, on the 210
ready to trade a little modern capability
interchange the left mirror shakes itself
for something more involving, both
loose, but the
mechanically and aesthetically.
SR otherwise
Real old bikes have rarely interested me,
acquits itself
and the prettier they are the more nervous well on the
they make me. A quick chat with an owner ruthlessly
or a ride around the block is enough to
modern
quell most crushes, but the SR has always
interstate.
been different. Emerging in the late 70’s
Over the next
as a then-modern version of the iconic
few days I
British singles of the 60’s, the original US
took the little
market SR500 sought to offer a fettle-free
thumper on
alternative to the old Brit roadster in the
over 600 miles
same way Mazda would later do in the car
world with the Miata. (Full disclosure: I’m of backroads,
big cities, dirt,
a Miata fan, having owned a ‘94 for many
and highway.
years) And like that car, the SR found a
Together we
similar fun-loving crowd to embrace its
scraped pegs in drizzly Azusa canyon,
simplicity. These folks cared less about
delivered medical marijuana in San Diego
the credibility of having something old
(that story coming in our May issue)
than about the consistent delivery of a
cultivated experience- the distilled essence slogged up and down 5 and got stopped by
of what made the old stuff fun. It is a credit LA County Sheriff deputies. So how’d it
do? Well, that will almost entirely depend
to Yamaha that they have offered this
on your expectations and your point of
experience to riders for so long, and now
reference. My hand was cramping from
have wisely sought to bring it back to it’s
wringing the throttle to the stop, my feet
American fans.
half asleep from the peg vibration, but
To properly attract the retrophiliacs here,
aside from the time on the interstate the
Yamaha have fitted the new bike with 19”
SR never failed to be a fun and engaging
wire wheels instead of the old mags, and
experience. The seat and ergonomics
deleted the electric start for maximum
are comfortable, the controls all feel
street cred. The only modern update is EFI.
Really, this is a bike not likely to
be left stock for long (a proper
pipe would be my first step),
and so I’ll keep my judgments
general to the overall platform.
Words & Photos: Jeff Ebner
A
By Surj Gish
Photo by Angelica Rubalcaba
other mothers. Big, heavy, top of the line,
expensive American V-twin touring bikes.
We’re obviously really reaching on this
title of this one (we encourage you to
sing Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive”
if that helps), but these two bikes just beg
to be compared. The Indian Roadmaster
and Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited
are, in many ways, the same bike from
different manufacturers. Brothers from
So how do they stack up against each other?
Engine
For a lot of folks, the American V-twin is
the heart of the matter. So which one is
better?
Harley-Davidson gets points for their
forward-thinking, well-disguised Twin-
Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited Indian Roadmaster
Seat Height
Wheelbase
Overall Length
Weight (wet)
Fuel Capacity
Torque
29.1” (unladen)
64”
102.4”
896 pounds
6 gallons
105.5 ft-lbs
Cooled (AKA liquid-cooled) motor, but
there’s just no denying the aesthetic beauty
of the Thunder Stroke 111 engine—it’s an
imposing, massive, yet somehow graceful
thing. And that bottomless torque… no
question, the Indian wins this one.
Handling
I never achieved the same level of comfort
with the Ultra Limited that I did with the
Roadmaster—I was happy to toss it into
corners all day long, in a way that never felt
quite right on the Harley.
26.5”
65.7”
104.6”
930 pounds
5.5 gallons
119.2 ft-lbs
clear that the Indian is a better platform
for hitting the road and staying on it for a
while.
Technology
The Indian’s tech is integrated in a simple,
subtle way, and I found it easier to use as a
result. But there’s no denying the Boom!
Box. If you’re looking to geek out, there’s no
question—that big touch screen delivers
the nerdery.
Coolness/Heritage/Blah Blah Blah
Both bikes take offense at rough pavement
pretty quickly, too. We’ll call this one a tie.
Polaris has done an admirable job of
revitalizing the Indian brand in a very
“authentic” way. But Harley-Davidson has
of course been doing their thing nonstop for what, a million years now? And
it’s worth noting that almost everyone
who felt compelled to ask me about the
Indian followed their initial “Indian, huh?
Intersting…” inquiry with, “Did you think
about getting a Harley?”
Luxury & Comfort
Price
This is a tricky question of rider and
passenger ergonomics, wind protection,
and lots of other totally subjective
items. Both bikes have great seats and
good riding positions, and both offer
excellent passenger accommodations.
But the Indian’s outstanding adjustable
windscreen, better overall wind protection,
and heated seat mean that it handily
trounces the Harley in comfort.
Both of these bikes are ridiculously
expensive. The Indian is more ridiculously
expensive. So that’s a win, or a loss,
depending on how you look at it.
But I dragged the pegs a lot less on the
H-D—maybe because I didn’t ride it as
hard, maybe because the floorboards aren’t
so gigantic. Harley actually claims less
ground clearance for the Ultra Limited, at
5.3”, versus a claimed 5.5” inches for the
Roadmaster.
Touring Ability
What Would Surj Do?
If you’ve already read the complete reviews,
you know the answer to this. Surj would
get himself an Indian, especially if Surj is
talking about himself in the third person.
The Indian touched me in a special way
and I liked it. Yeah, its more money, heavier,
In terms of luggage and general capabilities,
and doesn’t have the cache of a Harley, but
the two bikes are about equal. But when
in my opinion it’s a better bike in almost all
you consider comfort in addition to “how
ways. And did I mention that engine?
much stuff will it hold” type questions, it’s
April 2015 | 22 | CityBike.com
Camera gear secured to the
shiny chrome luggage loop on
the wide seat, I hop aboard the
2015 SR400 for my first-ever
authentic kick start experience.
I’ve seen it on YouTube, how
hard can it be? Fuel, ignition,
top-dead-center (aided by a
handy window), kick, and... hm.
A Yamaha tech (who’d obviously
seen more than one moto-journo botching
the kick start procedure) noticed me giving
it throttle with the kick and corrected my
procedure. Hand off the throttle and it
starts just fine.
Trundling out of the warehouse and
onto the eight lane LA streets, the SR’s
diminutive size becomes immediately
apparent. It’s low, and though the seat
is wide, my one bag of luggage has me
crowded on the tank, knees not far from my
elbows. Onto the 605 onramp and I twist
the throttle to the stop. The bike groans
and shakes, vibrations coming through the
pegs, grips, tank and saddle. It gets up to
speed quick enough to merge safely, but
the fast traffic runs us a thousand short of
redline in top gear.
R9T, and now the Ducati Scrambler have
struck a well-balanced resto-mod approach
with the best of both worlds, the SR cannot
be judged on the same scale. In my mind it
can’t even rightly be grouped into the retro
category. This isn’t a Hollywood remake,
it’s a fresh print of the classic.
Coming down the Angeles Crest Highway,
the SR was a perfect ride. 50 mph sweepers
put the bike
in its element,
the skinny
rubber carving
effortlessly. On
the brakes as
things tighten,
the front end
gives positive
feedback. The
400 remains
neutral and
intuitive
right up to its
relatively low
limits. Those
limits do a great job of keeping the fun
accessible at legal speeds—something
that immediately came in handy as the
highway wound down into the city, where I
stumbled upon a group of a half dozen LA
County Sherriff vehicles stopped on the
side of the road. They had a car stopped
and seemed busy as I idled by, coasting at
the 45 mph limit down the hill. I thought
nothing of it until I spotted the Crown Vic
behind me a minute later as we descend
into town. Sure enough, they flip on their
lights. Another unit pulls in behind the
first. After the usual routine, I’m told I was
paced at 50 but that they’d let me off with
a warning. They ended up asking all about
the bike—”no electric start” elicited cocked
eyebrows of begrudging respect—and sent
me on my way. While breaking the law
aboard the SR might not be necessary for a
good time, it’s nice to know that it is at least
possible, and the bike’s ample charm might
just save you a ticket.
So for the very specific motorcyclist who
isn’t happy with the Craigslist collection
of rusting 20th century SRs, or the city
dweller looking for the coolest alternative
to a Vespa, or yes even the antiquarian
looking for a two-wheeled companion for
his never-running MGB, this is the perfect
bike for you. For everyone else, in the same
showroom you’ll find the perfectly modern
R3, FZ07, and WR250R, any of which will
do at least one task nearly infinitely better
than the SR. But for the brave, stupid, vain,
or otherwise inexplicably smitten, the
little thumper does it all willingly, and in
timeless style.
Jeff is a Bay Area native, born in Berkeley and lives
in Oakland. He recently replaced his 72,000+ mile
SV650 with another SV650—nicer, older, and
fewer miles.
2015 Yamaha SR400
Super Ténéré
positive, and the entire bike is impressively
finished. The mountains and the city
proved the most enjoyable- thumping
through switchbacks, exploring dirt roads,
alleyways, and even bike paths (don’t tell
The Man!). Consider it a classy enduro
with half the performance and no ground
clearance and you’ll be pleased. Customize
it to your preferred usage and you start to
see the point of such a machine sold new in
2015.
Motorcyclists are fairly polarized on the
current retro trend, and even in my own
mind there are contradictory desires.
While I appreciate the simple aesthetics
and engineering of the old, I love the
performance, capability and comfort of
the new. Where bikes like the Bonneville,
What’s old is new!
Stop by and check it out.
Always wear a helmet, eye protection, and protective clothing.
Please respect the environment, obey the law, and read your owner's manual thoroughly.
BERKELEY YAMAHA
735 GILMAN STREET
BERKELEY (510) 525-5525
www.berkeley-yamaha.com
April 2015 | 23 | CityBike.com
Tues.-Fri. 9-6, Sat. 9-5 — Sun.-Mon. Closed
dr. gregory w. FRAZIER
More pointing and writing
English numbers resulted in
my understanding the road
tax for my excessive speed was
$25.00. I objected, saying and drawing on
the paper that I was following the car in
front of me and asked why that driver had
not been stopped, but my objections fell on
non-English understanding ears.
no overhead airplane, and no camera
watching measured lines across the
road. Ahhhhhaaaaa! They had a spotter
in town, some fellow tax collector
watching traffic go by, then calling
on the walkie talkies to the cop stop,
“Tourist on green motorcycle.”
A couple of things I had going against
me, other than being a tourist, were the
Getting Over It
each part being translated to Vietnamese
for him to read.
His reply was tapped on the smart phone
very slowly and carefully. He handed it
to me with a smile. Looking at the screen
I saw, “write what you wish $25” and
knew what purportedly worked for the
self-proclaimed VIP Moto-Journalist in
Malaysia was not going to work for the
that you will imagine that all used bikes are He wrote back to tell me he thought my
alike too. Who knows?
bike was worth about $2,000.
maynard
HERSHON
Chief, World Adventure Affairs Desk
WTF?
I thought as
I was waved
off the road
at a cop stop on the outskirts of a medium
sized town in Vietnam.
I was on a 1,200 mile adventure from
the north to the south, piloting a 125cc
Frankenstein Minsk (part Minsk, part
Honda) through town, following a car in
front on me. The traffic cop jumped behind
the car and in front of me, waving me
over to the shoulder with his cop baton. I
complied, noticing the gun on his cop belt.
I then applied Rule #2, showing both
cops my dummy wallet with $10.00 and
some old business cards and an expired
Playboy Club card. The “I don’t have much
money” act did not pass the acid test. Both
cops pointed to the computer and said,
questionable status of my International
Driving Permit, which was only rumored
to be honored, and the fact that I was on
a motorcycle that was not mine, instead
it was a questionable loaner. Thirdly, no
one had asked to see my passport, driving
Chief of the World Adventure Affairs Desk
for CityBike in Vietnam.
After digging $25 out of a hidden stash
pocked and forking it over I was wished a
safe journey by all three Vietnamese traffic
After 52 years riding sportsstyle motorcycles, somehow
I can now picture myself on
a cruiser. A Guzzi cruiser,
somewhat older, with pegs, not
footboards. What’s come over
me?
In Vietnamese, while he was pointing,
I was instructed drive off the pavement
and then to turn off the motorcycle and
dismount, which I did.
I stared at the number in his email. I don’t
know how much I thought my bike might
bring. Maybe I hoped for a thousand
dollars more than that, even fifteen
hundred. Two thousand subtracted from
the price of the Guzzi left many thousands
to pay. Too many.
I know that I could sell my bike for more
than $2,000. But his offer was a rude
But the seventh time I returned to the site
awakening, a hint that my ZRX had
to look at the photos, I emailed the dealer.
become worth as little as it was likely to.
CycleTrader provides an icon; you enter the On the one hand, that was a shock. On the
make, model and year of your trade, and
other, it was a liberation.
A quick look around the cop stop saw a
second cop sitting in the shade 20 feet away
with a laptop computer on the table in front
of him. A third cop was smoking a cigarette
while leaning against a 250cc Honda cop
bike. Two of the three were fingering small
radio communicators.
The high speed, high tech cop bike that
took down the Doctor. Photo: Dr. Frazier.
“Mastercard, Visa.” It was then I realized
they could swipe a credit or ATM card they
knew I must be carrying somewhere on my
body as a tourist.
The thought of making a run for it
found me looking around. No radar,
license, motorcycle ownership papers,
insurance or registration, and no ticket was
being written. I had been born at night, but
not the night before, and concluded I was
being shaken down for a cash donation.
Rule #3 was shifted into; being adamant
and unyielding, shaking my head, speaking
in German, French, Spanish and Montana
Cowboy. Application of this rule only got
me 15 minutes of sitting in the hot sun.
Switching back to English, I said, “OK, let’s
make a deal,” trying to negotiate the sum
down. Out came a smart phone from a cop
pocket. He Googled translation, then on
a keyboard he typed in Vietnamese and
translated to English, showing me “deal
$25.00.”
Out of rules, I fell back on what one
journalist claimed worked for him in
Malaysia, The VIP Moto-Journalist Ploy.
On the cop’s smart phone I carefully
typed in English, “I am a very important
journalist, here in your country by
invitation of the Minister of Tourism,
whom would not wish me writing bad
things about your country,” in several parts,
April 2015 | 24 | CityBike.com
cops. As I drove away I thought, “These
communists have learned a lot from the
capitalist speed traps in the USA. I just
contributed to a nice 250cc motorcycle,
laptop computer and Samsung Galaxy
smart phone, each costing more than the
owner made in salary in a month.”
To confirm my suspicions I slowly drove
back through town until I saw the spotter
sitting in the shade under a large tree.
I turned around and very slowly drove
towards him. He saw me and was about to
raise his walkie talkie to speak into it until
I waved at him and shook my index finger
at him. He seemingly understood, smiled
and waved back. I had paid my Vietnamese
road tax for the day.
Dr. Frazier’s new all-color coffee table book,
DOWN AND OUT IN PATAGONIA,
KAMCHATKA AND TIMBUKTU, available
at mototorbooks.com, is the first-ever first-hand
chronicle of a never-ending motorcycle ride
by “the world’s most cerebral motorcyclist.” It
is highly “recommended” by Grant Johnson,
horizonsunlimited.com adventure travel book
guru, and for dream riding armchair and keyboard
adventurists.
After scouring the Guzzi Owners Club
classified ads and internet ads from
owners and dealers, I found a used bike I
thought I might like, offered by a dealer
in far-off Minnesota. I saw the listing on
CycleTrader.com.
I had been checking the Guzzi Owners
Club classified ads once or twice daily, even
if new ads are infrequent in the winter. And
I’d check both Craigslist and CycleTrader
more than once each day. I’ve removed the
bookmarks from those sites. I’m not going
to look at photos of transverse V-twins I
cannot buy.
You’ll be pleased to hear that I haven’t
looked at a Guzzi ad all morning. Maybe
I’m over it already.
The mechanic found the
steering head and wheel
bearings to be just fine. And
the brake pads to have twothirds of their lives still left
in them. I have a new battery,
several oil filters and a new
rear tire set aside, waiting until
they are needed. The ZRX is
ready for another year or two
of trouble-free use at minimal
expense.
I can only afford to own one
bike at a time. So to buy a
Guzzi, I would have to sell or
trade my Kawasaki. I fought
with myself about replacing
it. There was no compelling
reason to do so. It’s a lovely
bike, after all. And I couldn’t
even tell you precisely why I
wanted a Guzzi. I just...did.
So I called the insurance company, half
expecting the customer service person
to try to convince me to maintain my
coverages despite my bike’s lessening
worth. No such thing happened. Now I
have greatly reduced coverage...and greatly
reduced premiums. Hundreds less.
You know, I think I get a little unhinged
in the winter. I think that once spring
comes and snow stops falling, once I can
ride again, I will fall back in love with my
Kawasaki. It will be my steadfast friend
again, my partner in adventures near
and far. I’ll forget my mad flirtation with
those idiosyncratic Italian motorcycles.
In January, before that fever
fully took hold, I had new
seals and bushings put in my
Kawasaki’s fork, and new
sprockets and chain installed.
Removing my helmet and sun glasses, I
pantomimed while applying my Rule #1
for a foreign cop stop; I pretended not to
understand the language or how I could
have violated road driving rules, using lots
of hand waving and pointing to my ears
and mouth.
The baton waving cop tucked his baton and
radio in belt holders and took from his shirt
pocket a slip of paper and pen and then
wrote “54 – 40.” Applying Rule #1 again, he
finally pointed to my speedometer and the
street, eventually making me understand
I had been traveling at 54 kilometers per
hour in a 40 kilometer per hour zone. He
then politely invited me to sit at the table
across from the cop with the computer.
F
or some time, as you read in this
space a few months ago, I’ve been
wanting a Moto Guzzi. I say, a Moto
Guzzi, not some specific Moto Guzzi. I
looked at many Guzzi models, sporty ones,
touring ones, so-called adventure bikes,
even cruisers.
I looked at the photos maybe half
a dozen times. The bike looked
good, low-mileage and clean. The
seller was in fact a Guzzi dealer, a
good sign, I guess. Days passed. I felt that
if I followed up on the ad, if I contacted the
dealer, I’d be committing to sell or trade
my fine, trustworthy Kawi for a bike I knew
almost nothing about. I resisted.
If indeed my bike is worth two grand, any
minor crash, maybe even an unlucky fall off
the sidestand, could total it.
click on the icon. The dealer receives notice
from the website that you are interested in
the particular bike and want to know how
much your trade is worth.
I heard via email from a salesperson at the
shop, also by the way a Kawasaki store.
He wanted to know more about my trade.
Dealers list their inventory, new and
How many miles, how did it look, you can
used, bike-by-bike, on these websites.
imagine the questions. I wrote back, telling
Too often, the dealer descriptions are
him about the good tires, the new seals and
absolutely unhelpful, merely manufacturer bushings, the new chain and sprockets, and
advertising copy applicable to any example the mileage, 37,000 miles. Thirty-eight by
of that particular model.
the time I reached Minneapolis to trade
We know that all new bikes of a given make bikes.
and model are alike, and we know that no
My ZRX is an ‘04, you may recall. Thirtytwo used bikes are. Still, the dealers listing eight thousand miles is 3,800 per year.
the bikes do not bother to add comments
Surely many ten-year-old, liter-plus
about the particular bike-in-question.
motorcycles show far more miles on their
Instead, you get brochure hype from the
odometers. No?
manufacturer’s website. Maybe they hope
I would love to be able to buy bikes like
mine for two thousand dollars each. I’ll
take three, please. My ZRX is worth far
more to me as a thing to ride than it is
to Joe Dealer as a thing to sell, a unit of
pre-owned inventory. I suppose the make,
model, year and mileage tell a story, but
when you’ve heard that story, you don’t
know the bike. You definitely don’t know
MY bike.
I realized that, one: I was not going to sell
or trade my motorcycle. It will not bring
nearly enough money to help me afford
a desirable, different bike. And two: It
will not even bring enough money to buy
another ZRX, same year and mileage, that
I could trust as I do mine.
And it occurred to me that I have been
paying five or six hundred dollars a year to
insure my two thousand dollar bike. Crazy.
April 2015 | 25 | CityBike.com
From 3:14 Daily
Valencia @ 25th
415-970-9670
Inspected By Herb
direction because he sometimes gives me
a headache. Later, driving on the highway,
I rolled my windows up, and it suddenly
got very dark inside the van. I then realized
that someone had covered the entire
window with dozens of Suzuki Dual-Sport
Rider’s Club stickers.
H
increased speed to help him get wherever
he was going a bit faster. Let’s just say that
this wasn’t a BAD move, it was merely
stupid.
Especially if you fit a bad guy profile.
Marketplace
A cargo van with no side windows fits
a bad guy profile. A cargo van carrying
large items that might be stolen, like that
motorcycle in the back, fits a BAD GUY
profile.
M
GARAGE
LEATHER ODYSSEY
COATS OF SKINS, SKIRTS
JACKETS, CHAPS, PANTS,
VESTS, GLOVES,
BOOTS, SADDLE BAGS,
RIDING GEAR, FASHION
& MORE. ALL SIZES.
Vintage / Modern
Motorcycle & Scooter
Service Specialists
A driver wearing dark sunglasses, hat
We both had quite a bit of speed on
pulled low and wearing what might be
when he found room to pass. He came
a fake beard fits a BAD GUY profile
up alongside and pointed to me with the almost exactly.
PATCHES SEWN ON MOST WHILE U WAIT
CLEAN, REPAIR,
ALTER
952 B STREET
BETWEEN MAIN
& MISSION
HAYWARD CA 94541
510-582-5222
(Pre-1975? Come on in!!)
e calls himself Papa Herb;
has it written in big letters
on everything he wears,
and I wouldn’t be surprised if he had
it tattooed on his back. He may be
Mark Hyde’s uncle or father-in-law or
something because they always show up
together.
Moto Garage
415-337-1448
112 Sagamore St, SF, CA. 94112
We fix anything on
American V-Twin bikes
Mark, if you didn’t know, is the factory
rep at most of the Suzuki trail ride series
and is the best guy to meet when you’re
a thousand miles from home and you’re
motorcycle breaks. It doesn’t matter if
it’s a Suzuki or a competing brand; Mark
and his crew can perform some sort of
transplant to help you finish the ride.
If someone breaks down on the trail,
Mark will often ride off to help with a
whole golf bag full of parts slung over his
shoulder.
$14.99 + $5 shipping
Sizes S-XXL
Email us: rftc@citybike.com
or by mail:
City Bike Magazine
PO Box 18738
Oakland, CA 94619
You can carry a lot of spare parts in a
golf bag.
Papa Herb must be a self-appointed
official Suzuki practical joke dispenser.
Most of the jokes are harmless, such as
riding up alongside you and saying, “I
suppose you already know your rear tire
is flat.” Papa Herb is a good enough rider
to pull that little stunt on the steepest
part of a long uphill paved with loose
stones and wet tree roots—places where
stopping would mean you’d have to turn
around and go back two zip codes to get
another running start at the slope.
408-298-6800
75 Phelan Avenue, San Jose
Open 7 Days a week
Along with the harmless jokes, he’s pulled
at least one that wasn’t quite as harmless.
That was one of Papa Herb’s harmless
jokes, you say?
It could have been anywhere from Florida
to New Hampshire, but I think it was in
Michigan, where I’d parked my van with
the windows down while Papa Herb was
in the vicinity. I didn’t see him but I sure
could hear him, and I went off in the other
Not exactly.
Two weeks later I was back in New Jersey
driving the van on a narrow road when
a police car came up behind me with his
“bubble gum machine” lights flashing
merrily. I had no place to pull over, so I
unmistakable message: “I want YOU,
I want you NOW, and I am NOT in a
good mood”.
Put all that together and then add a fake
state inspection sticker and the profile is
complete except for height, weight, hair
color and scars, if any.
I slowed, swung into the Pemberton school
parking lot and stopped. I did not get
The policeman seemed to appreciate
out—they don’t like it when you get out
my having both hands on the top of the
and it’s unwise to do anything they do not steering wheel as he asked me to step out
and produce the required documents for
van and the motorcycle in the back. He
took the paperwork back to his cruiser
and punched the numbers into the
computer they use. He came back to tell me
everything was in order, but he’d have to
write a ticket for the fake inspection sticker.
Cylinder Head
Specialists
In Business Since 1978
All Makes
All Models
All Years
ENGINE DYNAMICS, LLC
Phone 707-763-7519
Fax 707-763-3759
www.enginedynamics.com
2040 Petaluma Blvd. N.Petaluma, CA 94952
WHAT fake inspection sticker?
The one on the outside of the windshield
that says; Suzuki Dual-Sport rider’s club.
I ripped it off so he could see the real
inspection sticker on the inside of the glass.
The policeman ALMOST smiled—I don’t
think they’re allowed to in uniform. Next
time I see Mark Hyde I’m going to ask him
to keep those club stickers away from Papa
Herb.
Get Ed’s latest book, 80.4 Finish Check on
Amazon.com!
April 2015 | 26 | CityBike.com
• Flow Bench Testing • Competition Valve Jobs •
• Porting • Polishing •
• Valve Seat & Guide Replacement • Race Prep •
ed HERTFELDER
like because they have guns and quite often
their nerves are strung really tight.
April 2015 | 27 | CityBike.com
Tankslapper
Come On, There Are Lots Of
Shitty Bikes In SF
Kevin Smith, ex-president of the AFM, not
the often silent, movie-making guy, sent in
this shitty (bike) story:
Reading the complaint about an undesired
term of affection on the back of your shirts
reminded me of an incident from a few years
back: A friend and I were in Orange County
and stopped at a Chinese food restaurant.
The place was nearly empty as we sat in a
booth but after a few minutes a couple came
in and sat in the booth next to ours. My back
was facing that booth and before long the lady
there asked me, “Is there really a Shitty Bike
in San Francisco?” It took me a few seconds to
understand why she asked the question (after
all, I’m typically not looking at the back collar
of my shirts) and then I chuckled and showed
her the front. When I apologized that she had
to look at the offensive phrase, she laughed
and said, “No, it’s not that. I was just curious
that there really would be a shop called Shitty
Bike.” By the way, this woman was in her
seventies.
Awesome story, Kev! And here’s some
shameless CityBike self-promotion: if you
too would like to strike up conversations
with random old ladies, head to citybike.
com/subscribe.html to get your own shitty
shirt.
To Bill (Quirk), Re: Bill (AB 51)
Steve Murtaugh, writer / blogger /
motorcyclist from Hayward, sent us this
note about Assemblyman Bill Quirk’s
AB 51, that would explicitly codify lane
splitting here in the Golden State:
Bill even accompanied me to Arlen Ness
in Dublin to see that other side of the
motorcycling lifestyle. He was fascinated
by the craftsmanship and creativity, and of
course the price tags in the showroom. I think
his reaction was, ‘OK, here’s another way
lots of people enjoy themselves, and good for
them.’
My friend & California State Assembly
Member Bill Quirk introduced AB 51 recently.
Bill understands in that ‘politics is the art
Yes, he has no interest in riding motorcycles
of the possible.’ If he doesn’t win, at least
himself, and he’s way cautious driving a car.
he’ll be appreciated by the CHP for trying
to give them some cover on an increasingly
As a retired PhD astrophysicist from
contentious, ‘not legal but also not illegal,’ but
Lawrence Livermore National Labs, he
now proven safe activity. In Bill’s mind, he’s
understands the cold hard facts of our
just doing the job we elected him to do, and
roadways. So he drives a multi air-bagged
doing it well.
Toyota Camry Hybrid—slowly. I’ve ridden
with him, and he’d follow the only slower car
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Steve.
in sight while ignoring empty lanes all around
Lane splitting is near and dear to our hearts
us. His lovely wife sometimes wishes he’d drive
here at CityBike, and we’re working with
faster.
Bill on his bill—stay tuned!
But he actually doesn’t mind if we swoop by
Ride Fast? Sure. Take Chances?
his mirrors!
I got to know Bill by working for his Hayward
City Council campaigns in ‘04 & ’08. We
progressed from discussing our shared
political interests to his interest in Einstein’s
theories and my interest in motorcycling. He
easily grasped how lane splitting on freeways
protects us from dysfunctional freeway
congestion. And lately I bet he paid LOTS
of attention to that data proving we’re safer
while sanely lane splitting.
Maybe…
Our ‘Ride Fast Take Chances’
motto has been the subject
of much scrutiny for
many years. Even here
at CityBike HQ , we
have deep, philosophical
conversations about ye
olde RFTC. Here are
two recent letters on
the subject.
CLASSIFIEDS
can send you, since you said nice things
about us)
I ride the $$ brand
but truly believe
that anybody on
two wheels is
my brother or
sister.
The
first
time
I read
your rag I
was hooked.
So yeah, I’m one of
those stupid people that subscribe to a free rag.
But I refuse to BUY a shirt. (however, I want
one. XXL please)
Keep up the attitude, the coverage, and above
all keep the shiny side up.
But Rick, think of all the ladiez you’ll meet
if you spring for a Shitty Bike shirt! (We’ll
see if we have a spare XXL ‘round here we
April 2015 | 28 | CityBike.com
Enter these contacts into your phone now, while you are thinking about it, so
that you will have them when you need them.
On the anti-RFTC side, we have this letter
from Poul in Palo Alto, whose letter was
written in such beautiful, artful script we
could barely read it.
The blond female getting a ticket for
distracted driving must have been distracted
by the front page of her issue of CityBike.
Taking chances on your bike is dumb and
juvenile. If your magazine had been available
when my two children were growing up, I
would have removed or obliterated the ‘Take
Chances’ headline. I have not ridden for 60
years by living up to your philosophy.
Cycle Tow
510-644-2453(BIKE) Est 1988 24hr emergency service.
Reasonable rates.
We tow all makes of motorcycles, sidecars and trikes.
We also network with many other motorcycle tow services throughout
the entire Bay Area. If we can’t get to you quickly, we can find you a tow
service that’s closer. We are based in Berkeley, CA.
SAN FRANCISCO AND BEYOND:
DAVE’S CYCLE TRANSPORT
I beg for a competition to find something
funny but zany in that spot.
In all seriousness—which we hate doing—
we actually talk about this. We don’t
advocate stupid
riding—in
fact we’re
big
fans of
always
The Old Man
The Old Truck
Dave is working
Dave’s Cycle Transport
San Francisco-Bay Area and Beyond…
24 Hour Service
(415)824-3020 — www.davescycle.com
Motorcycle & ATV Hauling
Sonoma, Marin, Napa & Mendocino Counties
24 hour Roadside Pickup
707-843-6584
Insured & Licensed
California Motor Carrier Permit
www.mcmotorcycletransport.com
mcmotorcycle@att.net
On the pro-RFTC
side, we have Rick
from Potter Valley:
Ride fast,
take
chances!
I do, it’s a
habit that
I haven’t
been able to
break, since
about 1968.
Yeah, I run
straight pipes and
split lanes a lot.
TOWING
DEALER CLASSIFIED
increasing your
skills—but taking chances is
part of riding motorcycles.
And we like riding fast.
What do you think about
Ride Fast Take Chances?
We’re asking seriously, by the
way. Let us know at editor@
citybike.com or over at facebook.
com/citybikemag.
We want to know what you think, and
we’re not mind readers. Hell, if you
read the magazine, you’ve probably
wondered if we can read
at all! Anyhow, you
can get correct
our numerous
mistakes (or
just say hey) at
editor@citybike.
com or talk to
us on our Facebook
page at facebook.com/
CityBikeMag. You can also send us an oldtimey paper letter, which we think is pretty damn
cool. Those go to CityBike Magazine, PO Box
18738, Oakland 94619.
2013 BMW R1200RT - (Midnight Blue Metallic) 29,443 miles, This
110hp R1200RT has everything you would need on a long j­ourney:
comfort, practicality and speed. It handles the twisting roads with
incredible agility, while its fairing offers excellent protection for both
rider and pillion passenger against wind, rain and air turbulence. This
1170cc Air-Oil cooled, opposed flat twin comes with BMW color
matched Side Cases . California registration is valid till May 2015. NADA
value is $16,185 / KBB value is $16,510 / Cycle Traders average price for
this bike is $16,215. Save big $$ as we are only asking $15,975.00
2012 Yamaha Super Tenere - (Black) 35,657 miles, If you want
and adventure touring bike with no recalls and very little maintenance
issues than this is your bike. Earning Best Adventure Bike honors in
2012, Proven in the European market for years and now in the US. This
1199cc liquid-cooled, four-stroke parallel-Twin comes with Givi Side
Case Mounting Brackets, Side Bags Not Included, but can be ordered
at dealer cost if wanted and Adventure Skid Plate. California registration
is valid till Nov 2015. NADA value is $11,535 / KBB value is $10,705 /
Cycle Traders average price for this bike is $10,619. Save big $$ as we
are only asking $7,975.00
More info and pictures on our website at
http://www.dubbelju.com/Bikes-for-Sale.htm
Dubbelju Motorcycle
Rentals / Storage
First, a few words about the condition of our equipment. All advertised
vehicles are technically and operationally sound; furthermore, they are
factory original (very important for vehicle inspection and licensing
out-of-country). Components which show even a trace of wear or fatigue
are replaced. In other words, you receive a motorcycle which, while it
may have some miles on the odometer, has been routinely and expertly
maintained.
2009 BMW 650GS - (Silver) 35,166mi, BMW Factory Lowered
Suspension, ABS, Heated Grips, The lowest up-right motorcycle making
it perfect for riders of a shorter stature who don’t want a cruiser. 36k
mile service just completed by BMW SF. California registration is valid
till May 2015. NADA value is $6,715 / KBB value is $6,315 / Cycle
Traders average price for this bike is $6,309. Save big $$ as we are only
asking $5,975.00
2006 Harley Davidson Heritage Softail Classic (FLSTC) - (Vivid
Black) 40,631mi, Throw a leg over a Heritage Softail® Classic, and
just like that, you’ve bought yourself a one-way ticket to happier days.
One look at the studded leather bags and you can’t help but grin. This is
how the early dressers did it. Fire one up and good feelings fill the soul.
1450cc, Pushrod V-twin 4-stroke, Air cooled, Electronic Fuel Injection,
Five-speed, Belt-Drive, Windshield, Studded Seat with Matching
Studded Side Panniers. California registration is valid till May 2015.
NADA value is $9,578 / KBB value is $10,690 / Cycle Traders average
price for this bike is $10,214. We are only asking $9,450.00 **Reduced
to $7,950 for March!
2010 Ducati Multistrada 1200 - (Ducati Red) Bike has 33,542
miles, 150 Hp 1198cc L-Twin cylinder 4-valve per cylinder Testastretta
11 motor, liquid cooled, six speed, wet slipper clutch, adjustable
traction control, power delivery riding modes, ABS, 5.3gal fuel tank,
two 12V power outlets, adjustable screen, 50mm fully adjustable
Marzocchi forks and Sachs rear shock. Service intervals are now up to
and impressive 15,000 miles. Voted Best Sport-Tourer award in Cycle
World’s Ten Best balloting and won Motorrad’s the “Best All-rounder”
award. California registration is valid till Aug 2015. NADA value is
$13,536 / KBB value is $13,425 / Cycle Traders average price for
this bike is $13,182. Save big $$ as we are only asking $11,975.00
**Reduced to $10,475 for March!
2012 BMW R1200GS - (Silver Metallic) 53,781 miles, 110bhp this is
BMW’s premier adventure touring motorcycle with the perfect balance
between city, back roads, pavement, or off-road riding. This bike comes
with Heated Grips, ABS, On-Board Computer, and BMW Vario Side
Bags. California registration is valid till April 2015. KBB value is $14,775
and NADA value is $14,560 / Cycle Traders average price for this bike is
$15,338. Save big $$ as we are only asking $11,975.00 **Reduced to
$10,475 for March!
J&M Motorsports LLC
2243 Old Middlefield Way
Mountain View, Ca 94043
650-386-1440
www.jm-ms.com
We have a huge selection of Sport bikes, Cruisers, Dual Sport & Dirt
Bikes! We are a licensed dealer owned and operated by people who love
motorcycles. We specialize in newer, low-mile, affordable bikes! We offer
in-house financing! Visit our website and fill out an application today!
Looking for your first bike, your tenth? J&M is not a giant dealership.
When you call or visit, you’re talking directly with non-commission team
members who are passionate about motorcycles and who want to help
you get the bike you desire! Looking to sell your bike? Consignments are
welcome!
Come by and take a look!
Can-Am:
2010 Can-Am Spyder RS SE5 - $13,995
Ducati:
2014 899 Panigale - $13,995
2013 1199 Panigale S - $17,495
2008 848 - $12,995
2011 848 Evo - $10,995
2008 Multistrada 1100S - $7,495
2010 Streetfighter S - $12,495
Harley-Davidson:
2006 FLHRCI Road King Classic - $11,995
2013 FLHR Road King - $16,995
2011 FLHTK Electra Glide Ultra Limited - $17,995
2008 FLHX Street Glide - $15,995
2007 FXDWG Dyna Wide Glide - $9,995
2014 VRSCDX Night Rod Special - $15,495
2013 XL883N Sportster 883 Iron - $8,495
Honda:
2006 CB900F - $4,995
2007 CB250 Nighthawk - $3,295
2003 CB750 Nighthawk - $3,495
2012 CBR250R - $3,495
2012 CBR250R - $3,495
2014 CBR650F - $7,995
2005 CMX250 Rebel - $2,995
2006 CRF100 - $1,695
2013 CRF450R - $6,495
2001 VT750 Shadow ACE - $3,995
2006 VTX1300S - $5,495
Husqvarna:
2006 TC450 - $3,295
Kawasaki:
2012 KX450F - $4,995
2005 Ninja 250R - $2,495
2011 Ninja ZX-6R - $8,495
2012 Ninja ZX-6R - $8,495
2015 Ninja ZX-6R 30th Anniversary Ed. - $10,495
2004 Ninja ZX-10R - $5,495
2006 Vulcan 900 Classic - $3,995
2005 Vulcan 1600 Classic - $4,995
2001 ZRX1200R - $4,495
MV Agusta:
2011 Brutale 1090RR - $9,495
Suzuki:
2012 Boulevard C50T - $6,495
2004 DR200 - $3,295
2011 GSX-R600 - $8,795
2007 GSX-R1000 - $7,995
2014 GSX-R1000 - $11,495
2014 RM-Z450 - $5,995
2007 SV650S - $3,995
2006 V-Strom DL650 - $5,995
Triumph:
2013 Daytona 675R - $11,995
2013 Trophy 1200 SE - $13,995
Yamaha:
2008 Rhino 700 EFI - $7,995
2007 FJR1300 - $7,495
2012 FZ8 - $7,495
2013 R1 - $10,995
2004 R6 - $5,495
2008 R6 - $7,995
2009 R6 - $7,995
2010 R6 - $8,995
2012 R6 - $8,995
2013 R6 - $9,495
2007 Road Star Warrior - $6,495
2008 V-Star 250 - $2,995
SF MOTO
275 8th Street at the corner of Folsom
San Francisco - 415 255 3132
www.sfmoto.com
275 8th Street at the corner of Folsom
San Francisco - 415 255
3132
www.sfmoto.com
USED INVENTORY
- All used motorcycles at sf moto come with a 3 month warranty and 12
month road side assistance.
We thoroughly go through our used inventory:
- If we find brakes to be worn over 60%, new pads are installed
- If we find tires to be worn beyond 60%, new tires are installed
- If chain & sprockets have too much play, we install new chain &
sprockets.
- NEW: All Our used bikes come with a free 12 month roadside
assistance.
---- APRILIA ---Sold out! Please check back with us soon!
---- BMW ---F800R ABS, 2012, 8890 Miles, Red, $9498
F800R ABS, 2011, 10449 miles, white, $7998
---- DUCATI ---Hypermotard, 2008, 4973 miles, red, $8498
Monster 696, 2009, 6178 miles, white, $7498
Monster 696, 2009, 4110 miles, black, $7495
Monster 696, 2009, 4639 miles, red, $7495
Monster 696 ABS, 2012, 3793 miles, red, $8498
Monster 696 ABS, 2012, 5949 miles, Black, $8498
---- GENUINE ---Sold out! Please check back with us soon!
---- HONDA ---599, 2006, 13026 miles, black, $4998
CB1000R, 2012, matte gray, 6425 miles, $8995
CBR1000RR, 2011, black, 1282 miles, $8998
CBR250R, 2012, black, 8346 miles, $3498
CBR250R, 2012, red/white/blue, 3009 miles, $3995
CBR250R, 2012, red/white/blue, 77 miles, $3998
CBR250R, 2012, black, 2595 miles, $3998
CBR250R ABS, 2013, black, 4298 miles, $4298
CBR250R ABS, 2012, black, 2503 miles, $4198
CBR500R, 2013, black, 1676 miles, $5498
CBR600RR, 2010, orange/black, 6551 miles, $8498
CBR600RR, 2003, black, 8335 miles, $5498
CBR600RR, 2008, orange/black, 1710 miles, $7798
919, 2005, black, 14573 miles, $4498
PCX125 scooter, 2011, red, 450 miles, $2998
RC51 RVT1000R, 2006, Gray, 11479 miles, $7498
Rebel 250, 2012, red, 128 miles, $3298
Rebel 250, 2009, black, 4314 miles, $2998
Shadow Aero VT750, 2007, Black, 2397 miles, $4498
Shadow RS VT750, 2012, Blue, 74 miles, $5998
---- HUSQVARNA ---Sold out! Please check back with us soon!
---- KAWASAKI ---EX250, 2007, Blue, 1634 miles, $2998
EX250, 2007, Red, 5631 Miles, $2998
EX300, 2014, black, 991 miles, $5298
EX300 ABS, 2014, black, 2435 miles, $5298
EX300 ABS, 2014, black, 5587 miles, $5098
EX300, 2014, green, 2686 miles, $4998
EX650, 2012, black, 3052 miles, $5998
ZX-10R, 2012, green, 1142 miles, $10498
ZX-10R, 2008, blue, 9972 miles, $6998
Versys 650, 2009, blue, 870 Miles, $5998
Vulcan 500, 2003, blue, 15098 miles, $3498
Vulcan 900, 2011, black, 805 miles, $6598
---- KYMCO ---Sold out! Please check back with us soon!
---- PIAGGIO ---Sold out! Please check back with us soon!
----SUZUKI ---Boulevard S40, 2013, green, 1177 miles, $4798
Boulevard S40, 2014, green, 400 miles, $4998
GSXR-1000, 2009, Burgundy, 6146 Miles, $8498
GSXR-600, 2011, blue/white, 8122 miles, $8998
GSXR-600, 2008, white, 13780 miles, $7498
GSXR-750, 2011, blue/white, 10773 miles, $8498
GSXR-750, 2009, black, 5535 miles, $8498
GSXR-750, 2013, blue, 5515 miles, $9998
GSXR-750, 2007, blue, 4240 miles, $7495
GSXR-750, 2013, blue/white, 2097 miles, $9998
GW250, 2013, black, 449 miles, $3798
GW250, 2013, black, 46 miles, $3798
GZ250 cruiser, 2009, black, 1541 miles, $2998
GZ250 cruiser, 2009, black, 885 miles, $2998
SV650S, 2006, red, 24892 miles, $4498
SV650S, 2009, gray, 2318 miles, $5498
V-Strom DL1000, 2008, black, 8705 miles, $6998
V-Strom DL650 ABS, 2013, blue, 30 miles, $7298
April 2015 | 29 | CityBike.com
---SYM--See our new SYM listing at the bottom of this ad
---TRIUMPH--Bonneville, 2012, gold, 4604 miles, $7498
Bonneville, 2011, white, 361 miles, $6997
Bonneville SE, 2012, white, 585 miles, $7498
Bonneville T100, 2013, red, 4432 miles, $7998
Bonneville T100, 2013, red/black, 1665 miles, $8498
Bonneville T100, 2013, red, 820 miles, $8498
Daytona 675, 2010, red, 4804 miles, $8495
Daytona 675, 2012, red, 2250 miles, $8498
Speed Triple ABS, 2012, red, 7939 miles, $8998
Speed Triple ABS, 2013, gray, 1584 miles, $8998
Thruxton, 2013, black, 2221 miles, $8498
----VESPA ---Rally 200, 1974, 1837 miles, black/white, $4498
GL150, 1964, 8540 miles, white, $4698
----YAMAHA ---FZ6, 2014, black, 699 miles, $6498
FZ6, 2014, black, 237 miles, $6998
FZ6, 2008, blue, 5322 miles, $4798
FZ6, 2014, black, 304 miles, $6498
YZFR6, 2009, white, 1873 miles, $8498
V-Star, 2014, red, 71 miles, $3798
WR250R, 2012, blue, 1433 miles, $5998
Zuma 125 scooter, 2013, black, 860 miles, $2998
NEW INVENTORY
---SYM---- All SYM bikes come with a 2 year factory warranty -SYM Citycom 300i scooter, 2015, NEW, red or blue - $3999
SYM Fiddle II 125 scooter, 2015, NEW, sand, blue, black, red, white
- $2295
SYM HD200 scooter, 2015, NEW, Yellow, Orange, Black, Red,
Gunmetal - $3495
SYM Symba (aka Honda Cub), 2015, NEW, blue, red, black - $2349
SYM Wolf (aka Honda CB150), 2015, NEW, Tricolor, red, green, black,
white - $2995
SYM T2 250i, 2014, NEW, yellow, black or white - $3799
--- LANCE POWERSPORTS --Lance PCH 150, 2014, green, red or grey, $2199
Lance Cali Classic, 2014, red, blue, white or beige, - $1899
Lance Havana Classic, 2014, black, white, blue, beige, red - $1899
Lance PCH125, 2014, orange, yellow, red, black, white, - $1899
USED MOTORCYCLES:
Ed Meagor’s BSA
BSA 500 Single Empire Star
Cheap $10,000 Firm
Old Ed Meagor
What you see is all that we got this time. Maybe you already know him or
he’s on Google and you can beat the rush? Maybe Old Ed Meagor will USPS
mail us another piece of butcher paper with permanent marker that’s got his
contact info on it for the May issue? We still love you, Ed!
-CityBike Classifieds Editor
Interceptor 1000
Runs good, good tires, everything works. 45,000 miles, x-tra parts,
factory shop manual. $1800 OBO / trade
707-290-8277
2006 Harley Davidson - Comes with all the standard Ultra Classic
features, including CB radio, built in intercom, air ride suspension, AM/
FM/CB/Weather radio/CD player/12V outlet/Electronic Cruise Control/
Fuel Injection/Tubeless tires/Trunk liner/Vented lowers, Harley chrome
luggage rack on the trunk, with built in rear stop light.
Asking $10,000.00 Call: Carl 408-426-0441
PARTS AND SERVICE
ADVANCED CYCLE SERVICE
*Motorcycle Service and Repair*
• Tires • Service •Insurance estimates
Monthly bike storage available
Come check us out
1135 Old Bayshore Hwy
San Jose, CA 95112
(408) 299-0508
jim@advcycles.com — www.advcycles.com
DUCATI SUZUKI KAWASAKI YAMAHA
Cycle Revolution
Bavarian Cycle Works
EXPERT Service & Repair
Bavarian Cycle Works specializes in new and vintage BMW, modern
TRIUMPH and select motorcycle models. Our staff includes a Master
Certified Technician and personnel each with over 25 years experience.
Nearly all scheduled motorcycle maintenance can be completed within a
one day turnaround time. All bikes kept securely indoors, day and night.
Come see us!
Coats of skins, Chaps, Pants, Vests, Gloves, Boots, Saddle Bags,
Helmets, Riding Gear, Fashion & More.
All sizes: Kids/Big/Tall.
Patches sewn on most while U wait.
Clean Repair Alter
952 B Street, Hayward
B/W Mission & Main
510-582-522
ROCKRIDGE TWO WHEELS
Need new rubber? Rockridge Two Wheels is offering a $50 mount
and balance with the purchase of two tires. Factory techs. 40+ years
experience. Full service facility.
510/594-0789
vespawalnutcreek.com 925 938 0600
rockridgetwowheels.com 510 594 0789
For all your Bay Area Vespa / Piaggio / Aprilia needs
Tech needed for 20 year established motorcycle repair shop
Located in Santa Cruz County
Business is booming and time to expand
Tech must have minimum 5 years working experience prefer 10
Ability to follow procedures start to finish
Send qualifications and references,along with expected compensation
We work on Japanese,German and British bikes
Street,off road and scooters.Vespa included
No attitudes or egos
apply to; napoleonsnut@gmail.com
FINE DINING
CityBike Classifieds
Darby Dan’s (Sandwich Nirvana)
South San Francisco
Forget Togos or Subway.
What you need is a real SANDWICH for lunch.
Come in and revel in our famous garlic mayo, fresh ingredients, and
friendly staff and walk out with a cheshire cat’s smile.
We do it right at 733 Airport Blvd South San Francisco
650-876-0122
WE CARRY CITYBIKE!!
EAT AT REDS JAVA HOUSE, SF.
“IT’S REALLY GOOD FOOD”
SAYS CITYBIKE MANAGEMENT.
Bay Area Sidecar Enthusiasts
(BASE)
•What does your dog think about motorcycling? (A: Hard to tell
without a sidecar!)
•Ever driven in traffic with a fake machine-gun mounted to your
rig?
• Want to know how to “fly the chair”?
•Maybe just want to find out what it’s like to be a “sidecar monkey”
for a day by catching a ride with us?
We are a facebook-based group in the SF Bay Area filled with sidecars
and the people who love them, and we’d be happy to meet you.
Email pej12378@yahoo.com for more information.
Rabers Parts Mart
BRG RACING - CONCORD
Independent service of BMW, Ducati, Triumph.
Factory certified, and certifiable, too!
Fair prices and fast turnaround
We love what we do - we solve problems and make
people’s machines run their best. Bring us your problem.
We’ll solve it for you - nothing that we can’t fix.
BRG Racing
925-680-2560
110 2nd Ave. So. - Unit D
Pacheco
www.brg.com
LIVE MOTO
Your local motorcycle performance center. Offering service, parts and
accessories, competitive pricing, and friendly advice for your motolifestyle.
We specialize in Japanese and American motorcycles, and accept all
makes and models. Come in today for a free tire pressure check
and visual inspection!
Conveniently located near the heart of downtown Livermore.
205 North i St., Livermore, CA.
(925)292-0443
Sierra Dual Sport/Dirt Bike Rides,
Rentals and Training
Come and ride the Sierras! No dirt experience needed! Dual Sport and
dirt bike rentals. Guided or map your own course. Skill building classes
also available.
Easy access from Highway 50 south and west of Tahoe, this side of the
hill in Camino, CA.
Free secure storage of your car or bike onsite, or we can deliver bikes to
many all day riding areas (additional fee applies for delivery).
Well-maintained bikes and a rider-owned company makes us a great
adventure for the day, weekend or longer.
ASK ABOUT OUR SPECIAL $200 3-HOUR INTRO TO DUAL SPORT
RIDING TOUR/INSTRUCTION! ALSO SCHEDULING WOMEN’S DIRT
AND DUAL SPORT TRAINING CLASSES! **WE OFFER LOWERED DUAL
SPORT BIKES!
530-748-3505- www.sierradualsport.com
Raber’s Parts Mart is looking for a full-time, experienced vintage British
motorcycle mechanic for immediate hiring.
Requirements include:
- At least 5 years experience in a professional, vintage British motorcycle
shop (a must)
- Provide own set of hand tools
Benefits include:
- Full time pay (discussed individually)
- Health and Dental insurance provided after 90 days
If interested, please contact us at 408-998-4495 and ask to speak with
John, or send us an email with your resume to
mike@rabers.com
HELP WANTED
Custom Design Studios
Mind-Blowing Custom Paint Since 1988
Visit Our Showroom!
56 Hamilton Drive # A
Novato, Ca. 94949
415 382-6662
www.customdesignstudios.com/
V-Twin Service, Repair, Parts, & Fabrication.
Harley Factory Trained Tech. CYCLE
LVA G
E
SA
Marin Moto Works
Aprilia, KTM, & BMW independent service in San Rafael.
17 years of experience and factory certified. Service, Maintenance,
Engine Rebuilds, Suspension Service, Race/Tour Prep, Tires.
Around the corner from Marin Speed Shop
M-F 10-6pm/Sat 10-5pm
415-454-7433
Michael’s Motorsports
BMW Motorcycle Service, Repair, Restoration
Air heads, Oil Heads, Hex heads, K Bikes, F Bikes
880 Piner Rd. Ste 46
Santa Rosa, CA 95403
(707) 575-4132
Santa Clara Cycle Accessories
ADDICTION MOTORS
Looking for a business to call your own? Addiction Motors has
just the opportunity for a motivated and driven person. Motorcycle
maintenance knowledge is necessary for this endeavor.
Contact Galen at 510-473-7247 or galen@addictionmotors.com
for more info.
MOTO TIRE GUY
Cycle Salvage - Hayward
Cycle Salvage Hayward - your one stop shop for remote controlled
motorcycle models, fuzzy helmet slip-on covers, flaming-hair-evilclown graphics kits, moderately-worn vintage motorcycle manuals of all
stripes, and replacement kickstand legs that are not too hot and not too
cold, but JUST RIGHT
Cycle Salvage Hayward
21065 Foothill Blvd
Hayward, CA 94541
510-886-2328
Bavarian Cycle Works
www.MotoTireGuy.com
Motorcycle Tire Services
San Francisco - Bay Area
(415) 601-2853
Order your tires online, Zero CA sales tax plus
Free UPS Ground, then have a Preferred Installer
in your local area do the installation and save! Please visit website for details.
Devils Detail Motorcycle Detailing
Detailing vintage, classic, modern motorcycles
415 - 439 - 9275
www.thedevilsdetailing.com
thedevilsdetail@hotmail.com
established 2007
Greatness can be in your detail!
Since 1956
Knucklehead
Panhead
Iron Sportster
Shovelhead
Evolution
Twin Cam
Multi Valve 450cc and up
Cyl. boring on H.D. only
21050 Mission Blvd. Hayward, 94541
(510) 581-5315
MOTOR WORKS
BMW PARTS
Take a European trip this year!
Visit www.motorworks.co.uk
• Huge range of new and used parts and accessories for all models from
1970 onwards
• UK’s largest independent, 25 years experience
• Competitive prices, fast shipping
• Expert and friendly advice available
• Trade customers welcome
Quality Motorcycles
235 Shoreline Hwy.
Mill Valley CA
(415) 381-5059
We’re not afraid of your old bike.
Bavarian Cycle Works is hiring PT/FT motorcycle technician.
QUALIFICATIONS
• Formal motorcycle repair training
• Valid M1 & clean DMV record
• Perform routine maintenance
• Able to diagnose and repair to specifications
• Understand basic motorcycle electrical systems
• Work with minimal supervision
• Take pride in quality work with excellent attention to detail
• Maintain organized, clean and safe work area
• Reliable and timely
• Accurately and clearly record steps taken and findings of work in repair
orders
• Able to communicate effectively with service writer and customers
when necessary
• Maintain positive working relationship with customers and staff
• Solid technical and mechanical skills regarding work on BMW
motorcycles (preferred) and/or Triumph, Moto Guzzi or limited other
foreign brands
BENEFITS
• Medical / Dental / Vision
• Vacation
Compensation commensurate with experience and discussed
individually.
Please email bcw415@gmail.com resume for consideration.
Santa Clara Cycle Accessories has an immediate opening for a full time ,
experienced motorcycle technician.
We offer competitive wages, paid holidays, paid vacation, medical,
dental, vision insurance and 401k.
Please respond to sales@santaclaracycle.com or call 408.730.0600
ask for Gregg or Doug
LEGAL
Mike Padway
MOTORCYCLE ATTORNEY
Motorcycle accidents often are serious There is an epidemic of
motorcycle lawyer advertising by attorneys who brush you off on support
staff or other lawyers. I’m Mike Padway. I handle a limited number
of motorcycle accidents. My goal is to do the best job for you, not to
handle the most cases. If your injuries are significant, why not work with
an attorney who knows what he is doing, and cares? Call now and let’s
discuss the best way to handle your motorcycle accident.
415-777-1511
April 2015 | 30 | CityBike.com
LAKE BERRYESSA MOTO FUN!
FREE Italian appetizer and FREE bocce ball for motorcyclists at Cucina
Italiana! Real Italian food cooked by a real Italian chef. Fun, twisty roads.
Outdoor seating. Club discounts. Event Promotions.
Thurs.-Sun. (11:30-9:00)
4310 Knoxville Road, Napa 94558.
707-966-2433.
www.facebook.com/CucinaItalianaLakeBerryessa
City:
ANNOUNCING: “DUFFYDUZZ
Promotions”
If you’re planning a M/C event of any sort, whether an Open House, a
Special Sale Event, a Competition Event or even a Rally, a “pleasant but
not pushy” voice (and your choice of music) can make a huge difference
in the excitement and remembrance of your event. Have P.A. / Will Travel...
I have been “The Voice” of Ducati Island at Moto G.P. (‘98 - ‘06) the
Wilseyville Hare Scrambles (‘98 - ‘12) ...Most recently; La Ducati Day, La
Honda, MOTORAMA Car Show, Lafayette, sub’ Announcer at Continental
Sports Car Challenge Laguna Seca, Santa Rosa flattrack for Circle Bell
Motorsports... and more... References and resume available. Find me
on FaceBook: “Duffyduzz Promotions” for all contact info - or - call 510292-9391 - or - E/M: duffyduzz@yahoo.com
LOCAL CLUBS
The BSA Owners’ Club of Northern California was formed to promote
the preservation and enjoyment of the motorcycles produced by the
Birmingham Small Arms Company in England. Founded in 1985,
the Club now has over 500 members, and has produced the monthly
newsletter, The Bulletin, since the Club’s inception. Rides and activities
are scheduled each month in addition to two major activities: The
Clubman’s All British Weekend in the spring, and the Northern California
All British Ride in the fall. Membership is open to all BSA enthusiasts.
For more information: www.bsaocnc.org
GroupRides was created to be like what TV Guide has been for TV
Programs. It is a calendar of group rides and moto events from many
fine groups, clubs and organizations in Northern California, nicely put
together for the riding community to use and enjoy.
www.GroupRidesForum.net is the Forum and moto group where
1,400+ local riders enjoy the roads, the wind and the thunder of our
motorcycles together.
Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle Club
The Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle Club San Jose’s (BSMCSJ) Primary
Mission is to keep the legacy of the 9th and 10th Calvary US Army
(Buffalo Soldiers) alive through example, education and participation in
our local community. buffalosoldiersmcsanjose
Doc Wong Riding Clinics
PERSONAL IMPROVEMENT
Come to the FREE monthly Doc Wong Riding Clinics.
www.docwong.com
Eighteen years, 40,000 riders!
Classic Japanese Motorcycle
Club
The Classic Japanese Motorcycle Club is dedicated to the celebration and
preservation of the Classic and Vintage Japanese motorcycle. We have
rides, meets, shows, swaps and can help you find and sell parts, bikes and
motorcycle-related services. Members make the club function!
www.CJMC.org.
CMA is a servant minded interdenominational motorcycle ministry with
a non-denominational message of hope and love through Jesus Christ.
Enjoy the family atmosphere, make life-long friends, and join an army
of people dedicated to changing the world, one heart at a time in the
highways and byways.
www.cmausa.org
Learn Dirt Bikes
Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) dirt bike lessons at Carnegie State
Park - Tracy, CA - Ages 6 and up. Loaner motorcycles available.
www.learndirtbikes.com 925-240-7937
Monkey Moto School
Monkey Moto School gets people riding in just one day. Our focused,
private classes and small beginner bike are the start of a proven system
that will have new riders out and about on a motorcycle with confidence
in short order. Available in SF (and beyond by arrangement).
Call Evan to get started. 415-359-6479
monkeymotoschool.com
MotoGP riding techniques for street riders on a little race track.
Learn from a straight forward racing pro!
More info online: Superbike-Coach.com/Cornering School Days.
Bay Area Moto Group
Ride with other local sport bike riders in the Bay Area.
• Mostly sport bikes
• Routes go to ALL parts of the bay area and focus on the “twisty’s”
• We set a quick pace and newbies may get left behind ;)
• Group riding experience is highly recommended, as is proper riding
gear
• We also do track days, drag races, motorcycle camping, and attend
motorcycle racing events
http://www.meetup.com/BayAreaMotoGroup/
The Richmond Ramblers
The Richmond Ramblers Motorcycle Club was established in 1944. We
are chartered with the American Motorcycle Association/District 36. Our
clubhouse is situated at the foot of the famous but now defunct off-road
riding hills in Point Richmond.
Our club exists to promote the sport and recreation of motorcycle riding.
Our membership reflects a diverse interest in motorcycling but our club
has a long tradition of off-road competition. Annually, we host a street
ride/poker run in October and a Family Enduro in the Mendocino National
forest in November.
Meetings are held on the first and third Thursdays of each month at 7:00
p.m. Visitors are welcome and we invite you to come by.
818 Dornan Drive, Point Richmond, CA 94801 WWW.RRMC.CC
Leather & Lace MC
Antique Motorcycle Club of
America
Yerba Buena Chapter of the
Antique Motorcycle Club of America
Motorcycle Enthusiasts dedicated to the preservation, restoration, and
operation of antique motorcycles.
To join or view more information about our club, visit us at www.
yerbabuenaamca.org
Zip:
www.GroupRides.net
Leather & Lace MC,was created to bring women together who have a
serious interest in motorcycling and in making a difference in the lives of
others. Upon this foundation, the women of Leather & Lace Motorcycle
Club have built a strong sisterhood.
Amethyst Dreamers, a Northern California Chapter of Leather & Lace
MC, was formed in 2004. We came together because of our love for our
motorcycles, the joy of riding and being free. We stay together because
of our love for ourselves, our sisters, and with the intent of making life
better for the children of Northern California.
ad.leatherandlacemc.com/
www.facebook.com/AmethystDreamersChapter
Call 415/999-4790 for a 24-hr. recorded message and a copy of the
FREE REPORT.
RIDING SCHOOLS
State:
e-mail:
BSA Owners Club
EVENT SERVICES
ACCIDENT OR INJURY?
Berkeley Honda Yamaha
Berkeley Honda Yamaha is looking for a full-time, experienced
motorcycle technician for immediate hiring.
Requirements include:
•Previous dealership experience (a must)
•Ability to perform routine maintenance on
motorcycles/scooters/ATVs
•Ability to abide by dealership policies/dress code
•Ability to maintain a positive working relationship with other
employees/customers
•Knowledge of Lightspeed system
•Valid driver license with motorcycle endorsement
(and acceptable driving record)
Benefits include
•Medical/dental/vision
•Vacation
•Compensation will be proportional to experience and
discussed individually.
If you believe you have the necessary skills, please contact us at
510-525-5525 or via email berkyama@pacbell.net.
Name:
Address:
The Junction
If you know you can handle a real road then come up and get your reward!
Slow smoked BBQ , hand pressed burgers and a long list of great beer.
The Junction 47300 Mines Rd. Livermore.
At the intersection of Mines & Del Puerto Canyon Roads
11-8 daily (closed Wednesdays)—10-8 weekends.
Go there and go nowhere, into the middle-of.
Reach thousands of Northern California motorcyclists. Just $15 for 25 words, 25¢
each additional word. Photos add $25. Industry classifieds are a higher price. Free
25-word listing for stolen bikes. Deadline is the 3rd of each month. Just fill out the
form, or copy and send it with your check, payable to CityBike PO Box 18738,
Oakland, CA 94619.
San Francisco Motorcycle Club, Inc., established 1904, is the second
oldest motorcycle club in the country!
Our business meetings are Thursday nights at 8:30pm, and guests are
always welcome. Our clubhouse is filled with motorcycling history from
the last century, a pool table, foosball and pinball games, and people
who currently enjoy motorcycles, dirt riding, racing, touring, riding and
wrenching. Check our website for events such as club rides, socials and
events, and come visit us, no matter what bike you ride!
San Francisco Motorcycle Clubhouse is located at
2194 Folsom St, @ 18th St in San Francisco.
www.sf-mc.org 415-863-1930
The Northern California Norton Owners’ Club (NCNOC) is dedicated to
the preservation and enjoyment of the Norton motorcycle. Membership is
open to all British Motorcycle enthusiasts and is currently $25 per year,
you can join online. Our monthly rides, meetings and tech session and
events are open to all members and guests see our web site calendar at
www.nortonclub.com.
Now celebrating our 40th year!
OMC
Exciting women-only motorcycle group in the SF Bay Area. For more info
visit www.curveunit.com
San Francisco Motorcycle Club
The Oakland Motorcycle Club is the fourth-oldest club in the nation
and celebrated 100 years of continuous operation in 2007. The OMC is
dedicated to supporting the sport of motorcycle riding. We are a diverse
group of male and female riders with a wide variety of motorcycles,
including street, dirt, and dualsport bikes. We sponsor and organize
the following annual events to which all riders are invited: Sheetiron
300 Dualsport, held in May; Three Bridge Poker Run, held in July;
Jackhammer Enduro, held in October. Regular club meetings are held
every Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. Guests are welcome. 742 – 45th Avenue,
Oakland. (510) 534-6222. www.oaklandmc.org.
The San Jose Dons Motorcycle Club exists to Advocate motorcycling,
promote good will between motorcyclists and the public, promote rider
safety and protect the rights of riders. Put more simply, the Dons are a
group of people who love riding motorcycles and come together to enjoy
motorcycling, and each other’s company. All bikes are welcome!
The San Jose Dons Motorcycle Club was formed in 1932, with the clubs
colors of green and gold. The Dons are associated with the American
Motorcycle Association (AMA).
Club Meetings are held on the first and third Wednesday of each month,
beginning at 7:30 PM. The last Wednesday of each month is reserved for
“Putt Night” when a club member leads the group on a short destination
run to a restaurant, or other point of interest. Come check us out.
sanjosedons.com
The Ducati Vintage Club
The Ducati Vintage Club was founded to assist vintage Ducati MC (1987
and older) owners with information and resources to preserve, resurrect
and bring these MC’s back to the road! Owners and enthusiasts are
welcome to join. We meet once monthly at the Ducati Bike Night event and
we sponsor the annual European Motorcycle Show and Swap held in March
at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, the La Ducati Day Concorso held in
LaHonda each October and more.
Visit us at www.ducativintageclub.com
Port Stockton MC
COME RIDE WITH US!
-We are a friend and family oriented historical club of motorcycle
enthusiasts.
-Any make, model or style of bike is welcome.
-All are invited to join us on our rides, visit our weekly meetings or
become a new member.
For more information:
E-mail us at port-stocktonmc@webtv.net,
or visit our website at port-stocktonmc@webtv.net
April 2015 | 31 | CityBike.com
FREE HELP WANTED ADS
In our ongoing effort to support and promote local motorcycling
businesses that we rely on, all motorcycle industry help
wanted ads will be listed in the CityBike Classifieds Section
for free.
Contact us via email: info.citybike.com
1.9
PAYMENTS AS LOW AS $59/Month
36 MONTHS FOR
% FOR
QUALIFIED BUYERS
*AS LOW AS
APR
Scooters Purchased and Registered Beginning January 1, 2015 until June 30, 2015
*On All New KYMCO
for a Limited Time at Your Local Participating KYMCO USA Dealers Only.
CHICO MOTORSPORTS
1538 PARK AVENUE
CHICO, CA 95928
530-345-5247
CYCLE WEST
1375 INDUSTRIAL AVENUE
PETALUMA, CA 94952
707-769-5242
SCUDERIA
69 DUBOCE STREET
SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103
415-621-7223
R&M ENTERPRISES
SALINAS MOTORCYCLE CENTER SAN JOSE MOTORSPORT
1905C ARNOLD INDUSTRIAL WAY
1286 N. MAIN STREET
1886 WEST SAN CARLOS ST
CONCORD, CA 94520
SALINAS, CA 93906
SAN JOSE, CA 95128
925-798-4360
831-295-0205
408-295-0205
ROCKRIDGE TWO WHEELS
5291 COLLEGE AVENUE
OAKLAND, CA 94618
510-594-0789
SCOOTER CITY
614 16TH STREET
SACRAMENTO, CA 95814
916-448-6422
VERACOM MITSUBISHI
790 NORTH SAN MATEO DR
SAN MATEO, CA 94401
650-340-7199
POWERSPORTS OF VALLEJO
111 TENNESSEE STREET
VALLEJO, CA 94590
707-644-3756
Choose Your Own Path
KYMCOUSA.com
facebook.com/KYMCO.Scooters
twitter & Instagram @kymco_usa
The Official Scooter and SxS
1.9% for 36 Months [3.53% APR*]
$0 DOWN
|
1.9% INTEREST RATE
|
$30.03 PER $1,000 FINANCED
*Example: On a purchase where the Amount Financed is $1,999 your Down Payment is $0 with 36 monthly payments of $58.60 each. Interest Rate is 1.9% [ANNUAL PERCENTAGE RATE is 3.53% (E)]. For other Amounts Financed, the payment would be approximately $30.03 per $1,000 financed. Note: The above financing programs are offered by Sheffield Financial, a Division
of Branch Banking and Trust Company, Member FDIC. Subject to credit approval. Approval, and any rates and terms provided, are based on credit worthiness. Other financing offers are available. See your local dealer for details. Rate advertised is based on bureau risk score of 675 debt to income ratio of 45% or less. Minimum Amount Financed $1,500; Maximum Amount Financed
$50,000. Other qualifications and restrictions may apply. An origination fee of $50 will be added to the amount financed in the above example. Financing promotions void where prohibited. Offer effective on all new and unused KYMCO Scooters purchased from a participating KYMCO USA dealer between 1/1/2015 and 6/30/2015. Offer subject to change without notice. [“E” means
estimate. © KYMCOUSA 2015 KYMCO vehicles meet all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety and EPA standards. Take a riding skills course. For the course nearest you, call the Motorcycle Safety Foundation at 1-800-446-9227. For your safety, always wear a helmet, eye protection and protective clothing. Never operate under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Avoid excessive speed
and stunt driving..