Table of contents for June 6th 2018 in MCN

Until I was about 30, I was never bothered about going to America. It seemed fake and brash and full of annoying people. Then I went. I loved it and everything about it. One part of the States is so different from another and several riding trips, including Route 66, convinced me just how amazing this place is. But I would not have known or changed my view had I not given it a go. Riding around the TT course is a similar thing. Many can’t understand why anyone would want to thrash your own bike on open roads around the treacherous circuit on Mad Sunday. The clue is in the name after all. Then you do it and nothing is ever quite the same. Get up early with a…

Under the watchful eye of a Douglas Dakota and two Arnhem veterans, Royal Enfield unveiled the Classic 500 Pegasus: a special version of the Classic 500 styled on the RE/ WD 125cc Flying Flea. Flea by name For those of us who are not history buffs, the Flying Flea was a lightweight 125 used in the Second World War. The Army had come up with the idea of throwing people out of planes and realised that when they were down there, the soldiers needed to get around. At first they tried bicycles but that didn’t go particularly well, so they had they idea of dropping lightweight motorcycles – enter the Flying Flea. So light a solider could lift it above his head and capable of speeds in excess of 40mph,…

Changes to insurance rules could kill off racing according to industry bosses who have called on EU member governments and MEPs to reject new European Commission proposals. The proposals arise from an EU directive that amends aspects of the Motor Insurance Directive. The new directive also responds to the so-called ‘Vnuk’ judgement from 2014, which ruled that all mechanically propelled vehicles must have third-party insurance, even if they are only used on private land. The insurance industry has already made it clear that it would be difficult to provide such cover given the risks involved with racing and that doing so could be incredibly expensive. In other EU countries where this has already been applied, premiums made many events unsustainable. “It is now vital that our motorcycle sport and industry…

‘Fire stations will be able to train more frequently’ Biker Sam Massey is collecting old helmets to help train firefighters on how to safely remove them following an accident. He’s amassed over 20 so far, which are to be used by the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, and is on the look out for more. “Being both an avid biker and a funeral director I’d heard it’s very difficult to remove a helmet safely following an accident,” Massey said. “If done incorrectly, it can result in a more serious injury or death. “I’ve friends in the services and was shocked to find out that, although they receive theoretical training, they rarely practice removing a helmet because they don’t have helmets to do it with. “My hope is that by…

Parallelogram linkage Allows the bike to lean. Parallelogram linkage is cast aluminium and hollow to save weight KYB forks Two sets each side. The front leg is 41mm and the rear is 43mm. Adjustable rear takes care of shock absorbing duties Steering tie-rod Connects to both the left and right assemblies, and allows Ackerman steering geometry Wheels Yamaha went for 15in wheels to increase agility thanks to their reduced inertia. 17in wheels make the bike too slow to steer The launch of Yamaha’s Niken gave us the chance to find out more about the bike and its parallelogram front-end. For the first time, Yamaha stripped down a Niken for us to see exactly how it works and revealed geometry that is wildly different to a normal bike. To make a…

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HONDA MT50 My old Honda back in May 1981. I still have bikes, five and counting, but I have fond memories of this. Peter Cuthbert VICTORIA MODEL 155 My first bike in 1964. It’s a 50cc two-stroke and quite unusual. Wally Fogerty ARIEL ARROW This bike had a red tank and I’ve never seen another one like it. Dave Barber APRILIA RS125 My first real bike was this Aprilia RS125 two-stroke back in 2013. It still managed 84mph lugging 19-odd stone. Mike Mosely YAMAHA FS1-E I had the hair, the bike and the girl. Well it was my cousin Kim actually but I loved that FS1-E, bought from The Bee in Liverpool. Robert Mutch YAMAHA FS1-E My brother-in-law Paul on his Fizzy in 1984. Andrew Cooper TRIUMPH TIGER 100 My…

Oh, the anticipation. The sky is blue and the tarmac is sticky, and my mates and I have the whole day ahead to get to grips with the latest generation of electronically suspended superbikes: machines dripping with exclusivity and a plethora of riding aids that can turn normal folk into trackday superstars. Yes, the motorcycling world has moved on from those knee-sliding, sportsbike-obsessed days of the 1990s, but for me it still doesn’t get much better than this. But first a dose of reality, because here, in a car park in Oundle at the top of the MCN250 test route, we are all frowning into the bikes’ TFT clocks: scrolling, cancelling, switching off-switching on as we try to make sense of the electronic options on offer. Bruce and Jimmy wear…

‘When the traffic melts away and the road opens up, all three bikes are magic’ We headed to Mallory Park to set a lap time. All three bikes come on Bridgestone R10 rubber and although we could have personalised the suspension on all three, we decided to leave them all in a semi-active mode, but on their sportiest settings. Riding aids were reduced to a minimum. As you can see from the figures below Yamaha’s R1M was the king of the track, half-a-second quicker than the Honda and almost a second quicker than the Kawasaki. It feels like the most race bike-like on the road, which translates perfectly to the track. The riding aids, including ABS, are the least intrusive. It revs faster and turns quicker. The Honda was second,…

When it comes to high quality cables there’s really only one British name, but if you ride too fast north out of Dorking you could easily miss it. Located in the same, humble, two-storey premises (on the left, just before the railway bridge) they’ve occupied since the 1970s, Venhill were born out of motocrosser Chris Ventress’s frustration with cable breakages. So he started making his own. Then friends began ordering from him and a partner, Colin Hill (hence the name) came on board. The rest, as they say, is history. Nearly 50 years on the company have expanded into hydraulic hoses and are now also the UK agent for Magura and more. But Venhill continue to hand-make their products entirely on-site and retain the same ethos of well-engineered replacement cables…

“ They used to sit up here on the hillside and fire mortars at the people in the town,” I’m told as I shovel food into my mouth. Not a line from Thomas Cook’s latest brochure admittedly, but the arresting truth of Croatia’s all-too-recent history. If you’ve not gazed east just yet, Croatia is going through something of a tourist renaissance. But there’s so much more to Croatia than sports bars and stag-do hangovers, it’s also home to some of the finest riding roads in the world. Riding heaven Heading out of Split, on Croatia’s southern coast, there are two riding options. You can head along the coast road, which is a well-ridden path but packed with drivers glued to their phones, or you can head up into mountains towards…

‘Even on tickover it sounds period’ 100 miles Even before throwing a leg over Kawasaki’s new Zed I’m smiling. It’s a stunner. So often manufacturers try to copy historic designs and fall short. Kawasaki, however, have hit the retro nail squarely on the head. It’s a beautiful blend of nostalgia and modernity. The classic Kawasaki green really looks the business, especially with that single headlight and 1970s throwback nose cowl. Settle into the saddle and the journey back in time continues. The seat is wide, and surprisingly high. I’m only 5ft 6in and it’s a stretch around the large fuel tank to the dropped bars. Chrome analogue clocks are a lovely touch, with only the modern switchgear detracting from the authenticity. Even on tickover it sounds period, giving the impression…

THE STUDENT Chris Murat, 43, Peterborough Ducati SuperSport rider Chris has come back to biking after a break while ‘life got in the way’. His first bike was a VFR400. Chris’ riding problem ‘I’ve been away from biking, and have never had ABS before so I’m not confident about how hard I can brake if I have to stop fast.” THE TUTOR Mark Edwards, Rapid Training A police motorcyclist for 18 years, Mark has been training people to be faster, safer, better riders on the road for 20 years. Mark’s action plan ‘I’ll break down the process for Chris so that he knows how to brake hard, then get him to do it hard enough to activate his ABS.’ THE LESSON 1 It’s all about stopping FAST Chris is braking…

‘II’ve been riding bikes ever since I saw my brother-in-law’s Yamaha RD350 YPVS. My parents instantly said: “You aren’t having one.” So I went to my nearest dealer and bought a Yamaha RXS100. It was delivered to my house and he then taught me how to ride at a local airfield.” After passing his full test, Nigel progressed from a Divvy 600 (in bright yellow) to a Yamaha FZS600 Fazer and then an FZ6 Fazer, which was quickly swapped for a Bandit 650 as it didn’t match up to the original Fazer. Next on the list was Suzuki’s underrated Gladius, a Honda CBR500R (he liked it so much he had two) before he dabbled in the supersport class with a Suzuki GSX-R600 L1 before an SV650 and finally the V-Strom…

• Yamaha legend grabs third again • Viñales fed up and wants to see major changes Valentino Rossi has told MCN that his hopes of lifting a tenth world title in 2018 aren’t yet gone, after a useful podium at his home race. Unable to beat the Ducati duo of Jorge Lorenzo and Andrea Dovizioso, he was nonetheless able to get his championship restarted with his second successive third place. Now second in the championship and just 23 points adrift of leader Marc Marquez after the Honda rider’s crash at Mugello, Rossi admitted that there’s still plenty of work to be done by Yamaha if he’s to turn the M1 back into a genuine title challenger. “To fight for the victory in the championship we have to go faster. If…

• ‘The heat from the bikes in front was just melting the front tyre’ Cal Crutchlow put a difficult weekend behind him by coming home sixth and top Honda at Mugello. Struggling with the same tyre allocation issues as Marquez and still not back to full fitness after his punishing crash last time out in Le Mans, Crutchlow managed to leave with ten valuable championship points. He said: “It was damage limitation, because when we tested here we were a second a lap faster with track temperatures 20 degrees lower. The tyre allocation didn’t work for us and it was a risk on the hardest or try to manage the medium front. Marc took the risk while I tried to manage. “The heat from the bikes in front of me…

Andrea Dovizioso got his championship aspirations back on track with a strong second place at Mugello. The Italian couldn’t match team-mate Jorge Lorenzo but still managed to take a useful 20 points out of Marc Marquez’s title lead. Mugello is one of Dovi’s favourite tracks and is one that saw him transform his fortunes last year with a stunning victory. While he couldn’t repeat the trick on Sunday, he was still happy with the overall result. He said: “We could have had five points more but going home with 20 points in this heat and with Marc scoring a zero is not bad. We started this season in the best way in Qatar, and we’re more competitive and faster, especially in tracks where we struggled last year. Marc still has…

• New tank helped Lorenzo take victory • Says Ducati should have listened sooner Jorge Lorenzo stunned the MotoGP world by showing a return his old form in Sunday’s race at Mugello to take an utterly dominant victory. Looking much more like his old Yamaha-mounted self, the five-time world champion led from start to finish to take victory by over six seconds from team-mate Andrea Dovizioso. The Spaniard has been asking the Italian manufacturer repeatedly to help alter the ergonomics of the Desmosedici to make it easier for him to ride, a request they finally granted for their home race. The Desmo is a very physical bike and this time around Ducati came up with a modified fuel tank that allowed Lorenzo to exert less energy during the race. He…

‘Bikers help other people, it’s what we do’ MARK HAWWA, RIDE SUNDAY FOUNDER Ride Sunday is a new charity event started by the guys behind the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride. Operating in a similar vein, riders meet up and ride together raising money for their chosen charities in the process. The first event was on Sunday, June 4, and over 1200 riders participated globally, covering over 85,000 miles on 239 separate rides. Mark Hawwa, founder of Ride Sunday and the DGR, pledged to cover 1km for every $1 he raised, ultimately riding over 3000km. “The idea for Ride Sunday began in 2014 and there are lots of reasons why we have created it,” says Hawwa. “We want to create the ‘International Day of Riding’, to bring motorcyclists together to foster an…

This diamond-encrusted showpiece has been made by a Swiss watch firm and will set you back £1.4 million. Bündnerbike have made the Blue Edition which has more bling than an American rapper’s entire entourage. Sliver-plated metalwork You might not be able to tell by looking at it but the Blue Edition started life as a Harley-Davidson Softail Slim S. In fact it took a team of eight over a year to design and build the bike. That’s because every single metal part has been produced, welded, beaten, ground and polished by hand. Even the rims are custom-made but before we get to the bodywork, let’s talk about the engine because that’s rather special too. The blue coating starts with the engine. The whole thing has been silver-plated, before six colour…

Yamaha have just launched the XT1200Z Super Ténéré Raid Edition in the UK. Featuring a wider bashplate, high screen, handguards, fog lamps and two 37-litre aluminium panniers, in either Yamaha blue or Tech Black with carbon sidepanels the bike is aimed at serious adventure riding. But there are loads of great do-it-all machines out there for a lot less than the £15k-plus super-duper Super Tenere. Take your pick. 2018 XTZ1200Z What is it? This the Tenere with nearly £3k worth of accessories added to make it more of a rally bike. It’s not really a new bike, but a standard machine with loads of accessories added to turn it into a globe-trotter. MCN says “It oozes character, but is heavy and expensive.” Want to buy one? £15,849, £179 a month…

‘Once we slept on a park bench and got pestered by drunks!’ R5K MEMBER GRAEME DAWSON Married couple Graeme and Sally Dawson clock up almost ten times the average mileage each year on their Honda Pan European and say that just like marriage, riding a bike with a passenger is all about teamwork. The couple recently finished as the top pillion bike on the super-tough Brit Butt Rally, a high-mileage riding challenge where bikers ride the length and breadth of the country with the requirement of having your photo taken at landmarks outlined in a road book. The winners are decided on who clocks up most miles combined with points for getting photographed at the correct landmarks and return to the start point within 36 hours. “This is our seventh…

Kindness is key The other day I left my Kawasaki ZZR14 in my friend’s garage in Brighton. I live in Alderney and a fast bike is not required there. It took my mate about 15 minutes to lose the only key I’ve got! So after turning the garage and his flat upside down, we checked all the taxi companies in Brighton: no luck. I made enquiries to a company called Motomatrix about re-programming the ECU and getting two new keys. All possible, but for a hefty £350. As a last resort, my mate tried the police station and there it was. Some kind soul had found it in the street. The officer at the station said they almost never get keys handed in, so I thank the kind person who…

There is nothing quite like a good ride to the seaside, and this week our quest to find Britain’s best biking café takes us to the tip of Essex’s ‘Sunshine Coast’, where we check in with the folk who frequent the Revved Up Tea Bar at Walton on the Naze. “The idea was to create a mini Ace Café on the coast,” says owner, Paul Barnes. “We’re right on the beach and I’ve set the whole thing up for bikers to have a good time.” On a sunny day the location is superb, but Revved Up is far from seasonal as Paul explains: “We open throughout the year from 8am to 8pm and sometimes stay open later. Even in the depths of winter our customers know they have somewhere to…

Before Saturday I hadn’t ridden a bike for 386 days, since I came off at Primrose Hill at the North West 200. Despite signing for Norton earlier this year, as I recovered from my leg injuries, I hadn’t actually done a lap on the thing. We were hoping to get some testing done, but it just couldn’t happen with my injury setbacks. ‘I COULD HEAR THE FANS CHEERING, EVEN OVER THE V4’ So to be setting off down Bray Hill for my first ride on the SG17 was a little daunting. But I absolutely loved it. It was a special day to be back on a bike. Sticking the leathers on in the motorhome beforehand made me nervous. I had the TT track to myself on the Norton. It doesn’t…

It’s Britain’s best road test route. A tough 250-mile mix of A and B roads, a stretch of busy motorway, plus plenty of towns, villages, blind corners, ballistic straights, and a huge range of grippy to slippy different tarmac. There’s two cafés, an off-road section for adventure and trail bikes, track time at Mallory Park, and Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground and the dyno for hard and fast data when needed. You want answers? We’ve got ’em. 1 Fast money We have close to £60,000 worth of bikes with the Yamaha topping the table at over £20,000. The R1M’s data logger neatly nestled into the seat hump and Öhlins make it the most eye-catching. While the Honda lacks the jaw-dropping appeal of the Yamaha, it is a more sophisticated package. The ZX-10R…

‘The setting makes you feel like Stoner’ Working so closely with their MotoGP team in its development, it’s no surprise the new Ducati Panigale V4 S is so advanced. With its counter-rotating crank, its whizzyup-and-down bits are a marvel, but the zeros and ones inside its brains are just as jaw-dropping. All the bells and whistles Fitted with an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), the Ducati comes with a smorgasbord of lean-sensitive rider aids: engine braking control, spin, slide, suspension damping and even the autoblipper changes depending on how far you’re banked over. But what the V4 does on the brakes is even more impressive. To rear or not to rear There’s always been a debate among riders and racers on whether you should use the rear brake, especially on a…

3. RE-EVALUATE If you’re stopping faster than you need to, try to back off to increase your grip safety margin, or do the opposite if you have to! 2. BRAKE HARDER As weight transfers to the front wheel, you can then load it harder with increased braking force and add in the rear brake 1. FRONT LOADER Load the front tyre with your initial braking force to achieve the maximum braking power. This is crucial if you don’t have ABS DANGER ZONE Not understanding your brakes’ capabilities could result in under-braking in an emergency, risking an avoidable crash 5. COM POSURE It’s easy to find yourself stopped in fourth gear and flustered. Learn to quickly evaluate the scene and recompose 4 . STOPPI NG Putting your left foot down when…

• ‘Race Direction should do something’ An angry Danilo Petrucci lashed out at Marc Marquez after Sunday’s race, blaming the Honda rider after the two made contact in the first corner, with Petrucci adamant the move cost him any chance of a top three finish. “It’s unbelievable, because I almost crashed and I lost seven places. All the work we do in qualifying is wasted. Race Direction should do something because we said in the safety commission that if a rider ruins another rider’s race they’ll get penalised. “I did something less serious in Argentina and it was as if I was a killer. I don’t normally complain but he wasted the work of a lot of people, because it wasn’t in the plan to push a lot in the…

Marc Marquez saw his title lead slashed from 36 to 23 points after an uncharacteristic race spill at Mugello. After what was his first crash out of a race since last year in Le Mans over a year ago, he was adamant that there was nothing to be gained by examining the causes too closely. He said: “I don’t want to learn anything from the weekend because I want to forget about it! In the morning, I had a perfect bike and in the afternoon, it was completely different, and what I’ve learned from that is that we need to manage the situation better. I’ve also learned that I can crash again, but that’s something that I already knew! We’re human, we make mistakes, and it’s been a year since…

Peter Hickman blitzed the opposition to take his maiden TT victory in a thrilling Superstock race that saw him come within three tenths of Dean Harrison’s outright lap record. The Smiths BMW rider didn’t make it easy for himself, running on at Bradden Bridge and losing almost 20 seconds on the opening lap. But Hickman was on a mission when he rejoined and he set an incredible speed of 134.623mph from Glen Helen to Glen Helen. By the time they came into the pits at the end of lap two he was in the lead, but a slow pit stop saw him lose four seconds on rival Michael Dunlop. However, a rapid third lap saw him regain the lead before a 134.403mph last lap saw him beat Dunlop by four…

• ‘Dunlop has a good tyre but Metzeler has closed the gap’ Despite two of the three podium places in Saturday’s Superbike race being claimed by Dunlop riders, Dean Harrison’s phenomenal lap times on Metzeler rubber has added even more intensity to the TT tyre battle. Rumours of problems with Dunlop rubber were sparked by Michael Dunlop claiming he had suffered ‘rear end problems’ on his Tyco BMW. “We had problems with the tyres at the North West 200 and there is a different issue here,” team principal Philip Neill told MCN. “Everything has to gel but for some reason it isn’t working at the moment and Michael can’t get it working the way it should,” he continued. Peter Hickman who uses Dunlop tyres for road racing but switches to…

Thirty-year-old Dan Kneen was enjoying the most successful spell in his decade-long Mountain course career when he sustained fatal injuries during last week’s TT practice. The Manxman crashed his Tyco BMW at Churchtown near Ramsey during Wednesday evening’s session. The winner of three races as a newcomer at the 2008 Manx Grand Prix, the British championship regular had 15 top ten finishes at the TT, including his first rostrum in last year’s Superstock race. Following periods with the Burrows Suzuki, Mar-Train Yamaha and Padgett’s Honda teams, Kneen’s excellent performances at the 2018 Ulster Grand Prix, where he deputised for the injured Ian Hutchinson, secured a ride with the Tyco BMW squad for 2018. Kneen set his fastest ever lap of the TT, at 132.258mph, 24 hours before his fatal crash.…

A horrified Mike told me: ‘Flat out? I was only joking’ STUART GRAHAM Motorcycling legend Mike Hailwood has been posthumously inducted into the Motor Sport Hall of Fame. Hailwood’s addition comes after tens of thousands of fans all over the world voted for him. Stuart Graham, who rode with Mike at Honda and presented the award to Mike’s widow Pauline, spoke highly of his team-mate. Graham said: “It’s a great honour to present Pauline with Mike’s award and his entry into the Hall of Fame. He was a lovely bloke and sorely missed by all who knew him, so I’m absolutely delighted he’s getting the recognition he deserves. “I first joined Mike in the Honda team in 1966 as a replacement for an injured Jim Redmond. It was my first…

‘They took everything within six minutes’ Having completed three Dakar rallies including two in the unsupported Malle Moto class, Lyndon Poskitt is no pushover. But even he struggled after he was robbed on his way to the hardest races on earth. “We were travelling southbound on the M11 on our way to Erzberg,” says Lyndon. “We parked up and went to get something to eat. We were inside for six minutes. By the time we came out everything was gone. They stole my two Alta Redshift MXR race bikes, our camera equipment, tools, clothes, generators: everything. It was about £40k-£50k worth of kit. “Watching the CCTV footage and speaking with the police, it seems they waited near the slip road and followed us into the services. They then parked next…

It costs nearly £19k: £5k more than the stocker 1 Dripping in carbon The dashboard cover, airbox cover, front and rear mudguards and the fuel tank sides are all carbon fibre 2 CNC lovers Custom CNC alloy details including brake, clutch levers, oil filler cap, fuel filler and fluid reservoir covers 3 Pipe work The exhaust silencers have a special black ceramic coating, exclusive to the LH44, to give it a mean and moody look 4 Proof in the pudding Each bike comes with a certificate of authenticity, plus a custom bike cover MV Agusta have had a long relationship with Lewis Hamilton, resulting in him helping to design the Dragster 800 RR LH44 and the F4 LH44. After the success of both models, they’ve now unveiled a third: the…

‘Balance of bikes and atmosphere is always spot on’ Over 50,000 people headed to Killarney in south west Ireland last weekend for Ireland Bikefest, the largest free motorcycle gathering to grace the Emerald Isle. Now in its 12th year, it featured a packed programme of events over the three days, including the Harley-Davidson Experiential Zone, demo rides, a custom bike show, live bands, great food and a family-friendly atmosphere. “Ireland BikeFest is a fantastic way to meet other bikers,” says BMW 650 rider Emma Philips, who lives in Killarney. “I was here for year one and have been to every festival since. Every year we make new friends.” One of the festival’s highlights was the BikeFest parade. The fund-raising rideout saw 1500 bikes thunder through the town centre. The local…

It was with interest that I read in MCN that MP Diana Johnson is demanding that petrol stations stop selling petrol to illegal riders. How do you tell? My local garage has been blatantly discriminating against bikers for months. It displays this notice on all of its pumps. I have been told twice that I will not be served unless I pay first. I will not under any circumstances be handing over my contactless debit card to any petrol station cashier. I have checked with a police colleague of mine and he said that he is sure this notice would not be sanctioned by the Met police. I get that I should remove my helmet and have no issue with that. I now boycott my local garage. Clive Cooper, email…

The dated Kawasaki clocks reveal the bike’s true age. Despite being a new model for 2018 the clocks remain unchanged, and aren’t as appealing as the others. The dash is hard to read and the digits are too small. In comparison, the Honda and Yamaha both feature full colour TFT dashes. On the Honda, you can flick between road and race mode. Both the Honda and Yamaha are far more complex, with a vast amount of info, which at first is a little intimidating. However, they become simpler the more you use them. YAMAHA Aside from the small nav wheel on the right bar, the majority of the buttons are on the left. The Yamaha is the least intuitive to get to grips with of this trio. KAWASAKI The middle…

1 Starting from the outside Cables start with the outer conduit, available in three different diameters (plus twin coil speedo cable conduits) and in masses of colours so you can match them to your bike. 2 Conduit cutting The conduit is cut to length on a mechanical cutter. These are done in batches but one-off jobs are possible. 3 Fittings A huge variety are available including bends and threaded adjusters. They are added using special machines. 4 Inner core The inner cable is then selected (either ‘strand’ or ‘rope’, stainless or galvanized), measured and cut according to spec. One end is then ‘birdcaged’ to take the nipple. 5 Threading Nipples are selected and then soldered onto the birdcage and the other end threaded into the conduit. 6 Finishing The cable…

We first rode BMW’s standard K1600 B (for Bagger) last summer, an overtly American offering that features the same super-smooth and powerful inline six-cylinder engine as BMW’s K1600GT. The standard K1600 B has the ‘streamliner’ design with fixed side cases and integrated lights. Now BMW have gone one step further with this, the K1600 Grand America. Fully-dressed looks This fully-dressed bagger is equipped with a large top case, complete with backrest, has integrated indicators and brake lights, while its electronic windscreen has also increased in size. The Grand America also now features footboards as standard. The large top case looks classy (especially at night) and has remote central locking, but some feel it spoils the flowing lines of the stock Bagger. Speed weave More importantly, the top case limits safe…

Most of the last 1000 miles with Yamaha’s crazy but capable middleweight has been a hoot, but there has been a period of adjustment for both us is. Quite literally. The thing that sets an MT-09 SP apart from a standard MT is its suspension. At the front, the MT has a set of KYB forks and at the rear an Öhlins shock. Both are fully adjustable. Great, apart from one thing, they’re set far too stiff as standard. The forks are the worst culprit. The first bounce aroused my suspicions, the first ride confirmed them, with the front end crashing over bumps and using nowhere near its 137mm travel. Happily, the KYB forks have both high and slow-speed compression adjustment. The high-speed controls bump absorption, the low-speed supports the…

DAVENTRY MOTORCYCLE FESTIVAL, DAVENTRY, JUNE 9 ‘Great day out for the family’ This festival is a great family day out with a fun fair, bouncy castle, live music and even a stunt show. The event is run to support the SERV Blood Bikers, so if you see a bucket for donations, please give generously. The route Starting from Grantham, take the A607 towards Melton Mowbray. Take it easy because while this road is fast, it has some tricky corners to catch out the unwary. At Melton pick up the superb B6047 as its cuts down towards Market Harborough and enjoy this fantastic bit of tarmac that is full of ups and downs and has a great surface as well as some wonderful views. It really is a great road to…

Who hasn’t dreamt of owning a Ducati sportsbike? That glorious blood red paint, the booming desmo V-twin exhaust note and those gorgeous Italian supermodel looks. Ducatis had a reputation for being unreliable with high servicing costs. Some of the horror stories may be true, but with our expert’s help you can snap up a styllish bargain. So what should you buy? £8950 1998 DUCATI 916 916cc | 195kg | 109bhp | 790mm seat height • Dealer price £6000 to £12,000 • Private £5000 to £10,000 • The one £8950, private sale The 916 arrived in 1994 and is powered by the Desmoquattro motor, which started out as 916cc. The 916 was originally sold in monoposto or biposto form (with or without a pillion seat) and in 2000 the 996S introduced…

1 Preperation is key First check your manual for the procedure for removing the carbs. Our Kawasaki KR-1S is fairly typical for a twin in that the seat and tank need to come off, along with the air filter. Before you do this, make sure your work area is well ventilated and that the petrol tap is in the off position. Make a note of how the fuel and breather pipes are routed. 2 Disconnect the choke Remove the cables where they fasten onto the carbs, but leave them connected to the lever at the controls. In this case, the choke plungers are secured by two 14mm nuts. Undo them and make a note of how they are routed. At this stage, you should also have a look at any…

MotoGP returns to Silverstone for the GoPro British Grand Prix on August 24-26, and this year there’s a whole new fanstand available dedicated to our British riders, as well as five more supporting Ducati, Suzuki, Aprilia, Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi. Always the first to sell out, the Valentino Rossi fanstands are located at Copse B and C, with the Suzuki fanstand supporting Andrea Iannone and Alex Rins occupying the Copse A grandstand. The Marc Marquez stand can be found over at the Village complex, taking up the whole of Village B, flanked by the Aprilia fanstand taking over Village A. If title hope Andrea Dovizioso or a rejuvenated Jorge Lorenzo better suit your allegiances, then you should grab a seat in the Ducati fanstand, located at Luffield. All of…

Repsol Honda team principal Alberto Puig has ruled out any talk of World Superbike champion Jonathan Rea joining the team for next season, quashing rumours that the Northern Irishman was close to penning a deal with them. “His manager approached me in Le Mans to ask if we had an interest in Rea and I said no. Frankly we are not considering this; we are considering other things. It is not that we don’t think Rea is a good rider but I was straight to them that he is not in the range of riders we are considering.”…

• ‘He’s in a serious but stable condition in Liverpool’ Questions currently remain unanswered after Jackson Racing rider Steve Mercer suffered serious injuries after colliding head-on with a course car during Wednesday evening’s Isle of Man TT practice. The incident occurred after the red flags came out following Dan Kneen’s tragic crash at Churchtown. An official Honda Civic Type R course car was en-route to the incident but a number of riders were making their way back to the TT Grandstand the wrong way around the course at the same time. This resulted in a collision between the car and Mercer aboard a Honda Fireblade. The 36-year-old was flown to Noble’s hospital before being transferred to Liverpool for specialist treatment where he remains in a serious but stable condition. A…

Conor Cummins returned to the Superbike TT podium for the first time since 2014 when he was runner-up to Michael Dunlop on the Padgett’s Honda. The Batley-based squad had worked through Friday night to build the 32-year-old a new engine for his 2018-spec Fireblade ahead of Saturday’s race. “The pace has been red hot this year but I’m settling into the new Fireblade well,” the Manxman said. The Ramsey rider established himself in third place on lap one, steadily building a 21-second gap between himself and James Hillier on the Quattro Plant/JG Speedfit Kawasaki ZX-10RR before Harrison’s retirement elevated both up the final order. “We did a couple of BSBs and it has sharpened me up a little bit.” Cummins explained. His fastest lap of 132.589mph was just four seconds…