[1][2] Roger Hull founded the magazine in 1969, with the name Road Rider, and was publisher and editor until 1982.

[3] The title was changed to Motorcycle Consumer News (MCN) in 1991, when it became subscriber-supported and ad-free.

[5] Contributors have included many motorcycle training and safety specialists, including Motorcycle Hall of Fame member David L. Hough, Ken Condon, Tracy Martin, Lee Parks, Walt Fulton, and Gary LaPlante.

Numerous physician contributors have included Flash Gordon M.D., Cary Tanner M.D., John Alevizos D.O., Charles L. Rosen M.D., Ph.D., and psychologist Mark Barnes Ph.D. Additional contributors include Motorcycle Mechanics Institute curriculum developer Kevin O'Shaughnessy, global motorcycle adventurer and author Gregory W. Frazier Ph.D., motorcycle designer Glynn Kerr, Moshe K. Levy, and Mike Kneebone, president of the Iron Butt Association.

[8] On February 1, 2020, Motorcycle Consumer News publisher Lumina Media LLC announced that it had been dissolved as of that date and had ceased its business operations, due to the company having insufficient assets to satisfy all of its liabilities.