Rider names its 2026 Motorcycle of the Year
Consumer motorcycle publication Rider Magazine has awarded its 2026 Motorcycle of the Year to the Buell Super Cruiser, a bike it says is the quintessential super cruiser that blends the styling of an American V-twin with the high-revving, aggressive performance of a superbike.
Rider has given out its Motorcycle of the Year award for 36 years, and maintained the credo of awarding a machine not just based on performance, but what it represents for the future of motorcycling.
Last year, the publication selected the Can-Am Canyon Redrock as its Motorcycle of the Year, a three-wheeled bike Rider said opened the door for more enthusiasts to enter the world of motorcycling. This year’s winner won’t blow you away with any new, never‑before‑seen technology. It doesn’t have an electric powertrain, radar‑guided cruise control, or a high-tech TFT display.
What it does have is 175 horsepower – and a cruiser chassis. Rolling on 17-inch wheels with serious suspension, the Super Cruiser is outfitted with Brembo brakes and a liquid-cooled 1,190cc V‑twin, and it weighs less than 500 pounds.
The Super Cruiser features a silhouette that recalls one of the most beloved performance‑oriented American motorcycles ever built, Harley-Davidson’s FXR. The compact chassis, triangular under-seat frame section, low-slung stance, and relationship between the seat, tank, and engine immediately trigger that familiarity, Rider writes.
Roland Sands Design developed an entirely new steel-tube chassis around the Buell powerplant, drawing inspiration from the FXR while creating something designed for modern performance, which Rider argues combines nostalgia and modern style at the same time.
What’s most impressive about the Super Cruiser, Rider says, is the way the components work together. A 175hp motor would be entertaining in almost anything. But bolting a big engine into a cruiser frame doesn’t automatically make a good motorcycle. In fact, it can make a terrible one.
The trick is making the chassis capable of using the engine and the power it provides. The Super Cruiser has the stance and visual language of an American cruiser, but underneath that familiar shape is a machine designed to turn, stop, and accelerate with considerably more urgency than the average cruiser.
To boil it down, Rider says its Motorcycle of the Year award recognizes a motorcycle that isn’t just the next version of what already exists. But one that moves forward with familiar idea, turns it sideways, and asks what else it could become.
