Hotshots

HOTSHOTS

Saving gas, having fun

Good article on the small bikes, “Best Firsts” in the September issue. Most of the big manufacturers build excellent small bikes between 125 and 250cc for overseas markets. I’m surprised they haven’t imported more to the U.S. I think they’d sell.

Maybe it’s time for Triumph to produce a 250 Tiger Cub, too. I’ll need one when I’m not riding my new 1600 Thunderbird. AI Owens

Dallas, Texas

Just finished a 3000-mile ride across Oregon, down the Pacific Coast Highway to L.A., across the I-15 to Las Vegas, up US 93 to Idaho and home to Troy via 1-84 and US 95. My 2001 Yamaha FZ1 averaged 47 mpg in all kinds of riding from the leisurely pace of Oregon’s 55-mph speed limit to navigating the madness of salivating gamblers aiming their cages at Vegas at 90 mph. Weather was hot, 110 degrees in the desert, to cold, mid-40s along the north coast; and searingly dry to foggy and wet. The FZ 1 was loaded with me at 210 pounds and 100 pounds of gear.

My FZ1 is a 120-hp, 150-mph vehicle. Who would have thought it would also be a sport-tourer and sip gas?

I also enjoyed the Up Front column about Craig Vetter’s quest for both performance and fuel economy with his 100-mpg Freedom Machine. Knowing Vetter for 45 years, I will put my money on him finding a solution to the challenge of fuel and fun. Nice to see articles that address the real world of motorcycling and not merely the highperformance mania of hyper sportbikes.

Joe Zeller Troy, Idaho

I read “Best Firsts,” and I didn’t see a Yamaha Virago 250.1 bought one new for $3700 last year, and I am very happy with it. This bike will get 80 mpg with my 5-foot, 6-inch, 230-pound butt riding on it!

Also, I don’t understand why a bike with a small engine has to be labeled “entry-level” or why, just because you buy a 250cc bike, you’re a beginner. Maybe you’re just somebody who wants to ride and not make the oil companies any richer.

I’m done whining now, thanks for listening. Russell Davis

Rimersburg, Pennsylvania

I couldn’t believe that you guys forgot the actual best first bike: Kawasaki’s Ninja 500R! The 500R (nee EX500) has a gem of an engine, can be used as a commuter, a light tourer and even (as Mr. Editor Edwards knows) a club-

level roadracer. Oh, and just in case its styling is the limiting factor, just call it “retro.” Freddie Ortiz

Bedford, New Hampshire

I really enjoyed “Best Firsts,” but I think these bikes should be considered by everyone who rides, not just newbies. A 2005 Ninja 250 is my everyday commuter; a 2004 BMW RI 100S is my big bike. I wouldn’t want to lose either. I can park the 250 inside at work; the Beemer won’t fit through the doors!

Tom Migliorino Massapequa, New York

Hey, if you guys ever do a comparison test on bikes that get really high mpg, be sure you leave out any references to fuel-tank capacities. Oh wait, never mind... Dallas Eschenauer

Phoenixico, Mexizona

Toward 100 mpg?

I agree 100 percent with David Edwards when he asks in his “Freedom Machines” column, where are the 100-mpg streetbikes? Why aren’t they being built?

I got my answer when I turned the page to see the ad for the new I700cc Star VMax, and a few pages later the 2300cc Triumph Rocket III. Hmmm. People don’t really see motorcycles as an alternate form of transportation, at least not in the USA. They are bought to enhance our image or feed our need for performance.

Frank Smith Campobello, South Carolina

Feelin' tipsy

Just wanted to say your “21 Tips: How Not to be a Newbie” sidebar to the “Best

Firsts” story was excellent. I’ve been riding dirt for 18 years, street for 11.

When I began working for my current employer,

I was one of only three motorcycle riders out of about 80 employees.

With gas prices rising, many of my co-workers have turned to motorcycles.

While it’s great to have more motorcyclists on the road, many of them do not take the motorcycle safety courses you referred to in the article before throwing a leg over their new investments. I’ve taught a handful of them techniques I have learned over the years,

but that may be the only instruction they ever receive. So it’s refreshing to see your very comprehensive list of tips. Thanks for a great magazine and for looking out for the motorcyclist, rookie and veteran alike. Jason Harris

Tallahassee, Florida >

In “21 Tips”” wearing a helmet doesn’t rate a mention, but armored riding gear and “proper” motorcycle boots do?! Jeffrey Jacobson

Cornwall, Connecticut

Let us just say, “D ’oh! ” Seemed so obvious, we overlooked it. Yes, in a crash, a helmet is your best friend.

Get a proper one, too, not one of those silly, DOT-cheating beanies.

Bonnie at 50

Associate Editor Blake Connor mentioned the celebration of the Triumph Bonneville turning 50 years old this year (Roundup, September). It appears to me that he is jumping the gun by a year. Although the Bonneville was definitely being developed toward the end of 1958, it was not available for sale to the public until 1959. Every book I’ve read on Triumphs lists 1959 as the first Bonneville. Those of us in the British Biker Cooperative plan to celebrate and honor the Bonneville at next summer’s rally.

Rich Reed

Colgate, Wisconsin

So, James Dean, Marlon Brando and Steve McQueen rode Triumph Bonnevilles, huh? Just thought I should inform Mr. Conner that the Bonneville wasn’t introduced until three years after Dean was killed in his Porsche Spyder. I think the only connection between Triumph motorcycles and Brando was the fact that he “rode” a Thunderbird in The Wild One. And while Steve McQueen may have owned a Bonneville, I suspect that his heart was really with the TR6C off-road competition model. Carl Best

Eugene, Oregon

On the warpath

So, another Indian revival? Just what we need.. .perfect timing (“Indian Lazarus,” CW, August). You can now buy any new Harley-Davidson you want directly off the showroom floor, no deposit needed, no waiting, no obscene dealer markup. H-D’s domestic sales have dropped 16 percent over the last two years. Harleys are actually beginning to seem like good deals on the used market.

Yes, there will always be a market for the 45-degree, air-cooled, pushrod-activated-valve V-Twin in our sport. Heck, I still love my Briggs & Stratton lawnmower. But surely we have reached the saturation point for modem motorcycles made on inefficient and dated architectures of the past.

I ponder these thoughts and others as

I prepare to go for a ride on my Boxer Twin. Jeff Sparks

Jasper, Alabama

The Egan Prophecy

Sadly, it appears that the honeymoon is over for Mr. Egan and the Velocette Venom. Let’s see, the snow melted in his last article, and now it’s taking more than six kicks to get her started (Leanings, September). If my math is correct, this British Single bliss lasted about two months?

That’s okay, though! I’m gettin oT Eeegs figgered out! We’re all in this together! He’ll break up with this sweetheart, only to rekindle the romance sometime in 2011. Then we’ll be reading a story about Peter driving his blue Chevy van to some gawdawful place to retrieve his beloved Venom. He’ll be reunited with his bike, we’ll be reunited with another good story, and everything will come filii circle (again). Gregg Tomchick

Anaheim, California

KC and the Sunshine Band of Brothers

It’s a good thing motorcycling remains the narrowly focused pursuit that it is, otherwise we would have lost Kevin Cameron to the wider world of journalism long ago. His recent story, “Superbike Showdown” (Race Watch, September), is but the latest example of his to-the-point, no-BS style. He entertains and informs without stretching for the foolish similes and analogies that some at other bike magazines do. Please send him out to cover more racing. He’s the best. Gerry Michaud

Marblehead, Massachusetts

Thank you for featuring what has got to be the greatest motorcycle show in the world the Legend of the Motorcycle Concours d’Elegance (“Coming and Going,” CW, September). I enjoyed reading about Kevin Cameron’s awe regarding the heri-

tage and history behind the bikes because I feel the same way each year. Thanks again for a great report! M. Lucas

Houston, Texas

Geez, I hate it when people write to you about picky stupid stuff they don’t like about your great magazine, but here I am. I just finished Kevin Cameron’s article on the most recent revival of the Indian brand. I’m a big fan of Kevin’s writing, but what the heck is a “portly Throckmorton?” Wikipedia was no help and Webster’s unabridged failed me for the first time in years. Please use words I can at least look up if they are not included in my very much abridged vocabulary. Joe Jarvis

Wenatchee, Washington

KC says you need to hit Google just a little harder: Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve was title character in the popular 1941-57 radio show “The Great Gildersleeve.” As a captain of industry-or at least a girdle-manufacturing company (“If you want a better corset, of course, it ’s a Gildersleeve ”)-he was portrayed in publicity photos wearing a three-piece suit with gold watch-chain across his expansive tummy.

Find the missing Buell

The MasterBike issue (CW, September) is always a pleasure to read. One question: Why was the Buell 1125R not included in the competition this year? The 1125R is the real deal and I believe it would have even given the inline-Fours a run for best lap time. Harlan Horvath Fresno, California

Good question, Harlan. MasterBike is set up and organized by our friends at Spain s Motociclismo magazine. We expected that an 1125R would be in attendance. Next year, we ’ll specifically request that a Buell be included. O