"These are elements of our larger effort to shine a light on the people and personalities of motorcycling, and to change the way motorcyclists view the Association," said AMA President and CEO Rob Dingman. "We continue to re-focus the AMA on its core mission of promoting and protecting the future of motorcycling."

The June issue of American Motorcyclist magazine has a stronger focus on the Association's members, and includes a number of member-generated stories. The cover story features rider and entertainer Jay Leno, and future editions will highlight people from throughout the motorcycling community, each of whom has made a significant contribution to motorcycling in America.

Along with the re-launch of American Motorcyclist, the AMA has created a new landing page for the organization's primary website, www.AmericanMotorcyclist.com. The new design compliments the look of American Motorcyclist and expands upon the magazine's mission.

"Rest assured that, along with new, compelling stories and fresh designs, you'll find that the most popular content of the Association's magazine and website remains," said Dingman. "If it has anything to do with the people, the lifestyle or the sport of motorcycling, it has a place in American Motorcyclist."

To re-energize the AMA's visual identity, the AMA also redesigned its logo. The Association went straight to Troy Lee, one of the industry's leading purveyors of cool, to fulfill the vision. Lee started with what worked--the AMA logo that was used predominately in the era from 1970-2000--and went from there.

"The old AMA logo was like Coca-Cola, just so recognizable," Lee said. "It was such a visible statement, and it had an American theme. So, we started with the old logo, changed it up maybe 20 percent, added some speed to it and made it a bit racier-looking, a bit faster-looking." The resulting design is being phased in over the next year, starting with American Motorcyclist.

"For 84 years, the AMA has evolved to meet the changing needs of America's motorcyclists," said Dingman. "Although the new magazine, website and logo are three very visible parts of that process, this is not an evolution of image only. The AMA is changing in a number of tangible ways that will improve motorcycling across the board. The best part? We're just getting started."

Reprinted with permission from Rider Report.