Canadian Biker - March 2012
It may seem a little early to be thinking about spring but the March 2012 issue of Canadian Biker has now been mailed to our subscribers and is available on fine and discerning newsstands near you. Don't have a newsstand near you? There is a subscription button to the right.
On the cover of this issue we feature the new for 2012 Kawasaki ZX-14R. Can technology replace the pungent yet exhilarating smell of burning rubber? The answer is yes - fortunately or unfortunately, we will leave that decision up to you. We take the big green beast to the drag strip and with a little help from champion drag racer Ricky Gadsen we learn that launching a 195 rear wheel horsepower machine capable of reaching a limited top speed of 299 kmh isn’t as hard as it use to be. Gadsen can do a quarter mile on a lowered but otherwise stock ZX-14R in a mere 9.29 seconds. What can our guy do? We will find out. So its blindingly fast but how does the Ninja stand up in the real world where most speed limits range in an area one third of the Ninja’s top speed? Surprisingly well.
We aren’t done with the sport side of the equation in this issue quite yet. We take a look at Suzuki’s two junior GSX-Rs in the melodramatically named article “Change of Heart ... Or Not”. The answer it turns out isn't Colonel Mustard in the library with a candlestick. Suzuki has persevered in the 750cc category of pure sport bikes when all other manufacturers have left the genre behind. We look at both the 600 and the 750 to see if there really is a big difference and what it will mean to riders on the street.
Just so the new Suzuki GSX-R750 won’t feel completely like the last basselope, we feature the 1986 Ducati 750F1 in our Vintage Hall this month. (They keep sneaking these Ducatis in on me). It is red, white and green. This was high end stuff back in the mid-90’s and it still looks good today.
Apparently there are people out there who believe you can have too many tools. It kind of makes you tear up thinking of such utter foolery. It is like saying you have too much air to breathe or roads to ride. In “The Four Laws of Acquisition” we look at how we come to have a giant, varied and much loved pile of wrenches, sockets, pliers, drivers, saws ......
Want to get away from it all. Really away. We have the road for you. The TransLabrador Highway - 1800 km of dirt, dust, mosquitos and trucks...and beautiful scenery and physical challenges. To hear some people tell it, Labrador City is the next Fort McMurray. And yes there is a Tim Hortons.
What else will we tell you about in this issue? How about brush-on heat retardant for your mufflers? The meaning of “mechatronic” and how to dress cool like like James Dean. Plus 10 ways to add spice to your.....whoops, sorry that was another magazine.
Finally we review sunglasses. There is more to it than simply whether or not they pinch your nose.
A fellow came up to us at the Vancouver motorcycle show this past weekend. He said he loved the magazine but was concerned about us burning out from all the information we pack in a single issue. It is superhuman. Okay that is my word but the rest of it is absolutely true. For those of you worried about the having too much information in the magazine just spread the reading over a few days.
Enjoy.
