BACKFIRES
LETTER OF THE MONTH
Back To Basics
J
ust got my American Motorcyclist and read it cover to cover. Congratulations to Mitch Boehm and the new staff, as it’s the best Motorcyclist I have read in years. The feature on Malcolm Smith and the article on Harley-Davidson both read right to my heart. Having turned 74 this past January and having ridden motorcycles since 1958, you might say I have been there and done that. Really looking forward to the next issue. Promise us old dudes you will not switch to a digital-only publication. I know all the reasons, but I have copies of various moto mags, some of which are 50 years old, that I can pick up and reread and smile at the memories. John J. Black | Huntsville, AR #3332040 Promise, John! -Ed.
Reading that excellent article about Malcolm in the April edition, and his femur problems, reminded me of a day in 1964 when a tree jumped in front of me on my motorcycle and broke my right femur. The doc fixed it with a long rod, and I asked if the rod had to stay in or could be removed. “Do you plan on continuing to ride motorcycles?” he asked. “Yes.” “Well, just think if you had the same accident, breaking the femur and bending the rod, so we’ll take it out in two years.” I’m now 81, still riding, rodless, with a well-healed femur. Clement Salvadori | Atascadero, CA AMA #77415 Mitch, the Malcolm Smith piece in the April issue is perhaps the best you’ve written. It certainly struck a chord with me. We have similar history, as I was 13 when I discovered motorcycling. Trans-
AMA at Carnegie, must have been ’71, and Laguna Seca in ’72. Thanks, Dad. I wish you were still here. I remember Parkhurst, Neilson, Jennings, Seimen, and Art Friedman is also etched into my brain. Call me old and old-fashioned, but I love the print and the stories. I avoid the computer in my downtime; too much time spent there for work. A dozen bikes in the garage now, some street, some dirt, some new, some old, all ridden with gusto. The passion that was born some 50 years ago still burns. I’ll add that I had the pleasure of crossing paths with Malcolm in Bahía de Los Ángeles maybe seven or eight years ago. It was an epic ride and a meeting in Baja that will never be forgotten. Keep it coming and thank you. Jeff Banister | Pleasanton, CA I just got my new issue of American Motorcyclist and thought I’d just scan
it and maybe save for later. Well, an hour later I’d say well done! It’s a fresh reminder of how much I looked forward to getting printed magazines each month, as I have let all my subscriptions to gone-digital magazines lapse. Harley recently announced that its HOG magazine is going digital and asked what members thought; I responded by telling them not to bother with a renewal notice. There is just something to the printed word! Enjoyed the article on Malcolm. It really gave a side I had never heard before. Keep up the good work. Rick Steen | Altus, OK The April issue was the best I’ve read in a very long time. Not sure if Mitch deserves all the credit [No chance! -Ed.] but I suspect he had a big part in the recent changes. I often gave past issues just a cursory glance, but I read this one cover to cover. Great job! I understand the transition to digital media, but as an old fart I grew up turning pages and much prefer it. Don Kathke | AMA #632283 A huge Hurrah! to Mitch Boehm for his excellent Malcolm Smith tribute in the April issue. But please give us some background on the big-fin Greeves MX bike — wearing an “XLR900 HarleyDavidson” badge — that’s shown with Malcolm, Mert and that McQueen dude on pages 20-21. I suspect it may have been Mert’s playbike at the time? Lindsay Brooke | Plymouth, MI Rumor has it Mert didn’t want to make his bosses in Milwaukee unhappy, though do we think anyone was fooled? We do not! -Ed. Thank you for your article celebrating Malcolm Smith’s 80th Birthday. I agree, time flies when you are having fun. It seems yesterday that, as a 14-year-old, my mother bought a used Husqvarna for my birthday. I had just completed my first filter cleaning on my new, to me, bike and came up missing a washer. At 14 I didn’t see a problem and decided
Letters to the editor are the opinions of the AMA members who write them. Inclusion here does not imply they reflect the positions of the AMA, its staff or board. Agree? Disagree? Let us know. Send letters to submissions@ama-cycle.org; or mail to American Motorcyclist Association, 13515 Yarmouth Drive, Pickerington, OH 43147. Letters may be edited for clarity and brevity.
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