Australian Motorcycle News

Editor: Dean Mellor Deputy Editor: Kel Buckley Sub Editor: Phil Branagan News Editor: Hamish Cooper Staff Journalist: Pete Vorst Founding Editor: George Lynn Art Director: Paul Andrews Designer: Joe Ferrara Sir Alan Cathcart, Michael Scott, Ben Purvi

The first Chiko Roll, inspired by a Chinese spring roll, was sold. Families burnt their household rubbish in backyard incinerators. The gym was associated with the working class and often included a boxing ring. Everyone smoked and they smoked ever

TO CELEBRATE the 70th birthday of Australian Motorcycle News, authors Darryl Flack and Don Cox are offering AMCN readers a $10 discount in their much-acclaimed tome Race Across The Great Divide. Largely inspired by AMCN’s regular Where Are They Now s

› MODEL 2019 Honda Grom (L) Z125M, 2019 and 2021 CB500X, CB650R, CBR500R, CBR650R, 2020 C125AL, CRF250L-LA, CRF250R (Rally), 2021 CB500F, CMX500A2, 2019-2021 CMX500A › IMPORTER Honda Australia MPE Pty Ltd › NUMBER OF AFFECTED MOTORCYCLES 2981 (in tot

$40m Is how much the Aussie-founded, now global motorcycle event The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride has raised for charity over the past 10 years. Incredible effort by Mark Hawwa and his team. Innovator Robert White talks about the financial frustra

AMCN picked a winner in its first edition in June 1951 by featuring Aussie TT racer Ken Kavanagh on the cover. His performances in that week’s Isle of Man TT helped him become the first Australian to get a full factory ride in the world 500cc champio

HONDA ENTERING THE international motorcycle market in the 1960s. Within a decade it had cornered the market and then used its resources to maintain a technological edge. It is hard to understate the contribution Honda has made to motorcycling. In 196

Last year’s BSB runner-up, Aussie Yamaha rider Jason O’Halloran, has a dream start to season 2021 with three wins from three starts at Oulton Park. Norton has thrown a chassis, race data and technical mentors at the University of Warwick to give its

Six years after the end of World War II, US President Harry Truman officially calls an end to the state of war between the US and Germany, Winston Churchill is re-elected as PM of the UK, and Disney’s Alice in Wonderland premiers on the silver screen

Include your full name and address in your letter, via post or email. Long letters will be cut to fit, so don’t ramble. The views expressed by readers are not necessarily those of the editor. ■

I am the proud owner of a 1976 500cc three-cylinder two-stroke Kawasaki which rekindled my interest in motorcycling after owning English bikes in the 1950s. One of the main reasons why the early large two-strokes were not popular was their poor handl

Hi guys, thought this pic might bring some joy and happiness to others. These are my two current girls – a 1983 Yamaha RZ350K and a 1984 Kawasaki GPZ750R. I always get the feeling when I walk into my garage I’m being watched!! Nathan Warnes This

BOSCH 3900W Lithium Ion, 3.24kWh total 5kW 12.9Nm from 1rpm 110km (claimed) 95km/h (claimed) 8-9 hours 103.5kg 770mm ■

The Maverick Viñales/ Yamaha split got the bush telegraph buzzing Frebby Eddy is a big fan of Garry McCoy, GP winner and now, his local barista “Watching Gaz come onto the straight at Phillip Island with smoke peeling off the rear tyre is something

ANSWERS WILL BE REVEALED IN THE NEXT ISSUE EMAIL YOUR NUMBERED ANSWERS TO AMCN@AMCN.COM.AU FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN!

WITH A FRESH state under his belt, 22-year-old Peter Nicol was selected as WA’s representative in the 1953 Australian TT titles to be held at Longford in Tasmania. This merited partial travel assistance from the West Australian Motorcycle Association

Capacity 1746cc Type V-twin, single cam, eight valves Bore & stroke 100 x 111mm Compression ratio 10.0:1 Cooling Air/oil Fueling EFI Transmission Six-speed Clutch Wet, multi-plate Final drive Belt Power Not given Torque 144Nm @ 3

THE CURRENT GSX-S1000 retains a similar engine to the previous model, which was based on the legendary GSX-R1000 from 2005. Yes, it’s old technology, but at the time the GSX-R1000 had a phenomenal engine. I’m old enough to remember one of the first m

RIGHT NOW, THE soon to be superseded 2020 Suzuki GSX-S1000 is on runout at $15,890 (ride away). It’s fair to assume the updated model will incur a grand or two premium over that price, but that still makes it a pretty compelling option when you compa

Capacity 999cc Type Inline four cylinder, DOHC, 16-valves Bore & stroke 73.4 x 59mm Compression ratio 12.2:1 Cooling Liquid Fueling EFI, 40mm throttle bodies Transmission Six-speed Clutch Wet, multi-plate, slipper Final drive Chain

Looks great, the finish is top notch, handles well for a cruiser (relatively) and the Milwaukee-Eight is a torque monster No clutch adjustment at the ’bar, ground clearance is an ongoing issue for Harley and it’s expensive for what you don’t get ■

Capacity 292cc Type Single cylinder, SOHC, 4 valves Bore & stroke 70 x 75.9mm Compression ratio 10.9:1 Cooling Liquid Fueling EFI Transmission V-Belt automatic Clutch CVT centrifugal Power 20.6kW @ 7250rpm Torque 29Nm @ 5750rpm (cl

Capacity 373cc Type Single cylinder, four valves Bore & stroke 89 x 60mm Compression ratio 12.4:1 Cooling Water Fueling EFI Transmission six-speed Clutch Wet, multi-plate Final drive Chain Power 32kW @ 9000rpm (claimed) Torque 37

Capacity 349cc Type Single cylinder, four valves Bore & stroke 72 x 85.8mm Compression ratio 9.5:1 Cooling Air Fueling EFI Transmission Five-speed Clutch Wet, multi-plate Final drive Chain Power 15kW @ 6100rpm (claimed) Torque 27

THERE ARE MORE than 100 accessories should you wish to personalise your new Bonneville, and these range from crash protection to luggage and screens, and all come with a two-year warranty. But if you want something a little different, and can’t be bo

Capacity 900cc Type Parallel twin, SOHC, 8 valves Bore & stroke 84.6 x 80mm Compression ratio 11.0:1 Cooling Liquid Fueling EFI Transmission 5-speed Clutch Wet, multi-plate Power 47.8kW @ 7400rpm (claimed) Torque 80Nm @ 3750rpm (cl

Improved performance Improved brakes and handling Style and appeal Strong engine Agile at speed Cruise control as standard Basic technology Pricier than the competition Needs a more soulful exhaust note to match its looks Basic rider aids Heavy

Capacity 1200cc Type Parallel twin, SOHC, 8 valves Bore & stroke 97.6 x 80mm Compression ratio 10.0:1 Cooling Liquid Fueling EFI Transmission 6-speed Clutch Wet, multi-plate Power 58.8kW @ 6550rpm (claimed) Torque 105Nm @ 3500rpm (

TRIUMPH ESSENTIALLY OFFERS two Bonneville models: the $20,300 T120, which is powered by a 1200cc parallel twin and has also seen an update for 2021; and the ‘entry-level’ T100, a 900cc parallel twin with a slightly lower spec than the T120 but priced

“AERODYNAMIC DRAG IS your chief adversary in designing any vehicle whose aim is to go faster than anyone else in a straight line, coupled with high speed aerodynamic stability,” begins White. “So what we have here has a method of removing the centre

“We don’t want to carry any heat exchangers like radiators and suchlike, because with any that we add, we lose aerodynamic performance. The inverters and motors of the LSR bike will surely need to dissipate heat, and that’s likely to be done through

TIM HAD BEEN racing a bike with a highly modified Square Four motor, and using what he and George had learned about making the engine work more efficiently and stay together in doing so, they decided to build their own complete Square Four-based road

BEFORE THE ASCENT of Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez, Mick Doohan held the credentials to surpass Giacomo Agostini as Grand Prix’s GOAT. Growing up on the Gold Coast riding dirt track, Doohan made his road racing debut at Surfers Paradise Raceway in

TWO-TIME DAKAR winner Toby Price cut his teeth in the Australian Off Road Championship, winning five Aussie titles before his first Dakar win in 2016. He is also a seven-time Finke winner, including once in the car section in 2021 and a six-time Hatt

AUSTRALIAN JACK FINDLAY’S first world championship race was at the German Grand Prix in 1958. Some 19 years later he became the second-oldest rider to ever win a grand prix, taking victory at the 1977 500cc Austrian Grand Prix aged 42. His last race

BORN IN MARRICKVILLE, NSW, Tom Phillis became the first rider to win a GP on a Japanese machine, winning the 1961 Spanish 125GP. Phillis won six Grands Prix during the 1961 season before sealing the title at the final round in Argentina. He was kille

KEITH CAMPBELL WAS Australia’s first world grand prix motorcycle champion, winning the 350cc title in 1957. He was killed in a racing accident the following year, aged 26. THE YOUNGEST WINNER of the Australian 500cc Motocross Championship, Leisk hea

ROBBIE ‘MR SUPERBIKE’ Phillis was a pioneering racer in the late 80s and early 90s, winning the Aussie title five times for Suzuki before switching to Kawasaki. He amassed over 100 starts in World Superbike for four wins, paving the way for future Au

Samford Village is a great place to stop with good coffee and PULP available As good as it is there is often a strong Police presence so stay alert At the far north western end of this route there are several good camping options at Cedar Flats,

Fuel up at Hawker or Wilpena Pound Resort as you head north as no petrol is available at Blinman. If you are riding through the gorge to Parachilna on the unsealed road you will find petrol available there Wilpena Pound Resort offers a range of acc

Take care as this road is frequently policed with hidden radars, especially since they’ve lowered the speed limit Aspley Falls Road is on your right about 12kms before Walcha and the campground and lookout is not far off the road The Walcha Royal

Apollo Bay is a popular meeting spot where you can refresh with a good lunch and catch up with other riders The area between Port Campbell and Petersborough, often referred to as the Shipwreck Coast, is littered with some fascinating and famous coa

So what has changed in the last 50 years? THE SHORT ANSWER is: not a lot. The original race was a 100-mile (160km) race, but these days it’s a four-hour race, regardless of the distance covered. Early Kamfari races had juniors racing on a different

IF IT WAS NOT for a wrong turn while leading the 2004 A4DE outright, Williscroft might never had entered the Kamfari. Disappointed with his loss, Wonka was asked by ADB editor Andy Wigan to have a go at the mud enduro. With help from the Darwin Motor

What bike were you riding in the first Kamfari? The first year I rode a Suzuki 250 Savage. I just removed the lights, taped up the wires and rode it. Two stroke, twin shock with drum brakes, so you can imagine what they were like in the swamps! Did

PETER THOMSEN RAN a safari business out near the Adelaide River and wanted to call the park Kamarok. Considering he ran a safari business, it was decided to combine the two words and he settled on Kamfari. On the early trophies you can see the origin

HIS MEMORABLE DEBUT MotoGP win aside, Assen has rarely been the happiest of hunting grounds for the 26-year old. Nevertheless, he found himself in the lead group and was spying a top six finish mid-race. But a crash out at turn five – when he was pre

HONDA AND YAMAHA are MotoGP royalty, Suzuki somewhat the junior Japanese, Ducati and the rest latecomers. These two have something else in common. Each has built a MotoGP bike so particular that only one man can get the best out of them. This has bee

GARDNER WAS SOME way off teammate Fernandez and Lowes in free practice, and admitted to surprising himself by qualifying second. Again, the 23-year old’s approach to the race was measured. Having started well, Remy was in danger of losing big points

KELSO SHOWED SERIOUS improvements in his second GP for the CIP KTM squad, qualifying a promising 19th. But an incident in Q1, when he was judged to be touring on the racing line, undid his race, with the 18-year old one of six riders to receive a tou

IT’S BELIEVED APRILIA will be Viñales’s future destination. Pressed on this matter on Sunday, Aprilia Racing CEO Massimo Rivola said, “We need to know if the rider is on the market. If he is on the market, if he is available then we will try our best

AFTER THE DISAPPOINTMENT of Barcelona, where a technical issue forced him off his pole position spot on the grid, Eric Granado (One Energy) delivered an emphatic response at Assen by storming to a second win of the year. The Brazilian maintained a le

YAMAHA’S LUKE CLOUT has snatched the MX1 red plate from KTM’s Regan Duffy after a dominant performance at round four of the ProMX series in Maitland, NSW on 27 June. Clout won the MX1 pole shootout and then took the holeshot in race one, commanding t

IN THE LEAD-up to the start of the Speedway Grand Prix series Jason Doyle has scored a significant victory taking out the International Individual Ekstraliga Championship, staged at Torun on 18 June. This feature meeting brings together the top rider