Up To Speed

NEW YORK – With fall bringing so many new model announcements from various manufacturers, this weekend’s Progressive International Motorcycle Show at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center promises to be an improvement over recent years, and shaves and boot shines will be free! The doors open at

Another month has gone by. That’s time enough for a sufficient number of news stories and events to have accrued to generate some thoughts and opinions. So, here goes with another edition of “If you had asked I would have told you that…”

KENT, CT – Iron Horse Customs has a bigger stable. The custom motorcycle builder and repair shop stages a grand opening today from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. at its new 21 Bridge Street (Route 341) location, just west of the Route 7 intersection. The building is the former home …

TORRINGTON, CT – It’s never easy parting with an old friend, so I wasn’t surprised Sunday when I looked in the rear view mirror and saw a sad-faced Phil Pepper giving his 1977 Honda GL1000 Gold Wing what might be one last fond look. Friend Brian O’Neil and I had …

Polaris is recalling more than 9,000 of its Slingshot reverse trikes from the 2015 and 20126 model years for an electrical issue that may result in headlight failure. The company says 9,182 of its Slingshot SLs built between April 21, 2014 and October 23, 2015 and Slingshot SL SEs manufactured …

Is it too soon to start looking ahead to 2016 or would it be proper to wait until after the last  big event of 2015 – the Progressive International Motorcycle Show in New York City next weekend? Regardless, while many events haven’t firmed up dates for the coming year, several have. …

KENT, CT – Black Friday shopping? No way! Not when the temperatures climbed into the 60s in southern New England. On a warm day like this, it was imperative to get in some late-season seat time because it might not happen again until April. Not surprisingly, this destination hamlet attracted …

SAN FRANCISCO – A state appeals court here has rejected an appeal filed by a man from Sausalito, CA who claimed he suffered from acute priapism (a painfully prolonged erection) after riding his 1993 BMW motorcycle for two hours. Henry Wolf had sued BMW and seat-maker Corbin in 2012, but …

It was several years ago (with input from a few friends) that I wrote a RIDE-CT column in “The Republican-American” on the tell-tale signs of a “Dunkin’ Angel.” The column was posted here four years ago and promptly forgotten. However, remembering how long-ago friend Joe Gilmartin of “The Phoenix Gazette” used …

YORK, PA – Workers at the Harley-Davidson factory here today approved a new contract with the company that will be effective Feb. 1, 2016 and will run through Oct. 15, 2022. It covers approximately 970 employees. The existing contract with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) Local …

TORRINGTON, CT – Mike Wallace’s urgent need for a new kidney may have saved Tim Sparks’ life. This tale of need and generosity started with an article that ran in The Sunday Republican on Sept. 13 and was later shared on RIDE-CT & RIDE-NewEngland. It evolved into a bittersweet lesson about …

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – The cost of owning an Indian just went down. The company today unveiled a new addition to its motorcycle lineup in the form of the Scout Sixty, a less expensive version of the existing Scout and with a smaller engine. The Scout Sixty looks much like the …

MANDELLO DEL LARIO, Italy – Moto Guzzi is out with two new models with an 850cc engine as well as two variants of existing models.

BMW’s R NineT roadster model now has a Scrambler stable mate.  Powered by an air-cooled 1,170cc boxer engine that delivers 110 horsepower and has a maximum torque of 116 Nm, the R nineT Scrambler features an upright riding position with higher handlebars and lower footrests than the R nineT. The …

“Hitting The Apex” finally has some U.S. dates. The movie, narrated by Brad Pitt and directed by Mark Neale, begins a limited release rollout in the states today with five theaters in New England hoping to screen it over the next month. “Hitting The Apex” goes behind the scenes at …