Australian Motorcyclist Issue #108 by Tony Clemenger

HARLEYDAVIDSON SPORTSTER

HARPER TRONGER MARTER

THE CLASS OF 2022

We all love new bikes!

HARLEY-DAVIDSON SPORTSTER S

Something just a bit different

YAMAHA YZF-R7

A new kind of fun

APRILIA TUONO V4

Softer, but still hardcore

PUB

How

ROBE,

AMM/EDELWEISS

Experience

“SMILE LIKE A MONKEY… WITH A NEW BANANA!”

Stuart

Editor Stuart Woodbury

Contributing Editor J Peter Thoeming

Sales Manager Ralph Leavsey-Moase ralph@ausmotorcyclist.com.au

Designers FriendsLoveDesign.com

Photographers Nick Wood Creative, Half Light Photographic

Contributors Robert Lovas, Boris Mihailovic, Chris Pickett, The Possum, Colin Whelan, Nick Wood, Bob Wozga

Editorial contactus@ausmotorcyclist.com.au

Subscription enquiries ausmotorcyclist.com.au, contactus@ausmotorcyclist.com.au

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E

NEW YEAR W

ELCOME 2022! LET’S HOPE life gets back to some sort of normality and we just face that we have to live with covid and whatever variants come from it. We here at Australian Motorcyclist have two massive readers’ tours planned and set in stone. The ﬁrst is with IMT Bike for our Land of Vineyards Tour (September) which will be for all motorcyclists who don’t mind tasting the ﬁner side of life while riding some truly amazing roads –not to mention having a huge laugh with me!

Our second readers’ tour is with the largest motorcycle tour company in the world, Edelweiss Bike Travel. Our tour will visit Morocco (October) with some special inclusions no other tour will be privy to. Funny man, Ralph will be your laughs at every stop, just don’t ask him about… ah hell, just take the piss out of him at every opportunity you get!

If you got to come along, or have spoken to someone that came along on one of our readers’ tours to New Zealand with Paradise Motorcycle Tours you’ll know how much fun can be had, and the pranks that can occur

at any time – usually by me!

I got out on my new purchase, the super sweet Suzuki Bandit 1250 and loved blasting it up Mother Putty testing the Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV tyres. I was lucky to really not share the road with anyone else and rode like a cut cat up and back. One thing I have noticed about Mother Putty is how much more rough it’s become since my last ride along there. My back is still feeling it and the local chemist has a fatter wallet thanks to my purchase of pain killers! LOL!

My back also didn’t take to kind to me riding like a cut cat at Sydney Motorsport Park for the Yamaha R7 launch. So you know what the remedy for all of this was? A couple more Sangrias and loads of laughs on Christmas day with family. I hope you had a great xmas and new year period and got out for a ride or two or three days

New bike releases for 2022 will be exciting and aplenty and as they tumble down from the sky into the manufacturers/distributors hot little hands, we’ll be plonking our backsides on them to let you know what’s what.

Let’s go!

Cheers, Stuart.

8 www.ausmotorcyclist.com.au

The new Kawasaki Z650RS combines Retro style with modern Sports technology. Distinctive styling notes like a classic round LED headlight, needle instrumentation, 70’s influenced bodywork and colours, plus a twin-cylinder engine, create a stunning neo-retro segment reference point. The Kawasaki Z650RS is destined to impress all riders with its lovingly distilled spirit of RETROVOLUTION.

PARALLEL TWIN 649cc ENGINE

MODERN RETRO STYLING LEARNER APPROVED EASY TO RIDE

LAMS RETRO-SPORT STYLE

SPOKE-STYLE WHEELS LOW SEAT HEIGHT LED HEADLIGHT

SWAGGER

Oztent Group - having just won a Gold global design award for their Dome swags - will release the Oztent ULS-1 Ultra-Light Single Swag, designed speciﬁcally for bike adventures.

The ULS-1 Ultra-Light Single Swag is a pure utilitarian delight, designed speciﬁcally to provide smart, highly durable, very lightweight shelter to 2-wheel adventurers wanting to explore beyond the roughest of tracks, or simply swag it up wherever they end up.

Constructed of Ripstop canvas, with a PVC tub ﬂoor and No-See-Us mesh skylights and vents, all with heat-sealed seaming the ULS-1 is 100% waterproof and rated UV 50+.

Incredibly durable, well ventilated, easy to use and exceptionally functional the ULS-1 weighs only 2.7kg and packs down to a 15 x 43cm roll.

The OZTENT ULS-1 Ultra-Light Single Swag also has a vestibule area to protect gear from the elements. An easy access top entrance keeps the camper away from the dirt when getting in and out of the swag.

Priced at $299.99, visit oztent.com.au

GET HIS BOOK

The Australian bush has conjured up some crazy legends, but the rise of two-time Dakar champion Toby Price is surely one of its best.

In “Endurance: The Toby Price Story”, Toby shares his inspiring journey from childhood racing prodigy on a remote farm in the Australian bush to the top of the podium in one of the world’s most unforgiving race events and recipient of an OAM at age 33.

Widely renowned for his ‘Bush Mechanic’ persona and one of the most beloved ﬁgures in Australian

Suzuki Australia has launched a 3 Year Warranty program on its range of Boulevard, GSX-R, GSX-S, Hayabusa, SV and V-STROM models 250cc and above purchased after 1st October 2021. The eligibility date has been backdated to the 1st of July 2021 to ensure Suzuki included Gen III Hayabusa customers.

Suzuki is the ﬁrst Japanese motorcycle manufacturer to extend the standard 2-year, unlimited kilometre warranty by an additional year on more than one range of road motorcycles sold in Australia. We’re sure many more manufacturers will follow.

sport today, Toby has overcome many formidable bumps in the road. The death of his adored sister, Min; the tragic loss of mentors and rivals in the desert; countless broken bones and an accident that should have paralysed him for life.

Endurance: The Toby Price Story is co-written with Andrew Van Leeuwin and will be published on 1st February following Dakar 2022, where Toby will be pursuing his third title after suffering a brutal injury in 2021. To purchase, jump onto penguin.com. au/books/endurance-the-toby-pricestory-9781761043871

THE ULTIMATE HIGH PERFORMANCE MUSCLE ROADSTER.

The Rocket 3 R and Rocket 3 GT are genuine motorcycle legends. Equipped with a 2500cc Triple engine, the biggest production motorcycle engine in the world, delivering the highest torque of any production motorbike – 221Nm @ 4,000rpm. With truly imposing muscular presence and magnificent style, the Rocket 3 line-up combines the highest level of specification and technology with all of Triumph’s signature phenomenal handling.

There are two magnificent models to choose from – the Rocket 3 R, delivering instantaneous world-leading torque, incredible control and capability, and the Rocket 3 GT, built to go further, with even more comfort and effortless touring capability. Find out more, visit triumphmotorcycles.com.au /triumphaus @triumphaus

ausmotorcyclist ausmotorcyclist.com.au

HERE’S ONE THEY BUILT EARLIER

An amazing historic ﬁnd, discovered and restored by leading vintage Triumph collector Dick Shepherd, the 1901 Triumph Prototype rewrites the history books, adding a whole new chapter prior to Triumph’s ofﬁcial sales starting in 1902.

Long rumoured to exist and referenced within advertising and reviews in 1901, this ﬁrst Triumph prototype was developed from a standard Triumph bicycle, with an engine provided by Belgian manufacturer Minerva, in order to generate interest and gauge the public’s demand for a Triumph motorcycle.

ONE MILLION…TRIUMPHS

Triumph has reached a historic milestone in its modern era with the reveal of the millionth motorcycle built since the brand’s return in 1990. Unveiled at Triumph’s Global Headquarters in Hinckley by Nick Bloor, CEO, in front of the UK team, the millionth Triumph is a oneoff custom painted model of Triumph’s highly successful

signiﬁcance of this motorcycle became incredibly clear.

“Having been approached by a friend of a collector, who had sadly recently passed away, to evaluate an old Triumph I was incredibly excited to discover that the bike they had featured unique details that were not present on the ﬁrst production Triumphs,” Dick Shepherd says.

“Along with the bike, the collector had also received a letter from Triumph, dated in 1937, that outlined the bike’s unique origins and provided key details.

“With an engine number that is consistent with

BYE, BYE BIG RED

The traditional red Honda CT110 postie will soon be a relic of the past as the national post service looks for ways to improve rider safety.

Australia Post representatives told a parliamentary inquiry into road safety the company was on track to have all motorbikes phased out of the ﬂeet by 2025. The motorcycles which have been used for postal deliveries since the 1970s and their safety features were overhauled in the late 1980s by none other than The Bear. Replacements are three-wheeled electric delivery vehicles (eDVs) that are claimed to be safer and can carry more parcels. The vehicles can only reach 45km/h.

“As a lifelong, passionate fan of the history and achievements of this incredible British brand, to have discovered this amazing survivor and restored it to the glorious condition it would have been in when it ﬁrst went on display in 1901, has given me an immense amount of satisfaction,” Shepherd says.

This historic motorcycle is on display, alongside the millionth Hinckley Triumph, in a new, specially created 120-year anniversary display, hosted in Triumph’s Factory Visitor Experience. The Triumph Factory Visitor Experience is free to visit and is located at Triumph’s HQ in Hinckley, England, and is open daily Wednesday through Sunday, from 10am – 4.30pm.

Inspired by the original Continental GT 250, our new Continental GT 650 Twin is an evolution in the line. A design icon in itself, it is an ode to the cafe racers and culture of the 50’s and 60’s

HARLEYDAVIDSON SPORTSTER S Get that up ya!

WHEN I FIRST LOOKED at the new Sportster S in the ﬂesh I was in two minds – is it an evolution of the V-Rod? Sorta, kinda, maybe not…or is it a real ‘Sportster’, true to the name? Sorta, kinda, maybe not. What it is however is a transposing head scratcher. To me it’s an urban mean machine which will get you all kinds of looks, and some of those looks will be weird ones as people, again, scratch their head looking at the mash up of design styles and the size of the front tyre and the huge upswept side pipes.

To achieve a custom look, H-D tucked the pill-shaped headlamp within the forks and placed the instrument display and the bar-end mirrors below the handlebar, creating a streamlined and uncluttered front end. The shape of the bike then tapers like a teardrop to the rear. The tail piece follows a sloping line established by the fuel tank, while the fast upswept line started by the belly pan is picked up by the lower tube of the swingarm. The ‘X’ swingarm is an important design feature of the bike. You can see H-D style from other

models, like the fenderless front end of a classic bobber, and also, the more contemporary Forty-Eight and Fat Bob models.

The tail section, highmount exhaust and slim solo seat draw inspiration from the H-D XR750 ﬂat tracker. The thick inverted forks and wide-proﬁle tyres suggest a high-performance sports bike - kinda, sorta, maybe not.

Remember when the V-Rod was released back in 2001 (I think it was?). People laughed at Harley, wondering if they’d gone mad producing a bike like this. However, the V-Rod became very popular, especially in Australia and with drag racers worldwide since the liquid-cooled V-twin was easy to hot up and revved like no other V-twin could.

In 1957, Elvis Presley released the hit song “All Shook Up”, the ﬁrst Frisbee was produced… and the Harley-Davidson Sportster model motorcycle was introduced. This

WORDS – STUART • PHOTO – MARK WATSON, JOSH EVANS, H-D

was the start of the great HarleyDavidson Sportster history. It was called the XL series, with many of the same characteristics as its K model ancestor such as the frame, fenders, gas tank and front fork. The Sportster we knew of last year has been given the ﬂick due to emissions (Euro 5) and replaced with a non-Model ‘K’ moniker, with the Revolution Max engine being the one slotted into the frame.

The Revolution Max engine is also used in the Pan America, but HarleyDavidson hasn’t just pinched it and slotted it into the Sportster S. No, it has many different parts internally and different power characteristics. Cams, valve proﬁles, porting, airbox and the ECU tune are just some of the differences. The letter ‘T’ has been tagged onto the end of the engine name and it is designed more for urban road use, versus the Pan America which is an all-round weapon.

Given the name Revolution Max 1250T, power has been reduced from 150hp to 121hp. Torque is the same, however comes in 700rpm earlier on the new Sportster S. Variable valve timing has also been changed to match

the performance of this engine. VVT allows independent timing on intake and exhaust cams and varies up to 40 degrees. This broadens the powerband and I was quite surprised that despite the lack of overall power, the ‘T’ is damn fast accelerating off the mark. Equipped with a high-mount 2-into1-into-2 (one header pipe and mufﬂer for each cylinder and a shared mid-

pipe) designed to produce a pleasing low-frequency tone, you might just be more than happy to leave it as is. This “high-mount” exhaust is inspired by the exhaust found on ﬂat-track racing motorcycles.

The exhaust system is engineered with shielding designed to deﬂect exhaust heat away from the rider’s legs and the under-seat area. Multi-layered

insulation and glass-ﬁlled nylon outer shielding are in place around the head pipes and mufﬂers. You can grab the black exhaust shield without problems, in case you’re wondering, as it was a question that was raised during the launch – thinking the exhaust would burn your inner leg area really quickly.

Reckon you could easily wheelstand a Harley? Yep, the Sportster S has that fat 160 wide front tyre heading skyward with a steady twist of the right wrist! Stick that in your pipe!

Speaking of the 160 wide front tyre; you’re probably screaming at the page right now with all sorts of profanities, but you haven’t misread – a 160/70/17 Dunlop is what you’ll ﬁnd dropped in between the forks. I was very sceptical and thought the Sportster S would be like trying to push a 1000kg bull over to get it to turn, but I must

give it to the engineers, the S turns quite well. You can feel that it has a fat front tyre, but for just about all of the target market, they will never explore the limits and won’t feel a bit of understeer creep in at the limit. 34 degrees of lean angle is pretty good for a ‘cruiser’ and it was only when pushing hard that I’d touch down the pegs – excellent.

The Sportster S is equipped with fully adjustable Showa forks and shock. The suspension on the bike I rode had been given a bit more preload front and rear, as well as some rebound. I would have preferred it pretty much standard as it was a little stiff on rough roads; and softening up the front might make it turn in a little easier.

Three selectable Ride Modes that electronically control the performance

characteristics of the motorcycle and the level of technology intervention are pre-programmed, while two additional modes can be customised however you like. Each Ride Mode consists of a speciﬁc combination of power delivery, engine braking, C-ABS and C-TCS settings.

Cornering Rider Safety Enhancements (Cornering Enhanced Antilock Braking System (C-ABS) and rear wheel lift mitigation) are designed to match motorcycle performance to available traction during acceleration, deceleration and braking, in a straight line or while in a turn. The systems are electronic and utilise the latest chassis control, electronic brake control and powertrain technology via a six-axis inertial measurement unit, or “IMU”. You can turn traction control off if you really want to liven things up.

A neat and tidy round 4-inchdiameter TFT screen displays loads of instrumentation and infotainment functions. This is not a touchscreen like the Pan America’s, though.

Some of the infotainment includes music ﬁles stored or streamed via your mobile as you listen through a headset, while the artist and track name will appear on the display, and you can use the hand controls to scroll through music ﬁles and adjust the volume.

Using voice commands through the headset, you can receive or place calls through your mobile. The caller ID of an incoming call may appear on the display. Navigation is supplied by the HarleyDavidson App for iOS or Android, which must be downloaded into your mobile. When navigation is enabled, a turn-by-turn map is displayed on the screen, assisted by audio instructions

through the headset.

When the moving map is displayed, the speedometer, turn signals and other key information are displayed above the map. Using the hand controls, the rider can pan and zoom the map to see more detail.

As expected, there are a lot of genuine accessories for the Sportster S. Seats, different footrest position plus plenty of others, (although no accessory exhaust or mufﬂers) are ready to go.

The Harley-Davidson Sportster S is a mish mash of other Harley styles and a mix of outside the box styles which could very well become like the V-Rod and be extremely popular. For the present, it’s a motorcycle that will get you a lot of attention, mostly talking about the front tyre and that exhaust. D

Specs

HARLEY-DAVIDSON SPORTSTER S

PRICE: $26,495 (ride away)

WARRANTY: Two years, unlimited distance

SERVICING INTERVALS: Every 8000km or 12 months

ENGINE: 1252cc liquid-cooled V-twin cylinder, 105x72.3mm bore/ stroke, DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder

POWER: 90kW @ 7500rpm

TORQUE: 127Nm @ 6000rpm

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed, wet multi-plate assist/slip clutch, belt ﬁnal drive

SUSPENSION: Front, 43mm inverted fork, adjustable preload, compression and rebound, travel 92mm. Rear, monoshock, adjustable preload, compression and rebound, travel 51mm.

DIMENSIONS: Seat height 755mm, weight 228kg (wet), fuel capacity 11.8 litres, wheelbase 1520mm

TYRES: Front, 160/70/TR17. Rear, 180/70/R16

BRAKES: Front, 320mm disc with radial four-piston cornering ABS caliper. Rear, 260mm disc, singlepiston caliper.

FUEL CONSUMPTION: 5.1 litres per 100km (claimed), premium unleaded

THEORETICAL RANGE: 231km

COLOURS: Vivid Black, Stone Washed White Pearl, Midnight Crimson

VERDICT: Elvis is all shook up

ey’re new…

“Bike of the show was the MV Agusta Superveloce AGO. So beauti l!”

Everyone loves a new bike, whether it’s the new bike smell or having the latest and greatest sitting under your backside, whatever it is you’ll want to check out the class of 2022. Neither The Bear nor Ralph was able to get over to EICMA for the show in November ’21 due to Covid but all the manufacturers sure made certain the new bike information was sent out. So, without further ado… here’s the class of 2022! 2022 is the year!

COMPILED BY STUART

SPECIAL FEATURE New bikes for 2022

Aprilia

Tuono 660

As powerful as thunder, as light as a cloud. Two universes collide...the legendary Tuono V4 1100 meets the advanced technology of the RS 660 to create the Tuono 660, a motorcycle destined to shake up the way you look at the world.

Tuareg 660

The 660 platform represents the start of a new era for Aprilia. One deﬁned by lightweight and high-performance motorcycles with an attractive design and unique, unequivocally premium technological content. It is Aprilia’s response to the new generation’s demand for easy and fun vehicles capable of being just as thrilling on the daily commute as they are on dynamic rides. Following on the heels of the highly popular RS 660 and Tuono 660 dedicated to street sport riding, this is a true off-road bike. It bears a name that was introduced by Aprilia in 1985, which subsequently became legendary – a name so evocative it’s clear what the bike is all about.

SR GT

The Aprilia SR GT is the ﬁrst “urban adventure” scooter by Aprilia, designed to re-inject the fun into everyday riding, long distances and less travelled paths. ‘All-terrain’ styled wheels with all-terrain tyres call you to adventure on any surface. Combined with either the latest 125 and 200 cc i-get engines complete with Start/Stop system, and a comprehensive equipment list that includes full LED lights, LCD instrumentation and the APRILIA MIA connectivity system (optional).

With such a signiﬁcant history, the Tuareg name expresses a clear set of values: a guarantee of riding quality, performance and fun. Tuareg 660, an off-road bike par excellence, is also exceptional on the road and on even the longest and most adventurous trips.

It was designed to accompany those seeking freedom –a core value in the culture of the Tuareg people, who identify with the name “imohag”, meaning “free men”. Granting the gift of freedom is Tuareg’s real mission. Tuareg 660 was designed, developed and built to be the best combination of single-cylinder enduro bikes and medium-engine capacity adventure bikes. Two opposing worlds – until now.

Tuareg 660 raises the bar for off-road adventure bike riding. But, at the same time, it places its supreme travelling spirit centre stage thanks to its impeccable performance on asphalt, its premium technical content, the performance of its 58.8kW twin-cylinder and its reduced weight of just 187kg without ﬂuids. We can’t wait to ride it!

144kg with a full tank (148kg for the 200 version), 25-litre underseat compartment and the big news is the ground clearance –175mm, something never seen before on a scooter!

Tuono 660 Factory

The Factory versions of Aprilia sportsbikes have always been ﬂagship products, dedicated to the most demanding and skilled riders, who can appreciate the quality of the most sophisticated outﬁtting.

And now, the Factory trim is also available for the Tuono 660, which makes for a Tuono with unparalleled dynamic qualities, the most efﬁcient and fun to use on the road and a true generator of emotions, accessible to everyone. All this, while respecting the Aprilia 660 project that promises bikes with a sensational weight/power ratio that are lightweight, high-performance, and built around the brand-new latest generation Aprilia parallel twin. Expect more power, better suspension and more tech.

RAW POWER - PURE SOUL

The R 18 B brings together full power with BMW Motorrad touring history and the emotional character of the R 18 family. The large front end featuring trim panels on the handlebars and the low windscreen make for an unmistakeable, strong front end. The 1802 cc of the Big Boxer also leave no room for speculation. The powerful 180 watt booster powers a total of six Marshall Gold Series Stage 1 speakers: for maximum sound quality and absolute audio pleasure. Four traditional, analogue round instruments combine with one modern 10.25” TFT display: from the fuel level indicator to the navigation system and your playlist, you have all the information you need. Still, it’s not all about displacement. The R 18 B goes significantly further. It’s made for customising. Turn it into your unique bike and bring out the #SoulFuel. Learn more → bmw-motorrad.com.au

SPECIAL FEATURE New bikes for 2022

Benelli

TRK 800

The TRK 800 is a well-designed maxi-enduro intended for long hauls on and off-road with solid capabilities on both. The chassis is a substantial steel-tube trellis frame with additional steel plates bracing the critical areas. The bike’s suspension is generously dimensioned as well: a 50mm Marzocchi male-slider fork and a gascharged rear shock absorber that cooperates with an aluminium swingarm.

The TRK 800 rolls on multipurpose Pirelli Scorpion radials and wheel travel is a generous 170mm at both ends. A massive 22 litre fuel tank is strapped on the top; the TRK 800 is clearly intended as a long-haul touring enduro. The electronic suite is limited to a 7-inch TFT instrument display and the mandatory ABS with Brembo supplying the braking components.

Leoncino 800 and Leoncino Trail 800

The same engine expresses itself in two variations on the theme: the Leoncino scrambler model comes in both a road version, the Leoncino 800, and an off-road-capable bike, the Leoncino 800 Trail. The Trail is the more attractive model, with its high exhaust, 19-inch front wheel and increased ground clearance.

comes in the same state of tune as the TRK 800, while the chassis has a slightly shorter wheelbase.

Bimoto

KB4

Retro, weird and maybe some Bosozoku style in this Kawasaki H2 powered weapon. Also available in a naked version, called the KB4 RC: if you want to be the talking point at every stop, the KB4 will get you that!

The engine

The Leoncino 800 Trail wears Pirelli Dragon semi-knobbies (120/70-19 front and 170/60-17 rear), while suspension is similar to the TRK 800, as is the Brembo braking system. The fuel tank has a slimmer design, and capacity is down to “just” 15-litres.

TRAVEL PERKS

Adventure riding now has a new and exciting dimension thanks to CFMOTO, with a KTM-sourced engine wrapped in a razor-sharp package brimming with technical flair and impressive styling.

800MT STANDARD FEATURES

7-inch TFT screen Ride by-wire throttle

Multiple riding modes Cruise control

Adjustable screen Fog lights Crash bars

USB charging LED lights and turn signals.

Tyre pressure monitoring Wire-spoked wheels

Centrestand Quickshifter Handguards

Alloy bashplate Steering damper

S 1000 R

New variants, colours, and options have been added to the BMW Motorrad line-up for 2022.

S 1000 R, S 1000 RR, S 1000 XR

New Clubsport variants include a carbon and billet pack, giving each of the S-series models a sharp and sleek new look.

R 18

The R 18 range offers plenty of new swag with new options, new colours and a new Highline variant. Three new colours have been added, with Manhattan Metallic, Mars Red Metallic, and Option 719 Galaxy Dust/ Titan Silver 2 Metallic offering customers more individuality with their machine.

CE 04

The BMW CE 04 is launching into a new era of design, to seamlessly integrate into your everyday life thanks to its intelligent connectivity solutions – an electric motorcycle with a style not seen on the showroom ﬂoor! Quite simply #PluggedToLife.

More options…

Other bikes that beneﬁt from new options include the F 750 GS, F 850 GS, F 850 GS Adventure, F 900 R, F 900 XR, G 310 R, G 310 GS, M 100 RR, R 1250 GS, R 1250 GS Adventure, R 1250 RS, R 1250 RT, R nineT Pure, R nineT Scrambler, R nineT Urban GS and the K1600 range.

The new BMW G 310 R is set to launch in Australia in Q1 2021 boasting a range of enhancements to provide a new level of engagement for riders of all levels. Some of the highlights include, a single-cylinder engine with electromotive throttle controller and automatic idle speed increase, self-boosting anti-hopping clutch, new LED headlight and LED ﬂashing turn indicators and hand lever adjustable in four stages for brake and clutch.

SPECIAL FEATURE New bikes for 2022

BSA

Gold Star 650

The famous marque returns! BSA has shown the ﬁrst of its new line-up, the Gold Star. Built by Classic Legends, a subsidiary of India’s Mahindra & Mahindra group, the Gold Star will be powered by a single-cylinder 652-cc engine that was developed by BSA with the assistance of the Austrian Technical University of Graz, producing 45hp and 55Nm via a slipper clutch and a ﬁvespeed gearbox.

The design emulates the classic lines of the original model and is complemented by technical choices that echo the same vintage tune, such as the steel double-cradle frame, conventional forks, spoked wheels, twin shock set-up and 18inch front wheel on Pirelli Phantom Sportscomp tyres. Braking is handled by Brembo, with a single

two-piston caliper at the front, supported by Continental’s dual-channel ABS. At 213kg fully laden, the Gold Star isn’t exactly lightweight, but that won’t worry many and it could also be LAMS approved.

Available in four colour options: Insignia Red, Dawn Silver, Midnight Black and Highland Green. There’s also a Legacy Edition in the works with lots of chrome and a dedicated colour scheme, Silver Sheen.

At the time of writing, we hadn’t heard who or which distributor has picked BSA up to sell in Australia.

New bikes for 2022

CFMoto

SR Vision Concept

Leaps and bounds, this is what CFMoto will be all about. The SR Vision Concept is a motorcycle that will go into production during 2022 with the capacity yet to be announced. It will have all the good gear on it too - Brembo, single-sided swingarm, SC-Project, winglets, loads of electronics and other goodies and super sexy styling to go with it.

800 MT Sport

Already shown and able to be ordered, this new exciting adventure machine should really take it to the other manufacturers. Kiska design and a KTM 790 powerplant, it sounds the goods. Pricing at only $12,990 is very attractive too.

800 MT Touring

For only $1000 more you can get the upspec Touring version with more ‘off-road’ specs. As soon as we can get our hands on both the Sport and Touring, you’ll read about it right here.

Ducati

Multistrada V2

Replacing the Multistrada 950 the new Multi V2 is lighter, more comfortable and technically advanced. It should be a great motorcycle.

Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak

When sportiness is more important to you than anything else. The Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak was developed to bring the sporty qualities of the Multistrada V4 S to the extreme: a dedicated riding position, 17” wheels with sports tyres, single-sided swingarm, Öhlins suspension and a new Race Riding Mode. A bike that is sharp, precise and effective even on the track.

The Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak is not only the sportiest Multistrada ever, it is also the most powerful model in the entire crossover segment. Exciting and adrenalinfuelled, it is powered by the V4 Granturismo engine, capable of delivering 170hp at 10,500rpm and guaranteeing high performance for sporty riding thanks to new electronic management strategies.

Scrambler 1100 Tribute Pro & Urban Motard

New colourways with a bright yellow for the 1100 and a nice White/Red for the 803cc Urban Motard.

SPECIAL FEATURE

New bikes for 2022

Ducati

Streetﬁghter V2

You knew it would be coming – the baby Streetﬁghter is on the way. Combining the sporty DNA of the Panigale V2 with both the attitude and style of the much-admired Streetﬁghter, it

Panigale V4

will be 955cc of pure fun. The result is an intuitive and easy-tohandle vehicle, with the right dose of power to ensure feisty performance and maximum riding enjoyment.

Streetﬁghter V4 SP

Oh yes, oh yes! The top-of-the-range Streetfighter V4 SP model, a further precious gem in the Streetfighter universe, offered in a numbered version and marked with the legendary “SP” (which stands for Sport Production). The new Streetfighter V4 SP is the most adrenaline-pumping naked to ever roll its wheels off the production line in Borgo Panigale.

Aesthetically, the SP stands out from the pack thanks to its “Winter Test” livery, which Centro Stile Ducati created by taking inspiration from the bikes used during MotoGP and WSBK pre-season testing. Premium equipment derived from the Superleggera V4.

With the 2022 version, the Panigale V4 project completes the most signiﬁcant evolution since its birth. The improvements involve all areas: aerodynamics, ergonomics, engine, chassis and electronics. The result is an even faster bike on the racetrack and at the same time more intuitive and less tiring for a wide range of riders. In short, it offers great and rewarding excitement to pro-rider and amateur alike.

The new carbon rims, 1.4kg lighter than those of the Streetfighter V4 S, significantly reduce the amount of inertia and contribute to an overall weight saving of 3kg. The 1103 cc Desmosedici Stradale engine features a counter-rotating crankshaft, “Twin Pulse” firing order, 208hp of power and 123Nm of torque at 9500rpm. The STM-EVO SBK dry clutch ensures a more effective anti-hopping function but also reproduces the characteristic sound that Ducatisti so appreciate. The comprehensive range of equipment is completed with Ohlins Smart EC 2.0 suspension and the Brembo Stylema R braking system.

Desert X

Ducati showed what the Desert X might look like at EICMA 2019, but here it is in all its glory – an off-road rally raid styled motorcycle ready to take on whatever you throw at it. Powered by the 937cc Testastretta 11° V-twin engine and ﬁtted with 21 inch and 18 inch wheels with a massive 230mm of travel, this is a serious machine for offroad adventures.

Harley-Davidson

Sportster S

The next generation of the V-Rod you might say. The Revolution Max T engine is borrowed from the Pan America, however with different characteristics.

Bronx 975 & 1250

Rumoured to be a new model for 2022 using the Revolution Max V-twin, we’ll have to wait and see if this naked streetﬁghter rolls off the Milwaukee production line.

New bikes for 2022

NT1100

Ready to travel? The new NT1100 offers everything you need in one motorcycle. It’s built agile for the demands of the city with light, easy handling and long-travel suspension. But it’s also a fantastic tourer, with powerful twin-cylinder engine borrowed from the Africa Twin, high equipment level and comfortable GT design for two. Add premium riding technology – and the option of six-speed Dual Clutch Transmission.

CBR1000RR-R Fireblade 30th Anniversary

The ﬂame that burns brightest is the will to challenge, and from that burning passion Honda created something quite extraordinary in 1992. Something that not only formed a new sport bike category, but also changed sport motorcycles forever. Now, in its 30th Anniversary year, the very name ‘Fireblade’ still sets hearts racing. Harking back to ’92 with a great colour scheme, this 30th Anniversary model has many special features. Power stays steady at 214hp for 2022, but it’s been tweaked for stronger midrange, better traction management and throttle feel, says Honda – and the rear sprocket has jumped up a surprising three teeth.

Husqvarna

Norden 901

Could the new Norden 901 be everything that every adventure rider is looking for? The Norden 901 is an exceptional adventure touring motorcycle, says Husqvarna. Powered by a smooth and torquey 889 cc parallel twin with an output of 105hp and housed in a light steel trellis frame, the Norden 901 is the complete long-distance travel package. Off-road ready suspension with long travel will take you across the terrain you wish to traverse, while comfortable ergonomics make every journey an adventure - not a trial.

Indian

Scout Bobber Twenty

Styling and power all-in-one. With design nods back to the original Scout with its stripped down, minimalist Bobber style with a dose of classic style. Powered by the sweet 1133cc V-twin.

FTR Rally

Scrambler inspired FTR1200; could Indian be getting a bit ‘dirty’? Take it off-road and ﬁnd out.

Super Chief

Another model harking back to Indians of old. This classic is powered by the super sexy Thunderstroke 111.

SPECIAL FEATURE New bikes for 2022

Kawasaki

Z650RS

Kawasaki’s retro sport lineup, including the Z900RS and Z900RS Café, has been a favourite of the industry’s classic craze, and now Team Green is expanding it further with the addition of the all-new 2022 Z650RS ABS. The new RS (Retro Sport) combines its proven and versatile 650cc paralleltwin platform with timeless styling harkening back to the old-school Z models of the ‘70s. And it looks awesome.

KLR650

A semi-makeover for this venerable adventure model has brought the KLR650 into the modern age. Checkout our full review in our previous issue, #107.

Versys 650

Adding to its acclaimed versatility and playful character, a number of new features offer increased comfort and convenience to the 2022 Versys 650, like KTRC (Traction Control) which brings an additional level of rider reassurance whether exploring backroads or navigating trafﬁc.

A new windshield and updated bodywork deliver increased wind protection, while new 4.3in full-colour TFT instrumentation provides clear view at the bikes information and smartphone connectivity contributes to an even richer riding experience. Strong Versys family looks come by way of new styling inspired by the Versys 1000. Highlighted by new LED lighting, the modern, ﬂowing design beckons invitingly, calling the rider to hit the open road for another adventure. Both functional and attractive, the design helps direct air around the rider for increased rider comfort.

The second-generation Ninja H2 SX benefits from a host of new technology that makes it the most advanced model in Kawasaki’s fleet. A completely revised core system includes an FI-ECU with torquedemand capabilities, a new IMU that measures in all six DOF; and a compact, boost-circuit-equipped ABS with high computational power – all firsts for Kawasaki. Working in concert, they enable coordinated control of both engine output and brake force.

It’s also the ﬁrst Japanese massproduction motorcycle and the world’s

first sport tourer to be equipped with Bosch’s Advanced Rider Assistance Systems (ARAS). Complemented by the new core system, ARAS uses millimetre–wave radar sensors mounted fore and aft to sense other vehicles in proximity to the Ninja H2 SX and provide three new features: Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Blind Spot Detection (BSD), and Forward Collision Warning (FCW). The peace of mind offered by these systems contribute to next-level comfort and enhanced rider confidence. Additional first-time Kawasaki functions include Vehicle Hold Assist (VHA) and

Emergency Stop Signal (ESS).

The new centrepiece of the cockpit is a large, easy-to-read 6.5in full-colour TFT instrument panel. A new upper cowl design elegantly incorporates the ARAS equipment while giving the Ninja H2 SX a fresh look. Improved heat management, revised seat design, and other updates that contribute to increased rider comfort are complemented by new ﬂagship convenience features like KIPASS and TPMS – all increasing the bike’s touring capability. Now, more than ever, the Ninja H2 SX is ready to supercharge your journey.

Ninja H2 SX

SPECIAL FEATURE New bikes for 2022

KTM

1290 Super Duke R & Super Duke R Evo

The wild gets wilder…a new frame, using the engine to get 3x more torsional stiffness and a new braced, single-sided swingarm further reduce weight while increasing stiffness by 15 per cent, improving lean angle stability and more feedback from the rear wheel. The swingarm pivot was also moved up by 5 mm for more neutral anti-squat behaviour, improving chassis balance under hard acceleration was another update made in 2020.

Semi active WP suspension is ﬁtted to the Evo model. Riders can make quick changes to the suspension through the TFT menu, like preload and dampening. A new blue and orange paint scheme or orange/silver freshens things up and the Evo comes with hot orange lightweight 5-spoke forged wheels.

Despite the new active suspension, the Evo sees a weight gain of only 2kg. The weight increase is due to the newly ﬁtted semi-active suspension, but tipping in at a dry weight of 191kg, with a hefty 132kW and 140Nm propelling it forward, 2kg will not be noticeable.

Throttle response is given a further boost with the addition of a new quick turn throttle twist grip, reduced by 7 degrees to 65 degrees. This was developed to deliver improved throttle response, but also to reduce the rider’s wrist angle and elbow drop at full opening.

1290 Super Adventure S

Less weight, better cooling, tweaked frame, redesigned bodywork and ergonomics, WP APEX Semi-Active Technology (SAT) suspension, and the 2022 S model ups the ante with radar-assisted adaptive cruise control (ACC). The Bosch-developed system automatically adjusts speed based on the trafﬁc ahead and users can tailor following distance with ﬁve settings.

RC8C

For the trackday nuts who are also quick to place their order. 100 only, 140kg and a 128hp LC8c engine, pinched from the 890 Duke R. What a fun machine this would be!

Moto Guzzi

V100 Mandello

A never-before-seen Moto Guzzi, one characterised by cutting-edge technology, as the brand paves the way towards the future with innovative technical solutions and aerodynamics.

The V100 Mandello will represent a turning point in the brand’s history, the project introducing some very important technological innovations. It will be the very ﬁrst motorcycle to offer adaptive aerodynamics, and the ﬁrst Moto Guzzi to be equipped with advanced electronic solutions such as the six-axis inertial platform, cornering ABS, semi-active suspension and a quickshifter, to name just a few of the most important features.

And it will be the ﬁrst Moto Guzzi to be powered by the new “compact block” engine, with its sophisticated technical characteristics. Tradition is respected with the 90° transverse V architecture of the twin, which guarantees that unique torque delivery and inimitable Moto Guzzi sound, but the project is in fact all new - 1042cc and punching out 115hp and 105Nm, with 90% already available at 3500rpm and the limiter set at 9500rpm.

function, which allows the rider to view directions directly on the instrument panel once a destination is set on the smartphone.

V85 TT Guardia d’Onore

This is a special, numbered limited edition of the popular V85 TT, which joined the Cuirassiers’ Regiment’s motorcycle ﬂeet in Moto Guzzi’s centennial year.

Just like the V85 TT bikes delivered to the Head of State at the Quirinal Palace, the V85 TT Guardia d’Onore features the typical black livery with white graphics that characterise the Cuirassiers’ Moto Guzzi machines. The white decorations run along the front mudguard, continuing onto the fuel tank and the side panels and they are also picked up on the oversized Touring windscreen. The latter is part of the standard equipment package, along with the centre stand, the engine guard bars and the supplementary LED lights. The pair of side panniers dedicated to this model are available as extras.

V100 Mandello will be available in two versions… the more comprehensive version includes Öhlins semiactive suspension as standard, but also the quickshifter, heated hand grips, and the Moto Guzzi MIA multimedia platform that allows a smartphone to be connected to the instrumentation via Bluetooth to extend its functions. Moto Guzzi MIA includes both the infotainment system for management of the voice assistant, phone calls and music via the intuitive handlebar controls, and the GPS

The Guardia d’Onore will be produced in a limited-edition of 1946 units, a number reminiscent of the ﬁrst 75 years of partnership between the Mandello Eagle and the Cuirassiers’ Regiment, as well as a tribute to the year the Italian Republic was established. To further highlight the exclusive nature of this particular version, the progressive number of the unit is engraved on the handlebar riser, from 1 to 1946.

Everyone who purchases this special version will also receive a remarkable celebratory case which includes a brochure with the history of Moto Guzzi bikes used by the Cuirassiers and the stamp collector’s folder containing the postmarked stamp issued on the occasion of the Moto Guzzi Centennial.

SPECIAL FEATURE

MV Agusta

Superveloce Ago

MV Agusta pays a tribute to the legend. The result is a unique limited-edition series of the original Superveloce, which now returns even more exclusive top-of-the-range Superveloce Ago.”

5.5 and 9.5

Lucky Explorers

December 26th, 1978. The day that marked the genesis of one of the most fascinating and dangerous adventures ever: the Paris-Dakar.

MV Agusta has launched two new adventure bikes under the Lucky Explorer project that harks back to the original Paris-Dakar. The Elefant model in its Lucky Explorer livery is probably the most celebrated icon of that historic desert raid.

The Lucky Explorer Project is not just a marketing project. MV say it

New bikes for 2022

represents the ultimate character of the Company to express its sentiments in the motorcycle business, revamping deeply the passion, the emotions, the values, the style, the gestures of men and bikes who made the history of racing in the desert. It’s more than a project.

The new 5.5 and 9.5 adventure bikes offer a concrete yet suggestive perspective in an increasingly crowded competitive arena, focused on riding efﬁciency and stylistic charm, as well as on advanced technical solutions. Both projects represent the modern interpretation of the desert race’s myth, which appealed the imagination of the Motorsport world since the mid-Eighties, conquering tons of enthusiasts in the continuous search for brand-new and thrilling adventures.

5.5

The 5.5 version, developed in close collaboration with MV Agusta’s partner QJ,

is a new adventure bike inspired by the heritage of the Elefant. Such close collaboration with the partner has brought to life a truly advanced model. Electronics, mechanics and chassis, have been carefully developed on the basis of detailed speciﬁcations.

The 5.5 looks to be more road riding centred, with less aggressive tyres than the 9.5… electronics, for example, have been made to offer the perfect combination between performance and safety. The 550cc two-cylinder inline liquid-cooled engine with double overhead cams has also undergone specific refinement, aimed at further improving the high efficiency.

9.5

The 9.5 truly introduces a gateway to the future in the shape of a premium adventure bike, faithfully based on the new MV Agusta 950 engine, powered by class-leading technology and close to that racing spirit of the original Elefant. The two new models share numerous stylistic elements: the front end area and the sturdy handguard, for example, are both painted black. A side cover protects the radiator, which reveals a semicircle element in the centre. A cover protects the front braking system, with a large ﬂap to ensure the discs the right dose of air ﬂow; the skid plate underlines the intended off-road use.

Royal Enfield

QJ Motor

QJMOTOR, the Chinese owner of Benelli presented its new models at EICMA. An extensive offering ranges from sporty cruisers and stylish retro bikes to fully faired racing replicas and high-performance naked bikes, which are available with engines ranging from 250cc to 700cc. With the two adventure models, the SRT 750 and SRT 500, QJMOTOR also offers big trail bikes with top equipment that are suitable for long distances. No news on whether they’ll come to our big brown land.

120th Anniversary edition Interceptor and Continental GT 650

Anniversary edition of the Interceptor and Continental GT 650s with a rich black-chrome colour scheme and handcrafted brass tank badges presenting the brand’s 120year journey. Only 480 units to be made, so you better get in quick!

SG 650 Concept

The SG650 Concept is the result of a challenge set to Royal Enﬁeld’s Industrial Design Team by Mark Wells, Chief of Design. At its core, the message underpinning the concept build was about celebrating ‘transition’. The aim, through this challenge, was for the team to embark on a new creative journey with the SG650 Concept; starting from within Royal Enﬁeld’s classic design sensibilities and then pushing into a whole new era of what the RE’s of the future could look like.

SPECIAL FEATURE New bikes for 2022

Suzuki

A revised engine with more power, new electronics package, including a new dash and ﬁtment of rubber cushioning for the handlebar are complemented by a classy new matt blue colour scheme with gold forks and bronze wheels. Due to arrive in Australia during mid-2022 it will be available in one colour – Metallic Matte Stellar Blue for a manufacturer’s recommended retail price of $21,990 ride away. Interested customers are encouraged to build and pre-order their new MY22 KATANA by visiting suzukimotorcycles.com.au and trying the ‘Build Your Bike’ feature. As an added bonus and gesture of Suzuki’s appreciation for customer commitment and patience, online preorder customers will receive free “heated grip set” valued at $641.31 with their bike delivery.

GSX-S1000GT

The engine in the 2022 GSX-S1000GT is the 112kW four-cylinder that is used in the latest GSX-S1000 naked bike, hitting that power peak at 11,000 rpm and matching it with 106Nm of torque at 9250 rpm. It sits in the same alloy beam frame that’s used on the GSX-S1000 with fully adjustable suspension and Brembo braking.

The big change comes at the back, where there’s a new bolt-on seat subframe under completely new tail bodywork, adding more luggage and passenger-carrying potential than the naked GSX-S can offer.

The fuel tank area is carried over directly from the naked GSX-S1000, however the GT gets an allenveloping front fairing as well as a longer, more comfortable seat. Up front, modern LED headlights are mounted unusually far forward, right on the leading edge of the nose, surrounded by black plastic.

A brand-new TFT display is the focus of the cockpit, and can support smartphone connectivity. New cast aluminium handlebar is rubber mounted to dampen vibes. Suzuki

Electronics are inevitably another focus of the Suzuki’s updates, and the GT gains a new 6.5-inch colour TFT dash (the ﬁrst Suzuki to do so) to replace the old LCD unit, and it includes smartphone connectivity via the Suzuki mySpin app. That means you get info about calls, navigation, contacts, music, and even an appointment calendar on the display if required, all synced to your phone.

The GSX-S1000GT also receives the full ride-by-wire suite made up of power modes, adjustable traction control, quick shifting, and more. At 226 kilograms the GT is lighter than its closest competition and should be very popular once it arrives in Aus.

New bikes for 2022

Triumph

Tiger 1200

Signiﬁcantly lighter and much more powerful, with class-leading handling and speciﬁcation, plus all of Triumph’s new T-plane triple performance advantage, the all-new Tiger 1200 has been designed to be the world’s most capable, agile and manoeuvrable large-capacity adventure motorcycle.

Delivering a transformation in capability and performance on the tarmac – and the most dynamic and exciting experience off-road – the new generation brings the best of all worlds with a whole new Tiger line-up, including for the ﬁrst time two all-new 30-litre tank Tiger Explorer options.

The Tiger 1200 range, comprising the GT Pro and GT Explorer as well as the Rally Pro and Rally Explorer, is expected to arrive in local showrooms in the second quarter of 2022. Australian pricing has yet to be conﬁrmed.

Bonnies

A whole range of Limited Edition and Special Edition Bonnies is coming our way. Check out our New Bike Prices section to see them all!

Tiger 660 Sport

Priced at $14,690 ride away and available in the first quarter of 2022, Triumph’s all-new Tiger Sport 660 is the new definition of triple-powered versatility, with its LAMS approved 660cc triple engine performance advantages, class-leading power and specification, plus great long-distance touring capability.

Just like the Trident 660, launched to international acclaim last year, Triumph say the new Tiger Sport 660 has been designed to set a whole new benchmark for performance, specification and cost of ownership. Bringing significant advantages to the middleweight adventure sports category, the Tiger Sport 660 delivers a new first choice for riders looking for maximum versatility in every ride. From commuting, to everyday riding, to longer trips.

New for 2022, the super tough Ural outﬁts get a new 2-into-1 exhaust system with high mount silencer (Euro5 compliant), all new rear brake system utilising a two-piston Brembo caliper and a standalone mechanical parking brake caliper, high compression pistons, and a forged aluminium front swing arm. Heidenau tyres are now standard equipment, updated intake manifolds with barbed vacuum ports and a new centrestand are also ﬁtted.

Yamaha

MT-10

With more power, more control and more adrenaline, MT-10 is built to take the Hyper Naked experience to the next level, and reinforce the MT-10’s reputation as the deﬁnitive Master of Torque. With so many new features, you’ll have to get to your dealer to check them all out, or wait for our review…coming soon.

MT-10SP

MT-10SP features all the changes bestowed on the standard model for 2022 plus some more of its own to further elevate its status as king of the nakeds.

A new Öhlins Electronic Suspension package is speciﬁed with improved response and comfort for the many varied road conditions.

The new Brembo radial master cylinder is now connected with braided brake hoses for an improved feel at the lever.

Like the standard model, the ﬁtment of the six-axis IMU makes the full suite of rider controls available and the new wireless throttle allows power mode selection. Plus, cruise control and a variable speed limiter function are useful for keeping within speed limits.

MT10SP will be available in Icon

Performance colour and a new threepiece belly cowl highlights the raw and aggressive look.

Tenere 700 Rally

The mega popular, lightweight and no compromise Ténéré 700 adventure bike continues into 2022 with new features and one of the highest speciﬁcations in its class. A ‘Euro-spec’ Rally edition is to be released, however Australia will not be receiving it! Damn!

Some Scoots!

KYMCO

AK 550

According to the brand, the AK 550 is part of the new scooter segment “Super Touring”, which brings the comfort and convenience of a scooter, embodied with the attitude and performance of a sportbike. For 2022, the model receives cornering ABS, Brembo front brakes, USD forks, traction control, two riding modes, electronic throttle, cruise control, LCD instrument panel and electric windshield.

Piaggio

Beverly 400 S

The new 400cc high performance engine is more than a simple increase in cubic centimetres. Maximum power is 17% greater than the previous 350cc version, while maximum torque increases by 30% for an engine that delivers over 35 horsepower and is Euro 5 compliant, giving the Beverly 400 the best power to weight ratio in the category.

The Beverly S ﬂaunts its sporty, gritty character, with its design lines and stylistic ﬂourishes testament to its exuberant spirit. The fuel tank is located in the tunnel for greater agility, along with riding thrills more typically found in a motorcycle.

In addition, it has a tyre pressure monitoring system, 15″ aluminium alloy wheels, full-LED lighting with DRL (daytime running light) and heated grips, among others. With a ‘GT’ style, it has a lot of fairing and ample windshield, generating a lot of comfort and protection from the wind and rain. The seat is wide and there’s lumbar support for the rider (with position adjustment).

Vespa

Elettrica

As you guessed, the electric Vespa Elettrica is the latest icon of Italian technology. It is synonymous with advanced connectivity and quiet operation, customisation and accessibility, respect for the environment and unique style. Vespa has always embodied these values, which are now fully expressed with Vespa Elettrica, conﬁrming the company’s status as a brand that has always been ahead of its time.

With its easy, or rather, natural ride, Vespa Elettrica is the ultimate expression of Piaggio Group research into electric mobility. The group aims to respond to growing environmental concerns, providing technological solutions for an increasingly sustainable and liveable urban habitat. Wearing a full red ‘outﬁt’, comprising red steel body and saddle, and red painted wheel rims with a diamond edge. The trim is completed with chrome ﬁnishes, visible around the edge of the shield, in the steering cover embellishments, and on the crest of the front mudguard you’ll certainly stand out from the crowd. D

THE GREAT OCEAN ROAD, VIC 8

DID YOU KNOW?

WORDS AND PHOTOS THE BEAR

YES, YES, WE ALL know the GOR inside out. Except not everybody does, mind even those who do may simply have used it as a way of getting from, er, G (for Geelong) to P (for Portland). Here, then, are a few ideas beyond that. My preferred way of reaching the GOR does not include Geelong at all. Nothing against the place, I have happy memories of it, but the Geelong Freeway is not a road anyone should be forced to use. The Frog of fond memory once lost his licence in one ride from Melbourne going home to Geelong.

Instead, allow me to suggest the Searoad ferry from SORRENTO to QUEENSCLIFF. It’s cheap for a bike and rider, only $39; it’s also quick. There are two ferries which pass each other along the way, so departures are hourly. There is no need to tie down your machine during the crossing, although they do recommend that you stay with the bike. I think that would only be necessary if there was a bit of a sea. On my most recent crossing it wasn’t necessary although I did stay

with the bike, as recommended, during departure and arrival.

You can buy your ticket at the boom gate coming into the terminal. This is not signposted as well as I would like to see, but then again you can’t really go astray. The peninsula is not very wide at the Sorrento end and the terminal is really obvious in Queenscliff. More information from www.searoad.com.au or 03 5257 4500.

The way I got the most out of the GOR on my most recent trip was to catch the ferry in the afternoon and then stop overnight in AIREY’S INLET, near the beginning of the road. I chose the Lightkeepers Inn Motel, not least because it is across the road from the Airey’s Pub which also offers the SALT Brewery. Food is good, although the ordering system with its codes on the tables is dumb. The beer is ﬁne if not particularly interesting.

Watch out on the GOR itself once we get some tourists back. They may choose to drive on the right.

Back to the subject of beer, the Apollo Bay pub has really been smartened up and now offers local brews as well as both indoor and

outdoor drinking and eating areas. I’m happy to recommend it for a stop before you tackle the Otway Ranges. I can remember when the road through the Otways was still dirt, and quite a challenge because of the number of trucks that used it. These days it’s all tarred, but the tar can still be a challenge… because of all the trucks that use it and carve it up. Ah well. Make a point of allowing enough time to take the detour out to Cape Otway. Not only is the narrow road a pleasure, but the scenery is wonderful. I feel much the same way about the Red Johanna, having camped there in days gone by.

THE GREAT OCEAN ROAD, VIC 8

DID YOU KNOW?

WORDS AND PHOTOS THE BEAR

with the bike, as recommended, during departure and arrival.

Watch out on the GOR itself once we get some tourists back. They may choose to drive on the right.

Back to the subject of beer, the Apollo Bay pub has really been smartened up and now offers local brews as well as both indoor and

And now, what do you reckon is the best part of the Great Ocean Road for motorcyclists? You may well have a corner or two in mind, or even a stretch of road along the ocean. But you’re wrong. The best stretch of the GOR is the last kilometre down from Lavers Hill to the GELLIBRAND RIVER.

The Royal Enﬁeld Interceptor I was riding was just right for this; it’s light and chuckable with torque at almost all revs to pull out of corners. The Indian tyres turned out to be okay, too, which surprised me a little. No particular reason. Now, why do I think you might not know about that stretch? Because I see any number of bikes en route from Airey’s Inlet to Apollo Bay; fewer through the Otway Ranges (a subject for another map) and even fewer beyond that. Now it’s true that the GOR along the cliffy coast with all the rock towers at sea is more a scenic attraction than a motorcycling one – the road is nice, but not exactly challenging – but that bit down to the river is just amazing. Literally one corner after another, all just right for some spirited riding. Not

much chance to overtake, though, if any so keep that in mind.

PORT CAMPBELL is quite touristy these days, but that’s all right because it means you can get some really good ice cream. The pub is still pleasant, too.

So when you next head out on the GOR, remember these few tips. And if you’re on a Royal Enﬁeld Interceptor, give it its head. It will love you for it.

Royal

WHEN YOU SEE THE term “R7”, you probably think straight back to the ultra-rare, and original R7 – the OW02. It was designed on the principle of a World Superbike at the time and is now a mega expensive collector’s bike. So, when Yamaha recently released the new ‘R7’, everyone’s ears pricked up thinking this would be some sort of red hot, fire breathing race replica. Sorry. What Yamaha has done is given the MT-07 a full fairing (plus many other changes) and used the ‘R7’ moniker to bring it in line with the rest of the R range – R3, R6, R7 and R1. The R6 is now a track only bike and not street registerable. This leaves the R7 to sit in between the R3 and R1 as a bike that has good levels of torque, adequate handling and great looks. It’s the next step (if you like) for a rider looking to buy a sportsbike to ride around town, weekend blasts and some track days, without stepping straight onto something like the R1 and not totally enjoying the experience thanks to the huge power step up from an R3 or the like.

Ergonomics of the new R7 are virtually the same as the (now track only) R6. The hip grip point is 742 v

753mm (R6), the foot point is 450 v 447mm (R6) and the grip point is 817 v 802mm (R6). What all this means is the R7 has a slightly higher handlebar and a fraction higher (but more set back) footpegs. While on paper the seat height is 25mm lower (for the R7), in the riders’ triangle, it’s only 11mm difference from the R6. I found the R7 to be small, but roomy enough for

a giraffe like me. I could (for the most part) tuck in along the straights and I wasn’t restricted for room while moving around the bike.

Braking comes via radial mount four piston calipers up front with 298mm discs – a combo seen on a number of other Yamaha models over the years. Combined with a Brembo master cylinder the stopping power is

crazy good – probably a bit of overkill actually, that’s how good they are. For the launch we got to roar around Sydney Motorsport Park, and it was one finger braking for the most part.

The parallel twin cylinder CP2 engine is the renowned MT-07 powerplant. It is, of course, the ‘HO’ (High Output) version that I rode during the launch, however you can also get a LAMS version which really opens up a vast market for the R7.

The engine has great torque, but for

the track, it could do with a bit more power for that extra bit of oomph along the straights. On smaller tracks like Wakefield Park, Winton Raceway or Morgan Park it would liven up a lot of litre sportsbikes (in the right hands). To make the R7 more pleasurable, there’s no traction control, no power modes, so for those that think you can just smash the throttle exiting a corner, beware, I got a bit throttle happy at times on the track and had the rear kick out.

If you wanted to compare the R7

with the MT-07, the triple clamps are set 20mm further apart and the offset changed by 5mm, the caster angle is also changed, with all these changes to place more weight over the front wheel. KYB inverted forks help increase rigidity over the MT-07 telescopic units and the R7 rear spring has been beefed up. The frame has been pinched from the MT-07, however a new aluminium centre cover (was resin) is now rigid mounted. This helps increase torsional rigidity around the swingarm pivot. The wheels are similar

to those fitted to the MT-09, which are reasonably lightweight. All of these design features make the R7 a very light 188kg wet, making it very easy to ride.

Handling, on the track, my bike was a click or so off full everything, I did struggle a little with it all wound up, but if I owned an R7 some serious work would be done if I made it a track bike. I had it put back to standard for the road, for which it has joined our long term fleet for three months or so, and on the standard setting the front is great. I would put a little bit of preload on the rear just to stop a bit of sagging – this is obviously something I have time to play with over the coming months. For the most part, the road settings make this a compliant bike that turns in nicely and will handle some bumps mid-corner. In fact, the R7 is a wonderful road bike for someone looking for a super stylish sportsbike.

The R7 features a new full LCD instrument panel, which is compact and packed full of the info you need. Larger displays for the clock, gear, trip meters and tachometer make things easy to see.

Styling of the new R7 is very much in

line with Yamaha’s MT range with a single centre-mounted headlight, while the rest of the bike is styled in the R-series between the R3 and the R1. e familiar M-shaped intake duct in the front of the fairing is where the single adaptive bi-functional LED headlight sits. e R7 is also equipped with LED taillight and front and rear turn signals.

ree colourways are available for the R7 – Icon Blue, Tech Black and the super sexy 60th WGP colour scheme, with the familiar speed block pattern.

Ride away pricing for the new models will be $13,999 for the learner approved ‘LA’ model and $14,999 for the high output HO model.

ere is a wide range of accessories available and the two that I consider will be in high demand are the rear seat cowl and the quickshi er. Having a quickshi er on this bike will make it much quicker on the track (excuse the pun).

While the new Yamaha R7 isn’t what you might have thought it was going to be, it is a new kind of fun for those a er a mid-sized, lightweight sportsbike. If you’ve ridden any of the MT range, you’ll know how much fun they are and the new R7

Specs

YAMAHA YZF-R7 HO

MODEL: Yamaha YZF-R7 HO

PRICE: $14,999 (ride away)

WARRANTY: Two years, unlimited distance

SERVICING INTERVALS: Every 10,000km or 12 months

ENGINE: 689cc liquid-cooled parallel twin cylinder, 80x68.6mm bore/stroke, DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder

POWER: 55kW @ 8750rpm

TORQUE: 68Nm @ 6500rpm

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed, wet multi-plate assist/slipper clutch, chain ﬁnal drive

SUSPENSION: Front, 41mm inverted fork, adjustable preload, compression and rebound, travel 130mm. Rear, monoshock, adjustable preload and rebound, travel 130mm.

DIMENSIONS: Seat height 835mm, weight 188kg (wet), fuel capacity 12.8 litres, wheelbase 1395mm

TYRES: Front, 120/70/ZR17. Rear, 180/55/ZR17

BRAKES: Front, twin 298mm discs with radial four-piston calipers. Rear, 245mm disc, single-piston caliper.

FUEL CONSUMPTION: N/A

THEORETICAL RANGE: N/A

COLOURS: Icon Blue, Tech Black, 60th WGP

VERDICT: A new kind of fun

SO ANYWAY, STU FORWARDS

me an email from a reader, the one who reads my monthly rubbish, who suggests I do a piece about getting to the pubs each month and like most ideas that people hit me with I thought, that’s a bloody decent idea so I’ll put my yarn on Boree Creek on the back burner for a month and see what I can cobble.

DISCLAIMER: I’m not ‘into’ bikes. Not into them any more than Dan, my carpenter mate, is into hammers. He’s got a few, each for a different job. When he knocks off and hangs with buddies, they don’t sit around sipping beers and talking hammers: “Mate what’s the curve ratio of the claw on your claw hammer?”

Or tape measures. Have you ever overheard tradies sitting around in a pub discussing, “Mate, how long’s your tape measure? You got imperial as well as metric? Where’s it made? Current model?”

Fuck me! It’s a tape measure.

So, I never understand why, when I tell someone I ride a bike and they also happen to ride, or they used to ride, or their partner, brother, sister, mother, father ride that the next question is what type, what

engine size, what model? Huh? I hardly know. Tell someone I drive a car, bang a nail, clear an S-bend, not a bloody chance in hell that I’m going to be quizzed about brands and models.

So anyway, I’m blessed to have a few bikes from which to choose and 90% of the time it’s ‘Super Ten’, my bought-new in 2010 Yamaha Super Tenere 1200, now showing 135,000 kms on the counter. So I’ll stick with the blue boy.

I’ve ridden around 133,000 of them, the rest were done by a bloke in Bathurst, a mate of a mate to whom I lent it when I was banged up after an operation a few years back.

I bought it with a high screen, side wind deﬂectors, heated grips, and high seat. Bark Busters were added for comfort, bash plate and engine bars were added for a bit of reassurance and in the ten years since, none of these has proved superﬂuous.

The screen and deﬂectors minimize the wind battering, the high seat reduces leg bend and helps my thrice-replaced knees and the heated grips/bark busters and (added later) handle mittens get me through the really cold rides. The Super Tenere seat comes with a reversible insert

which can raise the saddle height by a couple of centimetres. On high I’m down to toe tips on the ground when the bike’s stopped so it only gets inserted the morning I’m heading out for a ride.

Sorry, forgot to mention the extra headlights/fog lights whatever they’re called. Been on since new, attached to the engine bars. Didn’t take long for a stone to crack the cover of one. Turns out you can’t buy a single cover. Turns out you can’t buy two covers. Or a single light unit. Nah! Crack a

ﬁve buck cover and you’re up for a full fucking replacement. So it hasn’t been. What bullshit.

Only ever had two issues with the bike. One time Super-Ten - then based in Brisbane, because I used to ﬂy there for work a lot and would leave it at the airport - stopped wanting to start. Battery was never an issue. But three times I had to call a mob at Breakfast Creek to come and collect it and each time, back at the bike shop, we’d turn the key again and the bloody thing would ﬁre up, good as gold.

I had a ﬁve-dayer to Darwin coming up and I needed a bike that would start each morning. On Super Teneres the ﬂashing dash light only works for 24 hours and the mechanics worked it out that the problem was in the immobilizer. Somehow once it went to sleep after a full day, it wasn’t wanting to wake up again.

The service manager told me I needed a new immobilizer and it was over a grand and had to be ordered in. Only way of sorting the issue. So I told him if that’s the case, if it has to

be done, it has to be done. Was going to take maybe 6 weeks for the bit to arrive and meanwhile I took the bike, made sure I didn’t leave it un-started for more than 24 hours and got myself to Darwin. By this time it needed a service so I left it with Holeshot Yamaha down at Berrimah and ﬂew back to Sydney to do some more footy games, telling them about the ‘immobilizer issue’ and leaving ﬁrm instructions to kick it over every day.

A week later I’m back in Darwin on a Saturday arvo, cab to the dealer, bike’s out the side waiting for me, ready to go. Pay the bill, grab the key, insert and turn. Bike’s dead.

Fuck! Mechanic assures me he’s started it every day, and he’s about to go home but he stays back and we play around until after more than an hour – a lot more than an hour - we decide to turn the front wheel, lock the

steering and then undo it and give it a go. Thing starts ﬁrst time. Turns out it would start with the wheel turned but not straight. A cable was getting pinched somewhere.

We work out which one, and I’m on my way. And the mechanic, bless him, is 2 hours late for his date. So I’m sweet to ride to Townsville via Normanton, remembering to turn the front before switching it off. On Monday I call the Brisbane Yammy mob with the good news.

Service manager says, “That’s great but you’re still up for the cost of the immobilizer. You told us to order it and we can’t return it once it gets here.” I tell him that er, I, er, ordered it because you, er, told me to, wish him good luck and press the phone’s red button.

Never heard from him again.

Only other issue I’ve had with the bike is very short headlight life. There’s been a recall for the lighting basket on these, but still it eats bulbs. Took it to Great Southern Motorcycles at South Nowra and David there listened to my concerns, analysed my burnt-out globes and, we think, sorted it.

Would seem using the heated grips on the hottest settings drags too much power from the system and this causes voltage ﬂow issues. A month after he had Super Ten in, he rings me to check how it was going. Now that’s service. Must remember to tell him about paying – or not - for the immobilizer in BNE!

The panniers are Hepco-Becker. Have the same side and top box mounts on all my bikes and so am committed to them. But I wouldn’t be getting them again. The locks are crap and the side cases get smashed by baggage handlers but they make decent seats for sitting around the camp ﬁre when I’m not spending a

night in a pub.

Other stuff in the cockpit is a throttle rocker so I can change my right hand grip, a tank bag that clips onto the fuel cap ﬁtting and carries a camera for any immediate shots, GPS (Garmin) mount and a plastic Sea to Summit A4 Sleeve that carries paper maps of each day’s ride and is bulldog clipped to my screen. First did that in 1971 and it’s just something I do.

The Super Tenere is a great tool for the riding I do. The shaft drive

eliminates a lot of issues, its tank allows for pretty much all the long distances to be covered without recourse to the 6-litre pack I sometimes carry. It’s too bloody heavy for me to pick up if I drop it and it once broke my right leg twice in one day, but I’ve forgiven it!

When borders allow, I much prefer reverse season riding: Outback Qld in the summer and southern states in the winter – the roads are less travelled, the accommodation more available,

and the experience more extreme and immersing.

Which probably brings us to riding gear. The common thing in all ride gear is the base layer, especially upper and it’s always natural ﬁbre, Icebreaker merino, various ratings from 120 to 260 and a Forceﬁeld spine protector underneath.

Pants are always IXS triple shells and boots are Forma Adventurers.

In winter, it’s pretty easy: just layer-up with base layers in the morning, not forgetting the neck sock under a Rukka twin shell jacket and then shed the under layers as required during the day.

In summer it’s been a bit more of an experiment. Keeping cool is about evaporation so I have two base kits. If the max forecasts for a trip aren’t past the low 30s it’s a long-sleeve merino base layer under Spidi Adventure triple-layer jacket. Soak the base layer either before I don it, or more usually put it on and stand in the shower. Open the jacket vents, and hit the road.

If I’m expecting above 35C for every day then it’s a Forceﬁeld Body

Shell over a long sleeved 120 Merino base layer. Natural ﬁbre holds moisture way longer than synthetics and so again I totally soak the base layer, by showering in it, swimming in it or getting myself under the sprinkler in the local park. Do this with my ride pants on as well. At 40C and 120km/h, this keeps evaporating (read ‘cooling’) for an hour by which time I just ﬁnd another sprinkler, river, dam, waterfall, rip off the boots, socks and

jacket and soak and repeat. So that’s it and that’s more than I’ve spoken about equipment in ten years, but there’s one more thing that’s essential for the type of stuff I do and which I reckon enriches the rides of everyone. Each day on the road equates to about 2 days of research, ﬁnding the histories and stories of the towns and the pubs, contacting the pubs for days and times when the most interesting long

DURATION

term regulars come by. Slowly a trip will build, contacts made. Then it’s about getting the right mix of planned encounters with enough time left for the spontaneous adventures.

And it’s about entering each situation, each pub, every café with the belief that I am not the most interesting person in the room – but I sure want to ﬁnd them. Because the right bike, the right jacket, the right pants don’t mean shit without the right attitude. D

LET’S GO BACK TO the 1850s, just for a moment. Imagine standing on the wharf at Robe, one of southern Australia’s busiest ports. It is a prosperous place, having shipped more than a million Pounds’ worth of wool to Europe in the preceding decade. But it is about to see the beginning of a very different trade. A sailing vessel comes in, the gangplank drops and the first passenger off the vessel is pushing a wheelbarrow loaded with mining equipment. He is followed by a couple of hundred more men, all equipped the same way, and after finding their bearings the lot of them set off on a 400km walk – to the Victorian goldfields.

These passengers are Chinese miners, and they have paid an average of twenty Pounds for their fare from the Chinese mainland; a huge sum for which they often mortgaged their home and farm back in the old country. They have landed in Robe and set out on their long trek to avoid the Victorian

poll tax, which is another twenty Pounds. In 1857 alone, some 15,000 of them transited through Robe. Nothing lasts forever, as the song so wisely points out, and the prosperity created for Robe by the likes of local shipping agent George Ormerod evaporated as competing ports opened up and the pastoral industry fell on hard times. By the turn of the century, Robe had all of

200 inhabitants.

But the wheel turned again, and the decline did not last forever either. From the early years of the Twentieth Century, Robe reinvented itself as a holiday destination and simultaneously began to harvest Southern Rock Lobster (Jasus edwardsii), a species of spiny lobster commonly (and incorrectly) called crayﬁsh or crays in both Australia

and New Zealand. “Real” crayﬁsh are actually freshwater creatures.

Both of those efforts have been blessed by success, and Robe today is once again a prosperous place, with a thriving surﬁng culture to top it off. Sadly, the large number of holiday homes – often in one or another of the surviving historic buildings –means that the town has relatively few residents out of season. Its charm remains, however, and it has the by now obligatory craft brewery. My favourite place to both drink and stay, the Caledonian Inn, has prospered.

You might assume, as I did, that with its strong historic links to China and easy access to superior seafood, Robe might offer outstanding Chinese food. Sadly, it is not so. My “Chinese” dinner at Robe’s sole Chinese restaurant was full of ingredients that have never seen the kitchens of the Middle Kingdom, like celery and carrot, and featured the most anodyne black bean sauce it has been my misfortune to be served for many a year. For a moment I wondered if I had contracted Covid-19 with the resulting loss of taste. As for the “fried rice”… let’s be kind and admit that yes, it did contain some rice. It did

not justify its price, however.

The town has outstanding beaches, with access to the northern one from right beside the Caledonian. Back in the ‘80s I ran an annual motorcycle gathering called the Readies Rally, then the most expensive but also most luxurious bike rally in Australia. Well, when I say “luxurious” I mean that we all slept in beds.

The ﬁrst of these events took place in Robe under the auspices of Barrie Hayman, then publican at the Cally. Among the attendees was the legendary Peter Smith. One of the other legends in attendance, Grant “Wrench McTaggart” Roff, tells how Smith attempted to disport himself in the waves before stretching his remarkable corpus out on the sand for a rest.

As Grant tells it, “Greenpeace came along and tried to roll him back into the surf. They failed due to his bulk and left after covering him in wet sacks.” Smith is sadly deceased now, although I’ve never understood the word. I mean, “ceased” I can follow.

returned from the dead? Interesting thought.

The South Australian Limestone Coast has several interesting towns, but to me Robe will always be the heart of the region. Even though it’s Kingston SE that has the giant lobster, an attraction that has grown from a

Spectacular South Africa

It’s hard to believe, but this iconic image is now more than 20 years old. It’s a bit grainy; we took it on our first Andes tour, waaay back in the late 90’s.

somewhat stylised sculpture to something rather scarily realistic. On a practical level, there is a lot of accommodation both in caravan parks and rentals, so you’re not likely to be pushed for choice except in school holidays.

TUONO V4

THE APRILIA TUONO V4 has always been at or near the top of the hypernaked market. That is not surprising, since it is basically an RSV4 without a full fairing and ﬁtted with a more upright handlebar. For 2022, Aprilia has ‘softened’ the Tuono V4 to be more accessible to another style of riding, namely touring. It’s the ﬁrst major split in the model since its inception around twenty years ago.

The Tuono V4 is now more focused on being a street-friendly “hypernaked.” Taller handlebar risers sit you up a touch and take some more weight off the wrists and the taller windscreen offers some nice wind deﬂection. The restyled ‘fairing’ also offers some better wind protection over the outgoing model.

To make the Tuono V4 more ‘touring’ friendly, the passenger pegs are slightly lower, there’s a decent

passenger grab rail, and a larger, more accommodating seat is now ﬁtted. A more robust subframe is also there for the potential extra weight of a passenger and luggage.

The 1077 cc 65-degree V4 now meets Euro 5 regulations, and thanks to the new Magneti Marelli 11MP ECU, the Tuono hasn’t lost any of its claimed 129kW or 121Nm of torque. Equally important, the new ECU now allows for further

reﬁnement of the already stellar APRC electronics package which includes six riding modes, engine braking, traction control, wheelie control, launch control, cornering ABS, cruise control, pit limiter and rear wheel lift mitigation. All of these adjustments are easily made through a larger, ﬁveinch TFT instrument panel via the new left-hand switchgear.

Even though the V4 is a wailing riot of seamless power and monster torque all wrapped-up in an RSV4 chassis, I have always hated that it’s way over geared. It makes it quite a pain to ride in heavy trafﬁc as you need to slip the clutch a lot to make it smooth. An instant ﬁx for any potential owners would be to drop one tooth from the front sprocket – even adding one tooth to the rear as well if you felt the one off the front wasn’t enough. Sure, it will knock top speed, but do you really need to be doing 300km/h? Not unless you like living in a concrete box.

Aprilia’s Tuono V4 has such a sweet supple ride on the road and with a couple of clicks will mix it up with the superbikes on the track

As mentioned, this is basically an RSV4 stripped down. Handling is not as stiff as an RSV4 but thanks to the excellent dimensions it handles perfectly on all roads. For the track I would put a little more preload and compression in the rear and maybe one click of compression on the front – it’s that good. If you got super serious and banged a set of slicks on for trackday fun, some more playing with the suspension settings would be needed, but for the majority of riders (and especially while on road legal tyres), standard or a click here and there is all you’ll need.

The changes to the ergonomics are welcome but it does feel like the rider pegs should be 5-10mm lower, just for that extra bit of comfort on the road. I know Aprilia has left them up for those who want to ride the Tuono

Specs

PRICE: $28,230 (ride away)

WARRANTY: Two years, unlimited distance

SERVICING INTERVALS: Every 10,000km or 12 months

V4 on the track, but now that the Factory version is the ‘racier’ of the pair I reckon the ‘standard’ model would have beneﬁtted from the lower pegs. However, in saying that I would be happy owing the Tuono V4 as it is and do some touring on it. My licence might not hang around long, but it would be fun.

Tuono V4 is available in Tarmac Grey and Glacier White and the genuine accessories are aimed at some touring, with panniers, tank bag and various other bits and pieces available.

Aprilia’s Tuono V4 has such a sweet

supple ride on the road and with a couple of clicks will mix it up with the superbikes on the track. With velvety low-down torque that will also rip your arms from their sockets when you get to the redline, it’s still a bike that is comfortable enough to cover big distances easily.

The Tuono V4 is all those things and so much more: its wailing exhaust note, the tech, its new looks and colour dash. It is however much the same to ride as before and still one of the best hypernakeds money can buy.

ENGINE: 1077cc liquid-cooled V4 cylinder, 81x52.3mm bore/stroke, DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder

POWER: 129kW @ 11,350rpm

TORQUE: 121Nm @ 9000rpm

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed, wet multiplate slipper clutch, chain ﬁnal drive

SUSPENSION: Front, 43mm inverted fork, adjustable preload, compression and rebound, travel 120mm. Rear, monoshock, adjustable preload, compression and rebound, travel 129mm.

DIMENSIONS: Seat height 835mm, weight 209kg (wet), fuel capacity 17.9 litres, wheelbase 1452mm

TYRES: Front, 120/70/ZR17. Rear, 190/55/ZR17

BRAKES: Front, twin 330mm discs with radial four-piston cornering ABS calipers. Rear, 220mm disc, two-piston cornering ABS caliper.

FUEL CONSUMPTION: 8.34 litres per 100km, premium unleaded

THEORETICAL RANGE: 214km

COLOURS: Tarmac Grey; Glacier White

VERDICT: Velvety punch

APRILIA TUONO V4

Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV

Stick like the proverbial to a blanket

WORDS/PHOTOS – STUART

I’ve had the new Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV tyres sitting at D Moto Motorcycle Engineering for a couple of months and was about to t them to my father’s Kawasaki Z900RS when I purchased my Suzuki Bandit 1250. Bad luck, Dad. I had to wait a few weeks for the Bandit to arrive from Queensland so have only just been able to take a blast up Mother Putty to give the Diablo Rosso IV’s a proper workout.

Here’s the technical details…

is all-weather tyre caters for supersport, hypersport and naked models, o ering fantastic performance to road riders of all levels.

e tread pattern design of the Diablo Rosso IV features slicker midlean areas. is is an evolution of the Diablo Rosso III, giving support at lean

angles where water drainage is useless (over 35°). is means a large slick area on the shoulders, which results in excellent grip and line holding while cornering at extreme lean angles. e Diablo Rosso IV tread pattern is developed around the ‘Flash’ icon which is synonymous with all Pirelli sport tyres. Flash features two prominent centre grooves providing directional stability and ensuring wear stability. ey also provide water drainage from the centre out for the contact patch when upright. Flash tails of varying lengths are distributed around the centre design, outlining the midlean grooves. ese tails are an important element for the tyre’s behaviour, providing the right tyre exibility, e cient water evacuation and wear uniformity. e Rosso IV boasts a Silicaenriched, multi-compound in both the front and rear tyres, combined with WSBK-derived structures and contours. Pirelli has spared no expense in development;

Mother Putty on a glorious day

this is demonstrated in the con dence the Rosso IV brings. It o ers superb grip under braking, thrust boost in extreme lean angles and brilliant traction when powering out of corners.

When tting up the tyres I found them to be a medium to sti construction and sti er than the Diablo Rosso III. Tyre manufacturers make tyres with varying sti ness in the carcass for a variety of reasons – wear, feel, grip and much more.

The front e hard layer delivers outstanding grip in cold and wet conditions. e so er side layer (accessed when in lean angles over 35°) o ers excellent grip and delivers a brilliant contact feeling. e new Diablo Rosso IV’ has

increased the Rayon cord sti ness, obtained through a larger section of more twisted strands, adapted along the contour, which di erentiates sti ness depending on the lean angle. Combined this gives the rider the option to adjust the trajectory while cornering or to delay braking ahead of entering into lean.

Dual compound rear

For rear tyres up to and including a 190/50/ZR17 it is a dual-compound and features a Rayon 2-wire strand structure. e chord sti ness has been raised by more than 30% over the Diablo Rosso III, reducing the end-count freeing up the space available for the compound to perform. e full silica dual compound rear o ers a quick warm-up and a signi cant grip level irrespective of lean angle, even in

wet conditions. In relation to the dimension of the tyre, and therefore of the contact patch, a dual compound with more continuity ensures the best stress distribution and wear uniformity.

Tri-compound rear

For rear tyres at and above 190/55/ZR17 you get a triple compound. This endurance-racing compound features a 5-zone layout, which trades wet grip on high lean angles for thrust boost to cope with the extreme cornering speed and the astonishing engine outputs of modern performance motorcycles. It features a 3-wire strand Lyocell structure which translates to a deformation ratio considerably lower than usual street tyres. The soft full silica mid-rubber strip ensures performance, whilst delivering a safe sporty ride across all weather conditions.

On the road

I instantly noticed the ‘Pirelli’ feeling – this is one that gives you loads of feel to crank the bike right over to the edge of the tyre without any thoughts of sliding. Mid corner grip in the transition from no throttle to powering out stability is the feeling I get and when you wind the throttle hard exiting a corner you can get on it earlier and harder as the grip level from the rear is supreme. This didn’t matter if the road was smooth or rough and dear Mother Putty has all of this and plenty more!

Wet performance is reasonable and in the scheme of a tyre that is a sports tyre, they work excellently.

Warm up is near instant. Out of my front door I have two fast lefts into two fast rights and banging the Bandit into them there was no sliding or feeling the tyre would let go. Lucky, cause she who must be obeyed would bury me in the backyard if I crashed!

Get some!

Priced at $229.95 for a 120/70ZR17 front and $329.95 for a 180/55/ZR17 rear I think I’ve found my ‘go to’ tyre. I highly recommend them if you like to give it the berries but don’t want a virtual race tyre like the Supercorsa. The Diablo Rosso IV will be plenty of tyre for you, and will more than handle a track day or two. I’m estimating around 5000km from a set, but I will assume most riders will see around 7500km. Pretty amazing for what is probably equal to a race tyre only a few years ago! See your local Pirelli motorcycle tyre seller or jump onto linkint.com.au .

EDELWEISS BIKE TRAVEL IS keen to get an Australian Motorcyclist magazine readers’ tour on the go once again. Covid wiped out our ﬁrst try, but 2022 is the year!

This will be a trip not to be missed.

A 14-day trip to Morocco includes places that are not on the normal Edelweiss Morocco tour, so we all get something special for joining it.

The ‘Best of Morocco’ tour will run from 8 October to 21 October 2022. Not only that, but we have organised an annual readers’ tour from now on. So, get your interest registered with the folk at Edelweiss and let’s get out there and have an awesome time!

Edelweiss Bike says…

“If you think of Morocco, you automatically conjure up images from 1001 Nights, of colourful bazaars and historic Kasbahs, but also of endless sand dunes, barren mountains and palmfringed oases.

“In cooperation with Australian Motorcyclist magazine, we have created an exclusive tour just for you!

“Experience oriental ﬂair, awesome roads, interesting people and a completely new culture on this motorcycle tour through Morocco. It will introduce us to the Orient with new impressions: The witnesses of the Islamic culture, the royal city of Marrakesh, the fortiﬁed city of Aït-Ben-Haddou, the multi-faceted landscapes of the high Atlas, the couloirs, the desert and the oases create the setting for this motorcycling tour through the kingdom of Morocco.”

Best of Morocco

(Tour code: SPT22008)

8 October 2022 – 21 October 2022

14 days/13 nights – 12 riding days

Day 1 Arrival in Marrakech

Day 2 Marrakech to Essaouira

Day 3 Essaouira to Agadir

Day 4 Agadir (rest day)

Day 5 Agadir to Tizourgane

Day 6 Tizourgane to Foum Zguid

Day 7 Foum Zguid to Mhamid

Day 8 Mhamid to Zagora / Agzd

Day 9 Zagora / Agzd to Boumalne Dades

Day 10 Boumalne Dades to Ait Ben Haddu

Day 11 Ait Ben Haddu (rest day)

Day 12 Ait Ben Haddu to Taroudannt

Day 13 Taroudannt to Marrakech

Day 14 Departure from Marrakech

Highlights

• All the highlights of Marrakech

• The old town of Essaouira

• Two times crossing the Atlas Mountains

• Riding the Atlas and Antiatlas mountains

• Agadir and the Atlantic beaches

• Ride through the dessert

• Camp in the dessert

• Wadis and oasis

• The gorges Todra and Dades

• The ancient town of Ait Ben Haddu

• The most spectacular pass Tizi n Test

• Fantastic food, Berber culture, etc.

Daily distance 175-330 km

Included services

• All overnights (comfortable middle-class hotels, oriental kashbahs and riads) during entire tour

• Breakfast every day

• 2 picnics/lunches

• 13 dinners

• Motorcycle rental with unlimited mileage

• Third party liability insurance for motorcycles

• Comprehensive vehicle insurance for motorcycles with deductible according to the

Riding level

As you can imagine, Morocco has dirt roads, so please bear in mind that your experience level should be high enough to manage riding on dirt roads. We’re told the degree of difﬁculty is not beyond any normal rider who has ridden on a dirt road in Australia. (The Bear says it’s a snack; he had no problems on his Yamaha XS1100, overloaded with luggage) If you haven’t ridden on dirt, you’ve got time to do it before the tour.

booked motorcycle model

• Tour information package in English or German including safety tips, details about the hotels, the route and the sights

• English and German speaking tour guide on motorcycle

• Support van for luggage transportation

• Edelweiss Riding Tips

Optional services

Optional deductible reduction on included motorcycle insurance

(Cover All / Cover Plus)

Services not included

All services not mentioned and all items of a personal nature.

Please note

This group tour is not suitable for people with limited mobility.

Terms and conditions

Edelweiss terms and conditions can be found at edelweissbike.com/ en/reisebedingungen.php. D

Tour price per person in USD

THE BIG

WORDS STUART

PHOTOS ANDRE PHILLIPE DE-BRISSAC

BERNARD / VARIOUS

DANCE PART TWO

IN THE MOST RECENT issue I interviewed my friends, Chris and Alex Pickett, about their ﬁrst foray into racing on the roads at the Isle of Man. From there Alex went on to ride for a couple of well-known teams at the TT. Here’s how it went down.

Alex: “I had become friendly with a local Isle of Man based team when I was at the Manx GP in 2013. TC Racing is a family-based team that specialises in up and coming racers, especially ones from overseas. Cam Donald and Dave Johnson both had their ﬁrst TT starts with TC Racing. Often, over the years, you’d ﬁnd the three of us Aussie riders chilling out in the TC tent. It’s a real family atmosphere and they are in fact still like family to me.

“All decisions within the team are made as a team and they approached me to ride for them in the 2014 TT, getting sponsorship from the IOM government. I had to get myself there and pay for tyres. Everything else was covered.”

Chris: “TC Racing is not only a great team but a great bunch of people. John and Liz Taubman, their daughters Alana and Sam Taubman and their partners Gas Knight and Mick Charnock. Mick himself was a very experienced roads racer but a couple of big crashes at the the TT stopped Mick’s career. They looked after us like family, even after my mate Dave dropped a brand new Magnesium Dymag rim on the ground. Dave is no longer with us, but gave us some great laughs at the TT in 2014. Little did we know he had a brain tumour at the time and was losing the plot a little.”

Alex had a full schedule at the 2014 TT.

Alex: “I was entered in all ﬁve races in 2014. I had a Honda CBR600RR for the Supersport

CBR1000RR for the Superbike and Senior TTs. Practice week went ok, but not without a few dramas. The super stocker fried a fuel pump fuse and left me stranded near Sulby Bridge, and I crashed the same bike at Creg Ny Baa on another lap during practice week. I say crashed but it wasn’t as bad as that really. I had been on a ﬂyer of a lap. I couldn’t understand why I was passing bikes so easily, thinking they were going slow. Turns out I was going fast, wheel standing everywhere and having a blast. That bike was so easy to ride but as I hit the brakes for Creg Ny Baa I found I didn’t have any. All the wheel standing and head shaking had forced the front pads back in the calipers and by the time I realised what was happening I ran out of road, nose diving into the air fence at the pub on the corner. The bike plopped back down and fell over, breaking a brake lever. When I got back to the pits the team was jumping up and down, saying I was on for a 125mp/h lap until my little ‘incident’.

Alex

Chris

Chris: “Alex was going well in practice and qualifying but was struggling with the Superbike. It was a beast of a thing, with a 24-litre tank, lots of horsepower and a front end off Carlos Checa’s world superbike CBR. I think he was actually faster on the super stock 1000. A couple of times he came in with grass on the fairing where he’d nearly ran out of road, so that was a bit scary for me at least. Overall though, especially in the Supersport class, he qualiﬁed much higher than the start number the TT organisers had given him.”

Race week dawned and the Superbike TT was the first race.

Alex was on the hard to ride CBR Superbike but was keen to show what he was capable of.

Alex: “We were running hard compound Dunlop tyres that year, ones that could do six laps. The top blokes had quick change rear axles so would change two rear tyres during the race. I had to manage my tyre wear. Turned out it didn’t matter in this race anyway. The six lap race started well but on the second lap I lost the front on a left hander just up from the Gooseneck. I was probably doing at least 160km/h at the time. I lost the front but managed to keep it upright, but then of course I ran out of road. I ran up the embankment and somehow

managed to jump across a two car wide gap in the embankment where there was a gate for the paddock. Somehow, I managed to stay on and rode back to the pits. I was pretty shaken up but still managed a well over 120mp/h lap. There was grass and dirt everywhere on the bike, even between the tyres and the rim. How I didn’t crash I don’t know.”

Chris: “I was watching the pit crew getting ready for Alex’s ﬁrst stop. Gaz Knight from TC Racing was next to me and said, “There’s something wrong”, as soon as Alex pulled up. You could see from his body language that his race was over then and there. To this day he doesn’t know if he hit something slippery on the road or just made a mistake. Luckily, he stayed upright. It was pretty scary for all of us.”

Alex: “The rest of race week was a shit-fight really. The team bent over backwards for me but we just had issue after issue. I was going great in the first Supersport race until the engine blew. In the Superstock race I was pumped up more than ever before. I was flying on the first lap but the fuel pump fuse blew again. We put a used stock engine from the wreckers in the CBR600RR for the second Supersport race and it held together. I came around 30th out of near 100 riders but I knew I could have gone better. The best bit was dicing with my mate Dominic Herbertson for the entire race. I had qualified one place ahead of him but we were very evenly matched. Dom has gone on to be a well-known sponsored TT racer in the UK. We are both from ‘Newcastle’, on opposite sides of the world.

“The last race of the week was the Senior TT, the one every rider wants to win. Of course that wasn’t going to happen for me but I wanted to give it everything. It all went well enough on a bike I struggled to tame, but I ended up around 50th place. Then it was all over for that year.”

Chris: “One of the highlights was seeing Alex get some good airtime on the TT coverage. He was ﬂat out and Michael Dunlop eased past him on top of the mountain. The commentators gave him a big rap which was nice.

TRAVEL

FOX Sports usually runs the coverage of the TT but it’s a huge thing over there. ITV4 does the coverage and you see it each night. There are something like 300 people from ITV4 working on the TT, and the night’s show starts only one hour after practice stops, for example.

“Another surreal thing happened that year and a photo was taken of Alex that went viral. Guy Martin was chasing Michael Dunlop in one of the big bike races and Martin had an onboard camera. They both caught Alex near a big jump at Ballacrye. A still shot was taken from Martin’s bike showing Alex getting big air on the CBR1000RR. Fantastic stuff.”

But Alex was disappointed with his results, even though much of it was out of his control.

Alex: “I was very disappointed in my 2014 results. I feel I could have gone better, especially in the Superstock race. To this day that CBR1000RR is one of the best bikes I have ever ridden, if not the best. It was so easy to ride fast and I was on a mission that day until it broke down. That one, more than any of the others, really hurt.

If our duo from Australia thought

2014 was an underwhelming year, they were in for more pain in 2015…

Chris: “Not much was on the radar for 2015 at the TT for Alex until I got an email from Paul Phillips, the head man at the TT, saying there could be something with Ice Valley BMW. We didn’t have the money to do something ourselves from this side of the world, so the deal was not a bad one for us. The ride was paid for by the IOM government and Ice Valley with us having to pay for tyres, getting ourselves there, and crash damage. What could go wrong I thought. Lots as it turned out.”

Alex: “This was the team that gave Peter Hickman his start in 2014. He did a 129 or 130mp/h lap in his rookie year so the team had some pedigree. There were three riders in the team, myself, team principal Paul Shoesmith, and French rider Franck Petricola. All of us were on BMW S1000RRs with customer superbike k itted engines. They had around 215rwhp so were fast. It all turned to crap before practice week even started. We were at Jurby Airﬁeld to get a feel for the bikes and I managed to highside the bike big time. I was pissing blood for a week and nothing went right

after that. I knew the old man wasn’t happy when I was lying in the back of the ambulance and the door came ﬂying open, him giving me a spray and slamming the door shut. The nurse said, “who’s that?” “My Dad,” I replied.

Chris: “I could see someone was going to crash that day at Jurby. It was so cold and Alex was showing everyone he was the fastest. I wanted to grab the red ﬂag and stop the session but sure enough, Alex had a massive highside. Sometimes you can see things happening before they do and that was me that day. I still maintain there was no point being out there in those conditions. The risk was much higher than any gains to be had. As they say, you can’t put an old head on young shoulders.”

Some tool time was required…

Chris: “Alex only had the one bike, which was now well damaged. I somehow became his default mechanic and had to borrow tools to get the bike back on track. From then on we chased electrical gremlins, that even factory staff from BMW head ofﬁce in Germany couldn’t ﬁx. It had a habit of cutting out and then chiming back in. We changed all sorts of stuff to no

avail, so Alex had to practice on an older S1000RR while we tried to ﬁx his bike, partly held up from waiting for parts from the mainland.”

Then practice week got worse.

Alex: “We were struggling to get our six laps of practice due to these bike issues and also poor weather. Finally I was able to get out on my bike after the team got it back together. I was running out of time to qualify so out I went. I nearly lost the front under brakes as I was braking for Ballaugh Bridge on the ﬁrst lap. That was weird I thought and should have stopped to see what the issue was, but being under pressure to get my laps in I pressed on. Little did I realise my front tyre was going down. I got onto Sulby Straight and as I tipped into the right hand kink at the end of the straight I lost control of the bike. I remember just hitting the limiter in top gear as I tipped in, a millisecond before the bike went into a massive tank slapper.

“I was heading for the wall of a house and was about to jump off when the bike hit the kerb and bounced me straight. You can imagine how fast all of this happened, as I had just hit around 300km/h when I had the tank slapper. Somehow I held onto it and came to a stop at Sulby Bridge. By this stage the front tyre was off the rim.”

Chris: “I knew something had happened because live timing showed Alex hadn’t progressed beyond a certain sector of the course. Then he called me from a Marshall’s phone and told me he had a ﬂat. We were able to borrow a van from James

TRAVEL

Whitham, ex WSBK/TT racer and TT commentator, and I went out with Dan Harrison, one of Alex’s mates from Australia, to pick him up. We had to wait until the roads were declared open and while we were doing this I got a text from Cam Donald, asking if there was anything he could do, just to ask. All good I replied, he’s just got a ﬂat tyre. When the roads were opened up after practice we joined the course at Kirkmichael. As we came onto Sulby Straight Dan said, “someone’s crashed there, pointing to a hole in the hedge.” We only had to go another kilometre or so to get Alex but when we arrived he was very agitated, asking us how his team-mate Franck was (sadly, Franck had died as a result). Little did we know it was Franck who had crashed and created the hole in the hedge, and that was the bike Cam had seen. He thought it was Alex because all the Ice Valley bikes were painted the same.”

and I had gotten on very well and this was his ﬁrst big race after crashing at the NW200 in Northern Ireland 12 months earlier. You could tell he wasn’t over his injuries as he was tired all the time. This had happened a couple of times now. In 2014 I had enjoyed a coffee with

multi-British Supersport champion Karl Harris. He was a real friendly guy who had noticed me and wanted to give me some tips. I met his wife and kids and they were very nice and helpful to me. Later that day after our coffee together he was killed. We still don’t know what happened.

Alex: “That was hard to accept. Frank

either.

situation we believe the

but at the TT they

dad looked at the

“We still don’t know what caused Franck to crash either. In my situation we believe the gyroscopic forces of the wheel caused the valve to pushed down releasing air. In Australia we have to ﬁt steel valve caps to prevent this but at the TT they use rubber caps with seals. When dad looked at the valve on my front tyre he noticed the cap was cross threaded and not on properly. Because I was riding for a well know team, Dunlop technicians would check our tyres before the race. They are no doubt under

technicians would check

provided engine and transmission, the R 50 donated the frame and running gear) turned out to be useful but never really ideal; for a start the Ural sidecar was too heavy. I didn’t build the perfect outfit until I matched a Yamaha Bolt to a replica Steib chair. Still, the Beemer outfit covered a lot of miles and was a lot of fun. I don’t seem to be able to find any photos, so you’ll have to settle for one of the Bolt.

RALPH - KTM SUPERDUKE / BMW R 1200 GS

Split Decision

DRIRIDER

I slipped the wall at over 200km/h and came off. I was knocked out and slid for some 150 metres. I regained consciousness and was able to get off the track without being run over. I was lucky, only hurting my wrist and badly spraining my ankle. The bike didn’t get off so lightly.”

dririder.com.au

I owned both in the late 2000s and these bikes meant different things for

Touring 2 Panniers – $199.95

600D Ripstop construction featuring universal fit expandable soft side bags (18–31L capacity), Velcro fitting and attachment straps, extra side compartments, heat resistant base in case of accidental contact with the exhaust, includes PE boards for shape retention, equipped with rain cover and shoulder strap, anti–scratch non–slip material on inner side and reflective strip for night safety.

ANDY STRAPZ andystrapz.com

Avduro Panniers – $475

The name Avduro nods its lid to the mix of Enduro and Adventure.

Since their inception in 2003 Andy Strapz panniers have evolved in line with the demands of modern Adventure riders.

Navigator Mini Tank Bag

Magnetic – $59.95

the pump time wise and to this day I believe that was the case with us. The cap wasn’t ﬁtted properly. I should have stopped at Ballaugh when I had a big slide but I felt under lots of pressure to get a lap in to qualify so I pushed on. Then a photo of me turned up when my front tyre went ﬂat, with me in a full on tank slapper, the actual rim on the road and the tyre only being held on by the fork leg. This caused a major stir around the paddock, including the course secretary.”

600D Ripstop construction featuring a non–slip anti–scratch base, strong magnets for secure holding, includes waist strap and is sized at 180x130x30 –great for carrying phone, wallet, money and/or cards.

Race week was no better

Alex: “I was only doing the big bike classes in 2015 but never got to ﬁnish any of the three races, with a breakdown in the Superbike TT, and a crash in the Superstock TT. We’d had no end of electrical problems due to

able to get off the track without being run over. I was lucky, only hurting my wrist and badly spraining my ankle. The bike didn’t get off so lightly.”

my crash at Jurby and through by now, so

Made in Australia from their tried and crashed, 17oz Aussie, Dynaproofed canvas, they are packed (pun intended, sorry) with new approaches to the existing features.

The basics of the pannier bags remain unchanged from those Andy made for himself all that time ago. If it ain’t broke…

Although the basics stood the test of time and Aussie riders, that doesn’t mean the nice little extras can’t be tweaked and improved such as what you’ll ﬁnd with the Avduro.

Scoota Bagz – $74

A small courier style, shoulder bag with an external ﬂap. A very neat size to carry on the bike.

the bike would cut out momentarily while you were on full song, then as you are shutting the throttle it would then chime back in, making it very difﬁcult and dangerous to ride. As I was coming up to Black Hut during the Superstock TT, the bike had a hiccup again, I looked down for a moment and by the time I looked up again I had run out of road. I slipped the wall at over 200km/h and came off. I was apparently knocked out and slid for some 150 metres. I regained consciousness pretty quickly and was

me and my riding. Both bikes I bought without test riding, and placed an order prior to their arriving in Australia. It’s proof that marketing hype works! Both represented freedom in every sense -performance or travel, wheelstanding or chugging through the countryside. Both were instrumental in consolidating their brands in their respective markets.

pit lane ofﬁcials coming towards me, locking what none of it was good. He down he walked to the chopper was that for 2015. Alex in where

Chris: “That was pretty scary. I knew Alex should have come through by now, so something was wrong. I then saw one of the pit lane officials coming towards me, locking his eyes on me. I didn’t know what to think, but none of it was good. He got to me and said, “your rider’s down but he’s ok, he walked to the chopper and is heading to Nobles Hospital now.” And that was that for 2015. Alex convalesced in hospital for a few days, we flew home via Dublin where we did a tour of the Guinness factory and he managed to set his wrist bandage on fire in a pub. Then came the task of paying for the crash damage. I worked for a few months for free to pay that off.”

Designed to ﬁt an A4 sized ﬁle, Andy’s Scoota Bagz are constructed from 1000–denier (jargon for bloody tough) Korda nylon with waterproof backing and brown oil–less oilskin, a combination of both!

e 2010s

Functional and handsome enough for everyday use the Scoota features two external pockets with dividers under the front ﬂap and inside the bag, rear–mounted handle, angled shoulder strap for optimal comfort. And a rugged two–inch side–mounted release clip for helmet–on removal.

STUART – BMW R 1200 GS

Water-Cooled Magic

Let it be known, BMW have pretty much always held amazing new bike launches and the introduction of the

Had Alex run over a black cat? It certainly seems this way. He went it alone in 2016 to race in the Supersport class on his own Kawasaki ZX-6R and managed to win his class in the Classic TT that year too on a TC Racing owned Kawasaki ZXR750. We’ll ﬁnd out more next month.

Do you think choosing a guided motorcycle tour for your holidays will force you to ride from morning till dawn? Well...not exactly. Guided motorcycle tour’s are much more than just riding. Especially if you’re about to ride through Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey. The experience can’t get much more colourful than that. Ladies and gents, meet the Romania to Istanbul Adventure run by the great folk at Adriatic Moto Tours.

People might get the wrong perception when you mention a ‘motorcycle tour’ to them. Some might imagine a couple of hairy riders on choppers, cruisin’ Route 66, stopping only to refill, smoke, eat and sleep. Or a bunch of young guys in full leather suits on Ducatis and Yamahas, bruising knee sliders and scaring families in campervans along the twisty coastal road. Yes, there are riders that love to do it, but just reading the sales numbers of the last decade will clearly tell you that riders of all ages and genders mostly buy bikes to travel. To explore. To cross

borders. To answer questions like: “how di erent can a riding destination be from my hometown?” And how di erent can a day be compared to a day before? If you’re on a ‘Romania to Istanbul Adventure’, the answer to both questions is: very di erent!

e tour starts in Bucharest, the capital of Romania, and goes southeast all the way to the biggest city in Turkey. Together with the rst and the last day at the starting point, it lasts for 16 days; of which three are ‘rest days’. Besides Romania and Turkey, it crosses two more countries, Bulgaria and Greece, and covers all together roughly 2800 kilometers.

Do you think you know Europe?

not a good idea. I had to drive in rst gear to avoid endless potholes on the road that didn’t deserve its name. To avoid destroying the front rims on our bikes we carefully pick roads, which are, in general, just ne. And some of them are just superb...

Which one is better: the Transfagarasan or the Transalpina?

A er landing at Bucharest airport and being transported to your hotel in the city centre, you won’t nd it so much di erent from other European capitals. Yes, there’s a lot of Dacias (cars made in Romania) on the streets, probably you’re also driving in a yellow one, and the tra c is a bit hectic - but not much less than in, for example, Paris. But just a er we hop on the bike the next day, and leave two-million people behind, the situation changes. For example: a horse and cart is still a common way of transportation - in a country that’s been a member of the EU since 2007! e roads are quite okay as long as you stay on the main roads. Once I tried to take a shortcut in a van and it was de nitely

Not many people knew about Transfagarasan until the TV show, Top Gear, who declared it as ‘the best road in the world’ back in 2009. I agree the road and the surrounding scenery is very unique - it’s a kind of a mountain racetrack! - but there’s another great road nearby. Most people would agree: 148 kilometers long Transalpina is even better than the only 3km longer Transfagarasan. Expect two riding days that easily compete with the best roads in the World!

Carpathian Mountains - check. Now let’s continue our ride towards Istanbul. And since the Carpathians are in the opposite direction - north - we have to spend a night in the most non-typical town of all of our tours: in an industrial town of Pitesti. I’ve just Googled the top 15 things to do on Tripadvisor -

Romania To Istanbul Adventure BASIC FACTS

Countries: Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey

Start/endpoint: Bucharest, Romania

Duration: 16 days / 14 riding days

Rest days: 3 (Sibiu, Istanbul 2x)

Length: 2800km

Dates: 3-18 September 2022, 2-17 September 2023

For available bikes, pricing and booking visit adriaticmototours.com or contact directly by info@ adriaticmototours.com

what’s on the top of the list? Pitesti Prison Memorial. Honestly: we stop there only because there’s nothing else in that area on our way south, but the hotel is okay and the restaurant we go to for dinner is one of the best on the whole tour. at might have to do something with the economy of the area as the Dacia factory with 14,000 employees is about 15 kilometers

from Pitesti. I’ve heard a story from a taxi driver about how Toyota was interested in buying the factory, and how many public investments were promised by the Japanese, but somehow French Renault got the deal. It is also interesting to know what’s driving the country’s economy, and why it became an EU member before Slovenia, which, in my humble opinion, has much higher living standard than (most of)

Romania. Okay, let’s continue our ride towards...

New day, new country, new surprise(s)

Bulgaria is to us Slovenians (culturally), closer than Romania, as their language has Slavic roots, while Romanian is a mixture of Balkan and Roman languages, and is more similar to Italian. But looking at the living standard you can’t say Bulgaria is much di erent from Romania; looking at numbers it’s even worse. e average Bulgarian net salary is 605 EUR (that’s monthly, not weekly!) while in Romania it’s 708 EUR. In Slovenia it is 1290 EUR and in Germany, just for the reference, 2913 EUR (source: Wikipedia).

605

But what’s important for a traveler: most Bulgarians are warm, friendly, hospitable people. ey really do know how to handle meat in the kitchen, but not only meat; their gardens produce fantastic peppers, tomatoes, and other vegetables, and when they ask you whether you want to try local wine, say yes. I vote for the red Mavrud, grown

in the south. It goes well with strong meat dishes. e biggest impact on my personal perception of Bulgaria is Plovdiv, the oldest continuously inhabited European city, today the second-largest city in the country. In this cultural capital of Bulgaria, you’ll nd a Roman theatre, many churches, two mosques, synagogue, theaters, museums, shops, and also great and not expensive restaurants with ‘no guns’ signs on the doors. e old centre is closed for tra c and everything is within walking distance. Our hotel is also a kind of ‘museum’ with rooms which were probably considered modern... back in the ‘80s. I’ve heard the rooms had been renewed. Ah, I was so sorry to hear that. Chairs with leopard-skin-like covers and red and purple walls were so sexy! (Bahahahaha! Ed). We used to have a rest day in Plovdiv and I can almost say I’m sorry not to stay there for more than one night.

place of tears for Australians (and not only for them)

e next stop on the tour is Alexandroupoli, Greece. When I did the tour the last time, we only stopped there for lunch - and rushed further to Turkey. I have to admit it was a long, long riding day - 400km! And that included two border crossings with the last one being quite challenging. e

Turks are very strict with checking your papers and that’s why our guides will ask you two times in the morning: “Do you have your passports, bike papers, and rental agreements?” Please don’t forget anything in the hotel... Gallipoli peninsula is a wonderful place to ride (or just be), one of the most peaceful and serene on the whole tour. In WWI it was far from that as approx. 250,000 people died in the campaign battle - on each side, the

HIGHLIGHTS

Sarajevo, Mostar, Adriatic coastal road, Hvar Island, 5 UNESCO

World Heritage Sights: Plitvice National Park, Durmitor National Park, Kotor, Dubrovnik, Split

MAY 21 - JUN 4, 2022

AUG 19 - SEP 2, 2022

SEP 4 - SEP 18, 2022

Beautiful Balkans Adventure

adriaticmototours.com

Entente Powers and the Ottoman Empire. Some 7500 Australians were killed and another 18,500 wounded. We always take time and ride to graves and memorials and hope that a tragedy like that will never happen again.

What follows a er leaving Gallipoli is considered ‘riding’, but probably the most boring riding day of all AMT tours. But there’s a good reason for doing it, and that is Istanbul, which is far from boring. On our rst edition of the Romania to Istanbul Adventure we ‘only’ stayed there for two nights, but we quickly discovered that a er visiting the ‘must-see’ sights there will de nitely not be enough time to rest for our riders. at’s why now there are two rest days: the rst one is for sightseeing, the second one is for shopping. Resting. And more sightseeing, if you’re into that. You can also ride over the Bosphorus Bridge to Asia, but my suggestion is that you leave the bike

mega city is pretty challenging, drivers are (from our point of view) quite aggressive. If you do it anyway: don’t be afraid of using the horn as much as locals do, which is - a lot.

is is what we came for!

main sights (Hagia Sophia palace, Sultanahmet District, Topkapi palace, Basilica Cistern...) it’s time for shopping in the Grand Bazar. Suggestion: don’t stop a er the entrance and start bargaining immediately, but continue walking the crowded streets towards the

in the garage.

Navigating through a 15 million citizen

Golden Horn, until you nd yourself surrounded by locals doing their daily shopping. e shops are not as shiny and fancy as the one in the Grand Bazar, but the prices are reasonable and the smell of spices and co ee is just as great, if not better. Keep in mind the maximum weight of your luggage on your ight back home... and our support van guy’s back.

On the other hand: dare to buy nothing. Spend your Turkish liras for shish kebabs, for pidas, for fresh orange juices, for three co ees a day with some delights on the side. Spend an hour at breakfast. Go to a hamam! Men, go shave - the experience is totally di erent from doing it in your bathroom! Make yourself a picnic in the park, just like locals do. Chat with them. Let them teach you a game they’re playing. Ah, Istanbul is such a wonderful, vibrant and colourful city! An experience like that will give you much more than fridge magnets. And the silk scarf you bought in London was made in Turkey anyway.

e tour doesn’t stop here. A er leaving Istanbul behind, we stay another two nights on the Bulgarian coast of the Black Sea. It’s not that cities of Nessebar and Kavarna don’t deserve to be mentioned, but let me nish the article right here. I wrote too much already anyway. Sorry, dear editor. It’s hard to put so many memories and photos into eight pages. Dear reader, thank you for reading till the end, and when you have a chance, go and experience it yourself –lifetime memories await!

It might be called Death Valley but both Furnace Creek and Stovepipe Wells are quite lively, in a frontier desert sort of way. I recommend it. D

L O N G T E R M E R S

The range of the CPx is not outstanding, but it will get you over the Coathanger.

TAKE IT EASY

The Super Soco CPx worms its way into The Bear’s affections

HOW CONVENIENT CAN A motorcycle or scooter be? Take the Super Soco CPx that is currently taking up a modest slice of my garage. It is, in every way but one –no, actually two – just like any decentsized scooter. It is slim, which is why I say “modest”, but not miniaturised like many scooters and also not wideshouldered like many others. A good, full-sized compromise.

How is it not like other scooters of its ilk? Well, for a start it’s electric. When it ﬁrst arrived, I thought I’d set things up so that I could just recharge it overnight, but in fact my usage has turned out to be simpler: I just plug it in when I get home, and when I next need it, on the same day or the next, it’s fully charged. That only takes three or four hours, even when it is right down. In effect

it is always available when I want it because it doesn’t need to be fully charged for a run down to the shops, Bunnings or Ofﬁceworks. You wouldn’t believe

the amount of time and money I spend at Bunnings and Ofﬁceworks… Do I have any shares in Wesfarmers? I bloody should.

The other thing that sets it apart is not so good. There is a little bit of room under the seat because my CPx only has one battery, but it’s just the room that the second battery would take up if I had one.

My answer to this limitation is to use a Kawasaki KLR650 accessory, namely a milk crate. There is plenty of room for one of those on the sturdy carrier, even if Mrs Bear were to choose to accompany me down to Bunnings to ensure that I get exactly the right tile grout.

There are more elegant ways to provide the CPx with luggage capacity, but I’ll leave those up to you.

For reasons that I don’t entirely

Yes, there is room under the seat. No, it’s not especially useful.

understand, I feel less compelled to equip myself with ATGATT (All The Gear, All The Time) when I head off on the CPx, compared to one of the motorcycles. I know that dangers are no less on a scooter that they are on a bike, and the fact that “it’s only a quick run down the road” means nothing. But while I like to think that I am not A Bear Of Very Little Brain, I do succumb to the convenient ﬁction that on a quick run down to the bottle shop it is okay to wear runners.

So what we’re looking at here with this Super Soco is a convenient way to lie to myself. I don’t care! Just heading down to the garage, donning a helmet and gloves and hitting the door opener button before rolling out on the CPx is easy. Really easy. Should you have a 20km commute, for example, the CPx will take some of the stress out of that at both ends of the trip.

Electric scooters are still rare enough so that I get people cocking their heads and asking, “is that thing electric?” It’s pretty obvious that it is, but they feel the need to ask so they can start a conversation. I don’t know how many Super Socos I have sold just by spending a few moments down at the shops singing its praises, but I suspect it’s a few.

The Super Soco CPx will not replace any of your motorcycles, except perhaps that postie bike that you’ve been ﬂogging for years. What it will do is add a signiﬁcant amount of convenience to your life. And the only accessory you need is a KLR650-standard milk crate. I am told it is possible to steal those. Not that I would know.

PT D

YAMAHA R7

Here for a good time…not a long time

Just a quick mention that we’ve been given the new Yamaha R7 you read about in this issue for three months to play around on. I will be doing many duties on it – commuting, shopping, weekend blasts and some track days. It should be a heap of fun! SW

Picnic time

ROYAL ENFIELD METEOR 350

So relaxing is the Meteor 350 to ride that I took it for a little jaunt to have a salad sandwich and a cold can of drink at a park along an outer city route I occasionally ride. It was great sitting there looking over the Meteor and saying to myself, “oh yes. I like that…and that, and that is nice, what colour would I paint it if I owned it.” And so it went on until my lunch was done and I jumped back on this little beauty and made my way back home to sit in front of the computer again! LOL!

W H A T S A Y Y O U ?

WE LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU, the letters are among the most keenly read parts of the magazine. Please try and keep letters down to no more than 300 words. We do reserve the right to cut them and, you do need to provide a name and at least your state, if not, town or suburb. Please address letters to contactus@ausmotorcyclist.com.au or Australian Motorcyclist Magazine, 17 Weeroona Place, Rouse Hill NSW 2155. All opinions published here are those of the writers and we do not vouch for their accuracy or even their sanity.

LETTER OF THE MONTH

WE LOVE HEARING

GREAT stories and Brian is one of those that is just great. I’m sure you’ll agree. Brian, you’ve won the awesome Motul Chain Pack – send me your postal address. Cheers, Stuart.

YOUNG AGAIN

Hello Boris,

I have never written to a magazine before, but after reading your article I thought I would, as I always thought I was the biggest motor cycle enthusiast in the world. At 78yo, I still get a buzz when I go out on my VFR 800, which now done 258,000 Ks, and I have not even checked the tappets. It does have the dreaded alternator fault, so it has burnt out three stators. Right from being a teenager, as soon as I got on that bike, I would shout out and punch the air with the, to me, joy of freedom. As I say, I am 78, and have great difﬁculty walking about, but when I get on that bike, I am 18yo again. Unfortunately I also suffer from depression, and the old bike helps me there again, I just get out there and ride, but now I have to ride on my own, as no one wants to ride as long as I do, they want to do short rides, then sit in the café and talk about their latest caravan trip, where I think sitting in the café is wasting riding time. Sorry about boring you, take care, ride safe, and have a great Christmas and New year. Cheerio, Brian (The Old Black Dog)

Hi, Brian.

I don’t pray, but if I did, I would pray that I’m still riding at

your age. What a great innings! Good on you. As blokes, lots of us ﬁght the Black Dog every day. Like you, if it wasn’t for bikes, I’m sure my outcomes would be less positive. I hope your health lets you keep riding as long as the desire is there.

Kind regards, Boris

BANDIT

Hi Stu,

Well done on the purchase of your Bandit. They are an awesome bike. I had the half faired version a few years ago and regret selling it as I’ve not had as good a bike since. They go like stink so I’m sure you’re correct that you’ll be ripping paint off anyone you come across. Enjoy it, mate and I look forward to seeing the things you do with it.

Regards, Johnno

Here it is ready to deliver presents to the grandkids.

Cheers, Phil Werribee VIC

Hi Phil,

Yes, they are very underrated machines. I wouldn’t say it’s too fast though, but some modiﬁcations and that will ﬁx that up.

Nice pic – I did consider the fairing version, but opted for the naked one instead – mostly for my long legs to ﬁt without possibly hitting the fairing, like I did with my CB1300S. Cheers, Stuart

FIX THAT SEAT!

Hi Team,

Just read # 107 editorial & note the new Suzuki 1250 Bandit. I had one in the day, a great bike let down by the absolutely worst Suzuki seat ever produced!

LOVE THAT BANDIT

Great choice Stuart, Out of all the bikes I have owned the Bandit has treated me the best with never a complaint, other than its too fast. Lol.

I upgraded at the time to a Sargent seat (the exchange rate at the time was on par $ for $) & what a revelation.

Now I’m pretty much a Suzuki man over many many years, GT380, GS1000G, GS1100G (x 2) & the last 20 odd years with a GSX 1400, 1250 Bandit, V Strom 1000 & as I got older C50T, C109R & then an M109R.

I’ve owned the M109R for the last 5 years & thought it was time to refurbish the saddle, I am a 140 kg lump. I went to MJM in Goulburn. Sensational!!! A great Result.

So, do yourself a favour, see Mick @ MJM & get the F#$KING Bandits seat ﬁxed, your backside will love you for the upgrade.

Keep up the good work. Regards, Barry Regan

Hi Barry,

Yes, the Bandit is a great bike and mine has already had some work done to the rider’s seat. It feels not

continued on page 106...

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WHAT SAY YOU

to improve my biceps

continued from page 104...

to improve my biceps

Hi Harry,

to improve my biceps

Hi Harry,

GOODLY

Hi Harry,

too bad, but will certainly consider Mick at MJM. I know a few people who have had their seat done by him. Thanks for the kind words. Merry Xmas!

I’m sure your legs look ﬁne to the ones that care…your family. As for your bike not being a very good exercise machine, you better get an adventure bike and do some hillclimbs, that will get the muscles burning! - Cheers, Stuart.

THE NOISE

COVID 1

Dear Stuart,

Cheers, Stuart LOVE IT

COVID 1

Dear Stuart,

Gents,

Dear Stuart,

Clearly there is a lot of economic downturn as a result of COVID19 and it is further impacting on car sales and I would think motorcycle sales (which I think have been down anyway pre Covid19).

There is nobody much on the roads in the ACT except those who by necessity have to go out for work or food and essentials.

Hi Stuart, Firstly, great mag, love it each month. The Kawasaki Versys 1000 S you reviewed in the last issue (97) was great. I was looking at the electronic suspension version last year but you have just sold me on this new model. Not only is it cheaper, which is great for keeping things happy with the “boss”, but as you mentioned you’d be hard pressed to really notice the difference between the two. I like the grey paintwork as well, let’s see how the “Highly Durable Paint” goes in real life.

There is nobody much on the roads in the ACT except those who by necessity have to go out for work or food and essentials.

Regards, Mark, QLD

There is nobody much on the roads in the ACT except those who by necessity have to go out for work or food and essentials.

I have been managing to use the bike for essential trips within the conﬁnes of the ACT border but that is a big change from our weekly ride group where we would usually ride out of the ACT to, say, Goulburn or Boorowa or Yass or

I love the Culture article in the last issue (#107). It was a great to be taken back to a more freer time and having topless painted girls is just one of those good times when people weren’t so caught up on how someones shirt has to be “this long” and not “that long”. I remember back a few years ago when you ran a cover shot with a girl and a rusty bike and the reaction some ‘special’ people wrote into you about. They all need to relax and just realise times were different and a bit of history every now and again is a good thing.

Clearly there is a lot of economic downturn as a result of COVID19 and it is further impacting on car sales and I would think motorcycle sales (which I think have been down anyway pre Covid19).

GREAT STUFF

Cheers, Peter

I haven’t enjoyed a bike mag like this since the old Two Wheels that as a kid I’d eagerly pedal my pushy to the newsagents for every month and read every page once I got it home. I love all bikes and respect anyone

Braidwood. Purpose to ride, have a social get together and have some food whilst out. Now, no such trips. I know there has been panic in terms of buying up of products like loo paper, tissues, hand sanitizer, pasta, canned tomatoes and other products. This panic buying has been ridiculous in my opinion and created a problem of store supply where there was no need to stockpile goods at home. I note that the news reports say that a small supermarket group Drake’s has refused to buy back 150 x 32 roll packs of toilet paper and 150 x 1 ltr sanitizer. I am GLAD they refused a refund as the individual concerned was having about 20 people chase these products and then he attempted to re-sell on E-Bay. Serve the bugger right for being a scungy individual!

Braidwood. Purpose to ride, have a social get together and have some food whilst out. Now, no such trips.

I know there has been panic in terms of buying up of products like loo paper, tissues, hand sanitizer, pasta, canned tomatoes and other products. This panic buying has been ridiculous in my opinion and created a problem of store supply where there was no need to stockpile goods at home. I note that the news reports say that a small supermarket group Drake’s has refused to buy back 150 x 32 roll packs of toilet paper and 150 x 1 ltr sanitizer. I am GLAD they refused a refund as the individual concerned was having about 20 people chase these products and then he attempted to re-sell on E-Bay. Serve the bugger right for being a scungy individual!

Hi Peter/ Stuart, I would like to throw in my two bobs worth regarding exhaust noise. 10 years ago I decided that I would do mobile machine servicing throughout NSW and beyond (if they pay) 98% of my work traveling is by motorcycle. After about 2 years I decided to fit a set of Staintune exhaust which raised the decibels slightly, and I did find that it did catch the attention of surrounding vehicles better than with the standard exhaust, this was a good safety feature for me as I am constantly traveling slightly quicker than surrounding traffic and being noticed certainly helps you do it safer. I must say 98% of the motorists on the road weekdays are very accommodating in allowing you to do your bit without adding extra pressure on your riding.

All that said, I think your quoting of ﬁgures of the people that die daily from cancer, heart disease, diabetes, mozzies and murders is an unfair comparison! Yes to date the total numbers of COVID19 deaths World Wide would be exceeded by a week’s worth or less perhaps of the

for speeds between 5 & 8 kilometres over the limit) and when you are lane splitting and you come across a good sort sitting in her car with a short skirt on try and keep your eyes focused on the gap ahead and not the gap beside you as your motorcycle will happily head in the direction that you are looking.

Hi Hugh, Thanks for the kind words, although I don’t think the shiny paper would go too good as shit paper. LOL!

Cheers, Stuart.

Yours in Motorcycling, Ian Gregory, Regents Park

BORIS

reasons for the daily ﬁgures of these deaths, however this pandemic of COVID 19 is not normal and as you would know has the potential for totally overwhelming the hospital and medical resources of all countries. I am not aware of any cancers etc you can catch from shaking someone’s hand or touching contaminated surfaces. So, comparing normal worldwide deaths to COVID19 deaths is like trying to compare apples and oranges.

STEP AWAY FROM THE TOOLS

All the people dissing Boris “Get a Life”. Don’t read it, you know where it is. Last page! Ignore it!

Hi Bear,

I felt your editorial came across as dismissive of the seriousness of Covid19 and smacked a bit of self-centredness in highlighting the inconvenience it has caused you. I like bikes and riding too, but many people have had to alter travel plans etc for the greater good.

Don’t ruin a top read because of one page, personally I love his column (even though I feel he has a ﬁrm grip on his nether region). Be a boring read if we succumb to the lowest common denominator. No name provided

A couple of little tips from someone who does trafﬁc riding every day whilst concentrating on zipping through the trafﬁc you tend to not remind yourself of speed camera locations and they are becoming very savage nowadays (been booked 4 times

who shares the passion, regardless of their ability or choice of machine. So, I have subscribed, to most of the magazine, but thanks for the spare shit paper at the end :) Hugh Jorgan

BORIS 2

I think that all the media reporting though is worrisome for Australian people as it is repeated and repeated and like the bushﬁres you do not get a break from it. Every time you turn on the T.V, look at Facebook, listen to the radio it is in your face or ears.

I try to reduce my listening/reading/ watching to once or twice a day to keep up with developments - more than that is

Stuart, I don’t always agree with what Boris has to say but I am well aware of how he writes to get a reaction. As for the couple of blokes that sent letters in the last issue, I think

I had a really good laugh at your comment “somebody stop me before I modify another perfectly good motorcycle” (AM #105) - as this is so quintessential of me! If you view the included pictures of my last two bikes you will see that I could not help myself trying to make my BMW F700 into what I considered the best tourer for exploring out of the way places. Likewise my poor Suzuki GSX S750 was piled up with all kinds of add-ons to make it into my perfect road tourer. I just can’t help myself – LOL.

Like you I fell in love with the looks and simplicity of the Triumph Street Twin (in polar blue), but was told by the dealer after paying a deposit that it will not arrive here in South Australia until May or June. The years (2 years your junior) have not mellowed my impatience (I too am “considering the end” and have a “timescale for planning”). The dealer suggested the limited edition EC1 as an alternative ($17,150 vs- $16,590) which is due to arrive in January – so I forgo the polar blue model (you lucky lucky bastard –a nod to Monty Python) and ‘settled’ for the EC1 in matt aluminium silver. Now we come to the most important part of new motorcycle ownership – what modiﬁcations to make? I have similar views to yours on the evolution of my Street Twin – I have outgrown any unrealistic views on my abilities to be a café racer (my ex son-in-law stirs me about the ‘chicken-skin’ left on the edge my tyres). So, I concur with you that my Street Twin will become more of a Tearoom Twin. My daughters and wife caution me about ruining the looks of a such a good looking motorcycle (how well they know me)!

Due to delays in obtaining parts here in Adelaide I have ordered the

following from the Triumph dealer:

• main stand (a real necessity for servicing the chain when touring around)

• clear touring screen and mounting kit (as I am only short I found a small screen adequate on the Suzuki and can use an extender on top if necessary)

• bar end mirrors (I don’t like the looks of the standard mirrors and due to my wide shoulders found the view restricted with standard mirrors)

• radiator guard (I occasionally ride graded gravel roads in the Flinders Ranges and have experienced stone damage on the radiator on the Suzuki)

I have sourced on the net:

• a sidestand extender plate (I had the unfortunate experience of the side stand on the fully loaded BMW GS 700 sinking into soft ground and crushing my ankle and breaking a few bones)

• A RAM mirror mount to screw into the hole vacated by the standard mirror to mount my Garmin GPS I currently have an expandable Nelson Rigg seat bag which will serve as storage for non-touring riding, but I plan to ﬁt rear bags for touring and am impressed with the quality and ﬁtment

TOUR OPERATOR DIRECTORY

of the Hepco and Becker C BOW holders/bags (particularly the lockable and waterproof Orbit side cases). I have always ﬁtted tank bags (using tank ring mounts) to my bikes but this mounting method is not feasible with the offset screw cap on the Triumph. I have seen many tanks scratched by magnetic tank bags and harnesses and so am rather reticent about going down that path.

So, ﬁnally I look forward to following your modiﬁcations to your Tearoom Twin and would love to get your advice on possible additions my Triumph.

Have a safe and merry Xmas.

Regards Mike

Hey Mike, we just did the photos for my Tearoom Twin today, so you should be able to read about my alterations and additions in the next issue. I agree with most of yours, but I’ve taken it a bit further. I reckon it would be great for the two of us to go no a ride together to compare our changes. Send me your email address and maybe we can sort that. I seem to spend a lot of time in SA lately –

The Bear D

The guide to the stars - The who’s who in the zoo of motorcycle travel worldwide is what you’ll ﬁnd here. We’ve travelled with many of them and know them all, so they come highly recommended. In alphabetical order, they are:

MAGIC MOTORCYCLING

ADRIATIC MOTO TOURS – Europe www.adriaticmototours.com info@adriaticmototours.com

CENTRAL OTAGO

MOTORCYCLE HIRE AND TOURS – New Zealand www.comotorcyclehire.co.nz info@comotorcyclehire.co.nz

EDELWEISS BIKE TRAVEL

– Worldwide tours* *Guided, Self-Guided + Rental www.edelweissbike.com

IMTBIKE TOURS & RENTALS

– Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Europe and Thailand www.imtbike.com tours@imtbike.com

– Thailand and Croatia www.magicmotorcycling.com tour@magicmotorcycling.com

MOTORRAD TOURS – Worldwide ofﬁce@motorrad-tours.com www.motorrad-tours.com

PARADISE MOTORCYCLE TOURS – New Zealand & European Alps www.paradisemotorcycletours.co.nz

RIDE THE WORLD

MOTORCYCLE TOURS www.ridetheworldmotorcycletours.com david@rtwmotorcycletours.com

TOURS – Europe www.romaniamotorcycletours.com ofﬁce@romaniamotorcycletours.com

SOUTH PACIFIC MOTORCYCLE TOURS – New Zealand www.motorbiketours.co.nz ofﬁce@motorbiketours.co.nz

TEWAIPOUNAMU

MOTORCYCLE TOURS – New Zealand www.motorcycle-hire.co.nz nzbike@motorcycle-hire.co.nz

WORLD ON WHEELS

– Europe, Iceland, South America, India, Asia, Mexico, Africa & Himalaya www.worldonwheels.tours Adventure@WorldOnWheels.Tours

ROMANIA MOTORCYCLE

B E A R T A L E S

YOU’RE FREE TO GO

IT MAY WELL BE that by the time you read this we will have reached “Omega” with plague variations, but I’ll bet that while it may be extremely infectious, it will cause no more than a red nose and a snifﬂe. Well, here’s hoping anyway. What am I trying to tell you? Very simply, get out and do the things you’ve been holding back on. Do them, or at least book them, now.

Elsewhere in this issue you will find details of a couple of reader tours we are arranging. They are being run by a couple of tour companies with whom I have significant experience, and whom I am very happy to recommend. If anyone can show you a good time after two years of lockdowns and other stuffing around, then Edelweiss and IMTBIKE can.

Not only do they have a solid background in enjoyable tours, they are also extremely good value. And for both of these tours, they have created itineraries speciﬁcally for you, our readers. They were put together in consultation with Stuart and me, and I reckon between us we know what you are going to enjoy. On top of that it looks like you are going to have Stuart as your tour leader, and let me tell you there are few if any who do that better. Check it out with anyone who has been on one of the New Zealand tours he has led.

There are a few reasons why I am recommending these tours.

One very important consideration is that things will have changed during the past couple of years, both in Europe and in Morocco. Before the plague, I would have felt conﬁdent in passing on suggestions for things to do and places to stay. Not so now. I

have no idea which past attractions have changed or even closed, and for the life of me I would not be able to tell you where to stay or eat or drink. The tour companies, on the other hand, have their ﬁnger on the pulse and can make sure that you get to see and experience the best there is in the respective destinations.

Hand in hand with that goes the volatility of prices. Some people reckon that prices in overseas destinations will rise steeply so that operators of hotels, restaurants and whatever can make back some of the money they have lost. After all, people have not been spending during the lockdowns and other limitations on freedom, so they will have money to burn. Others think that prices will fall to attract business. I think the former is more likely, but the thing is, I don’t know. Neither does anyone else. Once again the tour operators will come to the rescue because they, ﬁrstly, have good on-the ground information and, secondly, are prepared to take a chance. Why? Because they have to. So they will do that on your behalf, and guarantee their prices even if they rise.

Finally, there is the increase in bureaucracy we have seen all over the world. Do you have this form, have you had this shot, is your vaccination paperwork the correct one for this

border and up to date etc etc… it’s going to be a paper storm of mythic proportions. And, you knew I was going to write this, once again it is the tour operators who will make sure that all your paperwork is in order for wherever you go. It is quite true that your travel agent will do that too, but your travel agent is going to be in Australia while IMTBIKE and Edelweiss are overseas and have people on the spot.

All of that may seem pretty negative, but don’t worry. You have the opportunity to be among the ﬁrst motorcyclists to enjoy some of the world’s greatest roads after the plague. What could be wrong with that? And you will be able to enjoy the roads, the food, the accommodation and the occasional drink – without having to worry about the details. As well, you will do all this at a set price that is highly competitive. Book now. Use some of that cash you’ve saved and guarantee yourself the ride of a lifetime.

That’s what I’m doing. I have booked three overseas motorcycle trips for the coming year: all three with the companies with whom we are running our reader tours. I can’t be with you because I need to do my research, but you’ll have more fun with Stu anyway. Like I said: book, and book now! D

E W B I K E P R I C E S

G 310 GS

$8090

F 750 GS $13,590

F 750 GS Tour

F 750 GS Low Susp

APRILIA

www.aprilia.com.au

$17,305

$13,840

F 750 GS Tour LS $17,005

F 850 GS

F 850 GS Rallye

F 850 GS Rallye X

F 850 GS Tour

F 850 GS Low Susp

F 850 GS Rallye Low Susp

F 850 GS Tour Low Susp

F 850 GSA

R 1250 GS

R 1250 GS Rallye

Tuono

BENELLI

www.benelli.com.au *All

BMW

www.bmwmotorrad.com.au

R 1250 RS Exclusive

R 1250 R Spezial

R 1250 RT $32,290

R 1250 RT Sport $33,190

R 1250 RT Elegance $33,465

R 1250 R Spezial

S 1000 XR

S 1000 XR Carbon Sport

$17,990

$18,390

$22,305

$21,805

$18,240

$18,640

$21,505

$TBA

$23,490

$24,940

R 1250 GS Rallye X $29,890

R 1250 GS Exclusive $28,140

R 1250 GS Spezial $31,390

R 1250 GSA

$25,490

R 1250 GSA Rallye $26,390

R 1250 GSA Rallye X

$31,590

R 1250 GSA Exclusive $30,790

R 1250 GSA Spezial $30,540

SCOOTER

C 650 Sport

$14,150

C 650 GT $14,990

BROUGH SUPERIOR

broughsuperioraustralia.com.au

SS100 (Euro3) $105,000

SS100 (Euro 4) $110,000 Pendine Sand Racer

001 $185,000

CAN-AM (BRP)

can-am.brp.com

Ryker

$13,799

Spyder F3 $29,299

Spyder RT $39,299

CF MOTO

www.cf-moto.com.au

ROAD

150NK

250NK

$3490

$4290

300NK $4990

300SR $5790

650NK

DUCATI

www.ducati.com.au

*All Ducati prices are ride away ROAD

Scrambler Sixty2

Scrambler Icon

Scrambler Full Throttle

Scrambler Café Racer

Scrambler Desert Sled

NEW BIKE PRICES

Chief Vintage $33,995

Springﬁeld Dark Horse $35,495

Springﬁeld

$35,995

Chieftain Dark Horse $38,495

Chieftain Limited

Chieftain Elite

Challenger Dark Horse

Challenger Limited

Roadmaster Limited

www.honda.com.au

$38,995

$49,995

$39,495

KAWASAKI

www.kawasaki.com.au

ROAD

Z125 Pro KRT $4099

Ninja 400

Ninja 400 SE

Z650L

NSS300A Forza $7999

HUSQVARNA

www.husqvarna-motorcycles.com/au *All Husqvarna prices are ride away

Vitpilen 401 $7875

Svartpilen 401 $7875 701 Supermoto

Ninja 1000 SX

SX SE

CRUISER Vulcan S

INDIAN

www.indianmotorcycles.com.au

KTM

www.ktm.com.au

PIAGGIO www.piaggio.com.au

ROYAL ENFIELD

www.royalenﬁeldaustralia.com

*All Royal Enfield prices are ride away

ROAD

Meteor 350 Fireball

$7890

Meteor 350 Stellar $8290

Meteor 350 Supernova

$8690

Interceptor 650 Classic $10,790

Interceptor 650 Custom $11,090

Interceptor 650 Chrome Mk2 $11,390

Continental GT 650 Classic $10,990

Continental GT 650 Custom $11,290

Continental GT 650 Chrome $11,590

ADV TOURING

Himalayan 410 E4

Himalayan 410 Base

$7690

$8190

Himalayan 410 Mid $8390

Himalayan 410 Premium $8590

SUPER SOCO

www.supersoco.com.au

*All Super Soco prices are ride away

ROAD

TC Café

TC Max alloy wheel

$5490

$7990

TC Max wire wheel $8290

SCOOTER

CUX $4990

CUX Special Edition Ducati $5490

CPX $7690

CPX dual battery $9990

SUZUKI

www.suzukimotorcycles.com.au

ROAD

GSX-S125

$3490

GSX-R125 $4490 DR-Z400SM $9390

GSX-R600 $14,990

SV650 $8990

SV650 LAMS $9190

GSX-S750 $11,790

GSX-R750 $15,990

GSX-S1000

GSX-S1000F

GSX-S1000 Katana

Gran Milano 440

SM 500 R

$7990

$8990

SM 650 R $9490

ADV TOURING

Superdual

TRIUMPH

www.triumphmotorcycles.com.au

*All Triumph prices are ride away

ROAD

Trident 660

Street Triple S 660

Street Triple R

Street Triple RS

Street Twin

Street Scrambler

Bonneville T100

Bobber

Bonneville T120

$9990

$12,840

$14,990

$18,140

$19,950

$16,190

$18,590

$18,290

$22,490

$20,890

Speedmaster $22,490

Thruxton RS $25,990

Speed Twin $21,090

Tiger Sport 850 $17,990

Speed Triple 1200 RS $28,490

Speed Triple 1200 RR $32,490

SPECIAL EDITION

Street Twin EC1

T100 Goldline

T120 Goldline

Street Scrambler Goldline

Bobber Goldline

Speedmaster Goldline

Scrambler 1200 XC Goldline

Scrambler 1200 XE Goldline

T100 Bud Ekins

T120 Bud Ekins

Thruxton RS Ton Up Edition

Tiger 1200 Alpine

Tiger 1200 Desert

Rocket 3 R 221 Edition

Rocket 3 GT 221 Edition

LIMITED EDITION

Street Twin Goldline

Street Scrambler Sandstorm

T120 Diamond

T120 Ace

Scrambler 1200 Steve McQueen

Daytona Moto2 765

CRUISER

Rocket 3 R

Rocket 3 GT

$17,150

$19,190

$22,090

$19,490

$23,790

$24,690

$26,090

$18,000

$19,900

$27,150

$27,250

$28,750

$35,850

$36,850

$16,900

$18,990

$20,350

$20,650

$26,100

$28,990

$34,450

$35,490

Boulevard S40 $7990

Boulevard C50T $11,190

Boulevard M109R $19,790

ADV TOURING DR650SE $8290

V-Strom 650 $10,990

V-Strom 650 XT $12,290

V-Strom 1050 $16,490

V-Strom 1050 XT $18,990

SCOOTER

Address $2820

SWM

www.swmmotorcycles.com.au

ROAD

Gran Turismo

$7490 Silver Vase 440 $7490

ADV TOURING

Scrambler 1200 XC

Scrambler 1200 XE

$23,450

$24,890

Tiger 900 GT & GT Low $21,150

Tiger 900 Rally

$22,390

Tiger 900 GT Pro $24,190

Tiger 900 Rally Pro $24,790

TRIUMPH FACTORY CUSTOM (TFC)

www.triumphmotorcycles.com.au

*All

WORDS BORIS MIHAILOVIC

I HAD THIS MATE…

ONCE UPON A TIME, and that time has long gone, and I am much the better for its passing, I had a mate. Like all of my mates, he was special. But unlike every other mate, his specialness was unique to him and him alone.

He loved riding, which is the prime reason why were such good mates.

I see no point in having friends that do not like riding bikes. Unless they’re lawyers, because lawyers are handy as hell to have as mates.

Anyway, this mate was not a lawyer. We got on just fine anyway. But he tended to stretch the bonds of friendship unto breaking with what ultimately became monotonous regularity.

You see, his problem – and it was a problem, and while friendship demands that we overlook our friend’s problems and try to assist them through these problems, this became impossible – was that he crashed his brains out all the time.

And I mean: All The Time!

At first, I thought it was just bad luck. But how many mirrors can a bloke break?

He crashed the day I met him in a pub in Burwood.

Not a big crash. Just one of those U-turn, front-brake incidents that always catches young players when they tuck the front-end at walking pace. It was kinda funny. We all laughed. Even him.

Two days later, he crashed again. Into the side of a car as he was lane-splitting behind me. Actually, it was into the sides of two cars and the back of a third. He broke

his hand that time. I laughed anyway. It was funny because he wasn’t dead.

He healed up a bit, and was back on the road in no time. And then it began – a relentless cascade of road trauma that saw me visit every single hospital in Sydney (and a few regional ones) at least once.

It was equal parts fantastic and appalling.

He hit roadworks at speed on the entry to Gladesville bridge and lowsided himself into the road-crew.

He hit a dog and ploughed into an old lady’s front fence in Ashfield.

He rear-ended a taxi in Peak Hour on George Street.

A sheep took him out on the Duckmaloi Road near Oberon.

A dirt-road near Cooma put paid to him one Australia Day long weekend and took most of his knee-cap off.

I stopped counting the number of cars he’d side-swiped while lanefiltering, but he was buying levers and mirrors for his bike in bulk, and his hands were a mangle of twisted fingers and exploded scaphoids.

His collar-bones became ash and misery. His gravel rash was so frequent he’d stopped healing and just leaked pus through broken scabs 24/7.

And still the crashing went on.

Corner after over-cooked corner on the Old Road, The Putty, the Oxley, and others without name or reputation. He’d lost the front-end so often there were flat spots on the edges of his front-tyre.

Sometimes it was rider error and sometimes it was machine failure. Sometimes it was both. Chains would slip off worn sprockets, old tyres would deflate, subframes would crack, and loads

would shift themselves down into his rear wheel. There was even one occasion on the Hay Plain when the petrol container he was carrying leaked and then caught fire, which produced a wonderfully entertaining comet-like effect for several kilometres.

His injuries mounted and became chronic. He often did not wait for everything to be fully healed before getting back on the bike. You’ll remember I told you he truly loved riding. And he would get back on that bike, plaster-casts and all, often doing many miles with his jeans stuck to his arse or thighs with weeping bodily fluids.

The rest of us looked upon him in awe.

How was this motorcycle-riding still a thing for him?

Lesser men would have realised this was a zero-sum game, understood they were not good at it, and moved on with a different form of transport.

None of us ever thought he would die or be catastrophically injured – and he wasn’t. He just kept on crashing and he just kept getting back on the bike.

He bought other bikes and crashed on them just as often.

There were no riding courses one could do back then, and we all learned by riding lots and lots. And he rode lots and lots too – it’s just that he usually didn’t make it home.

There was no advice we could offer him. Back then, you acquired skills by osmosis and did your best not to crash. Most of us succeeded to some degree.

He did not.

But he never faltered. He never took a single step back. He never wondered or doubted if riding was not for him.

He just kept getting back on and coming for rides.