Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2017 i BIKE

These days they don’t say it’s been a bit blowy or that it looks like it’ll bucket down. Instead we have ‘weather events’. And this month Bike’s writers and testers have experienced very many events. Life-long Ducati fetishist Rupert Paul went to Spain to ride the new SuperSport, and it rained. A lot. Clouds emptied their contents on tester Jonathan Pearson and KTM’s new Adventure models in Corsica. A hefty deluge dampened socks on the chilly launch of Triumph’s Street Triple. And yes, the beautiful but menacing sky in this picture threw all it had at our test of BMW’s new R nineT Racer and Pure on Spain’s southern coast. They reckon that Almeria is the driest place in Europe, but I’ve never ridden in wind and rain quite like…

£2236 reduction Guzzi Eldorado Moto Guzzi’s 1380cc California has taken many forms in its four-year life, from Custom and Touring to Audace. The Eldorado hides 21st century tech with spokes and whitewalls. Not been current for a year or so, but essentially like the current Cali’. List was £15,536 but Mo-Tech (0191 2659793) offer some pre-reg 16-plate bikes from just £13,400. Price up £14,000 Yamaha RD250LC Our own Mark Graham remembers nosing at 250LCs in Sanders & Lewis on Kilburn Road, Maida Vale, London NW6 in 1981. They were just over a grand. Now at thebikespecialists.com they have a new-old-stock, zero mile 250 with all its keys and books and all that for £14,980. The value will halve if you ride it… so keep it in the bedroom. Pocket £1500…

‘John was the Valentino Rossi of his era. In 1955 he rode in 86 races and won 68, including his first Grand Prix’ IF YOU WANT to improve your road riding, remember a word that John Surtees used a lot: relationship. In the 30 years I worked with him, John so often used this word in connection with a motorcycle or a car. ‘You have to build a relationship with the machine,’ he would say. In other words, you have to feel the messages coming from the motorcycle through your fingertips, your belly, your backside, your thighs, your feet - everywhere. And listen to the messages as well: empathise with the machinery. John was the Valentino Rossi of his era. In 1955 he rode in 86 races and won 68,…

Midual Retromobile does feature the odd modern bike, the astonishing Midual perhaps being the oddest this year. With its 1036cc flat twin engine hanging ingeniously longitudinally from its alloy, fuel bearing monocoque ‘frame’ and tank-mounted instruments, it’s the most beautifully crafted bike I’ve yet seen, but for €140,000, so it should be. Siccardi ACS 1000 S3 Announced in 1981 by car parts supplier René Siccardi and engine designer Francois Nadin, this innovative 998cc triple, 150bhp endurance racer featured Claude Fior–designed (and arguably Norman Hossack-cribbed) front suspension, but changes in race regs and dwindling funds forced Siccardi to quit even before it saw a starting grid. Derny Taon 125 Famed industrial designer Roger Tallon, he of the TGV trains, created this sleek little 1957 Derny Taon as a pacer for France’s…

>> 27-30 April, 2017 Horizons Unlimited Travellers’ Meeting, Virginia, USA A perfect time to explore the Appalachian Mountains and the twisty back roads of Virginia. The weekend includes talks, ride-outs and workshops, and presenters come from all over the world and this year include the amazing Dylan Wickrama with his tale of how he transformed his BMW into a raft to sail around the Darien Gap. Cool or what? horizonsunlimited.com/events/virginia-2017 >> 7-16 May, 2017 Rally Indochina, Vietnam Rally Indochina is the largest charity ride in South East Asia. Open to any adventurer with a desire to put something back into Vietnam, part of the entry fee goes to the Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation, which helps local children from former war zones. The rally is a spectacular nine-day ride on Soviet-era…

‘The CRF’s main goal in life is to handle better and make life easier and it does just that’ SPECIFICATIONS (RX) Price £7399 (£7899 with lights) Engine 449.7cc four stroke single Power/torque 55bhp/35 lb.ft (est) Fuel capacity 8.5 litres Weight 118kg Colours red Availability now BIG 450CC MOTOCROSS and enduro bikes are not for the fainthearted. Honda’s 2017 CRF450R and RX models are now lighter and more agile. The trouble is this ground-up redesign of Honda’s flagship off-roaders has also made them faster and more powerful too. The R model is the basic motocross machine while the RX is essentially the same bike re-suited and booted with lights, 18-inch rear wheel, a side stand, bigger tank, different gearing, a sump guard and softer suspension. The CRF brochures boasts, ‘80% of…

MV: the real no deal I was slightly less than shocked when I read a letter headed ‘It’s MV Disgusta’ in Bike (Letters Mar 2017). I visited a Piaggio dealer (TT motorcycles in Clinton Twp MI, USA) on several occasions to buy motorcycles. Cash in hand! Each time they would make excuses as to why they couldn’t sell me a bike that day, but promised to call me back ‘tomorrow’ and never did. Over the years, instead of a new Moto Guzzi V7, I bought a new Triumph Thruxton. Instead of a used Moto Guzzi Griso, I bought a used Speed Triple. Instead of a new MV Agusta Brutale, I then bought a new Triumph Speed Triple. Each time, I gave them ample warning they were going to lose a…

>> From deep within its womb-like luxury, cocooned by ocean-deep black storm metallic paint and exquisite detailing, I can report that BMW ownership is a nice place to be. Not cheap, but nice. Buying my nineT was a pleasure, helped along by a smart showroom on Park Lane. My nearest dealership, Balderston, is but a 15-minute ride away. They patiently indulge my part-exchange time-wasting and always come up with the demo bike I’m after when the nineT’s in for servicing. Reliability’s been absolute, depreciation gratifyingly slow and, two years in, I remain hopelessly in love. Really the only downside to BMW immersion is the endless urge to buy another. The S1000RR Sport and R1200GS Adventure I’ve test ridden besieged my every waking moment for a week or so, but I…

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>> Triumph are right up there with BMW with their official bolt-ons (if not reaching Harley territory). Here’s our pick of the very many desirable whatnots. SLIP-ON SILENCERS Made from brushed stainless steel. Shorter, lighter, but still road legal. £610 a pair? Eek. Black ceramic versions are £665. CAFE RACER FAIRING You get the fairing and screen, plus an aluminium subframe and a low clip-on ’bar kit. It’s £665. Or just get a flyscreen for £70. LED INDICATORS We’re not sure about these. We like the size, especially with the short stem option, but are they a bit blingy? They’re £70 a pair. COMFORT SEAT Uses 3D net inserts, whatever they are, plus some tidy stitching and embroidered logos. It’s £205. Don’t buy the brown version.…

THE TERM SUPERNAKED didn’t mean much before April 2011. There were sporty nakeds but bikes like Kawasaki’s Z1000 and the KTM Super Duke, though exciting and able, weren’t true naked sportsbikes. Aprilia’s Tuono changed all that. The V4 brought all the sporting performance of the WSB-winning RSV4 superbike, wrapped it in a package that was infinitely more usable on the road. Where the previous V-twin Tuono had been sporty, the new four-cylinder bike was smaller, slicker, faster and sharper. Nakeds reached a new high. The Tuono V4 shares many components with Aprilia’s RSV4 superbike; the polished frame and swingarm are essentially identical but the engine is mounted lower and the front-end kicked out by an extra 10mm. The 60-degree V4 is from the sportsbike, with slightly softer cam timing and…

This isn’t a limp brochure-style round-up of all the bikes you can buy. No, your guide is far more useful as it only contains bikes that we have tested, with comparable on-the-road prices plus data, expert opinion and must-know detail gathered by fussy full-time testers. We do hundreds of thousands of miles, dyno, datalog, weigh and answer the big questions. Don’t buy a new bike without reading this first. *CAGIVA SUPERSPORT Ducati’s SuperSport (p58) is equivalent to ’90s SS models, which can be traced back to the Pantah... and were nearly Cagivas. When they took Ducati over the Pantah became Cagiva’s Aluzzurra, with SS decals on faired bikes. ‘Better than predecessors’, said road tests. But buyers wanted red V-twins, and Ducati won. * JET-FUELED KWACKERS NATO and US military…

Aprilia Moto 6.5 TYRES: Avon Roadrunner WORTH: £3000 MILEAGE: 12,068 MPG: I’ll never know Mark Williams >>Contributor ‘Buyer beware’ is always sound advice, and just for once I took it. But being too cautious comes with its own set of consequences… IN MY ENDLESS QUEST for the impractical, I’ve long fancied a Philippe Starck-designed, ie weird looking, Aprilia Moto 6.5. Prices seem barmy high for a bike that isn’t yet a classic (made 1995-1999), cycle parts are hen’s teeth but the engine’s the Rotax 650 unit found in other Aprilias (and BMWs). So, when I saw a low-mileage almost pristine fleaBay example at an almost affordable price I sent a deposit. I was about to go and collect it when the admirably honest vendor rang to say it wouldn’t start,…

Honda RC30 WORKSHOP HOURS: lots NUMBER OF PIECES : lots OVERDRAFT : increasing VALUE: not for sale Ian Martin >>Team Bike The race is in September, so the bike’s coming apart now. Out with the spanners for the special joy of dismantling a Honda RC30… THE CLASSIC BOL D’OR isn’t till September, but there’s loads to do. We’ve currently got four Honda RC30s (I know, it’s a bit greedy, but at least we use them). Two are the original team bikes from 1989-90-91, and we’ve got two more that we’re currently racing. We don’t want to risk racing the original bikes. The bike on the bench is the T-bike; that’s the racing spare. We bought it in bits a year ago, built it up and used it in a couple…

H-DFXLR TYRES: Avon Road Rider WORTH: £5500 MILEAGE: 11,365 MPG: 42 Mark Graham >>Production Editor Bored with friendly ‘rideability’, half-decent economy, quiet operation and metronomic reliability? Time for a mad cam then… SEARCHING FOR ALTERNATIVE HARLEY EVO cams is a full time job. There are, quite literally, hundreds to choose from. Forums are stiff with internet experts bigging-up this, rubbishing that, and recounting how their ‘scoots’ did a million miles an hour with this cam or that. So naturally I’m completely suckered into it all. Instead of going with a well-known cam maker like say, Andrews or Crane, I have elected to do business with Leineweber Enterprises of Johnson Valley, California. This small outfit is run by ex-drag racer Jim and his son Justin. Jim is renowned for his ‘square’…

1 JONATHAN REA WILL WALK IT Phillip Island can throw up some odd results so it’s not always a good indicator of who’s going to do what for the rest of the season. But, while you can’t read too much into the results from the opening round, you can be sure that Jonathan Rea is the man they all have to beat again. Not only did he get pole position, two wins and the fastest lap in the opening round, he won both races in Thailand two weeks later to become the first rider to win the opening four races of the year since Neil Hodgson in 2003. In super close races at Phillip Island, it’s critical to lead into the hairpin on the last lap and Rea timed it…

>> 16-17 April, 2017 Red Marley, Great Witley, Worcs, WR6 6JJ Easter weekend means Red Marley with its spectacular hillclimb and preceding trial, both exclusively for classics. Little beats the sight, sound and smell of a quartet of Castrol R-burning, mainly British singles and twins tearing up the truly challenging grassy slope. redmarleyhillclimb.com >> 25-28 May, 2017 Eastblock Rally, Marrum, Netherlands Looking a little further ahead if only for planning purposes, this extraordinary get-together in northern Holland is a must for fans of forgotten but in their Iron Curtain-shrouded homelands once-ubiquitous machines. Real rarities to Western eyes such as Panonia, WSK and EMW will be proudly on display alongside slightly more familiar names such as Jawa, Ural and Voskhod. It’s an ideal occasion to compare notes, soviet engineering horror stories…

YOU CAME ALL this way for a motorcycle show?’ asks the lady behind the car rental desk, her eyes widening as her words spill out. All this way is Lincolnshire, UK to Portland, Oregon up on the USA’s north pacific coast. And the answer to her question is ‘yes’, because The One Motorcycle Show really is something else. After a delayed flight, followed by another delayed flight, I don’t get to the show’s new home until 10pm on the first evening and people are queuing in a dark, damp car park to get inside. The show is free to enter, but there is a capacity limit, and the organisers are nudging up to it. As it grows, the show regularly moves locations and this year’s event is housed in a…

THERE’S A BIT in John Steinbeck’s novel Tortilla Flat where the district nurse is questioning a poor kid called Alfredo about his diet. To her dawning horror, he cheerfully tells her he has tortillas and beans for breakfast, lunch and dinner. ‘Do you mean to stand there and tell me you eat nothing but tortillas and beans?’ she asks. Alfredo is astonished. ‘Jesus Christ,’ he says, ‘what more do you want?’ Yamaha’s engineers must have felt a bit like that nurse after the February launch of the MT-10 SP in Cape Town, South Africa. The new bike has Öhlins electronic suspension and a full-colour dash to fully exploit the 100-times-a-second semi-active damping technology. The only trouble is the standard MT-10 is already an absolutely amazing motorbike.…

‘The belief a long stroke means torque just isn’t true’ NEW 765 TRIPLE COOKED THREE WAYS... >> The old Street Triple (green lines) had a well-developed, linear delivery. The R version of the new model (grey) is most similar in character, model-specific cams giving the most torque all the way to 9000rpm and a smooth curve. RS (yellow) has different inlet, outlet and lumpier cams, with a power rush at 8500rpm. Triumph don’t talk about a bespoke S cam (blue) – we suspect it’s as used in the RS. INTAKE ROAR There’s a redesigned airbox for the new 765 engine. As well as feeding bigger cylinders, it gives a ‘richer’ intake noise, and is lighter – airbox and exhaust changes have saved 1.7kg. BESPOKE CAMS Triumph have three tunes of…

>> 500 miles (after run-in): change oil and oil filter, check brake pads for even wear, safety checks. Cost: £99 >> 10,000 miles: change oil and oil filter, balance throttle bodies, safety and diagnostic checks. Cost: £249 >> 20,000 miles: As 10,000 service, plus new spark plugs, check valve clearances, renew air filter, fresh coolant and brake fluid. Cost £499 Schedule then repeats every 10,000 miles. >> Additional time-based: Services are to the mileage schedule, or every year. An annual service is similar to the first (500 mile) service and costs £99. >> Get yours refreshed: Prices supplied by Webbs of Peterborough (01733 223444, webbsmotorcycles.co.uk).…

>> The Ardennes region is perfect for easy and stress-free touring. First, you can build up your confidence on local, laid-back roads with great sight lines – no hedges or walls to block your view. Then, when you’re more comfortable and want a challenge, it’s only a 20-minute ride to the Eifel or Luxembourg to test out your new skills. Riding here is also great for pillions, where the smooth, flowing lines will keep you comfy and great cafés provide excuses to stop in every town. And that’s not even mentioning the beautiful valley views along the way. >> The N834 toward La Roche-en-Ardenne from Bastogne is a great way to start any day in the Ardennes. It begins curving its way lazily through wooded hills, down to meet the…

‘Frame is made from steel created for military applications, and used in Spitfires’ Refinement Curved alloy 14-litre fuel tank and hand-made seat. TiG-welded frame in T45 chro-mo steel is lacquered to show off the work, and the alloy wheels use machined hubs. There’s a compact digital dash, and seat height is 830mm. Punch 600cc single has four titanium valves, Mikuni injection and 55bhp. There’s 43 lb.ft of torque at an easy 5500rpm – at just 120.8kg dry, that’s a better torque-to-weight ratio than Triumph’s new 765cc Street Triple RS (see test on page 45 ). IT MIGHT LOOK like the product of a custom workshop, however the new Spitfire is the work of Bolton-based firm CCM. Shown in the metal for the first time at the recent MCN London…

>> 9-13 May, North West 200, Northern Ireland The North West 200 is like the TT but with a mass start! Crazy speeds on public roads, with all the top road racing stars and all set in a beautiful coastal location. Get ready to party! northwest200.org >> 19-21 May, French MotoGP round, Le Mans One of the closest foreign MotoGP races and one of the most historic and atmospheric tracks . You’ll also enjoy the ride down there to see the world’s fastest riders and machines. lemans.org >> 26-28 May, World Superbikes British Round, Donington Park This is the only chance you’ll get to see the WSB stars on British soil this year so don’t miss it! There are lots of top Brits to cheer so pick your favourite and…

‘The wind was blowing so hard it shook the bike until I fell down’ >> Where are you right now? In Bosnia, on my way to Montenegro. Today I’ve been riding on an almost empty road through amazing grey/white mountains under a clear blue sky. >> What’s the big plan? I’ve been travelling for six months so far, starting in Barcelona, Spain. Then I rode to Andorra, France, Belgium, England, Scotland, Wales, Holland, Germany, Austria, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. I am now flying to South East Asia, landing in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam where I will buy a small motorcycle and start a whole new adventure. >> A Suzuki Marauder is unusual for a long ride. What was your thinking behind the choice? In Mexico I used to…

>> 29-30 July Motorcycle Social, Leeds, West Yorkshire As far as new generation custom events go the north has been left behind. Down and Out Café Racers organised the Revival Show in Rotherham late last year, and though small it was friendly and well-received. Motorcycle Social, a new event in Leeds, is closely following the One Motorcycle Show recipe – without the free entry, but it’s impossible to know how good the first year event will be. The only way to find out is to go. motorcyclesocial.co.uk >> 15-17 September The Trip Out, Rendlesham, Suffolk The UK’s premier traditional chopper show. What does that mean? Lots of barn find metalflake paint jobs, springer forks, Panheads and packs of well-heeled professionals who look like stitch-perfect 1969 San Bernadino Hells Angels (without…

>> 23 April AMCA British Classic Motocross Championship, Yatton Keynell, Wilts Round one of the AMCA’s Classic Championship scrambles its way to just outside Chippenham for some proper scrambling as it used to be (before we called it motocross). Split into pre-’65 and pre-’74 categories the racing looks, sounds and smells great. amca.uk.com >> 15 April British Enduro Championship, Lossiemouth, Aberdeenshire Many domestic UK championships are kicking off in April. One of the big ones is the first round of the British Enduro Championship with its usual mix of forests and the odd bog thrown in for good measure. Britain boasts some of the best enduro riders in the world, the least we can do is go and support them… elrat.co.uk >> 23 April MXGP of Europe, Valkenswaard, Netherlands Already…

>> Alongside the SP, Yamaha launched the £11,649 MT-10 Touring Edition. It’s really a stock 2017 bike (which costs £10,799) with five Yamaha accessories: semi-rigid panniers and rack, a comfort seat, a screen, knuckle guards, and a TomTom GPS mount (plus the offer of their bike-specific sat nav at half price). The screen and knuckle guards help you feel more plugged in to the bike, which is no bad thing unless you love wheelies, in which case they make it harder to see where you’re going. The guards also make the bars a couple of inches wider, which affects filtering. That completes the list of disadvantages over the standard bike. On the plus side the frame-mounted screen gives an easy 90mph cruise, the taller seat asks less of your knees,…

‘The kicks, such as they are, involve steam freezing into ice on your clothes’ AL KASHI (AND NOT THE FAMOUS PERSIAN ASTRONOMER) Al Kashi is a semi-casual Russian motorcycle club whose members like nothing better than to frequent ice racing meetings. Not to be confused with the 14th/15th Century Al Kashi, reckoned to be the greatest mathematician/astronomer The Near East has ever produced. FROM THE QUAINT TO THE UTTERLY TERRIFYING No, it’s not all steam and turn of the last century nonsense, other participants take advantage of modern inventions like the internal combustion engine. To wit: a Yamaha FJ1200 power unit; robust, air-cooled (liquid-cooled engines run the obvious risk of freezing to death), heavy enough to (almost) act as ballast to keep the front end on the ice, and plenty…

PERFORMANCE TESTING >> It’s mild, with damp patches and a gentle tail wind. Short gears, a hefty midrange and an old-fashioned disregard for mass centralisation see the Thruxton wheelie under hard acceleration – with TC on this means stuttering, with it off you need control. From a standing start it hits the rev limiter in top in just over 700 metres. Interesting fact: other than a tenth of a second here and half a mile-per-hour there, the figures are identical to an Aprilia Caponord 1200. POWER AND TORQUE >> When they launched the Daytona 600, all the rival manufacturers issued power figures before Triumph. ‘We waited to see what they said, then made ours up to suit,’ an ex-Triumph employee told us. These days they’re honest: giving 95.4bhp to a…

BMW R nineT Racer Pros: cheaper than Thruxton, ace style and colours, steadfast handling, burping great twin, proven nineT platform – see test on page 32. Cons: hasn’t the premium air of the Thruxton R (or first nineT). Price: £10,775 otr PCP deal: £2500 deposit, £130 for 36 months, final payment £5719. Total £12,778. Yamaha XSR900 Pros: utterly brilliant engine, light and engaging handling, great ergonomics – it’s the fab MT-09 (see p88) in fancy dress. Cons: lacks a little authenticity – it is, after all, the very modern MT-09 in fancy dress. Price: £8436 otr PCP deal: £2500 deposit, £71 for 36 months, final payment £4369. Total £9426. Triumph T120 Pros: smooth ride, manners, thrumming motor, traditional Bonneville style. It’s all sunny Sunday mornings and cricket. Cons: not as…

>> 2013 Tuono V4R Ad says: 7569 miles, two owners, full service history, excellent bodywork and new tyres. Ready to scare its next owner. We say: no APRC but seductively low miles. Lovely. Price: £6999 >> 2016 Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 Factory Ad says: 658 miles, lovely example of this very sought after and amazing bike. If you have not ridden one then you are in for an experience. We say: dealer sale of this Öhlins suspended, Superpole liveried stunner. Price: £11,750…

‘Lights which do not dazzle or flash, but glint, are wholly within the law’ As many adventure riders will tell you auxiliary lights seem to make riders more visible to car drivers. I certainly notice I seem less visible on my enduro bike than I do on my BMW GS with the semi obligatory auxiliary light. There is one, admittedly relatively small, study which indicates that the triangular set up of auxiliary lights and main headlight is more conspicuous than a single light. But how far, ie bright, can you go when it comes to legally lighting up? Auxiliary lights make you appear bigger and wider which is legal, but a light which causes ‘undue dazzle’ is illegal. The test is not numerical, ie wattage or lumens, it is about…

‘The engine encourages you to use the midrange, but you can hold gears all the way to the redline so you don’t need to shuffle through the gears’ Yamaha Tracer 700 TYRES: Michelin Pilot Road 4s COST: £6849 MILEAGE: 1284 MPG: 56 Hugo Wilson >>Editor Sunshine, warmth, lambs in fields and daffs breaking ground. Definitely time to get onto the bikes and go out for a ride SHOULDN’T WE BE out riding bikes? It’s cold, but the sun is shining and the roads are dry. Is spring here? I’m not sure, but we’d best make the most of the opportunity, winter might return next week. Mike, Langy and I slope out of the office early to reacquaint ourselves with the joys of the A6121, A151 and B1176. It’s my first…

Aprilia SL1000Falco TYRES: Metzeler Roadtec 01 WORTH: £1800 MILEAGE: 33,610 MPG: not a lot Stephen Herbert >>Digital Art Editor Cold tyres, greasy roundabout, emergency braking, and one, inevitable, painful outcome. Not my best day, leaving the office… MONDAY EVENING, LEAVING work to go home and cook a family dinner and traffic is heaving. Second roundabout out of Bike HQ, I move into a Falco-sized gap, ease the ’bars to go round the roundabout and gently pick up the throttle. At the same instant, the driver in front slams on her brakes to avoid the car that just pulled out on her. An instinctive grab of front brake and I’m dumped hard into the tarmac. I was going so slowly, I don’t even slide. Assisted by the driver of the car…

KTM 250 EXC-F TYRES: Michelin AC-10 HOURS RIDDEN: 16 VALUE: £7449 MPG: 16 Jonathan Pearson >>Off-road Editor Things you’ve never come across before: shocking riding tactics in heavy, heavy mud blow the KTM 250 EXC-F shock seal… NOTHING IN THIS WORLD IS INFALLIBLE. That said in thousands and thousands of hours of riding bikes off road I’ve never once had a shock get so heavily blasted by riding conditions that it cries, ‘enough’. However… Shortly after last month’s boot camp action some heavy, heavy going in the late winter weather and some hard training round a sandy track turned out to be a bit too much for the EXC’s shock. A seal on the piston inside couldn’t take it, began letting dirt past and it lost damping due to the…