Old Milwaukee fans will dismiss the Ecosse. One more dizzy, up-market domestic to take on Ducati's Monster. Another heavily festooned, 45-degree, pushrod V-twin crammed into yet another pipe-rack steel frame. Meanwhile, anyone with more discriminating mechanical tastes can see there is more going on here than meets the jaundiced eye. There's a beautifully detailed simplicity that starts with a name on the carbon-fiber fuel tank and runs all the way back to a renaissance gearhead in Colorado who wanted a different sort of American motorcycle.inline_mediumwraptextright27094720/features/122_0912_the_ecosse_heretic122_0912_01_o+ecosse_heretic+right_side_view.jpgTrue

The small cluster of supporters are craning their heads westward, listening for a distinct sound. Fat chance hearing it: The kids blasting through the tidy, Clare-Mar Lakes Campground in rural Wellington, Ohio, make more than enough noise to drown out the tiny, pea-shooter streetbikes that left here some 10 hours ago. Nevertheless, supporters of the annual Lake Erie Loop road rally-where riders complete a bum-chapping, 650-mile lap around the fourth-largest Great Lake on motorcycles with engines smaller than 200cc-are committed to their quixotic cause. "When we tell people about the ride, a lot of them think we're crazy, but after you've done it, you realize that riding a small bike that far is really a lot of fun," explains Joyce Murar, the Loop's official timekeeper.inline_mediumwraptextright"On your mark, get set..." Competitors in the Lake Erie Loop endurance run prepare to embark on their 650-mile journey.27239446/features/122_0911_little_bikes_big_mission122_0911_11_z+the_cycle_warehouse+race.jpgTrue

What famous racebike would you give your left nut to ride: Kenny Roberts' Yamaha TZ750 flat-tracker? Mike Hailwood's Isle of Man Honda RC181? Rollie Free's "bathing-suit" Vincent Black Shadow? For many enthusiasts, it's probably Cook Neilson and Phil Schilling's Daytona-winning Ducati 750 Super Sport, nicknamed "Old Blue."inline_mediumwraptextrightThe Neilson/Schilling 1977 Daytona Superbike winner in its final iteration as Old Blue, Daytona 1997.27044485/features/122_0911_1974_ducati_750_super_sport122_0911_14_z+1974_ducati_750_super_sport+left_side_view.jpgTrue

Rather than enjoying the holiday with my family and friends, I spent last Christmas in the basement of my parents' house on Cape Cod. That trip was my only opportunity to disassemble and ship my father Todd's vintage Honda CB350 racebike to California in time for the AHRMA National at Willow Springs in April.inline_mediumwraptextright31244604/features/122_0911_1968_honda_cb350122_0911_01_z+1968_honda_cb350+left_side_view.jpgTrue

According to Arlo Guthrie's anti-war anthem, Alice's Restaurant, the Group W bench is where you sit if you "may not be moral enough to join the Army after committing your special crime." While there aren't any father-rapers in Group W Racing (I don't think), there's no shortage of doctors, firefighters, deep-sea fisherman, former big-bike racers and other Type A-plus adrenaline junkies. And, just like the misfits in Guthrie's song, the raggedy Group W crew has more fun than anyone else in the paddock.inline_mediumwraptextright27043675/features/122_0911_1971_honda_cl175122_0911_01_z+1971_honda_cl175+front_view.jpgTrue

Not done with it yet?! The freewheeling, curve-chasing hippie was long gone. It was the mid-'90s, and Jim was an executive at a tool-and-die company with two kids and a split-level on a few acres outside of town. The Guzzi had long been banished from the living room and now languished under an old blanket in a dark corner of the basement. It hadn't been started in at least 20 years.

Driving to Susanville, California, to pick up the bike, I didn't know what an H2 was or what to expect. I only knew what I was told-that it was an "old 750 streetbike." When the garage door opened and the sun shone in after 11 dark years, it was hard to be anything but disappointed. The poor Kawasaki was covered in dust and rough-yellowed carbs, frozen front brake, oil everywhere and just plain sad-looking. It would barely roll, much less start. I drove 550 miles for ths?

What you rode once upon a time says a lot about who you were. Or at least who you wanted Nancy Bliss and the Keahey twins to think you were. I'm not entirely immune to the national nostalgia epidemic. Certain facets of 1972 beat the h-e-double-hockey sticks out of 2009. If I'm honest, with myself at least, the AT2-M was not one of them. You can't go back home. If you try, it won't be the same. I drove by the old house once. Some aesthetically impaired band of heretics had painted the garage purple and there was a '78 Honda CX500 decomposing in the driveway. Revisionist history leaves Memory Lane undisturbed while allowing a detour to the way you wanted things to be. To those who actually owned a spanky-new 183-lb. CR125 back in high school and never had to i.d. some corroded steel frame as the skeletal remains of your 50-horsepower RD400D: You've had your fun. This is my story.

Way back in 1975, the AMA 125cc Motocross Nationals came to St. Charles, Missouri, not far from my home in St. Louis. The buzz around high school and the local bike shops was like a beehive as my friends and I made plans to go see the Pros race.

Like most of us, Chris Gatto was into motorcycles as a child. Growing up in the Pittsburgh suburb of Tarentum, his youthful hobby was supplemented by the fact that his parents owned Gatto Harley-Davidson-a large, multi-brand dealership. "I was maybe 10, but I loved the smell of leather and rubber and oil in the shop," says Gatto, now 42. "I wasn't old enough to own a streetbike of my own, so I'd hang around the shop, asking if I could keep the parts people were taking off their bikes and going through the dumpster." From there, he began purchasing broken bicycles from neighborhood kids for $5, repairing them and re-selling them at a 400 percent mark-up.

Brrrrrrzzzzzz... I'll never forget the sound. Except I had: I'd forgotten the noise my Honda CR125 Elsinore's constant-mesh transmission made when I downshifted. I hadn't forgotten its light handling and pipey powerband, nor the sweet smell of premix coupled with freshly overturned earth. But I have to admit it smelled better than I remembered after decade of inhaling acrid race gas and adobe dust.

Terry Vance
Multi-time NHRA Top Fuel Champion and founder of Vance & Hines
1970s Honda CB750
"My first bike was a 750cc Honda. It was a gift from my father that I later modified for drag racing. It was the summer of '71, and this picture is at Lions drag strip in Long Beach, California. I had found out about drag racing from a friend, and after a couple of bracket races, I was totally hooked!

The TT M.D.
Discussing life-and death-with the doctor who tends to the world's bravest bike racers.
By Mick Phillips
Photography by Fabiano Avancini
The late, great Isle of Man TT specialist David Jefferies once reportedly answered, in response to a journalist questioning the lack of armor in his racing leathers, "All the armor in the world won't help me if I fall off here." Apocryphal or not, that story is haunting: Jeffries, a nine-time TT-winner, was killed instantly after impacting a stone wall at 170 mph during practice for the 2003 Senior TT. Though there was nothing he could do for Jefferies, Dr. Peter Moran has saved countless other lives during his near-three-decade tenure as the TT's lead medical authority. And while he knows-perhaps better than anyone else in the world-the true dangers of TT participation, he doesn't even try to explain or excuse the famed event's fatalistic appeal:

I got a fantastic start, pushing through both classes and diving into Turn 1 well ahead of the crowd. I rode unchallenged for several laps, when a wheel suddenly appeared inside of me in Turn 10. Although I was already leaned over the curbing, the rider forced his way past me. It was Dave Roper, the legendary American road racer, aboard his ex-Cal Rayborn factory Aermacchi. Roper worked his way forward to join me ahead of the pack, and now he wanted to race. Race we did, drafting down the front straight and barreling into Turn 1 side-by-side, rubbing elbows at the exit and swapping the lead several times a lap. My Honda had motor on Dave's Aermacchi, but his precision and smoothness enabled him to repeatedly pass me. In the end I took the win, but Dave certainly made me work for it!

Our ride on Richie Morris Racing's Buell 1125R started with a lot of questions, and no firm answers:
"How much does it weigh?"
"Close enough to the class minimum."
"How many horsepower?"
"Ride it and tell me what you think it makes."

Best New Technology
Honda Combined ABS
Other manufacturers have developed anti-lock brake systems for the two-wheeled set, but they all pale in comparison to Honda's new C-ABS (Combined Anti-Lock Brake System), available on the 2009 CBR600RR and CBR1000RR. Sure, the sophisticated, linked system adds $1000 to the price tag and 20-plus pounds, but it's worth every penny and ounce to have optimum braking performance at all times. With a natural lever feel and none of the bizarre pulsing exhibited by some other makers' ABS, Honda's system is so un-invasive that you'll never know it's there until you need it. Grab a handful of brake on a wet or dirty road, and you're rewarded with complete composure and smooth deceleration. Honda's C-ABS offers controlled braking at the threshold of wheel lockup-something even expert-level riders are hard-pressed to match, and only after several attempts on dry pavement. In the real world, you only get one chance.

Garages tell stories. Whether a sheet-rocked, bare-bones suburban three-car or a rickety single-car workshop bursting with 50 years of accumulated parts and memorabilia, the space itself has something to say. The right garage is the perfect place to share a drink and a story. Like a flat-black Yamaha XS650 with straight bars, good rubber and a hot motor, it's an honest, hard-working place where spilled beer only adds to the atmosphere.

Each engine is hand-assembled in-house. While Indian resisted the temptation to tread too closely in the path of tradition by reverting to the hallowed 42-degree cylinder angle of vintage Tomahawk engines, today's Power Plus 105 motor has its Magneti Marelli EFI's single 52mm throttle body mounted on the left--same as the Indians of yore, and the opposite of the older Harley Evolution 45-degree V-twin motor, which it otherwise resembles. There's a single injector per cylinder, and a separate lambda probe oxygen sensor in each exhaust header, so the EFI effectively treats the twin as two singles. The bright, double-skinned, stainless steel, 2-into-1 exhaust system has chrome outers and a three-way catalyst in the forward part of the right-side silencer. The six-speed Baker gearbox bolts to the back of the motor, with a chain primary and Gates Kevlar/carbon belt final drive. Indian claims an output of 72 bhp at the crank at 5000 rpm, with 100 lb.-ft. of torque peaking at just 3200 revs.

Suzuki coined the term "hypersport" to describe the first Hayabusa in 1999, and the big, bad roadburner has defined the unlimited sportbike category ever since. In the intervening decade, a lively aftermarket has emerged to support the GSX1300R and help enthusiasts build whatever sort of bike they desire--from a gentlemanly sport-tourer to a 7-second drag racer. Last year brought the release of the second-generation model with more power, stronger brakes and improved handling. It's a better 'Busa in every way, but there's still room for improvement--making it a perfect candidate for a Streetbike Surgery.

2009 Yamaha YZF-R1 | Price: $12,390

Tech Spec
Engine type: l-c inline-four	Fuel mileage (high/low/avg.): 28/22/25 mpg	Rake/trail: 24.0deg./4.0 in.
Valve train: DOHC, 16v/td>	Frame: Aluminum twin-spar	Seat height: 32.9 in.
Displacement: 998cc	Front suspension: 43mm Soqi inverted fork with adjustable spring preload, compression and rebound damping	Wheelbase: 55.7 in.
Bore x stroke: 78.0 x 52.2mm	Rear suspension: Single Soqi shock with adjustable spring preload, high/low-speed compression and rebound damping	Fuel capacity: : 4.8 gal.
Compression: 12.7:1	Front brake: Dual Sumitomo six-piston radial calipers, 310mm discs	Weight (tank full/empty): 477/448 lbs.
Fuel system: EFI	Rear brake: Single Nissin one-piston caliper, 220mm disc	Colors: Team Yamaha Blue/White, Raven/Candy Red, Pearl White/Rapid Red, Cadmium Yellow/Raven
Clutch: Wet, multi-plate slipper	Front tire: 120/70-ZR17 Dunlop Sportmax D210F	Availability: Now
Transmission: 6-speed	Rear tire: 190/55-ZR17 Dunlop Sportmax D210	Warranty: 12 mo., unlimited mi.
Corrected 1/4-mile: 10.02 sec. @ 144.23 mph		Contact: Yamaha Motor Corp. USA 6555 Katella Ave. Cypress, CA 90630 800.962.7926 www.yamaha-motor.com
Top-gear roll-on, 60-80 mph: 2.90 sec.

I bought my "Wee-Strom" with the intention of doing some serious long-distance riding and fire road scrambling. It's a great little bike, with the SV650's legendary V-twin engine, ample ground clearance and a modest price tag--which left a little cash to refine it a bit. With Iron Butt aspirations swirling in my mind, I knew I'd need to do some upgrades.

The next morning, Alex said he needed an oil change, and the Suzuki could use a rear tire. A new one would cost a lot of money, but it's the smart thing to do. My first call was to Nathan at the Bike Shack. He had a used Metzeler I could have for free. Perfect. Alex was impressed with this display of American hospitality. We both laughed as he said "Didn't cost me nuthin'!" We thanked Nathan and headed for Bear Tooth Pass. I just kept thinking of how lucky I am and how generous other motorcyclists are. We were both lucky to be climbing the 11,000-foot Bear Tooth with blue skies, puffy clouds and freshly fallen Labor Day snow still on the ground. If you ever ride that way, take Chief Joseph Highway (296) into Cody, Wyoming. You won't regret it.

Cheap racing. Of all the oxymorons, that's arguably the most moronic. Racing is the fastest way to turn money into noise. Always has been, always will be. And as you climb the rungs of competitiveness, it only gets more expensive. Want to beat the guy who blew his inheritance on engine work? Better cash in your 401K plan--and never mind that pesky penalty for early withdrawal.

Name: Chris Doyle
Age: 47
Home: Bolton Valley, Vermont
Occupation: R&D Mad Scientist, Burton Snowboards

The minimum weight of a four-cylinder MotoGP racebike is capped at 148 kilograms, or 327 pounds. In World Superbike a four can weigh no less than 162 kg. (357 lbs.), and a twin can't tip the scales below 168 kg. (371 lbs.). The main reason behind these regulations is to limit costs, as lightweight parts often carry heavyweight prices. As it is, there's plenty of titanium and carbon-fiber on these bikes. Weight limits have changed the game when it comes to mass. Instead of reducing mass, the designers of these bikes work to place mass in the best location. The game is now mass centralization, which sounds like a simple program. It's not.