NEW IDEAS
DEPARTMENTS
Biker’s Choice Big Easy
Build the custom V-Twin of your dreams at home in the privacy of your own garage. That’s the idea behind “The Big Easy,” the S&S-engined bike-in-a-box from Biker’s Choice. For $14,596, you get everything needed to get underway, sans paint, oil and gas, of course.
Tucker Rocky Distributing, 4900 Alliance Gateway Fwy., Fort Worth, TX 76177; 800/347-1010; www.tuckerrocky.com
Rider Gear Jeans
Trade in your cotton Levi’s for the uprated abrasion resistance of 1000-denier cordura-nylon jeans. No heavy-duty armor here, just comfy zip-fly, seven-belt-loop, five-pocket pants. Black only, in even waist sizes from 30 to 42. Price is $80.
Rider Gear, 1110 Ocean St., Eugene, OR 97402; 800/873-8949; www.time-to-ride.com
Galfer Superbike Lines
Nothing new in brake lines? Guess again. Developed specifically for road-racing, Galfer’s new Superbike lines thread directly into the brake calipers, doing away with banjo bolts. Result? Better flow and feel. Cost is $105 for all applications.
Galfer USA, 57/67 W. McFarlane, Ventura, CA 93001; 805/653-5012; www.galferusa.com
Sidi Champion Air
A cool new addition to Italian boot-maker Sidi’s warm-weather collection, the mid-height Champion Air relies on a combination of synthetic-leather Lorica and breathable mesh panels for comfort and protection. Selling for $160, the boots are available in black only in men’s sizes 5-13.
Motonation, 14168 Poway Rd. # 205, Poway, CA 92064; 877/789-4940; www.motonation.com
Dainese Jackets
Who says safety with style is an elusive concept? Not Italian gear-maker Dainese. Three nifty new waist-length wraps, the leather/textile Talos ($749) and all-leather Trax ($499) and Shard ($609), feature composite armor at the elbows and shoulders, and room for an optional Back Space G2 spine protector. Waist zippers accommodate matching pants. Both men’s and women’s sizes are available in a range of colors. Dainese USA, Inc., 270 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012; 212/274-9848; www.dainese.com
BOS Exhaust
Here's an exhaust note from the Netherlands: Hand-crafted BOS slip-ons bring European racetrack performance to the street. The hand-polished pipes feature stainless-steel baffles and end caps, and choice of aluminum, titanium or carbon-fiber mufflers. Several styles are available, including underseat designs, for current sportbike and naked-bike applications. Prices start at $339. Spiegler USA, LLC, 94A WestparkRd., Dayton, OH 45459; 937/291-1735; www.spieglerusa.com
CW SPOT LIGHT heavy stock and packed with excellent current and histor ical photography, it's an immense work warranting hours of attention. MBI Publishing, Inc., Ga/tier Plaza #200, 380 Jackson St., St. Paul, MN 55101; 800/826-6600; www.motorbooks.com
The Harley-Davidson Century
LARGE-FORMAT COFFEE-table books often garner only passing glances. Not The Harley-Davidson Century ($50). Edited by Darwin Holm strom, this 384-page tome features many of motorcy cling's best writers, including CW's own Steve Anderson, Kevin Cameron, Peter Egan, Allan Girdler and contributors Mike Seate, Brock Yates and Ed Young-blood. Other popular authors, such as Greg Field, Jerry Hatfield, Chris Maida and Herbert Wagner, add to the mix, which is further stirred by gonzo-journalist Hunter S. Thompson, whose Hell's Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga is excerpted. Printed on