Zack Courts

California

Senior Media Lead and Editor at Common Tread

Co-Host at Highside / Lowside: Motorcycle Podcast

rider/writer. motorcycles save lives.

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Articles

A 'round town review of the 2025 Kawasaki Ninja 7 Hybrid

1 month ago | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

I’ve been waiting for this for a long time. A true hybrid motorcycle. And considering all of the hype in my head, the Ninja 7 from Kawasaki already had big shoes to fill. It’s a properly complex machine, as we covered in the first ride article, but what it’s trying to capture as a motorcycle is pretty simple.
2025 Ducati Panigale V2 S first ride

2 months ago | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

Motorcycles are too fast. There, I said it. Maybe you’ve noticed that oftentimes the second-most powerful machine for sale from any given company is the better choice for most of us. And that being the case, it seems like if a manufacturer made its second-fastest machine even smaller and less powerful it would be even better. Ducati decided to give it a shot.
Inside a SuperMotocross semi truck: Everything needed to make motorcycles fly

2 months ago | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

Riders in the SuperMotocross World Championship fill stadiums around the country, soaring off massive jumps in a chase for glory and a million-dollar check. It's fair to say that they live a special life on two wheels, and the way their motorcycles travel is also a little different. In the case of the Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki team, two full semi trucks carry all of the things the group of mechanics and staff need to get through a weekend.
2025 Honda Dax 125 first ride review

2 months ago | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

“Is it fast?” the young girl asked, raising her eyebrows. The “ha!” came out so fast I surprised myself. “No…not really.” “Well, it looks cool,” she said. In some ways, I could end the Honda Dax review there — no, it isn’t fast and yes, it looks great. Then again, there’s a whole constellation of reasons that the new-to-America Dax even has that kind of kickstand presence and why that gal, too young to have a driver’s license, thinks it’s cool.
Retrospective Review: 1924 Harley-Davidson Model J

Dec 9, 2024 | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

I guess I’ll never truly know what it’s like to ride a motorcycle 100 years ago, because I can’t go there. But, even if I don’t have a machine to take me back in time, I was able to find the next best thing — a Harley-Davidson Model J, circa 1924. Then again, you don’t just “go.” Getting up to speed on a motorbike from 1924 is a layered process, and pretty foreign for an average enthusiast. A quick walk-around tells you that the Harley J is not going to be like most motorcycles.
European motorcycles made in India: Good or bad?

Nov 18, 2024 | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

I ended up in an argument with a KTM representative recently about manufacturing motorcycles in India. They believe the bikes are good and I said no, they are not. Here’s the thing: I think we’re both right. This is an issue I’ve been grappling with a lot lately, having ridden and reviewed Aprilia's RS 457 as well as the KTM 390 Duke and Triumph Speed 400.
2025 Ducati Panigale V4 S first ride review

Sep 16, 2024 | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

I am sore. My hands are slightly blistered, my upper arms are tender, and my lower back feels strained. It feels like I tried an extreme sport for the first time, or got in a fight, but it wasn’t that. I used a motorcycle to do this to myself. I spent a day at a racetrack with the new Ducati Panigale V4 S. I know what you’re thinking and no, I didn’t crash the thing. It’s just hard to ride a powerful, modern showroom superbike as fast as you can.
2024 KTM 390 Duke ride review

Sep 13, 2024 | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts |Bre four-piston caliper

Well now, this new 390 Duke seems nice. It’s a sporty and energetic little motorcycle, with good handling and not too much weight. Plus, KTM added an amazingly sophisticated suite of electronics, and more mechanical adjustability than most bikes this size. So, then, why don’t I like it? Maybe there’s something wrong with me. It’s taken a lot of riding and even more thinking about this heavily updated 390 Duke to try to understand what’s working and what is not.
A 'round town review of the 2024 BMW R 1300 GS

Aug 16, 2024 | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

Here at Common Tread, our first experience with a new motorcycle is often a brief ride in a faraway land. It’s just enough to get a taste and report back on important updates, but sometimes leaves many questions unanswered. To really learn the ins and outs of a machine, there’s no place like home. So it was with BMW’s new R 1300 GS. Our man Spenser flew to Spain last October to sample a small platter of GS variants and filed his report.
Is this Honda ADV150 the coolest scooter around?

Aug 8, 2024 | revzilla.com | Riding StyleAdv |Zack Courts

I’ve been seeing this Honda ADV150 around my neighborhood and it always catches my eye. It scares me just a bit. Imagine the dimly lit corner of a neighborhood bar, with smoke hanging in the air and neon lights reflecting off the picture frames and liquor bottles. Hunched over half a pint of translucent beer is a grizzled loner, not making eye contact with anyone. “You mean ol’ Jimmy G?” the bartender asks.