Shakedown - 2014WRC Rally Poland

Le Rally Poland a débuté ce matin avec le Shakedown remporté par Jari-Matti Latvala (VW/Michelin) devant les Norvégiens Mads Ostberg et Andreas Mikkelsen. La cérémonie de départ est programmée à 15h30 sur les rives du lac Mikolajki avant les trois premières spéciales du rallye.

Après trois jours de reconnaissances pour les concurrents, le rallye a commencé ce matin avec le Shakedown tracé tout près du parc d’assistance de Mikolajki. Les 4,3 km de cette spéciale-test seront également à parcourir dans l’autre sens lors de la Power Stage (14,90 km) dimanche à midi.

D’ici là, il devrait s’en passer des choses sur ce parcours très rapide et, il faut le dire, un peu dangereux, du Rally Poland. « Ce n’est pas seulement super-rapide, c’est aussi technique et étroit avec des arbres ou des poteaux très près de la piste. Certains sont protégés par des ballots de paille, mais la plupart ne le sont pas », expliquait Kris Meeke entre deux runs au Shakedown. « Nous étions limités à 70 km/h en reconnaissances, et on va passer à 200 km/h en course. La prise de notes sera déterminante. »

Sur ce terrain ultra-rapide, les pilotes nordiques pointent déjà aux avant-postes. Jari-Matti Latvala a réalisé le meilleur chrono du Shakedown (1min59s3) devant Mads Ostberg (1min59s8) et Andreas Mikkelsen (1min59s9). Sébastien Ogier n’a effectué que deux passages pour signer un 2min00s1. Leader du championnat, il va ouvrir la piste cet après-midi et demain, en Lituanie, où la spéciale n°5/7 a été raccourcie de 26,60 à 12,92 km après les pluies récemment tombées sur la région.

Kris Meeke a signé le 5^e chrono (2min00s7) devant Robert Kubica et Thierry Neuville, ex-aequo (2min01s5). La Hyundai i20 WRC de Juho Hanninen a connu un petit souci de direction assistée lors de son 1^er run.

La cérémonie de départ est prévue à 15h30 sur le port de plaisance de Mikolajki. Ensuite, les concurrents disputeront deux spéciales, Milki (14,54 km) et Kruklanki (17,24) avant le retour à Mikolajki pour la Superspéciale tracée près du parc d’assistance. Le ciel est nuageux et les températures relativement fraîches (14°C) aujourd’hui en Mazurie. Le temps devrait se gâter demain.

Rally Poland action started with this morning’s shakedown which was won by Jari-Matti Latvala (VW/Michelin), ahead of Norwegians Mads Ostberg and Andreas Mikkelsen. The start ceremony follows at 3:30pm on the shores of Lake Mikolajki before the event’s first three stages later in the day.

After three days of recce, the rally programme proper kicked off this morning with the shakedown very near to the service park in Mikolajki. The 4.3km test will also feature on Sunday, in the opposite direction, as part of the Power Stage (14.90km).

Between now and then, we are likely to be treated to a great show on the rally’s ultra-fast, awesome stages. “Not only are they very fast but they are also narrow and lined by trees and posts. Some are protected by straw bales, but not all of them,” noted Kris Meeke between two attempts at the Shakedown. “We couldn’t go any faster than 70kph during recce, but we will reach 200kph during the event in places. The quality of the pace notes could be decisive.”

The Nordics gravitated to the top of the order on shakedown, with the best time going to Jari-Matti Latvala (1m59.3s), ahead of Mads Ostberg (1m59.8s) and Andreas Mikkelsen (1m59.9s). Sébastien Ogier, who only did two runs (2m0.1s), will be first on the road this afternoon and in Lithuania, where SS5/7 has been shortened from 26.60km to 12.92km as a result of recent heavy rain in the region.

Kris Meeke was fifth (2m0.7s), ahead of Robert Kubica and Thierry Neuville (equal on 2m1.5s). The Hyundai i20 WRC of Juho Hanninen had a power steering problem on his first attempt.

The start ceremony starts later at 3:30pm on the harbour side in Mikolajki. After that, competitors face two stages (Milki, 14.54km / Kruklanki, 17.24km) before returning to Mikolajki for the super-special near the service park. The weather is cloudy and quite cold (14°C) and is expected to worsen tomorrow.

Moto GP : Aleix Espargaró démarre fort à Assen / NGM Forward’s Espargaro delighted with Assen lap time

Le pilote du team NGM Forward Racing a signé le meilleur temps du jeudi à Assen et a battu le record du circuit qu’avait établi Casey Stoner en 2012.

Aleix Espargaró avait impressionné dès jeudi matin puisqu’il avait terminé la première séance d’essais en seconde position, à 0.189s de son frère cadet Pol (Monster Yamaha Tech3).

Le pilote espagnol a ensuite réalisé un superbe chrono d’1’33.653 l’après-midi et battait ainsi le record de Casey Stoner de six centièmes de seconde, grâce au pneu tendre de la catégorie Open mais aussi au travail réalisé à Barcelone lors du test post-GP.

« Je ne m’attendais pas à ça et à tourner dans les 1’33 dès le premier jour, ce qui est très rapide, » a affirmé Espargaró. « J’adore cette piste, c’est l’une de mes préférées sur le calendrier. J’ai déjà eu de bons résultats ici. »

« Nous sommes un peu perdus avec le pneu avant. Nous avons essayé les trois mais nous ne savons toujours pas dans quelle direction avancer. A l’arrière je peux être rapide avec les deux pneus mais c’est étrange parce que le pneu tendre baisse moins en performances que le dur. Peut-être que nous pourrons courir avec le tendre parce que j’étais troisième quand j’étais sur un pneu qui avait 15 tours. »

Concernant ses tests de châssis, Espargaró a ajouté : « Je cours avec le cadre Yamaha. Le cadre Forward est meilleur que ce à quoi je m’attendais mais nous avons besoin de passer plus de temps dessus. »

Aleix Espargaro topped the first day of practice at the Iveco Daily TT Assen, going under Casey Stoner’s 2012 lap record time at the historic Dutch venue.

FP1 saw NGM Forward Racing’s Espargaro come in second to younger brother Pol Espargaro (Monster Yamaha Tech 3).  The older of the brothers was one of the six riders in the 1’34s during the first session and he missed out on top spot by just 0.189s.

Later in FP2 a staggering 1’33.653 was 0.06s under Stoner’s record from 2012. The combination of a softer rear tyre and extra knowledge from the post-race Barcelona test allowed Espargaro to take over at the top on his penultimate lap.

Espargaro is continuing to use his original chassis for 2014 while teammate Colin Edwards has been running a new Forward-made version.

Regarding his record pace he said, “I was not expecting that. To go in the 1’33s on the first day is really fast. I love this track, it’s one of my favourite on the calendar. I’ve had good results here before.”

On his set-up challenges for the rest of the visit he added, “With the front tyre we are a little bit lost. We tried all three front tyres and we still don’t know which direction to go. With the rear I can be fast with both, but it’s strange, the soft tyre drops less than the hard. Maybe we can race with the soft as I was third with a 15-lap rear tyre.”

On his chassis choice Espargaro concluded, “I am racing the Yamaha frame. The Forward frame was better than I expected, but we need more time with it.”

DAUPHINE-LAMARCK TW125

Ever get that feeling you should never have sold something? Yup, thought so. I met FCL Motorcycles owners Phill and Graham at the BSMC Event III and it reminded me to ask what happened to my old TL125 I sold them years ago, for £80, ouch! Turns out it had a tuned motor with hot cam, bespoke frame a host of trick parts. I was young, and needed the money, I’m now old-ish and still need the money, damn it! (Bear with here, this tangent is relevant).

The welcome inundation that is the BSMC inbox offers flashes of images that inspire us to read particular build stories. A fleeting glimpse of the TL tank on Dauphone-Lamark’s TW125 got my pulse racing. There we go, got there, tenuously! Phil from Dauphine-Lamrack, Paris has continued his winning recipe of modding diminutive Japanese Trailies, Stepthroughs and Monkey-bikes, as seen previously in The Shed.  If the donor bike’s piston will fit into a glass of Pernod, he’ll be happy to build a bike around it.

Californian desert racers and BMXs from the 70s & 80s were the inspiration for this dual-breed creation, that and Phil’s penchant for no-fuss city hacks. Something that will never ever happen on a race circuit, Yamaha and Honda have been forcefully conjoined.

Once stripped right down, the Yamaha TW frame received the obligatory de-tabbing and weld grinding before the rear was adapted to accept the single piece Honda TL tank and seat unit. The fibreglass was reworked and given a proper period paint job and machined fuel cap. The seat pad looks to offer a touch more comfort than the original TL thats for sure

The Kitico parts catalogue was raided for understated indicators and lights, with most of the wiring requiring a tidy and hiding where possible. Apart from the HT lead and matching red fuel hoses.

The engine is stock and was in perfectly good condition so didn’t need opening up. To cope with the open filter and handmade stubby exhaust the 24mm Kehin carb received a bigger main jet. Rolling burnouts might be off the cards but with such a stout rear Bridgestone wheelies should be possible.

Wide, laid-back bars, with old school grips look the business and will make filtering in the Parisien traffic a doddle, if not Phil could practice his bunny hops, or just pull over and admire his creation.

With Yamaha’s cheap pressed steal tank binned and this sleek one piece Honda unit taking centre stage the sand-spec tyres look purposeful rather than silly and would probably have the designers at Yamaha wishing this is how they’d designed their bike in the first place.

Thanks to Hugo Michaudel for the moody photography, really makes the red pop, as they say in Cali.

via The Bike Shed

Inside Andy Green's 1,000mph office

No one likes going to the office. There, I’ve said it. I’m on my fourth cup of coffee and the week has barely started… If I had Andy Green’s Bloodhound SSC seat though. I wouldn’t be complaining.

There are exceptions to every rule, and the same applies here. You see, when your office moves at a 1000 mph, you’d have to make a VERY compelling case not to go to work. Enter Wing Commander Andy Green. An RAF pilot by profession, he is better known for his extra-curricular activities. Like attempting to break the land speed record.

Everyone is fascinated by land speed records, especially due to the numerous attempts – sometimes successful – to push the boundaries of speeds that can be attained with all four wheels on the ground.

Green set the last record at Black Rock, Nevada in 1997 with the Thrust SSC, under the direction of Richard Noble, the previous record holder. Green managed to reach speeds of 763 mph, creating a new and yet unbeaten land speed record.

Thus, it is only fitting that Green should try to break his own record. With the attempt scheduled for late summer 2015, Green has just been shown his new ‘office’, the Bloodhound SSC. Rolex instrumentation, multiple computer systems and numerous fail-safes are part of the cockpit, which has been made, or molded rather, to Green’s exact dimensions.

So sit back and let Andy Green show you around his office, while I try and work out how to fit a jet engine to my swivel chair.