Bike Mania for bike lovers ..

Big Bike  & Classic bike
Sport Rider was but a gleam in our publisher’s eye at the time, but Motorcyclist named the CBR its Motorcycle of the Year and most significant bike of the (still young) decade. 

In the magazine’s road test of the new bike, Nick Ienatsch — who would soon be the editor of SR — wrote, “In the CBR900RR, I’ve found a fantastically fun motorcycle that takes motorcycling a step beyond where it is now with pure function; what happens after that initial step is up to you, but the climb is worth the view.”

Of course, the CBR900RR was on the cover of the very first issue of SR, along with the FZR, GSX-R and ZX as part of that issue’s open sportbike comparison test. This brought to light the first chink in the CBR’s lightweight armor: a flighty front end with vague handling. “On the gnarled back roads of central California, the CBR was noticeably more jittery than anything else,” we wrote, and this led to the Yamaha winning that comparison test, even though the Honda lapped a dominating .8 seconds faster than any of the others during our track day at Laguna Sega.

The 900 went largely unchanged for eight years, an eternity in sporbike terms but another indication of how important the light-weight premise proved to be. Its popularity during those years is easily judged by thumbing through back issues; the CBR is often on the cover, and even more often found inside as a project bike, custom bike, reader’s ride, racing feature or in some form of road test. Then Editor Ienatsch was part of the title-winning Two Brothers Racing and Erion Racing AMA GTO Endurance teams; in later years, current Editor Kunitsugu’s own ‘93 model was often the guinea pig for testing aftermarket products or demonstrating riding skills.

The CBR900, and in its later forms the 929 and 954, just kept getting lighter and more powerful. The CBR954RR was the featherlight at 429 pounds fully fueled, but in ‘04 the CBR seemingly lost its way. Baba was no longer in charge. “Mass centralization” and “MotoGP technology” were the new buzzwords, and the CBR ballooned from the class lightweight to the heavyweight in the transition to a full 1000cc. Certainly, Honda was not alone and all the manufacturers struggled to keep weight in check when faced with ever-tightening emissions laws. Even in our ‘12 literbike comparison no four-cylinder could match the 954’s weight, and that’s 10 years on.

Still, in ‘08 the CBR returned to a focus on light weight and good, useable power — familiar ground at last. In fact, many of the comments from our tests of the original 893cc models would fit right in with descriptions of the current generation CBR, and vice-versa. “There’s definitely plenty to like about the big CBR, including a responsive engine with a solid midrange punch that launches off corners, and an agile-feeling chassis that lets you put it anywhere in a corner,” we wrote of the CBR1000RR in our ‘12 literbike comparison test. Sound familiar?

“The brief was to create a sportbike with total control that was easy to ride,” said Tadao Baba of the ‘92 CBR900RR. “This was my world, my ideal bike.” Twenty years on, the ‘12 CBR1000RR remains true to Baba’s original.

Motard
The Superbikers returned in the form of Supermotard or Supermoto. Surfacing in France as the Guidon d'Or (the Golden Cup), the concept was the same: Riders from a variety of disciplines compete on a partially paved, partially dirt course.

And just as the bike of choice in The Superbikers was a lowered, wide-tired motocross bike, current Supermotard machinery typically consists of big-bore, four-stroke motocrossers, suitably modified. The Superbikers/Supermotard comeback has spawned a number of series, whether it's serious multi-race championships like Don Canet's SuperTT series or the Thursday night rumbles in the parking lot behind the local Target. They all have one thing in common though-dirt bikes ridden on pavement or a dirt/pavement mix.

Supermotard

Canet's series is split into several classes, with the machinery divided into three basic groups: Premier (unlimited displacement and modifications), Middleweight (under 400cc with unlimited mods) and Sportsman (stock-sized wheels, stock brake calipers and full suspension travel required). Typical in the Premier class are big Huskies, KTMs and the odd Honda CR500 and VOR-all with wide, 17-inch wheels and their suspensions lowered. Yamaha's YZ400F is popular in the Middleweight class (wide-tired also) and the Sportsman class attracts a mixed bag of motocross equipment with dual-purpose tires fitted.

A hint dropped to our friendly Yamaha PR representative and a WR400F loaner appeared, which is eligible for a number of classes depending on modifications. Dual-purpose or dirttrack tires are the norm for the Sportsman class because they have enough tread to get at least something resembling grip in dirt sections, without disintegrating on pavement. We spooned on a set of Dunlop Trailmax dual-sport buns and while the back rim was off, a three-teeth-smaller rear sprocket was scrounged from the MX shop and fitted.


Standard gearing is woefully short for paved straights of any length, and for longer tracks we also fitted a front sprocket one tooth larger than stock. A stroll through the pits reveals serious competitors have bark busters (guards that protect a rider's hands) mounted: Are there trees on course? No, but they're necessary as the racing is um...close.

The hot suspension setup for Sportsman is as follows: Take all the air out of the front fork (to lower the front end) by tying it down and bleeding it; at both ends dial-in almost all the rebound damping and take out most of the compression damping. Weird and simple, but effective. Armed as such, we were set for a couple of SuperTT events and a day at the local kart track.

Put simply, the big WR is awesome to ride on pavement. Grip from the Trailmaxes is surprisingly good, but even 'motard novices will be slithering around after a handful of laps. First thing to notice is these bikes are quite tall and tippy compared to sportbikes, but after a few corners the sensation fades. Big, wide handlebars make it easy to muscle the thing around, and your inside foot naturally gravitates off the peg to skim across the ground-just in case. Tire-spinning exits are next, and their ease depends on how much grip is available. At Bakersfield's Mesa Marin Raceway in California, the Supermotard track includes portions of the oval's infield, covered in sealer. Slides out of every corner are the norm, and you quickly realize that they are required to Keep Up with the Joneses. Back to Willow Springs' kart track and regular pavement, slides on corner exits are a bit less predictable, and near high-sides inevitably result.

Classic
After spending a few years in Europe and spending way too much time plastering his apartment walls with sketches of new ideas, Michael knew that when he returned home he had to take this bike building thing more seriously. "I formed Raccia Motorcycles in 2006 with the main objective to create vintage Japanese race-inspired motorcycles using primarily Japanese parts along with some hand built parts" he says. The main shop is in Southern California but 4 months ago Michael opened another satellite shop in the Bay Area of northern California.

"In my opinion the Japanese engineering surpassed it’s European predecessors in the 60s and 70s but was still far inferior in the aesthetics department. I’ve always believed that the Japanese motorcycle could rival the beauty of let's say a Norton or Ducati, but it just takes a little more work." This is exactly what Michael has achieved with this stunning 1971 Honda cb350. "I’ve always loved the styling of the 60s British and Italian production racers so a lot of that inspiration went into this build." Here are a few of the alterations he made: Battery relocation, handmade seat, alternate tank and clip-ons to start. Michael handmade the rear-sets and spent a good amount of time reshaping the cases to give it the 'Raccia touch'. With a large amount of weight removed, larger pistons and a steeper cam this beautiful little two cylinder really moves. "As an art major in college one of the most valuable things I learned was the importance of proportion and lines" he says. "I’ve always tried to build bikes from an artistic perspective and utilize those ideas obtained in college. I focused a lot on the lines of this bike and I’m pretty satisfied with the result."

This CB350 cafe racer was purchased by The Mike Taggart Guy Webster Motorcycle Museum in Ojai California last year and will probably spend the rest of its days being drooled over by numerous automotive fans. Michael LaFountain is currently working on six new projects with the first to be completed in early May. As far as we're concerned, May can't come quick enough.

Vespa

Piaggio’s design brief was to pack the power of a 400cc scoot into something sized like a 300. The new motor is a fuel-injected, liquid-cooled four-stroke Single with a four-valve cylinder head. It’s oversquare (the bore is wider than the stroke, and a short distance for the piston to travel means a high-revving motor) at 78mm by 69mm, for a displacement of 330cc. Lubrication is by dry-sump, which gives you a more compact design and smaller oil capacity. Claimed power is 33.3 horsepower, which works out to something like 100 hp per liter of displacement, once a benchmark for car racing, no?

The chassis of the BV 350 is standard scooter construction utlizing a tube and sheet-steel frame enclosed in plastic bodywork.But of interest to real scooter nerds is the new wet-clutch transmission. Don’t let the word “clutch” scare you – it’s still a twist-n-go CVT (that means “continuously variable”) transmission, so no need to learn how to work a clutch or gearbox. Gone is the dry centrifugal clutch that’s driven twist-n’-goes since the ’80s, now replaced by the smooth, efficient goodness of oil-bathed plates, which promise greater reliability and longer service life.

In fact, all the innovations added together mean oil changes are needed but every 6200 miles, and major services are a globe-trotting 12,400 miles apart. Efficiency is boosted, too: Piaggio claims the BV will return 70 mpg.

 The chassis is standard scooter stuff. It uses a tube and sheet-steel frame enclosed with plastic bodywork. Rear suspension is provided by twin shocks, adjustable for preload. In front, there’s a 35mm fork. Braking is handled by single discs fore and aft, but it’s a linked system – squeeze the right lever and two of the front caliper’s three pistons squeeze the 300mm disc; add in some left-lever action and the center front piston works as well as the two pistons in the rear.

Riding the Beverly is a pretty familiar experience for those who know Piaggio products. Starting is quick and easy, with the FI setting the busy little engine into a smooth, quiet idle. Rolling on the throttle produces rapid acceleration, and while the gearing seemed tall for lower speeds, midrange acceleration was impressive. The entire bike has a solid feel that may seem top heavy if you’re coming from another brand. The seat is tall, but the bars are close to the rider. All the controls and switches work fluidly and feel well made.

The BVs linked brakes worked well as long as both levers get the squeeze.It’s studded with luxury touches, which you’d expect on a $5499 scooter. Instrumentation is very complete – there’s a fuel as well as a temperature gauge and an info-packed trip computer. There’s also a fold-down man-purse hook, and pushing the ignition lock in opens the big weatherproofed glovebox, which contains a 12-volt outlet, little cubbies for your stuff and a lever to open the lighted underseat trunk. Said trunk is pretty big – there’s enough room for a full-face helmet and a jacket (or two half helmets, but we don’t wear those, do we? We like solid food, don’t we?). A rain cover is cleverly hidden under the seat, along with the fuel filler, battery and tool kit. My BV came fitted with the optional trunk, color-matched and backrest equipped. That’s a lot of storage capacity, and the trunk comes off with a press of a button if you don’t want it, leaving a big, square mounting pad behind.

Take it to a twisting two-lane country road and you’ll have some fun. The long wheelbase means stability, but the small wheel sizes – 16 inches in front and 14 behind – mean responsive and smooth steering. The motor is responsive, too, with the new CVT keeping the Single in the powerband for aggressive corner exits. Like many modern scooters, you’d be amazed how fast you can go on the BV, but it’s still a scooter, and my confidence was limited by the rearward weight distribution of the drive unit bolted to the back wheel.

Still, I found the twin shocks offered good spring rates and adequate damping. The Michelin City Grip tires provide all the stickiness I could handle (and promise good wet-weather performance), but ultimately, fun is limited by the centerstand, which can make sparks in left-hand turns.



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