Innehållsförteckning för March 2017 från Fast Bikes

Yes indeed, after a solid inaugural outing in 2016 Race, Rock ‘n’ Ride is back once again at the Santa Pod Raceway –but even bigger and better! On the weekend of 20th and 21st May, you’ll once more have the chance to get busy and, should you fancy it, thrash your own machine down the hallowed drag strip in our ‘Run What Ya Brung’ competition. But that’s not all, oh no… This year there will be an official round of the ACU National Drag Bike championship running alongside everything else, meaning you get to see the fastest bikes in the UK hammering eye-bogglingly quick quarter-mile times. The world’s fastest accelerating man on two wheels, Eric Teboul, will also be doing blistering, mind altering demo runs – and this is a…

Honda’s pulled off something truly brilliant here, and it’s going to cause a ruckus in the litre bike sector . To be fair, it’s been long enough in the pipeline. But the big question is: has Honda’s 13th generation Blade been worth the wait? Undeniably so, is my considered opinion after a day spent flogging the guts out of the standard CBR1000RR and higher spec SP model around a warm and winding Portimao race circuit. It all kicked off with a chance to swing a leg over the base model Honda, which packs 189bhp, just like its fancier and costlier SP-version sibling (and the even more exotic SP2 which won’t be with us till May). Fundamentally, the RR and SP share the same motor, frame, swingarm and mostly the same…

FANCY CLOCKS A new TFT dash is in place to brighten up the rider’s view. It’s essentially been nabbed from the RC213V-S, and gives clear information on a whole load of details, such as speed, revs, gear selection and setup data, like engine brake selection or the chosen power and torque control levels. The clock interface can be switched between three different modes – Circuit, Street and Mechanic – to guarantee the user the most relevant info for the situation. ÖHLINS ELECTRONIC SUSPENSION Unlike the base model RR, the SP version comes kitted with Öhlins electronically adjusted suspension as standard. It’s a semi-active system, which means it reacts in milliseconds to the feedback of numerous different sensors, including brake pressure, throttle position and engine RPM. Using aspecial Suspension Control Unit…

EXHAUST The Akrapovic full system offers three benefits. The first is more power, to the tune of 12bhp at peak, with plenty more oomph available across the range – after the air filter and map are also added. There’s less weight as the system is no longer road legal. And finally the exhaust looks superb – and so it should at this money. TYRES You can obviously stick whatever tyres you want on, but these Dunlop KR slicks were something else. Offering stunning grip and impressive consistency, they really are fabulous and convert you from being utterly average to nigh on a riding god! SUSPENSION WP grace the standard bike, and as the company is owned by KTM, why wouldn’t you stick some of the firm’s trick stuff on the…

“POWER IS THERE, BUT NOT BEFORE IT PLAYS A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK.” In truth, I should have started with the Suzuki GSX-R750, but my excitement levels at riding something new were peaking. Saying that, this Slabby is effectively brand spanking new, what with it being rebuilt at last year’s Motorcycle Live. This is almost as authentic as a first generation GSX-R750 gets, although a few nerds might complain at the polished fork legs or use of Allen bolts in the brake calipers. We’re in geek territory now... Whatever, this was the father of all current superbikes. I sit in it, heave my feet onto the pegs, stretch out to the bars and the position I’ve found myself in is as alien as anything I’ve ridden in the last…

Is it wrong for a 30-year-old man to scream like a seven-year-old girl? Well, even if it is, I had no control over my vocal chords as I clung for dear life to the tank of Lee Bowers’ vertically mono-wheeling ZX-6R stunt bike. Let’s backtrack a bit. Having had a 13 second health and safety briefing to moderate loss of limbs in the event of a probable crash, I’d essentially handed Lee the keys to my destiny, putting my faith in the rude talent he’d shown during a day stunting on Santa Pod’s slick, rain-drenched strip. From hands-free wheelies to riding in circles going backwards, Kawasaki’s acclaimed stunt rider had not just rewritten the laws of physics, but taken the coveted rules of every advanced motorcycling organisation and disproved their…

SHIFTING MADE EASY ... Q I’ve got a 2008 Kawasaki ZX-6R with a Power Commander, and I’m looking at a quickshifter. Do I have to buy a Dynojet item to work alongside the PC? A No, of course not, but it’s a common question posed in the workshop. There are four cylinders, four lower injectors for low RPM running, and four upper injectors that chime in around 8,000rpm on the ZX-6R. If you want a quickshifter to cut in at, say, 10,000rpm, the bike will need to cut all eight injectors (you can’t solely cut four, and cutting the fuel on eight injector bikes will work fine but you will get a harsh transition), so Dynojet offers a secondary fuel module to adjust the upper injectors and use…

MY FRIEND JERRY... A good friend of mine (I would even call him a fatherly figure), has been recently diagnosed with cancer. He’s a tough, stubborn Irishman and will fight until the end, however he knows it’s coming. I first met him at a local track day and we immediately clicked. He soon became my mentor both on and off the track, passing down his riding and wrenching knowledge so that I could one day do the same to other youngsters. Jerry Cutler is approaching 70 years old and continues to whoop ass on track (including mine), however he senses that the cancer treatments may hold him back from any further excursions. He has been and continues to be an inspiration to me and to others around him. Oh, and,…

FB heads down under to give Suzuki’s MotoGP inspired Gixer a good thrashing. We cock aleg over the latest metal, including Triumph’s Street Triple, Ducati’s SuperSport and Kawasaki’s compact but lethal Ninja 650. …As well as being taught how to go sideways in six simple steps by a Marquez-beating-Brit. AND LOTS, LOTS LOTS MORE STUFF: ■ Used Yamaha R6 buyers guide ■ What VVT is and why we want it ■ Life with an ex-BSB superbike On Sale 7th March, 2017 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…

When the last round of big motorcycle shows opened their doors, we were surprised that there was no new Street Triple revealed. We knew one was coming, and we knew it’d be a larger capacity than 675cc, but nothing was forthcoming from the British manufacturer. A lavish unveiling launch at the beginning of January in dat dere London finally allayed our concerns with not one, but three new versions of the Street Triple – the S, the R and the RS. All three are powered by an uprated, redesigned and larger capacity three-cylinder engine. More than 80 parts are new, including the crank and the Nikasil plated aluminium (increased bore & stroke) barrels. All three versions have different states of tune, mostly through different cranks, although much of it will…

1: ARENACROSS 18TH FEBRUARY Even with the UK’s inclement weather, 2017 doesn’t necessarily have to start when the sunshine appears. Arenacross is making somewhat of a resurgence and, while it will never compete with our septic tank buddies, it offers supercross entertainment in stadiums up and down the country. By the time you read this, the championship will be reaching its crescendo but the finale is staged at Wembley’s SSE Arena and comprises bargain family enjoyment and unreal atmosphere. An eclectic mix of pyrotechnics, loud music, a shouty MC and pampered gusset accompany the racing, which in itself is a bar-banging bonanza. 2: GET ON A TRACKDAY ALL YEAR ROUND! Why not begin with a trackday at Donington Park for under a ton? Recently taken over by Mr Palmer and…

I hope so. What we had last year won a race; I nearly won and Jason (O’Halloran) did. To have such a drastically improved bike is only going to help. There are four or five aspects of the new Blade which will transfer over to the BSB bike and aid it. I noticed riding it today that the new stock motor’s already much stronger than last year’s road bike; the new one’s so much more responsive and sharper too. Obviously, those advantages alone are going to make a big difference to the road bike. We’re going to have to do a bit of fettling with the ride-by-wire throttle to dial it in to suit my style. Last year’s cable system was calibrated to suit my preferences, but this new bike’s…

There are many marks along motorcycling’s relentless march forward that denote a point of progress. Initially little more than a steam-powered pushbike, the motorcycle has first lovingly embraced the internal combustion engine as its eternally beating heart, then settled on basic chassis design before making massive progress in braking and suspension to a point of arrival called convention. Early breakthroughs by the British, French and Germans were later capitalised on by the Japanese from the 1950s onwards. More recently tastes have reverted back to European flavours in this post millennium age, while the Indians and Chinese are doing the copy and paste thing for their own markets. We’ve only been riding the things for 150 years, but the most staggering advances have been made in the last 30 years –a…

The S1000RR is an incredible bike, as any recipient of our Sportsbike of the Year title should be. In many ways the parallels to the Suzuki are clear –what with it bossing production racing at the TT and in superstock classes. It has also found fans galore on the road, who marvel at how a 190bhp bike can be such a breeze to pilot. And it’s not just the electronics working their magic here, it’s intrinsic control born from sound chassis design principles, sublime fuelling and all the trickery behind the semi-active Sachs electronic suspension. I’m not about to write another love letter to the BMW here, we’ve done that during our SBOTY test and also when we pitched the Beemer up against a race-kitted ZX-10R a couple of months…

Throttle pinned, teetering on the powerband, awkwardly contorting over my miniscule steed, the Christmas extremities lurking between fresh rolls of flab were palpable. Squeezing every fraction of throttle tube and trying to at least look fast, I assume I’m flying. But then Fraser Rogers – one of the UK’s juiciest road racing talents and top Kawasaki in last season’s BSB Stock 1000s –whizzes past and slams my visor shut like we’re on a bloody fairground ride. I felt like crying. CRASH FEST This is the time of year I’m reminded of being overweight for many reasons. The now annual post-Xmas minimoto endurance race has been resident at Swindon Karting Arena for several years now, manifesting into the biggest minimoto race in the UK and a who’s-who of motorcycle racing. With…

It’s true that we of FB are not generally of an off-road persuasion, especially when it comes to the sports side of motorcycling. Oh, we love it just fine, but in the grand scheme of things it’s not really our bag, you know? When it’s properly hardcore though, such as the Dakar Rally, we’re all in! And this year especially is a good one for us, as Sam Sunderland astride his mighty KTM, a lad from these very shores, became the first British competitor to win the event. Go on, Sam! This edition of the rally, the 38th, kicked off at Asuncion in Paraguay and blazed its way through Bolivia and Argentina. Incredibly, this is the 16th time in arow that KTM have won the Rally, a near unbelievable dominance.…

Well now, Triumph will be supplying Moto2 engines from 2019 and onwards, with their new 765cc triple which will first be seen in their new range of Street Triples. As Iwrite though, this is allegedly, as nothing has been made official. In fact, I’ve heard that at the recent launch of the new bike whenever any question regarding the Moto2 situation was asked in Triumph’s direction, the response was a blanket and resounding ‘no comment’. Now, I do know that Triumph representatives visited MotoGP on a couple of occasions, as will anyone else who wanted to tender for the contract. The likelihood is that it will indeed be Triumph as I can’t see anyone else really wanting the job, and by anyone else, I mean the main manufacturers. Honda were…

Okay, so there isn’t a great deal we can tell you about the SP2 version , other than if you want the fanciest Blade Honda has to offer, you should be running down to your local dealership and handing over some cash. How much cash? Well, there’s the question. At this point in time there’s been no official price released, but we’d guess it’d probably be around £25k. Basically the SP2 is Honda’s homologation racing special, which carries quite a few different features to the RR and SP, including lightweight Marchesini wheels, a launch control feature and a substantially tweaked motor. To give this bike the best chance of ruling the race track, Honda’s enhanced the combustion chamber, fitted different pistons and introduced new valves to the revised cylinder head.…

This is a motorcycle, there’s no two ways about it. Every element, bar one, points to a beautifully designed, immaculately peppered machine. There’s a set of chunky Marzocchi forks at the front, at whose ankles sit a brace of Brembo calipers. The swathes of swooping carbon fibre fairings partially hide a steel tubular trellis frame, while the upside-down swingarm is a work of art. At the rear there is a Bitubo shock and OZ rims grace both ends. Every element looks like a real weapon – especially if you’re trying to stare it out with those two spotlights glaring at you. It’s only when you look for an exhaust, or the wiring and plumbing for the bike, or, if you’re playing intimate attention, a clutch lever, that you’re left scratching…

“BY THE END OF 2006 THE KING OF SPEED WAS DEAD – REPLACED BY THE ZZR1400.” KLEEN KLEEN is Kawasaki’s emissions-helping system that injects clean air into the exhaust to help burn off unburnt fuel. Some owners reckon it robs the bike of a bit of power and remove it, others argue this is a waste of time and effort. Generally it is best to get an unmolested bike, just to be safe. If you want to remove KLEEN, there are hundreds of how-to guides on the internet. AFTERMARKET EXTRAS There are quite afew modified ZX-12Rs out there, so be a little choosy. Avoid any with engine tuning aside from an end can and air filter as more than 165bhp isn’t really that necessary on the road. A taller…

SCREW THIS –I’M OUTTA HERE! My name is Lisa, I am a 29-year-old biking enthusiast and thrill seeking junkie. I am about to embark on an impending solo motorcycle trip of around 3,000km of mixed terrain through Vietnam from Ho Chi Minh City north to Hanoi in just shy of four weeks. I have quit my busy stressful job in London as a marketing exec and decided to do this trip to feel the real freedom of the open road and do what I love for a bit. I leave in exactly 14 days. I still have a lot to do but am I ready? Of course I’m ready! My adventure will then take me on to New Zealand where I plan to buy two more wheels out there and…

GREAT LAUNCH ROADS: MALLORCA, YAMAHA MT-09 Starting off from Palma, head west on the Ma-1 motorway for a gentle start. Take a right at Palmonova on the Ma-1015, where things get interesting as you zap into the hills. Join the Ma-1031 then hook the Ma-10. Now, you’re going to be on this particular ribbon for some time, and if offers up corner after corner. Some of it can be tight, and beware in the mornings as many corners may be wet as they sit in the shadow of the mountains. The Ma-10 wriggles its way along the West coast until you hit the mountains in the North. These are some lovely stretches, with scenery you’ll desperately want to stop to admire on more than two or three occasions. Heading southeast…

So, Stuart, now MSV has Donington Park, what’s the first move? The starting point with Donington is good, it’s stable, and there’s alot of headroom to push the circuit on. It’s early days yet though, of course, we need to just evaluate the potential scope of what can be done in the short, medium and long term. Running a track is a hard task though, right? I don’t think we’ve ever had such a period where circuits’ dilemmas dominated so much news space. It’s tough, it takes a considered, lean model of operation to make them work against ever increasing obstacles, noise being the big one. We have to work very constructively with our neighbours at all the circuits on this alone. We also have to diversify where possible, too.…

If we’re talking about proper factory signed British Grand Prix racers, and not those who’ve deputised for teams along the way, the last time we had such a Brit flying the flag in the premier racing class was Niall Mackenzie on the Lucky Strike Suzuki RGV500, way back in 1990. Okay, unless you count the Jeremy McWilliams’ Aprilia Cube efforts or KTM’s exploits with Señor Shakey Byrne. But neither of the latter rides seemed to pack the credentials of what’s now being offered to Oxfordshire’s most established GP rider. Having rocked the world on his Tech 3 Yamaha in 2015, finishing the highest Brit and sixth overall in the MotoGP standings, it’s fair to say 2016 was a forgettable season for Bradley Smith. Well, unless you factor in his unprecedented…

Morning y’all, how are things? Did we have a festive and happy holiday season? I did, thank you, and it got me away from answering seemingly unending questions about WSB’s new format for the grids in 2017. If these changes are news to you, then if I win race one on a weekend, for example, where do you think I would start from in race two? Ninth, that’s where, as everything has been mixed up. The podium moves to row three, and the two rows of finishers off the podium move up themselves ahead of me. Now, many have asked me whether or not WSB actually needs something like this, specifically. Honestly, probably not, but at the same time do something, sure, to try it out. But otherwise, no, the…