Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 142 i Australian Road Rider

Honda’s big sports tourer, the ST1100 (known as the Pan European in other markets), first found its way Down Under in 1990, gaining slow showroom response at a new price of $13,990. The Australian bike marketplace has always viewed entirely new models with a little suspicion and the ST was no exception. After all, here was a bike that was falling smack bang into a sportsbike-mad retail atmosphere, weighing in at 288kg and using a longitudinally mounted V4 powerplant. Big and different. It wasn’t a pretty motorcycle, either, and a short demonstration ride was never going to sell the bike. Short of the full dresser-style category and the brand’s GoldWing, the market was a little new to the idea of purpose-built tourers that could be shoved along at the sort…

“The 1200 inundates your every sense yet never overwhelms them.” I’d headed out for an early run around my favourite road loop and annoyingly, as I approached the start of the properly fun bits, the fuel gauge went orange and the trip display flipped over to range-to-empty. It showed there were about 60km to play with and even though I knew the only opportunity to refill was some way back, I decided that, probably, all would be fine and with a buzz of anticipation dumped the clutch and let slip the twin dogs of war residing in those kennel-sized cylinders. Using all the performance this bike offers is a particularly involving and mesmerising experience. Slamming up and down the box without ever bothering the clutch lever, thanks to the up-and-down…

BERIK RUSH RACE SUIT When we test bike gear such as a new set of leathers, we usually only speak of its conformability, features and its claimed safety specifications. These garments, while designed to look and feel good, are primarily made for safety in an accident. In short, we can’t really gauge how well they work in a prang unless we throw ourselves along the tarmac. Well, in this case, I can because, ashamedly, I did just that. After a long day at the track, I got overconfident and went for an extra few degrees of lean, lost the rear and slid off the circuit. You know what they say: never go out in the last session. It wasn’t a biggie, but it was large enough to call a crash.…

Don’t forget to write! We mean it. We love to hear from you and everyone else does too; these pages are among the most popular in the magazine. Preferably, keep letters under 300 words so we can fit more in, though we will allow the odd exception without taking to it with the editorial knife. Yes, we will chop ’em when we have to. Do include your real name and some contact details just in case we need to clarify something. Please write to gleech@universalmagazines.com.au or send mail to Road Rider, Unit 5, 6–8 Byfield Street, North Ryde NSW 2113. WHO YOU GUNNA TRUST? I made my usual trek to Aldi a few weeks ago for its “giant” motorcycle gear sale and, not surprisingly, had exactly the same experience I…

If you’d like to see your very own pride and joy featured in the mag, send a photo to gleech@universalmagazines.com.au or message us on Facebook.…

In her second time running, Stacey Heaney set a blistering 43.9-second time up the steep and windy track in Maldon. “It was pretty scary; I snapped my clutch cable on the way up and just had to hold on for the ride. I thought I’d blown it, but then I saw the time and was over the moon,” says Stacey. She rides a heavily modified 1971 Yamaha XS650, which was prepared by the XS Club of Australia. “I’m lucky enough to be the main race rider of this motorcycle. We’re basically the guinea pig for the club, so everything we do on this bike is recorded so other XS builders know what does and doesn’t work,” explains Stacey. “It’s a lot of trial and error, but eventually we get a…

If you’re looking for a biking adventure next year, how about riding 2000km over and around planet earth’s deepest lake? Lake Baikal in Russia is the oldest and deepest (it’s just over a mile to the bottom) lake in the world. With temperatures in the region dipping to a balmy -20°C, the lake spends most of the year frozen and the folks over at The Adventurists decided it was high time that a group of people rode across it on old motorbikes with sidecars attached. Naturally. The sixth Ice Run, taking place in March 2018, has just opened its doors for entrants — teams of two comprising one rider and one “navigator” in a sidecar, although you can swap over as much as you want. There’s no route set in…

For those of us seasoned enough to romantically remember the downright dirty rush that fast two-stroke motorcycles brought about, well, don’t give it all away just yet. Yes, in this era of rules, order and policed behaviour, Yammie has delivered us a top-end screamer that doesn’t give you a whole lot — until you demand it. Then the delivery of mind-altering euphoria hits like your first deep kiss. Yeah, you remember that feeling, don’t ya? “After banging away at Eastern Creek for the best part of a day, I can confidently say that I have never been around there faster on anything” The reason for all this fuss is the way the bike makes its power. Peak horsies come out to play at 14,500rpm, and that’s where the bike wants…

I’ve been wanting to do this course for some time and now that we have the longterm Australianised version of the Tracer 700 at our disposal, replete with knobbly tyres, it seemed more relevant than ever. You probably won’t be surprised to learn that in London there’s very little chance to ride on the dirt, unless perhaps you’re doing a runner across Hampstead Heath, but that’s another story. Now that I’ve moved to this wide, brown land it seems something of a waste not to get out there and explore things away from the beaten track, or at least away from the HWP cars cruising every fun bit of tarmac. With that in mind, I felt it was time to learn how to comport myself properly on the loose stuff…

Could we do him a favour? That was the question Paul McCann of PS Imports asked me when I enquired about a Moto Guzzi test ride. “We have three demo bikes that need to come back to Sydney,” he explained. “You’ll need to go to Brisan’s in Newcastle, though.” Well, that took all of a few seconds to decide, so it was on the phone to riding mates Dave and Paul (aka the Grey Ghosts) and onto the early train to Hamilton, where Tom Carrigan had just finished moving the dealership from Broadmeadow to spanking-new multi-brand premises at Islington. And there they were. Three Italian beauties lined up like a Federico Fellini casting call. A sweet V7 II Special in pigtails, a cheeky V9 Roamer in strapless gold, and an…

LOOKING BACK The most popular motor vehicle in history recently hit another milestone, proving that some things never go out of fashion. Honda has now built 100 million Super Cubs, and even after 60 years of production, it still looks pretty much the same. To mark the occasion, Honda has revamped the iconic step-through for 2018. The basic concept is the same, but with a discrete redesign to the fairings, some LED lights and a touch of modern engineering to the engine for efficiency. LOOKING FORWARD ARR ISSUE 143 ON SALE MARCH 8 2018 RIDDEN Harley's new Softail Fat Bob under the microscope, we belt the living suitcase out of a Triumph Explorer 1200 XC and Crowley rekindles his youth on a new Indian Scout Bobber. ON THE ROAD We…

Despite plenty of competition for riders at other events, some 100 bikes turned out for the Motorcycle Council of NSW (MCCNSW) Sunday ride from Berowra to Cessnock to kick off 2017’s Motorcycle Awareness Month. The three-hour, 170km ride was a gentle tour through forest and farmland via Calga and Wollombi with stops at familiar landmarks such as Jerry’s Cafe at Kulnura. Lovely as the ride was, there was a firm “safe riding” message and a spot of fundraising for MARI (Motorcycle Accident Rehabilitation Initiative). Oh, and a sausage sizzle. “Seeing the large group of motorcycles on the local roads helps the community to view motorcyclists as fun-loving people who enjoy life and care about road safety,” said Motorcycle Council of NSW treasurer, Steve Pearce, in the lead-up to the event.…

My father was fond of dispensing advice in bite-sized chunks. On marriage, he warned me not to neglect my homework. In my career, he told me to make my own luck and in life, to play a straight bat. He rarely elaborated, which made his wisdom both memorable and timeless. Another gem was to be careful what I wished for and this is especially apt as I get older. With the kids gone and the mortgage not far behind, turning wishes into reality is easier done than said. Whims can be accommodated if I don’t go silly. My Norton is a case in point. Despite being happily married to a wonderful Ducati for more than 20 years, I lusted after something on the side to spice things up, an old…

Yes, I know. We’ve travelled a fair chunk of the world on two wheels and here I am raving on about Tasmania. And why not. Tasmania has a bit of everything, all compacted into a nice little island. I recently toured around with some mates, including three Texans who couldn’t believe how lucky we are to have this little bit of paradise in our part of the world. To quote one, “It’s just corner after corner, a ‘WOW’ factor around every corner. It’s so different to the US where we ride for miles on a highway, ride a twisty road, then travel miles on a highway to the next curvy road. Y’all so lucky!” Ron, JJ and Hans are right. We’re lucky to have Tassie right here. So let’s do…

They say there is no replacement for displacement. Indeed, that maxim has been widely applied by bike and car manufacturers, particularly from the Land of the Brave, with varying success. While Triumph has never been shy of knocking out a big cubed bike — look no further than the behemoth Rocket III — its middleweight range of 675cc engines has held sway as a global sales winner, particularly in Street Triple guise. So why has it been upped to 765cc for three of the new four-model range of Street Triples? After all, they certainly weren’t broke. Why fix them? Aha. Glad you asked. That’s been well motivated by Triumph’s coup of being announced as the engine supplier for Moto2 machinery for the 2019 GP season. That’s a huge get for…

KABUTO AEROBLADE 5 The super-light, aerodynamic and well-ventilated Aeroblade series has seen good uptake here in Australia. The Kabuto team, renowned for their innovation and R&D, have lifted the bar once more with the fifth-generation of the Aeroblade, as usual with a focus on weight, safety, aerodynamics, size and wind noise. The Aeroblade 5 helmets are ECE approved and are built using Kabuto’s Advanced Composite Technology to reduce weight, and their own wind tunnel testing to get the airflow right, a combination which ensures the rider has less Gs on the head in both acceleration and deceleration. This translates to less neck and shoulder stress on the road. The aerodynamic features of the Aeroblade 5, such as the patented wake stabiliser, are said to reduce vibration to allow for more…

New bike prices can go up and down like the stock market, so in every issue we’ll bring you the sticker prices. To be completely up to date with things like factory discounts and incentives, check the Road Rider website (www.roadrider.com.au) where we will bring you all the special deals, bonus offers and cashback promotions we can find. We have included the importers’ websites, which is the place to go if you’re looking for more information. You’ll see that we haven’t listed every bike on the market (yet) but we aim to get there with all of them. Sometimes even we struggle to find the details of the smaller, newer importers. Meanwhile, enjoy this most meaningful of Australian bike listings, covering the bikes you’re interested in. The prices are the…