Hugh Janus

2020 Yamaha TT-R110E (Yamaha /)We said it in the past, we will say it again, the Yamaha TT-R110E is a kids’ bike that adults can ride. The 2020 TT-R110E continues to be an approachable option for kids (or adults) who wish to tackle the trails due to its low 26.4-inch seat height, accessible 110cc powerplant, and four-speed auto-clutch transmission. 2020 Yamaha TT-R110E (Yamaha /)2020 Yamaha TT-R110E Reviews, Comparisons, And Competition Competition of the TT-R110E include the Kawasaki KLX110 and Honda CRF110F. While the TT-R has a slightly higher seat height than the CRF it does provide more suspension travel than both the KLX and CRF. 2020 Yamaha TT-R110E (Yamaha /)Yamaha TT-R110E Updates For 2020 Graphics have been updated, but the price remains at an affordable $2,299. 2020 Yamaha TT-R110E Claimed Specifications Price $2,299 Engine Air-cooled SOHC four-stroke Displacement 110cc Bore x Stroke 51.0 x 54.0mm Horsepower N/A Torque N/A Transmission 4-speed Final Drive Chain Seat Height 26.4 in. Rake 26.0° Trail 2.4 in. Front Suspension 31mm telescopic fork; 4.5-in. travel Rear Suspension Monocross shock; 4.3-in. travel Front Tire 2.50-14-4PR Rear Tire 3.00-12-4PR Wheelbase 42.5 in. Fuel Capacity 1.0 gal. Claimed Wet Weight 159 lb. Source

2020 Yamaha YZ125 (Yamaha /)As a lightweight 207-pound (claimed) dirt bike, the 2020 Yamaha YZ125 presents itself as a nimble option for teens who are moving up in displacement and looking for a full-size motocross competition bike. Its aluminum frame, subframe, swingarm, and handlebar help keep weight down while the reed-valve-inducted two-stroke engine delivers 125cc of power throughout the rev range. It is race-ready with front and side number plates, fork guards, fully adjustable KYB suspension, and Dunlop knobbies. 2020 Yamaha YZ125 (Yamaha /)2020 Yamaha YZ125 Reviews, Comparisons, And Competition Beside the newly introduced cross-country-focused YZ125X, the YZ125 continues to bring its racing roots to the track. Past impressions of the MX model from sister brand Dirt Rider found that the YZ125—and YZ250—are bikes “known for their excellent powerplants and great handling.” The 2020 Yamaha YZ125 is similarly priced to the KTM 125 SX ($7,299), Husqvarna TC 125 ($7,399), and TM MX 125 ($8,395). 2020 Yamaha YZ125 (Yamaha /)Yamaha YZ125 Updates For 2020 The YZ125 returns in 2020 with only graphics updates. It is available in Team Yamaha Blue for $6,599. 2020 Yamaha YZ125 Claimed Specifications Price $6,599 Engine Liquid-cooled two-stroke Displacement 125cc Bore x Stroke 54.0 x 54.5mm Horsepower N/A Torque N/A Transmission 6-speed Final Drive Chain Seat Height 38.4 in. Rake 26.0° Trail 4.3 in. Front Suspension KYB inverted fork, fully adjustable; 11.8-in. travel Rear Suspension Fully adjustable; 12.4-in. travel Front Tire 80/100-21 Rear Tire 100/90-19 Wheelbase 56.8 in. Fuel Capacity 2.1 gal. Claimed Wet Weight 207 lb. Source

2020 Yamaha TT-R125LE (Yamaha /)One of the larger-displacement trailbikes Yamaha offers—aside from the TT-R230—is the 2020 TT-R125LE. It is powered by a 124cc air-cooled four-stroke engine, rolls over terrain on a 19-inch front and 16-inch rear wheel, and soaks up bumps with adjustable suspension—a feature of which is seen only on the TT-R125LE of Yamaha’s trailbikes. Aimed at teens but also appropriate for adult riders, the TT-R125LE is a motorcycle that can get the teen off his/her phone and onto the trails with the rest of the family. 2020 Yamaha TT-R125LE (Yamaha /)2020 Yamaha TT-R125LE Reviews, Comparisons, And Competition Although the TT-R125LE does not have a big-wheel version, it can still find some friendly competition from Honda’s CRF125F and CRF125F Big Wheel models, Kawasaki’s KLX140/L/G models, and Suzuki's DR-Z125L. Yamaha TT-R125LE Updates For 2020 Aside from graphics changes and a $50 increase to the MSRP from the 2019’s $3,299, no major changes were made. The 2020 Yamaha TT-R125LE is available in Team Yamaha Blue for a starting MSRP of $3,349. 2020 Yamaha TT-R125LE (Yamaha /)2020 Yamaha TT-R125LE Claimed Specifications Price $3,349 Engine Air-cooled SOHC four-stroke Displacement 124cc Bore x Stroke 54.0 x 54.0mm Horsepower N/A Torque N/A Transmission 5-speed Final Drive Chain Seat Height 31.7 in. Rake 28.7° Trail 3.7 in. Front Suspension 31mm telescopic fork, preload adjustable; 7.1-in. travel Rear Suspension Compression and rebound adjustable; 6.6-in. travel Front Tire 70/100-19 Rear Tire 90/100-16 Wheelbase 50.0 in. Fuel Capacity 1.6 gal. Claimed Wet Weight 198 lb. Source

In the early days of carbon-carbon brakes, friction would increase so quickly with temperature that they required covers to keep the heat up for a consistent feel and actuation. If cooled too much and then reheated quickly with a sharp application, the rider risked seizure and wheel locking. (Ducati /)In 1989 at Laguna Seca, Wayne Gardner was holding some lever to bring his new-technology carbon-carbon brakes up to operating temperature when their friction-versus-temperature curve shot up so steeply that his front wheel locked, throwing him up the road and breaking a leg. This was an extreme example of how friction can depend upon temperature. Graph out the relationship between temperature and friction coefficient, and with early carbon brakes it could rise too steeply for human reactions to prevent seizure and wheel locking. While improved carbon-carbon disc and pad materials were in development, bikes often wore carbon-fiber disc covers to keep heat in the discs when they weren’t being used. Such disc covers are seen occasionally today in wet conditions. The covers notionally prevented the discs from cooling off down a straightaway enough that when applied too slowly for the next turn, their material would again have to heat up through the danger zone of steeply increasing friction. Just for review, carbon-carbon is a solid material made by repeatedly impregnating a disc-shaped carbon-fiber preform with a resin, tar, or other carbon-bearing material, then reducing that filler to amorphous form in an oven until the preform is carbon-filled to the desired density. This process takes considerable time. The steep rise in carbon friction when heated is the reverse analog of the problem riders had with the torque output of two-stroke racing engines. As engine rpm rose into the zone in which the tuned exhaust pipes began strongly pumping mixture, torque could rise more steeply than human reactions could keep up with, resulting in corner-exit high-side crashes. Yamaha tackled a related problem with clutches in MotoGP. At the start of a race, all the bikes are stationary with engines running, and at the start signal a mass drag race occurs. Not surprisingly, this is the most dangerous few seconds in each event, as riders seek to get maximum drive from revving engines and slipping clutches while maneuvering for the top positions entering the first turn. Fine control of the slippage taking place is the clutch is essential, for if the friction discs act anything like Gardner’s carbon brakes in 1989, the front wheel will pop up, the launch control system will intervene, and time will be lost in one or more corrections. Yamaha’s testing was effective, apparently resulting in selection or development of friction material whose temperature response was “flat” enough to be more easily controlled by the rider. The result was fast, controllable, and uneventful starts. Many will remember the high song of a 250 two-stroke racebike making a race start; the rider pinned the throttle and controlled the launch entirely with left-hand pressure on the clutch lever. Front end coming up? Add lever pressure to settle it. Engine dropping below its best torque range (11,000)? Pressure on the lever pops the tach needle back up into “the zone.” This was the method taught by tester and drag racer Jay Gleason and by roadracer Randy Renfrow. It was one of Randy’s great pleasures at the riding schools he taught to challenge his students (many of whom considered themselves pretty hot) to a match race to second gear. He showed them how much there was to learn. Clearly, for this to work well, the torque transmitted between friction and steel plates in the clutch must remain consistent, neither shooting up with temperature (tending to lock up the clutch and wheelie) nor “fading”—decreasing as the friction material grows hotter. The front brake of a 305 Honda Superhawk that I tried to “build” into a racer was lined with friction material of the latter kind. Through a single practice, I could feel that brake fading as I had to pull harder and harder for each corner. Once back in the paddock, there I’d be, front wheel out, brake backing plate in my lap as I sanded off the shiny layer of binder resin that hard brake use had boiled to the surface of the stock “linoleum” lining bonded to my brake shoes. I had a lot to learn. The most common situation of temperature-dependent friction is tires. Before 1974, roadrace bikes ran only on all-weather tires, their tread surfaces crisscrossed by many water drainage grooves. The extravagant flexing of the resulting tread elements as they passed into and out of the loaded tire footprint quickly brought such tires up to operating temperature. Rubber is not 100-percent elastic. Deform it with 100 units of energy and when you release it, you may get back only 75 units. The other 25 units become heat in the flexing rubber itself. That’s how tires warm up. Street tires achieve operating temps quickly thanks to flexing of tread elements and carcass. (Bridgestone/)Slick tires were different because their tread was not weakened by any drainage grooves. Flexing very little, they warmed up much more slowly, revealing that racing tread compounds are essentially useless until hot enough for their rubber-to-road dynamics to function properly. Lap one crashes were many until racers were given warm-up laps (I remember bone-headed officials, reciting their tiresome mantra that “The throttle turns both ways”). Soon, tire warmers brought added protection: electric blankets that wrapped circumferentially around the tires to keep them at around 176 degrees Fahrenheit/80 degrees Celsius. Slick tires warm up more slowly and need tire warmers to keep them at operating temp before heading out on the track. (Pirelli/)Why should friction vary with temperature? A primary mechanism in friction is the continuous formation, stretching, fracture, and re-formation of adhesive bonds between myriad tiny points of contact on surfaces moving past one another. Think of a ship, its deck laden with people, gliding slowly along a pier on which stand hundreds of others. Departing travelers on the ship and well-wishers on the pier hold hands as long as they can, holding on, exerting pier-to-ship forces. But then their hands are pulled apart by the ship’s continued motion, and they reach out to grasp other hands in turn. If we imagine rubber and pavement instead of people, it becomes clear that the process of rapidly forming new “ship-to-pier” bonds has to be temperature dependent—because rubber becomes stiffer the lower its temperature. At its so-called “glass point” (Tg) it becomes a rigid solid! Too stiff to keep up with the adhesion, stretch, fracture, and re-adhere cycle that is a primary mechanism of friction. That is why racing tread rubber needs tire warmers to help it function during the tricky first three laps of races. Why don’t street tires act so temperamentally? The Tg, or glass point, of racing rubber must be quite high to maximize grip in the desired temperature range, but that of street rubber is set low enough to assure safe all-weather operation. The same adhesion, stretch, fracture, and re-adhere behavior goes on between brake pad and brake disc, and between clutch friction and steel discs. The details of how friction varies with temperature depend upon the blends of materials used. Early friction materials contained such ingredients as cloth, horsehair, and tar. Film of the 1906 auto Grand Prix of France shows an explosion of smoke from one car’s clutch at the start, as rapid heating of the friction material vaporized its binder. Considerable progress in friction materials has been made in the intervening 114 years. Source

When the KTM 790 Duke arrived stateside in fall of 2018, our first ride told us we had a ripper on our hands. After logging thousands of miles, it proved to be a practical and comfortable sport standard matched with an aggressive attitude. The 799cc parallel twin offered smooth and tractable power delivery with a rowdy behavior with enough coaxing, and the nimble-handling chassis proved its prowess, even if the budget-spec nonadjustable fork and J.Juan brakes received criticism. It wasn’t a revolutionary bike, but it was good enough to contend with competitors and after a lot of seat time I became particularly fond of the Duke. But, of any company, KTM’s developmental program has truly focused on seeking absolute performance. So the Austrian brand went to work analyzing every component of the 790, then re-engineering it for improved capability. Enter the all-new KTM 890 Duke R—faster, lighter, and fitted with more premium components, all at a reasonable additional cost. The 890 Duke R enters KTM’s lineup as a premium middleweight naked, and is priced as such at $11,699 before options. (Jeff Allen /)Powering the 890 Duke R (aptly dubbed the “Super Scalpel”) is a new 889cc DOHC parallel-twin engine, based on the 790 powerplant. The engine gets an increased bore and stroke of 90.7 x 68.8mm (from 88.0 x 65.7mm) and a higher 13.5:1 compression ratio (versus the 12.7:1 of the 790) and 1,000-rpm bump at redline to 10,500 rpm. The cylinder head was redesigned to accommodate larger valves and camshafts with increased lift, while new forged box pistons shed 10 grams each despite the enlarged bore. What’s a “forged box” piston? The skirt and ultra-short wrist pin bosses are all reinforced with a box-like detail connecting them. A new crankshaft with 20 percent more rotational mass has also been implemented, which is said to improve low-rpm throttle response and increase cornering stability. To discover the true performance gains, we strapped the 890 Duke R to our in-house Dynojet 250i dynamometer, recording horsepower and torque figures prior to testing. The Super Scalpel ripped 106.2 hp at 9,900 rpm and 60.4 pound-feet of torque at 8,700 rpm. By comparison, that’s an 11 hp and a 2 pound-feet of torque improvement over the 790 Duke. Although the peak torque is only 2 pound-feet higher, there is an increase between 3,500 and 6,000 rpm, which adds grunt to the 890’s low-end. Likewise, horsepower figures enjoy a bump throughout the powerband, most notably matching the 790’s peak power 1,000 rpm earlier, then smashing all the way until its increased redline. And you feel it on the road. The 890 Duke R’s engine has a more muscular personality, without sacrificing a gentle touch at low rpm. A buttery initial power delivery sets the bike in motion, while packing an addicting punch in the midrange. At 7,000 rpm, the 890 Duke takes life and lofts the front end to the air in the first three gears. Power builds fast and quickly makes its way through the rpm, pulling strongly into high revs and just tapering off before redline. It’s this extra grunt that we didn’t know the 790 was missing until riding the bigger-displacement Duke, and wringing its neck comes with a serious amount of fun. Added low-to-mid grunt brings a more beastly characteristic to the 890 Duke R. (Jeff Allen /)It’s a well-balanced powerplant that can be appreciated by riders of every level, and not so fast to… ahem… always threaten your license like a liter-plus-sized supernaked might. It’s smooth at highway speeds, and thanks to the optional clutchless up/down KTM Quickshifter + function (a $399.99 upcharge), offers seamless shifts through its six-speed gearbox. Good thing, because the gear ratios are tightly spaced and require quick work between them, especially on hard mountain-road charges. And while not completely alleviated, the overly abrupt on/off throttle mapping familiar with the 790 has been improved, adding a sense of control to low-speed riding. The 890 Duke R’s vitals and rider-aid functions are easily accessible via this full-color TFT display. (Jeff Allen /)A trio of factory-equipped ride-by-wire modes include Rain, Street, and Sport, each with preset and nonadjustable levels of throttle response, traction control, and wheelie control settings do their part in adding a measure of confidence too. A fourth Track mode with nine levels of selectable TC (plus off), a choice of throttle-response settings, and a chance to deactivate wheelie control is available via KTM’s optional Track Pack ($339.99) or Tech Pack ($739.99, as fitted to our test unit). Ultimately, ripping with WC off and a TC level of 3 suited my liking, offering a balance of corner-exit hyperspeed and usable power delivery, while harmoniously working with the excellent grip of the factory-fitted Michelin Power Cup II rubber even if they just slightly lack feel at the contact patch. The TC response smoothly blends safety and performance characteristics in low-to-mid settings, quickly ushering the 890 through corner exits while limiting power delivery enough to prevent rear wheel slip, but not enough to dumb down the 890’s potential. Wheelie control catches front-wheel lofts quickly, often abruptly setting them down and limiting hooliganism—hence, the reason we disabled it. We thank you for the option, KTM. The split-function WP Apex fork is a welcome addition. Spot-on base settings offer an easy glide over rough tarmac, while compression and rebound adjustability let you dial it in. (Jeff Allen /)But as we’ve come to learn, adding power to a chassis incapable of handling it upsets its balance, so KTM fitted the 890 Duke R with a fully adjustable, split-function WP Apex fork (compression damping in one leg and rebound in the other) with finely calibrated damping settings. The fork effortlessly glides over small chatter bumps in stark contrast to the 790, while providing adequate support for the travel-munching dips and heavy braking zones. And it’s sweet to have adjustability too. Every rider has his or her own preferences, and dialing it in can make all the difference—something you couldn’t do on the 790 Duke. Rightly earning the “Super Scalpel” badge, the 890 Duke R shreds corners with absolute confidence. (Jeff Allen /)The 890 Duke R is a whole 8 pounds lighter on the CW scales than the 790, losing a majority of that via the elimination of the passenger pegs and seat, and 2.6 pounds via the top-notch Brembo Stylema Monoblock brake calipers—not to mention the wicked feel and stopping power that comes with. In fact, a rad touch to the 890 Duke R is the fitment of a Brembo MCS master cylinder that allows adjustability of lever ratio and feel. Racer stuff. Add this to an almost unnoticeable lean-angle-sensitive cornering ABS for a drama-free corner entry. That’s unless you enable Supermoto ABS mode, which allows the rear wheel to lock under hard braking, letting the 890 be pitched sideways in long corner-entry slides. The lost weight adds up in terms of handling by quickly shredding mountain twisties and flicking from side to side with very little effort. It’s lightweight between the legs and comes with an any-apex-anytime attitude that rightly earns the Super Scalpel badge, though no one is ever likely to call it that in conversation. A menace in the canyons, and I suspect a helluva lot of fun at the local trackday. The LED lighting is a nice touch and offers a seriously impressive illumination during night hours. (Jeff Allen /)If there is any gripe about the 890 Duke R, it’d relate to the upcharges required to unlock the Track Mode, Quickshifter +, and various other electronic functions, mainly because they are preprogrammed into the package and just need unlocking at the dealership. These are valuable features but for simply “turning them on” the cost is challenging in the marketplace. Especially considering that this motorcycle is intended to be a premium model aimed at exploiting outright middleweight naked performance and is priced as such at a base $11,699. Instead, our test unit priced out at $12,439 with the Tech Pack, which gets you the quickshifter, Track Pack, and anti-wheelie off—all necessary options needed to discover the 890’s true potential. At the as-tested price, the 890 Duke R is up against the Triumph Street Triple RS, which is a pretty compelling competitor, and the up-spec version of the 2019 Cycle World Ten Best Middleweight Streetbike Street Triple R, no less. Sign up here to receive our newsletters. Get the latest in motorcycle reviews, tests, and industry news, subscribe here for our YouTube channel. Having ridden countless hours aboard the 790 Duke, I can say that the up-spec 890 Duke R packs an added punch that raises questions as to why the 790 exists (though the passenger accommodations are nice if you need them), especially considering the relatively small cost difference between models. The 890 fills the gaps left by the 790 and shreds its way to raising the bar of middleweight naked performance. 2020 KTM 890 Duke R Specs MSRP: $11,699 ($12,439 as tested) Engine: 889cc liquid-cooled parallel twin Bore x Stroke: 90.7 x 68.8mm Transmission/Final Drive: 6-speed/chain Cycle World Measured Horsepower: 106.2 hp @ 9,900 rpm Cycle World Measured Torque: 60.4 lb.-ft. @ 8,700 rpm Fuel System: Electronic fuel injection w/ DKK Dell’Orto 46mm throttle body Clutch: Wet, multiplate Engine Management/Ignition: Bosch w/ ride by wire Frame: Chrome-moly tubular steel frame, engine as stressed member Front Suspension: 43mm WP Apex w/ adjustable compression and rebound damping; 5.5 in. travel Rear Suspension: WP Apex monoshock w/ adjustable high-speed compression, low-speed compression, rebound, and spring preload; 5.9-in. travel Front Brake: Brembo 4-piston Stylema Monoblock calipers, 320mm discs w/ cornering ABS Rear Brake: Brembo 2-piston caliper, 240mm disc w/ cornering ABS Wheels, Front/Rear: 3.50 x 17-in. / 6.00 x 17-in. Tires, Front/Rear: Michelin Power Cup II; 120/70-17 / 180/55-17 Wheelbase: 58.3 in. Seat Height: 33.3 in. Fuel Capacity: 3.7 gal. Cycle World Measured Wet Weight: 406 lb. Availability: Now Contact: ktm.com Source

Springs, glorious springs! The spring in my grip exerciser broke in fewer than 15,000 cycles, but 15,000 highway miles can flex a bike’s valve springs a million times. Quality must match the application. (Jeff Allen /)The word “spring” usually applies to an intentionally created elastic element, such as the helical coil springs used in vehicle suspension or engine valve trains. It can also apply to the compressibility of gases, as in the pneumatic valve springs used in MotoGP, or in the MX “air suspensions” that flower every few years. Rubber in torsion was a common form of spring in 1960s British motocross bikes. Spring can also describe ­structures never intended to be flexible, as when former Ducati engineer ­Corrado Cecchinelli explained to me that certain riders mistakenly feel flex in footpeg brackets as loss of tire grip. Structures acting as springs became a big subject during the decades when chatter set the upper limit of chassis performance. I was shown a Yamaha 750 Superbike on a two-post hydraulic shaker rig as the operator Rob Tuluie (Makers, Issue 3, 2019, CW) made a frequency sweep. At around 22 Hz the front wheel essentially disappeared, so large and rapid was the fore-and-aft whipping motion excited in the springy fork tubes and steering head. When in 1993 Yamaha again stiffened the chassis of its two-stroke YZR500 GP bike, rider Wayne Rainey characterized the result as “chatter, hop, and skating.” Since that time, intensive work has gone into making chassis and swingarms into functional suspension springs, their deliberately ­created lateral flexibility improving the ability of the tires to follow irregular pavement at high lean angle, rather than skip rigidly from crest to crest, losing grip each time. Conventional steel-coil springs only seem straightforward. When former US Honda racing chief Gary Mathers actually measured the spring rates (rate is measured as pounds of load required to produce 1 inch of spring compression) of the race team’s color-coded suspension springs, he found wide deviations from nominal values. During the 1920s, the quality of steel spring wire in engine valve springs was so far behind the vigor of valve train dynamics that the best protection against spring breakage was statistical—to provide multiple springs per valve (as many as 16) in the hope that not all would break. Velocette engineer ­Eugene Goodman used a strobe light to reveal spring motions. The sudden acceleration as valve lift begins can generate a Slinky-like wave that bounces many times between the spring’s ends at every valve event. The result is abnormally fast accumulation of stress cycles—and early fatigue failure. The hard vibration of my 1973 Kawasaki H2-R excited similar wave action in its suspension springs, causing one to break at Laguna that year. In valve trains, three cures were developed: Coil-to-coil friction between nested spring pairs damped out wave action.Progressive-wound or conical “beehive” spring shapes outfoxed wave action by having no single resonant frequency.Fatigue properties of spring wire were hugely improved by techniques such as vacuum remelting (to evaporate oxide contaminants) and surface compression by means of shot-blasting.Because steel is heavy (density 7.8), designers sometimes turn to titanium (density 4.5) wire to reduce spring weight. Not so fast! Because spring winding damages the titanium wire’s surface, this damaged layer must be removed by acid etching to prevent early failure. An Öhlins shock spring, made in a wide range of stiffness, measured in pounds-per-inch or kilograms-­per-millimeter. Which one is just right? (Jeff Allen /)Because in high-rpm engines the flexibility of parts can lead to cam and crankshaft windup and valve bounce, it has become ­customary to consider the flexibility and ­natural frequencies of all highly stressed parts. As a test, I once assembled a race engine with a very close squish clearance (piston-­to-head) of 0.018 inches and was rewarded upon teardown after operation by the appearance of bright zones on the piston crowns, indicating that they had touched the head at peak revs. At such stress levels, every part—including the con-rods—becomes a spring. Steering a motorcycle takes place through a stackup of springs, and the speed of response depends on their collective stiffness. I apply pressure to the bars to turn the front wheel, but because the wheel is a heavy gyroscope, it resists, forcing me to “wind up” the fork somewhat with steer torque. As the wheel begins to steer, the tread rubber rolls in a slightly different direction. That pulls sideways on the front end of the bike by first distorting the tire’s carcass to transmit the new force to the wheel rim, then deflecting the fork tubes slightly and finally the steering head. As a former Cycle World off-road editor once noted: “I tested two 125 MX bikes of different makes with identical rakes and trails, same tires—everything. They should have steered the same. But one bike had right-now steering, and the other had serious steering delay.” This is a fork spring. Note how the end coil has been closed and ground flat to rest squarely. When you think of it, a coil spring like this is just a torsion bar rolled up into a more convenient package.­ (Jeff Allen /)The spring stack was different in the two cases—handlebar flex, bar mounting, fork twist, tire stiffness, wheel flexibility, axle bending, fork-tube deflection, and steering-head stiffness. Add all these springs to get steering response. Thinking of the motorcycle as a collection of springs has brought many useful insights. Source

When unveiled in 1986, the Ducati Paso 750 represented a high point in motorcycle design with its sleek, functional, fully enclosed bodywork. There was nothing quite like it. (Bruno dePrato /)In the mid-1980s, the Castiglioni brothers, Gianfranco and Claudio, owned the Cagiva Group and had established excellent ties with the leaders of the major Italian political parties. They liberally used their connections to financially strengthen the group after proving rather successful both in the motorcycle market and on racetracks. These same friends granted the Cagiva Group full control of Ducati at no cost. Not a bad gift. At the time, Ducati was controlled by a government-owned financial group, and the top managers were so inept that heavy financial losses piled up year after year. Giving it to the Cagiva Group at least cut the hemorrhagic flow. Almost in perfect coincidence with the acquisition of Ducati, Claudio had made a generous offer to Massimo Tamburini, rescuing him from the backstabbing that Massimo had received from his former Bimota partner, Giuseppe Morri. Claudio and Massimo teamed up perfectly, and Claudio entrusted Maestro Massimo Tamburini with the design and development of the new Cagiva and Ducati models. Ducati was limping badly with its line of models, and Claudio first discussed with Massimo the creation of a model that would radically refresh the company’s image—starting with a breathtaking design, the Massimo Tamburini way. It would be called Paso, for the Aermacchi/Harley-Davidson champion Renzo Pasolini, who died in a terrible crash that also killed Jarno Saarinen on the first lap of the 1973 Italian 350 Grand Prix at Monza. Tamburini’s mission was a big challenge because the new model had to retain the essence of a real Ducati, with levels of dynamic qualities, styling finesse, comfort, and practicality never achieved before at Borgo Panigale. Tamburini wanted the new model fully wrapped in a sleek fairing that should also grant high-speed comfort. Perfectly balanced, the Ducati Paso was a great ride, both on the road and at the racetrack. (Bruno dePrato /)The 750cc OHC Pantah V-twin that would power it was a radical evolution over the previous generation of bevel-driven OHC Ducatis. Dr. Fabio Taglioni had replaced the traditional interference-fit built-up crank assembly turning on roller bearings with a much more reliable solid crankshaft with cap-type connecting rods turning on plain bearings. But still he selected a hybrid solution at the main ends, not plain bearings but the same MRC high-performance angular contact ball bearings that I had selected for the glorious 750/900SS in my days working at Ducati with the great Doctor T. That he still selected them for the Pantah engine I took as an appreciation of a job well done back then. The sleek, fully faired design Tamburini chose gave him a free hand on frame design, allowing him to make it easier to fabricate (its square tubes welded more easily) and faster to build a bike around on the assembly line. A bolt-in lower cradle gave easy access to the engine for servicing, rather than requiring engine removal as did other Ducatis of the day. The solid and functional frame structure was nothing compared to the radical revolution Tamburini made in frame geometry. Tamburini never loved any of the previous Ducati chassis for their rear-biased weight distribution and heavy steering geometry. He progressively refined every minor geometric factor of his project to the point that the Paso still is the best-balanced Ducati chassis ever, even today. Tamburini conceived a square steel tubing frame structure to simplify the production process, and accurately calculated steering geometry and weight-distribution bias. (Bruno dePrato /)To obtain this precious result, he took advantage of the latest innovations, among them radial tires. Michelin and Pirelli had both developed low-profile 16-inch radials. The 130/60-16 front radial was 22 inches in diameter, a cool 1.58 inches less than today’s standard 120/70-17, and much more compact when compared to the 18-inch tires of the original Pantah. Keeping the Pantah chassis as a reference, Massimo pulled the steering rake down from 31 to 25 degrees and 95-millimeter trail, but above all, he fully exploited the advantage offered by the much smaller diameter of the new front radial, and retracted the front wheel by more than 2 inches nearer to the center of gravity while adding 2.5 inches to the swingarm, a total geometrical revolution that generated a perfectly balanced chassis spanning a still pleasantly compact 57-inch wheelbase. One of the Paso’s engine changes was that the head of the vertical rear cylinder was turned 180 degrees to adopt a more rational central induction system. Doing this got rid of the additional cables and unequal throttle response from the traditional Dell’Orto PHF-PHM carbs. In their place was a Weber 44 DCNF automotive-type twin-choke carburetor. The Weber not only returned smoother and had more precise throttle response, but it also improved the torque delivery, moving the 65 hp power peak (net, rear wheel) down from 8,800 to 7,900 rpm. The Weber’s drawback came due to the fully enclosed fairing: In slow traffic, the fuel in the bowl would overheat, and the engine would lose tractability and finally die because there simply wasn’t enough cooling airflow. The Paso featured a modern and elegant instrumentation cluster. Clip-ons placed atop the upper triple clamp induced a streamlined and sporty but very comfortable riding position. (Bruno dePrato /)The problem remained even when the old faithful air-cooled 750cc SOHC was replaced by the liquid-cooled 904cc SOHC unit based on the 851 eight-valve Desmo crankcase, complete with the new six-speed gearbox. Named the Paso 906, it represented a sound evolution of the original, since the chassis was more than capable of dealing with the 74 hp peak power at 8,000 rpm and stronger torque of the larger unit. The Paso 906 was much more versatile than the 750, and fast, strong, and handling well, it was a great pleasure to ride anywhere. Top speed easily exceeded 135 mph, finally delivering what the sleek lines of the fairing promised. When it came time to adopt a new, fuel-injected version of the 904cc unit, Ducati decided to homologate a new chassis and switch to 17-inch wheels, which were then coming into fashion. It was a bad idea, hastily put together and completely overlooking the fact that the wheels and tire sizes were a determinant factor in chassis balance. Using a 120/70-17 front and 170/60-17 rear completely trashed the original dynamic quality of the Paso project. The Paso 907 i.e. was forced to grow taller, not only because of the larger diameter of the wheels and tires at both ends, but also because the front wheel demanded a much taller fork to push the larger front wheel forward in order to clear the front cylinder head. Wheelbase grew by nearly 1.6 inches, and the Paso lost its light, precise steering, and became heavily understeering like other Ducatis of the time. The only positive brought by the Paso 907 i.e. was its fuel injection, which added a little power (now 78 hp at 8,500 rpm) and completely eliminated carburetion problems. Still, it was the sad swan song of a great project while it should have been the cornerstone on which the Ducati technical team could have built a new competence in motorcycling dynamics. But by then, ­Tamburini was actively working on his perfect Ducati 916 jewel. ­Godspeed Massimo. Always. Source

2020 KTM 250 SX (KTM/)The KTM 250 SX is intended for motocross riders who are lifelong two-stroke fans and those who want a bike that features much of the same technology as the Austrian manufacturer’s new-generation four-stroke models, but is cheaper to maintain and repair than the valve-and-cam-equipped machines. Unlike KTM’s off-road and enduro two-stroke models, which feature Transfer Port Injection (TPI), the 250 SX still utilizes a carburetor in 2020. 2020 KTM 250 SX Reviews, Comparisons, And Competition The 250cc two-stroke motocross bike market is much smaller than it was in the early 2000s, but in 2020, there are still a few options to choose from aside from the 250 SX including the Husqvarna TC 250, Yamaha YZ250, and TM MX 250. With its suggested retail price of $8,299, the 250 SX costs $100 less than the TC 250, $800 more than the YZ250, and $896 less than the MX 250. 2020 KTM 250 SX (KTM/)In 2017, we attended the 250 SX intro at Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, California. After logging more testing time on the bike, we put it up against its blue rival, the YZ250, and wrote a comparison test of the two machines. Sign up here to receive our newsletters. Get the latest in motorcycle reviews, tests, and industry news, subscribe here for our YouTube channel. KTM 250 SX Updates For 2020 When it comes to motocross bikes, many motorcycle manufacturers have put their sole focus on the development of four-strokes. However, there still are a couple of manufacturers that not only continue to produce two-stroke MXers, but improve them year after year as well. Such is the case with KTM, and its flagship two-stroke motocross bike, the 250 SX, is a shining example of that. 2020 KTM 250 SX (KTM/)In 2019, the bike received a stiffer frame, updated suspension settings, a new cylinder, and a new diaphragm steel (DS) clutch. For 2020, the 250 SX returns with revised settings in the WP Xact fork and WP Xact shock, and new graphics. 2020 KTM 250 SX Claimed Specifications Price $8,299 Engine Liquid-cooled single-cylinder Displacement 249cc Bore x Stroke 66.4 x 72.0mm Horsepower N/A Torque N/A Transmission 5-speed Final Drive Chain Seat Height 37.4 in. Rake 26.1° Trail N/A Front Suspension 48mm inverted fork, fully adjustable; 12.2-in. travel Rear Suspension Fully adjustable; 11.8-in. travel Front Tire 80/100-21 Rear Tire 110/90-19 Wheelbase 58.5 in. Fuel Capacity 2.0 gal. Claimed Dry Weight 211 lb. Source

Tobacco’s women’s riding jeans provide ultimate comfort and abrasion protection for the casually dressed rider. (Jeff Allen /)It was the 2019 HighPipe motorcycle festival at Mountain High Resort in Wrightwood, California. I walked the grounds and took stock of the motorcycle riding gear, insurance, and manufacturers’ products on display at the lodge. Among the various companies represented was LA-based Tobacco Motorwear Company. The casual gear under Tobacco’s tent intrigued me enough to try on some of its offerings—or was that the marketer doing their job? I tried the Jet Black riding jeans and then the Indigo ones and loved the fit of both. They were incredibly snug. At the end of the day, however, I did not buy them. The $300-plus price seemed a bit steep for something that didn’t have D3O impact armor included; I find that defense against impact would have been a plus. But, ah, they were so comfortable. And they did offer heat and abrasion protection with the DuPont Kevlar lining. Flash forward a couple of months and I receive a gift from my husband. Lo and behold…the Indigo Tobacco jeans were unboxed. I immediately tried them on again and knew that we were meant to be together—me and my husband, of course. If you get moto gear as a gift from your significant other you know you got a keeper. How They Look And Protection They Offer Aside from possibly recognizing the brand name as a motorcycle apparel company I bet you would be hard-pressed to figure out if these were casual, everyday street jeans or if they were riding jeans. No bulky armor thickens the knees (although the lack of impact armor and armor pockets is a drawback), but rather a layer of DuPont Kevlar lines the buttocks and front of the legs all the way down to the shins. This neon green liner is one of the only other hints that these jeans are suited for something more than a casual pant. With just enough flex, the jeans fit comfortably both on and off the bike. (Jeff Allen /)How They Fit And Feel I find that size 29 accommodates my thin-ish 6-foot-tall frame well. It sits very comfortably on my hips, hugs nicely at the thighs, and hits perfectly at the ankles. Sizes range from 24–40, which is an extensive offering for various body types. The 2-percent stretch denim allows for just the right flexibility when swinging a leg over the bike and does not bunch up in the crotch or knee areas when in a riding position. With other motorcycle jeans, I have had a problem with bunching behind the knees and chaffing in that location as well, however, the Tobacco jean material is soft and supple enough for ultimate riding comfort. Size 29 is perfect for my 31-inch waist and 32-inch inseam. (Jeff Allen /)What They Cost As mentioned earlier, the sticker shock did have a bit of a zap to it. A retail price of $339 is somewhat high considering there are others in the market that sell for about $100 less. But what you are paying for is supreme comfort. That’s really what it comes down to. The Tobacco jeans are very comfortable while still offering more surface area of the abrasion-resistant liner than its competitors. Now that I have these Tobacco jeans in my moto gear wardrobe (and have the potential to mix it in with my casual jeans accidentally) I am very happy that I ended up with these and will probably throw in a few hints to my husband to get me the black ones as well. Source

Technical Editor Kevin Cameron shares his wealth of motorcycle knowledge, experiences, insights, history, and much more. (Cycle World/)When I had accumulated some ­basic experience as quite a young man, I realized there were clear ­national styles in motorcycle engines, but in this new century, I see such ­diversity receding in favor of a new ­international style. I saw that British designers ­reacted against oil leakage and Times of ­London gasket material by employing a multitude of screws to hold case covers in place. Examples are the attractive, polished timing covers of British twins, but the extreme is exemplified by the cam covers of the Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft V-12, secured by nearly 30 fasteners each. Also very British was too few crankshaft main bearings—as in giving a parallel-twin or even an ­inline-four just two of them, and “­lettin’ ’er flex” in jump-rope fashion. Also ­essentially British in nature was the assumption that a taper alone, without key or other form of angular ­location, could be trusted with ignition timing. Assemble the taper loose, align crank and magneto as desired, then give “a sharp rap with a small hammer and do up the nut. She might move a wee bit in the first gallop or two, but then she’ll bed in.” Muddling through. German design, by considerable contrast, was a demonstration of the extreme capabilities of that nation’s machinists, often requiring the use of liquid nitrogen in the performance of shrink fits. Where a British crankshaft was assembled with tapers and nuts (all of the classic singles were thus) and was then aligned by soft hammer and dial gauge, a German crank such as that of the Adler two-stroke twin was aligned by finely machined ­radial face splines, drawn together by another favorite: a differential-threaded bolt. German design also ­reflected the extreme physical rationalism of Bismarck’s higher technical universities—that design must begin always from first principles. In my shop is the gap-bed lathe from the German Type-IX U-boat U-873. It is a tour de force of triple security on major assemblies, a multitude of clutches, and rigidity that comes only from aged cast iron. Sign up here to receive our newsletters. Get the latest in motorcycle reviews, tests, and industry news, subscribe here for our YouTube channel. The evolution of American motorcycle design practice stopped in 1913 when Henry Ford’s Model T took the transportation market. Only two years before, high-tech Indians with dog-ring gearboxes had swept the Isle of Man TT 1-2-3. From such creative fluidity American design solidified into slow-turning, large-displacement iron engines in heavily built bikes that could survive in a land of dirt roads. That style was enshrined as right and proper—the American way. Italian motorcycle engine design has been a conflict, with sensuous organic design and the shrink-wrapping of major castings suggesting the mysteries within, versus a contrary impulse to style every crankcase as a massive rib-reinforced ­aluminum egg. I loved the cam-drive wheel case of the Guzzi V-8, and the dense finning of Mondial’s Rebello, then wondered why so much aluminum was poured to make each Ducati bevel-drive engine. Spain, a nation new to manufacturing, struggled to produce its ­early Montesas, OSSAs, and ­Bultacos. Not everything was always as it should have been. From a Bultaco ­service bulletin came advice on how to ­combat oil weeping through porous castings: Remove and ­completely dismantle the engine. Then with a ball-peen hammer, the reader was to compress and seal the entire inner surface of the cases by tapping. Improvisation rules. Yet it was ­Bultaco, combining dead-simple two-stroke engines with extreme lightness, who triggered the mass market for ­off-road riding. Motorcycle Engine Architecture (Jim Hatch/)Now much of that national ­design individuality is shifting—toward what I am calling an “international engine style.” An early indicator was the ­engines made for John Bloor’s new Triumph motorcycles. Many called them “English Kawasakis” ­because they appeared in black epoxy finish with shapes closer to modern Japanese practice than to anything from Triumph’s Edward Turner past. In ­recent years, the more new engines I’ve seen, the more they come to ­resemble each other rather than continue the distinct national styles of the past. It was particularly striking to look at the details of Indian’s new PowerPlus big twin, which could have been those of any number of other engines I’ve seen recently. Why should this be so? Around the year 2000 came a casting revolution. Older methods, ­producing fewer sound parts that ­consequently had to be made heavier for ­adequate strength, were replaced by bottom-­fill, low-turbulence methods that produce castings so much ­freer of defects and voids that they have near-forged properties. On a ­before-and-after basis, complete ­motorcycles shed over 30 pounds of excess weight and all welding was automated. There has also been convergence in assembly methods. Out with the old—assembly workers with screw guns—and in with ­completely hands-off simultaneous fastener installation and final torquing. Cases are sealed by robotic pens that write a continuous line of sealant immediately before crankcase closure. To conserve material and ­control weight, major castings fit intimately over the parts they enclose ­rather than being styled into Philippe Starck eggs. Coolant passages are held tight to keep liquid velocity and heat transfer high. Just as Moto2 teams have ­discarded chassis that, while fast, are difficult and time-consuming to set up in favor of those that handle competitively over a broad setup range, so manufacturers have discovered which automatic production systems are most productive, cheapest to operate, and throw the least scrap. This pushes each factory to resemble all other factories. Variety in engine architecture ­remains (as you can see in “Old Souls,” page 58), but beneath it is a sameness. Design for production requires that whatever design choices are made, they must not be allowed to complicate or add costs to manufacturing. In the 1970s, former ­Cycle magazine editor Cook Neilson watched an early CNC machine take half an hour to machine each Ducati twin con-rod, and we learned that the proper adjustment of each bevel-­gear cam drive required seven hours’ work by an experienced technician. Market competition made human handwork too expensive to remain a part of production. Quality today far exceeds ­anything from the honored past, but to combine it with never-ending advanced features and still hit the price point, production methodology and ­economics must rule. Source

Riding the 2020 Husqvarna FE 350s. (Jeff Allen/)The Husqvarna FE 350s model is possibly one of the best dual sport bikes on the market. Significant updates have been made to the Austrian manufacturer’s 350cc four-stroke street-legal dirt bike for 2020. It features Husqvarna’s newest-generation frame, which is stiffer for overall improved handling and straight-line stability. It is the same as the FC 350 motocross and FX cross-country models, as is the engine architecture and bodywork. A WP Xplor 48mm fork and WP Xplor shock handle the suspension duties, while Continental TKC 80 tires are mounted on the wheels for a long life and a very quiet ride. To improve highway comfort, the rim locks are left off, but are included in the tool kit with the purchase of the bike. 2020 Husqvarna FE 350s Engine As of the new decade, Husqvarna manufacturers four 350cc four-stroke models. The street-legal version is the FE 350s. (Jeff Allen/)The FE 350s engine is a true Husqvarna 350cc four-stroke, but it is set up to meet all EPA regulations and be street-legal. This may not sound like a big deal, but making a competition engine run well with those requirements is not an easy task. Emissions are something that we have been dealing with, but compounding the regulations are the noise restrictions. Mufflers are easily quiet enough to pass sound tests, but now the engine has to be quieter. One of the things Husqvarna does to accomplish that is putting a reed valve in the airbox to reduce intake noise. Other EPA factors include a smaller-diameter header pipe with an O2 sensor, a catalytic converter stuffed into the mid-pipe, and an end cap with outlet holes that are about the same size as the salt shaker on your kitchen table has. On the dyno, the restrictions are painfully obvious, as the FE 350s makes 16.3 less peak horsepower than the FX 350 cross-country model. In order for it to be street-legal, the FE 350s is set up to meet all EPA regulations. Because of this, it makes 16.3 less peak horsepower than the FX 350 cross-country competition model. (Jeff Allen/)In comparison to the FC 350 motocrosser or FX 350, the FE 350s is down on power, but that really does not take any of the fun away. The thing that is easily taken for granted is how smooth it runs. It starts perfect, idles smoothly, and has zero hesitation when you crack the throttle. The engine never flames out and has little to no engine decel pop. In the tightest of trails, the gearing is decent. This combined with the smooth power means there is minimal clutch use necessary and in turn, the engine runs cooler; I never experienced any overheating. The only time you may want a little extra power is if you decide to climb some hills that are actually meant for a competition bike. Although the FE 350s’ engine is down on power compared to the FC 350 motocrosser or FX 350 model, it has excellent running characteristics. It starts perfect, idles smoothly, and has zero hesitation when you crack the throttle. (Jeff Allen/)The six-speed gearbox has a super-low first, normal second, and is taller from third through sixth gears. The 14:48 gearing works well and gives you plenty of top speed, making it easy to ride, even on the 70 mph interstate highways. The clutch action is smooth and predictable. I had no issues with the Magura hydraulic system on this bike. 2020 Husqvarna FE 350s Suspension & Chassis/Handling For 2020, Husqvarna’s 350cc dual sport features a stiffer frame and new bodywork. The WP Xplor 48mm fork and WP Xplor shock have updated settings, while the engine features a lighter cylinder head, new camshafts, and a different head gasket that increases the compression ratio from 12.3:1 to 13.5:1. (Jeff Allen/)The FE 350s’ suspension components are the most current model of the WP Xplor 48mm fork and WP Xplor shock with linkage. The FE 350s chassis received all the major updates the motocross and cross-country bikes were granted in 2019 as well. The new frame features increased stiffness for improved rider feedback, better energy absorption, and increased stability. The radiators have been lowered 12mm in an effort to lower the center of gravity. The carbon composite subframe is 250 grams lighter and 50mm longer with more rigidity for improved rider comfort. The bodywork has also been updated and the ergonomics are specifically tailored to deliver greater comfort and control. The contact points have been slimmed down and because of the new wiring harness, the seat height is claimed to have been reduced by 10mm. The Xplor fork is an open cartridge, coil-spring design and is configured specifically for enduro. Adjustments are made via the clickers on the top of each fork leg. It has an added benefit of external preload adjuster that can be moved without tools. The Xplor shock has updated base settings to match the new frame and front end. Although the suspension is cushy and works well in low-speed areas, it is simply too soft in stock form for anyone above a novice off-road rider. (Jeff Allen/)The FE 350s feels very light and nimble. Its smooth power and soft, cushy suspension make it fun in rocks and in tight, low-speed sections. While it works very well at low speeds and on the road, there is a point where you can find yourself using up all of the travel and still wanting to go faster. The fork is easy to adjust and offers external compression, rebound, and preload adjustments. Unfortunately, the front suspension is simply too soft in stock form for anyone above a novice off-road rider. You can somewhat compensate for the suspension with riding style. Decreasing the preload on the shock, thereby lowering the rear end, can also assist to move more weight to the back of the bike. On flowing single-track, it is still manageable, but when it comes to heavy braking or downhill canyons, the front end can become hard to manage. 2020 Husqvarna FE 350s Overall Impression The FE 350s is a light and maneuverable dual sport bike. (Jeff Allen/)The 2020 Husqvarna FE 350s is a very fun bike to ride. It’s a dirt bike first and street-legal second. Obviously, there are few things that you may want to change before you take it to your favorite two-track road. First, the tires. While they are super quiet on the pavement, they fall short on their off-road capabilities. Fortunately, there are quite a few options for DOT-approved knobby tires. After you pick up a set, be sure to add the rim locks while you are mounting them. Also, if you plan on doing longer highway rides, consider two rim locks per wheel to reduce the possibility of the wheels being out of balance. With the new knobby tires, you may want to consider a more compact taillight license plate holder, as over time it will catch in the rear wheel. If you are thinking about purchasing an FE 350s and want to ride it more off road than on road, I would suggest getting some suspension upgrades and leaving the engine alone. It will be very easy to improve on the stock suspension. If you think you are going to improve on the engine power by changing the exhaust or removing parts here or there, you need to be careful. Any change to the engine or its external parts will require different EFI and ignition mapping. While it is down on peak horsepower, the engine runs excellently as is, and with modification, it could easily go backward. Overall, what the FE 350s lacks in high performance, it makes up for in high enjoyment. Ride days of 150 miles from your house to the tightest of trails, fire roads, and back are no problem for the FE 350s. Gearbox The FE 350s has a high fun factor. It’s a dirt bike first and street-legal second. (Jeff Allen/)Helmet: Shoei VFX-EVO Goggle: 100% Racecraft Plus (+) Jacket: Thor MX Terrain Jersey: Thor MX Pulse Air Gloves: Thor MX Rebound Pant: Thor MX Pulse Air Boots: Sidi Crossfire 3 SRS 2020 Husqvarna FE 350s Tech Spec PRICE $ 11,099 ENGINE 349.7cc, liquid-cooled, single-cylinder four-stroke TRANSMISSION/FINAL DRIVE 6-speed/chain MEASURED HORSEPOWER 32.8 hp @ 10,100 rpm MEASURED TORQUE 20.5 lb.-ft. @ 7,600 rpm FRAME Steel central double cradle FRONT SUSPENSION WP Xplor 48mm inverted fork adjustable for spring preload, compression damping, and rebound damping; 11.8-in. travel REAR SUSPENSION WP Xact shock adjustable for spring preload, high-/low-speed compression damping, and rebound damping; 11.8-in. travel FRONT BRAKE Magura 2-piston caliper, 260mm disc REAR BRAKE Magura 1-piston caliper, 220mm disc WHEELBASE 58.5 in. MEASURED SEAT HEIGHT 36.7 in. FUEL CAPACITY 2.2 gal. MEASURED WEIGHT 258 lb. wet AVAILABLE Now CONTACT husqvarna-motorcycles.com Source

This is Walter Zeller at the German GP in 1957 at Hockenheim, where he finished third behind the two Gilera 500/4s of Libero Liberati and Bob McIntyre. Although the photographer identifies him in this year as a “<em>privat-fahrer,</em>” the year before on a factory BMW Zeller was second in the 500 championship behind John Surtees. That was the first 500 title for MV Agusta, made somewhat easier by the reduced participation of Gilera that year. This was the last year for full streamlining as rules with effect from 1958 would require the present form of fairing that completely exposes the front wheel. Today’s fairings impose aero drag similar to that produced as an airliner extends its undercarriage for landing. Evident are the long slow-taper megaphones preferred by the German builders (and soon adopted by Honda) for the wider powerbands they fostered. See also the finned under-engine oil sump, and possibly the use of fuel injection. This bike’s intakes are very different from those seen a year later on carbureted engines ridden by the late Geoff Duke. (Volker Rauch/)Volker Rauch photographed Grand Prix racing. His pictures showed the sport and its practitioners as it, and they, never before had been seen. Working mostly in black and white, using his beloved 35mm Leicas, Rauch made photographs that smack the viewer in the eye with their rightness of composition, exposure, and sharpness, with their sheer artfulness. For a time, Rauch was like the fictional Roy Hobbs in Bernard Malamud’s classic novel of baseball and life, The Natural. He simply was the best there ever was. Respected and rewarded, he lived racing’s high life, wearing the finest clothes, driving the fastest cars, chasing the most beautiful and expensive women. He revolutionized racing photography and set professional standards that still are being recognized and reached for. And then, two years ago, he killed himself. He left a widow, a daughter, a cadre of baffled and brokenhearted friends, and an estimated 100,000 photographic images of roadracing’s giants, made during racing’s golden age on the great and classic racetracks in the world.” —Jon F. Thompson, Cycle World, May 1995 Here is Geoff Duke himself in conversation with 1939 Senior Isle of Man TT winner Georg Meier. The venue is the 1958 Rhein Cup event in Germany. This engine is clearly carbureted and the long leading-link fork of that time is fitted. Note the chin pad affixed to the fuel tank: Tracks were seldom smooth and no one likes to take it on the chin. (Volker Rauch/) Detail of 1950s BMW front end with long leading-link fork and the hefty steering damper required to calm its motions when the rider has only the narrow clip-on bars pictured. Note also the substantial rear anchorage of that damper. (Volker Rauch/) RELATED: More classic Volker Rauch photographs in Part 1 MV Agusta factory riders confer. Is that Count Agusta himself with hands on hips? Nobody looks pleased. On the bike is Carlo Bandirola (many top placings but no GP wins), while the spare-looking fellow beside him is Umberto Masetti (500cc world champion in 1950 and ’52). This is the Nürburgring, June 1955, and Bandirola and Masetti would finish third and fourth respectively, behind Geoff Duke’s Gilera and Walter Zeller’s BMW. Why are these powerful four-cylinder bikes behind Zeller’s significantly less powerful twin? Because MV had not yet been exposed to the heat of John Surtees’ ambition, and his determination to “anglicize” the not-so-hot chassis of the MV. (Volker Rauch/) April 24, 1955, Dieburger Dreiecksrennen: This is the Horex 350 DOHC twin, which seldom appeared in races outside Germany. It is a feast for the eyes with its very extensive finning, exposed hairpin valve springs, external oil pump with a multitude of braided-steel lines (borrowed from aircraft practice), and its Indian-like ignition distributor. The carburetors are all but invisible, pushed rearward as they are by intake extensions. You can see several small chassis tubes heading for their points of attachment to the cylinder head. This feature and the shape of the Horex production bike’s cylinder head became prominent features of Honda’s Hawk and Super Hawk 250 and 305 twins of the early 1960s, later revived for the CBX 1,047cc six-cylinder. At bottom right can be seen the aft loop of this bike’s leading-link suspension, so trendy in this period. The engine was said to give 36 hp at 10,000 rpm. (Volker Rauch/) A rider in leathers and flat cap enjoys a smoke as he warms up this NSU Sportmax on its stand, hidden in a masterpiece of the panel-beater’s art. Bikes with such metal fairings were extremely noisy as their lack of damping set them drumming, acting as loudspeakers. The large opening cools the engine and the blisters are for handlebar clearance inside the fairing. This same casual “I do this really cool stuff all the time” look can be seen in race paddocks to this day. The fairing has probably been crashed and then only roughly unwrinkled. (Volker Rauch/) Here are the NSU record team and their six streamliners, headed for the US in 1956. They are shoehorned into what may be a KLM Constellation, powered by four huge supercharged piston radial powerplants. The NSUs set a total of 64 records with a variety of engines. With a 500cc engine in the Delphin III, rider Wilhelm Herz set 12 records (four each in 500, 750, and 1,000cc) over 200 mph, including 1 mile at 211 mph. In the iconoclastic feet-first Baumm II streamliner, H.P. Müller set 36 records ranging from 121.7 mph with 50cc engine, to 150 mph with 250cc engine over 1 mile. (Volker Rauch/) NSU techs use a Vernier depth gage and degree wheel to set piston compression height on one of the record engines. More compression can be used on the salt because of the reduced atmospheric density at Bonneville’s 4,237-foot altitude. Note the very large gearbox sprocket, made possible by the high rear wheel speed of a streamliner. (Volker Rauch/) Sign up here to receive our newsletters. Get the latest in motorcycle reviews, tests, and industry news, subscribe here for our YouTube channel. On the right is NSU’s Delphin III streamliner used with the 350 and 500cc engines, and on the left the Baumm II feet-first bike powered by engines from 50 to 250cc. (Volker Rauch/) NSU record-setter Wilhelm Herz (left) looks considerably less at ease than the unnamed Utah sheriff with ammo belt and sidearm as they enjoy drinks after hours. (Volker Rauch/) How’s the salt? Wilhelm Herz touches the white stuff at 122 degrees Fahrenheit. The hat protects his head from burning and peeling but his forearms will become “welder’s pink” if he doesn’t seek cover soon. The mountains look just as lunar today. (Volker Rauch/) How smooth do you want it? What looks to be a length of rail is about to groom the course at Bonneville. (Volker Rauch/) This is the well-attended Hockenheim German GP of 1967. The crowd density indicates that motorcycle sport at that time was mainstream indeed. Today we have YouTube so we don’t need to go anywhere. (Volker Rauch/)RELATED: More classic Volker Rauch photographs in Part 2 Source

Chassis flex can reduce sharp peak forces transmitted to a rider’s body, increasing performance, comfort, and stamina. (Brown Dog Wilson/)We all know that where people work on their feet, everyone is more comfortable and productive if there is cork or rubber flooring. I have spongy rubber floor mats at my porting bench. What do they do? They protect our joints from sharp impacts that, totaled over days and weeks, add up to soreness. Motocrossers speak of chassis “harshness” as setting the upper limit on what they can survive through a full moto. If chassis flex clips the sharp peaks off the forces that it transmits to the human body, that body works better and delivers greater stamina. As I’ve noted before on this site, roller chains couldn’t take over the motorcycle powertrain job until there was a flexible element between them and the engine’s hard combustion thumps. Rollers split and flew off, and joints tightened until some form of spring drive was added for their protection. Come to think of it, I strongly suspect the present long lives of drive chains are not entirely the result of O-ring construction, which seals in and retains lubricant in every chain joint. Also important is the rubber cush drive in the rear wheel which, like chassis flex for MXers, clips the sharp peak forces that would otherwise have hurtful results—in this case more rapid fatigue and stretch of drive chains. Why do modern motorcycle engines with digital engine control so often have cylinder-head-mounted accelerometers? They are there to detect the sharp peak combustion pressures caused by detonation—an abnormal form of combustion. Those peak pressures are known to shock rod and crank bearings into failure while they are doing the more obvious damage of blasting bits of aluminum out of our piston crowns. When detonation is detected, the ECU instantly pulls back ignition timing to stop the knock-knock-knocking before it can damage parts. When Keith Duckworth’s master work, the DFV Formula One engine, went into service in 1967, it would from time to time break a tooth or so off one of its cam drive gears. Calculations had been made to estimate how much torque this drive had to transmit, but the actual forces in the running engine turned out to be 10 times greater. The reason was that both the crankshaft and the cams have their own dynamics, flexing constantly in twist as cylinders fire and valves are heaved up off their seats and set back down again at 1,500 Gs. When one set of parts is trying to go north when another is unwinding to the south, the resulting momentary forces can be tremendous. Since the engine was already in production it would have been very expensive to redesign the whole cam drive, so Duckworth came up with something he could build into one of the gears, containing a circle of tiny torsion bars, each with a little crank at one end. This added just enough flexibility to the drive to clip off the tall force peaks that had been making gear teeth old before their time. Other makers, faced with similar problems, have found solutions in such things as flywheels or dynamic “Napier dampers” (Tootsie Rolls in holes). Or they have tried driving the cams from the flywheel end of the crankshaft, or from its center, hoping for “a quieter life.” There’s a lot more to engine development than ordering in 50 grand’s worth of super-rad parts from the usual suspects and bolting them together. This Honda six crankshaft drives the cams from the center because that location has zero torsional motion. This reduces vibration and impact loading. (John Owens/)When an aspiring World Supersport team’s rider kept reporting something weird in the bike’s rear suspension they hired a crew chief with experience (as opposed to just a youthful willingness to work 24 hours straight and then drive the transporter to Czecho). Removing the spring from the rear suspension unit, he then cycled the assembly through its full travel. Or tried to. There was a glitch, a momentary resistance at one point. That, added to what the rear tire was already being asked to do, was sometimes too much. It was kicking the back end loose without warning. Gotta watch those peak loads. Aircraft structures are “lifed” for a specific number of total flight hours. Such calculations are based upon years of experience with gust load intensity encountered at various altitudes, based upon the aircraft’s mission requirements. What puts an end to the life of an aerostructure? Fatigue or stress corrosion cracking, as a result of X spectrum of stresses. At present a new technique has been brought to bear on this problem: gust relief. What if, as a gust suddenly begins to accelerate a wing upward, the aileron on that wing were quickly deflected to reduce the severity of the gust load? It works. I also recall reading that the long-serving B-52 bomber’s airframe was lifed for operation mainly at high altitude where low atmospheric density just can’t muster as many bumps and thumps. When those aircraft were brought down to lower altitudes for use in the Southeast Asia war their airframes fatigued considerably faster owing to rougher air. Rougher air at low altitudes fatigued the B-52’s airframe faster than at high altitudes where the low atmospheric density had less impact. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Juan Torres/)This begins to sound a lot like what Ducati has done with its Evo2 anti-wheelie system. Instead of waiting for the wheel to rise a certain distance before intervening (by reducing engine torque a bit), Ducati’s system looks for a rapid initial upward acceleration rather than a specific upward displacement. And now helmets. A famous movie star regarded a motorcycle helmet as a serious infringement of his personal freedom, so when he had the misfortune to tip over, in the resulting tumble he hit his head on something hard with nothing between to clip the sharp peak off of the impact force. That peak load made his hospital stay a lengthy one. Same with auto-inflating “air bag” riding suits. That collarbone may not break this time if, as your shoulder approaches ground zero, a suddenly inflated air bag clips the sharp spike off of the impact. I mustn’t leave out the ultimate impact-reducing system, essential to every vehicle, operator, and passenger: the brakes. Source

Oil viscosity is affected by temperature—at both ends of the thermometer. (Cycle World Archives/)I stepped off a train at wintry Westport station near New York City, pulled my suitcase off the rack, and went looking for my ride: an ancient black Buick straight-eight. I found it with other long-term cars in a snowbank. Eventually I made a way to the driver’s door and sat at the wheel. Key above the sunshade—there it was. Now the terrible contest—battery and starter versus the Pleistocene. The starter turned, but so slowly. I’ll have to walk the 5 miles. I could hear the grr of tooth engagements of the starter pinion against the ring gear. Grinding. Surely it’s too cold for sparks to ignite gasoline. Grinding. I thought about the congealed oil on cylinder walls, in bearings, resisting all motion. But the battery kept turning the starter until there was a single jump: A cylinder had fired. Again. Shall I drive rather than walk? Oil viscosity is both bane and benefit. Oil, thickened by low temperature, resists all motion. It has become glue. But oil’s viscosity in the fast-moving loaded zone of a crankshaft bearing is what keeps it from being squeezed out by the load. That resistance keeps enough oil moving through the bearing to support the load. Had that Buick’s oil sump contained a modern multi-grade oil I’d have been spared that drama—the engine would have spun over and fired at once. The point I’m making is that oil viscosity rises at low temperature and falls at high temperature. It’s a fight between the affinity of the long-chain oil molecules for each other and the vibrating energy of temperature. In the 1930s, Benelli in Italy borrowed from aviation practice by mounting an oil cooler on a bike. And it took a patent on the idea. When Honda went GP roadracing, starting in 1959 at the Isle of Man, it quickly encountered severe oil viscosity loss at high temperature, and suffered some outright engine seizures. We’re talking four-stroke engines here; so what was happening was that in summer operation, oil in air-cooled race engines was losing so much of its viscosity that piston lubrication was occasionally breaking down completely. In quick succession Honda tried the “English answer,” carrying the oil in a separate, remote tank, and it tried the “Italian answer,” which was to provide a long finned aluminum sump under the engine. Since neither was adequate, in 1965 it integrated small oil coolers into ducts in the bikes’ fairings, such that oil was actively, intentionally cooled rather than cooled by accident. That brought the situation under control, keeping oil from getting hotter and hotter until it “turned to water” and bad things happened. I saw Honda’s oil coolers at the Canadian GP in 1967, dangling from their hoses after fairings had been removed. Success. Oil acts as both lubricant and as heat-exchange fluid. Oil can go places where air and water cannot. It cools internal parts such as pistons, valve springs, and bearings, tending to level all temperatures. Certain styling departments reflexively dislike oil coolers—rather like the vain young biologist I once encountered, who upon arriving at work invariably put his wallet in a desk drawer, explaining that “It spoils the line.” Okay, maybe even better than an oil cooler is a water-to-oil heat exchanger (the spin-on oil filter often mounts on such an exchanger) because the rapid warm-up of engine coolant sees to it that the oil warms up just as fast. Why do we care how quickly the oil warms after starting? We care because any cycle shop service manager can name for you the older models whose sluggish cold-start oil circulation led to problems like premature cam or bearing wear. In an ideal world, every engine would have an electric pre-lube pump that pressurized the oil system just before starting. Although liquid-cooling has solved many durability and running problems, cooling by internal oil circulation remains essential. In the case of air-cooled engines, which tend to run too hot in hot weather and too cool in cool weather, oil cooling has a long history of giving aid where needed. The large air-cooled radial piston engines that powered so many aircraft in WWII (all US bombers, plus the P-47, F4F, F4U, F6F, plus all ground-attack types) relied upon oil cooling for about 30 percent of their waste heat removal. Therefore it is just continuing that great tradition when present-day builders of iconic air-cooled designs need to supplement what cooling fins can do by adding oil coolers plus strategic circulation through cylinder-head passages. This includes several Harley-Davidson models, the large BMW twins, and at least one of Honda’s large “cooling-fin revival” four-cylinder jobs, in which the official line is that the supplementary cooling is just for the spark plugs (nudge, wink). Fins for cooling, on the cylinders and on the oil cooler on this Harley-Davidson Street Glide, keeps the oil in the proper temperature range so that the engine oil’s viscosity can do its job. (Kevin Wing /)Let’s not kid ourselves. When oil cooling is necessary, the job is keeping oil in the temperature range in which its viscosity can carry engine loads. Putting the cooler in a desk drawer “because it spoils the line” may cut it at art school, but it’s poor physics. Source

Can you fold your way to two-wheeled freedom? Give it a try with our Energica Ego papercraft template. (Chris Philpot /)Young or old, there’s never been a better time for crafts than now. In that spirit, we commissioned this paper template so you can fold your way to two-wheeled freedom right at the kitchen table. The Energica Ego electric motorcycle’s crisp lines are perfect for translation from two dimensions into three, so fire up your printer and get started. We have added vibrant colors, but may we also suggest you print in black and white so you can pick your own graphic scheme. We’d love to see what you built. Tag @CycleWorld along with the hashtag #papermotorcyclechallenge. Print this template and get to work. Should we make more of these? What motorcycles would you like to bring to life? Ducati Panigale V4? BMW R nineT? KTM 790 Adventure? Yamaha Ténéré 700? Honda Monkey? Suzuki Katana? Let us know in the comments below! Source

Debuted in 1985, the Honda Rebel has been bringing beginner riders to the sport for decades. The model saw significant changes in 2017 and now, for 2020, Honda keeps the updates coming to further entice its intended audience. The added assist and slipper clutch, suspension refinements, modern LED lighting, a new gauge layout, and a thicker, more dense seat are all part of the 2020 package. After receiving a significant face-lift in 2017, the Honda Rebel 500 returns for 2020 to attract female and newer riders to motorcycling. (Jeff Allen /)Honda told us its primary target is women and beginner riders. In fact, the manufacturer shared some numbers showing that a growing portion of Rebel owners are women with 36 percent of owners for the 300 and 28 percent for the 500. It also found that an impressive 61 percent of Rebel 300 purchasers are first-time owners and 45 percent are first-time owners for the 500. This shows that while both females and first-time owners have their sights set more on the 300 model, there is still a significant percentage who end up opting for the 500. I don’t blame the latter percentile’s higher interest in the 500 as it is not as intimidating as the displacement may imply. The Rebel is powered by a 471cc parallel-twin engine. A helpful beginner addition this year is the assist and slipper clutch which makes clutch lever pull lighter. (Jeff Allen /)A key update that will be helpful to a beginner is the new addition of the assist and slipper clutch. This is said to reduce lever effort by 30 percent and, in practice, the clutch pull was very light eliminating any intimidation factor that a tougher lever actuation may present. The Rebel’s 471cc powerplant remains unchanged for 2020, and I found the power is smooth and manageable, with plenty of low-end torque for getting off the line and enough horsepower to pull the taller gears for cruising and moving at highways speeds. We ran the 500 on the Cycle World in-house dyno and concluded that the parallel twin makes 40.8 hp at 7,900 rpm and 29.9 pound-feet of torque at 6,300 rpm at the rear wheel. Another change is that suspension has been stiffened. Under large, harsh bumps the rear end did buck up, but over potholes or rough roads you will encounter more often, both front and rear were stable. (Jeff Allen /)Honda says spring rates have been stiffened to improve overall comfort and handling. As a result of the increased stiffness, I found that the Rebel 500’s front suspension under hard braking was firm, keeping the chassis balanced and limiting front-end dive under hard braking. Rebound damping was quick initially but slowed on its return to static ride height. Generally, the 41mm fork and twin shocks felt stable over potholes and rough roads with 4.8 inches and 3.8 inches of travel, respectively. However, under larger, harsher bumps the rear did bottom out causing the bike to feel unstable at the rear when I was bucked up out of the seat. Braking with the Nissin hydraulic disc brakes is strong and communicative. (Jeff Allen /)Nissin hydraulic disc brakes are employed by Honda at the front and rear. They do not have a hard initial bite (as should be expected from a beginner-friendly motorcycle) but a strong and communicative feel pulls the bike to a smooth stop as you increase lever effort. This is a positive aspect for beginner riders who need a more controlled, steady stop upon a fast, tight squeeze that can come from less experienced fingers. Both the 300 and 500 are also available in ABS options at a $300 addition to the base MSRP—a solid choice for new and experienced riders. The Rebel’s low-slung weight keeps the bike planted in the turns and twisties. ( Jeff Allen/)The Rebel 500 carries its weight down low which makes not only picking it up off the stand easy but taking the twisties with confidence as well. Hitting the crest of the turns the bike was planted thanks to its low center of gravity and the power pulled it out of the turns with a tame sweep that was confidence inspiring. Without the saddlebag accessory the Rebel 500 tipped our scales at 418 pounds and weighed 422 pounds with the saddlebag attached. The four-lamp LEDs really add to the overall aesthetic and are one of the new additions for 2020. (Jeff Allen /)The new LED lighting throughout is a notable change for the 2020 model year. Four LED lamps are tucked into the circular casing, and LED turn signals and taillight (even the license plate light) are clean and modern. The previous models’ taillight section used to protrude awkwardly, but this has now been tidied up nicely. The new semi-circular gauge is easy to read at a quick glance. (Jeff Allen /)The larger semi-circular LCD gauge is also new. It displays information like time, speed, gear position, and fuel level readout, but is missing a tachometer—an odd omission. Additionally, you can also scroll through the odometer, two tripmeters, average trip mpg, and current mpg. A toggle switch on the hand controls rather than a button on the gauge would be handy, but the Rebel is a more basic ride. Regardless of this, all of the information displayed is easy to read at a quick glance. A comfortable reach to the bars, though the footpeg position is slightly cramped for a 6-footer’s legs. (Jeff Allen /)In terms of the ergonomics I found the riding position to be comfortable for my 6-foot-tall frame. The reach to the bars was natural and relaxed, however, the peg position was slightly compact for my long legs, because it put my knees a little too far above my hips. The accessory seat looks custom with its stitched pattern. It is also updated with the same foam as seen on the 2020 stock seat. (Jeff Allen /)The seat has seen some changes including the thickness and density. Our Rebel test unit was equipped with a seat from Honda’s accessory line, so while we didn’t get a chance to try the stock seat, the foam in the accessory one is also updated to the new 2020 spec. Whether an hour-long or two-hour-long stretch, saddle soreness barely even made itself known with this upgrade. We measured the seat height at a low 27.6 inches (Honda claims 27.2 inches for the stock seat) and its thinness between the legs makes for a very easy stretch to the ground. From the tidier tailsection to the LED lighting and everything in between like the braided hoses, the Rebel’s fit and finish makes it look more expensive than the $6,199 base price. (Jeff Allen /)Honda has paid great attention to the rest of the fit and finish of this motorcycle. It is especially orderly in terms of wiring. The wrapped cables on the handlebars and braided hose covers near the engine show that Honda paid attention to even the minuscule and less exciting details in addition to the updates I mentioned before. And all of these finer points of the finish make this machine look more expensive than it is. The Honda Rebel 500 has an MSRP of $6,199. ABS increases the price to $6,499. (Jeff Allen /)Props to Honda for keeping the pricing unchanged for 2020, despite the upgrades. The base Rebel 300 rings in at $4,499 and the base 500 is $6,199. Both appropriate pricing for entry-level machines. Accessories are available so you can tailor your ride however you like. All of these accessories total out to $410.70. (Jeff Allen /)Our Rebel 500 test unit wasn't quite stock, fitted with elements from Honda’s accessory line. Equipped with the headlight cowl, fork boots, 12-volt accessory socket, custom-looking seat, left 14-liter saddlebag, and saddle bracket, $410.70 was added to the price tag. Overall, Honda’s Rebel 500 carries the torch for the beginner cruiser category and with smooth and torquey power, comfortable ergos, useful updates, commendable attention to detail, and affordable pricing these machines will continue to be enjoyable regardless of gender or skill level. Additional updates on a proven platform continue to make the Rebel 500 an enjoyable ride regardless of gender or skill level. (Jeff Allen /) MSRP: $6,199 (non-ABS)/$6,499 (ABS) Engine: 471cc liquid-cooled parallel twin Bore X Stroke: 67.0 x 66.8mm Transmission/Final Drive: 6-speed/chain Cycle World Measured Horsepower: 40.8 hp @ 7,900 rpm Cycle World Measure Torque: 29.9 lb.-ft. @ 6,300 rpm Fuel System: PGM-FI Clutch: Wet multiplate Engine Management/Ignition: Full transistorized ignition Frame: Diamond-type steel tube Front Suspension: 41mm fork; 4.8-in. travel Rear Suspension: Dual shocks; 3.8-in. travel Front Brake: Nissin hydraulic disc Rear Brake: Nissin hydraulic disc Wheels, Front/Rear: Cast aluminum Tires, Front/Rear: 130/90-16 / 150/80-16 Rake/Trail: 28°/4.3 in. Wheelbase: 58.7 in. Ground Clearance: 5.3 in. Seat Height: 27.2 in. (claimed)/27.6 in. (measured) Fuel Capacity: 3.0 gal. Claimed/Cycle World Measured Wet Weight: 408 lb./418 lb. (w/o saddlebag), 422 lb. (w/ saddlebag) Availability: Now Contact: powersports.honda.com Source

Harley-Davidson, in conjunction with Bonhams, will be auctioning off this custom LiveWire to raise funds for the United Way. (Harley-Davidson /)Harley-Davidson’s trying to do its part. The Motor Company and Bonhams will host an exclusive auction of a one-of-a-kind custom motorcycle and donate the proceeds to United Way Worldwide’s COVID-19 Community Response and Recovery Fund. It’s not unusual for The Motor Company to step up in times of crisis; it has contributed to both US and international relief efforts consistently over the years, from support for 9/11 first responders to donations of bikes in the Haitian earthquake restructuring. The current health crisis is an unprecedented and ongoing one, and H-D is chipping in to raise funds with a customized LiveWire made just for this moment. “We’re all affected by the current situation,” said Jon Bekefy, general manager of brand marketing at Harley-Davidson Motor Company. “As a longtime partner of the United Way, and inspired by their continued resilience in this crisis, Harley-Davidson is honored to have a part to play in the relief effort and to inspire our community about the open road ahead.” Part of the custom treatment on the auction bike include carbon fiber finishes and accessories like this Speed Screen. (Harley-Davidson /)Up for bidding will be an ultra-exclusive version of Harley-Davidson’s electric machine, adorned with a one-off paint scheme and unique graphics package created by the Harley-Davidson styling and design team just for the occasion. This bike, which is a modified “First Strike” edition of the LiveWire (those specially numbered versions celebrating the first 500 units produced) also wears a full array of carbon fiber Genuine Parts and Accessories including carbon fiber Speed Screen Blade, Tail Section Cowl, and Tank Trim. To mark the historical significance, the bike on auction is number #500 of the 500 “First Strike” edition LiveWires and will be signed by members of the Davidson family. “The Harley-Davidson design team created the custom paint and graphics on this motorcycle to accentuate the natural forms of the LiveWire,” Bekefy said. “It’s a very unique and stunning motorcycle that is truly one of a kind.” The winner will also get special delivery of the motorcycle as well as a hosted, behind-the-scenes private tour of the Harley-Davidson Museum. (Andrew Cherney /)On top of that custom LiveWire, the winning bidder and one guest will also be treated to an exclusive delivery experience and a “behind-the-scenes” tour of the Harley-Davidson Museum. That includes all travel and accommodations to Milwaukee as well as a private, one-of-kind walk-through of the museum. The auction will be held by Bonhams digitally to honor the CDC’s social distancing guidelines, and will open for bids online at this site starting May 12 at 10:00 a.m. EST, closing May 26 at 4:00 p.m. All proceeds will be donated to United Way Worldwide’s COVID-19 Community Response and Recovery Fund. Bidders can find more info about the auction and prize package at bonhams.com/LiveWire, which is available for participants from the United States. Sign up here to receive our newsletters. Get the latest in motorcycle reviews, tests, and industry news, subscribe here for our YouTube channel. Brian Gallagher, president and CEO of United Way Worldwide, is thankful for the help;. “The funds raised by auctioning this customized motorcycle will allow us to better provide needed services for individuals and families recovering from COVID-19 and support our efforts to bring communities back stronger than before.” More info on the LiveWire is at Harley-Davidson.com/LiveWire. Source

Kevin Cameron (Robert Martin/)“Vtt-nn! Bark! Rumble!” Who can resist? Here we all are, waiting for the stoplight to turn green, and we are anticipating departure by blipping our throttles. Why do we do it? Cruiser guys do it. Tenured professors of English literature do it. Because motorcycle engines and their fuel systems have been so civilized for decades, there is no longer any physical reason to blip the throttle. We are not “clearin’ ’er out,” because there’s nothing to clear. All bikes now have near-perfect air-fuel mixture at all times because that’s the job of their digital engine management systems. That became obvious when Cycle World testers used to run for top speeds at their “secret desert road.” Here comes the bike, sounding strong and sharp; 192 mph! Hot stuff. Moments later the test rider rolls back to the group, the bike’s engine burbling happily and stably at idle. Or think of dragstrip riders. As the tree starts down, they smoothly bring the revs up to their chosen launch rpm, hold an instant, and go. No brum-brum, no vtt-nn, vtt-nn. Bring revs to the launch point and go. Yet remember the generations of racing mechanics, warming up bikes with rhythmic bursts of throttle, tach needles swinging back and forth. Hailwood’s Honda 250 six warmed up with a rapid, irregular WOOP-woop-WOOP. Manx Norton 500 singles prepared for action with BRUM-bah, BRUM-bah. It was exciting. It was anticipatory. It was a sonic celebration. But why did they do it? Why not just start the engine, check for oil circulation, and leave the bike to warm up on the stand? There was a real reason for throttle blipping, and in some cases it still exists today in certain racing engines. In a valve train with high-pressure valve springs, it is the nature of the lubrication between cam lobes and tappets that sets the speed of minimum idle. Above some critical speed, the cam lobes are spinning fast enough to generate a full lubricating oil film between themselves and their tappets (this can be measured by such means as electrical resistance between the parts). But below that speed, the slower motion allows more time for lubricant to be squeezed out, leaving only a partial oil film. Anti-wear additives in the oil can help here, protecting bare surfaces from scoring. But in some race engines, idling just destroys the cams. Because oil films need speed to form completely, friction rises at low rpm. Both Professor Heywood at MIT and Paul Jette at Del West (the California makers of titanium valves and pneumatic spring systems) told me that rising friction at low speed puts a lower limit on idle rpm. Jette noted that many racing valve systems will fail promptly if idled. On page 3 of general information regarding the Cosworth Norton JAB engine, dated 5/18/1976, it says, “The engine must not be allowed to idle under 2,000 rpm or excessive cam and tappet wear may be experienced.” That is why racing mechanics for 100 years have warmed up engines by throttle blipping. And that made it cool. Production machines naturally have to be engineered to idle indefinitely without valve train damage (ever shuffle forward for a solid 10 minutes in a long summertime toll queue?). The bikes we buy and ride are given cam lobes and tappets wide enough and valve springs soft enough to guarantee satisfactory lubrication at idle. They have oil pumps that at idle bathe moving parts through a multiplicity of holes through cam lobes, supplied through oil galleries into their hollow interiors. This is just sensible engineering. As superior oil additives and super-hard and smooth anti-friction coatings such as DLC have come into general use, even some of today’s 18,000-rpm MotoGP engines are allowed to idle during warm-up. All that is irrelevant for street riders, who continue to enjoy the sound and fury of a bit of throttle-blipping at stoplights. Its origin forgotten, throttle-blipping has become part of the fun. Source

Going under the sword with the 2020 Suzuki Katana. (Jeff Allen /)In 1980, Cycle World dubbed the four-valve Suzuki GS1100 “the best all-around superbike in history.” It turned the quarter-mile in 11.39 seconds at 118.42 mph. It was arguably the finest-handling Japanese production motorcycle of the time. It was practical; it got 47.4 mpg on the CW test loop, and it was as comfortable as anything without a Windjammer fairing. It was a formidable large-capacity motorcycle with real presence. It may have been exceptional, but the GS1100 was nothing new. Like other iconic superbikes of the era—the Kawasaki Z1 and Honda CB750, for instance—the big GS exemplified the Japanese motorcycle industry’s conservative approach toward design. Wide bars, circular headlight, and bread-loaf seat were the status quo. To the unacquainted in 2020, there aren’t a lot of visual cues that distinguish the era’s sit-up superbikes from the more plebeian UJMs that sprouted in their midst. It’s as if Suzuki product planner Etsuo Yokouchi divined the GS’s inevitable decay—chrome oxidized from years of neglect, vinyl ignominiously patched with duct tape fraying at the edges, steel tank pasted with wet leaves. The 2020 version of the best all-around superbike of 1980 is a forgotten also-ran marooned beside a rotting front porch in the damp corner of rural-town USA. It takes little stretch of the imagination to envision Yokouchi, in search of something future-proof, kicking around the Hamamatsu factory like some bored kid in the backwaters, hankering to change the world. What he came up with was the 1982 GS1000S Katana, a futuristic expression of the Japanese design philosophy of wabi-sabi. Though very much based on the GS1100 platform, Suzuki hoped the Katana’s daring departure from established norms would be the answer to stagnant sales. With its rectangular headlight, triangular fairing, and long two-tone seat, there’s a note of asymmetrical discordance—almost an appearance of being unfinished —that articulates an ephemeral beauty, which is a very wabi-sabi virtue. Intentionally or not, the Katana’s radical thinking comes across as deeply rooted in ancient Japanese philosophy. It’s ironic that it was sketched by the German design firm headed by Hans Muth. The second-year Katana is distinguished from the 1982 model by the blue and navy ribbons down its spine and its 1,074cc displacement. In order to meet racing regulations, the limited-production original had a reduced bore to bring displacement to 998cc. (Jeff Allen /)Yokouchi himself previously designed the X-6 Hustler, the GT750, and the GT250, but his stint as manager of the racing department in 1974 and 1975 crystallized his desire to build a full-on sportbike. The Katana’s clip-on handlebars and rearsets (firsts for a production bike from Japan) and notoriously taut suspension left a physical impression on its rider as uncompromising as its visual one. The Katana was a motorcycle that demanded sacrifice from its rider. The Katana became the first movement in Yokouchi’s symphony of speed. But by the time enthusiasts first laid eyes on it, he’d already begun envisioning his masterpiece. Yokouchi wasn’t content with radical. What he wanted was a revolution. And here we are in 2020 with the legendary Katana badge reborn for a new generation. Like the original, the new Katana is largely based on an existing GS, the GSX-S1000. History repeats itself, with Suzuki entrusting the concept design to an outside firm, this go-around headed by Italian designer Rodolfo Frascoli. “[The challenge was to] make it a redefined modern motorcycle with real novelty,” says Kazutaka Ogawa, Suzuki director of design development, “not a revival or a run-of-the-mill déjà vu [motorcycle].” The 2020 Katana in looks-right Metallic Mystic Silver. (Jeff Allen /)The GSX-S and Katana share the same chassis and both utilize a street-tuned version of the long-stroke (73.4 x 59.0mm) 999cc inline-four from the legendary GSX-R1000 K5. Stainless-steel valves replace the K5’s titanium ones, and revised cam timing and gearing (via two additional teeth on the rear sprocket) conspire to deliver a generous helping of torque throughout the rev range for street-riding bliss. The Katana’s lower gearing means that at 90 mph in top gear, the engine is spinning at 6,000 rpm, and there’s significant buzz transmitted through the bars and pegs. Compared with the semitruck-long original, the modern Katana looks compact and stubby, almost football-shaped. At 475 pounds fully fueled, it’s also around 72 pounds lighter than the original. The seat and tank are relatively narrow considering the four cylinders situated across the frame, but the rider is perched on top—rather than in—the motorcycle. After an hour in the saddle, the seat begins to communicate its, ahem, minimalism. The bars are lower and narrower than on a typical naked bike, so just when you start to feel antsy in the saddle, you also begin to pine for slightly higher, closer bars to accommodate a more upright position. Coupled with the nonexistent wind protection, the only option is to hunker down in search of a clean pocket of air and a different position to give the shoulders a break. Etsuo Yokouchi. (Cycle World Archives/)But if one must hunker, finding a twisty road to do it on is the natural choice. There, you’ll be dropping your head and hanging off anyway, and the Katana will be at home in its corner-terrorizing habitat. Heading into Borrego Springs on S22 (er, make that “the S22,” to use the Californian’s vernacular) is a reminder that once you escape the gridlocked hellhole of Southern California, it has some of the finest roads anywhere on the planet. The road ascends and descends with a mix of sweepers and third-gear corners that keep the Katana in the ­generously broad sweet spot of its rev range. Trail-braking hard into downhill hairpins, the front suspension doesn’t offer the last word in hard-braking support, too quickly compressing through its travel and skipping off small bumps, ultimately making the front-end feel a bit vague. Getting on the gas to take load off the front alleviates much of the issue, however, so the Katana tracks well midcorner and through the exit. Otherwise, the fully adjustable 43mm KYB front and rear shocks (adjustable for pre-load and rebound) are compliant over rough surfaces. With its Brembo radial monoblock caliper (front) and Nissin (rear), the Katana recorded a 60-to-zero braking test in 133.9 feet, comparable to the 136.8 feet recorded by the Honda CB1000R that we tested in 2019. Unfortunately, the Katana’s system doesn’t offer the same feedback through the lever as higher-spec items. In terms of handling, Michael Gilbert, CW’s ­resident MotoAmerica racer, notes: “The Katana requires a degree of physical exertion to change directions in side-to-side transitions, but once settled into the corner, its chassis is impeccably planted, confidently carving corners with the prowess of a sportbike.” It’s worth remembering that the Katana doesn’t disguise its rotating mass with a fancy counter-rotating crank like many of today’s cutting-edge literbikes. The K5 engine is, after all, essentially a 15-year-old unit. Polarizing style belied the original’s conventional underpinnings. (Cycle World Archives/)But that 15-year-old engine is the Katana’s party piece. The GSX-R1000 K5 is one of the most notorious motorcycles of the halcyon age of race-replica superbikes. Valentino Rossi describes his 500cc grand prix motorcycle as a “bike beyond all reason.” Mere mortals would make a similar remark about the GSX-R1000 K5. It was an absolute gorilla and delivered all its power with not one rider aid, except excellent throttle response and predictable, abundant torque. Suffice it to say, there’s ample reason BMW studied the K5 powerplant when building its first S1000RR superbike. Subsequent Gixxers got heavier as emissions standards grew stricter, and power modes and other electronics were added, so in many regards, the K5 represents perhaps the purest evolution of raw GSX-R. The 1982 Katana’s dash had dial needles facing in opposite directions. (Cycle World Archives/)Like a 15-year-old barrel of bourbon that’s lost more heavenly fluid to the angels than its seven-year-old counterpart, the Katana motor has lost a few ponies and revs in its revamped role as a roadbike. Suzuki chief engineer Satoru Terada emphasizes: “We didn’t want to unnecessarily pursue peak power, but instead focus on pursuing the ideal characteristic for streetfighter models that correspond to Katana’s positioning in the market.” On our dyno, the Katana produces 139.6 horsepower at 10,100 rpm and 76.3 pound-feet of torque at 9,200 rpm. The last time we put a K5 on the dyno, it produced 156.9 horsepower at 11,500 rpm and 78.9 pound-feet of torque at 8,600 rpm. So, while the Katana’s unit isn’t the uncut original, it’s still a high-proof swig of Japanese firewater. And to hear it is to know it. That muscular, classic-four rumble is Suzuki’s leitmotif—all induction howl and on-the-pipe savagery. The exhaust note sounds bassy and full by 2020 standards. Accessory switches and choke knob are integrated into sidecover. (Cycle World Archive/)At the first touch of the throttle, it’s all systems go. While on-off throttle isn’t abrupt—the ’16 GSX-S’s fueling niggles were resolved with ignition and EFI updates in 2018 and 2019—the throttle is like a hair trigger, requiring the most delicate touch. On the gas, the motor has that frenetic yet buttery power delivery characteristic of a 1,000cc four. There’s so much grunt down low that taking corners in too high a gear isn’t really a thing. But hit 7,000 rpm and the motor comes to life, resurrecting Y2K5 images of our wayward, wheel-lofting youth. Where the K5 was searingly fast—just fast as hell—the Katana is simply fast. Fast as purgatory maybe. Fast enough that it’s hard to restrain yourself from being a glutton of vroom, gorging yourself on whopping helpings of horsepower and noise. As the poet William Blake said, “Those who restrain desire do so because theirs is weak enough to be restrained”—perhaps not a great excuse in the event a cop pings you in a moment of unrestrained throttle twisting, but still. 2020 Suzuki Katana (Jeff Allen /)On a Katana, desire is measured by quarter-mile trap speeds. At our testing facility, it set a time of 10.86 seconds at 133.3 mph and went from zero to 60 in 3.2 seconds—that’s not too far off times set by current superbikes. With an excess of exuberance, we found the Katana delivered an average of 43 mpg. With its diminutive 3.2-gallon tank, expect to start getting nervous when the tripmeter hits just 100 miles. The 2020 Katana’s character lines reference the original’s, but the designers took liberties with them in order to give the motorcycle a 21st-century identity. (Jeff Allen /)The Katana has a slipper/assist clutch that’s as light as can be and barely needs to be touched on upshifts. While a quickshifter would be nice, the gearbox is so lovely, it doesn’t seem a glaring omission. Besides, blipping the throttle on downshifts provides a period-correct pleasure. It’s easy to find neutral at a standstill; the shift lever feels light, and the close-ratio box just begs to be frequently exploited for the pure joy of it. That being said, at $13,499, the Katana isn’t ­particularly well-equipped. It has nonswitchable ABS and three-­level traction control (plus off), but neither are lean-angle-sensitive. The LCD dash is a bit outmoded, and several of our testers found it difficult to navigate. It also lacks the brightness we’ve grown accustomed to with TFT displays. The 2020 Katana is a self-assured roadster powered by a version of one of the all-time-great inline-fours. (Jeff Allen /)There’s no doubt aesthetics are an important part of the Katana’s formula. Consequently, pride of ownership is of great value here, so the stakes are high when it comes to fit-and-finish. Unfortunately, the Katana falls a bit short. Welds on the aluminum frame are inelegant-looking compared with those of the K5, which were as precise and delicate as the piping on a wedding cake. Likewise, the plastic tank cover has a thin seam discernible through the paint, and the seat-cover material has an odd latex feel. Gilbert says the whole package feels like a ­15-year-old motorcycle. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. In its homage to 1981, Suzuki ended up with an ode to 2005. But there’s more to it than that. For 2020, Suzuki took a sportbike and turned it into a standard. In the ’80s, it took a standard and turned it into a sportbike. It illustrates the vast evolution of the motorcycle (and of market demands) in 40 short years. It has the right name, the look, and the motor—did we mention the motor?—to do Etsuo Yokouchi proud. (Jeff Allen /)The original Katana marks a turning point in that evolution, a distinct moment in a two-wheeled world on the cusp of change. Yokouchi’s Katana looks radical to this day, but it was not his revolution. That would be the 1985 GSX-R750, the bike that made him the father of the modern sportbike. While the Katana’s air-cooled engine and steel-tube double-cradle frame were mechanically conventional, the GSX-R was revolutionary in practically every way. In retrospect, the original Katana is a transition bike, a one-way bridge between the sit-up superbikes of the 1970s and race-replica R sportbikes ushered in by the first GSX-R. The 2020 Katana is so special because it transports its rider back and forth between both of those worlds. It’s a mashup of the evolution of motorcycling, the missing link between generations. It bends the line between the GS1100, GS1000S Katana, GSX-R750, and GSX-R1000 K5, transforming it into a closed loop. The challenge with building a retro bike—especially one that reinterprets an icon that was all about looking ahead—is it risks coming out retrograde, not retrospective. But the Katana’s unique blend of performance, style, and authentically Japanese sensibilities makes it a true retrospective that honors not just its namesake, but also Suzuki’s storied history and pursuit of GS excellence. 2020 Suzuki Katana Type Liquid-cooled inline-four Displacement 999cc Bore x Stroke 73.4 x 59.0mm Compression Ratio 12.2:1 Valvetrain DOHC, 4 valves/cylinder Induction (4) 44mm throttle bodies Final Drive 6-speed/chain Front Suspension KYB 43mm fork, fully adjustable; 4.7-in. travel Rear Suspension KYB monoshock, adjustable rebound, spring preload; 5.1-in. travel Front Tire Dunlop Roadsport 2 120/70-17 Rear Tire Dunlop Roadsport 2 190/50-17 Rake / Trail 25.0°/3.9 in. Wheelbase 57.6 in. Seat Height 33.2 in. Fuel Capacity 3.2 gal. Dry Weight 456 lb. Horsepower 139.6 hp @ 10,100 rpm Torque 76.3 lb.-ft. @ 9,200 rpm Fuel Consumption 43 mpg Quarter-Mile 10.86 sec. @ 133.3 mph 0–30 1.64 sec. 0–60 3.20 sec. 0–100 6.04 sec. Top-Gear Roll on 40–60 2.54 sec. Top-Gear Roll on 60–80 2.66 sec. Braking 30–0 33.7 ft. Braking 60–0 133.9 ft. Price $13,499 Source

2020 Husqvarna FE 350 (Husqvana/)The 2020 Husqvarna FE 350 is a 350cc four-stroke enduro bike aimed at trail riders looking for a 50-state emissions legal off-road motorcycle. With its midlevel displacement, the FE 350 is designed to offer a 450-like power-to-weight ratio, while maintaining the light and agile feel of a 250. Although it shares many of the same components as the 2020 KTM 350 XCF-W of which it’s based off of, the FE 350 features shock linkage, whereas the 350 XCF-W is equipped with a Progressive Damping System (PDS) shock. 2020 Husqvarna FE 350 (Husqvana/)2020 Husqvarna FE 350 Reviews, Comparisons, And Competition In our review of the FE 350, test rider Allan Brown explained why the FE 350 is best suited to a beginner or intermediate rider in stock trim and that it could suit a higher-level rider with some aftermarket modifications: “The 2020 Husqvarna FE 350 is very easy to ride and it doesn’t feel intimidating when you start out on it. As your skills improve, the bike has the potential to improve with you. The suspension could easily be revalved and the engine is quietly waiting for someone to unleash its potential.” Sign up here to receive our newsletters. Get the latest in motorcycle reviews, tests, and industry news, subscribe here for our YouTube channel. Before we hit the trails on the 2020 Husqvarna FE 350, we ran it on our in-house dyno. As far as competition in the four-stroke enduro bike segment, the FE 350’s two closest rivals would be the 2020 KTM 350 XCF-W and 2020 Yamaha WR250F. At $10,499, the FE 350 costs the same as the 350 XCF-W and $1,900 more than the WR250F. 2020 Husqvarna FE 350 (Husqvana/)Husqvarna FE 350 Updates For 2020 Although there technically was an FE 350 model in 2019, it was a dual sport model, and Husqvarna renamed its 350cc four-stroke street-legal dirt bike to “FE 350s” for 2020. After discontinuing its 350cc four-stroke enduro bike in 2017, Husqvarna brought it back in 2020 under the same name of FE 350. With that, the FE 350 has changed significantly since it was last on the market in 2016. In its reemergence among Husqvarna’s lineup, the FE 350 features a completely new chassis, new suspension components, and a new engine. 2020 Husqvarna FE 350 Claimed Specifications Price: $10,499 Engine: Liquid-cooled DOHC single-cylinder Displacement: 350cc Bore x Stroke: 88.0 x 57.5mm Horsepower: N/A Torque: N/A Transmission: 6-speed Final Drive: Chain Seat Height: 37.4 in. Rake: 26.5° Trail: N/A Front Suspension: 48mm inverted fork, fully adjustable; 11.8-in. travel Rear Suspension: Fully adjustable; 11.8-in. travel Front Tire: 80/100-21 Rear Tire: 110/100-18 Wheelbase: 58.5 in. Fuel Capacity: 2.2 gal. Claimed Wet Weight: 236 lb. Cycle World Tested Specifications Seat Height: 36.6 in. Wet Weight: 251 lb. Rear-Wheel Horsepower: 36.9 hp @ 9,400 rpm Rear-Wheel Torque: 21.7 lb.-ft. @ 8,400 rpm Source

A half-century of development kept the XR750 at the front of the pack for most of that time. Now with the Indian FTR750 winning in dominating fashion and Harley-Davidson campaigning the XG750, could the XR ever win again? (Harley-Davidson /)The previous two installments of this 50th anniversary series centered on the genesis and development of Harley-Davidson’s XR750, as well as the outsized contributions to its glorious history made by three titanic talents in Jay Springsteen, Scott Parker, and Chris Carr. However, while those stories of the XR span from the ’60s into the new millennium and effectively defined the careers of perhaps the three greatest riders American Flat Track has ever known, it would be a great disservice to the bike to suggest its history ends there. In truth, the legacy of the XR750 transcends far beyond even those eras, heroes, and the sport of dirt track racing entirely. Addressing that last point first, we could argue that no two-wheeled icon and their equipment have achieved the same sort of celebrity or has been etched so permanently into the public consciousness as daredevil Evel Knievel and his fleet of red-white-and-blue XR750s. What child of the ’70s didn’t have at least one Evel Knievel XR750 toy? Evel Knievel brought the XR750 into nearly every American home. (Motorcyclist Archives/)And the XR didn’t only succeed on dirt or in the air. Cal Rayborn was the hero of the ’72 Transatlantic Match Races on a roadrace-spec Iron XR750 TT, and then gave the Aluminum XR its only two GNC roadrace victories later that year at Indianapolis Raceway Park and Laguna Seca. Mark Brelsford actually earned the first (and only other) GNC roadrace win for the platform in ’71 at Loudon on an Iron XR. A couple of years later, Brelsford’s Number 1 Aluminum XR750 TT went up in flames (along with his hopes of defending the Grand National Championship) in a dramatic crash at Daytona International Speedway. A decade later, that same destroyed bike was pulled from purgatory and re-forged into a pumped-up 1,000cc XR-based racer that promptly won the Battle of the Twins race at Daytona with Springsteen at the controls. The resurrected machine was then dubbed “Lucifer’s Hammer,” wrenched by famed H-D tuner Don Tilley, and wielded by Gene Church. The pairing went on to claim the AMA BOTT crown for three years running from ’84–’86. But even when taking only the XR’s flat track accomplishments into consideration, there’s so much more to the story. While Springsteen, Parker, and Carr did combine for an astonishing 183 main event victories and 19 Grand National Championship wins, simple arithmetic tells you that still leaves an additional 319 wins and 18 GNCs on the docket. Digging deeper, 55 riders other than the Big Three won races on the XR750, and 11 of those 55 earned at least one Grand National Championship aboard it. Over 50 years, the Harley-Davidson XR750 has captured 502 wins and 37 Grand National Championships. Is a 503rd win possible? (Harley-Davidson /)The full story of XR750’s reign also happens to be very much a modern one. Of those 18 non-Springsteen/Parker/Carr titles, the bulk of them came following Carr’s final Grand National Championship in 2005. It’s only due to recency bias that it feels like the recent history of American Flat track can be summed up as the rise of the Kawasakis—culminating in Bryan Smith’s 2016 crown—followed one year later by both Harley-Davidson’s pivot to the XR750’s successor, the production-based XG750R, and the return of Indian Motorcycle with its purpose-built XR killer, the FTR750. The reality is the XR750 played as the backdrop for all of those monumental developments, leading ubiquity to instantly seeming like antiquity. The all-guns-blazing reemergence of Indian Motorcycle, in particular, had a massive impact on the sport. Indian followed the blueprint utilized so effectively by Honda in the mid-’80s with its once-dominant RS750 and perfected it with the added edge of three decades of technological advancements to call upon. 2000 Grand National Champion Joe Kopp was brought onboard in a testing and developmental role in 2016 and found the FTR to be instantly familiar following a long and successful career campaigning XRs. Indian’s FTR750 has dominated since its arrival. (Indian Motorcycle /)“It has a purpose-built engine like in the XR750… I wouldn't say they copied it, but there are a lot of the same things, like a four-speed transmission and big heavy flywheels on the crank…a lot of similarities,” Kopp said. “The only thing that's really different, I'd say, is the modern technology with fuel injection and ignition timing and stuff like that.” Kopp gave the all-new FTR750 its AFT debut in a shakedown ride at the 2016 season finale ahead of its impending full-scale 2017 campaign. The 47-year-old turned heads with his seventh-place run in the Indian’s maiden performance at the Santa Rosa Mile, but that effort was largely overshadowed by Brad Baker, who gave the XR750 a proper send-off by winning the machine’s final outing as a full-factory racebike in blowout fashion. There was no denying Indian Motorcycle the spotlight the very next day however, when it enacted the next stage of its plan for dirt track domination. Yamaha had beaten H-D and its superior XR750 in the ’70s thanks primarily to the singular brilliance of Kenny Roberts. Honda had then done the same with its outstanding RS750 and a pair of superstars in Ricky Graham and Bubba Shobert in the ’80s. Indian took it one step further. It hired the series’ three most recent Grand National Champions, Smith, Baker, and perhaps the biggest catch of all, Jared Mees, assembling its own version of the “Wrecking Crew.” By that point, Mees had been well on his way to expanding the exclusive “Titans of the XR750” club to four. Before signing with Indian, he’d already claimed four Grand National Championships on the XR and ranked seventh in the machine’s history with 20 victories to his credit. Jared Mees took four GNC titles on the XR750. (Dave Hoenig/)Since joining Indian, Mees has only accelerated his assault on the record books, storming past Springsteen in all-time wins (now with 48 to Springer’s 43, trailing only Parker’s 94 and Carr’s 78). And as a result, the perception of his place has likely been forever altered; the same way Ricky Graham, who took the 1982 Grand National Championship on an XR750, is best remembered as the master of the RS750, Mees seems destined to be most closely aligned with the FTR750 after his racing days are done. Mees clinched the FTR’s first title in its opening attempt with two races still remaining in the 2017 season. With the championship already locked up, he entered the penultimate race of the year in Fort Worth, Texas, riding a run of five consecutive oval wins—a streak that likely would have been eight if not for some uncharacteristic start line mishaps at Lima Half-Mile. Similar to the situation that helped pave the way for Honda’s overwhelming success in the ’80s, Indian’s ascent transpired while H-D’s factory race program was most vulnerable, deep in the development phase of the new XG platform. Yet, despite being “officially” left behind, the XR750 still had some fight left in it yet. Privateer Jeffrey Carver Jr., showed up for the Lone Star Half-Mile in a van with just crew chief Ben Evans in tow and a single XR750. Jeffrey Carver Jr. earned the XR750 its 502nd win. (Scott Hunter, AFT/)“We actually broke our Kawi the week before,” Carver explained. “We thought we were going to have to ride the backup, but its motor wasn't as good. We were sitting there at the shop, and Gary Goodwin was there. He had given us an XR, and he was like, 'What about that bike?' “ 'I don't know… We’d need two of them.' “ ‘Welp, you’ve got one good one and that's all you need. Imagine being the last one to ever win a race on an XR750.’ “Man, I was so fired up. I'm not one to say, ‘Hey, we're going to go to this race and win.’ I just let the energy play itself out.” Even with a field stacked with Indian FTR750s, H-D XG750s, Kawasaki Ninja 650s, and Yamaha FZ-07s, nothing stood a chance against Carver and that XR750 on a slick Texas Motor Speedway surface. “When you’re on a track, the XR delivers the horsepower down to the track. When it gets slippery, the XR just has the characteristics to really hook up to the ground,” nine-time GNC winner Parker said. “The Yamahas struggled at that in their era and the Hondas struggled at that for a period of time too. That's the big thing. It will hook up to the racetrack where the other bikes would struggle trying to get tires to hook up onto the dirt.” Mees just couldn’t catch Carver in Texas as the privateer took the last win for the XR750. (Scott Hunter, AFT /)“I had been close—podiums and running up front,” Carver said. “At the beginning of that year, I was going to quit and maybe try to find something else to do, at least part time. I didn't even know if I was going to the West Coast for the races. To come out and have that drive and that grit, I didn't care, you had the factory Harleys, the factory Indians. To be able to go there and win—it was just amazing. I just had this determination in my eyes that day.” Only one rider could so much as keep Carver in sight that evening: Mees, who finished more than a second and a half back in second. “I tried so hard to gain on him; I couldn't bridge the gap,” Mees admitted. Carver's mechanic Ben Evans proudly celebrates the victory. (Scott Hunter, AFT /)As the weekends and seasons continue to add up, Carver’s underdog victory in Texas seems more and more likely to go down as the XR750’s last hurrah. He did wheel it back out at the Atlanta Short Track early in 2018 to score another podium finish, but the series has only further fallen into Indian’s clutches. Since Carver’s upset, the FTR750 has taken 34 out of a possible 37 main event triumphs. Meanwhile, while improving, Harley’s factory XG750R racebike is still looking for its first. While impossible to predict at the time, Carver did give the XR750 one final bragging right. The FTR750 closed out the decade with 47 wins. And thanks to Carver, the XR750 ended the 2010s with 48. Granted, the FTR amassed those wins in much less time. The XR750 is now largely absent from AFT competition. Danny Eslick did manage to score points on it last season at Lima, serving as a fleeting reminder of the potential of its continued relevance. “Sure, one hasn't won since 2017,” Kopp said. “But we really haven't seen them much on the track since then with a real capable rider. Honestly, there are some tracks—if I was 20 or 30 years younger—I would still choose the XR750 at times over an Indian, honestly.” Kopp in the midst of his 2000 championship hunt. (Dave Hoenig/)Asked if he believed it could still win, Parker said, “I do. I really do. Why would you not expect it? My career ended in 2000. Twenty years later they kept tweaking it here, tweaking it there. You can have a 1,000-horsepower motorcycle, but you've still got to hook it up to the ground, and that's the key issue. Just because you've got a faster, more powerful bike, doesn't mean you can go faster around a circle.” “I know you could still win on that thing,” Kopp added. “There are certain tracks where it’s favorable in my mind. A slick clay car track—the slicker the better for that thing—and with a more rounded straightaway, it would be hard to beat still. I’m confident in that.” The XR750 has become widely considered to be the most successful racebike in motorcycle racing history, perhaps the greatest vehicle in motorsports history. Is there even any competition? What other machine boasts a half-century reign spent transforming talents into heroes and heroes into legends? And best of all, this legacy might not yet be fully written. Source

2020 Yamaha XT250 (Yamaha /)Of Yamaha’s three dual sport bikes, and one of those is the simplistic XT250. Although it is designed more for the casual rider, the XT250 packs a reliable punch. It is powered by a 249cc, air-cooled, four-stroke engine. The suspension duties are handled by a nonadjustable 35mm conventional fork, while the shock is adjustable for preload and rebound damping. With its estimated fuel mileage of 76 mpg and its 2.6-gallon fuel tank (2.4-gallon for the California model), the XT250 can cover a decent amount of ground on a single fill-up. 2020 Yamaha XT250 (Yamaha /)2020 Yamaha XT250 Reviews, Comparisons, And Competition Some competitors for the Yamaha XT250 would include the Kawasaki KLX230, Honda CRF250L, and Kawasaki KLX250. At $5,199, the XT250 is $600 more than the KLX230, the same price as the CRF250L, and $200 less than the KLX250. Yamaha XT250 Updates For 2020 If you liked everything about the 2019 Yamaha XT250, you’re in luck because the 2020 model is exactly the same. 2020 Yamaha XT250 (Yamaha /)2020 Yamaha XT250 Claimed Specifications Price: $5,199 Engine: Air-cooled SOHC single-cylinder Displacement: 249cc Bore x Stroke: 74.0 x 58.0mm Horsepower: N/A Torque: N/A Transmission: 5-speed Final Drive: Chain Seat Height: 31.9 in. Rake: 26.4° Trail: 4.2 in. Front Suspension: 35mm conventional fork, nonadjustable; 8.9-in. travel Rear Suspension: Preload and rebound damping adjustable; 7.1-in. travel Front Tire: 2.75-21 Rear Tire: 120/80-18 Wheelbase: 53.5 in. Fuel Capacity: 2.6 gal., 2.4 gal. (CA model) Claimed Wet Weight: 291 lb. Source

2020 Husqvarna FX 450 (Husqvarna/)The largest-displacement off-road competition motorcycle from Husqvarna is the FX 450. Although it shares many of its components with the FC 450 motocross bike, the FX 450’s softer suspension settings, larger 2.25-gallon fuel tank, 18-inch rear wheel, kickstand, and Dunlop Geomax AT81 tires make it more suitable for cross-country racing. 2020 Husqvarna FX 450 Reviews, Comparisons, And Competition Since it was first introduced in 2017, we have tested, dyno’d, and compared the FX 450 against others in the 450cc four-stroke cross-country motorcycle segment. In our review of the 2020 model, test rider Allan Brown had plenty of good things to say about the bike: “The FX 450’s strengths are plenty of smooth and usable power, precise handling, a lightweight feeling, and great ergonomics.” 2020 Husqvarna FX 450 (Husqvarna/)Its competitors include the 2020 KTM 450 XC-F, 2020 Yamaha YZ450FX, and 2020 Honda CRF450RX. With its suggested retail price of $10,699, the FX 450 costs $100 more than the 450 XC-F, $1,100 more than the YZ450FX, and $1,000 more than the CRF450RX. Husqvarna FX 450 Updates For 2020 New graphics are the only change the FX 450 received for 2020, but the bike was heavily updated the year before with a stiffer frame, updated suspension settings, and a shorter and lighter cylinder head. 2020 Husqvarna FX 450 (Husqvarna/)2020 Husqvarna FX 450 Claimed Specifications Price: $10,699 Engine: Liquid-cooled SOHC single-cylinder Displacement: 450cc Bore x Stroke: 95.0 x 63.4mm Horsepower: N/A Torque: N/A Transmission: 5-speed Final Drive: Chain Seat Height: 37.4 in. Rake: 26.1° Trail: N/A Front Suspension: 48mm inverted fork, fully adjustable; 12.2-in. travel Rear Suspension: Fully adjustable; 11.8-in. travel Front Suspension: 48mm inverted fork, fully adjustable; 12.2-in. travel Rear Suspension: Fully adjustable; 11.8-in. travel Front Tire: 90/90-21 Rear Tire: 110/100-18 Wheelbase: 58.5 in. Fuel Capacity: 2.25 gal. Claimed Dry Weight: 223 lb. Cycle World Tested Specifications Seat Height: 37.2 in. Wet Weight: 239 lb. Rear-Wheel Horsepower: 51.1 hp @ 10,000 rpm Rear-Wheel Torque: 32.2 lb.-ft. @ 7,600 rpm Source

2020 Yamaha Star Venture (Yamaha /)When Yamaha’s big tourer made its debut in 2018, the marquee item on the all-new, freshly designed Star Venture was the air-cooled V-twin engine, a change from the V-4 arrangement of previous models. But that massive 113ci (1,854cc) mill is designed specifically for long-distance touring and the counterbalanced engine is rubber-mounted in an entirely new chassis, while modern electronics get packed into every nook and cranny of this dresser. All the cushy touring amenities are back as well, like cruise control, traction control, linked ABS, Sure-Park parking assist, infotainment, ride modes, an adjustable backrest, and more. 2020 Yamaha Star Venture (Yamaha /)2020 Yamaha Star Venture Reviews, Comparisons, And Competition In his First Ride Review of the Venture (with his wife aboard), Joe Gustafson remarked, “The new motor has torque everywhere, stump-pulling, smooth-as-silk torquey goodness. Even two-up and fully laden, the most the bike required was two downshifts on the steepest of inclines.” Hardcore tourers and happy couples alike will be drawn to this luxury tourer for all those reasons, and those folks will be comparing it to competitors like the Honda Gold Wing Tour, BMW’s K 1600 Grand America, and perhaps the more retrofied Indian Roadmaster. 2020 Yamaha Star Venture (Yamaha /)Yamaha Star Venture Updates For 2020 There are exactly zero changes for 2020, including the price. Impact Blue joins Granite Gray as a new color option, however. The Transcontinental Option Package upgrade adds supplemental LED fog lamps, additional storage for the passenger, and an alarmed security system. 2020 Yamaha Star Venture Claimed Specifications Price $24,999–$26,999 Engine Air-cooled V-twin; 4 valves/cyl. Displacement 1,854cc Bore x Stroke 100.0 x 118.0mm Horsepower N/A Torque 53.8 lb.-ft. @ 3,750 rpm Transmission 6-speed; multiplate assist and slipper clutch Final Drive Belt Seat Height 27.4 in. Rake 31.0° Trail 5.7 in. Front Suspension 46mm telescopic fork; 5.1-in. travel Rear Suspension Single preload adjustable shock; 4.3-in. travel Front Tire 130/70R-18 Rear Tire 200/55R-16 Wheelbase 67.3 in. Fuel Capacity 6.6 gal. Claimed Wet Weight 957 lb. Source

CFMoto’s new 1250J police model is said to output 140 hp, making it the most powerful motorcycle to come out of China. (CFMoto/)Back in late 2017, the Chinese firm CFMoto surprised the motorcycle world with a spectacular concept bike—the awkwardly named V.02 NK—that demonstrated what it believed lay in its future. Now the chances of the concept becoming reality have taken a huge step forward as its engine has hit the streets in China as the basis for the nation’s latest police bike. When it showed the V.02NK, CFMoto offered few technical details, only suggesting a 1,000cc-plus capacity, but it quickly emerged that the engine was a development of KTM’s LC8 V-twin. CFMoto is already KTM’s partner firm in China; it builds the 200 and 390 Duke models and is due to start manufacturing the 790 Duke and 790 Adventure in a purpose-made plant later this year. However, it hasn’t simply borrowed the existing LC8 engine in either current 1,301cc “1290” form or its earlier iterations. Instead CFMoto has used the basics of the engine to create a purpose-made 1,279cc V-twin that’s certified to make 140 hp in the new CF1250J police bike, which is also destined to be offered as a BMW-rivaling tourer. That power figure makes it easily the most powerful motorcycle to emerge from China, and one that’s on par with similarly sized tourers from European firms like BMW in terms of performance. Although in current form it wears police accessories, the CF1250J could easily be the platform for a civilian spin-off. (CFMoto/)The CF1250J While the new CF1250J police bike doesn’t look much like the V.02NK concept, its engine is externally virtually identical. Although the layout and general design comes via KTM, the engine’s cases, cylinders, and heads are all noticeably different from any KTM version of the engine and its internal measurements are also unique to CFMoto. Although the firm has yet to make any official statement about the CF1250J, its specifications are revealed in Chinese type-approval documents, which confirm that it makes 140 hp and weighs 655 pounds, with a top speed of 149 mph. CFMoto’s V.02NK concept from 2017 used the basics of KTM’s LC8 engine to create a purpose-made V-twin. (CFMoto/)The CF1250J’s existence was first revealed in design patents last year, but now it has hit the streets in real-world police use, showing that its development period is complete and production is underway. Given the vast size of China’s police and security services, if CFMoto has secured the contract to supply the next generation of official bikes, it’s a guarantee of thousands of sales—and enough to largely offset the considerable R&D expense of developing the bike. CFMoto has previously followed the same pattern with its existing 650cc parallel-twin bikes. A police-spec touring version led the way, becoming the standard motorcycle of China’s government forces, and it led to naked, adventure-sport, and sport-touring derivatives to be sold to the general public. What we’ve seen of the bike so far flies in the face of stereotypes of substandard, derivative Chinese motorcycles. The firm outsources its styling to Kiska Design, which is part-owned by KTM’s parent firm Pierer Mobility and responsible for the visuals of all KTM’s current offerings. CFMoto has also turned to the West when it comes to parts and technology, outfitting some models with Brembo brakes and Bosch electronics. And on the subject of electronics, videos of the new police bikes on Chinese social media reveal the biggest TFT color instrument display that we’ve yet seen on two wheels. Production is underway for the Brembo-and-Bosch-equipped CF1250J. It’s destined for use by Chinese police and security services. (CFMoto/)What Does That Mean For The V.02NK? Although the concept bike isn’t likely to reach production exactly as it appeared in 2017, the fact that the engine is ready for the limelight means that something similar is sure to be on CFMoto’s mind. In the firm’s current streetbike range, the naked 650NK is the mainstay model, and that means an unfaired 1250NK built around the new 1,279cc twin is likely to be the first civilian spin-off from the CF1250J. The police bike’s chassis isn’t easy to make out thanks to its all-enveloping bodywork, but design patents for the machine show a tubular steel frame very similar to that used on KTM’s old-generation (2014–2019) Super Duke. That means it could easily be fitted with a single-sided swingarm, as used on the Super Duke and the V.02NK concept, and wrapped in stripped-back bodywork. We likely won’t see the V.02NK concept reach production in this form, though a CFMoto naked model based on the new 1,279cc engine is likely. (CFMoto/)It’s clear that some elements of the V.02NK have been dropped. The concept featured an underseat radiator, for instance, whereas the CF1250J has a conventional front-mounted unit. The unusual rear shock mounting of the concept, which avoided a conventional upper shock bracket on the frame, is also unlikely to reach production. Since CFMoto already has a worldwide dealer network (although limited in the US), offering ATVs and side-by-sides as well as motorcycles, any bike it develops isn’t likely to be kept for the Chinese market. Whether the firm’s deal with KTM puts any limits on the styles of bike it can create around the new engine or the markets it can sell in remains unknown, but if it follows the pattern set in the existing 650cc range, we should expect the new V-twin to go into a “1250NK” naked bike, surely inspired by the V.02NK, and then into a street-oriented adventure-sport “MT” model and a sport-touring “GT.” Source