1993 Honda Goldwing 1500 (columbus) on 2040-motos

Moto blog

How to solve the mystery of the wildcard replacement

With the two test riders coming forward to act as replacement riders for the injured Rossi and Aoyama, it brought back memories of the days when the grid would be gifted with wildcard riders from the respective countries. The Japanese rounds were always attended by some of the top guys with experience of the 500GP and MotoGP bikes, through racing them in their domestic championships. What resulted was getting to witness the exciting and talented Japanese riders, and bring new riders to the attention of the teams.

475cc NS400R. Marquez and Spencer.

Winter may be here but I seem to be as busier than ever, maybe the economy is finally turning around. At my last UK track day of the year I had some fun testing this little beauty.  It’s a late eighties NS400 triple bored out to 475cc and it felt sweet as I zinged round the GP Arena track at Silverstone.   Being stripped bare to reduce weight gives it a very respectable power to weight ratio which means it could live with 600s (on the twisty bits at least).

Own A Scale Model Of The Elf5, One Of The Most Unique Racing Motorcycles Ever

If you’re a fan of scale model racing motorcycle kits, this 1/12 scale model of the Elf5 racer, as ridden by Ron Haslam in 1988, should make your mouth water. Designed by famous F1 designer André de Cortanze, the Elf5 was the culmination of a radical experiment by de Cortanze and Elf, the French petroleum giant. And even though it didn’t claim the racing success Cortanze and Elf had hoped, the experimental Elf motorcycles hold a distinctive place in motorcycle racing history, with some of its technology still in use today.  Powered by a Honda NSR500 V4 engine that served as a stressed member and main mounting structure for the single-sided swingarms both front and rear, this recently released scale model is based closely on the actual Elf5 racing machines. This full detailed kit maintains the single-sided suspension, with the front suspension consisting of aluminum alloy and springs that will be partly movable.