Hoy ha tocado sufrir y aguantar las vaciladas de este fenómeno!!
Me ha pasado por encima😅
Empezamos cardio, un pasito más en la recuperación!💪🏼 Today was time to suffer and tolerate his jokes!
He has beaten me! 😅
We have started cardio, another important step for the recovery! 13,5km + 550m #Fita973
Source: Marc Márquez on Facebook
The opening round of AMA Supercross for 2019 at Anaheim saw competitors battle muddy conditions. For round two in Arizona conditions were fine and clear as they were under the roof of the State Farm Stadium at Glendale, despite that the track still certainly presented its challenges.
Some fireworks had unfolded earler in the heat races when Dean Wilson and Justin Barcia had some stern words with each other after the pair clashed in Heat Race One. That opening Heat was one by Marvin Musquin ahead of Cole Seely.
Chad Reed qualified 11th before finishing second in his Heat to Justin Brayton, and thus the Aussie legend was promoted straight through to the Main. Ken Roczen qualified P9 and finished eighth in his heat race to narrowly qualify for the Main without having to endure LCQ.
Malcolm Stewart rode strong at the series opener and that form looked to have followed him to Arizona with third place in his heat race. Unfortunately the 26-year-old crashed heavily 15-minutes remaining of the 450 Main which put him out of the running. The fall was heavy and caused the race to be stopped while Ken Roczen had a handy lead over Anderson and Musquin. Stewart was later diagnosed with a broken femur.
Roczen would rue the race being stopped as he had scored an amazing holeshot in the first attempt at running the Main and looked as though he was running away with it.
Jason Anderson didn’t really fire at the A1 season opener but the reigning Supercross Champion looked to have a lot more fire in his belly. Some judged that to be too much fire in his belly when the Husqvarna man made a hard pass on Roczen that took the German down.
The Honda man managed to remount and salvage third place after being passed by Anderson, Baggett and Musquin while he was on the ground. Roczen got back past Musquin for third but his challenge for the win ended with that pass by Anderson. To help offset some of that disappointment Roczen can take heart that he now leads the 2019 AMA Supercross Championship on 44-points.
Jason Anderson was rounded up by Baggett in the closing stages of the race and the KTM man then went on to walk away from the defending champion to an almost easy win. Anderson gave up the fight as soon as he was passed by Baggett, electing instead to take a safe P2 and the 23-points it came with. Anderson is now seventh on the points table.
Glendale marked the first 450 Main win for the 26-year-old Californian and promotes the KTM rider to fourth in the championship standings.
Blake Baggett – P1
“It’s good to just be able to feel good enough to run behind Jason [Anderson] and you know, I’ve had weekends where I can run with those guys and some weekends they just leave me in the dust, so it feels good to finally get my whole program together and be able to run with those guys. I’ve got to keep things rolling, it hasn’t hit me yet that I finally got a 450 win!”
Jason Anderson – P2
“This was a good weekend. I was able to ride the Main better than last week. I had a section that I didn’t think I was great in, so I didn’t want to put myself in a position to go down and lose points. I took the second and I’ll go from there.”
Eli Tomac had to take on the LCQ in order to make the 450 Main Event after the reigning AMA Motocross Champion suffered a problem with the rear wheel of his KX450F in the heat race. There was a massive pile-up during the LCQ that Tomac managed to avoid but Savatgy got caught up in the incident and thus missed the Main.
Tomac though rode well in the main to claim fourth place ahead of Marvin Musquin and Anaheim 1 winner Justin Barcia. Tomac is now third on the points table, three-points adrift of second placed Barcia.
Justin Brayton finished seventh ahead of Dean Wilson and Cole Seely while Cooper Webb rounded out the top ten.
Chad Reed bagged nine-points from his 14th place finish, coming home four-seconds behind Yoshimura Suzuki team-mate Justin Hill.
Adam Cianciarulo jumped out to an early lead in the 250 Main and by half race distance had built up a healthy five-second buffer over Shane McElrath.
By race end Cianciarulo had doubled that gap out to almost ten-seconds while Colt Nicholds overhauled Shane McElrath in the latter half of the race to claim the second spot on the rostrum.
Nichols retains the series lead while Cianciarulo’s win promoted him up to second on the series leaderboard.
Colt Nichols – Race P2 – Championship P1
“The bike was great. It felt really, really good all day. We made a few changes to the suspension before the night program and that helped a lot. The track was just so dry and you had to be really, really patient. I was trying not to rush everything, but sometimes I kind of rushed it and made a few little mistakes. That’s all right though. I still salvaged a second, so I’m really happy to leave with the points lead and will get ready for next weekend.”
Australian privateer Tomas Ravenhorst piloted his KTM to 26th in qualifying to make it into the top 40 cut that progressed through to the heat races. Ravenhorst then finished tenth in his heat race which meant he narrowly missed the cut for automatic progression to the 250 Main. Ravenhorst then had a difficult LCQ in which he finished 15th and thus missed out on the Main, despite running inside the LCQ top ten for most of the LCQ.
Source: MCNews.com.au
Reed 14th as Cianciarulo breaks through for 250SX West victory.
Image: Supplied.
Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM’s Blake Baggett has earned a stunning career-first 450SX main event victory at Glendale’s second round of the 2019 Monster Energy AMA Supercross and FIM World Championship, in what proved to be an eventful night in Arizona.
The initial main was red-flagged just a number of laps in when Malcolm Stewart (Smarttop Bull Frog Spas MotoConcepts Honda) suffered a heavy fall at the end of the whoop section, which ultimately saw the race restarted with riders lining up in single file on the main straight led by Ken Roczen (Honda HRC).
Reigning champion Jason Anderson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) forced the issue on Roczen upon restarting, taking down the number 94 for the top spot, however it was only a matter of time before Baggett charged his way by to take the win.
Roczen recovered for third, granting him the championship lead, finishing ahead of Eli Tomac (Monster Energy Kawasaki) and Marvin Musquin (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), as Australian Chad Reed (JGRMX Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing) wound up in 14th position.
In the 250SX West category, Pro Circuit Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo broke through for victory, clinching a commanding 9.557s win over Colt Nichols (Monster Energy Yamalube Star Racing Yamaha), who still maintains control of the championship.
Third was credited to Shane McElrath (Troy Lee Designs Red Bull KTM) followed by RJ Hampshire (Geico Honda) and Jimmy Decotis (JGRMX Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing), while Australian Tomas Ravenhorst (Husqvarna) fell short of qualifying for the main event.
The Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship heads to Anaheim next weekend for round three of the 17-stop series.
Source: MotoOnline.com.au
Dakar riders have taken stock of their progress so far during the first half of Dakar 2019, tried to regenerate their bodies and rejuvenate their machines, during their well-earned Saturday rest day at the Arequipa bivouac.
In reality though it was far from a rest day, as riders did not have much time to relax, instead they had to study their road-books and plan for the remainder of Dakar 2019. Then at 1700 in the evening they had to then set out for the new bivouac in Camaná, some 175 kilometres from Arequipa, from where they will begin the final assault with the Dakar heading into the home straight for the conclusive week. Competitors were barely able to savour more than a few hours relaxation on Saturday.
So far it has been a series of ups and downs for the Honda camp at Dakar 2019.
Paulo Gonçalves was forced to retire from the race with a head injury and a suspected broken right hand. Stage one winner Joan Barreda had also made a premature exit. Thus before the midway point of Dakar two of Honda’s main strike force are out of the running. At the opposite end of the ledger though, Honda currently leak Dakar 2019 thanks to the efforts of 27-year-old American Ricky Brabec.
Raul Castells – Monster Energy Honda Team Manager
“We have five days left where everything can happen, it is a cliché but it is true. Even if we are ahead, everything can happen. We will take it day by day. We will look to finish each day as far forward as possible to have a chance of victory. We are focused on not making mistakes and in which all the riders can return to the bivouac each stage. Nacho is riding a very good race, he lost a little time but he is still doing a very good bit of team work. Kevin took the first part a little more calmly to figure out which way the race was going, which I think is a very successful strategy. On the other hand, Ricky has pushed from the first day and now is leading the overall standings. The two are doing very well and have options.”
Ricky Brabec – P1
“Rest day is always good. It’s good to recharge the batteries. I’m leading the Dakar. I’m one of the only American riders to ever have led the Dakar except for maybe Robby Gordon. It feels pretty good. It’s going to be a big fight between me and Kevin as the week goes on. The two Monster Energy Honda Team riders want to win. I think it will be a battle between us until the end.”
Sam Sunderland’s stage win on Friday elevated him to second overall, just less than one minute from the lead. Feeling fit and confident, the 2017 Dakar winner is ready to push during the second half of the rally.
Sam Sunderland – P2
“So far, the race has been really, really hard. The navigation, the nature of the stages with the Fesh-Fesh, the rocks, mass-start days and all the little changes they have thrown into the mix – it’s all come together to make it a very different Dakar and seriously tough. The final five days are going to be the same or even trickier, strategy is difficult as you don’t know what the next stage is going to bring. All we can do is take each day as it comes and go from there. Coming into the race I expected many more kilometres in the dunes, but the organisers have certainly thrown everything else at us as well. I’m happy with my position, second overall going into the second week is of course great, but the nature of the race has made everything very close. I am still feeling good and the bike is great so if I can keep on doing what I’m doing, hopefully that will put me somewhere close next Thursday.”
Husqvarna’s Pablo Quintanilla has so far been a force to be reckoned with during this year’s event. Following a well calculated plan, the Chilean rally star has arrived at the Rest Day holding on to a solid third position in the event’s provisional overall standings. Enjoying a well-deserved day of rest today at the Arequipa bivouac, Pablo is excited to keep battling during the second week of the Dakar, which starts tomorrow.
Pablo Quintanilla – P3
“I am really happy with my performance during the first week of this Dakar. I’ve had some good results in some stages. For me it was also important to reach the Rest Day inside the top five and have a good starting position for stage six. It looks like my strategy from Friday worked out quite well, now I have a great starting position for tomorrow. This gives me the opportunity to make up a lot of time in the overall and I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s stage. My bike is running great and I’m enjoying my riding here in Peru. I really like the landscape and the terrain here. A podium result would be good but, honestly, I’m focused on the overall victory. This is my main goal for this Dakar and I am motivated to keep fighting to make it happen.”
The 2019 Dakar Rally has been a tough one for Toby Price. Despite nursing a wrist that he broke only a few weeks before the Dakar, the determined Aussie has gritted his teeth and ridden through the pain to place fourth overall at the rally’s halfway point.
Toby Price – P4
“So far my favourite part of the rally has been today, the rest day! No seriously, it’s been a good rally so far. I’m still in the fight and in fourth, just three minutes off the lead – if you told me that a few weeks ago I would have been quite happy. It’s been tough, every day I’m riding in pain a little and I suppose the injury is always in the back of your mind no matter what. The simple fact is, you’ve always got to be in it to win it, you can’t quit, you can’t stop, you can never give up. It doesn’t really matter where I finish, top 10, top five or on the podium, I know I will have given it my all and ridden my hardest.”
Overcoming the added pressure of the first few days, Adrien Van Beveren is now looking to show his full potential on the second week of the Dakar. Enjoying a mistake-free race, Adrien is now fifth overall and less than seven minutes behind the provisional overall leader.
Adrien Van Beveren – P5
“Everything is working well for me at the moment. I’m very satisfied with my results from the first week and I’m looking forward to the second one. I’ve felt fatigued on the first few days, but that was mostly due to the pre-race stress. Once I got over that, I could start racing the way I know. This Dakar is different to any other in the past. The pace is really fast and in many stages we’re racing alongside each other for pretty much most of the day. These are quite stressful conditions but I’m managing the pressure quite well. Physically I’m strong at the moment. For the second week, I want to retain that same momentum so that I can be able to fight for the big goal that is to win the Dakar. We all know that the second week will be even harder, but I am confident in my abilities.”
30-year-old Argentinian Kevin Benavides has been enjoying a steady rally thus far and has managed to keep his nose clean enough to rank sixth on the leaderboard at this midway point of Dakar 2019.
Kevin Benavides – P6
“He finished the first week with a good balance and now we are preparing everything for the second. It will be five very hard days of navigation and off-piste. We will have to be vigilant and know where to attack. We will try to be as focused as possible to be able to do our best and achieve my goal, which is to win the Dakar. The seven riders in front of us are have times very close to each other, so we all have the option of winning.”
Enjoying a successful rally so far, Matthias Walkner currently lies in seventh overall with a stage win under his belt. A hard landing from a drop-off on stage four couldn’t even slow his pace. The defending champion is happy with his performance so far and keen to attack the second week of racing.
Matthias Walkner – P7
“The Dakar Rally is like no other and this year we have seen it’s different again. The average speed on the stages has been high and it has made strategy tricky to work out. Opening the piste has been tough as we have seen, but at the same time it’s important to keep an eye on your competitors to see what they are doing, too. The first week has been good, day three was beautiful. The weather was good and the route took us through some beautiful valleys and over the dunes. The stages in general have been good, dusty in places and very, very fast. Now on the second half of the rally we will go back and cover some of the areas we have ridden already. I think it will affect the pace again as you can’t always follow the tracks on the ground, you have to rely on your road book completely. If the rally finished now with me in seventh place, of course I would be unhappy with my position but I would be happy with how I have ridden – I have done my very best on every single day and that feels good.”
Delivering Yamaha its first stage victory at this year’s Dakar by winning stage three, Xavier de Soultrait is now eighth in the provisional overall. Physically and mentally strong, the rider from France is looking to take advantage of his acute navigational skills as the race enters it hardest part this coming week.
Xavier de Soultrait – P8
“So far I’ve won one stage and finished second in another one and I’m really happy about that. I might have lost some time on stage four, but this is part of the game. I feel I’m in a great place right now for the rest of the race. I’m doing quite well with my navigation and I think this is my strong point this year. During the second week, we’re all expecting navigation to be even trickier and I want to turn this into my advantage. The race is intense and there are stages where it’s hard to make passes. Fortunately, I’ve had zero issues so far. I’m strong physically and my bike is running great. If everything goes according to plan, I know I can fight for the overall victory and that’s where my eyes are set.”
In just his second participation in the world’s toughest rally, Andrew Short has battled with many of the motorcycle class’ top contenders. Securing a career best fifth place result on the second day of the marathon stage, the American racer is currently 10th in the provisional overall standings.
Andrew Short – P10
“The first part of this rally went quite well for me. I expected more sand dunes, but it turned out to be more tricky than that. There was a lot of fesh-fesh and some technical bits in the mountains. My body is in a great shape right now and I’ve recovered well from some crashes I had during the first week. I’m looking forward to the second part of this rally. Hopefully I can stay smooth and steady and keep my momentum to finish strong. Today I’m preparing for the upcoming days and it’s quite important to have a strategy for the stages to come. It’s also crucial to rest. My position at the moment is decent and hopefully I can improve on it during the second week of racing here in Peru.”
Laia Sanz has put in strong performances on the first five stages and is looking to better her position during the latter half of the race. Despite recovering from illness coming into the rally, Sanz has ridden extremely well to lie just inside the top 20 at the halfway marker.
Laia Sanz – P19
“The main thing I have learned this Dakar is that I can still surprise myself in what I can accomplish when I put my mind to it. I wasn’t 100 percent coming into the race and the first couple of days took me a while to feel comfortable and get into a good rhythm, the last three days have been great though. My pace has improved and I am much happier on the bike, despite the stages being so tough. My goal for next week is to continue as I have been and hopefully, I can improve my position a little. It’s going to be tough for me, the conditions this year don’t suit me so well as the stages are often about speed and not so much the navigation. I’ll try my best and as we know anything can happen at Dakar so if I can make it into the top 15, I’ll be happy.”
Sunday’s stage, which heads out from the bivouac in Camaná, will have a total of 839 kilometres before reaching the camp in San Juan de Marcona. On the way competitors face 317 kilometres against the clock.
Jordi Viladoms (KTM Rally Team Manager)
“We knew from the very beginning the 2019 Dakar Rally would be one of very high intensity. Obviously, that has been the case, all the riders are really close and many different things happen each day that can throw off our strategy. Opening the piste is a big disadvantage and can result in a lot of time lost, we need to be mindful of that and adjust things. The race is so unpredictable, following a plan like that simply isn’t possible so we have to take each day as it comes. We go into the second half of the rally with Sam near the front, some guys in the middle and some further back so we have the positions covered. In my opinion the next three stages are going to be extremely important, the final two are a lot shorter and will make it harder to make up time if we need to. We’ll have a good idea of where we are after day eight. Every single one of our riders is performing very well. Sam is fit and I think can push next week and really fight for the win, Matthias the same – he’s so strong on his navigation and he has found a great rhythm, Toby is hurting but is so strong physically and mentally, we just need to make sure he doesn’t risk too much. Luciano and Laia are riding very well and of course Mario has been brilliant. The marathon stage is always a very important part of the rally and Mario was great assisting with all the bikes and attending the briefings. He’s taken on the father’s role for the riders, so a big thank you to him. We are definitely in a good position to fight for the podium places and the win of the rally. The next few days will be crucial, but we will do what we do best and hopefully we’ll be successful.”
Source: MCNews.com.au
Source: MCNews.com.au
Australia’s top three riders, including a World Champion, reigning Australian Champion and determined up-and-comer battled it out for glory at Loxford Park Speedway, Kurri Kurri yesterday evening. Fans didn’t need to wait for the A Final though, with history already made when Max Fricke produced enough points in his final heats to make defeat impossible.
The Finale
Temperatures well into the high 30’s all evening at the final round of the series. The mounting pressure on the Kurri Kurri Speedway Club to maintain the track, alongside the pressure on riders to maintain their cool were major factors throughout the evening. Jaimon Lidsey reflected this mounting pressure, retiring from his fourth heat of the evening. Lidsey otherwise had a difficult run at Round 5 of the 2019 Australian Senior Solo Speedway Championship, scoring three seconds and a third-place finish, ending the Championship in seventh place on 45 points. Settling in behind Lidsey in eighth-place was Nick Morris, also on 45 points, who finished his heats with a win, plus three seconds and a third.
Taking out sixth place in the 2019 Championship was Brady Kurtz, a late bloomer in the Championship but one to keep an eye out for in next year’s Championship! Kurtz had an eventful evening, taking out two wins, two seconds and a fourth-place finish, which qualified him into the B Final. Scoring a total of 51 points, Kurtz just couldn’t hold onto the momentum, finishing the qualifier in fourth place. Ahead of Kurtz in fifth place overall was Jack Holder, with 52 points. Fiery and jesting in nature, Holder maintained his position in the finals but simply couldn’t push past the three Kings, Rohan Tungate, Chris Holder and Fricke, to make it onto the podium. Upon the close of Round 5, Holder had to be content with a qualification into the B Final, plus one win, two seconds and two thirds during his heats.
Coming in at fourth overall was Sam Masters, who made himself a dominant figure throughout this entire season. Masters’ efforts tonight with three wins, one second and one third place finish qualified him straight into the A Final. Masters closed off the Championship on 53 points and a third-place finish in the A Final, and will no doubt be a huge feature in next year’s Championship season!
Well ahead on 70 points and taking his well earnt place in third was Chris Holder, who fought tooth and nail throughout the Championship to take out the bronze. Keeping his fans on the edge of their seats during Round 5, Holder nabbed two wins and three second place finishes during his heats to qualify into the B Final. Up against his younger brother, Kurtz and Morris, there was simply no stopping Holder on his campaign to land himself into the A Final. Holder’s hunger for gold though could not match up to Rohan Tungate, Masters or Fricke in the A Final, and he settled instead for a fourth-place finish and enough points to comfortably land in third place overall.
Six points behind first and indisputably the fastest rider on track, reigning Champion Tungate took out second place overall in the Championship with 77 points. Tungate delivered an unforgettable performance at Kurri Kurri, winning all his respective heats and just too fast for Fricke in the A Final. Blazing a trail like a demon at the handlebars, Tungate was a ferocious competitor all evening but that six-point lead maintained by Fricke just couldn’t be beat.
Rohan Tungate
“I came out with a plan and everything went to accordingly. I did everything I could and won all my races, so I achieved my goal in the end! Max rode well all meeting and all series, and you simply can’t take that away from him. I can sleep well knowing I rode him hard, and so did Chris. It’s been a hard Championship, and Max fought hard for it, so he deserves it,” explained Tungate, reflecting on the closing round of the Championship.
In first place, on 83 points, was 22-year-old Fricke. Adding the Australian Senior Solo Speedway Champion title to his already impressive CV has done nothing to impact his humility, with the Mansfield local quick to remind himself and his fans that the goal of a World Championship is a long way into the future. Fricke finished Round 5 off with four wins and one second place finish during his heats, and a second-place finish in the A Final behind the lightning fast Tungate.
Max Fricke
“There’s some great talent that have won the Championship in the past, so it’s an honour to have my name on the list. It’s been a really close championship between myself, Rohan and Chris right from the get-go. It’s been a great Championship and I am unbelievably happy to now be named the Champion. All the clubs have done such a great job this championship and everything has worked out really well! I hope to look to add a GP World Championship but I think that’s a long way into the future, so I just need to continue improving and hopefully a goal like that can be achievable.”
Source: MCNews.com.au
If it wasn’t for the ride-sharing and mountain and wriggly route options on our TomTom Rider 550 GPS we might never have discovered a hidden gem of a mountain road.
Riding partner and map expert Peter “Worldmapman” Davis recently reviewed the TomTom Rider 550 for us and has been using it now for some time.
Usually one of our riding group decides where to go and then leads the pack. It’s usually me and I’ve almost run out of routes in the South East Queensland area.
I think I know every twisting, winding scenic roads in this region. But I was wrong.
This time we decided to put the TomTom unit to the test and let it decide a route for us.
Since it was hot, we thought a ride up to Toowoomba at the top of the Great Dividing Range would give us a respite from the heat.
So we put that in as one waypoint, plus Hampton and Flagstone Creek.
You can select the waypoints by typing in a place name or simply pressing a point on the screen to drop a waypoint “flag”.
We then selected a return journey with maximum mountain and winding roads options. There are two levels of each and we chose the top levels.
That increased an out-and-back journey on the highway from about 160km to about 250km.
Because we were riding cruisers, we chose the “avoid dirt roads” option. You can also choose to avoid toll roads, highways and even roadworks in the settings menu.
Route selected, we shared it among ourselves either with other TomTom GPS units or via their MyDrive app platform on their phones.
Sharing a route like this is great because it means you don’t have to bother about corner-man systems as riders can’t get lost.
You can plan your route on the GPS unit, or on the TomTom MyDrive app on your phone or your computer. Each allows you to share with other TomTom users via Bluetooth, email or message.
When we headed off on the Brisbane Valley Highway TomTom almost immediately took us off the highway on to back roads.
This led us the long way round to Esk before heading up the only sealed road to Hampton.
In fact, it even bypassed some of Esk.
Peter says a good tip in selecting waypoints on this sort of route is to never select a town’s CBD or the name of a town.
Always select a waypoint on a road past the town. That will actually throw in a nice little deviation and avoid sending you down every suburban street.
In fact, you should even start your journey out of town or it may take you on a wild goose chase around the suburbs first.
The great thing about the TomTom Rider 550 is that you can change your mind along the way.
If you decide to go into town for a coffee or toilet stop, just head on in and the unit recalculates the route very quickly.
In fact, it is the fastest of any unit Peter has used in his extensive mapping career.
You can also add more waypoints, or change the winding road option from super wriggly to less wiggly or to the fastest or most direct route if you are getting tired and want to head home.
All it takes is a touch of a button on the screen.
If you decide to bypass a waypoint, the unit will try to recalculate you back to it, so it’s a good idea to delete the waypoint by going to your list of stops and deleting it.
We largely followed the directions, but also chose to ignore them a little and explore.
But we are glad we did not ignore its advice when we came down the Range on Flagstone Creek Rd.
It pointed left on to Blanchview Rd which we have done before and enjoyed, so we followed.
But shortly after TomTom took us right on to Silver Pinch Rd which looks almost like someone’s driveway. We’ve ignored this road in the past … but not today.
Just as well as it is a real rider’s gem.
It traverses several narrow ridges past Table Top Mountain, overlooking beautiful fertile farmland with jaw-dropping views on either side.
The road really does wriggle along and it seems it has only recently been paved along its entirety until it becomes Topps Rd and ends at the T junction with the Back Flagstone Creek Rd.
What a rollercoaster of a road it is with plenty of elevation, looping corners, esses and switchbacks.
We enjoyed it so much we stopped along the way for photos and doubled back a bit to ride some sections again.
Consequently we ended up running a little behind our schedule return time.
So at Laidley we simply decided to switch to the shortest destination and head home.
When we got home, we shared photos and maps with each other via MyDrive so we can do it again another time … maybe in a reverse direction.
You can do that by simply shuffling the order of the waypoints. Just drag and drop the last stop to the top and make the rest of the changes accordingly.
Source: MotorbikeWriter.com
Peter Fonda famously throws away his watch in the cult 1969 movie Easy Rider, starting a fad with riders and other travellers to discard their watches and disregard the constraints of time.
A watch is a symbol of “the man”, society and capitalism that constrain us.
Motorcycles are freedom machines that allow us to escape the rigours of timekeeping.
In a hilarious parody of the famous Easy Rider scene, John Travolta and his buddies throw away their mobile phones before a cross-country ride in the 2007 movie Wild Hogs.
“You don’t need a GPS to discover America; you need a bike and you need the road, ok? Freedom,” says Travolta.
Exactly!
There are no deadlines on the open road. Even sunset is no limit.
So there really is no need for a watch. Besides, you can’t see it under your jacket sleeve and gloves when riding.
Besides, most bikes these days have clocks, although I have my bike’s screen set to the trip meter, rather than the clock.
Yet motorcycle companies have had a long association with watch companies over time.
The latest is the Ducati-Locman collection with prices ranging from €299 to €598.
Other motorcycle manufacturers have had similar exclusive watches in recent years so devoted fans can wear their “heart” on their sleeve – or wrist!
They include: a Ducati Scrambler watch in 2015 with Swiss watchmaker Tudor; Indian Motorcycle with Swiss watchmaker Baume & Mercier; a BMW GS watch, BMW boxer watch designed by Marc Jenni; and a host of Harley-Davidson watches with New York company Bulova.
Source: MotorbikeWriter.com
Moquegua > Arequipa 776 km – Jan 11th
The second part of the two-day long marathon stage, Friday’s stage five of this year’s Dakar brought competitors back to the Arequipa bivouac. The stage featured a mass motocross style start off the beach at Moquegua.
Riders set off in groups of 10 according to their finishing positions from the previous day’s stage four, each group split by five minutes. From the beach, competitors headed into the Ilo dunes for the remainder of the 345-kilometre timed special. With a number of riders racing together on the stage, split times were close to every waypoint.
Starting in the first group, Sam Sunderland got off to a solid start, opting not to push straight away and risk a mistake or incident with a fellow competitor. Coming across a fallen Paulo Goncalves, Sunderland stopped and assisted until the medical team arrived, setting off again after 10 minutes. Pushing hard to make up time the sand specialist demonstrated the skill he is known for, almost catching the front group before the finish. With the time lost awarded back to him, the Brit had done enough to win the stage and move up to second in the provisional overall standings, closing to within a minute of outright rally leader Ricky Brabec.
Sam Sunderland – Stage P1 – Overall P2
“Obviously the first thing is to wish Goncalves the best after his accident – it’s always scary when you see that happen in front of you. I stayed with him for over 10 minutes but it’s difficult to gauge how long you’re actually stopped for. A lot of riders passed us and so when I got going again, I just pushed as hard as I could. It’s so difficult when you are behind like that, to know if you are gaining on the guys in front or losing ground. I saw the group just before the finish so I knew I had made up some time. I’m lying second now and it’s been a good first half to the race, but I know if the next five days are going to be anything like these we’ve just had, it’s going to end up as a seriously tough rally.”
Yamaha’s Xavier de Soultrait secured a solid runner-up result on Friday’s stage five of the 2019 Dakar Rally and moved up to eighth in the provisional overall standings.
Xavier de Soultrait – Stage P2 – Overall P8
“It was another good stage for me and I’m really happy with my second place. I started the special at a steady pace to preserve my tyres. The pace was fast and there were some dangerous spots in the special. As we were getting closer to the end of the special, I was feeling great on my bike so I decided to push hard for a good time. I made my attack and when I got to the finish I was told I had won the stage. Later on we learned that Sam Sunderland was given back the time he lost to assist an injured rider, so he ended up winning the stage with me a close second. I’m wrapping up this first week of the rally on a high. I’m really happy with the way things have worked out for me so far and I’m looking forward to the second week that starts on Sunday.”
It was another strong stage for defending Dakar Champion Matthias Walkner. After clearing the group that had formed following the morning’s mass-start, the Austrian was able to increase his pace and put in an excellent performance on the latter half of the special. Walkner was the first to cross the line, posting the third fastest time just over three-minutes down on team-mate Sunderland. Unfortunately, a three-minute speed penalty then dropped Matthias to an eventual 10th.
Matthias Walkner – Stage P10 – Overall P7
“It’s always fun to set off motocross-style on the beach like that, but I didn’t get the best start and then as we hit the Fesh-Fesh I found myself in clouds of dust and wasn’t able to do anything about it. It carried on like that for around 200 kilometres and it was really frustrating. Things improved towards the end of the stage where I was able to get in front and open the piste. I pushed hard then and made up some good time and was actually the first to finish. My ankle is still sore but I don’t think it is affecting my pace, especially when the adrenalin is flowing. I just need to be careful that I don’t put my foot down and twist it more when I’m riding. Now I am looking forward to the rest day tomorrow.”
Earning a fourth-place result for the day, WR450F rider Adrien Van Beveren remains fifth in the event’s provisional overall standings.
Adrien Van Beveren – Stage P4 – Overall P5
“This Dakar is proving to be quite challenging. Coming to Peru we thought it would just be racing in the dunes, but it turns out there’s a lot more than just sandy dunes. Today we went through some parts with fesh-fesh and lots of stones. Despite not being my favourite terrain, today I got a great feeling on the bike and was able to push. I took my time and once I felt confident in this terrain I was able to ride the way I know. This Dakar is not just about raw speed. There’s lots of parts where you need to be patient and think about the overall classification. I felt I could have possibly won the stage today, but I wanted to make sure I had a good starting position for Sunday so I slowed down a bit towards the end. This race is really intense. There’s 10 to 15 racers who are able to win stages and you need to be on top of your game each day. I’m in a good position now for the next stage and I’m looking forward to it.”
Pablo Quintanilla finished 13th on stage and slipped to third in the provisional overall.
Pablo Quintanilla – Stage P13 – Overall P3
“Five days done and I’m in a great position in this rally. The first part of the stage was a lot of fun. I took the lead after the mass start, but then decided to stay off the gas a bit. My eyes are focused on the overall classification and I’m in a good spot to attack during the second week. Today I felt great on my bike. I was able to get a good pace and do my own race. The Dakar is always a long event and you need to always see the overall picture. I’m happy with my performance today because I’ve managed to put myself in a great position for Sunday’s stage six. I am feeling great physically and I’m looking forward to the second week. It’s important to get back as much time as possible on Sunday so that I can then control my pace for the rest of the race.”
Toby Price again put in an extremely brave performance to place ninth on the tough stage five. Despite aggravating the injury to his wrist, the 2016 Dakar Champion was able to maintain a solid pace throughout the timed special and goes into the rest day in a very creditable fourth place overall after losing a rank overnight.
Toby Price – Stage P8 – Overall P4
“It was a really, really tough day for me today. Starting in groups of 10 on the beach means that you not only have to fight for position with other riders, you have to keep an eye on your navigation while dodging the rocks and dust thrown up by the guys in front. My pace today was good but I cased out on one drop and that put a lot of strain through my wrist again. I was able to continue, but I am really thankful for the rest day now. I am happy to have reached the halfway stage of the rally so hopefully after a day off I will be ready to go again on Sunday.”
Despite losing a little time with just five kilometres to go, Laia Sanz completed the fifth stage in 20th position, and now sits 19th in the overall standings. Happy with the pace on her KTM 450 Rally, Laia is glad of tomorrow’s day off but is looking forward to the remainder of the rally.
Laia Sanz – Stage P20 – Overall P19
“My day went well today, I am happy with my speed and rhythm especially with everyone riding together and the times being so close. I’m not so keen on the mass-start, it’s more difficult to judge things when you are riding in a group like that. I did lose a little time today right near the end of the stage when a rock got stuck in my rear wheel but overall it was another good day. I’m pleased with how the rally is going so far, but I’m definitely looking forward to the rest day tomorrow.”
During tomorrow’s rest day, riders will catch up on some well-needed sleep and prepare themselves physically and mentally for the challenging week of racing that lies ahead.
Source: MCNews.com.au
Price holds onto fourth overall with eighth as Dakar heads into rest day.
Image: Supplied.
Monster Energy Honda Team’s Ricky Brabec still maintains control of the 2019 Dakar Rally, while Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Sam Sunderland topped day five of the gruelling event.
Riders were put up against 776-kilometre stage that saw the first mass start of the rally, where riders set off in a motocross-style race into the Ilo dunes as they contest the 345-kilometre timed special.
Sunderland lodged a time of 4h11m48s, edging out Yamalube Yamaha Rally’s Xavier de Soultrait by a slender 3m23s, significantly boosting the former winner in the overall standings.
Rookie Lorenzo Santolino (Sherco TVS Rally Factory) wound up third in the stage for his first top three, while the first five was rounded out by Adrien van Beveren (Yamalube Yamaha Rally) and Andrew Short (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing).
Overall leader Brabec was 11th fastest in the stage, and is followed in the classification by Sunderland, Pablo Quintanilla (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing), Australian Toby Price (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) – who was eighth on day five – and van Beveren.
Australians Ben Young (KTM) and James Ferguson (KTM) are now ranked 76th and 94th respectively after recording P89 and P92 results on the day. Compatriot Rodney Faggotter (Yamalube Yamaha Rally) was ruled out of the competition during stage three with a technical issue.
Saturday is a rest day for all 2019 Dakar Rally competitors. Riders will relax in Arequipa for the day before heading out to the bivouac on Saturday evening to prepare for Sunday’s stage six that will take them back to San Juan de Marcona.
Source: MotoOnline.com.au