Indholdsfortegnelse for September 2021 i Fast Bikes

SHOEI X-SPIRIT 3 HELMET TESTED BY: TIM NEAVE MILES: 2000+ TIME: 4½ YEARS PRICE: £599.99 (PLAIN COLOUR) WEB: WWW.SHOEIASSURED.CO.UK TEL: 01384 413841 Ever since I started road racing, I only ever wanted the very best protective equipment. The Shoei X-Spirit 3 provides me with exactly that, and I couldn’t be happier to have one on my head when I’m riding. It’s even more reassuring to know that the fastest rider on the planet, Marc Marquez, feels exactly the same way and there’s no denying he’s been the very best test dummy. This lid is built with a shock-absorbent shell with AIM+ and hasa modular EPS liner system with multiple densities, making it ultra-strong yet light weight. The helmet is fastened with a double D-ring and features an EQRS system for…

STAR LETTER KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK Gents, Just want to say I think you are doing a cracking job with the mag. It’s great to see a group of people who still have the passion for sportsbikes and the ability to write so well about them. I’m sick of hearing about (in other publications, not yours) adventure bikes and how wonderful they are, and why sportsbikes aren’t relevant anymore. Pah. Nonsense. Please keep it up. You really are the last bastion for us sportsbike-loving readers. And in print form, too! The e-readers can sod right off! Lastly, John’s article on Omega pistons was fantastic. What a brilliant insight. Genuinely one of the best articles in a bike mag I’ve read in more than 21 years (I know, I need…

How good was the Triumph compared to your rivals in terms of top speed and handling? “We were down on top speed, and that always showed on the speed traps, but I’d say I probably had more grunt off the corners… I just lost out in the long-run. I suppose it didn’t help with me being a bit bigger than everyone else, especially when you’re against smaller riders like Lee Johnston. When it came to handling though, the bike was really, really good; I always felt like I could carry more corner speed, brake later and literally place the bike exactly where I wanted to… I could run rings around people in the corners – we just lost out in a straight line.” When you go back to the TT,…

In October 2019 I handed back my last long-term test bike, Honda’s CBR650R which had kept things interesting on the roads whilst my trusty CB500 saw me safely through my first ever race season. Racing had been so much fun in truth it had a detrimental effect on my road riding – just getting a little too fruity here and there, and I decided to give myself a bike break for a few months. Thanks to covid this scheduled ‘break’ turned into a full year-and-a-half without a ride, which has got to make you rusty, right? Thus it was with some trepidation, aligned with the obvious excitement and appreciation, that I accepted the Triumph seat for Fast Bikes for 2021. Originally the plan was for the Trident to come visiting,…

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 Last issue we looked at the risks and rewards of buying a used, ready-built track machine. It is a bit of a lottery because quite often you're buying on faith, and the hope that the bike you're purchasing is what the seller claims it to be. That reality can be a different story, and a lot of people end up being burned by their new buy, with very little scope of going back to the seller and getting any help or compensation. With these factors in mind, you'll probably…

IN BRIEF… Rider: Farmer Brod Track: Anglesey Series: No Limits Racing Class: Pirelli Super Series 600 Bike: Yamaha R6 Fastest Lap: 1:10.6 Position(s): 5th ,8th ,5th Championship Position: 6th Excuse: Holiday mode Round five of the No Limits Racing Championship definitely proved to be a blinder, and the weather was nothing short of scorching. After a successful outing at Croft, we headed over to Anglesey for the next stop in the calendar. Anglesey is definitely a firm favourite of mine for a race weekend - and not just because there’s plenty of sheep to look at. I went into it with my mind set on continuing to finish in the top 10 and maybe make progress into the top five. It’s easy to set unrealistic goals with racing but after…

Q I had a lovely BMW S1000RR which I sold last year in between lockdowns. The bloke turned up, test rode it and fell in love straight away. I knew he was going to buy it and we agreed a price £100 off my asking price. He paid me cash for the bike there and then and rode it away. I got him to sign a receipt and I updated the DVLA new keeper system online. I only had a few weeks left to run with my insurer on the BMW and so let the policy run on the bike. I didn’t think it would be a problem and I wanted to get another year’s no claims bonus for my new bike, a Ducati. I purchased the Ducati a month…

A lot has happened in the last month, and the race season is now well and truly under way. I was hoping for the arm pump op after it cost me podium finishes at Oulton Park, but it didn’t come off in time and so I’ve been having massage therapy instead. I didn’t suffer with arm pump at Knockhill thankfully, but instead the weekend turned into a shoulda-woulda-coulda kind of meeting. I had all of the pace and potential to be on the podium and fighting for wins in the races, but we had a technical problem which meant a DNF in race one. The team did a great job getting that sorted, but in race two we suffered with a gear selection problem… I’m sure a few of you…

I’m just coming to the end of my 10-day holiday in Majorca and it’s been an absolute scorcher. The UK heat wasn’t quite enough, so we thought we’d get over here and try to melt ourselves. Anyway, getting back to it, I’ve had a busy month. I’ve been down at the Brooklands Museum for a live audience chat show with Maria Costello as my guest, and then I was straight to the Goodwood Festival of Speed. It’s one of my favourite events and it was great to be back after missing it last year…even better, wehad the fans there to enjoy it with us, which makes all the difference. It’s just one of those events that brings everyone together, young and old, and for me it’s a throwback in time…

SPORTING GESTURE: 2022 KTM RC 8C It’s been more than five years since you could buy a proper sportsbike from KTM. The Austrian nonsense-mongers dropped the ugly-but-awesome RC8 superbike back in 2015, and since then we’ve yearned for a proper full-fat sportsbike in vain. Okay – the Super Duke 1290 and even the Super Adventure 1290 are both properly crackers, and we’re definitely all over them. But perhaps surprisingly for a firm which won four MotoGP rounds last year with its pure-sex RC16 race bike, there’s been little sign of a new, orange, track-ready machine. Until now, that is. Say hello to the RC 8C – a limited edition track-only weapon of a bike, powered by the 890R Duke engine and built by KTM’s close partner, Krämer Motorcycles. Krämer has…

It’s true that recently at Fast Bikes we’ve had a lot of new bikes to get to know as the 2021 offerings eventually found their way to these shores. That doesn’t mean we don’t love a nice used bike; in fact, with the price of anew litre bike now starting at the best part of £16,000 for a Kawasaki ZX-10R, the case for a used alternative is a strong one. On top of that, the global shortage of a microchip that is used in pretty much every bike’s ABS system means the waiting list for new machines has never been longer. So, this year more than any other, the second-hand bike is in more demand than usual. We decided to pay a visit to my newest local used bike dealer,…

THE LAST 30 YEARS OF TRIUMPH’S WINNING WAYS Since the firm’s inauguration way back in 1902, a lot of water has passed under the bridge and countless trophies have been won by Triumph race bikes of all types and sizes. But perhaps some of its greatest endeavours have come in the last three decades, following the brand’s rebirth in Hinckley at the hands of John Bloor. Triumph rose from the ashes once more, not just in the showrooms, but also out on the racetracks, too. With such a pedigree, it’s probably no surprise that even in its infancy the manufacturer wasted no time in getting back into motorcycle competition. One of the Hinckley factory’s first production models was the 900cc Speed Triple that was quick to win favour with riders…

The Yoshimura exhaust system that’s on order for my ‘busa hasn’t arrived yet, so sadly there’s no update this month on the weight saving and power gains it promises to bring. Fingers crossed that by next month I’ll have all the answers. In the meantime, I took the Hayabusa for a 500(ish)-mile road trip to Wiltshire for a day at the Avon tyre factory for an upcoming feature and took a long detour home via R&G Racing for a poke around there, too. The Gen3 Hayabusa has got some much-publicised new bodywork that has typically divided opinion among people, but more so it has caused the folk at R&G to cook up a new crash protection set-up for it. To be honest, I wasn’t sure what process R&G would use…

IN ASSOCIATION WITH NO LIMITS TRACKDAYS WANT TO WIN? To be in with a chance of winning a No Limits trackday, send us a pic on our Facebook page or email one to letters@fastbikes.co.uk Closing date: 30th August, 2021 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 and we’ll look after the rest... and…

What is it? Dunlop’s GP Racer Slick is derived from the D212 GP Pro - Dunlop’s Isle of Man TT race specification bloodline, the new GP Racer Slick delivers the ultimate race-level grip for demanding trackday riders, endurance and club racers. This tyre boasts key track technologies, such as the brand’s NTEC carcass at the rear that allows for pressures to be run lower for a broader footprint and higher levels of adhesion - delivering the kind of performance, handling and endurance that until just afew years ago was only available to factory-backed teams. The race-derived mould profile makes for a faster turn-in and reduced steering effort, and the new construction, combined with compound development, provides improved endurance for sustained racing performance. Who’s it aimed at? The GP Racer Slick…

Hey there everyone. Well, the usual things have been going on since last month; I’ve been really busy at the shop and sorting stuff out with the racing. We have been racing No Limits Endurance at Anglesey circuit. It’s strange having never raced there or trackday’d there before in all the years I’ve been racing, so I was quite excited to get a run round the place. As an added bonus it was my first time out on the CFMOTO lightweight bike too. The great thing about riding one of these bikes is with it being a little bit slower it gives you more time to have a look out on the circuit and learn it, and also to admire the view coming back down towards the Corkscrew. The spec…

PETRONAS FP1 It was one of the most fiery and curious bikes to grace the World Superbike grid in the early Noughties, and we’ve somehow managed to spin some laps on one. BEAUTY VS. BRUTALITY They’re both exotic, pricy, and feature the same three cylinder 800cc motors. Which was better – MV’s Super Veloce or the Brutale 800? There was only one way to find out... TRIUMPH DAYTONA 600/650 It came, it conquered, and it cleared off. But it also got our juices going, and if it did yours, you’ll want to check out our buyer’s guide.…

HPS ISR CUSTOM BRAKE DISC SERVICE We like this a lot. Top Swedish brake firm ISR has launched a new custom manufacturing service that lets you buy totally bespoke brake discs. You can specify your own diameter, offset, drilled, plain, floating, semi-floating or fixed carrier – and the Swedes will bosh them up for you. You can even have special coatings and quality damped floating bobbins. It’s the perfect solution if you’ve built a fancy special, or even just if you’ve swapped a front end or wheel over. They also supply uprated discs in standard sizes and spec for straight replacements. UK firm HPS runs the service, and the prices are very decent indeed – a 300mm GSX-R1000 disc starts from £222 for a straight replacement floating design. There’s an…

Here at Fast Bikes it goes without saying that the sportier the bike, the better it usually is. Even so, it’s nice to have a little bit of comfort thrown in now and again; as fun as it is holding on for dear life with a savage superbike, it’s not quite the thing for 600-mile days and a shed-load of touring. And also, let’s not forget about the whole age thing – superbikes these days are getting smaller and more compact than ever, and if you’ve had an ‘entertaining’ life with the scars to prove it, sometimes, it’s time to just move onto that next stage… but that doesn’t mean you have to be boring and head down the GS route, oh no. There are other options on the table…

How can any red-blooded sportsbike fan look at the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 and not desperately want to throw a leg over and give it a damn good thrashing? A bike that screams about its MotoGP heritage, the all-new R1 marked a huge turning point in Yamaha’s litre bike’s development. Gone was the slightly lardy older crossplane generation, replaced by a racing whippet loaded with all the modern gizmos and even had a full-on M-model sibling that boasted more bling. However, this change did come at a cost – both financially and in terms of practicality... When the covers were pulled off the 2015 R1, Yamaha made no bones about its target audience. Designed as a ‘high performance pure sport motorcycle’, Valentino Rossi was (they claimed...) involved in its design, and…

Jack Valentine is a name that needs no introduction to racing fans. Among his many achievements, he is credited as the man who put Triumph back on the map with ValMoto’s racing achievements in the early Noughties. To relive those moments and learn more about them, we asked him… Who contacted who? How did the deal with Triumph come about? “I’d just finished with V&M Racing, set up Valmoto and was looking for a new project. I’d heard a rumour that Triumph was looking to make a return to racing with its all-new Daytona 600, so I put a presentation together and went over to the Triumph HQ to meet the guys. They liked what they saw, it got signed off, and we went from there.” What was the bike…

CHECK OUT THE VIDEO! To keep you all entertained and to offer a bit more depth, we’re also filming this whole project. So find a comfy chair, grab yourself some popcorn and check out the project’s videos that will be hosted on the Fast Bikes Magazine YouTube channel. If you’re following British Superbikes you’ll know just how frantic and full-on the 2021 season is. So much so that the lads have barely had time to pop home and change their underwear in between meetings, which has meant progress with our R1 project bike has been steady to say the least. Actually, steady is an exaggeration… there’s been zero change since our last catch-up, but that’s not such a bad thing. Since we got this ball rolling, transforming a streetbike into…

This is not your everyday BMW. It may look like the latest M1000 RR but it is, in fact, a 2020 S1000 RR that’s had the all-singing and all-dancing parts thrown at it by Crowe Performance in Lincolnshire. As if the standard road bikes weren’t already fast enough, this machine has gone from being a £20,000 road model to a £50,000 fire-breathing racing missile in a relatively short space of time – and here’s exactly what £30,000 worth of upgrades looks like. Carl started trackday riding on a Triumph 675, and after that first taste of circuit riding he was absolutely hooked on the sport… Iknow many of us can relate to that! With a year on the Triumph under his belt, he was ready to sample 1000cc power, and…

Winner winner, chicken dinner. I’ve had two of them since my last instalment as the BSB circus has completed rounds two and three of the series and as I write this now, I have the red plate. The red plate, by the way, is something from the off-road world. Basically, the leader of the championship gets to have a red background on their numberboard. We don’t do it in BSB but we totally should – it’s cool. I’ve led this championship after both the Knockhill and Brands rounds, and both times I’ve posted a picture of a red dinner plate on my Insta. Needless to say, almost everyone has zero idea why – but you guys do now! So, we made our way up to Knockhill for the second round…