On a warm night early in 2009, Annette Birkmann stood in front of eighty or so riders at the BMW/Triumph dealership on Old Middlefield Way in Mountain View, California. Birkmann, a blond, Danish woman of average height and weight, with piercing blue eyes and a ready smile, had just arrived… Continue reading
Few articles since the publication of my JIS screwdriver review have caused as much sensation or were as fun to write at the one on Plast-aid. Article, Motorcycle Consumer News – April, 2014 (PDF) First off the product really works, and works far better than anything I’ve ever found for… Continue reading
By: Steve Larsen Half a dozen years ago, or more, I acquired a PrepPen, although I’ve no idea how or why. It sat around untouched for a few months. One day when replacing the batteries on a rarely-used flashlight, I grabbed it to see if the PrepPen could remove the… Continue reading
I wasn’t surprised to see Dave at MCN publish several Letters to the Editor about JIS screwdrivers, as I’d gotten half a dozen emails from people about the article as well. Here are the two that were published. Letters to Editor about JIS Screwdrivers. I WAS surprised to see that… Continue reading
Rather than taking my bike to a dealer for repairs I can’t handle myself, I prefer Oltman—he lets me help—stifling his snickers at my ignorance and ineptitude. This typically doubles or triples the time a repair would take at a real motorcycle repair shop. My last visit required some extensive disassembly. Unable to dislodge one rusted and corroded screw, I’d managed to strip a good part of its Phillips head. Oltman went to his tool box and came back with a different screwdriver saying, “try this.” This screwdriver fit snugly and the screw came right out. “That’s a JIS screwdriver,” Oltman told me… Continue reading
A visit to the Ducati factory and museum followed by a ride on a favorite route of Ducati employees and testers. Continue reading
My feature story on the Dakar Rally in Argentina and Chile appears in the current issue of The Overland Journal. Some diligent friends have found the magazine at Barnes & Noble and at airport news stands. But many have told me they can’t find it anywhere. Not unexpected, this is… Continue reading
Well, it’s finally arrived – the summer 2012 issue of the Overland Journal. One of its feature articles is my story on the Dakar Rally in Argentina and Chile. In theory it should be on newsstands and Barnes & Nobles and Books-a-million, but I’ve not had any luck finding it.… Continue reading
Andy Norrie, a Staff Sergeant with the Toronto Police Service in Toronto, Canada recently wrote an article on motor officer training. He lists the six R’s of training as keys to reducing risk to officers: Recent, Relevant, Repetition, Realism, Review and Responsibility. What I liked about his article best was… Continue reading
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