volume 7 | issue 05
JUNE 2016
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MOTORCYCLE NEWS
Victory Will Compete In Pikes Peak And TT Zero Competition Victory Motorcycles is preparing two all electric motorcycles to compete in the Pikes Peak hill climb and the TT Zero race on the Isle of Man this year. The racer for Pikes Peak will be a modified version of the company’s street legal Empulse TT. “Victory Racing serves as an international R&D development program and test bed for future products, and since Pikes Peak is arguably the most challenging race in America –it’s exactly where we need to be,” says Alex Hultgren, Director of Marketing for Victory Motorcycles. Pikes Peak is ideal for electric vehicles because their performance does not fade as altitude increases the way combustion engine powered machines do. The 12 mile long course rises more than 4,700 feet from start to finish. Driver Don Canet says he’s “very optimistic” about their chances with the electric bike. “Pikes Peak is an ideal venue for an electric powered bike to showcase its performance potential,” he says. The company is also bringing and all new Victory RR electric motorcycle to the TT Zero competition on the Isle of Man this year. It will be ridden by William Dunlop and is a development of last year’s race machine. The bike’s motor was developed in cooperation with Parker Hannifin and is called the Parker GVM. It make 170 peak horsepower from a motor that is only 8 inches in diameter and 5 inches long. The battery for this year’s racer is more powerful and has a higher energy density. The package of battery and motor is more than 97% efficient. “Compared to the electric motor we used in the TT Zero event last year, this year’s version features an even further optimized winding configuration based on the data gathered from last year’s bikes. Coupled with the increased energy on board in the battery, William Dunlop will have access to more of the power available from this motor than in 2015,” Victory Racing’s team manager, Brian Wismann said. It was only a few years ago that electric racing vehicles were considered impossible. The pace of development in the world of motorcycle racing is rapid and may well have a spillover effect on electric car technology.
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Harley-Davidson XG750R Flat Track Bike Harley may be waking up from a long slumber. Brand new Harley Davidson XG750R looks like Harley just remembered it used to race and win. Makes you think Harley performance is coming back – Nice! No doubt about it, something is definitely going on inside the Motor Company and I like it. Take a look at this new liquid cooled flat tracker, the XG750R. That is just a great looking bike! No excuse necessary, if appearance alone won races, this would be on the podium right now. I love it. Of course, it’s a brand new bike and it takes a lot more than looks to win, but it seems Harley is investing their resources
with the intent of attracting younger customers to the Harley Davidson brand. Put something like this out an a dirt track and get the young guys fired up. The engine is a modified version of the 750cc Revolution X™ V-Twin engine designed for the Harley-Davidson Street® 750. Vance & Hines put this machine together so we’re likely looking at a bike that will evolve into a winner. If the introduction of the Roadster wasn’t enough to make you think there’s some fresh thinking inside Harley, this should be enough to convince you. Maybe some engineers went rogue, maybe they retired some managers, I don’t know what hap-
pened, but the Motor Company is showing signs of life. Whatever it is, they need to keep it up. Press Release MILWAUKEE (May 26, 2016) – A newgeneration Harley-Davidson® flat-track motorcycle is ready to race. The HarleyDavidson® Screamin’ Eagle® Factory Team is unleashing the XG750R, its first allnew flat track race bike in 44 years, to battle in fierce, adrenaline-filled competition on dirt ovals across the U.S. The XG750R will make its official competition debut Sunday, May 29, at the AMA Pro Flat Track Springfield Mile in Illinois. CONTINUED ON P.03