Blog: Signs Along the Way
Scott ‘Bones’ Williams
November 20, 2012
I love word play as much as I love motorcycles, and entertaining ways to combine these two passions are conveniently posted along roads where I ride. Signs guide the way and state the rules, but more than a few give me reason to laugh out loud. Often it’s by accident, but other times by design. Signs... Read more »
Frightening Lightning
Scott A. Williams
March 7, 2012
The lesson I learned as a Cub Scout is still with me: “When thunder roars, go indoors.” In a pinch, an enclosed automobile qualifies as “indoors” because its steel shell can channel a lightning strike around the occupants. Motorcyclists aren’t so fortunate. We’re exposed in a thunderstorm.... Read more »
Crouching Panther, Hidden Ninja
Rider Magazine
April 12, 2011
Rider February 2011 On the cover of our current issue (February 2011) is the new 2011 Kawasaki Ninja 1000, a fully faired version of the Z1000 that features roomier ergonomics, an adjustable windscreen and touring accessories. Few motorcycle model names have been as enduring as Ninja. The name invokes... Read more »
From Young Urban Professionals to Middle-Aged Urban Pros: Thirty-Some Years of Death Valleying
Clement Salvadori
March 18, 2011
Some MUPs, having a very loose grasp of the way chess is meant to be played, met at the Kern Lodge in Kernville CA the day prior to the Death Valley weekend. A long, long time ago, roughly in the pre-Pleistocene age, three Young Urban Professionals (two MDs, one JD) happened to meet at the Rock Store,... Read more »
Some Days are Like That
Rider Magazine
January 17, 2011
When I was a kid, one of my favorite books was Judith Viorst’s Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, which is about the trials and tribulations of a young boy on a day when nothing goes his way. Alexander wakes up with gum in his hair. He finds no prize in his cereal box (his... Read more »
Dream Garage
Rider Magazine
December 28, 2010
Still full of Christmas spirit (and with monthly deadlines behind me), I’ve been thinking about my dream motorcycles. Here are my faves from the list of touring/sport-touring, cruiser, sport and dual-sport motorcycles. First off, my Dream Garage would not have all the clutter and boxes that’s currently... Read more »
Out of Gas
Rider Magazine
December 9, 2010
It’s been many years since I’ve run out of gas on a motorcycle, but I did just that coming home from work the other night. I’d left work on the Honda VFR1200F DCT with the intent to gas up before getting on the freeway. Somehow I simply forgot, hopped on the freeway and headed home. While I was... Read more »
Stayin’ Safe Advanced Rider Training
Rider Magazine
November 22, 2010
Left to right: Pete Tamblyn, Don Theile, Eric Trow, Jeff Abell, Bob Stallard, Chris Phillips, Ken Berendes and Bob McTavish on Stayin' Safe's inaugural Southern California Advanced Rider Training session. Last week Rider’s Riding Well columnist and motorcycle instructor Eric Trow was here... Read more »
Motorcycle Windshields, Er, Windscreens
Rider Magazine
November 17, 2010
Here at Rider magazine, we get mail. Boy, do we get mail–email, snail mail, even hand-delivered letters and notes on occasion (though no one ever brings us a cookie. Sniff.). We love it all, good, bad, critical and even incoherent, except maybe the ones pieced together from letters cut out of a magazine.... Read more »
Good Guys and Gals
Rider Magazine
September 29, 2010
This morning’s freeway commute was interesting. First, someone waved me ahead when I signaled that the Yamaha FJR1300 and I wanted to change lanes. This is highly unusual since the unwritten rule—at least on the roads I commute on in Southern California—is to speed up and get ahead of the person... Read more »
