Innholdsfortegnelse for January/February 2026 i Motorcycle Mojo Magazine

Honda was founded in 1948, and the Japanese manufacturer has since produced a number of milestone motorcycles. These are bikes that have been around for decades, and have had a significant impact on motorcycling. The Honda Super Cub, for instance; it’s the unassuming step-through on which you were likely to “meet the nicest people.” It has introduced millions to motorcycling, and more than 100 million have been made since it was launched in 1958. Then there’s the pint-sized Z50 Mini Trail. Countless kids hit the trails for the very first time on this easy-to-ride, semi-automatic minibike. While today’s CRF50F has more contemporary styling, it is nonetheless a direct descendant of the original Z50M introduced in 1967. The CB750 — Japan’s first inline four motorcycle — changed the motorcycling landscape in…

Before I understood what life on the road could offer, my first big ride was all about indulging in the pull of vast landscapes and absorbing the sacred connection between rider and machine. That still applies. But ride far enough — through a diversity of countries, climates, and chaos — and the road changes you. Not with one grand flourish, but slowly and almost imperceptibly. More than a journey, the road became a teacher, revealing that the real terrain I was crossing was internal — charted not on the Garmin but in the gradual surfacing of self-belief, blind spots, and the person I was becoming all along. THE MILES BETWEEN THE MILESTONES Somewhere along that long, winding route, it stopped being just my story as a new rider. My partner,…

I’ve ridden in some wild winds before, but nothing like this. I’d just swung around the bottom western edge of New Zealand’s South Island and was met with a savage squall thrown at me by a ferocious Southern Ocean. It was wind so fierce that slow and steady wasn’t even an option. Against my instincts, I eventually worked out that riding a smidgen over 100 km/h and getting tucked as low as I could get behind the windscreen was the best way to remain upright and with the most control amid such strong and gusty winds. I was grateful for the Southland region’s remoteness as wind blasts forced me onto the wrong side of the road. New Zealand’s South Island is a bucket-list destination for motorcyclists worldwide, offering a mix…

Pictured here is John Alton and his passenger, Bob Barrow, sitting on John’s 1951 BSA B33 500 cc motorcycle in front of the House of Commons in Ottawa in 1954. They had ridden from Windsor and continued on to Quebec before returning home. The 1949 Matchless 500 cc twin in the background belonged to Bill Scott of Windsor. The second photo of John Alton (90 years young) with his 1954 BSA Gold Star was taken in 2024. Bob says, “John phones me every nice day for a ride. Recently we rode our BSA Goldies to La Salette, Ont., for lunch, about 90 miles for John and 120 for me.” SUBMISSIONS TO REMEMBER WHEN? ARE ALWAYS WELCOME. IF YOUR PHOTO(S) IS PRINTED WE WILL SEND YOU $25.00 HIGH RESOLUTION DIGITAL PHOTOS…

On October 13, 2025, Polaris announced that it will sell Indian Motorcycle to Carolwood LP, an independent private equity firm. The company was founded in Los Angeles in 2014 and deals primarily in real estate and corporate divestitures. That second bit might be a concern to Indian Motorcycles, as well as the brand’s loyal customers, because a corporate divestiture is the downsizing or selling off of a company or branch of a company to raise capital or increase the value of the mother company for investors. During a Bloomberg interview, Carolwood’s Spencer Towill, head of mergers and acquisitions, said that “85-90 per cent of our pipeline is corporate divestitures.” The good news is that Carolwood doesn’t seem to be in the business of liquidating companies, but rather in buying them…

Originally released in 2020, the KTM 390 Adventure was a good entry-level motorcycle, but lacked some off-road focus. It was a great bike for someone who didn’t know what they were missing in the dirt. Interestingly, the 2025 KTM 390 Adventure R, headed up by celebrated racer Quinn Cody, was in the works since before the original 390 was released, ensuring it would stand up in the segment KTM seemingly created. To list off what has changed between the last generation 390 and this one would be a waste of words, so I’ll say this: the new 390 Adventure and Enduro platform is a new beast that only shares a name with its predecessor. “KTM MADE IT EASY TO CHANGE RIDE MODES AND MAINTAINS THE RIDER’S LAST PREFERENCES AFTER THE…

Never would I think that a simple YouTube video would grow into an entirely new chapter for a once-retired race team. Here, director and producer Peter Goertz describes the making of the film Nitro – The Williams Dynasty. As an amateur filmmaker behind the YouTube channel Pete’s Classic Cycle, I found myself looking for my next story. A friend, Jim Breslin, suggested I talked to John Williams, the world-famous hillclimber. Being unfamiliar with both John and the sport of hillclimbing, I was reluctant, but Jim persisted and made arrangements for an introduction. After an hour-long phone call, I knew there was something there. Not only is the story incredible but John himself is a true showman — a winning combination. It was also during this call that John mentioned, “You…

You know a motojournalist likes something when he pays for it rather than trying to describe it as a “test” product. And if, for instance, said motoscribe bought the same tires no less than five times for his 2018 much-pampered Suzuki DL1000 XT, well then, that would be the ultimate proof of genuine admiration. Now, truth be told, I pay for most of the accessories I test within these pages. That doesn’t alter the fact that I did buy five sets of Avon Trailriders in a row for my V-Strom. Blessed with decent longevity, excellent grip and — the main reason I loved them so — perfectly “linear” steering, never once, after having tested numerous other brands, have I opted for anything else. Until Avon — recently acquired by Goodyear…

Remember the good old days when motorcycle brands had specialties? Kawasakis were a little mad (okay, a lot mad), Hondas were reliable, BMWs were the tourers and Ducatis were eccentric — that should be read “unreliable” — but beautiful, fast and, well, a little cranky. There was surprisingly little overlap which meant that, if you were shopping a specific kind of motorcycle, the choices were obvious. I, for instance, owned various versions of the first three. A Kawi Mach III 500-cc triple two-stroke that was as barking mad as reputed. I also owned both a BMW R75/5 and, later, an R1100RS, both bought — no surprise here — for long-distance touring. I also rode a whole slew of Hondas for when I got sick and tired of being left stranded…

Invercargill’s Classic Motorcycle Mecca remains the southern hemisphere’s most comprehensive motorcycle museum, housing over 300 meticulously curated machines spanning more than a century of motorcycling history. Located in a beautifully restored two-storey Art Deco building in the heart of the city, Classic Motorcycle Mecca is a must-visit. Originally founded in 2016 when a vast private collection of historic motorcycles was acquired, the museum has since expanded, now featuring an extensive collection that includes vintage, classic and racing bikes, along with an ever-growing array of motorcycle-related art and memorabilia. The John Britten tribute remains a centrepiece, celebrating the Kiwi engineering genius and his revolutionary machines, while the Burt Munro exhibit continues to captivate visitors with its insight into the man behind the legend. The attention to detail in the museum’s presentation…

The creation of the Ducati bevel-drive V-twins, and the early days of their quixotic evolution into the kings of Formula 750 racing — able to defeat their British, German and Italian rivals as well as the latest and greatest from Japan in top-level competition — are recounted in this latest book by Alan Cathcart. In it, the noted British racing journalist not only records the technical evolution of Ing. Fabio Taglioni’s unique designs, but also crucially tells us what they were like to ride via his own hands-on experience from the hot seat. This one-of-a-kind book features track tests of legendary motorcycles like the Ducati 750 desmo on which Paul Smart claimed victory at Imola in 1972, as well as its little-known predecessor, the Ducati 500 GP Bicilindrica. Cathcart also…

GIRDER FORKS: THE GENTLEMAN AND THE BAD BOY It was strictly by chance that, after learning to ride on a more traditional motorcycle, Ian Taylor became enamoured with vintage motorcycles — and more particularly, girder forks. This is the story of restoring not one but two girder fork bikes. GAINING TRACTION It’s no surprise that many a rider has slowly moved from tarmac to a little gravel or even dirt on their adventure bike. Those road skills don’t necessarily translate well to the newfound lack of traction. Enter eRag’s cross-training enduro camp. The theory is that it’s best to perfect your off-road riding on a supplied small bike before progressing to your large ADV bike — you can bet that a pilot of a 747 jumbo jet didn’t learn to…