In the 2nd part of his trip to Barcelona, Drake McElroy takes in the local architecture before heading to Catalunya to watch MotoGP. Afterwards, he has dinner with Nicky Hayden and gets weird with Absinthe in a local bar. :continue:
In this installment of Drake’s Passage, the professional motorcycle dude visits Barcelona, takes his wife out for dinner, rides his first electric motorcycle, spouts some nonsense about battery pollution, then visits Toby Moody and Julian Ryder at Catalunya. Damn, Drake gets to do some fun stuff. :continue:
To create this homage to the era of Mick Doohan GP domination, Australian artist Eamon O’Toole created an exact replica of the “big bang” NSR500 from period photos and magazine articles, before deconstructing it and suspending it inside Brisbane’s Ipswich Art Gallery. It’s the centerpiece of an exhibition entitled “Revhead” which whimsically explores the man’s greasier obsessions. :continue:
500 > 990 > 800 > 1000 > CRT > ?
In an era where it is more important then ever for companies to innovate and differentiate themselves from the competition, the race track, for a motorcycle company, should be as central to their operation as the boardroom. If companies no longer deem racing essential, it is because the formula is no longer relevant. Worse, if racing classifications are not clear then fans fail to connect and eventually even care. Ask even a loyal fan to explain the difference between DSB and SuperSport or WSB and a CRT.
Photo: Grant Ray :continue:
Soichiro Honda once said, “We only have one future, and it will be made of our dreams, if we have the courage to challenge convention.” That quote and many more from Soichiro and other racing luminaries are used by satellite Honda team LCR in a presentation it created to mark the release of its new MotoGP bike. It’s a visually stunning, textually compelling tribute to the pinnacle of motorcycle racing. :continue:
AGV has upped their game with the new AGV PistaGP. They used a freakin’ lazer to scan Valentino Rossi’s head and designed the helmet from the inside out around the resulting 3d model, unlike the traditional method of creating the outer shell first then going inside. The new visor mechanism is minuscule at 71% smaller than before. And then there’s the shape: small, lean and reptilian, it looks more like something out of Tron than a motorcycle helmet. I once said that the XR1R was the nicest helmet ever, but it looks like the PistaGP may be poised to steal the crown.
Update: Now with 77-photo mega gallery
Can’t wait for the return of MotoGP racing next month? Here’s a recap of some of 2011’s most dramatic passes, crashes and action, all in 1,000fps slow motion. :continue:
An awful lot is riding on this new Ducati Desmosedici GP12. Will it be capable of making Valentino Rossi a World Champion again? Will Nicky Hayden be competitive? Will Ducati’s unseemly trashing in the world’s most-watched motorcycle race series come to an end? And all that is riding on one thing — the aluminum frame. Officially released this morning, here’s every scrap of material on the great red hope. :continue:
Top-level MotoGP racing machines almost never reach private hands. But, two of the most significant Ducatis ever, one of Casey Stoner’s GP10s and Valentino Rossi’s GP11 are going on auction in May. These are true race machines. Stoner took the above bike to victory at Phillip Island while Rossi placed 3rd on the other bike at Le Mans. :continue:
This morning’s pre-season MotoGP test at Sepang was plagued by bad weather, but that didn’t stop Champ Casey Stoner from setting the fastest time. 2:01.761 was 0.675 seconds faster than Lorenzo and 1.484 faster than Rossi, but still off the Australian’s unofficial lap record of 1:59.607. Still, it’s a rare opportunity to ride onboard for a complete lap with the fastest rider in the world, riding the fastest bike in the world. :continue:
