From the editor ~ 178
It’s interesting that Oldlondog should choose a Steinbeck reference to illustrate an article about his local bike shop because the American Nobel Laureate was very much to the forefront of Continue Reading
In The Saddle
Dear Dave, Just read TRD and liked it so much I recommended it on Facebook. You must tell The Boy Biker that he only learnt half a lesson when he Continue Reading
Riders’ Lives – Paul Nicholas Blezard (aka Blez)
1.What was your first motorcycling experience? Aged 13, hiring a 50cc motorcycle and riding it on the streets of Rimini for an hour without mastering the clutch, but also without Continue Reading
Six and the City
Thursday Today I was told that I am no longer a biker. “What do you mean!?” I was told that I’m no longer a biker, just a bike rider Continue Reading
Paddy’s Perspective
Which Way Now? It’s something to ponder: Where’s the Bike Industry going? Chasing a GP dream or embracing environmentalism? Are the marketing men leading, or are consumers demanding change? Is Continue Reading
The Boy Biker – lessons learned
Lessons Learned It’s been an odd month in my little bubble. After getting my mind focused on finally booking and passing my test, I have been attempting to ride accordingly. Continue Reading
Nuts & Bolts
Something a bit different this month. Up until now I’ve concentrated on specifics, how a clutch works, that kind of thing. This month I’m talking about maintenance, more of what Continue Reading
A View from the Group W Bench
I am going to have to disagree with Dave G here. I started proper biking aged 26 in 1979. I bought a Lewis Leathers Double zipper and a set of Continue Reading
Two Wheels to the End of the World – Alpine Argentina
The border crossing between Chile and Argentina at Portezulo de Puyehue is the last paved crossing for several thousand kilometres. As the border is high in the mountains the arrangement Continue Reading
Jan’s Off Road Experience
In April 2012 I finished work to set up DragonMotoTours with my husband, Geraint, and I received a voucher for the Yamaha Off-Road Experience, (Y.O.R.E), as a leaving present from Continue Reading
BREAKOUT
It’s rush hour in downtown Marseilles and I’m filtering through the seafront traffic on Harley Davidson’s new Breakout. It’s been an interesting day and one that challenges my preconceptions as to Continue Reading
ACAB (or are they?)
I caught a flash of orange ahead and gave my GT250 a little extra, shaving a few more percentage points off my margin of error as I rode west along Continue Reading
Meet and greet the police (the painless way)
When PC Graham Pierce rang me to talk about writing a regular column in the Digest, I saw the appeal immediately. As laudable as his stated mission to cut down Continue Reading
Ask a policeman
I’d like to start by saying I’m not a writer, a reporter, or a journalist. I’m not highly educated and I possess very few literary skills, (thank goodness for smell Continue Reading
Riding Out The Recession
Ed Ricketts, the real-life marine biologist immortalised as Doc in Steinbeck’s Cannery Row, evolved a theory of how everything is connected in the natural world. He observed that the sea Continue Reading
Secondary Effects
I read other motorcycle magazines somewhat regularly. I’m more interested in their letters-to-the-editor than I am in their latest shoot-out between six identical motorcycles. I don’t care about elite Continue Reading
The first sunny ride of the year
It’s been a funny old winter. I started out determined to ride right through as I have done in previous years. Anything aside from snow will see me out on Continue Reading
Funky Mopeds
There was a time, many years ago, when some of the contributors to this august journal had long hair, pimply faces and flares, when there existed a sub culture Continue Reading
The Ace Cafe, Café Racers, and Racing Aces – Book Review pt. 1
It is doubtful that there is anyone involved in the world of British motorcycling whose life is not touched directly or indirectly by the Ace Cafe. A visit here, an Continue Reading
The Ace Cafe, Café Racers, and Racing Aces – Book Review pt. 2
The world of the contemporary café racer in the United States is more properly addressed in Seate’s Café Racer: the Motorcycle (2008). For the past five or so years Seate Continue Reading