Tabla de contenidos para December 2016 en Cycle World

1 WET BUT READY Getting caught in an unexpected shower shouldn’t put a damper on your ride. Designed to be worn over riding gear, the ISX Saint Rain Jacket ($79) and matching Croix Pants ($59) are lightweight, 100-percent waterproof, and breathable. The jacket features adjustable collar and cuffs, while the pants have zippered leg and drawstring waist. • (561) 571-1900 isxusa.com 2 FINGERS FIRST Proper gloves can eradicate dreaded dishpan hands when riding in wet conditions. The Rukka Harros GTX Glove ($199) is constructed of goatskin leather and Cordura with a waterproof and breathable Gore-Tex lining. It has padded knuckle protection and a combination of Outlast and light thermal insulation for warmth without the added bulk. • (866) 501-0510 rukka-usa.com 3 RAIN RUBBER Maintaining good footing on wet roads needn’t…

When you think of two heavyweights competing toe to toe for the title of best in the world, you can’t help but remember “The Fight of the Century” between Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali. Coined the great- est match in the history of boxing, the 15-round event in Madison Square Gar- den was the first time two undefeated boxers fought each other for the heavy- weight title. If you translate that to an engine and two wheels, there has been no greater rival ry between two “heavyweight champions” than Harley-Davidson and Indian. Both brands were formed in the early 1900s and, like Frazier and Ali, went toe to toe, fist to fist. When Indian left the game in 1953, Harley-Davidson took control of the American market and, in large part,…

It’s been said that racing is life, and everything else is just waiting. And maybe it is for the fancy guys who have made it to the top, flying in on jets and arriving to factory-run transporters and perfectly prepared machinery waiting trackside. But for thousands upon thousands of racers around the world, racing is life and everything else is…loading the van, driving the van, unloading the van, and then loading it again to drive some more. And also: sleeping in the van. It’s the ritual that’s the foundation of racing, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a MotoGP world champion who didn’t start out in the back of a van, most likely a white one at that. Our most direct inspiration for attacking MotoAmerica Superstock 1000 and a few…

I think your “Making It” comparison test of adventure bikes didn’t quite “make it” for me. If your comparison was directed toward something not as expensive and lightweight, then why didn’t you include the BMW F800 or the Triumph Tiger 800 instead? Most of these big bikes will never get off road much more than a hard-packed gravel anyway. The adventure bike market is popular now because a lot of us like the big-bike performance, long-travel suspension, and the upright seat/ride position. I still want some horsepower but don’t need the latest GSX-R, nor do I need to go that fast! As for the expert-level KTM, I’ll take one. A better bike can make a better rider. KTM 1290 Super Adventure for me. DENNIS KALTHOFF COLD SPRING, MN BOLDLY WE…

There’s a lot of loose talk about “motorcycles as art” in this red-hot custom-bike moment, but sometimes the shoe fits. The very best builds have tremendous artistry applied, and a very few transcend the motorcycle genre, rising to the realm of art. Bryan Fuller of Atlanta’s Fuller Moto thinks he’s finished with his “Shogun,” but after eight years of collaboration between three artisans at the top of their game, perhaps (like DaVinci’s dictum about art) the trio has merely abandoned the Honda CB550 in an exceptionally beautiful state. Fuller won’t add up the hours involved, nor the expense of working with a top-tier commercial graffitist (Totem) and master engraver (Tay Herrera) for so long. He only claims, “This is the most expensive CB Honda ever.” Even the handgrips, each thread…

Royal Enfield has a lofty goal: become the leading middleweight motorcycle company in the world by bringing fun and accessibility back to motorcycles. This begins with the all-new Himalayan, a bike built for the sole purpose of expanding the company’s reach and conquering the Himalayan mountain range—regardless of your skill level. At 410 pounds, the Himalayan is not light, but the weight is carried low in its all-new frame, so maneuverability is great and gravel antics are fun. The air-cooled, carbureted, 410cc singlecylinder UCE engine is willing to rev and is smooth in its delivery. Running amok in gravel lots, it flatters your riding without surging your adrenaline. It’s average in the nicest use of the word, in that it doesn’t make a fuss of being throttled, and it doesn’t…

LOW-OCTANE CAPACITY Q:I picked up my Victory Octane this April. I now have more than 5K miles on it, and I’m having more fun than a barrel of monkeys with it. I only have one complaint: The small tank is a royal pain. What can I do? Will a Harley tank fit with some modifications? Can my existing tank be modified? Will I have to carry a gas can with me the rest of my life? I’m sure the aftermarket will have a solution some day, but I can’t wait. I’m 70. Time is running out. MARCEL THOMAS HOBART, IN A: You must like getting into bar fights. Putting a Harley tank on your Indian? Really? My suggestion: Ride with a friend on his Interstate Norton Commando and you’ll never…

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Unlike those lanesplitting lunatics and front-flipping freestylers, you eschew needless risks. You also wear safety gear and don’t ride buzzed or overtly speed. Minding risks is a great way to enjoy a lifetime of injury-free riding, right? Sure, when it comes to busted wrists. But surprise: Long-term noise exposure inherent in riding can significantly contribute to permanent hearing loss. Dr. Phil Scheinberg is a licensed otolaryngologist (ear, nose, and throat physician). He is also a longtime car racer, a former streetbike rider, and all-around motorsports fan. “The inner ear’s delicate hair cells (stereocilia) vibrate in response to sound pressure stimuli, starting the elegant process of turning acoustic energy into electrical impulses your brain interprets as specific sounds,” he explains. “Unfortunately, these hair cells are vulnerable to the high sound pressure…

Indian is challenging the weight of history by building a race-only 750 dirt-tracker for AMA Pro Grand National events. Since Bill Tuman won Indian’s last Grand National Championship by topping the Springfield Mile on a Scout in 1953, Harley-Davidson-mounted riders have won the GNC 50 times. How do you like those odds? Indian’s challenge is its 109-hp V-twin FTR750 flat-track racebike, based on no production model. There is nothing more American in motorcycling than its century-old fairgrounds flattrack racing. Indian’s challenge asks, “Who is the most authentically American manufacturer?” When I search for a similar long shot, I think of Honda who, with the help of Gene Romero and others, turned its unlikely CX500 engine sideways and transformed it into the RS750, which won five AMA GNCs. Indian management heavies…

Expressionist artist Edvard Munch, who painted 1893’s haunting “The Scream,” went so mad during his career that he nearly lost his soul. A heavy price for art, but fabricator Michael LaFountain understands. After all, he experienced similar stressors while building this replica of an obscure but beautiful Kawasaki W1R, a period factory GP racer based on the production 1966 W1 streetbike. LaFountain stumbled across a blurry photo of the racer while researching W1s and it stuck with him. Actually, the picture of that W1R burrowed in like a demented woodland tick and would not let go. A veteran builder with his own Southern California shop, Raccia Motorcycles, LaFountain specializes in turning production Japanese motorcycles into British-looking café racers. That he would discover the W1 in 2009 was fate. It had…

Well here’s something you don’t see every day— a late adopter like yours truly actually coughing up $12K (plus tax, licensing, etc.) of his own money for a motorcycle we’ve not yet tested here in the magazine. Yes, last month I went out on a limb and bought a new 2016 Triumph Bonneville T120— right out of the crate—and took it in just yesterday for its 500-mile break-in service. Which was actually a 640-mile break-in service because I couldn’t stay off it for a full weekend. Truth be told, this was not completely a blind impulse purchase. I’d previously visited our local Triumph dealership, Team Triumph in Janesville, Wisconsin, to take a look at the first of these new liquid-cooled 1,200cc Bonnevilles when it came in. It was Cranberry Red…