Not every rider requires a race boot; some value everyday wearability over full armor. Taking to the sidewalk comfortably without losing complete protection while riding was a motivating factor in the design of Alpinestars new Joey Shoe, which are available in canvas or waterproof models.

At first glance, you'd never know the Alpinestars Joey shoes conceal sport-riding features lost on your regular everyday shoes. Dual-density ankle protectors, a reinforced toe and heel box and durable polyfoam padding on the tongue and ankle aid in comfortably light protection.

We quite like the Yamaha TTX when we rode it some time ago, and our only grudge against it was that it was marketed as a scooter for girls. Why let marketing lingo overshadow the merits of a truly deserving product? Thankfully, Yamaha has addressed this by the Yamaha TTX X-Force Edition, a scooter targeting at... boys.

So, what's so boyish about it? A lot of cosmetic changes, that's what. The Yamaha TTX X-Force gets new colors – army green and black/blue – with very stylish decals.

The most prominent cosmetic change is the overall look of the TTX X-Force Edition. Yamaha uses jet fighters in the advertising campaign. The Yamaha TTX X-Force comes in matte color and currently comes with a free pilot style jacket and helmet as promotion.

Last weekend we looked a the Honda CRF250M, which is basically the supermoto version of the popular dual-purpose CRF250L.

The Honda CRF250M utilizing the same liquid-cooled, DOHC single cylinder engine as the CRF250L, the Honda CRF250M sits 20mm lower due to revised all-round suspension with heavier weight springs, and gets an upgraded larger 296mm floating front disc, plus 17 inch wheels with wider profile road tires, in this case IRC Road Winners.

Putting the Honda CRF250M through its pages around a tight and twisky go-kart track was great fun – the 22.8 horsepower engine revs well and the taller gearing (39 teeth rear sprocket) compared with the CRF250L was welcome down the back straight.

Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo delivered a perfect performance today in the Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya to take his second consecutive Grand Prix victory, his third of the 2013 season. A scorching start from third on the grid saw the local hero pass pole man Dani Pedrosa almost immediately for the hole shot into turn one. A classic Lorenzo master class followed with the reigning world champion maintaining a metronome precision over race distance to keep the two following Hondas of Pedrosa and Marc Marquez behind. The result closes the gap at the top of the championship standings with Lorenzo now on 116 points, just seven behind leader Pedrosa as they head for the Dutch TT in Assen in two weeks time.

Teammate Valentino Rossi made a good start on his YZR-M1, jumping two places to hold fifth going into turn one. The nine-time champion looked comfortable behind fellow Yamaha rider Cal Crutchlow until the young Brit crashed out, promoting Rossi to fourth. By this time a small gap had grown to the front three riders and despite at times lapping faster than the front he was unable to close the gap, riding a relatively lonely race to fourth at the line. The result gives Rossi 13 points and closes the gap to Crutchlow in fourth to just 11 points.

Today proved to be another day to forget for Ratthapark Wilairot, who made a mistake in qualifying practice this afternoon and crashed. The Thai rider will start from 28th on the grid tomorrow in a race that he must at least finish.

Ratthapark Wilairot

(28th 1’ 48” 240 )
I am massively disappointed for the team and I want to say sorry to them because another crash was not what we needed. I didn't have a good feeling with the bike and I made a mistake in turn five but as I tried to make up for it on the way into turn 6 I lost the front. Tomorrow we simply have to make it to the finish. That is my main objective.

Jorge Lorenzo continued his unbroken run as the only rider to consistently start from the front row this season, taking third on the grid for tomorrow’s Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya. The reigning world champion had only the last minutes of the brief qualifying heat to record a best time after a clutch issue forced him to pit shortly after the session started. Despite the setback he was able to salvage a front row start in third with a 1’41.566 after completing just seven laps. Lorenzo was able to walk away uninjured from a crash in the morning’s third free practice after losing the front at turn five. Conditions were even hotter than yesterday with track temperatures hitting up to 57 degrees over the afternoon.

Having been the fastest rider yesterday Valentino Rossi continued his competitive pace into the third free practice this morning, ending in fourth but just 0.156 seconds from first. Having mastered race pace the nine-time champion turned to qualifying, allowing most of the field to leave the pits before venturing out to find some clean track. Using the harder front and soft rear tyre option he delivered a best time of 1’41.959 to take seventh on the third row of the grid, less than four tenths from his team mate Lorenzo on the front row.

The Victory Judge, a muscle cruiser cast in the spirit of the muscle cars that ruled the roads 40-something years ago. But to get the Victory Judge off the bench and onto the playing field, Victory borrowed from a formula that's proven to be so successful by that other motorcycle company. Victory based its new muscle cruiser on an existing platform, in this case the Victory Vegas, a model that has been the primary donor for a variety of other Victory cruisers for the last 10-years. The result is impressive, to say the least, because the Victory Judge checks in as a model with a comfortable ride and snappy performance that's bundled in a stylish package that enthusiasts expect from a muscle cruiser.

Indeed, it's the styling that set the tempo for this ride, in this case paying tribute to the Judge's namesake, Pontiac's GTO Judge, a muscle car that first scoreched the streets in 1969. That Judge was perhaps best known for its bright orange paint and five-spoke metallic gray Rally II wheels that were wrapped with raised-white-letter tires. And it was those fashion cues that Victory's stylists leaned on to set the color options for the Judge. While Victory offers a variety of color options for the Judge, it's the Suede Nuclear Sunset – a flat or semi-gloss – that will be remembered most in years to come. Even though the suede color differs noticeably from Pontiac's glossy hue of 1968, the visual connection is obvious.

Helmets, much like the heads they protect, come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. But what really separates the good, the bad, and the ugly? The only true way to choose the right one is to try them on and see which one fits. I've been fortunate enough to be able to have worn lots of motorcycle helmets for my head. And what a head it is at that.

I have a big fat head with short shaved hair. What this means is that many helmets meant for, say, a smaller Asian cranium, won't fit my super-sized Caucasian skull and many inner liners tend to stick to and pull my hair. I'm still getting used to getting bugs in my teeth wearing half head helmets, so when somebody stopped by with a Shoei QWest Passage TC-2, I was anxious to rack up some kilometers behind the facial windscreen.

Yamaha Factory Racing heads to Spain this week for the second home race of the year for reigning World Champion Jorge Lorenzo, the Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya at the Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló on Sunday 16th June. The circuit promises to deliver an exciting weekend of racing as the scene of one of the greatest battles between Lorenzo and his teammate Valentino Rossi in 2009 when the Yamaha riders took it to the wire over the last laps in a fight for glory, won at the last corner by Rossi.

Fresh from his superb victory in Mugello, Lorenzo will be eager to repeat the performance in front of his home crowd and continue his unbroken four-year podium run at Montmeló. The Mallorcan was second in 2009 and 2011 and claims two premier class victories there, 2010 and 2012. Lorenzo also has one 250cc win at the track in 2007.

After a disastrous home race in Mugello that saw him crash out on the first lap after a collision with Alvaro Bautista, Rossi will be determined to come back fighting this weekend in Spain. The nine-time World Champion can claim more victories at Montmeló than any other GP rider with one 125cc win in 1997, 250cc wins in 1998 and 1999, one 500cc victory in 2001 and five premier class victories in 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2009.

Bangkok is called the 'City of Angles', but anyone living in the capital today will tell you it's far from an ideal metropolitan. During rush hour our sky trains and buses are overcrowded, a good amount of the roads could use some maintenance, and the metro/subway seems to go to places I never need to go.

I live at one end of the city and for work I sometimes need to travel to the other end – my daily commute is 70km loop. Catching a bus means reaching work drenched in sweat, driving down daily means emptying half a tank of fuel and my wallet, and if I took the air-condition bus, I'd never reach on time.

So last month, I rode down those 70km on the Keeway RKV200, which, design-wise, is the most sorted looking below 250cc commuter motorcycle on sale today. I need a smooth, hassle-free daily ride without hurting my backside or my wallet. And the Keeway RKV200 obliged. The single-cylinder, air-cooled with additional oil-cooler, 200cc engine felt pretty smooth and responsive and things have only improved after its second service.