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    mardi 25 décembre 2012

    The Brilliance of Cannonball Baker


    FROM Good Spark Garage
    By 1917, Erwin Baker had been racing motorcycles and setting records for 13 years. He was an Indian rider from Indianapolis with a valuable reputation. After a quick coast-to-coast ride, he became nationally known by the speedy and marketing-appropriate nickname, “Cannonball.” Long before racing vehicles were covered in corporate sponsorship, Baker earned the support of some of the biggest names in automotive manufacturing. The story of his record-breaking ride at the Cincinnati Speedway board track in 1917 is the kind of stuff his legend is built upon. It’s also a great example of why the Cannonball moniker added a powerfully positive association to motorcycle products of the early 1900s. Read on…
    This two-page ad was placed in the July 5th, 1917 issue of Motorcycle and Bicycle Illustrated.
    The dust had recently settled on the 2-mile board track just north of Cincinnati, Ohio. There, not even a month before, 65,000 people watched Louis Chevrolet win the Sharonville Sweepstakes in a Frontenac race car. The field was stacked since the nearby Indianapolis 500 had been cancelled due to wartime efforts. On June 26th, 1917, Cannonball Baker had the 70ft-wide straightaways to himself. The goal was to ride as many miles as possible on his 1000cc Indian Powerplus V-twin in a 24-hour window of time. The guy that held the 500-mile, 1000-mile, 12-hour and 24-hour records was the “Stalwart Californian,” Alan T. Bedell, who rode for Henderson. All four of these records were broken by Baker, but not without challenges and potential pitfalls.
    Within the last four months, his 24-hour and transcontinental records had been beaten. The newspapers reported, “Baker’s reputation at stake” as he began his mission to alleviate a “sting he could not long endure.” He also knew he’d need the best equipment and full support of his sponsors. In return, if he won, he’d provide them with advertising bragging rights in an industry that was exploding with competition.
    No chances would be taken when logging the times and speeds at Cincinnati Speedway; four scorers and four timers were hired among a sprinkling of other officials. At the end of the trial, his engine would even be torn down in the presence of a referee and “six disinterested parties” with an affidavit to substantiate the findings (that it was indeed stock).
    All this preparation sounds proper and smart. Baker knew the value of playing by the rules and having many sets of eyes on the accomplishment. Others that came before and after faced scrutiny and skepticism, especially on the hard-to-monitor transcontinental rides. But, what many folks don’t know is that Erwin G. Baker started a career in vaudeville before racing. Yep, he wasn’t your average gearhead or stoic racer; this guy knew how to creatively and confidently present his feats to the public. It’s often the colorful personalities that draw in sponsorships, a fact that wasn’t lost on Baker. Of course, his ability to become “factory sponsored” had to be supplemented with tenacity and perseverance.
    During the record-breaking attempt in Cincy, after the 900th mile, a heavy rain caused concern as it fell on the dirty wooden surface. In Baker’s mind, he could probably already envision the headlines that would soon be printed in Motorcycle and Bicycle Illustrated: “Rain Interferes with Ride…Dependable Equipment Played a Big Part.” Bank. He or his tire reps also made sure the press knew that the same tires used in the 1300+ miles had also been tested for over 500 miles beforehand. Another example of marketing gold, the Diamond Chain, made right in his hometown of Indianapolis “did not even need an adjustment during the twenty-four hours.”That’ll sell some chains. One of my favorite bits of descriptive journalism keyed in on the Troxel-Maslen saddle that was mounted on the bike. Cannonball noted how the “velvety action of the springs” was like first aid to the vibration-inducing track and that the “low saddle position afforded him a grandpa-chair-like satisfaction.”
    Maslen-Troxel Saddle similar to what Cannonball Baker mounted to his Indian Powerplus motorcycle in 1917.
    Baker had quite a team, too. Made up of several Indian “agents” from the Cincinnati area, they orchestrated efficient pit stops that included gas-and-oil refills every 100 miles and occasional valve and spring inspections. As Baker loosened up his muscles during stops, not even 5 minutes would pass before the bike was ready to press on. To the delight of the bike’s maker, Hendee Manufacturing Company, reports said that the Indian’s motor ran “with the same humming smoothness at the finish as it did at the start.” His team would communicate via slates held up alongside the track. Only one hiccup thought to relate to the motor ended up being a problem with the gas line. Mechanics removed the strainer and off he went.
    Cars line up on the grid at the Cincinnati Speedway. Construction on the board track started in 1914 in Sharonville, Ohio.
    With a 24-hour run, nightfall is bound to factor in to the challenge. Usually, the moon would’ve cast a bit of light on the track, but it was particularly overcast that night. Baker used four red lanterns, one placed in each turn, to guide him along. To add even more spice to the story of Baker’s ride, nature struck again when the path of his Indian (traveling at approx 60mph) crossed with an errant rabbit. Cannonball avoided catastrophe, but suffered a jarring blow to his right hand, which was left severely swollen for the next 600 miles.
    Cannonball Baker on his Indian PowerPlus at Cincinnati Speedway.
    After reading of his accomplishments, how he landed sponsorships, how he inspired movies and generated headlines, I imagined him sitting back as an older gent proud of his ability to make the realm of racing his “stage.” Though he left small vaudeville theaters for racing, he remained an entertainer for sure, performing for a much bigger worldwide audience. For that, I stand and applaud. Bravo, Baker!
    Cannonball’s records set at Cincinnati Speedway as reported by Indian in a July 1917 advertisement.

    Snow and Ice :Porsche Driving Experience 2013

    This winter at the Porsche Driving Experience, we have some challenges for you on snow and ice. These take place in the far north of Finland at temperatures of up to 30 degrees below zero, on specially covered snow tracks or a frozen lake prepared exclusively for Porsche. Learn about accurate braking, evasive manoeuvres or controlled drift on specially prepared ice circuits.
    Find out more www.porsche.com/driving-experience-winter


    Road Racing: the main events of 2013


    From Twowheelsblog 
    Apparently, since the Mayans got it all wrong, next year we will be able to enjoy the magnificient show of the Road Racing once again. The events to mark on your calendar are always the same, and the most important of them all is obviously the Isle of Man TT, arguably the most prestigious motorcycle race in the world. The 2013 Tourist Trophy will take place from the 25th of May till June the 7th: one week of practice and then 9 races on the 37¾ miles (60.7 km) of the legendary ‘Mountain Course’. Hopefully, next year will also see the return of Senior TT after the first historic cancellation due to bad weather in 2012.
    With 19 wins already under his belt, His Majesty ‘King of the Mountain’ John McGuinness will be once again the man to beat, and some of his most valuable opponents will be his newly appointed team mates, Michael Rutter e Michael Dunlop, who have just joined the ranks of the Honda TT Legends team. Other ‘eligible candidates’ for success on the Isle are New Zealander Bruce Anstey (9 wins so far), local hero Conor Cummins (who just joined William Dunlop in the Milwaukee Yamaha team), Cameron Donald, Ian Lougher, Adrian Archibald, James Hillier, Gary Johnson and the ‘rebellious’ Guy Martin, a rider with great talent and plenty of fans who has been chasing his first win at the TT for years.
    Unfortunately, some of the crowd favourites won’t be part of the show next year: Ian ‘Hutchy’ Hutchinson (who collected an unprecedent ‘5-out-of-5′ at the 2010 TT) will be sidelined for the entire 2013 by yet another surgery to his battered left leg, while Farqhar Ryan announced his retirement after the tragic events of the 2012 Manx GP.
    The North West 200 - the biggest outdoor event in Northern Ireland, which attracts over 100,000 visitors every year - will take place in May, from the 12th to the 18th. On the 8.1 miles (14 km) of the famous ‘Triangle’ course running between the towns of Portstewart, Coleraine and Portrush, there will be no less than 8 races divided into 4 categories (Superstock, Superbike, Supersport and Supertwin) and the man to beat will be Alastair Seeley, 8 times winner who got himself 3 more races at the 2012 NW200.
    From August 12 to 17 it will be the turn of the Ulster Grand Prix, an event born in 1922 and staged as always in Dundrod, near Belfast. The favorite rider for this event must be Michael Dunlop (2 wins for him in 2012) along with the other winners of the last edition: his brother William, Guy Martin, Ryan Farquhar and Bruce Anstey.
    As usual, the 2013 Road Racing season will come to an end at the Macau Grand Prix, in southeastern China, scheduled for November 14 to 17 on the famous Guia road circuit. Michael Rutter, who won the last two editions and is a 8 times winner between the typical black-and-yellow guard-rails of the race, has to be the favorite here, but look out for Scotsman Stuart Easton, winner of three editions and holder of the record lap, now fully recovered after the terrible accident of the 2011 NW200.
    Road Racing - Main Events 2013
    Scarborough Spring Cup (England): April 21
    North West 200 (Northern Ireland): May 12 to 18
    Tourist Trophy (Isle of Man): May 25-June 7
    Scarborough Road Race Festival (England): June 15 to 16
    Skerries 100 (Ireland): 5 to 6 July
    Southern 100 International Road Races (Isle of Man): July 8 to 11
    Cock ‘O The North Scarborough (England): July 20 to 21
    Chimay Grand Prix de Frontieres (Belgium): July 27 to 28
    Ulster GP (Northern Ireland): August 12 to 17
    Manx GP (Isle of Man): 17 to 30 August
    Scarborough Gold Cup (England): September 14 to 15
    Macau GP (China): 14 to 17 November

    Carlos Checa: Sykes will be the rider to beat in 2013



















    Carlos Checa was another rider that our guy over at Motoblog.it was able to interview during Nolan’s Christmas party last week.
    The 2011 World Superbike champion turned 40 last October and has a few strands of white hair and a couple of wrinkles around his eyes, but what strikes the interviewer is his sheer steel determination of someone who never gives up, even if he’ll be the oldest rider in WSBK’s next season, now that Max Biaggi has retired.
    Carlos you had a great start to the 2012 season [he won at Phillip Island and took a double victory at Imola] but then something happened. What went wrong?
    “It was a very good year for us and we had a good season, but technically we were behind compared to the year that I won the championship and I made several errors and the opportunity to be first, which was our objective, passed us by. However we’ve learned from our mistakes.
    A couple of days ago you were at Borgo Panigale, how did it go?
    “We had a Christmas party, and we also discussed the situation regarding the bike, the tests and the 2013 program. We know it’s going to be a tough year because our rivals in Superbike are much further ahead of us and we have to work to close this gap.”
    Carlos don’t you ever get tired of racing?
    “I now make my decisions on a yearly basis: for the upcoming season I saw a challenge that filled me with enthusiasm and I want to help Ducati with this new project, this new bike, and see where we can take it and then we’ll see. For me signing for more than a year would be too restraining. I want to be free.”
    What will change with Dorna taking over?
    “I know Dorna very well: on the TV and media level they’re very ahead, you just have to see the job they’ve done with MotoGP. I think that this will be very positive for Superbikes and it can get better in a lot of ways.
    Do you mean on a visibility level?
    “Yes, even if Superbikes in these last few years wasn’t bad and we can be satisfied on how it went, but you can always be better.”
    Who will be the rider to beat in 2013?
    “Sykes. And then Guintoli and Melandri.”
    And Checa?
    “I’ll do everything possible, but at the moment I have to think on developing the bike, and at the present we can’t compete against them.”
    propos recueillis par TWOWHEELSBLOG

    Rudy Banny’s '86 BMW R80RS - “Brafé Racer”


    FR
    Rudy Banny's college career began with Petroleum Engineering. That's the art of getting crude oil out of the ground and in to pipes. But that was only for about ½ a semester, after which he found out that several calculus classes were involved, and promptly dropped out. Amen to that. Afterwards, you could say he did complete u-turn and got into a little Petroleum Deconstruction. “I've always been a huge fan of Brat Style. After landing a job in advertising, I fell in love with BMW's when a buddy of mine let me ride his 1965 r60/2 and 1972 r75/5 for a week when I was shooting in LA. That was it. I fell in love with airheads. I wanted one, but just couldn't get into the purist mentality that seems so prevalent with Bimmer owners. I’m more of a custom guy. So, I started looking for the cleanest, most pristine airhead I could find, so I could deconstruct it.”
    “I was intrigued by Nicholas Damen's Bee Emm Brat posted on Pipeburn, so I used it as my inspiration for this build, except I went ‘Brafé’ Style...”
    The bike started out as a fully dressed 1986 R80RS. After stripping it down to a motor and a frame, Rudy started by powder coating the wheels, forks and driveshaft flat black. He then installed an Acewell Speedo, a new headlight and fork ears and brake lines from Spiegler Performance Parts and left the RS cafe bars in place.
    “Because I removed the fork brace so I could put a fatter tire on the front, I replaced the stock top fork plate with an aluminum triple clamp from Boxerworks to keep the forks from twisting."
    "When I decided to keep the cafe bars, I felt the need to get a nice rear set, which I picked up from Flatracer. I kept the stock pipes, wrapped them and capped them off with some sweet stainless steel reverse-cone shorties that I picked up from Dime City Cycles.”
    “I had the tank painted flat black to match the wheels and slapped some new badges on it as well as a Monza gas cap from Flatracer.com. I cut down and narrowed the rear sub-frame to take the Nitroheads Bratstyle Thin Seat that I purchased from Pipeburn. And finally, I cut down and powder coated a steel rear fender and topped it off with an old school tail light from Dime City Cycles.”
    Fromcpipeburn.com

    - MOTO GRIGIO -


    Woolie’s Workshop and the Deus Ex Machina-Emporium of Postmodern Activities present:
    -MOTO GRIGIO-
    Moto Grigio is Michael Woolaway’s latest addition to the Deus Ex Machina arsenal. The bike’s namesake is a vintage Ferrari paint called Grigio Scuro. A simplified translation of the term from Italian into English—dark grey—does the name little justice. It’s a complex hue that shifts from dark grey to near black in different lights. Pairing this color with the aggressive silhouette of Moto Grigio, the bike cuts an imposing figure.
    Hand built in Woolie’s Workshop at The Emporium of Postmodern Activities, the Kawasaki W650 engine was punched out to 800cc, features FCR flat slide carburetors and stainless steel headers that flow into a Supertrapp exhaust kitted out with hand made hangers. The custom-made tank and seat marry ideas of new and old. The tank shape is inspired by classic TT style road racers while the seat models itself after current Moto2 bikes. The competition-spec inspiration extends throughout the build with a laundry list of race-ready parts. The wheels sport Sun rims, Buchanan stainless steel spokes and nipples, and knock off hubs from Durelle Racing. The adjustable offset triple clamps are also from Durelle Racing and link up with black anodized Ohlins forks that have been re-valved, re-lengthened, and re-sprung. A Motion Pro Revolver throttle, Brembo brake and ASV clutch lever call the Woodcraft clip-on bars home. The enormous flat track rear brake set-up incorporates a Grimeca caliper and Brembo master cylinder, while up front the Beringer six piston brake meets a Brembo rotor and lever for huge stopping power. A custom chromoly swingarm links up to Works Performance shocks. Finishing touches include a digital dashboard from Motogadget and custom seating from C&C Motorcycle Seats.
    MUSIC: Rodrigo y Gabriela – Hanuman




    RSD Street Tracker "Pastrana"












    Foto: Roland Sands Design from Racing Café

    Wunderlich BMW R1200GS LC 2013 (liquide cooled)


    wunderlich r1200gs r1250gs liquide cooled

    Vision d'un futur proche, découvrez la description et toutes les versions ou presque sur la page FBK Wunderlich 


    Vision of the near future, discover the description and almost all versions of the page FBK Wunderlich

      r 1200gs 1250gs lc red adventure advr 1200gs 1250gs lc yellow base

    from http://petit-motorcycle-creation.over-blog.com/

    YAMAHA SCORPIO '08












     Spesifikasi :
    • Body Custom by STUDIO MOTOR Custom Bike
    • Painting & Airbrush by KOMET Studio
    • Shock Depan Kawasaki Ninja 250
    • Velg Depan TK Japan 18X3.00 Inch + Firestone Deluxe Champion 4.00-18
    • Velg Belakang TK Japan 18X3.50 Inch + Firestone Deluxe Champion 4.50-18
    • Stang ClubMan Custom
    • Swing Arm Custom + Shock YSS
    • Lampu Depan & Belakang Aftermarket
    • Footstep NUI Racing
    • Knalpot Custom by Jet Hot



    STUDIO MOTOR Custom Bike