Ride The Wild Wind is Regenerating

Hello all Editor Nick here.  Doctor Who fans will get the reference above, for those who don’t it means a new incarnation of Ride The Wild Wind approaches.  This will be version 4 of the site, having started as a simple html local site, then moving to VOX for a bit more of a social blogging effect.  While RTWW did well on VOX with about 800 readers a month, there wasn’t much happening on the VOX service itself, and it’s now closed as of the end of September 2010.

At the start of 2010, after a brief break for the birth of my son Brandon, RTWW moved yet again to WordPress.com and fouind a good format there that has seen a huge rise in visitors with close to 10,000 a month now.  I started the site as just a bit of fun to let me waffle on about how awesome motorcycles are,  and it would seem quite a few people are tuning in. I can’t thank you all enough for checking out the site and I’ve made some great friends via RTWW both here as well as via the accompanying Twitter feed (@Bikers_RTWW), and on Facebook.

So in an effort to keep things fresh, and make all the content that has built up on the site over the last couple of years more accessible, a new version of RTWW is due for launch on November 1st.  We’ll still be featuring stories as usual until then but hopefully come Monday the 1st RTWW will have regenerated into its new version.

….Of course I probably shouldn’t have said this in case I miss that deadline but hey ho! 🙂

Sons Of Anarchy Vrs Harley Davidson – Round One

Oh dear it would seem there’s no end to the woes of Harley Davidson.

Flagging sales and financial problems have dogged it of late and now one of the best advertising opportunities the company had, has had enough of getting nothing in return.  On his Twitter page series writer Kurt Sutter issued the stunning announcement that Harley’s would no longer be used on the show due to poor response from HD and bootleg SOA merchandise being sold through HD outlets.  His exact tweets were;

– SOA has boosted HARLEY sales and we get next to nothing in return. now i find harley shops are selling bootleg soa gear. fuck you HD usa.

– next season, SOA upgrades to VICTORY, the other great american bike. i’ll make a story point about it, start to put a dent in the HD market.

If he’d said this in a fit of rage at what he sees as an unfair situation he hasn’t deleted the posts, but has since tweeted a slight retraction to clam the issue;

– Okay so I probably won’t pull them off harleys,that’ll hurt the show, I just hate when big companies throw their monopolistic weight around.

However despite this tweet following two hours after the previous ones the damage appears to have been done, with disgruntled fans making the pitch for Victorys, Indians, or customs to take over two-wheeled duties on the show.

While it may be a few idiot shop owners selling bootleg gear and not HD themselves sanctioning such practices (hopefully) the lack of reciprocal promotion of the show by HD is ridiculously inept PR.  Which ever chimp is wearing the Harley CEO hat currently should pass it along.

Follow http://twitter.com/sutterink for more developments

Many thanks to The Borg, http://twitter.com/The_BORG for the heads up on the story.

 

Ride The Wild Wind arrives on Facebook.

It took a while to get there, and many mentions on Twitter that it was happening only for it to be delayed, but finally Ride The Wild Wind has made it on to Facebook with our new page.  Looking forward to making connections with bikers everywhere and if you or your motorcycle club has a Facebook page get in touch and RTWW will friend or fan you ….. assuming you’re not a raving wackjob!

Making Connections..

Taking a blog break today to focus on building Ride The Wild Wind’s ‘social networking’ profile, as is the done thing these days.  One of the reasons RTWW came into being was to allow me (the Editor Nick) to connect with bikers everywhere to learn about all the cool stuff going on.  Motorcycling is such a diverse field to be involved in with so many types of bike, from sports, to adventure, cruiser, chopper, cafe, custom, dirt, and then to the challenges undertaken on them, on tracks, both smooth tarmac and loose gravel, touring around the world, endurance runs, drag racing, freestyle stunts, and the list goes on.

So in order to keep learning, and reaching out to motorcyclists across the globe, RTWW is getting a Facebook profile to better help the site make connections to bikers for whom the differing activities mentioned above, are their daily adventure.  RTWW already has a Twitter profile http://twitter.com/Bikers_RTWW which is great fun and hopefully Facebook will be another way of making friends and getting to know people who make bikes their hobby, passion, obsession, and essential part of their lives.

RTWW on Facebook will launch in a few days, back to regular blogging shortly.

We’re Back!..

Hey fellow Bikers

After a short hiatus due to new baby (God I need sleep) and a small spill on the ice a couple of weeks ago (OW! the noise of scraping metal haunts me still) the blog was on hold along with plans to revamp the Ride The Wild Wind web site.  Well both are now done and integrated into a bit more of a  modern look, that hopefully you’ll like and take part in as it’s a little more interactive now.  Also we’re no longer a Northern Ireland specific site so if you have a UK club you’d like added to our pages drop us an email at info@ridethewildwind.co.uk and we’ll get you listed and featured on the blog.

RTWW will be commenting on bike news, giving our own spin and adding a splash of opinion, and you can now take part in that, by signing up to the blog and commenting on the stories.  Also send us your pics of you and your pride and joy and we’ll get them up on our Flickr site, as well as featuring funny/cool ones on the blog itself.  New to RTWW is the ‘Your Voice’ section which will feature Polls to get your opinion on motorcycling’s burning issues as well as getting some fun views as well.  You can also check out our YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/RideTheWildWindTV and we’re looking for any hints & tips you may have to join Steve’s in helping new and old riders get the best out of their bikes.

You’ll still find us on Twitter, http://twitter.com/Bikers_RTWW as well so drop us an @ if you tweet yourself.

Hope you like the new look Ride The Wild Wind and let your biker mates know we’re here.  Ride Safe : )

Got a Motorcycle Club? Tell the world!..

Frozen Bones MCC

Stepping away from bike news today to highlight Ride The Wild Wind's new clubs section which is online now.  Our first featured club is Frozen Bones based in Dromore. Co.Down, Northern Ireland.

Frozen Bones MCC was formed by a group of friends in
January 2009. It's now in the process of recruiting members, building
the club website and establishing itself as a well organised, friendly
club in the local and wider area of Dromore.

Bike clubs are vital to the health of motorcycling as a sport, hobby, or obbession.  They are an essential resource for learning about both riding and maintaining your ride from other bikers.

But most of all clubs offer a great time through ride outs, meets, tours which can end up crossing several countries, and charity events which raise tens of thousands for worthy causes all year round.  Frozen Bones is a great example of a well run club ensuring everything is done professionally, but still focused on the fun and friendship that's an integral part of being in the biking community.

You can find out more about Frozen bones on their website http://www.frozenbonesmcc.com/

If you have a Northern Ireland based Motorcycle Club email us your details and we'll get you listed on Ride The Wild Wind (and for those who have asked it is free)

We have had requests from a number of other UK clubs to open up RTWW beyond Northern Ireland, to cover England, Scotland, and Wales as well.  This is certainly something we may do and would like to hear from other clubs/bikers who'd like a wider coverage on the site.  Again email us or get in touch via Twitter http://twitter.com/Bikers_RTWW

Read and post comments |
Send to a friend

Get Tweeting with Ride The Wild Wind..

RIde The Wild Wind on Twitter

Just a brief update to say Ride The Wild Wind is now on Twitter.  We'll be letting you know when new posts are made here, and hope to chat with Bikers from across the world (and the Twitterverse) on all things motorcycle.  Get following us and drop us an @, be great to hear from you.

Read and post comments |
Send to a friend