April 2009 - Page 3 of 6 - Asphalt & Rubber

Banter

Biker Fatally Shoots Speed Camera Operator

By Jensen Beeler 04/23/2009 3 Comments

UPDATE: We’ve gotten further information that Thomas Destories wasn’t on a motorcycle when he shot at the speed camera van, instead he was driving a truck at the time of the shooting. He was however on a motorcycle when he was arrested, and was armed with a gun and ammunition at that time. Thanks for the tip Stacey!

Thomas Destories, a 68 year old motorcycle rider, has apparently shot to death a speed camera operator in what police are calling a ride-by shooting. After opening fire on speed camera operator Doug Georgianni’s van, Destories turned himself in to the local police department. He has subsequently been charged with the first-degree murder of the 51-year-old camera operator.

“I’m sorry. I was going to turn myself in,” Destories, 68, told police. “I didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt.”

During the incident five shots were fired at the marked Safety Camera van. Three were grouped on the window of Mr Georgianni’s seat. Police found a magazine for a .45-calibre pistol in Destories’ front pocket when they arrested him. The police haven’t said what Destories motives were for the attack, although it would seem obvious that the motorcycle rider wasn’t too fond of speed trap cameras.

Source:

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Racing

Michael Schumacher Pulls Out of IDM Superbike

By Jensen Beeler 04/22/2009 No Comments

Former Formula1 Champion, Michael Schumacher, has called off his plans to race this weekend at Lausitzring in Germany in the German IDM Championship on Holzhauer Racing’s Honda CBR1000RR. Schumacher had been team back in November, and prior to that has been seen taking laps on both Hondas and Ducatis in the past.

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Racing

MotoGP Practice Sessions Back to One Hour Format Again

By Jensen Beeler 04/21/2009 No Comments

When the cost-saving measures were passed down this year for MotoGP, it reduced the time riders could lap around the track during practice sessions from one hour to 45 minutes. When the rule was put into practice for the first time at Qatar, the reduced practice time came under a lot of criticism from teams, who found themselves scrambling to setup bikes properly, and making bad decisions. Thus based on the feedback they received, the Grand Prix Commission is due to meet prior to the Motegi Grand Prix in Japan, where they are expected to restore the sessions back to their one hour format again.

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Racing

Dainese to be the Official Safety Partner of the Isle of Man TT

By Jensen Beeler 04/21/2009 1 Comment

Dainese has announced the renewal of their partnership as the Official Safety Partner for the 2009 Isle of Man TT. Like last year, the partnership will include the first race of the Superbike TT to be renamed “The Isle of Man Dainese Superbike Race”.

The Isle of Man has long been regarded as one of the premiere races in motorcycling, as well as one of the most dangerous. Riders like Joey Dunlop have helped cement the iconic status of the time trial, while his death has also reinforced how dangerous the race still is. The TT races are extremely dangerous because of the high speeds on very narrow, twisting streets, roads and lanes flanked by stone walls and even buildings. Between 1907 and 2007 there have been 225 deaths during official practices or races on the Snaefell Mountain Course.

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Rumors

Harley-Davidson Working on A Liquid-Cooled V4 Engine?

By Jensen Beeler 04/20/2009 14 Comments

There’s a rumor going around that Harley-Davidson is working on a water-cooled, four cylinder, v-twin motor with a displacement somewhere between 1,300cc and 1,600cc. The good, the bad, and the ugly after the jump.

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Racing

Petronas Sponsorship Worth $24 Million to Fiat Yamaha

By Jensen Beeler 04/20/2009 No Comments

You may remember that , sponsoring the Rossi/Lorenzo duo in MotoGP. While Petronas has worked with Yamaha for eight years in a variety of fields, this marks their first collaboration with them in MotoGP, and it is costing them a pretty penny: $24 million for three years, or $8 million a year. For this sum, Petronas branding will appear on the Fiat Yamaha team’s bikes, equipment, and uniforms. Looking closer at the deal we see how large of a deal this is when compared to other similar sponsorships in MotoGP, while also at the same time, how the actual sum paid might be much less than $24 million.

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Bikes

BMW S1000RR To Be Priced Against Japanese Superbikes, Cheaper Than Ducati & KTM

By Jensen Beeler 04/17/2009 5 Comments

BMW Motorrad USA will show the S1000RR superbike in the United States for the first time this coming Memorial Day weekend at the Miller Motorsports Park World Superbike round, with the bike hitting US dealership floors by January 2010. Pieter de Waal, Vice President of BMW Motorrad USA, has revealed that BMW intends to position the S1000RR against litre-class superbikes from Japan.

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News

Vectrix Motocycles on the Chopping Block

By Jensen Beeler 04/17/2009 1 Comment

Electric motorcycle manufacturer Vectrix looks to be in financial dire straits yet again, and is reportedly looking for either a buyer, or possible merger in order to bail itself out of the deadpool.

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Racing

Kawasaki Secretly Signed on as Sole Motor Provider for Moto2?

By Jensen Beeler 04/17/2009 3 Comments

Visordown is reporting that they have a source who has uncovered an unofficial report that Kawasaki has been chosen as the sole motor supplier for the new Moto2 race series. The source goes on to allege that a deal has already been signed for Kawasaki to supply the one-make motors for the class, despite . Apparently, the deal has been done on down-low in order to keep Kawasaki involved in the MotoGP racing series.

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Bikes

The Ducati Desmosedici’s Carbon Fiber Frame

By Jensen Beeler 04/16/2009 1 Comment

Ducati at the Qatar GP race last week release more photos and information on the . Ducati calls this “the next step in the advancement” of their GP series motorcycles. The objective behind the new frame is to create a chassis set-up in which each element carries out a specific function, to obtain the desired rigidity with as little weight as possible, thus attaining maximum efficiency.

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Bikes

2009 Yamaha R1 Reportedly Heavier and Less Powerful than the 2007 R1

By Jensen Beeler 04/15/2009 No Comments

Performance Bikes magazine is reporting that their independently conducted dyno tests show that the 2009 Yamaha R1 makes less power and torque than the 2007 R1. Furthermore, Performance Bikes also got a chance to throw the 2009 R1 onto a scale, and found that the bike weights more than the 2007 version as well. In the liter-bike class its all about stronger and lighter, crossplane crankshaft or not, so is the 2009 R1 all its cracked up to be?

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