Cycle Torque August 2014

FREE 2014 AUGUST

ALSO RIDDEN BMW S 1000 R CAN-AM SPYDER RT VESPA PRIMAVERA YAMAHA STRYKER

FEATURES ALEX PICKETT TT BLOG QUAD TORQUE DREAM RACER BOOK SHOP

TTRACER

IN THIS ISSUE

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 2

Cycle Torque has a sportsbike, a cruiser, a scooter and a Spyder three-wheeler on test For the love of motorcycling this month, with features on Alex Pickett’s foray to the Isle of Man TT, reviews of Dream Racer and lots, lots more in this edition.

The Vespa Primavera scooter features the TV spot we made about the machine - the same video will be shown during Cycle Torque TV during Spring, but we’re happy to bring you the spot early with the test for iPad and iPhone readers.

In fact, as I type this I’m taking a break from filming the TV show – recently I’ve been shooting some awesome new Polaris ATVs and Side-by-Sides, the Kawasaki Z1000, Triumph Thunderbirds and tomorrow the Ducati Diavel Carbon - so look for tests of those machines in recent and future issues of Cycle Torque, and then watch Cycle Torque TV for the viewing experience.

Cycle Torque TV debuts on September 7 on both 4ME (a digital free to air channel) and Aurora (on Foxtel).

– Nigel Paterson publisher@cycletorque.com.au

CONTENTS

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 3

REGU LARS

RIDDEN YAMAHA STRYKER

BMW S 1000 R

LAUNCH

LAUNCH

32

41

05 NEWS TORQUE 17 SMALL TORQUE 19 EDITORIAL 20 DIRTY TORQUE 21 RACE TORQUE 22 GUNTRIP

PIAGGIO VESPA PRIMAVERA

CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED TEST

LAUNCH

50

59

68 BIKE STUFF 70 USED & REVIEWED 72 MARKET TORQUE 79 BOOK SHOP 81 TORQUING BACK: LETTERS

FEATU RES

ALEX PICKETT TT BLOG

24

QUAD TORQUE

75

DREAM RACER VIDEO REVIEW

79

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 4

NEWS TORQUE

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 5

Carbon TNT

BENELLI has produced a Carbon Edition TNT 1130R and only five will come to Australia.

Producing 161 hp (120 kW), the Carbon Edition is the lightest and most powerful TNT 1130 ever offered. To get the weight down carbon fibre has been used for all fairings, chain guard, fuse cover, front and rear fenders. Along with the weight saving, increased performance has been generated through an engine mapping upgrade, HPE Carbon muffler and a DNA air filter.

Other features of the trick TNT include 50mm Marzocchi forks, Sachs rear shock, Brembo monoblock calipers and a race spec sureflex ergal slipper clutch.

The TNT 1130R Carbon Edition will retail in Australia for $23,490 (+ on road costs), including a two year unlimited kilometre warranty and two year premium roadside assist. n

Manufactured in Australia

by Rideworx T 02 4271 8244 Find what fits your bike at:

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TAP EACH PRODUCT ABOVE FOR MORE INFO

NEWS TORQUE

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 6

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Team Honda Assaults Suzuka TEAM Honda Racing riders Jamie Stauffer, Josh Hook and Troy Herfoss will contest the 2014 Suzuka 8 Hour World Endurance race in Japan in late July, just after this issue hits the bike shops.

Honda’s three Australian riders will take a break from the 2014 Australasian Superbike Championship to contest one of the world’s premier motorcycle endurance events, which will be raced on 27 July.

Two-time Australian Superbike Champion Jamie Stauffer and former Australian Supersport Champion Troy Herfoss will partner at Suzuka for the Dream RT Sakurai Honda team, while Josh Hook will ride for rival team Idemitsu Honda Team Asia.

All three will ride Honda CBR1000RR Fireblades.

“Suzuka is one of the most iconic races on the calendar and it’s long been an event that the very best riders want to win, and I’m no different,” Jamie Stauffer said.

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“I’ve had a couple of goes and done okay, but I would really like to win it, so like previous years I will be trying as hard as I can for the win.”

Josh Hook, who had his first experience of the ultra-fast Japanese track last year, is equally keen to take the event on again.

“It’ll be strange racing against my regular teammates Jamie and Troy, but also a challenge, I really want to beat them!

“As I learned last year, it’s a very long race and experience is everything, so I feel I am much better equipped this year for a good result,” Josh Hook admitted.

Troy Herfoss, new to Team Honda Racing in Australia for the 2014 season, will be making his Suzuka 8 Hour debut.

“The boys have been talking the race up for a while now, so I’m pretty keen to get to our first test session to find out,” Troy Herfoss admitted.

“Thanks to Honda for the opportunity, I can’t wait.” n

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NEWS TORQUE

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 7

Stars for Classic TT THE headline act for the 2014 Classic TT at the Isle of Man must surely be the Motorsport Merchandise Formula 1 Classic TT Race. Over 70 entries have been accepted for the four lap race, with a number of high quality entrants more than capable of 120mph+ laps.

After taking the victory and posting a stunning near 124mph lap in last year’s race, which he followed up with his second successive four timer at the TT in June, Michael Dunlop is the clear favourite for the race win, particularly as he will again be racing Team Classic Suzuki’s GSXR1100 powered XR69. However, there’s further strength in depth this year with an increase in both the quality and quantity of the field.

Michael Dunlop on the Suzuki XR69.

Cam Donald will again ride for Ripleyland Racing.

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Starting from number one on the road, Dunlop’s challengers come thick and fast with James Hillier and Dean Harrison at numbers two and three respectively on the grid. The duo will both be mounted on ZXR750 Kawasaki’s, Hillier with Jackson Racing and Harrison for Mistral Racing, and are sure to be major contenders.

Guy Martin is scheduled to start at number four on another GSXR1100 XR69. Riding the Trident Engineering machine, it will be the Lincolnshire rider’s first outing around the Mountain Course on a classic machine since finishing second in the 2009 Post Classic Manx GP Race.

Possibly the most exciting rider and machine combination on the grid comes in the form of outright TT Lap Record Holder Bruce Anstey on board the Padgett’s Motorcycles YZR500 Yamaha. Having made his name on two stroke machinery, the Kiwi should be right at home of the exotic ex GP machine.

Team Winfield provides a double-pronged attack with Ryan Farquhar and Gary Johnson on their 1100cc Harris Yamaha’s and the pairing will certainly push Dunlop hard at the head of the field while last year’s third placed finisher Ryan Kneen will be expecting to challenge again on the DMR OW01 Yamaha.

Many more current and former TT stars will also take on the challenge of beating Dunlop, and all on a variety of interesting machinery, from Ducati 888s, Bimotas and Honda RC30s to the humble Yamaha FZ750.

Those keen to barrack for an Aussie should keep an eye out for two time TT winner Cam Donald who will be campaigning a Seeley G50 and an AJS 7R for Ripleyland Racing. n

PH: 02 6882 8884

11 VICTORIA STREET, DUBBO, NSW MMMOTORCYCLES@OZEMAIL.COM.AU

NEWS TORQUE

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 8

NAKED GIXXER

SUZUKI could be set to release an un-faired version of its GSX-R1000RR this year.

It will most likely be called the GSR1000, and heralds the first time the company has united anything like a race style motor and a naked chassis since the B-King which used the 1300cc Hayabusa engine.

It has since been canned, and since the naked 1000cc market has been getting a bigger slice of the sales pie in recent years it does seem like a smart idea from Suzuki.

The B-King was a very good bike, possibly the styling was the reason it failed to sell well. There have been others from Suzuki, like the SV1000 but none of them have been that popular with buyers. Maybe Suzuki should bring the B-King out with 1980 GSX1100 inspired bodywork?

Anyway, we digress, but if the retuned engine hasn’t been too dulled down the bike should be able to take on rivals like the BMW S 1000 R, the Aprilia V4 Tuono, KTM’s 1290 Super Duke R or Kawasaki’s Z1000 to name some.

Styling is similar to the GSR750 but we here at Cycle Torque feel the colour scheme is important if Suzuki wants to sell a few.

The bike does look nice and also seems kitted out with some decent suspension and brakes, and no-one can refute the abilities of the GSX-R engine, even if retuned.

A modern Bandit maybe? n

It’s not where you’re going, It’s how you get there!

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NEWS TORQUE

Road sales strong

AUSTRALIANS purchased 53,396 new motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and scooters in the first half of 2014, with road motorcycle purchases making up 40.6 per cent of these sales.

While sales in the road motorcycle segment were up 2.2 per cent, total motorcycle, ATV and scooter sales were down 0.5 per cent compared to the same period in 2013.

Releasing the half-year motorcycle sales figures, the FCAI said Honda was the leading volume manufacturer for the period 1 January to 30 June 2014, with 12,212 sales. Honda was followed by Yamaha with 9,034 sales, Kawasaki with 5,341 and Suzuki with 4,758.

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 9

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Honda also led the volume race in the road motorcycle market, selling 19.7 per cent (4,269) of the total 21,672 road motorcycles sold. Honda was followed closely by Harley-Davidson with 18.4 per cent (3,985) of sales. Kawasaki came in third, selling 13.4 per cent (2,914).

In the road motorcycle segment, KTM sales increased by 109 per cent, Indian by 100 per cent, BMW by 42.8 per cent, Yamaha by 28.9 per cent, Aprilia by 25.5 per cent and Moto Guzzi by 19.4 per cent.

In the 2014 January to June period, off-road motorcycles represented 31.7 per cent of the total motorcycle, ATV and scooter market. The 16,903 total sales represent a decrease of 1.7 per cent on January to June 2013 figures.

AUGUST MADNESS!

Yamaha was the leading brand in the off-road motorcycle market, selling 27.1 per cent (4,579) of the 16,903 off-road motorcycles sold. Yamaha was closely followed

by Honda with 26.9 per cent (4,541) of sales and KTM with 15.3 per cent (2,587).

ATV sales increased 2.9 per cent compared to the same period in 2013, with 298 more units sold. Honda regained its position as the largest selling ATV manufacturer, selling 26.8 per cent (2,877) of the 10,721 ATVs sold. Honda was followed by Polaris with 22.9 per cent (2,456) of the ATV market, and Yamaha with 16.6 per cent (1,783).

The popularity of scooters continues to decline with overall scooter sales down 15.4 per cent in the first half of 2014, compared to the same period in 2013. Piaggio was the top seller in the scooter market, selling 16.4 per cent (673) of the total 4,100 scooters sold between January and June 2014. Vespa came in second with 14.2 per cent (583) of sales and Honda came in in third with 12.8 per cent (525).n

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CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 10

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TV

Tune in at 6.30pm Sundays on 4ME and 8.30pm Sundays on Aurora – from September 7th.

NEWS TORQUE

New bird of prey THE latest version of Suzuki’s biggest capacity sportsbike - the legendary Hayabusa has swooped into Australia.

Suzuki’s Hayabusa simply stunned the world when it was released back in 1999, named after the Japanese bird of prey capable of speeds in excess of 300 km/h, and for 2014 the bike gets an all-new special edition Candy Red/Black livery option featuring special graphics and detailing.

It’s not always smart to keep updating such an iconic machine, and it took until 2013 for Suzuki to make the Hayabusa the first Suzuki sportsbike to feature ABS. But it’s not all an unchanged spec sheet, with radial mounted Brembo monobloc front brake calipers, and the Suzuki Drive Mode Selector (S-DMS) giving the rider a choice of three available engine maps keeping new Hayabusa owners in the techno loop.

The 2014 Suzuki Hayabusa is now available in two all new colour schemes - Candy Daring Red/Glass Sparkle Black; limited to just 25 units and Pearl Vigor Blue/Pearl Glacier White.

Both retain the same retail price as last year’s model at $19,290.

So, there might not be too many updates, but then the Hayabusa has never really needed them. n

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 11

NEWS TORQUE

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 12

Cycle Torque now on iPhone and TV YOU can now read Cycle Torque in its dedicated iPhone App and soon you’ll be able to watch Cycle Torque TV, the new television series we’re producing to give you even more Cycle Torque.

Cycle Torque TV will be similar to the magazine, with tests of 2014 and 2015 new bikes, the best bike products around, tips and advice on everything motorcycling and lots, lots more.

The iPhone App adds to the iPad App and print, online and PDF editions, so you can enjoy Cycle Torque almost anywhere, anytime.

Free to Air

The success of the iPad edition has pushed us to create an iPhone version, while the online and PDF versions can be used on computers, Android phones and tablets etc.

The iPhone edition Redesigned to suit the small screen, issues from July downloaded to your iPhone look fantastic, with all the articles and additional content including videos, 360-degree views, slideshows and lots, lots more.

The iPhone edition also gives you access to the back issue iPad versions, which can be easily enjoyed with pinch and zoom to get in close on the smaller screen.

The iPad edition has also been updated and now features pinch and zoom to get in close.

To get the iPhone edition, just search the App Store for ‘Cycle Torque’. We’d love to get feedback on the app to feedback@cycletorque.com.au and don’t be afraid to review the App, too.

Cycle Torque TV Launching on Free to Air network 4ME on September 7, Cycle Torque TV will run right through Spring, bringing you the best in bikes, products, events and even some news.

All the mainland capital cities and most of the Australian countryside can receive 4ME (www.4ME. net.au) - a digital channel which specialises in Lifestyle shows, so in addition to Cycle Torque TV, it also broadcasts lots of fishing, 4WD and travel shows.

MXTV and HDTV also show on 4ME. 4ME should be in your TV on channel 64 or 74, but if your area has had a digital TV upgrade, you may need to retune your TV to receive 4ME (and you’ll get a heap of other channels when you do a retune, so it’s definitely worth the trouble). Check your TV owner’s manual for instructions, and if you can’t find that you can probably find one online with a Google search, or check out http://retune.digitalready.gov.au for more information.

On Foxtel Cycle Torque TV is also being telecast on Aurora, which is channel 183 on Foxtel - first showing each week will be at 8.30pm on Sunday nights, with repeats later in the week. Check out www.aurora.tv for more information.

Online After the TV telecasts, Cycle Torque TV will be available for catchup on the 4ME website (www.4ME.net.au) and at www.cycletorque/tv. n

Telecast Times: 4ME - 6.30pm • Aurora - 8.30pm SUNDAYS FROM SEPTEMBER 7

www.sharkleathers.com.au

NEWS TORQUE

Through the forest

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 13 NEW BIKES

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The NSW Enduro Committee have teamed up with many of NSW’s biggest offroad/enduro clubs to put on the 2014 Australian Four Day Enduro, this year at Dungog in the Hunter Valley.

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The area is well known for it’s lush hilly terrain, which can become quite difficult to ride in wet conditions due to the clay soil prevalent in the area.

2014 will see the A4DE into its 36th consecutive year and since its beginning in 1978 has grown to now attract around 300 competitors from all across the nation, with some riders travelling internationally. The Australian Four Day Enduro is one of the toughest, longest and highest recognised events in the southern hemisphere, the event is an Australian championship event which enduro riders aspire to compete in and finish and pro riders strive to win.

Scrutineering starts on Monday August 11, with the Prologue on the 12th, the three days of forest and special test stages after that. Day four’s Motocross special stage and presentation is on August 16. n

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NEWS TORQUE

Two-tone war paint

for 2015 Indian Chiefs

Indian Motorcycles has announced new two-tone paint schemes will be offered for the 2015 model year Indian Chief lineup.

The Chief Classic will now be available in Indian Motorcycle Red/Thunder Black while the Chief Vintage will be available in Indian Motorcycle Red/Thunder Black, Indian Motorcycle Red/Ivory Cream and Willow Green/Ivory Cream.

The Chieftain will come in Indian Motorcycle Red/Thunder Black, Indian Motorcycle Red/Ivory Cream and Springfield Blue/Ivory Cream.

Indian Country Manager Peter Harvey said the two-tone paint schemes were among the most iconic elements of vintage Indian motorcycles dating back about 80 years.

“They give the bikes a look and feel that is instantly recognisable and beloved by motorcycle fans,” he said.

“It is an honour to reintroduce two-tone paint for our 2015 Indian Chief models. These paint schemes pay tribute to Indian bikes of the past but come coupled with the exceptional technology and power that the Chief lineup offers. They are simply stunning, and the quality and craftsmanship of the paint jobs is exceptional.”

The new two-tone colours will arrive in Australia in late October with models priced from $29,995 ride away.

Visit www.indianmotorcycle.com.au to locate an Indian dealer near you and see the full line of apparel, parts and accessories.

Indian Motorcycle joins Victory Motorcycles (founded in 1998) as a wholly-owned division of Polaris Industries Inc. Indian is America’s first motorcycle company founded in 1901, giving Polaris Industries both the oldest and newest American motorcycle brands. n

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 14

NEWS TORQUE

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 15

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Honda’s much-anticipated CB300F is set to go on sale in August.

Lightweight, nimble and affordable, the new naked Honda brings together a combination of traits sure to appeal to both beginner and experienced riders alike.

The Japanese motorcycling giant has taken the best features from a number of its models to create the new 300.

Hatched from the frame of the CBR300R, the innovative new CB300F has shed its fairings for a sleek and versatile new look, with the performance to match.

The CB300F’s lively single cylinder engine is the same engine shared with its CBR300R sibling.

Weighing in at just 161kg, the new model packs a real punch in the performance department, with the 286cc fuel-injected engine providing responsive power throughout the rev range.

The stylish CBR500R- inspired exhaust system offers more than just good looks, featuring larger internal volume for increased performance and a mean, throaty exhaust note.

Meanwhile the specially configured seat and side covers are designed to provide an easy reach to the ground for more confidence.

The ultra-affordable price tag will make it easy to add on a few Honda Genuine Accessories.

The CB300F will be available in Australia with ABS as standard fitment and in Pearl White or Millennium Red colour schemes.

Volume control

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Honda 300 here soon

4/05/2014 5:38 pm

Check out www.honda.com.au or visit your local Honda Dealer in August to see Honda’s newest offering. n

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 16

FOR THE PERFECT RIDE...

CHAIN MAINTENANCE

SMALL TORQUE BENELLI, EBR FOR BRISBANE

URBAN Moto Imports has announced North Star Motorcycles as the new home for EBR and Benelli motorcycles in Brisbane, Queensland.

North Star Motorcycles is a family owned and run business located on Brisbane’s Northside.

Owners Michael & Lisa Edwards are both avid motorcyclists - Michael an ex road racer who, for many years raced in the Australian Superbike Championship.

North Star Motorcycles will officially have EBR and the Benelli brands in their store including the EBR 1190RX, Benelli BN 600 (LAMS), Benelli TNT 899 & TNT 1130R from July 1st 2014 and will be offering test rides, service support and factory accessories.

Visit them at 154 Abbotsofrd Rd, Bowen Hills, ring them on (07) 3852 5217 or check them out at www.northstarmotorcycles.com.au.

APRILIA AND MOTO GUZZI WALK ON THE NORTHSIDE!

NORTHSIDE Motorcycles at Artarmon on Sydney’s north shore has become a new home for Moto Guzzi and Aprilia Motorcycles.

Northside Motorcycles first opened its doors in 1982, originally only selling accessories and tyres. In 1991 they made the decision to expand their business to include motorcycle sales.

Dealer Principal Carl Blecher started out as an aircraft engineer but got his start in the industry through racing from 1974.

“The thing I like about the motorcycle industry is that it is an enthusiast market and you are selling to people that are into motorcycling with passion,” Carl said.

“Because of this are we very excited and proud to announce the addition of two high end Italian motorcycle brands into our lineup and look forward to working with the John

Sample Automotive team as we continue to grow our business.”

The Northside Motorcycles showroom is located at 335 Pacific Highway, Artarmon. All enquiries can be directed to Carl Blecher on 02 9439 3549 or visit their website at www. northsidemotorcycles.com.au. Carl and his team will be holding their first Aprilia and Moto Guzzi Test Ride event on Saturday, 9 August. Bookings are essential so contact them today to secure your spot.

SX CHAMPS ARE GO

THE 2014 Australian Supercross Championship has been confirmed for five rounds over three weekends in October and November.

“We have worked closely with the championship promoter and have secured guarantees for prize money and Australia’s leading mobile medical team – Racesafe,” said Dale Gilson from Motorcycling Australia.

“We now have guarantees in place to protect them.”

The series will kick off in Bathurst on 10 - 11 October then move to Phillip Island and run in conjunction with the Australian MotoGP on 17-19 October and conclude in Brisbane on 8-9 November.

NO LONG FLAT 2014

DUE to what the organisers of the Long Flat Rally see as the current anti-motorcycle climate the social club that has run the Long Flat Pub Run event for the past 20 years has made a decision not to run it this year. The social club members says they are unwilling to have the patrons of the rally potentially harassed by police, and despite past raised funds for the Long Flat community, feel they can no longer do so. n

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 17

SMALL TORQUE TWO THUNDERING EVENTS

THE Ducati Owners Club of NSW has two upcoming events which should not be missed, especially if you love the thundering V-twin Italian masterpieces.

arena that has been constructed with grants assistance of the ACT Government.

10,000 REASONS TO CHEER

This year’s Concours d’Elegance at the Royal Rehab Center at Putney (Sydney) on September 21 promises loads of great raffle prizes including a much sought after Ducati-replica mini bike.

There will be an opportunity to have your bike professionally photographed by a fellow Ducati connoisseur, John Damico of d’AMICO Photography. Plus, not only are there all those sexy motorbikes to perve on, you’ll enjoy trade stands, specialists advise, bike gear, regalia and all things Italian including a pizza stand, gelato van and barista.

AFTER just five short years, global powersports manufacturer CFMoto has sold its 10,000th vehicle in Australia.

For more information call Chris Maloney on 0414 018 586.

DUCATI is offering loads of great deals for many bikes in its range, from the Monster 796 to the go anywhere Multistrada and the outrageously fast 1199 Panigale.

The Thunder Rally has been going for over 30 years and is held at Sheba Dam Reserve near Nundle in NSW on the weekend of 24-26 October.

This is a wonderful event and bikes of all makes are welcome. So pack your camping gear and head out to this picturesque location just south of Tamworth. Accommodation can be found at Nundle if you’re not keen on camping. The Dam is well stocked with big, healthy and delicious trout, so bring your fishing gear!

For more information call Auntie Mal on 0404 002 427.

TRIALS SPECTACULAR

THE Trials Club of Canberra is hosting a National Open Motorcycle Trial on Sunday 3rd August.

The event will be held in the Trials area of Fairbairn Motorsports Complex. Competition begins at 10 am. Access is via the ACT Motorcycle Club’s gate, Pialligo Road near Canberra Airport.

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 18

The achievement comes off the back of three solid years of growth which, according to ERG data has seen sales grow 473 per cent and made CFMoto Australia the fastest growing motorcycle brand in the country over the three-year period from 2010 to 2013.

DUKE DEALS

The deals on each model are slightly different and there are more than one option to save.

Get into your local Ducati dealer to check out the deals on offer.

LOWNDES GOES H

Arguably Australia’s most popular and successful racing driver, Craig Lowndes has become an ambassador for Honda.

Lowndes is a long time motorcycle enthusiast who rides regularly for both relaxation and training.

Honda’s newest four wheeled ambassador now has a CBR1000RR to ride on the road, and a CRF450 dirt bike for mid-week training sessions.

“We’re delighted to welcome Craig into the Honda family and we are proud that he has chosen Honda as his brand of choice,” Honda This event will see a mammoth gathering of both Australia Motorcycles National Manager – male and female trials riders vying for prestigious Marketing, Glyn Griffiths said. trophies at the 14th Australian Sherco Women’s “Craig has a genuine passion for motorcycling Cup and also the Howard Wallace Master’s and, as a person and professional athlete, he is a Shield. The event is utilising the man-made trials great fit to represent our brand.” n

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EDITORIAL Harley-Davidson LiveWire

FOR most of us, riding a motorcycle is more than just the feeling of the actual bike. The noise they make is definitely part of the experience.

There are a number of machines produced over the years, which have iconic sounds, and those sounds have been kept by the manufacturers because they know that’s part of the allure of their brand.

I know every time I start one of my Ducatis I will smile at the sound. My 851 road bike with reverse cone megaphones sounds a bit different to the 851 race bike with different pipes, but it’s still a Duke.

One reason I have three Honda VF1000Fs is the sound their V4 engines make. I fell in love with them years ago, and in fact the reason I bought my first bevel drive Ducati was because I followed one for about 100 kilometres when I was 21 or thereabouts.

I bought one two weeks later. It doesn’t matter what the noise is, I’m sure all bike enthusiasts enjoy one or two more than others, and dislike some too. Whatever floats your boat as they say.

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 19

Electrifying But this isn’t the future. Electric powered motorcycles and cars will one day rule the roads. When I think of electric powered vehicles I think shopping trolleys and the like – boring hybrid cars and low powered motorcycles. Dig deeper though and you’ll see some very high powered electric cars have been built, and at this year’s Isle of Man TT, John McGuiness did a 117mph lap of the famous course on the Mugen electric racer.

Recently I was at Queensland Raceway for the third round of the Australasian Superbike Championship. It was also the first round of the eFX Electric Superbike Championship. My son Alex was riding for the Newcastle based Catavolt team, something new for both of us. This all came about with an offer of the ride, with the team eyeing off the Isle of Man Zero TT (Zero for zero emissions) as the main goal.

Only five eFX bikes were entered, with Alex riding the only machine with a hub motor in the rear wheel. The rest had electric motors in the frame with chain

drive to the rear wheel. The bike to beat was the Voltron from Western Australia. It was run up on the dyno at the track, firstly producing 160hp and then with some tweaking, a 180hp second run. This bike is seriously fast but it does weigh in the vicinity of 250 kilograms. It has a custom made frame and top shelf suspension and brakes. It was the best built machine there and deserved to win. And it was the only one out of the five that you could race at the Isle of Man according to Alex.

In his opinion, the others at the meeting are just not ready at this stage. Catavolt has a Yamaha R6 ready to be converted to an electric racer, going the chain drive route for it. Alex is keen to develop the R6 based racer, he feels he now has enough TT experience to know whether the bike will be safe enough to ‘race’ there.

The other three machines were the Yamaha R1 based Ripperton, and two bikes built by Varley Engineering who do everything from building electric mine vehicles to ship repairs. One of Varley’s bikes is Honda CBR600RR based, the other a Ducati 999.

Whether it’s one guy and a couple of mates, or a big company, one thing which stands out is the passion all the eFX crew have. They are probably looked down at a bit by the petrol powered racers but so were the first engineers with petrol in their veins over 100 years ago. That doesn’t matter to them, electric powered vehicles are their

thing and they are full steam ahead.

Unfortunately the noise part of the enthusiasm we have for motorcycles is part of the problem. So many areas we used to ride in as kids on our little trail bikes have all but disappeared, much of it down to the urban sprawl, but there’s no denying the noise issue is a big part of that. Imagine the agro you get riding a pit bike in a park?

And rightly so. But, turf the petrol motor and put in an electric one, like Catavolt does with Braap pit bikes and you have an altogether different scenario. Want to ride your electric dirt bikes in the bush near a housing development? They wouldn’t even know you were there.

We’ve shown a few big horsepower electric bikes over the last couple of years, like the ones from Mission Motorcycles, Brammo and MotoCzysz but the latest, and perhaps one of the more exciting ones is the Harley-Davidson ‘Project LiveWire’.

Personally I would love to have a ride of this bike. H-D has nailed the styling and the suspension and brakes look to be built for fun.

Yes, I love petrol powered motorcycles, and will never forget the sound of those Ducatis I grew up riding, but I will embrace the electric future, especially when it involves these amazing electric performance machines.

– Chris Pickett

DIRTY TORQUE

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FRIEND OR FOE - the Yamaha YZ490

FROM 1982 to 1991 the YZ490 was Yamaha’s open class weapon and despite the fact that it copped a lot of criticism and was deemed a dog by many, the big air cooled monster took some of the world’s best riders to championship wins in motocross, desert racing and dirt track.

Glen Bell, Mike Bell, Damon Bradshaw, Hakan Carlqvist, Stephen Gall, Neil Hudson, Jimmy Ellis, Broc Glover, Rick Johnson, Jeff Leisk, Peter Melton, Warren Reid, Jeff Stanton and Darryl Willoughby to name a few all wrestled with Yamaha’s YZ490 at some stage during their careers and you can be sure that each rider won’t forget their time on the 55 horse powered, air cooled machine.

So with so many great riders winning on them why did the YZ490 cop such a bagging? Well, after years of success with the YZ400 and YZ465, the Yamaha YZ490 was introduced in 1982 but it was heavier than the 465, there were some initial reliability and jetting problems, it was difficult to start and in standard form the suspension was considered sub-standard.

But, Yamaha stuck to its guns and each year the YZ490 would receive minor improvements, although the basic design from 1982 was more or less the same right through to 1991. And to rub salt in the open wounds of Yamaha YZ490 racers throughout this period we had Honda and Kawasaki in particular putting out and continually refining their water-cooled CR500 and KX500 models.

But it wasn’t all doom and gloom for the YZ490.

In 1982 we had Stephen Gall, Jeff Leisk and Darryl Willoughby riding the all new machine and it didn’t take long for all three to start racking up race wins.

Darryl Willoughby has nothing but good memories of the YZ490. “The YZ490 truly was a cutting edge model for Yamaha. I was lucky to be

involved in the development stage while I was in America during 1981, 1982 and 1983,” Willoughby told me recently. “A lot of testing was carried out with Yamaha America who I was a factory support rider for at the time with Kenny Clark. My local work was mainly at Saddleback and Carlsbad with suspension at a local level.“ “Most of the detail design came via Broc Glover, Mike Bell, Rick Burgett and Warren Reid while Hakan Carlqvist did the Europe testing,” Willoughby continued. “So this model really did evolve through a pedigree process and in the end Yamaha engineers designed a pure race winning bike, and that it certainly could do.”

“I was lucky to have a new model flown to Aust for the 1982 Grand National at Granite Park Seymour. Trevor Flood prepped it and the bike enabled me to win this National and I was so thankful to Yamaha for allowing me to race it before they fully arrived in Australia.”

Dirt Track legend Paul Caslick had this to say about his days on the YZ490. “Incredible, especially on a methanol fuelled, full blown Frank Pons 515cc weapon,” enthused Paul. “My first 490 was the ’84 ‘L’ model, I never got the chance to ride it standard, straight to Frank’s before the ’84 Australian Titles at Barleigh Ranch and what a weapon!”

“Dad didn’t enter me in the 500 Championship as he thought three classes would be too much, then on my first ride I went out and pulled a third place in the support class against the sliders.

Trying to get one to hook up wasn’t that hard, but when I did trying to keep the corner tight and body weight forward it was quite a challenge. “ “These things had 10HP at idle, and the modern 450s are soft compared to what the old 2- strokes were like. We had weapons, and everyone remembers my Yamahas. 15-42

gearing and 3rd gear starts, I could talk about my old 490s forever, mine never vibrated or rattled, they were great!”

Gall went on to win his fourth Mr Motocross Championship on the YZ490 in 1982 (just six points in front of Willoughby) then went on to win the Finke Desert Race in 1983 and 1986 on the YZ490. In fact, every major big bore eligible race or championship held in Australia during that period was won by the YZ490.

But how did the 490 fare in America? Well, thanks to Broc Glover in particular the YZ490 racked up 500cc USGP wins at Carlsbad in 1983 and 1984 all the while winning 18 500cc National Championship rounds. Glover won the 500cc AMA Motocross Championships in 1983 and 1985 as well as scoring second place in 1984 against the factory equipment from Honda, Suzuki and Kawasaki.

And let’s not forget that Eddie Lawson won the ABC Superbikers event at Carlsbad in 1983 and 1985 on a modified YZ490.

Over in Europe Hakan Carlqvist, Neil Hudson and Andre Vromans all put the YZ490 to the ultimate test in the World Motocross Championships with the highlight being Carlqvist’s 500cc World Motocross Championship in 1983 while Hudson’s best result was a third in the 1982 championship.

Carlqvist’s relationship with the YZ490 and Yamaha had its highs and lows with ‘The Super Swede’ letting his temper get the better of him during testing in 1984. According to the legend, Yamaha’s Japanese engineers were testing the 1984 factory YZ490 with Carlqvist and the Swede was not happy with the bike they had prepared for him so he simply rode the bike into a small hole that was in the pit area, walked over to his truck,

grabbed a shovel and started throwing dirt over the factory machine while mumbling something like, “this bike is shit and this is what we do with our shit.”

Carlqvist persisted with the Yamaha against the might of the factory Honda machines till the end of the 1986 season but he never got to win another World Motocross Championship.

So there you have it, the story of the Yamaha YZ490 and the impact it made on the motocross world. Sure, the bike was not perfect but when you look back at the championships the riders managed to win on this machine you would have to say that for a short period in the history of motocross, the YZ490 ruled the world.

– Darren Smart

RACE TORQUE

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Then There Was One IN 1995, track owners in the UK took over the running of the BSB, sidelining the long-running national controlling body, the ACU. Racing at a national level in the Old Dart has never looked back. The BSB is without doubt the best-run and most successful national series in the world thanks to private promoters. Dorna took control of the BSB in 2004 and in 2008 it invited MotorSport Vision owned by Jonathon Palmer to take over the series. In the US, it didn’t work out so well. AMA Pro-Racing was sold off to DMG in 2008 and is now a basket case, as is the ASBK. You could conclude that whoever takes control of a national series is crucial.

Australia was the last country to recognise this truism.

The ASC/ARTRP is based on the MSV model. MotorSport Vision Racing is the racing division of MSV, owner and operator of four of the UK’s top circuits ‒ Brands Hatch, Oulton Park, Snetterton and Cadwell Park. The model works. I watched the 2014 ASC round at Malalla on SBSTV and was blown away by the solid grids, healthy crowd and the incredible tussle between Team Honda team-mates Wayne Maxwell and Jamie Stauffer. You only needed to watch a fired-up Stauffer almost losing it after finishing a shattering second to see what the Swann championship means to him. Normally the most reserved of riders, Jamie pushed a camera away then announced to a national TV audience that he had “f****d up” in surrendering his hardfought lead to Maxie on the final corner. It was great TV. The Supersport action was literally out of control, all on the back of the stellar opening round at Wakefield Park. This is what a national championship should be about.

Some observers have said Australian road racing is in crisis. Perhaps more accurately, the MA-sanctioned ASBK championship is in crisis and has been on shaky ground to varying degrees for the best part of 20 years. Don’t believe me? Here’s an edited exchange, published in an early issue of Cycle Torque that I had with former ASBK champ and Superbike team owner Peter Goddard in 1999 about the then Shell Advance Australian Superbike Championship.

Q: What’s your view on the Australian road racing scene?

PG: It’s been floating around the bowl of a toilet for so long, and if something isn’t done soon, the whole thing’s gonna go down the shoot.

Q: What are the problems?

PG: It’s not marketed, it’s not run professionally. Motorcycling Australia, they’re not marketing or business people, they’re licensing people. They’re not promoters…they need someone to run road racing. There are professional promoters in motocross and speedway, but road racing is just blundering along. If someone doesn’t stop the chain from being pulled, it’s going to be a sad story. There’s so much potential in Australia, lots of young kids out there.

If it was done properly, it could be good again. We need more television, and better television coverage. I’ve pushed hard for that to be changed and it’s like talking to a brick wall…”

Goddard was never considered a rock-throwing radical so his tirade rocked the sport. He didn’t mince his words over issues that the ASBK has battled with in recent years.

MA finally took his advice, but it didn’t quite work out.

After successfully employing the services of Terry O’Neill then dumping him for IEG to run the series, the MAsanctioned ASBK now finds itself in an even worse position than in 1999 – it is not functioning at all and I can’t see how it can ever be successfully revived. Even so, road racing in Australia remains afloat because there is a vibrant, wellrun alternative to the ASBK ‒ the ASC. And while the ASBK lays dormant, the ASC can only grow stronger. State level and club level racing is not what it was in the 1970s, ’80s and early ’90s, but there are pockets where it is quite healthy. Without the AFX/ASC and these hard-working clubs promoting their own series, there wouldn’t be a crisis because there wouldn’t be ANY local road racing at all!

Naturally, there will be differing opinions about rules and overall direction.

I have a very different view from some Superbike team owners who appear to be ‘parking’ their teams in the ASC in 2014 while they wait for the smouldering ASBK to be somehow resurrected. I think they’re in for a long wait. Paul Free revealed that Honda needs to be in FIM-sanctioned events adding, “if the ASC is the only option, Honda will pull out.” According to the Macquarie

The crowds show how strong BSB is!

Dictionary there is a difference between “sanction” (authoritative permission) and “affiliation” (branch or part of). MA is affiliated with the FIM, which does not sanction local racing therefore it cannot sanction the ASBK. The BSB is not ACU sanctioned, the two bodies are merely affiliated according to the ACU website. The FIM-affiliated ACU has no involvement with the running of the BSB, yet Honda UK has had a long history in the BSB under MSVR control.

Their affiliation is largely ceremonial and works extremely well.

You cannot separate sport from business, or let tradition override professionalism. These are hardly new precepts, but some organisations have had trouble letting go of the past, even if it is in their own interests. At the elite level, the FIM has a role with the MotoGP rider safety committee it set up in 2003 and a few ceremonial duties, but it has no say in the major operations/direction in MotoGP or WSBK. The reality is that governing bodies across the world have very little actual involvement in running international and national road racing. Locally, it has taken the painful implosion of the WSBK to understand why. Most people agree that Australia can only afford one national series. We now have one. New MA CEO Dale Gilson would be wise to simply ‘affiliate’ with the ASC so the sport can move on.

– Darryl Flack

GUNTRIP

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Road Music IF I recall correctly Hunter S Thompson described it as a “burst of dirty thunder”, the unmistakeable and distinctly unmusical rumble that announces a clutch of Harleys about to roll over the horizon and come your way.

Like most sensations it means different things to different people, and to we in the Blue Mountains it’s synonymous with the onset of a weekend. I don’t think I know why the Harley types arrive first, but it’s the patch clubs who usually lead the way. They’re often through and heading west before most of us have downed the morning’s first mug of tea, failing to excite the attention of either the local chamber of commerce or the constabulary before they’re down the escarpment at Mount Victoria and gone, grumbling towards their engagement in whichever wind-blasted corner of the western plains they’re about to call home for the weekend.

More Harleys follow: newer, shinier, haute couture riding apparel, usually in smaller groups and more tentative about their progress. This group is well into its ride by the time they’ve passed Springwood, and

by Wentworth Falls the coffee gene is demanding satisfaction. They’re often early enough to find parking spots, too, and there can be as many as half a dozen lined up outside Blue Mist and collecting interested glances while their registered keepers are inside exacting vengeance on Al’s bacon and eggs.

The riders of Japanese hardware defy classification.

United only by the muted howl from their diversity of preferred four-into-one, many of these will arrive next with their heads down and tails up, a la the patch club boys, bent on attaining some remote destination for purposes unknown, while others will leave the highway and deign to rub shoulders with the other Harley people while assuaging the need for warmth and food. Others will join the lengthening queue of cars aiming for one

or other of the local beauty spots. They don’t stop long. If they’re lucky they’ll find a single parking spot, shove four bikes into it and wander off, helmets in hand, to gaze across the valley while one stays behind to smoke and clean his visor. Then they’re off again to repeat the process as many times as needed to justify an hour in a Katoomba pub before riding home for the footy on TV. About now one or two of the local irritants begin to pop up: a couple of lads with well-used trail bikes, whose faith in their own immortality I do not share, take to them familiar but other littleknown paths into the bush to resume their battle for supremacy with the flora. Come to think of it, we don’t hear many thumping singles rasping through the village. Most of the off-road hardware that comes our way goes west the previous Thursday in the back of a ute or on a trailer, clean, often well-prepared and closely attended with fuel cans and toolboxes. Meanwhile the local Triumph man adds his note to the swelling tune on the highway, usually heading east and so going the opposite way from everybody else. What a surprise.

There’s no telling whether the Italians will arrive in numbers. There are always one or two, of course, but as a community they’re probably more critical of the weather than others and will take a long and considered look at the likelihood of wind and rain before committing themselves to a long ride on their sleek, exotic and often mesmerically costly twins. And who can blame them – a couple of years back we had heavy snow one October day, adding an interesting element to the morning’s labours – but at least it had the consideration to arrive on a Monday and not bugger up everybody’s weekend.

Perhaps the most enthusiastic of all are the newbies, fresh-faced kids on their newly acquired LAMS hardware who will sometimes appear in small, diffident groups in

the most unlikely of places, perhaps practising feet-up U-turns in residential streets, apparently for the sheer pleasure of being out and riding.

Yet that needs working at these days. Riding to and from Bathurst in the 1980s, the Blue Mountains looked very different: a looser, freer, less congested prospect.

While the upper reaches of Sydney’s own hills can today almost claim a continuous run of two lanes each way, the volume of weekend traffic continues to go through the roof, with Friday and Sundays calculated to test the patience of the most placid. We took our most recent visitors for a peek at Wentworth Falls itself last weekend and were surprised to find unending strings of grimfaced tourists filing silent past one another on the path to the falls. Perhaps that’s why the locals hide at weekends and the Harley gang gets moving early. You have to take your time, there’s no alternative.

Or perhaps there is. True, the range of coffee is limited on the Bell’s Line of Road but at least you still have a chance of being able to ride at your own pace. Remember doing that?

– Bob Guntrip

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 23

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Cycle Torque RACING Feature

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 24

TTRACER

Cycle Torque Feature

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 25

Cycle Torque’s Alex Pickett was the youngest rider at this year’s Isle of Man TT. Here’s his story.

TTRACER RACING in the Isle of Man TT is different to short circuit racing. Much different. On short circuits you can get away with risky overtakes, riding at 100 per cent of your ability, and with a race lasting barely 15 minutes the intensity is high but not for very long.

There’s probably a few good reasons why short circuit racers don’t make good TT racers, and vice versa. Of course there’s always the exception to the rule. This year Peter Hickman became the fastest TT newcomer in history, getting a lap in at over 129 mph during the Senior TT. Hickman, by the way, is one of the more well known BSB racers.

Hickman admitted he’d done something like 70 laps of the course in a car before he did his fist lap on a race bike, regularly flying over for a few days of familiarisation of the course.

Photos by John Baker, Barry Clay, Dane Gardiner, Bryce Stacker and Chris Pickett

One of the main differences is at the TT you tend to race yourself. If you can get into the groove and be smooth throughout the race, get good pit stops, and not get held up by slower riders then you are hopefully in for a good result, as long as your bike holds together for the close to two hour race.

I knew I was in the big time this year. There would be no newcomers race. There would be no orange jacket. There would be no ‘touring’ around as I got my head back in the right space. There would be no room for error. At the same time I was a proper TT racer, something plenty of riders dream of but never do.

I’ve heard many times that racing on the Isle of Man should be ‘fast touring’. Not a chance. I can tell you that doing a 121mph lap is far from ‘fast touring’.

I had arrived on the Isle of Man five days before official practice started and it seemed all I was doing was waiting around. I found that out last year at the Manx GP, when there was plenty of waiting around before actually getting on the track. And with dodgy weather all around us this year, delays and postponements would be commonplace.

Looking at the entry list is the who’s who of road racing between the hedges, and a few short circuit stars as well. At sign-on I recognised a fair few riders but the big stars were noticeably absent, probably turning up when the rest of us had finished. This is something they do at practice and race times too, turning up to their bikes at the last minute.

I have to admit I did feel in awe of some of the stars but at the same time they weren’t born TT racers, they all had to work hard to get where they are now. I knew I had the same chance to succeed if things went my way. As it turned out things didn’t always go my way. In fact I had a lot of bad luck but it hasn’t stopped me from dreaming about next year’s TT. In this story you will find the first week or so of a blog I did while at the TT. I hope it gives you an insight into what goes on behind the scenes at the TT.

Day 1 Arrived on Isle of Man after a long flight from Australia. Dropped in on the guy who made stickers for us last year and ordered some for my bike’s screen and my helmet.

Continued on next page

Cycle Torque Feature

TTRACER

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 26

Picked up TT14 Island Racer magazine at servo, and found this piece on myself in the rider line up bit.

easy, as ‘touring’ can get you killed if another rider comes up on you way too fast and in the wrong spot.

‘Australian rider Pickett shocked the paddock at last year’s Manx Grand prix when he lapped at almost 115mph in practice for the Newcomers race. He went on to finish eighth but is definitely one to watch and, the youngest rider in the entry, he lines up for Mick Charnock’s team who have previously helped Cameron Donald, David Johnson and Jimmy Storrar.’

At the end of the day I was able to do a lap with Johnny Barton, one of the rider liaison guys. It’s always good to hear from experienced racers like Johnny. I learn something new every time I go around the circuit.

Headed to the pits on Glencrutchery Road to catch up with team owners Mick Charnock and John Taubman.

Checked out the bikes and came away very impressed, especially with the Superbike. It’s got 6-piston calipers, massive forks off Carlos Checa’s world superbike, a huge alloy tank and a quick release rear wheel set up. Trick.

Over to Peel late in the afternoon to drop off my leathers for the new patches to be sewn on.

After that we did a lap of the track in our one litre hire car, which goes all right by the way.

Lastly we moved into our digs in Douglas with Maggie George and her family. It’s only about one kay from the pits, an easy walk.

Jet lag had us by now so it was an early night.

Day 2 Lazy day. We did a couple of laps of the circuit in the hire car.

I break the course up into four sections: Start line to Ballacraine; Ballacraine to Kirk Michael; Kirk Michael to the Gooseneck; Gooseneck back to the start/finish.

In the car with us were other riders South African A J Ventor and British Danny Webb, both well known on the world and BSB scene.

Day 3 Signed in today, got my gear sorted and had to pay another $430 for insurance as the insurance you get via Motorcycling Australia is inadequate, even though the MA insurance scheme is based on the Isle of Man. This is the second year we’ve had to pay this.

Wish it was properly sorted back home before we come over. The cost of this one-off event insurance adds up to around $1100. If you don’t have it you don’t race.

The visors on my Arai helmet didn’t come with tear-off tabs, so another $250 for another 3 visors.

Expensive day.

Had plenty of visitors down in the pits, racers and team people I met last year, Aussie tourists and even had a good chat with Connor Cummins. Also caught up with the Aussie sidecar guys. Good to see them here. The more Aussies the merrier.

Cam Donald come down for a chat too, and my mate Bryce Stacker called in as well. Great to see them all.

I find this is the best way to learn the circuit. There are sections I know pretty well and some I struggled with last year so I tried to concentrate on those ones.

Finished off the day with a curry down on the Promenade with the team.

I’m excited and can’t wait to get out for my first lap.

I’ll take it easy first up to get in the groove but not too

Day 4

First day of practice for newcomers, super twins and sidecars. No practice for me as I’m not considered a newcomer.

Called out to Jurby airfield to see Cam testing his Norton. Bloody hell it’s loud, looks special too. Seemed to me they still need to sort out the fuelling but there’s not too many slow corners on the TT course, maybe it won’t matter as much as on a short circuit. Time will tell I guess.

Headed out for a lap of the course. The road is one way from Ramsey Hairpin to Creg Ny Baa. We were giving the hire car some stick over the mountain but it’s a bit dodgy I reckon. You have to really watch your mirrors as lunatics pass you at big speeds with no room for error.

Heard later the road was closed three times for crashes.

No wonder.

Continued on next page

Cycle Torque Feature

TTRACER Got to the pits, the team put new tyres on the Superbike and Supersport machines. Apparently the Dunlop slicks for the Superbike are a ‘Strong’ compound, not ‘Hard’ as we would call them at home. They are expected to last a full six laps. We’ll see.

Was looking forward to watching the first practice but it was cancelled when rain set in. This will now affect practice on Monday as newcomers still have to get their guided lap in, and rightly so.

Monday can’t get here quick enough for me.

Day 5

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 27 to turn into the corners. I realised later this was probably due to the 24 litre tank which was full to the brim when I left pit lane. It was carrying around 10 kilos extra fuel than my Ducati 848 last year.

Heading out of Ramsey for the first time the bike lofted the front, I changed gear and it came up again.

Tipping into May Hill I ran wide and ran up the gutter. Things happen real fast on this bike.

Day 6

The engine light was on so I came Practice on the Supersport, in after one lap. There turned out beside Adam Child from UK magazine Motorcycle News. to be nothing wrong with the bike, this happens when you disconnect Richard from Maxton suspension came down to look at certain things from the wiring loom. I should have the bike and suggested some extra ride height on the known that but…

600, and soften the compression damping on the front too.

Second lap was the supersport 600 Honda. I followed Cam Donald out on the Norton and going down Bray The 1000 stocker needed some setting up for me as Hill was a nightmare straight off the bat, the bike tankwell. Hope they work. slapping like a maniac. In tighter sections it was OK but on the real fast bits it was weaving bad. On the Practice kicked off around 6.20pm in glorious mountain I actually thought, ‘what the f__k am I doing conditions. I headed out on the 1000cc superbike here’. When I came in after that lap my dad asked me machine and the bike felt good. I came through for how I was and I replied, ‘f_____g scared!’ my second lap (first lap 112.5mph) and felt good.

Unfortunately I broke down near Kerromoar, just after By this time the team had ‘tweaked’ the superbike so I Ginger Hall. The bike simply stopped so I’m not sure went back out on that for one more lap. It was better what the problem is. It pissed me off too as I was 14 and I was able to do a 111mph lap from a standing start, seconds faster than my previous lap to that point of and slowing down for the pits. the track. I think I was up for a real good lap. The other problem is I couldn’t get back so couldn’t see if the 600 There’s work to do on the 600. It feels too soft but we’ll was better than before. see what happens tomorrow. But I feel okay with that last lap.

Hope the weather stays fine, I can’t afford to lose many practice sessions. The fast boys are pretty much at their pace, so it’s up to me to go faster to qualify.

I was pretty nervous before heading out for my first lap of practice, and my first lap was on the Honda CBR1000RR superbike. I tell you what, it’s a beast. It wants to wheelstand everywhere, and wasn’t real easy

It was supposed to rain today but Mona’s Isle has a climate all of its own. Luckily it turned out beautiful, and more importantly dry.

More laps around the circuit in the hire car. It’s Sunday so there’s no practice. I feel as though I’m getting to know the circuit better each lap, and some sections I had trouble with last year are a bit clearer.

I think the trick to going fast really is knowing the circuit. All the riders here are good riders, some better than others, but there’s a reason why they say you need a three-year apprenticeship before you can challenge for a win. I think if I was in with a chance of winning in three years then it would almost be a miracle.

We stop at Windy Corner to watch some of the road riders go across the mountain. That doesn’t last long though as the road gets closed, probably due to an accident.

After that we catch up with the team down at a pub on the promenade and get home in the early hours, knowing if the weather is fine I’ll be out tomorrow evening for practice with the big boys.

Day 7

Last night I had qualified 56th out of 70 riders on the superbike, but the times are very close between many of us. As for the 600 I was dead last, with a 103mph lap.

Continued on next page

Cycle Torque Feature

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 28

TTRACER That needs to improve dramatically. I know I can do it, if the bike is handling well enough.

I was 20th fastest superstocker tonight, but I reckon if I hadn’t broken down on my second lap I would have been well up on that. But not everyone was out on their superstocker.

Overall happy but unhappy at the same time.

a best time of 112.9mph, 36th fastest 600. My allocated number is 76 but if I qualify higher I start at my qualifying position, if that makes sense. On that sort of time, and if I keep it up, I’d be jumping 40 positions ahead of my allocated number.

I’m trying my best but lack of practice time has hampered me a bit. But I’ve already done more practice laps than I did at the Manx GP last year.

I’m in front of a few people I wanted to be so that’s good.

Day 8 Got one lap in on the supersport tonight. The plan was to go out for two laps on the 600, two laps on the superbike and one lap on the superstocker but by the time I came around to finish my lap there were yellow flags everywhere, and red flags by the time I was near the start/finish line. Seems that not long after I left the pits a TT newcomer from Belgium, Laurent Hoffmann left for his lap. Unfortunately he made a mistake near the top of Barregarrow, coming off and injuring his leg. Don’t know how bad but he’s in hospital. Hope he’s OK.

Late night, didn’t get to bed until close to midnight, and I’m being interviewed early in the morning on Manx Radio TT, along with Cam Donald, David Johnson, and Josh Brookes.

Anyway, I did a 111.9mph on the 600, and that was with dodgy conditions and slowing down for the yellow flags. There was too much crap on the road from the crash, and the weather was bad so the Clerk of the Course cancelled the session.

I was happy enough though.

Day 9 The sidecars went out first tonight, and the weather was dodgy. As a result of the damp conditions the Clerk of the Course decided not to let the big bikes out, making it for 600 supersport and 650 supertwins only, as they have treaded tyres.

I was able to do two laps on the 600, with

You have to scrutineer your bike before each practice or race.

– Alex Pickett

Lining up for practice at 6.30pm.

Cycle Torque Feature

TTRACER Rhencullen 1, just out of Kirkmichael.

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Cycle Torque Feature

TTRACER

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Signing autographs was a bit of a novelty.

er 76 and 81.

My bikes were numb vid Johnson.

Da low Aussie Number 16 was fel

Davo and I ready for practice.

You can’t get enough practice.

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INTRODUCING THE NEWEST MEMBER OF THE FAMILY. WELCOME TO BUNDOORA BMW MOTORRAD.

With the redevelopment of our Bundoora facilities now complete, which incorporates Bundoora BMW Bodyshop, we invite you to experience the new Bundoora BMW Motorrad. Providing all aspects of support for the motorcycle enthusiast including Sales, Service, Parts & Accessories, as well as Finance & Insurance, Bundoora BMW Motorrad is designed to go beyond your expectations.

As an integral member of the Doncaster BMW family (recipients of the 2013 BMW Motorrad Metropolitan Dealer of the Year Award), Bundoora BMW will continue to deliver the highest levels of customer care. Visit us today.

Bundoora BMW Motorrad 62 Enterprise Drive, Bundoora VIC 3083 Ph: (03) 9468 8000 bundoorabmwmotorrad.com.au LMCT 8560

Doncaster BMW Motorrad 812-814 Doncaster Road, Doncaster VIC 3108 Ph: (03) 8848 0000 doncasterbmwmotorrad.com.au LMCT 8560

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Doncaster BMW Motorrad

BMW S 1000 R

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BMW S 1000 R

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Built more on function than looks, BMW’s S 1000 R is quite possibly the sweetest naked sportsbike it’s ever built.

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BMW S 1000 R

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N REPORT BY CHRIS PICKETT, PHOTOS BY JEFF CROW N RIDING GEAR: SHARK HELMET, SCHOTT JACKET, IXON GLOVES, AXO BOOTS.

MOST manufacturers have stripped down their premier sportsbike to produce a naked bike at some stage. Some have even made a naked street fighter style bike from scratch, but to be honest I have never ridden one as good as BMW’s new S 1000 R. I have ridden some that are very good but the two areas I think which set the S 1000 R apart from the others is the engine and the optional Dynamic Damping Control (DDC) suspension.

Looking at the bike side-on you can see that BMW has taken the fairing off the S 1000 RR and done not much else styling wise. There is the similar looking asymmetrical headlight set up housed on a ‘Transformer’ style of small bikini fairing, and slightly different side fairing pods. I wouldn’t say it’s a pretty bike but it doesn’t have to be. It’s so good at everything else who cares what it looks like. But it would definitely look better if it had a catch pan sort of fairing, which hid the exhaust collector box.

Civilising the racer It’s amazing how a few fundamental design changes have transformed the racetrack oriented RR into a machine capable of allowing you to enjoy so many more types of riding than you could ever dream of with the RR. It’s so much more than just ripping the fairing off and putting a set of high handlebars on.

The main differences between the two bikes lie in the re-tuned engine, the longer wheelbase, and the revised steering head angle on the R. Add in the higher ’bars and lower ’pegs and you have a bike which is much better suited to everyday life than its sportier sibling.

The inline four cylinder engine is essentially the same as found in the RR, which really did set the standard for production horsepower when it was first released. Instead of some 190 odd ponies running rampant in the RR the R uses different cylinder

porting, cam shafts, lower compression, and fuelling to produce an engine better suited to fast road work. There’s now 160 rampant ponies to play with and peak power is found at 11,000 rpm, 2000 down from the RR. Peak torque is actually the same (500rpm lower than RR) but it’s the torque curve where you see the real power differences between the two. The R engine is way stronger off the bottom. I mean WAY stronger.

Electronics All Australian delivered S 1000 Rs have four riding modes standard: Rain, Road, Dynamic and Dynamic Pro. Dynamic Pro is where you unleash everything so making sure you really know what you are getting yourself in for. There is a little plug-in widget which unlocks the Pro option.

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BMW S 1000 R

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Each mode alters the way power is delivered but for pure horsepower comparisons Rain Mode has 136 PS, a rev limit of 9,500 rpm and slightly less torque. All other modes have the full 118kW (160ps).

In this standard package you also have Dynamic Traction Control (DTC) and ABS. As you go from mild (Rain) to wild (Dynamic Pro) traction control intervention gets progressively less invasive. In the wet and in Rain Mode you can basically crack open the throttle and the engine’s power will be substantially reduced to save you from ending up in the trees or under a bus. In Rain Mode there’s no wheelies either. I did try the traction control in the wet and it does work well. It’s all about letting your brain trust it I guess.

For riders who like pointing the front wheel to the sky, Road Mode will let you pull small ones and gently bring the front down. Dynamic will let you go higher before taming it, and Dynamic Pro is yeehaa. You can of course turn the DTC off if you like.

It’s essentially the same with the Race ABS system. The more aggressive a mode you select the less invasive the ABS becomes. It even detects rear wheel lift for all you demon brakers out there. Pretty easy to understand really.

While the standard S 1000 R comes with fully adjustable suspension, and good stuff at that, it’s the Dynamic Package which retails for a paltry $1,150, which is what I think most people will equip their R with.

This Dynamic Damping Control (DDC) suspension in this package is pretty much what is found on the S 1000 RR HP4, and actively alters the damping on the fly to suit the mode you are in, the way you are riding and the road conditions via numerous sensors mounted on the suspension.

If you want to change preload settings this must be done manually, via a hexagon head adjuster, so it’s nothing like the Electronic Suspension Adjustment (ESA) system found on many other BMW motorcycles.

As part of this package you also get heated hand grips, and engine or ‘chin’ spoiler and white LED indicators. You can

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tell what suspension the bike has by the colour of the forks; black for standard, gold for DDC.

Accessories If you want to outfit your BMW then the S 1000 R has almost everything. From the $505 alarm to $5,495 full Titanium exhaust, there’s parts to make this bike either quicker, handle batter (forged wheel option), look smicker or make life easier while touring. The accessory list is extensive and well worth checking out.

On the road The riding position is what I expected. Compared to the RR the R has the obvious higher handlebars but the footpegs are lower and not so far rearset too. The seat is still firm and made for shortish distances but overall it’s immediately comfortable and inviting.

As soon as you ride off you notice the extra torque of the engine. The gearing is lower than the RR too, so you can be real lazy with the gears if you like. Top gear in town is not an issue for this engine. Power is eye popping, as are the brakes. At one stage I had the throttle pinned hard as I quick-shifted through each gear. I swear the front wheel felt like it was just hovering above the tar the whole time, and when I pulled on those big Brembo four potters for the T intersection the bike simply buried the front tyre into the tar. Top speed is somewhere near 250km/h I would guess.

Fuelling is impressive and as fault free as anything I’ve used before, and the quick-shifter is smooth too. The quick-shifter feels firmer on your foot than when you use the clutch but overall again, impressive and hard to fault. Even when I was lazy the quick-shifter worked seamlessly.

When I first set off I had the bike in Rain Mode. I found this was all I needed power wise, and the default soft suspension settings worked well on the country roads we were on in Northern NSW.

As I progressed through each mode things firmed up increasingly and as conditions change, like they did on this test, I simply changed the Mode on the fly. It’s very easy to do, one button and roll off the throttle.

Even though the DDC suspension has default settings you can override them. I found I preferred the bike in either Dynamic or Dynamic Pro Mode with the suspension set Soft, the default Rain Mode suspension setting.

This soaked up the bumps much better than you would think, but was still on the firm side, suiting this sort of bike.

This allowed me freedom to ride with less traction control intervention and less impact on my body from the road.

Set up like this, and with the power characteristics, made this bike as real world quick as anything I’ve ever ridden. Of course bad roads will still limit this bike but that’s not what it’s about really. It’s not designed to revel in poor conditions, rather be fantastic in good conditions and good even in poor ones.

I’d love to ride this bike on the track too, as I reckon in Dynamic Pro Mode it would be a hoot to ride. Quite possibly I’d even be faster on this bike than the RR. On top end tracks like Phillip Island it would lose out but tighter tracks would see the R maybe even edge ahead of the RR. I reckon the R would be an awesome track day bike.

Back to the standard suspension. It is good, but the DDC is just better at everything, and for $1,150 I just don’t think anyone would not take that option. It is ridiculously cheap for what you get

Last thoughts My bike would be optioned with the Dynamic Package, which includes DDC, street legal slip on Akrapovic muffler, Sports windscreen, Comfort seat, tank bag and rear softbag.

That would take the base price of $18,990 + ORC to $23,068 + ORC. Sure it’s not chump change but what a bike, and a bike which would do everything I wanted it to, including track day shenanigans. It’s even got cruise control! n

CONTACT DONCASTER BMW MOTORRAD FOR MORE INFORMATION. PH: (03) 8848 0000.

BMW S 1000 R

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BMW S 1000 R

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S P E C I F I C AT I O N S: BMW S 1000 R Engine Type: Liquid-cooled 4-stroke inline four.

Capacity: 999cc Transmission: 6-speed and chain drive Fuel Capacity: 17.5 litres Frame Type: Alloy composite bridge frame.

Seat Height: 814mm Wet Weight: 207kg Front Suspension: 46mm adjustable USD Rear Suspension: Adjustable single shock Brakes: Dual 4-piston radial calipers on front, single caliper on rear Tyres: 120/70-17, 190/55-17 Price (RRP): $18,990 + ORC www.cycletorque.com.au/more

www.cycletorque.com.au/more www.bmwmotorrad.com.au

CALL FOR A QUOTE

1800 24 34 64 Forks and brakes are beyond good.

Retuned S 1000 RR engine has amazing stomp.

Much of the rolling stock comes from the RR.

Quickshifter is standard.

Forks are fully adjustable.

We’d like the speedo and tacho to swap spots.

WE’LL BEAT ANY PRICE GUARANTEED*

Shock settings are well suited for everyday roads.

BMW S 1000 R

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BMW S 1000 R

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YAMAHA STAR XVS1300 STRYKER

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Custom Cool

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YAMAHA STAR XVS1300 STRYKER

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Yamaha has done the tinkering for you with the new Stryker. It’s customised already.

YAMAHA STAR XVS1300 STRYKER

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Custom Cool N TEST BY CHRIS PICKETT, PHOTOS BY JEFF CROW N RIDING GEAR: SHARK HELMET, IXON GLOVES, SCHOTT JACKET, DRIRIDER BOOTS

WHEN motorcycle designers put pen to paper on a cruiser the biggest thing in their mind has to be the styling. When you really think about it, most riders put styling first too, no matter what type of bike it is. It has to look the goods first, how it rides comes second.

In the customising game it’s even more so. Look at the American Chopper TV show for example. Some of the stuff they would build with raked out front ends and dodgy riding positions looked plain dangerous.

And then they would tell us how good it rode. Give me a break!

You might wonder where I’m going with this and the Stryker test but thankfully I can tell you the XVS1300 Stryker is not like that. Yes it has a raked out front end but it steers much better than you would expect with such a set-up, and it rides pretty good too.

Striking Style I think there’s three major design points on the Star Stryker: the 1304cc liquid-cooled 60 degree V-twin donk, the raked out front end and the down sloping twin exhausts. Using dark, flat colours the bike looks like it has an air-cooled engine (the radiator hides at the front but follows the shape of the frame), and tends to look much smaller than similar capacity

cruisers, like you would expect a proper custom to look.

I quite like the look of the bike, although it doesn’t have the classic lines of some other cruisers on the market. If you look at the tank shape it looks almost like an afterthought, like it belongs on another make and model of bike. If you’ve ever seen the Discovery Channel Biker Build Off episodes you might come to the conclusion, like me, that the style is almost Bratz like. This is a custom style, big in Japan, where you use anything from any bike to make your own motorcycling statement. I could be wrong, but I think it looks cool. If I owned one though, the first thing I’d do would be to paint it some crazy metalflake colour.

The American market gets more colours than Australia, which seems a shame. I particularly like the burgundy colour scheme they get over there. We get Midnight Black and Matt Grey. Black retails for $14,999 and the Grey colour scheme for $15,299. Plus on-roads of course.

I also like the way there’s lots of steel on this jigger. It’s not adorned with tacky plastic bits, especially plastic chrome which can look worn very quickly.

Mechanic’s dream The engine itself is very nice, with the big 100mm pistons belting out some admirable torque. I like big cruiser engines anyway but you can be both lazy and ‘spirited’ in the way you rev the engine. It seems happy to do either.

I guess most people really only want to know how long the engine will last and how much grunt it has but I will tell you a little about its insides. I mean it’s fuel injected and has four valves per cylinder but a couple of the main design features of the engine are the ceramic composite cylinders and the dual counter-balancers which give the cylinder bores a long life and the rider a nice smooth engine.

Yamaha is giving a five year unlimited kilometre warranty on the Stryker, and all of its Star range of motorcycles, so the company is confident in the product. If that doesn’t give you confidence in the bike’s reliability then I’m not sure what will.

For cog changing there’s a five-speed cluster (lots of torque remember) and a clean and long lasting belt drive to the rear wheel.

Continued on next page

YAMAHA STAR XVS1300 STRYKER

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On the road It does have short travel suspension, which most cruisers have, but it’s only big bumps or choppy surfaces, which will test the shock. The forks though, with the long rake and the 21 inch wheel bolted to them work pretty well. I don’t know how Yamaha has managed it but it actually goes around corners very well considering the front end set-up. Roundabouts or fast sweepers, once again it’s happy doing either. I’m also glad Yamaha didn’t put too big a rear wheel/tyre on the Stryker. It is a 240/40-18 tyre, which is decent enough in size but it doesn’t feel that big. If it had been a much bigger tyre I think it could have detracted from the riding experience.

Now it’s not a light bike, being 293 kilograms ready to ride away but the seat height is only 670mm, making it easy to manoeuvre, even for shorter people. Even on some dodgy gravel surfaces and broken edges of the road the bike was easy enough to do U turns and the like, something not all cruisers are happy doing, so you shouldn’t write the bike off before riding it if you think it might be too heavy.

It has a 15 litre tank and we were able to do close to 250 kilometres before really worrying we were going to have to push.

That’s around 17 kpl or 48 mpg. Not bad fuel economy in my book.

Ground clearance is very good too. The only time I remember touching down the footpegs was in a roundabout and even then I was trying to see when it would touch. Even hitting big dips in the road at speed didn’t have the bike scraping.

I also liked the riding position. Normally cruisers can give my back a hard time but not so the Stryker. I think the seat design, and then relationship to the footpegs and handlebars were just good for me. You can do lots of kilometres on this bike without feeling like you’ve been violated.

Verdict All in all this is one of the nicest ‘custom’ style cruisers I’ve ridden. The styling doesn’t really do it for me but then that’s always a subjective point anyway. But if I did something with the paint, and changed the exhaust design it would be on the money for my tastes.

But that’s the point of a custom, isn’t it? Even though Yamaha has done the tinkering for you, you can still have a massive play if you want to. n

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YAMAHA STAR CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 45 XVS1300 STRYKER

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YAMAHA STAR XVS1300 STRYKER

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S P E C I F I C AT I O N S: YAMAHA STRYKER Engine Type: Liquid-cooled 4-stroke V-twin Capacity: 1304cc Transmission: 5-speed and belt drive Fuel Capacity: 15 litres Frame Type: Double cradle Seat Height: 670mm Wet Weight: 293kg Front Suspension: Conventional telescopic Rear Suspension: Single shock Brakes: Single disc front and rear Tyres: 120/70-21, 210/40-18 Price (RRP): $14,999 + ORC www.cycletorque.com.au/more

www.cycletorque.com.au/more www.yamaha-motor.com.au

CALL FOR A QUOTE

1800 24 34 64 WE’LL BEAT ANY PRICE GUARANTEED*

Double Vroom.

More rake than the garden.

Torque laden V-twin.

Bratz black.

YAMAHA STAR XVS1300 STRYKER

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YAMAHA STAR XVS1300 STRYKER

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Cali 1400_Custom_CYCLE TORQUE_HP_MG2_FINAL.indd 1

13/01/2014 11:00:04 AM

CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED

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Full Fruit

CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED

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For open road freedom it doesn’t CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 51 get much more fully loaded than the Can-Am Spyder RT Limited.

CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED

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Full Fruit N TEST BY DLONGIE, PHOTOS BY CHRIS PICKETT N RIDING GEAR: M2R HELMET, SPYKE JACKET, IXON GLOVES, DRIRIDER BOOTS

CAN-AM Spyders have been around for a while now and not many people could say they haven’t at least seen one but it always hits you how different they look from any other road going motorcycle.

Cycle Torque has tested a few Spyders since they were first released in Australia but this is the first time we have tested one of the new three cylinder models. The machine tested is the top of the range 2014 Spyder RT Limited. It’s the biggest and I think the most impressive looking of the models.

Looks are deceiving

First impressions

On collection I was given a rundown on the new model which on first appearance doesn’t appear any different to the previous year’s, however this is far from the case. The 2014 model now boasts a brand new Rotax ACE 1330cc in-line three cylinder engine with power figures up from the previous model’s 74.5 kw to 85.5 kw. Other changes include bigger 15 inch wheels instead of the previous model’s 14 inch, power steering assistance has been increased and the gear box is now six speed instead of five with fuel capacity being increased to 26 litres. I was also assured that while the weight had increased to 459 kg the new engine was more economical than the previous model.

As I headed off my mind drifted back to the first time I rode a Spyder remembering how it took a while for me to feel comfortable riding it, especially in roundabouts. While Spyders have a cockpit layout that makes you feel you’re on a bike that’s where the similarity ends. If you don’t lean into corners then the Spyder will fight you all the way while trying to negotiate tight corners. On that first ride it took me around 250 km to come to terms with the handling characteristics but from then on the ride just got better and better. I simply had to adapt myself to the Spyder, rather than expect the Spyder to adapt to my years of ingrained two-wheeled experience.

Back to the present, as I set off the first thing I noted was the bike felt more As I had recently spent some time with the previous V-twin powered Spyder I noticed the Limited’s instruments were much the same as the earlier model’s, so I responsive than last year’s model with the gear changes being smoother as well.

I quickly felt the increased power assistance improved how the bike steered felt comfortable with everything from the get go so to speak. through corners especially on roundabouts but I still feel that a little more Continued on next page

CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED

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CYCLE TORQUE

assistance at low speeds would make the bike even more rideable in heavy traffic.

The Limited is fitted with a six speed semi-automatic gearbox which includes reverse gear. Basically this means that there is no clutch and you have to change up through the gears. The bike will however change down automatically or you can change down yourself if you like. It’s similar to the tiptronic shift in newer automatic cars.

Smoother and sweeter Seeing I had ridden a Spyder before, I immediately felt at home on this new improved model. As I left the traffic behind I set my sights on the Putty Road and got down to really enjoying the bike and the scenery feeling like this was what the bike was all about. The bike’s suspension handled the road brilliantly, and the front suspension was improved with only the worst bumps affecting it.

Over the week I had the bike I took it on all types of roads including some dirt where I did feel the bike’s traction control came into its own. The bike always behaved beautifully on all road surfaces and with the cruise control on freeways and motorways were a breeze. Despite the extra weight it did have improved fuel economy over the previous model with 400 km out of a tank not being a problem. The Limited has more than enough storage, it’s fitted with moulded panniers and a top box, which are colour coded. Add to that the front nose cone storage area, which on this model had the removable overnight bag included.

Overall storage is very impressive.

With the new six-speed gearbox the Limited not surprisingly now revs lower than the previous model, which probably accounts for the great fuel economy.

On the highway it feels like it’s only cruising and not even trying. To my mind I didn’t think that the exhaust note was as nice as the previous model but then again I’ve always liked the sound of twins. The brakes are linked and operated by foot lever on the right side and at no time did I ever find myself trying to go for a handbrake.

The bike comes in a number of colours including the Black Current, Pearl White, Silver Platinum and Cognac.

Overall view The real beauty of riding a Spyder is that weight never becomes an issue. Being a three-wheeler the weight is taken care of and you can just concentrate on enjoying the ride. The engine’s power delivery and gearing was absolutely brilliant allowing the rider to just sit back get comfortable and enjoy themselves with more than enough power so you never need to rev the motor hard, and on the highway the engine’s torque allows you stay in top gear almost all the time.

When I took the bride on a ride I was a bit worried that the lateral forces might give her some issues in the bends and I warned her that she really needed to lean into the bends to counteract them. When we finished the ride however she admitted in a very animated fashion that it had taken her by surprise but said she had loved the experience and found the seat and ride to be very comfortable.

I myself loved riding the Spyder so much that the wife was always wondering where I was because every chance I got I was on it and I can’t wait for the opportunity to ride one again.

I’ve heard some people have not enjoyed their experiences on a Spyder but I can only assume they either hadn’t spent enough time on them or were not able to get their head around the different riding style required to ride one.

I believe that a Spyder would be a great choice for anyone but especially anyone who is starting to have issues with balance or the strength required for bigger bikes. And if you’re into touring or need the storage then the RT Limited is the Spyder for you. Retailing for $41,990 it is not cheap but the experience is worth the price in my view.

Now if only I can get my hands on another one and continue the Spyder experience. n

CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED

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CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED

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www.cycletorque.com.au/more can-am.brp.com/spyder

Electric screen caters for all shapes and sizes.

Very Buzz Lightyear.

You can’t see much of the engine but the oil level is easy to check.

Comfort at the touch of a button.

S P E C I F I C AT I O N S : C Y CRTL E T O R Q U E A U G U S T 2 0 1 4 - 5 5 CAN-AM SPYDER Engine Type: Liquid-cooled inline triple Capacity: 1330cc Transmission: 6-speed manual with reverse Fuel Capacity: 26 litres Frame Type: Steel Seat Height: 772mm Dry Weight: 459kg Front Suspension: Double A-arm with Sachs shocks Rear Suspension: Air-assisted Sachs shock Brakes: Twin disc front and single rear Tyres: 165/55-R15, 225/50-R15 Price (RRP): $41,990 + ORC www.cycletorque.com.au/more CALL FOR A QUOTE

1800 24 34 64 WE’LL BEAT ANY PRICE GUARANTEED*

Panniers and top box have plenty of space.

Fuel tank sits below seat.

CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED

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CAN-AM SPYDER RT LIMITED

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1.99%

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VT1300CX

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PIAGGIO VESPA PRIMAVERA

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We have a new Vespa, with a classic name re-born…

PIAGGIO VESPA PRIMAVERA

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PIAGGIO VESPA PRIMAVERA

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N REPORT BY NIGEL PATERSON, PHOTOS BY JEFF CROW N RIDING GEAR: MOJO HELMET, SCHOTT JACKET.

THE FIRST Primavera Vespas were introduced in 1968, classy 125cc step-through machines which quickly became popular, then collectable.

In 2104, we have the Primavera name back, the new model replacing Vespa’s bestselling in Australia, the LX. An all-new body with a classic name and styling cues from the 946, the 2012 collectable machine hand-built in very limited numbers.

The 946 was eye-wateringly expensive, but the Primavera is actually a little cheaper than the LX it replaces - the more popular 150 is $5990, while the 125 is $5290.

New body, new style Although still unmistakably a Vespa, the new Primavera is a mix of classic Vespa style and new touches. The front of the machine looks far more modern, the monocoque front panels offering cleaner, smoother lines from the chrome-accented headlight nacelle downwards to the 10-inch front wheel.

Of course, there’s nothing joining the front of the machine to the back except the footboard area, which then extends to the large side panels covering the engine – this is the very definition of ‘monocoque’, the body also being the frame.

the new panel is reinforced internally, negating the need for the brace - less parts and neater styling.

And it’s steel, too, Vespa not straying from the traditional build material scooter aficionados have loved for decades.

At the rear the new seat is well built for two and there’s a chrome steel grab rail.

The power

The footboards themselves are scolloped in when viewed from above, to make the base of the machine narrower, so the shorter-legged among us can more easily get their feet on the ground.

The Primevera is available in 125 and 150 variants. Such a small difference in engine capacity has more to do with legalities than performance. We still have different vehicle licensing regulations in the different states of Australia, and in some places you can save a considerable amount on registration if you buy the 125 - and $700 on Between the rider’s feet lies a black plastic panel, which is the cover for the battery, moved from under the seat to increase luggage capacity and to improve handling by the purchase price. lowering the centre of gravity.

Both engines are 3-valve fuel injected four-strokes, the 150 offering a little more Where the previous model had a brace along the bottom edge of the engine panel, urge and a bit better performance on freeways than the 125 - but seriously, there’s Continued on next page

PIAGGIO VESPA PRIMAVERA

Launch

CCYYCCLLEE TTOORRQQUUEE AAUUGGUUSSTT 22001144 -- 6622

CYCLE TORQUE

not much in it. Neither bike is going to replace a motorcycle, but either machine is superior in so many ways to a motorcycle when you’re squirting around the city it’s no wonder Vespas have sold in their millions, mainly to Europeans who understand their worth.

the machine easier to live with, more economical and simply better. Things like fuel injection, which improves performance, reliability and fuel consumption. There’s a side-stand lock-out switch, engine immobiliser, tubeless tyres, LED running lights, LCD instruments and 10,000km service intervals.

A new engine mounting system has reduced vibration compared to the older models. The Primavera is a real smoothy, with hardly a tingle reaching through to the rider.

Other improvements over earlier models include a larger rear wheel and drum brake, a switch for the headlight and better-looking wheels.

Hustle and Bustle Spend a day in the hustle and bustle of a big city and you start to understand the attraction of a small scooter. Easy to park, incredibly easy to ride and so convenient, it’s a shock to many Europeans arriving in Australia that we don’t have lots more scooters squirting through the traffic of our clogged streets.

Of course, it’s often alleged we travel too fast for scooters in Australia, but that’s not true – even the 125 gets to 100km/h faster than most cars, and the 125 will easily cruise on 110. No, that doesn’t mean I’d recommend a Primavera for touring, but what it does mean is that a little freeway hop on your way to work shouldn’t preclude you from choosing one.

Cafe culture A Vespa, though, can be much more than just for commuting. They are perfect for nipping down for a little shopping – park right out front, there’s somewhere you can squeeze it in. For quick trips anywhere when you’re travelling light - which, admit it, is most of the time – a Primevera is perfect.

Under the seat is a voluminous luggage area, and it is over two litres larger than the LX’s underseat capacity. At the front of the seat is a pull-out bag hook for the shopping or handbag. There’s more carry capacity in the ‘glove box’ under the ignition key, and there are top boxes and racks available for even more carrying capacity.

The Primavera is built for two, with a pillion seat which will earn you more friends than the one on your pocket rocket, although the performance two-up won’t cause an adrenalin rush.

Piaggio has fitted the Primavera with technological marvels which most buyers would never ask for but make the machine much nicer than its forebears and make

It’s a rainbow…

OK, there isn’t quite a rainbow of colours, but there are lots and lots… Black, red, white, light blue, dark blue and ‘Marrone Crete Sensei’ - to call it brown is probably not unreasonable, but honestly, it’s a nice brown.

Scooters are safe Many motorcyclists are disparaging of scooters, believing them to be unsafe, because “you can’t accelerate away from idiots on the road”. While I can sympathise with this position in regard to 50cc scooters, the 125 and 150 Primaveras really hold their own in performance right up to highway speeds - and if you’re regularly going to ride in the countryside, well, I’d recommend something bigger.

But if getting around the city is the point, a Vespa Primavera will do it in comfort and style with decent luggage capacity and excellent economics. And a lot of fun.

Which one?

If you check out the laws and insurance costs for your age, licence and how all that relates to engine capacity you might find the 125 Primavera works out a lot cheaper than the 150.

There’s a $700 saving on the purchase price and with some states having a much cheaper registration and third party insurance for bikes under 125cc, it can make a lot of sense to go with the smaller machine.

If you’re not going to save on government charges, I’d recommend you drop the extra $$$ and buy the 150, because everyone rides on freeways at least occasionally these days, and your Primavera is so good looking your friends will want you to take them for a ride. n

PIAGGIO VESPA PRIMAVERA

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CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 63

S P E C I F I C AT I O N S: VESPA PRIMAVERA Engine Type: Air-cooled fourstroke single Capacity: 124.5 or155cc Transmission: CVT Fuel Capacity: 8 litres Frame Type: Double cradle Seat Height: 780mm Wet Weight: 114kg Front Suspension: Single arm with monoshock Rear Suspension: Hydraulic monoshock Brakes: Single disc front and drum rear Tyres: 110/70-11, 120/70-10 Price (RRP): $5290, $5990 (150) + ORC www.cycletorque.com.au/more

PIAGGIO VESPA PRIMAVERA

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CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 64

www.vespaprimavera.com.au

Old and the new - A Primavera from the ’60s with the new machine on its left.

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Stylish and modern dash with classic style.

Daytime running lights in the front panel, headlight is switchable.

Big tail/stop light on the freshly-styled back end.

PIAGGIO VESPA CYCLE TORQUE PRIMAVERA Launch

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 65

PIAGGIO VESPA CYCLE TORQUE PRIMAVERA Launch

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 66

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All Rekluse products allow retention of the clutch lever to manually override the auto-clutch at all times!

The rider can still “feed”, “fan”, “slip”, or “pop” the clutch and do motocross style starts.

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Rekluse Used By: Merriman, Ballard, Grabham, Whibley, Mullins, Caseli, Spies and the late great Mika Ahola. Rekluse has won in every major off road series the world over, including 8 U.S. and 2 World Championships in 2011!

“The MXA wrecking crew gives the Rekluse Core EXP clutch 5 stars” – Motocross Action Magazine

• Highest grade CNC machined billet, hard anodized aluminium clutch components.

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• CNC laser cut drive plates giving longer clutch component life, smoother engagement/disengagement, and less clutch hammering, virtually eliminates notching.

• Centre clutch design with innovative oil flow for cooler operating temperatures for less fade and londer clutch life.

Moto Roost Defectors Evolution Debris Defectors – wide – for those that don’t want to bend for lever room and “U” clamps for feel claustrophobic. Multiple better cable and hose clearance, various colours $70 bar fitting $85 Add the bolt on Evolution Roost Deflector for $35 Multiple colours.

KTM Comfort Seats – in standard & tall versions $165 Carbon Fibre Exhaust Pipe Guard – $180

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“The Rekluse Core EXP Clutch Is Magical” – Dirt Bike Magazine Plastic is fantastic... but in case you don’t feel the same, Skid/Bash Plates From $110

KTM Heim Joint Tool – $70

Ultra Disc Guard – with complete Carrier for superior strength $120

Axle Pulls Spoke Wrench – front or – $25 rear $35

Upgrade Wheel Bearing Kits – front $70 rear $60 rear with spacer $70

High Quality, High Performance Off-Road Motorcycle Products

Speedo Guard – $90

Billet Shock Spanner Wrench – two types $35

Clutch Slave Cylinder Protector – Protects from a thrown chain or side impact $50

Radiator Braces – Strong and light to protect from twisting and bending without sacrificing airflow $120

Bar Riser Kits Upgraded – Adjust your life Lower Shock 5-30mm for a Bush Kit – $40 custom fit $50

• All the features and benefits of the EXP with the addition of High grade CNC machined billet, hard anodized aluminium clutch components.

• CNC laser cut drive plates giving longer clutch component life, smoother engagement/disengagement, and less clutch hammering, virtually eliminates notching.

• Centre clutch design with innovative oil flow for cooler operating temperatures for less fade and longer clutch life.

• 17-7 stainless steel precision wound and heat treated pressure plate springs provides consistent clutch torque capacity eliminating clutch slip.

• Rekluse billet aluminium clutch cover with added oil volume offers greater impact protection and lower operating temperatures.

Grad Handle – keep your hands away from a hot exhaust $45

• STEERING DAMPERS • FOOT PEGS • KICK STANDS • CARRY RACKS

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 68

INFORMATION FROM OUR ADVERTISERS

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IBIKE STUFF

SHOOTING STAR

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SUNSTAR Sprockets’ latest series, the Works Aluminium, is a unique and evolutionary combination of durability and minimal weight.

Constructed from aerospace grade, heattreated aluminium, it is a first class addition to the Sunstar range.

New computer designed, weight reduction holes place the Works Aluminium in the featherweight category, making it the lightest sprocket on the market. However, lightest definitely doesn’t mean weakest; the hard, anodised coating increases its lifespan by around 15 per cent compared to other brands.

The Sunstar Works Aluminium Sprocket range caters to both road bikes and off road bikes.

PRICE: $83.95 AVA IL A BL E F ROM: All good motorcycle shops MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

YOUR 2014 Yamaha YZ450F and YZ250F can now breathe easier with the high flow air filter from K&N. The washable and reusable filter offers low air flow restriction, resulting in increased throttle-response, horsepower and torque. The K&N cotton pleated media provides a large filtration area offering long service intervals and excellent filtration.

This filter is designed to slide directly into the OEM airbox without any fitting or cutting required using an injection molded OE style mounting frame that offers a very secure fit.

PRICE: $105.95 AVA IL A BL E F ROM: Good motorcycle shops MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

SHARP AS AN ARROW

HONDA’S 2014 CBR1000RR seems to be the same as the previous incarnations going back to 2008 but many improvements have been made, including the exhaust.

Arrow has made some modifications to its slip-on systems for the new CBR, with all-new headers, mid-pipe and mufflers available.

Mufflers are available in the Indy-Race and GP2 series, using aerospace quality materials including Aluminium, dark anodised Aluminium, Carbon-Fibre, Nichrome and of course Titanium. The Indy-Race series are street-legal under PRICE: Mid-pipe is $299 (Part No.82-716-06MI); ADR 83/00 section 6. mufflers start at $539 (Part No. 82-718-18).

AVA IL A BL E F ROM: Good motorcycle stores MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

DUNE

IXON’S Dune HP jacket is specifically designed to handle all weather conditions with a removable winter lining and additional insert that’s both waterproof and breathable. The adjustable flaps on the front also provide added air flow while the fixed grids on the back and sleeves help with ventilation to keep you cool in the warmer conditions.

The Dune HP is built to withstand heavy duty wear over the course of its lifetime. Made with Noxiguard fabric with double coated high-density weave material.

Available in black and with sizes ranging from small to 4XL. PRICE: $399.95 AVA IL A BL E F ROM: Good motorcycle shops MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

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CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 69

IBIKE STUFF

RAW STYLE

SHARK Motorcycle Helmets’ latest addition is the highly versatile Raw. Their cutting edge design is an instant status symbol, drawing praise from bike lovers and fashion pundits alike. Whether you’re on a postie or a chopper; you will look and feel like a badass in the Shark Raw.

COOL AIR

PRICE: $349.95 AVA IL A BL E F ROM: All good motorcycle shops MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

VENTURA VSTROM

VENTURA now has its Bike-Pack System available for the new Suzuki V-Strom 1000. The system is designed to maintain your motorcycle’s performance and handling while giving you excellent load carrying capacity. They are available as kits with a range of packs in several sizes and rack configurations.

Accessories such as Grab-Handles and the smaller Sports-Racks and 10 Litre Sports-Packs are also available.

PRICE: Kits from $359 but parts can be purchased separately AVA IL A BL E F ROM: Good motorcycle stores MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

WHEN it’s hot and you are bothered, try one of these new air vents by Ventz.

They slip into your jacket sleeve to open up airflow, and they have a mesh cover so no insects, like bees, will find their way in. Easy to fit, easy to use, easy to like.

PRICE: $29.99 + $7.99 registered post AVA IL A BL E F ROM: Direct from Ventz Australia MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

H-D COOL

YOU can wear the Harley-Davidson Genuine Classics Plaid Shirt under your jacket on a ride or even out for dinner, it’s that nice.

Made from 100 per cent cotton, it’s both light and comfy.

Other features are the button front, snap-down collar, left button chest pocket, button cuffs, embroidered graphics on left chest and back neck.

PRICE: $91.80 AVA IL A BL E F ROM: Harley-Davidson dealers MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 70

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USED & REVIEWED CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 71 CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 71

Dirt Track Cowboy IT’S hard to get extra horsepower from the new generation of 450cc motorcrossers, unless you have a fat wallet. They are so good straight from the factory.

Leading up to the recent Australian Dirt Track titles at Old Bar (Taree) we decided to fit an Arrow exhaust to a late model Kawasaki KX450F to see if it would make a difference for rider Zach Thackeray.

We decided to go for a Stainless Steel header/collector and a Titanium muffler, partly because of cost and partly because of durability.

Fitting them was easy, and regardless of your model or brand of motocrosser, it’s a pretty simple job.

Of course staight away the sound is fruitier but the proof of the pudding is on the dyno, and even the seat of the pants feel on the track.

Zach had this to say about the system, “On the dyno it gave 1.5 peak horsepower more than the stock system, but the power was stronger down low too.

“On the track I could really feel the difference in both bottom and top end power. It was definitely worthwhile fitting it.”

Arrow build systems for a wide variety of both road and dirt bikes.

– Chris Pickett

Like an Axe WHEN a race can take close to two hours, like at the Isle of Man TT, it’s important to make sure your gear fits well and is comfortable, otherwise your mind can wander and concentrate of the discomfort you are in. And that’s dangerous.

At the TT I wore a pair of AXO Aragon race boots in every race because I simply liked the feel of them.

And besides that the AXO brand is pure quality.

They are the only road racing boot in the world with no buckles, no zip and only one steel lace (BOA System) It has a wind up system to tighten the boot around your shin area for extra support in the event of a crash. It looks different but it’s easy to operate, and releasing the system to remove your boot is easy too. You just pull back the knob and push the front part of the boot forward, the cables releasing their tension immediately.

Supporting your ankle is a nifty hinge system, and removable and interchangeable plastic shin and toe sliders mean you can replace worn out bits I can’t really fault the boots, and even after a two hour race my feet felt OK, even in the toe/gear changing area, which believe me, gets a workout.

– Alex Pickett

PRICE: $369.95 AVA IL A BL E F ROM: Good bike shops MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

PRICE: Race Tech Titanium Slip-On Muffler with Carbon End Cap - $749.00; Stainless Steel Collectors - $409.00 AVA IL A BL E F ROM: Good motorcycle stores MORE INF O: www.cycletorque.com.au/more

MARKET TORQUE

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QUAD TORQUE NEWS TOP FIVE AT FIN KE IN A dominating performance at the 2014 Tatts Finke Desert Race, Polaris secured the Top five places in the side x side class.

The Finke Desert Race is an off road, multi terrain two-day race for bikes, cars, buggies and quads through desert country from Alice Springs to the small Aputula (Finke) community. The race is held each year on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend in June, and is one of the biggest annual sporting events in the Northern Territory, and indeed Australia.

Polaris started the event with 12 RZRs, out of a total field of 16. It was a fierce battle for podium positions between the Polaris racers as the final result came down to the wire.

In the end, it was Phil Swindale and his copilot Matt Costello from Eagle Powersports who upstaged their more fancied rivals to take home desert glory in their Polaris RZR XP 1000.

It was a consistent effort from the Swindale/ Costello team who had clearly learned from their 2013 experience, posting a time of 03:01:04 on Day one, and 02:52:34 on Day two. Impressively, their time also allowed them to finish 30th overall in the car/buggy class in the gruelling event where almost 40 entrants failed to finish.

Gunning for a record-breaking third straight Finke Desert Race side x side title, Adrian Jackson and his co-pilot Chris Meloury tried their best in their RZR XP 900 but fell an agonising seven minutes short of glory. In other years, times of 03:00:02 and 03:00:33 would have been enough to secure victory, however this year it was not the case and Jackson/Meloury had to settle for second place.

Closing out the podium places and finishing 34th overall was Aaron Phillis and Brett Morgan from Chapmans Off-Road in their RZR XP 1000 with an overall time of 06:12:10, 12 minutes behind Jackson/ Meloury. They beat out fourth placed Barry Moule and Aaron Ward of Team Churchill in their RZR XP 900, and Jason Neate and Christopher Johnstone

from Mongrel Dog in their four-seater RZR 900 XP4.

The highly fancied Polaris Racing team of Cody Crocker and Greg Foletta recovered from 13th place after day one to finish the event 7th overall. After experiencing some difficulties on day one, which cost them not only the lead but 50 minutes of time, Crocker and Foletta dug deep to finish day one. On Day two however, the duo came out and blitzed the field with a time of 02:48:42, winning the trip back to Alice Springs by almost four minutes.

“We always knew we had the fastest vehicle on the track, however desert racing is a tough sport and we had some slight issues on day one which cost us valuable time,” said Crocker, himself a fourtime Asia Pacific Rally Champion with Subaru and three-time Australian Rally Championship side x side champion with Polaris.

“This was our first time racing Finke and it was a great learning experience. Our time on day two shows what we, and our RZR, are capable of and we’ll be a lot stronger for this experience come the 2015 event.

“We’re pleased that we were able to come home so strongly and post the best time of the whole event in the side x side class in our trip from Finke to Alice Springs on Monday.” n

T A C D IL W A T N RE

G2 RALLYE Racing is offering you the opportunity to hire a race spec Arctic Cat Wildcat X, supported by an experienced race team, to compete in this year’s famous Australian Safari, being held September 19th – 27th.

The G2 Rallye team has an impressive list of credentials over the past 15 years, competing in six Australasian Safaris,five South American Dakar Rallies, and two Australian Safari. The team has posted some impressive results including five class wins in the past 18 months throughout Australia and a range of international race meets.

The hirer will receive an Arctic Cat Wildcat X prepared to 2014 specification, with wholesale pricing for Arctic Cat parts and consumables for the period of the event. Provisions for fuel, oil, filters, 12 tyres, three clutches and a CVT drive belt per day of racing.

The G2 Rallye Wildcat comes complete with 85L fuel capacity; GPS, full 5-point harness and CAMS compliant cage. The package includes 8x Braid rally wheels and Fox race suspension all round. The Wildcat is set up for the challenge with heavy duty rear control arms, gusseted and braced chassis and a Stilo WRC intercom unit.

On top of this complete package of hard parts is access to the G2 Rallye pit infrastructure and event logistics, the option of a dedicated mechanic with

additional support from team mechanics and your travel costs to and from Perth to and from the event.

The hirer is responsible for damage outside of reasonable wear and tear as well as entry fees, catering and personal requirements. Of course, this is motor racing and G2 Rallye cannot guarantee the performance, reliability or durability of the rental machines.

Arctic Cat Wildcat X is a machine capable of running competitively in the FIA T3 class. This event is a true test of driver and machine for endurance, strategy and determination.

The full package, including a race prepared Wildcat X, full mechanical support, spare parts and consumables is available at a just $24,590 + entry fees.

To discuss this opportunity further and for a more in depth breakdown, please contact Garry Connell on 0418 904 921. n

LIKE A M U LE KAWASAKI is offering a $1000 retail price rollback on its full range of 600 series Mule utility side-by-sides.

Specifically, the standard Mule 600 now retails for $11,999, the Mule 610 4X4 for $12,999, and the 610 4X4 XC $13,499.

This $1000 price reduction is available on all remaining dealer stock, and future releases too.

Being a Kawasaki you can be confident in the Mule's reliability. Powered by a 401cc air-cooled single cylinder four-stroke engine, she might look basic on paper, but the running gear is built to last in our tough conditions.

Drive to the wheels is by CVT transmission ,and carrying capacity is right up there with the best.

Check out your Kawasaki dealer for more info. n

DEMO RIDE DAYS

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TEST RIDE BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL! sales@ricandrewsmotorcycles.com.au | ph: (02) 4324 1800

TEST RIDE TRIUMPH’S RANGE OF CRUISER, SPORT AND CLASSIC MOTORCYCLES ALL RIDERS MUST PROVIDE APPROPRIATE RIDING GEAR

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 77

VIDEO REVIEW R A K A D G N I DO

CHRISTOPHE Barriere-Varju has lived his dream of competing in the Dakar rally. It’s a dream many offroad racers share.

All too often we write these dreams off as pure fancy and commit ourselves to the reality we will never achieve them - which begs the question, is there a 'Dream Racer' in you?

I myself fell into the same zone, thinking my dream of racing at the Isle of Man would never happen due to financial and family constraints. Like Christophe I decided to throw those thoughts out the window and live my dream. And when you do, regardless of what the dream is, you will feel enlightened. It’s like a weight comes off your shoulders. The elephant in the room is no longer there, mocking you.

I already knew Christophe, having interviewed him quite a number of years ago, and I was aware his dream had cost him plenty in the way of relationships and financial hardship. I followed his attempts at the Dakar Rally, admiring his focus and determination.

The thing is we get wrapped up in our own lives, and reading a short story in a motorcycle magazine about some ex-pat French bloke racing in the Dakar, was never going to really register on the radar. All we see is the pretty pictures, a dirty face and a beat up bike. We all assume he’s got money or backing and he’s ‘lucky’.

What those pictures don’t tell you is how difficult it is to take on something like the Dakar, how much planning goes into it, how fit you have to be, and how tough it really is to take on the hardest off-road race of them all.

Huge days in the saddle, danger seemingly at every turn, then having to work on the bike each night with barely a few hours sleep. Then go out and do it all again for two weeks straight. And on top of that actually filming the whole thing for the documentary. Not only did Christophe need to focus on the riding, he needed to think about the filming side of things too.

I watched Dream Racer a year or so ago on an overseas flight. No outside interference, no-one asking what the story was about. With just my headphones on I was able to almost put myself there with Christophe and I couldn’t help but get right into the story of Christophe’s Dakar assault. Just this one bloke living his dream with basically no outside assistance. Perhaps this was the turning point in me living my own dream at the IOM later on.

If Dream Racer doesn’t give you a buzz or get you motivated then I don’t know what will. To use an old cliché, it really is a triumph of the human spirit.

Does Christophe succeed? You’ll have to watch the show to find out.

Next month we’ll interview Christophe to find out how hard it is to actually get yourself to the start line, let alone race it, how the video affected his Dakar race, and what’s in the pipeline for the plucky Frenchman. n

DVD is available from Cycle Torque for $24.95, Blu-Ray for $29.95

CYCLE TORQUE AUGUST 2014 - 78

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1. Essential Guide to Dual Sport Motorcycling – $55.00

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The idea to travel the world on a motorcycle did not ‘come out of the blue’ Monica’s husband Simon had this dream for 30 years. The opportunity to go arose after their three children had left school and home. Monica had a motorcycle licence but no mechanical skills and very little riding experience. She didn’t even have a motorcycle. At the end of a focussed year of preparation sandwiched between two busy jobs as a social worker she was more or less ready to go.

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About five years ago Shaun, Andy and I (Jake) started to run out of places to ride. We were sick of riding the same places time and time again so we decided to pay a visit to the Melbourne Map Centre in Chadstone to see if there was a guide book on the subject.

Much to our surprise there was nothing to be found. Sure there were heaps of 4WD and Mountain Bike books but, alas, no trail bike books. The guys in the shop were also surprised, as they had had a lot of enquiries from other trail bike riders.

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LETTERS Security

K C A B I G N I U TO RQ

JUST a thought, but what standards will be applied as to what is regarded as appropriate reflective clothing? Will there be a defined list of manufacturers or will clothing have to have an Australian Standard logo?

Reflective clothing will give Learners a false sense of security.

Cheers, Neal Gowen Hi Neal. There is no legislation forcing riders to wear reflective clothing at this stage but if it was to be implemented then I would think only Australian Standard products could be sold in shops. That said, it does open the door to online purchases etc. I also think it would be way too hard to police.

As for the learner issue, you could possibly be right in some instances but I don’t think it would be a general rule of learner thinking. Ed.

No green apple

JUST wondering when you guys are going to catch up with the real world, and release a version of your motorcycle magazine Cycle Torque for 7” - 10” Android Tablets?

Did you know that world wide, Apple’s share of Mobile phones is only 5 per cent, (Android has about 90 per cent of the market.)

Apple’s share of the Smart phone market has fallen to about 15 per cent, (Android about 80 per cent.)

And relevant to you, Apple’s share of the Tablet market has fallen from 52 per cent in 2012, to 36 per cent in 2013. (Android has most of the rest.)

With the release in July of new Samsung 8” and 10” Galaxy S Tablets - which will be higher spec and cheaper than Apple Tablets, and also new Google Nexus and other Android brand Tablets soon after, by the end of 2014 Android is expected to have at least 70 per cent of the worldwide Tablet market, and about 50 per cent and growing, of the Australian Tablet market - which you are not catering for.

If you can make an iPad version of Cycle Torque for 7” - 10” Apple Tablets, I’m sure you can make an Android version for 7” - 10” Android Tablets.

Myself, other motorcyclists and your advertisers, would love to see your articles, pictures and videos

WRITE A LETTER!

WIN A GREAT PRIZE

available on our Android Tablets this year.

This month Ross Wilson has won a Cargol Turn & Go puncture repair kit.

Cheers Available from better bike shops everywhere and Trevor Hudson there’s a video of one being used on the Cycle Hi Trevor, Torque website.

We’ve been trying to come up with an Android Send your letters (and/or great bike pictures) to solution for years, but the roadblocks are The Editor, Cycle Torque, PO Box 687 Warners Bay, NSW 2282 or email many - different screen sizes, ratios (16x9, chris@cycletorque.com.au.

4x3 etc), operating system incompatibilities etc etc etc.

The other problem is getting an app to run on the cheap Android tablets, which have An Instructor’s View slow processors and crappy graphics.

I READ Dean Finch’s letter with interest. As a riding I also suspect the bulk of the Android tablets being instructor, employed by a very reputable company that sold are at the bottom end of the market. offers learner, intermediate and advanced courses in However, we think we have a solution - check out rider training, I would like to comment on Dean’s Issue Stand from the Google Play store. Cycle Torque experience. should be available there soon, maybe from the July As an instructor in NSW, I am expected, and required, issue, maybe a little later. to follow a very structured procedure in relation Regards, to learner training. This takes little account of Nigel Paterson, Publisher previous experience or expertise, and sees all trainees start at the most basic of skills and progress through to a point where the instructor International Flavour feels the trainee is ready to go out on the road.

I JUST wanted to add an international flavour to some It is important to remember that at this stage of of the positive words you have recently received training, the emphasis is totally focused on basic about your digital editions. defensive skills. Whilst the aim is to get trainees I’m currently living across France/UK, and have out on the road armed with these defensive skills, regularly promoted the magazine and the App to both it is certainly not a “don’t let anybody fail” French and UK riders - for the Australian view mentality, and there is definitely not a “bonus system on motorcycling, the excellent articles and the for achieving 100 per cent pass rates”. occasional shots of the wonderful Land Down Under.

There are limitations as to what can be taught within I know that everyone to whom I’ve shown Cycle Torque the confines of a car park, or similar, to people now has the App on their iPad etc... and I get who are not legally allowed to undertake training regular mails from them discussing various articles on even the quietest of streets. This said, I take in the monthly releases. I also know that it has great pride in teaching trainees, at all levels, encouraged a lot of them to make the time and effort learner and beyond, the skills that will assist to get on a plane, and to hire a bike to ride some them to improve their riding and adopt the defensive of the great rides in Oz. So not only is it a great techniques that will see them become safer riders. magazine for bikers all round, but it’s helping to While Dean may be wondering why his wife was allowed support our tourism industry! Well done guys and keep to proceed to the point of applying for a learner up the good work! permit, I am confident that the system, and the vast TK majority who implement it, work well and are highly France/UK competent.

Thanks TK. We are always trying to get to Regards international readers, our readership base just gets Ross Wilson bigger and bigger. Ed.

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