California Screamin’

May 5, 2018 | By Mike Seate

Basking in the 91 degree dry heat and taking in the sights and sounds of countless fast motorbikes whizzing about, our annual journey t test ride new bikes in Southern California is always a mind-bender. The visit is even more meaningful having spent what proved to be oe of the coldest, wettest winters and springs on record at home in Pittsburgh- at times I got the weird feeling that warm weather would never fully return. No such issues here as year-round riding conditions make for some seriously skilled and aggressive motorcyclists, evidenced by a scene we took in just yesterday on Mulholland Highway above the vaunted Rock Store motorcycle hangout. At a popular overlook above the winding mountain road, a group of youthful riders were staging some of the most spirited runs down the canyon we’d ever seen, with one particularly bold fellow racing his Harley-Davidson Dyna Glide straight at a wicked, 45 degree downhill apex where he drifted the bike through at an impossible speed and lean angle. I never even knew such things were possible on a 700-pound cruiser, but as they say, the riding is different in California.