Claim OwnershipThe Lowdown Show - By ADVRider
Subscribed: 26Played: 935
Subscribe
Description
Join host and Gemini award-winner Neil Graham as he explores the people and passion behind the rapidly growing adventuring riding community.
The former editor-in-chief of Cycle Canada magazine, Neil applies his expertise in documentary filmmaking to delve into the intrigue that shapes the world of motorcycling, as told by designers, pundits, presidents, outliers and outlaws.
74 Episodes
Reverse
Most every type of motorcycle originated in Europe. Paris—of all places—begat the supermoto and our beloved ADV. But that’s not all. Michael Uhlarik reports in from Italy on a motorcycling culture more inclusive and less dismissive than our ways in the west. We also talk Roman roads, Roman chariots, and expertly ridden motorcycles owned by people who don’t really consider themselves enthusiasts. Don’t miss this one.
Summer's almost over, so what did we get out of it? Rumors and confirmations of new motorcycles, a lot of wildfires and some surprising stories about the situation that average riders face at their local dealerships. The Lowdown Show wraps up August with a talk with ADVrider's managing editor Zac Kurylyk. Zac and host Neil Graham discuss the topics that have made headlines this summer, like issues at dealerships. Neil and Zac both advise to pick your motorcycle based on the dealership that sells it as much as the bike itself. Or Harley-Davidson's new Sprint motorcycle, coming this fall—can they get it right? And then there's the wildfires that have closed down woods riding and wilderness travel in the northeast: how should adventure riders plan around such events?
Longtime Cycle World and Road & Track writer Peter Egan is back with a new book. Landings in America chronicles a mid-‘80s trip around the US with his wife Barb in a vintage Piper Cub airplane. Landings is a classic Egan travelogue with a dash of reflective pathos that lends the book the gravitas of memoir. Neil Graham talks to Peter about the trip, about motorcycles, and about why it took him 35 years to sit down to write it.
Harley-Davidson at the crossroads. How bad are things at H-D? They’ve sold off a chunk of the ultra-profitable financial services division in an attempt to keep the wolves from the door. Will the new CEO—plucked from the world of pizza and golf—be able to craft a plan to lead the brand back onto its feet? Michael is doubtful. And hopeful. But time, just as it is for all men, is running out.
The proposed selling of public lands and looming tariffs threaten to derail an already struggling US motorcycle market. Motorcycle Industry Council lobbyist Scott Schloegel, who for years worked inside government, has, for the past eight years, worked to bring the interests of US motorcycle manufacturers and distributors to legislators and lawmakers. In addition to a 2025 status report, Schloegel gives us the goods on what’s looming on the horizon—good and bad—for the American motorcyclist.
The motorcycle manufacturers' head offices tell us not to worry about the state of dealerships in North America—"Everything's fine, fine fine!" we're told. But if you look around, you see dealerships closing everywhere, and others seeming to be in financial straits. What's going on? Dealers are close-lipped trying to avoid trouble with the OEMs' bigwigs. But Mark Sheffield, who's been working on with dealership insiders for decades, is here to tell us what's really happening in the domain of the dealer. Get the straight information in this second part of a two-parter episode.
While OEMs claim all is well in dealership land, the dealerships themselves tell a different story—if only they’d talk on the record, which they won’t. Mark Sheffield has been involved with dealerships for decades and pulls back the curtain on a relationship that is as often contentions as it is convivial. Part one of our conversation with Mark is this week, next week in part two we’ll wrap it up.
America has long been seen as the big bike capital of the motorcycling world. Gold Wings, Harleys, Indians, superbikes and, for this readership, KTM Adventures and BMW GSs. But, as industry watcher Michael Uhlarik points out, it’s just not true. Or at least not true anymore. Small bikes are making a big comeback, and that’s not just an opinion, it’s the truth—sales numbers make it blatantly clear. Michael has the latest figures that show Honda’s CRF300L as the best selling bike in America today. Followed by a Harley. Is it surprising to see a split between the haves and the have-nots? Or is this just what we expect in 2025?
How tough is BMW’s GS Trophy, the one-make, one-model competition that pits skilled amateur riders from across the globe against each other? We talk to team USA’s Scott Acheson, who competed in Namibia in the most recent competition. Here’s a spoiler: Namibian sand, Scott tells Neil Graham, is not like Floridian sand. Would Scott do it again? Absolutely. Would he prepare for it differently? Absolutely.
Hugo Eccles does it all. Designer, teacher, customizer, lover of petrol and enthusiastic about electrification. In this episode, Hugo and Neil dig into the perils of designing electric motorcycles, the challenges of customization and malaise that makes most new motorcycles look so damn busy.
Caius Tenche doesn’t do half measures. After discovering motorcycling in his 40s, he promptly decided what the world needed was a film festival catering to riders. And riders only. If you can’t make his festival, listen-on, as Tenche picks a few favorites from the past and tells us how to watch them for free.
Motorcycle-mad Peter Dering founded Peak Design off the back of one product. Now, the San Franciscan has built an empire of rolling carts and backpacks and what he claims is the single best motorcycle phone mount in captivity. Peak Design is also a case study in how to build a business in the modern age, as it successfully crowdsources development funding in lieu of seeking outside investors.
Pundit Michael Uhlarik claims we in the west have been getting the KTM story all wrong. Or mostly wrong. The readily-accepted narrative—that new majority-shareholder Bajaj will benefit from KTM’s technology and expertise—is pure poppycock. And Michael draws a parallel between KTM’s woes and the near collapse and diminished future of another major European OEM to prove his point.
Brian Price, who joined us in Lowdown 42 to talk all things KTM, is back with an update on the fate of the once-proud Austrian brand. Now that KTM's future is assured—or so KTM would like us to believe—Brian fill us in on what’s next now that the brand is Indian-owned.
Fearless Fazer Manny is the luckiest man alive. Just ask him. His confidence far outpaces his skill. He says it himself. But despite a lifetime of crashing—his latest a 100 mph shunt into the woods just this month
—he carries on with boundless enthusiasm. He’s overweight, out of shape, and at 72 carries on like he’s 25. If that doesn’t make him legendary, we don’t know what does.
This week's guest is ADVrider editor Zac Kurylyk, who's just returned from riding the Can-Am Canyon. Is this bold new three-wheeler really suitable for adventure riders? What's it like to ride, and who is it made for? Zac and Neil also discuss a recent ride to Cape Breton Island, with some tips for travelers who want to explore this paradise of paved and unpaved roads, with distinct cultures and gorgeous scenery.
Tall tales from Africa part two. The ultimate innocent abroad, Sam Manicom headed out from the UK to Africa having never ridden a motorcycle before. Ever. As in never. Forget working on your skillset to help combat African sand—Sam was just doing his best to differentiate the brake lever from the clutch lever. But he survived with beautiful, well-observed stories from the continent.
Traveller and author Sam Manicom joins us to talk about riding Africa and to read excerpts from his book Info Africa. With little experience on a motorcycle (as in none) Manicom took the advice from his two mates down at the pub and bought an R80GS and set out from England for points south, fulfilling his mother’s mantra that her son could be foolishly naive. But he survived. And what a story he brought back home.
In this episode, host Neil Graham speaks to Inna Thorn and Bryce Stevens from the BDR organization, aka Backcountry Discovery Routes, a centralized, registered non-profit that provides off-road routes through some of the most visceral, breathtaking country in the US. The BDR organization may be the best thing that’s happened to adventure riding since the advent of motorcycles that don’t fall over.
JT Nesbitt took a break from fabricating the great American motorcycle—his built-from-scratch Magnolia 4—to chew the fat with Lowdown host Neil Graham. JT shared his feelings on kids these days, the flatlining Harley-Davidson motorcycle company, when to ignore and when to pay heed to criticism and more. All from the land of New Orleans.
Comments
Download from Google Play
Download from App Store
United States