PPIHC: Carlin Dunne Sets Outright Best Motorcycle Time at Pikes Peak Tire Test on a Lightning Motorcycle

The competitors for the 91st Pikes Peak International Hill Climb have just concluded a two-day tire test at the Colorado road course, and it should perhaps come as no surprise that our boy Carlin Dunne has posted the outright fastest lap for a motorcycle during the tire test (the Santa Barbara native set the outright two-wheeled course record last year on his Ducati Multistrada 1200 S). What is surprising about Carlin’s result at the tire test is that he was on the Lightning Motorcycles electric superbike. That’s right, the fastest bike so far for 2013′s Race to the Clouds is a 200+ hp electric superbike that is refueled with solar energy. Petrol heads, eat your heart out.

Report: Indianapolis “Opting-Out” of 2014 MotoGP Race?

Talking to the Indy Star, Mark Miles (CEO of Hulman & Co, the parent company to Indianapolis Motor Speedway) has put some doubt into the historic venue’s commitment to host the MotoGP Championship. Having a contract to run the race through the 2014 season, Miles said that IMS might opt-out of the final year in its agreement with Dorna (IMS apparently has this option for a brief window after the 2013 Indianapolis GP). However while the news has focused so far on IMS’s ability to opt-out, both Dorna and Indianapolis Motor Speedway have options in their contract to go through with the 2014 round, and with a bevy of variables in the air, we may or may not see three American GP rounds next year.

2014 Yamaha FZ-09 – Three Cylinders of Naked

Surprise! America will be getting a 847cc three-cylinder naked bike for the 2014 model year, the 2014 Yamaha FZ-09. Replacing the Yamaha FZ8 in the Japanese company’s line-up, the FZ-09 is the first motorcycle from the tuning fork brand to sport the Yamaha’s new line of three-cylinder engines. The Yamaha FZ-09 comes about as the MIC is reporting its second-consecutive year of growth in the 751+cc sport bike segment, as well as increase in commuter riding over short-distance sport riding. With those trends in mind, Yamaha has punched out the displacement on its middleweight naked bike, and focused on giving riders a comfortable, yet stout, motorcycle. Priced at $7,990 MSRP, we think Yamaha hit the nail pretty much on the head with this one.

Trackside Tuesday: The Mind-Killer

In the past few years I’ve come to believe that, while superior physical differences (their reflexes and fine motor skills) are significant, it’s the mental differences that are the most interesting. I suppose anyone who has ridden a motorcycle even a bit beyond one’s comfort zone can appreciate some part of the physical aspect of riding a racing bike. For most of us, even the speed of racers in local events is impressive compared to our street riding. While the skills with throttle, brakes, and balance are on a level similar to the best athletes in other sports, I think that what really sets motorcycle racers apart is their ability to overcome fear.

Video: Still Think Electric Motorcycles Are Slow?

The progress in the last five years on electric motorcycles has been astounding. Taking their first laps around the Isle of Man TT Mountain Course, a 87.434 mph pace was the best an electric motorcycle could do at the prestigious road race in 2009 — a pace that was on par with the 50cc record set in 1971. In just five years after the first laps were taken by electric motorcycles at Snaefell, these machines have grown their average lap speeds by over 20 mph at the TT Zero race, setting a new record of 109.675 mph in 2013, and boasting a rate of improvement of roughly 5 mph each year since 2009. If hitting 142.2 mph down the Sulby Straight speed trap wasn’t further proof of the speeds these bikes are achieving, maybe some visual evidence will help support the notion.

Here’s Your Feel Good Moment of the Week — Now, What’s Your Excuse for Not Riding Today?

Darius Glover is a dirt bike racer. Like you and me, he lives to ride, and when he is on two-wheels he feels the freedom that only other motorcyclists can truly understand. The thing is though, Darius is paralyzed from the waist down. Where others would give up their dreams and this sport, Darius at the age of 15 instead pushed onward. No pity parties, no excuses, just simply a daily example of where there is a will, there is a way, and a reminder that you can achieve anything that you put your mind to. It’s hard not to get a bit choked up listening to Darius tell his story, but you walk away feeling uplifted after feeling his attitude come across the screen.

Erzberg Rodeo – Red Bull’s S&M Playhouse for Motorcycles

Any race where 1,500 riders start, 500 qualify, and only 14 finish, has got to be an epic competition, and considering the fact that the Erzberg Rodeo starts in the excavation pit of an Austrian mine…well, it takes a special rider to be enticed by such an event. One such special rider is Graham Jarvis, who was the first of the fourteen men to reach the 20th and final checkpoint. Taking 2 hours and 52 seconds to complete the course, Jarvis made the 2013 Erzberg Rodeo look downright easy. However, with one look at the race-day conditions from this past weekend, we know it was anything but.

Controlling the Uncontrollable – The Role of Ritual in Racing

While normally, MotoGP fans never get enough of seeing Valentino Rossi on TV, there is one shot they would (for the most part) gladly be spared. As he leaves the pits, Rossi stands on the footpegs, and pulls his leathers from between his buttocks, before sitting back down again and leaving. These rituals – part useful limbering up, part invocation of Lady Luck – are something many riders perform, in their attempt to exert control over themselves, and over their environment. In a fascinating press release – by far the most interesting we have received in many months – the Aspar team today provided a discussion and explanation of what riders are trying to achieve through the use of these rituals.

Up-Close with the 2013 MotoCzysz E1pc

Hoping to make it four wins in a row, it goes without saying that the MotoCzysz crew is working hard to close the gap to the John McGuinness and the Mugen team. However, having Team Principal Michael Czysz stuck back in the US, undergoing cancer treatments, must certainly add another level of motivation for the on-island MotoCzysz crew. Making time in their busy schedule, Asphalt & Rubber got to take some up-close photos of the 2013 MotoCzysz E1pc. The most obvious changes made to the MotoCzysz E1pc for the 2013 TT Zero race are the use conventional suspension pieces. Of course, it’s not a completely standard suspension setup, as MotoCzysz has developed its own adjustable triple clamp that incorporates tunable lateral flex parameters.

MotoGP: Max Biaggi To Test Ben Spies’s Ducati at Mugello, Michele Pirro To Replace Spies at Barcelona

Max Biaggi is to make a surprise return to riding a MotoGP machine. The former 250 and World Superbike champion will take a seat on Ben Spies’ Ignite Pramac Ducati as part of a one-day test at Mugello, as part of Ducati’s testing program, according to Italian site GPOne. Spies was scheduled to stay on at Mugello to take part in a two-day test, but after the first day of practice at last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, it was clear to both Spies and Ducati that his shoulder was still too weak to ride a MotoGP machine. With work continuing on the Desmosedici, it was important for Ducati to get as much data as possible on their bike, and so Biaggi was offered the chance to ride the machine.

MotoGP Agrees On New Measures to Reduce Costs

03/01/2009 @ 9:07 am, by Jensen Beeler1 COMMENT

MotoGP Agrees On New Measures to Reduce Costs motogp paddock trailers 560x420

The Grand Prix Commission has announced a slew of new rules for MotoGP, supposedly aimed at cutting costs in MotoGP, and thus allowing the manufacturers and teams to compete despite the world’s economic situation.

The new measures include the following:

Race weekends will be rescheduled with Friday’s practice dropped completely, and Saturday’s sessions shortend.
From the Czech GP onward, a maximum of 5 engines can be used in 8 races. No changing of parts will be permitted except daily maintenance.
Only 2 post race tests will be allowed at the Catalunya and Czech GP’s for development purposes, and only using test riders will be permitted.
Ceramic composite materials are not permitted for brake discs or pads.
Electronic controlled suspension is not permitted.
Launch control systems are not permitted.

Carmelo Ezpeleta and Vito Ippolito announced the new rules be saying:

“We have taken important decisions today in order to reduce the cost of Grand Prix competition and we all agree to make these changes. Our organizer, Dorna, our manufacturers and our teams have participated in the decision…The significant reduction in the number of test sessions and reduced the duration of the testing sessions will lower costs significantly, as the ban on the power-assisted starting and reducing the number of engines usable in the second half of the year. These are the first steps made by thinking about the future and we will meet again in the coming weeks to discuss measures for 2010.”, said Vito.
“Today we gathered at the Grand Prix Commission to take important measures to ensure the future of the Moto GP. Through the decisions taken in 2009, participate in the World Championship will be more affordable and we want to continue on this path for 2010. This is an important day for the MotoGP World Championship which will be cheaper and more spectacular.”, concluded Carmelo.

The revised weekend schedule will see the Friday morning practice dropped all together, and the other practice sessions severely shortened. Fans actually attending races may be losing out on track time, but there are rumors that the Friday morning will be turned into some kind of open paddock, allowing fans a better opportunity to get close to the riders, the bikes, and see the teams at work up close. TV audiences will suffer however. The shortened sessions on Friday and Saturday afternoons mean half an hour less MotoGP action on TV, which won’t affect us too much in the US, but in countries like Spain and Italy both days of practice are televised, and as such a reduction in airtime might spell fewer sponsorship dollars.

The intention of the minimum engine life rule is to get the factories to de-tune their engines and build them for longevity. There is a lot of concern in the teams about how this rule will be enforced, because depending on the severity of the penalty, it might even be worth it to teams to disregard the rule entirely. Starting from the middle or back of the grid with a significantly faster bike, might pay-off when compared to running a bike within the rules that is significantly less competitive.

Cutting the number of post-race tests from the 5 currently scheduled down to just 2 will surely save on maintenance. The rule also specifies that only test riders may be used in the testing sessions. This in conjunction with the already in-place single tire rule, however makes testing for race setups even harder for teams and makes the test rounds a bit abstract in their application to race day.

The ban on ceramic disc brakes are aimed firmly at 2010, when the Grand Prix Commission is likely to ban carbon brakes. Without a ready alternative, the hope is that the teams will turn to steel discs, so that a one-bike-per-rider rule can be imposed, and the teams can also save the quarter of a million euros they drop on brake parts. Whether they do, or whether they spend more money looking at alternatives which aren’t ceramic composites, remains to be seen.

Like ceramic brakes, electronically controlled suspension is not used currently in MotoGP. But once again, the single tire rule makes this a more attractive proposition. Some teams have experimented with it, but it is far from commonplace yet and it would appear this rule is designed to prevent that from occuring.

Lastly, launch control will be banned in order make the race more about the rider than the bike. Without a spec ECU, policing launch control is going to be impossible, and even with a spec ECU we have seen in Formula1 how difficult policing this technology can be. There is no clear indication on how the people charged with enforcing the rules will be able to distinguish between a “safety” engine map, or “rain setting” engine map will be handled in lieu of launch control.

Both Carmelo Ezpeleta and Vito Ippolito have spoken out against the increasing use of electronic controls, as have any number of riders.

Source: MotoGP Matters

Tagged under: Carmelo Ezpeleta, Ceramic Brakes, cost, cost-cutting, Electronic Suspension, engine, engine life, Launch Control, measures, MotoGP, practice, race, reduce, reschedule, test, testing, Vito Ippolito

Comment:

Asphalt_Rubber says:
March 1, 2009 at 2:08 PM
#motorcycle “MotoGP Agrees On New Measures to Reduce Costs” – http://tinyurl.com/d3sgkz

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