Columns

NAUGATUCK, CT – Head and brain injuries are the leading cause of motorcycle fatalities, so the helmet is the most important piece of protective gear that any rider can wear to protect the brain. It’s more important than the traditional leather jacket that prevents road rash, the gloves that keep …

CHESTER, VT – Back in the 1990s, I was at the big BMW MOA (BMW Motorcycle Owners of America) motorcycle rally in Moodus, CT when I overheard a woman declare that her butt was busted after riding from the Midwest to New England. We were standing in front of the Corbin …

NORTH GRANBY, CT – As the weather cools and the leaves start doing their thing, I have discovered that I also do “a thing.” My thing would be riding with my beloved Emily as pillion and our dogs in the sidecar. A lot. Emily joins the ride quite often but …

GORHAM, NH – There are a few things adventure-minded riders should experience at least once in their lifetime. Riding up the Mt. Washington Auto Road before dawn to watch the sun rise from the top of New England certainly qualifies among them. The sunrise run is offered to the public three …

THOMASTON, CT – Tom Ordway of Thomaston wasn’t expecting to buy a Norton when he went shopping for a motorcycle in 1975. “I went to a Harley dealer to buy a Sportster – all my buddies had Sportsters – and this was parked over on the side,” he recalled, referring …

HARWINTON, CT – Sorry, CPTV. You can spin it any way you want, but I feel betrayed and ripped off by the shutdown of CPTV4U, and the rebranding of CPTV Sports to CPTV Spirit on Monday. For those who watch TV via cable and have hundreds of choices, CPTV’s closure …

I debated with myself quite a bit about writing this column. A part of me does not want to bring attention to a driving behavior that I wish were not real. On the other hand, I do not want to “not discuss” this behavior because talking about it might save …

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 …

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 …

BROOKLYN – When Peter Boggia first starting earning his living wrenching on motorcycles nearly 20 years ago, he found a line of work that resonated with him like nothing else. He ultimately established Moto Borgotaro at 97 Union St. in Brooklyn in 2008 and became the go-to guy for repairs …

CHESTER, VT – I’ve always been fascinated by cyclecars. What are they? Here’s a very loose history: Cyclecars first became popular in 1910. They were lightweight vehicles with small, motorcycle engines and minimal bodies. The most common configuration was a V-twin engine mounted in front between two steerable wheels with …

LAKE GEORGE, NY – Most everyone in the motorcycle world knows that the first full week of June is reserved for one of the best known motorcycle rallies in the country – Americade. But what most don’t know is that last year Americade hatched a side show – the DirtDaze …

Long weekends like Memorial Day provide an opportunity for friends and family to gather. Barbeques are certainly the norm for most and if you own a bike maybe riding that bike to a barbeque is also the norm. Hey, for me, riding a bike to everywhere is normal. Every inch …

WATERBURY, CT – Mother’s Day weekend didn’t go as uneventfully as Taig Rehmel had hoped. He’d anticipated a wonderful reunion with a fondly-recalled motorcycle model from his earlier street riding days and an exhilarating ride from Connecticut to his home in Georgia. Instead, he was confronted by pain and the challenge …