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KTM 1290 SUPER DUKE R Prototype makes its mark at Goodwood last weekend.

KTM took its 1290 SUPER DUKE R prototype to the Goodwood Festival of Speed this past weekend and certainly made an impression on the Hill Climb course of this British event.

Making its first ever moving public appearance, former MotoGP pilot and current KTM development rider Jeremy McWilliams had to use his years of racing experience to keep “The Beast” under control around the narrow and hazardous 1.16 mile Hill Climb course.

Boasting “a lot more torque” than the 1190 RC8 R its engine originated from, the prototype has many similarities between itself and the new 1290 SUPER DUKE R production model which is due later this year.

For petrolheads, there aren’t many events that can rival the Festival of Speed, as it brings together exotic and historic two and four-wheeled machines from the past, present and, in this case, future. With its almost open-piped Akrapovic system emitting a raucous 125db, fans around the straw bale-lined circuit couldn’t miss the sight and sound of “The Beast” in action. Complete with Dunlop slick tyres, McWilliams built up pace and confidence and was able to clock an impress (and unofficial) 54 second lap time, hitting speeds of 135 mph – sometimes on one wheel.

Five runs were completed over the three-day event and thus there was plenty of time for McWilliams and the KTM staff to talk to the people attending the Goodwood Festival of Speed. More than 130.000 people attended the magnificent event.

Goodwood JMCW Wheelie news

Jeremy McWilliams said: “I’ve ridden some magnificent machines at Goodwood, but nothing as lairy as “The Beast”. It definitely suits the name. As soon as I tested this bike the evening before the event I knew I wanted to try and set a fast lap on it. I think we put on a good show as the response to the bike has been incredible and not just from the public! Kevin Schwantz told me it was his favourite bike at the event and he really wanted to ride it! I can’t really say a lot about the upcoming production bike only that people won’t be disappointed – the engine even has more grunt than that of ‘The Beast’.”


KTM and ADAC presented the KTM RC 390 Cup machine for the new “ADAC JUNIOR CUP POWERED BY KTM”, being introduced at the 2013 MotoGP of Germany at the Sachsenring. For the coming year, the RC 390 is to be the new machinery for the Brand Cup for up-and-coming young racers.KTM RC390Cup right

By introducing the motorcycle that will be used for the 2014 “ADAC Junior Cup powered by KTM”, KTM takes another important step in extending its activities on asphalt. Following the successful entry into the Moto3 World Championship – KTM brought the World Championship title to Austria in the premiere year – and the completion of the Duke range of naked bikes with the 125, 200 and 390 displacement models, there will now also be a fully faired sports bike available for sale. In typical fashion, there is a direct connection to motorsports. The “ADAC Junior Cup powered by KTM” will see the RC 390 in action for the first time worldwide as the exclusive motorcycle used in this Brand Cup competition.

Naturally it is not difficult for the sports motorcycle manufacturer from Mattighofen, Austria, to make the connection between racing and series production. In short: as always, KTM once again underlines that it is always “Ready to Race” in every aspect by presenting the RC 390 Cup at the eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland.

KTMRC390Cup PLAYERSKTM CEO Stefan Pierer: ”We developed a pure GP racing machine for the Moto3 World Championship. In contrast, the RC 390 Cup is based on a series model project. Both of these two projects were given the highest priority because the development of lower displacement, high quality street bikes are among our core activities. The new KTM RC 390, which will be available for sale in 2014 will meet a big demand for affordable, quality sport bikes for the lower displacement class.”

The KTM CEO adds: “Since 1993, ADAC has achieved a great deal with excellent work with up-and-coming riders in the Junior Cup. The promotion and support of young talent is also a very important aspect for KTM. We are happy to put a lot of energy into this because we actively engage in the promotion of young riders both in offroad sports and on asphalt. We are honestly thrilled that we will be able to support the ADAC Junior Cup as the KTM 390 Cup with all KTM bikes. Also because with ADAC we have a committed, reliable and strong partner in which everyone involved is a professional.”

Guy-leads metsMetzeler ‘real road racing’ campaign continues at Isle of Man mass start races.

Castletown, Isle of Man, 11 July 2013 – Metzeler racer Guy Martin saved the best to last at the Southern 100 races today as he won a hard fought battle with Michael Dunlop to take the feature ‘Solo Championship’ and log a new outright lap in the process.
Impressive young road racer Dean Harrison was also in fantastic form as he won the Supersport race and ‘Lightweight’ event- as fellow Metzeler rider James Hillier did on his ER6 machine at last month’s TT event.

Guy’s victory cheered his legions of fans at the event and listening online in a race which the Lincolnshireman professes to ‘loving’. In the ‘main event’ he took his Tyco Suzuki GSXR1000 to a new absolute lap record of 114.245mph in the fifth of eight laps to beat the current road racing man in form, Michael Dunlop.

Guy-metsThe historic 4.25 mile Billown circuit again attracted good crowds who enjoyed fantastic racing and magnificent weather over the four day event. With a grassy paddock, mass starts and a traditional atmosphere to proceedings, the ‘Southern’ offers a unique charm for both racers and visitors alike. Tragically local racers Mark Madsen-Mygdal and David Jukes lost their lives at the event this year.

The races also marks another major road racing success for the Metzeler development team after victories in the North West 200, Isle of Man TT with the high speed Metzeler Ulster GP in August.

To see the top Metzeler riders behind the scenes and in preparation for the Ulster GP please visit: www.metzeler.com/roadracing and on Twitter follow #roadtolegend

Videos are also available on You Tube channel: www.youtube.com/metzelermoto.


ISLE OF MAN 2199 fullby Ian Groat

With more visitors than ever before to the iconic worlds best motorcycle road racing festival, the trump card of near perfect weather was played out in early June with throngs of international bikers and the races were broadcast to some 30 million global tv enthusiasts worldwide which adds up to all the makings of a happening for one and all.ISLE OF MAN 2118 full

Practice Week

ISLE OF MAN 1409With only two of the six sessions of evening practise being any good, riders in the senior class were left perplexed as to just how their machines were set up so the only XXXXX came from the clerk of the course who made a programme change to run the Superbike TT on a schedule of  XXXX Sunday’s rest day after rain stopped play. But in the practice week already the pace of Michael Dunlop and his brother William showed that between many of the TT aces like Cameron Donald, Gary Johnson and the maestro John McGuinness their plus 130 miles per hour laps showed that the weeks TT races in prospect showed a brilliant pace was on the cards.

Interview with Wade YoungSeventeen-year-old South African Wade Young has kept himself busy since this year’s ErzbergRodeo. Opting to stay in Europe, the Husaberg rider contested two rounds of the Enduro World Championship in Romania and Greece before turning his attention towards the upcoming Red Bull Romaniacs.

Delivering some promising results on his EWC debut, Young is a rider very much on top form. Hoping to translate that pace across to the Hard Enduro scene, he feels fit and ready for his debut ride at the longest and toughest race on the Hard Enduro calendar…

Wade, how have you enjoyed these past two weeks racing in the Enduro World Championship?
“Honestly, it’s been great. Racing in the EWC is something that I’ve been building towards for quite some time. It was my first time racing with these guys and it’s given me a realistic understanding of where I’m at.”

goodwood 03The international Goodwood Revival to be held in September in the UK, have extended an invitation to South Africa to race the high profile Barry Sheene Memorial Race. This race will be held on both the Saturday and Sunday race schedules.

The organisers allow only motor cycles made up to 1961 to participate with a 500cc limit on capacity. “Team Incomplete”, which is run by Ian Groat, the Publisher of Automotive Refinisher magazine, has a stable of Grand Prix racing machinery.  The Manx Grand Prix winner Jimmie Guthrie, along with Springbok rider Peter Labuschagne, will ride a special Manx Norton in the 25-minute leg on each day at Goodwood.

The colonial flyers will be in star-studded company with the likes of Troy Corser, Jamie Whitham, Wayne Gardener, Freddie Spencer and Mick Grant, who will head up only 30 teams for the race. Lord Charles March, the patron of the event, which features aero displays and car races for the retro historic competition, says the unique atmosphere and intense competition of the Barry Sheene Memorial Race is a major drawcard for the weekend’s festival.

On the agenda for Jimmie Guthrie will be to appear in the Isle of Man section for this year’s Classic TT Race where they are celebrating 90 years of the running of the Manx Grand Prix races. All previous race winners are to be honoured.

 

 

 

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JIMMIE GUTHRIE: Jimmie Guthrie won the Manx Grand Prix in 1967 and will ride a bike like this 1961 Manx Norton at Goodwood in the Barry Sheene Memorial race.

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PETER LABUSCHAGNE: has been extremely successful on the “Team Incomplete” Wagon Wheels racer from the 60’s. Springbok motocycle champion and regular local TT racer, will represent South Africa at the Barry Sheene Memorial for “Team Incomplete”.


HARLEY rome

Thousands of Harley-Davidson enthusiasts congregate in the Eternal City  for momentous four-day celebration-

 

ROME (June 18, 2013) – Harley-Davidson riders from across the world took part in an epic four-day event in Rome (June 13-16, 2013) to mark the European leg of the company’s 110th Anniversary celebrations around the globe.

 

An estimated 100,000 Harley-Davidson fans flocked to the Eternal City to attend one of the biggest events ever hosted by the company in Europe. A series of unique Harley-Davidson 110th Anniversary activities took place across multiple sites in Rome for fans to experience.

 

The key highlights of the event saw thousands of fans take part in a police guided motorcycle parade from the port of Ostia through some of the most iconic sections of Rome, passing by the 2000-year-old Coliseum and a one-of-a-kind custom bike show on the Foro Italico grounds with a range of Harley-Davidson models on display.

Yamaha 2014 MT ride

Yamaha MT-09 is a whole new concept in sport bike design. With a compact new chassis and high-torque compact and lightweight 850cc 3-cylinder engine, this new generation performance machine is designed for riders who appreciate character and soul.

2014-3KTM continues to set the benchmark in the development of offroad motorcycles with the presentation its Model Year 2014 range. A stand-out example of the company’s dedication to ongoing research and development is the star attraction in the Enduro range, the brand new 250 EXC-F, featuring a completely new engine based on the very successful 350 EXC-F.

The Austrian manufacturer has 50 percent of the Enduro market share but its dedication to R&D was evident right across the new models as it continues to deliver the best in terms of performance, ride-ability and reliability. The star attraction 250 EXC-F also features many improvements over last year’s model, including an all new high tech race proven engine.

2014-4Cutting-edge developments in Enduro and Motocross bikes were presented to 70 journalists from 19 countries, including from as far afield as Australia, Japan, Israel and Malaysia on the Italian island of Sardinia, location for the much-awaited 2013 International Six days Enduro. And as KTM and its factory riders continue to dominate many of the world’s most prestigious motocross competitions, the presence of Tony Cairoli, Ken de Dycker, Jeffrey Herlings and Jordi Tixier of the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team added to the media interest.

 

 

 

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