RoadRUNNER May/June 2005
Shamrock Tour
Shamrock Tour®: Around Gillette, Wyoming
Mention Gillette, Wyoming, to most people and you'll get a blank stare. Motorcyclists may show a glimmer of recognition and a puzzled frown. When you add "90 miles west of Sturgis," the lights come on. Western-based bikers frequently stop for gas here, northeast Wyoming's last major town en route to the annual Black Hills Motorcycle Rally....
National Tours
Colorado Pass Roads
"Always use the cable lock," said Matt at Eaglerider when I collected the '04 Electra Glide. Parked at Extended Stay America in the Denver suburb of Aurora, I make sure the reinforced steel cable wraps round the front wheel and frame. This baby's goin' nowhere. Next morning I'm packed, ready to roll, and slide the key into the barrel. It jams solid....
Southwestern New York
I've been hammering the Interstate for the last nine or so hours and I'm ready to quit for the day. Despite the surprising comfort of the Aprilia Falco and the diversion of my trusty iPod, I'm beginning to wilt. Thankfully, the mileage numbers to Jamestown, New York, have also wilted to single digits. This mind-numbing super-slab has me thinking curves,...
Florida Panhandle Tour
The R rule is one of the seafood basics I remember from my younger days on the Chesapeake Bay. If a month contains the letter R, it's OK to eat oysters. My destination is the Florida Panhandle, the month is February, and the Apalachicola area of the Panhandle happens to be world renowned for its oysters. I'm certainly no rocket scientist – they're...
Piaggio X-9: Eastern Shore Maryland
It's amazing how a few years of separation can inspire a whole new outlook on things previously unnoticed. Having grown up in Annapolis, Maryland, I was aware of the region's deep historic roots. But, like most teenagers, my coming of age concerns centered on girls, parties, and bikes. The Eastern Shore was that place across the bay you had to ride...
International Destinations
Sweepers, Samba, and Sugarloaf
The flight was long – 8 hours from Miami – and although it was a night flight, I was too excited about the upcoming tour to sleep well. Drowsy, I staggered from the plane. A morning brew of warm, humid air swamped my face. A curtain of gray clouds concealed the mountains of Rio de Janeiro....
East Africa: Among Gorillas, Lions and Elephants
A washed-out track that winds through green banana plantations to the Ugandan border has led us here. And once inside the post on the Kenyan side, it's obvious we've committed the serious offense of disturbing a well-fed immigration officer during his power nap. Call out the guards!...
Riding Impressions
Benelli TnT 1130
The name is explosive, the design aggressive, the engine eruptive, and the sum total is the Benelli TnT 1130, one of the sharpest bikes on the market....
Kawasaki Concours - Long-term Evaluation
Since its introduction in 1986, the largely unchanged Kawasaki Concours has inspired a loyal, some would say fanatical, following. The Concours Owners Group (COG) is well represented from coast to coast and beyond. This crew motors out of the woodwork for practically every motorcycle show and consistently show themselves to be some of the "ridin'-est"...
Little Big Scoot
Still kind of new to this scooter thing, I have to constantly remind myself to temper my skepticism. I know for a fact that 250cc motorcycles do just fine as commuter machines and can hold their own on the open road. Why, then, am I so quick to scoff at a 250cc scooter? It's called ignorance, and the cure for that is education. Come on, let's go to...
Chronicles
The Passion Of Mark Jurus
It was simply love at first sight: the sensuous curves of the Italian beauty immediately captivated the recent college graduate with a degree in visual communication and graphic design. The year was 1992, the place was Boulder, Colorado, and Mark Jurus fell head-over-heels for Italian motor scooters. The design elements of these diminutive machines...
Secrets of Successful Baking
Head protection is one of the most important jobs of safety gear, and motorcycle helmets are high-tech products. Nolan, Europe's largest helmet manufacturer, gave our writer Oliver Ahrens a close look behind the scenes at their production facility in Bergamo, Italy....
Leather or Synthetic?
"Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes," Henry David Thoreau advised in Walden. It's unlikely Thoreau had motorcycling in mind, but as you're reading RoadRUNNER, you've probably decided to ignore his counsel anyway. So why do we need special clothing? If you have to ask, perhaps you wouldn't understand. Motorcycling is dangerous. When...
