The month of May is Motorcycle Awareness Month — one of the most important months of the year for the safety of all road users and especially motorcyclists, according to the American Motorcyclist Association. 

"Motorcycle Awareness Month serves as a seasonal reminder to all road users to look around, check their mirrors and consciously look for motorcycles," said AMA President and CEO Rob Dingman. "Motorcyclists are now getting out on the road in greater numbers across the nation, and it's vital that road users watch for them to avoid crashes.

"Unfortunately, many drivers aren't always mindful of other road users, and an annual reminder is helpful for them to recognize the flow of motorcycles in traffic," Dingman said. "By consciously looking for motorcycles in May, we hope this will grow into a habit that will last the rest of the year, and longer." 

AMA board member and actor, Perry King, is featured in a public service announcement campaign produced by the AMA called "Think. Ride. Watch for Motorcycles." Video and audio messages can be downloaded here. 

"One of the leading causes of motorcycle crashes is the fact that drivers don't see motorcycles," Dingman said. "Drivers tell themselves to watch for cars, trucks, buses and pedestrians, but they don't always tell themselves to look for motorcycles. We want to change that." 

Drivers can avoid crashes with motorcyclists by taking extra care and looking twice to spot motorcycles in traffic — especially at intersections — respecting the motorcyclists' space on the road and by not following too closely. 

The AMA recognizes that distracted or inattentive driving has become a major concern for all road users. Far too many cases have been documented of motorcyclists being injured or killed as the result of other vehicle operators being distracted or inattentive. 

The AMA also strongly encourages motorcyclists to wear appropriate safety gear and practice safe riding techniques. 

The AMA has long advocated that local and state governments maintain or increase funding for motorcycle rider education and motorist awareness programs — two highly effective strategies to reduce the likelihood of motorcycle crashes. 

Rivera Primo's Top Gun kit is made for ultimate performance and drivability on larger motors where gobs of torque and horsepower are the goal! Mikuni’s® legendary track record for producing fuel systems that are unparalleled in delivering economic fuel consumption while providing top performance in a streetable carb, even work great on smaller performance motors. Each Rivera Primo® 45mm or 48mm single Mikuni® kit includes a show polished carburetor & manifold, all bracketry & hardware including the breather kit.

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In celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the Monster, we’re making a pilgrimage to the annual Quail Motorcycle Gathering which will have a dedicated Ducati Monster showcase this year. Our journey will start atDucati Newport Beach in Costa Mesa, CA and wind up the epic California coastline with our final destination being Quail Lodge & Golf Club in Carmel, CA.

http://www.meetup.com/Ducati-Monster-West-Coast-Meetup/events/113559972/

With one of the longest and hottest riding seasons on record, higher gas prices and a slight increase in motorcycles registrations, 2012 saw a small increase in motorcycle fatalities with over half of those being fatalities being riders not endorsed to operate a motorcycle.

"Fatalities in 2012 were 129, which fall within the normal range of variation and proves conclusively that the helmet-law amendment has had no adverse effect on motorcycle safety."

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The Tail Gunners rolls through the engine rebuild like shit through a goose. So far, he's been a very lucky mofo.

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Check out this short feature on Bikernet Baggers. Quick, hit the picture below to continue reading.

Bikernet Baggers Editor Buck Lovell shows you a neat place where you can find everything you need in the Black Hills. Click on the photo to continue reading.

Moviegoers and movie critics have come away from "Oblivion" raving about the vavoom vehicles in the box-office hit starring Tom Cruise — especially lead character Jack's futuristic folding motocross bike.

Known on the set as "Jack's moto bike," the wispy ghost-white bike wheelies its way across a landscape of desert salt flats — actually, volcanic sand in Iceland — and transports the hero into and out of trouble throughout director Joseph Kosinski's dystopian film.

The "moto bike," though, was a Honda CRF450X before local motorcycle-fabricator-to-the-stars Justin Kell started transforming it.

Kell, whose Glory Motor Works has built or restored bikes for "The Master," "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and "G.I. Joe 2," among many others, said his company built three futuristic motorcycles for Cruise and Kosinski's stunt crews to ride in "Oblivion."

To do that, Kell removed and replaced the Honda's exhaust system, cooling system, fuel tanks and body work, added all-new lighting and electrics — all in his Glendale facility, where he also does classic motorcycle restoration work — and slapped on custom carbon fiber wheels.

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Harley-Davidson® Screamin’ Eagle®/Vance & Hines riders Ed Krawiec and Andrew Hines continued advancement of the team’s new Harley-Davidson® V-Rod® motorcycles, as both riders qualified for the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals presented by Super Start Batteries at Royal Purple Raceway, the third Pro Stock Motorcycle event in the 2013 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.

Hines, a winner for three consecutive years at the Houston event, qualified third with an Elapsed Time (ET) of 6.904 seconds. Krawiec had a best ET of 6.947 seconds to qualify in the 14th position. Lucas Oil Buell rider Hector Arana Jr. led all qualifiers at 6.876 seconds. For the second week in a row, rain washed out one of the four qualifying sessions, robbing the Screamin’ Eagle®/Vance & Hines team of valuable track time.

“We were really using this race as a test session,” said Hines. “We tried some things with both bikes, going one way with my bike and the other with Ed’s V-Rod. Obviously my tune-up was working better, but then we lost that last session on Saturday, or I’m sure Ed would have qualified further up in the field.”

The qualifying results also placed the Screamin’ Eagle®/Vance & Hines teammates in the same pairing for the first round of eliminations on Sunday. Hines prevailed over Krawiec, 6.913 seconds to 6.983 seconds. In the second round, Hines fouled at the starting line to hand the win to Sovereign-Star Racing Buell rider Michael Ray.

“That red light was all on me, a mental issue in my routine at the line that will be easy to correct,” said Hines.

With four weeks off before the next NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle event, the Harley-Davidson® Screamin’ Eagle®/Vance & Hines team will engage in a ramped-up test program of the new V-Rod drag bikes, which were completed to meet new NHRA rules just before the start of the season.

“We keep learning about the new motorcycle and the new engine,” said Krawiec, the defending Pro Stock Motorcycle champion. “We’ve seen the tuning we did on the dyno start to come through at races. Now we are going hit the track hard for testing during this break, and come back ready to race at Englishtown.”

After three rounds of Pro Stock Motorcycle competition in 2013 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, Arana Jr. leads the class with 375 points, followed by Pollacheck with 256 points and Viper Motorcycle Company Buell rider John Hall in third place with 187 points. Krawiec and Lucas Oil Buell rider Hector Arana Sr. are tied for fourth place with 174 points. Hines is in seventh place with 144 points.

The Pro Stock Motorcycles will next race at the 44th annual Toyota NHRA Summernationals, May 30-June 2, at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, N.J.