Two Wheels

[wino]

De Puniet highly encouraged by Suzuki pace


Monday, 17 June 2013
Randy de Puniet has dubbed Suzuki’s Monday performance in Barcelona ‘a great job’, with the Japanese manufacturer having joined the Official MotoGP™ Test
The Circuit de Catalunya outing for Suzuki’s in-line four, 1,000cc prototype marked the first time the bike had gone up against other, current racing machinery.
"I am satisfied because the first test at Motegi was quite good and now we are at a GP track, with most of the other riders and running in the same conditions," explained the Frenchman, who is contesting the current campaign with Power Electronics Aspar.
"I think we did a great job because I’m only seven tenths slower than the best lap time today and after only 50 or 60 laps; all of the other riders have already been here for three days. I am satisfied, but think we could be even faster if we had one more day.
"Anyway, it’s a good start because we now go to Aragon for a two-day test, so I really hope to do the same job and have the same feeling with the bike."
Suzuki’s two-day MotorLand Aragon test will run from Wednesday, sharing the track with Repsol Honda Team, Yamaha Factory Racing and LCR Honda MotoGP.

Suzuki Motor Corporation to return in 2015


Follow the first laps Suzuki's MotoGP bike at Catalunya
Monday, 17 June 2013
The Japanese manufacturer has confirmed its comeback to the premier class in 2015 as their test team join the rest of the MotoGP™ field for the first time today for its first European appearance.
After two years suspension since 2012, Suzuki Motor Corporation has organised its test team to undergo more practical running tests at its advanced development stage and will participate in the official joint testing to be held at the Catalunya circuit in Spain. Through continuing running tests at the circuits inside and outside Japan for further development and refinement, Suzuki Motor Corporation will participate again in MotoGP racing from 2015.
Suzuki Motor Corporation will feed back advanced technology to be derived through MotoGP racing activity to develop further attractive production models.
The outline of testing team and racing machine to be developed are as follows:
Chief members of Europe testing team in 2013:
- Team manager: Davide Brivio
- Development rider: Randy de Puniet
MotoGP machine to be developed:
- 1000cc In-line four GP racer
Press release courtesy of Suzuki Motor Corporation

 

[wino]

Ducati: Hayden Second-Fastest Today At IRTA Test
Monday, June 17, 2013
Ducati Team concludes Barcelona post-race test

With this past weekend's Catalan Grand Prix behind them, the Ducati Team and most of the other MotoGP riders were back in action today for a one-day, IRTA-organized test at the Circuit de Catalunya.

The team's work schedule called for a continuation of the back-to-back comparisons between the bike that Andrea Dovizioso and Nicky Hayden have raced thus far, and the ?laboratory' version that has only been used in battle by Ducati Test Team rider Michele Pirro (at Jerez, Mugello, and Barcelona).

Once again, Hayden was more comfortable on the Spanish track, as the American posted the second-best time of the day. His 1:41.955 lap was just five-hundredths off of Jorge Lorenzo, while Dovizioso finished fourth-best on the day with a time of 1:42.417.

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) 2nd, 1:41.955 (73 laps)
"Overall, it was kind of an up-and-down day. We were here with the lab bike, but unfortunately, I'm consistently faster with the standard version. We want to do a step and come closer to the front guys, but at the moment, I can't find it with the lab bike. I hope I at least got some good information for the engineers. I spent some time on my standard bike, and I had a pretty good feeling with it today and was able to check a couple of things. We also tested Bridgestone's new hard rear tyre, which has good potential. We haven't been able to use their current hard for most of the year, which makes race weekends tough, but I had a good feeling with the new one today and did a 42.4 on it. Hopefully that will give them some direction to help us as the summer gets hotter."

Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) 4th, 1:42.417 (56 laps)
"We did the comparison between the two frames on a track that's much different from the others where we've tested. We still have to decide which one to use, but the difference is very small. Just like in the tests at Jerez and Mugello, the new frame seems better on corner entry but moves a bit more on exits. Anyway, the positives and the negatives are both minimal. Now we'll decide which frame to use at Assen, but there aren't big differences. Using one or the other won't change much, so we'll wait for more new parts."

Bernhard Gobmeier - Ducati Corse General Manager
"After the disappointing race yesterday, we had some encouraging signs today. We tested a bunch of new things on the engine side, on the tyre side, and on the chassis side. Regarding the chassis, we're still evaluating the data from the back-to-back comparison, and we'll decide in the next few days which one to use."
ENDS

 

[wino]

Smith undergoes successful skin graft operation


Successful operation for Smith in Barcelona
Tuesday, 18 June 2013
Bradley Smith underwent a successful skin graft operation in Barcelona on Monday evening, having headed directly to the Quiron Dexeus University Hospital from the test session at the Circuit de Catalunya.
The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider had the operation on the little finger of his left hand, which had been injured in an accident on the Friday of the Italian Grand Prix.
“I needed this operation after the Barcelona race just to make sure that everything will be 100% for the second half of the season,” the Englishman explains. “We have had a learning experience in the first half of this year, but I really want to make sure that the second half is really successful, so this operation was at the perfect time.”
When asked by motogp.com if he will be ready for Assen, Smith replied:
“100%. I feel that the recovery process will only be three or four days for the scaphoid and close to ten days for the skin graft, but we already have everything clear about how we will protect the little finger in the race. I am confident that, with all of the medical team that we have - the Clinica Mobile at the race track and also Dr. Mir and his team - we won’t have any problems to race at our best.”
Smith will be unable to move his hand until Thursday, when the bandage will be replaced. After that, the 22-year-old will be able to begin physiotherapy for both his wrist and the fourth finger, with the stitches being removed before the next race at Assen.

some IOM and MW 200 pics

 

[wino]

 

[dankhead]

Rodrigues leads in Argentina

Team HRC riders Helder Rodrigues and Javier Pizzolito hold the top two places in the overall standings after today’s fourth stage of the Desafio Ruta 40 rally in Argentina.

After an early start this morning, with temperatures hovering just above freezing, Rodrigues was fifth fastest after a 586km ride, with a 192km special stage, from Belén to Chilecito. His team mate, Pizzolito, who won yesterday’s third stage, finished ninth, 12m50s behind today’s stage winner Marc Coma.

Pizzolito opened the stage at 06.10 this morning, which was conducted in the Fiambalà area of Argentina and contained some typical Dakar scenery of spectacular sand dunes, and the Argentinian rider made some small navigational errors which affected his time.

But it is the consistency of Rodrigues, together with the performance of his Honda CRF450 Rally, that has put him at the top of the overall leader board, just 1m16s ahead of his Team HRC team-mate.

However, the results were overshadowed by the announcement that Argentinian rider, Nicolás Rojas, had succumbed to injuries sustained when he crashed heavily in today’s stage. The thoughts of Team HRC are with his family and friends in this difficult time.
Helder Rodrigues #3 – 5th What a difficult day! It was really easy to make a mistake in navigation and I got lost with a few other riders today, but we got back on the right track in the end. After these problems, I’m really happy with the result today. I am leading now and I think Javier and I can make a good race in tomorrow’s long stage. The bike is feeling great and the team is working really well together.
Javier Pizzolito #7 - 9th It was difficult for me to open today’s stage because it required a lot of navigation, but I am happy with my performance. I injured my hand in the crash yesterday and at the end of today, whe n I was tired, it started to swell up and I was in some pain, but I managed to reach the end. I am also happy that Helder is leading overall and that I am quite close to him because tomorrow will be an important stage.

Martino Bianchi – general manager, Team HRC Rally:
It was a difficult stage today, especially the navigational aspects and Javier suffered from this as he was opening the stage. Tomorrow’s long stage – almost 800km – will be crucial to the final results. But the team’s consistent performance has put him and Helder in front overall, even though it’s very close between the top six riders. Of course, the results from today suddenly lost any significance when we heard the news of Nicolás Roja. Something like this affects the whole rally community and, of course, our thoughts are with his family now.

Desafio Ruta 40
Special Stage 4 results:

1 Marc Coma (KTM)
2 Kurt Caselli (KTM) +1m50s
3 David Casteu (Yamaha) +3m36s
4 Claudio Rodrigues (Honda) +4m38s
5 Helder Rodrigues (Team HRC) +5m25s
6 Pablo Rodrigues (Honda) +7m16s
7 Francisco Lopez (KTM) 9m44s
8 F J Prohens (Honda) 9m55s
9 Javier Pizzolito (Team HRC)12m50s

Overall standings:
1 Rodrigues
2 Pizzolito +1m16s
3 Caselli +1m39s
4 Lopez +2m11s
5 Coma +3m17s
6 Casteu +4m33s
7 Goncalves +12m28s

 

[dankhead]

​

​

The Future of Motocross

​

A meeting between the FIM, YouthStream and all the Motocross Manufacturers and Teams engaged in the FIM Motocross World Championship was held at the FIM headquarters in Mies on 19 June 2013. The meeting was chaired by FIM President Mr Vito Ippolito and attended by:
FIM representatives: CEO Stéphane Desprez; Executive Director, Sports Ignacio Verneda; Motocross Commission Director Wolfgang Srb and Motocross Coordinator Dirk De Neve.
YouthStream representatives: President Giuseppe Luongo, Ursula Luongo, David Luongo, Luigi Zompetti, Didier Henriod, Daniele Rizzi, Nikos Gounaris and Marc Pauwels.
Motorcycle Sport Manufactures’ Association (MSMA): Secretary General, Takanao Tsubouchi
Teams & Manufacturers: Roger Harvey (Honda), Pierluigi Zampieri (Husqvarna), Steve Guttridge and Thierry Suzzoni (Kawasaki), Sylvain Geboers and Thomas Ramsbacher (Suzuki), Marco Ricciardi (TM), Laurens Klein Koerkamp (Yamaha), Pit Beirer (KTM)
During this meeting, which took place in a spirit of mutual respect and understanding, the FIM, YouthStream and the Manufacturer and Team representatives discussed the 2013 Championship. They also shared their ideas and viewpoints on the classes, race formats and rules for 2014, with a view to the meeting of the Motocross/SuperMoto Grand Prix Commission, which takes the final decisions.

 

[wino]

http://www.tgfphotos.com/

http://www.goldandgoose.com/

 

[wino]

 

[wino]

History matters ahead of 65th World Championship Dutch TT


The Cathedral set to host MotoGP™
Monday, 24 June 2013
Assen is the only venue on the MotoGP™ calendar to have also featured on the very first World Championship schedule back in 1949. Even more of a reason to strive for success, then, as Jorge Lorenzo aims to take back the advantage from Dani Pedrosa.
The very first World Championship Dutch TT took place on Saturday 9th July 64 years ago. Six riders contested the 500 race and, after one and three quarter hours of racing, Italy’s Nello Pagani came out on top for Gilera, leading home the AJS of Britain’s Leslie Graham who two months later would already be the first ever World Champion.
Fast-forwarding to 2013 and it is sure that we will not have a repeat of last year’s winner, as it was Casey Stoner who took the chequered flag at the Iveco TT Assen. The race would count for nothing for Jorge Lorenzo, furious to be taken out at Turn 1 by the wayward Alvaro Bautista who has ironically now retired on the opening laps of the last two Grands Prix.
As the season draws ever closer to its midway point - which will come up quickly, as the next two races at the Sachsenring and Laguna Seca will be the first to run back-to-back this year - the tension is certainly building in the paddock.
If anybody is aware of consistency, it is surely Lorenzo who finished on the podium in all events bar two last season. On top of that, after six races in his pair of title-winning campaigns, the Mallorcan had scored 140 points. This time around, his total of 116 means he is almost the equivalent of one race win from where he was at this stage of both 2010 and 2012, which is due to his surprisingly low seventh place at Le Mans as well as such happenings as that at the last corner in Jerez…
They often say being the pursuer is easier than being pursued. It is fair to suggest that Pedrosa could be out of practice when it comes to defending a championship lead, as until this year he had been yet to head the standings since the middle of 2008. Both he and Lorenzo will stress that points will win prizes come the season finale in Valencia, but being ahead by the summer break is undoubtedly a psychological boost.
What of those behind the leaders? Marc Marquez’s Mugello shunt leaves him 30 points in arrears of his teammate, despite having finished on the rostrum at all other races. The trivia lovers amongst us will have already noticed that the 20-year-old’s points tally is currently matching his bike number, whereas Valentino Rossi has managed to collect only 40% of the maximum points on offer so far in 2013. The last time he rode Assen on a Yamaha was in 2009. He won. How he would love a repeat.
The MotoGP™ World Championship heads to Assen for the 65th time. On 34 past occasions, the winner has gone on to lift the premier class crown; if history does matter, this is an important one…

Sofuoglu Tries Out KRT Ninja ZX-10R Power At Recent Aragon Test Sessions
Newsflash, 21 June 2013
During a recent test for the Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike squad at Motorland Aragon WSS Champion Kenan Sofuoglu was given the chance to ride the official Kawasaki SBK machine for a few sessions

Sofuoglu is part of the Kawasaki Mahi Racing Team India Supersport World Championship team at present, having won the title with Kawasaki in 2012, making the Turkish rider a three-time WSS champion in all. He was invited to ride the official KHI Superbike to see how he understood the machine that Tom Sykes and Loris Baz compete with on a regular basis in 2013.

Kenan was given approximately three hours of testing on the KRT machine and provided good feedback and comments, noting the big difference between his regular Ninja ZX-6R and the full Superbike Spec Ninja ZX-10R, particularly in the field of electronics and the absolute levels of pure race equipment.

It was also a useful test to help Kawasaki start to understand the potential of new technical rules, which are expected to come in for the 2014 season, instigated in order to help championship rights holders Dorna to put even more bikes on grid next year.

Kenan is a possible candidate to ride a satellite bike in 2014 under Mahi team management. Kawasaki will continue working on the evolving new technical rules, which should offer the same competitive package as Tom and Loris are using now.

Kenan Sofuoglu, Rider: "I have to say thank you very much to Kawasaki as I recently got the opportunity to test the full Superbike and get a feeling for it. What I understood from this short session on track is that a modern day Superbike has a lot of electronics, even compared to a Supersport bike and that aspect of SBK racing is also very much geared to every individual rider. I think I would need to spend many days on the bike to find out where you need electronics. Mahi racing wants to move to Superbike next year so there are many things to speak about now. Kawasaki has opened a door for me with this test so thanks to them and the team for that opportunity. One thing is sure - the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R is one of the very best Superbikes out there.”

Pere Riba, Crew Chief: "We did three hours with Kenan and we made the bike’s riding position similar to the one used by Tom Sykes, although Kenan actually used Loris’ bike. In Supersport the bikes ‘request’ that you keep the speed up into the corner and at the apex of the corner. The Superbike, or any other bigger bike, requests that you use the power on the exit of the corner much more than corner speed. So any rider needs some time to adapt to a Superbike. We made some changes for Kenan and he felt a little bit better on the bike. Importantly, Kenan understood the difference between a Supersport machine and a Superbike but to make the change just takes time. He felt good on the Superbike and even compared to the WSS bike he found it lighter in changes of direction, in keeping the line, and in flicking the bike to the apex.”

Guim Roda, Team Manager: "Kawasaki Europe asked us to provide Kenan with a ride on the Superbike in a private test as thanks for his great job in the 2012 WSS championship and also because the 2014 rules should, for sure, allow Kawasaki have more Ninja's ZX-10R on grid. As the Kawasaki Racing Team we will also be involved to support KME and Dorna with this idea, so that made it a pleasure from us to invite Kenan on this experience. One of our main sponsors is Mahi and that was another reason to get involved because it looks like next year they are thinking of putting one bike in WSBK and continue in WSS with two riders. To manage the overall package for a competitive bike and rider we need to consider the team who will manage this also. Maybe this is the most important point to work on for 2014 for Dorna, because for sure they will need to support teams in order to increase their budgets and also find an even more professional way to work. Everybody is working hard on that, so we expect a 2014 season with more bikes on grid, more TV coverage and a better show!”

Amit Sandill, Director/Team Principal Mahi Racing Team India: "I am really glad that Kawasaki, Steve from KME and Guim of KRT have given Kenan the opportunity to get astride the factory Superbike. As people may be aware, depending on the plans of Kawasaki with our team, we would like to step up the game and move to Superbikes next year - in an ideal world. Therefore, Kenan's test was the very first move towards this, even though it was done at short notice. While Kenan did not know exactly what to expect, he does feel that given more time on the bike he may well be fast enough to challenge the top third of the grid. It’s a pretty tough ask. Of course, for the team as well, the challenge will be even more than that of Supersport, but we feel that it is really the way to go - not the least in terms of media and television coverage, especially in India. Anyway, Kenan is currently completely focused on winning his fourth Supersport World Championship title this year and he has this task ahead of him now."

 

[wino]

Embedded media from this media site is no longer available

WTF ?

 

[wino]

Crutchlow sets sights on 2014 factory ride


Wednesday, 26 June 2013
Cal Crutchlow admits that his MotoGP™ future is currently undecided, but that he is keen to secure a factory deal with Ducati, Honda or current employers Yamaha.
The Englishman entered MotoGP™ at the start of 2011 and secured two podium finishers last season plus a further pair so far this year, including a career-best result of second place in the French Grand Prix at Le Mans.
"As for my own future, whether I'll be with Ducati, Yamaha or Honda is yet to be decided," Crutchlow says in a column for BBC Sport. "We're in negotiations with them all and hopefully in the next couple of weeks we will know what we're doing.
"At the moment, my career seems to be on the up and I'm getting closer to the guys at the front and starting to challenge for wins. I don't want to take a step back, so the next thing is to be in a factory team, but it has to be the one with the right machinery."
He also mentions the fact that Suzuki has confirmed its return to the sport, although this will be taking place in 2015 as opposed to the option of coming back in 2014.
"It’s a big disappointment for the championship, as it would have been nice to have another factory on the grid," Crutchlow claims, going on to share thoughts on his current teammate.
"If I do stay and Yamaha also bring in Pol Espargaro, then what will they do with Bradley Smith? It’s not fair on Bradley to have to give up his two-year deal. He’s not doing a bad job at the moment…the Tech 3 project for him was also for two years, so why should it be taken away from him?"
So far this season, Crutchlow has never placed outside the top five at Grands Prix in which he has finished. His sole retirement to date came as a crash in Barcelona.

Racing Numbers: Iveco TT Assen


Wednesday, 26 June 2013
This weekend sees Assen celebrate its 65th hosting of the Dutch TT as a World Championship event. That’s not the only number to bear in mind, though…
100 – At the Dutch TT, British Moto3™ rider Danny Webb will be making his 100th Grand Prix start. Webb has competed full-time in the smallest class of GP racing since 2007 and is the second youngest rider to reach the milestone of 100 Grand Prix starts in the Moto3/125 class; the only rider who has achieved this at a younger age is Sandro Cortese.
65 – Jorge Lorenzo’s win at Catalunya was the 65th time he has stood on the podium in the MotoGP class; this is one more premier class podium than Wayne Rainey achieved during his Grand Prix career. Only six riders have had more podium finishes in the premier class: Valentino Rossi (142 podiums), Mick Doohan (95), Giacomo Agostini (88), Eddie Lawson (78), Dani Pedrosa (76) and Casey Stoner (69).
39 years - On race day at the Dutch TT it will be 39 years ago to the day that Kenny Roberts made his Grand prix debut in the 250 class at the 1974 Dutch TT riding a Yamaha; he qualified on pole and finished the race in third place.
38 years – On the day of qualifying at the Dutch TT it will be 38 years ago to the day that Barry Sheene won a Grand Prix for the first time in the 500cc class, at the 1975 Dutch TT; this was also the first win for the square-four RG500 Suzuki. Sheene passed Giacomo Agostini exiting the final corner and the two riders were so close at the finish line they could not be separated with the hand timing of the day and were given the same overall race time.
33 years – On the day of qualifying at the Dutch TT it will be exactly 33 years since Jack Middelburg took the first of his two GP wins, at the 1980 Dutch TT. This was the last time that a Dutch rider has won in the premier class race at Assen.
26 – All of Jorge Lorenzo’s wins in the MotoGP class have been when riding for Yamaha. This is the same number of premier class GP wins on a Yamaha as Eddie Lawson. The only rider with more wins in the premier class while riding for Yamaha is Valentino Rossi with 46.
26 – Claudio Corti celebrates his 26th birthday on the Tuesday before the Dutch TT.
24 – Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa have finished first and second together in the MotoGP class on 24 occasions, with each rider coming out on top 12 times.
21 years – On the first day of practice at the Dutch TT it will be exactly 21 years to the day that Alex Criville became the first Spanish rider to take a 500 GP win, at the 1992 Dutch TT. In total, Spanish riders have now taken 79 wins in the premier class of Grand Prix racing.
6th – At the Grand Prix of Catalunya, Bradley Smith had his best result of his rookie season in MotoGP, finishing in sixth place. He is the youngest British rider to finish in the top six in a premier class Grand Prix since Gary Lingham was third in the 1979 Belgium Grand Prix, a race that was boycotted by the top riders due to concerns about safety.
6 – Both Luis Salom and Maverick Viñales have finished on the podium at the first six Moto3 races of the year. This is the first time since Kazuto Sakata in 1993 that a rider has opened the season with six successive podium finishes in the lightweight class of GP racing. In 1993 Sakata also finished on the podium at the seventh race of the year, but failed to take the title which went to Dirk Raudies.
4 – Only four riders in the MotoGP class have scored points at all six races to have taken place so far in 2013: Dani Pedrosa, Jorge Lorenzo, Andrea Dovizioso and Aleix Espargaro.

 

[wino]

MOTOGP »
Colin Edwards - Q&A
22 June 2013

“Don't let the spring valve aspect of the Honda Production MotoGP bike scare you. That thing's gonna be fast as hell. I've heard some numbers and compared to the prototypes, there's not much difference” - Colin Edwards.

By Christian Tiburtius

The biggest name to sign up for the new CRT MotoGP category in 2012, Colin Edwards has switched from a Suter-BMW to FTR-Kawasaki for his eleventh successive grand prix season in 2013.

The double World Superbike champion and twelve time MotoGP podium finisher recently spoke to Crash.net about his career - past, present and future.

In the interview, Edwards makes clear his desire to be on an M1-powered FTR in 2013, discusses the potential of Honda's Production RCV, weighs up the pros and cons of electronics and more...
Crash.net:
After all these years, what still motivates you to take part in such an extreme and competitive sport?

Colin Edwards:
I really don't know, that's something to ask my heart. I've ridden motorcycles all my life, I love them. That's why I built the Texas Tornado boot camp so that I could ride them and also train other folks to do it. The engine, speed, the racing smells, the bike, it's all of the above.

Also this project is about developing a bike and continuing to learn about motorcycles. I've always been good at that and I've always enjoyed finding that next tenth here and a couple of tenths there. I've always enjoyed development and making a package better.

Crash.net:
So you like the development aspect and are happy being seen as a development rider?

Colin Edwards:
Always, I've always enjoyed that. Even in my Superbike days at the factory Honda team, I could use those skills to build new stuff and play around with things and once you get to grand prix, the sky's the limit. You can change anything or do whatever you want so I became even more keen on that.

When you get into lengths, wheel rates, head angles and comparative trail, the numbers have an infinite number of possibilities. It's fascinating finding what works for you or a different rider

I'm always trying to chase that perfect lap. That doesn't mean there's no aggression involved though, when it comes to fighting for the flag, that's another aspect of it too. That's when you gotta unleash the beast.

Crash.net:
Some people say that you look a bit like Kevin Schwantz on the bike, did you base your style on his?

Colin Edwards:
Obviously he's a hero of mine when I was growing up, but I never tried to base my style on his. If there was one person I tried to base my style on, it would be back in the Motocross days and that was David Bailey. He was just the smoothest guy on the planet. It didn't matter how rough the track was, he was smooth as butter. With me it's the same, my fastest laps always look slow, they look like I'm getting a gallon of milk from the local store

Crash.net:
What would you say have been the lows and highs of your career?

Colin Edwards:

Oh man, probably the lowest point in my career was 97/98 when I got hurt and I was more or less out the whole year. That was hard to do, I was only 24 years old and found it really tough. There was kinda a light in the dark though because I got my Castrol Honda ride after that and won a couple of titles with them.

Probably the highlight, when you add a whole career together was Imola 2002 [the WSBK title decider against Troy Bayliss].

Other highlights were the three Suzuka 8 hour wins, one with Haga, one with Valentino and one with Kato. Those are all happy memories.

Those are all in the past though, in much easier times without electronics and without all the other stuff we gotta deal with nowadays. It was pretty bare knuckle stuff.

Crash.net:
You say that the times were easier without electronics?

Colin Edwards:
You know, it is what it is now. Some people are saying, 'Well let's take them all away to get better racing'. OK, if everybody does it then that's fine too.

One thing I would say though is that electronics have extended my career, let's say that. It's that safety net at the end of the day that doesn't allow you to flip yourself to the moon like in the old days. My career has definitely been extended by electronics, hell a lot of the development in electronics has been done by me in the last ten years. If you take them away, then you say 'there's ten years of work you can't use any more'.

Either way, if nobody has it, fine, we go back to the right wrist. If everybody has it I'm going to work to make ours the best out there. You could say they're bad from the racing point of view but good from the safety point of view.

Crash.net:
The 2012 season has to have been one of the hardest of you career right?

Colin Edwards:
Oh yeah, for sure.

We had a different plan that we wanted to do and we ran out of time. We were looking to use a Yamaha engine and doing something different last year and we just ran out of time.

Whenever we agreed to do the Suter thing, we got our asses patted on the back and promises and this and that and at the end of the day none of those promises came to fruition.

We were told that a new chassis was going to be built, that it was going to be a full team effort and in the end we were just given a package and it was 'There you go, thanks for paying us a sh*t load of money, we'll see you next year'. The BMW Suter just didn't work out like we were told.

If you talk to Suter, they'll tell you all day that it's the best bike out there and we believed a bit of it. We also believed that it could be improved and we didn't even have that. If someone throws you a package and puts hand cuffs on you, it's hard to make it better. There was no support there at all.
That was the reason we moved to FTR Kawasaki. Obviously there were other packages we could have negotiated for at the time too, but we were looking into the future. With the future being that Yamaha will have an engine available, good M1 engines that we can lease. We were looking at what we could do for a long term investment.

Crash.net:
You talk about the future, so you're signed to Forward racing for next year?

Colin Edwards:
Right now, no. I had a two year deal, this year and last year and I've yet to negotiate anything for the future. We know what we'd like, we just have to get it negotiated. I'm certainly 100% mentally involved with the project for next year though. I'm not just sitting around waiting for something to happen, I'm pursuing the project for next year, that's for sure.

Crash.net:
So we can expect you on the grid involved in that project next season?

Colin Edwards:
Yeah, I would say so.

Crash.net:
What's the thinking behind using the Kawasaki engine?

Colin Edwards:
We're kind of using it to develop the chassis, at the same time though, we're using it seriously and trying to wring every last ounce of power out of it.

The problem at the moment though is that we're struggling with the gearbox. At the end of the day, it's still a street gearbox. Any time you take a big old V8 Mustang and get 800 horsepower out of it, the first thing's going to happen is that you'll f*ck up the gearbox, and that's kinda the boat we're in.

We have to change some parameters on the electronic shift to make it smooth which means that we're losing time - we've also got a little bit of a lag in there. We have to do it for safety reasons though to make sure we're not shattering gearboxes.

Crash.net:
What kind of spec do you think the Yamaha motor will be?

Colin Edwards:
You got me, from what I heard it's going to be the first spec they start with next year is what they'll sell. As far as any upgrades go, they'd either have to be paid for or wouldn't be available. Whatever happens though that package will be faster and better than what we have right now.

Crash.net:
And it would be a full pneumatic valve engine, rather than the spring valves which Honda plan to use in their customer bike…

Colin Edwards:
Don't let the spring valve aspect of the Honda scare you though, that thing's gonna be fast as hell. I've heard some numbers and lap times and compared to the prototypes, there's not much difference. They're pretty much on par.

Spring valves against pneumatic valves are sure a limitation rev wise, but if you sort the power out and put it where you want it you can ride valve springs.

Crash.net:
So you think the customer Honda will be competitive?

Colin Edwards:
Oh I know it's going to be competitive. As far as winning the world championship, probably not, but as far as being able to compete day in day out for a top 6 or 8 position, absolutely.

Honda aren't going to start any race program which isn't serious, you know that.

Crash.net:
How does your current bike compare with the ARTs?

Colin Edwards:
We struggle, we struggle off the corner. That smooth power delivery they have is just very friendly and they've got their electronics sorted out from having ridden them last year. I did a test on one in Brno and it's really good.

You just have to look at Espargaro and de Puniet, they're always one and two.

Crash.net:
Do you think that MotoGP is in a good place then?

Colin Edwards:
Oh man, that's what we're telling everybody anyway (laughs)
No, I do think it's in a good place for the future. Whenever we do get the bikes evened out though and the electronics sorted, whenever they sort out the rules and what needs to really happen you're still going to have the same teams in front.

The main problem we always had in GP is getting bikes on the grid. I'm hearing that next season we're going to have a few more bikes and when you get these teams in place and they set their stakes in that'll be great. That's the first priority, getting bikes on the grid.

Crash.net:
I believe that you said once that the Moto2 system would be good for MotoGP?

Colin Edwards:
Moto2's just a great championship, they've all got the same engine and there are really no electronics involved.

Crash.net:
Would you ever consider riding in it?

Colin Edwards:
Oh, no. I rode Herve's Tech3 Moto2 bike to give him some feedback and that was enough. I've just been on big horsepower bikes since I was 18 years old and I can't really look back to being on a bike with 110 or 120 horsepower and flogging it. I do that at the Bootcamp.

Crash.net:
The Texas Tornado Bootcamp is a kind of fantasy world for guys, right?

Colin Edwards:
It's more or less a wonderworld. If you like motorcycles, shooting guns, hanging out telling war stories and having a few beers it's the place for you.

Crash.net:
Ben Spies recently suggested that MotoGP could be made more competitive if the tyres were just made to a lower spec?

Colin Edwards:
Yeah, I agree with that to an extent. At the same time you've got to understand how much work I did with Michelin back in the day in Superbikes and GPs. Then you had a package and you designed the tyre for it. If you needed something Michelin or Bridgestone would build something for that package.

Now the philosophy is completely different and you have to build your bike around the tyres. If you have chatter, you can't say the casing on this tyre's a little too strong or too stiff on the side. You have to figure out a way of making the bike work with that tyre.

The advantage that we used to have where we just had to design a good feeling motorcycle and put a tyre into it is gone.

Back in the day when we used to develop tyres it used to be so much fun because they'd just say 'sh*t, what do you need, let's build it'. Now, instead of the tyre manufacturers spending their money building a tyre for you, you've got to rely on a factory or FTR or Kalex to make a chassis to suit the tyre.

Crash.net:
Many fans would like to see you back in WSBK one day, is that a possibility?

Colin Edwards:
I had an offer at the end of 2011 to do last year and this year, it just didn't line up though. I chose to stay here with the CRT thing after having chats with Ezpeleta and the big wigs saying that this was the future of MotoGP. As one of the older guys here it made more sense to do that.

As far as WSBK goes, I don't feel I have to go back there and prove anything else, also things just haven't lined up for me to go there. When I look at the amount of effort and money flying around here, it's far more.

If you tell me I have to go back to a championship where I can't change head angles or custom taylor the bike to myself, that's kinda hard to go to if you've been here for a while. It's the fascination for the technical level that keeps me here.

Crash.net:
Apparently, you were going to retire at the age of 32…

Colin Edwards:

That was back in the 500 days when I first got started and everybody was getting flipped to the moon. I followed most of those guys and was friends with Lawson, Schwantz and Rainey and I see how broken those guys got and I just knew that 32, 33, 34, that's probably all you want to do. That's probably all your body could handle really.

Once they changed to 4 strokes in MotoGP though, it definitely extended your career expectations. We had a little safety net there.

The idea of retiring doesn't frighten me. I've been traveling Europe since '95 and that's 20 years. For me retirement just means going home and spending more time with the kidos and my family. Would I miss it, sure, but at the moment I'm still having fun.

Crash.net:
Did Marco Simoncelli's death make you reconsider that?

Colin Edwards:
You know, it can also happen at home with a big old truck, a lorry can pull out and drive right over you. We put ourselves at a calculated amount of risk and sometimes freaky sh*t happens, you can't control everything.

That was tough, hell it was tough on everyone. He was one of the bright young stars. I would say that the three guys that seemed to have some pretty good charisma in the paddock were me, Valentino and him.

We all three had to come together and one of us didn't walk away. It didn't settle well on anybody, it's racing motorcycles, and it sucks.

Crash.net:
If your son wanted to be a racer, what would you say?

Colin Edwards:
He can do whatever the hell he wants to do, my dad supported me and I'll support him. It doesn't matter if I say yes or no, he'll probably do whatever he wants anyway. Fortunately he's out of the bike thing at the moment; he's playing baseball and soccer.
Crash.net:
As the time goes on do you feel you have to train any harder?

Colin Edwards:
I don't have any regimented gym time where I've got to go this day or that day. Recently my wife was training for the triathlon so I trained with her, I just stay fit.

My daily routine is more taking the kids out in the boat or playing baseball in the yard.

Now that everybody's running on Bridgestones rather than the Michelins, the bike's got a lot heavier and we had to figure out how to make the bike light turning again because they're getting pretty strenuous.

I think too much of an obsession with training is more a brain thing. Some guys have this brain thing where if they haven't trained for a week or missed a certain day, they turn up at the race track thinking 'I missed that days training, I'm not as fit as I could be' and they've already set themselves up for failure.

Colin Edwards - Q&A I had a team-mate like that one time and he used to be his own worst enemy. I just choose not to worry about that. It's more important to be mentally fit.

Crash.net:
Do you think there should be a minimum weight limit in MotoGP?

Colin Edwards:
To be determined. I really don't want to comment on that, because you may penalise people more than you help others. Someone like Dani would need to carry 20 pounds on his bike, which is harsh. Having said that though, it doesn't really bother me

Crash.net:
Do you leg dangle when braking?

Colin Edwards:
I don't and I never have throughout my whole career. I thought there might be something to it so I tried it in Malaysia a couple of years ago and I almost fell of the bike. I need my knees and feet on the bike so that I can squeeze it.

When you take a leg off the rest, you put all the weight on your arms, you ride a lot of the motorcycle with your core. The only time I take my leg off the rest is because I'm about to crash my brains out or it's an 'oh sh*t!' moment. I never do it on purpose because I'm trying to take as much weight off my arms as possible already.

When I was behind Valentino, I know that when he did it, he out braked himself and almost ran into the gravel. If there is an advantage, I don't know about it.

Crash.net:
Thanks for taking time out to answer my questions - 'It don't git no better!'

Colin Edwards:
It don't git no better baby!

 

[wino]

You beauty ! Lorenzo is out of the Assen Moto GP.

I'll give the guy credit tho this is the first time in 4/5 years of the series that he has fucked up. It's a heavy crash but he broke the back wheel loose on the white lines OOOPPPSS. And you Crutchlow fans dont get to ahead of yourselves if the race is run in the wet Rossi is gonna be right up there in the mix and so will both of the ducati's. This is the track I'll put $$$ on that Marquez takes out someone in turn 1 lap 1.


the spanish media aint happy

and last year just for the shits and giggles

Injured Lorenzo ruled out of Iveco TT Assen


Lorenzo breaks collarbone in heavy Assen crash
Thursday, 27 June 2013
MotoGP™ World Champion Jorge Lorenzo has been forced to miss Saturday’s Iveco TT Assen because of a broken left collarbone. The Yamaha Factory Racing rider picked up the injury after suffering a high-speed crash in Thursday afternoon practice.
Caught out by standing water, Lorenzo was launched over the front end of his bike before landing heavily on his left shoulder. The accident occurred at the rapid Hoge Heide right-hander which leads towards Ramshoek and the Geert Timmer chicane at the end of the legendary Assen lap.
Having been transported to the circuit Medical Centre by ambulance, Lorenzo was given painkillers before his broken collarbone was confirmed. He will now spend 12 hours under observation at Assen hospital, where CT scans will be conducted, before returning to Barcelona for surgery on either Saturday night or Sunday morning.
“Jorge has suffered an accident at over 200 kilometres an hour and the obvious injury at this point is a broken left clavicle,” explains Dr. Xavier Mir. “However, as this was a significant accident, we have to take into account that there could also be head, thoracic or abdominal injuries. For now, we have taken him to hospital in Assen where CT scans will be carried out in those three areas to rule out any further injuries. It would also be a prudent move to observe him over 12 hours to make sure he can be treated by the appropriate parties when he arrives in Barcelona tomorrow.”
In November 2009, Lorenzo underwent a small operation for the removal of a titanium plate from the same collarbone. This had been fitted following a crash in the 250 race at the Circuit de Catalunya in 2005, after which his shoulder was injured again in a Valencia off-season testing accident.
Lorenzo had headed into this race weekend off the back of consecutive race victories in the Italian and Catalan Grands Prix and is second in the Riders’ Championship, just seven points behind leader Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team).

Jorge Lorenzo - “I think I was too confident, at the moment of the crash I was very fast and felt very strong, but maybe the conditions weren’t the perfect ones to have this high confidence. I entered the corner faster than the previous lap and I think touched a patch of water, or maybe aquaplaned which made the rear wheel light and touch onto the white line, making it a lot worse which is why I crashed. I flew and when I hit the ground I broke my collarbone. I don't have anything negative with this circuit, just bad luck or in this case, too much confidence. You must always be optimistic, things could be worse and I will try to recover as soon as possible.”

 

[dankhead]

^damn, his boot even came loose. Really nasty fall.

 

[wino]

Sophie Lovett Kawasaki’s latest fast femme

• Friday 28th June, 2013 10:42am

Sophie Lovett brings her strong racing heritage to Kawasaki
Hunter Valley 250 Production motorcycle road racer, Sophie Lovett is the latest female rider to join Kawasaki for her efforts in the 250cc Production category and the Pro Stock class within the Australian Superbike Championship.
Lovett won the opening round of the women’s 250 Production Championship, which she rides on a Ninja 250R and is aiming to take that trophy this season, whilst also clocking a top five in the Pro Stock class, which she pilots a Ninja ZX-10R.
After winning the C/D-Grade of the Pro Stock Championship in 2012, Lovett joins World Women’s Motocross campaigner, Meghan Rutledge and boxing media personality, Lauryn Eagle as a Kawasaki ambassador.
“I’m really looking forward to showing other ladies that if I can be out there racing, then they can too,” explained Sophie. “The Women’s 250cc Production class is a fantastic way for ladies who ride on the road to transition into an affordable racing class. As a Kawasaki supported racer and ambassador, I hope to raise the profile of female road riding and racing in Australia and hopefully bring more women into the male dominated sport.”
Growing up in Cessnock in the Hunter Valley, Lovett has been around motorcycling her entire life, however her family is more associated with off-road racing.

Sophie Lovett in action
Her father, Phil, is one of Australia’s most decorated and versatile motorcyclists. He was Australia’s first Gold Medallist in the International Six Days Enduro in the late 1970s, is a multiple Finke Desert Race winner and over recent years has adapted his ability to road racing, where he now races against his daughter in the Australian Superbike Championship Pro Stock category.
Sophie started in Super Moto competition, before crossing over to road racing where she has shown an aptitude leading her to the deal with Kawasaki.
Aside from on-track competition, Sophie will be one of the spearheads of Kawasaki’s Women in Motorcycling program throughout 2013.

 

[wino]

^damn, his boot even came loose. Really nasty fall.

yeah really heavy, Iv'e watched 10/15 times and love it. At least it was wet I rekon that saved him from bigger crash and worse injuries.

 

[dankhead]

Road rash on a hot/dry day, over asphalt isn't fun.

 

[wino]

Road rash on a hot/dry day, over asphalt isn't fun.

Too right bloke I got the skin grafts to prove it.

There might be some scary facts future in the race win and story.

Lightning Motorcycles eBike Sets Fastest Time at Pikes Peak

2013 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
Lightning Motorcycles have beaten top gas motorbikes and set the fastest times at the Pikes Peak Hill Climb on the same machine that will be entering the FIM eRoadRacing World Cup.
In the first weekend of practice for the legendary Pikes Peak Hill Climb, Lightning produced the quickest times on their solar-powered motorcycle, beating the long-dominant gas bikes.
Lightning is no stranger to speed. They hold the land speed record for fastest production electric motorcycle in the world at 215mph with a fast run of 218mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats.
Richard Hatfield (CEO and Founder of Lighting Motorcycles) says: “This is the first time in history that an electric bike has beaten top gas bike competitors on the same playing field.”
Lightning Motorcycles have signed professional racer Carlin Dunn for Pikes Peak. The current all-time record holder and two-time champion of the legendary race chose to ride the Lightning electric superbike in his attempt at a third consecutive victory.
The Pike’s Peak record holder made the historic decision to ride on the electric-powered Lightning instead of a gas-powered bike. He will race the same electric motorcycle Lightning are entering in the FIM eRoadRacing World Cup, which kick-starts in Valencia on 14 July before heading to Laguna Seca on 21 July. The suspension set-up is the only difference between the bikes.
Carlin Dunne says: “I have a chance to be a part of something even bigger, to prove something to the rest of the world by riding this amazing electric bike. I’ve been testing it for a month and it’s insane. Its power and acceleration is like nothing I’ve ever ridden. When you light that fuse, hang on.”
The Lightning SuperBike is powered exclusively by solar energy through combined technology developed by SMA, Trina Solar and EnerDel Lithium batteries. That in turn is used to fuel the motorcycle’s onboard battery pack. This ground-breaking technology makes it one of the first racing vehicles in major motorsport events to leave a zero-carbon footprint.
Richard Hatfield says: “This technology will drive the future of racing. We always knew what we had in the performance of our electric bikes but it takes time for the world to comprehend and accept a huge change like this. It took 50 years for people to accept a car was better transportation than a horse. Now here is the top rider in the world at this race, at the top of his game, putting his seal of approval on us by leaving combustion and going electric.”
About Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
The Pikes Peak Hill Climb is the second oldest race in America next to the Indy 500 and the most dangerous. The track itself measures 12.42 miles (19.99 km) over 156 turns, climbing 4,720 ft (1,440 m) from the start at Mile 7 on Pike’s Peak Highway to the finish at 14,110 ft (4,300 m). This is on gradient grades averaging seven percent.



Old footage but you get the idea ^

 

[Calgacus]

 

[wino]

Embedded media from this media site is no longer available