Up To Speed

MIDDLETOWN, CT – It was one-of-a-kind, impossible to duplicate and irreplaceable for those who enjoyed it.  It was also exhilarating, claustrophobic and much anticipated every year. The sudden end to Middletown Motorcycle Mania, which was announced Friday morning, cannot be viewed as a surprise, though, because last year’s 13th annual event …

MIDDLETOWN, CT – Middletown Motorcycle Mania is no more. Last August’s 13th annual event, which drew thousands of riders and created a madhouse in downtown, was the last one. The reason given for the axing of the event was that it “has grown so large that the cost of providing …

LAS VEGAS – BMW calls it a “research prototype for future mobility innovations.” It’s a R 1200 GS model that’s able “to ride off, accelerate, corner, and slow down to a standstill – completely independent of its rider.” Yes, it’s a riderless motorcycle and BMW used the Consumer Electronics Show …

VERNON, CT – The New England Motorcycle Museum over the weekend released a schedule of major events planned for 2019, including a 2nd annual Café Fever show in August and auctions in May and September. While the museum’s booking agent, Keith Gorden, reported in a Facebook post that details will …

LAS VEGAS – Harley-Davidson used the Consumer Electronics Show here to provide more details today on the LiveWire, its first production electric motorcycle. The 2020 model-year LiveWire will go from 0-60 miles per hours in under 3.5 seconds, will have an urban range of 110 miles and will be priced …

OSSINING, NY – Energica, the high-performance electric motorcycle brand from Italy, has signed a new dealer in the northeast and its ninth in the United States, RIDE-CT & RIDE-NewEngland has learned.  Hudson Valley Motorcycles expects to have models in its showroom on Route 9 here soon. “They’re beautiful bikes. It’s …

Wintertime is normally a down time for motorcycle activities in the northeast. Riding opportunities are limited at best and events are few. There’s an exception this year, though, as Saturday, Jan. 19 has loads of activities taking place simultaneously and offering a variety of options both indoors and outside and …

BRIDGEWATER, CT – Are you interested in exploring new and interesting routes and places within the areas you like to ride?  If so, a moto-tag game may be for you. For those not yet familiar with the concept, moto-tag is a game played by riders to find and photograph objects/locations …

ENFIELD, CT – The new year will likely offer a better ending for the former owner of Shark Cycle in Stafford Springs, CT than last year did. Robert Charland has been incarcerated in the medium-security Willard-Cybulski Correctional Institution here since Aug. 15, according to online records from the state Department of …

LITCHFIELD, CT – Jimmy Kelley, owner of Crabby Al’s Seafood Restaurant in Thomaston, went to the Possum Queen Festival & Auction at the Litchfield Inn on Sunday afternoon with the idea of possibly bidding on a 1971 Honda CL 450 that was being offered. He watched, though, as the action …

Where did the year go? The months passed too quickly and here we are at year’s end. The bikes have yet to be put away for winter, and may not be if the weather continues as it has recently. Here’s hoping. Here are a few New Year’s resolutions for 2019 …

(Updated at 9 p.m. on Jan. 2, 2019 – Buzz Kanter reports tonight that the Indian Four has been sold to a collector and vintage Indian rider from the South and that it will be picked up on Thursday. “I got my price,” he messaged. “Now I have to decide …

HARWINTON, CT – The April ouster of a high-profile chapter president of the Antique Motorcycle Club of America, the November launch of a posse targeting bike thieves by the founder of the New England Motorcycle Museum, and the July announcement of new non-cruiser models by Harley-Davidson were among the stories …

VERNON, CT – Having spent $6.5 million and obtained more than $4 million in state loans to open the New England Motorcycle Museum in the Rockville section of town in late summer, founder Ken Kaplan is now revisiting crowdfunding to help keep the grandiose project moving forward. On Wednesday, Kaplan …

It has been a while. Ten years of living and working in Torrington, CT and,  all of a sudden, I’ve had to spend most of the year in my native England to sort out some stuff. By coincidence, this past summer happened to be the hottest and driest since the …