On the subject of British motorcycle magazines

[scoprire]

So it's not just me then; I pick up BIKE and TWO.  Sometimes PB if something looks good.  one US mag I get is when a friend trades me his CycleWorld for my read Brit mags.  The Brits aren't as worried about pissing off the companies that advertise w/ them; if something sucks... they say it sucks.

the local bookstore rarely gets the Brit mags by the 1st of the month; usually takes till at least the 3rd or 4th day of the month to be on the shelf.  In Oct, they didn't get TWO till about the 3rd WEEK of the month.  And my BIKE subscription was delivered till about then.  I'm guessing some kind of shipping/customs slowdown, but they are still making it here.

[Greg]

Does Bike magazine still have OGRI in the back?

[AndrewNS]

Last Issue I bought it still did (back in either August or September).

[flanman]

Does Bike magazine still have OGRI in the back?

Yeah they still have it, a couple issues back they had a story inside about it.

[Greg]

Yeah they still have it, a couple issues back they had a story inside about it.

Amazing - I think the last issue of Bike I read was when I was in College 28 years ago in England. Glad to see Ogri and Malcom are still around.

[ducatiz]

Part of the problem is the bike companies' US offices.

They will pull advertising if a US mag writes a shitty review of a bike. 

Superbike UK is awesome.  They will actually say "it sucks" when a bike sucks.  They lost HD's advertising when they did a negative review of HD's bike.  THey say "who cares?! you're a bunch of make the beast with two backswits!"

Bike companies need to suck it up and realize that they are going to get negative reviews now and then.  Maybe if they listen to the reviews they'll make better bikes.

Also, the US magazine market is much bigger than the UK, so an advertiser can dump one mag for another.  Or someone will start a new one.  It makes hte magazines so bland -- they appeal to the lowest common denominator.

Outlaw Biker is my favorite US mag.  Only because of the attitude.

[Lukey]

i found that after i picked up T.W.O. and read a copy, i started buying it, and stopped by american rags.

it's so much better that it makes it somewhat irksome to read the stateside publications.

Amen to that...I still grab an American mag now and then, based solely on the bike on the cover, but I usually can't read through a whole article...the writing's just too mediocre.

After the Brit publishers bought the American mags, I noticed the locals trying to add some wit and some tongue-in-cheek irreverance to sound more British.  Sadly, much like pigs in lipsick, they weren't able to pull it off.

[lemond]

http://www.ccgdata.com/10sh-6.html, 20% off for PB and 30% off for Bike.

[geoffduc]

hi guys,
          over here in jolly old england the bike mags most of the time tell it as it is.i personally have a good look at the cover to see what write ups are inside before i buy.in april 2008 ride magazine there was a 10 page article on ducati monsters which i found very good and worth trying to get a back issue of.the one mag that i subscribe to is cycle world,peter egan and kevin cameron are worth the price of subscription on their own and WOW what a deal the price of subscription is.a magazine that i really enjoyed was italianbike but it went pop after just 9 issue's so i don't what happened there.

[Lukey]

One of the mags, I'm pretty sure it's BIKE, gave a bad review to the stock (as opposed to S version) 1098, saying it wasn't nearly as good as the S.  The next issue, they reported that Ducati punished them for it by withdrawing all advertising, but that the mag stood by its review.  That's worth the price of admission.  And it just makes Ducati look like fools.

[ducatiz]

One of the mags, I'm pretty sure it's BIKE, gave a bad review to the stock (as opposed to S version) 1098, saying it wasn't nearly as good as the S.  The next issue, they reported that Ducati attempted to punish them for it by withdrawing all advertising, but that the mag stood by its review.  That's worth the price of admission.  And it just makes Ducati look like fools.

That would be Ducati NA, not Ducati MH. 

That is how American companies work, it's pathetic.  Ducati NA hasn't really shown they aren't above being dickheads now and then.

[tufty]

Brit mags are written by the English who, unlike writers in American mags, know how to use the ENGLISH freakin' language...imagine that!

Brits really are more passionate about bikes.

Brits have tremendously clever wit and prefer self-abasing humor which sure beats American pedantic-poopie-pants humor.

Brit mags are expensive partly because of shipping but also because they have next to no advertising, which is a real plus.

That said...I haven't been able to find BIKE magazine at Barnes and Noble or Borders for a couple of months...is this just local or is there a problem with the mag?

They're also universally biased towards jap 4 bangers and horsepower. Not as bad as Kent Kunitsugu (sp), but still pretty one sided.
T.W.O. or Bike are the best IMO.

P.S. I'm a limey so I'm allowed.

[flanman]

Off topic but I picked up a copy of Robb Report Motorcycling. Usually i flip through it because they have some interesting customs and higher end bikes. The content never really is any good but this last issue took bad to a whole new level. They are focusing even more on the ritzy rich aspect and are way too upper crust orrientated. they had a story (not just an add) on designer jewlery as a fasion statement followed by a review of a custom vehicle to haul all your bike stuff.

[Lukey]

Proving that fools and their money...fill in the blank.