Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol 72 Issue 02 i Australian Motorcycle News

LOOKING AT THIS issue of AMCN, you might be wondering what the hell happened to the Japanese motorcycle industry. Instead of Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha, the pages of this issue are adorned with reinvigorated marques from the once mighty British and American motorcycle industries, including Royal Enfield, BSA, Norton, Triumph, Harley-Davidson and Indian. You might think that this British and American theme is by design, but it’s not; it just so happened that the bikes we tested over the previous few weeks were from British and American marques. And one news piece that broke for this issue was the new electric prototype from Triumph. We’ve also run a hell of a lot of content over the past 12 months from European manufacturers including Aprilia, Ducati and MV Agusta, as…

AUSTRALIAN AND NEW Zealand race fans were rocked on 23 March when racer, promoter, businessman and family man Iain Pero suffered a heart attack while mountain biking at Burrowye, near Albury. He was 60. Pero attended Shirley Boys’ High in Christchurch. He photographed racing from age 15, selling prints he made in his backyard darkroom, before following elder brother Mike into competition in 1978. His other early sporting interest was snow skiing. Both Pero boys displayed a natural flair for business and customer service, skills they first learned in their parents’ fish and chip shop. Their father was from the Cook Island and their mother from England. They had a younger sister, Shelly. Mike liked to joke that as residents of East Christchurch, one of the poorer parts, burglars took…

BSA WAS ORIGINALLY a maker of guns and ammo after its formation in June 1861 under the Birmingham Small Arms banner, and by 1863 had completed a factory on 25 acres of ground at Small Heath, turning to manufacturing bicycles in 1880. The company’s first motorcycle appeared in 1910, the year it also acquired the Daimler car company. After a major contribution to equipping the British Army in World War 1, BSA re-entered the car market under its own name in 1921 with a V-twin light car, followed by four-cylinder models. In 1931 it acquired the Lanchester Motor Company, and production of their cars was transferred to Daimler’s Coventry works. Throughout the 1930s BSA’s motorcycle production increased steeply via the popular Sloper, Blue Star and Empire Star singles, before the…

A LOT GOES into planning our annual adventure bike test (Vol 71 No 25). Multiple bikes need to go to multiple people in multiple destinations. The Scrambler 1200 XE was no exception and was booked well in advance of the test, and was set to be delivered to my place in Sydney’s south-west from Triumph’s Victorian-based HQ But, immediately after climbing out of the Tasmanian wilderness in the middle of the GS Safari I received a call from Deano telling me that the Scrambler had been delayed. It was still in Melbourne and wouldn’t reach Sydney before we were due to leave on the adventure comparo. So the following morning, instead of flying home from Hobart, I found myself climbing out of a plane in Melbourne, set for a mad…

How to judge MotoGP 2022 as it takes a much-needed summer break? Could we call it intense? Certainly. A period of 11 races in 17 weeks in countries as far flung as Indonesia, Argentina and the USA testifies to that. Has it been faster? Mostly. Technological strides have resulted in new lap records at six of the 10 tracks we had previously visited, and new race records at seven. And could we call it surprising? With Enea Bastianini, riding in a satellite team, winning as many races as anyone else, sure. And that's before we mention the fortunes of Aprilia. Perhaps most pertinent of all is whether it has been exciting. On the back of seven years of some of the closest, most dramatic racing in the history of the…

THE RIDER PULLED up beside me at the traffic lights, looking as cool as he could in an adventure-style helmet, fingerless gloves, ripped jeans and Slasher skate shoes. As the lights prepared to turn green, he hunched over the handlebars and got into launch mode. Then he was gone, weaving through the traffic at 60-70km/h, narrowly avoiding an errant motorist pulling out from a side street. He wasn’t a motorcyclist, but a daredevil thrashing a powerful electric mountain bike through the urban jungle. A couple of years ago (AMCN Vol 69 No 12) we spoke about how electric bicycles were blurring the boundaries. “You can go into your local bike shop, spend just a few thousand and ride out on an e-mountain bike that almost looks like a motorcycle,” we…

SPOILER ALERT. TOPRAK Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha) set his heart on winning all three Donington Park WorldSBK races, and not just for the obvious reasons. He had never taken three wins at one track on one weekend before. So where better than his genuinely favourite circuit layout to finally achieve that goal at, especially as he had sunshine and, occasionally, some relatively Turkish temperatures to do it in? The riders and teams were fighting heat and thirst at Donington, not the cold and rain it has delivered in the past. But the spectacle was sometimes spectacular and the record books got another good kicking. First of all, six-times champion Jonathan Rea smashed the Superpole record, setting a new all-time best of 1m26.080s. He was delighted to take just his second Superpole…

FRESH FROM HIS dominant form at the Isle of Man TT races, regular BSB rider Peter Hickman (FHO BMW) entered Donington as a late wildcard. He qualified 22nd, and in the races scored 22nd, 16th and 19th, scoring no points. Leon Haslam, bottom, was not technically a wildcard, the regular BSB rider was a substitute rider in the WorldSBK TPR Kawasaki team. He was 15th in Superpole, 15th and a point scorer in Race 1, then 13th in the 10-lap Superpole Race. In Race 2 he had to retire. Gone are the days when wildcards could rock up at tracks like Donington Park, Phillip Island or Laguna Seca and kick even the best regular WorldSBK riders’ bums.…

FOURTEEN-YEAR-OLD Jayden Martin proved he’s an emerging Australian racing talent after putting on an incredible display of speed and resilience at the third round of the 2022 Inter Club Championship held at Collie Motorplex on 5 June. Besides riding in the 150 Production Junior category, he was invited by Turn 1 Motorsports’ David Manson to ride his 1989 Honda NSR125 GP bike. Given Martin’s age, the club needed to apply for an exemption from both Motorcycling Australia and Motorcycling Western Australia to allow him to compete in the class, which was granted. Martin had not seen the bike prior to his first Saturday morning practice session and after easing himself into it, was looking forward to race day Sunday. During the morning’s warm-up and qualifying session, he blew up the…

Get out on the bike and help raise money for the less fortunate while having the time of your life. The Variety Adventure Ride is a six-day motorcycle event departing from Tamworth on Sunday 18 September. Participants commit to raising at least $2000 with the funds helping Variety – the Children’s Charity, which supports children who are sick, experiencing disadvantage or living with a disability. If you want a different take on adventure, join the Postie Bike Dash, from 30 October – 4 November in a loop around Armidale, NSW. Info on both events at www.variety.org.au.…

Letter of the issue Motomuck Win 5L of Motomuck Motorcycle Cleaner to keep your ride shiny valued at $59.95! Include your full name and address in your letter, via post or email. Long letters will be cut to fit, so don’t ramble. The views expressed by readers are not necessarily those of the editor. Access, AMCN, PO Box 6, Bittern, Vic, 3918 access@amcn.com.au Letter of the issue Red centre Here’s a pic of me with my 1974 BMW R 75/6 heading to the 1978 Centre Rally in Alice Springs. This photo was taken on the road about an hour east of Croydon in North Queensland. I still own this bike, having ticked just over 210,000km. Ten minutes after Lilly took this pic, a ’roo charged out of the high grass…

YOU MAY THINK that Harley’s Road Glide ST and Street Glide ST look almost identical apart from the front fairing, and you’d be mostly correct. Word on the street is that the Road Glide is preferred by the crazy folk who compete in bagger racing because the frame-mounted fairing doesn’t weight the steering as much as the Street Glide’s fork-mounted fairing. That may be the case if you’re racing, but after riding both back-to-back at the launch of the ST range in Bright, I’d go with the Street Glide ST, but there’s nothing in it. I preferred the handling of the Street Glide on everyday roads you and I ride on. The fork-mounted fairing on the Street is ever so slightly a hinderance when you turn the ’bar when stopped,…

A SEASON OF ups and downs so far. For every podium finish, there has been an off day when Miller has brought home a low points haul. Along with teammate Bagnaia, the 27-year-old struggled in the early rounds to get Ducati’s GP22 dialled in, scoring 15 points from a possible 75. But after convincing podiums in Austin and France, there was a puzzling 15th at Mugello, and a 14th in Barcelona, when speculation mounted over his future plans. But a post-race test in Barcelona allowed him to work on set-ups that aided him in braking zones. The double header in Germany and the Netherlands showcased the Australian’s potential at two historically tough tracks for Ducati. No one was faster than him on track in the closing laps in both outings.…

Top 3 TV 01 WSBK, Rd6 Czech, LIVE Videopass, Kayo, Foxsports 30-31 JULY From 6pm Round 6 of WSBK takes place at Most. Race 1 starts at 10pm AEST Saturday followed by the WSS Race. On Sunday the Superpole race airs at 7pm and Race 2 at 10pm. See worldsbk.com for the full race schedule. 02 MotoAmerica, Rd8 Brainerd, LIVE motoamericaliveplus.com 30-31 JULY TBC Livestream all the action of MotoAmerica Rd7 from Brainerd. Cost is $US12.99 for the round. Head to the website (above) and you can purchase a live coverage package. If you can wait a couple of days it will be replayed on Fox Sports (see guide for details). 03 The AusMoto Show SBS ON DEMAND Anytime If you’ve missed any episodes of The AusMoto Show hosted by Kate Peck you…

I WANT TO let you know how I am doing with my recovery. The idea that perhaps I needed to have another operation was there since September of last year. We were checking my arm periodically, to see the evolution of the fracture after the third surgery. When preseason came around, I wanted to convince myself that I could do it, with the phrase “power is in the mind” as my motto. But as the season began, I realised that the limitations were very big. I wanted to complete the whole season but whilst knowing my limitations and hiding the discomfort, to avoid daily questions. Only those closest to me knew. The defining moment came around the French GP, when everything was prepared for a 3D CT scan. We made…

THE FIRST RACE of the WorldSSP weekend turned out to be a straight fight between championship leader Dominique Aegerter (Ten Kate Yamaha) and eventual second-place rider Lorenzo Baldassarri (Evan Bros Yamaha). But only after a delayed start, a red flag shown after less than one full lap, a 12-lap restart, a crash from leading force Nicolo Beluga (Aruba – Ducati) and warm temperatures generally dealing out some mischief. Raffaele De Rosa (Orelac Racing VerdNatura Ducati) had his first podium of the year, almost seven seconds adrift of the winner, and just ahead of Yari Montella (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing). Things looked a little tougher for Aegerter in Race 2, but even though he had to leave his best pace to almost last (he put in the best lap of the race…

THE GRAND PRIX Commission has announced a number of new rules for the Moto2 and Moto3 categories, effecting age limits, testing restrictions and technical regulations. As well as increasing the minimum age limit across all classes, including MotoGP, to 18, the number of days the Moto2 and Moto3 teams will be allowed to host private tests has been reduced from seven days down to four. In terms of the age limit, exceptions will be made for the winners of the Red Bull Rookies, Junior GP and European Moto2 series, while Moto2 and Moto3 rookies will be allowed to test during the off-season. Similarly, so-called concession teams in both categories will retain their seven-day test allowance in a bid to encourage the least successful teams to be more competitive. The commission…

SETTING FASTEST TIME of the day on both special sprint tracks, former Aussie Motocross champion Todd Waters took his maiden victory in Rounds 5 and 6 of the Australian Off Road Championships, held at Mendooran in mid-west New South Wales last weekend (15-17 July). The sandy, power-sapping conditions favoured the larger-capacity bikes, with Andrew Wilksch’s Husqvarna FE501 holding out Josh Green’s Yamaha WR450 to complete the podium. On the Sunday, Waters made it back-to-back wins on his Husqvarna FE450 ahead of Green, who retains his points lead in the E2 Class. Tasmanian Kyron Bacon made it six straight wins in the E1 Class but was relegated to fifth outright on the Saturday and climbing to fourth on the Sunday to retain the outright championship lead at the halfway point of…

LAST YEAR MOTO Guzzi trademarked the name and logo of an upcoming V850X model and now just such a machine has appeared in the company’s European type-approval filings – showing that it’s a derivative of the latest V7 range but with more performance, less weight and a very different look. The V850X has already been spotted on test in Italy, and while it shares the V7’s 853cc V-twin and dual-shock, retro-style chassis it features styling that aims to break the mould. Just as the V100 Mandello is hard to pigeonhole, sitting somewhere between tourer and roadster, the V850X has a hint of scrambler in its wire wheels and deep-treaded Michelin Anakee rubber, but combines its old-school frame with styling that looks like a 1980s vision of the future. The tail…

FOUR FOR 46 Valentino Rossi wrapped up the 2002 MotoGP World Championship with four rounds up his (wet) sleeve after winning the rain-soaked Brazilian GP. It was Rossi’s fourth world title. The Italian also achieved the unique distinction of winning the first-ever MotoGP championship after winning the last-ever 500cc championship in 2001. TRICKY NICKY Honda Racing Corporation confirmed that 2002 American Superbike Champion Nicky Hayden would compete with the big boys in the 2003 MotoGP championship aboard a full-factory Honda RCV211V. Unfortunately, the signing of the Superbike star made Yamaha a little cranky, as they were under the impression that Nicky had signed with them for the 2003 season. DIRTY GOAT They don’t call Ricky Carmichael the GOAT in dirtbike racing for no reason. Carmichael completed an unprecedented clean sweep…

IF YOU’RE AFTER something that’s a bit more at home on the road, something with a shorter seat height with just as much mechanical machismo, then Triumph’s Scrambler XC might be right up your alley. You get the same steel frame and liquid-cooled, 270° crank parallel-twin as the XE, but with less extreme suspension bolted to it. A 45mm Showa fully adjustable fork takes the lead with Ohlins shocks on the bum. Travel is reduced to 200mm, which in turn has lowered the seat height to 840mm as opposed to the XE’s 870mm seat. The the XC also runs a 21-inch front rim, and 200mm is still decent travel, so it’s still more than capable of hitting the dirt. The XC has five riding modes rather than six, losing Off-road…

The bikes have been produced for current customers who have laid down deposits. How many customers are waiting on bikes? We have a strong waiting list for the bikes, however our priority will be to get bikes to those 74 customers who have placed a deposit to NMUL (the old Norton). What is the reduced price for current V4SS owners? Despite having no legal liability to any motorcycle made by NMUL, Norton has been committed to investing funds and time to finding a solution for owners of the V4SS. Unfortunately, despite significant efforts, Norton has been unable to repair the identified safety issues. As a result, like many others, the owners now await the outcome of the liquidation and confirmation of the final dividend payment they will receive against the…

In 2004, Bruce Fogarty put down a deposit on a new Triumph Rocket III sight unseen. It figures, ‘Fog’ was one of the first to buy a Kawasaki Z1300 in 1979. So big capacity, shaft drive and a thirst for the latest and greatest might explain why my muso mate bought another Rocket III in 2006 when they added floorboards and called it the Classic. But 97,000km later and the Fog’s still rolling on. This is Bruce’s two-up touring ride. He commutes to band practice and gigs on his YZF-R1 or on the MT-09 he bought shortly after a conversation we had about owning too many bikes. When I told him I had a new Rocket 3 GT to play with I could hear him counting coin. What I didn’t…

IT’S BEEN A tough four months for the reigning Moto2 champion. Transitioning from finishing 13 races from 18 on the podium to being a rookie on one of the grid’s most difficult bikes was never going to be easy. Gardner’s task was made even more difficult when he fractured his right wrist in a motocross crash before preseason began. He’s managed to score points four times, with 11th place in Barcelona his best ride of the season to date. But overall, he expected more. “Obviously the results haven’t been what we expected, but I think if you take everything in consideration, you have a look at the gap to the factory boys, I think especially the last three to four races, I’ve been quite happy to be honest. “We’re really…

IT WAS A great shame that half a season of great promise ended on a bum note. The 18-year-old is spending his summer break recovering from a fractured right ankle and foot after being wiped out of the Dutch TT on the final lap. Before then, he had produced a series of impressive performances in his first season in the Moto3 World Championship. He’s scored points in five races, with two of them coming in the top 10. He suffered misfortune at Jerez, when a rare collision hurt the abductor muscle in his left leg, forcing him to sit out two GPs. Then further outings in Barcelona, Germany and Assen showed he could run at the front early on, only to either crash as he attempted to run the leaders’…

AS AMERICANS RETREATED into their homes during the outbreak of Covid-19, Cannonball Run enthusiasts were making the most of the quiet roads. In fact, by the end of 2020 reports were saying the record had been broken seven times in just five weeks. The unwritten rules of the unsanctioned race state that in order to set a record, you must start at the Red Ball Garage in Manhattan and finish 4677km later at the Portofino Inn in Redondo Beach, California. In 1915, Cannon Ball Baker completed a similar journey in a Stutz Bearcat in a time of 271 hours and 15 minutes. Today’s record, set in a highly modified but thoroughly inconspicuous 2016 Audi S6, stands at 25 hours and 39 minutes. With Arne Toman and Doug Tabbutt at the…

1 JIVE TALK Cassons Australia From $699.95 (02) 8882 1900 cassonsmedia.com Cardo’s new Packtalk Edge in-helmet communications system features second generation Dynamic Mesh technology, allowing connection between up to 15 riders simultaneously. The Edge also boasts new 40mm JBL speakers, improved Natural Voice Operation and noise-filtering, Bluetooth 5.2 and a USB-C charge port. 2 MAGIC FRICTION Zerofit From $129.95 1800 888 349 zerofit.com.au Zerofit claims that its Heatrub Ultimate Baselayer is up to five times warmer than products from its leading competitors. Ideally suited to temperatures between -10° and 10° Celsius, the specialised ‘heat threads’ are activated through movement, gently brushing against the skin to generate heat instantly. 3 BOOT OF BOVINE Moto National Accessories $179.95 1300 885 355 motodry.com.au Motodry’s Clio lady’s boots feature a full length zippered closure and are…

THIS HAS BEEN a particularly historic season. Not all the landmarks have been positive, however. Two of motorcycle racing’s icons have been stricken with historic failings that break the serial achievements of many decades. Honda first – and it happened in Germany’s Sachsenring, a track where even before Marc Marquez embarked on eight years of serial domination, the Big H had staked a claim for ownership. Dani Pedrosa won it the previous three years and in the preceding 10, Honda riders ranging from Mick Doohan to Valentino Rossi to Alex Barros to Sete Gibernau also. Until 2022. Now, on an afternoon when traditional rivals Yamaha celebrated a Fabio Quartararo victory as calm and controlling as any by Marquez, Honda packed up its travel case with a long face. Not one…

BMW MOTORRAD’S BIG boss Markus Schramm was at Donington to witness Scott Redding’s first-ever podium for the German manufacturer. For Redding, it was not just personally satisfying to score a podium in the Superpole race – with no big-name crashers ‘gifting’ him a position – but also important as a morale booster, given how much BMW has re-invested in an effectively four rider factory spread this season. “It’s good to have him around,” Redding said. “He came to Aragon – I think it was the worst weekend of his life! So he turned up again. “Honestly, he’s one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met. He’s just sound. I enjoy to be around him, I don’t feel like there’s levels, I see how much it means to him. “It was…

AUSTRALIAN JASON DOYLE spearheaded a Rest of the World team to defeat Great Britain 48 – 42 in a one-off speedway test match staged at Glasgow earlier this month on 9 July. Doyle was beaten only once in five rides, finishing on 14 points. Fellow SGP rider Max Fricke weighed in with nine, while their American, Danish and German teammates all chipped in. Top scorer for Great Britain was SGP rider Robert Lambert who scored 16, but he had one more ride than Doyle. Amazingly the last time Doyle had ridden at the Glasgow track was back in 2011, when he was part of the Newport team in the second-tier league in the UK.…

YOUNG DIRT TRACK riders last contested an Australian Championship in 2019, and they had to wait one extra week due to wet weather before the North Brisbane track finally staged the 2022 event over the weekend of 9-10 July. The competitiveness of the racing was evidenced by only two boys remaining unbeaten through the heats, before only one rider claimed title wins after having been top qualifier for a final. Viv Muddle (9 – U/13s) actually won two finals after being top qualifier both times – one of them unbeaten – while Rory McQualter (13 – U/16s) was another dual champion. Other class winners were George Holmkvist and Hugo Holmes (both 7 – U/9s) and Hugh Hope-Hodgetts (7 – U/12s), while Anika Loftus dominated both girls’ classes.…

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. There must be, surely, a way of calculating what was the last issue of AMCN to feature test rides on a Triumph, a Norton, a Royal Enfield, a BSA and a Harley-Davidson. Perhaps during the Menzies administration or, at a pinch, Holt. Thankfully the days of 6-volt electrics and magnetos are behind us, and bikes have never been more reliable. Mind you, the Royal Enfield Classic 350 is leaking oil in Kel’s shed. There’s comfort to be found in some constants though, right?…