Before you start reading this month’s Editor’s Letter, let me assure you this isn’t a reprint.

If you’re the type who carefully peruses the masthead, you’ll notice that Senior Editor Nic de Sena is no longer present. This isn’t the first time. Or the second. Yes, this is the third time Nic has left us for greener pastures, 11 years after he began his career at Ultimate Motorcycling.

While Nic returned to us after stints with Rider and Motorcycle.com, this one may stick. As with his time here, Nic wasn’t the top dog at the other two media outlets. He is an excellent writer and easy to work with; he has enough experience to run the show and hasn’t needed me to tell him what to do for some time now.

Nic has moved over to TopSpeed.com, part of the portfolio of the Montreal-based Valnet Inc. Don’t be misled by his title of Deputy Editor. Nic will be calling plenty of shots at the unconventional website, and he will continue to write about motorcycles, though you may see him test a car or truck at some point. If you enjoyed his work with us, and I have no doubt you did, you can follow Nic on the TopSpeed website. You can read one of Nic’s farewell pieces this month, a review of the KTM 690 SMC R. We have one more in the can for when we start covering 2027 models in earnest.

People come and go in our personal and professional lives, as do motorcycles. Nic’s departure and this issue of Ultimate Motorcycling prompt me to consider that ebb and flow.

KTM has been mining the supermoto genre for over 30 years, and the big-bore SMC designation has carried the flag for nearly 25 of them, beginning in 2003 with the 660 SMC. I’ve ridden several SMCs, and they never fail to delight. That includes the new 690 SMC R.

Honda adds its E-Clutch to the CB750 Hornet, the bike that revived the CB750 designation. As many of you know, the first CB750 in 1969 was one of the most important motorcycles in history, with a design language that is still present today in the motorcycling vernacular. While this model won’t be as highly regarded as the original CB750, the E-Clutch promises more great things.

I get press releases from Europe, so I’ve long been familiar with the Kawasaki KLE500. The problem is, I have only read about it, because the bike never came to the United States until now. This latest version is an interesting ride that’s hard to categorize, as it’s part rally and part adventure, carving out its own genre.

In the early 1960s, Japanese bikes were considered junk and not real motorcycles. Bikes from China have taken the same slings and arrows, and often deserved them. Happily, times have changed, and motorcycles from China are now impressive. The Benda Chinchilla 300 is one of them, and it features a cool V-twin that elevates the entry-level cruiser experience.

We also have the Triumph TF 450-E. I’ve been riding dirt bikes long enough to have raced MX in the same era as the 1973 Triumph TR5MX Avenger. I got roosted by a 500-class pro rider as I sat behind the starting line on my Yamaha MX125, waiting my turn in the Novice class at Indian Dunes. Little did I know in 1973 that Triumph would still be making a big-bore off-road bike. Okay, so there was a 50-year gap in there. Now, instead of a pushrod, two-valve motor, we get an overhead cam and titanium valves. Progress takes time.

Finally, we have coverage of Moto Guzzi’s 105th anniversary. While I may be old, I was not around when the Italian company got started. Still, I read about the 1971 Ambassador 750 in the earliest motorcycle magazines I bought. I wasn’t riding street bikes, and didn’t really expect to, but the iconic V-twin still resonates with me. I’m sure Moto Guzzi has an Ambassador in its new museum on its factory campus in Mandello del Lario. I did get to ride the Ambassador’s progeny, the California 1400 and various iterations, and that was always a treat.

So it goes, as Kurt Vonnegut wrote. Things change. Time passes.

And we keep riding motorcycles. Thanks for continuing to read about them.