May is motorcycle safety awareness month…here is an idea to help spread awareness to the children.
As we all know, all the safety gear we wear and all the safety tech on our motorcycles are just not enough at times. Awareness of motorcycles by drivers of cars and trucks is as important as everything we do.
To help improve the awareness in others (and therefore ourselves) we need to start teaching children to watch for motorcycles. That is why the idea of teaching kids to count motorcycles instead of “punch bugs” is so important. If they are watching for motorcycles as kids they will have an easier time seeing them when they start to drive. Thus our safety as motorcyclist is improved. The payoff is in the future but let’s invest now.
Make a game that has a small reward when they spot “X” number of motorcycles. Ask your non-riding friends to do this with their children. Mention it at events and gatherings, just get the word out. You know when a 6-year-old yells “motorcycle” that their parent is going to see it to!!
Hitting Neutral – Harley Davidson Live Wire offers their second model.
Starting in the US, this July, you will be able to buy the second electric motorcycle offered by Harley Davidson’s electric division. For $15,499(US) you will be able to ride away with an S2 Del Mar capable of 0-60 in 3 seconds.
It will also have a range of 110 “city miles” and will recharge on a Level 2 charger from 20% to 80% in 75 minutes. There is no fast or super charge available currently.
My Take – This is an urban commuter motorcycle. Nothing wrong with that but, it is a niche spot that might find some traction against Zero’s offerings. The lack of a fast charger option is a bit of let down but from an urban zip around traffic commuter bike point of view it will probably work.
I test rode the Live Wire and the Zero SRF each were fantastic rides. Acceleration and handling were very good with both bikes, and they are something that people should look at if interested. But I am not yet a fan of EVs and electric motorcycles.
In the real world, outside of the urban jungle, there is still a dearth of charging stations and charging times are still incomparable to the standard conventional vehicle. I am awaiting the evolution of hydrogen power to be pursued as hard as EV. That will be the true zero emission vehicle.
*****
Up Shift – Ducati sets a new record!
For the first time ever, Ducati has recorded revenue of over $1 Billion!
This is a 24% increase over 2021 and a profit of over $100 million. This also aligns with the sale of the most Ducati motorcycles ever at 61,562 a 3.6% increase over 2021. Ducati has also expanded their dealership network to over 800.
My Take: Tie this to their race success in MotoGP and other series then I think we are in a Golden Age of Ducati. This is well deserved success they created a plan and are executing it well. It was just a few years ago that people stated that Ducati was Italian for 8th place, can’t say that anymore!
As we are in Motorcycle Helmet Safety Month, I thought we should revisit the proper fitment of your helmet.
Unfortunately, not every helmet will fit every head. Each helmet will have a sizing guide to help you ensure your head is safe and snug inside.
Sizing your Skull
When you measure your head, wrap the tape measure starting about ½ inch above your eyebrow. Next, loop it around your head, at the largest point keeping it above your ears.
Two recommendations with the tape measure, get a friend to help you you’re your buddy can make sure the tape measure is in the right spot. Also, measure your skull three times then calculate the average to get a closer measure of your head.
If your melon falls between two sizes of your motorcycle helmet of choice go with the smaller size.
Shape of your skull
This one is a bit harder. Most motorcycle helmet makers really, truly do not consider the shape of our braincases.
While all human heads are, for the most part, oval, some are more round while others can be more elongated. The shape of your skull impacts how your helmet will fit.
You will have to try on a properly sized helmet to see if it fits your individual dome!
Trying the Helmet On
Does your new candidate helmet feel a little tight? If so, that is good! Feeling a little tight or a touch uncomfortable is ok but, it should not be inducing any pain to the back of your gourd, your temples, or your forehead. Any hotspots or truly uncomfortable pressure points will be a guarantee of a miserable ride.
If it is feeling tight but not duly uncomfortable (the padding should adapt over time) now, try turning the motorcycle helmet right and left then tilting it forward and back. If the helmet moves over your skin freely it is too big, try a smaller size.
If it seems to fit well, try to keep it on for at least 10-15 minutes. Does it still feel good? When you take it off are there any hotspots or rub marks? If not you may have a winner. If you are having comfort issues the helmet just might be the wrong shape for your head.
Try to Pull the Helmet Off
Last step, if everything else seems to be working as it should, reach over your head and grasp the bottom/back of the helmet. Try pulling it up and over your head. If it comes off, try a different size.
Final thoughts
While these are my recommendations, please do your own research on proper fitment. There are as many fitment recommendations as makers of motorcycle helmets.
Use these suggestions as a way to get started with getting a good fit. Never trust just one website, look at as many sources of information to make sure you fully understand.
Also, you can use these fitment techniques as a starting point to determine if your current motorcycle helmet is still good to go. Can you pull your current helmet over and off your head? Might be a good time to replace your primary safety device.
Down Shift – Cardio Packtalk is now subscription based.
Cardio, one of the leaders in motorcycle helmet to helmet and helmet to device communications has made a MAJOR change to how their product works.
The Bluetooth communications and intercom maker now has “Packtalk Custom” to allow you to “customize” the way you connect. The device itself sells for about $250US.
So, what do you get out of the box? The ability to connect to nothing. You must subscribe to the Silver Package to connect to your phone OR navigation system, NOT BOTH.
Subscribing to the silver package for $3 dollars per month gets you:
Music sharing
Three audio profiles
Speed dial
Subscribing to the gold package for $5 dollars a month allows you to “expand your capabilities with Bluetooth intercom and a 2nd device”. The full gold package gives you:
Universal Bluetooth Intercom (to allow you to connect to other brands of intercom)
Bluetooth bridge
Second channel connection (allows you to connect an additional device – without it, you can only have your mobile phone OR sat-nav OR bike’s dash).
Music sharing
Three audio profiles
Speed dial
Subscribing to the Platinum package for $7 dollars a month enables:
Voice commands
Eco mode (up to 20% longer operation)
Universal Bluetooth Intercom
Bluetooth bridge
Second channel connection
Music sharing
Three audio profiles
Speed dial
My Take – WOW, why would I pay $250 dollars for something that I cannot use out of the box? I will not be purchasing this device that is for sure. IN FACT, I THINK THIS IS STUPID!
While I am sure that there are people who will do this, I would hope the vast majority of people will go to other brands. We should not have to pay additional fees to be able to use the product we just bought. As is, you will need to pay $5 a month just to use what I consider basic features.
Ride two up…. an extra $7 per month to be able to talk with your passenger and do the normal stuff like phone and nav.
This subscription thing is a trend I have been seeing in other areas including cars and trucks and I hope that people are smart enough to not buy into this or otherwise it might spread.
I can easily imagine a day where if you wanted 5th gear you would have to pay a fee.
*****
Up Shift – International Female Ride Day 2023
The 17th International Female Ride Day falls on May the 6th this year.
For 16 years the IFRD has “shined a spotlight on women riders and females in the motorsports arena!”
Nearly 20% of riders are women and that number has been growing over the years and I do not expect that growth to end anytime soon. Coming out of the pandemic more people and especially women are feeling empowered to do the things that they really want.
The goals of the event are:
Highlight the number of women who ride.
Encourage other women to take up the activity.
Raise awareness about women’s equality in motorsports.
Celebrate women’s advancement in motorsports and powersports.
Ride for accelerated gender parity.
My Take: Anything that gets folks out and riding is a great thing! That this team has been encouraging women to mount up and ride is just awesome. I hope that we can grow the number of women riding from 20% to 30% in the next few years.
The Moment Collector is an anthology of short stories from motorcyclists traveling the world. The collector of these stories is Sam Manicom, himself a world traveler on two wheels.
Sam collected twenty tales from intrepid motorcycling travelers. As with all anthologies some stories are more engrossing than others, some writers are better than others. Yet overall, I enjoyed the book greatly.
I was familiar with a few of the authors, Tim Notier for example, but most were new to me. Mr. Manicom provided each writer’s social media information with their stories. A subtle but impactful touch that allowed me to see more about each of them.
As noted above, it is difficult for any collection of stories, or moments, to have every tale a hit. I am giving this book a 4-Star review because it is an anthology and not all the stories were great.
However…. It should be part of your motorcycle book library!
Maybe one way to judge if we are returning to something approaching normal is the number of motorcycle events around the world. I started with the over 20 motorcycle themed posters, many of which were for events in 2022. However, come on guys, put a little more effort into your designs and PLEASE put something about the location on the poster too!
Below are the top 9 motorcycle posters for 2022. My personal favorite is the flat-track motorcycle rider on the moon by Ryan Roadkill. Which one do you like best!
By the title of the movie, you can guess this is a film about a firefighter motorcycle club. You would be right, but there is a lot more to it than just a motorcycle club movie.
This is a movie more about the mental health aspects of first responders and what they bring home after years of service. How PTSD is impacting their lives and that of their families and the fact that they find it difficult to deal with the issues while on duty.
That said…. This is a difficult film to watch.
The Florian Knights were formed in 2017 in Vancouver, Canada by an active firefighter. It was his attempt to create a group of motorcyclists to ride with and to talk about the hard stuff, away from work. Each of the members of this chapter had a reason, beyond riding, to join the club.
A year or so later, in New York City, another firefighter was starting a riding club with the same name, Florian Knights. When he found out that there was already a firefighter motorcycle club by that name, they decided to open a new chapter to help fulfill the same purpose.
My motorcycle is my medicine.
Many of the Florian Knights, throughout the movie, comment that motorcycling helps cope with their stress and PTSD. This is where the first twist in the movie occurs.
The film switches from a documentary of the two clubs to an actual scientific study of motorcycling on the brain. A Doctor of Psychology wants to track brain patterns and uses many members of the clubs as test subjects. Putting on wired caps under their helmets to track how their brains worked while riding.
No surprise to us, motorcycling reduces stress by 28% according to the study.
Right after this segment the movie takes a second, harsher, twist. This twist I am not going to describe as I will leave it to you to create your own take away. I am also not going to rate this motorcycle move as I don’t think it can judge it on a normal scale, it is just so different.
What do you think of how this motorcycle movie ends? Let me know in the comments.
2022 was an OK year for motorcycle memes. The internet though up a lot of recycled, older memes and a bunch of really dumb motorcycle themed memes. Yet, I found 12 decent and/or funny memes and narrowed that down to best 9 motorcycle memes for 2022.
Why nine? Because everyone does 10 and 11 is too much work!
I reviewed an earlier version of the Bilt Iron Workers Kevlar motorcycle pants way back in 2013. The older version received a 4-star rating, but these pants have been improved over the years.
The new Iron Workers Kevlar pants are available in several colors, I purchased the khaki version. They were more brown than khaki but acceptable. I read that the sizing was running a little small, so I bought one size up from my normal and it worked out well, a good fit.
They look more like casual office pants than any of the other motorcycling pants I currently own. With the knee pads removed it would be even more difficult to discern they are motorcycle-based clothing.
Speaking of knee pads, the Bilt Iron Workers Kevlar pants have an external zipper that allows for “easier” access. I placed “easier” in quotes as it can still be a bit of a struggle to get them in and out, but it is much better than turning the pants inside out to access the armor pockets. This is a plus over many other pants I own.
While the Bilt pants come with armor for the knee they do not come with hip armor, luckily, I have several extra pairs. Unlike the knee armor the hip armor is not as easy to insert or remove. The pocket openings face the outside pant leg, and it can be a bit of a struggle to put the armor in place. Once the hip armor is installed, they are comfortable and snug. This is about the same as other pants I own.
After riding in these pants for a few thousand miles, I have to say I like them quite a bit. While heavy they are not too hot in the heat, and they have some decent wind breaker qualities that help in the cool weather.
The cargo pockets are secured with heavy-duty Velcro and, wow, it is some really heavy-duty Velcro. It can be a bit of an effort to pull the pocket open. You will not need to worry about the cargo pockets coming open during your ride! The regular pockets are just regular pockets. This is a plus over other pants I own.
The only downside and it does not impact my rating is the hip armor pockets, they could be better with a pocket opening facing the inside of the pant with a Velcro closure. Some people might complain of the limited use of the Kevlar lining but there is a price point consideration.
For their price these are very good motorcycling pants.
How about some ideas for that crazy motorcycle rider you love. Sometimes it can be difficult to figure out what to get for your motorcyclist during the holiday season so I made a list of those things that would appeal to most bikers.
9) Heated gear – We all “Just Want 2 Ride” right. The gift of heated gear will extend the riding season for weeks or months depending on where you live.
8) New tie-down straps – Another piece of equipment that gets old, but one that is especially important if you’re crazy biker tows or hauls their bike(s). Steal a glance at their current straps, look worn or about to be worn out, get them a new set.
7) Custom Dynamic Motorcycle Lights – Custom Dynamic makes SUPER bright, eye catching lighting for motorcycles. I have several sets on my bike and wish I had more! Look at the ProBeam LED Motorcycle Turn Signals I have added them to two motorcycle and I am sure I have sold several dozen for Custom Dynamics as well.
6) A Gift Card – from their favorite local dealership. That way they can pick out what they want!
5) Frame them – Frame a nice picture of them with their motorcycle. Simple and cheap but you might have to snoop on their phone to find the best one!
4) Battery Tender – Winter is here in the northern hemisphere. This gift will help your crazy biker be ready to roll the first chance they get. No recommendation, they are almost all good. Just make sure you get the right connection for their motorcycle.
3) Kevlar lined pants, shirts, or jackets. Kevlar can get pricy but, your motorcycle rider will love you for it.
2) Long sleeve T-Shirts – Motorcycle themed long sleeve T-Shirts provide a wardrobe option when the weather gets cool.
1) Membership in the AMA – That is the American Motorcycle Association. Membership not only gets discounts on products, it also includes emergency towing. The AMA is the largest, but not the only, lobbyist group protecting your right to ride.
I JUST WANT 2 RIDE!! 