Moto GP ; Cal Crutchlow: 'this was a true pole' says of second pole position

Everyone loves Cal Crutchlow. The Yamaha Tech3 rider scored his second pole position of the season in record-breaking lap, saying that this one topped his first at Assen, because he beat out the rest of the riders on equal terms.

“It’s nice to take a true pole, because I felt Assen wasn’t with Jorge not able to ride,” said Crutchlow. “Everybody is here and half-fit - a motorcycle racer is never fully fit, they always have an injury somewhere!”

The British rider’s umbrella gesture (up yours in Italian) was evidence on how good his lap time was and his zinger against Yamaha’s Lin Jarvis was later mitigated with, “I appreciate the support from Yamaha, they are still giving me a great bike and doing a great job for me - and I’m doing the same for them. I’m giving 100 percent.”

“I am really happy to be on pole position again and I have to say a massive thanks to my Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team,” said Crutchlow. “It has not been an easy weekend while we have been working on improving the bike, but in every session we have progressed and got faster. I felt really good on that lap and to set the circuit best lap is a great achievement for the whole team to be proud of. I am looking forward to the race and the objective is to finish on the podium like last year. It would be great to have a strong result tomorrow so I can go to my home race in Silverstone with some big confidence.”

Yamaha Tech3 Herve Poncharal can also be proud of Bradley Smith. The rookie equalled his best ever qualifying result and he was less than half a second off pace from his team mate’s pole position.

“Today was another great day for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team. It is very exciting to have Cal on pole position again and from my side of the garage it is a brilliant achievement to be in the top six. The atmosphere in the team is great and both of us are really looking forward to the race tomorrow. I am less than 0.5s away from pole position and very close to the top three and it shows the progress I am making. We’ve made some changes to the front-end of the bike and it is really working. Now my main focus will be to remain smooth at the start of the race and not make mistakes like I did in Indianapolis. It is going to be a hard race over 22 laps because this track is very physical and it is very important to keep on a good line. I will try and get a good rest tonight and be ready for tomorrow. Getting a good start like in Indianapolis will be important and then I will try and learn as much as possible,”said Smith.

via TWOWHEELSBLOG

Moto GP Jorge Lorenzo suffers from spin, Rossi still having problems qualifying

Jorge Lorenzo will have to start tomorrow’s Brno race in fifth, his worse qualifying position this season, if we exclude Assen and Indianapolis where he was still recovering from collarbone surgery.

The Yamaha rider was unable to replicate his performance in the fifteen minute time attack, suffering with rear tire spinning, and he was slow exiting from the slower corners, but he hasn’t lost hope as his pace belies his starting position and he can fight for the victory, hoping that Yamaha will soon bring some updates.

“I waited for much more because I wanted to improve seven tenths or a second from the pace to make a fast lap but I couldn’t take profit from the power of the new tyre. We had so much spinning and we went slow. The pace from all the top riders is quite similar so it’s going to be important to get a good start and try to overtake some riders at the beginning of the race and then we will see how we are,” said Lorenzo.

Valentino Rossi ended up in 7th, and qualifying has become the Italian’s bete noir and this time he was even slower than Tech3’s rookie Bradley Smith. Rossi’s pace is good, but starting so far back he could again be caught in the middle of field in the first couple of laps and lose the front runners.

The Italian also had some complaints about the qualifying format saying that a lot of riders waste time trying to shake off slower rider who are looking for tow - obviously he was referencing Alvaro Bautista who grabbed a second spot on the grid, thanks to Marc Marquez.

“At the end I’m not so happy because seventh position is my worst position of the weekend and it was qualifying,” said Rossi. “I improved my lap time but the other guys were faster. My target was to start in the first five but unfortunately I have to start from seventh on the third row. Anyway, I have a good pace and was always with the front guys in the free practices. Now we have to make some changes to the bike, we have been competitive all weekend so I think and I hope we can be competitive during the race. Yesterday the harder tyre we used was good but today it was no good, maybe because it was ten degrees less, so I think we will use the soft tomorrow.”

via TWOWHEELSBLOG

Leg 3 (Latvala and Neuville crashes) - 2013 WRC Rallye Deutschland

End of Day 3: Sordo emerges in front / Etape 3 : Sordo vire en tête

After starting Saturday’s action in third place, 26.3s behind the leader, Dani Sordo (Citroën/Michelin) has moved to the top of the order in Germany at the end of Day 3. The Spaniard is less than a second ahead of Belgium’s Thierry Neuville with Sunday’s two stages (50km) remaining. Today’s second visit to Panzerplatte (SS14) was cancelled ater an accident on Panzerplatte 1.

Troisième ce matin à 26s3 du leader, l’Espagnol Dani Sordo (Citroën/Michelin) a pris la tête de l’ADAC Rallye Deutschland avec moins d’une seconde d’avance sur le Belge Thierry Neuville. Il reste deux spéciales à disputer demain dimanche. Le deuxième passage de Panzerplatte (ES14) a été annulé suite à un accident.

Volkswagen has scored six victories from the eight WRC rounds contested so far. However, it will not have the honour of winning its home event, the ADAC Rallye Deutschland, even though Sébastien Ogier and Jari-Matti Latvala both led before making mistakes.

Jari-Matti Latvala was 14.8s clear of Thierry Neuville after today’s first visit to Panzerplatte (SS11), but then rain blew in over the Trier region. The Finn subsequently crashed out in wet conditions on SS12, reportedly due to a mechanical problem, leaving Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo to battle for the win.

Sordo, who is competing on ‘pure’ asphalt for the first time in the Citroën DS3 WRC/Michelin this weekend, got off to a cautious start before upping his pace as the rally progressed.

This morning’s loop saw the Spaniard close to with nine seconds of Neuville and he later eased into the overall lead after SS13 (Peterberg), eight-tenths ahead of the Belgian youngster. “I feel more and more at ease with the Citroën and I think it will be a great fight on the last day,” declared Sordo who is chasing his first WRC victory after 106 world class starts.

“I am caught between wanting to make sure I score points for the championship and claiming my first WRC victory,” noted Neuville. “I’ll have a good night’s sleep and then decide, but I think I’ll try for the win…”

Meanwhile, Latvala’s disappearance provided Mikko Hirvonen with a footing on the provisional podium, even though the Finn is almost a minute-and-a-half down on the current leader. Fourth-placed Martin Prokop (Ford) is a further four minutes adrift.

Mads Ostberg (Ford) was fifth before his off on SS12, while Nasser Al-Attiyah (Ford) crashed out on SS11. Sébastien Ogier (24^th, VW), who re-joined this morning under the ‘Rally2’ ruling, won three of today’s stages and could still possibly salvage some valuable Manufacturers’ points for Volkswagen.

Pole Robert Kubica (Citroën DS3 RRC) is now fifth overall and on top in WRC-2, 7.8s clear of Welshman Elfyn Evans (Ford). New Zealand’s Hayden Paddon (Skoda) is third, but Sepp Wiegand (Skoda) went off on SS13.

Sébastien Chardonnet and Pontus Tidemand are comfortable leaders in the WRC-3 and Junior WRC fights respectively.

Après six victoires en huit rallyes, Volkswagen ne gagnera pas à domicile ce week-end. Sébastien Ogier et Jari-Matti Latvala ont tour à tour mené l’épreuve avant de partir à la faute.

Jari-Matti Latvala comptait 14s8 d’avance sur Thierry Neuville à l’issue du premier passage de Panzerplatte (ES11). Mais la pluie s’est invitée sur le Saarland et le Finlandais est sorti de la route dans l’ES12 – apparemment après un problème mécanique -, laissant Thierry Neuville et Dani Sordo s’expliquer pour la victoire.

Pour ses débuts sur asphalte « pur » au volant d’une Citroën DS3 WRC/Michelin, l’Espagnol Dani Sordo a effectué un début de course prudent avant d’hausser le rythme au fil des spéciales.

Après la boucle matinale, Dani était revenu à 9s de Neuville avant de prendre l’avantage – et la première place du rallye – à l’issue de l’ES13 (Peterberg) pour 0s8 d’avance sur le Belge. « Je me sens de mieux en mieux dans la Citroën et ce sera une belle bagarre », déclarait Sordo qui vise son premier succès mondial après 106 rallyes WRC disputés.

« Je suis partagé entre assurer pour marquer de gros points au championnat et attaquer pour remporter ma première victoire mondiale », avouait de son côté Thierry Neuville. La nuit porte conseil, mais je pense que je vais essayer… »

La sortie de Latvala a promu Mikko Hirvonen sur le podium provisoire. Le Finlandais est à près d’une minute et demie du leader et compte plus de quatre minutes d’avance sur Martin Prokop (Ford).

Mads Ostberg (Ford) était 5^e avant de sortir de la route dans l’ES12. Sortie de route également pour Nasser Al-Attiyah (Ford) dans l’ES11. Reparti en Rally2 ce matin, Sébastien Ogier (24^e, VW) a remporté trois spéciales aujourd’hui et pourrait marquer des points au championnat Constructeurs.

Le Polonais Robert Kubica (Citroën DS3 RRC) est 5^e du classement général et mène la catégorie WRC-2 avec 7s8 d’avance sur le Gallois Elfyn Evans (Ford). Le Néo-Zélandais Hayden Paddon (Skoda) est sur le podium provisoire. Sepp Wiegand (Skoda) est sorti de la route (ES13). Sébastien Chardonnet et Pontus Tidemand sont confortables leaders des catégories WRC-3 et Junior WRC.

Moto GP;Cal Crutchlow takes new pole position at Brno

Cal Crutchlow has taken his second pole position of the season in today’s qualifying session at Brno. The Yamaha Tech3 rider was able to lower the record breaking lap that suprisingly enough Gresini’s Alvaro Bautista had just conquered, albeit with a tow from Marc Marquez.

Crutchlow who has been having problems with the new gas tank that he received at Indianpolis had a perfect lap as he posted a 1.55.257, more than two tenths of a second faster than Bautista and more than three tenths of a second faster than Marc Marquez who will close the final row.

The British rider believes this pole is more worthy than the one at Assen, when Jorge Lorenzo was recovering from his shoulder operation, and he also zinged Lin Jarvis when he was at the parc ferme, saying that its too bad that Yamaha wasted money coming to Brno to test …

Open the second row will be Dani Pedrosa, and Jorge Lorenzo, who no doubt will upset about the position even though his race pace puts him line for a victory tomorrow. Another suprise of the session was Bradley Smith.

The MotoGP rookie took 6th and he was just +0.487 from his pole sitting team mate and almost more than two tenths faster than factory Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi, who was unable to improve with his second tire.

Joining Rossi on the third row will be Stefan Bradl and Andrea Dovizioso on row three. Nicky Hayden took the 10th spot followed by Andrea Iannone and Colin Edwards in his second Q2 session after Indianapolis.

2013 MotoGP Brno Qualifying 2 results:

01- Cal Crutchlow – Monster Yamaha Tech 3 – Yamaha YZR M1 – 1’55.527
02- Alvaro Bautista – GO&FUN Honda Gresini – Honda RC213V – + 0.227
03- Marc Marquez – Repsol Honda Team – Honda RC213V – + 0.336
04- Dani Pedrosa – Repsol Honda Team – Honda RC213V – + 0.341
05- Jorge Lorenzo – Yamaha Factory Racing – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.422
06- Bradley Smith – Monster Yamaha Tech 3 – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.487
07- Valentino Rossi – Yamaha Factory Racing – Yamaha YZR M1 – + 0.659
08- Stefan Bradl – LCR Honda MotoGP – Honda RC213V – + 0.950
09- Andrea Dovizioso – Ducati Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP13 – + 1.298
10- Nicky Hayden – Ducati Team – Ducati Desmosedici GP13 – + 1.452

from TWOWHEELSBLOG

Roy’s Cook’s Rogue

WTF? was our first reaction. Not only is this bike based around the unlikely Honda VTR Firestorm it’s also been built by a 45 year old shed-builder who is described as being “new to bikes, full stop” with little engineering experience. …This is just the kind of feature opener we can’t get enough of, so let’s let brothers Clive & Ron tell the story for themselves.

Here’s how it all began…

Brother Clive: “About 18 months ago, over a pint, my older brother, Roy, announced he was going to build a custom. Now, my brother (aged 45) is fairly new to bikes full stop and didn’t have much engineering  experience to speak of, but rather than mildly customize a bike he wanted to build a frame from scratch! To cut a long story short, he was deadly serious and a donor bike was ridden back from Brum (to South Devon) and stripped down the next day. I tried to reason with him that it was going to be a very tall order to pull this off, but he wasn’t to be deterred. After a false start with a cheap tube bender, we jointly purchased the right tool for the right job. Roy started bending tube like a man possessed. I knocked up a frame jig at work to help him along. Once the frame was all tacked-up we chucked (or rather very carefully placed) it in the back of his car and snuck it at night) into my place of work – to use the big amp welder.”

“After a month, the bike was back up on its new wheels. With some messing around it was ready for the SVA test, which it flew through save for a noisy exhaust. Its now Q plated.” The guys make it sound so easy, but having put a bike through an SVA test ourselves last year, we know it’s no mean feat.

“Roy would occasionally drop a piece of bike around for me to weld up, but he did 95% of the fabrication work himself. He taught himself to weld and use a lathe, and with help from brother in-law Jay made a bloody good crack at a first custom I think. The bike was stripped back down for paint, this was farmed out locally (as was the exhaust system). I then recieved the call, ‘Bike’s finished, you wanna pop round for a squizz?’ …Well he pulled the sheet off and my blooming jaw hit the deck.”

“Needless to say we’ve all got the bug now and have 3 more bikes mid build! There are plans (pipe dreams?) to offer frame kits in the future… Hey, you gotta have a dream!”

So. The bike? The donor is a Honda VTR Firestorm with a Hayabusa front end and a VFR800 rear. The tank (cover) is from a Honda Superdream and the frame is built from 1 and a quarter inch tubing with the subframe at 7/8″. Roy built two back ends. One is very slim. The other carries an auxillary fuel tank built into the seat.

So what next? “In a ideal world we’d love to be able to make some pocket money on selling parts (frames?) but in the meantime we’re busy building up our skills (and tools) on our current projects.” Their mate Jay is doing-up his GSXR400, with upside down forks, a one-off steel tubular single-sided swing arm. Roy’s bought another VTR to chop up. “I’m 3/4′s way through the Zed bobber and have just started buying parts for my next project ;  Norton 490cc sidevalve engine, with a one-off tig welded flat-tanker frame, mag wheels, teles and classic green Castrol racing paint job – I think it will work, honest!”

Considering the donor – and the builder, Roy, (who it turns out is an Immunology Research Laboratory Technician of 17 years) – this is one hell of a good start for a crew of custom bike meddlers, and we can’t wait to see what Clive, Roy and Jay come up with in the future. Thanks for sharing.

from the bike shed

L’Ihle de la passion

Ever heard of Wolf-Dieter Ihle? No? Well, his name has appeared on WRC entry lists for more than three decades. While in Germany, we took time to meet this amateur driver who is contesting the Rallye Deutschland for the 15th time.

Wolf-Dieter Ihle. Vous connaissez ? Nous non plus… Pourtant, son nom apparaît dans les classements du WRC depuis plus de 30 ans. Nous avons profité de ce rallye pour enfin rencontrer ce pilote amateur qui dispute son 15e Rallye Deutschland.

His first Rallye Deutschland was in 1983. Sordo and Ogier were both in nappies, Hirvonen was at play school and Latvala and Neuville had yet to be born. Yet Wolf-Dieter Ihle had been rallying for some time already, after a debut as co-driver in 1978.

It was in the right-hand seat of an Opel Ascona 400 (N°180 on a start-list of 237) that he first contested the Rallye Monte-Carlo in 1980. It was the start of a long love affair, since he has now done the wintry event 10 times. The first was as a driver was in 1982. “I love the Monte’s difficult conditions and magnificent stages. My best memory is my class win in 1998. I was invited to the prize-giving ceremony in front of the palace…”

They don’t come much more enthusiastic about rallying than Wolf-Dieter who has taken part in some of the sport’s finest events (Monte Carlo, Corsica, Critérium des Cévennes, Circuit des Ardennes) but always in ‘modest’ cars, like the VW Golf, Opel Astra or Group N Peugeot 306.

Today, he has his own team which has specialised in the renting of cars for historic rallies. His current stable features an Audi Quattro S1, an Audi 80, a Porsche 953 and an Opel Manta 400. Customers include Walter Röhrl and Stig Blomqvist, and he sits beside them as co-driver from time to time.

Even so, he is entered in the ‘modern’ class of this year’s ADAC Rallye Deutschland, in a diminutive Citroën DS3 R3. “I am still a competitor at heart and historic events are sometimes more like parades than real rallies. At my age [55], my aim isn’t to beat the Citroën Top Driver youngsters; it’s to have some fun and forget all about shares and investments for a while…”

Wolf-Dieter is a finance expert and has run Sachsen Asset Management since 2008. After learning the ropes in a Stuttgart bank, he went on to work in foreign exchange before becoming an advisor for Sachsen LB. He contributed to the latter’s incorporation by the giant German LBBW financial group.

“My work takes a lot of my time and rallying is a chance to relax. I arrived here just before recce with no pressure. Some stages have changed but I know the terrain well. My DS3 R3 [on Michelin tyres] is fun to drive and reliable. Everything’s going well for the moment.” On Friday evening, his white N°136 DS3 was 39^th overall.

If his diary permits, Wolf-Dieter would like to do the 2014 Rallye Monte-Carlo. “This event has changed a great deal, and not always for the good. Even so, the atmosphere is unique. I’ve done the Nürburgring 24 Hours a few times, too, but I much prefer rallying.”

Le premier, c’était en 1983. Sordo et Ogier étaient en couche-culotte, Hirvonen jouait à la crèche, Latvala et Neuville n’étaient pas nés. Mais Wolf-Dieter Ihle avait débuté sa carrière de rallyman bien avant. En 1978 exactement, en tant que copilote.

C’est toujours dans un baquet de droite, celui de l’Opel Ascona 400 n°180, anonyme parmi les 237 partants, qu’il a découvert le Rallye Monte-Carlo en 1980. Depuis, Wolf-Dieter est tombé amoureux de ce rallye qu’il a disputé dix fois, dont la première derrière le volant en 1982. « J’adore ce rallye pour ses conditions difficiles et son parcours magnifique. Mon plus beau souvenir, c’est en 1998 quand j’ai remporté ma catégorie. J’ai eu l’honneur d’être invité à la remise des prix devant le palais princier. »

Wolf-Dieter Ihle est un authentique passionné de rallye, un pur amateur qui a toujours tenu à disputer de beaux rallyes - Monte-Carlo, Tour de Corse, Critérium des Cévennes ou Circuit des Ardennes - au volant de voitures « modestes » (VW Golf, Opel Astra, Peugeot 306 GrN, etc).

Sa passion l’a emmené à monter sa propre structure – Ihle Motorsport – spécialisée dans la location de véhicules de rallye historiques. Il propose actuellement une Audi S1, une Audi 80, une Porsche 953 ou encore une Opel Manta 400. Parmi ses clients, Walter Röhrl ou Stig Blomqvist qu’il n’hésite pas à copiloter de temps à autre, pour le plaisir…

C’est pourtant dans le rallye moderne que Wolf-Dieter est engagé à l’ADAC Rallye Deutschland 2013, au volant d’une voiture de « jeun’s » : une Citroën DS3 R3. « Je reste un compétiteur et parfois, les rallyes historiques, c’est plus de l’exhibition de voitures anciennes que de la course. A 55 ans, il n’est pas question de se mesurer aux requins du Citroën Top Driver, mais juste de s’amuser et d’oublier son quotidien fait de capitaux, de placements, d’investissements.

Wolf-Dieter Ihle est un financier réputé outre-Rhin, gérant-associé de Sachsen Asset Management depuis 2008. Après des débuts dans la banque à Stuttgart, il a été nommé responsable des transactions de valeurs mobilières et de produits dérivés suite à la création du département de change à terme allemand en 1993. En 2007, il est devenu conseiller sur le marché des capitaux de la banque Sachsen LB et a contribué à son intégration au sein du groupe LBBW, un géant de la finance allemand.

« Mon job est très prenant, alors pour moi le rallye, c’est de la détente. Je suis arrivé ici la veille des reconnaissances, sans pression. Je connaissais un peu le parcours même si certaines spéciales ont changé. Cette DS3 R3 (équipée en Michelin) est très « fun » à piloter et elle est fiable. Tout se passe bien pour le moment. » Vendredi soir, la DS3 blanche n°136 était 39^e du classement général.

Si son emploi le lui permet, Wolf-Dieter Ihle pourrait être au départ du prochain Rallye Monte-Carlo. « Le rallye a évolué bien sûr, et pas toujours dans le bon sens. Malgré tout, l’ambiance y reste incomparable. J’ai participé plusieurs fois aux 24 Heures du Nürburgring, mais je préfère de loin le rallye. »

C1-RS 1962 CORVETTE BY THE ROADSTER SHOP

• POSTED BY MOTO VERSO
 

Now if your not a classic american car fan you soon will be with the stunning C1-RS 1962 Corvette by the Roadster Shop. This is the finest example of a customised car I’ve featured on Moto Verso. As you can tell I’m a huge Corvette fan loving the Blue Flame I featured a few days ago, but the C1-RS is the perfect example of improving and modernising a classic beautiful car. With modern materials blended in perfectly and bucket loads of brushed aluminium you can see why I think this is such a cool looking car. Huge drilled Bembo brakes are visible through the sweet multi-spoked rims, loving the white inner rim on these wheels. Keeps it true to it’s age mimicking the old white walled tyres  of yesteryear.

The Roadster Shop has been an industry leader for over 25 years in the chassis fabrication and turn key vehicle building market for street rods and muscle cars. You can see what 25 years experience shows for in this build.

Roadster shop said “By capturing the market with advances in design, engineering, and innovation, the Roadster Shop has continued its development of chassis and suspension products to the growing Muscle Car, pro-touring market. With full in-house design, engineering, prototyping, and manufacturing capabilities, we can provide a customer with an industry leading chassis product that exceeds all expectations.”

Images: roadstershop.com

Website: roadstershop.com

Rallye Deutschland’s favourite battle zone! / Pas de Rallye Deutschland sans Baumholder !

The Baumholder military ranges southeast of Trier and the infamous ‘Panzerplatte’ stage have been a hallmark of the ADAC Rallye Deutschland ever since it was first run in its current form in 2001.

Au sud-est de Trèves, le camp militaire de Baumholder et sa célèbre spéciale de Panzerplatte sont des incontournables de l’ADAC Rallye Deutschland depuis 2001, avant même son accession au WRC. Cette année, la victoire pourrait s’y jouer une nouvelle fois.

Today, the Baumholder ranges are notably used for helicopter exercises. For decades, though, they served for tank practice, and this led to the development of a maze of punishing tracks and roads. Rallye Deutschland is commonly described as an asphalt event, but here the surface tends to be concrete, often of a poor quality...

The experienced Henning Wünsch has been the German fixture’s Deputy Clerk of the Course ever since it became a round of the World Rally Championship. Before that, he was clerk of the course of the original Deutschland Rally, from 1972 to 2000. He has consequently built up a strong working relationship with the authorities at Baumholder which was the responsibility of the French and Americans before coming under the control of the German army. Henning’s current contact there is Colonel Ingo Osbahr, the camp’s Kommander.

“We hold very regular meetings with the local officials and we have worked well together for many years,” says Henning. “We are even invited as guests when non-motorsport functions or festivals are organised there by the Americans. The latter naturally have less of an understanding of rallying, but their assistance is always very positive.

“Permission to run a stage in the camp isn’t automatic, but our annual visit has become something of a tradition. We understand each other’s needs. The most important factor is spectator control, which must be perfect. As you can imagine, access to non-military personnel is highly restricted and a large, safe and also spectacular area is set aside for watching. Ultimate responsibility for safety is in the hands of the Kommander who performs the final fly-over in a helicopter before giving the green light. Elsewhere on the stage, only rally staff with a professional task are allowed.”

The route tends be similar from year to year because another prime concern is ecological protection. Many of Germany’s military ranges have become nature reserves, especially following a European Community ruling that a certain surface area must be given over to this purpose in each country.

Since the end of the Cold War, many of Germany’s extensive army camps – often in remote locations – have become superfluous, so their conversion into ecological areas was a simple process.

However, with the exception of Baumholder, this made their use for rallying a little complex. To clarify matters, especially in the former ‘East’, a law was introduced at the end of July 2013 to specifically authorise the use of army land for motorsport. “This legislation will encourage other organisers to run stages on military land,” says Henning. “I can think of three new areas that the sport will be able to use, and perhaps we will see another big event emerge in the ‘West’…”

aujourd'hui, le camp militaire de Baumholder est surtout utilisé pour des entraînements d’hélicoptère. Mais pendant des décennies, il servait aux manœuvres des chars d’assaut, d’où la multiplication des pistes et routes dans l’enceinte du camp. Le Rallye Deutschland est une épreuve asphalte, mais ici, les routes sont revêtues d’un mélange bitume-béton, parfois dans un piètre état.

Henning Wünsch a été directeur de course du Rallye Deutschland de 1972 à 2000. Au fil des ans, il a tissé des liens très étroits avec les autorités du camp militaire de Baumholder qui fut longtemps sous responsabilité française et américaine avant d’être rendu à l’armée allemande. Sur place, le contact d’Henning est le colonel Ingo Osbahr, Commandant du camp.

« On organise régulièrement des réunions avec les responsables du camp et on travaille ensemble depuis des années », explique Henning. « Nous sommes souvent invités pour des manifestations autres que sport automobile, comme des festivals organisés ici par les Américains. Ils ne connaissaient pas le rallye, mais leur soutien a toujours été très précieux. »

« La permission d’organiser une spéciale dans un camp militaire n’est pas automatique, mais notre visite annuelle est devenue comme une tradition. Le plus important, c’est le contrôle des flux de spectateurs qui doit être parfait. Comme vous l’imaginez, l’accès au personnel non-militaire est très réglementé. La sécurité est placée sous la responsabilité du Commandant qui supervise depuis un hélicoptère avant de donner le feu vert. Partout ailleurs dans le camp, seuls les membres de l’organisation du rallye sont autorisés. »

Les spéciales sont grosso modo les mêmes d’une année sur l’autre car il y a aussi des préoccupations d’ordre écologiques. Beaucoup de camps militaires sont devenus des réserves naturelles, notamment après la publication d’une directive européenne qui précise que chaque pays doit consacrer une certaine surface à cela. Depuis la fin de la Guerre Froide, la plupart des camps militaires allemands sont devenus caduques et leur reconversion en réserve naturelle fut… toute naturelle !

Mais cela rend leur utilisation pour le rallye automobile encore plus complexe. Pour clarifier la situation, notamment à « l’Est », une loi a été votée fin juillet 2013 qui permet d’utiliser des terres de l’armée pour le sport automobile. « Cette loi devrait encourager d’autres organisateurs à utiliser ces terrains, explique Henning. « Je pense à au moins trois autres endroits que l’on pourrait utiliser, et peut-être que nous pourrions voir la création d’un nouveau grand rallye en Allemagne. »

Pure Motorcycles Black Beauty

Pure Motorcycles have mastered the art of refining the CB500 and have put several stunning examples together. Some are cafes, some are set up more as brat/trackers, but they are all crowd pullers, as we saw at Wheels & Waves in Biarritz this year when we got to ride around on Blue Moon for the weekend. The photos really don’t do these bikes justice as it’s the attention to detail that makes them lovely and a lot work goes into unique paint finishes, often capturing areas of original patina or paint.

Whether configured as a cafe or brat this family of machines, all based on the mid seventies CB500, make the perfect beach-hopping bikes, which is just as well, as owner David Chapius and his Communications Manager William Guerin, are based in Cannes in the South of France. Jeans, sneakers, T’s and an open-face lid are the only required accessories.

This bike is “Black Beauty”, Pure MC’s fourth ’76 Honda CB 500. The forks have been shortened and the rear shrouded suspension lowered, with the wire spoke wheels powdercoated black and wearing a pair of genre-defining Firestone deluxe tyres, while braking is taken care of by twin ventilated discs.

The engine is in it’s original set-up but with electronic ignition, velocity carbs and a Marving Racing exhaust. The large yellow-lensed headlamp is original but given more prominence by the use of mini indicators, front and back and tiny instruments. The old school cafe racer seat is from a Suzuki 125 which has been re-formed by hand for racy monoposto looks and two-up practicality.

The list of mods looks short but these bikes reek of hand-finished quality, detailing and choice of components, from the controls and grips to the tail lighting and fender. We’re very pleased to have anotherPure Motorcycle Ceebee to share with you all on The Bike Shed.

trop fort : Future Suture

MOTO GUZZI 1000 SP BY KAFFEEMASCHINE

There are three brands I always associate with the glory days of motorcycling in the 1970s: Honda, Triumph and Moto Guzzi. Four decades on, their bikes still have an enduring appeal for custom builders.

Honda may have lost its way in the charisma stakes of late, but Moto Guzzi still has a hotline to its past in the shape of the new V7 and California models. Adding fuel to the fire is a steady stream of high-profile customs: there’s Officine Rossopuro and Venier in Italy, Revival Cycles from the USA and Kaffeemaschine in Gerrmany.

This is Kaffeemaschine #9, based on a 1978 Moto Guzzi 1000 SP. Hamburg-based Axel Budde has stripped the bike back to the essentials and rebuilt everything to standards probably better than the factory could manage 35 years ago. The overhaul includes new cylinders and pistons, a lightweight single-disc clutch, and wider air intakes for the hungry 36mm Dell’Orto carbs.

Axel has also shortened the frame and modified it to carry a new seat pan, topped with an angular new seat unit that perfectly captures the style of the era. The tank is from a Le Mans Mk 2, and the wheels—complete with stainless spokes—are from XS Performance. The exhaust system is also stainless, and handmade.

“I wanted to build a relaxed bike with a ‘moderate’ seating position,” says Axel, “and decided to leave the 1000 SP’s integrated brake system intact. The foot pedal acts on one of the front discs as well as the rear disc—very cool!” The suspension is heavily upgraded though, with adjustable Wilbers shocks at the back and Yamaha YZF-R6 forks up front, which Axel modified to maintain the classic look.

The electrics are now packed neatly underneath the tank, leaving the space under the seat empty. So AxeI has filled the gap within the frame with a “glove box” (above)—a useful zipped bag nestling behind the side covers. It was designed by upholstery specialist Alex Rothe of WeitgehendGar—who also made the beautiful seat, and creates bespoke luggage for cafe racers and classic bikes.

Timeless style, modern reliability and even a touch of practicality too. What more could you want?

This Moto Guzzi 1000 SP is for sale. Contact Axel Budde via the Kaffeemaschinewebsite for more details.

via BIKEEXIF