11/26/23
For a large part of the country, motorcycle riding season has ended or is in its waning days. It’s time to winterize the ride and tuck it away in the garage until things thaw out. It’s also the time to try to squeeze in one more road trip—roll the dice and hope the weather holds until you hit the home stretch. I can hear the Southern states now, “What are you talking about? We ride year-round in these parts!” Well, on behalf of those snowbound states: Shut it! No need to rub it in…
Well, to celebrate those who did and are squeezing in one more ride, I’ve selected a collection of tests and rides that we recall as solid road trips. And for those who have run out of time—live vicariously through our editors.
You can’t have a collection of epic road trips without Peter Egan. He has a knack for putting you in his seat when he hits the road. We could have filled up the entire newsletter with just Egan’s finely crafted articles. First up: “Smoke Trail Motorcycle Tour: Riding the Blues Highway from Memphis to New Orleans on Indian Motorcycles.” Egan and Cycle World Editorial Director Mark Hoyer hit the road from Memphis to New Orleans on a pair of Indian cruisers, in search of good food and music. “I have to get my Highway 61 music and food fix every few years or I become erratic and morose,” Egan said.
There’s always the option of heading to other parts of the globe when the winter won’t allow riding at home. CW’s Photography Director Jeff Allen jetted off to Nepal to join a Royal Enfield tour from Kathmandu to the Forbidden Kingdom of Lo Manthang, and I have to admit I was more than a little envious of his adventure.
Nearly every Cycle World comparison test is a road trip. We cover big miles over several days to find out which bike rises to the top, but I’m going to let you in on a little (not so) secret: Comparison tests give us the budget and time to ride where we really want to. There’s tons of work, no doubt, but there are those moments where the words “work” and “job” disappear from our consciousness.
Hope you get that “one more” before it’s too late this year; if not, we’ll keep the seats and engines warm for you here.
As always, there’s more than we can fit into this email. Check out cycleworld.com for additional tests, reviews, and news.
Ride on,
Justin Dawes
Executive Editor
