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Jensen Beeler

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Watch These Urals Ford the River, Oregon Trail Style

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I don’t really get the people who obsess about riding a Ural – a Russian knock-off of a German sidecar just doesn’t strike me as an enjoyable time on a motorcycle.

Of course, my saddle time on a Ural has been relegated to around-town and highway riding, which isn’t really the Ural’s domain of choice. These Cossack bikes really shine off-road, where their funky WWII-era 2WD design becomes an asset, not a hinderance.

Add to the fact that Urals are bone-simple to work on — owning a Ural means you will be wrenching on it, a lot, by the way — and you’ve got a motorcycle that’s well-suited to the rough-and-tumble lifestyle of where the road ends…especially when the road ends in a river.

Attempting to ford the river, Oregon Trail style, these Ural owners are experiencing all that the Russian marque has to offer. Seeing is believing, after the jump.

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MotoGP

Bradley Smith’s Dream MotoGP Track is Awesome

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Have you ever wanted to create your own dream track? Take the best corners from all the MotoGP tracks, and combine them into one epic venue for motorcycle racing? That’s pretty much Bradley Smith has done for us today, and it’s awesome.

When it comes to riders who are adept at explaining the nuances and technical aspects of riding a MotoGP motorcycle, Bradley Smith ranks as one of the top riders. This year has been a breakout season for Smith, maturing both on and off the track, with the Englishman showing strong results on the track.

It’s a bit of a mystery as to why Bradley doesn’t have a signed contract for the 2016 season, though we suspect there’s more than meets the eye taking place behind closed doors.

Silly season issues aside, we’re pretty intrigued by Bradley’s choices for his dream track. Checkout which corners made the track after the jump, along with a video that explains Braldey’s picks, with commentary by his teammate Pol Espargaro.

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Bikes

New Belt-Driven Ducati Diavel Being Developed

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A new Ducati Diavel has been caught by spy photographers, making this the first proper “leak” ahead of November’s EICMA show.

Though keeping the overall aesthetic of the Ducati Diavel in place, the model has some clear visual and mechanic differences. Namely, a belt drive…yes, you read that right.

Other changes include a feet-forward seating position, revised trellis chassis, and likely Ducati’s Testastretta DVT engine with variable valve technology.

The switch from Euro 3 to Euro 4 emissions standards at the end of 2016 almost assure the DVT engine permeating its way into Ducati’s current lineup.

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News

Some Curious Details of That Stolen Victory TT Race Bike

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A month ago, the Victory TT electric race bike was stolen from the Brammo’s headquarters in Talent, Oregon. Thankfully, the bike was recovered quickly, though it suffered some damage to the bodywork, and the rear wheel was removed.

Two suspects were arrested in conjunction with the theft, and currently are out on $25,000 bail bonds. We will have to let the great wheel of justice sort out the facts, and awaits the two suspects in question.

While one would likely not call the legal process entertaining, there are some amusing facts at issue to this case.

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News

Yamaha USA Sales Up 28% for First-Half 2015

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Yamaha Motor USA is seeing a resurgence in its motorcycle market, with Yamaha posting a healthy 28% sales increase in the North American market, for the first-half of 2015.

The sales boost comes due to the release of the Yamaha YZF-R1, and likely aided by the Yamaha FJ-09, and Yamaha FZ-07 – all of which debuted to rave reviews from the moto-press.

Overall, Yamaha’s motorcycle business is seeing good growth, up another 14% in the European markets (boosted by the MT-09 Tracer), for a total increase of 7.6% in revenue (¥36.8 billion) across all markets.

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Bikes

Yamaha “YZF-R1S” Spied in CARB Documents

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When the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 first broke cover last year, it was with two model designations: the YZF-R1M and YZF-R1S. Obviously, only one of those machines has come to market, which is peculiar since Yamaha went to some trouble to register both names with the USPTO.

What happened to the YZF-R1S is up for conjecture, though it does seem the model, whatever it may be, is destined to arrive in the US market, as the model name has been spotted in documents filed by Yamaha with the California Air Resources Board (CARB).

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MotoGP

Paddock Pass Podcast – Episode 4 – Brno

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The summer break was too long, but the boys at the Paddock Pass Podcast (Twitter & Facebook) are back in action on the track, and on the microphones.

This week we are changing things up a bit, not only do we have David (MotoMatters) and Neil (Road Racing World and Crash.net) on this episode of the podcast, but we are also doing a wrap-up, rather than preview, of the Czech GP.

Let us know what you think about doing round-ups to the race rounds, rather than previews (or in addition to previews?). Apologies in advance for the bike’s on the track and the press room chatter…at least you know the Triple-P is authentic, right?

As a postscript, I know many of you have been asking for this to be on iTunes and with an RSS feed. We’re working on it, but first we want to nail down our audio so it sounds professional. Thanks in advance for being a part of this “public beta” of sorts.

Comments, feedback, rants, and raves are welcomed in the comments section.

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Bikes

Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R Scrambler by Holographic Hammer

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Taking a superbike off-road isn’t the dumbest thing we’ve ever done, but too many it certainly is sacrilegious. The truth is, the Venn diagram of motorcycles and their capabilities for different uses has a lot more overlap than riders are willing to admit.

That’s why when we see our friends at Holographic Hammer working on a scrambler model based off a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R we get a little excited. With enough suspension travel, bash plates, and right-handed traction control, there’s no reason that a ZX-10R can’t be the basis for a fun dual-sport.

And naturally, the talents at HH are going to make the project look amazing, so what’s the rub? Think differently, and have a brappy day – we say!

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Racing

Bonneville Motorcycle Speed Trials Now Canceled

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After being a tentative “go” for racing last week, the 2015 Bonneville Motorcycle Speed Trials has now been canceled because of conditions on the Bonneville Salt Flats.

The announcement comes after rains in the Salt Lake City, Utah area put water on the salt flat racing course, and now currently half an inch of water sits on what the BMST calls its “Mountain Course” area.

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