Aussie movie star, passionate motorcycle rider and motoring fan Eric Bana will play Mike “The Bike” Hailwood in a movie based on the legendary racer’s life.
Bana will also write and direct the film about the legendary racer who retired from racing bikes in 1967 after 12 Isle of Man TT victories and returned to take back his crown in 1978 on a Ducati 900SS.
His brave return will be the focus of the film.
The bike he raced has also become legendary and is even immortalised in the latest TT computer game.
Isle of Man TT 2 game
Hailwood honoured
Hailwood’s widow, Pauline, says the family is “absolutely thrilled” that Eric will adapt Mike’s story into a feature film.
Bana started directing with the 2010 movie Love the Beast about his first car, a 19745 Ford XB Falcon hardtop.
He also has a passion fort motorcycles, particularly Ducatis and is often participating in track days, so no doubt he may do some of his own stunts in the movie.
Eric on track
It is quite appropriate that an Aussie brings Hailwood’s story to the silver screen.
The British rider had a close connection with Australia having ridden many Ducatis in long-distance races, often with Aussie co-rider Jim Scaysbrook.
He also raced Formula One and once stopped mid-race to pull a fellow racer from his burning car and save his life.
Ironically, Hailwood died, age 40, along with his daughter after a truck crashed into their vehicle on their way to a restaurant.
Potential ‘all there’ declares Bautista as testing concludes
Section: Competition
Team HRC debutant making progress in Honda transition.
Image: Russell Colvin.
Alvaro Bautista says the potential of the all-new Team HRC Honda CBR1000R-RR is ‘all there’ after the final Motul FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) pre-season test concluded at Phillip Island this week.
Bautista, who dominated Phillip Island’s season-opener last year on Ducati machinery, has been challenged by his transition to the Japanese manufacturer – the Spaniard ultimately finishing both days of testing 16th and 10th on the timesheets.
The race winner is confident in the package, explaining the team and himself need to work towards harnessing what the brand-new Superbike has to offer.
“This test has been very important for us of course and I think we’ve made progress,” Bautista commented. “With respect to yesterday, my feeling with the Fireblade was a little better this morning, while this afternoon was a little trickier in the wind and on a more slippery track.
“We’ve also tested tyres today, finding positives and negatives as is always the case, and we also attempted a long run in order to collect as much data as possible ahead of the first races. All this information is really important as we move forward and I’m confident we can take another step forward this coming weekend.
“The potential, power and speed are all there, now we just need to work to be able to effectively harness it all.”
Bautista’s team-mate, Leon Haslam, was fifth fastest during the pair of days of testing.
Helmet cameras, GPS units, radar detectors and other devices could be ruled unlawful by Western Australia Police under a rule amendment that is being brought in by stealth, say critics.
Police Minister Michelle Roberts has added a section to the Impaired Driving and Penalties Bill that allows police to ban any “device” they deem fit.
Those devices could include helmet cameras, intercoms, radar detectors (legal only in WA), dashcams and even phones being used for sat nav or music.
Rather than police applying the law, it would make them creators of the law in a dangerous precedent for other states.
Stealth law
Motorcycle Riders Association of WA representative Dave Wright says the Minister is effectively trying to allow legislation by stealth without proper consideration or discussion by the voted Members of Parliament.
The issue was brought to light by the Australian Drivers Rights Association who is lobbying the Upper House to reject the amendment.
Association secretary Glen Secco says it was sneaky of the Minister to attach the section to the Bill.
“Problem is it’s an open ticket to be used at any time to ban whatever they want,” he says.
Glen believes it is primarily designed to outlaw radar detectors.
“The Office of Road Safety keeps putting this forward and it’s been rejected by the government in 1998, 2003, 2006 and 2012,” he says.
“The office receives all its money from speeding fines and a lot of things they support is simply to increase their revenue from speed cameras.
“Motorists make mistakes and it’s not all speeding; driver inattention, misjudgement and distraction cause the majority of accidents and yet they just concentrate on speed.”
However, Glen says a lot of other devices could also be ruled illegal in a vehicle or on a rider.
“GoPros on a helmet also aren’t safe,” he says.
“They may also decided that phones on a bike are not safe as they are a distraction.”
If you have been following 2020 MotoGP pre-season testing in Malaysia, and more recently over the weekend at Losail, you would have read much discussion regarding new engines for the new season.
It’s no secret that for much of the four-stroke era Ducati have been consistently dominant in the speed traps and the clear leaders in the horsepower wars. That still rings true as the five quickest machines at Losail were all built in Bologna.
Honda gave the RC213V a major power boost last season though and got close to, and even bested the Ducati speeds at some circuits in 2019.
Yamaha’s lack of top speed has been a trend for at least most of the four-stroke era. A sweet chassis sees their riders regularly swamp competitors in the bends, before those hard won gains then being promptly undone as competitors walk away from them again on the straights. They also have to use a lot of edge grip from their tyres to lever their cornering advantage, which hurts the Yamaha in regards to tyre longevity.
Yamaha have made some strides forward to try and redress their speed deficit and their 2020 engine is more powerful. If we compare speed trap data from Qatar last week versus the same test last year, we can see that Yamaha’s hard work seems to have paid off. Both the factory Yamaha’s of Vinales and Rossi together scoring higher numbers in the speed traps. Vinales +7.6 km/h and Rossi +5.4 km/h respectively compared to 2019.
In fact, Vinales’ top speed of 346.1 km/h last week would have placed him joint third with Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso last year.
The thing is the others have also made forward gains… As you can see from the table below, every manufacturer has made strides, which has pretty much left Yamaha in the same position as before.
The factory Ducati machines have seen a 6.8 km/h and 5.6 km/h speed increase compared to 2019. This number could perhaps have even been higher if not for the new funky aero that Ducati were testing in Qatar. The new aero package is said to produce more down-force, but that generally brings with it more drag at high speeds. Or have Ducati achieved the holy grail and scored improvements at both ends of the aero spectrum..?
Jack Miller’s Pramac Ducati didn’t run the new aero package and it was the Australian that topped the speed charts at 355.2 km/h, 8 clicks quicker than he achieved at the same test last year. Pramac team-mate Francesco Bagnaia was placed third this year at 351.7 km/h, an amazing 12 km/h up on the 2019 test.
There is another interesting angle to the Ducati top speed angle this year with the adoption of a system whereby the rider can lower the bike on the straights, improving traction and perhaps even aerodynamics. How much has this new development contributed to Miller’s top speed advantage at Losail…?
Pretty much every team has seen an increase in top speed with the exception of Marc Marquez and his factory Repsol Honda. The champ some 2.2 km/h down on his 2019 speed.
Of course, there are many other variables and factors at play, so direct comparisons with 2019 testing top speeds can only tell us so much. What the 2020 test does show is that the factory Yamaha’s are a little higher up in the charts relative to their competitors compared to last year. So at the very least it appears to be a step in the right direction for the factory Yamaha’s, whether that will be enough, we’ll have to wait and see.
The Petronas Yamaha machines were not quite as fast as the Factory Yamaha’s but did see a slight speed increase from 2019.
All other things equal, from what we have heard about new engines, and from the data, it suggests that MotoGP bikes are the fastest they have ever been. It will be very interesting when we arrive at Mugello later on in the year, as if the stars align, we can expect to see the 356.7 km/h top speed record achieved by Andrea Dovizioso tumble. Perhaps the magic 360 km/h barrier will be eclipsed. If that happens, how long will it be before officials take yet more measures to slow the bikes down…?
The biggest electric motorcycle company, Zero of California, will finally plug into the sportsbike market with the launch of the SR/S.
Over the past 14 years, the company has produced dual-sport models and last year added the naked SR/F streetfighter.
The Zero SR/S is basically an SR/F with a fairing.
Zero says it’s “the most comfortable sportbike on the road” with higher bars and lower footpegs.
However, range, power, speed, and other tech specs are fairly identical to the SR/F.
The premium SR/S model with 6kW Rapid Charger, heated handgrips and aluminium bar ends starts at $US21,995 and the standard model with 3kW Rapid Charger starts at $US19,995. They are available in grey or blue.
While Zero has not yet made an announcement about a return, we suspect it is a long way off. At least until the government offers subsidies like America’s 10% rebate and our charging infrastructure catches up to the USA and Europe.
The Zero SR/S is powered by the same 14.4kWh battery and ZF 75-10 motor with 82kW of power (110hp), 190Nm (140lb-ft) of torque and a top speed of 200km/h (124mph).
Range is also the same at 260km (160mi) in the city, 132km (82mi) on the highway and a combined range of 175km (109mi).
Riders can also buy a $US2895 3.6kWh Power Tank that increases range 323km/201mi (city), 166km/103mi (highway) and 219km/136mi (combined).
However, with 13% improved aero from the fairing, range could be better if you tuck down low.
Zero SR/S has the option to install one, two, or three Level 2 charger modules on board.
Charge time from 0-95% is four hours with a single charge module, two hours with two charger modules and just over an hour with three.
It features a Cypher III operating system that includes Bosch stability control and a full telemetrics that links to your phone.
It shows charging status, charge time scheduling, tip-over protection or unexpected motion notifications in case someone is trying to steal it plus a Find-my-Bike feature to track its whereabouts.
You can also share your ride data with other riders, but be wary of divulging too much incriminating evidence!
They even have optional Shard panniers in case you want to go sports touring.
Maiden WorldSSP test positive for wildcard Bayliss
Section: Competition
Cube Racing rider sets personal best time at the Island.
Image: Russell Colvin.
Australian wildcard Oli Bayliss has described his maiden WorldSSP test as positive after he set a personal best lap-time at Phillip Island, the youthful talent set to make his world championship debut this weekend at the season-opener.
Bayliss, who will take on double-duties at the Island as he contests both WorldSSP and Australian Supersport, went 16-19 on the timesheets across both days of testing this week, setting a 1m36.010s lap on Tuesday’s final hit-out before the weekend.
“It wasn’t such a bad day to be honest,” Bayliss reflected. “The first session this morning went well for the team and I. We again went faster than what we did yesterday, which was positive, as it was the fastest which I have ever been around the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.
“We kept on doing more and more laps to get used to the Cube Racing Yamaha YZF-R6 to get as ready as we can possibly be ahead of the start of the round on Friday. I feel good and I feel like we are improving. The extra track time which I’ll get in the Australian Supersport Championship will definitely help me, in terms of track time that’s for sure.
“To finish 20th overall in the combined times, I’m okay with that. The positives which we can draw out of the two days is the fact that we have gone the fastest around this track than we have done before on a bike which is not quite where we want it to be just yet.
“We as a team can see that the bike needs a bit of improving. I really need to go a second quicker and I should be closer to the top 10. I’ll keep working towards that target.”
The 16-year-old will have 11 sessions to complete – including four races – at the Island this weekend across the two championships.
Zeb and Bob Congdon at The Deals Gap Motorcycle Resort before heading up the Tail of the Dragon. Photos by the author.
As I leaned into the corner, a stopped garbage truck appeared just ahead, hugging the stone wall on the right closely enough that I could just squeak by. Doing so revealed the gorgeous sight of a rock-laced, turbulent waterfall directly in front of me. These exciting moments were in the Cullasaja River Gorge of North Carolina’s State Highway 28, parts of it nicknamed “Moonshiner 28” due to its rich history of use by speeding moonshiners evading the revenuers. Everyone has heard of the Tail of the Dragon section of U.S. Route 129 in Tennessee and North Carolina — Moonshiner 28 begins at its southern end and is an even better ride in many ways.
Map of the route taken, by Bill Tipton/compartmaps.com.
I wasn’t expecting anything extraordinary riding this portion of Moonshiner 28 after two days of enjoying nothing but amazing riding from where I started in Cherokee, North Carolina. But what had begun as a raw, misty autumn ride soon developed into an unforgettable fall-color riding spectacle.
In Cherokee, I camped in a KOA cabin along the Raven Fork River for two days of fishing. The cabin was a luxurious tent, tailormade for a motorcycle journey. Besides fishing, Cherokee has amenities and attractions like the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, a casino, lodging, eateries, a gateway to Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway.
I left the Cherokee campground on a misty, rainy morning, bypassing the elk refuge at the national park’s Oconaluftee Visitor Center and heading north on U.S. Route 441 into the park. It was cold and raw this November day, and the mist limited my vision. Taking the turnoff up to Clingmans Dome, all I could see were the clouds hanging in the valleys — the “smoke” in the Smokies.
View from the Foothills Parkway between Townsend and Chilhowee, Tennessee.
I left Clingmans Dome Road, got back on U.S. 441 and headed for Townsend, Tennessee, to check out the Little River fishing potential. At Sugarlands Visitor Center I headed west on Fighting Creek Gap Road, becoming Little River Gorge Road. It merges with U.S. Route 321 in Townsend. Normally a great ride, on this day it was overwhelmed with park traffic, and I rode attentively.
Chilled and needing hot food and coffee, I pulled into a roadhouse in Townsend and wolfed down a medium-rare strip with eggs, home fries and coffee. Full and warm I headed off on U.S. 321 to the Foothills Parkway. The sun came out, allowing me to absorb Mother Nature’s continuous visual treats. The colors along the parkway were overwhelmingly beautiful.
The author’s BMW F 650 GS parked at Foothills Parkway Overlook between Townsend and Chilhowee, Tennessee.
Suddenly I was at the beginning of the Tail of the Dragon section of U.S. 129 in Tennessee. I had ridden it from the North Carolina side, but not the other direction. Sports cars and screaming sportbikes ply the road’s endless curves, so you must pay constant attention. Dragon riding is about turns, leaning, weight change, rhythm and smiling through 318 curves in 11 miles. Having conquered the Dragon, now a legend in my own mind, I pulled into Ron and Nancy Johnson’s Deals Gap Motorcycle Resort, a mandatory stop at the southern end.
Moonshiner 28 starts here. As I leaned and twisted down the Moonshiner I imagined Robert Mitchum’s 1950 Ford two-door sedan (actually a modified 1951 model) from “Thunder Road” screeching around the corners and hauling the moonshine to market. Riding along Cheoah Lake to Fontana Dam is quite fun, a simply enjoyable, sparkling and twisting lake road. I reached the dam and rode across it, stopping for pictures and picking up great riding maps at the visitor center.
Bob Congdon rides Moonshiner 28 along the Cheoah River, between Deals Gap and Stecoah, North Carolina. Photo by Killboy.com
Moonshiner 28 from Fontana to Franklin is not a make-time route; it is a rider’s enjoy-the-feeling route. Arriving in Franklin at dusk, I pulled up to the Microtel Inn & Suites, looking forward to a relaxing cocktail and a good night’s sleep. But I had forgotten that I was in the Bible Belt — finding that “moonshine” was a chore.
The next morning it was onto Mountain Waters Scenic Byway. I have come to love this 9-mile section of U.S. Route 64/State Route 28, but that morning was special. With the trees in full fall color and the cascading Cullasaja River Gorge on my right, it grabbed my soul. I enjoyed sunny, prime fall riding conditions on this scenic, twisty, color-laden river road. The Gorge is a part of the Nantahala National Forest in western North Carolina, and on this part of the Moonshiner 28 the Cullasaja River tears down the gorge interrupted by cascading, tumbling waterfalls like Dry Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Bust Your Butt Falls and, of course, Cullasaja Falls. Dry and Bridal Veil Falls have large enough pull-offs for multiple bikes. Dry Falls is particularly unique with a falls walkway and restrooms.
Bust Your Butt Falls is one of several waterfalls on the Mountain Waters Scenic Byway section of Moonshiner 28.
At Highlands, I continued down Moonshiner 28, crossing into Georgia and then South Carolina. No wonder moonshiners liked this road. You could quickly hit multiple state population centers!
Turning around, I headed for my destination, my brother’s house outside Spartanburg, South Carolina. I wasn’t about to pass up a continuing ride through the Smokies for Interstate 85. I got back to Highlands, picked up U.S. 64 east toward Brevard, U.S. Route 276, Pisgah Forest and the Blue Ridge Parkway. At U.S. 276 I figured seeing my brother was more important than the Blue Ridge. It would have to wait until spring.
As a senior rider, my bike rides mean freedom, being alone with my thoughts, rugged country and having a big grin on my face. A favorite ride has to have raw beauty, scenic rivers, intriguing history, meandering roads and mountains. It has to be all that to keep me coming back. This ride is a great journey; I appreciate being alive when I am here. I wish you the same in riding Moonshiner 28.
A dragon stands guard at Deals Gap Motorcycle Resort.
Now organisers are focussing on the second event in what they hope will be a series of charity rides to encourage riders out into bushfire-ravaged communities to spend their tourist dollars and help the communities recover.
Our main suggestion is to just get out and ride to these areas and buy local fuel, food, accommodation and supplies.
Inaugural Fire Aid Ride
Riders on the first Fire Aid Ride ride gathered in Windsor in support of the rural Aussie town of Putty which had been devastated by the recent bushfire crisis.
The charity rides were founded by Sydney rider Jimmy Woodriff with help from Mark Hawwa’s The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride team.
“It was amazing to have so many people join us and support those in Putty who have been significantly impacted by the recent fires,” Jimmy says.
“Riding straight north from Windsor, it’s definitely overwhelming to see the devastation on each side of the road for kilometres on end.
Jimmy addresses the riders
“The Upper Colo RFS were on the roadside to greet us halfway with lights flashing and kids waving, which put a smile on everyone’s faces. We had huge lines buying coffee, food, fuel and beers right through the area.”
Starting at the Macquarie Park Boathouse Cafe, the group ride made recommended pit stops at the Colo Riverside Cafe and Colo Heights Caltex along the route from Windsor, towards their final destination at The Grey Gum International Cafe in Putty.
Jimmy says that with the big turn-out of riders, both venues at the start and end of the ride nearly ran out of food.
While fundraising wasn’t the focus of the event, many attendees still donated to the Putty, Howes Valley and Upper Colo RFS.
“Enough money was raised to assist the Howes Valley RFS in upgrading their station to make it a more suitable space for the firefighters to meet, recuperate and work,” Jimmy says.
The first CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP to arrive in Australia will make its debut appearance at Honda’s expo display at the Phillip Island World Superbike and ASBK season opener this weekend.
This lone ranger is the only unit to hit Australia so far, with the remaining models’ due mid-year. It’s fate? To become Troy Herfoss’s steed for his 2020 Australian Superbike campaign with Penrite Honda Racing.
Herfoss is extremely excited to get out on the track with his all-new race machine in the coming months and looks forward to seeing it in action when Team HRC riders Alvaro Bautista and Leon Haslam head out to race for the first time on Saturday.
Troy Herfoss
“It looks so fast, it’s going to be a serious contender, I am shaking with anticipation to ride this thing. The technology and craftsmanship that has gone into it is so obvious, it looks mean! I’ve seen some of the dyno stats from Europe where the bike is straight out of the box, it’s got quite a bit more horsepower than my current race bike as standard so I can’t wait to feel that power in the coming months.”
Troy Herfoss will race the CBR1000RR-R SP in ASBK with Penrite Honda Racing in 2020
It will likely be some time before Herfoss races the new Fireblade in ASBK however. As of now there is only one bike in Australia, and 20 need to be here before it become eligible for ASBK Superbike competition. The outgoing model remains competitive in ASBK with Herfoss only narrowly being beaten to the title in 2019, and of course he was crowned champion in 2018.
Joining the new CBR1000RR-R SP Fireblade on show at the Honda display over the WSBK weekend are the all-new CRF1100 Africa Twin and top spec Africa Twin Adventure Sports with Showa EERA (Electronic Suspension)
Lighter, more powerful and with more features than ever before, the new Africa Twins are forged through adventure and will be available in Honda dealers from March.
The 2020 Motocross models, the CRF450R and CRF250R will also be on display.
However, he has tweeted that his demo V4R that he uses for promotional duties pillioning customers around the track has been stolen.
Stolen, straight out the back door of our race truck at Somerton VIC while driver having a shower. What the hell do you want a two-up bike for? It’s due for an engine rebuild as well, you ain’t going far on that.
Troy’s race truck
Troy says he is hoping to catch the thief on CCTV and says in another tweet:
If anyone spots a V4R two-up bike cruising down the highway can you stick a broom handle in the front wheel and cut off at least one of the hands of the rider?
We can certainly understand his feelings and many other riders have suggested similar penalties for bike thieves.
NSW introduced tougher penalties in 2006 of up to 14 years for anyone involved in motor vehicle theft or rebirthing.
While it has resulted in a decrease in car theft, it is not having any effect on motorcycle theft which is up 17.1% in NSW compared with an increase of 11.7% nationwide.
Law enforcement agencies agree that tougher penalties are needed. But maybe not castration, nor cutting off a hand as they still do in Saudi Arabia!
The problem has been that organised criminal rings use specialist criminals for different functions of the same offence.
They include bike thieves, burglars who break into your house to steal car or bike keys, re-birthers, fencers and document forgers.
This has made it difficult to convict offenders and gang bosses or organisers. Charges were often not proven or bargained down to lesser charges, such as receiving stolen property.
At best, the conviction system was protracted with little or no joy for the victims.
In 2006, the NSW government amended the Crimes Act 1900 to introduce a new offence of knowingly facilitating a rebirthing activity carried out on an organised basis.
It applied to any and all members in the network involved in stealing your motorcycle or car with tougher penalties. The maximum penalty was 14 years in jail.
Last year a review of the laws founds they were not only catching some offenders who knowingly participate in a vehicle rebirthing activity but who may not be guilty of any other offence.
Yet it also found that sentences did not reflect the seriousness of the crime, given the lack of offenders receiving the 14-year maximum penalty.
Although it did note that the Court of Criminal Appeal and District Court “conscientiously assess the gravity of the offending when applying the standard non-parole period of four years”.
It also identified the difficulties of proving the offender’s knowledge of the motor vehicle theft network.
Despite this and the lack of maximum sentences, the review did not proposed any legislative changes.
Meanwhile, we wish Troy every success in both racing this weekend and finding his demo Duc.
Isle of Man TT 2 game
Eric on track
Jimmy addresses the riders
