Video: 2011 AFM Banquet Film – Death to Second Place

The oldest racing organization in the country dedicated soley to motorcycle road racing, the AFM is a Northern Californian non-profit racing organization that has helped hone the skills of riders like Eddie Lawson, Wayne Rainey, Kenny Roberts, and Steve Rapp — not mention a weekend warrior or two. Each year the racing league comes together for a banquet, and lately the tradition has been to include a highlight film of the year’s racing. I’m not sure what films in the past have been like, but if the latest AFM banquet video doesn’t give you goosebumps, you might want to check your pulse. Bonus points for the including the Versus “Second Place” monologue — it’s very apropos.

Pikes Peak International Hill Climb 2011 – The Ducati Story

Grab some popcorn, because this video from Ducati North America is over 14 minutes long. Telling the story of Ducati at the 2011 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC), DNA has put together a great video that really captures how special the racing is at Pikes Peak, and how gorgeous the scenery is of the Colorado Mountains. With Santa Barbara Ducati’s Carlin Dunne winning the overall motorcycle category on his dealership’s Multistrada 1200 demo model, Alexander Smith from the Spider Grips Ducati Team made it a double podium for Ducati in the 1205cc class. If you’re new to racing at Pikes Peak, or wanted a quick re-cap of last year’s race, Ducati’s video pretty accurately sums up racing on the mountain and the anxiety around last year’s race.

Ducati Announces Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Team with Carlin Dunne & Greg Tracy

Ducati has announced its factory team for the 2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC), and the Italian company has secured the services of last-year’s winner and Rookie of the Year Carlin Dunne as well as six-time PPIHC winner Greg Tracy. Ducati has also partnered with the Spider Grips team, who will help prepare the teams Ducati Multistrada 1200 for the “Race to the Clouds” on July 8th. For 2012, the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb will be fully-paved to the top of the mountain, which will surely see the speeds of competitors increase, and lap times drop on the 12.42 mile long course that ends at 14,110 feet.

Cutaway Photos of the Ducati Superquadro Engine

I was flipping through some photos from the 2011 EICMA show, and found these shots of the Ducati 1199 Panigale’s Superquadro engine. Unfortunately at the show, Ducati had its 1199cc v-twin motor behind a Lexan case, which created a bit of a glare, reflections, and of course had smudges from the touchy-feely Italian crowd. But still, the photos give a good idea of what’s going on in Ducati’s most-advanced production engine to date, and are better than just looking at the CAD renders. If you look at the shots very closely, you can almost see where the 195hp and 98 lbs•ft of torque is lurking inside.

AGV, Please Make This Helmet!

In addition to testing the factory Ducati Desmosedici GP12 “Phoenix” this week at Sepang, Valentino Rossi is also trying out a new lid from AGV. Aside from the carbon fiber goodness, and of course the Rossi stickers (which add 5hp & $200), AGV’s prototype helmet sports a noticably pronounced rear spoiler. Tucked in behind the windscreen, it is obvious why the Italian helmet manufacturer designed such a large protrusion off the back of the prototype helmet, as it looks to be clearly helping the flow off the back of the helmet, across the rider’s hump, and down his backside.

2012 Honda RC213V Debuts in Malaysia

While Ducati Corse is busy playing hide-the-Desmosedici at Sepang, HRC is all business in Malaysia this week, and has debuted its 2012 Honda RC213V MotoGP-contender. Honda isn’t saying too much about the RC213V, simply stating that the race bike is all new, but is also a continuation of the company’s design with the 800cc Honda RC212V. Testing the Honda RC213V over the course of last season, reigning-World Champion Casey rode the new 1,000cc machine three times in 2011, while teammate Dani Pedrosa swung a leg over the RC213V twice (missing one test because of injury).

No, This is the “90%” New Ducati Desmosedici GP12

You may have been misled by some eager journalists today and yesterday, if you saw a Ducati Corse livery-clad Ducati Desmosedici GP12 that some sites were passing off as the first shots of the “90% new” GP12. With the alleged new GP12 looking surprisingly similar to the aluminum-framed “GP0″ that was tested at Valencia, Valentino Rossi’s mechanic has now Alex Briggs confirmed that the photos taken were not of the all new “GP12 Phoenix” that the factory team will race this season. While the Ducati lords can taketh away, they can also giveth, and Valentino Rossi himself has posted the first photo of the factory Desmosedici GP12, and the bike is clearly different.

Zero Motorcycles Commences 2012 Model Line Production

Zero Motorcycles has announced the full-commencement of production for its 2012 model line, which is expected to hit dealers in February & March of this year. First off the line was the 2012 Zero DS back in December, though the electric motorcycle company has recently started building the Zero S, Zero XU, Zero X, and Zero MX at its Scotts Valley facility as well. A story we broke back in November, Zero Motorcycles debuted its important 2012 electric motorcycle line up at the 2011 EICMA show in Milan, with the 2012 range being a substantial improvement upon the company’s previous offerings.

The Dainese D-Air Racing Airbag Suit Comes to America

Getting a look at Dainese & AGV’s 2012 collection, Asphalt & Rubber was down in Orange County earlier this week to see the highly anticipated Dainese D-Air Racing leather suit, which has a four liter airbag system that helps reduce the risk of injury during a motorcycle crash. Dainese has been working on the D-Air Racing system for 10 years now, and after soft-launching the airbag suit in Europe, the Italian company is ready to bring the game-changing technology to American soil.

I Love the Nightlife. I’ve Come to Boogie.

Us Danes, we’re a strange breed. From the culture that taught you how to rape and pillage, Scandinavia is making yet another contribution to the motorcycling world with this latest video. Featuring Danish Supermoto Champion Andreas Mikkelsen, we get a RoToR camera-esque perspective (this rig is actually home made) on the Dane’s practice session at the Als Supermotard Club in Denmark. It’s videos like this that are slowly eroding my will-power to resist getting into supermotard riding. Also, I don’t know who was in charge of the music selection on this thing, but my hat is off to him/her. I love the nightlife. I’ve come to boogie.

Brammo Enertia TTR Electric Motorcycle – Sponsored by Best Buy

Tue, June 2nd, 2009 @ 5:00 pm, by Jenny Gun6 COMMENTS
Home » Racing » Brammo Enertia TTR Electric Motorcycle – Sponsored by Best Buy

Brammo Enertia TTR Electric Motorcycle Sponsored by Best Buy brammo enertia ttr 1 560x373

Today is a double Brammo day. Earlier this morning we teased you with a picture of the Brammo TTR in race trim. You may have noticed two things. 1) The bike is green…kind of like the Hungry Hunter, and 2) Best Buy is sponsoring it. We don’t mess with giant men that have brussels sprouts growing on them, so this article will solely focus on the latter of the two observations. More pictures after the jump.

With the Brammo Enertia slated to be sold at a Best Buy near you, there is in a way a logical connection then for the Brammo TTR to have Best Buy as a marquis sponsor to the electric racer. Best Buy is also a large investor in the Brammo the company, making the sponsorship fit even more so. In its sponsorship, Best Buy will be supporting a 2-bike team at the Isle of Man TTXGP, being held this July 12th.

There’s no word yet as to whether the Geek Squad will be working the pits at the IOM, but we have it on good authority: that joke isn’t going away anytime soon.

The Brammo TTR race bike is based standard Enertia chassis, but everything has been appropriately beefed-up to handle the output of the enlarged electric motor and 100-volt, 8kWh lithium polymer battery pack. Top speed is listed at just 100 miles per hour, but Brammo believes its low 360-pound weight and high-spec suspension will help the TTR maintain a consistently high average speed over the 37-mile TTXGP time trial, and fend off the advances of the larger and more powerful MotoCzysz and Mission One.

Speaking about the competition, Brammo CEO and Chairman, Craig Bramscher said this:

“Our goal is to be the best handling bike and the one that goes through the curves the fastest so we’ve got the highest average speed,” says Bramscher. The TTR is likely to be far slower in a straight line than both the Mission One, the street version of which is said to hit 150mph, and the MotoCzysz E1pc with it’s 10 battery packs and three motors. We’ve already seen the E1pc hit 122mph on a dyno.”

Brammo CEO Craig Bramscher also told Wired.com that his company doesn’t have plans to sell the race-ready TTR at the consumer level, but we suspect a more “sporty” version of the Enertia will make its way off the drawing board at some point. Rumor has it that a fully-faired version of the bike will be launched within the next six months alongside a less-expensive, detuned version of the standard Enertia.

What is interesting though, is that the Brammo TTR has taken a bit of color change from the leaked photos we gave you about a month ago. Could those be possible renders of a street going bike? Or just one of many designs that was up for grabs for the IOM racer?

Brammo/Best Buy Press Release:

BEST BUY SPONSORS BRAMMO ENERTIA TTXGP RACE TEAM
ASHLAND, Ore., May 28, 2009 — Brammo, maker of the Enertia plug-in electric motorcycle announced today that Best Buy is an official sponsor and team partner of Brammo’s two-bike team that will compete in the Isle of Man TTXGP race. The team will be officially known as Team Brammo Enertia Best Buy Racing.
Founder and CEO of Brammo, Craig Bramscher (Twitter: @brammocraig) said, “Our goal with Team Brammo Enertia Best Buy Racing is to explore future capabilities, technologies and features of the production-based Enertia electric motorcycle and the future of the Brammo product line. Having Best Buy support for our Enertia racing program has really helped Brammo elevate the program and it is awesome to have their involvement.”
“Best Buy Racing is thrilled to be part of such an innovative racing endeavor,” said Paul Zindrick, senior manager of event marketing at Best Buy. “Our involvement with Brammo and the TTXGP event is a natural extension of our Best Buy Racing initiatives and we will apply our full technical and promotional resources to integrate the Brammo Enertia into Best Buy Racing around the world.”
Team Brammo Enertia Best Buy Racing has two bikes entered in the TTXGP. Bike #11 will be ridden by Roy Richardson. “Roy Boy,” is a third-generation motorcycle racer and has an impressive history at the TT with numerous silver replica awards and lap records. Bike #26 will be ridden by Edinburgh native, Mark Buckley. Mark has been racing for 15 seasons with numerous top finishes and is also an accomplished journalist.
TTXGP is the first zero emissions motorcycle race on the planet that will take place at the historical Isle of Man TT scheduled for June 12, 2009. Twenty-three teams from around the world are entered in the TTXGP and the event is designed to introduce carbon-free racing to the world. For additional information about the event, visit www.ttxgp.com.
Fans and media can follow Brammo on www.brammo.com, or on Twitter at @BrammoSays. Additional pictures of the Enertia race bikes and fresh video can be found at www.brammo.com.
About Brammo
Brammo (www.brammo.com) is a premier specialty vehicle manufacturer developing sustainable performance products for the next generation of transportation. Through integration of digital engineering and high impact design, Brammo transforms ideas into compelling products. Located in Ashland, Oregon the company was founded in 2002 and is privately held.
About Best Buy Co., Inc.
With operations in the United States, Canada, China, Europe and Mexico, Best Buy is a multinational retailer of technology and entertainment products and services with a commitment to growth and innovation. The Best Buy family of brands and partnerships collectively generates more than $45 billion annual revenue and includes brands such as Best Buy, Audiovisions, The Carphone Warehouse, Future Shop, Geek Squad, Jiangsu Five Star, Magnolia Audio Video, Napster, Pacific Sales Kitchen, Bath and Electronic Centers, The Phone House and Speakeasy. Approximately 155,000 employees apply their talents to help bring the benefits of these brands to life for customers through retail locations, multiple call centers and Web sites, in-home solutions, product delivery and activities in our communities. Community partnership is central to the way we do business at Best Buy. In fiscal 2009, we donated a combined $33.4 million to improve the vitality of the communities where our employees and customers live and work. For more information about Best Buy, visit www.bestbuy.com.

Source: Brammo

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Tagged under: Best Buy, Brammo, Brammo Enertia, Brammo TTR, electric, electric motorcycle, IOM, race, race version, sponsorship, TTXGP

Comment:

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