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61 crashes between MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3 at Sachsenring

The Sachsenring weekend was characterized by a unusually high number of crashes, which kept the circuit medical center and Clinica Mobile very busy patching up banged up riders.

There were 61 crashes overall at Sachsenring - with some riders binning their bikes more than once - like MotoGP’s Cal Crutchlow and Nicky Hayden.

Just the MotoGP class saw 20 crashes that resulted in Dani Pedrosa, Jorge Lorenzo and Andrea Iannone beign forced to skip the race.

Last season saw 42 crashes, while in 2011 there were 51, and even if there were a few wet sessions in 2012, most of the crashes occured on a dry track due to the circuit’s layout.

Many MotoGP riders blamed their tires, requesting that Bridgestone bring asymmetric front tires to tracks that have a succession of corners going in the same direction and tires have problems keeping the heat on the less used side.

Moto2 and Moto3 rider use Dunlop tires, but they didn’t fare any better in the German GP, but in the lower classes riders make a lot less noise about any issues, and most crashes are chalked up to over eager and ambitious teenagers, even if Pol Espargaro, Scott Redding, Xavier Simeon and few others all suffered from extremely degraded tires (check out the photo on gpinside.com or this image posted by journalist Tammy Gorali on Twitter.

from TWOWHEELSBLOG

VUHL 05 SUPERCAR – AUTOMOTIVE SPLENDER FROM MEXICO

WOW great photography and presentation of the all new 2014 VUHL 05 Supercar straight from Mexico. It has been the brainchild of two brothers with a family history in racing with the 05 being there fathers racing number. It’s a beautiful very functional looking car with it’s stall clearly put out for the track and driving enthusiasts. VUHL stands for “Vehicles of Ultra High Performance and Lightweight” so this gives you an idea of what the cars intentions are straight away, a two seater racing car with a monocoque chassis that is perfectly road legal.

It’s powered by a Ford 2.0 turbocharged engine producing a huge 285 BHP and with it only weighing 1532 pounds it’s not surprising that it will hit 60 in just 3.7 seconds. It’s estimated that the cost will be around £50,000 to £60,000 and limited to only 50 cars being built. This just shows you that you don’t need to be a huge manufacturer to be able to launch a new car, the whole package looks fantastic and probably presented better than any of the big names in the business!

Photography & BrandingAs you can probably tell the photography is awesome done by Moto Verso’s favourite automotive photographer Laurent Nivalle. The branding was undertaken by Canadian design studio Blok who said “To capture the visceral quality of the driving experience, we chose a photographic style that is at once gritty and stylish, nostalgic and contemporary” Blok started on the branding for VUHL and have achieved a modern contemporary look with a beautiful choice of font and branding. You can checkout the branding on thereBehance page. The said “Our involvement began before any bolts were riveted or steel welded. Working with the designers, we helped shape the brand, from the story to the identity to the art direction, the interior graphics, the helmet and all communications. The identity reflects the subtleties of high-end design that are a hallmark of the car.”

from Moto Verso

BSA Lightning 650 - La Raiz Motorcycles

It's a truism of sorts, but in many ways customising bikes is as much about what you remove and where you cut the bike as it is about what you add. Many builds that are hailed as ‘miraculous transformations’ turn out to be mostly about the builder's skill in seeing past all the external frippery and into the core beauty of the bike's design. As Michelangelo famously put it, ‘I simply saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.’ And if ever there was a bike the personified that approach it would have to be this, the latest build from Spain's La Raiz (or The Root) Motorcycles.

The rather enigmatically named ‘Le Gons’ from La Raiz helped us fill in the details on the build. “We did some changes from the original BSA design. We reduced the subframe a few centimeters and we changed the shocks for new ones, which were quite a lot harder than the old ones."

As the donor bike was a pain to get started, the boys also exchanged the old electrics system for a new one with a smaller coil and skillfully hidden electrics. They also took the time to fabricate themselves a bespoke pipe set from their own design.

And time is something that the La Raiz boys are obviously in short supply of. “We spent more than a year to complete this project because we can only dedicate our free time. We all have to work in other jobs,” notes Le Gons. I'm not sure about that, but I know if I was given the choice between a dark, greasy garage and enjoying a jug of Sangria in the Parque del Retiro, I'd be choosing the red-wine-and-sunshine option every time.

“This motorbike is for a customer called ‘Nortes’, a tattoo artist living in Vigo, Spain. His passion is traditional tattoos and classic bikes. He already has a Norton Commando, Triumph Bonneville, a Harley XL1200 and now a BSA Lightning, too.”

And for the purists amongst us, Le Gons is quick to point out that they spared the grinder on the bike. “We tried not to change the geometry of the motorbike, preserving the original style as much as we could. To balance it out we put some more personality into it with a race plate and dirt tyres. We then simplified the rear of the bike with a single-seater configuration.” Works for us.

In parting, Le Gons did the right thing and tipped his hat in thanks. “Now we have finished this project, we’d like to thank everyone who cooperated and supported this restoration. And we also have to mention our clients, who are the ones who let us do what we love and improve our skills with their bikes.” Amen to that.

from Pipeburn