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Off to the Tokyo Motorcycle Show 2026 at Tokyo Big Sight. The things that stuck with me on the floor, in note form.

At a bike show, what stopped me first was a bag

A Honda Cub fitted with an AMBOOT side bag
An AMBOOT side bag mounted to a Cub. The balance of cargo space and looks is right.

Walked into a hall of hundreds of bikes, and the first thing that stopped me was the AMBOOT side bag. Not a bike, a bag.

The fit on a Cub is excellent — proper carrying capacity and still good-looking. The leather-feel material and clean shape really suit the Cub's vibe. I came away wanting a Cub. Because of the bag.

CBR400R FOUR

Honda CBR400R FOUR
Honda CBR400R FOUR. A full-fairing 400 is back after 36 years.

Honda's booth had the CBR400R FOUR. An inline-four 400 cc full-fairing sport for the domestic market — the first since the 1990 CBR400RR, 36 years on. In person it has more presence than I'd expected.

CT125 custom

A customized Honda CT125
A customized CT125. Built into a full-on adventure-bike spec.

There was also a CT125 custom on display. Front rack, big rear carrier, knobby tires. Built fully into adventure-bike spec — a reminder of how far a 125 can stretch.

In the end, my own bike is the best one

XSR900
On the way home, my XSR900. This is the one.

On the show floor I drifted from bike to bike, but back at the car park looking at my XSR900, I thought "yeah, this is fine." Looking at things you'd like to own is fun, and you always end up landing back here. I think I do this every year.

Places I visited

1
Tokyo Big Sight
Ariake, Koto-ku, Tokyo / Venue for the Tokyo Motorcycle Show 2026