HONDA CB CAFE RACER BY EXESOR

Is brown the new black? This highly-caffeinated Honda CB café racer built for a coffee company sure looks good. It’s a creative mix of CB250, CB360 and CB400 parts, and it took Christian Schwarzenlander of ExesoR Motorcycles over two years to construct.

Christian is a quality control engineer from Austria, and his attention to detail shows in every aspect of the build. The prestigious German magazine Custombike was impressed too, and earlier this year, awarded Christian the first prize in its annual competition—the first time that a café style bike has taken the top honor, and the first Honda too.

After cutting his teeth on streetfighters, Christian found himself veering towards the café style and picked up a 1976 Honda CB250 basketcase for €250 ($340) on eBay. “It was in a very bad condition,” he reports. “I started sketching out a design study, using as few stock components as possible.” There was another rule: No chrome. “Every metal part is either nickel-plated, black chrome galvanized or made from bare stainless steel.”

The work is meticulous. Christian strengthened the CB250 frame and slotted in a CB360 motor, bored out to 390 cc. The motor itself is blueprinted and juiced up, with a hot cam and a tweaked intake manifold. The kickstart is removed in favor of electric start, and power now runs through a race clutch. A Dyna ignition system controls the spark, and a custom-made LiFePo123 accumulator acts as a battery for starting.

The suspension is pretty trick as well. Christian’s upgraded the stock CB250 forks with Wirth springs, and coated the inner tubes with DLC—diamond-like carbon—a treatment more usually found on racing forks. The swingarm is a CB400 item extended 7 cm, with a custom-fabricated chain tensioner, and the drum brakes have been modified with extra ventilation to keep them cool during brisk riding.

The construction is impressive, but for me, it’s the warm, vintage aesthetic that takes this one to another level. Head over to the ExesoR website for more images of Christian’s work, and follow his news via Facebook.

Images by David Matl.

via BIKEexif

Pirelli 2015

Vidéo : les essais de Neuville pour le Rallye Monte-Carlo

Watch the footage from the tests of Thierry Neuville (Hyundai/Michelin) for the next rallye Monte-Carlo.

Sic Supermoto Day 2014 : Dovizioso deuxième du samedi / Dovizioso finishes second on Saturday

Le circuit d’Il Sagittario a accueilli samedi le Sic Supermoto Day, un évènement annuel dédié à la mémoire de Marco Simoncelli et auquel participaient plusieurs pilotes MotoGP™ et WSBK.

Cette troisième édition du Sic Supermoto Day, organisé par Federico Capogna, a de nouveau réuni de nombreuses personnalités des paddocks MotoGP™ et WSBK ce week-end en Italie et permis de continuer à soutenir la Fondation Simoncelli, dirigée par Paolo Simoncelli, le père de Marco, ainsi que la Fondation Tudisco, qui aident les enfants atteints de maladies graves.

Les pilotes présents ont ainsi rendu hommage à la mémoire de Marco Simoncelli mais aussi à celle de Doriano Romboni, un autre ancien pilote de Grand Prix, qui avait perdu la vie dans un accident mortel à Il Sagittario lors de l’évènement de l’an dernier.

En piste, la journée a été l’occasion d’organiser une compétition ‘MotoGP vs SBK’, avec deux teams de quatre pilotes. Andrea Dovizioso, Mattia Pasini, Niccolò Antonelli et Matteo Ferrari représentaient le MotoGP et étaient opposés à Max Biaggi, Christian Iddon, Niccolò Canepa et Leon Haslam.

Iddon s’est finalement imposé devant Dovizioso et Biaggi. Une course d’endurance de 58 tours aura ensuite lieu dimanche et sera suivie de la remise des prix.

The Italian 'Il Sagitario' circuit was the host venue for the annual Sic Supermoto Day on Saturday, an event attended by several big names from MotoGP™ and Superbikes – all in memory of the late Marco Simoncelli.

The 2014 staging of the Sic Supermoto Day is the third edition of the event organised by Federico Capogna – with funds raised from the gathering going to the Simoncelli Foundation (directed by Marco’s father, Paolo) and the Tudisco Foundation, which assists children with serious illnesses.

The day’s activities saw Simoncelli’s memory honoured by the attendees, with Doriano Romboni also fondly remembered. Former Grand Prix rider Romboni was killed at the same Italian track last year as a result of a tragic accident.

Saturday saw a ‘MotoGP vs SBK’ showdown at the event, with two teams of four riders representing each series. Andrea Dovizioso, Mattia Pasini, Niccolo Antonelli and Matteo Ferrari represented MotoGP, whilst Max Biaggi, Chris Iddon, Niccolo Canepa and Leon Haslam were the SBK team members.

Iddon ultimately came out on top with Dovizioso second and Biaggi third. A second day of riding on Sunday will see various activities with a 58 lap endurance race being held in commemoration of SuperSic, followed by a closing awards ceremony.