MCN Magazine 8-Feb-2023 Back Issue

THE RETURN OF THE POCKET ROCKET
Once upon a time there were hordes of 400cc inline-four pocket rockets screaming down country roads and around track days at the top of their lungs – but much like usable sports 600s and grunty litre bikes, they all melted away... until now! In a move that almost defies logic, but has us reaching for our credit cards, Kawasaki have resurrected the breed with their new ZX-4R. Here come the 1990s…

STURGIS: RIDE THE AMERICAN DREAM
Riding into town like a modern-day cowboy, propping up the saloon bar at nights and exploring the wide-open wilderness during the day... Few places feel more filmic than the USA, and few events more immersive than the incredible spectacle that is Sturgis. Whether you’re a die-hard Harley fan or not, the event, the roads, the sights and the sounds should be on your biking bucket list.

ADVENTURE-SPORTS EVERYDAY HEROES
Take three of the UK’s favourite new adventure-sport tallroaders, and mix thoroughly to establish which one is best for your needs. Triumph’s Tiger 850 Sport, BMW’s F900XR and Yamaha’s Tracer 9GT are the sports-tourers for the 21st Century: Fast enough, comfortable enough and practical enough to be your everyday heroes, while delivering enough zest and fruity B-road riding engagement to keep you buzzing at the weekends, too. And – crucially in these increasingly tough times – they’re more affordable than you might think to own, too.

FRED HILL: FIGHTING THE HELMET LAWS
You may wonder how anyone could defend the idea of not wearing a helmet, but when the law was introduced making it mandatory, Fred Hill was so incensed by the removal of his right to choose that he embarked on a crusade to have the law quashed – and ended up in court and prison on numerous occasions as a result.