National News

MILWAUKEE – A massive recall of nearly 251,000 motorcycles built between 2008 and 2011 by Harley-Davidson is being implemented overs fears that the brakes might fail. More than 30 ABS-equipped models are affected, including Road King, Road Glide, Electra Glide,   Street Glide, V-Rod and Night Rod models. Nearly 175,000 …

MILWAUKEE – Harley-Davidson this morning announced that its Kansas City assembly plant will close. The announcement came in conjunction with a press release stating that the company’s retail motorcycle sales tumbled in 2017. U.S. sales dropped 8.5 percent from 2016, while worldwide sales dropped 6.7 percent. Harley-Davidson shipped 241,498 bikes …

At least one TV ad in Super Bowl LII this Sunday will feature a motorcycle.  Movie actor Keanu Reeves stars in new spots for website development and hosting company Squarespace. Two ads do double duty as they also promote the custom Arch Motorcycle Company, which Reeves co-founded. One ad and …

It’s a tough time to be in the print business of any kind. Circulation of newspapers and magazines are dropping, and advertisers are going elsewhere to spend their clients’ money. This is especially true in the motorcycle arena where numerous mags have disappeared, while others have been merged or seen …

It was probably a dozen years ago that a friend urged me to take his worn-orange 1970 Triumph Bonneville for a ride. Having never ridden an old British bike up until that time, I had to quickly adjust to the right-side shifter and left-side brake pedal. What I recall most …

DAYTONA BEACH, FL – Flat track enthusiasts in the northeast who had to journey to Weedsport, NY on the far side of Syracuse to catch racing action this past season won’t have to travel so far next year. The 18-race American Flat Track schedule for 2018 released recently has the …

NEW YORK – Three examples of the redesigned 2018 Honda Gold Wing were displayed at the Progressive International Motorcycle Show this past weekend. RIDE-CT & RIDE-NewEngland talked with Bill Savino, manager of product planning for Honda, about the new Gold Wing: Here are the specs for the Gold Wing:  

NEW YORK – The Ducati exhibit is traditionally one of the largest and most colorful at the Progressive International Motorcycle Show at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center every year. Ducatisti will be disappointed next month, though, because the high-end Italian brand won’t have a display at this year’s show, …

MINNEAPOLIS – Buried in the press release from Polaris Industries on its 2017 third quarter results this week was some striking news about Indian. The brand’s market share surpassed the 10 percent mark in September. Motorcycle industry sales in the 900cc and above category “were down high-single digits” in Q3, …

SANTA BARBARA, CA – Honda is giving its top-of-the-line Gold Wing a new look for 2018 with sleeker styling, less weight and a greater orientation toward performance. Due in showrooms in February, the new Gold Wing and Gold Wing Tour will range in price from $23,500 to $31,500 (with airbag) …

MILWAUKEE – Harley-Davidson saw its third quarter sales in the U.S. dip 8.1 percent this year compared to a year ago, with worldwide sales down 6.9 percent from 2016. However, in releasing its Q3 results today, the company noted that overall motorcycle sales in the U.S. were off 9.2 percent …

SEATTLE – A detective in the King County Sheriff’s Department in Washington has been suspended after he was recorded pulling a gun on a motorcyclist during a routine traffic stop on Aug. 16. Rider Alex Randall was wearing a helmet camera and had just pulled up to a stoplight on …

Lost in the hyperbole this week of Harley-Davidson’s announcements of new 2018 models – “boasting show-stopping style and plush comfort” with its touring bikes – was the absence of any mention of a model that debuted in 2001 and continued in various forms through the 2017 model year. Missing from …

MILWAUKEE – Harley-Davidson tonight rolled out its 2018 model lineup that includes nine 115th anniversary models. The company also announced that the 2018 slate includes eight “all-new Softail models” and five new touring models. Among the tourers are three limited-edition CVO models and new blacked-out Street Glide Special and Road …

MILWAUKEE – It’s getting to the point that there’s barely a space where an ad cannot be placed. Milwaukee-based Harley-Davidson has announced a new multi-year deal whereby its iconic bar and shield logo will appear in the form of a patch on the uniforms of Milwaukee Bucks’ players, beginning with …