Innehållsförteckning för January 2018 från Fast Bikes

A hysterical Boothy, sat stationary on the Racer at some traffic lights in Lincoln, said: “Boys! Check this out.” He sounded like he’d just unearthed a clitoris for the very first time, but no, it was Boothy’s first taste of a Boxer engine and its idiosyncrasies as it shimmied back and forth from upright to one side upon needless throttle jockeying. First we were treated to the original R nineT before BMW released the Scrambler, and the R nineT floodgates opened with a Pure, Turban and this, the fifth incarnation of the Boxer-powered platform: das Racer, ja. First off, this is the finest looking R nineT of the five. No question. You certainly attract more attention aboard the BMW. While the Yamaha faded into insignificance as just another street bike,…

Have you ever had flies in your teeth? I have. Lots of them, and that’s an experience I would’ve missed out on if it weren’t for the joys of open face helmets. I thought Bruce was pulling my leg when he told me to arm myself with leather chaps, goggles and a peaked lid for good measure, but this was no Village People revival he had in mind. Oh no! It was a chance to live out a day as a hipster. You know, one of those trendy folk who have slicked back hair, carefully pruned moustaches and drink light beer while watching live feeds of the stock exchange. Not that I’m being judgemental, or owt. I’m not that kind of guy. Live and let live, as they say, and…

PHILLIP ISLAND AUSTRALIA Twenty-one hours on a plane is up there with being smacked in the balls with a barbed baseball bat, but it’s a chore worth suffering for the delights of Phillip Island. I had my first chance to ride there this year, and it didn’t disappoint in the slightest. Wide, stupidly fast and effortlessly flowing, it took only a handful of laps to note why it was a firm favourite of so many top-level racers the world over. Not even the masses of suicidal geese perched on ridiculously fast apexes was enough to detract from the once in a lifetime experience, wherein I tasted the circuit’s relentless highlights first-hand. On a place so full of greatness, it’s really difficult to pinpoint the pinnacle of the circuit, but Lukey…

I haven’t had a bad career… I managed three World Championships, four British Championships and some solid road racing wins including a record six at Macau thrown in for good measure! I feel like I’ve been lucky enough to ride a massive variety of bikes, big and small... and I’m even luckier that I’m still able to do it. I never thought I’d end up becoming a teacher! When we came back to England for a bit I really wanted to get a race school going, and both Honda and Donington at the time were well up for it. I thought that I would just come along and ride some bikes, but we ended up running it and that was 21 years ago with 17 bikes. Now we have over…

Woolich Racing is one of the better known ECU flashing software companies on the market, which was started by an Aussie’s desire to better the performance of his beloved Suzuki B-King. Numerous years later and founder Justin Woolich’s products are now responsible for bettering tens of thousands of bikes’ mapping annually. We got all quizzical with the genius… Which bikes benefit most from a remap? All bikes. But when you say a remap – I’d specify that a custom tune is where you will see the benefit. Every bike is an individual and should be tuned appropriate to what it needs to run best. Send-in flashes and ‘canned’ maps will not give anywhere near the best results. How do you go about producing the hardware and software to map a…

I’ve heard of people going for suit fittings, dress fittings, and even shoe fittings, but rearset fitting was new to me. Still, I rocked up at Chaddy’s workshop for said engagement and got a bit of a surprise while I was at it. I knew him and his mate Neil had been hard at work on the Moto3 bike, but what I didn’t know was they’d dressed it up as a hipster mobile, complete with a minimalist seat that was suitably sized for a four-year-old, and a tank so huge that it could fuel you all the way to China. Thankfully both components were quickly removed from view, leaving some impressive welding work to drool over. Having dropped the bike off with the guys a month back, they’d been busy…

It’s been an interesting year in the racing world, where we’ve seen riders who’ve already taken multiple titles secure yet another. In BSB we had Shane Byrne winning his sixth British Superbikes crown, meaning the press office will be working feverishly to figure out a zingy rhyming catchphrase for 2018, the rhyme being related to the number seven. Six titles is a phenomenal number, and we really can’t rule out him. By the time he eventually decides to retire, he’ll have won so many it’ll take decades for anyone to best his tally. Then in WSB there’s Jonny Rea, with his third on the bounce (the first man to do so), Carl Fogarty’s four-title record now in danger of being matched. His race win record will undoubtedly fall in 2018,…

In whatever sphere of life we venture, rules are there to keep us in check, whether that’s riding a bike or driving a car on the road, going about our daily business in the street or toeing the line in the corporate workplace. Without them, we are bolloxed. In sporting circles too, it’s no different as in order to make it as fair and competitive as possible all round, markers have to be laid down as to how it all operates otherwise there’s little point. Some rules stay the same indefinitely – the offside rule in football being a case in point – and others change with ridiculous regularity (NASCAR Playoffs anyone?). And as with any rules, new or ancient, people will always look at ways of manipulating them for…

Despite my season coming to a premature end it feels like I’ve been busier than ever of late. I didn’t get the chance to watch Taz racing in Moto 2 during the season as most of the dates clashed, so I decided to jump on a plane and catch the end of his flyaway rounds with a trip to Sepang in Malaysia. Although the flyaway races involve a lot of travelling they’re really good fun for all of the teams because there’s a couple of days downtime that everyone gets to spend socialising away from the stressful environment of a race circuit. The first day I managed to venture into Kuala Lumpur for a spot of sightseeing with Taz and John Mcphee, and the second day was mostly spent trackside,…

Hello all, I’m currently back in Andorra after a pretty busy couple of weeks. It’s just starting to get a bit fresh here as it’s started snowing. Had a bit a few weeks ago, and quite a bit more yesterday and though it’s not sticking just yet, it’s coming! Gotta watch it around here though if you’re up a little mountain lane, you can get caught out quite easily. Otherwise it’s nice to wind down a little bit before our 2018 season starts next week at Jerez. So, a short break, but one nice to have regardless. Obviously I went to Qatar with one thing in mind, securing second place in the series. I got a little lucky in that my rival for it, Tom Sykes, had an issue on…

The Welsh Road Race will return to the historic Eppynt circuit in 2018 and is intended to be the biggest road race on mainland UK tarmac in the last 50 years. The race will be held on a ballsy 5.25 mile circuit in remote rolling countryside, complemented by designated viewing areas, purpose built grandstands, plus catering and retail facilities over a two-day racing period. It is hoped that the race can eventually be expanded into a five-day festival, supported by the establishment of a road race academy for young and old racers alike. The first event will take place on the 4th and 5th of August 2018 featuring the following classes: Ultra Lightweight – 125cc to 250cc, Lightweight Supertwin – 650cc, Welsh RR Zero – Electric, Supersport – 600cc and…

Having hit the ground running at the beginning of 2017, Suzuki have given their GSX-R1000 range a brand new bright white paint scheme option, alongside a stealthy black take on their MotoGP GSX-RR livery. The GSX-R has had a successful year taking both the MotoAmerica and Australian Superbike titles, alongside the Senior TT win and a heap of other National race wins all over the world. It will cost you £13,599 for the GSX-R1000 and £16,099 for the GSX-R1000R that comes equipped with an inertial measurement unit-controlled traction control system with 10 settings, cornering ABS, launch control, a quickshifter and auto-blipper alongside Showa’s race-proven balance free suspension.…

“IT’S IMPOSSIBLE NOT TO BECOME ENGROSSED IN THE XSR’S ATTITUDE” My opening prose may not come as a shock to some, but here goes. The XSR is a jazzed-up MT-09, or jazzed down depending on how you look at it. This equates to supernaked fun and frolics clothed in retro apparel, not to mention endless wheelies and the constant urge to do so. But what this also means is a retro bike with classy components that supplies sporty dynamics without (too much) compromise – something that’s been missing from the class until now. If you fancy looking retrosexual AND shaming £20k superbikes, there really isn’t another option. About 99% of the MT-09 remains with additional plastic and aluminium bolt-ons for aesthetic pleasuring, which means the XSR weighs in at a…

Tons of you out there will have done a trackday and thought there’s no greater thrill than jumping on your pride-and-joy road bike and flying around the likes of Brands Hatch or Silverstone at whatever speed you want/can. You would be nearly right; there is one thing that’s better and that’s flying around any of this fine isle’s multitude of circuits on something that doesn’t have thousands of pounds worth of lights, mirrors, bodywork, paint, pillion pegs and all that malarkey to worry about. If anything is going to detract from the fun to be had on the circuit it’s the thought of taking home your beautiful road bike in numerous boxes or bin bags, because bin bags aren’t cheap you know (not if you’re investing in the decent ones),…

YOUR JUDGES ARE… To rate the best of the best in 2017, we’ve rounded up our finest (and only) staff on the mag. YAMAHA M T-10SP In truth I’ve ridden some absolute corkers of bikes in 2017, but it’s the MT-10SP that stands out as being my favourite road bike of the year. I first got acquainted with it on its launch back in February and was quickly smitten with its easily adjusted electronic suspension and fancy paintwork. It looked every bit the desirable super-naked, and later transpired to back up the looks with the goods when pushing the bike to its limits (and mine) around some mountainous kamikaze roads in South Africa. In reality, the motor and frame are near enough identical to the stock MT-10 package, but that…

SPADA CURVE EVO CONTACT: www.spadaclothing.co.uk PRICE: £469.99 Having decided to go-racing on a budget this year I wanted to keep things real, so thus opted for a budget suit from Spada. This choice wasn’t a reckless one though, as I’d experienced the brand’s high quality of build previously, having worn the Spada Predator in the past; a suit with an incredible reputation. As an off-the-peg purchase the Curve Evo fits me perfectly, featuring good quality malleable leather, stretch panels, double and triple stitching in the most essential places, and even an inside pocket that I store my beloved mobile phone in – obviously I go hands free when I’m racing. All brilliant qualities, hence why I’ve had no need to look at any other suit this…

IMMOBILISER Early K-Series bikes had issues where the immobiliser antenna ring failed, meaning the bike didn’t recognise the immobiliser fob and therefore wouldn’t start. Most issues should have been cured by now, but it is something to be aware of. UPDATE The K1200S became the K1300S in 2010 and as well as a larger capacity 1293cc engine it gained 8bhp and 9.5Nm of torque. The K1300S is generally reckoned to be the more reliable machine, however early models did suffer from switchgear failures due to water ingress. Prices start at £5,500. CAM CHAIN TENSIONER The cam chain tensioner is a bit crude on the K1200S, causing the motor to sound like a bag of spanners until the oil pressure has built up. It doesn’t physically harm the motor, but swapping…

Len Whalin will modestly call himself one of the technical coordinators for YPM, with the additional responsibility of looking after both the club bike and rider that hires it. Two roles that he does extremely well, but there is much more to the man that gives up his weekends and holiday time for the love of the series, the riders and the TZR. Len has been working with bikes since 1973 when having left school he joined Stan Shenton’s Boyers of Bromley, a shop that built, sold and raced motorcycles. This was soon to become an official Kawasaki dealership and the Boyer Team Kawasaki was born initially running the air-cooled H2Rs, much to the interest of the US. This is when Len was introduced to the likes of Erv Kanemoto…

FB: What is the role of a brake line? MA: These days most bikes come fitted with disc brakes and a hydraulic braking system. The way the system operates is that when you squeeze the brake lever, brake fluid is forced through a hose until it reaches the calliper, where a piston pushes the brake pad against the brake disc, creating friction for braking force which in turn slows the bike down. Essentially, brake lines create the vessel to get the fluid to the caliper. FB: So cable operated brakes are no good? MA: It is possible to use a cable operated system on a bike, as was done over time for generations, but these would struggle to cope with the pressure required to slow down 200kg of bike at…

ITALIAN STALLIONS Pitching Ducati’s 959 Panigale against MV’s new F3 800. ELECTRONIC SUSPENSION It’s becoming more common than whiplash claims, but is electronic suspension here to stay? GET FIT, RIDE FAST! How to knock seconds off without even touching your bike. PLUS LOADS MORE GREAT CONTENT, INCLUDING: ■ HOW DO TREADED TYRES STACK UP AGAINST RACING SLICKS? ■ PROJECT GIXER THOU IS GO! ■ TECH(NO)! ARE RIDER AIDS WORTH THE MONEY THEY COST? On Sale 9th January, 2018 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…

You might have read last month that we have had a bit of a last minute change of machinery for the Macau GP, as I had a kind offer from the Lee Hardy Racing Briggs Equipment Kawasaki team to run me on the ZX-10R that Jake Dixon has been racing in BSB... and luckily it goes as well as it looks! We worked really hard with it while we were there and found lots of ways to improve the setup, which they had struggled with throughout the year. My god I’ve got a lot of respect for Jake with the speed he has gone and the results he has got on that bike as they are just awesome, but I think we have transformed it into a much easier and…

In addition to Kawasaki’s ZX-10R and the more track focused ZX-10RR, the company is now offering the ZX-10R SE, which is its first supersport motorcycle equipped with Kawasaki Electronic Control Suspension units front and rear. Having won a third consecutive World Superbike title in the hands of Jonathan Rea, it’s fair to say that the ZX-10R range is already a very capable family of motorcycles, but the introduction of electronically adjusted units is likely to move the goalposts even further. The SE has been equipped with Showa Balance Free Front Forks and a Showa BFRC Lite Shock, which are actually of the same construction as the Kawasaki WSBK spec machines so come laden with the very latest technology. This includes stroke sensors and adjustment solenoids which are built into the…

It’s not just GSX-R1000s that are getting a snazzy colour update for 2018 from Suzuki, as the GSX-S1000FZ and GSX-S1000 get some new clothes for next year too, including the Phantom treatment with its stealthy black livery and red detailing. Using the much loved GSX-R1000 K5 engine, the GSX-S1000FZ Phantom will come with a three-stage traction control system, Suzuki’s low rpm assist and the easy-start system – not forgetting the power increase which gives you 147hp, made more manageable by a new slipper clutch system. The GSX-S1000 super-naked is also available in a white paint scheme, and both available in dealerships early next year.…

The modern retro scene is booming. There, we said it. While many mock the newfound craze of dressing 21st century metal in classic garb and the related off-bike vogue, manufacturers have acted upon booming sales – chucking big budgets and concentrating effort into new models. And just as we thought the fad was subsiding, Kawasaki releases the awesome new Z900RS and Triumph has gone to the extent of basing a majority of its range on modern retros and ditching the supersports category. Unbelievable, Jeff. As with other models in manufacturers’ ranges, these sporty heritage bikes aren’t bespoke ground-up overhauls, instead being based on something that was previously far sportier. Mutton dressed as lamb, possibly. It’s often more about style than substance, fashion over function, and ensuring you don’t necessarily need…

“IT’D PROBABLY FEATURE IN THE QUEEN’S HONOURS FOR UTTERLY MARMALISING THE RETRO SCENE.” In a usual FB test, with a usual FB testing protocol measured, the Yamaha XSR900 would marmalise the Bavarian opposition. It’d probably feature in the Queen’s Honours for utterly marmalising the retro scene, but the Yamaha is almost too polished, too good to earn authentic retro status – even with those authentic brown leather panniers fitted. I think a more suitable competitor would be Kawasaki’s Z900RS, where two naked bikes dressed in chintz can slug it out like two naked kamikazes. But there aren’t many other bikes offering such bang-for-buck as the XSR900. For just over £8,000, you have a bike that does everything but munch miles: fast road riding, commuting and even trackdays, all while looking…

These days the only two-stroke you’re likely to see (or hear) is your wife’s chainsaw… or the kid next door’s remote control car. I’m sure I speak for many others out there when I say that it saddens me to think that such an important technology is all but redundant in today’s motorcycling world. Be that as it may, there are still a fair few good examples of recent(ish) two-strokes out there, and not all of them will require you to re-mortgage your house to own one. Take my dad’s Aprilia RS250 for example; it set him back £4,000 and it’s in pretty decent nick. I say decent-ish because it’s not a minter, and the truth is that it’s a thoroughbred two-stroke, which means it craves more maintenance than a…

You wanted excitement, well how about an ex-British Superstock 1000 Kawasaki ZX-10R (raced by yours truly). Although these days it’s a bit long in the tooth for national level competition, it wasn’t long ago that this little puppy was capable of winning races at BSB Superstock. At six years old it’s still a very adept race bike and on a trackday there will seldom be anything much faster. This ZX-10 is a tool. By that I mean it serves the purpose for which it was intended. It has had a hard life, and it shows. It’s got more battle scars than Rambo, but looks aside it knows how to get a move on. The engine will dish out generous portions of power right from the off so don’t be lulled…

TURIN ITALY Out of all the wonderfully exciting, super-fast and incredibly warm roads I’ve been lucky enough to spank some incredible machines on this year, I have to say my favourite has been through the city of Turin, Italy on the KTM 125 Duke launch – for the pure banter. Just hear me out here; imagine you and about 15 mates, on identical 125cc toys ripping it up through the middle of a busy town. It was full on chaos, and even though it was pissing with rain it was just epic with traffic light race starts happening every 100m. And if that wasn’t enough we had a pit stop at a skate park to mess around for a bit. From then on, we got to ride around the track…

How much is too much? It’s a valid question in today’s world where every other sportsbike seems to make nigh-on 200bhp. Of course, if you feel like we do then you’ll agree that there’s never too much power to be had. The trick is to just keep upping your game to match the excessive outputs on tap (or to buy a bike with enough rider aids to make you look good, even if you’re out of control). We’ve all be there. But somewhere most of us haven’t been in a very long time is to the opposite end of the power spectrum, where minute horsepower figures rule supreme. Legislation is the bane of all evil in most aspects of life, and there’s no finer example than in the power-castrating rulings…

What annoys you most about your bike? Does it have a stupid 186mph speed limit? Do you reckon it’s softening the power too much in lower gears? And why the feck does it keep resetting the power mode to ‘lame’ every time you park the bugger up? Yep, modern bikes are great. But they’re also really smart. Too smart sometimes. The ECUs (electric control units) at the heart of many current bikes are clever enough to give us 200bhp, quickshifters, auto-blippers, traction control, ABS, wheelie and launch control – about the only thing they can’t do is wave cheekily at the bus stop queue as you sail past doing a mono. But this comes at a price. Because, ultimately, the person in charge of all this is the boffin at…

Scanning is frequently touted as the ultimate form of visual control when riding a motorcycle or even driving a car. Let’s deconstruct this piece of conventional wisdom... First, try this quick visual experiment: find two objects about 5ft in front of you and 2ft apart. Rapidly scan your eyes back and forth between the two objects, focusing briefly on one and then the other. Observe that, unlike a still or video camera, there is no motion blur as you shift your eyes from one object to the other. A particularly good observer will also notice a very brief blank period while shifting between the two objects – a quick fade-in fade-out of the visual field. That blank period is the result of something called ‘visual saccadic suppression’ or ‘saccadic masking,’…

“DO IT, BE A RACER, EVEN IF IT’S JUST ONCE IN YOUR LIFE AND EXPERIENCE IT FIRST-HAND. IT’S A TRULY AMAZING EXPERIENCE.” GARY HARTSHORNE “THE BIKE’S REALLY FAST, FASTER THAN I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE, IT WAS JUST ME HOLDING IT BACK A BIT I THINK. RACING WAS JUST AN UNBELIEVABLE EXPERIENCE.” LORRAINE ANSON If ‘motorcycle racing’ has made it onto your 2018 bucket list then this is a great place to start. It was, and forever will be, one of the best things I’ve ever done on two wheels, and that’s saying something. Better still, it’s actually really easy to get stuck in. While having a huge wedge of cash in the bank is beneficial when it comes to racing, it’s not always necessary, especially…

I know what you’ll expect me to talk about, and I’m kind of going to but from a different angle because you’re probably bored of it all. I certainly bloody am, and it only happened days ago as I tap away… So, this whole team orders thing, a facet of racing for years that fans and those involved alike have said time and again has no place in motorcycle racing. It’s funny, isn’t it, that when it’s a particular rider who has seemingly gone against them, suddenly team orders should be obeyed, shout all. Well, what a surprise! So rather than focus on whether a certain Spaniard should or should not have moved aside, no matter what the facts, nor what’s been said afterwards, or even giving these racers credit…