You’ll realize how cheesy that headline is after watching the pretty rad video that Yamaha has released.

Yamaha’s new motocross bike has taken a radical new approach.  The engine is backwards.

Yamaha’s reason for doing this is to shift the heavy end of the motor more to the center of the motorcycle to make it more agile and responsive.  Slanting the cylinder also made for a straighter pathway for the air intake at the front of the bike.

Of course you can read about many more details and features of Yamaha’s YZ on Motorcycle.com where they just wrote a preview for it this week!  There’s also a bunch of photos to go through if you just don’t feel like doing any reading.

Check out the rest of the post for Yamaha’s official video on the 2010 YZ450F and also why I mention sketching (also, see if you can understand any of the equations that are scribbled down throughout the video) Continue Reading »

Not everyone can pull off a tattoo, I know I can’t.  Or maybe I’m just too scared to ink up my entire arm for the rest of my life, sporting a faded and stretched color blotch when I’m 75 with my grand kids trying to guess what it once was.

Well Harley-Davidson has a solution for me (and maybe you!)

Fake it!

Harley-Davidson’s new clothing line has been designed by “Tattoo Masters” to give you that authentic tattoo look, but on a shirt.

Show your individuality with H-D Ink, a new, limited-edition brand of MotorClothes® apparel. Inked by tattoo masters from around the world and cut from the highest-quality materials, H-D Ink is available exclusively at select H-D dealerships

They’re actually quite fashionable if yer into skulls, eagles, spider webs, and dragons.  I actually think the women’s shirts are way cooler then the men’s.  The prices range from $60 to $95 USD and can’t be bought online so head over to a dealership to pick a few up before they are gone.

See the rest of the post for a fancy H-D commercial and a few pics of their apparel.  Head over to Harley’s site to see the full line. Continue Reading »

James Cameron, the genius behind such movies as Aliens, Terminator 1 and 2, True Lies, and The Abyss, has a new movie coming out this fall.

“Avatar”, a sci-fi action movie, stars Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Giovanni Ribisi, Stephen Lang and Michelle Rodriguez, all of whom can be seen in the new pictures released yesterday by the studio.

In one of the images we see Sam Worthington wearing a Harley-Davidson shirt and sitting in a bar.  Is this the story of an average tough guy who rides motorcycles and plays pool in bars, turned action hero who saves mankind?  Does Sam’s character, “Jake Sully”, ever get on a motorcycle in the movie or just shows his Harley support by wearing the T-shirt?

Are motorcycles (especially Harley-Davidson motorcycles) an instant “this guy is a badass” tool/cheat used by movie directors/producers/writers to quickly paint a picture of their character as a tough guy?

Yes, and they’ve been doing this for a long time.

See the rest of the article to see a shot of the motorcycle “riding” tough guy from Avatar, and several more pictures.  I’ll toss in a synopsis for you in case you have no idea what this movie is about.  Stay tuned for the first trailer to come out tomorrow (I think!).

Continue Reading »

Scooters have exploded in major cities all over North America.  I remember seeing them long long ago and thinking “that’s adorable”.

Well no more! Scooters are the “new cool” for downtown workers.  I see business men and women jetting around on these things everyday and I can’t help but be a little envious (as I walk to the congested subway station). A downtown core can be your oyster with this handy and cheap form of transportation.

QLINK has just announced on Twitter (yes, we do pay attention to Twitter..) that their new Rave 50 and 150 scooters are now available.

I don’t know about you guys, but a motorcycle or scooter that is under 50cc around here doesn’t require a full motorcycle license.  That means anyone looking for a two wheeler to almost instantly jump on and go can grab this thing and be set.

And why QLINK?  I don’t know if you saw a post we did earlier, but they will deliver the thing right to your door if no QLINK dealer is near you!

Now, to convince my boss to order one for me and in exchange I’ll go out everyday on it and do a coffee run for him.

Check the rest of the article for more shots of the QLINK Rave 50.  Head over to QLINK’s website and have a gander at their Rave 150 as well.

Continue Reading »

As you may or may not know, Motorcycle.com has a motorcycle babes section full of scantily clad women on or around motorcycles (the motorcycle may not be pictured… ).  This babes section also allows you, the babe viewer, to vote on your favorite babe that’s up for the “Motorcycle.com Babe” title.

It’s been a heated race and I am happy to fill you in on the standings so far.  If your favorite babe is losing, get your friends to vote!

See the rest of the post to see the rankings so far!  Check out the Motorcycle.com babes section for way more girls.

Continue Reading »

There’s a great series running on Motorcycle.com all about getting you and your motorcycle ready for road racing.  If you are interested at all getting out on the track to be just like those MotoGP racers, you have some very interesting reading ahead of you.

The series is very extensive, it starts off with just you and your motorcycle and proceeds all the way to what you should expect, learn, know and bring to the track.  Any expenses made are highlighted in each article so you can get an idea just how much it will cost to get you on your way with this addiction.  The author, Jeremiah Knupp, took his 2000 Ducati 748 along on this journey.

Here’s 9 handy guides to help you start motorcycle road racing:

1. Introduction: Leaving the lawn chair

2. Geoff May: one man show to AMA pro – Pointers and Interview with Pro Geoff May

3. Prepping your bike for track school

4. Cleared for Take-Off: Getting Your Race License

5. Building a Supersport racer – the minimum

6. Building a Supersport racer – the priorities

7. Advanced Supersport modifications

8. Building a Supersport Racer – Stage III, the Finishing Touches

9. Preparing for your first race weekend

Even if you don’t plan on ever getting into road racing, I found the articles to be quite fascinating as to how Jeremiah Knupp (the author) got prepared for his new hobby.

Give the articles a skim at least, there’s some great pictures from photographer Holly Marcus to check out.  I’ve included a few shots below that I pulled from some of the photo galleries.

Continue Reading »

If you haven’t heard, or have seen the new 2010 Buell Blast, you should check it out before viewing the video below.

Buell has re-branded itself over the last month or so and have been taking a very close look at themselves.  Not only did they change their logo, but they decided to put to rest a motorcycle that just didn’t fit what they really wanted to be making.  Sport bikes.

So the 2010 Buell Blast is a crushed hunk of metal signifying the end of that model.  There will be no Blast in the future so don’t hold your breath!

From comments on our own blog and across the Internet, it seems that not everyone agrees with Erik Buell’s decision to kill this beginner motorcycle.

So to help everyone understand this decision, Buell has thrown together a video explaining why they killed the Buell Blast.  See the rest of the post for the 3 minute video.

For more Buell video, check out the Motorcycle.com Buell Video Channel.

Continue Reading »

We have been sent what the Motorcycle.com team seems to think are spy shots of the new Ducati Multistrada which is supposed to be liquid-cooled and faster.  Judging from the tape on the motorcycle pictured above, it looks like it was out for road testing and they didn’t want to reveal some details of the bike.

What more can I say?  They’re spy shots! What do you think of this thing? Is this the Multistrada update that Pete had in mind?

See more pictures after the jump.

Continue Reading »

In my search through the Motorcycle.com community forums (see the links at the very bottom of this page) to find some handy, insightful and practical tips or projects for readers to check out, I’ve stumbled across a few bizarre things.

I felt I had to post this one.  It is awesome and scary all at the same time.

Blackdog 15 of the harley-davidsonforums.com has posted his method on mounting a sidearm (or two) on his motorcycle.  He admits that he and a buddy had a few drinks to inspire them on how they would attach such instruments of death to their rides.

I guess it’s kind of obvious (and hilarious) that they had a few drinks.

See the rest of the post for some more pics.  Go sign up on harley-davidsonforums.com to give a friendly hello and a pat on the back for a job well done.

Continue Reading »

QLINK is taking online shopping to a new level with their ‘Ready-to-Ride’ delivery service.

What is Ready-to-Ride delivery?

Well, QLINK’s online store allows you to buy their motorcycles right from your computer chair.  It’s pretty surreal to be able to add a motorcycle to your “cart” and proceed to the online check out.

After purchasing a motorcycle online, QLINK will look for a QLINK dealership in your area for you to be able to pickup your new bike.  If there’s no dealership nearby, QLINK will DELIVER the motorcycle to you in a giant crate!

That’s pretty mind blowing and a pretty awesome way to help out your customers.  The bike is fully tested before being shipped and in most cases requires no assembly from the rider (except maybe attaching the mirrors).  The battery is even juiced up and ready to go.

Kudos to QLINK for this pretty amazing service they provide.

Check the rest of the post for a few shots QLINK took of one of their motorcycles being crated up for delivery.  Check out their online store to witness the whole “add to cart” motorcycle shopping.

Continue Reading »