Episode 30 of the Brap Talk podcast is now out for your two-wheeled audio pleasure, and as always, it is packed with some interesting motorcycle discussions.
Every year the motorcycle industry comes to our backyard, as The One Motorcycle Show packs Portland, Oregon with two-wheeled enthusiasts.
One last entry from our wandering lens at The One Motorcycle Show, we bring you this BMW R1200GS from Roland Sands Design.
The machine gives a throwback to the rally machines we saw in the 1980s competing in the Dakar Rally, particularly those made by HPN-Motorradtechnik, which were based off the BMW R80 G/S
Another bike that caught our eye at The One Motorcycle Show, this tasty morsel is a 1982 Yamaha Virago 750 (XV 750) made by the hands at WKND.
Though not a terribly appealing motorcycle in its original form, and part of Yamaha’s first attempts at challenging Harley-Davidson in the cruiser space, the Yamaha XV750 has seen builders make some tasty customs off its old air-cooled v-twin platform – as we can see here.
The One Motorcycle Show was in Portland this weekend, meaning we didn’t have to travel very far at all to see the largest custom bike show in the United States.
Naturally, we feel compelled to share with you some of the best bikes we saw the show, and we will start things off right with one of our favorites from the expo.
To that end, it was a shame that the ABC 500 by A Bike Company wasn’t front and center when you came into the main bike hall, as the board tracker made by Niki Smart is a stunner and dripping in black.
When you think of race bikes to use for battle on the race track, an old air-cooled BMW boxer twin is probably not the machine your mind immediately lands upon. Though, custom builder Scott Kolb is making a strong case to change that opinion.
This is because his latest creation is a 310 lbs purpose-built racing machine, with 82hp on tap for good measure.
Built around a 1976 BMW R90/6 boxer-twin engine, this blend of something new and something old would certainly be potent – and legal – in most lightweight club racing classes, and that tickles us in all the right places.
Episode 73 of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast is out, and it was worth the wait, as it’s a good one.
An omnibus of topics, we start out with some racing items from the MotoGP and Isle of Man TT paddocks, with a focus on newly crowned “MotoGP Legend” Randy Mamola, and a surprise announcement from John McGuinness.
We the turn our attention to Harley-Davidson’s bizarre brake fluid recall, and speculate what the Bar & Shield brand is up to. The iconic American brand was also present in Portland’s One Moto Show, which we discuss as well.
The conversation then shifts to the continually changes in the motorcycle media landscape, which has seen no shortage of movements in recent months.
The show concludes with a deep-dive into the issue of umbrella girls in racing, as the Formula One series has banned the practice from the 2018 season onward. We’re sure the conversation will stir some debate amongst the two-wheeled community.
You can listen to the show via the embedded SoundCloud player, after the jump, or you can find the show on iTunes (please leave a review) or this RSS feed. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter as well.
We hope you will join the conversation, and leave us some audio comments at our new email address: twoenthusiasts@gmail.com.
Just the other day, I was lamenting to a Ducati person about how the Desert Sled should have been the first model from the motorcycle makers Scrambler sub-brand…since, you know, it goes off-road quite well.
Built for the hard hits and jumps that come with taking a production street bike scrambling through the woods, the Desert Sled pretty much lives up to its name. But, if you really want to do the business, some changes need to be made.
This is where Alex Earle comes in the picture, with his Ducati Desert Sled “ADV Alaska” Prototype. A designer for Audi by day, Earle is known better in motorcycling circles for his street-tracker inspired custom Ducatis. You’ve probably seen them before.
Over 17,000 people flocked to the northern end of Portland this year, braving the cold interior of a vacant building with their plaid shirts, in order to drink PBR, listen to loud music, and look at the occasional motorcycle. Yes, it us that time of year for The One Motorcycle Show in Portland, Oregon.
More than just a much larger venue, The One Moto Show continues to gain traction with vendors and sponsors, all the while attracting more and more bike-curious attendees through its doors.
Main-lined into the zeitgeist that we recognize as two-wheeled hipsterdom, “mainstream” motorcyclists can roll their eyes while shuffling through the PDX masses, but you cannot deny the pulse the show keeps with younger motorcyclists.
As such, there were more than a few pillars of the motorcycle industry circulating in the show’s ranks – all incognito, of course – trying to understand how the next generation interacts not only with motorcycles, but also with each other.
Over 150 bikes were on display for those in attendance – I heard a figure as high as 170 motorcycles were hidden throughout the multiple rooms and floors of the show’s venue – and a couple trends struck me over the course of the show.
The One Moto Show in Portland, Oregon is just a couple weeks away, an event where hipsters and custom bike builder will come together to celebrate all things two-wheeled. One of the show’s sponsors this year is electric startup Alta Motors, and they will be debuting a street tracker concept to the masses.
The concept bike is built off Alta’s Redshift platform, with changes made to the bodywork (made via rapid prototyping), lowered suspension, and an LED headlight, along with the addition of 19″ carbon fiber BST wheels shod in flat-tracking rubber.
As a concept, the Redshift ST still has some evolving to do before it can be a production model, but it shows that Alta Motors is considering adding something to its lineup that resonates with a younger, more urban crowd (The One Moto Show being a prime spot to test those waters).
More importantly perhaps, the Redshift ST could a model to Alta’s lineup that has a seat height below 32″ – a key dimension when it comes to making motorcycles accessible to a wider variety of riders, both in terms of physical height and experience level.