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By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Nearly 100 competitors and 200 spectators from southern New England kicked off another season of ice racing today at the Hamilton Rod and Gun Club in Sturbridge, Mass. The weather was perfect – temps in the upper 20s and no wind. The crowd was enthusiastic. The competition spirited. …
Read More »Ice Racing Season Opens Sunday
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com In trying to pin down the date for this year’s IMOC meet (staged by the Italian Motorcycle Owners Club), I chatted this week with Jeff Lussier of the Hamilton Rod & Gun Club in Sturbridge, Mass. That’s where IMOC holds it annual event. Lussier informed me …
Read More »Norwalk Newspaper Favors Helmet Law
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com “The Hour” newspaper in Norwalk yesterday heaped some editorial praise on the new Connecticut law that requires all new riders to take motorcycle safety course before obtaining an “M” endorsement on a driver’s license, and then took up the issue of the lack of a helmet …
Read More »Changes at Gengras
By Bud Wilkinson Ever since Gengras Harley-Davidson bought the BMW and Triumph franchises from Canton Cycles in Winsted and brought them to East Hartford in mid-2006, pairing them with Ducati, it has acted much like a nerd in an unlikely relationship with a supermodel – unsure of how to treat …
Read More »Hybrid Can-Am Spyder in Development
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Riding a snowmobile for the first time over the weekend got me to thinking about the Can-Am Spyder. Part of the reason was that the sled was a Ski-Doo with a Rotax engine, manufactured by Bombardier Recreational Products, the same company that makes the Spyder. Another reason …
Read More »Ride Video Offered by Gengras
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Today’s RIDE-CT column in “The Republican-American” focuses primarily on changes that are being implemented at Gengras Motorcycles in East Hartford, which sells Harley-Davidson, BMW, Ducati and Triumph motocycles. RIDE-CT visited there earlier this week. In our conversation, Jim Taylor, who is general manager of the Euro …
Read More »Registrations, Student Enrollment Dip Slightly
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Given the continued dreary state of the economy and ominous stories in the motorcycle press about aging Baby Boomers on the verge of giving up riding, you’d think that “the numbers” would show a major decline in the popularity of motorycling. That’s certainly not the case here in …
Read More »Ducati Hasn’t Departed from Gengras
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com It’s a story that keeps changing, depending on who’s talking and what day it is. However, for the moment, the Ducati brand continues to be sold by Gengras in East Hartford. RIDE-CT visited the Harley-Davidson, BMW, Ducati and Triumph dealership today and learned of some substantive …
Read More »Ducati Confirms Loss of CT Dealers
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Ducati has confirmed that it is currently without a dealer in Connecticut as Max BMW in Brookfield and Gengras in East Hartford have quit selling Italian brand. “Max BMW didn’t want to carry Ducati as it didn’t fit their business model, which leaves a big …
Read More »Date Set for 2011 Rice-O-Rama
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com A date for the 2011 edition of Rice-O-Rama, the vintage and custom Japanese motorcycle show and swap meet in North Brookfield, Mass. (not too far from Sturbridge and I-84), has been set. This year’s show will be Sunday, Sept. 11 at the same site as last …
Read More »Have You Ridden Yet This Year?
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com The roads were wet and there were spots of thin fog. There was rain, too, and only a few moments of sunshine. Inside my helmet, there was a wide smile. The first ride of 2011 put it there. Friend Gary Randall and I had talked about riding …
Read More »Connecticut Without Ducati? Looks That Way!
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com The new year begins with Max BMW in Brookfield and Gengras in East Hartford having apparently dropped the Italian brand Ducati. RIDE-CT’s seeking to confirm reports elsewhere of the departure of Ducati from the two dealerships, which would leave the state without a Ducati dealer. The new edition …
Read More »Looking Back at 2010…
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com The 2010 riding season seemed to last forever. Unlike 2009, which was marked by seemingly constant rain, this year was much sunnier and many great memories were stored. The best part of writing the RIDE-CT column in “The Republican-American” is meeting riders and seeing interesting bikes. Looking …
Read More »Size Matters as Triumph Recalls Sprints
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com An inadequate dipstick on some 2010 Sprint ST and GT models has prompted Triumph to issue a recall order, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Adminstration. The NHTSA reports that due to “an incorrect length” of some dipsticks, “the accuracy of the dipstick for …
Read More »A Rare Harley That’s Worth a Look-See
By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Between Christmas activities and the great blizzard of ’10, RIDE-CT.com has been shoved into the background recently. The goal for 2011 is more frequent postings of the latest motorcycle news, but that’s not a concern until next week. Today, let me provide a link to a video …
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