Tank Moto Magazine

You may have noticed that the frequency of my posts has dropped off a little lately. For this I must apologise but I do have a very, very good excuse. I am excited to announce that I have been working with the team from Fuel Magazine to produce an all new, independent magazine called Tank Moto. As the editor and content curator I've helped to pull together an awesome selection of custom motorcycles from Australia and around the world, which we have photographed exclusively for the mag.

Unlike Return of the Cafe Racers the bikes we are featuring in Tank Moto are from every genre and style of custom motorcycle building. The mag is designed to showcase the creativity and skill of custom motorcycle building and in each issue there will literally be something for everyone.

In issue 1 you will find everything from Choppers to Cafe Racers, Bobbers, Trackers, Vintage race bikes, historic articles and artist profiles. All printed on the finest stock and finished to the high quality standard that people have come to expect from Fuel Magazine.

Tank Moto Issue 1 wil be launching nationally (Australia) on the 25th of May and will be available internationally anywhere you can currently buy Fuel Magazine. If you're in or around Melbourne on Saturday the 25th we will be holding a launch event at Gasolina, 25 Dukes Walk, South Wharf Promenade from 6pm till late. Be one of the first 100 people to arrive and score yourself a free copy of the mag (more info here).

'Like' Tank Moto on Facebook     |     Launch Party Details     |     Tank Moto website

La course - Bol d'Or 2013

Marc Marquez takes maiden and historic victory in Austin GP

from Twowheelsblog

Marc Marquez as highly expected, won the inaugural race at the Circuit of the Americas with his second ever MotoGP race.

The 20-year old Repsol Honda rookie entered the history books of motorcycle racing, becoming the youngest rider to ever to win a GP race and destroying Freddie Spencer’s last standing record and he won the race with the craft of a consummated rider pressuring Pedrosa for almost twelve laps only to take the lead and then break his team mate on the rest of the distance, but able to give Repsol Honda 1-2 with Jorge Lorenzo taking the third spot on the podium.

Pedrosa got the holeshot in a very confused first lap that saw paint exchanged and criss crossing racing lines with Stefan Bradl getting ahead of Marquez, while Jorge Lorenzo had a bad start as his rear tire slid at the start and he was fourth and followed by Cal Crutchlow, Valentino Rossi, Andrea Dovizioso and Alvaro Bautista.

Marquez (betting on a hard tire) took back the second spot from Bradl and put Pedrosa in his sights, while Lorenzo put in a hard overtake on Bradl to grab third that he would keep, uncontested until the chequered flag happy that he was able to keep the top spot in the standings, albeit tied with Marquez and waiting for more Yamaha friendly tracks.

Yamaha’s Tech 3 satellite rider Cal Crutchlow took fourth but he didn’t make it easy for himself as he ran off track and found himself behind Bradl, Alvaro Bautista and Valentino Rossi and having to pass all these riders to claim his final position, but satisfied that he was able to beat Stefan Bradl who previously tested at the Austin circuit.

After a horrible weekend Valentino Rossi finished in sixth finding himself battling with Alvaro Bautista and Andrea Dovizio but he managed to shake both riders halfway through the race and finished 16 seconds off pace.

Bautista and Dovizioso battled to the finish line and the Ducati rider prevailed and he finished in 7th, while Nicky Hayden finished in ninth ahead of Andrea Iannone who closed out the top ten.

Aleix Espargaro rode to a lonely 11th ahead of Bradley Smith and a struggling Ben Spies who couldn’t do better that 12th and he was more than a minute behind the leaders.

2013 MotoGP Austin Race Results:

01- Marc Marquez – Repsol Honda Team – Honda RC213V – 21 giri in 43’42.123
02- Dani Pedrosa – Repsol Honda Team – Honda RC213V – + 1.534
03- Jorge Lorenzo – Yamaha Factory Racing – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 3.381
04- Cal Crutchlow – Monster Yamaha Tech 3 – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 6.616
05- Stefan Bradl – LCR Honda MotoGP – Honda RC213V – + 12.674
06- Valentino Rossi – Yamaha Factory Racing – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 16.615
07- Andrea Dovizioso – Ducati Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP13 – + 22.374
08- Alvaro Bautista – GO&FUN Honda Gresini – Honda RC213V – + 22.854
09- Nicky Hayden – Ducati Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP13 – + 33.773
10- Andrea Iannone – Energy T.I. Pramac Racing – Ducati Desmosedici GP13 – + 42.112

2° Underground Cafè Racer & Old Style Bike Contest

Foto: Racing Cafè

1980 Harley XLS “MX” - Lucid Customs

In life, you'll see plenty of things that seem pretty good from a distance but just don't stand up to scrutiny once you have a closer look. Take, for instance, cheap tools. Or your local politician. Or just about any film James Cameron has made. Similarly, custom bikes can sometimes look great at first glance, but upon closer inspection they just don't impress. Well, here's a bike that kind of reverses the equation. Now, that's not to say that it's crap from a distance. Hell no. See, what the latest build from Kevin Clarkson and the Boys at Lucid Customs in Calgary, Canada manages to do is to fool you into thinking it's a rough-and-ready parts bin special. But get up close and, well, just take a look for yourself.

Here's Kev. “As far back as I can remember, I grew up around BMX, skate boarding, dirt bikes and custom cars. In my late teens I tried to wrench on anything I could get my hands on, from a 1964 Comet, numerous VW bugs to my dad’s beat up old Datsun truck; I had a passion to make them faster and different than anything anyone else had.”

“The Iron MX was born out of a vision I had in my previous career as a software designer while working on a project at the 2010 ESPN Summer X Games. While watching one of the Moto-X events, I pondered the idea of a big twin in a dirt bike roller pulling a 50 foot jump and doing a tail whip. In 2011, after about a year of this idea ticking in the back of my mind, I started to do some looking at vintage hill climbers and some of the bikes being built at shops like Bling, Nash and Detroit Bros and the concept started to evolve.  

Many months later I gave in to a 1980 XLS Ironhead that had been collecting dust in the coroner corner of my garage at home; one I picked up for a few bucks and just didn’t want to deal with.”

“The 1980 Ironhead; an AMF-era Harley. They are generally bad news in my experience. Knowing a bit about what I was dealing with; an oil leaking, fix every ride, cheaped out on so called ‘Harley.’ We rebuilt both the top and bottom end on the 1000cc motor just to be sure. 

Once we had a useable drivetrain, we started to fab up our version of a drop seat frame by chopping off the rear section about ½ way under the tank; it's now a 6" stretch from stock with a 19" seat height so that the rider doesn't feel like they’re on the bike; it feels like your actually in the bike.”

“Getting it to a roller, we ordered a set of 21 and 18" DNA wheels, powder coated the rims and spokes; and mounted Kenda’s new Big Block adventure touring tires (F 21/90 – R 18/150) to give the roller an aggressive dirt look. 

For the gas tank, nothing other than a late 60’s Harley Rapido tank would do (thank you Detroit Bros). I managed to find three of them on eBay in a batch deal and snagged them with original functioning petcocks. The one we used is off a 1969 125cc with the stamped side plate. We installed a low pressure fuel sight glass and a pop-up gas cap, re-chromed the side plate, brushed them with scotch bright to knock down the bling and did a nice, clean medium metal flake silver paint.”

“From there it’s a who’s who of ideas and concepts from other builders, bikes and late nights at the shop after too many beers. Custom made handle bars with inverted risers, internal throttle, Joker controls and $8 BMX grips. Also, there's a custom oil reservoir shaped from split exhaust pipes to look like a dirt bike side cover/number plate; with a secondary reservoir for the filter built into the same box as the battery and electrical box.

For a bit of ride comfort we fabricated a pivoted shock system under the seat using a 6 inch mono shock off a mountain bike and, yes, it really works. Other than the front half of the frame, forks and drivetrain, everything on the bike is custom made.”

“So far I haven’t actually jumped it or climbed any dirt hills, but it's mean, nasty and by far the coolest bike I have owned/ridden. Special Thanks to Tim Atkinson for fabrication and design support, Dan Banister for the Photographs, Dave Baxter for the artwork, and my wife Teresa for supporting my often ridiculous ideas.”

from PIPEBURN

1979 Suzuki GS750 - Tin Shack Restorations

It probably won't surprise you to learn that many custom bike builders and shops sometimes also dabble with custom cars. Less café, more drive-in diner you might say. If you ever follow the links to the builders websites in the stories we post you'll undoubtedly see the odd hot rod, classic Porsche, or muscle car lurking around in the background. But what did take us by surprise was the way Colby Morris of Tin Shack Restorations gets his four-wheeled kicks; he has a burning desire to bring old Land Rovers back from the dead. And if this is the kind of bike that gets made when these rubber boot and pheasant hunting types aren't, er, pheasanting then it's fine by us. Presenting ‘a series Land Rover and motorcycle hobby run amok,’ here's a '79 Suzuki GS750 they call the ‘Tin Shack Special.’

“I've owned or ridden some form of motorcycle every year since 1968, the very first being a Rupp Roadster; a 5HP beast!’ says Tin Shack's owner, Colby Morris. “I raced motocross for several years, and went to road racing school but never made it to a starting grid, I think I've owned pretty much every kind of bike - dirt, enduro, standard street, several crotch rockets, big adventure bikes, couple of Harleys, and a couple of full custom choppers. I also picked up a Series Land Rover habit about twelve years ago. First just driving, then improving, then modifying, and now frame up restoring.”

“The idea for the Suzuki came a little over a year ago after an old motorcycling friend told me about your site. I literally stayed awake at night (far too late some nights), scanning through your archives. I was just finishing up a particularly nasty (lots of rust repair) Rover project for a gentleman in New York and needed something fun to do.”

“I was just finishing up a particularly nasty Rover project for a
gentleman in New York and needed something fun to do.”

“I found the Suzuki on the local Craigslist, a 1979 GS 750L with just over 10k miles. The "L" model was not my first choice but it was close to home and a nice running bike; all I had to do was scrap the sissy bar, chrome luggage rack, tear drop tank, and mini ape hangars and I would have something. I wanted to end up with a bit of drag bike/cafe racer look - a point and shoot bike.”

“The bike was stripped to bare frame, wheels were powder coated black and Avon Speedmasters mounted. The first tank was an ebay gs 750E model that turned out to be a GS 1100 tank, didn't fit, next up was the ubiquitous Benelli tank, it wouldn't fit either so I cut out and rebuilt the backbone of the frame; I now had a cool tank with a top mount wing nut off of my early 70's Gios Torino track bike. Tarozzi clip-ons and rear sets were ordered, along with Pingel switch gear to clean up the handlebars. The 70's vintage dirt bike fork brace was another eBay find.”

“I have an old 1966 Bridgeport vertical mill that I used to mill down the top triple clamp, make an exhaust hanger, and carb hose manifolds, and cross drill the rotors. The brakes were treated to new EBC pads and Goodridge stainless lines courtesy of Z1 enterprises, and I replaced the reservoirs with Tygon tubing. Everything not necessary on the frame was shaved off and a rear hoop was bent up and welded on. I made a stainless tray that would fit flush to the frame under the seat cowl and house all of the electronics, including a Ballistic Evo battery laid on it's side.”

“I made the seat cowl out of 14 gauge 6061 aluminum; it's three separate pieces shaped, then tig welded together. The welds were ground down then filed flush, I then polished the cowl, I love the raw aluminum look, it takes a ton of time but well worth the effort. I'm sure I'll take some flak for the seat as it's nothing but superbike seat foam that gets the job done. Remember, point and shoot drag bike - no cross country rides on this one. The paint is Mini Cooper Royal Grey flattened a bit, with hand lettering done by Charlie Decker of One Arm Bandit Pinstriping.”

from PIPEBURN

Marc Marquez on Austing GP: "it will be a long race" - Pedrosa: "we need to increase grip"

from TWOWHEELSBLOG

Marc Marquez became the youngest rider to take a premier-class pole position during qualifying yesterday at the Circuit of the Americas breaking Freddie Spencer’s record, and also beating fellowing countrymen Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo when they debuted in MotoGP in 2006 and 2008 respectively.

It looked like Marquez was very cool and collected as he waited a few minutes before going out for QP2, instead the Spanish rider admitted he was nervous. Marquez also said that his morning crash was due to a cold tire and he hit his back, but the only thing that is worrying him is the first turn when the lights go out.

We are happy of course, because we took our first pole position which is important and always exciting! We knew beforehand that we could fight for pole, but you never know what will happen in the session. Both Dani and Jorge are fast over a single lap, and we managed to overcome them. The important stuff starts tomorrow, because we have a long, physical race with many of changes of direction to deal with. We need to be ready, because tomorrow is what really counts and I will do the best that I can!” said a smiling Marquez.

Dani Pedrosa looks like he is the only rider that will be really able to contest Marquez’ in Sunday’s Austin GP. Watch out for veteran rider’s trademark lightning starts and that’s where he may able to try to keep his young and aggressive team mate at bay, but if the two start to battle our bets are on Marquez, who clearly enjoys exchanging paint, something that Pedrosa tries to avoid at all costs.

“The session was a little tense, as in fifteen minutes you only have time for four good laps. Fortunately we didn’t have any problems with traffic this time, and I was able to focus and put in a strong lap - faster than all but one in the end! It was a good session, and we took second on the grid which is positive, because Marc put in a fast lap and is close by. We need to try to increase the rear grip for tomorrow and work towards having a strong race,” said Pedrosa.

Jorge Lorenzo: 'Anything can happen' Valentino Rossi: 'problems in braking'

from Twowheelsblog

The Circuit of the Americas is a physically punishing track and Jorge Lorenzo is hoping with all his metronomic heart that Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa will fade during the 21 lap race, but as Yamaha Tech3 rider Cal Crutchlow said after qualifying,”No Yamaha has a chance of winning here,” but practice and qualifying are one thing, and racing is entirely another.

Here’s what Lorenzo who will start on the front row in third said: “What happened in qualifying is more or less what happened in all the sessions: our rivals are much more fast than us in pace and on a fast lap. Our best position we could do today was third. Tomorrow in the race anything could happen. If something strange happens we can fight for the win but in normal conditions third is a really good position for tomorrow. We hope that the race is going to be better than qualifying and we can be closer to Marc and Dani.”

For Valentino Rossi it will be another uphill battle after qualifying a very lowly 8th, but even worse he is slow, very slow. Rossi was even slower than during last month’s test in Austin which theoretically should have given him a slighter advantage, instead he’s struggling braking issues that gives him front end problems (shades of two seasons in Ducati). Realistically the Italian knows that in Austin, a podium is completely out of his reach, because even if he solves his problems in today’s warm-up, he’ll end up battling with the much faster Crutchlow and Stefan Bradl.

“We expected to go better today but we were unable to fix the problem in braking, especially in the first part, and I lose too much time. We still have tomorrow, we knew that this weekend on this track it could be difficult and in fact it is. We have to make a good race and try to take as many points as we can,” said Rossi

Bol d’Or : victoire de Kawasaki SRC

After winning the last three Le Mans 24 Hours, Kawasaki SRC (Pirelli) claimed its second straight Bol d’Or victory today at Magny-Cours, France. The N°11 Kawasaki took the chequered flag ahead of the N°7 Yamaha-Michelin (YART) and the N°1 Suzuki (SERT, Dunlop). The podium was shared by three bike makers and as many different tyre manufacturers.

Après s’être imposé lors des trois dernières éditions des 24 Heures Moto, Kawasaki SRC (Pirelli) remporte pour la seconde année consécutive le Bol d’Or. La Kawasaki n°11 devance la Yamaha–Michelin n°7 du YART et la Suzuki n°1 du SERT (Dunlop). Trois constructeurs et manufacturiers différents se partagent une nouvelle fois le podium.

Kawasaki SRC’s Grégory Leblanc, Loris Baz and Jérémy Guarnoni were the dominant force at the 2013 Bol d’Or which saw four different bikes top the order in the course of the 24-hour classic.

Vincent Philippe (SERT) got away well from second on the grid to lead out of the first turn, chased by the pole-winning N°11 Kawasaki which eventually eased ahead after approximately 30 minutes.

Kawasaki SRC was dislodged from the lead on just two occasions: during its first refuelling stop, when BMW Motorrad France Team emerged in front, then shortly before the six-hour mark due to a poor tyre choice. For the rest of the race, the pace of its riders enabled it to shrug off pressure from GMT 94 (Michelin) which spent the night just one lap down on the leader.

Kawasaki SRC’s only scare came at 8:30am Sunday when the team was forced to make an unscheduled saddle change. That allowed the N°94 Yamaha to close the gap to less than a lap, but the latter was then delayed by an electronics issue a little later in the morning. That left the Kawasaki free to collect the Japanese make’s ninth Bol d’Or success after completing 808 laps (3,564km).

Second across the line was the N°7 YART Yamaha (+9 laps). The Austrian squad was rewarded for the consistency and reliability of Igor Jerman, Broc Parkes and Sheridan Morais who benefited from their main rivals’ misfortunes to finish on the podium.

Two early falls saw SERT lose 14 laps and fall back to 33^rd place overall. Vincent Philippe, Julien DaCosta and Anthony Delhalle did well to fight back to third spot, although they failed to reduce their deficit.

The only team to pose a serious threat to the winner was GMT 94. Its chances were dealt a cruel blow, however, when its bike was forced to pit to repair an electronics problem shortly before 10am. The N°94 Yamaha spent 23 long minutes in its garage, losing 13 laps and dropping back to fourth place in the process.

BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent was down on luck once again. The N°99 BMW initially lost time due to a fall while lying second after 5½ hours of racing. The damaged it sustained in the incident later forced the team to throw in the towel. Another front-runner not to reach the finish was Honda TT Legends (engine).

“Our partner teams lacked a little luck this weekend,” noted Michelin Motorsport Director Pascal Couasnon. “Even so, our tyres were competitive, especially in the lower temperatures encountered during the hours of darkness. That’s an area where we have made good progress since last year’s race.”

The Superstock win went to Junior Team (N°72 Suzuki) after a superb battle with Penz13 (N°13 BMW). These two bikes completed the distance in fifth and sixth positions respectively, while the fine run of Yamaha Viltaïs Expérience (N°333) ultimately bagged seventh place in the Yamaha’s class.

Kawasaki SRC, emmené par Grégory Leblanc, Loris Baz et Jérémy Guarnoni, a largement dominé la 77^ème édition du Bol d’Or où quatre leaders se sont succédé durant les 24 heures.

S’élançant de la seconde position, Vincent Philippe (SERT) a pris les commandes du Bol d’Or dès le premier virage. Prise immédiatement en chasse par la Kawasaki n°11, auteur de pole position, la Suzuki n°1 a cédé le commandement peu après la demi-heure de course.

Kawasaki SRC a été dépossédé de la tête à deux reprises seulement, lors de son premier ravitaillement au profit de BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent et peu avant la sixième heure suite à un mauvais choix de pneumatiques. Rapides et réguliers, les trois pilotes ont résisté à la pression du GMT 94 (Michelin) et maintenu la Yamaha n°94 à un tour durant toute la nuit. L’équipe de Gilles Staffler n’a connu qu’une seule alerte, dimanche à 8h30, avec un changement de selle. Bénéficiant d’un problème électronique sur la Yamaha n°94 en milieu de matinée, revenue à moins d’un tour,  Kawasaki SRC a pu aborder la fin de course avec sérénité. La Kawasaki n°11 a rallié l’arrivée en bouclant 808 tours ( km) et offre un neuvième succès au Bol d’Or au constructeur japonais.

Relégué à neuf tours du vainqueur, le YART a décroché la seconde place. Réguliers et fiables, Igor Jerman, Broc Parkes et Sheridan Morais ont profité des mésaventures des autres favoris pour se frayer un chemin jusqu’au podium.

Troisième, le SERT est revenu de loin. Chutant à deux reprises dès les premières heures, l’équipe de Dominique Meliand a plongé à la 33^ème place accusant un retard de 14 tours. Vincent Philippe, Julien DaCosta et Anthony Delhalle ont cravaché pour revenir à la troisième sans néanmoins réduire l’écart sur le vainqueur.

Seule équipe capable de rivaliser pour la victoire, le GMT 94 a vu ses chances de s’imposer partir en fumée quand la Yamaha n°94 a dû rentrer au stand pour un problème électronique à 9h46 dimanche. Immobilisée 23 minutes, elle a repris la piste en quatrième place handicapée de 13 tours. Le GMT 94 a conservé cette position jusqu’au drapeau à damier.

BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent a joué une nouvelle fois de malchance. Chutant après 5h30 de course, la BMW n°99, seconde, a été contrainte à l’abandon. Le Honda TT Legends n’est pas venu non plus au bout de ce Bol d’Or (casse moteur).

« Nos équipes partenaires ont manqué un peu de réussite. Cependant, nos pneus se sont montrés compétitifs, surtout lors des faibles températures nocturnes où nous avons réalisé des progrès par rapport à la saison dernière » souligne Pascal Couasnon, directeur Michelin Motorsport.

En Superstock, la victoire est revenue au Suzuki Junior Team à l’issue d’une superbe bataille avec Penz 13. Les deux premières machines se sont classées respectivement cinquième et sixième au classement général. Très beau parcours du Yamaha Viltaïs Expérience qui a franchi la ligne d’arrivée à la septième place de la catégorie.

Prochaine course : les 8 heures de Suzuka, Japon 28 juillet

with motoracinglive

Christian Sarron, from world champion to coach / Christian Sarron, de champion du monde à coach sportif

Christian Sarron was the 250cc MotoGP world champion in 1984 and won the Bol d’Or in 1994 with Yamaha and Michelin. Today, the Frenchman is the technical and sporting consultant for Superstock team Yamaha Viltaïs Expérience.

Champion du monde en 250 cc en 1984 et vainqueur du Bol d’Or en 1994 avec Yamaha et Michelin, Christian Sarron est désormais le conseiller technique et sportif de Yamaha Viltaïs Expérience, engagée en Superstock.

“I have obviously got fond memories of my grand prix days with Michelin,” says the Auvergne-based rider. “I remember the title in 1984, of course, but also the friendly collaboration with my Michelin technician Gérard Bombled.”

After a three-year break, Christian Sarron returned to racing in 1994 when he shared a Yamaha-Michelin with his brother Dominique at the 24 Heures Moto and the Bol d’Or. The visit to Le Mans ended after a fall, but the Bol d’Or produced the Japanese make’s first Bol d’Or victory.

“Winning the Bol d’Or is one of the best recollections of my career. We weren’t the favourites and we didn’t manage to find a good set-up for the race. Our bike didn’t handle well at all,” he recalls. “We suffered from chassis and suspension problems but our tyres performed well, and we just did all we could to stay in the fight. During the night, we managed to close on the leaders and put them under pressure.”

Christian, his brother Dominique and Yasutomo Nagaï went on to take the win, establishing in the process a new distance record (667 laps) at Paul Ricard.

“Yamaha Viltaïs Expérience’s team manager Yannick Lucot and I first met at my go-kart track near Clermont-Ferrand. At the time, I was looking after a number of GP, Superbike and endurance riders. He told me about his project and asked if I wanted to be the team’s technical and sporting consultant.”

The idea appealed to Christian who joined the charity in 2008, with special responsibility for grooming the riders. At the same time, he helps Yannick Lucot with race strategies and in the hunt for sponsors. “It’s great to have Michelin on-board,” he smiles.

“It’s something very different. Viltaïs is not looking for absolute performance, even though everyone wants to obtain the best results possible. The team has succeeded in bringing together people from very different backgrounds, and sometimes in real difficulty. The common denominator is their passion for motorbikes. We form a real family and everyone knows what their mission is, but we are living the same dream.”

After claiming fourth place in its class at last year’s Le Mans 24 Hours, Yamaha Viltaïs Expérience is targeting a podium finish this weekend and has set itself the target of winning the FIM Superstock World Cup within the next three years.

« Je garde évidemment d’excellents souvenirs de mes années passées en GP avec Michelin » se rappelle le pilote auvergnat. « Il y a eu bien sûr le titre en 1984 mais je retiens également ma collaboration très amicale avec mon technicien, Gérard Bombled »

Après trois années sans compétition, Christian Sarron est de retour en piste en 1994 au guidon d’une Yamaha-Michelin engagée aux 24 Heures du Mans et au Bol d’Or qu’il partage notamment avec son frère Dominique. Si l’aventure des 24 heures du Mans se termine par un abandon sur chute, le Bol d’Or va sceller le premier succès de la marque japonaise.

« La victoire au Bol d’Or reste l’un des meilleurs souvenirs de ma carrière. Nous ne partions pas favoris et nous n’avions pas réussi à trouver un bon réglage pour la course. La moto était très difficile à piloter, elle guidonnait » se souvient Christian. « Nous avions des problèmes de suspension et de châssis. Par contre, les pneus marchaient bien. Nous nous sommes accrochés. Dans la nuit nous avons réussi à revenir sur les leaders et à leur mettre la pression. »

Après 23h 57 min et 46 secondes de course, Christian Sarron et son frère Dominique, associés à Yasutomo Nagaï, s’imposent et signent un nouveau record en bouclant 667 tours du circuit Paul Ricard. Première victoire pour Yamaha et Christian qui laisse percevoir son émotion à l’arrivée.

« On s’est rencontrés avec Yannick Lucot (team-manager de Yamaha Viltaïs Expérience) sur notre circuit de kart à Riom (63). A l’époque je m’occupais de différentes pilotes en GP, Championnat du monde Superbike et endurance. Il m’a exposé son projet et m’a proposé de devenir le conseiller technique et sportif de l’équipe ». Séduit par l’aventure, Christian rejoint l’association en 2008. L’ancien champion du monde gère l’entraînement et la préparation des pilotes et les conseillent sur leur pilotage. Il intervient également dans les choix stratégiques de course en collaboration avec Yannick Lucot et appuie les démarches de sponsoring. « Je suis ravi du partenariat avec Michelin, c’est en quelque sorte un retour aux sources. »

« C’est vraiment différent de ce que j’ai pu connaître auparavant. Avec Viltaïs, on ne recherche pas la performance à tout prix même si, bien-sûr, nous avons des ambitions de podiums et de victoires. Viltaïs a réussi à réunir des personnes issues de milieux très différents et, parfois en grande difficulté, autour d’une passion commune, la moto. Nous sommes une vraie famille où chacun a sa place et sa mission.  On vit ensemble un rêve. »

Quatrième des dernières 24 Heures du Mans, Yamaha Viltaïs Expérience vise un podium et s’est donné trois ans pour réaliser le rêve de décrocher la Coupe du monde FIM Superstock.

HONDA CB400T CAFÉ RACER

Steel Bent Customs based out of Tampa, Florida, build some of the most approachable and affordable café racers you’ll find anywhere in the USA. This is their latest creation, it started life as a stock Honda CB400T however she now has the rear end of a CB650 and the front end of a CB550, making her a Honda Triton of sorts. That can’t be a bad thing.

Steel Bent Customs added clip ons, a custom seat and rear cowling, they then moved all the electricals into that cowling to clear up the centre of the bike. That exhaust is a custom 2 into 1 and the engine itself has been serviced by SBC, meaning Honda’s famous reliability should keep the new owner kicking along for many a mile to come.

If you like clean, no nonsense café racers hit the link here and check out the bidding for this bike on eBay.

from SILODROME