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Miller Motorsports Park Sale Vacated by Judge

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Miller Motorsports Park is set to change hands, after the Miller family’s LHM Group decided not to renew its lease with Toole County on the property.

This created a situation where bids were tendered for a new operator, which lead to Mitime Utah Investment, LLC — a subsidiary of Chinese company Geely Holding Group, which is also the owner of automotive company Volvo — winning the bidding process with a sum of $20 million, two months ago.

That sale though has been vacated by Third District Judge Robert Adkins, who agreed with the petition of Center Point Management (CPM) that the company’s $22 million bid should have won, since it was higher and the County has an obligation to sell the property for the most money.

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Bikes

Alta Motors Makes First Redshift Customer Delivery

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It has been a long time coming for Alta Motors (the electric motorcycle company formerly known as BRD) to bring its electric motorcycles to market, but that day has finally arrived.

Alta Motors has delivered its first motorcycle to a customer yesterday, with Eric Gauthier and Jeannine Smith of Suspension Performance taking delivery of their new Redshift MX.

“We’ve been quietly driving towards this moment for over 8 years in pursuit of creating the best motorcycles money can buy,” said Marc Fenigstein, Co-Founder and CEO of Alta Motors.

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News

Alpinestars & Dainese Head to Court Over Airbag Systems

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Airbag technology is the future of safety in the motorcycle industry, of this much I am certain.

Intelligent airbag suits allow for a level of impact protection previously unheard of in the motorcycle industry, or any industry for that matter, and the effects are already obvious both at the pinnacles of our sport and at the consumer level.

The business side of all this is incredibly lucrative, especially for companies who are inventing in this space and patenting their work. As such, it should probably not surprise us to learn that Alpinestars and Dainese have headed to court over their two respective airbag brands: Tech Air and D-Air.

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News

Yamaha Releases Letter for R1 Owners Regarding Recall

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By now, Asphalt & Rubber readers should be well aware of the recall being issued on all the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 & 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1M motorcycles sold in the USA.

We broke the news back in November, and even covered how recalls work in Episode 11 of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast – the show is well worth having a listen to if you want to know more about how recalls work.

In the show, we speculated a bit about what Yamaha would do to fix the gearbox issues with the latest R1 superbikes, and now we have official confirmation from Yamaha Motor Corp. USA on how it will handle the 3,500 or so models that need to be recalled.

Yamaha was kind enough to supply us with a letter, which will be sent to all affected R1/R1M owners, as it outlines what is being recalled, what actions Yamaha and its dealers are taking, and what owners should do going forward. Read it, after the jump.

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News

MV Agusta Sales Up 30% for 2015

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MV Agusta reports today that the company’s annual unit sales are up 30% for 2015, continuing the growth that the Italian brand has seen over the past years.

With nearly 9,000 units sold worldwide in 2015, MV Agusta is seeing the most growth outside of Italy, with a 140% increase in the UK, 54% increase in Spain, 26% increase in Germany, and 20% increase in France.

MV Agusta also saw strong gains in the United States, with a 50% increase in units sales reported. Interestingly, sales in Italy remained fairly flat, with a 0.1% decrease when compared to figures from 2014.

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News

Erik Buell Racing Bid Contested, Headed Back to Court

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The receivership of Erik Buell Racing continues to go on, as the company’s second round on the auction block ended with no fruitful resolution.

It was hoped that Monday would see the announcement of a Erik Buell Racing’s new owner, after the auction on Thursday seemed to show that a new bidder, Liquid Asset Partners LLC, had snatched up the American motorcycle effort and had plans to liquidate EBR’s assets.

However, it appears that the winning bid on Erik Buell Racing’s liquid assets has been contested by previous auction-winner Bruce Belfer and potential-bidder US Heritage Powersport. Accordingly, a new date in court set for January 14th, 2016 and formal motions to be submitted by January 4th, 2016.

This means that the ongoing saga and future of the Erik Buell Brand will continue, well into the start of the new year.

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Racing

How to Watch the 2015 Superprestigio Race in Barcelona

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This year marks the third time that road racers and flat track racers will meet in Barcelona for the revived Superprestigio event.

The short-track format dirt track race is a welcomed addition to the doldrums of the winter off-season, and it features international names like Marc Marquez, Toni Elias, Jared Mees, Brad Baker, and many others (see the entry lists, after the jump).

DTX Barcelona, the promoter of the event, has been very forward-thinking its approach to the Superprestigio, and as such we have been blessed with a quality live stream each year, the 2015 Superprestigio being no different.

FansChoice.tv will host the live stream, which will begin with the opening ceremonies on Saturday, at 9am PDT. For a full schedule of the day’s events, check here. Be sure to tune in, it should be a fun event for the off-season.

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Bikes

Ducati 1199 Panigale Café Racer Concept by AD Koncept

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I think in 2016, we will find that the whole post-authentic motorcycle movement officially jumped that shark right about at this point in time. The 2015 EICMA show was inundated with café racers and scramblers from manufacturers that wanted to cash in on the budding trend.

Now with Deus ex Machina up for sale and no Honda CB350 left behind, the industry feels ready for the next moto du jour – though not before we give it one last go, of course.

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Bikes

Here We Go Again, Honda V4 Superbike Rumors Abound

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For the past decade or so, we have been promised a V4 superbike from Honda – one that’s been based off the Japanese manufacturer’s MotoGP program. The Honda RC213V-S is perhaps our closest realization of that promise, though the $184,000 price tag was considerably more than many envisioned.

Now the rumors are rife again, with a V4-powered superbike said to be coming our way for the 2017 model year, in parallel of course with a new inline-four powered CBR1000RR as well.

Like the rumors of old, this current excitement comes from the insatiably minds at MCN, and while there is certainly evidence for the rumor, when you drill down into the facts, Honda’s plan is far from certain.

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Bikes

Yamaha YZF-R1 Gearbox Recall Affects All USA Units

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More trouble looms for Yamaha and its pending recall of the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1, as our sources have indicated that all of the superbikes sold in the USA will be affected by the new R1’s transmission issues.

You may recall that Asphalt & Rubber broke the story two weeks ago about the upcoming recall for the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1, and we explored the topic in-depth on Episode 11 of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast.

Still, we are surprised that a more formal announcement hasn’t emerged from Yamaha Motor USA regarding the matter.

In the meantime, Transport Canada – the importer for Yamaha motorcycles in Canada – issued a recall for 240 units, while some YZF-R1 owners in the USA have begun to receive letters from their local Yamaha dealers concerning the recall procedure.

For 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 owners who haven’t received a recall notice from the dealer, you should expect one, as it’s our understanding that ultimately all of the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 and 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1M motorcycles sold in the USA will need to have their transmission replaced.

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Dirt

Help Make Two-Stroke Scented Cologne A Thing

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Do you ever go for a ride in the woods, come home smelling like pre-mix, only to lose that sweet scent once you finally take a shower? Has the move to four-stroke machinery greatly reduced your ability to woo a worthy partner to make “brap brap” noises with throughout the night?

Never fear dear reader, we understand your plight. Behold, 2 Stroke – a manly cologne that has been scented from the smell of two-stroke machinery, with hints of pine and spruce. Your braplife needs this.

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