Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol 74 Issue 05 i Australian Motorcycle News

Malcolm Yeo left school at 14 in 1983 because he wanted to race motorcycles. His late father Barry had raced. Seeing New Zealand’s John Woodley dominate the 1977 Australian 500 Grand Prix at Bathurst gave a then eight-year-old Malcolm inspiration, before he witnessed the famed Australian Unlimited GP battle between Ron Boulden, Graeme Crosby and Woodley two years later. Malcolm found work in Ron Antak’s motorcycle shop at Carlingford, Sydney, and later as a bank officer. He won the Australian 125 championship in 1991 but racing was hardly plain sailing. He broke his back twice and missed a second 125 title in 1993 due to a mechanical failure at Phillip Island. The second spinal injury in 1996 prompted advice from Murray Sayle (who sustained a career-ending back injury in 1980)…

As midsize adventure bikes like the KTM 890, Triumph Tiger 900 and Ducati DesertX grow in capacity, stature and power, you might think that the big-bore adventure brigade is becoming irrelevant, but when BMW launched the R 1300 GS last year, it surprised the market by packing its new larger-capacity boxer twin into a smaller and lighter package… and when it comes to adventure bikes, smaller and lighter is a good thing. The Option 719 ‘Tramuntana’ weighs in at 237kg fully fuelled and ready to ride, which is significantly lighter than its predecessor. Much of that weight feels low in the frame, so even with a pillion aboard, low-speed manoeuvres through heavy traffic are a doddle. Don’t get me wrong, the R 1300 GS is still a behemoth in the…

Melbourne-based brothers Ken and Barry Horner are the can-do kids of Australian road racing. Over the past 20 years they’ve amassed an enviable roster of race wins and podiums with the various Irving Vincent V-twin racers they’ve created in their southeast Melbourne machine shop, racing against much more powerful four-cylinder Japanese post-classic superbikes, lately equipped with short-fused 180hp drag-race engines. Then, just to show they could take on the modern twin-cylinder mafia equally well, in 2008 their enlarged 1600cc air-cooled two-valve pushrod V-twin won the world’s premier ProTwins race at Daytona. Ridden by Craig McMartin, it rumbled away from a full grid of liquid-cooled multi-valve race replicas, including Ducati 1198 Superbikes with such famous names as two-time WorldSBK champion Doug Polen and Larry Pegram aboard, in the team’s first appearance…

The Wigwam, as Indian called its factory, was founded in 1901 by chieftains George Hendee and Oscar Hedstrom in the city of Springfield in the US state of Massachusetts, making Indian America’s oldest motorcycle manufacturer. A brand with a very fascinating and sometimes very troubled history, Indian began with a collaboration between an avid cyclist and a brilliant technician. An American cycling champion, Hendee’s publicity sense was the perfect match for Hedstrom’s technical genius. The first motorcycle to bear the Indian name was really no more than a bicycle fitted with a 1.75hp single-cylinder engine, but instead of featuring a leather belt final drive, common at the time, the Indian featured a chain-driven rear wheel. Two were sold in the first year, but that number grew exponentially. In 1904, the…

UP UNTIL now I have run those yellow foam earplugs you can buy at Woolies or Bunnings, but since I have sampled these MotoSafe Pro earplugs, I won’t be going back. Unlike the foam plugs, which you have to roll and insert into your ear canal, then wait for them to expand to hear whether you’ve achieved a good seal, you just pop these MotoSafe ones in, give ’em a little twist and there’s a good seal every time. The little mini-grip on the end of the plugs makes this an easy task, and also makes it easy to pull them back out again. The kit contains two black earplugs for road use and two red earplugs for track use, the latter said to provide more sound reduction, although I…

TESTED VOL 73 NO 25 BIKE SPOTLIGHT APRILIA RS 457 ENGINE 457cc parallel twin POWER 35kW (47hp) @9400rpm TORQUE 43.5Nm @6700rpm WEIGHT 175kg (kerb, claimed) PRICE $12,540 (ride away) “Justifies its styling links to the RS 660 and even Aprilia’s race-winning RS-GP” TESTED VOL 73 NO 23 BIKE SPOTLIGHT YAMAHA XSR900 GP ENGINE 890cc three cylinder POWER 87.5kW (117hp) @10,000rpm TORQUE 93Nm @7000rpm WEIGHT 200kg (kerb, claimed) PRICE $21,499 (rideaway) “It brilliantly blends the analogue past with the digital present, ticking all the right nostalgia boxes”…

“SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE TO PUT THE CHAMPING BACK IN CHAMPIONSHIP” WHAT’S WRONG with MotoGP? Well, quite a few things actually (and, to be fair, quite a few things are also right, in a minor golden age). But the salient point concerns personality. Everyone’s much too nice. I’m talking about riders here. Those larger-than-life figures Dorna’s PR machine display on various electronic media, and wheel around on trailers early on race mornings, waving dutifully at mainly empty grandstands and grateful early-start corner workers. All while giving agreeable interviews. Lovely bunch of chaps. Deadly rivals on the track, of course, but best of friends off it. Really? Risking their necks to beat each other in a high-stakes life or-death sport? Sorry, but the warm, fuzzy atmosphere is as bogus as…

THE AUSTRIAN GP brought confirmation Ai Ogura has signed for Trackhouse Aprilia in 2025 on a two-year deal. The 23-year-old had an option to replace Takaaki Nakagami at LCR Honda but opted for Aprilia’s satellite squad. “It’s really special and I am happy that, finally, I can make this step,” he said. “It looks like the team and the bike are really competitive, so I think I am in the best place for next year.” Ogura had the chance to move to MotoGP in 2023 with Honda but felt it wasn’t the right time. Now is a different matter. “I feel more ready now than two years ago,” he told AMCN. “Two years ago, I was fighting for the title but in practice I wasn’t always in the top five.…

LEVI RUSSO and Judd Plaisted have secured the 190cc and 160cc FIM Mini GP Australia titles respectively, with both delivering strong performances in the series’ penultimate round at Monarto Go Kart Track near Adelaide over 24-25 August. After four rounds an ecstatic Plaisted remains undefeated in the 160cc class, clinching the championship to book his ticket to the World Series Grand Finale in Valencia. “Hopefully I can go well in Spain and do Australia proud,” said a beaming Plaisted, who had just donned his new gold helmet. After qualifying on pole, Plaisted (Headsox) blitzed the start in the opener and scorched the field to win by 11.335sec with Chaz Williams (VP Race Fuels) and Isaac Ayaad (Abseilers Crew) fighting it out to complete the 160cc podium. With a shower of…

ROUND 4 of Western Australia’s State Road Racing Championship was met with atrocious weather on 18 August. As cold temperatures, strong winds and heavy showers kept the tyre techs, timing and pit crews busy, it was Superbike rider Bronson Pickett (Yamaha YZF-R1) busy making the most of championship leader Sam Clarke’s early withdrawal, notching up two wins and a fourth-place finish. Jack Langley-Robins (Yamaha YZF-R1) took the win in the final race, while Adam Senior (Yamaha YZF-R1) took two seconds and a third to finish third overall for the round. Ben Stronach’s (Yamaha YZF-R1) fifth overall was enough to see him leading the points again on 190. Senior (183) is in second ahead of Pickett and Langley-Robins both on 175 points. It was a costly weekend for Clarke (150), who…

Triumph appears to be preparing an update for the Speed Triple 1200 RS going into 2025 as a prototype has been spotted on test with a host of changes, including the adoption of electronically-adjustable suspension. The 1200 RS already enjoys some pretty high-end suspension in the form of an Öhlins 43mm NIX30 upside-down fork and TTX36 rear shock, but the even more exotic, half-faired Speed Triple 1200 RR uses the Öhlins Smart EC 2.0 electronically-controlled versions, and it’s those that look to be heading to the naked Speed Triple 1200 RS. In fact, since Öhlins has recently introduced a ‘3.0’ version of its electronic suspension, it’s possible that Triumph will be upgrading to the latest set-up. The spy pictures show that there are cables running into the top of the…

News of Can-Am’s re-entry to the motorcycle market with a pair of electric models – the Pulse and Origin – first broke in 2022 and two years on the full details of these machines have been released as the company opens the order books for its 2025 range. Both the road-oriented Pulse and the adventure-style Origin share the same building blocks of their chassis, motor and battery pack, differing in their style, geometry and suspension. The design revolves around a central, structural battery case, following the same route that’s been established by bikes like the LiveWire S2 machines, to maximise battery space and minimise weight. However, the Can-Am machines take it a step farther by incorporating their motor into the front of the swingarm – a single-sided design that doubles…

The time has come to say goodbye to the Hornet, which makes me a little sad. I lovingly named it the African Hornet the day it arrived, as it sounded just like an Africa Twin. It certainly made a little nest in my shed and always rewarded me with an enjoyable ride. While being quite unassuming, the little beast does the business better than I ever expected. It is a joy to blat around running errands, commuting or general hooning. I say hooning, because it is ultra predictable and has a very versatile power delivery, which makes for beaut first and secondgear wheelies. While I’m still slightly bummed that the Hornet isn’t powered by an inline four-cylinder engine like the old days, the 750cc parallel twin is a solid performer…

When the Vitpilen and Svartpilen combo hit Australian streets back in 2018, The White Arrow and the Black Arrow respectively were 375cc singles dubbed 401. A great learner and city bike, but a bit small for experienced riders to get their jollies on. Soon after, Husqvarna introduced the 701 single-cylinder version with much more pep in its step but it still remained a city and suburban brawler. Fast forward to 2024 and things have taken a twin-cylinder turn with the introduction of the Svartpilen 801, now sporting a 799cc LC8c donk straight out of KTM’s medium calibre ammunition box. As part of Pierer Mobility Group’s global empire, Husqvarna’s job is to provide a little bit of class with premium offerings. The Svartpilen 801 is Husqvarna’s highest-capacity nakedbike, outsized only by…

“BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE LIST OF BIKES HE’S OWNED, YOU KNOW HE’S DANCING TO A DIFFERENT TUNE” MY LITTLE brother’s weird. Well, not so much weird as wired different. I should know, we’ve spent most of our lives living, working, riding or making music together. I probably should qualify that. While packing for some beach camping last night I mentioned to Karen that Nicko was taking his guitar so I’d better find my harps. She groaned and said something about earplugs. Nicko’s also a lifelong motorcyclist. When I was away working and Nick was still at school he used to take the bikes I had stashed on the farm for a spin. His favourite was the old Matchless but I know he took my Norton out more than once…

FROM DESPAIR to hope; Jack Miller has enjoyed quite a turnaround in fortunes in the space of a fortnight. On the eve of the British GP the Aussie couldn’t hide his devastation at a lack of offers that had come his way over the summer break. Yet all signs in Austria pointed to him claiming a seat at the new Pramac Yamaha squad next year alongside Miguel Oliveira aboard a full factory YZR-M1. “Mood’s definitely better,” he said on Thursday at the Austrian GP comparing his emotions to Silverstone. “It doesn’t seem that the world’s crumbling around, but we’ll see.” The move would see Miller reunited with the Pramac team with whom he rode for three seasons between 2018 and 2020. “I mean, there’s truth to the rumours, obviously we’re in…

FRANCO MORBIDELLI has signed to ride with the VR46 Ducati team for 2025 alongside Fabio Di Giannantonio on a one-year deal. The news came through on the Friday, when the Italian finished second in the first two sessions of the weekend. “It’s a great story that we were able to announce it today and it’s a great story. Continuing with Ducati is a great thing,” he said. It was assumed Morbidelli would continue riding a GP24 next year, while his teammate will be given a full factory GP25. But, “that’s not certain yet”, according to the 29-year-old. “But continuing with the same bike is great.” GP25? “I’m not strong with contracts,” he said. Di Giannantonio was ruled out of the race due to a shoulder he dislocated in Friday’s practice…

WITH A WINNING margin of nine seconds over Kyron Bacon (Yamaha) in Saturday’s cross-country enduro, Daniel Milner (KTM) appeared set to wrap up the 2024 Australian Off-Road Championship with three rounds left to run. However the rugged three-hour event through Kingston’s mallee country had taken its toll and, after holding out Bacon in the first of Sunday’s sprints, Milner dumped his KTM in the second, dislocating his shoulder in the process. And after struggling to finish eighth, called it a day. Bacon won the round ahead of Jonte Reynders (Sherco) with Milner’s mishap leaving both with a slim chance of the outright championship title to be decided at Nowra in mid-September. Danielle McDonald (Yamaha) leads the Women’s Division and Jett Arnold (Yamaha) the Juniors.…

A SPATE OF new trademark applications from Yamaha have appeared in European filings as the company aims to get rights to use the titles RW125, RW155, RW250, RW350 and RW700 on future motorcycles. But it’s far from clear what those bikes will be. The capacities listed on the trademark applications suggest that the new models will be derived from the existing MT and YZF-R model ranges and several also have other spin-off variants, including the retro XSR models in 125cc, 155cc and 689cc form, leaving a question mark hanging over what the upcoming ‘RW’ models might be. The ‘R’ suggests sportsbike, and in some contexts Yamaha uses ‘W’ to denote track-only models, for instance the YZF1000W and YZF600W are stripped-back variants of the R1 and R6, sold only to race teams.…

Honda has filed a patent application in Japan that aims to protect the idea of motorcycle headlights with a hole in the middle – with the hope of improving aerodynamics and getting a distinctive style into the bargain. We’ve seen a recent trend of outlining air intakes with rings of LEDs to mimic headlights, particularly emerging from China, but Honda’s new patent is a little different as it appears to build an air intake hole into the middle of a ring-shaped LED unit that still retains its original purpose of providing the motorcycle’s main illumination at night. As a result of using high-powered LEDs, there’s a cooling demand on the light unit that’s fulfilled by creating slats across the central opening that work as heat sinks. Unlike the Benda…

Back in 1970s Adelaide, where I spent several formative years, the Dragster bicycle was the height of kid cool. All I wanted was a cherry-red Malvern Star with high-rise handlebar and banana seat – plus a bag of musk sticks. Times have changed and while I can’t stomach musk sticks any more, there is still a red Dragster I’ve got my eye on. It’s got the same wow factor, but the main differences are that this one is bigger, more expensive and handcrafted in Varese, Italy. I’m quite sure MV Agusta didn’t plan to evoke this kind of nostalgia when it named its 800cc naked the Dragster, but it works for me. One of the most minimalistic motorcycles in the company’s range, it is, according to the marketing blurb, the…

She could never have known it at the time, but it was the competitive streak within Remmi Aloni which ultimately lead to the creation of a riotous annual motorcycle rally called Sheilas Shakedown. Because without that competitiveness, the now 43-year-old would never have got her motorcycle licence, she would never have participated in an overnight campout with a handful of fellow female riders and she would never have had the opportunity to launch what has now grown into the country’s only female and gender-diverse motorcycle and vintage car rally. “My boyfriend at the time was really keen to get his licence. And he was like, come get it with me, come get it with me. And I was just so hesitant, mostly to do with the cost involved,” Remmi recalls.…

The graphics in MotoGP24 are simply astounding, and so is the sound and the physics, with impressive response to braking and acceleration inputs, although I struggled to hold a decent line in corners, but this could come with a bit more practice. And for those who aren’t big into video games, the new Adaptive Difficulty technology matches AI difficulty to your skills. So even if you’re a crap armchair racer like me, you can still have loads of fun playing. Starting out in the practice mode allows you to get a hang of how the bikes respond to control inputs without crashing on every corner. It’s worth spending a bit of time doing this. If you’re tempted to step straight up to the intermediate mode, you’ll probably crash at the…

1 LIME DRINK Kawasaki Australia $15.50 shop@kawasaki.com.au shop.kawasaki.com.au For those of you who love Team Green so much you want to taste it, you need to get yourself one of these Kawasaki ceramic mugs. It features a matt black outer finish with bold white Kawasaki logo, and a high-gloss lime green on the inside to add some high-powered flavour to your favourite beverage, whether hot or cold. 2 ADVENTURE HEAD Moto National $899.95 1300 885 355 www.motonational.com.au The Kabuto Geosys GT is a dual-purpose helmet with a composite shell, Multi-directional Impact Protection System (MIPS), washable antimicrobial Coolmax liner, dedicated space for intercom and speakers, visor with Pinlock included and large eye port to accommodate goggles. Solids and graphics available. 3 TORTOISE RACE Link International $99.90 (07) 3382 5000 www.linkint.com.au The La…

TICKETS FOR THE Australian round of the 2024 FIM World Supercross Championship in Perth have gone on sale, as Motorcycling Australia (MA) asks for help to put on the 23-24 November event. MA is looking for volunteers to fill a range of roles, including marshals, scrutineers, officials and support services, saying it’s an opportunity to get a front-row seat for the world-class action. Starting from $75 for a single-race pass and rising to $309 for a weekend VIP pass, there are a range of ticketing ting options available, including family passes ($355, two adults and two kids) and weekend ($135) tickets also available. To register your interest in helping out, head to www.surveymonkey.com/r/2024WSX, or for tickets head to Ticketmaster and search World Supercross Championship.…

You’ve had a very interesting year balancing commitments between Glenn Allerton in ASBK and Sean Dylan Kelly in MotoAmerica. How’s it all going? It’s been a pretty good season; a lot of things have had to come together. With Glenn, the crash at Morgan Park was a shame because I think he was really starting to build some good momentum. Topping practice was a true reflection of where he is at. In MotoAmerica I’m with a new team (TopPro Racing) and Sean had never ridden a Superbike before. Tell us more about working in the US. I work for Alpha Racing, BMW’s motorsport partner, and MotoAmerica basically runs under world Superbike rules, so we use a lot of BMW Motorsport parts. It’s essentially a WorldSBK-spec BMW from the previous year.…