It doesn’t seem like a topic that really needs that much explaining, but after suffering through this weekend’s MotoGP race coverage here in the United States, it would seem there is some confusion on how to properly pronounce “Lorenzo”, as in Jorge Lorenzo’s last name. Continue reading if you want to see a leviathan description of Spanish language and how it relates to motorcycle racing in an admittedly over-the-top and pretentious sort of way.
How important is the 2010 Ducati Multistrada 1200 to the Italian company? Consider this, despite releasing a bevy of new and revised motorcycles for the 2010 model year, only the Multistrada 1200 has seen the Bologna company bend over backwards to market its sport-tourer with a bevy of videos. Part of this is due to the extra pocket change seen in the adventure segment of motorcycling, but an even more important reason for Ducati’s aggressive media push is the need for the Italian brand to stand for something more than just expensive sport bikes.
Before there were Hypermotards and Multistrada 1200’s, Ducati still saw the lion’s share of its sales come from the Monster line, despite the company being better known for its Superbike line. Unlike some other companies, Ducati was fortunate enough to realize that you can’t play in only one market segment, and began looking for new ways to expand it’s product lineup…thus the Multistrada 1200 was born. In an effort to keep up with all the marketing around the beak-nosed bike, we’ve compiled all of the Ducati Multistrada 1200 videos we could find, so sit back, grab a beverage, and enjoy them after the jump.
The MotoGP season is kicking off this weekend at Qatar. The oddity of the night race is good news for us Americans, as the race will hit the airwaves at a semi-decent hours. Accordingly, SPEEDTV will kick-off the season with a 1PM PST (4PM EST) live broadcast of the Qatar round.
“In addition to the international feed shared by all partners, SPEED will produce SPEED-specific features, interviews and graphic enhancements,” said Rick Miner, SPEED SVP of Production & Network Operations. “We are really stepping up the presentation for the American audience.”
Commentary will come from Greg Creamer as the in-studio host for SPEED, and Nick Harris will handle the play-by-play for the international feed. Providing analysis is Ian Wheel, with Gavin Emmett reporting from the pits. For 90% of race enthusiasts this means simply the absence of Greg White. Time and schedule of races after the jump.
That’s right your favorite motorcycle show to hate, American Chopper, is back on TLC for another season, this time pitting father against son. American Chopper: Senior vs. Junior centers around both Paul Sr. and Paul Jr. building motorcycles in a sort of head-to-head competition. The father-son duo hasn’t spoken in over a year, which has created a great deal of drama in what was hailed as the last season of the original show. It looks like that drama is set to return to a television near you.
Dorna Sports has announced that this year’s MotoGP season will be shot in HD and broadcasted in high definition where available. After suffering through years of regular definition coverage that was often grainy and poorly saturated (there’s a reason MotoGP bikes have bright colors), race fans will hopefully be able to see their favorite riders lap the track in more clarity. Bonus for us American viewers, SPEED Channel has agreed to carry the races on its HD channel.
UPDATE: American Chopper is back as American Chopper: Senior vs. Junior. The new show sees both Teutuls going head-to-head in bike build offs at their respective workshops.
The Learning Channel (TLC) has finally given the television series American Chopper the boot, releasing information that show’s season finale will debut this Thursday at 9pm (8pm Central). We can only conclude that the show’s demise comes as a result of the ongoing rift between Paul Teutul Sr. and his sons, in particular his former partner Paul Teutul Jr. The two Paul’s are locked in a legal struggle regarding ownership of the American Chopper business, which has bled onto the television screen.
In our opinion, KTM leads the pack when it comes to TV spot ads. With superb photograph and quick edits, KTM creates ads that are just as edgy as the lines on the RC8, and promotes the hooligan within all of us. Unfortunately the way product liability works in the United States prevents many of these ads from actually airing in the US market. So, we thought we’d bring them to you so you can see how KTM envisions you using their bikes on the street and track. Continue reading for the videos.