The idea that less is more is often a theme usually devoid from the agenda of motorcycle designers use these days, but this Triumph Bonneville bobber concept, aptly named the Triumph Bobbeville, by Australian industrial designer Dan Anderson is a fresh take on the classic Triumph lines found on the Bonneville, with a cue back to the 1950’s that isn’t over the top.
After Yamaha released only a limited view of the FZ8, there has been much speculation about what the new fazzer will have in store for would-be riders. As such in the past week, there have been a couple attempts to decipher what the Yamaha FZ8 could look like by using the all-glorious tool that is Adobe Photoshop.
In a slightly bizzare manner, Nicky Hayden is responsible for the latest bit of news and photo leak from the MotoGP paddock. Making a stop in Bologna to celebrate the holidays with the Ducati Corse crew, in route to India to help open a Ducati store, Hayden got a chance to see the new Ducati GP10 race bike up-close. Armed with a cell phone, and a little indiscretion, the American rider snapped a photo of the new bike, posted the photo to his personal website, and there you have it.
In 140 characters or less, Mat Mladin has signaled that he won’t be jumping to WSBK anytime soon. Linked to Reitwagen’s satellite BMW racing effort, Mladin’s possible seat on the team went to Andrew Pitt just last week. Mladin created some buzz with his tweet two weeks ago, which hinted that the ex-AMA racer was considering making the transition to World Superbike racing.
As the holidays rapidly approach and leave us (shalom to our Jewish readers), the issue of drunk driving becomes more topical and important to us as motorcyclists. In the motorcycling world, drunk driving becomes a two-pronged issue because of the added physical and sensory requirements it takes to safely operate a two-wheeled vehicle, and because of the heightened danger of road-hazards, i.e. other impaired drivers.
Unveiled at the COP15 United Nations Climate Conference in Denamrk, the Copenhagen Wheel system was developed by Ducati Energia, MIT’s SENSEable City Lab, and Progical Solutions for the Kobenhavns Kommune (City of Copenhagen), and is an electrical drive system that can be added to any bicycle to help assist the rider with a boost of extra power. Along with its motor assist, the Copenhagen Wheel has a variety of sensors that relay information back to the rider via a Bluetooth connection that syncs with the rider’s smart phone (iPhone used in the demonstration). It’s a pretty cool concept, check after the jump a video and more.
MotoGP new comer FB Corse has announced that they’ve signed John Hopkins to their 2010 season debut. When FB Corse first hit our radar back in September, the new MotoGP team stated that they had not secured a rider, but were keen on signing American John Hopkins to their racing efforts.
After things fell silent on the Italian front, we broke the news that John Hopkins has since been in talks about a possible ride in the AMA Pro Racing series with Pat Clark Motorsports. It would seem that PCM’s AMA Deathstar will have to go on hold for now, as FB Corse has officially announced that Hopper will be riding with them next year. Hopper will join the FB Corse team in Milan on January 21st for the team’s official presentation.
Bombardier Recreational Prodcut (BRP) is recalling just over one-hundred 2010 Can-Am Spyder Roadster RT’s for a faulty connection in the bike’s electrical harness. This recall affects only SM5 and SE5 motorcycles made between October 13, 2009 and October 30, 2009.
Ducati North America has announced that the Hypermotard 796 will be in dealerships before the New Year, and some dealerships will have the new motard as early as this weekend (that’s tomorrow, or today if you work in the A&R office!).
If you’re having a hard time finding the right gift for that special motorcyclist in your life, this might be the chance to get them what they really want this year. Nothing says Merry Christmas like a $9,995 lightweight red Ducati Hypermotard 796 with a bow on it. Press release after the jump.
Kawasaki has just announced that it will be leaving the AMA Pro Racing series. Citing the economy as it core reason for leaving the American racing series, Kawasaki says it hopes to return to road racing when the economic conditions in the United States allow the company to do so. For the DMG & AMA, this is the second manufacturer that has withdrawn from the now beleaguered racing series, and just a continuation of the momentum that has become AMA Pro Racing’s downward spiral.
It’s been a rough outing in the stock market for Harley-Davidson recently as in the past 10 days the company has seen to substantial hits to its stock price. First the company was hit by the news that it would be recalling over 110,000 motorcycles for faulty fuel tank mounts. And now, the latest bad news comes in the form of a downgrade by financial powerhouse Goldman Sachs, which has downgraded their opinion of Harley-Davidson from “neutral” to “sell”. More after the jump.