“When I believe in something I fight like hell for it” Steve McQueen
www.inspire-lcr.com/mcqueen
INSPIRE
INSPIRING HEROES
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BIKE & PEOPLE
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FASHION & STYLE
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MotoGP RACE HIGHLIGHTS - Round 10
MotoGP RACE HIGHLIGHTS - Round 11
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BIKES & PASSION 6
EDITORIAL With a little help from my friends A true friend is the person you call on your brightest day to share your happiest story and the one that comes on your darkest night to support you through your saddest moments. Where would I be without friends? Who would I be without friends? I’ve been blessed with a gift, which are true friends and did my best to deserve their trust, love and consideration.
Massimo Visconti Contributor
Friendship is like a flower bud that becomes stronger and more beautiful the more time you spend together. It might keep growing on its own, but you should never leave it alone. Be there when they need you most and you will never regret. Friendship is a single soul dwelling in two bodies. So please don’t walk behind me; I may not lead. Don’t walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.
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+ style
+ performance
+ racing spirit
SPECIAL PARTS
EXHAUST
LCR TEAM COLOURS
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PLAY
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THE WORLD OF REDBULL
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n 23 August 2014, Motocross freestyle rider Josh Sheehan from Australia wins the Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour in Pretoria, South Africa. Sheehan was visibly overwhelmed by his achievement, as he celebrated the success with enthusiasm in front of 22,000 spectators. “It’s amazing! I always wanted to win overall, and to do it in front of such an awesome crowd and at such a magnificent location... Thank you so much everybody!” said Josh after winning the title. Photographer: Jörg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
www.inspire-lcr.com/joshsheehan
Zero Gravity
www.tombolini.it
FASHION & STYLE
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he Goddess of Victory will take them all under her Aegis and conduct in triumph. As they ride their way to Freedom, the cheering pipes rumble louder and the engine just runs faster. Chromed bodies flash under the sun and the rays of glory increase tenfold the power of the army. They ain’t here to fight but to rediscover freedom. Fearless beauties march together while their hair swing in time with wind; independence is just a mile away. Her turquoise gaze inspects the scene and shoots. It’s not a firing gun but a medium format Hasselblad instead. She’s a photographer and a motorcyclist based in Portland, Oregon. Her weapon of choice is a 60 years old manual camera, an amazingly engineered machine that delivered these rich of tonal value, grain and clarity images displayed here. Lanakila MacNaughton is a beautiful young woman who fell in love with photography first and motorcycles after, her first bike was a 1982 Honda 250. Her name is Hawaiian and means Victory indeed. This talented female artist devoted to the two wheels fell the urge to express herself through the form of art she knows best and gave birth to the Women Motorcycle Exhibition, a testimony of the new wave of modern female motorcyclists in the U.S. “The motorcycle culture and popular culture as a whole did not accurately represent the modern day female motorcyclist. We are seen as ornaments for motorcycle culture rather than power figures charging down the road on a bike. It was a pity to see these women overlooked and under-represented.” said Lana. “There are new kinds of women who are getting off the back of their boyfriend’s bike and buying their own bike, and connecting with other women in their community and going on adventures together. That’s what living’s about, doing spur of the moment spontaneous stuff that you remember for the rest of your life.” Her project takes her all around America capturing the motorcycle culture mostly from the back of a bike herself. “The women that I did meet blew me away, they were and are independent, strong and courageous. I was inspired to create The Women’s Motorcycle Exhibition to represent these fearless women who have been unacknowledged in our culture and media. The show is a vehicle to promote women motorcyclists as liberated, passionate and fearless riders rather than just an ornament standing perched naked on a bike. I want to change the way women are perceived not only in the motorcycle world but society in general. I hope to promote and present, the freedom, independence, excitement and personalities’ of -the born to be freewoman motorcyclists.” Lanakila MacNaughton
This picture was taken in the desert right outside Los Angeles, California
Deja portrayed on her Honda CB250
The location for the shoot is an abandoned Hotel near the Salton Sea, California
www.inspire-lcr.com/fearlessbeauty
THE WOMEN’S MOTORCYCLE EXHIBITION
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anakila MacNaughton is the Portland based photographer and motorcyclist that created The Women’s Motorcycle Exhibition. A photographic project that documents the new wave of modern female motorcyclists in the United States. Above all, she hopes to illustrate, and really present, the freedom, independence, excitement and personalities’ of “the born to be free” woman motorcyclists. This video was recorded while shooting on the open road.
MotoGP RACE HIGHLIGHTS
INDIANAPOLIS Grand Prix
text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
THE WORLD FAMOUS BRICKYARD WELCOMES MOTOGP RIDERS AFTER THE SUMMER BREAK, BUT INDIANAPOLIS IS KNOWN NOT JUST BECAUSE OF BEING THE RACING CAPITAL OF THE WORLD
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ndianapolis is the capital city of one of the smallest states in United States, Indiana. Historically the city was oriented around industry, but over the years it began a long process of revitalize and now it has much more diversified economy. The city itself it known not just for contributing in the fields such as education, health care or finance, but also, having numerous of interesting places to visit, in tourism. Indianapolis also hosts several sporting events during the year. The most famous are of course the NASCAR races named as Indianapolis 500 or Brickyard 400 and of course the motorcycle Grand Prix. While you’re in the city, you have to visit the Lucas Oil Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts. Do not forget to see the Indianapolis Pacers in action, as basketball and especially the NBA league are very popular in the United States.
MotoGP
RACE text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
NOTHING HAS CHANGED AT THE FRONT AS MARC MARQUEZ WINS THE INDIANAPOLIS GP WHILE MOTOGP COMES BACK TO ACTION AFTER THE SUMMER BREAK
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fter the crazy round at Sachsenring circuit, MotoGP riders took a well-deserved break from racing. They came back on track in the second weekend of August, taking part in Grand Prix at modified Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Even if results from free practices were unexpected sometimes, at the end Marc Marquez took another pole position. He did not have, as usually, a good start and dropped back to fifth, giving the lead firstly to Andrea Dovizioso and then to Valentino Rossi. Everything came back to normal in the middle of the race, as the rider number #93 won the battle for the first place between him, Jorge Lorenzo and “The Doctor”. In the end Marquez crossed the finish line as a winner, scoring his tenth victory in succession! Lorenzo was third, in front of Rossi, Dani Pedrosa and Pol Espargaro. An emotional 13th place came to Colin Edwards, who has decided to end his career earlier, right after his home GP at the “Brickyard”.
Stefan’s
RACE WEEK text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
A POSITIVE BEGINNING AND UNLUCKY FINISH OF THE WEEKEND AT THE FAMOUS BRICKYARD CIRCUIT FOR STEFAN BRADL
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ven if before the summer break the German rider had an unlucky race at his home Sachsenring circuit, he was in optimistic mood ahead of the start of Indianapolis GP. In the past he had quite positive races at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but he was aware to see how he would ride at modified track. The first free practices were quite good for him, as he was in the TOP6 and even won the FP3. Unfortunately he met some traffic during the Q2 session, which means he waited too long to make a perfect flying lap. On his fastest one he made some small mistakes and had to start to Sunday’s race from 10th spot on the grid. After the lights went off he was fighting with Aleix Espargaro for the eight place. In the end he hit the back of Spaniard bike and they both crashed, fortunately unhurt.
“Disappointing Sunday for us. My start was so and so pretty similar to the others. I was in the same group of Aleix and Pol Espargaro and I could see that my pace was faster in some areas but Aleix had some advantage in some corners so we raced with the same pace. At the end of the straight I tried to attack him but we were on the same line and he released the brake a little bit closing my corner space. I hit him in the back and we both crashed: it was a racing accident that can happen to anybody� – said Stefan after the race.
Behind
THE SCENES text: Elisa Pavan - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
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tefan Bradl is training ahead Indy GP: weightlifting with his press officer/ Nicky Hayden celebrates his home race with a special helmet and a special book dedicated to his racing family/ and Jorge Lorenzo, who is hardly trying to battle Marc Marquez, tries a new sport: basketball is very popular in the US/ Marc is never tired of racing: after his daily
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job on track the Spanish talent enjoys an off track session in front of his fans/ So sweet! Pol Espargaro gives his signed official shirt to a very young fan/ during the race weekend the Indianapolis city centre becomes an incredible bikes show/ the best way to celebrate the victory is a brother touching hug/what’s that strange device on Rossi’s bike? A space shuttle or a UFO?/ the ice bucket challenge is not valid with champagne Vale! 44
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BIKE & PEOPLE
a wheel...
Once upon
text: Inspire Team
THE ACADEMY AWARD-WINNING ACTOR, THE DEVOTED HUSBAND, THE PHILANTHROPIST AND THE PROFESSIONAL RACING DRIVER: PAUL NEWMAN
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wonder how much I can add to so much that is known” wrote Paul Newman in a foreword for a book and I feel the same way as I write about someone who doesn’t really need any introduction. It is said that his passion for Motorsports was unlocked in 1968 while filming “Winning”, a movie about a driver who aspires to win the Indianapolis 500. Chances are that his love affair with rumbling engines started earlier but definitely continued till his very last day. “If I hadn’t been an actor, or a director, I guess I would have liked to become a racing driver more than anything else.” said Newman once, “The only thing I found grace in was racing a car”. His enthusiasm for high-performance cars began to manifest itself in 1953 after buying his second car, a Volkswagen. While complaining about the power of his machine, his mechanic suggested dumping a Porsche Super 90 engine in it, plus Porsche brakes, sway bars, Konis shock absorbers and Dunlop Super Sports tires. This was the first of many more hopped-up streetcars to come. 1972 was the year in which Paul Newman first took part in a professional event as a racer at the Thompson International Speedway, he was 47 years old at that time. Nobody can say if he could have been a top pro himself if he only started earlier than that but what we know for sure is that his passion for the sport has been enduring. Together with Carl Haas, in 1982 Paul Newman founded Newman/Haas Racing, a team competing in the IndyCar Series. Since then the team has won 105 Champ Car races and eight drivers Championships proving that Newman was successful not only as an actor but also as a team owner. Mario Andretti was the first rider to drive for him “He was so supportive of the mechanics. When things were going well, he was there and when they weren’t going well, he was still there. He was a rare individual” recalls Andretti. “He loved the camaraderie at the track. He was glamorous, fearless, funny. Bigger than life but also trying to be extraordinarily ordinary. Wanting to be just one of the guys.” Always keep your feet down to the ground, respect the others, be humble and give all that you can to those who were less lucky than you. This could have been Newman’s mantra and sure it was how he really lived as almost all of those who knew him recalls about the Hollywood super star who never acted as one of them. “Racing is the best way I know to get away from the rubbish of Hollywood” said Paul Newman during an interview “I’d like to be remembered as a guy who tried — tried to be part of his times, tried to help people communicate with one another, tried to find some decency in his own life, tried to extend himself as a human being.”
Paul Newman’s first professional event as a racer was in 1972, at Thompson International Speedway
Stefan Bradl takes the new CBR 1000RR Fireblade SP - LCR Edition for a ride at Sachsenring
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OFFICIAL TIMEKEEPER
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MotoGP RACE HIGHLIGHTS
CZECH REPUBLIC Grand Prix
text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
ONE OF THE MOST PEACEFUL COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD, KNOWN FOR SPA RESORTS AND THE MOST ATTENDED MOTORCYCLE GRAND PRIX IN THE SEASON: WELCOME IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC
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he Czech Republic, the former western part of Czechoslovakia, is one of the youngest states in Europe, as it came into existence just in 1993. It includes the historical territories as Bohemia and Moravia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire. The country still grows up, has an advanced economy and high standards of living, and is also the second richest in Eastern Europe. While mostly people visit such cities as the main one, Prague or the second largest Brno, the country itself has much more to offer. It is the world renowned country for its spa cities, especially those along the border with Saxony (Germany). But Czech Republic is known for two more things: the heaviest consumption of beer in the world and also for its cuisine, which has both influenced and been influenced by dishes from surrounding countries. When there, it is impossible to do not it the popular snacks as potato pancakes called “Bramboráky” or fried cheese named “Smažený sýr”.
MotoGP
RACE text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
THE MOST POPULAR ROUND IN THE CALENDAR SEES THE MARQUEZ’S WINNING STREAK COMES TO THE END AS DANI PEDROSA WINS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC
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hampionship leader and reigning World Champion Marc Marquez came to Brno with the aim to become the first ever rider to win the opening 11 races of the season in the premier class. Everything went well for him in the beginning, as he won the pole position on Saturday. The day later he didn’t take a good start, which becomes natural for him now. Andrea Iannone and Andrea Dovizioso took the early lead, but after few laps Jorge Lorenzo was in the first place. When everything seemed to be going as a perfect end for the Spaniard, Dani Pedrosa closed the gap to „Por Fuera” and overtook him. There was no one stronger than #26 that day, as he scored his first victory in the season and his triumph number 26 in the premier class. Lorenzo was second, while Valentino Rossi had a great battle with Marquez for third. It was the Italian who stood on the podium, while Marc’s winning streak came to an end. “Dovi” completed the TOP5 after a race-long battle with Iannone.
Stefan’s
RACE WEEK text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
POSITIVE WEEKEND AND RACE RESULT FOR STEFAN BRADL AT ONE OF HIS FAVORITE CIRCUITS IN THE MOTOGP CALENDAR
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-year old German Stefan Bradl came to Czech Republic with the goal of forgetting about an unlucky finish of the Indianapolis GP just few days earlier. As Stefan had no rest after coming back to Europe from “Brickyard”, he was anxious to score some points in Brno. It all started with sixth place in combined classification of two free practices on Friday, and then a difficult FP3 session. As Bradl set the eleventh fastest time, he had to take part in the Q1 session on Saturday afternoon. In the end he scored the eight spot on the grid, even if missed the pole position by less than three tenths of a second! In front of more than 138.000 fans, the former Moto2 Champion finished the race in seventh place after struggling with the front of his bike when the rear tyre started to drop. That position moved him to ninth place in the championship standings. On Monday Stefan also took part in the post-GP test session, in which he set the eighth fastest time.
“After the last difficult weekends we had recently, we can be quite happy with this result. Anyway it was a hard weekend for us because we lost our way a little bit on Saturday morning and we had to go through Q1 working hard to be back to our standard shape. I did not take a perfect start because we lost some acceleration due to some wheelie. I tried to catch the guys in front of me, Dovi and Iannone, but for some reasons I could not go the same speed as I was struggling with my front tyre as soon as the rear started to drop. The seventh place is quite good but it would be even better to beat the Ducati guys” – said Stefan after the race.
Behind
THE SCENES text: Elisa Pavan - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
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epsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa breaks the winning record of his team mate Marc Marquez: 26 victories and a lot of smiles in the garage! / Alex De Angelis is back in MotoGP with Team Forward and a very sexy blonde one: lucky boy! / While Marc and Dani meet the young talented riders
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of the RedBull Rookies Cup, Randy Mamola is posing for a cute shot with his adorable daughter / After the session Gigi Soldano will cook “risotto con porcini” for the whole paddock: get ready! / Danilo Petrucci’s drinking bottle is funny: not sure what’s inside though: Duff Beer or just water?/ Jorge Lorenzo is looking at the sky to understand if it’s gonna be a dry or wet race. 70
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PHOTOGRAPHER Tino Martino
THE RACING SPIRIT IN ONE SHOT
On 18 August 2014, MotoGP star Marc Marquez miraculously managed to stay on the bike after whizzing round a corner at a 68 degree lean, during a test day at the Brno circuit. Italian photographer Tino Martino captured the epic moment. Camera: Nikon D810 Lens: 500mm f/4
BIKES & PASSION
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he Wall of Death started in the early 1900’s and derived from the United States. It’s a fairground attraction and appeared first at Coney Island amusement park, New York, in 1911. Portable tracks began to appear on traveling carnival and with its peak in the 1930’s, more than 100 motordromes were present on traveling shows and amusement parks. The Wall of Death consists of a huge upright cylinder constructed of large wooden beams, four to five meters high and 7-10 meters in diameter. There is a platform along the top edge of the wooden cylinder. The audience stands on the platform near the top of the wooden cylinder looking down, while a daredevil motorcycle rider enters the cylinder from a door at the bottom. The rider begins in the center of the drum, going up an initial ramped section until they gained enough speed to ride the motorcycle horizontally to the floor, in a clockwise motion at speeds of nearly 40mph. It’s internally navigated by one or more motor vehicles, mostly motorcycles. As the rider builds up speed, the audience is just centimeters away of the roar and smell of a 1920’s Indian motorcycle, a Honda CB200, BMW R51/2 or an original Formula Vee racecar from the 60’s, which are particularly used by The Original Motodrome from Germany, led by Donald Ganslmeier and Thomas Ottl. The Honda CB200 is a lightweight versatile built motorcycle with Japanese precision and robustness that is perfect for the greeting ride and overtaking-races. Driving in the steep wall is exhausting and dangerous, the riders cheat gravity and risk their lives showing their skills riding the vertical ram. High forces act on the driver, often three or more times of its weight. The circuit and the physical condition must therefore be in top shape, similar to the requirements for fighter pilots. A high concentration is needed, the slightest inattention can cause a crash or flying out. In particular, driving close to the upper edge is extremely dangerous. The spectators at the upper are protected with drift fences, yet the driver is highly endangered. In the past there have been occasionally serious accidents when driving steep wall. Over the world there are only few teams that perform these fair arts. For example the Ken Fox Troupe from the UK or The Original Motodrome from Germany, the oldest portable Wall of Death in the World launched in 1928. All those who see the show will remember it for the rest of their life. The noise, the speed, the smell, the proximity of the bikes ridden to the top of the wall, close to the audience – an experience never to be forgotten and a show not to be missed!
The Original Motodrome from Germany is the oldest portable Wall of Death in the World
IDEAS NEVER STOP
Scan the QR Code and continue the journey. www.rizoma.com
MotoGP RACE HIGHLIGHTS
GREAT BRITAIN Grand Prix
text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
GREAT BRITAIN IS A COUNTRY FULL OF SIGHTS OF TRADITION AND HISTORY, HOME OF SHAKESPEARE, THE RED TELEPHONE BOX, THE BEATLES AND WIMBLEDON CHAMPIONSHIPS
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he United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland consists of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It is a constitutional monarchy and has one of the world’s largest economies. The biggest city is the main one, London – one of the most-visited cities around the world as measured by international arrivals. The city is known for Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, London Bridge or the biggest skyscraper in the European Union – The Shard of Glass. The UK has a huge history in various sports, including football, tennis, golf, cricket or snooker. It’s even called the sport-loving country, but it is also closely connected with motorsport. Many teams of Formula 1 are based in the UK, close to Silverstone circuit, while motorcycle racing in the country means not just the MotoGP or British Championship, but also one of the most popular road races around the world –the Isle of Man TT.
MotoGP
RACE text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
AFTER A GREAT BATTLE BETWEEN MARC MARQUEZ AND JORGE LORENZO LAST YEAR, SILVERSTONE WAS ONCE AGAIN THE SCENE OF A THRILLING BATTLE OF THAT DUO. WHO WAS THE BEST THIS TIME?
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hen the MotoGP field went to Silverstone for round 12 of this season, the first time it was not Marc Marquez who came as a current winner. As Dani Pedrosa won in Brno, everyone would like to repeat Dani’s success also on Sunday during the British Grand Prix. But #93 had a strong pace through the whole weekend and once again won the battle for pole position. After the start Jorge Lorenzo took the lead, but had Marquez right at the tail of his Yamaha. Marc was up to first place after „Por Fuera” made a mistake, but just few laps later British fans saw a completely opposite situation. The battle for victory came during the last laps, and after an elbow-to-elbow race, Marquez scored his eleventh triumph this year, beating Lorenzo by less than a second. After a strong race to the finish line, Rossi just defeated Pedrosa and Dovizioso in fight for the last spot on the podium. The honour of being the best British rider deserved Redding in 10th place.
Stefan’s
RACE WEEK text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
ANOTHER SOLID RESULT FOR STEFAN BRADL AFTER A DIFFICULT WEEKEND AT THE FAMOUS SILVERSTONE CIRCUIT DURING THE BRITISH GRAND PRIX
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he German rider was in a positive mood ahead of the British Grand Prix, as last season he had qualified fourth and finished sixth. Stefan has known that the potential of his Honda RC213V, which at Silverstone was branded – for the third time this year – in CWM FX colors, is high. And he proved that on Friday, setting the second fastest time in FP2 and having only Marc Marquez in front of him. As opposite from Friday, Saturday was a much more difficult day for Stefan. He had two crashes – firstly in FP3 and then in FP4. Luckily escaping serious injuries, the 24-year-old from Munich was quite bruised ahead of Q2, in which he set the ninth fastest time. On Sunday he had a good start from the end of the third row, but then a mistake dropped him back to 13th. Stefan fought hard to regain positions and finally finished in seventh place. Thanks to that, he scored important points to his world championship standings in which he is in ninth position with six more races until the end of the season.
This is what Stefan said after the race: “Overall it’s not a bad result for us. I took a good start from the third row but in the beginning of the race I made a big mistake and dropped to 13th place. After that I did my best to repair the situation trying to get closer to the guys in front of me. I could catch them but suddenly Smith had a technical issue and I got stuck behind him. Once again I had to regain my pace but in the last laps I passed Iannone and Bautista (who crashed at two laps to go) and managed to finish 7th. We missed some rear grip since the first part of the race so we will work on this point before Misano”.
Behind
THE SCENES text: Elisa Pavan - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
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or his home race Scott Redding is wearing a special leather to celebrate the UK flag and colours: patriotic spirit / Even this year the Auction organized by MotoGP Charity Riders for Health raises â‚Ź245,010 for Africa. Thanks to the generosity of
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the MotoGP Fans and MotoGP riders, the annual Day Of Champion runs a fantastic event / third podium in a row for popular Valentino Rossi who celebrates his third place with the F1 driver Mark Webber whilst the “golden boy� Marc Marquez takes his eleventh vitcory: simply incredible! 98
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BEHIND THE SCENES text: Elisa Pavan - photo: Milagro - Mirco Lazzari
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WM FX entered as the lead title sponsor for three races this year. The partnership between CWM FX and LCR HONDA MotoGP Team was officially inaugurated at the Dutch TT Assen. CWM FX and the LCR HONDA MotoGP Team have strengthened their partnership with the redesign of their racing bike’s fairing display. At the end of the 2014 MotoGP season, LCR Honda will look ahead towards 2015 in which they will deepen their partnership with CWM, who will become the team’s title sponsor.
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t was a cold French windy morning when the Parisian newspaper “Le Matin” challenged readers to embark into something that had never been tried before. “What needs to be proved today is that as long as a man has a car, he can do anything and go anywhere. Is there anyone who will undertake to travel this summer from Peking to Paris by automobile?” It was 31 January 1907 when this provocative proposal was printed on paper and soon after many Gentlemen accepted the daring bet. There were no rules, but a lot of dust to inhale along those 9316 miles (14.994 km) and only one magnum of Mumm champagne as a prize for the winners at the end of the road. Sure it wasn’t for the bubbling gift awaiting on the finish line, “au contraire” all these Monsieurs were intrigued by the lure of the adventure and the echo of glory. “Our names will defeat time, we will not only be crossing borders but centuries as well. Our names will leave a mark on the dry land.” They were right. There were forty entrants in the race, but only five teams showed up in Peking, eleven people in total. The world’s first ever international motor rally took place in the summer of 1907. These pioneer motorists shipped their machines to China and raced half way round the globe to prove that cars were an independent mean of travel. That was the beginning of an epic, legendary journey that made history. When the teams arrived in China the Chinese authorities said that no car should be allowed to start. But no authority could have stopped them. So they set off anyway. The event had no officials, barely any rules, no proper organization, and no garage assistance. They were recording their positions by sending telegrams to relay stations at towns and railways junctions along the route so that the race could be well covered in newspapers. Each car had one journalist as a passenger, with the journalists sending stories from the telegraph stations regularly throughout the race. Camels carrying gasoline tanks left Peking (now Beijing) and set up at stations along the route, to provide the fuel for the racing machines. The rally started from the French embassy on 10 June 1907. It quickly settled down to be a race between a Prince and a Pauper. The prince was Luigi Marcantonio Francesco Rodolfo Scipione Borghese, commonly known as Scipione Borghese, an Italian industrialist, politician, explorer, mountain climber and of course a racing driver. His main challenger was a fairground roustabout called Charles Goddard driving a Spyker machine. He had no money, sold most of the car’s spare parts to be able to reach Peking, had to borrow petrol from
The Peking to Paris motor race was an automobile race, originally held in 1907
other riders or begging it from locals during the whole race and on top of it all, the Spyker he was driving didn’t belong to him. In a modern novel he would have been the perfect winner, but this wasn’t the case. Italian aristocrat Scipione Borghese instead belonged to a noble family that had lost most of its fortune, so he opted for a career in the army and was well known for being a consummate planner and a skilled traveler. He opted for 40hp, four cylinder Itala. Before the race started, he took a three-hundred mile ride on horseback to the mountain passes north of Peking carrying a bamboo pole cut to the width of his car to see if the Itala could squeeze through the tight trails. Where the way was too narrow, Borghese found an alternate route or hired troops of Oriental laborers to widen the path. He arranged for extra fuel and spare parts to be cached along the route. The rally took them across the Western mountains that separated northern China from the Mongolian plains directly into the Gobi desert and then into the wilderness of Siberia. When the Italian team entered Europe they found out to be ahead of the competition by almost seventeen days. Prince Scipione Borghese, his mechanic Ettore Guizzardi and journalist Luigi Barzini Sr. arrived in Paris on 10 August 1907. Charles Goddard was removed as a driver over a money dispute in Berlin and never finished the race. The Spyker team with a new driver entered Paris only twenty days after Borghese. Apparently, Italians couldn’t help but winning competitions even back then. Such a small but resourceful country. In 1997 the Endurance Rally Association (ERA) staged a rally to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the original 1907 race, but due to the social and political conditions of China at that time it was impossible to faithfully follow the route taken by Prince Borghese. Since the early pioneers first drove Peking to Paris in 1907 the ERA has organized three further editions of this remarkable event. The Peking to Paris is the longest and toughest challenge anyone can drive in a vintage or classic car. The 2013 Peking to Paris route drove from China, through Mongolia, then into Russia and westwards to the Ukraine, Slovakia and Europe on route to the triumphal finish in Paris. 96 cars, 33 days and 7.609 miles (12.247 Km). These memorable images by stunning photographer Gerard Brown were taken during the latest edition of the race. It’s a tough rally, it’s rough, it’s not a game for spoiled rich kids. It’s real, it’s dangerous, frightening but absolutely beautiful and worth riding it. With already 120 cars on the entry list, the 2016 edition of the rally is sold out but don’t loose hope and head to ERA website, a reserve list is being established. This article is dedicated to the memory of Emma Wilkinson who has been killed in a car crash in Siberia while taking part in the rally.
This Chevrolet Fangio Coupe won the Vintageants category of the race
PEKING TO PARIS
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orth watching it, this is a short edit of the 2013 Peking to Paris classic car rally. The film shows an intrepid bunch of people facing extreme adversity in extraordinary old cars as they drive from Beijing through China, Mongolia Russia and Europe
www.inspire-lcr.com/pekingtoparis
The 1907 edition of the race was won by Prince Scipione Borghese and Ettore Guizzardi on a Itala 35/45 HP car
The 6th Peking to Paris Motor Challenge will be held in 2016
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Gi2 DeJaVu Buster
D
uring the next seven months, you are going to ride over 110 meetings, competing in more than 600 races. You will need to catch a hundred flights, drive a huge amount of hours and cover around 126.000 miles (202.777 Km) in total. That’s like travelling around the World more than five times. Apart from being a Speedway rider you are also the boss of your race team, so you have to hire your own mechanics, sign the deals with the clubs, buy your motorcycles and engines. It’s tough but the reward is high. You’re not only doing it for the money. You are doing it because you love it. You love to ride your motorcycle. It’s so light and powerful, it only has one gear and no brakes and can accelerate from 0-60 miles (0-100 Km/h) faster than a Formula 1 car. It’s such a raw form of motorsport and it’s beautiful. Speedway clubs are similar to soccer clubs so if you want to step into this sport you have to be attached to a club. Pro riders usually race for more than one club. The more you race, the more you earn, so they all have a pretty intense schedule, to say the least. On Sunday they might be in Poland racing for their Polish club, then fly to England and race for their English club on Monday. On Tuesday they might wake up in Sweden and race for their Swedish club, then back to England and get on the track on a Wednesday night. Plus every two weeks they will have to defend their title in the World Championship. Practicing on Fridays, racing on Saturdays then start all over again. There are no other sportsmen who do what these guys do. It’s relentless, they have to keep on pushing and get through the best they can. Welcome to their life, this is how they live from April to October with the gas wide open. They simply can’t stop even with a broken collarbone like the British rider Tai Woffinden. Due to their crazy schedule and pretty hardened attitude, he got back on his bike two weeks after a massive crash in 2013 with a couple of screws in his collarbone. He kept racing and at age 23 he won his first Championship and set the new record as the youngest rider to ever win a World title. Fourteen years after their last victory, in 2013, Great Britain managed to bring home the World title again. Now 24, Tai Woffinden is currently fighting against legendary American rider, two times World Champion Greg Hancock. The oldest rider in the GP, aged 44, against the youngest to ever win a World Championship. At time of writing there are three events left on the calendar and Greg Hancock is only five points ahead of Woffinden. Speedway got us hooked now, we can’t wait to watch the Grand Finale in Poland. See you there.
Tuning the engine is one the most crucial apects of Speedway
In Speedway races there are four riders in each heat, two riders from each team
Greg Hanckock age 44, is the oldest rider in the history of GP and never missed one race
“Another one bites my dust” www.arrow.it
INSPIRE
Vintage Emotions PRESENTS
KENNY ROBERTS
text: Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska - photo: Gigi Soldano, Fermino Fraternali, Franco Villani
THE FIRST AMERICAN TO WIN THE GRAND PRIX WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. A TRUE DIRT-TRACKER, MOTORCYCLE RIDER, MANAGER AND CONSTRUCTOR. A LEGEND. “KING” KENNY ROBERTS
K
enny, officially Kenneth Leroy Roberts, was born on December 31, 1951 in Modesto (California, USA). But as a child he wasn’t interested in motorcycles. As today’s champions have started their career at age 3 or 4, including Marc Marquez, Jorge Lorenzo or Valentino Rossi, Roberts spent his early years in the rural area and was interested in horseback riding. Moreover, as a small kid, they even wanted to make him a jockey! Roberts had his first motorcycle ride quite late as for a future champion, at the age of 12. And it was 134
also little bit of a fortune. He accepted the challenge of his friend and for the first time sat on a minibike. Riding on it was such a powerful experience for him, that soon Kenny built his own motorcycle… by attaching to a bicycle frame an engine of his father’s lawn mower! There were no excuses for him, he just tried to give his best. And as his father, “Buster” once told, as a child Kenny had to be a star of everything he did. And when he started to ride on a motorbike, he never looked back again. It didn’t take long that Roberts started to race in
www.inspire-lcr.com/kennyroberts
In 1978 Kenny Roberts became the first American to win a Grand Prix World Championship
dirt track and showed a natural talent for it. As soon as he began to win local races, his results dew the attention of local dealers and managers. Knowing that he cannot concentrate on everything he would like to, Kenny made the decision to drop out of high school and begin a career as a motorcycle racer. Just a day after his 18th birthday, he took part in his first professional race and… finished fourth. Years later he told, that he earned $175 for it, which he spent on a Honda bike. As a true motorcycle lover! He just lived for the bike, spending time on it all day long and even riding it into his room at night and then waking up next to it. In 1971 Roberts won the trophy of AMA Rookie of the Year, and soon after was winning races as an expert class rider. Even if he had to battle with the dominant factory in dirt track, Harley-Davidson on an underpowered Yamaha, he was just giving his best and trying to score as much as possible. No excuses, just fight. It became apparent that Yamaha wouldn’t develop a competitive dirt track bike, so that’s how Kenny started his career in Europe in 1978. He entered the World Championship with Yamaha but no one gave him any chances of winning the world title at the first attempt. They told he had to spend at least one season to learn all European circuits. But what was the first thing he did? He revolutionized road racing with his riding style. Firstly he had started to shift his body weight to the inside of a corner and extending his knee out until it dragged the surface. As the first in Europe, on the track Roberts began to brake early, open the throttle, which resulted in loosing the traction and make the rear tyre spinning, while the bike started to shake. It was a style coming from dirt track, a style never seen before in Europe. And thanks to that Kenny was able to achieve the top speed faster than his rivals. Roberts was already fast in his first season in Grand Prix, winning his only third race in the year 1978. Scoring overall three victories then, and fighting for the title with Barry Sheene, in the end it was Kenny
who won the championship. And what’s more, he has become not only the first ever American to win the world title in World Championship, but also the first ever world champion in the rookie year! With a season under his belt, Roberts should have an easier task in front of him. An injury from the pre-season tests resulted with missing the season opener, but in the end Kenny was again in the battle for title. And he was once again the best at the end of the season and also the only non-Suzuki rider in the TOP10! In 1980, another season, Roberts was fighting with another rival, this time a fellow American, Randy Mamola. Scoring three wins and three more podiums, Kenny came to win his third and the last world crown. The next two years weren’t the best for him, even if he tried to fight for the top places and won few races. His final year as a rider, 1983, was one of his best ever, as he had a brilliant mid-season, winning five out of seven races. Battling with Freddie Spencer for the world title, Kenny won the final round at Imola, which was his last victory and last race in 500cc class. It was not enough to defeat Spencer with who he lost the battle for championship by just 2 points! After retiring, Roberts formed his own Grand Prix team. He won three titles in the premier class with Wayne Rainey on the Yamaha and then concentrated in building his own motorcycles. He had his own team in the paddock till the end of 2007. In the meantime, his eldest son, Kenny Junior, won the world title in 500cc class in the year 2000 on Suzuki. It’s been the first ever time in history, that both, father and son won the title in the premier class. A champion as a dirt-track rider, in road racing and as a team-manager. “King” Kenny Roberts is one of the well-remembered riders around the world. A rider who never made excuses, who was giving his best.
INSPIRE, AUGUST 2014 139
King of the Road, this was and forever will be his nickname
The 1983 battle for 500 cc supremacy between Freddie Spencer and Kenny Roberts was epic
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GREEN LIGHT NEVER MORE WITHOUT INSURANCE ALARM: FOUR MILLION ITALIAN CARS ARE NOT INSURED, A NEGATIVE RECORD PUTTING ITALY IN THE LAST PLACE IN EUROPE photo: Shutterstock
PRESENTS
T
he figure is alarming. We are talking of Italy, a highly industrialized country and certainly not in a state of economic backwardness or with the typical problems of developing countries. Yet even in a European country like ours the safe and correct circulation of all the vehicles on the roads is still far from being achieved. The figures speak for themselves: in Italy 4 million vehicles (in a total of 50 million vehicles) circulate without insurance. It is a negative record that puts Italy in the bottom of the charts in Europe: it means almost 1 out of 10 vehicles, practically ghost cars endangering the lives of citizens. Only in Naples, according to police controls, 800.000 vehicles are “outlaws”. This is a very risky situation: “It is a startling figure. We need to take urgent action to recover this tax evasion and thus give a contribution to road safety”, said the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Maurizio Lupi. “We must act quickly, through new technologies, to identify the vehicles in order to stop evasion and ensure the security of citizens.” This situation is also a consequence of the fact that there is no system capable of detecting irregularities before putting the car on the road. It would be useful to have a law requiring users to communicate insurance coverage for the issuing and updating of documents of ownership and circulation. “The ACI wishes – said Enrico Gelpi, president for ACI – that the anti-fraud law being presently examined by the Senate Industry Commission will also incorporate appropriate measures such as this.” A similar system of active prevention has already been successfully introduced in Switzerland, UK, Finland, Austria and many other European countries and it is clear that it leads to greater safety on the roads. CIRCULATING WITHOUT INSURANCE IS PROHIBITED Circulating on the roads without having a valid insurance is a highly uncivilized and dangerous behaviour, because in case of an accident with damage to persons and property the not insured driver will never be able to compensate the victims. Uninsured car drivers know the risks and responsibilities related to their status and this is why they often run away after an accident leaving the victims unattended. Cars, motorcycles, trucks and even tour buses that circulate without insurance are very dangerous and can cause serious damage. Not only that: the recent economic crisis is worsening the problem, and not just in the South of Italy. With serious dangers for both those who have no insurance, which are likely to end up fi-
nancially ruined in the event of an accident, and for those who suffer the damage, forced to seek compensation from the Guarantee Fund for Road Accident Victims. Not surprisingly, according to the rules of the road of all the civilized countries, circulating on the road without insurance coverage is forbidden. WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU ARE WITHOUT INSURANCE? According to Article 193 of the Highway Code motor vehicles cannot be driven without a proper insurance coverage in accordance with the laws on civil liability towards third parties. Anyone caught driving a vehicle without insurance will be subject to an administrative penalty, from € 841 to € 3,287, in addition to the immediate seizure of the vehicle. WHAT TO DO IN CASE OF ACCIDENT WITH AN UNINSURED CAR Drivers without insurance may not provide cover for the losses – civil, criminal or moral damages – caused to third parties. If you happen to have an accident with an uninsured vehicle, the risk is that damaged things and injured people will not be able to receive any compensation. To avoid this occurrence all civilized countries have made it mandatory having insurance for civil liability. In addition, there is a Guarantee Fund for Road Accident Victims who is also involved in cases of accidents with unidentified vehicles or cars unable to respond for damages caused to third parties. The Guarantee Fund for Victims of Road Accidents compensates the people involved in accidents caused by cars and motorcycles with no insurance, even if its resources are not infinite and, due to the economic crisis, its intervention is more and more required. The vehicles insurance is mandatory by law because this obligation only provides coverage for the damage suffered by the victims. The insurance is therefore an important element of social security because it allows claimants to obtain compensation while the driver causing the accident does not have to deal with its assets to a large outlay of money. HOW TO STOP THIS PHENOMENON Some Italian municipalities will feature the new Targa System, which can read the plate among the traffic and identify in a few seconds the car without insurance, not reconditioned or even stolen or subject to seizure.
INSPIRE, AUGUST 2014 143
Team LCR is extremely grateful to all the friends and brands involved in our projects. With your hard work, support and passion, you keep on making us bigger as a MotoGP team. Your efforts also helped us in giving birth to an amazing magazine, we’ll be forever thankful. Life is a race, let’s get inspired. We keep on running!
INSPIRE
CREDITS
Editor-in-chief ENRICO BARBIERI enrico.barbieri@lcr.mc
Coordinator LUCIO CECCHINELLO cecchinello@lcr.mc
Art Director Emanuele Vallorani graphic@lcr.mc
Production Director Errico Gasperoni graphic@lcr.mc
Contributors Massimo Visconti, Elisa Pavan, Tanja Haydn, Nelly Pluto-Prondzynska Photography Milagro, Gigi Soldano, Tino Martino, Mirco Lazzari, Jörg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool, Lanakila MacNaughton, Gerard Brown, Marian Chytka, Fermino Fraternali, Franco VillaniFabio Alberti, , Shutterstock, Envato Publisher Steve Burgess
steve.burgess@clearsightpartners.com
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