By: Tony Morgan

So I’m in the process right now of finalizing a deal on a 1973 Honda Cb350 Twin.  I have been looking for one for a friend of mine for a couple of years.  He had been looking for an orange or green one, but I had not been able to locate any original ones for less than $2500!!  I didn’t understand why the top-end price, but in the Toronto area, these bikes are very sought after.  I have spent a considerable amount of time the last couple of years, every day, checking various local classifieds sites, not just for CB350s, but everything that was for sale.  There seemed to be, a few years ago, a large influx of, if not quite new, riders; at least ones that hadn’t ridden for many years.  After talking to a few of them who were ecstatic/disappointed/enraged by their own model selection, I discovered that the motorcycling world had changed so significantly over the last fifteen years, that someone who hadn’t ridden for at least that length of time was at a bit of a disadvantage when trying to choose a new model.  They found themselves at the mercy of (sometimes) unscrupulous salesmen, or choosing an inappropriate bike based on looks alone.  More than one person in this position found themselves disgruntled with motorcycling by the end of the season, and chose not to continue with it, when the real problem was the bike itself.

It should be as illegal as it is irresponsible to sell an eight hundred pound chromed behemoth to a fifty or sixty year old individual whose last bike was a Virago 750 in the early eighties.  Sure, they might be smitten with all the pretty colors and chrome, but the last bike they rode (twenty years ago!) weighed three hundred pounds less than cruisers today, but also came with centerstands, tachometers, an easily located ignition switch, and in most cases, more power.  My Dad was one of these “returning bikers” about six years ago, and found himself in this same position.  We looked at all the current crop of cruisers, and his comments were always the same – “Where’s the centerstand?  Where does the key even go?”  I had no answers for him, having not kept up on the cruiser world, and was somewhat disappointed to find that items that had been disappearing off of sport bikes for years in the name of weight savings were also disappearing off of cruisers, where weight is no issue.  Nope, no issue at all.  There were several 1500cc+ bikes that my Dad (who is by no means a weakling, but is a man of average build) could barely lift off the sidestand.  Having resigned himself to looking for a mint, 80′s era “standard” bike, I unexpectedly discovered a 2000 Kawasaki W650, which fit the bill for him, perfectly.  So, I had discovered an advantage to simply being “up” on what was currently for sale around the area, and I have employed that knowledge numerous times over the last little while.  A customer at my framing shop wanted to get back into bikes, but had been balking at a V-Star 900.  He loved the look of the bike, but thought it too heavy, and a little slow.  I inform him I had seen a two year old Vulcan 500 for sale privately in Fergus, which he promptly purchased, and set about loading up the kilometers on it.  He absolutely loves the bike, and has no interest in “upgrading” any time in the near future.

This brings us back to our little 350.   The fellow who wants the bike has faced several rounds of questions from me over time, as I would get frustrated looking for this particular model.   Why this bike?  Why won’t a CB500T do?  What about an older GS400, they were six-speeds with locknut and adjuster valve adjustments?  Nope, had to be a CB350.  Now that I’ve found one for him, I’ve arranged for a buddy of mine who lives in Stittsville to drop off a deposit, and we’ll be going to Ottawa next weekend (March 27) to pick it up.  Embarassingly, I had gotten so excited at actually finding a metallic green 1973, that I don’t even think I read through the entire ad to the end.  If I had, I would have discovered that the purchase price includes a complete, but not running, identical CB350 without an ownership as a parts bike.  Hmmm, maybe next weekend’s trip will include me getting a new project, as well.  Then maybe I can find out what is so damn special about these little CBs.  Stay tuned for pics of the roadtrip, as well as the look of indescribable gratitude on my friend’s face when he is reunited with one of these CB350 twins…

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After many years of stereotypes, showing women as little more than Umbrella girls, The FIM Commission for Women in Motorcycling has produced a video to combat the image that they themselves have helped create at most of their own racing events. Generally speaking, the only women you see on TV at their events, are the barely dressed model type girls holding umbrellas over the riders. The video was created not only to change some perceptions about women in the world of motorcycling, but also to show that they also ride and to perhaps inspire more women to do so.

Participating in the campaign and the video (below) are Leslie Porterfield (FIM Land Speed World Record Holder), Livia Lancelot (FIM Women’s Motocross World Champion) and Laia Sanz (FIM Women’s Trial World Champion). More info can be found on the FIM website (click here)

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TourByTwo.com is looking for new amateur writers to become contributors to the site. Have you ever dreamed of having your motorcycle travel stories published? Now is your chance to enter the world of motorcycle and travel journalism.

TourByTwo’s Founder and Chief Editor, will review and judge potential candidates. Submit your 300-word (or 5min video) travel piece by January 31st, 2010 to be one of five new motorcycle travel journalists.

We’re looking for inspired riders with a desire to write about their adventures, who can mix multimedia savvy with an engaging writing style. Our emphasis is on riding related stories and adventures. Video documentaries will also be acceptable for online story submissions.

The right candidates will know how to recognize and tell a story, write or record and edit it, clean and get it up on our site fast. You will of course be credited for your contributions and will have an online profile established on the site.

Please send a brief cover letter, clips or writing samples and a resume to info@tourbytwo.com. Links to your stories are acceptable as well as video submissions.

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Each Spring, more and more people take up motorcycling and they do so for a wide range of reasons. As such, motorcycle training schools across the country quickly fill up with students who are new to riding or those who are returning after taking many years off.

Whether you are new to riding or someone who is taking up riding again, the question that is often asked is “Why take a course? Isn’t it just like riding a bike?”

The short answer is no…it’s not.

Riding a motorcycle comes with risk, just like driving a car does. However, making a mistake on a motorbike can have far greater consequences. The point to taking a safety course is to mitigate and reduce those risks. Instructors start you with the basics of where the controls are and how to use them and rapidly move you up to required skills like emergency braking, obstacle avoidance and proper vision techniques.

Even for those who have ridden before and are returning to riding, much has changed in the past decade and so have the bikes that are now available today. For those who have many years of riding dirt bikes, riding on public roads is a very different experience since trees don’t tend to simply jump out in front of you (only those who drive/ride drunk would disagree with that statement).

In general, people take up riding for many reasons ranging from a childhood fantasy to a mid-life crisis, peer-pressure from their friends or family, to wanting to save on gas, or simply wanting to indulge in the pure joy and sensation that riding provides and that they’ve heard about. Many of the joys of riding are foreign to new riders until they actually get out on their own bike and discover the thrills, adventures and excitement on their own.

I recently spent some time at a local motorcycle safety course and talked to some of the students and their instructors. The students shared the opinion that they wanted to learn the basics of motorcycle riding and one student went so far as to say that he took the course to “stay alive”, despite his many years of riding a dirt bike. He recently purchased a new BMW F800GS and wanted to go adventure riding but since that meant riding on public roads, he wanted to get a better understanding of what was involved in riding on them.

Another student was very new to riding and when asked how long he had been riding, he replied “Oh…about four hours”. I asked what motivated him to take up riding a motorcycle and this middle-aged student answered that many of his friends and family rode motorcycles and he figured he would take it up too. Although he had already purchased his cruiser, he wanted to take a safety course first before taking it out on the road. Wise choice.

The instructors already understand what’s involved in riding on public roads and are there to pass down their knowledge much like native cultures pass down knowledge from one generation to the next by showing them first hand. We all start out the same as newbies, without a clue what we are doing and it’s the instructors passion for riding and willingness to “pay it forward” that makes taking a course enjoyable. Just observing the instuctors running along side the students and taking extra time talking to those who required some extra tutelage, showed how much they cared about arming new riders with the basic knowledge and skills that they would need to head out on the open roads. One instructor stated that he chose to teach new riders because of the instructors who taught him. He had been riding for seven years and teaching for two and wanted to give something back.

Whatever your reasons are for taking up riding, please take the time to do it safely and take a safety course. It’s worth far more than it costs and should be considered a personal investment in you. Most riding schools offer not only a basic course for those who are new to riding but also advanced courses too. Some regions have graduated licensing and local schools, who are certified by their local governing body, offer weekend courses that focus on the skills required and actually administer the ministry tests that are required to graduate to the next level.

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