2011 Yamaha Yzf-r6 on 2040-motos

Moto blog

Four Classic Clubs Showcase Variety At AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days

From custom café racers to beautifully restored Bridgestone motorcycles, a full range of motorcycling interests will be represented at BikeBandit.com AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days, featuring Indian Motorcycle, July 11-13 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio. Classic Clubs that will be located on Championship Row include the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club, Louisville Vintage Motorworks, Café Racer magazine and Bridgestone Motorcycle Club. The Club Corral, across from Championship Row, will include the Indian 4 Cylinder Club, the Kawasaki ZL Owners Association and the Cincinnati Classic British Motorcycle Owners.

Yamaha Offers VIP Package for US Grand Prix at Laguna Seca

Yamaha and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca are offering a special VIP ticket package for the 2012 U.S. Grand Prix for fans 0f the Japanese manufacturer. The Yamaha VIP package includes a three-day general admission ticket for the July 27-29 event to catch the MotoGP and AMA Pro Racing action.

I can die happy!

As an eighteen year old Kenny Roberts was my bike racing God.  I loved Barry Sheene but as a Yamaha FS1E rider I always wanted the little American to win simply because his bike resembled mine.  The coverage of Grand Prix in the late seventies was sketchy but I clearly remember watching the epic Sheene/Roberts battle unfold at the Silverstone GP on my council estate telly.  The Dutchman, Wil Hartog was hanging in there for a while but as the laps unfolded it became a two way battle with Sheene looking favourite to win.  Sheene lost the most time as the pair lapped a certain George Fogarty so my hero Roberts eventually won by just three hundredths of a second.  I’m not sure what happened next but being a Sunday we would no doubt be skidding around later in the day at the Pines chippie pretending to be Roberts and Sheene.  Fast forward thirty four years and a boyhood fantasy came true as I headed out on Chris Wilson’s 1980 Roberts machine for the Barry Sheene tribute laps at last weekend’s Moto GP.  It crackled into life instantly and felt as sharp as any of the more modern 500s I used to race.  The temperature gauge had a maximum marker on 60 degrees so to begin with I was nervous as it didn’t move but being a hot day (although still keeping my hand on the clutch) I convinced myself it wasn’t working.    The bike felt tiny, not helped by the fact I only just squeezed into my 1989 Marlboro Yamaha leathers.  It still felt rapid though as I played out the 1979 classic in my head while getting tucked in down the Hanger straight.  Steve Parrish was also out there on one of Barry’s 500cc Heron Suzukis so we did our best to copy the famous last lap at Woodcote Corner where Sheene came so close to winning his home GP. As a lad I would have said the chances of me riding round Silverstone on a GP winning Kenny Roberts machine were zero, but in the words of Gabrielle, dreams can come true!