Keeping the theme going, motorcycling in 2009 was sometimes expressed better in a single frame, rather than in full-motion. With so many great photos coming in from a plethora of talented photographers, it’s hard to pick just a few that stand-out from the rest. But still, we gave it our best shot. Click past the jump for our picks.
We saw a lot of great videos this past year. Some were funny, some were clever, and some were the epitome of motorcycle racing. Our top-picks pull from all of these genres, but we have to admit, the selection pool was limited by what was still available at the time of this writing.
Some of the biggest pieces of footage this year came from the WSBK and MotoGP racing series; unfortunately, the rights holders for these videos don’t feel like sharing the clips beyond their original air-dates. We’ll leave the issue about how this hurts the sport and motorcycle racing enthusiasts aside for today, so continue on past the jump for some great videos despite this situation.
2009 was Asphalt & Rubber’s first entire year bringing you a daily-dose of motorcycle news, racing, rumors, and more. As the year winds down, we thought we would re-visit some of the top stories from the motorcycle community this year. It’s the high’s and the low’s, it’s the best and the worst, it’s the 2009 A&R Rubbies, and they’ll be coming at you everyday until 2010.
This is our second holiday season here at Asphalt & Rubber, and while the news will be slow today, we wanted to wish all our readers a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Wonderful Winter Solstice, and Kick-ass Kwanza. May your holiday presents be full of titanium exhaust systems, racing slicks, and fresh kneesliders.
We’ve got something special planned for the rest of the month, with full news service ramping back up after the New Year. See you in 2010!
Employing time-lapse photography, the folks at Vyrus show how 750 parts come together to make one finished bad-ass hub-center steered motorcycle in just 3 minutes. Check-out the video after the jump to see how it comes together, and check here to learn more about the Vyrus 987 C3.
The idea that less is more is often a theme usually devoid from the agenda of motorcycle designers use these days, but this Triumph Bonneville bobber concept, aptly named the Triumph Bobbeville, by Australian industrial designer Dan Anderson is a fresh take on the classic Triumph lines found on the Bonneville, with a cue back to the 1950’s that isn’t over the top.
After Yamaha released only a limited view of the FZ8, there has been much speculation about what the new fazzer will have in store for would-be riders. As such in the past week, there have been a couple attempts to decipher what the Yamaha FZ8 could look like by using the all-glorious tool that is Adobe Photoshop.
In a slightly bizzare manner, Nicky Hayden is responsible for the latest bit of news and photo leak from the MotoGP paddock. Making a stop in Bologna to celebrate the holidays with the Ducati Corse crew, in route to India to help open a Ducati store, Hayden got a chance to see the new Ducati GP10 race bike up-close. Armed with a cell phone, and a little indiscretion, the American rider snapped a photo of the new bike, posted the photo to his personal website, and there you have it.
In 140 characters or less, Mat Mladin has signaled that he won’t be jumping to WSBK anytime soon. Linked to Reitwagen’s satellite BMW racing effort, Mladin’s possible seat on the team went to Andrew Pitt just last week. Mladin created some buzz with his tweet two weeks ago, which hinted that the ex-AMA racer was considering making the transition to World Superbike racing.
As the holidays rapidly approach and leave us (shalom to our Jewish readers), the issue of drunk driving becomes more topical and important to us as motorcyclists. In the motorcycling world, drunk driving becomes a two-pronged issue because of the added physical and sensory requirements it takes to safely operate a two-wheeled vehicle, and because of the heightened danger of road-hazards, i.e. other impaired drivers.
Unveiled at the COP15 United Nations Climate Conference in Denamrk, the Copenhagen Wheel system was developed by Ducati Energia, MIT’s SENSEable City Lab, and Progical Solutions for the Kobenhavns Kommune (City of Copenhagen), and is an electrical drive system that can be added to any bicycle to help assist the rider with a boost of extra power. Along with its motor assist, the Copenhagen Wheel has a variety of sensors that relay information back to the rider via a Bluetooth connection that syncs with the rider’s smart phone (iPhone used in the demonstration). It’s a pretty cool concept, check after the jump a video and more.