TeamMoto is proud to announce the opening of a new HONDA dealership on the Northside! TeamMoto Honda Virginia now joins the TeamMoto Suzuki/KTM/Hyosung/Kymco and TeamMoto Triumph at 1916-1924 Sandgate Road, Virginia.
Offering a brand new spacious showroom full of the latest Honda models, plus a massive air-conditioned workshop, service bay and tyre centre.
With the new workshop area, the TeamMoto Virginia Off-Road Performance featuring senior Technician Ian Kerr, is the perfect venue for suspension, tuning and maintenence for your motocross, enduro or trail bike. Ian's years of experience set him in a class of his own and the TeamMoto Virginia Off-Road Performance centre really is the place to go for your off-road servicing needs!
With TeamMoto Honda dealerships located on the Gold Coast and in Springwood, TeamMoto is excited to cater to the Northside of Brisbane with the fantastic location at Virginia.
"We are very pleased to add Honda to the Virginia location," states Michael Oliver, Dealer Principal of the Virginia stores.
"Virginia has really become the motorcycle destination on the Northside - like a new Moss Street. We offer six different brands, a huge range of accessories and parts, a massive workshop - this is truly your one-stop motorcycle shop now. There is something for everyone."
The doors are now open at this new Honda dealership, so be sure to head down to Sandgate Road (1916-1924) to check out the new showroom!
When we last left Christian, he had just completed the first leg of his journey from Brisbane to Canberra on his brand new Super Tenere. It's now time to head back home and that is where the adventure picks up...
It’s early morning and I’m about to depart Canberra. I had 1700km in the saddle lying ahead of me and four days on the road... I couldn’t wait to get going.
It was still quite early meaning the roads were empty. It was a public holiday today too and the police would again be out in force as it was still the usual holiday double demerit point period as well. I was never going to be guilty of speeding however as I was in touring mode again and the slower I went the better as it would extend my trip and I would be able to take in as much as possible.
With each small township I pass through, I see glimpses of what could be another world or even another time zone. I wondered if I hadn’t been teleported back to 1970 as I entered and left some of the small sleepy townships. This was to be a recurring thought as I progressed right up the New England Highway through NSW.
Approximately half way along this route, I came up the hills and into Abercrombie River National Park. By now the weather had totally cleared and in my astonishment it was a typical summer’s day – I had gone from the cold, bleak, misty rain to sweating and sucking up the water emptying my camelback.
This made this particular ride through the national park all the more special. It was beautiful - some great roads now as well. Up and down hills, tight corners, a couple of hair pins thrown in for good measure and scenery on both sides of the road. I did take notice that there weren’t any railings bordering the roads so I was extra careful to keep the bike in the middle of the road as it was a loooong way down if I was to go over the side.
I eventually arrived into Oberon – another small sleepy little town. Here I made a quick fuel stop – for me and the bike - before taking a detour out to Jenolan and the famous caves.
Once again, the weather had turned nasty as I was travelling and it closed in fast as I rode across to the top of the range. The rain had returned as well as thick thick fog. I had not done a lot of fog riding so this was going to be interesting
to say the least.
If you have never been to the Jenolan Caves before,
from the west there is a very steep windy road down to where the caves
are – very steep and very windy is an understatement. Couple this with
the thick fog and rain made for a very hairy scary ride indeed.
I could
measure the visibility I had in metres only and the tight hairpin
corners were coming up on me faster than I was used to. I was in second
gear and even back to first on occasions. I pulled into the car park and
had enough time for a bathroom break and a muesli bar while
contemplating which of the tracks to take to find the caves before a
thunderstorm hit – and hit with a vengeance it did.
Lightning, thunder
and very heavy rain put a real dampener on something I had been looking
forward to. I grabbed a brochure from the stand to read later on and
left. I figured that given I was in the mountains this weather could be
set in for a while so I figured that I would get very wet regardless of
what I do.
I high tailed it out of there at a breakneck 20kph. The road
was quite wet, narrow and the fog was incredible. I was in a line of
cars so I guessed that if the guy in front of me didn’t drive over a
cliff that I could just follow the procession and I would be OK.
My
visor had fogged up now so I had to lift it up which added rain water
hitting my face to the long list of things I had to deal with.
My plan worked well while we were all nose to tail out of the immediate area but as the traffic thinned out it became even more difficult to navigate and stay on the road. I pushed on though at a somewhat slower speed than the allowed 70kph.
I did give thought to pulling over as it was probably the smartest thing I could have done – and probably the safest – however there was absolutely nowhere to stop. The one or two places that I did come across where I could have stopped came onto me so fast (almost no visibility) that I would have had an accident in the process of stopping.
I decided that even going at a slow pace – I was still moving forward
(no reference to Julia Gillard there) and eventually I had to come out
of this bad weather. Having travelled up into a mountain range I would
have to come down as well at some point.
Sure enough the weather started
to clear and I was out the other side of it to my great relief.
A
couple of more small towns flashed past me before finding my way to
Lithgow. I was originally planning to take another of the local
recommended rides but decided that I was wet enough and just wanted to
get to Bathurst where I was camping for the night. Seemingly I had come
through the worst if it and was on the day’s home stretch.
I traversed my way along the Great Western Highway towards Bathurst and I was even starting to dry out a bit. Unfortunately the weather gods have not finished with me yet and had one more surprise instalment for me before I stopped for the day.
I was heading straight into a nasty looking storm system that was also threatening Bathurst and the surrounding towns. I am not sure if this was the same system that I had earlier encountered in Jenolan or if it was its big brother - it was looking ugly though.
Electrical lightning and loud thunder claps preceded torrential rain as I approached Bathurst. Still 20km out of town, this was going to be the hardest (and wettest 20km) of the day. So much for drying out – I was now wetter than ever. As I took my gloves off to take a picture of the storm, I saw how red my hands were – I figured this was from gripping the bars so tightly through the bad weather and I chuckled to myself.
Arriving in Bathurst, I made my way to the camp grounds soaking wet, cold and shivering. Like a drowned rat I was standing at the reception desk of the caravan park.
I needed to seek more warmth than what my tent could provide so I splashed out (pardon the pun) and got a cabin for the night. This was a great idea I must say. I was able to string my gear up and relax with a heater and a nice cuppa - after a hot shower!!
To give you some idea of what I rode through earlier, the evening news on TV reported that the storm I had ridden through into town had caused widespread blackouts and the deluge of rain had also been responsible for collapsing the ceiling of a local movie cinema on to about 40 patrons.
I was a bit disappointed that I wasn’t camping in my tent as I was really looking forward to it however a warm comfortable night sleeping in a bed was worth the unexpected expense of a cabin as opposed to my tent but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do and no doubt there would be many other days to camp.
All up it was 420km today and despite the weather a great start to my journey.
Day Two – A dream realised....
There had been many aspects about my whole trip that in the planning of it I was really looking forward to – and I had been fortunate that I could do all those things so far.
The one thing that I was most excited about was going out to Mt Panorama and touring the circuit of the greatest motorsport race in the world. I have long been a huge fan of the Mount Panorama spectacle that rolls
around in October each year – it’s without doubt my favourite day (and
whole weekend actually) of sport all year.
It’s a day when I am up early to watch the pre-race hype, a day that I sit there and watch every lap tell the story that unfolds. I am a FORD fan but I don’t care who wins really as it is just an awesome race and throws up so many twists and turns it’s impossible to pick a winner before it starts. I have so many memories of previous races and here I was where they were all created.
I was up early and at the track before I knew it. The big white Mount Panorama script on the side of the mountain was visible for miles.
To my amazement the gates were open and you could just drive straight onto the track. I guess as it was a public road year round they couldn’t block it off really. And, you could also go in the same direction as the race cars. I had been told you could only go in the reverse direction so I was thrilled to see what the drivers saw – albeit in slow motion.
A quick picture on the start line (of course) and I was off on my first lap.
Wow – I was chuffed as I rounded the first bend and accelerated to a
blistering 60kph up mountain straight. I had been warned that police
lurk for the unsuspecting visitor that was tempted to emulate the real
heroes of the mountain so I kept my speed in check the whole time I was
there.
Up the mountain I was amazed at how steep it really is.
You have no idea when you see it on TV but it’s really steep – and
tight. To think they are doing in excess of 150kph as they roar up there
- I was thinking that they must be insane.
I wheeled past the corner
where Marcus Ambrose and Greg Murphy famously came to blows a few years
back and had blocked the circuit. Up on top of the mountain now through
Reid Park, past all the kitty litter that still had shrapnel in it from
this year’s great race – like the drivers had only been there yesterday –
I stopped to take in the breathtaking scenery over Bathurst.
Incredible! As I climbed back on the bike I could have sworn Jamie
Wincup or Mark Winterbottom roared past me... you can still hear the
engines roaring even though there was not a breath of wind or a single
leaf moving on the trees. It was eerily quiet, but haunted by the ghosts
of 30000 horses...
Conrod Straight was a highlight of my laps. The incredible speeds these guys do down here is mind-blowing. I was only doing 60 and it was great – I can’t imagine 300 kph.
I passed the spot where Fabian Coulthard blew a tyre this year and rolled at nearly 300 clicks in the sand – where Andrew Jones clipped the rear of John Bowe a few years back and rolled... these thoughts come flooding back... and many others as I started and completed lap after lap.
I could have easily stayed and kept going round. Each lap, each
corner, reminded me of the action I had seen on TV over the years.
I
have never been to a race but this was as good as being there for mine.
On my new bike, no other cars on the road and beautiful weather - I
can’t wait to ring my mates and rub this one in.
I had to press on though. From here the Blue Mountains were calling so I headed east again.
I stopped in at one of the small fruit barns that dot the sides of the highway heading down the mountain. They not only make their own jams and marmalades etc but also make fresh fruit pies on the premises. I called in at the Cottage Orchard Cafe as I came into Bilpin. The pie was well worth the stop - very nice indeed – and a great coffee to go with it both went down a treat.
Just before I got back on the bike, my phone rang. It was a work enquiry from Brisbane. I didn’t mind taking the call at all but when I hung up the reality hit me that I was soon going to be back in Brisbane and back at work. It made me a little sad to think that this great adventure I was on would soon be over. It dawned on me that it was coming to an end but also inspired me to make sure I enjoy every minute that was left.
A left turn at the bottom of the mountain takes me onto ride #31 – Putty Road.
I had never heard of this road or been in this area before but given that my atlas had looked after me so far I took it to see what excitement it would bring. Apparently it was a well known biker route and carries something like 3000 bikes each weekend. It is a 150km stretch from Windsor to Singleton near Newcastle.
It is bordered by National Parks on each side, long straights, winding bends through gorges and forests. The road lived up to all the hype – it was awesome. One hundred and fifty sounds like a lot but when it’s this good it could have been 1050 and I wouldn’t have minded. Brilliant riding!
About half way along I came across a cafe in the middle of nowhere called the Grey Gum Cafe. I was greeted with two big smiles as I entered and took a seat at the counter. While I was waiting for my coffee I chatted away to the two ladies who ran the cafe and they told me they had only been trading for four days. It was a brand new establishment.
They also informed me that their cafe was situated exactly half way – 86km from Windsor to the south and 86 km from Singleton in the north – along the Putty Road. Was that planned or a coincidence? Hmmm...
It’s the interesting people you meet on your travels which add to the experiences of travelling and meeting these ladies was one of those moments. Kim, the owner, spoke a little about her previous life when she was the travel manager for INXS – in the late 80’s with U2 as their support band on their KICK world tour.
And now she is in the middle of nowhere running a cafe.... what a story. I bet she has a few more tales to tell also – things we may not have heard of in the media at the time...
Today’s destination was a camp ground out near Scone - so not far to go now. I stopped in at the visitors centre there to get the directions out to where I was camping. It was approx 20km out of town and through some farming areas. It also included about 5km of dirt road and three water crossings which was an awesome way to finish the day.
All up I did 460km today and I would easily say that seeing the Mt Panorama circuit, riding over the Blue Mountains, the Putty Road stretch and the dirt road with its creek crossings made today one of, if not the, best days I have ever had on a bike. I was also grateful to the riding gods that the weather was excellent today and the bike was going really well. What a fantastic machine this was on the road, over the distances I have ridden and in the dirt stuff as well.
Day Three – To be cut short...
Tune in next month for the final installment of Christian's Rider Adventure!
WARNING! The Tigers have been released...
On a dreary day at the end of February, several of the TeamMoto crew could be found down south in Melbourne, heading out for a ride.
This is not an uncommon occurrence, except for the fact these boys were more excited then if it were Christmas and the smiles on their faces lit up the gloomy day.
This was due to the fact they were all mounted on board the first Triumph Tiger 800 XC’s in the country.
“People need to ride it to believe how exceptional it is. Don’t go off specs, pictures, hearsay… just get your arse on the bike and you’ll understand!” Ben Parker from TeamMoto Triumph Springwood sums up the general consensus in a simple statement.
“It really is a fantastic package," Ben states. "Everything that they have designed is awesome – you can tell how much R&D was put into this bike. It’s literally next to none.”
The Tiger 800 (road version 19” front and 17” rear) and the Tiger 800 XC (adventure version 21” front and 17” rear) are new to the Triumph lineup for 2011 and it seems they are to live up to the hype which has surrounded their release.
The guys could not believe how great these bikes handled and to put it simply – how much FUN they were!
The Tigers also come with a great accessories range… actually a staggering accessories range – some 40 odd parts and spares which make the bikes that much tricker!??
2 Box Pannier Kit, Arrow Slip on Exhaust, Alarm Kit, Adventure Fog Light Kit, Heated Grip Kit, Low Rider Gel Seat, Rider Gel Seat, Engine Protection Bars, Adventure Tail Pack Kit, Centre Stand Kit (800 XC), Sump Guard, Machined Lever Kit – Standard, Machined Lever Kit – Short, Adjustable High Screen Kit, Adventure Tank Bag Kit, D Lock Kit, Pannier Inner Bag Kit, City Tank Bag Kit, Tapered Black Handlebars, Paddock Stand Kit – Rear, Waterproof Roll Bag, City Tail Pack Kit, Pillion Gel Seat, GPS Mounted Kit, Aluminium Radiator Guard Kit, Paint Protection Kit, Tank Bag Harness, Adjustable Screen Mechanism, Headlight Protector, Anodised Rear Brake Reservoir, Motorcycle Care Kit, Triumph Battery Optimiser, Triumph Tool Kit, Rear Mudguard Extension kit, Front Mudguard Extension kit, Adjustable clutch lever, Paddock Stand Bobbins, Auxiliary Power Socket Kit, Swing Arm Pivot Cover Kit, First Aid Kit.
Phew – there is plenty to choose from to make this bike even better!!
The Tiger also comes in several colour options - crystal white, phantom black and intense orange for the 800XC and crystal white, phantom black and venom yellow.
But enough talking, check out the video below from some action footage of the guys out on the Tiger 800 XC's.
There are demo's available in all our stores now - so once you have watched the video and gotten the itch... call your local dealer and get out on one for yourself!
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Dunlop SportSmart - the Ultimate Sportsbike All-Rounder
By Steve Douglas, TeamMoto Honda Springwood Accessories Manager & Dunlop aficionado
The new Dunlop SPORTSMART was recently released to the Australian market in typical Dunlop quiet achiever mode.
This tyre, which is pitched as a Hypersport tyre for our market against the likes of the Michelin Power Pure and Bridgstone's 003, has been tested and available in Europe since late last year.
The UK are especially excited as this tyre is proving to be more than just a Hypersport tyre as it manages to last the distance as an everyday road tyre as well.
This particular Dunlop is constructed in the French Dunlop facility. It was tested by motorcycling journos along with competitors tyres at the Mireval test facility just outside Montpellier, South of France late last year.
Rather than just relying on the info from the other side of the world, we
decided to slap a set of the latest sticky tyres from Dunlop on one of
our resident nutters bikes and send him off for a 5 day track test at
Eastern creek, Broadford and Phillip Island with about 600 twisty road k's as well.
Knowing that this new dunlop has the “Ntec” construction from the all conquering NTEC slicks, along with Dunlops “JLB” jointless belting and multi tread front and rear, I felt confident Paul would have more than enough grip but was surprised at how much life he would get from them.
After 5 track days and over 600kms you would swear they were only 60% worn. Looks like he'll be able to get to work and back heaps before we worry about more tyres.
So what is this tyre?
Pretty much a track day, weekend ride, super sport touring tyre. Without compromising grip.
NTEC explained = is dunlops pressure adjust technology , allowing higher pressures for road and touring, then the ability to lower pressure for greater traction and performance.
However this is only available to the Sportsmart as the Ntec construction means the tyre has a stiffer carcas to allow for adjustment. Much like slick racing tyres.
The adjustability is a first for our market and will solve the age old problem of trying to get one tyre to do all things. This will do all things very well.
The Sportsmarts stiffer carcas by nature will allow more feedback to the rider. The adjustabillity of air pressure and Multitread will allow customised grip as well as fantastic tyre life.
Please read Pauls story "Chasing the thrill: An adventure of track days, road rides and new tyres" to see how he faired on his SPORTSMART adventure.
Also, see the picture below of his tyres before and after his trip.
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Chasing the Thrill... An adventure of track days, road rides and new tyres!
By Paul Woodward, TeamMoto Virginia CSM
So the first ride on the Dunlop SportSmart’s on my new 2010 GSX-R1000. I wanted to start with a ride over Nebo to scrub in the tyres before starting our track day adventure.
It was a beautiful day; just a quick stop to check tyre pressures and get fuel for the beast and off I went with a big smile on my face.
So coming through the first set of twisties just getting a feel for the tyres, which were immediately giving confidence even though they were brand new. After ten minutes of my smile growing I can feel the tyres are happy.
So I come out of a high crested right hander and pour on a medium amount of fat to the hand grip. And the rear was settling in awesome, still smiling I came back into the flowing down hill and got my elbow on my knee and smash around the corner full speed… Rear didn’t even blink, happy days its all on full speed ahead!
Through the whole ride the tyres felt happy, plenty of grip and very controlled under brakes. Excellent ride did about 200km to get them ready for the abuse about to come!
Eastern Creek
I awoke in Sydney to a glorious day. In the pits, bikes unloaded, slap the tyre warmers on the bike.
I called Steve to check what track pressure to run in the new SportSmarts. Dialed it in and that big smile is back again. Had the riders briefing and on our bikes we went.
It was my first time at Eastern Creek and I jumped into my first session, tyres felt great but I was a bit slow out the first time.
I had a chat with Al from California Ride School and ran through some
corners and lines – he tells me that turn one is one of the fastest
turns in the world.
So after a couple of sessions I’m pulling much higher speed and through turn one I’m hanging over my left side with my head just above my clip on. I can feel the front wheel changing shape under me through this 200km turn (or for us normal riders 180ish).
These Dunlops are awesome coming around Easter Creek, they feel fantastic and never moved! I must admit I’m not at all full race pace but I’m doing high 1.49’s and pushing them hard by the second day.
All in all Eastern Creek is a fast flowing track with a couple of technical hairpins and some open sweepers, lots of contour and on camber rolling corners.
My most favorite part – Turn 8 and 9. Coming out of a trick 6 and 7 being a left hander, tight but still fast and an open exit giving you plenty of room to smash out power, pushing tyres to a GP wiggle you come over a crest on the gas unable to see the corner.
Then rolling off the gas just enough to get in position, hanging out with your slider on the track. And then getting on the gas but staying in tight to the ripple strip, you pick up on the bike and hard on the brakes. Jump down a gear into a right hand 2nd gear downhill sweeping smooth hairpin.
Knee dragging on deck looking into a small straight you get on the gas and the front picks up on exit, then click a gear and pull the bike down into turn 10 while dragging front brakes ready to nip a bit of speed off before lining up 11 and 12 in a nice long double apex left. Love it so much, on the 2nd day wore out my toe slider!
The Dunlop’s gave ultimate feel through the whole track inspiring me to be comfortable at speed and under braking.
Awesome two days at Eastern Creek, wicked fun.
Then we were off on our Blue Mountains ride. Me on my GSX-R and Ben on his RC8R headed out to the mountains, excited we hit the gas station and increased our tyre pressures.
GPS in the tank bag all ready to find our way. Fail. GPS needs to be upright and in my tank bag its flat.
So we fill up our bikes and get some air in the tyres, and we head out Sydney winging it! After our months of planning and looking at maps the night before I manage to ask for some directions (bad ones) from the gas station and get us out to some roads I remembered.
First sign of twisties it’s a nice 35km yellow board with some black and white arrows pointing left and the camber of the road rolled upwards. Instant smile.
Turning in I was going way too slow as the road shot upward. Getting on the gas the tyre held a good line no movement as the tyres had only been rolling along at commuting pace until now.
Then straight into a right with a better pace, bike felt right at home and again with more confidence on the tyres. Smooth bitumen was helping the course and adding to the fun. Heaps of beautiful road and good tyres got me all the way to Katoomba in one piece.
There were some fast sweepers and some road works but the GSXR and RC8 were at home up the mountains with the stiff race setup but a controlled tyre and steering dampers standard the bikes were happy flying at full pace over bumps. Maybe not the riders as we were off the seat, but the bikes were happy as Larry.
Stopped in at the corner roast shop at the roundabout top of town. Good tucka in Katoomba. Then a nice ride back down the Great Western Freeway to Penrith and back to Eastern Creek where the van was awaiting to be loaded with two wicked Machines ready to travel to Broadford raceway.
These Dunlop’s look brand new as the bike rolls into the van after two days at the magic Eastern Creek and 400 odd km around the Blue Mountains.
Broadford
We get to Broadford and pop out to the track to take a look. We run into Trevor who looks after the track and he lets us drive the Volkswagon around for a look. I’m in the drivers seat and do a lap first. OMG, this is nothing like that I thought we were in the for… what a technical track!
So the morning of the day is here and Ben is up too excited to sleep! We are some of the first riders at the track before 7am, get signed in… tyre warmers on, leather on, out we go.
With the tyres ready to go I’m straight on my knee first corner uphill right hander go to power out but can’t as I was too wide and out that wide the track gets off camber.. so I pluck a gear and hit the gas on the exit and over a crest front wheel in the air I shoot to turn 3.
Crash corner up ahead. With warning from Trevor I take it easy and wander down to the flip flops off the gas and going way too slow to get taken up the inside on the exit of turn 6 as it to is off camber. So with pucked up ass cheeks and being a chicken on the gas I come through turn 7. Again my favorite turn being similar to turn 9 at Eastern Creek, it’s a right hand down hill tight corner. But Broadford was harder as it starts downhill and comes flat but as one of the hardest corners following it… a double apex uphill left hander with an off camber exit onto the main straight. Took all day but I did get it!
So with all this learning new tracks the demand for ultimate feel from my tyres I'm absolutely rapped with the Dunlop’s, they have been giving me confidence to push myself into and out of turns. Hard on the gas the tyres did move but you could feel they where they were happy and where they were not..
With slides though crash corner and turn 7 the day was fun and exciting. Wheelies down the crest every lap on the back straight kept me pushing harder into turn 3 and faster out of the last turn just ended in faster times and more fun with tyres doing what they do best… Holding onto the tarmac.
Phillip Island
And last but definitely not least we headed to Phillip Island. Arriving there knowing I was going to riding this amazing track on my GSX-R… the excitement was overwhelming!
Lots of butterflies as I pop on my life and head out onto the track, joining on the left from turn one. I roll on the gas and with a morning chill I breathe in a breath of cold air and smile as I’ve just turned onto one of the best tracks in the world.
Flowing over turn 2 its a long patient left hander with a excellent exit requiring heaps of exit speed / lots of gas on the way out. After a couple laps I'm coming out of turn 2 fast and holding awesome pace into and through turn 3 with my head next to my left bar end weight. Wouldn't think so but being way off the bike holds the front as your powering out off 3, keeps the bike happy and feels awesome.
Never been so fast so far off the normal riding position. And with all this I'm coming very fast into Honda (turn 4) in fourth gear smashing every gear with a blip of gas a dribble of rear brake all they way down to 1st.
Pulling the bike over hard on the brakes and dragging it into the turn with the brakes right on to the apex is requiring heaps of tyre feel and support.
The Dunlop’s are doing a great job as in my second session I found full throttle out of 11 and through 12 the last corner before the straight.
With a chat to Andy and moving into the fast group I pull my times into the 1.55 which is not fast but good for a first timer to the track.
And now in the fast group, Andy shows me some new lines through turn 2 and MG – Ben’s RC8R is awesome though Siberia and the sweepers to Lukey Heights.
So now Day 2… pulling low 1.50's I'm demanding much more of the tyres and coming down the main straight at just under 300km dropping two gears and reefing the bike into turn one at massive speed.
I'm now going so fast I'm forcing the bike to the ripple strips on both sides of the track. But still my fave is turn 3 - getting max drive from turn 2 you can go as fast as you like not even backing off in fourth gear hanging off the bike like a monkey trying to get a banana and then smashing the anchors into Honda hairpin.
Wicked track but even going as fast as you can there is always someone faster! And on day two flying out off southern loop (turn two) McDonald (or is it just Donald?) the man with the fastest average speed around Isle of Man comes flying past like I'm not even moving!
On a stock cbr1000rr with slicks doing laps under 1.40.. Some people have talent and others just have fast motorcycles.
Well done Dunlop, SportSmarts are fantastic and lasted 5 track days two road rides and are still ready for more when I get back to Brisbane!
TeamMoto Photo Comp: And the Winner is...
The suspense has been excruciating! But it is finally time to announce the winner of our TeamMoto Photo Competition!
Started in December 2010, our competition ran until the end of February 2011 and the response was astounding. We received so many fantastic photographs that truly showcased the love of motorcycling across our country - it was truly inspiring.
It made choosing a winner extremely difficult, however we would like to Congratulate Shawn Crowell!
Shawn is now the proud owner of a Strike Genius Motorcycle GPS. Congrats Shawn!
We would like to thank all of the participants and although we unfortunately could not fit all of the images in, we have created a Photo Album for your viewing please. Please check it out below and look forward to seeing your entries for more TeamMoto Photo Competitions in the future.
Click on the image below to view the TeamMoto Photo Comp Album!
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You want power, light weight & style?
By Ian Kerr, TeamMoto Virginia Off-Road Performance Centre Technician
It is an age old topic for discussion - what are the benefits of aftermarket exhaust for your motocross bike? Fiery debates have been waged for decades on this particular subject, but when it comes down to it there are three main reasons to fit an aftermarket exhaust to your MX, enduro or trail bike.
POWER. WEIGHT. STYLE.
Lets look at these 3 points a little more closely.
Power
Bike manafactures do an OK job of building standard exhausts, but there are always restrictions on the end product. For example some countries have tighter noise limits than us, also time and costs come into it. So when a company like FMF for instance, spend all their efforts just building exhausts they can come up with a more effective end product.
They also can offer different combations of exhausts for different tastes or applications - for a YZ250 2-stroke, FMF make four different chambers and four different silencers, just for that one model bike! And it's a similar story for 4-strokes with different headers and mufflers available, so you are able to chose the system that gives you a style of power and noise level you desire.
For example if you are intending to ride your YZ250 2-stroke off road
you might choose the "Gnarly" chamber and "the Q" silencer for improved
low end torque. Or if Supercross is your thing, you would probably run
the "Fatty" chamber and the "Titanium 2" silencer for improved response
and over-rev.
Likewise if you were into enduro or trailriding on a CRF450R than a
"Q4" slip on is a quiet and robust muffler that adds torque and can be
used with the standard Honda header pipe or a FMF header pipe. Again if
motocross is your passion than the titanium "Mega Bomb" full system is
the go.
Weight
The exhaust system is usually the easiest and
cheapest way to save weight on a motocross or enduro bike. With a Titanuim FMF system normally saving over 1 kg at least on most motocross
bikes and even more on most enduro bikes.
Style
For some
reason standard exhaust's are normally the ugliest part on an otherwise really
cool looking race bike. FMF's are a real cool looking exhaust,
especially when the titanium turns blue/purple after it heats up.
Motorcycle Riding School: Introducing Steve and 'Unconscious Incompetence'!
By Steve McDowall, TeamMoto Motorcycle Riding School Senior Instructor
Ok, I’ll admit it. I’ve done some dumb things in my life.
But then again, if we all want to be brutally honest with ourselves I think everyone could say the same thing. Often we do these things because we don’t know any different, we don’t know the consequences and we don’t know the risks involved.
In training we call this “Unconscious Incompetence” - translated to plain English this means we don’t know what we don’t know.
Take buying my first bike as an example. I’d been taken for a ride (literally) on the back of a Z1000 ex police bike up the road at Jenolan Caves west of Sydney, and decided I wanted one of these things. So innocently (read “stupidly”) I went into a dealership in Wentworth Ave in the southern end of Sydney city to buy a bike.
There it was – a red Suzuki GSX250! I knew nothing about how to ride it, but I wanted it. I knew so little I had to ask the sales guy what all the levers were and how to change gears, but I knew how to drive a manual car so it can’t be that hard, right? I had my learners permit and in NSW in the early 80’s that’s all you needed to ride that little baby out of the showroom. So I did! And I did at 5pm on a weekday.
Now at that stage of my life I lived on the north side, so I rode that GSX250 through peak hour Sydney city traffic, over the Harbour Bridge, up the main highway to home. A total of about 25 kilometres.
The trip was …. well …. interesting! I can’t remember how many times I stalled that bike, but I do remember stalling it in the middle of the Harbour Bridge! Drivers kept blowing horns at me and abusing me, but it was like their mouths were moving and the words not coming out because I was so totally overloaded with adrenaline for all the wrong reasons I’d stopped hearing them.
When I got home I thought to myself “maybe that was dangerous …. Really???”
That’s when, although I didn’t know it at the time, I reached the next level of competency – “Conscious Incompetence”. That’s where you go “holy @#$%, there’s a lot more to this than I thought!” You start to realise what you don’t know!
And that started a journey. One of seeking training and education in how to do this riding thing as well as I possibly could. Mistakes, crashes and injuries along the way – oh yeah! But I kept learning.
Now wind the clock forward 29 years (yeah, yeah, I hear you doing the maths on my age now) and I find myself as an instructor here at TeamMoto Riding School. I see students come through going through a similar process, and it’s no different to anything else in life.
With time and experience in anything we start to recognise that there’s always something more to learn. And we also start to draw on the experience and memories of situations we’ve found ourselves in the past to make some smart decisions about what we’re doing right now.
In riding, we learn from our mistakes and close calls and recognise the potential risks in what we’re doing earlier, before it becomes so bad that we can’t get ourselves out of it.
And another way to learn (which is a whole heap less risky) is to draw on the experience and knowledge of those that have been before you. That’s why I love what I do here. The chance to pass on some knowledge so our students don’t have to do quite as many dumb things as I did before they realise what they may not know.
Dumb things – yes there were plenty of them. Did I tell you about the time I fell off the sidecar at close to 200? Maybe another time. - Steve
Upcoming Road Rides - Sunday March 27th
TeamMoto Triumph Springwood & TeamMoto Triumph Virginia are once again hitting the black top on the last Sunday of the month for their Northside / Southside rides.
TeamMoto Triumph Springwood RAT Ride
Meet and Greet at TeamMoto Triumph Springwood (61 Moss St) from 8.00am, with the ride departing at 8.30am sharp. The route will then head through Beaudesert to Boonah, where there will be a quick stop at the Flavours Cafe for a leg stretch and a coffee.
Note - it is suggested that if you can't get 250/260 km's out of
your tank from that start, that you top up at the BP before we leave.
After
a half hour break we are back on the bikes and head out for another
good stretch before reaching Fernvale for lunch with an approximate
arrival time of 12 noon.
After an hours lunch break you can
return to Brisbane (or your home base) at your leisure. The ride will
return to Brisbane via Brisbane Valley Highway - Warrigo Highway -
Ipswich Motorway - Logan Motorway.
Fuel available at Freedom Servo at Fernvale (225km's). BP Servo at Blacksoil (240km's) and Shell Servo at Riverview (250km's).
Note - all distances shown approximate from start of ride. Total ride distance approximately 300km's.
TeamMoto Triumph Virginia
For
the "Northside" riders out there, TeamMoto Triumph Virginia's road ride
will kick off from 1924 Sandgate Road, Virginia on Sunday, March
27th 2011 at 7am with a sausage sizzle (and the coffee van will be in
attendance!).
The ride will take us over Clear Mountain, through Dayboro and up into
the hinterland. The ride will again conclude around 12-12.30pm at the
Bellbird Creek Cafe in Kenilworth, where you can purchase lunch and
relax in the tranquil setting.
Be sure to chat to the TeamMoto staff
about any of the Triumphs currently on offer, cast an eye over the new
Speed Triple or book a test ride! Paul Lewis will also be riding the new Tiger 800, so you can see it in action for yourself!
From Kenilworth you can either follow the TeamMoto crew back to Brisbane or find your own way home.
It's your life, enjoy it! Hope to see you there.
TeamMoto on Great South East - March 27th!
We have a date for the TeamMoto segment on Channel 7's Great South East - on Sunday March 27th at 5.00pm be sure to catch the show for a special story featuring TeamMoto.
Focusing on promoting women in motorcycling, the segment will feature
some off-road women riders talking about getting into motorcycles, what
bikes might best suit lady trail riders and much more! Also featured is
the Motorcycle Riding School and how easy it is for girls to get a
licence for both road and off-road riding!
So don't miss Great South East on Sunday March 27th at 5.00pm. For more information on the show check out www.greatsoutheast.com.au.
Shots of the Month
This month's shots pay tribute to St. Patricks Day with a few Irish shots, focus on the history of a iconic British bike in Australia and feature a porcupine tyre on a frozen lake. Yep, this months images are as diverse as they come.
Below. We are passionate about motorbikes and passionate about Ireland. Whether
you want to hire a motorbike and see the great cities of Ireland like
Belfast, Dublin, Cork and Galway, or tour through the breathtaking Irish
landscape, the Irish Bike Tours company as everything you need! So who wants to go to Ireland?
Below. Fagan was a motorcycle built in 1935 and 1936 in Dublin, Ireland. There was only one model made, it used a Diamond loop frame, fitted with Webb forks and was powered by a 148cc Villiers engine. As the design was typical of the period, the make didn't last long.
Below. The first ever Triumph dealers in Australia - photographed in Melbourne, VIC.
Below. Almost 100 years to the day, Triumph was back at the same location for the 2011 Triumph Dealer Conference and Tiger 800 Launch. These photos came about because of pure coincidence - when the Triumph reps showed up at the Hotel before the conference, one of the staff members thought they might be interested in an old photograph... once the guys saw the above picture they had to recreate history! It's great to see such strong tradition thriving Australia.
Below. While most of the North American's are still cooped up inside because of copious amounts of snow, Palatinus Attila (what a name!) sees the frozen terrain as an opportunity... Several hundred screws later and his CBR600F4 is transformed from a street machine to an ice queen! Be sure to check out the video below as well.
