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Five bikes from EICMA you need to know about

Each and every year, the world's biggest motorcycle manufacturers gather together in Milan, Italy to show off the latest and greatest machinery that will soon be offered to dealerships the world over. It's called EICMA (Esposizione Internazionale Ciclo Motociclo e Accessori), and this year's crop of new motorcycles is just as exciting as ever.
We've selected five of the coolest motorcycles shown at this week's show, including models from Aprilia, BMW, Ducati, Honda and Yamaha. Join us down below for a high-performance, two-wheeled Italian journey.

BMW working with Dainese to put airbags in motorcycle suits [w/video]

Addressing the safety concerns of its customers, BMW Motorrad is co-developing a rider suit with Dainese to feature something that's much more common in automobiles: airbags.
Starting with Dainese's D-air Protect System, which is made up of inflatable protectors that deploy in 15 milliseconds, the two companies will integrate the technology into a BMW Motorrad brand, one-piece racing suit, the DoubleR RaceAir. Later a different, street-oriented airbag system that can be retrofitted to bikes will be offered to Beemer riders.
The DoubleR RaceAir is expected to be presented at the EICMA motorcycle show in Milan in November, after all required crash testing has been completed.

BMW and Roland Sands show off Concept 101 custom bagger

Though BMW may not be the first motorcycle manufacturer that comes to mind when you think of cruisers, that's precisely what the German marque has unveiled – in concept form at least – at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este this year. Appearing alongside the 3.0 CSL Hommage concept, the BMW Concept 101 is a custom "bagger" created in California through a collaboration between BMW Motorrad, BMW Designworks, and legendary bike builder Roland Sands. Better suited towards cruising down the highway than carving up a racetrack or a dirt trail, the Concept 101 strikes a rather stunning (if uncharacteristic) form. The elongated shape is rendered in materials like brushed aluminum, carbon fiber, and wood trim, tapering towards the rear that encompasses two hard saddle bags characteristic of this style of cruiser. The top half of the bike is done up in lighter shades than the dark bottom, capped by a saddle crafted in fine-grain black leather, perforated black leather and a strip of brown leather. Power comes commandingly from an inline-six displacing 1.6 liters – or about 101 cubic inches, which along with Highway 101, gives the concept bike its name. The engine breaths out through a pair of tailpipes, each with three outlets to emphasize the six-cylinder and envision what it would look like if Munich opted to take on the Honda Gold Wing F6C Valkyrie. Of course this isn't the first time BMW has done a bike with Roland Sands, nor the first time it's displaying a bike concept at Villa d'Este. Last year the German marque displayed the Concept Roadster at the same show, and did the Concept Ninety with the same custom shop at the previous year's concours. BMW Motorrad "Concept 101" - The Spirit of the Open Road. Munich/Cernobbio. Every year, the most impressive representatives of the mobile past and future on both two and four wheels assemble at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este for a very special get-together on the shores of Lake Como. Amid this extraordinary blend of the traditional and the contemporary, BMW Motorrad once again presents a breathtaking concept study: the BMW Motorrad "Concept 101". "The Concept 101 opens up a new chapter in the history of our concept bikes. It is the BMW Motorrad interpretation of endless highways and the dream of freedom and independence - the perfect embodiment of "American touring". Designing this big touring bike study was amazingly exciting for us because we haven't been involved with a motorcycle concept like this before.