Honda CL77 Motorcycles, page #72

Moto blog

Honda CBR250R top speed run

The Cope Law states that: the capacity of the bike you're riding is inversely proportional to your chances of a crash. Never was it more true than on the launch of Honda's CBR125R and CBR250R where a handful of UK journos were riding elbow to elbow for a couple of hours, with laughter flowing from everyone's lid as we all took turns to back in to roundabouts, burnout through town and wheelie from the lights.. This video shows me chasing Trevor Franklin of MCN fame on a top speed run.

BMW 1000RR and the Honda C70, are they indestructible?

I’ve managed 1374 miles on the Michelin Power Pures (mostly on track) and although we’ve had some decent temperatures they still look like new so there’s plenty meat left for another month at least. I’ve been running them at 30psi front and 32psi rear and find they warm up after a few miles but I wouldn’t say the temperature comes any quicker than any of the competition so it has to be four miles before I get brave. I’ve had a few out the seat moments with my BMW but I have got the rear suspension  set pretty hard (8 rebound,8 compression, two turns on pre load) and in slick mode, so 190bhp in first gear at the Knockhill hairpin is always going to be dodgy.

Looking for a CBR250R or K1600GTL Forum?

Every year in the motorcycling world there are a few new motorcycles that gather the collective interest of enthusiasts across the country. This year those two models included the new entry-level sportbike from Honda, the CBR250R, and the new luxo-touring bike from BMW, the K1600GT and K1600GTL. While enthusiasts are gearing up for delivery of their new bikes there is a place for them to enthusiastically discuss their new purchase, or perhaps, for those who have not yet purchased, a sounding board for their thoughts.

Get On Africa: Blog One

It's not every day you get to bomb around a field that was set aside for The Pope but that's exactly what we've done this morning; the first proper day of our Get On Africa adventure. We started the morning at the Riders for Health workshop where the mechanics took us through their setup and maintenance program for their bikes. The celebs ran through the basics of bike maintainance, the mechanic boasted that bikes never come back to the workshop broken, they just come in for scheduled servicing.

Press launches - the ugly truth. Part 3

So with an afternoon of sightseeing completed (a rare luxury on most launches) it's back to the hotel for the press conference. These are you usually long winded, tooth pulling affairs with Japanese technicians insisting on speaking their bestest engrish which only serves to elongate the proceedings. Nothing kills a presentation more than reading every word of a powerpoint slide verbatum, even thought the viewers can read exactly the same words (and probably a lot faster).  The Crossrunner presentation was mercifully brief and snappy followed by dinner in the hotel and a reasonably early night as everyone had already been up for twenty hours.

Video: Honda Crossrunner v mountain pass

This road (the one in the video) was a previously unseen, super-steep mountain pass which needed first gear for the hairpins and second between them with an occasional grab at third on the quicker sections. It was the sort of road that pumps up your forearms and makes you crane your neck to see what's coming next (mainly cyclists). The surface was rubbish.

Press Launches - the ugly truth. Part 1

For the nosey amongst you, you might be interested to know what goes on during a 'press launch'. The phrase is used in passing in new model reports as if you should all know what it is. Like some kind of given.

MotoGP 2011: 'Expert' Predictions

What's instore for the 2011 MotoGP season. Anticipation for exciting racing that's more likely to be largely dull, one-horse races. Here are the Visordown predictions for the top three this year: Ben Cope: Stoner Lorenzo Pedrosa James Whitham: Stoner Lorenzo Rossi Niall Mackenzie: Pedrosa Rossi Spies Mark Forsyth: Stoner Spies Lorenzo Robin Goodwin: Stoner Pedrosa Spies Barring Mackenzie and his far-out choices, it's a unaminous Visordown support for Casey Stoner on the Repsol Honda.

Japan Needs Your Help

By now, we’ve all seen pictures and video of the devastation in Japan following the March 11 earthquake and the ensuing tsunamis. Japan, of course, has contributed much to motorcycling, with the Big Four of Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha, as well as tire manufacturer Bridgestone, helmet companies Arai and Shoei and many other motorcycle industry stalwarts all coming from the Land of the Rising Sun. Jon Bekefy and Greg Hatton, two motorcycle enthusiasts, industry employees  and above all, humanitarians, have set up a fundraising campaign benefiting the Red Cross for relief efforts in Japan.

Schoolboy Heroes

A wet and grey day in Calais in 1992 wouldn’t be the obvious situation for a life changing experience, but for a 11 year old lad on a boring booze cruise from Dover this is exactly what happened. Pockets bulging with funny money I headed to the Tabac for the obligatory bangers, dirty playing cards and some sweets.  Then it happened, I stood in front of the magazine rack and reached up, as if drawn by an external force.  At the time I wasn’t tall enough for Playboy or L’ Escort so settled for a copy of Moto Verte, the French motocross mag.  Life would never be the same again. Inside there was a double page spread, with a fresh faced Jeremy McGrath resting a leg over his #15 Honda CR125.  Sporting a pair of fluro MX trousers with a, now retro, bright white surname emblazoned jersey, and casting an eye over a seriously vast motocross park.  I stared at this Sinisalo advert all the way home, partly because all the articles were in foreign, but also because I was transfixed.  What and how do I become a motocross champion?