Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol 68 Issue 07 i Australian Motorcycle News

The Romano Fenati saga has been as sad as it has been intruiging WHAT WINDS SOMEBODY up so much that they go into a complete mental meltdown, and the only thing they can think of is exacting revenge on someone they deemed had done them wrong? The Romano Fenati saga has been as sad as it has been intriguing. To chase down an opponent and grab his brake lever at more than 200km/h is beyond stupidity, and the condemnation from fellow riders and fans was justified, as was his immediate sacking from the team he raced for, as well as the shredding of his 2019 contract. The lenient two-race ban handed down by the FIM stewards following the race may not have fitted the crime, but the series of sackings…

Our recent Who, What, Where was made a bit more difficult when a fat finger missed the '0' key and hit the '9' while typing our Where question. David Williams from Tugun in Queensland is the winner, and he’s picked up an IPONE Motorcycle Care Kit from Ficeda Accessories. Turn to Pg28 to have a crack at this issue’s Mental Twisties! Who Peter Goddard and Robbie Phillis at Phillip Island What Cagiva Elefant 900ie Lucky Strike Explorer Where Phillip Island. It was 1990, not 1999…

A PRODUCT OF WA’s Screenwest’s prolific film program, 1% is a tale of brotherhood, loyalty, and betrayal set within the primal underworld of outlaw motorcycle clubs. The heir to the throne of a motorcycle club has to betray his president to save his brother’s life. Some critics have already compared it to Aussie classics Romper Stomper and Wake in Fright. The film stars Ryan Corr ( Mary Magdalene, Hacksaw Ridge), Abbey Lee ( Dark Tower, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Neon Demon), Simone Kessell(San Andreas),Josh McConville ( War Machine), Matt Nable ( Hacksaw Ridge, Riddick) and Aaron Pederson (most recently seen on TV’s Mystery Road and Jack Irish).…

Reckon you’re pretty quick when it comes to two-wheeled trivia? Then have a crack at our who-what-where series. If you’re finding it hard, here’s a clue – all the answers have appeared in AMCN at some time over the past 67 years. When you reckon you’ve worked out the bloke, the bike and the track, email your numbered answers to comps@amcn.com.au for your chance to win! 1. WHO? Who is this top Aussie racer at the controls of the Gus Kuhn Suzuki at the 1978 Nürburgring 8 Hours race Clue He was a top racer and a top bloke 2. WHAT? What make and model of BMW is this? Clue It’s not an S 1000 RR 3. WHERE? At what Aussie circuit is this group of ride day punters nervously awaiting…

WE’LL LET YOU in on one of our favourite test routes on the New South Wales south coast. Starting from the seaside town of Thirroul, we head south down the freeway to Albion Park where a mid-week right turn usually results in a gloriously uninterrupted run up Macquarie Pass. Here, Steve was muscling the Fat Boy, while I was Gliding it up the hill. There was plenty of scraping of footboards as we used the torque to negotiate the 107 cubic-inch V-twins up the Pass, and we made it to Robertson Pie shop in good time. A (bloody good) pie and a yarn with the locals later, we swapped bikes and headed down Pearson’s lane, over Barrengarry Mountain and into Kangaroo Valley. Another swap and took on Cambewarra Mountain before…

ROAD GLIDE SPECIAL Brakes Front Twin discs, four-piston calipers Rear Four-piston caliper Wheels Spoked, cast alloy Front 19-inch Rear 18-inch Tyres Dunlop Harley-Davidson Front 130/60B19 (61H) Rear 180/55B18 (80H) Colours Vivid Black, Bonneville Salt Denim, Twisted Cherry, Hard Candy Hot Rod Red Flake, Legend Blue Denim Warranty  Two years, unlimited km FAT BOY (107) Brakes Front Single disc, four-piston caliper Rear Two-piston caliper Wheels Solid, machined cast aluminium Front 18-inch Rear 18-inch Tyres Dunlop Harley-Davidson Front 160/60R18 (70V) Rear 240/40R18 (79V) Colours  Black, Black Tempest, Red/Twisted Cherry, Industrial Grey, Silver/Samatra Brown, Blue/ Vivid Black, Legend Blue Denim Warranty  Two years, unlimited km…

ENGINE Configuration Inline four cylinder Cylinder head DOHC, four valves per cylinder Capacity 998cc Bore/stroke 78 x 55mm Compression ratio 13: 1 Cooling Liquid Fueling EFI, 4 x 47mm Keihin throttle bodies Power 150kW @ 13,500rpm (claimed) Torque 115.7Nm @ 11,500rpm (claimed) TRANSMISSION Type Six-speed Clutch Wet, multiplate. Slipper-type Final drive Chain CHASSIS Frame material Cast aluminium Frame layout Twin-spar Rake 25° Trail 107mm SUSPENSION Showa Front: 43mm USD BFF fork, fully adjustable 120mm travel Rear: BFRC Monoshock, fully adjustable, 114mm travel WHEELS/TYRES Wheels Aluminium, seven-spoke Front: 17 x 3.5 Rear: 17 x 6.0 Tyres Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa SP Front: 120/70ZR17 (58W) Rear: 200/55ZR17 (75W) BRAKES Brembo, ABS Front: Twin 330mm discs, four-piston radial calipers Rear: Single 220mm disc, two-piston caliper DIMENSIONS Weight 206kg (wet, claimed) Seat height 835mm Max…

Goldwing Tour Previously known as the Goldwing, the Tour boasts the pillion throne with integrated topbox and comes with the six-speed manual transmission. It weighs 379kg (wet). $41,999 plus on-road costs Goldwing This is the bagger-esque base model with dual-clutch transmission (DCT), previously known as the F6B. It tips the scales with a wet weight of 365kg. $35,999 plus on-road costs Goldwing Tour Premium The king daddy complete with airbag, armrests and LED lighting. It employs the DCT transmission and is the heaviest of them all, with a wet weight of 383kg. $42,999 plus on-road costs…

“Don’t die, that’s the main rule,” smiles Gary Inman when asked about the rules of Dirt Quake. He’s the founder of Britain’s hugely popular flat track event and he shudders as he recalls four-time World Superbike Champion Carl Fogarty’s appearance in 2017, when he crashed heavily, breaking a shoulder, puncturing a lung and breaking 10 ribs. “Fogarty’s accident was the worst we have had,” he grimaces. “And apparently his wife has banned him from coming back again, which is probably wise, because he made a hell of a mess of himself.” Of course all forms of motorcycle racing carries its dangers, but incidents such as Foggy’s are anathema to the ethos of this most homespun of events. “When we started we wanted to demystify and take away a lot of…

AFTER A LIFETIME on the road and 20 years in the game, you’d think I’d be Mr Sorted. But like most of us, my time on the road is often spent in a state of disorder – spare gloves in here, what’s that doing in there and where the hell did I put my house keys? It’s not helped by the fact that I’m usually always testing a new product, or trialing a new improvement which means I rarely leave home with the same luggage setup. But, regardless of where I end up stashing them, what I have worked out after two decades is the handful of items I can’t talk myself into leaving at home AA BAG $140 THE AMERICANS CALL them Tail Packs but, since I don’t have…

From a factory Ducati rider, I’m now a satellite team with limited settings I’M REALLY LOOKING forward to the ASBK final at Phillip Island. The racing’s gone to another level this season in all classes with many lap records broken and I’m sure that will continue at the Island. The season started well for me there in Round 1 [qualified third, with a best race result of second for fourth overall] but I felt it took me a while to get up to the speed of racing again. I was pretty green and recovering from a broken hip socket, so it was bit of a struggle. By mid-season, our DesmoSport Ducati team was very competitive and always playing for the win. So I’m really happy with the way things are…

eCorser? Former double World Superbike champion Troy Corser is planning a racing return, in next year’s all-electric MotoE championship. With former GP rider Randy de Puniet already marked down for the series, the addition of Corser’s name adds further depth to the new series, which will run at five European GPs next year. No place like... You might think Marc Marquez has won everything that there is to win in Grand Prix racing but there is one somwhat obscure achievment he is yet to tick off. Marquez has never swept the Spanish quartet of GPs at Jerez, Barcelona, Aragon and Valencia. He can’t do it this year after finishing ‘only’ second at Barcelona, but you can be sure he’ll target the wins before he hangs up his helmet. Unlucky break…

Yamaha’s problems are impacting the motivation of star riders Valentino Rossi and Maverick Vinales and Rossi highlighted the need for a technical revolution from Yamaha’s engineering department. He claims that it is now three years since there was a significant upgrade to the M1 and says the situation is similar to 2004, when he arrived and Yamaha instigated big changes to the bike and engineering staff. “The last time Yamaha made a big step with the bike was the test here in Aragon in 2015, a chassis and swingarm.,” Rossi said. “It’s difficult to work like this. The rider has to be inspired to give the maximum but also for the rest of the team.”…

AUSSIE YOUNGSTERS TOMMY Edwards and Jack Mahaffy raised more than a few eyebrows in World Supersport 300 in Portugal over 14-16 September, Edwards nabbing pole position and Mahaffy making his strong debut. Among a 40-strong grid, Edwards will go down in history as the first Australian to score pole position in the competitive feeder category. In a thrilling Superpole 2 session, Edwards (Kawasaki Ninja 400) claimed pole position with a 1m56.877s, 0.136s clear of the next rider and almost a full second quicker than championship leader Ana Carrasco, who qualified ninth. “I’m really stoked to achieve the great result in Portugal,” said the young Aussie, above, who went on to finish a season-best sixth in the race. Meanwhile, on a track he’s never seen before and on a bike he’d…

Fourteen-up For WorldSBK? WITH THE USUAL caveats in place at this stage of planning, the 2019 WorldSBK championship should be held over 14 rounds (all being well with some contract negotiations, of course). The next campaign will start as usual on the last weekend in February, at Phillip Island and will finish at the end of October, in Qatar. South Africa looks like returning to the fold at the underlating Kyalami circuit, an old WorldSBK hunting ground, that was last used in the 2010 season. The Brno WorldSBK event in 2018 was a one-year deal only and the regular MotoGP circuit could not see a way to make it work for the future, so Jerez in Spain should come into the mix again. Until the FIM declares the final calendar…

ANY PRE-1988 brake-drum trailenduro bike is eligible. It has to be road registered (a recreationalrego scheme is available), have a working headlight, an efficient muffler and pass a pre-event safety check. The club relives the golden years of enduro riding and so machinery around the 1981 period gets the best reception. There are a lot of flow-on models from this period, but they must have drum brakes. What isn’t welcome is any VMX bike modified to look like an enduro. VERi says there is no shame in riding an old ‘beater’, as enduro bikes got beat up quick back in the day.…

Australian Motorcycle News road test photographs are posed for by skilled, professional riders under controlled circumstances. Attempting to imitate their actions may be dangerous. Australian Motorcycle News supports and endorses rider training and wearing protective riding gear. Especially if you’re the first bloke to arrive in the hotel bar while on a launch in New Zealand. You do the right thing and you charge your first drink back to your own room while you await the arrival of your host. Then unbeknowns to you, the group’s drinks for the rest of the evening get charged to the same room without so much as a signature to approve it. Good thing you took the missus’ credit card, eh, Dobie?!…

LAST YEAR, THE MotoGP community joined five-year-old Sydney girl Freyja’s battle against a very rare and, to date, incurable form of malignant cancer. This year the fight continues, with another auction to run from 18 October to 8 November. Hosted with Charity Stars, it will attract worldwide interest. Among auction items offered are a Kalex top triple clamp signed by all Kalex world champs, Stefan Bradl, Pol Espargaró, Tito Rabat, Johann Zarco and Franco Morbidelli, a Maverick Viñales signed replica helmet with signed visor, as used in the 2017 Valencia Grand Prix, and Zarco’s signed gloves, used from Misano to Phillip Island, with pole position in Motegi. The auction will go live at www.charitystars.com/acureforfreyja…

Spark up The 2019 electric MotoE class will run as a support category at the Jerez, LeMans, Sachsenring, Red Bull Ring and Misano rounds of the MotoGP. Troy still winning Troy Corser has won arguably the world’s most prestigious historic bike race, the Goodwood Revival, riding a 1929 BMW side-valve Boxer. Frosty welcome Dobie headed to New Zealand, arriving just in time for a cold snap that saw decent snowfalls across his planned ride route. Ant West suspended Aussie racer Ant West has been provisionally suspended due to a positive doping test at the Misano WSBK round.…

IT WAS ELECTION time in Australia and the key issue was the GST. John Hewson’s notorious birthday cake interview helped Paul Keating and the Labor Party to an unlikely win. In the US, the Waco seige saw 82 members of religious group Branch Davidians die, while in Europe, the Maastricht Treaty came into force, beginning the European Union. And the host city of the 2000 Olympic Games was announced – as “Si-den-y”. Sport The world’s quickest and fastest nitro Harley drag racer, American rider Mike Roland (right), was confirmed for the five-rider US team to compete at the Tooheys Classic Australia versus USA Nitro Harley Challenge at Victoria’s Heathcote Park Raceway. Bike test The Woose requisitioned a ZZ-R1100 and managed to get booked by NSW’s finest. Guy Allen was sympathetic:…

AMCN Still number one I recently returned from Hong Kong, before leaving I bought the only bike magazine available at the airport. It was an English publication, and there was a big Triumph feature with many bikes tested together (including the bug eye as tested in AMCN Vol 68 No 04), with some other tests and articles. It was quite informative and a decent read discovered when I was hanging out for something to keep me alive prior to and during the flight. As soon as I got home I bought the current copy of AMCN, I have to say that from a reader’s point of view, it was chalk and cheese. You guys are to be congratulated on the content, presentation and the standard of journalism presented in your…

BENELLI, FOR reasons unknown to me, repeatedly cops a beating with the made-in-China stick. Despite nearly every one of its rivals opting for south-east Asian manufacturing facilities without so much as a snigger, poor old Benelli seems destined to forever be unjustifiably hampered by the fact that its dedicated and deep-pocketed owner is based in China. But if there’s a bike (actually, now there’s two) that has the ability to finally rid the brand from its made-in-China stigma, then it’s the TRK502 (and it’s newly introduced X sibling). Seriously.…

ROAD GLIDE SPECIAL Engine Oil/Air cooled V-twin Bore and stroke 110mm x 111.11mm Power Not given Torque 150Nm @ 3250 Options fitted None The Road Glide is a member of Harley-Davidson’s Touring range. Unlike the firm’s Street Glide ,which has its fairing attached to the fork legs, the Road Glide’s fairing is mounted to the chassis. FAT BOY (107) Engine Oil/Air cooled V-twin Bore and stroke 110mm x 111.11mm Power Not given Torque 145Nm @ 3000rpm Options fitted None The iconic Fat Boy is available in two flavours, with the standard 107 cubic-inch Milwaukee-Eight engine, or the optional 114 cubic-inch powerplant which produces 155Nm at 3000rpm.…

Fat Boy 107 I LIKE HOW the styling has stayed true with the solid wheels and lugs for luggage. The brakes are great compared to what they used to be, and the overall width has increased significantly. I like the grunt, it’s got so much torque compared to 20 years ago. The seat is low, but it’s still quite a stretch to the ground because of the overall width of it, but it was a ride down memory lane – all I need now is some 90s sunnies. Road Glide Special THE ROAD GLIDE felt massive compared to the Fat Boy. The Batwing fairing works really well, which is a huge advantage, and having it mounted to the chassis instead of the fork keeps the steering light and predictable. There’s…

“THE KAWASAKI RACING department works very closely with the production bike department so there is always a link, and the focus of the RR was on its engine’s performance, which was to help our racebikes. “The WorldSBK regulation changes have seen us lose a lot of engine performance due to the ZX-10R’s rev limit being reduced. We have a lot lower rev limits than our rivals, 14,100rpm compared to 14,700rpm, and so our focus this year was to improve acceleration and top speed using our lower rev limit. We also tried to maintain the manageable feel of our bike, which has good torque characteristics and is a very nice machine to ride. “The issue with losing revs is that you have to homologate a gearbox at the start of the…

It’s not as though the Goldwing is a new concept, but to those of us who only get to ride them occasionally there seems to be a point, about an hour or so into a trip, that you have to laugh out loud at the sheer audacity of these monster tourers. In some ways they seem to defy physics. There you are, allegedly exposed to the elements, but belting along in complete comfort, on a bike that looks like it may need assistance to make it through a corner but handles just fine, thanks. Yep, it can seem a little weird. A (large) mass of contradictions. Now the thing is, weirdness aside, the Goldwing has long been one of the planet’s signature heavyweight tourers. In its prime market, the USA,…

ENGINE Configuration Horizontally opposed six-cylinder Cylinder head SOHC, four valves per cylinder Capacity 1883cc Bore/stroke 73mm x 73mm Compression ratio 10.5: 1 Cooling Liquid Fueling EFI, 50mm throttle body Power 93kW @ 5500rpm (claimed) Torque 169Nm @ 4700rpm (claimed) TRANSMISSION Type Six-speed Clutch Wet, multi-plate Final drive Shaft CHASSIS Frame material Aluminium Frame layout Twin-spar Rake 30.5° Trail 109mm SUSPENSION Front: Dual wishbone fork, electronic adjustment, 109mm travel Rear: Monoshock, electronic adjustment, 104mm travel WHEELS/TYRES Wheels 12-spoke, cast aluminium Front: 18 x 3.5 Rear: 16 x 6.0 Tyres Bridgestone Exedra Front: 130/70R18 Rear: 200/55R16 BRAKES Front: Twin 320mm discs, three-piston calipers, linked, ABS Rear: Single 316mm disc, three-piston caliper, linked, ABS DIMENSIONS Weight 379kg (wet, claimed) Seat height 744mm Max width 925mm Max height 1430mm Wheelbase 1694mm Fuel capacity 21L…

Top 3 TV 1 WSBK Rd11 LIVE France Fox/Videopass 29 & 30 Sep 9pm (AEST) WSBK heads to Magny-Cours for Round 11 and action will be aired live on Fox Sports and through VideoPass. WSBK Race 1 starts 9pm (AEST) Saturday, WSS at 9.45pm Sunday and WSBK Race 2 at 11.15pm Sunday. 2 FIM MXGP Rd20 LIVE Imola, IT mx-gp-tv.com 30 Sep & 1 Oct 9pm (AEST) Subscribers to MXGP-TV can catch Rd20 live from Imola. MX2 Race 1 starts at 9pm (AEST) on Sunday, followed by MXGP Race 1 at 10pm. MX2 Race 2 kicks off at midnight then MXGP Race 2 is on at 1am Monday. For the full schedule see mxgp-tv.com. 3 MotoGP Rd15 LIVE Chang, TH Fox/Videopass Sun 7 Oct 7pm (AEST) MotoGP Rd15 from the…

Between 1986 and 1988 the cost of a new motorcycle soared by more than 50 per cent MY LAST COLUMN about the 1980s got a few people talking about that decade. But here’s something they don’t want to talk about: what it cost to live back then. It’s hard to explain to someone who wasn’t there exactly what it was like living with home mortgage rates as high as 17 per cent and inflation nudging 13 per cent. By contrast, interest on a typical home loan now is less than four per cent, while inflation is south of three per cent. So how did this affect motorcyclists? Between 1986 and 1988 the price of a new motorcycle soared, in some cases by more than 50 per cent. For an industry…

STOCK 1000 Third place from Markus Reiterberger (alpha Racing-Van Zon BMW) in the Portimao race was not enough to give him the championship win a round early, as Roberto Tamburini (Berclaz Racing team) scored the race victory to go to the final weekend of the series 18 points down, with 25 points up for grabs. Federico Sandi (Motocorsa Racing Ducati) was second. Maximilian Scheib (Aprilia Racing Team) is 19 points behind the lead, after finishing fifth. WorldSSP300 WorldSSP300 points leader Ana Carrasco (DS Junior Team) was 10th for the second race in succession and in so doing, lost any chance of winning the title in Portimao. Scott Deroue (Motoport Kawasaki) won the race, from Mika Perez (Kawasaki ParkinGO) and Manuel Gonzalez (Pertamina Almeria Yamaha). Carrasco leads Deroue by 10 points…

Jack Miller MotoGP 9th “The bike was good and I had good rhythm – really comfortable, and I was edging closer to Petrucci. Then all off a sudden there was a big bang and the bike jumped out of gear. It felt like the tyre delaminated, so I shut off. There was a big vibration after that and I just had to limp home. I managed to hold Valentino off for a while, but I was a sitting duck.” Remy Gardner Moto2 19th “It was pretty disappointing. I struggled all weekend. I did my best but we were a bit lost. Then I made a mistake in the last corner, I got a false neutral, and so I lost two positions. I knew it was going to be a tough…

YAMAHA HAVE RULED out a dramatic switch to a V4 motor configuration for the YZR-M1 in a bid to end their longest losing streak in the premier class of grand prix racing. The increasingly inexcusable slump in Yamaha’s race fortunes was highlighted in the Aragon Grand Prix, in which they were thrashed by Suzuki’s GSX-RR. Both the M1 and GSX-RR use an inline four-cylinder layout, with Yamaha MotoGP boss Lin Jarvis reckoning the in-line concept — against the might of Honda and Ducati V4s – is not yet dead. “I guarantee there will be no V4 next year,” Jarvis said of Yamaha’s 2019 plans. “Take a look at the Aragon race; there was an in-line four doing well in third place. I don’t think the in-line is at the end…

ALEIX ESPARGARO SAYS his ride into an unexpected sixth place in the Aragon Grand Prix should not mask the reality of the need for Aprilia to make huge step forward in MotoGP. It was an inspirational performance by Espargaro, who bravely rode over the limit for 23 laps on a favoured home track to gift Aprilia a rare top-10 finish. In the lead-up to the race Espargaro had pleaded with Aprilia to be allowed race the 2017 model bike which, he claims, is more competitive than his current mount. The request was denied. Espargaro warned that his sixth place should not be seen as salvation for Aprilia. “This was not a revolution but one of the best races of my career considering it has been difficult to stay happy and…

MICHAEL KIRKNESS REIGNED supreme at the 2018 Australian Senior Dirt Track Championship meeting staged at the Balcary Park Raceway at Gunnedah, NSW, over 8-9 September. The Pro Open, MX Open and Pro 450 classes were all won by the racing stalwart, the first and last of them after come-from-behind efforts. The Pro Open final looked to be in the hands of Kayden Downing before Kirkness pounced on the final lap, with top qualifier Ryan Douglas completing the rostrum. The final of the MX Open was more straightforward, with an all-the-way win for Kirkness (#387) ahead of top qualifier Marty McNamara and Douglas. In the Pro 450 final top qualifier Kirkness again grabbed Downing (#491) on the final lap, with Mackenzie Childs third. There was a last-round decider in the Pro…

It’s been one of the most competitive seasons of ASBK in recent memory, with good fields, all major manufacturers present and close racing. Where does it go to next? That’s a tough one. We’re under-resourced as a promoter across all disciplines of racing. I think we’re getting it right but we need a new focus on Juniors. You’ll see some important announcements over the next few months. I think the multimedia platform (television, live streaming and social media) has worked reasonably well, but it hasn’t leveraged the commercial opportunities enough. It should have the potential to bring sponsorship in from outside the motorcycling industry, both for teams and the series. How important is the inclusion of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship? It’s very hard for Australians to go directly…

First love We all have a soft spot for our first bike and our Readers’ Rides page has been so popular, it’s now a regular thing. Tim Redmond’s first roadbike was a 1982 Honda VF1000R when he was just 22. More info on P128 Sidecar School Ural Australia will be holding a test ride event on Saturday 29 September at Uralla Showgrounds. The day starts with breakfast and includes sidecar-riding tuition, followed by the opportunity to test ride the latest range of Ural outfits. An unrestricted riding licence is required. To book your place call (02) 6778 4673, email info@imz-ural.com.au or check out www.imz-ural.com.au Get to the TT Get Routed has secured additional accommodation for the 2019 IoM TT in a restored 1850s stone cottage with one double, one twin…

Stone (1974) A product of an Australian film industry awash with production money, Stone had some quality actors (Bill Hunter, Helen Morse, Gary McDonald, Roger Ward and Hugh Keays-Byrne). Although it repaid its investors within 18 months, Stone was never released overseas. Cosy Cool (1977) A well-intentioned but dopey ‘road-buddy’ movie shot around Penrith, Sydney. Two young mates ride spindly choppers (one with crazy six-bend pullback handlebars) on yet another journey of self-discovery. Very limited release – but you can see it on YouTube. Mad Max (1979 and 2015) Neither the first, nor the latest Mad Max films are totally focused on bikers but leather-clad warriors dominate many of their scenes. The first Mad Max movie had it all: supercharged V8s, Z1 Kwakas on nitro and Jim The Goose (a…

Send an image and details about your two-wheeled pride and joy to access@amcn.com.au He says I rode the Guzzi over to Victoria from Perth back in 1983. The Honda is my current ride, which I rode to last year’s MotoGP. The photographs were taken at the same place 44 years apart! The Blade is so much fun; it’s an easy bike to live with and does whatever you ask of it. However, I would dearly love the Guzzi in the garage again, but they are so bloody expensive now! I bought the Guzzi secondhand in 1982 after I made the mistake of taking it for a test ride. I was hooked, and the sound from the twin Lafranconi mufflers was music to my ears. It was not the…

AS THOROUGHLY OVER used as the term is, it’s important to see and use the Benelli TRK502 for exactly what it is. If you’re expecting big-bike performance from its big-bike looks, then you’ll be bitterly disappointed with its 35kW and 45Nm offering. It’s more than lively enough to cover all sorts of riding, and on the thousands of kilometres I rode with the 52kW/52Nm 645cc Suzuki V-Strom it was only once or twice, in really fast open sweepers, that the Suzuki was able to ride away from the Benelli. On the other side of the coin, in terms of the no-more-to-pay ride away price, the Benelli is a whopping $4500 less expensive.…

ROAD GLIDE SPECIAL Frame Steel, double cradle Rake 30 degrees Trail 104mm Seat height 695mm Weight 388kg (wet/claimed) Wheelbase 1625mm Suspension Front Dual-bending valve fork, non-adjustable,117mm travel Rear Monoshock, adjustable for preload, 54mm travel Fuel capacity 22.7 litres Fuel economy 6.1L/100km (measured) Fuel range 370km FAT BOY (107) Frame Steel, double cradle Rake 26 degrees Trail 173mm Seat height 675mm Weight 317kg (wet/claimed) Wheelbase 1665mm Suspension Front Dual-bending valve fork, non-adjustable,117mm travel Rear Monoshock, adjustable for preload, 54mm travel Fuel capacity 18.9L Fuel economy 5.6L/100km (measured) Fuel range 337km…

A BUCKET AND shim design required a heavy ‘bucket’ to sit on top of the valve, which then moves up and down with the valve’s action. In addition, the bucket has a bit of float in it, due to the fact it is designed to rotate when the cam strikes it to reduce wear. So, as well as the weight travelling up and down, the bucket is spinning around, all of which creates power-sapping drag within the head – and with 16 valves, this small amount soon adds up. A finger-follower system does without the bucket, as the rocker arms directly strike a shim on top of the valves. This style of follower is lighter than a bucket system, which allows the bike to rev higher with less chance of…

There’s a valid case for stating that the Ducati Monster is the single most important motorcycle to be produced anywhere in the world since the original Honda Super Cub debuted back in 1958. Ducati has ‘only’ manufactured 335,000 Monsters to date, compared to the 100 million Cubs, but this motorcycle is not only the bestselling Ducati model ever, it’s also the one that saved the Italian manufacturer from going bust in the 1990s. It proved to be the crucial lifeline for the Bologna factory in allowing it to survive long enough to be purchased in 1996 by American investors TPG, and set on the path to its present success as part of the VW Group. In 1999, the M600 midi-Monster variant was the best-selling motorcycle of any kind in Italy…

Show time 29 SEPTEMBER Wide Bay Tattoo, Car and Bike Show, Maryborough Sports Club, 168 Salt Water Creek Rd, Maryborough, Qld. Registration from 10.30am-noon; show starts 11.30am. Entry $10; lunch and dinner available for under $10. All proceeds to Motorcyclists Advocating Child Empowerment (MACE) and Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide (SOBS). For more information phone 0404 017 433. 6 OCTOBER Park Custom Bike & Tattoo Show, Croome Lane, Albion Park Rail, NSW. From midday; under 13s out by 6pm. Trade stalls, burnout comp, reptile display, kids rides and after dark adult entertainment. Food, refreshments and live music; no BYO. Clubs by invite only. For information phone 0429 320 777. 13 OCTOBER Shovel Fest Bendigo, Lords Raceway, 646 McIvor Hwy, Junortoun, Vic. Shovelheads and Ironheads to be judged; other pre-1984 H-Ds…

The pressure of being so good can be very hard to bear AM I THE only person in the world who feels a shred of sympathy for Romano Fenati? It seems that everybody else is engaged full tilt in an orgy of vilification. Just because of his ability not to make a fool of himself deserted him for a moment. Again. Grabbing Manzi’s front brake at Misano wasn’t really very clever, especially while being filmed in great detail. Analysing it, Race Direction thought it worth a two-race ban. This response, it rapidly became clear, was considered excessively lenient by the wider world. And in the week that followed, the condemnation of the 22-year-old echoed internationally, from respectable newspapers all the way to the death threats of twitterdom. And resounded with…

Anthony West WorldSSP EAB antwest Racing DNS – Suspended “I have two choices: I admit to something I didn’t do, or fight the anti-doping ruling. In 2013, I was in violation after taking a nutritional supplement that contained a banned substance. I admitted my mistake and accepted my punishment. After that, I stopped taking nutritional supplements. Now I fail a test and I have no idea why. We are looking into the best and fastest way to proceed. I just want to get this situation resolved and get back on track. After nearly 20 years in World Championships, I have never used any substances to try and artificially improve my on-track performance.” Tom Edwards WorldSSP300 Nutec Benjan Kawasaki Grid 1st, Race 6th, 21st “I’m really stoked to achieve the great…

Circuit length 5.077km Race distance MotoGP 116.771km Moto2 106.617km Moto3 96.463km 2017 winners MotoGP M Marquez 42m06.816s Moto2 F Morbidelli 40m09.904s Moto3 J Mir 25m57.607s Did you know? ... whether Marc Marquez’s wristwatch runs anti-clockwise? Because he certainly has a preference for that kind of racetrack. On clockwise circuits, which have predominantly right-hand corners, MM93’s win rate is an already impressive 25 per cent. But on left-hand circuits, that number balloons out to more than 70 per cent. The good news for the opposition is that there are only two ‘lefty’ tracks remaining on the calendar. One of them is Phillip Island... Round 14 Finishing positions…

AUSTRALIA’S JOSH HOOK and his F.C.C. TSR Honda squad have made the best start to defending their 2018 Endurance World Championship by winning a gruelling and drama-filled Bol d’Or 24 Hour over 14-16 September. The squad, this year made up of Hook, Freddy Foray and Mike di Meglio, took the win ahead of the Yamaha Austria Racing Team of Australian endurance veteran Broc Parkes, Niccolo Canepa and Marvic Fritz. Less than one minute separated the teams at the conclusion of the 698 laps completed in the 24-hour period. After an issue in the pits, the defending champs found themselves in 15th place but fought back to 10th by the eight-hour mark, and were up to sixth overall after 16 hours of racing. With three hours to go, the TSR squad…

AUSTRALIAN JOURNEYMAN racer Anthony West has denied any wrongdoing in the events that have led the talented Aussie to fail a random drug test, resulting in him being provisionally suspended from all racing. The 37-year-old has said he disputes the findings and will fight the suspension. “I don’t know what to say,” he said. “I have two choices before me; admit to something I didn’t do, or fight the anti-doping ruling. “We are looking into the best and fastest way to proceed. I just want to get this situation resolved and get back on track. After nearly 20 years in world championships, I have never used any substances to try and artificially improve my on-track performance.” According to a statement from his team, West was randomly selected for the test…