How the 1970s Supertrain went off the rails

In 1979, Americans were shown the Supertrain: a nuclear-powered cross-country shuttle that boasted an on-board disco, swimming pool, cinema, and even a shopping centre. However, it was built not to carry people – but rather to entertain them through the medium of the small screen…

Despite expenditure of more than $5m – making it by far the most expensive TV show ever produced at the time – the Supertrain made only nine outings before hitting the buffers. It was intended to become a sort of ‘Love Boat’ on rails and, in the process, to provide NBC with a ticket to stratospheric ratings such as those being lapped up by rival ABC. But in reality, the concept was flawed, the storylines were suspect, and expenditure spiralled.

Heading for derailment

A full-size set was built; but equally expensive were the scale models, said to cost $250,000 apiece. During filming, one of the models was unintentionally crashed and had to be replaced – the resulting delays pushing costs up further. Ultimately, this frivolous spending led to not only the derailment of the show, but almost the NBC network as a whole. 

Photos: Gary Null/NBCU/Getty

Velib ..........

Le Qatar accueille l’ouverture de la saison MotoGP™ 2015 / The MotoGP™ paddock returns to Qatar

Le Championnat du Monde FIM MotoGP™ 2015 commence cette semaine au Grand Prix Commercial Bank du Qatar.

Le paddock MotoGP™ retourne au Circuit International de Losail cette semaine pour l’ouverture de la saison 2015. Après des mois d’attente, la première manche promet d’être passionnante, d’autant plus que les essais de pré-saison réservaient bien des surprises.

Ducati semble avoir renoué avec la compétitivité pour 2015 et avait dominé le dernier Test Officiel de la pré-saison au Qatar, avec une toute nouvelle Desmosedici GP15 conçue par Luigi Dall’Igna. Le nouveau prototype italien a été très rapide sur la piste de Losail mais semble surtout ne plus souffrir de la fâcheuse tendance à sous-virer qui affectait ses prédécesseurs. Andrea Dovizioso et Andrea Iannone n’ont maintenant plus qu’à concrétiser sous les projecteurs de la piste de Losail.

Suzuki est de retour en MotoGP™ avec un tout nouveau team officiel baptisé Suzuki Ecstar, qui engage Aleix Espargaró et le rookie Maverick Viñales. Les deux Espagnols ont énormément travaillé sur la GSX-RR depuis l’an dernier et ont déjà prouvé sa compétitivité durant la pré-saison mais le team espère tirer bien plus de son potentiel au long de l’année.

Suzuki n’est pas la seule marque de retour en MotoGP™ cette année puisque Aprilia a décidé de reprendre la compétition en Grand Prix un an plus tôt que ce que le constructeur de Noale avait initialement annoncé, et a fait appel à Álvaro Bautista et Marco Melandri pour développer la RS-GP afin de la rendre compétitive pour 2016.

Marc Márquez (Repsol Honda), le double Champion du Monde et tenant du titre, est de nouveau prêt à faire face à ses adversaires, dont les principaux seront d’après lui les pilotes du team Movistar Yamaha MotoGP mais aussi son propre coéquipier Dani Pedrosa.

Valentino Rossi et Jorge Lorenzo seront déterminés à rivaliser avec Márquez dès la première manche de la saison afin de reconquérir le titre mondial. Rossi était revenu à son plus haut niveau l’an dernier grâce à quelques changements réalisés en coulisses tandis que Lorenzo avait été le pilote à marquer le plus de points sur la seconde moitié de l’année après un début de saison catastrophique.

Également sur prototypes Factory, Cal Crutchlow (CWM LCR Honda), Scott Redding (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS Racing), Pol Espargaró (Monster Yamaha Tech3), son coéquipier Bradley Smith et les pilotes du team Pramac Racing, Yonny Hernández et Danilo Petrucci, promettent quant à eux de se livrer une passionnante bataille pour la place de premier pilote satellite, bien que certains d’entre eux espèreront se frotter aux pilotes officiels et éventuellement atteindre le podium.

Dans la catégorie Open, Karel Abraham (AB Motoracing) avait été le plus rapide lors du test de pré-saison à Losail et sera opposé cette année à Nicky Hayden et Eugene Laverty du team Drive M7 Aspar, qui roulent eux aussi sur Honda RC213V RS, à Héctor Barberá et Mike Di Meglio du team Avintia Racing ainsi qu’à Stefan Bradl et Loris Baz du team Athinà Forward Racing. Le jeune Australien Jack Miller, vice-Champion du Monde Moto3™ l’an dernier, courra aussi dans la sous-catégorie, avec CWM LCR Honda, tandis que Alex de Angelis sera engagé sur une ART par Octo Ioda Racing.

En 2015, la grille sera un peu plus importante avec un total de 25 pilotes, contre 23 en 2014, et n’aura jamais compté autant de Champions du Monde ou de pilotes ayant au moins une victoire en Grand Prix à leur palmarès. 

Disputé en nocturne, le Grand Prix Commercial Bank du Qatar suit un programme différent de celui des autres Grands Prix et commencera dès jeudi avec une première séance d’essais tandis que la course MotoGP™ aura lieu dimanche à 21h, heure locale.

The 2015 FIM MotoGP™ World Championship kicks off this weekend with the Commercial Bank Grand Prix of Qatar.

The MotoGP™ paddock will arrive at the Losail International Circuit this week for the start of the 2015 season. After months of waiting the first round is upon us and what a season it promises to be, as already during preseason testing a few surprises have been thrown up and there are some big stories making the headlines.

Ducati have dramatically come back with a competitive machine for 2015, with the Luigi Dall’Igna designed Desmosedici GP15 dominating the final preseason test in Qatar. The new machine is not only fast, but the Italian factory team seemed to have finally cured the understeer problem that affected previous versions of the bike.  While the GP15 has shown good pace since it debuted at the second test in Sepang, it will be interesting to see how it performs over the race distance under the floodlights at the Losail Circuit in the hands of the Ducati Team riders Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone.

Suzuki have returned to MotoGP™ with an all new factory squad, the Suzuki Ecstar Team, featuring riders Aleix Espargaro and class rookie Maverick Viñales. They have been developing the GSX-RR machine over the last year, and already it has proved competitive, plus the team believes there is a lot more potential to unlock in the bike throughout the season.

On the subject of comebacks, Aprilia have also returned to the MotoGP™ grid for 2015, although this year will be more of a season-long test for riders Alvaro Bautista and Marco Melandri, as they look to develop the RS-GP bike to be competitive in 2016.

Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez will be looking to defend his title once more, having claimed back-to-back championships in the past two seasons. The young Spaniard believing that the serious challenge for the titlewill not come from Ducati, but his own teammate Dani Pedrosa and the Movistar Yamaha’s.

Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo will be desperate to wrestle the title from Marquez’s grasp, and with 11 world titles between them plus a renewed determination this season, the Movistar Yamaha team will be looking to claim the Championship once more. Rossi experienced a resurgence last season, having made some changes behind the scenes, while his teammate Lorenzo ended the season brilliantly, after a disastrous start to 2014 effectively cost him any chance of the title.

There is also the interesting battle of the satellite teams with riders Cal Crutchlow on the CWM LCR Honda RC213V, Scott Redding on the factory spec Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS Racing Honda, the Monster Tech 3 Yamaha’s of Bradley Smith and Pol Espargaro plus the Pramac Ducati’s of Yonny Hernandez and Danilo Petrucci all set to do battle in Qatar.

In the Open class it was Karel Abraham who ended on top at the final preseason test, but it should prove to be an interesting season-long battle between the Drive M7 Aspar Honda RC213V-RS’s of Nicky Hayden and Eugene Laverty along with the Avintia Ducati’s of Hector Barbera and Mike Di Meglio, and the Athina Forward Racing Yamaha’s of Stefan Bradl & Loris Baz. Plus Jack Miller, the runner-up in the Moto3™ Championship last year, will be looking to impress on the Open spec CMW LCR Honda, while Alex de Angelis is on the Octo Ioda Racing ART Machine.

In 2015 the number of riders competing in the MotoGP™ class has increased to 25 - up from 23 in 2013 - and this season there will be more riders on the grid that have won Grand Prix World Championships than ever before. Twelve riders, who have won a total of 28 titles between them, will line up under the lights in Qatar to compete in the first round, along with 4 rookies to the class in the shape of Viñales, Miller, Laverty and Baz.

The schedule for the Commercial Bank Grand Prix of Qatar differs from other rounds in that it is spread over 4 days, with two days (but the normal amount of sessions) of free practice commencing on Thursday, qualifying on Saturday, and the MotoGP™ race scheduled to start at 9pm local time on Sunday night.

THE HUNTER: A SCRAMBLER WITH EXTRA FIREPOWER

By Wesley Reyneke | Rather Be Riding

The Triumph Scrambler’s biggest selling point is its looks. It might not be the strongest contender in the performance department, but it has a nostalgic appeal that few others can match. And it’s easy to upgrade.

This stunning Triumph Scrambler was built by Erne’s Euromotos—a dealership and custom shop in Zürich, Switzerland. It’s the perfect blueprint for anyone wanting to transform his or her own Scrambler with performance-based mods.

The engine gets a big power boost via larger valves, hotter cams, and a higher compression ratio. To increase airflow, Erne’s modified the air box, fitted a free-flowing filter, and installed a Zard exhaust system. The fuel injection was then remapped—making this particular Scrambler good for a reported 95hp.

Given this significant jump in power, suspension and braking upgrades were in order. A Brembo P4 braking setup was added at the front, along with a Galfer disc designed for the Thruxton.

Öhlins suspension components were set up at both ends: FG324 upside-down forks at the front, and S36P shocks out back. The forks are held in place by new triple trees from LSL, and the tires are Continental’s dual-sport-specific TKC80s.

LSL also supplied a set of X01 Superbike bars, bar risers, and adjustable clutch and brake levers. Other (less obvious) LSL parts include a chain guard, sprocket cover, main and passenger foot pegs and foot controls. The regulator, ignition and horn have all been relocated to clean up the front end as much as possible.

Erne’s dipped into the JvB-moto catalogue too—fitting a JVB headlight, side panels and rear fender. A Motogadget Motoscope Tiny speedo was installed via Motogadget’s m-TRI: a signal adapter designed specifically for plugging Motogadget components into modern Triumphs with minimal fuss. The bar-end turn signals are Motogadget’s m-Blaze Discs.

After a little back-and-forth on paint, the client settled on a satin olive green for the tank and fender. The Triumph emblem on the tank and Erne’s logos on the side panels were done in gold, taking cues from the distinctive Öhlins components. Gold highlights can be found elsewhere too: like the adjustment dials on the levers.

Rounding off the bike is a slimmer, shorter seat with custom upholstery. The diamond-stitch pattern has been created with a green thread that’ll darken over time to match the tank. That pattern is replicated on the grips—a pair of Biltwell Thrusters—which is typical of the well-considered detailing on this project.

The Scrambler’s brawny stance and olive finish have earned it the moniker Le Chasseur(‘The Hunter’).

A fitting name for a Scrambler that’s right on target.

Erne’s Euromotos | Photos by Marc Schneider

via BIKEexif