Canadian Biker - March 2016 | Canadian Biker Magazine

The March 2016 issue of Canadian Biker is now available on newsstands and has been mailed to our subscribers. If you can not find it on a newsstand near you, it can be ordered here (Canadian addresses only).

Blame it on reality television and the excitement of the auction. Initially it was collector car prices that went through the roof with nice examples of ‘60’s era muscle cars going for sky high figures. It was eventually motorcycles turn at the pricey podium. We have commented in the past that there seems to be a steady stream of rare motorcycles coming to auction – Indians, Triumphs, Vincents, Harley-Davidsons and a surprising number of bikes either ridden by or owned by Steve McQeen – and the prices keep going up. Rare British marquees seem to hold the most coveted status and bring in the highest prices. The Vincent Red “White Shadow” pictured on the cover is one such example. It is a lovely machine to be sure but not the loveliest Vincent we have laid eyes on but for someone it was a bike worth spending a lot of money on.

Coming down to earth from those lofty heights we get aboard KTM’s new 690 Duke. This machine is where the street began for KTM as the company grew to be more than a dirt oriented player by embracing the pavement. The rest is history but this bike proved that the idea of less was a good one. A single cylinder, a lightweight chassis and a good suspension is really all you need for fun on the streets – or in this case the roads of the Canary Islands which is where the launch of the 2016 690 Duke took place.

The less is more theme continues with our look at a Yamaha XS650 based street tracker. 1980’s era Japanese bikes are seeing a huge surge in popularity as the basis for custom work and this offering from a Calgary shop illustrates why starting with something fundemental reaps great rewards.

Our traveling adventure this issue follows the familiar trail of a Canadian looking for warmth in the desert. In this case the desert is called Owyhee and it is found in a very remote corner of Nevada where helpful things like food, gas and water are hard to find while swarms of giant stinky grasshoppers are not. What bike do you need to tackle this hot, harsh, and hoppy bug infested hard pack? A KLR of course.

What else do we have? Monster trucks and motorcycle flips, advice from the legal profession about risk, a nostalgic look back on a BSA with electrical issues (who knew?), new lighting technology (that doesn’t have electrical issues), more on Yamaha’s riding robot, smart helmets and, well…., all sorts of other stuff.

Enjoy.

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Canadian Biker – March 2016

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