Wheelers Blog & News

Racer Dane Westby, 28 years old, was killed in a streetbike accident last night in Tulsa, Okla. KTUL.com in Tulsa reports the accident occurred in the 1400 block of South Peoria Street in an urban area around 8:30 pm, when Westby and his bike ran off the right side of the road, slid along the curb and hit a telephone pole. He was later pronounced dead at a hospital. Roadracingworld.com posted comments from Westby’s long-time friend and former mechanic Dustin Meador, who says the skid marks...

For those of us in the USA the Green party does not really ring a bell. For those in the U.K. however they are one of their political parties and as the name implies they are "protectors" of the planet.   Their latest policy for protecting the environment from heathen drivers and motorcyclists is certainly the most progressive policy outside of France. In this case progress is not a good thing. Here are some of the highlights.     They propose to introduce speed limiters for powerful...

It is late 2005 and Confederate Motors is in shambles. Fresh from the epic high of securing a high-profile investor in the Middle East, the company’s president Matt Chambers and lead designer JT Nesbitt returned to their New Orleans base of operations to discover that their factory has been destroyed by the winds and flooding brought on by Hurricane Katrina. With their facilities in ruins and their insurance company bankrupted by the claims in the aftermath of the storm, it looks like the...

Italian tire manufacturer Pirelli may soon belong to the Chinese as the state-owned China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina) is poised to buy out the 143-year-old company. According to a report by Reuters, Pirelli’s top shareholders have already agreed to the deal, estimated to be worth €7.1 billion (US$7.7 billion). Reuters reports the number excludes Pirelli’s net debt, which the company’s preliminary 2014 fiscal report lists at €980 million.   ChemChina’s tire producing division, China...

A few days ago, we posted our Taste of Dakar 2015 recap, but still had a slew of extra photos to share. Enjoy:   In case you have absolutely no idea what we're talking about, the Taste of Dakar, is just that—a taste of one of the world’s gnarliest road rallies. Luckily, it’s set up for riders’ of varying skill levels on almost any ADV bike.   Seattle-based company Altrider, makers of high quality gear for adventure bikes, got together to put on this event. Altrider makes saddle bags,...

Haslam and Lowes complete the podium, Torres ahead of Sykes in fourth The second WorldSBK race of the day at the Chang International Circuit saw another lights-to-flag victory by Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team), who claimed his 18th career win and extended his lead in the championship to 10 points in the process. The third double of his career capped a perfect weekend for the Ulsterman, who was dominant all weekend long as he also claimed Pole Position and recorded the fastest laps in...

Life is short. It’s cruel. Unforgiving. Mysterious. It can anger you when it isn’t fair and amaze you when it is. There is no denying the privilege we have to experience life—to meet people, to love and cry, to sneak out of our parents house when we are 16 and to simply get on a bike and ride. Our time here is but a blip in the universal timeline that will long outlast any of us. We won’t be remembered. There will be no schools built in our memory. No streets bearing our last...

There are cars and there are motorcycles, and the differences between them are pretty clear: you sit in a car with four wheels and a steering wheel, but you sit on a motorcycle with two wheels and handlebars. Those lines, however, are being blurred by a new category of "autocycles," and the government is going to need new regulations in order to determine where they fit in.   That is, at least, the substance of the bill being proposed by Senator David Vitter. The ranking member on the...

1. Put angled valve stems on wheels, especially fronts fitted with two big brake rotors. Unless you’re a left-handed spider monkey, reaching straight stems with most conventional tire gauges is a bitch. 2. Design seats that better fit the shapes of human butts. There is no excuse for a seat that makes your rear end ache in an hour or less. 3. Make all controls and contact points at least slightly adjustable. Car companies acknowledged the wide range of human sizes almost a hundred...

Supercross Media Press Release: GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac captured his second Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, race of the season tonight at Ford Field in front of 46,141 fans.  GEICO Honda‘s Justin Bogle raced to his first Eastern Regional 250SX Class win of the season, leading all 15 laps of the Main Event. KTM”s Andrew Short started the 450SX Class Main Event by winning the Holeshot Award. Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Davi Millsaps and Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey...