Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2021 i BIKE

£308 saving Lexmoto LXR125 » The UK’s favourite sportsbike is the BMW S1000RR. Or it is if you’re talking 500cc and above. Include zingy 125s in the mix and the best-selling sportsbike last year and so far this year is the LXR125. Easy to see why, given the liquid-cooled engine with six-speed ’box, digital dash, LED lights, posh-looking brakes... and the fact that at £2799 new it’s about the same price as a five-year-old KTM RC125. Nip to Superbike Factory (01625 462721) and you’ll pay even less for a pre-reg in 2020 colours on a 71-plate. £1604 saving Zero FXS » Electric is getting big. Lexmoto have ditched 50cc models to rule moped sales with electric bikes, and one-in-ten new 125s is a battery equivalent like this Zero. List is…

Telephone 01733 468099 Email: bike@bikemagazine.co.uk facebook.com/bikemagazineUK twitter.com/BikeMagazine I spent a few years in North Texas and took the opportunity to volunteer at MotoGP events at CoTA. Which means I have tabards not T-shirts. Does that count? My first event was in 2014. Funny story: a year later and Friday’s moto2 practice. We had a dog get on track. Turns out it was the resident ‘track dog’, even had the name Pirelli. Well, it took maybe an hour to try and harness the mutt, he was fast and knew the facility. Finally the track officials gave up and Pirelli simply vanished through a hole in the fence. The sessions resumed and over the radio we heard he was officially renamed Marquez... because no one could catch him. Scott Johnson, email IF…

I was dreading this trip because I assumed the Dragster would be like every other MV I’ve ridden; fast, foxy and teeth-grindingly annoying. But it’s superb. No jerky throttle response, no bonkers switchgear, no ludicrously hard suspension. The automatic clutch that allows you to ride it like a blitzkrieg twist-and-go is good too – I found it more predictable than Honda’s DCT. Even the electronics are intuitive, seamlessly linking with my phone to give turn-by-turn sat nav in a way the Ducati V4 Multistrada can only dream of. And if you stay below 85mph, it’s all-day comfy. If MV had managed to make the cruise control easier to adjust and the indicator light bright enough to actually see, I really would have nothing to complain about.…

Bisecting green, yellow and freshly-ploughed countryside on arrow-straight D-roads. Pobbling through sleepy villages with their bars and patisseries. Enjoying the space, the lack of traffic, even the faint smell of manure from those fields... It feels so good to be across the channel again, heading through France towards the sun and the Bol d’Or endurance race. Three decades ago (and more) this was an annual pilgrimage for countless Brits. Lured by September warmth at Circuit Paul Ricard near the Mediterranean coast and inspired by Team Bike’s exploits in the famed 24-hour race, we took advantage of Team Bike Tours’ cheap ferry tickets and flocked south on autoroutes that were toll-free for Bol week and roads that seemed to be permanently police-free. Much has changed since my last trip in 1988.…

£19,600 1920 Rex Model 77 » Rex got into powered two-wheelers early doors, the Birmingham firm’s first products offered in 1900. The founding brothers left in 1911 and things turned rocky, and by 1920 they only had one bike: the 77. The 550cc single was at the cutting edge of engine lubrication, though – at a time when total loss lubrication was still common the Rex carried its oil in a sump, a worm-drive pump supplying the lube. Only sold during 1920 the Model 77 is rare. This one has been restored some time ago and has just been unearthed from shed-based slumber. £7650 1920 Triumph Junior » Nicknamed the Junior because it was the baby of Triumph’s range, the 225cc LW was the British firm’s first two-stroke. It doesn’t…

‘Squaring off’ corners has been bandied around pubs and commentary boxes ever since Doohan and Co slid their loopy two-stroke GP bikes around like motocrossers. But I’d never seen a compelling explanation of why average trackday riders like me should bother using the principle until watching this vid made by Italian club racer Alberto Naska. He explains – and proves with video footage – that on any bike with enough power to spin the rear wheel at maximum lean, the standard racing line is not the fastest way round sharp corners. Instead, you brake later, miss the usual apex, turn sharply, then accelerate like a demon, hitting a very late apex on the way out. Fast forward to seven minutes to see his examples. Search: How to ride fast on…

Donington Park, 1991, and I’m in wideeyed disbelief at the wailing, soaring, deafening sound of Ron Haslam’s rotary Norton exiting Goddard’s. My friends and I make our way to the paddock to try and get close to the wild black bike. Peeking into the team’s tent, its engine internals look like alien technology strewn over the work surface (a rug on the floor). But as teenagers we’re just as excited by what’s parked outside – a tiny minimoto in Norton colours, ridden by Ron’s eight-year-old son Leon. Six short years later and we’re back watching Pocket Rocket win a support race at the British GP. And in rapid fire succession see him in the British I2jCC series, Grand Prix, World Superbike, British Superbike... Having put the famous family name into…

The real James Bond Paul Edmondson, 52, did the main bike stunt in No Time To Die. Here’s how That jump was tricky,’ Paul Edmondson tells Bike, referring to the humongous near-vertical leap in the latest James Bond film. ‘When I came round the corner at the bottom, if I was slightly at the wrong angle the sun was in my eyes so I was going up the ramp blind. That was the big thing for me –I was hitting the marks I’d put on the ramp, but I couldn’t see where I was going. It’s not as straightforward as people think. You’ve got to be on your game.’ There were other issues too. Though it looks like he rides up the side of a chapel in the film, it’s…

New bikes versus our dyno, scales and datalogger ON THE DYNO There’s a definite top-end bias to the ZX’s delivery. Putting its peak torque so high up gets track-friendly power, as bhp is basically torque x revs. But gutless? No. There’s a very useful 80bhp just halfway up the revs. AT THE PROVING GROUND 0-60MPH 3.31s Gearing is lower for acceleration, but there’s so much power wheelies and electronic cut-in mean it’s no quicker. 1/4 MILE 10.3s Launching a superbike fast is all about technique, rather than grunt, so this latest bike is no swifter than the old ’un. 70-0 MPH 54.4m It was soaking at our test strip and the ABS went into overtime. Given 52m as a dry benchmark, this is quite impressive. 40-80 ROLL-ON 5.51s Proof that…

Mat is a TT winner, endurance racer, author and MotoGP paddock insider Leon Haslam still remembers winning his first motorcycle race. The great moment happened at the Autodromo Oscar Galvez outside Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, in October 1987. He was four and a half years old. ‘I remember doing the race, riding around this little track and winning the trophy,’ says Haslam, picturing the scene which took place a few days before the Argentine grand prix, in which his dad Ron was racing one of Honda’s early and evil NSR500 two-strokes. ‘So that was the starting point of my racing, but really all I was doing was riding around the paddock like I’d always done.’ Haslam grew up in the MotoGP paddock, whizzing around on his minibike, menacing…

‘The R18B’s highlight really is the technology which, in typical BMW fashion, is excellent’ It’s tit-for-tat, these days, between the US and Germany. BMW upper-cut first with the R18, then Harley-Davidson jabbed back with the Pan America. And now BMW have crossed with their new R18B – that’s ‘B’ for bagger. Clearly this is a not-disguised attempt to dethrone the Street Glide, one of Harley’s most iconic and enduring models. But is it going to send the Motor Company scurrying back to the gym? The R18B is powered by the same 1802cc boxer twin that debuted in the R18 last year. Nothing has changed internally, so performance is the same except you’re now dragging an extra 80kg along with you. Where the ‘regular’ R18 gets off the line alright for…

This turns cables from stiff, gritty nightmares into silky-smooth delights. It’s not perfect – some lube always squirts out the edges – but it does work. Release the top of the cable from the throttle assembly, clamp the device half over the cable wire and half over the sleeve. Twist the clamp tight and squirt lube down the cable via a hole which fits the little tubes you get with spray cans. I put WD40 down to flush out crud, then 3-in-1 oil (I find WD is more solvent than lube). Oxford Products do a bigger version with two clamps for £8 which probably leaks a lot less than mine.…

If you are lucky you will not have had that heart stopping moment when a car moves into your path from behind apparently optional ‘give way’ lines. But if you are a regular rider this will be an experience that is all too familiar. If fate smiles upon you, you brake hard, thank ABS engineers and the makers of decent tyres, and unclench your buttocks. But why does it keep happening? The driver did not set out to smash you off your bike or change the colour of your underwear. But the driver will swear blind they did not see you, and the usual corollary is you must therefore have been riding too fast. Biology, psychology etc I look at this with the eyes of a lawyer and a motorcyclist,…

‘In the wet Franco seems to do magic – he can ride on the limit but remain laid back’ When we tested before the season we were 18th, 19th, somewhere like that. So our goal was to get into the points, and hopefully for Franco to be in the top ten by the end of the year. After all, he’d never ridden a 600 before this year. But then we got a top ten finish at the World Superbike meeting and thought ‘right, let’s raise our expectations’. And now he’s put our Kawasaki ZX-6R on pole position. Not once but twice, at back-to-back rounds. Conditions were mixed during free practice at Oulton Park in September. It was wet, then there was a dry line, then there wasn’t – it was…

Held Curt/Burt short cuff gloves Used for: 2 years Price: £80 Info: held.de » The last time these gloves were worn I hit the tarmac, hands first, after being snookered off a BMW R1250GS on a Welsh road. That’s a proper test, and I’m proper impressed. The leather is scuffed but intact, though the stitching has popped on two fingers of the left hand glove. For a pair of unlined lightweight ventilated gloves they have performed really well and saved me from a lot worse than a broken scaphoid. Super comfy, they were my first choice summer glove for two years. I’ll be replacing them with another pair from the same manufacturer who’s getting my unreserved (and undamaged) thumbs up. I look at riders who’re not wearing gloves and I…

» ‘People are coming back to bikes for transport, especially younger people – the delays in getting a car licence are pushing people back to bikes. Most are doing CBT on geared 125s, but there are quite a few aged between 19 and 24 going for an A2 licence as well. There’s lots of bike choice now, which I think helps. ‘Most haven’t ridden before, and so clutch control during low-speed manoeuvres is what takes the most time. Right turns take some time too, as people grip the throttle. Occasionally we run out of time to complete and need to reschedule for them to finish training – someone might complete the car park syllabus but not make it onto the road, usually because they get tired. It’s a full day.…

1 John Westlake Ex-editor Westlake happily took charge of this month’s group test. 1000CC, four cylinder, nakeds with their hand-me-down sportsbike motors. Well who wouldn’t? 1000cc no fairings test on page 38 2 Mat Oxley Mat was reporting on GP’s when Ron Haslam was racing in them, so he watched young Leon Haslam growing up in the paddock. Now Leon’s the veteran, with an amazing career. Leon Haslam interview on page 50 3 Michael Neeves Sportsbike fan, club racer, road tester. Michael stepped off his 200bhp BMW S1000RR race bike and onto the 75bhp Yamaha R7, but was captivated by its capability and sense of fun. Yamaha R7 tested on page 58 4 Roland Brown In 1988 Roland was Bike’s deputy editor and raced his Honda RC30 at the Bol…

To push on through Royal Enfield Himalayan » It’s the UK’s best-selling adventure bike for a reason. Rock-solid, durable, the £4699 Enfield has the air of a bike that’ll survive years of grotty roads and neglect. Fun, unassuming, the single is a bike on which you’ll skip about regardless of the weather. And then use all summer too. For the worst weather Honda Deauville » Proper weather protection? Check. Built-in luggage to keep butties dry? Check. Fuss-free shaft drive, tedious reliability, ace quality? All this and more. Honda’s V-twin offers slush-beating riding in a compact, manageable bundle. Just £1500 gets a good ’un. For chilly fun Husqvarna 701 » ‘If the weather’s shite, ride a bike that’s light,’ as mum would say. Big, heavy bikes muffle feedback, but the low…

I was going to write about all the bikes I’ve loved and abandoned on my way to modern day handling and mechanical perfection. I was going to tell a funny story about my bike test on a 250 Superdream. A shuffle round the block on a wet day, a planned emergency stop, which it had to be because the brakes weren’t really up to much, and the examiner asking me what I would do if the traffic light was red. Stop. ‘Right son you’ve passed’. But then I turned to page 49 in the November issue, and see the caption: Enormous tyres... like something The Banana Splits would ride on the beach. At which point I realised I would be writing to people who have very similar life/motorcycling experiences to…

‘... looks as bonkers as ever, but it gets a bundle of refinements that significantly improve the way it rides’ MV Agusta are all about evolution over revolution. As each year passes, their cool creations don’t change much on the outside but underneath they’re constantly honed and polished. For 2021 the Dragster 800 RR looks as bonkers as ever, but it gets a bundle of small mechanical and electronic refinements that significantly improve the way it rides, without taking away any of its old fire-breathing aggression, which is quite a trick. Still the last word in naked decadence, its unique looks and aggressive sound are like nothing else in the showroom, and it has the poise and acceleration of a superbike. But now it has friendlier road manners and smoother…

» Yamaha are planning R7 Cup-type events in Europe next year, but what will it be like on a trackday for us lot here? It’ll be fast, unthreatening and fun, especially on tighter tracks. With Bridgestone R11 race tyres fitted at the launch at the Spanish Andalusia circuit, the R7 allowed throttle abuse that would send you to the moon on a more powerful bike. And the harder you push the chassis, the better it feels. Whatever trackday group you’re in, you’ll mix with much more powerful bikes that’ll zap you on the straights and hold you up in the corners. This could be frustrating... or worse. Is it time for trackday organisers to rethink the groups to allow this new breed of sporty middleweight to roam free?…

Don’t worry » There’s a lot of scare mongering going on about E10 (ie 10 percent ethanol fuel). Almost all fuel-injected bikes will run fine on it – even the ones that say E5-only, though they may lose a bit of power. Interesting fact: E10 means there’s a maximum of 10 percent ethanol. It’s currently much less due to ethanol shortages. Drain carbs » The main problem with E10 and carbed bikes occurs when you get water in it, usually from a dodgy filler cap. If you then store the bike, the water forms an acid with the ethanol, sinks to the bottom and rots any metals it touches – carbs are particularly vulnerable. Draining the carbs is one answer. Storage fuel » If you’re storing an older bike, an…

Alpinstars J-Cult £132 alpinestars.com » When I don’t want to clomp around like Darth Vader in my race boots I grab my CE approved J-Cults. After a few year’s use they’re looking a bit tired and have a frayed left lace, but they’re my goto footwear for short trips and for not looking/feeling an idiot in the pub. They’re comfy and have Drystar tech built in to stop toes getting wet. It worked when new, sadly no longer – maybe the glue has perished around the sole/toe area or because I wear them a lot. Even when I’m not on a bike. PL TCX Street 3 WP £144.99 uk.tcxboots.com » Stiff when new, after two months they’re not fully broken in. But they are comfy on my bike and to…