Big Day

ike lines up for his first ever Moto at the local BMX track, Patchway Bristol. A few jokes were made by rival Dads of his enormous AMA superbike style numberboard - and they weren't more impressed when I said it was made from a 20p charity shop place mat. It was miserably icey weather but more than 100 riders turned up.

Pippa, also first timing, borrowed a proper helmet complete with scene-correct stickers. BP

Unfortunate DRZ/ Tarmac Interface

From Harley in the Isle of Man...

After an unfortunate DRZ/ tarmac interface scenario this morning, I can report that, while Sideburn stickers look cool, crash bungs work better at keeping the bike intact. 
Harley

The Best T-shirt Company in the World?

Probably. FTWCo.

Road Racers by Stephen Davison

Very few photographers can be credited with influencing a sport, but Irish photographer Davison has. His images turned British motorcyclists onto real road racing like never before and he helped make stars of riders like Guy Martin and Ryan Farquhar. This isn't some PR blurb sent out with this new 140-odd page hardback book, it's an eyewitness opinion from a me, a journalist who was working for the biggest British magazines when Stephen's photos started coming through. It's a bold statement, but I stand by it.

Very few British riders knew anything about road racing beyond the NW200 and the TT, and the latter was on its arse. Once British magazines started printing the stories, foreign mags followed. I first worked with Stephen in 2004 and have regularly been on assignments with him since.

Stephen's photos; Paul Phillips taking over the TT; affordable on-board cameras, that led to improved TV coverage and new, free digital channels that allowed for more space for quality footage have transformed the TT and road racing in general. But, I truly believe, Stephen helped get the ball rolling by showing the world not all racers had become sponsor-thanking athletes. Road racing has long had its characters and mavericks and Stephen has benefitted from a rich seam including McGuinness, all the Dunlops, Martin, Hutchinson, Finnegan, and the fans that line the courses, both day-trippers and the hardcore.

The book includes photos dating back to 2000 right up to the present. They are from Ireland, England, Isle of Man, Macau, Spain and the Czech Republic. They include race footage and intimate moments, including an incredible shot of Stephen's friend Ryan Farquhar under-going surgery and at the funeral of Farquhar's uncle.

The RRP is £17.99.

Superprestigio - Live Stream!

We've just been sent this press release. The race is tomorrow (unfortunately for America only)...

Cycle World is pleased to announce a partnership with AMA Pro Racing and RPM Racing to deliver exclusive live streaming video coverage on www.cycleworld.com of the 2014 Superprestigio Dirt Track from the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona, Spain, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Standard Time on Saturday, January 11. 

Revived by 2013 MotoGP World Champion Marc Marquez, the Superprestigio brings together top roadracing and off-road stars for an exciting evening of competition using an American-style flat-track format that many riders now use as a training method. Because an international flat-track race would be incomplete without American riders, Marquez invited reigning AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Champion Brad "The Bullet" Baker to participate in this unique event. Fellow Americans Kenny Noyes and Merle Scherb will also compete, and AMA Pro Flat Track flagman Kevin Clark will be on hand to entertain the crowd.  The Superprestigio was created in 1979 by magazine publisher Jaime Alguersuari and has been held 15 times at pavement venues. Three future American world champions-John Kocinski, Kenny Roberts Jr., and Colin Edwards-made their European debuts at the Superprestigio. Other Americans who have competed include Randy Mamola, Rich Oliver, and Chris D'Alusio, and at RPM-organized dirt-track races, Jay Springsteen and Steve Morehead. 

A truly international affair, this year's event will also feature riders from England, France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. Live coverage of the 2014 Superprestigio Dirt Track on www.cycleworld.com will only be available in North America.

Dennis Kanegae, 207R

We featured Dennis Kanegae (we spelt his name correctly, Cycle News got it wrong) in our regular Trophy Queen back page spot in Sideburn 14. He sent this clipping through.

Just found this...pretty funny. Happy New Year! Cheers, Dennis

The Black Arrow on Bubble Visor

Lenny at Bubble Visor sent me some questions to go with some photos of my Suzuki street bike project, the Black Arrow, taken at Racefit last summer. You can see more photos and read the Q&A at Bubble Visor.
Massive thanks to Mat for these photos. They were taken a few months ago and the bike is now a runner with a custom wiring loom, chain, the whole lot! G

Hmmm...

"Do you think it is possible to turn this two stroke Jawa CZ 175 drudge I have access to, into something off the meat rack like this Yam????. I thought it could be rad but > > > > > > i'm not sure whether to proceed or not ha ha.
happy new year CFH!

UPDATE: Strangely, I just noticed in MCN that Jawa 350 twins (shown below) are being imported into the UK. They cost, what I think is, a whopping £3799. If you're still interested go to http://www.jawamotorcycles.co.uk GI

Mini Highside

Captain Highside's Honda Africa Twin in a KTM chassis featured in Sideburn 2 (see a post on it here). Highside is a very talented motorcycle engineer and racer and was one of the first pro BMX racers in the UK (for the Raleigh Burner team in the early-80s). And a couple of crashes he's put his own racing on hold and take his three kids BMX racing. Georgie is the the youngest and has a flat track bodykit on her balance bike, complete with tiny replica stickers. He says...

'I was given the bare bike but it needed the Skooter Farm treatment! I made a buck for the tank and seat unit and then vacuum formed them out of ABS in the 'shop. I made the stickers on my PC and printed them on vinyl. If anyone is interested in a tank/seat they could be available.'

As if...

You needed another reason to go this April's One Motorcycle Show in Portland...
Dice party with the Vicious Cycles!