Innehållsförteckning för July 2018 från Fast Bikes

Have you booked on our awesome track day at Cadwell Park on June 10 yet? No? Why not?! Hop to it, because while there enjoying Cadwell’s delicious curves, one can also win prizes, including a top drawer Arai TT replica helmet, one signed by several TT racers! And there will be other prizes, too! This day we’re holding is in concert with MSVT, RST and Bridgestone, who will be there with full tyre support for the day. There are three groups of Novice, Intermediate and Advanced all at £149 per space, or MSVT’s Track Academy spots at £448. For lots more info on the day, and how to get booked on, head to www.fastbikesmag.com!…

Prompting flowers to grow and women to wear short skirts, summer also has an inherent effect on Fast Bikes too. For us it can only mean one thing: it’s time for Sports Bike of the Year (SBOTY). For those of you unfamiliar with our tried, tested and revered annual shindig, allow us to tell you how it works. We kit out the latest and greatest sportsbikes with Bridgestone control rubber and R&G crash protection and head to warmer climes for two days of exclusive full throttle spankings on a world class track. All good stuff, but what’s the point? Well, it’s this simple: to see which bike goes the fastest. Talk’s cheap, unless you accidentally call one of those adult hotlines (eh, Carl), so in a no holds barred approach…

“ BY THE TIME THE ENGINE WAS STARTING TO BUZZ IT WAS TIME TO GET ON THE ANCHORS. ” While a lot of people would’ve argued the big Kwacker was most in need of revised gearbox ratios, its makers thought otherwise. The SE is a new addition to the ZX-10R posse for 2018, with its USP being its fancy-pants electronic Showa suspension. It’s also been kitted out with lightweight Marchesini wheels, and a striking new paintjob for good measure. Being a little lardier than the stock 10R (2kg heavier), and with no power gains to compensate, one could’ve argued that the already good handling bike had been dealt a duff blow in the performance department, but that pessimistic forecast didn’t translate at Navarra. For a while now the Kawasaki’s struggled…

“ ASKING FOR POWER WHILE CRANKED WOULD JUST SET THE BIKE WEAVING. ” It was as if someone kept dropping fivers near the V4, judging by the constant crowd of folk that seemed to migrate to the only all-new steed at this year’s SBOTY. A delectable looking, exotic offering that caused me to feel all funny inside just from being in the presence of the Bologna beauty, which came to life with a soundtrack so deep it could make operatic tenors sound like pubescent choir boys. But with such good looks and exciting exhaust notes came an expectation of performance, much akin to being invited over to the Playboy Mansion for a ‘sleep-over’. Would it flop, or would it rule? I could sense everyone’s eyes well and truly planted on…

“ THE RR’S BIGGEST USP IS ITS EASE OF USE, BEING AN EASY BIKE TO GET THE BEST FROM ” In a class fresher than a bathtub full of spearmint toothpaste, the Beemer is very much the old man. But with age comes wisdom, which the refined and perfected S1000RR has in spades. It’s never been a duffer and as this year’s SBOTY proved there’s plenty of life in the old dog yet. Highlighting each and every one of its qualities would tire my fingers out from typing, so I’ll stick to the core. For starters, it’s one hell of a dancer. The physical stance of the RR would make you assume it’d be about as lithe as an articulated lorry, but that’s far from the case. Spacious and comfortable…

There was once a time when the Triumph Speed Triple ruled the roost when it came to big, fast ‘super naked’ wheelie machines but for some years now the Tuono has been getting more and more comfortable on its throne of naughtiness. And it was a throne that became even more unobtainable to the competition when the Tuono was granted use of a V4 engine. Sure, we had a bunch of new and updated big nekkids in 2017, in the shape of BMW’s S1000R, KTM’s 1290 Super Duke R, and Yamaha’s MT-10 SP, and a selection of cracking motorcycles it certainly was, but there was nothing that could quite bump the Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 Factory off the top spot. Not only was the Tuono faster, sportier and downright crazier…

“DESPITE THEIR MANY DIFFERENCES, BOTH OF THESE BIKES ARE BLOODY AWESOME” There is no getting away from the fact that, despite their many differences, both of these bikes are bloody awesome. The Triumph is never going to beat the Tuono in a drag race, and it wouldn’t win round a race track either so if you’re after a bike to win the fast group on, out of these two fine examples, the Aprilia is the obvious choice. It’s more powerful, it’s sharper handling and it’s got more character than a bus full of 70s bike racers, but at £15,999 the question is, does the Aprilia pack £2,749 more of a punch than the £13,250 Speed Triple? Well there really is no right or wrong answer to that question. For all…

Q I was involved in a straightforward head on collision with a car. Both of us were approaching a pinch point in the road. I had right of way, the driver in the oncoming lane was to give way to me. It looked as though he was stopping, I came through, then the guy accelerated straight into me. The police were called. I was slightly injured, not anything especially serious, it could have been a whole lot worse, but there was a fair bit of damage to my bike. I did not think it could come any easier than this. However, the other driver is now defending the case, stating that the chicane in the road did not meet the appropriate standards, and he is not to blame. My solicitors…

FB: What do ECUs do? GW: The ECU is essentially the brain of the bike! It’s a complex computerised system which controls everything to do with the engine management, from how much fuel the engine gets when the engine sparks to literally everything to do with the running of the engine electronically. FB: What does the term flashing actually mean? GW: Okay, are you ready? The term flashing is a very old term which was used many years ago when early ECUs had an EPROM, or erasable programmable read only memory, which is an early type of flash memory chip that retains its data after the power supply is turned off or terminated meaning it’s a non-volatile memory. An EPROM is an array of floating-gate transistors which are individually programmed…

YAMAHA NIKEN Three wheels are better than none, but will Yamaha’s innovative tricycle impress us two wheel addicts? Boothy’s set to find out. SMALL BUT MIGHTY Kawasaki’s Ninja 400 scraps it out against Honda’s CBR500R and KTM’s RC390. BMW HP4 RACE Life behind the ’bars of a £68k carbon-framed Beemer. PLUS LOADS MORE: ■ CRUTCHLOW: “MARC MARQUEZ IS A FREAK...” ■ FRAMES: THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE TYPES ■ LIVING WITH A K5 GIXER THOU’ On Sale 26 June, 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…

Well I’ve got to give it to Tim, my twin brother; he might not be as good-looking as me, but he has been doing a bloody good job of flying the flag for us in the British Supersport Championship while I have been nursing my shoulder back to full fitness. He put in some strong performances at the first two rounds, and I’ll admit I was pretty proud of him (don’t tell him though, for Christ’s sake), but it was at Oulton Park (while I was busy working on the farm) that he really showed them what he can do. He might not have finished either of the races but I’m pretty sure that if he hadn’t popped an engine in race one he would have bagged a handful of…

Howdy folks. Are we all well? I can’t grumble, especially now that naff winter’s finally done one. It dragged on worse than one of Bruce’s stories… and that’s saying something. It’s been a busy month, what with getting the last bits of prep done ahead of the North West and banging in some much needed track time. You’ve probably read that me and Dangerous did a round of No Limits Endurance together. We didn’t win but I got a bit of a spin on my Supersport Triumph. What a weapon that thing is. I’ve been on Trumpets for a good few years now and they never seem to disappoint around the TT course. I can’t wait to blast off on that down Bray Hill. I’ve also had chance to clock…

Suzuki are returning to Silverstone once again for their annual track day, where you can ride the GP circuit and even test ride the GSX-R1000R for a session at no extra cost. If you book on you’ll be riding alongside the likes of Brad Ray, Richard Cooper and Billy McConnell, who will be in attendance with the Buildbase Suzuki British Superbike squad to offer on and off track experience and advice. Motovudu’s on-track instruction and Grand Prix race winner Simon Crafar will also be on track, alongside three-time British Superbike champion John Reynolds and paddock legend Jamie Whitham. The event will be run out of the Wing paddock and pit lane with three different ability groups on offer, meaning everyone is catered for. Oh, and if you come along you…

You may remember a couple of issues ago we had a superb feature on the best roads to go ride in the UK this summer? In there we had a section on Scotland and how fabulous it is to thrash around it. Well, the Scottish government, Police and Road Safety Scotland have gotten together to produce some videos and info for any aspiring biking visitors. They want us to come up, visit, ride and have a great time. All they’re asking is for us to mind how we go, essentially, and have managed to do it (mostly) in a completely non-patronising way, which when it comes to these kinds of biking safety campaigns, is an achievement all of its own! “As a biker myself, I love the thrill of riding…

If we were all as vain as Pretty Boy and lived in a world where looks set lap times, there’d be no doubt that the strikingly fashioned 959 Corse would’ve topped this year’s SBOTY test. New for 2018, Ducati’s deserving of commendations for making its otherwise mediocre and under-gunned entry level sportsbike an object of lust. Sporting trick Öhlins suspension, sleek and sexy twin-pot Akrapovic cans and a paint scheme straight out of MotoGP, the last surviving L-twin Ducati sportsbike has been blasted onto our radars like a dowdy librarian who’s suddenly discovered hot pants and heels. In essence, the package’s credentials are largely the same as the stock 959’s but that didn’t stop it from being eyed up, down and every which way by our rabble of riders when…

Honda’s had more stick than a bamboo salesman since releasing its new CBR1000RRs (RR, SP1, SP2) to the world, which is a shame in my eyes. On the road they’re one of the best bikes on the market, but they just don’t cut it on track. Having clocked 4,000 miles on my SP1 termer last year, I knew this bike better than any other at SBOTY, but fondness and familiarity counted for absolutely nothing against the stopwatch. I really wanted this bike to do well but its genetics compromised it like a ruptured rubber jonny. Fundamentally it was slow, being the most leisurely of the litre bikes down Navarra’s front straight (153mph), and it wasn’t just in terminal speed where the Blade was lacking. Out of corners it felt lazy,…

Another of this year’s revised wonder weapons, the 2018 R1M got pimped up with second generation Öhlins electronic suspension, a much needed blipper and updated wheelie control. Adding to its already impressive arsenal of race derived tech, the Yammy is without a doubt one of the smartest motorsickles to ever grace our good presence. And what a bloody fantastic bike it is. That being said, and to our surprise probably as much as yours, it’s never reached the top step of the SBOTY podium, and this year was no exception. It’s biggest problem around Navarra was its aggressive power delivery, which had more enthusiasm than a Labrador that’d swallowed a bag of speed; making life pretty damn hard around the narrow and winding circuit. Even when gassing onto the start…

While every bike at SBOTY is run and timed on the new R11, when the top three are decided for the final shoot out it’s time to get serious, which means fitting V02 slick hoops. Fitting three sets on-site with no dedicated tyre machine is some hard graft, meaning we needed a grafter, which is where our regular SBOTY mechanic Paul came in. And yes, he stuck a proper shift in getting the bikes ready for the final showdown. While the V02 has now been around for a few years, it’s far from just a sticky Bridgestone hoop with no tread pattern. And despite the new R11 getting times closer to the V02, it still dropped big chunks off the lap times. This tyre benefited from the multiple seasons of…

And so it was that SBOTY concluded yet again with the Aprilia as top dog; a bike unrivalled around the technical Navarra race track, having showcased its utter brilliance for another consecutive year. But that’s not to say everything else was a league apart. Far from it. The one thing that came to the fore during our sunny Spanish spankings was the capability of all the bikes, which were on occasion split by the smallest of margins. So what gave the better bikes their edge? Ultimately, it came down to individual idiosyncrasies such as the sophistication of electronic rider aids, or how conducive a braking package was to the demands of the track’s abundance of heavy anchorage points. Some bikes seemed to want to help you out of corners, while…

I’m a big fan of technology. In fact I’m a big fan of anything that makes my life easier. Sometimes though, the old adage of ‘if it’s not broke, don’t fix it’ really ought to be adhered to. I’m referring of course to the ‘keyless’ ignition system on the RS. You have to applaud Triumph’s willingness to utilise all the tech they can think of on the new Speed Trip’ but this particular feature is nothing but a pain in the arse. I’m sorry to start this on a negative note, but that’s exactly how my first ride on the RS began; I was handed the ‘key’ (which is a key, by the way), which I placed on a wall next to my helmet and gloves in close enough proximity…

“ROLLING OFF WILL ONLY MAKE IT WORSE AND COST YOU TIME.” 1 Redgate Redgate is a really tricky turn to get right. Use the triangle of paint at the pit exit as a braking marker and get the bike as close to it as possible on the approach to the turn (some racers will even cross this paint to open up the first corner, but avoid doing that on a trackday as there will quite often be a bike in there). Go down two or three gears and get the bike settled right down before you turn in. Don’t be tempted to turn in too early, stay out until the pit lane exit ends and then drop the bike on its side. Pull it in to the apex where the…

Track Craft Atrackday can be the most enjoyable thing in the world – but only if everything goes right. Why spend all that time, effort and money getting there to be let down by something silly? Well fear not readers, as I’ve put together a list of ten things to have sorted for the ultimate trackday experience. But before we get in with the nitty and gritty, what’s the best thing to remember? Well, you just have to go with no expectations other than to enjoy yourself! I mean, unless you’re getting paid to ride, you don’t need to worry about chasing lap times (especially as there’s no timing allowed) or being in the fastest group. It’s all a load of rubbish! At the end of the day, there’s nothing…

YAMAHA No change. Yamaha have done all of their business early and both Viñales and Rossi are confirmed for next year. HONDA Marquez is confirmed for 2019 but it looks increasingly likely that Pedrosa will be on his way out. Contenders for Pedrosa’s seat include Crutchlow, Iannone and Spanish star Joan Mir. DUCATI Dovizioso should be confirmed soon. He recently announced that he has also spoken to Honda. This should, however, be taken with a pinch of salt as he is probably just boosting his bargaining power with Ducati. Danilo Petrucci, Pecco Bagnaia (could skip the already signed move to Pramac and go straight into the factory squad), Dani Pedrosa and Jack Miller could also be contenders. SUZUKI Talk in the Paddock is that Suzuki have already signed Alex Rins…

You might not have heard of the new European Endurance Legends Cup (EELC), but you probably have heard of Guy Martin and the ardent bike racing fans among you may also have heard of Pete Boast. Well, experienced racers and good mates Guy and Pete have started there assault on the new classic endurance championship in style, storming to an impressive second place finish at the recent Donington Park round. With a growing number of top racers dipping their toes in the waters of classic bike racing, we crashed Team York Suzuki’s party to see what the fuss is all about. In the 70s and 80s, with events like the Suzuka 8-Hour, the Bol d’Or, and Le Mans 24H, motorcycle endurance racing was a big deal and attracted loads of…

Summer break as a kid was the best thing ever. Summer break from racing sucks though, because I love riding my bike and the thought of not getting to race for all that time makes me very sad indeed. This year however, it’s helped me out just a little as I head into the BSB holidays injured… Round 3 was Oulton Park and my home round, so I had loads of family and friends set to come along and pretty much all my personal sponsors too. I’d done the BSB media event, was on the front cover of the programme and even did a TV thing for local ITV. The sun was out and life was good until I lost the front just eight minutes into free practice 2 and…

Born between January 1, 2002, and December 31, 2006? No, but have a kid that is and fancy a shot at a racing series with all costs covered including Alpinestars kit and Shark helmets? Well, read on! Open for its second year, the British Talent Cup runs across British Superbike, World Superbike and MotoGP weekends throughout the year on identical Honda NSF250R Moto3 bikes, meaning the whippers will get a once in a lifetime shot at showcasing their skills on the world stage. Road racing experience is a bonus, but any high level of racing experience is taken into account (such as MX) and the contenders will be announced by July 16. Applications are taken from May 18 till June 17, via www.britishtalentcup.com.…

R&G SECOND SKIN TESTED BY: Charlie MILES: Brand new TIME: 1 month PRICE: £87.99 WEB: www.rg-racing.com TEL: 01420 89007 With the questionable state of the UK’s roads the probability of stone, tar and all sorts of other crap being thrown up for you to conveniently ride through, peppering your fairings, is high. Enter R&G’s second skin kit, a pre-cut number of bike-specific sections of extremely tough polyurethane protective film that can genuinely be applied with ease given the right preparation and patience. This UV stable material (which means it won’t yellow) absorbs impacts in all of the most vulnerable areas and once applied, using a squeegee and fitting solution (supplied) is almost totally invisible. The majority of the kit will cover the front of the bike…

1 5th/6th gear: This takes a very long time to get right, made harder if you’re riding different bikes. With your big boy brave boots on, upon the smaller bikes, you can hold it flat in top-gear through it. On the larger bikes, you tap off the gasser a tad to get her through towards turn 2. 2 3rd/4th gear: You’re braking on the edge of the tyre here, going down a couple of gears or more, it’s completely blind and, therefore, often the scariest corner on the circuit. It’s also tighter than you think, though the uphill inclination helps scrub off speed. 3 1st/2nd gear: Easy to get wrong if you’re carrying too much speed, but the track is wide here and even a late entry can allow for…

“ IT DIDN’T TAKE MANY LAPS TO APPRECIATE THE ENGINE’S GENIUS, BEING A CAPABLE DELIVERER ” While the first iteration of the F3 800 had more issues than Michael Jackson’s pet monkey, MV got their shiz together for this recently released Euro 4 contender. A better gearbox, shifter, fuelling and other such refinements suggested the riding of this Italian lovely would whisk away its woes and leave us end users with a bike as rewarding in the riding department as it is on the eye. But going by just how sexy this thing looks in the flesh, that was always going to be a tall order to meet. With its slim disposition, sleek lines and aesthetically gratifying abundance of finely fashioned components, the F3 had the alluring charm of a…

“THESE WOULD EASILY LAST YOU A COUPLE OF DAYS ON TRACK, WE LOVE THEM.” It’s amazing really, given how long the R10 was around, and despite bike power levels rising and electronics becoming more prevalent, how well it fared year after year – we couldn’t have asked for much more. But it was time for a change, and that’s the new R11. If any comment could be aimed at the 10, it’s that feel and feedback could have been improved to match the superb levels of grip. A ‘mono spiral belt’ design has been implemented on the 11 (front and back) to address this, which lets the carcass deform more towards the edge of the tyre. This provides more ‘feel’ as to what the tyre’s up to and as a…

The Gixer ’thou’s impressive debut at last year’s SBOTY surprised us all, but since seeing it come of age with superstock, superbike and TT wins to its name, there was a greater expectation that it would make this year’s podium. Dressed in its sexy new garb and sporting 2018-spec enhanced front brakes, the big question was whether it had what it took to stand on the top step of the podium at Navarra… which obviously didn’t happen. So where did it all go wrong? Well, the throttle pickup had a lot to do with it. The Gixer is a superb bike to ride and while its motor’s enthusiasm can’t be criticised, the initial throttle connection felt as disjointed as crazy paving. It would take a fraction of a turn to…

So after six months of organising, costing all the money from our piggybanks and enough sets of delectable Bridgestones to keep a whole race paddock content, SBOTY reached its climax after just two flying laps on the slick-shod Aprilia… and by no small margin. Judging this bike by its proven track pedigree, there was little doubt that it would do pretty well at Navarra but there were no guarantees it would or could beat the rest. A lot of the bikes we’d expected to be right up there simply weren’t, and in fact my first laps on the RSV4 felt about as awkward as the time I got caught with a porn mag by an elderly relative. Owing to the bike’s lack of grip, less aggressive pickup out of the…

Brittany Ferries For more than a decade now, whenever we’ve held SBOTY abroad, we’ve used Brittany Ferries’ fine services to get there. It really is the only way to travel to France or Spain in comfort, as anyone who’s driven a van or truck to SBOTY will attest to. On the longer journeys the ships are large enough to provide plenty of excellent cabin accommodation but also lots of entertainment, be that the night club, the cabaret in the bar, cinema, games rooms or even a dip in the swimming pool – there are far worse ways to spend 24 hours, and we’ve always had a right laugh while on board. For a lot more info, boat times and details, head to www.brittany-ferries.co.uk JHS Racing and Phoenix Yamaha... For dyno…

With the exception of maybe the thumping KTM Super Duke, there isn’t anything in the super naked class that can match the power figures of the V4 Tuono, which is one of the reasons it’s been the class leader for so long. But it’s not just its fantastic motor that makes it stand out from the crowd, oh no. On paper the Tuono has everything you want and more. With its Aprilia Performance Ride Control (APRC), its three riding modes – Sport, Track and Race – are customisable for all the things you’d expect via a dash every bit as trick as the Triumph’s. Also like the Triumph, the Tuono comes with fully adjustable Öhlins front and rear, Brembo brakes and Pirelli Supercorsa tyres. But the similarities end there. I…

PERFORMANCE: • SC Project Conic high position exhaust • AEM front and rear sprockets 16/42 • DID ERV3 520 pitch drive chain • DNA Racing air filter • Cox Racing oil and rad guard • Shorai lithium-ion battery HANDLING: • Brembo RCS brake master cylinder and clutch lever • Brembo Rem note span brake adjuster • BST Black Mamba seven-spoke carbon fibre wheels with ceramic bearings • Ohlins Steering damper • Pirelli Supercorsa SP V2 tyres • Black diamond titanium front caliper and various other bolts AESTHETICS: • CNC Pramac Racing carbon fibre brake air ducts • CNC Pramac Racing left and right switch gear • CNC Pramac Racing engine guards, sprocket cover • CNC Pramac Racing front brake lever guard • CNC Pramac Racing front and rear brake reservoirs…

What’s it like having two sons racing each other in BSB? I’m incredibly proud that they’ve been capable of getting there! There is a flipside though, as every lap of every session is just pure stress as a parent watching. I know what it’s like riding in BSB so I feel like I’m with them every lap, and it’s difficult knowing how hard it is. Racing is just one big emotional rollercoaster, but it’s what we do and I wouldn’t change it for the world! Last year you had Taz in MotoGP – was that a mistake? A competitive rider will always want to be in the most challenging championship! Tarran ended up in Moto2 last year as Kiefer Racing wanted a fast 600cc rider from the UK and Tarran…

WINNING RIDE Dean Birkumshaw Just about everything! We all just got back from a 900 mile trip round Nürburgring. FB: Now that is beautiful sight. Enjoy! Craig Shaw BMW S1000R Exploring the New South Wales (Australia) countryside with 17 bikes, including Super Duke, a couple of Tuonos, an MT-10SP, S1000R... and a bunch of others! Stuart Young Yamaha R1 Couldn’t get out at the weekend so made up for it on Monday with a lap of the Peak District from Essex and back on these beauties. #sorebum Nicholas Gibbs Yamaha MT10-SP Nice ride through the Yorkshire Dales on my Yamaha MT-10SP, picture was taken at Kilnsey Park fly fishing lake near Kettlewell. Joe Sheehan Aprilia RSV4 Yep we went to Germany to play on the Nürburgring and local roads, I’ve…

In a blast from the past triple British Superbike champ Ryuichi Kiyonari lined up on the grid once again, filling Dan Linfoot’s seat in the Honda Racing team for the Oulton Park round while he’s out of the running with a broken vertebrae. Riding a Honda in the Japanese superbike championship Kiyo was certainly no stranger to the Fireblade, gaining valuable data for the squad and even picking up a couple of point-scoring finishes along the way. Unfortunately for Kiyo fans, he apparently has no plans to make a full time return to racing though……

If you’re thinking of building a classic race bike for the EELC Superbike class, it will need to meet the following criteria… Manufactured between Dec 31, 1975 and Dec 31, 1986. Original engine must be cooled by oil, water or air. Displacement is limited to 1,300cc. Frames: original, original modified or aftermarket. Forks: 43mm maximum diameter. Bake discs: 320mm maximum diameter. Calipers: 4 pistons maximum, 2 calipers front wheel, 1 caliper rear wheel maximum. Front wheel: 16, 17 or 18 inch x 3.50 Tyre width: 120 maximum. Rear wheel: 16, 17 or 18 inch x 5.50 Tyre width: 180 maximum.…