I log a lot of miles on two wheels. I did 2,000 miles just last week, for example. But when I’m home relaxing on the couch, I flip on YouTube on the big screen and ride bikes I’ve never ridden before from the perspective of Zack Courts on the Revzilla channel. I doubt there is anyone with more two-wheel experience in this industry than Zack, and not only is it nice to get his perspective on stuff I’ve never ridden before, but it’s fun to see what matters on a bike from someone else’s perspective. Especially as it relates to using a bike as a commuter.
Even when he’s riding something I’ve already tested, it’s nice to compare what I thought of it to what he thinks of it. It’s like a one-sided trading of notes, and I appreciate that.
Zack’s Daily Rider series pits a new bike against a daily commute to the office on the mean streets of Los Angeles every couple of weeks. If you’re taking a different bike on the same roads every few days, you get a good perspective of how those bikes all compare as commuters. With a good mix of highway, surface streets, neighborhoods, and twisty roads, plus a bit of dirt and a jump or two for good measure, the route has become something of a standardized test against which all bikes must run.
Whether you’re looking for a new two-wheeled experience to consider for your commute to work, or you want to spend half an hour geeking out about motorcycles, Daily Rider is a good way to do that. This is the kind of thing that YouTube was built for. This is community building and tearing down the walls that keep people out of the sport. Accessibility is the name of the game here, because not everyone gets to test every single bike, so videos like this can help narrow down your choices before you go looking for a dealership demo day.
It sure helps that Zack is one of the brightest and most entertaining motorcycle dudes on the planet. I love the shenanigans that he and Ari get up to on their multiple long-standing video series, but I sure appreciate the down-to-brass-tacks approach of the Daily Rider series. Check it out when you get a chance, maybe you’ll be as hooked as I am.