ERC, Tour de Corse, étape 1 : Sarrazin devant Bouffier / Sarrazin leads Bouffier after Day 1

Deux Français, deux anciens champions de France, au volant de deux Ford Fiesta RRC/Michelin se disputent la première place du Tour de Corse, dernière manche du Championnat d’Europe des Rallyes FIA. A l’issue de la première journée, Stéphane Sarrazin est leader avec 1.7 seconde d’avance sur Bryan Bouffier. Le néo-champion d’Europe, Esapekka Lappi (Skoda), est sorti de la route.

La première étape du 57^e Giru di Corsica, organisée autour de Porto-Vecchio, a été dominée par les pilotes français. De retour de Chine et d’une 2^e place aux 6 Heures de Shanghai, Stéphane Sarrazin a vite retrouvé ses marques sur les petites routes insulaires rendues piégeuses par l’humidité.

Sarrazin a remporté l’ES1 avec moins d’une seconde d’avance sur Bryan Bouffier. Dans l’ES2, les deux Français ont fait jeu égal…Mais l’issue de la 1^ère boucle, c’est Bryan Bouffier qui est rentré en leader à Porto-Vecchio, avec une avance de 2.4 secondes, avant de connaître une crevaison dans la spéciale suivante. « A 6 km de l’arrivée, j’ai peut-être trop coupé une corde ». La robustesse de son pneu Michelin R31 lui a permis de terminer la spéciale à seulement 17 secondes de son adversaire, qui, de son côté, avait opté pour des gommes medium cet après-midi. Peut-être pas le meilleur choix, si bien que Bouffier est revenu à 1.7 seconde au classement général.

Derrière, le Néerlandais Kevin Abbring (Peugeot) se retrouve isolé à la 3^e place après la sortie de route d’Esapekka Lappi (Skoda) dans la dernière spéciale du jour. Le Finlandais était assuré du titre européen 2014 avant le départ du Tour de Corse suite au forfait de son seul challenger Sepp Wiegand.

Au volant de sa Peugeot 207 S2000, Eric Camilli pointe à la 4^e place. Le lauréat Rallyes Jeunes 2012 devance de plus d’une minute le Champion de France sortant Julien Maurin (5^e, Ford), victime de deux crevaisons, et le pilote officiel Porsche Romain Dumas (6^e), qui revient lui aussi de Chine où il a également terminé sur le podium des 6 Heures de Shanghai. Hormis dans l’ES1/4, la Porsche 997 GT3 RS n’était pas au mieux sur les routes sinueuses et glissantes de cette journée.

Bruno Magalhaes (7^e, Peugeot), Jaromir Tarabus (8^e, Skoda), Jean-Mathieu Léandri (9^e, Peugeot) et Keith Cronin (10^e et 1^er Production, Subaru) complètent le top-ten provisoire. En catégorie Junior, le titre européen se joue ce week-end entre Stéphane Lefebvre et Andrea Crugnola. Au terme de la 1^ère étape, l’Italien devance le Français d’1min06s5…

Demain, la seconde étape emmènera les concurrents autour d’Ajaccio avec cinq longues spéciales à disputer avant l’arrivée du Tour de Corse, et la conclusion de la saison européenne 2014, en fin d’après-midi.

The overnight leaderboard in Corsica is topped by two ex-French champions driving Michelin-equipped Ford Fiesta RRCs. Stéphane Sarrazin is provisionally 1.7 seconds clear of Bryan Bouffier. The newly-crowned European champion Esapekka Lappi (Skoda) has crashed.

The first day of the 2014 Tour de Corse in the Porto-Vecchio region was dominated by French drivers.

Freshly back from his World Endurance Championship race in China, Sarrazin lost no time finding his marks despite the treacherous, damp conditions.

He was faster than Bouffier on SS1 before the two were equal fastest on the following test. The morning’s loop saw the latter emerge ahead, however, 2.4s in front of his compatriot.

Bouffier then picked up a puncture on the following stage. “I cut a corner too much about 6km from the end,” he reported. Even so, the strength of his Michelin R31 tyre enabled him to limit the damage to just 17s compared with Sarrazin who chose medium tyres for the afternoon’s loop. It probably wasn’t the ideal option, since Bouffier succeeded in closing the gap to 1.7s this evening.

Dutchman Kevin Abbring (Peugeot) follows in third spot after Lappi put his Skoda off the road on today’s last stage. The Finn is sure of the European title, however, due to the last-minute withdrawal from the event of Sepp Wiegand.

Eric Camilli (Peugeot 207 S2000) is fourth, more than a minute safe from last year’s French champion Julien Maurin (Ford), who suffered two punctures, and ahead of Porsche driver Romain Dumas (6^th) who, like Sarrazin, finished on the podium of last Sunday’s 6 Hours of Shanghai. With the exception of SS1/4, his Porsche 997 GT3 RS wasn’t totally at ease on today’s twisty, slippery stages.

The top 10 is rounded off by Bruno Magalhaes (Peugeot), Jaromir Tarabus (Skoda), Jean-Mathieu Léandri (Peugeot) and Keith Cronin (Subaru, Production class leader).

The ERC Junior title will be settled this weekend. Andrea Crugnola is currently 1m6.5s clear of the championship’s leader Stéphane Lefebvre.

The second (and last) day will see the event’s epicentre shift closer to Ajaccio. After five more stages, the 2014 Tour de Corse will bring the FIA European Championship to a close at the end of Saturday afternoon.

MotoGP ; Márquez mène les essais libres au Grand Prix General de Valence / Marquez the pace setter as final round gets underway

Marc Márquez a réalisé le meilleur chrono de la journée de vendredi en MotoGP™ au Grand Prix Generali de Valence. Derrière lui, Jorge Lorenzo et Andrea Dovizioso complètent le Top 3.

Marc Márquez (Repsol Honda) se sera mis en confiance aujourd’hui sur la piste de Cheste en terminant les deux premières séances d’essais du Grand Prix Generali de Valence avec le meilleur temps. Le Champion du Monde MotoGP™ 2013 et 2014 a tourné en 1’31.296 le matin et fini à une seconde du record du circuit qu’il avait établi en qualifications l’an dernier (1’30.237).

Moins performant d’un peu plus d’un dixième de seconde l’après-midi, Márquez demeurait néanmoins le plus rapide en piste et finissait la deuxième séance devant Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati), Aleix Espargaró (NGM Forward Racing) et Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP). 

Vainqueur à Valence l’an dernier, Lorenzo avait lui aussi été un peu plus rapide le matin et occupe la seconde position sur le classement combiné, à 0.193s de Márquez et devant Dovizioso et Espargaró, qui ont profité de leur pneu arrière tendre cet après-midi.

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) complète le Top 5 de la journée, à 0.351s de Márquez, devant Cal Crutchlow (Ducati), Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP), seulement dixième en FP2, Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP), Pol Espargaró (Monster Yamaha Tech3) et Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech3). 

Héctor Barberá (Avintia Racing) poursuivait son adaptation à la Ducati et s’est classé onzième devant Michele Pirro, en wildcard avec la marque italienne, et Andrea Iannone (Pramac Racing).

Inscrit en wildcard avec Suzuki, Randy de Puniet a dû abandonner l’une de ses GSX-RR en bord de piste en fin de séance suite à ce que cette dernière ait laissé échapper un épais nuage de fumée. Suite à cet incident, le Français a conclu la journée à la dix-neuvième place, à une seconde et demie du leader. 

Hiroshi Aoyama (Drive M7 Aspar), qui deviendra pilote d’essais pour le HRC l’an prochain, a eu une première journée délicate sur la toute nouvelle RC213V-RS et a fini vingt-et-unième, derrière son coéquipier Nicky Hayden.

Mike di Meglio (Avintia Racing) était quant à lui vingt-cinquième.

Cliquez ici pour accéder aux résultats

The MotoGP™ FP2 session saw Marc Marquez on the pace at the Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, with Andrea Dovizioso and Aleix Espargaro also amongst the top three. Marquez was also the fastest ride on the combined timesheets from FP1 and FP2, in front of Jorge Lorenzo and Dovizioso.

Marquez’s (Repsol Honda Team) time of 1’31.296 from the morning session was the fastest of the day, with Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) second best overall courtesy of a 1’31.489 lap. Dovizioso (Ducati Team) was third fastest on Friday courtesy of his best lap from FP2, which was less than 0.1s off Lorenzo’s pace.

Aleix Espargaro (NGM Forward Racing) and Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) were both in Friday’s top five, which featured a real mix of manufacturers and technical packages.

Cal Crutchlow (Ducati Team), Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP), Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP), Pol Espargaro (Monster Yamaha Tech3) and Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech3) completed the top ten.

Wild card Randy de Puniet (Team Suzuki MotoGP) improved by over a second towards the end of the FP2 session, before a technical fault with the GSX-RR saw him pull over at trackside with smoke pouring from engine. He was 19^th overall.

For full MotoGP combined session results from Friday at Valencia click here.

Gone South with Vita Brevis Films

The open road provides a pathway to the uncontrolled spirit, a state of being that is universally felt yet so challenging to capture through a medium.

Gone South with Vita Brevis Films from VITA BREVIS FILMS on Vimeo.

BOBBER VS SCRAMBLER

When factories dip their toes into the world of custom building, it’s all too easy to smell a corporate stunt and dismiss the outcome as driven by research marketing and designed to drive ROI, but in this case Triumph have, well, triumphed, by challenging their own staff to contest an in-house build off – all on a voluntary basis and in their own time, and the results speak for themselves. There are no catalogue items lined-up to launch a range of accessories, and the boys at the factory have pulled no punches in rebuilding major components while throwing the EU regs out of the window with a pair of bikes that should have the pro custom builders out there checking their own levels of engineering ambition and creativity. Pulling off a factory custom build in the glaring public eye of social media with the most discerning and cynical audience imaginable meant just one thing: Knock our socks off – or die trying.

Triumph decided to pit their internal teams against each other in a build-off that started back in May, and the finished bikes were revealed at the Milan show this week. The only thing we can complain about is that it’s a competition so one team has to be declared the winner. To me, both bikes are stand-out custom builds, and I’d hate to have to split them and pronounce one better than the other… although I’ll be eating my words at the MCN show in two weeks time when I’ve been asked to help do exactly that. Ouch.

Each of the teams was given a new Bonneville to play with, but with so many posh parts available in the factory, plus more than a few skilled machinists and engineers, it was clear from the outset that these weren’t going to be cookie-cutter customs. The heat was on…

TFC1: The Bobber

A traditional bobber was out of the question for a team who count three Bonnie customs and a chopped V8 amongst their own personal vehicles. Their build was to be a single-sided, twin-tube hard-tail with a girder front end supported by twin Fox factory shocks with a remote bar-mounted adjustor. The rear-end features a seat supported by a third Fox unit and adjustable linkage, and also houses a Radianz LED light in two neat strips.

The cylinders have been reversed, turning the carbs and bellmouths to the front of the bike, allowing a super-clean exhaust to exit at the rear, while the engine internals were completely reworked. The engine remains fuel-injected, with all the electronic sensors that are required stuffed into one half of a split tank sourced from a ’69 Bonnie US Export. Start and kill buttons were added to the dummy half, which also contains a reduced loom and bespoke electronics board, along with a MotoGadget speedo and keyless ignition. The other side of the tank houses the fuel, the fuel injection pump and filters, and is finished with a pop-up fuel cap.

Astonishingly, the frame parts have been glued together (ok, “bonded”) with some hi-tech bespoke adhesive by ThreeBond, to allow a weld-free finish. We assume it’s all safe and proper! Four-pot brake calipers make sure the beast pulls up to a sharp stop and of course the wheels had to be wire-spoked.

TFC 2: The Scrambler

We see plenty of Triumph scramblers here on the Bike Shed, and some of them are stunners, so it’s all the more impressive how far this build stands out in such a densely-populated crowd. The team’s goal was to take on the genre with a build that was more than a simple nod to the old desert sleds and trackers that many of us aspire to. This build was going to be all about performance, handling and genuine off-road ability.

Before their donor Bonnie had even reached the bench the team had decided on their approach, which was to match the geometry and suspension travel of a modern competition motorcrosser, coupled with a properly uprated power plant. The exisiting steel frame was ditched in favour of a bespoke aluminium unit with light weight and aggressive geometry. It also served to hide all the throttle linkages and cables. The subframe was built from titanium, hand welded in-house before being finished with shot-blast and masked welds. …Trick enough for you yet?

The single-sided swingarm was pinched from a Speed Triple, which we can only assume is tucked away around the back, standing on a wooden block. It’s been inverted and modified – and it looks wicked. This setup required a mono-shock conversion, which benefits from a Nitron Racing System shock which is paired with a set of bespoke forks up front, and radial calipers don’t hurt either.

You’ll note the finish on the fuel tank, and by now will have realised that it’s unlikley to be 3M carbon-look wrap. Ace Fibreglass & Carbon assisted the team by producing a full carbon tank, plus battery tray and a few other bits of bodywork. The tank alone weighs less than a third of the original item, continuing the theme of weight-loss coupled with power-gain.

Those power gains come from a host of tweaks, including skimmed and ported heads, with large valves and Daytona throttle bodies, matched to a set of modified spun aluminium inlet trumpets. The team also engineered a one-off set of high-lift cams matching the Daytona profile. Although the bike hasn’t been dyno’d the team expect a full 25% increase in power.

Taking the grunt to the dirt are a pair of 17 inch Kineo wheels fitted with chunky treaded 180 rear and 130 front tyres, which is more supermoto than scrambler, but it should also provide flickable handling and great traction on the road – even on those Continental knobblies.

To sum it up, Triumph set themselves a potentially horrible challenge. The custom bike scene isn’t built around modern manufacturer’s bikes, and we all love to complain about the corporate vibe of the modern motorcycle marketing machine, but these two teams have put their heart and soul into two of the most authentic and original builds we’ve seen for a while, and they did it all under wraps and with minimal fanfare. Hats off to the teams, and to the business, for giving them free reign to do what few other manufacturers would dare to do in-house.

The tough part? Now you have to vote for your preferred build. If we were in charge, both would come equal first. VoteHERE. And if you come to the NEC in a couple of weeks time, you’ll see the bikes there.

via the bike shed

EXCLUSIVE: HUSQVARNA MOTORCYCLE CONCEPTS

Husqvarna has always had that elusive cool factor. Bikes sporting the classic “gun sight” logo have traditionally been fast and good-looking—just like famous owner Steve McQueen, whose weapon of choice in the 1970s was a Husky 400.

Today, that cool factor has just ramped up a couple of notches. Husqvarna has thrown the wraps off two stunning new ‘401’ concepts at the EICMA motorcycle show in Milan.

Created by the industrial design company Kiska, they’re designed to gauge public reaction before possible production.

There are two machines: the Vit Pilen (“White Arrow” in Swedish) and the Svart Pilen (Black Arrow). They take their inspiration from the famed Silver Pilen of 1955—a machine that was lighter, smaller and faster than its competitors.

The 401 concepts are anything but antiquated, though. They’re sporting upside-down WP forks, lightweight trellis frames, and 17-inch wheels with modern rubber. Power comes from a state-of-the-art 400cc water-cooled single. Output is 43hp and the bikes weigh a mere 135 kg (297 pounds).

Kiska’s senior designer Björn Shuster explains the thinking: “The 401s are not recollections of the past. They’re about purity, simplicity of form, and economy of line. Those are the fundamentals of the Husqvarna design language. It doesn’t matter if it was 60 years ago or now, the same mentality remains.”

“A lot of modern machinery has become so hyper-focused, it’s difficult for the customer to inject his or her own style into the bike. So we wanted to create a platform that offers more freedom,” says Björn.

“Maybe you want to run tall bars and a high pipe for some fire-road fun. Or install clip-ons, for more weight over the front end at your next track day. Or perhaps you just prefer one stance to another. It’s up to you.”

401 Svart Pilen (above) The Svart pays homage to the rich off-road heritage of Husqvarna. It’s still very much a road bike, but the ancillary components will make your life easier when the pavement ends.

The muffler is mounted high, out of the way of rocks and debris. The headlamp has an integrated cage that fully encloses the bowl: it’s the old headlamp grill reinterpreted in a modern way.

The solo seat has a grippy texture and makes room for a small utility rack at the back.

There’s a matching rack on the tank, giving the rider multiple storage options for longer off-road trips.

The riding position is upright, with wide bars and grippy pegs. A skidplate protects the crankcase and the tires are aggressive but street-legal knobbies.

401 Vit Pilen (above) “This model is meant to show how simple and pure a roadbike can be,” says Björn. The rearsets give maximum clearance in the corners, and clip-ons are mounted to stout triple clamps. A neat detail: the clamp bolts are installed from the front, allowing the surfaces to be as clean as possible. Even the headlight holder is integrated into the clamps, which also support the digital display.

From the engine cradles to the fenders, each part has been constructed with the Husqvarna ideals of simplicity, honesty, and cleaniness. The muffler is not your typical trapezoidal ray gun sticking out of the back: it’s just a clean oval section, and all the better for it.

“The Vit Pilen is what a stripped down street bike should look like,” says Björn. “Reduced to the minimum and lightweight. The stance and proportions let you know what it’s waiting to do.”

If the reaction to the 401 concepts is good, we’re told that Husqvarna will put them into production.

If the price was right, would you buy one?

Husqvarna Motorcycles | Kiska | Images by Piers Spencer-Phillips of Derestricted

via BIKEexif

The short but glorious flight of the GM Firebird concepts

Is it a car? Is it a plane? Well both, sort of. GMC’s Firebird concept of 1953 was the first of a trio of concept cars that brought fighter jet styling and technology to the road…

Born into the heart of GM’s legendary Motorama era, the Firebird concepts served not only to whet the public’s appetite for its more grounded production cars – but also as test-beds for the feasibility of gas turbine engines in automotive applications.

1953 Firebird I

Debuting in 1953 at the inaugural Motorama show, the first Firebird was the earliest instance of a gas turbine engine used in a car. Wings, tailfins and a bullet-shaped body/fuselage drew the crowds, although the highlight was the 370HP ‘Whirlfire Turbo-Power’ engine that spun at up to 13,000rpm.

1956 Firebird II

Deemed more practical than its single-occupant predecessor, the Firebird II could seat a family of four beneath its canopy – if the children hadn’t already been sucked into the front inlets, that is. This time, the pioneering features were a titanium body, electric gear selection and independent suspension all round.

1959 Firebird III

While the original Firebird was built strictly as a styling exercise, the Firebird III would come to directly influence several of Harvey Earl’s later designs. Its surface treatment was passed on to the 1959 Cadillac, while the 1961 model inherited the rear ‘skegs’ (those would be the upside-down fins that hung from the rear).

Photos/Videos: GMC

You can find several classic GMCs for sale in the Classic Driver Market.

WRC : Hirvonen met un terme à sa carrière

Le Finlandais Mikko Hirvonen (34 ans) va mettre un terme à sa carrière en Championnat du monde des Rallyes FIA à l’issue du Wales Rally GB 2014. Avec 163 départs, Mikko sera le « Flying Finn » qui aura disputé le plus de rallyes mondiaux.

Après un retour chez M-Sport cette saison, Mikko Hirvonen a décidé de mettre un terme à sa carrière mondiale longue de 13 années, de quatre titres de vice-champion du monde, de 15 victoires et 68 podiums.

« J’ai tellement d’incroyables souvenirs de ces 13 saisons ! », a expliqué Mikko sur son site internet. « J’ai eu l’opportunité de réaliser mon rêve d’enfant. J’ai voyagé dans le monde entier, rencontré des gens fantastiques et j’ai aimé chaque course et chaque bagarre que j’ai pu livrer contre des pilotes d’exception. Certaines que j’ai gagnées et d’autres que j’ai perdues, mais ce qui est sûr c’est que je m’en souviendrai jusqu’à la fin de mes jours avec un grand sourire aux lèvres. »

La première fois que nous avions rencontré Mikko Hirvonen, c’était au Rallye de l’Auxerrois 2001, une manche du Championnat de France des Rallyes sur terre que le tout jeune Finlandais était venu disputer sur une Ford Puma S1600. Timide et discret, il logeait au même hôtel que nous, avec son manager Timo Jouhki. Mikko s’était surtout fait remarquer par sa générosité au volant ; il avait arraché tellement de piquets de clôtures et de pieds de vigne !

Un an plus tard, il débutait en WRC au Rallye de Finlande, avant de disputer la saison mondiale 2003 sur une Ford Focus RS WRC, puis de signer chez Subaru l’année suivante. Une ascension fulgurante mais stoppée par une saison 2004 difficile qui l’a contraint à relancer sa carrière sur une Ford/Michelin privée en 2005 (podium en Espagne) avant de réintégrer le team officiel Ford l’année suivante. Après deux saisons chez Citroën Racing en 2012 et 2013, Mikko était de retour au bercail M-Sport cette saison. Sur ses 162 rallyes disputés, 116 l’ont été sur des Ford.

Mikko Hirvonen a loupé le titre mondial 2009 pour un petit point face à Loeb. « Cette année-là, la victoire au Rallye de Finlande, à la maison avec ma famille et mes amis, restera comme un souvenir unique. Il y a aussi eu notre première victoire en Championnat du monde au Rallye d’Australie 2006 et celle au Wales Rally GB en 2007. Je me souviens de ce podium que nous avons partagé avec Marcus (Grönholm) et Seb (Loeb). »

Comme Markku Alén, Mikko restera un « Flying Finn » sans couronne. Il a eu la malchance de mener carrière en même temps que l’ogre Sébastien Loeb. «  Avec Seb (Loeb), ce furent les plus belles batailles, celles que j’ai le plus adorées, qu’elles aient été gagnées ou perdues. C’était fantastique ! Seb a été un adversaire et un coéquipier pour qui j’ai eu et j’ai toujours beaucoup de respect et je pense que c’était réciproque. »

Mikko Hirvonen a donc décidé de mettre un terme à sa carrière en WRC à l’issue du Wales Rally GB, mais il n’a pas fait une croix sur le sport automobile. « Comme tout passionné de sport automobile, je ne suis pas seulement un adepte de rallye. J’ai toujours aimé avoir un œil sur d’autres disciplines. Mais si j’ai l’opportunité de relever de nouveaux défis dans un futur proche, ce sera avant tout pour le plaisir. Pendant toutes ces années de compétition, j’ai beaucoup pensé à moi. La course a occupé une grande place dans mon existence et le rythme des rallyes a toujours été intense. Je souhaite également me concentrer d’avantage sur d’autres choses importantes qui font partie de ma vie, comme mes enfants et ma famille. »

ERC : Maurin prendra la route en premier

Le Français Julien Maurin ouvrira la route lors de la première manche du Tour de Corse.

Maurin était le 3e pilote à choisir sa position de départ pour les six spéciales de vendredi et il a décidé de s’élancer premier au volant de sa Ford Fiesta R5. 

Bryan Bouffier partira 2e (Fiesta RRC), devant Kevin Abbring (Peugeot 208T16). Stéphane Sarrazin partira 4e. Le plus rapide en qualifications, Kajetan Kajetanowicz , sera 5e. « Je ne sais pas quelle est la meilleure position sur ce rallye, mais je ne crois pas que ça soit trop important », explique le pilote polonais. 

Esapekka Lappi, d’ores et déjà assuré de décrocher le titre, s’élancera 6e, Romain Dumas 7e (Porsche 997 RGT), Jaromír Tarabus 8e, Craig Breen 9e, Bruno Magalhães 10e et Robert Consani 11e. 

La journée de vendredi comprend un totale de 6 spéciales pour une distance totale de 135,40 kilomètres. Les choses sérieuses débutent à 08h31 heure locale. Tous les détails ici. 

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