It was last Friday that reader Joe Acampora posted a video of a 1912 Wilkinson motorcycle on my Facebook timeline. He presumably figured that I’d like to learn about a vintage machine – built more than 100 years ago by the folks who make razor blades – that bears my …
Read More »New England Motorcycle Museum Stalled
ROCKVILLE, CT – Ken Kaplan’s hope back in the fall of 2014 was to have his grandiose New England Motorcycle Museum opened by Labor Day 2015. His dream was to restore the derelict Hockanum Mill into a show place for motorcycles that would eclipse the world-renown Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum …
Read More »Eye Candy At Springfield Motorcycle Show
WEST SPRINGFIELD, MA – Part of the fun of attending a motorcycle show is being on the lookout for interesting bikes that may be parked in an out-of-the-way corner or tucked among other bikes in a display. This weekend’s Springfield Motorcycle Show at the Eastern States Exposition had quite a …
Read More »“Doug Danger” Recounts Record Jump
WEST SPRINGFIELD, MA – The expression of amazement on the face of four-year-old Cooper Cullen of Enfield, CT as he watched a video of Doug Danger‘s record motorcycle jump over 22 cars at the Sturgis rally back in August confirmed that daredevils never
Read More »Great Bay Motorcycles Closes In NH
NORTH HAMPTON, NH – Great Bay Motorcycles has closed after 16 years. A short message on the Home page of the dealership’s website thanks “all of our customers over the years,” while the websites of Ducati, Triumph and Zero, which Great Bay carried, no longer list the store as
Read More »Springfield Motorcycle Show Preview
WEST SPRINGFIELD, MA – With rain in the forecast for Saturday, a logical place to escape to is the 11th annual Springfield Motorcycle Show at the Eastern States Exposition. Numerous dealers will be showing off new models and vendors will have
Read More »Another Revival For EBR?
Might EBR start building high-performance motorcycles again? A judge in Wisconsin today approved the sale of the former Erik Buell Racing, which ceased operations last April and went into receivership. The new owner is
Read More »Honda Recalls 20,000+ Shadow Models
Honda is recalling more than 20,000 of its Shadow motorcycles from the 2010 to 2016 model years because of an electrical issue that may cause the engine to stall when riding. The NHTSA reports, “Engine vibration may cause the bank angle sensor wire to rub on the wire harness joint …
Read More »Deaths Soar After Helmet Law Repeal
Fresh data published last month in the “American Journal of Surgery” reveal that motorcycle deaths and head injuries among riders in Michigan have risen sharply since that state repealed its helmet law in April 2012 after 35 years of
Read More »If You Had Asked, I Would Have Told You…
A new month means another edition of thoughts and opinions issued under the not-so-subtle heading of “If you had asked, I would have told you…” – That work is progressing on the restoration of a 1948 Vincent “Series B” Rapide that Peter Kettle of Fitchburg, MA bought for a mere
Read More »Suzuki Recall Of V-Strom, SFV650, Burgman
Suzuki is recalling more than 8,500 motorcycles and scooters, with the 2014-2015 DL1000 V-Strom, 2012-2014 DL650A V-Strom, 2013-2014 SFV650 and 2013-2014 AN650A Burgman models affected. It’s an electrical issue that could potentially afflict as many as
Read More »CONREP Hikes Tuition For 2016
NEWINGTON, CT – Prospective motorcycle riders in Connecticut will pay more in 2016 to get an “M” endorsement on their driver’s licenses. The Connecticut Rider Education Program run by the state Department of Transportation has raised tuition for its courses.
Read More »Motorcycle Lover Finds A Match
TORRINGTON, CT – Mike Wallace expects to enjoy a healthier 2016 with a transplanted kidney and looks forward to traveling again after three years of having to endure more than nine hours of nightly peritoneal dialysis due to
Read More »New Year Starts At Possum Queen
LITCHFIELD, CT – It has become a tradition for RIDE-CT & RIDE-NewEngland to start each new year at the comical Possum Queen pageant. What’s Possum Queen? It’s a “legitimate scam operation,” according to event co-founder Brent Hawkins, and this year raised $45,000-$50,000 through the
Read More »The Year In Photos for 2015
Every story needs a picture (or several) to go with it, and RIDE-CT & RIDE-NewEngland took thousands of photos in 2015. Here are some that stood out: January Is there a riskier business than owning a restaurant? Last January, RIDE-CT & RIDE-NewEngland touted a
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