Up To Speed

(Courtesy: Paul Bass/”New Haven Independent”) By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com The picture whizzing around Facebook this morning shows a man covered with blood, groggily sitting in the middle of a city street as concerned onlookers attempt to assist him. The injured man is white. Those coming to his aid are …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com The video has only just come out, but, back in May, the grandson of gold legend Jack Nicklaus survived a nasty motorcycle crash. Nick O’Leary plays tight end for the Florida State football team. He went flying when a car pulled into his path and …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com With the unveiling of the all-new 2014 Chief by Indian only 10 days away, RIDE-CT.com has been wondering if Indian has added any new dealers in the northeast where an interested party might be able to buy the $18,999 base-price model with its Thunder Stroke …

Motorcycles weren’t plentiful at the recent Falls Village Car & Motorcycle Show, so it would be understandable if a spectator overlooked David Chase Parks’ exquisite and rare 1958 Gilera 175 Extra parked amidst the dozens of classic cars. It would be equally understandable if

Apparently RIDE-CT.com wasn’t alone in wondering why the New York tour stop for Progressive International Motorcycle Shows will shift from the traditional third weekend in January to mid-December for the 2013-2014. The dates for the upcoming show are Dec. 13-15 at the Jacobs J. Javits Convention Center. Advanstar Communications reports …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com In advance of this weekend’s Moto GP race at Laguna Seca in Salinas, CA, Yamaha released a video Q&A with racer Valentino Rossi. The questions were posed by fans and cover a lot of territory. His answers are quite entertaining:

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com A mid-winter ritual for riders in the northeast is getting upended. The just-released schedule for the 2013-2014 Progressive International Motorcycle Shows lists the dates for the next New York show as Dec. 13-15, rather than the event’s usual dates over the third weekend in January. …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com In an editorial posted online on Wednesday afternoon, Hearst Communications’ newspapers in Connecticut -including “The News-Times” in Danbury, “The Advocate” in Stamford, the “Greenwich Time” and the “Connecticut Post” in Bridgeport – came out in favor of the state renewing a requirement that all motorcyclists …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Ever played air guitar to your favorite song? Who hasn’t? Even ridden an “air bike” for fun? Probably not. You’ve probably never even had the idea of riding an air bike, probably because there’s a real one parked in the garage. Well, Ducati has just …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Chris ‘D’Aleo of Amenia, NY may have ridden into Toymaker’s Cafe in Falls Village, CT in a group yesterday morning, but the bike he was riding certainly stood out from the others (as did a Yamaha XS850 that I regrettably didn’t get pictures of). D’Alewo …

With the clock counting down on the unveiling of the all-new 2014 Chief, Indian continues to taunt with a new teaser that shows the bike’s Thunder Stroke 111 engine in action – inside a replica of Burt Munro’s famous “world’s fastest Indian.” Dubbed the “Spirit of Munro,” the motorcycle is

Ralph DeLuco, left, and Garrison Leykam By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Unlike most radio studios, the makeshift one inside Gengras Harley-Davidson in East Hartford doesn’t have a large window so visitors can peek inside to see the announcers at work. There’s no light above the door that shines brightly when …

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com A new video from Honda dubbed “Hands” celebrates the Japan company’s 65-year history and its many innovations:

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com Motorcycles come in all shapes and sizes because riders invariably have different needs and tastes. RIDE-CT.com is always on the lookout for interesting rides, whether they be new or vintage. Here are two that were spotted Sunday: 2012 Honda NC700X Owned by Michael LaRochelle of …

Inside the LiveMap helmet: LiveMap By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com With high-quality helmets costing hundreds of dollars, it’s not a huge leap to charge $2,000 if “something extra” is added. Russian inventors have devised the LiveMap helmet, which integrates full-color, translucent image and text displays on the visor to allow …