This just showed up in my inbox! Do the North American continent a favor and support this (motorcycleretro.com) and other fine vintage/classic bike magazines such as (http://www.motorcycleclassics.com/).

March 17, 2009
The Retro Report
Edition 2
Dear Retro Army,
I hope you’re doing well as the riding season fires up!
Although things at Motorcycle Retro are way busy, I wanted to let you know what’s been happening on our end. Finalizing the design of the full motorcycleretro.com website has sucked up most of the last month or so. We’d hoped to have the full site up and running by March 1, but we’re probably a couple weeks away from going fully live. Look for the site to launch by the end of March, with tons of information and credit-card/PayPal subscription payment options. We’ll also offer single-copy sales, dealer wholesale packages and cool retro news on a daily or bi-weekly basis to keep you up-to-date on the vintage/retro scene. Thanks for your patience here!
While we’re a bit behind on the website, we’re definitely on track for a May/June release of Issue One of Motorcycle Retro. We’ve got a great slate of bikes and people to feature, which we’ll list on the website in a few weeks’ time. Since we’ll be bi-monthly for 2009 and 2010, we’ll do two issues this year (we’re starting late in the wake of Motorcyclist Retro’s demise) and four next year. So for those who’ve already subscribed (big-time thanks!), you’ll get two issues this year (our May/June and Sept/Oct releases) and two more in the first half of 2010.
For those who haven’t yet subscribed, I’d like you to take a minute and please consider it. And here’s why: Unlike traditional bike magazines (most magazines, really), Motorcycle Retro is primarily reader-supported, meaning it gets the majority of its operating revenue from you, not from advertisers. Yes, we’re accepting ads from some great companies, but much less than traditional bike magazines. Which means you not only get more to read in each issue, but you play a vital part in the magazine’s future. With Motorcycle Retro, it’s not “the economy” or “ad sales” that’ll determine if we get over the hump this year and thrive going forward. It’s you! If we get enough subscribers this year – the break-even point is only a couple thousand subscriptions in 2009 – the future looks very, very good, including the very real possibility of us going bi-monthly (6x/year) in 2011.
You folks – the Retro Army! – can also help keep the magazine strong another way… by spreading the word about Retro to every vintage-oriented enthusiast you know. Whether by word-of-mouth, email, Internet forums or through your local riding club, every single recommendation helps. As I’ve said, selling our unique retro concept is easy; as soon as folks see the cool, ’60s/’70s/’80s stuff we’re covering, they immediately get it – and want the magazine. So the key for us is to let as many folks as possible know about us. Once they see what we’re doing, they’re in. And that sort of exposure is what’ll keep us going strong.
Also, if you have a favorite bike shop, especially one run by folks who dig the retro hardware we all love, ask if they’d like to carry Motorcycle Retro in their store. If so, they can contact me the same way you can – at mitch@motorcycleretro.com. Our goal is to have 100 outstanding bike shops carrying Retro nationally by the end of the year, and with your help we’ll make that happen.
As always, feel free to email me at the above address with comments, criticisms, ideas, photos and, above all, back-in-the-day stories and pix of you when you were young (and had hair)! We’re going to feature more of these BITD bits in Motorcycle Retro than before, so we’ll need plenty of material. Be sure the photos are relatively hi-rez (the more kilo- or megabytes the better) as you scan them.
Once again, thanks for the support you’ve shown the magazine. It helps more than you can imagine. And please continue to spread the word. I’ll be back in touch when the website launches in a couple weeks.
Best regards,Mitch
Mitch BoehmEditor/PublisherMotorcycle RetroPO Box 202Palos Verdes Estates, CA 90274www.motorcycleretro.commitch@motorcycleretro.com