Electric superbikes from an Italian F1 supplier, cafe racers built out of hardcore endurance racers and why trackdays are way better on two wheels. This is RideApart's guide to the last seven days in motorcycling.
2014 Suzuki V-Strom 1000: So here's the deal with so-called "Adventure" bikes. They're too damn big and heavy to actually handle much off-roading, but they do make great all-round motorcycles for commuting, touring, carrying a passenger or even just dragging peg on the weekends. Suzuki's replacement for the long-running V-Strom 1000 adds torque to its superbike-based v-twin and it gains a duckbill, a styling queue Suzi actually invented way back in 1988.
Stability Control Comes To Bikes: Well, they're mostly just calling it that. It's actually a new ABS-system invented by Bosch that works in conjunction with Traction Control to help reduce the likelihood of a lowside. TC has been available on bikes for a long time, most recently on super-fast superbikes to help them go faster. ABS is much the same story, again recently coming to performance motorcycles, which have incredibly, incredibly strong brakes (way stronger than any car). Now, ABS and TC talk to each other, combining lean angle data with braking force so you don't lose the front while grabbing the brakes in a corner. KTM tends to get its bikes right, so it should work as billed, but us bikers are a conservative crowd, so we'll remain skeptical until we try it. The concern is it will impair trail braking.
2014 Yamaha FZ-09 Review: The most anticipated motorcycle this year combines a torquey, 867cc, three-cylinder motor with a very, very low price. Just $7,990. Trouble is, getting that price so low comes with some compromises. Namely in the suspension and fueling departments. The forks are too soft and the fueling is jerky and unpredictable; a common problem with Yamaha's current range.
Why Motorcycles Are Better Than Cars For Trackdays: I mean they're just better in general (unless you have to haul two tons of pig shit or something), but on track, specifically, bikes are outright faster, considerably cheaper to run and just more fun. When was the last time you dragged a body part on the track itself in your cage? Without things having gone drastically wrong, that is.
Italy's Electric Superbike: So there's this company in Italy called CRP. You haven't heard of them, but they make the parts for F1 teams like Ferrari, Renault and Red Bull that are too complicated or too fancy for those guys to make in-house. Like next year's KERS motors. Now, they're making an electric superbike and I flew over to Italy to be the first person outside the company to ride the thing. It's not quite the fastest out there (That's the Mission RS), but it's seriously close and probably a more user-friendly ride. Did we mention that electric bikes like this are now faster than gas-powered superbikes?
RSD Cafe Racer: An ex-racer named Roland builds the best custom bikes in the US, combining looks with actual performance. His latest is this ultra-trick cafe racer based on the KTM 690 Enduro R.
2014 Kawasaki Ninja 1000: Take an already fast, already comfortable, already affordable bike and boost its ability in all those categories while making it cheaper and adding traction control. Nice one, Kawasaki.
This Week In Motorcycles