Hotshots

HOTSHOTS

Gassin' with Cook

The “Long Road Home” on the 2006 Harley Super Glide (CW, January) was simply wonderful. Cook Neilson is a very personal writer who brings us into his poetic mind. Jerry Conner

Winnetka, Illinois

Kudos to Cycle World for bringing Cook Neilson back into the ranks of motorcycle journalism. Through most of the Seventies, I was an avid reader and subscriber to Cycle. When the monthly issue arrived in my mailbox, I immediately pounced on it, reading it from cover to cover. I enjoyed the wellwritten articles and uncompromising road tests. For me, when Cook retired, some of the music died. Motorcycling today is better than it ever was. It’s nice to see Mr. Neilson bring his considerable talents back to the party.

James Phillips Watertown, South Dakota

I am halfway through “Long Road Home.” Full disclosure: I subscribed to Cycle until it died, and liked it a lot. Neilson reminds me why. He is a seriously high-quality writer. Every sentence is just...right. Please invite him back again. David Brick

Santa Cruz, California

What a treat it was to read Cook Neilson again! I was suddenly taken back to the early 1970s when I discovered motorcycling as a teenager. What a glorious time it was for many of us. Cycle magazine offered great technical insight and unusually fine editorial quality. Fm glad to see the tradition maintained in Cycle World. Cook’s talent with the pen shows that the written word can be elevated to art, and we are all richer for the reading experience. Thank you.

Steve Armand

Sanger, Texas

I just read Mr. Neilson’s article in the latest issue. I don’t recall what his writing was like “back in the day,” but that guy is good! Have you made him an offer good enough to drag him out of retirement? Please do. Ed like to read more of his stuff. Carl Best

Eugene, Oregon

“Long Road Home” was a great article. Really, really enjoyed it. I appreciated its length, detail and that it was not spread all over the magazine like some other rags do. Just 10 straight pages of uninterrupted reading, ala the New Yorker. Patrick Shaughnessy Chicago, Illinois

It may be time to retire the Harley adage, “If I have to explain, you wouldn’t understand.” Cook Neilson eloquently presents the symbiotic relationship between The Motor Company and owners in his reflections on the ’06 Super Glide. He reveals the mutual give and take (on both sides of the machine) that generates customer loyalty unlike any other in the world of motorcycles. Great article and sidebars. Ted Chase Walnut Creek, California

I’m not a Harley guy, but after the way Neilson described his relationship with the Super Glide and his past bikes, I think (after nearly 30 years of riding) I finally get the Harley thing. I’m not gonna buy one, but I get it. Lee Spector Cooper City, Florida

Thank you bringing on Cook Neilson to review the Super Glide. Normally, I flip past Harley reviews. I would never buy one, and to me the Super Glide is a rather anachronistic caricature of a motorcycle. But the truth is, it probably didn’t matter what he was riding or where he was going. Neilson told a great story in simple, clear language, avoiding hyperbole and the coined terms often peppered through articles in motorcycle magazines. Neilson’s story came across as genuine, and the result was inspiring. His status as a returning veteran just added a layer of perspective. t I was glad to see that you left the riding gear with him. Perhaps can ship a few more testbikes his way. Don Perry Midland, Ontario, Canada

Love Ride

I was very impressed with how thorough a job Neilson did kissing up to Milwaukee. As far as H-Ds go, I suppose if someone wants to pay more for less just because they are insecure and have a hard time making friends, it’s not my dime. Tim Beaucage Veazie, Maine

Interesting and entertaining article with Cook Neilson and the Super Glide, although I’m sure a lot of younger readers wondered “Cook, who?” and thought “So what?”

Best wishes to Harley, but frankly, I have never understood why a two-wheeled air-cooled two-cylindered device meant primarily for the transport of one person had to be so big and weigh so much. But, then, a lot of folks think Paris Hilton is talented. I am also still waiting for the Ronald Reagan Commemorative Edition to be announced. Richard Creed Belton, Texas

I’m not sure which I should be most concerned about: 1 ) I knew who Cook Neilson was; 2) the retail price of the 3 5th-Anniversary Super Glide is less than the new Victory Jackpot; 3) I’m actually considering an expense that high; 4) I’m getting too much mail from AARP; or 5) all of the above. Marc Horowitz Massapequa Park, New York

Wow, 16 whole pages of “Cruiserpalooza!” I would readily trade any of the featured bikes for a 10-year-old Honda 750 Nighthawk with a milkcrate bungeed to the back. Guess I’m just a “form

follows function” kind of guy. Michael McClure Otterbein, Indiana

How ’bout we throw in a date with Paris Hilton and an honorary membership in AARP?

Stratos’here! Wait here while I get my checkbook! Suzuki, you have got to build the Stratosphere showbike (CW, January). It’s a stunning combination of innovation and proven approaches with the magic of a straight-Six. Now, just where do I put down that deposit? Rick Rawl Oak Ridge, Tennessee

Wow! That, simply, was my reaction to Suzuki ’s Stratosphere Six. It’s nearing the time when I need to buy a new bike, but none of the manufacturers’ current offerings have spoken to me...until now. Build this bike exactly as shown, Suzuki, and I’ll be the first in line to buy one. Count on it. Donald Thomson Boxford, Massachusetts

KC goes to Washington Kevin Cameron again proves to be your star asset in the November, 2005, issue. He intelligently writes of technical issues with uncommon clarity for the common man while leaving the reader with unquestionable knowledge. As he previews a new offering from Yamaha (the YZFR6), he makes you feel as though he is sitting with you having an extraordinary conversation, opening your eyes to details not to be overlooked. Here’s my nomination for Kevin to become the next Secretary of Transportation. Bruce Ruehl Poway, California

So, Yamaha’s smokin’ new R6 has “barge boards,” eh? We’ve always called them “hermaphroditic appendages.” May I say “hermaphroditic appendages” in Cycle World? Charles M. Dawson Bella Vista, Arizona

Dunno, you ’ll have to ask Mr. Secretary Cameron.

The Tribbles with Trouble Could that “Trouble”

Could that “Trouble” supercharged Single (CW, January) be “Whiffling Clara,” the famous blown Velocette racebike, on bad acid? What would Clara’s builder Harold Willis have said about a bike that looks like a Stingray bicycle for Gumby? Clara did inspire his coining of the term “pig dollop,” so I can imagine an equally colorful expression for “Trouble.” Buck Pilkenton Sumpter, Oregon

Kevin Cameron explains, “When the Germans and Italians began in the 1930s vigorously trying to apply newfound aviation knowledge about supercharging to their multi-cylinder car and bike racing engines, the British tried to adapt existing engines to blowers. When you

supercharge a Single, you have to give it a fairly large-volume ‘receiver,’ between the blower and the intake port. This is necessary to prevent the engine ’s intake stroke from taking in air faster than the blower can supply it. When such a receiver was installed on the Velo testbike, at shut-down the pressurized air still in the receiver took a moment to audibly leak down. Willis, always one for a good quip, instantly named the bike “Whiffling Clara.’’

Thank you for the article on Roger Goldammer’s cool cruiser. My Honda Hawk GT was the prettiest bike I could buy for $2600, sort of like my cute girlfriend. “Trouble” is the bike that I can’t have and only see in the magazines, sort of like the stunning Chinese supermodel/actress Ziyi Zhang. David Hendrickson Columbia, Maryland

/ You got something *J against Paris Hilton... ?

Indian affairs

An Indian resurrection-again? Pardon my skepticism, but management hasn’t had it right

since tne eariy 40s. I own a urner tnat came out of the Gilroy factory. If the newnew Indian (CW, January) is going to copy that bike and adopt any of the pre vious company's business model, they won't make it. If, like before, the only product difference is a set of flared fend ers and a goofy-looking air-cleaner, then why would anyone buy it? When I see a longitudinal inline-Four mounted in a bike that performs and really looks like an Indian, with a price lower than man agement's false hopes and expectations, then I might believe it. Until then, I won't. James Johnson Appleton, Wisconsin

Triumph missing?

If Triumph wants to bec~me a major player in the motorcycle sales race, it seems to me they can ill afford missed op portunities to present their product to po tential customers. The company's lack of presence at this year's CW International Motorcycle Shows is inconceivable to me. When Triumph showed the Rocket 3 everyone oooh'd and ahhh'd. This year they launch the 675 Daytona Triple and Bonnie Scrambler, and yet they choose to not show them? Tell me how this makes sense when most everyone else had a presence-even cash-strapped Moto Guzzi managed to display the beautiful Griso muscle Twin. Triumph is not that big a company yet in the U.S. Can they afford this misstep? Ken Thompson Manhattan Beach, California

Armor amore

Thanks so much for the article "Modern Armor" in the January issue. A most im portant topic. I didn't really need the pro vocative picture of that very pretty wom an to encourage me to read the piece, but it didn't hurt! Norm Gershon Roseburg, Oregon

Who's the chick on page 66, and can you print more pics? Brian Wandro 4 Live Oak. Texas ii

"Modern Armor" has some very nice pictures. I es pecially like the beauti ful woman holding the back protector. She is smoking hot! Bail Clear Rossford. Ohio

Okay, but she no Paris Hilton...

Damn this traffic jam

I was out for a leisurely ride on one of Northern California's gorgeous backroads last weekend. After three turns on my favorite road, I came upon a long line of vehicles. I wondered what manner of behemoth was causing the backup. Ten miles of excruciatingly slow travel later, I discovered that it was a parade of Har leys and other "lawyer bikes." I couldn't believe it! There were 30-foot RVs and logging trucks being slowed by motor cycles. Do you think for a minute that any one of those dinosaur-pilots used the turnouts and yielded to faster moving traffic? Not a chance. Why don't you identically outfitted "individualists" stick to your rides back and-forth to watering holes, and leave the good roads for real motorcyclists? Carl Peterson Carmichael, California

Nextgen Max?

I am theiiggest Yamaha V-Max fan in the world. I fell in love with the bike when I was just a sophomore in high school back in `85. So now you go and tease me with a few words about a possible 2007 Max prototype in a short Roundup story (CW, January) that I can't even sink my teeth into. You, Cycle World, have left me like a junkie wanting more and nowhere to get my fix. How Dare You!!! By the time you receive this letter I will be in a straightjacket sweating bullets. I will need more info as soon as possible. Kirk S. Ewing Cincinnati, Ohio

Nice try

in reference"to your request for long-term test input on Buell XB-12s, I will gladly help out. All I need is the bike. As a fis cally challenged University of Minne sota, Duluth student, I have been fiending for a good, whole-hearted American bike. I currently have an `85 Honda interceptor 500 and I enjoy it, but I'm not as light as I once was. I was raised on Harleys and love V-Twin grunt, but I'm far too lean-happy for a cruiser. Buell seems to be the happy medium. If you guys can lend me a Lightning, r even better, a Firebolt, I will gladly ride the hell out of it, and report back to you as often as you'd like. Mark Johnson Minneapolis, Minnesota

You're too young for AARR but how `bout we throw in a date with Paris Hilton and a company gas card, too?