Australian to challenge alongside Endurance World Championship commitments.
Image: Supplied.
Broc Parkes has confirmed he’ll contest the newly-introduced ASB100 category in the 2019 Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) with Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN, joined by Yuki Ito in the premier class aboard the YZF-R1.
The Australian will challenge the series alongside his regular role with YART Yamaha Official EWC Team in the FIM Endurance World Championship (EWC).
“Happy to announce I will be racing the Asia Road Racing Championship with Yamaha Racing Team as well as the FIM Endurance World Championship with YART Yamaha Official EWC Team,” said Parkes in a brief social media statement. Big thanks to Yamaha Racing – [I’m] looking forward to a great year..
The Asia Road Racing Championship kicks off on 8-10 March in Malaysia before heading to The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australian for round two on 25-28 April. The series will will extend to seven rounds in 2019.
The rapid growth in online shopping has caused a rise in trucks on our roads that are not delivering to shopping centres but right to our suburban front door.
While the number of truck crashes is low on the statistics, when they crash they can cause multiple deaths and injuries.
Trucks were responsible for 169 deaths from 152 fatal crashes in Australia in the 12 months up to September 2018.
In the USA, truck crashes kill more than 4000 people each year, including about 500 motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians.
Fashion to blame
The online fashion industry is one of the biggest causes of this increase in truck traffic.
Almost a third of all clothes are now bought online and about 40% are returned when they don’t fit or after the buyer has taken an Instagram selfie!
And that’s just the fashion industry. A lot of other products are now bought online rather than from shopping centres.
Fashion Revolution of Belgium has warned fashion shoppers of the hidden dangers and costs of this increase in online trucking of goods with this video.
It shows women trying on clothes on highways, surrounded by trucks and traffic.
Count the costs
The costs of this online fashion business is not only an increase in traffic congestion, but also road danger and CO2 emissions output.
In 2016, transportation (including air travel) overtook power plants as the top producer of carbon dioxide emissions for the first time since 1979.
A quarter of this comes from trucks doing house deliveries after they have been transported by plane or ship to a warehouse.
Before online shopping, trucks mainly delivered to warehouses and shopping centres.
Now most packages go directly to a residential address.
Shoppers have traded trips to the shops in relatively fuel-efficient vehicles for deliveries to suburban homes by trucks and other heavy vehicles.
What to do
We are not suggesting you stop online shopping. It’s convenient and cheap.
In fact, we have several motorcycle products available through our online shop that are difficult or to find in shops or are not stocked in Australia.
However, you can help reduce truck traffic by ensuring you do your research first so that you don’t have to return articles that don’t fit or are not suitable.
You can also buy several articles at a time from the same distributor to try to avoid multiple trips and packages.
However, I recently bought four barbecue items from the same distributor and they arrived over two separate deliveries in four different packages!
Number 15 returns to Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing.
Image: Supplied.
Dean Wilson has been promoted to the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing team for the remainder of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship.
Wilson, a former member of the squad, has been racing in a self-managed operation while utilising factory support and components from the European manufacturer in the first five rounds.
The move will ultimately me see him spearhead the outfit’s premier class efforts, as reigning champion Jason Anderson is sidelined for the series while teammate 450SX debutant Zach Osborne is unlikely to make a scheduled return from injury this weekend.
“I am really excited to be back with the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing team,” said Wilson. “They have been a great help with my privateer effort. I am looking forward to putting in good results and making everyone proud.”
It’s understood the popular number 15 will retain his personal sponsors for the duration of his campaign with the factory team. Equal fifth in the championship standings, no plans have been made official to contest the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship with the squad later this year.
Re-injured collarbone sidelines Queenslander ahead of 250SX East.
Image: Simon Cudby.
Geico Honda’s Hunter Lawrence has confirmed he will miss this weekend’s opening round of the 2019 Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX East series after sustaining a collarbone injury.
Lawrence was due to line-up for the first time in the US on Saturday at Minneapolis, Minnesota, however will now have his supercross debut delayed.
“Absolutely heartbroken to say the least guys,” Lawrence confirmed via a social media post this morning. “I wont be lining up at round one this weekend.
“Some of you know a few months back I had a collarbone injury that I have now re-injured and it isn’t in a condition where I am able to plate it – a misfortunate crash and part of the sport. Will do everything I can like always to get back to 100 percent.
“I want to thank my amazing team and supporting sponsors for all their great support and a massive shout-out to all of the Aussie fans that were behind me and following along. Super-bummed, but with the Aussie grit and determination I’ll be back soon.”
Lawrence had been easing his way into supercross throughout the off-season in Southern California when the injury occurred, however it’s unclear when he may be fit enough to return later in the season.
The cost of living is driving more riders to smaller motorcycles and scooters, says Hartford Australia who is importing small-capacity Taiwanese machines.
Ballina-based importer Joe Fisher says scooters and learner bikes have “gone crazy” despite a slow market.
“I come from a time when the industry was formed on XL250s and Belstaff jackets,” he says.
“We see a healthy return to this time where the cost of living is pushing more and more people to find cheaper alternatives to get to work.
“We think the LAMS (learner-approved motorcycle scheme) market is the growth area for the immediate future of the industry.
“I regularly travel between Brisbane and Sydney and it’s been a long time since I’ve seen so many get-to-work bikes in every town I pass through.
“It is indeed encouraging to be involved in our efforts to expand this market.”
Hartford range
Hartford Classic
So Joe is importing the Classic 250 ($4799 +ORC), and the 125cc Sienna (#3399) and 300cc Vita ($6199) scooters. The Sienna comes with a one-year warranty and the others with a 24-month warranty.
Hartford Sienna
Hartford Vita
They will be followed by liquid-cooled 450cc adventure and naked bikes later this year.
Adventure
Naked
The sole Aussie distributor is working on setting up a network of non-franchised dealers “willing to give us a god shot”.
He hopes to start with dealers on the Gold Coast and in Brisbane.
Joes has been involved in the industry since 1975.
“I think I’ve pretty well seen the good the bad and the ugly of the industry over that time,” he says.
“To keep the motorcycle companies off our case for as long as possible, we have formed a company (Aussie Motorcycle Imports Pty Ltd) as the importer and distributor of this new brand of Hartford under my personal name.”
Kawasaki began its international road racing campaign a little later than the other manufacturers, not until 1966 in fact. Kawasaki 50, 125 and 250cc race bikes were fast but fragile, and technically behind the Suzuki and Yamaha V-4s and Honda 125/5.
NB: The images featured in this piece do not represent these early 50, 125 and 250cc machines but instead showcase the later F9-R. Which we get to later…
Kawasaki’s F9-R’s 346cc rotary-valve motor with Mikuni 35mm carburettor and expansion chamber exhaust
Indeed they had no victories at all early on, and despite designing their own 125cc water-cooled V4, they then quit GP racing at the end of that same year, 1966. However they did support Dave Simmonds with one of their 125 twins and some spare parts. The Englishman worked on the bikes himself and finished seventh in 1967 and 14th in 1968.
Kawasaki had a rocky entry to GP racing
Things changed for the 1969 season with the FIM imposing cylinder limits for the various classes – which resulted in Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha all officially withdrawing from the GPs, although they did continue to support various riders at lower levels.
Kawasaki F9-R
Simmonds then proceeded to win eight of the 11 rounds (missing the first round and placing second in the two others), giving Kawasaki its first world title (on a three-year-old bike)!
Kawasaki took a removed approach to supporting factory racing, including with this F9-R
This somewhat ‘removed’ factory support is also seen with the F9-R pictured here. Kawasaki USA had decided to take advantage of the AMA’s revision of the rules for the Lightweight class for the 1970 season (those changes had been made to provide some competition for the dominant Yamaha TD2 250).
Kawasaki F9-R
The 346cc rotary-valve motor from the F5 Bighorn trail bike was slotted into a slightly modified A1-RA frame to provide the basis for Kawasaki’s challenge. A close-ratio racing gearbox was fitted, together with a revised primary gear ratio, modified porting and disc valve, a Mikuni 35mm carburettor and an expansion chamber exhaust. H1-R wheels and brakes were used.
Kawasaki F9-R
The F5 Big Horn’s motor had suffered from reliability problems however, so by 1972 it had been renamed the F9. When the road racing version was debuted later that year it was known as the F9-R. Output was 45hp.
Kawasaki F9-R
Although the F9-R never won a race they did score many podium places, including a second with Yvon DuHamel behind Kenny Roberts at Charlotte in 1973. This particular example was campaigned by Art Baumann.
The future of flying motorcycles is still up in the air after a French company, Lazareth, unveiled their jet-powered motorcycle which failed to take off at the launch party.
However, at the opening ceremony, Lazareth failed to rise, unlike Lazarus!
It only managed to get the front a few centimetres in the air.
The LM496 or “La Moto Volante” (the Flying Motorcycle) is based on Ludovic’s Lazareth LM847 with a 350kW, 4.7-litre Maserati V8. It was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2016.
Its wheels rotate outwards when the bike is on its centre stand and then pivot so that they are horizontal.
Turbine jets
Then German Jetcat turbines in each wheel fire directly downward to elevate the bike, like a Harrier Jump Jet or a manned drone.
Note that at the launch party, the rider/pilot was tethered in case it took off and he couldn’t control it!
There is no word from Ludovic on when the project will “get off the ground”, how high it will fly or how much it will cost.
However, with a Maserati engine fitted, as well as four jet turbines, it is bound to cost a fortune.
It’s not that this will be the first flying motorcycle nor the first commercially available.
The Russian Hoversurf Scorpion hover bikes are now available for sale at $US150,000 (about $A212,500), which is nearly twice the price of the MV Agusta limited-edition Claudio F4.
This smart brake light could just save your life. It illuminates even when you slow down with the throttle only and acts as a warning motorists following behind.
Rear-ender crashes involving motorcycles are too frequent, probably because we often slow down with engine braking, rather than the brakes. This can take following motorists by surprise.
They had identified that many crashes are caused by riders forgetting to turn off their indicators. They also believe that many motorcyclists are rear-ended because riders don’t use their brakes to slow down.
How it works
The Smart Brake Module uses the same motion sensor technology as the Smart Turn System.
It detects any decrease in speed, regardless of braking with the front or rear brake or just decelerating with the engine.
Spokesman Miha Ernstscheinder says the module will detect “even the smallest deceleration forces”.
“It senses deceleration, and it activates the brake light when it senses a deceleration greater than 4.1kmh/s (2.5mph),” he says.
So it detects deceleration even before the bike’s brake switch activates.
Two modes
It has two modes of operation – a steady brake light signal (the same as when you press the brake lever) or a “flashing signal”.
“The flashing signal is similar to the blinker frequency,” Miha says.
“It does not have a modulating effect like a strobe which is forbidden and can be used only by emergency services and police.
“Most safety schools teach or advise that you tap the brake lever when you are engine braking.
“That signals to the following traffic and increases their reaction times.
“The SBM module does exactly that, but automatically.”
(When you apply the brakes, the brake lights perform in the usual way as a solid light.)
It could be enough to save you from a rear ender.
Miha says the brake light is compatible with all motorcycles whether they have standard bulbs, LEDs or HID lights.
“It is very small and easy to fit – not much bigger than a box of matches — and easy to hide under your motorcycle seat.”
Legality lights
Some riders have questioned whether the unit is legal in Australia.
Bigger doesn’t always mean better, and fortunately for those of us looking for a fun, affordable motorcycle there are more choices than ever. Nearly every manufacturer now offers at least one model that will fit just about any rider’s size and/or budget.
Scroll down for Rider’s 2019 list of Best Bikes for Smaller Riders and Budgets. When possible we’ve included a link to our review, making it easy for you to get a real ride evaluation. We’ve also included the 2019 model year’s U.S. base MSRP (as of publication), seat height and claimed wet weight (when a wet weight was not available from the manufacturer, the claimed dry weight is listed). For more details, you can read our review, which includes comprehensive specs, or click on the bike’s name to be taken directly to the manufacturer’s page.
BMW F 750 GS
2019 BMW F 750 GS (Photo by Kevin Wing)
BMW F 750 GS
$10,395
32.1-inch seat w/ optional 31.1-inch seat or 30.3-inch seat
493 lbs.
Rules changes designed to even the rest of the field up to the dominant Indian FTR750 should make the 2019 AFT season even more interesting, and running up onto the famed tri-oval at Daytona will reveal pretty quickly how effective those changes are. The season kicks off March 14.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (February 5, 2019) – On March 14, 2019 at legendary Daytona International Speedway (DIS), American Flat Track will host what will arguably be the most unique and anticipated professional flat track race in history – the third annual DAYTONA TT.
The hook is that the totally redesigned racetrack, constructed in the iconic Daytona International Speedway tri-oval, will utilize the legendary tri-oval start/finish asphalt straightaway as part of the actual racing surface, and form its high-speed front straight.
Not only will some of the world’s fastest riders launch their AFT Twins presented by Vance & Hines and AFT Singles racing machines out of the DIS eastern dirt corner and drift onto the asphalt, they’ll rip across the legendary start-finish stripe at over 100 mph, elbow-to-elbow and wheel-to-wheel – and mere feet from fans sitting along the Daytona International Speedway tri-oval.
In many ways, American Flat Track’s unique, dirt-and-asphalt DAYTONA TT season opener brings the sport of Grand National Championship motorcycle racing full-circle. Recall, of course, the legendary DAYTONA 200 beach-and-asphalt races of the ’30s, ’40s and ’50s, which featured motorcycles racing up the beach in a northern direction and then South again on the asphalt beach road, with untold thousands of fans watching it all unfold from the dunes and bleachers.
The DAYTONA 200 eventually moved to the freshly-built Daytona International Speedway facility in the early 1960s (quickly becoming the world’s biggest and most anticipated motorcycle race), but those decades of epic beach racing have lodged themselves in the collective memories of the motorsports community ever since. Full circle, indeed.
Since the reinvention of the series in 2017, American Flat Track has yet to present a multi-surface racetrack. The new, improved DAYTONA TT has been designed in collaboration and consultation with riders and race professionals to proactively address the design challenges inherit in the construction of an asphalt-to-dirt racing surface. Former professional flat track riders have been contracted to ride the surface and prove the design prior to the running of the race on March 14.
This year’s track layout also features enlarged and faster bookend corners, which offer faster straightaway speeds and more passing opportunities – the perfect thing for fans sitting along the front straight or in the enlarged-for-2019 trackside bleachers.
All of these changes combine to amplify the race’s Bigger, Better, Faster moniker to unheard-of levels.
With new teams and riders, new sponsors and manufacturers, some fresh thinking and a tsunami-like wave of excitement and expectation, the 2019 American Flat Track season is bound to be the most exciting ever.
And so it’s entirely fitting that this year’s unique DAYTONA TT, which features that unique mix of dirt and asphalt, and which pays homage to the visionary promoter who brought motorcycle racing to the sands and streets of Daytona Beach 82 years ago, leads things off in March.
The history-making 2019 DAYTONA TT. Bigger, Better and much Faster!
Fans looking for an in-depth view of the most-exciting DAYTONA TT track ever can visit the link below:
American Flat Track will kick off its 2019 season with its bar-banging DAYTONA TT in appropriate fashion – during the wild Bike Week festivities in Daytona Beach. The 2019 DAYTONA TT happens Thursday, March 14 once again under the lights of the iconic Daytona International Speedway. Tickets start at just $35 and are available now at https://tickets.americanflattrack.com.
NBCSN and FansChoice.tv are the official homes for coverage of American Flat Track. For the 2019 season, NBCSN’s coverage of AFT moves to highly-coveted, weekend afternoon programming slots within two weeks of each event. The complete schedule for AFT on NBCSN can be viewed at http://www.americanflattrack.com/events-nbcsn/. FansChoice.tv remains a cornerstone of AFT’s digital strategy, providing live streaming coverage of every event on AFT’s live page while previous events and exclusive features are available on AFT’s VOD page.
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