Cycle News Observation Check
COLUMN
What’s in a name?
This year marked a milestone for this publication, but it’s more than just a milestone, really. In 1965, the first issue of Cycle News hit the stands. That’s 60 years ago, and Cycle News celebrated its 60th anniversary by publishing another 50 issues to close out 2025: no hoopla, no confetti, no champagne. None of that; instead, we just went about our business and produced another 50 great issues. That’s just what we do.
Yes, 1965 to 2025. Crazy when you think about it. That’s a big achievement, if I do say so myself. Of course, I haven’t been with the company all those years, but on some Mondays, it certainly feels like I have. But I am proud to be part of this publication for more than half of its existence.
If you want to get technical, Cycle News’ roots go back to 1964, when a man named Roy White founded Motorcycle Journal, which published its first issue in January of that year. Nearly two years later, Chuck and Sharon Clayton purchased Motorcycle Journal from its new owner, George Holiday Inc., which had acquired MJ from White and published it for just three weeks. The Claytons founded C&S Publishing Co. and pledged to expand the newspaper to 12 pages and its circulation to 10,000, with Chuck serving as editor and Sharon as business manager. Four weeks later, the first issue with the name Cycle News appeared, and the rest, as they say, is history.
When the Claytons purchased Motorcycle Journal, they knew they would change the name but didn’t know what to call it. So, they reached out to their readers for help and asked them to come up with one; the Claytons offered suggestions such as “Handlebar Horizons,” “Throttle Tribune,” or “Pillion Post.” The winner would also receive a $25 check. That winner was Frank Newman of West Covina, California, a 26-year-old Yamaha owner who would use his winnings to buy a new helmet and, hopefully, a subscription.
There were 54 entries, and Newman’s Cycle News suggestion was the Claytons’ favorite. There were a few honorable mentions, such as “Cycle News A-Go-Go” and “Motorcycle News,” submitted by, of all people, publisher Joe Parkhurst, who founded Cycle World magazine in 1962. Looking back, maybe “Motorcycle News” would have been a pretty good choice, but search engines weren’t around then. Other suggestions included “Cycle Cyclist,” “Cycle Cycler,” “TT Times,” “TT Tabloid,” “Megaphones & Saddlebags,” “Cycle Action News,” and one of my favorites, “Sprocket Weekly.” But Cycle News won out, and here we are 60 years later.
The first issue with the name of Cycle News, which, for those of you who were born after 2010 that might not know, was a weekly print newspaper mailed every Tuesday morning that would get black ink on your fingertips as you read it and featured several small photos and news items on the front page. Some of the names in the news in that issue were Don Vesco, Dick Hammer, Skip Van Leeuwen and Dick Mann, and the Claytons lived up to their 12-page promise.
Cycle News began as a regional newspaper, covering motorcycle events in California and major national and international races, with a focus on flat track, motocross, road racing and enduro. Desert racing also received significant attention because it was so popular in Southern California. Speedway also received significant print coverage, and it took place just down the street. Cycle News would soon expand to three regional publishing offices: CN West (California), CN Central (Texas), and CN East (Georgia), eventually evolving into a single national publication based in Long Beach (technically Signal Hill), California, in the 1990s. Since then, CN changed hands a few times, even joining the “corporate” world for a short time.
Today, Cycle News is once again a family-owned business, just like it was from the start. That family is also celebrating an anniversary. It’s been 10 years since Sean Finley, Jesse Ziegler and Bryan Robb teamed up to buy the next generation of Cycle News, operating under the Powersports Media banner, and they’ve been doing an awesome job. Because of their hard work (yes, Jesse works hard), CN continues to grow year after year.
It goes without saying that Cycle News has undergone many changes in its 60-year history. Still, the one thing that won’t change is what Chuck Clayton said when he and Sharon announced they had purchased Motorcycle Journal: “Major national and international events will get the coverage they deserve.”
Thank you, our loyal and new readers, for being part of our journey for the past 60 years. We—well, at least the name Cycle News—plan to be around for another 60, one way or another. And if we ever do change our name, my vote is for Sprocket Weekly. CN
Click here to read the Observation Check Column in the Cycle News Digital Edition Magazine.
