WHAT’S INSIDE

Motorcycles, Travel

& Adventure

Publishers Brian Rathjen • Shira Kamil

Contributors Mark Byers, Dr. Seymour O’Life

Editorial Office BACKROADS, POB 620 Augusta, NJ 07822 phone 973.948.4176 fax 973.948.0823 email editor@backroadsusa.com online www.backroadsusa.com

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FREE WHEELIN’ BRIAN RATHJEN Looking Back

We had lunch the other day with our friend Roy.

I was having a required update on my BMW GS and Roy is now running Cross Country BMW’s shop in Hasbrouck Heights, so we arranged to drop off the bike around lunchtime, giving Shira and I a chance to catch up with an old friend.

We have been in the business for years, and so has Roy – who was once the regional rep for BMW, then press maven for Motorrad.

It’s hard to leave an industry like this and when he retired from BMW corporate, he found himself running CCBMW’s northern annex. Maybe, like Michael Corelone, they simply dragged him back in.

During this lunch, a lot of names came up and stories were retold.

Of course, the Colorado River incident was mentioned. We needn’t go into that now.

Like many of you, we have non-riding friends and family – but, for us, we have far more friends from riding than anything else.

Over the years we have been blessed with meeting so many great and interesting people, and I try to stay in touch with as many as I can – as the years, the miles, and the motorcycle industry itself have changed, putting distance between so many of our old friends and acquaintances.

Almost on schedule, I opened an email from another long-time friend Greg Frazier who had come across an article written by another even longer friend Fred Rau.

It was from Fred’s Contact Patch from June 2008 called The Passion of the Bike. In it, Fred went through the same thought process that Shira and I were now going through; thinking of how many superb human beings this sport has brought into our circle – which is far bigger than anything I ever dreamt of as a kid reading R.E. Howard’s Conan leaning up against the wall upback in Woodside, Queens.

The article talked about Riding Passion – and Greg, being Greg, made it a point to point out that he was mentioned.

What was scary… was reading the article that so many people Fred mentioned a decade and a half ago were part of our lives then and some, all these years later, still are.

Let’s start with the author and his wife Cherri – we have known these two now for twice that decade and a half – I know Fred – Jeesh!

Then there were the other names… Jon Seidel from American Honda, and the aforementioned Roy Oliemuller, along with our good friend Rob Mitchell, both from BMW. Dan & Judy Kennedy from Whitehorse Press could be found. Then there were folks we have met and just knew casually like Daytona 200 winner Walt Fulton and Dale Walksler, owner of Wheels Through Time, and a few others we have had the great fortune to have met because of riding motorcycles.

If I were penning an article like this… wait, I am –I would need to add Reg and Gigi Pridmore, the Alexander family, as well as Clement Salvadori, and

Continued on Page 9

Use itor Lose it

Back in December, Brian gifted me weekly piano lessons. Unlike the flute fiasco (which is a very long other story), I really had taken piano lessons for a minute when I was younger. My sister, Rowena, was the one with musical talent and fortitude, so she was the one who inherited the family piano when it was time. A few years ago, Brian decided that he might like to learn to play the keyboard so in came a not-full-size digital, which he noodled about and made some tunes. I, being older and wiser, sat down and found that I could still read a bit of music and, unlike my forced playing, I also found that I enjoyed it. I tried playing from the music books Brian had for guitar but was a bit frustrated so, come the new year, lessons were scheduled.

It’s been six months and I think I’ve made some progress. I play a pretty mean Star Spangled Banner and can accompany Brian when he plays guitar and calls out his chords. I try to practice every day (landing on three times a week is not too bad), and my weekly lesson session has just come to the end of the semester. I look forward to semi-regular lessons during the summer in between riding, magazine stuff and travels.

Just the other day Brian found something, also music related, that was very interesting. The Tone Traveler relies on the principle that audible frequencies can physically move matter to help migrate the drying sap inside the wood grain of an instrument in order to make the instrument more resonant. As the sap dries, it forms crystalline structures that can be fractured by sound waves further changing the resonance of the instrument. With the ingress and egress of moisture, the crystalizing sap in the grain of wood can become more or less liquid allowing it to resettle, causing an instrument to “fall asleep”. This is also why older instruments that have been played for decades sound better than instruments of the same age that have been left unplayed.

I know that Brian plays his guitar(s) every day, rotating between acoustic and electric. This process of keeping the resonance of the instrument takes away some of the need to physically play it every day, making the guitar sound oh so much richer if picked up less frequently.

So, what’s all this muscical stuff have to do with riding? I know that if I miss a few days of playing I have fallen backwards just a bit. As with the use of the Tone Traveler, if Brian doesn’t pick up a particular acoustic guitar for a while, the sounds coming from it will be just a bit flatter.

The same thing applies to our riding. Even if you are taking your motorcycle every day to work, riding the same route, perhaps on the highway, the mechanics of your riding are just that. Or perhaps ‘life’ gets in the way and you aren’t able to go for any good, long rides on varying roads for a spell. Either way you might lose some of the fluidness and rhythm that makes riding so much better. When we are able to ride a combination of fast, straight tarmac and twisty country lanes, our brains need to adapt to all the music of the road, taking in the different tempo, from adagietto to allegro.

Following that line of thought, opening your mind to other types of riding will make you a more balanced motorcyclist. I know that when I’m finished with my sessions at VIR with CLASS or the dirt lessons I just took at DC Dirt Camp, I am much more aware of what I am doing right or wrong and my riding becomes more of a joy, almost lyrical. When I am not able to get on my bike for a time, my brain needs to concentrate a little more, the crystalizing sap needs to be fractured and resettled.

We’ve always touted taking riding classes, of any kind, to strengthen your skills and open the envelope. There isn’t really any substitute to keeping the mind fresh, like the Tone Traveler, for your motorcycle riding. I think that most of you reading these pages are passionate about riding and opt to be on your bike over almost anything else. You know that the music of the road is some of the sweetest sounds you can hear.

For those who might be a little tone-deaf, just try turning up the volume a little, flip the page to the next lesson and let the music move you. ,

Red Ryder

Motorcycling attracts “characters” and that’s an apt description of my old friend Red. Picture a garrulous, stumpy, red-haired, Italian/Anglo, Navy-veteran, motorcyclist from Philly. When Red got out of the Navy in the 60’s and came to work at Patuxent River, the base was in a heyday of flight tests of interesting, and usually dangerous, new aircraft. There were several squadrons with tons of Navy men here and the local community reflected the wide-open Navy lifestyle. The main road out of the base was lined with pawn shops, bars, and strip joints that catered to sailors who sallied forth with their pay. St. Mary’s County was known as “little Las Vegas” because gambling was legal: even the local Rexall Drug Store had 35 slot machines.

Allegedly, the county had more alcohol-selling businesses per capita than any other place in the nation. The very first mixed drink I had when I came here in ’86 was from a drive-up window (I was a passenger). We still have several liquor stores with drive-up windows, although getting a mixed drink in a “go cup” is no longer legal. The county even had a small island, accessible only by boat, whose sole habitation was a bar/brothel. It was into this barrel that Red and his motorcycles were cast.

Red was a big fan of BMW’s and the K75 triple suited his small stature but desire for performance. I saw an old picture of him next to a Harley, but I don’t know if he had one. He had a selection of machines, but in later days, K75 BMW’s with and without sidecars were his cup of tea. He was a member of a local organization called the Silver Wheels Motorcycle Club whose members were as crazy as he was. It wasn’t a one-percenter club: Red and his friends represented a far more eclectic, rare sample of the population. One of the stories he told was of Red and his buddy John - a handlebarmoustached character in his own right - doing a “road rally” whose rules were never clear to me, but which apparently involved the sidecar passenger chucking an open bag of flour onto competing vehicles in the rally (which included both bikes and cars). The details are hazy because the participants were a little hazy at the time of both the rally and the story.

During the heyday of the Silver Wheels, not only was gambling legal, but the local constables were very lenient when it came to drinking. Being pulled over would result in being told to drive home on the shoulder or, if the impairment was deemed worse, a ride home in the back of the cruiser. This was a perfect environment for Red and his friends. One story he told on himself was using his last shred of consciousness to get his K75 home, whereupon he put down the stand and fell off the bike. Unable to go farther, he slept on the driveway until awakened the next morning by his longsuffering wife, Marie, because the neighbors were beginning to ask if he was dead. Red’s guardian angel worked overtime.

Red existed before the age of bike-to-bike Bluetooth, but stifling him was impossible, so he developed a repertoire of hand signals intelligible largely only to him. He’d ride down the road trying to communicate, but by all appearances, he was having a seizure. One time he and his friend John (of road rally infamy) were riding together and John’s attention wandered, which it was prone to do. Red slowed to render some hand signals and John rode right into the back of him. I remember Red leading us with his sidecar rig on a ride to Morton’s BMW Open House and, while he was looking in his mirrors to make sure all his “ducks were in a row” and waving his arms in some indecipherable semaphore, he rode right through a red light. But his longsuffering guardian angel was on duty once again, so he came to no grief.

Red would share many stories as we enjoyed breakfast at the local cafe where we’d meet before a ride, his eyes alight with mirth. He was a true motorcycling raconteur who delighted in talking, riding, and talking about riding. Regular readers will know I write about “the usual suspects” and he was the most suspect of them all! And now, he can finally thank his recentlyretired guardian angel in person, probably in some combination of ribald tales and indecipherable hand signals. ,

Thanks Shira.

Can’t tell you how enjoyable and helpful Backroads has been in planning trips. And your Inside Scoop is an absolute favorite of mine. You wouldn’t believe how many shops I’ve visited thanks to those articles.

Stay Well

Frank J Matullo

Free Wheelin’ – Mrs. Davis

Hi Brian,

About that. First let me say that in general I feel that all the modern digital and electronic gizmos are tools like any other. They can be used for good, evil, and stupid. Granted, some of the tools (Like nuclear reactors) and very dangerous and need to be kept out of the hands of ….well …assholes. That said I too just acquired an XT2. It is my first GPS. In spite of (or because of) being ridiculed for living in a cave, I held out all these years. It has been and is a point of pride for me that I know how to read a map. (OK Millennial). The thing is, I used to be able to look at a map, plan a detailed ride in my head and remember it. Or scan a rip and ride (remember when we had paper rip and rides to actually rip?) and remember that too. The remembering part is getting to be a problem so clearly, I do need this electronic crutch.

I don’t understand you’re lamenting the eminent demise of BaseCamp.

Frankly more than anything that was what I was really waiting for before I took the plunge. I tried to use BaseCamp several times and came close to throwing the computer through the window.

The XT2 seems so much simpler and intuitive. I don’t have it completely mastered yet, but I am leaving for Milwaukee via the North Shore of the Lakes on Sunday. I think I have the basics down well enough for a successful trip. If not I have paper maps (yes you can still get them) with me for backup. When I get back we should talk and compare notes.

Best

Danny

Hey Backroads,

Just read May 2023 Free Wheelin - when I bought my KLR in 2009 I posted a picture on the message boards and I got ripped apart on how clean my bike was, even comments on the tires having Armor All on them, that freaked a lot of guys out. Two weeks prior I was up to the seat in a water crossing and in clay type mud. I’m an ex -80’s moto-cross racer. Me personally I keep my stuff, shop, bikes cars like NASCAR, super clean. How do you work on a dirty bike? Do you really want dirt to end up in the carburetor or in the motor.

I wished them well and called them “dirt merchants”. Aerostich sells a bottle of mud to splash on your bike if you feel the need.

Never underestimate a rider’s skills, who has a clean bike!

Harvey Mushman

DAVE SWISHER • RIP

Morton’s BMW is sad to announce that David Swisher, for years the king of high mileage on BMWs, has passed away at the age of 93.

Morton’s had the distinct pleasure of awarding David his numerous mileage awards, concluding with one for 1.8 million miles on BMWs. The photo commemorates that occasion with (from left) Morton’s BMW owner Jeff Massey, David and Mary Swisher, their son Jim, Laurence Kuykendall (then with BMW Motorrad USA), and Muriel Farrington from the MOA and a good friend of the Swishers.

A retired dairy farmer, Davis was the first person to document 1,000,000 miles on BMW motorcycles, and BMW Motorrad USA named the million mile award after him. Aside from the staggering number of miles he rode, perhaps the most amazing part of his story is that he didn’t start riding

BMWs until he was in his 40s. He kept riding, through various health issues, over the years, the deaths of both Lyle Grimes – a frequent riding partner and fellow million-mile rider – and David’s wife Mary. Eventually, David had to give up two -wheeled riding, but he then bought a CanAm Spyder and put tens of thousands of miles on it before hanging up his helmet for good.

David Swisher was a true legend, and will be missed at Morton’s BMW and in the motorcycling community at large.

Mic Claims Industry Flatas Sales Dry

The Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC) has released their 2022 Motorcycle Statistical Annual, a comprehensive collection of data about the motorcycle business in America, featuring detailed information on vehicle population, owner demographics, product use, sales, market share, manufacturers, distributors and dealerships nationwide.

“While 2022 is pretty much flat compared to 2021 and 2020, it still is a significant increase from 2019,” explains Buckner Nesheim, MIC Director of Research & Statistics. The industry’s reference book has been updated and the data indicates 2022 sales of new motorcycles and scooters decreased by -3.5% over the previous year, while ATVs decreased -12.7%.

“When we compare 2022 to 2019 sales, off-highway is up +36%, on-highway is up +4%, and scooters are up +12%,” notes Nesheim. “Dual sport (ADV) is a tremendous growth story. Sales in this category have increased every year since 2016 and more dual sport motorcycles were sold in 2022 than in any other year since we started collecting data in this category in 1990.”

MIC data for the full year 2022 shows total powersports industry new model retail sales at -6.2% (733,537 units compared to 781,806 units in 2021). Domestic U.S. on-highway retail motorcycle sales were 297,174 units for the year (-5.4%); scooters at 22,181 units (-4.3%); dual sport models (ADV) were 72,643 units (+0.0%); off-highway motorcycles were -5.0% (145,216 units), with ATV retail sales -12.7% at 196,860 units.

Ducati Joinswith Local Artist

Ducati North America has partnered with acclaimed artist Mickalene Thomas and the RxART children’s charity to auction a unique, hand-painted 2024 Scrambler Ducati Icon during the Modern and Contemporary Art program by Heritage Auctions back on May 23. Proceeds will benefit the RxART children’s charity as part of a Ducati partnership with men’s clean skincare brand, ATWATER.

Ducati is proud to continue its partnership with ATWATER beginning earlier this year. The first phase of the collaboration resulted in a limited-edition custom soap bar, with proceeds benefiting RxART. Now, in the second phase, RxART has commissioned celebrated artist Mickalene Thomas for the upcoming Heritage auction.

As an acclaimed artist of her generation, Mickalene Thomas is renowned for her ability to explore the intricate interplay between race, femininity, and beauty through her unique artistic language. Her distinctive aesthetic and exceptional skills make her an ideal partner for the transformation of a Scrambler Ducati into a work of art. Thomas’ expertise in material and image creation imbues the Scrambler Ducati Icon with new opportunities of color, style, and concepts.

The auction’s proceeds will go toward funding RxART’s installation at the newly opened SUNY upstate: Nappi Wellness Institute in Syracuse, NY. RxART’s mission is to introduce contemporary art into children’s hospital settings, creating uplifting and engaging healing environments. Ducati is honored to support these efforts in transforming the lives of those in need.

MIC TO ADD “ADVENTURE BIKE” TO MARKET SEGMENT

With the growing popularity of the adventure bike market segment, the Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC) has announced it will add a new category to its Retail Sales Report (RSR) for the first time in decades. The MIC Research & Statistics Department will divide the adventure and dual sport categories as specific types underneath the general dual heading in the April RSR.

Motorcycle Training Graduates Exemptedfrom Skills Testin Kentucky

Senate Bill 60, a bipartisan bill introduced by Senator Brandon J. Storm was signed into law by Governor Andy Beshear on March 17, 2023 “to exempt applicants for a motorcycle operator’s license who have passed an approved motorcycle safety education courses from written and skills testing required under KRS 186.480.”

Under this measure, passed unanimously 98-0 in the state senate, Kentucky now joins with many other states where rider training course graduates can obtain a waiver for the riding skill test and/or written knowledge test portion of their state’s license exam requirements.

Big Fourto Conduct Joint Researchon Hydrogen Motorcycles

Japan’s Big Four motorcycle manufacturers will conduct research and development together, announcing a bold new plan to cooperatively develop hydrogen-powered motorcycle engines. Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, and Yamaha executives all gathered at a Tokyo press conference on May 17 to announce the formation of HySE, which stands for “Hydrogen Small Mobility and Engine Technology.”

HySE will pursue three main research and development areas, with responsibilities for each divided among the four OEMs as follows:Research on hydrogen-powered engines (Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, and Kawasaki Motors); Study on hydrogen refueling system (Yamaha); and Study on fuel supply system (Kawasaki Motors).

Clean “green” hydrogen is theoretically possible, though it’s been prohibitively expensive to produce, but according to the US National Resources Defense Council, implementation of the massive hydrogen tax credit included in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 could be a game-changer in terms of clean hydrogen development incentivization for companies. ,

Product Spotlight

WHATISTHE POCKET TRIPOD?

Pocket Tripod Prouniversal Kit

As per the name, the function of the Product Tripod is to act as a highly portable and convent way to have a tripod with you at all times. Shaped like a standard-sized credit card (with a patented design) it has a fold-out mechanism that allows you to transform and angle the tripod in a variety of ways for different photo or video shots. Its main innovation comes from its circular fluid tilt adjustment that allows the tripod to be precisely fine-tuned for pointing to key angles (5-degree minor and 15-degree major divisions). The convenience comes with how well it fits inside a wide variety of different wallets from the very largest to the smallest. When travelling on your motorcycle, you don’t want to take up space with bulky photo equipment and as most phones today have such great cameras built in, even taking a 35mm digital camera has become passe. The Pocket Tripod will easily tuck inside wallet or tank bag side pocket.

Device Compatability

One important aspect when going about purchasing the Pocket Tripod is will it work with my smartphone? The simple answer is yes, but it will depend on which version of the Pocket Pro you choose.

In total, there are two different models/versions of the Pocket Pro from which you can choose. The first is the single size version. While being the cheapest, it allows you to chose the right version for your phone but doesn’t provide any additional mounts. For example, if you decided to switch phones or somebody wanted to borrow your Tripod with a different phone, there are no adapters to, well, adapt. The alternative version, the universal kit, does exactly what it says on the package and allows the Tripod to be used on a larger array of different smartphone.

(Quick note:Remember to take into consideration any case you might have on your phone also).

MATERIAL & QUALITY

The Pocket Tripod has been built with fantastic attention to detail and quality materials. Made from 3K Twill carbon fiber, precision CNC’d, and over-molded with plastic, the Pocket Tripod is incredibly lightweight yet durable. Carbon fiber is most notorious for its use in high-performance sports cars.

Along with this, parts used to connect the hinges and overall mechanism are incredibly well manufactured and designed and won’t be broken even under incredible strain (even though it does feel quite brittle at times in the hand. It can really handle stress and strain). Finally, the tripod is also available in a small but eclec-

Free WheeLin’ Continued from Page 3

Mark Tuttle from Rider Magazine along with Jon Rall and Mike Vaughan from Kawasaki – always stalwart friends to us and to Backroads… and so many others. But that is just on the business-side of the motorcycle industry.

It is on the personal level that this list would most likely take up most of this issue. There are so many of you we have met and befriended simply because of our shared love of motorcycles.

But, what about you?

We are very aware of the fact that Backroads has allowed so many of you to meet, bond, ride, and grow together.

Ask yourself how many good people you count as friends have been brought into your life by this magazine? We hope more than just a few.

It is probably Backroads’ greatest legacy. There is a mystique about the solo rider, tearing across the open desert with a plume of dust in their wake. But, in truth, we think it is not about the solo adventures, but rather the friends and bonds we created, nurture, and grow during the journey that make the backroads worth riding. See ya on the road! , tic array of color options. At checkout, you can choose between five different colors including Black, White, Green, and Pink. They often also release new colors to keep things fresh if you’re ever looking for a more distinctive or unique look.

The Universal SingleSize sells for $30 and the Universal Kit is just $10 more – seems like a nobrainer to get the full kit. The website is very comprehensive and will walk you through sizing for your phone and case. The Pocket Tripod is a great accessory for any road trip to capture those special moments, especially when you are on your own. www.pocket-tripod.com