Motorcycle, Jacket

Harley-Davidson Sportster 883R

A seminal moment in biker history: After World War II, fighter pilots and bomber crews returned to the States with a taste for speed. Some of those heroes traded their planes for motorcycles, and the leather they wore to keep warm while airborne came in handy on the road. They wore their bomber jackets like trophies. The leather was battle-tested, and the bike of choice was a Harley-Davidson. A style was born. Today there are more motorcycle jackets than motorcycles. Leather still rules, and as for the bikes, Harley is as hot as it ever was. The Sportster 883R is a young man's Harley. Appealing to the purist, it's a minimalist machine uncluttered by excess chrome and aftermarket kitsch. The color scheme shown here (orange with black-and-white checkerboard) pays homage to Harley's racing history. The Sportster debuted in 1957--in the same decade that gave us the Stratocaster, Playboy and rock and roll. But the current model features a thoroughly modern (not to mention rubber-mounted) 883 cc Evolution V-twin engine. Climb on, rev the throttle, and you'll hear it--the best soundtrack on wheels. ($7,595, harley-davidson.com)

BMW R 1200 RT

BMW's design wizards have been in overdrive, first with last year's amazing adventure tourer, the R 1200 GS, and now with the more refined R 1200 RT (pictured). We tore up a stretch of desert highway on the RT. Simply put: The bike sets a new benchmark for high-tech sport touring. It embodies comfort and class, with subtle touches such as heated handgrips and an electronically adjustable windscreen. (Keep the bugs off the leather, thank you.) As for power, this long-distance runner wraps a streamlined body around a 1170 cc, 110 hp engine. It may look like a gentleman, but it can tear up the twisties without breaking a sweat. ($17,490, bmwmotorcycles.com)

Triumph Thruxton 900

The world's other 100-year-old motorcycle company has done as much to shape biker mythology as the one in Milwaukee. (Look what Brando's riding in The Wild One and what Dylan's wearing on the Highway 61 Revisited cover.) The Thruxton is a born-again British classic built around a 69 hp engine--what they call neo-retro, a rakish handful of speed with a spiffy period feel. It's an update of the cafe racer, the bike of choice among a pre-Beatles subculture of young men who gathered at the Ace Café in London and ran stripped-down street fighters from truck stop to truck stop. Like the originals, this one has rear-set pegs and tank-hugging handlebars called clip-ons (not to be confused with the tie you wore to your first wedding). Slap on a leather helmet and ride. ($7,999, triumphmotorcycles.com)

Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6RR

Most people hear the phrase class war and think of the rich and foppish. Or simply Paris Hilton. We think of the new class of 600 cc sport bikes, the weapon of choice for the young and restless. These middleweights work with astonishing energy on the road, and competition to roll out the best one is fierce. Kawasaki used cutting-edge technology from larger racing bikes to create the ultimate pocket rocket, the Ninja. The ZX-6RR (pictured) is a descendant of last year's Supersport champion, which won eight of 11 races in the 2004 season. Meet at dawn? ($8,899, kawasaki.com)

Ducati 999R

When Ducati first unleashed the revolutionary 999 in 2003, it sparked a controversy among the ducatisti (the Italian word for people who get aroused at the sight of anything so impractical and irresistible as a street-legal racing bike). Stacked headlights? What next, over and under breasts? All that cappuccino and you have to argue about something. One way or another, this model quickly established itself as the bike to beat, the object of desire for riders who crave speed first and foremost. It's hard to argue with something you can't catch. Powered by a 150 hp Testastretta engine, the carbon-fiber concoction is capable of 185 miles an hour. If a bug hits your leather jacket at that speed, it's between you and your dry cleaner. ($29,995, ducati.com)

Where and How to Buy on page 143.