INDUSTRY INFOBITES

The Motorcycle Safety Foundation will help adventure and dual-purpost riders looking to learn fundamental off-road skills through its newest offering, the AdventureBike RiderCourse (ADVRC). The course features 12 excercises and an adventure prep discussion that will help riders better understand and control their motorcycle so that they can main offroad riding con dence and be ready to take on bigger adventure challenges, more advanced training, and participate in more tours, events, and rides.

“Adventure and dual-purpose motorcycles open a whole new world of riding possibilities,” said Erik Pritchard, president and CEO of the MSF. “Sales in this category have increased more than 40% since 2019. Creating a course to help those new, or a bit rusty, to riding off-road is a need we are excited to meet.”

The course is a single-day experience taken on a student’s personal ADV or dual-purpose motorcycle. All instruction is done on an MSF-recognized riding range under the guidance of MSF-certi ed ADVRC rider coaches. As availability of the course spreads nationwide, it will be easier than ever for riders to gain core off-road skills.

The MSF AdventureBike RiderCourse is currently available in 12 states through various private- and MSF-run training sites, and under the Adventure Touring Rider Course name through participating HarleyDavidson® Riding Academy locations.

“The AdventureBike RiderCourse will make core off-road skill building available nationwide and help these riders explore the capabilities of their motorcycles,” said Corey Eastman, director of rider education expansion. “We hope riders take this knowledge and go on to discover thousands of ADV riding opportunities.” More than 100 MSF coaches are working to become certi ed to teach the AdventureBike RiderCourse by year›s end. The msf-usa.org site will be updated regularly as new training sites come online.

More information available at the AdventureBike RiderCourse

Fifteen women ready for 2022 BUILD. TRAIN. RACE. opening round at Virginia International Raceway. Women racers and builders are reaching new heights in road racing in 2022, where the groundbreaking Royal En eld Build. Train. Race. (BTR) program ignited the biggest season yet. Fifteen women from across the country from different age groups and varied backgrounds came together for the six-round exhibition series, which started May 20-22, as part of the MotoAmerica venue at Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia.

“This is a landmark year for Build. Train. Race.,” said Breeann Poland, Marketing and Communications Lead – Royal En eld Americas. “Last year was incredible; we received such support from fans and the industry. And this year, everything is twice the size—our eld of riders, our schedule and our presence in the MotoAmerica paddock. We’re really going to wow people with a full grid of riders from all levels of experience. Among our new and returning riders, we can already see that the level of competition has come up. These ladies are going to put on a great show this season.”

From the excruciating process of handpicking participants over the winter, including new and returning racers, the BTR crew assisted each woman in the “Build” phase of the program. Generous sponsorship comes from Parts Unlimited, S&S Cycle, Harris Performance, Dunlop, Maxima Racing Oils, BOXO USA, Öhlins USA Suspension and Arai Helmets.

Each of the 15 participants received a Royal En eld Continental GT 650 motorcycle that they spent three months designing and building. The “Train” phase included a recent test session at Barber Motorsports Park with Sportbike Track Time, where the BTR Road Race women all got on the track together for the rst time. With some guidance and mentorship from Melissa Paris, racers were able to dial in their Continental GT 650 motorcycles, and the entire eld demonstrated that they are ready to race.

Touratech USA is excited to announce the opening of a new retail store and distribution center in Brook eld, CT. Located only a few miles from the New York border, the company invested in this expansion to better serve its customers living on the East Coast. The store will provide riders with an opportunity to see products in-person and speak directly with adventure motorcycling experts. Visitors can try on riding gear and get expert help tting motorcycle helmets, riding boots and more.

The Brook eld location will also provide customers with faster delivery times for the company’s phone and online sales. Be-

sides riding gear, the store will offer a wide range of Touratech products including crash bars, skid plates, protection items, suspension, luggage and GPS navigation. Adventure riders will also be able to shop other brands including KLIM, Garmin, CruzTOOLS, Backcountry Discovery Routes, Sidi, REV’IT, RAM and Butler Maps among others.

“We are excited about this expansion because it provides better service for our customers and allows them to experience our brand values with a retail experience. We believe this location will serve as a hub for the adventure motorcycling community on the East Coast. We’ve even partnered with Backcountry Discovery Routes to provide a retail location for BDR maps, stickers and logo-wear.” -Paul Guillien, CEO, Touratech-USA

Just outside of the Danbury city limits, the store is conveniently located right off US 7 / US202 and Interstate 84 which provide easy access from all directions. The store is 55 miles from Hartford, CT and 60 miles from the George Washington Bridge which connects New Jersey to Manhattan, NY.

It is now illegal in New Hampshire for law enforcement to pull over, search or arrest anyone simply because that person “rides a motorcycle or wears motorcycle-related paraphernalia.”

Governor Chris Sununu signed House Bill 1000 into law on Friday, May 20, 2022, making New Hampshire the fth state to prohibit the discriminatory practice behind Washington (2011), Maryland (2016), Louisiana (2019) and Idaho (2020).

Co-sponsored by longtime bikers’ rights leader Sherman Packard, House Speaker representing Londonderry, the bill prohibits law enforcement agencies from engaging in motorcycle pro ling, and states: “No state, county, or municipal law enforcement agency shall engage in motorcycle pro ling. In this section, ‘motorcycle pro ling’ shall mean use of the fact that a person rides a motorcycle or wears motorcycle-related paraphernalia as a basis for deciding to stop and question, take enforcement action, arrest, or search a person or vehicle under the United States Constitution or the New Hampshire constitution.“

Packard, an original member of the National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM) Legislative Task Force, testi ed before the House Transportation Committee that a previous encounter with a local police of cer convinced him New Hampshire still has a “small problem” with some pro ling of motorcyclists; “This is a problem, not as major in New Hampshire as it is in some other states, but I have personally been a victim of it.” , WHATCHATHINKIN’ Continued from Page 5 I was leaning into the turns pretty well and he said ‘not so much.’ He suggested taking a piece of tape and putting it in the middle of the fairing so I could see if I was actually moving from side to side. And I thought I was just about ready to touch my knee……

Misperceptions.

I would imagine the best example of misperception is judging a book by its cover; for instance, say you are on a ride and stop at a convenient general store. You are sitting on the porch, sipping a cold drink and relaxing, when a couple of ADV bikes pull into the lot, covered in mud. The two riders dismount, take a pull from their water bottles and look over at you and your motorcycle, which is far from being mud-covered or something that you’d want to ride on the BDR, but they ask, ‘Hey, did you just come through that water crossing?’ When you answer in the negative, they turn away, almost dismissively. Once a real conversation is started, you nd out that there is more in common with your riding than thought and you part ways, having exchanged cards, with much different ideas than when the helmets rst came off.

Be careful of your words, verbal or written, as they have meaning and if misperceived, may cause hurt unnecessarily. ,

FREE WHEELIN’ Continued from Page 4 the speaker he would have gotten a far friendly response by simply telling us where they’d like us to park now – maybe why too.

Most of us react in a perfectly human way – when treated like a person.

They simply want us to park across the street in the parking lot. Super easy, barely an inconvenience.

The next day I called the park to see what was what with the circle and spoke with a very polite and civil woman named Tabitha. I asked her about the motorcycle parking at the circle and she explained that, although they love having us riding the park, the motorcycle groups have gotten larger and larger over the seasons and many times the of ce, which is in the middle of the circle, was unreachable simply because there were far too many motorcycles to park in a safe and coherent manner.

Bottom line – we got too big. Thus the move to the far larger and most likely safer lot right across the street. It was a pleasure talking with her and she restored my faith in civil servants.

As for the unknown guy on the truck? He might take some civility himself from Tabitha. You see buddy, it was not what you said – but how you said it.

The same thing can be said about other things… loud pipes for instance – but, that will be another rant.

See you on the road! ,