By Kurt Sunderbruch Part 5 The evening of day 1 provided its own excitement. We joined our fellow competitors for a beer and dinner, and lots of bench racing. There was excited talk and animated hand gestures describing the highlights of the day around the table. Comparing notes on where riders took wrong turns
By Talya Adams Traveling is one of my all time favorite things to do. It tends to offer rejuvenating effects, perspective, and life long memories. I recently returned from a two week trip to Mexico, and while I was there I spent time in two different locations. I visited Oaxaca City for a week and
By Talya Adams Life can feel unexpected at times and that’s especially true for motorcyclists. Unlike people in cars, there seems to be an added element of things going terribly wrong when you’re no where near your bike more often than not. For instance, when someone taps your ride while parked and it hits a
By Dennis Dumapias Under Two Minutes Riding Coach Rob is persuasive. You’d think he’d be glad to read that I’ve quelled one of my fundamental fears out on track. In any case, I couldn’t not listen to him, or why else did I ask him to coach me? So on the second day of our
By Kurt Sunderbruch After a somewhat fitful night of sleep, it was time to get up, pack up, have breakfast, check out, turn in my luggage, and head to the start. Apparently, the organizers wanted to have the start in a place where we could stage all the bikes, have a special test, and leave
By Kurt Sunderbruch Part 3: As the days until the Centopassi counted down, I was busy getting ready, and figuring out what I would wear and how I would manage luggage. The organizers had a luggage truck for participants, but I would have to arrange to carry my luggage with me before and after the
By Talya Adams Today I met a former rider who moved to Los Angeles seven years ago from the east coast. Of course, we started chatting about my bike and how my riding experience has gone living in LA. However, I found it interesting that he had ridden for years in Illinois and just didn’t
By Kurt Sunderbruch Part 2: With a commitment made to doing it, the next step was to figure out how to do it. The next steps were submitting my entry, arranging a bike, and figuring out the logistics. The entry part would be the easiest, and the arranging the bike would be the hardest,
By Kurt Sunderbruch Prologue: AJ said, “You’ve been riding a long time. You certainly must have some stories about all that riding. Tell those stories.” (maybe not an exact quote, but close enough). This is my best story. It explains more about my riding experience, and what sort of rider I have become than any
By Sergio Laurente Yesterday, I flipped through the Amazon Prime Video catalog and came across Dirtbag II: Return of the Rattler. The documentary focuses on group of guys and their process to get a build ready for the Dirtbag Challenge, a San Francisco event where the adventure of hacking and piecing together a ride
By AJ Jacobsen Recently MV Agusta came out with their new Superveloce 800, a beautiful bike that is designed to meld modern performance with a retro look and aesthetic. I must say, the first information video I watched about this bike had me drooling – it really is a piece of motorcycle art with
The RiderzLaw Racing team has been a big contributor to the MotoAmerica paddock for the past several years – from sponsoring entire events and big-named riders to supporting local club wild card racers. In addition to supporting its own race team, RiderzLaw Racing is working with BrotoGP to do something special to help out the
By Dennis Dumapias There were two fundamental problems I told Rob – my riding coach – that I had when it came to my track riding, which I believed were holding me back from a lot of time I could gain every lap. One was leaning the bike too much, past the point of grip
By Kurt Sunderbruch From the Cambridge English Dictionary: pilgrimage noun uk /ˈpɪl.ɡrɪ.mɪdʒ/ us /ˈpɪl.ɡrə.mɪdʒ/ a special journey made by a pilgrim a visit to a place that is considered special, where you go to show your respect Usually when we hear the term, pilgrimage, it’s in the context of a religious journey, whether
By Sergio Laurente Sometime in the early 2000’s, I had a bad get-off on South Mountain in Phoenix, AZ. I was doing a few solo trips up and down the mountain in the middle of a weekday, and had one of those “I’ll do one more run up and down” moments before calling it
By Kurt Sunderbruch The long, cold, wet winter has passed. It’s time to clear those cobwebs out of your head, out of your skills, out of your motorcycle, and get out and ride. Spring is my favorite season for riding. The natural world is blooming. The days have gotten longer, and the sky has
By Sergio Laurente While walking through Center City, Philadelphia for work, I took notice of special parking areas on mains streets filled with Vespas, Triumphs, and Ducatis. I was told that a rush hour drive home of a few miles down Broad Street may take close to an hour in a car, and it
By Ryan McNerney Pulling into Bakersfield after what felt like hours in the rain, I realized that I had, in fact, spent hours in the rain. My pace down 178 from Lake Isabella clocked in somewhere between “slow as cold molasses” and “glacially slow,” but I had made it into town safe and sound,
By Ryan McNerney “Riding? You’ve got thicker skin than I do; my KTM is hibernating until it gets warmer,” one of the locals told me as he filled his truck’s tank. The air temperature had been steadily dropping as I approached Lake Isabella on 178, and I was glad my Olympia jacket and pants
By Kurt Sunderbruch Do you have a local go-to road? Yeah, me too. I’m lucky enough to live in a place where some really fun roads are within a mile or two of my house. Roads I know well. Roads I feel like I can rely on like old friends. Roads that (almost) always deliver
By Dennis Dumapias For the longest time I really wanted to put my 2002 R1 inside my house as a personal trophy bike to commemorate all the smiles in the miles I’ve racked up with it. It really does embody a rich part of my riding history, encasing it between its two wheels. Like a
By Ryan McNerney “What’s that they say about the best-laid plans of mice and men?” I thought to myself as I listened to the patter of the rain on the roof of my tent. I was supposed to be camping in Death Valley at that point; I found myself instead at a KOA campground
By AJ Jacobsen Following the rather eventful moments during my previous race weekend, the Pacific Track Time weekend event at Thunderhill Raceway was looking to be an interesting experience for me. I was still recovering, and until a couple days before the event, I still wasn’t sure if I could even tolerate the drive
By Dennis Dumapias Last year I had another friend ask me to look for a motorcycle for her (…you know, I really should start a used-bike shopper service). She used to ride before we met, but it was short-lived. So while she isn’t going to be new to riding, she’s new again. And she knew
By Sergio Laurente Unfortunately, I am old enough to remember a time when having GPS readily available was uncommon. Not only is navigation now the norm, but some apps give real time feedback on best routes considering any heavy traffic areas. This means that people even depend on navigation to get them from home
By Sergio Laurente Recently, one of my non-motorcycle riding friends asked me about the purchase cost for my Harley Davidson. He guessed that it was in the $20k range and was surprised to hear I paid less than half that. After the conversation, I realized that some folks have a preconceived notion that getting
By Dennis Dumapias You never forget a heartbreak. You can physically feel it every time you remember. You can even remember the sights, the sounds. You may even remember the date. October 19, 2018 Track days are great for when you only want to work on your riding without any pressure from a race
By Ryan McNerney Since my first visit Since then I’ve come back for every 4,000 mile service. I’ve also done the brake service class, where I upgraded my brake line from the ancient rubber line to stainless steel. The three hours it takes me to do the service with a brake bleed comes to
By AJ Jacobsen The world famous Weathertech Raceway Laguna Seca – one of my favorite tracks to ride in Northern California. The great track surface, elevation changes, and variety of corner types makes this an amazing place to experience track riding, and one of only two tracks in California that the pros also race
By Ryan McNerney Last Friday I received some unfortunate news from the Moto Guild SF email blast. Aleks and Wilder, the shop’s current owners, have decided to move on and sell the business – or close if a new owner can’t be found. I consider myself a relatively new rider with a mere 4
By Dennis Dumapias Hubris really can be a witch sometimes. I had just redeemed myself at Laguna Seca since my crash there the year prior, and I found myself back on the deck right after, this time at Sonoma Raceway. Rookie mistake too, crashing on my out lap from the pits in only the
By Talya Adams In the last installment of my interview with Vincent Perry we discuss LA traffic, splitting lanes, and the importance of looks. Let’s get into it! T: Comparatively, was there less traffic in your hometown? V: Significantly less traffic. Right now, I live sixteen miles away from my school. Back
By Talya Adams In part three of my interview with Vincent we talk a little about the Indian vs Harley rivalry, and the biggest lesson he’s learned on these LA streets. So, let’s jump in and find out what Vincent has to say about these things. T: Okay, let’s get back on track.
By Talya Adams Welcome back to the second part of my interview with Vincent. In this section we discuss the importance of his friends and security measures for his motorcycle. T: Knowing the dangers of riding, what makes you get in the seat? Especially living in Los Angeles? V: It’s my friends. About every
By Talya Adams I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with a transplant motorcyclist with a beautiful bike, and a great sense of humor. Vincent Perry is an aspiring actor, and a die hard Indian motorcycle enthusiast. Throughout our interview we laughed, talked bikes, the LA riding experience, and the importance of motorcycle friendships.
By Dennis Dumapias In the past year alone, I’ve pulled off the following two-wheeled good deeds: Stopped to help a stalled car in the middle lane of a busy commuter freeway. The driver said the car just died, and not only was he not able to restart it, he couldn’t get it out of
By Dennis Dumapias Not one race circuit is less prone to crashes than the other, but I don’t know, I just thought that given how infrequent I rode Laguna Seca, that my chances of having a tumble there were slimmer than, say, Sonoma Raceway or Thunderhill Raceway. Just statistically speaking, I figured it’d be
By Talya Adams Last month, I reported I’d purchased a Wimius Action Camera to record my rides and other adventures I get up to while out on these rides. After a full month of use, I now have perspective on the device, and I’d like to share it with you all. First things first,
By Talya Adams Welcome back to my interview with Sabrina. In this section we’ll get into the hassles Sabrina faces as a motorcyclist in Los Angeles and her upcoming riding goals. T: What have you found most challenging about having a bike? S: Probably just getting on the road with big trucks –
By Dennis Dumapias It’s been over a week now since I checked out that RSV Mille. Over seven days, I’ve now had to decide whether to move my F4 out of my garage, and have another go at my dream bike – eleven years after I last owned one – or to keep my
By Talya Adams I love a quick and fun ride. They keep me going when I’m slammed with work. A top notch quick ride for me is usually anything under two hours, some nice views, and a few twists in the road if possible. Last weekend, I did a trip up to the San
By Talya Adams About two weeks ago, I made a stupid mistake while riding. It could have been much worse than it was, but because I remained calm I was able to get out of the situation without getting into an accident. A clear mind and a cool demeanor are two traits all riders should
By Talya Adams I don’t know if there’s anything that stresses me out more than money, maybe my mom, but that’s all. So, whenever I have to get work done on my bike, I get very tense and focused on getting the best bang for my buck. My upcoming bike work has been in my
By Talya Adams A few weeks ago, I took a very rewarding ride up to Malibu. I’m sure I’ve gushed about Malibu in the past, but every year I discover a new beach, or a new state park to explore, and I feel compelled to share my findings. My ride out to Leo Carrillo Beach
By Talya Adams I will be spending the majority of my weekends exploring new beaches this summer. I made this decision at the beginning of the month. It seemed to make sense given the beach was the only place I was finding relief from the heat. So, the weekend before last I drove down to
By Talya Adams For years I’ve noticed bikers utilizing GoPros and other types of action cameras. They usually mount them to their helmets or bikes. As with most new technology to hit the market, the price for one of these cameras used to be quite expensive. I’m talking upwards of three hundred dollars, and
By Talya Adams I recently took a trip back to my home town of Clearwater, Florida. While I was home, I noticed a lot of bikers on the road and the differences in styles shocked me. For some reason, I felt like riding would be the same everywhere. It’s not, and I had a
By Talya Adams I get asked a lot of questions about motorcycle culture on a regular basis. I get it, I ride, and people assume I have answers for a lot. I don’t – case in point, I don’t understand half shell helmets. I just don’t. A friend of mine asked me why I
By Talya Adams Is it hot, or is it just me? As we move further into summer, the temperatures will continue to rise. At the moment, the hot days have not been too consistent. However, this is beginning to change as I’ve recently finished up a long ride in hot conditions. Not to worry,
By Talya Adams Thanks for coming back for part two of my review of Point Mugu State Park. Below I’ll share tips, advice, and the aftermath of my journey. To say it was a learning experience would be an understatement. Find out why. I like to be informed in most things I do. When