Up To Speed

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Don’t blink or you’ll miss it, but Harley-Davidson’s new Street 750 model appears in the trailer for the upcoming movie “Captain America: The Winter Solider,” which won’t hit theaters until April 4. There are five quick glimpses of the bike during a chase sequence at …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com What’s not exactly a car but not really a motorcycle either? Does the word “autocycle” resonate? There’s a start-up company called Elio Motors, founded in 2008 by Paul Elio, that plans to build a three-wheeled model in Louisiana that’s essentially a motorcycle with auto controls. …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com What’s the biggest gripe when calling “customer support?” My guess is that it’s talking to “Bob” in some far off land. It’s not that Bob isn’t knowledgeable, polite or capable – unlike “Peggy” in the memorable Discover Card commercials – it’s just that he’s so …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Television used to be a shared experience back in the days of three channels (CBS, NBC and ABC) plus PBS. The came cable and zillion sports channels, Fox and its wired offspring, and dozens of channels that celebrate everything from duck hunting to zombies, with …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com A few snowflakes in the air today above the RIDE-CT.com garage, leading more to thoughts of prepping the snow thrower and generator for the coming winter than to getting the bikes prepared for the same… And now the news: – In a preemptive move, the …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com The idea of Harley-Davidson selling motorcycles built in India in the good ol’ U.S.A. runs so contrary to the company’s image as to be ludicrous, and that’s indeed the case. “The Kansas City Star” reports that Harley’s new Street 750 and Street 500 models will …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com The list of new or improved features or components is too long to list, so suffice to say that Kawasaki’s new Z1000 naked streetfighter (pictured above) is both fast and maneuverable. More info and more pics may be found on the New Models page here. …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com And the new model announcements just keep on coming… BMW today introduced the new S 1000 R (pictured above) for 2014. It’s a naked version of its S 1000 RR superbike Also unveiled was a new R 1200 RT (pictured below) with a new engine …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Would you like curry with your Harley? As expected, Harley-Davidson today introduced two new smaller street bikes that will presumably be built in India. The press release that just announced the Street 750 and Street 500 models did not mention a site of manufacture but …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Figuring it has a good thing with the V-4 motor that propells its ST1300, Honda announced today that it’s putting the powerplant into a new model – the all-new 2014 CTX1300. It will come in base and deluxe models when it hits showroom floors in …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com What promises to be a string of new bike unveilings began today in Milan, Italy at the EICMA show with Ducati unveiling its third-generation Monster – the Monster 1200 and the pricier Monster 1200 S (pictured). Both are powered by an 1198 Testastretta engine with …

Cycle Gear Inc., the nation’s largest retailer of motorcycle apparel and accessories, has opened its first store in Massachusetts. The new store is located at 345 Washington Street in Woburn. With this new location, Cycle Gear now has stores in 32 states.

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com A 76-year-old woman from Ludlow, MA has been ordered to serve two years probation after pleading guilty to negligent operation of a motor vehicle in a crash last year that killed a Connecticut rider. Bradford R. Storozuk, 36, of Stafford died as a result of …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com In the current issue of “Motorcycle Cruiser” magazine, technical editor (and Danbury, CT resident) Mark Zimmerman (pictured) writes about what he senses is a growing trend – riders abandoning their Harley-Davidsons for other makes and models. His conclusion is based on the number of Harley …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com The dates for the annual EICMA motorcycle show in Milan, Italy may be Nov. 7-10, but it will be on the press days next Tuesday and Wednesday that the manufacturers will unveil numerous new models for