Indholdsfortegnelse for April 2022 i Fast Bikes

Have you ever been in a really fancy restaurant, spent an absolute fortune, and come out hungry, frustrated and tempted to steal the cutlery just to even the score? Just me then! I’m all for paying a premium if the product or service you’re buying is worth the expense. In reality, any kind of purchase is a bit of a gamble, especially when it comes to buying a motorcycle. Be it new, used, or something that’s been sold to you in pieces… you’ll only truly know if it was a good purchase months, if not years, down the line. That said, a bike’s spec should give you a pretty good idea of what you’re letting yourself in for. A sportsbike with 200bhp to its name is likely to feel a…

YAMAHA XL TROLLY BAG (KITBAG) TESTED BY: Bruce MILES: All over the world TIME: Three years PRICE: £162.00 WEB: www.yamaha-motor.eu Not everyone needs a decent kitbag in their life, but if you do, you’ll want to know about this one. I picked mine up three years ago, handily arriving at a time when my previous item was on its last legs, complete with sticking wheels, knackered zips and more scratches than a child who’s just run through a thorn bush. It served its time well, but the prospect of Yamaha’s ginormous and shiny proposition gave me huge relief. Even the design of the kitbag got my heart racing because its layout was both spacious and logical. The main compartment measures in at 85cm long, 45cm wide and 45cm tall. It’s huge (150 litres), completely unadulterated…

We asked Stock 1000 champ Tom what he makes of data... FB: How much of a difference has data made to your riding? TN: As opposed to replying completely on feel, which isn’t always 100%, it allows us to go in and double-check things, be much more accurate, and basically confirm all the sensations that I’m experiencing with the bike. If there’s a problem and I can’t quite put my finger on it, we can go into the Motec system and see it all on a computer. On the flip side, I might have missed something, but the data guy can see where I need to improve so he can ask me to ride differently on the track if needed. FB: Have you ever disagreed with what the data says?…

STAR LETTER A RIDE IN THE SPOTLIGHT Hi Fast Bikes, Here’s me and my 2011 BMW 1000RR at Losail in Qatar in January 2022. I had the opportunity to do this in 2020 until Covid delayed the event to this year. So glad I did go and what a fantastic track too, plus the experience of riding under floodlights a unique experience. All you track riders should do it once – it’s an amazing time. Andy Bright FB: Hi Andy, great to hear from you. Think it’s safe to say the two-year delay was well worth the wait. It certainly is a unique experience to take on the Losail circuit at night, especially on such a great bike. Unfortunately, the best we can get here in the UK is riding…

2022 YAMAHA MT-10 Ever since it first kicked down our door and blew away our senses, the MT-10 has been a favourite of ours. For ‘22 it’s all-new, and we’re off to sample it. HOW TO RIDE ENDURO... We paired up with five-times British enduro legend Ady Smith to learn some key skills. LAPPING WITH A LEGEND! TT icon John McGuinness takes us for a spin around the TT, and tells a tale or two along the way. PLUS LOADS MORE: On Sale April 5, 2022 Buy it from WHSmith, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and all good newsagents. Failing that, try a bad one. Check out the eye-poppingly good digital edition at www.classicmagazines.co.uk Having trouble finding a copy of this magazine? Why not just ask your local newsagent to reserve…

TRIUMPH TE-1 UNVEILED PROTOTYPE If you speak to anyone in the bike trade about electric motorcycles, the answer is always the same – we need one of the big firms to launch one that’s properly engineered. The current (yes!) offerings from firms like Zero, Energica, and Harley-Davidson LiveWire are very good for what they are but remain a bit of a niche prospect for much of the market. And while the bottom of said market is rammed with budget Chinese-made mopeds and scooters, there’s still no such thing as a genuinely mainstream electric bike, in the way you have now in the car sector. That’s got to change soon – and this is perhaps one of the earliest signs: a real-world, running prototype of Triumph’s TE-1 electric bike. The Hinckley…

You could be forgiven for thinking we’ve completely lost our minds for making a comparison between an Aprilia RS660 and a Ducati Panigale V4SP – and on the surface you might be right, maybe we have lost the plot. The Ducati blew all of its rivals away on the road, drag strip, dyno, and racetrack on its way to winning our Ultimate Sportsbike of the Year test last year, so what the hell are we doing wheeling in a bike with half its power to take it on? As was correctly pointed out by some readers, the test doesn’t factor in each bike’s price, and that is deliberate. The test is called ‘Ultimate Sportsbike’, not ‘Best Value Sportsbike’. To identify which is the best in terms of pure performance and…

British Superbikes is arguably the most competitive domestic championship in the world, drawing big names from all over the globe to its grids. But it’s also a proven foundry for up-and-coming, homegrown talent. From Johnny Rea to Leon Haslam, Sam Lowes to Jake Dixon… they’ve all served time in the UK series, crafting the class they’ve needed to win big on the world scene. Such riders are now household names, proven and revered by fans and manufacturers alike, but no one’s time is infinite. Motorcycle racing is generational and the next wave of talent is quietly but confidently honing its skills, climbing the ladder and aiming for that next step along the road – riders such as British Superbikes 2021 Junior Superstock champion Jack Nixon, who now finds himself diving…

You probably think that because I race motorcycles at a British Championship level, there isn’t much I could learn from a day’s rider training on the road… well, that’s where you are massively wrong. First things first, every day’s a school day. Whatever your ability or riding experience, there is always something new to learn – whether it be improving riding skills or bettering your road safety knowledge. Touch wood, I’ve never had a road accident and I’ve always considered myself a ‘safe’ rider on the road; luckily for me, I get my adrenaline fix from the track, so when I’m out on the road it’s about staying safe and dodging the potholes, rabbits, and oncoming cars. I’m not out to lose my chicken strips and get my knee down,…

When it was revealed in 2006, the Yamaha FZ1 promised much – well, on paper at least. A genuine naked R1 with a proper chassis and suspension that was a far cry from the excellent but most certainly not sporty FZS1000 Fazer – what was not to like? Remember, this was before the super naked class really took off so Yamaha was in with a serious shot of making a bike that would tap into this rapidly emerging category of sporty streetfighters. Then we got to ride it and our dreams were shattered. Well, maybe not shattered, but definitely deflated… The issue the FZ1 (and also the FZ1 Fazer) had right from the off focused around two key areas – the shock and fuel injection. Japanese engineers often get a…

Yamaha went on to claim the 2015 British Superbike title in its new model’s infant year, a true testament to all the hard work and development from Yamaha and the dream-teaming of Shaun Muir’s Milwaukee race team with Josh Brookes in saddle. Carl’s 2016 R1M is a great tribute to the winning team with Dream Machine paintwork, which was his first upgrade to the bike when he bought it in 2018. Carl had always thought of himself as a Ducati man but when his £35,000 1299 R Final Edition blew up, he decided it was time for a change of colours and landed himself this beautiful Yamaha RIM. It was a totally standard road bike when he purchased it, but with the intention to use it on trackdays more than…

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…

Q Last summer I was riding my sportsbike home when I came across a recently resurfaced road. The entire road was covered in tiny loose chippings. It was as though they’d been thrown onto the surface and were so deep that, in places, it was like riding on ice. My front wheel lost traction and I was thrown off my machine. I partially fell into the path of an oncoming car and my right hand was run over. Despite my serious hand injuries, I feel so lucky to survive. I could have so easily been killed. I went back to the scene a few weeks after getting out of hospital. There were warning signs placed before and during the resurfacing. You could now clearly see the two lines that passing…

BRAKETECH VENTILATED BRAKE PISTONS Some posh chassis kit is destined to be on show all the time – but only you will know that these sweet Braketech vented pistons from HPS are doing a proper job on your bike. They’re produced from super finish stainless steel and have a cunning design aimed to cut heat transfer into the brake fluid. The pad side has 12 ventilated holes for increased airflow behind the pad and a limited thermal path to the fluid. Meanwhile, the fluid side of the piston features a castellated design, which increases the fluid volume inside the caliper, again to limit peak temperatures. The special stainless steel also reduces heat conduction compared with the aluminium pistons commonly used on OE calipers. These pistons are new fitments for the…

Launched only last year, the all-new RS660 from Aprilia was hailed as an antidote to the out-of-control, weapons-grade litre bike sector, which until the 660’s arrival had been pretty much the only type of sportsbike you could buy. Yamaha has followed Aprilia’s lead this year with its R7 to get in on the action and changing market appetite for a more affordable, simpler, and less extreme sportsbike. To be fair to Yamaha, it was a no-brainer to come up with the R7 – it had the MT-07 to begin with, so it had a very good starting point, unlike Aprilia. The gestation period for the RS660 seemed to take forever, from when rumours of its existence emerged to its showroom arrival. It’s not really a big surprise when you consider…

A little over a year ago, Suzuki reintroduced its trusty Hayabusa to the range after it needed a little bit of time off in order to clean its act up. It found its way back into the line-up complete with ride by wire fuel injection and catalytic converters stuffed up every available orifice to do its bit for the planet, and a posh new frock to give it a more modern look. Once again, Suzuki had a high-speed, continent-crushing mega-bike that with not much effort can also acquit itself in the corners if needed. Fast-forward to just a few months ago and Suzuki rolls out its new GSX-S1000GT, which must be one of the least catchy names for a bike since the err… GSX-S1000S.As I mused in my launch report,…

There was a time when winning races came down to big balls and even bigger bank balances… and there’s still a lot of truth in that. But these days, for any team to succeed in a credible racing championship, such as the British Superbike series, data has never been more important. On face value, it’s a pretty boring topic, spawning visions of geeks, white coats, and spreadsheets stacking higher than the Eiffel Tower, but in the right hands it makes the difference between winning and losing. That’s a fact. Believe it or not, data has been active in the motorcycle racing scene since the early 1990s, evolving with the times, just like those who’ve been tasked to absorb what it has to offer and use it to a team’s advantage…

Have you got other upgrades in mind for this bike? “I’ve got some CRC race fairings on order because its currently on the road fairings and I’ve decided I’m only going to use this bike for trackdays from now on, so I might as well save the additional weight with a set of lightweight race fairings. I’m also going to have to fit a race subframe and clock bracket to mount the new fairings, and while I’m at it, I’ll go for the carbon fibre air intake. I’ve also been thinking about a rear thumb brake, just to help keep the front wheel down more than anything, since I can’t seem to get my foot onto the pedal in time while I’m out on track.” How are you finding the…