AGAWAM, MA – The shiny black 1981 Harley-Davidson FXB Sturgis that Paul Murphy still rides was purchased new from what was then Easthampton Harley-Davidson for approximately $5,200. Some 36 years and maybe 150,000 miles later, it’s still on the road, although its motor has been rebuilt four times and many …

SPRINGFIELD, MA – Some motor in proudly. Others are rolled in, while a few arrive with “some assembly required.” The annual Indian Day staged at the Springfield Museums brings together dozens of old Indian motorcycles, along with their mostly old owners. The colorful show was held again Sunday not from …

SPRINGFIELD, MA – His father, Fritzie Baer, ran the factory dealership at the original Indian Motorcycle plant and Butch Baer got his first ride as a newborn on a 1923 Indian with sidecar. He’s been riding ever since, but after a couple of driveway drops last year, it looked like …

SUFFIELD, CT – Year two of a revived motorcycle show at Hilltop Farm, once owned by original Indian co-founder George M. Hendee, proved satisfactory on Saturday with a bluegrass band livening the proceedings. “The big change is the music. There’s nothing like live music,” said Kacy Colston, president of The …

FALLS VILLAGE, CT – If a motorcycle could talk, the single-cylinder race bike owned by Ed Bozzi of Naugatuck, CT would probably say that 15 years of retirement have been quite enjoyable. No hard running – just an annual oil change, a twice-a-year startup, an occasional track day, and periodic trips …

NEWINGTON, CT – Are your riding skills sufficient to teach others? If you think so, have some free time and would like to earn a few bucks in the process, CONREP needs you. The Connecticut Rider Education Program has lost roughly one-third of its instructor corps over the past few …

MILWAUKEE – After laying off some 200 production workers last October, Harley-Davidson plans to eliminate another 180 permanent positions this fall in the wake of weakening sales of its motorcycles, the “Journal Sentinel” newspaper reports. The company said Tuesday that U.S. sales in the second quarter of 2017 were down …

OSSINING, NY – Hudson Valley Motorcycles has expanded its lineup of new motorcycles by adding the Alta Motors brand of electric bikes. Alta joins the existing lines of Ducati, Kawasaki and Suzuki. Based in Brisbane, CA, Alta Motors offers two models – the Redshift MX for motocross and the Redshift …

A stunt rider from Ohio who went down last week while showing off on a Connecticut roadway is getting ridiculed on Facebook as an “asshat,” a “dumb ass” and a “jackass” – and, after watching the video, it’s easy to see why. Jeff “C-Bear” Flaherty, whose Facebook page says that …

MINNEAPOLIS – Indian is getting on the bobber bandwagon. The company today announced that a Scout Bobber will be offered for the 2018 model year. It will have chopped front and rear fenders, solo seat, and loads of black – black frame, black exhaust, black handlebar with bar-end mirrors, black …

HARWINTON, CT – What’s the penalty for an overdue book? Is there a statute of limitations on a purloined tome? The first question is one that I asked more than a week ago in a Facebook post after finding a copy of the book “Stories for Children” by Elise Reid Boylston …

THOMASTON, CT – It was while visiting the Railroad Museum of New England recently that a volunteer conductor grumbled to me about the use of unnamed sources by those of us who work in news. He’d seen my reporter’s notebook and camera, and knew my profession. I was there looking …

Mid-summer means a lot of bike shows and events. Here’s a sampling of July events that are worth attending: July 8-9: This weekend it’s the Hard Times Chopper Show from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Saturday at Ralph’s Diner in Worcester, MA and the third annual Bennington Bike Night in …

THOMPSON, CT – If this were a fish tale, it might be considered a whopper. However, unlike anglers who sometimes exaggerate the struggles involved in landing a prize catch, motorcyclists don’t need to embellish when storytelling because the truth alone is usually sufficient. Maine “Ted” Smith of Cheshire had such …

RHINEBECK, NY – It was 2016 that the Rhinebeck Grand National Meet shifted from its then-traditional second weekend in June spot on the calendar to close to the Fourth of July. Now, after two years, it’s looking to shift again, despite accomplishing its goal of boosting attendance by getting away …