Indholdsfortegnelse for June 2021 i Fast Bikes

SHARK RACE PRO GP FIM TESTED BY: Carlos MILES: 3000 TIME: 9 months PRICE: £779.99 (plus a Rich-Art Concepts spray job) WEB: www.nevis.uk.com I’m always pretty precious with what I stick on my noggin, and if I had to choose one item that was going to break the bank and be top spec, it would definitely be the ol’ melon protector. That’s exactly why I got myself an all-singing, all-dancing Shark Race R Pro GP FIM. After using Shark’s Race R Pro for a couple of years previously, I was impressed. It withstood tens of thousands of road and race miles, two crashes and a whole load of abuse, and with just a bit of cleaning both inside and out, it was absolutely spot on. Once that was retired though?…

The MT-09 that Yamaha pulled out of the bag back in 2013 arguably saved the brand from extinction. Eight years on, with hundreds of thousands of sales to its name, the time had come to repay that debt to this naughty naked with a ground-up evolution. Of course, there are other reasons for the MT’s redesign, with a core factor being the introduction of Euro5. Unfortunately, no matter how successful a bike is, no machine is safe from the ball-ache of legislation, but Yamaha saw this forced factor as an opportunity to take the MT back to the drawing board and make it bigger, better and even more of a head-case. Aside from the odd nut and bolt, everything about this bike is new, with the salient component, the engine,…

FB: After a strong 2019, last year didn’t go to plan for you, and it looked like you were struggling on the Kawasaki. Why was that? DB: “I struggled with a few things internally really, mainly around how we were getting the bike set up and a few things like that. “It was quite strange because I was qualifying well and wasn’t racing as good, and it didn’t help that because of Covid, we missed a lot of the good tracks I like, such as Cadwell – it meant that I didn’t have those confidence boosts to take me into the tracks where we were slightly weaker. “I just never felt comfortable, and I never really got going.” FB: You’ve spent a lot of time on Kawasakis in the past,…

I’ve come to realise that building a project bike can sometimes feel on a par with hitting yourself in the face with a hammer…relentlessly. Worst of all, you’re paying financially, physically and mentally for that self harm. It’s a crazy notion, right, and a sound reason for browsing the classifieds and paying that little bit more for a bike that’s fully built, MOT’d and ready to roll. So why do so many people go down the project route? The truth with this Mille build is I never really grasped what I was letting myself in for. My naivety has been an ally all the way through, just taking each blow as it comes and slogging it out in a warped war of attrition. Changing pads, chains, fairings or wheels... that…

WINNER Here at Fast Bikes magazine, we love trackdays. So much so, we wanted to give something back to you, the reader! We’ve teamed up with the lovely lot over at No Limits Trackdays to offer a free trackday every month! All you have to do is send us a picture of yourself at your last trackday for a chance to win. If you’re the lucky person highlighted on these pages, you’ve won a trackday of your choice! If it’s you, get in touch with us and we’ll look after the rest, and if you haven’t won this time, there’s always next month. There are no cash alternatives available. The winning image is drawn at random. Terms and conditions apply. To view the privacy policy of MMG Ltd (publisher of…

@FAIRMANGP It’s fair to say the world has been a pretty mad place for the last 12 months. We’ve had more than enough of the C word to last a lifetime. If there’s one thing we’re all looking forward to, it’s a gradual return to some semblance of normality. Well, I’m delighted to be the bearer of glad tidings. After what feels like the longest of off-seasons, MotoGP is back – and it’s back to normal. Normal in this context is totally and absolutely bonkers. While 2021 still looks set to be a year of upheaval away from the track, on track it potentially has all the ingredients to be another vintage year across all three classes. So, what did we learn from the opening salvos fired in the season…

PLANET FAST NEW METAL, NEWS & REVIEWS key figures for the TE-1 ► 177bhp ► 109Nm of Torque ► 18,000rpm rev limit ► 220kg ► 0-80% charge in 20 minutes It seems like a lifetime ago that Triumph first told us that they were going down the electric route, and it’s a different one to imagine, as you never quite know how it’s going to turn out. There’s always the worry it’s going to be a big, chunky, lump that just doesn’t cut the mustard in terms of performance or usability, and that costs a pretty penny too – or that they’ll just go down the easy commuter route and leave the high-spec stuff out of the equation. Thankfully, Triumph have just updated us all on where they’re at with…

With an opening sentence like that you could be forgiven for being disappointed to learn that the very vast majority of those new parts are there to help make the Hayabusa kitten friendly, and not to please the internet ‘experts’ or even current Hayabusa owners by adding to the already excess of power in the name of pub ammo and nothing else. The outpouring of negativity and outrage from the internet when Suzuki announced the details of this, the third-generation Hayabusa, was staggering. For me the reaction was more of a reflection on how high our expectations are these days rather than the accusation that was levelled at Suzuki for being lazy and missing a trick. I believe it’s thanks to just how far manufacturers are prepared to go to…

What is it? It’s Dunlop’s most street-oriented product in its premium hypersport family, with a90% road bias. SportSmart was originally introduced back in 2010 and this third-generation product is, unsurprisingly, the best yet, with a claimed 20% gain (rear grip) in wet weather performance thanks to anew compound of rubber (dual at the rear), improved grip resins and an optimised tread pattern. Dunlop’s also claiming a faster warm-up time and more even wear owing to the improved front profile that better relates to the one at the back. But the biggest gain is perhaps the rear’s 15% hike in durability, which is attributed to all of the above changes, plus tweaks to the rubber’s rayon carcass that harnesses a talkative Jointless Belt (JLB). Who’s it aimed at? If you’re a…

If you’re a fan of British Superbikes, you will have no doubt heard of Hawk Racing, more familiarly known as the Buildbase Team of recent times. The team was founded in 1996 by Stuart Hicken, and it goes without saying that these lads have been doing something right to be here 25 years on, and still going strong. The story starts with Stuart’s long and fruitful association with the sport when he started racing motorcycles in the late 1960s. His successful 12-year career saw him compete against multiple world champions, Giacomo Agostini and Phil Read, but Hicken gained as much pleasure from preparing the motorcycles as he did from riding them. After retiring from racing, Stuart went on to work in the Grand Prix and World Superbike paddock before returning…

As you can imagine, the answer is a lot! For those of you who don’t know Matt, he’s the man behind Smallboy Trackbikes – you know, those bikes you always see razzing around on track days. So what’s the score with that? Essentially, you can turn up and rent and ride any of their bikes from Ninja 650s to GSX-R1000s, but out of his armoury, the Triumphs have to be the sauciest in terms of track weapons. And yes, Is aid Triumphs… of the four of these that were built, he owns two, and looks after the other two. Lucky git. It all started long before he bought the bikes though, as they were owned by Nick Edgely, of Team Edge. They had originally bought them as Triumph Daytonas in…

Q I was riding my GS 1200 Adventure along a pretty regular two-way rural road when I was confronted by a massive balloon tyre bouncing down the road towards me. The GS has ABS but on panic braking and me probably throwing myself out of the way of the tyre, I managed to drop the bike. The tyre bounced harmlessly over my head. It turns out the tyre came off a livestock trailer towed by a quad. The lad riding the quad was super apologetic – he had fixed a puncture and only finger tightened the trailer wheel on, meaning to pinch it up properly, but he’d forgotten to. Luckily there were no animals in the trailer. However, it turns out the lad was 16 and not insured to drive…

Genius can take on many forms, and it’s not always immediately obvious when you’re in its presence. There is an utterly non-descript small workshop in the suburbs of Dudley that, since it was built in 1917, has seen the surrounding area grow and modernise while it remained virtually unchanged. To many in the area, I imagine it’s viewed as a bit of an eyesore. If you even noticed it at all, you would be hard pushed to guess what goes on behind the unobtrusive main door, blank apart from the small sign over it that reads ‘Omega Pistons’, which still doesn’t really give much of a clue about the engineering genius taking place there. At 6.45am every day, an 83-year-old man opens up the workshop, just as he has done…

Traditionally, Kawasaki’s Ninja ZX-10R model is bought by, shall we say, ‘enthusiastic’ riders? A machine that has forged a reputation for its no-compromise attitude and track focus, the Ninja sells on the fact it wins World Superbike titles and will happily allow you to head the field on a trackday. While this may not appeal to all riders, to fans of the Ninja, this is music to their ears. However, in 2018 Kawasaki made a somewhat surprising announcement and released an SE version – a full-on Ninja aimed at those who wanted a little more luxury in their life... at a price. Can you really have luxury and still lead a trackday? Kawasaki thought so, and the key to this double life was some modern tech. Although the SE is…

LEARN FROM THE BEST. For the ultimate one-to-one instruction which includes everything from initial bike checks to video playback and on/off track tuition tailored to suit all abilities from a former WSBK racer, check out Dean Ellison Rider Coaching at www.Ellison42.co.uk Gone are the days when everything you bought ‘Made in China’ just broke first time out. China is the world’s factory and produces an incredible amount of products, goods and garments to a really high standard. However, I still see the odd poorly manufactured aftermarket product that can seem like it’s saving you money initially, but will likely disappoint you just when you need it… and you’ll have to buy the same item again but from a more recognised manufacturer. Irun a little clothing and accessory shop in Leicester…

Where to begin this month?! March has been really busy and, for the first time in a while, it feels a bit more like normal. By the time you’re reading this, full lockdown should have ended (hopefully) and you’ll have been out enjoying your bikes in some decent weather! At the start of the month I’d just got back from Spain, where I was out on my own riding a range of bikes including my BMW S 1000 RR Stocker and Ohvale GP0 Evo 190. While I have been focusing on my training over this winter with cycling and conditioning, there really is no substitute for getting your ass on a bike. It was a mega couple of weeks spent keeping my eye in, ready for the year ahead! I’ve…

The 2021 British Superbike season continues to come ever closer like a steam roller. Yep, just like a steam roller. Coming at full pelt towards us at a painfully slow pace but yet with an air of inevitability that when it finally gets here, it’s coming with force. It should have been the case that just about the time I’m sat down writing this, I would have been all set for the first official pre-season test but with unseasonal snow in the air, perhaps the further delay to the start of the season is, for the short term at least, no terrible thing. The light at the end of the tunnel is certainly getting brighter by the day, especially as bikes are back on TV with the start of the…