Yeah, I get the performance benefits of having battery torque offroad— wheeee!—but there was nothing that Alta did better than a gas powered alternative did for a lot less money. Plus electrics are even more limited offroad than on, which will always be a psychological impediment to rider adoption— you can’t just…

That is not an answer to the question: why is this, or any, of the random ancient articles showing up on everyone’s homepages?

NEEDS MOAR FLAMETHROWER.

I wear branded shirts and hats when I like the products I purchased and wish to showcase that. Yes, it’s “free” advertising, but my Ducati, Yamaha, and Porsche make me happy, I’m okay to evangelize a little to others.  In my experience, the fastest way to spark up a pleasant conversation with a fellow motorcycle rider …

Keep congregating in public, and you’ll do it all by yourselves.

UPDATE: I found out from some kind geek on Twitter what kind of droid head that is on the R-series droid. It’s from another, older type of astromech/utility droid called an A-LT Utility Droid, and these were first seen in the movie Solo, which takes place well before the original Star Wars.

TORCH I HAVE SAVED YOU! The Mandalorian folks kit-bashed an astromech with the dome from this droid from the “Solo” movie: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/T1M8-LT2

While these bikes are guaranteed to see less time off-road than a Smart Fortwo, they should be wonderful touring machines.

Now, I have a theory, based on how this head looks. I don’t actually think it’s an all-new kind of R-series droid. I think this fella started life as one of the mainstream R-series droids, went through some shit that cost it it’s head, and what we’re looking at here is a cheap head replacement.

But the Jeep isn’t excellent, and it would take a thorough inspection to reveal things like that brake line rust and also this:

... but enough about the people who work for GMG.

Counterpoint: I’ve never had a sunroof leak in 35 years, I’m not a 7 foot tall mutant, and I’ve never once noticed the effect of extra weight because I’m not running effing autocross every morning.

My only complaint about the Golf R is a small one, but it’s insurmountable for me: I miss having a sunroof.

This.  Especially the two charging, which just fascinates me.  It’s like one of those push/pull car toys you played with on the kitchen floor growing up.

My brother happily owns a Street Glide. His other bike is a beloved V4 Panigale. Which is just such a delightful combination that gives me joy every time I consider it.

The fit and finish on the PA I saw at the IMS was first-rate, no complaints from me (that said, it *does* look far better from the right side than the left, heh).

I admit that I remain shocked that H-D is putting this out. After the CEO who greenlit this (and the Bronx, and the LiveWire) got fired, their new CEO appears eager to abandon any attempt at innovation or expanding into new markets. How The PA fits into Zeitz’ retrenchment business strategy stumps me.

Going on sale in March, the Serial 1 is to be the first bike from a new division Harley is spinning off called Serial 1 Cycle.

Congrats! I joined the cult two years via a much more complete 2016 981 Cayman 5-speed, but I always welcome fellow devotees to the cause. Be sure to make an appointment with the High Priestess for your required branding.

Wow, and here I imagined I had seen everything old on the internet before.  Those are magnificent, what a snapshot in time.