Australian Motorcycle News

SO, NOW THAT many bike launches around the world have been reduced to online reveals – not ideal, but there isn’t any choice for manufacturers, and all are in the same boat – how does one choose a flash new motorcycle? Not all launches have been canc

CARNIVAL HISTORIANS have recorded that an obscure routine, performed by a pair of bicyclists and known as La Corbielle de la Mort (The Basket of Death), was mentioned as early as 1901 but can elaborate no further. Certainly circus acts using bicycles

I recently had the privilege of catching up with Mick Hone and grabbing a limited-edition alloy billet plaque he had specially made to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Suzuki Katana. But almost just as significant as the Katana anniversary, is

There’s certainly no company more entitled to produce a retro model using current MV Agusta hardware than Moto Magni, whose founder the late Arturo Magni was the architect of the historic Italian trophy marque’s remarkable haul of 75 road racing Worl

TRIUMPH HAS TURNED its iconic Speed Triple into a cutting-edge, 1160cc weapon that takes on the main players in the supernaked category. A completely new design results in a 25-percent better power-to-weight ratio than the previous 1050cc version and

AFTER MOTORCYCLING Australia postponed the 2021 FIM Oceania Speedway Championship, the Australian Under-21 and Under-16 250cc Championships were also postponed just after our last issue went to print. Gillman Speedway did however hold a meeting on 30

MOTOGP’S REIGNING world champion Joan Mir says he has faith in the remaining members of the Ecstar Suzuki factory MotoGP squad to continue on the team’s successful trajectory without mastermind and former team boss Davide Brivio’s guidance. Brivio, w

THE HOSTS OF this year’s Australian Four Day Enduro (A4DE) have announced the postponement of the event due to ongoing uncertainty around Covid-19. Due to be hosted in Harvey in Western Australia over 19-22 May, the Trail and Enduro Motorcycle Club o

Short shorts are back. Actually, no they’re not. But they did feature in last issue’s spot-the-difference quiz and Kevin Sheerin is the lucky reader who picks up an increasingly rare AMCN-branded neck sock. Answers for AMCN Vol 70 No 14 1. The bran

The Dakar Rally may well have remained beyond our horizons had not Hans Tholstrup and Tom Snooks devised the Wynn’s Sydney to Darwin Safari in 1985, creating a generation of hard-core Australian cross-country racers. Among many others, Dakar champion

SIDECARS WILL TAKE over the speedway spotlight with Tamworth, Gillman and Mildura hosting feature meetings in the lead-up to the Australian Championship, scheduled for Mildura over 23-24 April. Tamworth hosts the East Coast Sidecar Round-up on 6 Febr

KTM HAS REACHED a milestone in motorcycling, offering radar cruise control as standard on its new 1290 Super Adventure. In 2018 KTM was among the first to confirm it was jumping on board with Bosch’s system, although Ducati’s 2021 Multistrada V4 S an

“DEROGATORY TREATMENT OF women” has forced Sharni Pinfold to call time on her motorcycle racing career, just months after securing a ride with the RT Motorsport effort in the competitive IDM series in Germany. The 25-year-old Australian used social m

A LOT HAS HAPPENED since my last AMCN column last year (AMCN Vol 70 No 05). Back then I had just finished an amazing Round One of the condensed BSB Superstock 1000 championship in the UK with two trophies and a joint lead in the points. It was a drea

MotoGP is going through special times at the moment, with the top factories banned from upgrading engines for 2021, to ease the financial pressures of the Covid-19 pandemic. This will make it harder for Suzuki’s rivals to close the gap on the GSX-RR,

We already knew that the FTR was a mug lair around town and oh, how I love that aspect of it. But as I’ve mentioned previously, I’ve been pleasantly surprised with how well the FTR stacks up as a bike you can get away on. So much so that my head has

When KTM owner Stefan Pierer purchased Husqvarna from BMW Motorrad in January 2013, it was by his own admission to clean up the existential ambiguity of the two separate off-road brands of Swedish ancestry; Husaberg, which KTM already owned, and Husq

WE HERALDED THE release of BMW’s long-awaited ABS system on its K-series range. It was originally expected to be released to the safe-stop-hungry motorcycling community late in 1987, but Beemer delayed it because more research was deemed necessary. T

0409 959 737 kriega.com.au The MAX28 backpack is constructed of durable 420D Cordura with soft-feel back panel and features Kriega’s Quadloc-Lite harness system. The expandable MAX28 includes a waterproof laptop pocket, fold-down zip compartment wit

COVID RESTRICTIONS FORCED the postponement of the official two-day ASBK test at Phillip Island, but that didn’t stop a handful of riders signing up for a track day over the Australia Day long weekend. The sell-out day and inclement weather meant the

A real career change for you as new HRC WorldSBK team manager? Our Superbike project is such a big one. So, you’re not relied on to do everything. My responsibilities at this stage are probably a fair bit less than a lot of other team managers have

AS THE HEART-WARMING news was received that the 2021 Australian of the Year was 26-year-old Grace Tame, a teenaged sexual abuse survivor turned campaigner, a sad announcement was made on social media. International racer Sharni Pinfold is quitting th

LINDSAY MCKAY SAYS he wasn’t an ambitious racer. He nonetheless enjoyed a 15-year career and finished second in the 1979 national 125 championship, racing an air-cooled Honda single against “those damn Morbidellis”. He once took six bikes to Bathurst

ROYAL ENFIELD IS throwing down a challenge in the sub-350cc market with its all-new, traditionally styled Meteor 350. Selling from $6540 plus on-road costs the three variants of this single-cylinder cruiser are aimed at the urban market, which has bo

Australian Motorcycle News road test photographs are posed for by skilled, professional riders under controlled circumstances. Attempting to imitate their actions may be dangerous. Australian Motorcycle News supports and endorses rider training and w

From the time I tipped the new ZX-10R into the first corner after I picked it up from Kawasaki, I immediately understood why Jonathan Rea had won six consecutive titles on a ZX-10. All those race wins, all that development has gone into each successi