Electra Glide In Blue

The kids just want to ride, and promise not to eat their motorcycles
The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) has effectively banned the sale of youth off-highway vehicles (OHVs) as of Feb. 10, 2009. Thank God they came to their senses and changed the language to exclude motorcycles and OHVs.

Motorcycle Pile Up
Saturday, September 19, 2009.
27 motorcycles and two cars have piled up on the Interstate 5 road in Oregon, United States. Two bikers were critically injured, on Oct 5th Detroit Dave died from his injuries.
The crash occurred near the Baldock Rest Area, which is just south of Wilsonville, at 2:45 p.m. Friday. The group of motorbikes, belonging to members of the Brother Speed club, was in the left (fast) lane behind one of the cars when traffic slowed down. Despite attempts to take evasive action, the bikes and car collided. The second car was hit by a motorbike that veered into the middle lane.

Hail Storm Pummels Sturgis on a Friday Night
A severe hail storm swept through Sturgis with unbridled fury Friday evening, shattering windows in cars, denting motorcycles, and creating havoc on campers. Hail the size of tangerines fell almost horizontally, fueled by driving winds as the storm left revelers at Sturgis in a state of shock and disbelief.

Erik Buell
Thursday, October 15, 2009, an emotional Erik Buell announced that the Buell Motorcycle Co. will no longer produce motorcycles. This is a very sad casualty of the bad economy. Buell has produced some very nice motorcycles over the years. Buell was the only American made sport bike going against the “Big Boys” from overseas.

Erik Buell Racing
Milwaukee, Wis. (November 20, 2009) – Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) announced today that following the company’s recent decision to discontinue the Buell motorcycle product line, Erik Buell, Chairman and Chief Technical Officer of Buell Motorcycle Company, will leave the company to establish Erik Buell Racing, an independent motorcycle race shop.

Valentino Rossi’s pass against Jorge Lorenzo at Catalunya
One of the most exciting MotoGP races since Laguna Seca last year. Click on the pic for a larger view of the last lap set-up. That is Rossi in the rear just before the pass.

Yamaha Sweeps World Championships
In an impressive sweep of world titles, Yamaha seals the MotoGP, World Superbike, and World Supersport Championships all in one weekend. Yamaha also won other titles this year such as the British Superbike championship, FIM endurance championship, and a handful of other national championships. Not bad for the piano company!

These are just seven of the top motorcycle news stories of 2009.
A thank you goes out to MoFo’s DynoDon, maxxed, and triker for giving me a kick-start to this post.

Happy New Year and welcome to 2010.