Stories of Bike: Origins

It's the little decisions we make and influences of history along the way that determine who we are, what we do and what we create. 

For this owner of a custom 1974 Honda CB360 cafe racer / flattracker, incorporating various elements from his own dirt bike and family history of speedway racing resulted in a build of the perfect ride.



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Urban Freeride - A Dirt Bike Rock The Street

Who never dreamed about freeriding the street with a dirt bike? Qui n’a jamais rêvé de freerider en ville avec une moto de cross ou d’enduro? - 

Bristol Blenheim: A matter of taste?

Well, over the years, there cannot be many cars that divide opinion more than those made by Bristol. The Blenheim, however, introduced in 1993, is an offering from the company that steps firmly on the right side of that fine line separating acceptable, individual styling from the downright ugly...

We think so, at any rate. A few years ago, Classic Driver took a Blenheim to Blenheim Palace, in Oxfordshire. We collected the silver four-seater from the famous Bristol showrooms in Kensington and drove it to one of England’s prettiest areas, the Cotswolds — thus doing all the city townhouse and country retreat stuff typical of a Bristol owner. The big car was as easy to thread through London traffic as it was along narrow Oxfordshire lanes, and the Chrysler V8 offered a surprising turn of speed when given a good prod.

Sit the Blenheim alongside an Aston Martin V8, a Jensen Interceptor, a Maserati Quattroporte or a BMW coupé, though, and there will be few that would rate the Bristol at the top of the tree. That’s despite its colossal price when new, and the fact that few will have actually driven one. Which is a shame, as they really are a rather satisfactory experience – in this writer’s opinion, easily the equal of a non-Vantage Aston Martin V8.

This car, available from Classic Driver dealer Graeme Hunt, was built in 2000 and has covered just 15,000 miles since. As the advert points out, this is a 150mph car, built to the exacting requirements of Bristol’s then long-term owner Tony Crook: space for four, a tight turning circle, more-than-adequate performance and the mass of the car’s mechanicals within its wheelbase.

As far as its looks are concerned, it’s a matter of taste. But given that you are unlikely to see a Bristol on the roads very often, why not enjoy the full visual experience when you do?

Max Biaggi drives the Alfa Romeo 4C SBK Safety Car

At the recent Silverstone round of the World Superbike Championship, current WSBK Champion Max Biaggi - now a commentator for the Italian TV - was invited to drive the newAlfa Romeo 4C on the historic British circuit, and you just know Mr.Biaggi is not the kind of man that would miss out on such a good opportunity to have some serious fun. The little Italian sports car is the official safety car for the World Superbike series and we usually see it dressed in red, but this time around it was given a special white livery with a 3-color stripe - resembling the Italian flag - crossing it all throughout in an attempt to emphasize its sportiness.

However, here is a nice video documenting the event, with Max Biaggi explaining - in Italian - how a rider should approach the most significant corners of the British circuit. If you don’t speak Italian just don’t worry, he isn’t really telling us any undisclosed secret about it.

The Alfa Romeo 4C is powered by a new 4-cylinder 1750 cc turbo petrol engine producing around 237 horsepower, with direct fuel injection, dual continuous variable valve timing - an innovative aluminum block with specific intake and exhaust systems - and a revolutionary scavenging control system that gets rid of any turbo lag. Thanks to engine and a curb weight of just 950 kg , the Alfa Romeo 4C can sprint from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 4.5 seconds before hitting its electronically-limited top speed of 250 km/h (155 mph).

via TWOWHEELSBLOG

Ferrari F12 Berlinetta SPIA Middle East by DMC

We weren’t really sure of what to expect from a Middle-East Edition of a European car. Would there be any engineering differences made to adapt the car to the hot and arid conditions or would it just be bling and gaudy to satisfy the market?

DMC’s Middle East special edition of SPIA kit for the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta offers a lot ofvisual changes that includes an extra wide carbon fibre body kit and the addition of a splitter at the front. A roof scoop and a rear diffuser add “muscle” to the Italian super car and there’s a rear wing that reminds us of the 599XX. The central black strip is actually a nice touch because it breaks up the golden paintwork that would otherwise be overkill. Buyers can choose to have their Ferrari F12 Berlinetta SPIA Middle East in the Virgin Gold seen in these images or in any other finish. The 21-inc front and 22-inch rear alloys with Pirelli rubber complete the exterior styling changes.

The German tuning house has installed a new exhaust system and the ECU has been remapped to increase the 6.2 litre V-12’s output from 740bhp to 766bhp. This leads to a top speed of 220mph, which is 11mph more than the standard model.

Ferrari F12 Berlinetta Spia Middle East by DMC

How much you’ll have to pay for the privilege hasn’t been given to us but making your Ferrari F12 Berlinetta even more exclusive than it naturally is won’t come cheap.

via EUROCARBLOG

KAWASAKI H1 BY VALTORON

Valtoron is one of the most unusual custom builders in Europe. It’s a foundry in a tiny hamlet in Spain, run by two brothers who live to ride. When they’re not creating sculptures they like to build bikes, and they let their imaginations run wild.

Their last bike was a KZ750 offroader. The latest one, shown here, is called La Bomba—and you don’t need a degree in Spanish to figure out why. It’s based on a 1974 Kawasaki H1, the original ‘Widow Maker.’

The metal is so beautiful it doesn’t need paint. The bodywork is cast in alloy, developed from clay models and using recycled aluminum. The gas cap and badges are bronze. Up front is a Zundapp headlight, ‘floating’ in a custom made bracket; the rear lights are LEDs.

The two-stroke H1 motor—an air-cooled 498cc triple—is famous for its explosive power delivery. That hasn’t stopped Valtoron tweaking the engine though, adding Wiseco high compression pistons and reworking the ports and the expansion chambers on the custom exhaust system. K&N filters are hooked up to the stock Mikuni carbs, and sparks are now governed by an Electrex electronic ignition. Rear wheel horsepower has gone up to 70, with the solid kick the H1 is famous for. (On the clip-ons is a quick-action throttle, just to add to the excitement.)

The stock H1 frame is also famous, but for all the wrong reasons—hence the ‘Triple with a ripple’ and ‘Flexible flyer’ nicknames. So Valtoron have braced and reinforced the frame, adding new motor mounts to elevate the engine. The front end has been dropped, and Koni shocks help keep the rear under control, hooked up to a Kawasaki GPz550 swingarm. The brake master is a Yamaha R6 and the wheels are 18” Morad alloys with stainless spokes, running Bridgestone Battleax BT-45 rubber—100/90 at the front and 130/80 at the back. Custom alloy rearsets complete the build.

It’s about as old-school as you can get, but in a good way—traditional craftsmanship mixed with a truly original vision. Head over to the Valtoron Facebook page to see more of Carlos and Pablo’s work.

Images courtesy of Kristina Fender. With thanks to David Borras of El Solitario MC.

from BIKEEXIF

Honda wants to give Jonathan Rea a chance in MotoGP

When Jonathan Rea replaced Casey Stoner in 2012 at the Misano and Aragon rounds, the World Superbike rider with just three tests (Brno and Aragon) under his belt on a prototype machine he finished a very impressive 8th and 7th.

Rea has been a loyal Honda rider for almost six years in the Superbike championship, and also competed several times in the Suzuka 8 Hours and won the 2012 edition, and HRC would like repay that loyalty with a place in MotoGP according to Livio Suppo, who toldMCN.com, “Jonathan has proven to be very loyal with Honda and personally I would like to see him in MotoGP because last year he did a good job and I think he deserves a chance. When we speak to teams we need to understand which kind of riders they would like to put on the bike and Jonathan is always on the list.”

Unfortunately for Rea all the plum seats in Honda are already taken (we expect that LCR and Gresini will soon officially confirm Stefan Bradl and Alvaro Bautista - now that Cal Crutchlow will be riding with Ducati in 2014), but the Northern Irishman has been linked to ride one of Honda’s new production racers, either with PBM, but it would be more likely with Fausto Gresini, who at Sachsenring confirmed that he bought one of the machines.

Rea told British website bikesportnews.com that he is in talks for a switch to MotoGP, but riding a Honda doesn’t seem his only option and confirmed that he is also talking to CRT teams, but also other teams in World Superbikes.

“There are a few opportunities out there that I’m waiting for and talking to. I don’t want to name who but some are really keen.”

from Twowheelsblog

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