''Cycle News'' is a

motorcycling Motorcycling is the act of riding a motorcycle. For some people, motorcycling may be the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation, and small-engine displacement, displacement motorcycles are the most common motor vehicle in ...

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

and website based in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, it was a weekly print publication from 1965 to 2010 and switched to a weekly digital magazine in February 2011. The magazine is headquartered in

Irvine, California Irvine () is a Planned community, planned city in central Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It was named in 1888 for the landowner James Irvine. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the ...

and is best known for coverage of all forms of motorcycle racing.

History

''Cycle News'' was founded in 1965, in Long Beach, California by Chuck and Sharon Clayton. Chuck Clayton purchased a troubled Los Angeles-area motorcycling newspaper and changed its name to ''Cycle News''. The Claytons initially ran ''Cycle News'' out of their living room. Chuck worked exclusively on the newspaper, relying on Sharon’s income at JR Engineering to support the family and keep ''Cycle News'' afloat. On evenings and weekends, Sharon handled the business side of the newspaper, and worked as a photographer and reporter. The Clayton family provided coverage of local and international races, and was a key source for racing results. Cycle News covered road racing, off-road,

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

, supercross, enduro, flat track, speedway, and drag racing, which appealed to a broad range of motorcycle enthusiasts. ''Cycle News'' eventually became one of the highest selling newspapers/magazines in the industry, and it had offices on the East and West coasts during its 45-year history.

End of print magazine

''Cycle News'' was one of several motorcycle magazines that failed during the

2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...

, and the rapid expansion in online media. On August 27, 2010, Cycle News Editor Paul Carruthers announced that he was no longer employed at ''Cycle News''. Carruthers had worked at ''Cycle News'' for twenty-five years and had been the editor of the publication since 1993. ''Cycle News'' closed on August 31, 2010; the issue printed the week of August 30, 2010 was its last. News about the closure was first revealed on the social networking site

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

after several staff members made posts about having lost their jobs. ''Cycle News'' made an official announcement on September 3, 2010, that it had ceased print publication. On September 7, 2010, publisher Bob NorVelle reported that ''Cycle News'' would continue to feature motorcycle news at its website.

Digital revival

In November 2010, Motorsport Aftermarket Group (MAG) purchased Cycle News from Sharon Clayton and Paul Carruthers was hired to re-launch the magazine/website. The magazine was re-launched in February 2011 as a weekly digital magazine. In May 2013, Cycle News launched their digital archive of print issues dating back to the 1960s available through a paid subscription. In October 2014,

MotoAmerica MotoAmerica is the organization that promotes and organizes the AMA Road Racing series. Formally known as the MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship, it is sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) and the ...

announced Paul Carruthers would be leaving Cycle News to become the communications manager for the newly formed racing series, ending his 30-year career with the publication. Following the announcement, Cycle News appointed long-time off-road editor Kit Palmer as Editor starting November 1, 2014.

References

External links

*{{official website, http://www.cyclenews.com/ 1965 establishments in California 2010 disestablishments in California Defunct magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1965 Magazines disestablished in 2010 Magazines published in Los Angeles Motorcycle magazines published in the United States Online magazines published in the United States Online magazines with defunct print editions Weekly magazines published in the United States