Kit Palmer
Inducted Into Hot
Shoe Hall of Fame
O
ur very own Kit Palmer was honored as a
Motorcycle Industry Icon at the 2026 Hot
Shoe Hall of Fame event. Palmer officially joined
the Cycle News editorial staff in late 1983, and he
became the editor in 2015. Before he joined the CN
staff, Palmer covered his local motocross scene at
De Anza Cycle Park, trading race coverage for free
race entries, and his stories ran in CN's "Western
Hotline" section. His illustrious career has taken
him around the world riding and reviewing a mul-
titude of new bikes, and he has spent countless
weekends reporting on national and international
racing events, including several trips to the ISDE,
which he has said rank among the highlights.
Palmer started out racing local motocross,
sharpening his skills on a Montesa Cota 247 trials
bike. Palmer also raced off-road and achieved very
respectable results at many races, including the
notoriously difficult Tecate Enduro when it was a
two-day, 250-kilometer event. That same tough-
ness translated well when he took on full-length
Ironman triathlons, completing his first one at the
age of 61.
WIND
IN THE
P30
Although much of his career and free time in-
volves two-wheeled vehicles, Palmer also enjoys fly-
ing airplanes. After an interview with Bob Hannah at
his hangar in Idaho, Palmer became intrigued and
acquired his pilot's license in 1990. He continues to
fly his plane recreationally.
More than 40 years after joining Cycle News,
Palmer continues to share his wisdom and enthusi-
asm for motorcycles and motorcycle racing, head-
ing the Cycle News team to produce the weekly
digital magazine, website and YouTube videos. On
behalf of the Cycle News readers and staff, congrat-
ulations to Kit and thank you to the Hot Shoe Hall of
Fame for the well-deserved recognition.
CN
Kit Palmer was
first listed on
the Cycle News
masthead in issue
35 of 1983, but
CN's "off-road
guy" had plenty
of bylines prior to
that, reporting on
the West Coast
MX scene.
