Harley-Davidson May Have Quietly Ushered in a New Era of Motorcycling

Sometimes, change happens fast and furious, impossible to miss. Other times, it slips in under your nose and only later do you realize nothing will ever be the same.

The latter scenario just might be unfolding with the latest bit of news from LiveWire, Harley-Davidson’s electric sub-brand.

LiveWire

The potentially game-changing announcement, courtesy of a simple press release? Bartels’ Harley-Davidson Riding Academy in Marina del Rey has become the first new rider program in America to offer certified training on LiveWire electric motorcycles. 

On the surface, that might not seem like that big of a deal, but in removing a difficult part of learning to ride from the process, they’ve dropped a huge barrier to entry, with major ramifications. 

Breaking news

Before we can get to what this means, let’s break down what it is. 

LiveWire says that at Bartels’, you can receive expert instruction from trainers certified by both the California Motorcyclist Safety Program (CMSP) and the Harley-Davidson Riding Academy.

More importantly, you can learn to ride on LiveWire S2 Mulholland and S2 Alpinista bikes — specially outfitted for motorcycle training.

The most noticeable modification is a crash bar behind the fork, which protects both the bike and the rider (but mostly the bike) in the (not entirely unlikely) event of a tip-over. 

According to LiveWire, the bikes also feature software calibrations friendly to new riders, including softened throttle response, adjusted regenerative braking and enhanced traction control.

LiveWire

On the flip side, as they are electric, what these bikes lack are a clutch lever on the left handlebar and a gear-shift lever on the left footpeg. 

In other words, they remove what is often the hardest aspect of learning to ride — mastering the timing and technique of clutch operation and gear shifting — from the process entirely.

Big ramifications

That was the trickiest part for me when I got my license a little over a decade ago, anyway — and I had the benefit of knowing how to drive a stick shift car (a similar process). 

A couple of my classmates did not have that background and eventually crashed out of the course, literally and figuratively.

Perhaps things would have been different for them on clutch-free electric bikes. I’m sure LiveWire CEO Karim Donnez agrees.

“This partnership is about breaking down barriers and empowering the next generation of riders,” Donnez says.

“By integrating LiveWire motorcycles into rider training, Bartels’ is redefining what it means to learn to ride — making it more accessible, more intuitive and better aligned with the future of motorcycling.”

LiveWire

All of that is so true, even as curmudgeons like me bemoan the fact that future generations may never experience the unique challenge of manually shifting gears, which, once you actually learn it, is also one of the most satisfying parts of riding.

It’s also what makes the ramifications so massive. Very few young people these days are learning to drive stick shift cars — especially in the US where they are increasingly rare — and may be quite intimidated by the numerous difficulties of learning to ride a motorcycle. 

So removing perhaps the biggest challenge opens the two-wheeled life up to a whole new class of humans who might not have seriously considered it before.

LiveWire

LiveWire S2 Alpinista

• $15,999 at LiveWire

It could also unlock a whole new customer base for LiveWire, which is simultaneously hemorrhaging cash and sitting on the precipice of a possible explosion in the electric motorcycle market. 

One wonders if it can keep the shiny side up long enough to reach the potential goldmine on the other side of the mountain.

Looking ahead

It is worth noting that upon completion of the New Rider Course, you won’t be able to end the weekend by testing for your motorcycle endorsement, as I did and so many others have done. 

However, you do get your Basic RiderCourse completion card, which you can bring to the California DMV and, upon passing a written test, procure the moto endorsement. 

LiveWire

Which means, ultimately, that it’s now possible to get licensed without knowing how to ride a “manual” motorcycle, just as you can get a traditional driver’s license without knowing how to drive stick.

Following this pilot program, LiveWire plans to expand to additional Riding Academy locations across the US.

In the meantime, Bartels’ is currently accepting new students to its LiveWire S2 rider training program. 

Just don’t blame me if your left hand or foot happen to fall asleep mid-course.

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