Chris Myers

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Riding from Mexico to Canada along US HWY 191

A little north of Tombstone, the coyote (Roadrunnerus digestus) emerges from the low scrub brush on the dusty shoulder of Arizona's SR 80. He stops mid-trot and watches with apparent nonchalance as our RoadRUNNER Gold Wing (Burn-em-upus asphaltus) breezes by. But I'm not fooled by his

Mar/Apr '17 Premium Content

Athens, Ohio Shamrock Tour®:Oh Me Oh My Ohio!

Ohio is an amazingly contradictory land. In places, it’s as flat as a Ping-Pong table with arrow-straight swaths of asphalt plowing through endless acres of agriculture. But in the southern part of the state, rugged hills magically rise from nowhere, grab the road, and rumple it into a glorious

Jan/Feb '17

City Escape: Roanoke, Virginia

> This Star City roundabout is a City Escape with an attitude. Seriously folks, only dual sports need apply. The first 40 miles on the Blue Ridge Parkway are perfect to relax and shake off the morning kinks. Once you drop off the mountain on Route 812 at the Sunset

Nov/Dec '13 Premium Content

Southern West Virginia Coal Heritage Trail: A New Black Gold

Being from West Virginia, my roots are tinged with coal dust and steel rails. It’s a noble heritage of hard work, callused hands, and long hours spent chiseling the bituminous rock from the earth and keeping the steel wheels rolling. Coal is energy; and West Virginia is coal. We’

Jan/Feb '13 Premium Content

Virginia Wine Tour: A Sampling of Appellations

Wine and motorcycles are an odd, yet appealing, combination. If mixed the wrong way, the two can leave one scarred for life. In my younger days, I found that out the hard way. But, if handled responsibly, these two endearing disciplines can uncork memories that last a lifetime. Like motorcyclists,

Sep/Oct '12

2012 Honda CB1000R: Matte Black Belt

> Martial arts competition, like sport motorcycle riding, stylishly blends power and finesse with razor-sharp wits and the ability to quickly and effectively compensate for any move the opposition, or the road, throws your way. While Honda’s CB1000R certainly delivers black belt performance on the open road, it also

Mar/Apr '12 Premium Content

Virginia: Crooked Road Tour

I’m no music expert; riding motorcycles is my thing. Sure, I still dabble with playing bass in a local garage band and can claim a fat-fingered mastery of a chord or two on the six-string. But music, like riding, certainly doesn’t require a professional license to enjoy. A

Sep/Oct '11 Premium Content

Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee

It doesn’t take much to prompt a tour at the RoadRUNNER offices, especially after an unusually cold winter – at least by our thin-blooded Southern standards – has been keeping us annoyingly close to home. So when coworker Florian called and announced that two Can-Am Spyders were in dire need of

Jul/Aug '11

Long-term: 2010 Victory Cross Country

> Unlike many motorcycle manufacturers, Victory has eschewed the alphanumeric formula for its machines and has instead chosen to name them. The Vision is indeed visionary, the Hammer is about as subtle as a blacksmith, and a well-appointed Jackpot is reminiscent of the Vegas strip. What are we to make

May/Jun '11 Premium Content

West Virginia, Virginia, Washington, DC, and Maryland via Route 50

Wafts of cool, mountain air swirl over the Victory Cross Country's short windshield in a near perfect dose. It's not enough to be buffeting, yet just enough to be invigorating. For Kathy, this is our journey's last leg. But for me, well, I'

Mar/Apr '11 Premium Content

Part III: Illinois, Indiana, Ohio via Route 50

For the better part of our journey across the United States, Kathy and I have felt that we were being followed. Like the incessant footfalls of an unseen pursuer, the potential for rain and nasty weather has plagued our daily routine. Though drops have not always fallen, the need to

Jan/Feb '11 Premium Content

Coast to Coast on the Cross Country Part II: Colorado, Kansas, and Missouri via Route 50

The cool, dry May, desert air carries a slight nip as it pours over the Victory Cross Country's short windshield and proves an excellent adjunct to the pick-me-up qualities of our breakfast caffeine. The early morning traffic is light, the road lonely, and in the distance, the fabled

Nov/Dec '10 Premium Content

Part I: California, Nevada, and Utah via Route 50

While the Interstate Highway system may be the quickest way to wheel from sea to shining sea, it certainly lacks the personality that most motorcycle travelers seek. On the other hand, the process of discovering small towns, local color, and scenic stretches can eat into those precious vacation days. Well,

Sep/Oct '10 Premium Content

East Texas

And left my self-respect, on down the road I guess. And they won't catch me. I planned my getaway. And things are lookin' great 'cause it's a one-two-three-four-five-six-seven-eight..."Longneck"by The Von Ehrics* The raucous vocals and jackhammer drum lines of Texas

May/Jun '10

2009 Honda VFR800 Interceptor - Long-term Evaluation

> In 1983, performance-riding enthusiasts got their first look at Honda's radical new sportbike, the VF750F Interceptor. For most of them, it was love at first sight. The aggressive lines and racy paint scheme were truly infectious. And after nearly three decades of refinement, the VFR800 is still

May/Jun '10

Kymco XCiting 500 2010 Models

> This past fall, Kymco USA debuted their entire 2010 product line in Asheville, North Carolina, and RoadRUNNER was there to get a first-hand look. Though the Taiwanese company's offerings range from 50 to 500cc, we naturally gravitated toward their flagship model, the machine most suited for the

May/Jun '10 Premium Content

Shamrock Tour® - Mountain View, Arkansas

We race toward the setting sun, darting from curve to curve along Arkansas' Route 14. A glance at the odometer verifies that the miles have really piled up since our departure from North Carolina. But the welcome climb into the foothills of the Ozark Mountains is reenergizing a couple

Mar/Apr '10

Review: 2010 KTM 990 SM T

> This past November, KTM invited the motorcycle press to sample their 2010 line of street machines in lovely Monterey, California. Plenty of hot (or in my case, lukewarm) laps were turned on the world famous Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca road course, aboard the impressive 1190 RC8 R superbike and

Mar/Apr '10 Premium Content

Vermont and New Hampshire

Progress, like the odometer, rolls on and on. Time flies, wheels turn, numbers roll higher, and just about everything increases in complexity. Forests give way to farms, that concede to homes, that spawn shopping centers, that lure expanding city boundaries. But unlike the forces that drive the increasingly familiar conurbation,

Jan/Feb '10

Review: 2010 Can-Am Spyder RT

When the Can-Am Spyder hit the road in 2007, it garnered every type of opinion imaginable. Some were good, others bad, but none indifferent. Its Y-shaped wheel stance (two in front, one rear) is reminiscent of a snowmobile, or maybe a trike reversed. Well, like it or not, the Spyder

Jan/Feb '10

2010 Kawasaki Concours 14

Before the ink was even dry on our long-term evaluation of the 2009 Kawasaki Concours 14, Team Green surprised us with a roll out of the new and improved C14 on the mountain curves and desert straights around Palm Springs, California. While we were mostly impressed with last year'

Jan/Feb '10

2010 Victory Cross Roads

> For many motorcycle travelers, having all the bells and whistles is an integral part of the touring experience. But for a growing number of riders, some wind protection and a good set of bags is more than enough to carry the day. In 2008, Victory Motorcycles dove headlong into

Jan/Feb '10 Premium Content

Shamrock Tour® - Ithaca, New York

According to scientists, the story of the Finger Lakes began in the Pleistocene epoch. Glaciers, some more than two-miles thick, crawled southward from what is now Hudson Bay, then retreated, and did it all again, several times. Over the course of their journeys, they gouged, tore, and plowed huge trenches

Nov/Dec '09

2009 Aprilia SL750 Shiver

> Italian motorcycles are cool, that's hard to deny. Their sound, style, and performance have long tempted enthusiasts with an undeniable aura of exclusivity. And while riders around the globe have long coveted these qualities, the experience has traditionally come at a price. But in Aprilia's

Nov/Dec '09 Premium Content

Shamrock Tour® - Jackson, Tennessee

In 1925, the Grand Ole Opry began riding the crackle of amplitude modulation (AM radio) into the foothills around Nashville. Not far west, in Memphis, the blues had long before cast its spell across the Mississippi Delta. But in the early 1950s, where the periphery of Appalachia finally merges with