1975 Honda CB500T 'Blackjack' - Gasser Customs

By guest writer Ian Lee.

This article involves climate change. Not global warming, but an extreme climate change nonetheless. From a location in the world where most people can only ride for half of the year due to the cold, to the tropical beaches of California,Gasser Customs has made the change from ice to nice. One thing hasn't changed though, they are still turning out sweet rides. Last time we caught up with Gasser he was based in Ontario, Canada, but looking to move south. Six months down the track and the Canuck bike builder is mixing it up with all Cali has to offer in custom bikes, and adding his own style to the scene.

'Blackjack', the latest Gasser build started off with a simple idea, and built from there. The concept of twin overhead cams put visions of old school speed into Gasser's head, and the build was started. Taking a metallic purple Honda CB500T, the bike was stripped down completely, and no component left untouched. 

The bare frame was double powder coated, and a custom hoop fitted to suit the fibreglass seat made for this build. A perforated stainless inner fender helps to save weight, showing one of Gasser Custom's signature build concepts, that of the art of the drill. The fuel tank was epoxy lined during the build, and a custom gauge cluster fabricated to suit the flowing lines of the bike. Gasser's trademark of polished highlights mixed with dark tones, is shown by mucho aluminium,  offset by satin black paint. 

The powerplant has been treated to a full rebuild, with Gasser opting for oversized pistons on reassembly. With the cylinder head has been planed, and the valves cut, this helped the builder achieve his goal of boosting the power of the bike. The carburettors have been stripped down and rebuilt, a fully custom 2 - 1 stainless exhaust culminating in a Thruxton silencer at the rear of this drilled out machine.

Bridgestone Spitfire are the tire of choice for this bike, wrapped around the standard rims laced with Buchanan stainless spokes. A progressive suspension system sits at the rear of the bike, allowing for a mix of riding styles depending on the mood of the owner. The front rotor had been cross drilled, the calliper rebuilt and new brakes fitted front and rear. 

From the cold climate of Canada, to the sunny beaches of west coast America, Gasser Customs is showing it's capability as a custom bike builder. Gasser's build quality is right up there, with signature build concepts letting you know who customised the bike, and letting you know this bike isn't just for show. 'Blackjack' is heading north to be with it's new owner, who knows that with only 6 months of the year to ride, he is going to need something special to do it on. 

via PIPEBURN

Moto GP : Marc Marquez handed two penalty points for warm-up crash

The Silverstone race direction has been very strict this weekend. After giving Andrea Iannone a penalty point on Friday for obstructing Andrea Dovizioso, they have now handed Marc Marquez two penalty points for not heeding the yellow flags following Cal Crutchlow’s crash during the warm-up session, that put in danger the marshals, but also the Yamaha rider.

The FIM statement reads:

Rider Marc Marquez (93) was riding in a section of the circuit where waved yellow flags were displayed due to an earlier accident. He continued at racing speed and did not slow down and be prepared to stop as required by the regulations. His subsequent crash at the same point as the previous accident seriously endangered the rider being attended and the marshals in the accident zone. This is an infringement of Article 1.22.2 of the FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix Regulations. A Race Direction hearing was held at Silverstone on 1st September 2013 and the decision of the Race Direction is to impose two penalty points on the 2013 season total of the MotoGP rider number 93 Marc Marquez. No appeal has been lodged. The decision of the Race Direction is final.

Marquez said that he did not see the yellow flags, “I know with a yellow flag you have to slow down and especially with an oil flag, you have to slow down a lot, but I didn’t see.”

The Repsol Honda rider’s crash left him with a dislocated shoulder that was put back in place by the doctors of the medical center, but the injury din not hinder him one iota, as he finished a stunning second in a thrilling battle with Jorge Lorenzo in the final laps.

The Penalty Point system was introduced this season and the Race Direction can sanction a rider with between 1 and 10 penalty points. Accumalating four points give a rider back of grid start, 7 points a pit lane start and 10 points a disqualification.

Andrea Dovizioso and Hector Barbera were the first MotoGP riders to be punished with the new system at Assen after an altercation during qualifying.

via TWOWHEELSBLOG

VdeV Endurance Series ; EQUIPE PALMYR RAFLE LES 12H DE MOTORLAND ARAGON !

La course s'était en partie jouée dans les stands en fin d'après-midi et la mécanique a continué à s'inviter dans les débats pour les quatre dernières heures. Comme les machines, les hommes fatiguaient aussi à l'approche du dénouement de ces douze heures.

Le début de soirée est l'occasion du premier véritable accrochage de cette course, avec la n°42 de Palmyr et la n°1 de CD Sport qui était alors aux avant-postes. Cette dernière réussi à rejoindre son box, mais les réparations à effectuer vont l'immobiliser pendant de très longues minutes. La Tatuus n°12 a, elle, quitté le top 5 suite à des problèmes d'accélérateur et les ennuis vont s'accumuler pour l'équipe officielle jusqu'à la fin de course. La n°3 de CD Sport, en lice pour le podium, ne ralliera hélas pas l'arrivée et CD Sport qui avait aligné ses pilotes dans le top 5 perd le bénéfice d'un excellent début de course. La n°4 est la seule à se maintenir en bonne place.

Avec les 12 passages obligatoires par les stands, on assiste dans les deux dernières heures à un bal de voitures qui rentrent sans s'arrêter dans la pitlane afin d'avoir un nombre suffisant d'arrêts comptabilisés avant le drapeau à damiers.

La Porsche d'IMSA passe à travers les embûches et pointe à la 4e place dès la 9ème heure de course. L'équipe rouennaise peut même espérer monter sur le podium. En tête, tout se joue entre la n°40 de Mondolot/Zollinger/Fargier, la n°4 de Bole Besançon/Taittinger/Bossy et la n°8 de Capillaire/Cavailhes/Gelin. On pense que la dernière heure va se dérouler sans encombre, mais dans ce trio de tête, la n°8 de TFT rentre dans son box avec des problèmes électriques, puis c'est au tour de la n°4 de CD Sport de rejoindre ses mécaniciens dans la dernière demi-heure avec des problèmes de freins !

A 1h00 du matin, c'est le trio Mondollot/Zollinger/Fargier qui amène la Norma n°40 de l'équipe Palmyr sur la plus haute marche du podium. La Norma n°8 de TFT est seconde et la Norma CD Sport n°4 conserve la 3ème place malgré ses ennuis de la dernière demi-heure.

Parcours quasi parfait pour IMSA Performance Matmut qui positionne sa Porsche GT3-R en tête des GT et à la 4e place du classement général. Gibon et Belloc confortent ainsi leur place de leader au championnat. La Ferrari F458 GT 2 de Visiom termine à la seconde place et 12e au scratch. La Porsche de Crubilé Sport complète logiquement ce podium GT et limite finalement les dégâts au championnat dans cette course au gros coefficient. La n°136 de Porsche Lorient Racing est 4e GT et première GTV 2, puisque la Mosler n°111 du V de V n'a pas terminé la course.

 

Beaucoup d'ennuis mécaniques, mais finalement peu d'abandons sur ces 12 heures d'endurance. Toutes les équipes ont fait le maximum pour rejoindre l'arrivée de cette belle épreuve dans laquelle GT et sport prototypes ont cohabités parfaitement. Une grande et belle épreuve d'endurance avec ces 12H de Motorland-Aragon qui marqueront sans aucun doute cette saison 2013 des V de V Endurance Series.

Le classement de la course est ici.

Source : VdeV Endurance Series

via Endurance-Info

WSBK : Tom Sykes wins Nurburgring race 1 in dramatic countback - Rea fractures leg / Chaz Davies wins redflagged race 2 at Nurburgring

Chaz Davies took his third victory of the 2013 World Superbike championship in a exciting race 2 at Nurburgring (where Davies took his first every SBK win) that like race 1 was red flagged with just two laps remaining in the race, and when Davies, Eugene Laverty and Marco Melandri (the other two podium finishers) were ready to rumble a few more times.

This time the oil on the track surface was promptly spotted, after wwildcard Matej Smrz violently highsided from his Yamaha R1 at turn 1, leaving a big puddle of oil right in middle of the track.

It was a battled race from start to the premature finish between Davies, Laverty and Melandri, with Tom Sykes marginally getting into the fray in the middle of the race, but his fourth place was good enough to take the lead of the standings by one single point over Sylvain Guintoli, who managed to finish 5th.

It was Marco Melandri who got the hole shot and trailing behind him were Tom Sykes and BMW team mate Chaz Davies, while Eugene Laverty shot up to 6th trailing his Aprilia counterpart, but one lap later the Nothern Irishman was already ahead of his team mate, as Davies took second from Sykes at turn 1 and began chasing after his team mate.

Laverty got past a lagging Sykes at the NGK chicane grabbing third - a big improvement from his first race when he hit his engine casing on the kerb that forced him to pit and return to finish 15th. On lap 7 Davies took the lead from Melandri and just a few minutes later Laverty would demote Melandri to third in his favourite braking spot, turn 1.

For a long while it seemed that the three were biding their times, studying each other until Melandri made two bold passes in the same lap, first eliminating Laverty and then Davies With just four laps remaining Davies dives back in front his team mate at the chicane and then Laverty passed Melandri again at turn 1 to take the second spot.

As the penultimate lap started, you could see the riders begin lining each other up for a last lap battle, only to have the red flag come out, giving Davies the victory.

Loris Baz was unable to take part in race 2 after being diagnosed with the fractured vertebrae. Leon Camier was was airlifted to the Stiffungs Klinicum in Koblenz for further observations on potential neck injury. Dr. Corbascio of the Clinica Mobile confirmed that Jonathan Rea suffered a fractured femur was also airlifted out.

2013 WSBK Nurburgring Race 2 Results:

1. Chaz Davies (BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK) BMW S1000 RR 34′36.933
2. Eugene Laverty (Aprilia Racing Team) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 34′37.065
3. Marco Melandri (BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK) BMW S1000 RR 34′37.299
4. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) Kawasaki ZX-10R 34′38.122
5. Sylvain Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 34′38.554
6. Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 34′40.166
7. Ayrton Badovini (Team Ducati Alstare) Ducati 1199 Panigale 34′51.610
8. Michel Fabrizio (Red Devils Roma) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 34′55.792
9. Max Neukirchner (MR-Racing) Ducati 1199 Panigale 34′59.058
10. Carlos Checa (Team Ducati Alstare) Ducati 1199 Panigale 35′00.761

RACE1 

World Superbikes race 1 at Nurburgring was run in dry and cool conditions and Tom Sykes was awarded the victory in a countback after a dramatic finale that caused the race to be red flagged on the penultimate lap, leaving Marco Melandri who had jsut taken the lead in second and team mate Chaz Davies completed the podium.

Ayrton Badovini had the pole position, but it was Tom Sykes who got the holeshot followed by Marco Melandri and Chaz Davies.

For almost the half race distance the three riders were separated by a few tenths as the rest of field lost contact, while Eugene Laverty who was rushing to try to catch the escaping group, crashed out. The Aprilia rider was able to remount, but was forced to pit with a crooked front rim, he would rejoin. but his race was over, but he was able to pick up a single point.

Davies would take the second spot from Melandri, but the Italian would return the favour just a few laps later as the two would continue their chase after Sykes as Jonathan Rea joined the three frontrunners.

On the penultimate lap Melandri lined up the Kawasaki and passed him and Rea was trying to line up Davies when disaster struck.

Federico Sandi crashed out and his Kawasaki lost oil on the track, and Rea arriving in fourth gear and at 200km/h was caught out by the oily substance at turn 10 and arrived like a missile against the barriers, and just moments later, Leon Camier was caught out. He smashed into the barriers like a bomb, with his Suzuki flying over the barriers. Rea has fractured his left femur. Camier has neck injury (the Suzuki rider is awake and moving) that has to be further investigated.

The red flag came out halting the race and the results were based on the countback giving Skyes the victory, his 11th of his Superbike career and he is now only one point from Sylvain Guintoli who couldn’t do better than fifth (fourth with the countback) and was never in contention for a podium finish.

Loris Baz was unable to take part in race 1 following his huge crash in this morning’s warm-up. The Kawasaki rider was shipped off the local hospital for further x-rays on his back.

2013 WSBK Nurburgring Race 1 Results:

1. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) Kawasaki ZX-10R 32′38.184

2. Marco Melandri (BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK) BMW S1000 RR 32′38.453

3. Chaz Davies (BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK) BMW S1000 RR 32′38.898

4. Sylvain Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 32′44.611

5. Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 32′46.710

6. Michel Fabrizio (Red Devils Roma) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 32′51.418

7. Leon Haslam (Pata Honda World Superbike) Honda CBR1000RR 32′52.002

8. Jules Cluzel (Fixi Crescent Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 32′56.910

9. Ayrton Badovini (Team Ducati Alstare) Ducati 1199 Panigale 32′59.233

10. Carlos Checa (Team Ducati Alstare) Ducati 1199 Panigale 33′00.958