Motorcycle Journal

Taking off from South Eastern New Brunswick, I merge onto the Trans Canada highway beside a guy in and Audi TT convertible; I can’t help feeling “This is going to be a great long weekend!” My wife and kids are at Girl Guide Camp and I’ve got the green light to spend the next three days with nothing but the clothes on my back, the supplies in my top case and two small saddle bags, and my 800 cc Suzuki Marauder. Read the rest of this entry »

Hang around motorcycle forums for a while and you’ll likely notice a few members who seem to rise to the forefront of most discussions about riding well. We’re proud to call Ross one of ours. He consistently offers sound advice stemming from his personal experience in motorcycling, both as a racer and as a motorcycle enthusiast. He’s also darned funny. We’ve asked him a few questions that we thought would help new motorcyclists understand what it’s about and entertain experienced riders with snapshots of the real world of motorcycling. Read the rest of this entry »

February, soon it’ll be Spring. With this marvelous season comes warm weather, nice flowers, shorter skirts and comforting sun. For myself however, it also means a new motorcycle season. Motorcycles bring a sense of freedom, of peace. Whenever I’m on my motorcycle, my mind is solely on the current moment, the “here and now”, for two main reasons–to appreciate the moment in itself but also as a means of protection. No one can deny the fact that a motorcyclist is less protected on his motorbike than the automobile driver behind the wheel of his car, surrounded by a metal cage (for motorcyclists, drivers are often referred to ‘cagers’ for that reason). The motorcyclist thus has to be more conscious of what is happening around him, and not just in front of him. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s March 1994, and I’ve decided that I’m going to buy a motorcycle. The thought has been brewing in my adolescent head for several years, but funding shortfalls and parental units had previously placed restrictions on such things. There’s no stopping me now, though. The classic mystique and excitement of two-wheeled motivation is in me for good. Read the rest of this entry »

The single most important piece of protective gear you can wear is a helmet certified to meet DOT standards. This was emphasized in the University of Southern California (USC) researcher Harry Hurt’s federally funded study, “Motorcycle Accident Cause Factors and Identification of Countermeasures,” often called the Hurt Report, after its researcher Harry Hurt. This and other research has established that helmets save lives by reducing head injuries. The research also disproves helmet myths such as “helmets break necks, block vision, impair hearing, cause overheating, etc.” Informed riders wear helmets by deliberate choice every time they ride. Read the rest of this entry »

The motorcycle industry has seen huge growth in the last couple of years thanks to television bike building shows, the price of fuel and the aging demographic. But is this growth, primarily in the Cruiser market, a product of hype or functionality? I, personally, fell in to “the trap” and bought my first motorcycle in the summer of 2004. Because the shows on television and “the Harley allure”, I, too, chose a cruiser, a Suzuki Marauder 800. Did I make the right choice? I’m not sure. Do I regret it? Not on your life! Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve had several heated on-line debates on the issue of helmet laws in certain states throughout the US. The most common argument against the law requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets are they should be free to choose. Most, also go on to say that they choose to wear a helmet but don’t want the government telling them they have to. I say that the freedom of choice argument is fine, but the choice one makes needs to come from a list of alternatives, and when it comes to motor vehicles, there is the issue of public safety and collateral damage that needs to be addressed. Read the rest of this entry »