So you’re riding in the city…

So much of whether you have a good time riding in the city is determined by your mindset. Riding in the city expecting a suburban experience will lead to pain.

You have to embrace the shit out of riding here.

Traffic sucks? Enjoy splitting and not having to wait behind cars. Drivers suck? Cool, avoid them and carry on. FDR deadly? Well, yes it is; deal with it.

See what I mean?

I got my first bike while living in the city and was essentially “born” riding here. It’s all I know. Obviously I’ve been to the track and have ridden around plenty upstate and beyond but the city is home and I’ve embraced my bike in it since day 1. Riding in the city is absolutely a mindset thing. It’s OK to hate it but know that hating it is a choice.

In any case, if you’re new on the scene, this has helped me get used to it a ton and I hope it helps you as well:

1. The metal construction plates are fine but avoid them when they’re wet

2. The city has its own climate; it’s always 5-10 degrees hotter in the summer and winter so dress accordingly

3. Speaking of gear, grab a summer jacket to remove the excuse of not gearing up

4. Split to your heart’s content; cops generally don’t care (I’ve split through cop cars) so long as you’re not being a dick

5. Stop at red lights. Read that again. Stop at red lights. And stop signs.

6. Don’t ride on side walks. Leave that to the asshats on scooters with no helmets and both feet flailing clipping pedestrians.

7. Park wherever tf you want. Just don’t block shit and stay away from fire hydrants; ask me how I know

8. A few notes on bike storage: Do not park outside overnight. I don’t care what kind of bike you have. That 440lb Streetfighter is an easy lift w/ 2-3 guys and will take all of 30 seconds to end up chopped in the Bronx. In general, don’t leave your bike unattended for more than like an hour. If you need ideas on how/where to store your bike, DM me on Instagram.

Speaking of parking… I’ve got space in my garage

I park on 57th & 1st and can see the entrance right from my apartment. The owner’s pretty chill and rides himself. There is a ramp down into the garage which makes it a bit more of a challenge of pulling out but essentially makes it theft-proof (yeah, I’ve heard of bikes stolen from garages).

The owner is looking to allocate an entire level of the garage for bikes so I’d love to get some 2 wheel things in there.

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A new route database & ride calendar is coming…

I know I haven’t been around much over the last few months but between the winter and my actual day job, I haven’t been able to focus on the newsletter as much.

What I have had time to do though was to build out an entire route, group ride system that can support us as riders through the summer. Here’s some functionality I’ve built:

1. Routes

   1. All of my custom routes will be in here.

   2. Custom routes will be sortable and filterable by distance, type (off-road/on-road), location, etc.

   3. You can build your own routes and upload links to Calimoto, GPX files, etc.

   4. Add in your own comments on routes you’ve done or are interested in.

2. Rides

   1. This is built to support rides for charity, motorcycle club rides, and a general platform to help with planning, etc.

   2. There will be a calendar for all rides and you will be able to join any ride you want (ride leads/organizers will be able to choose whether riders need to be approved or not)

   3. All of the expected group ride creation functionality will be there:

      1. Routes

      2. Ride date/KSU location

      3. Planned stops

      4. Custom ride rules & guidelines

      5. Ability to tip ($) the ride leader

      6. A group ride can be associated with one of the routes on NYC MOTO or a custom route set by the ride leader

Stay tuned for more updates as I finalize the build.

🥇 The NYC MOTO Riders Club

Here’s what being a member of The Riders Club means:

🌟 You’re supporting the only newsletter for riders in NYC. I work hard as hell bringing you this content and hunt down brands, routes, gear, and stories I know you’ll love. It’s a full time job and subscribers to the NYC MOTO Riders Club make it possible.

🔗 All of the Google Maps links & .GPX from our ride guides. Simply click on the links and follow the same turn-by-turn directions I did. I include .GPX links as well.

🛣️ A new route every week. There is an email blast that goes out on Thursdays to only those that subscribe to the Riders Club. It features one new spectacular route every week.

🤑 Exclusive discount codes to the 🔥 hottest gear. Some of the discounts are higher value than the free subscribers and you’ll also see some exclusive gear/brands entirely.

Give it a shot with a 7 day free trial:

Or if you’re the non-committal type, buy me a cup of ☕️ coffee. Honestly though, I’d probably just spend it on a pair of gloves.

🙏 Join the NYC MOTO Free Facebook Group

Go ahead and hit up the NYC MOTO Community to keep the convo going.

Until next time!

NYC MOTO

p.s. Sign up for the NYC MOTO newsletter here or share it with a friend