The dream of motorcycling is an open road, a rumbling exhaust, and a supermodel on the back with flowing blonde hair. With this image in mind, you buy a bike and then go on the lookout for a companion for the back. Often times, you may be successful, but although your girl’s high heels and dress may be suitable for a night out, they aren’t for riding a bike. So, what’s a person to do? Icon has the solution. They make the gear that your girlfriend will not only want to wear, but will keep her safe too.

There is extra pressure when someone is your passenger, but that’s no excuse not to include them. Riding pillion opens your significant other to the why behind the ride. They can experience for themselves the rush of riding a bike. We don’t just buy bikes because they are good to look at, but others don’t understand how fun they can be if they don’t experience it for themselves. Plus, once your passenger is comfortable, there will be no need to take the car out. They’ll be begging for the bike. But first, make sure they’re properly geared up.

Helmets for Her

For helmets, they have a variety of liveries and designs with females in mind. For this test, we used an Alliance helmet. You may recognize this piece from the last article we did, reason being is that it is a perfect all-around helmet for street use. It’s cheap, it’s protective and it’s light. This time around, we picked an Alliance helmet that has been slathered in Barbie pink from front to back.

The design is Chrysalis, but from my girlfriend’s reaction, they should call it OMG PINK!!! If your girlfriend is the glitter and pink type, get the helmet. It’s Disney princess approved and offers the same protection and comfort as the helmet on your head too.

Plus, the design will make her want to wear a full-face helmet. No complaints about their hair getting messed up, or how hot it may be. Get a design they like, pink or not, and they will want to wear the lid. Girlfriend’s not a pink fan? Have her pick out a design from the dozen of choices Icon has.

Suit Her Up

Icon’s jacket choices take their female options past just making it pink, however. Case in point: the One Thousand Federal Jacket. Part of the One Thousand collection, this jacket leaves off flashy graphics and logos for a subdued, vintage vibe. All leather, this jacket is more Black Widow than Disney Princess. The best part is that the jacket has D3O armor in the shoulders, elbows and back.

For those unfamiliar, D3O is a special type of foam that is soft when at rest, but upon impact, firms up. Because of the dual nature of the material, the armor can be slimmer and more comfortable – just another example of form and function combining at last.

Remember to get you girlfriend involved in the decision process, though. For as much as I loved the jacket, my girlfriend found it heavy and ungainly. Forgetting that she isn’t used to motorcycle gear, it will take her some time to adjust, but comfort is a top priority in order to keep your passengers to feel confident on the bike. That’s why she loves her Contra jacket that is lighter, made of fabric, but does not offer the D3O.

The One Thousand Federal is a premier motorcycle jacket with a cost to match, but you don’t need to spend a lot to make your girlfriend happy. She’ll be happy with the gear she chooses rather than the choice you give her.

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The Triumph Bonneville is etched into motorcycle lore. When it was created in 1957, it was one of the world’s fastest bikes. The epitome of fast and loud, it’s the original bad boy bike from across the pond. In 2001, Triumph brought it back for a new generation, but times have changed. The superbike of yesteryear is but a mildly fast ride today; that doesn’t mean that the bike has lost any of its legendary qualities though. So, can a retro-styled bike deliver an exhilarating riding experience without the latest tech and stratospheric horsepower numbers? In short, yes it can.

The Bonneville comes in three separate trims depending on how much you have to spend and the look you are going for. The Base and SE have cast wheels, and the SE adds two-tone paint and a tachometer. The T100 adds wire wheels, a different two-tone paint scheme and more chrome for a definite ‘60s vibe. The Scrambler is styled like a vintage desert sled and the Thruxton looks like a café racer of old. For this test, I took out the base Bonneville, no frills and no extras, to see how it performs.

Classic looks revisited

The Bonneville is not just a motorcycle, but a snapshot in time. Mods vs. Rockers, café racers, swinging ‘60s, Steve McQueen, Bob Dylan; the Triumph Bonneville was around during a truly exciting period in culture and history. To bring this look back may seem like a no-brainer, but it carries a certain amount of risk in that it can’t be a carbon copy or too different than the original. The base Bonneville strikes a good balance. Its cast wheels bring the look up to around the mid-70s, but don’t age the bike too much compared to modern machinery. And like your boomer parents, the Bonneville is plumper today than it was back then both visually and on the scales.

Park anywhere, though, and you might as well be stepping out of a time machine. People continually ask not where to get the bike, but how old is it, where to get one restored, and how much it costs. Slathered in gold paint, the vintage look is played up, but people are honestly surprised when you tell them it’s brand new; and for much less than they think. You can walk out the door with a brand new base Bonneville for $7699. However, all the good looks in the world are useless if the Bonnie is not an engaging ride. All other retro bikes lean on their classic looks to not provide a modern riding experience, but does the Triumph do the same?

Do the ton, eventually

Motivated by an 865cc parallel-twin, the Bonneville has the same type of motor as it did all those years ago, but with more displacement. The powerplant boasts 67hp, 50lb. ft. of torque attached to a five-speed transmission, but those are just numbers. In real life, this means more thrust than your average cruiser, but not enough to warp you into another dimension like the Diavel we just tested.

For all the heritage and history, though, the motor doesn’t want to remind you of any of it. It’s smooth almost to a fault, and with stock exhausts, much too quiet. Fire it up and you’d think you accidently got on somebody’s scooter. Get an aftermarket pipe and she’ll sing the song of the ‘60s all day, but in stock format, the motor has too little personality for what the looks promise.

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American motorcycle legend Harley-Davidson hosted an event for its latest Sportster model, the “Seventy-Two,” and Bullz-Eye.com was invited to ground zero of Latino motorcycle culture in East LA for the press launch and cultural immersion. The “72,” with its stylistic nod to hi metal flake custom paint and chrome so popular with the Latino low riders of Wittier Blvd., has made this one of Harley’s most splashy and eye-catching Sportster models to date.

Our first stop was the Harley-Davidson dealership in Glendale on the outskirts of downtown LA for a review of the Harley family of motorcycles for 2012 and our first glimpse of the new Seventy-Two model. This strikingly flashy Sportster is sure to get attention at any stoplight but is also within the most reasonably priced group of Harleys. The “72” boasts a hugely attention-getting hi metal flake red paint job, in Hard Candy Big Red Flake, the Evo 1200 cc V- twin, mini ape handle bars and a peanut gas tank. Forward foot controls and a low 28” seat height give laid back rider comfort, and the high torque output (73 pd-ft) in the low/mid RPMs lends the bike to impressive acceleration on the low end of the spectrum. The MSRP is $10,499 for the standard paint, and if you want the Hard Candy Big Red Flake, it has an MSRP of $11,199.

Tipping the scales at a modest 545lbs, this bike feels even lighter than it is, with a chopper fork rake, aluminum head and cylinders, skinny white wall wheels and narrow frame. The Sportster family has always been my favorite, with its nimble design and attractive low price, and it was always the most fun to drive. This is a bike either sex can easily operate with ease, the low un-sprung weight and laid back low seat height making it fun to buzz around in on a whim.

Soon after the showroom tour we were given an informative presentation of the Latino and Harley cultural marriage here in East LA. For more than 50 years, Latin American Harley riders have been proudly calling themselves Harlistas, and we were about to go on an enlightening tour of Los Angeles, with all things Latin and Harley mixed in!

Latino culture has profoundly shaped California and LA in particular, and the Latino culture loves the concept of Harley as it symbolizes freedom, individually and a sense of family – the Harley family. We visited several cultural highlights of East LA, including the LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, the Chicano murals of Boyle Heights, Candelas Guitars and a stop at Cities Restaurant, complete with authentic Mexican premium tequila tasting, courtesy of paQui Tequila! The food and subsequent tequila shots were delicious, and we boarded the tour bus for the afternoon stops.

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