Jensen Beeler, Author at Asphalt & Rubber

Racing

Dainese to be the Official Safety Partner of the Isle of Man TT

By Jensen Beeler 04/21/2009 1 Comment

Dainese has announced the renewal of their partnership as the Official Safety Partner for the 2009 Isle of Man TT. Like last year, the partnership will include the first race of the Superbike TT to be renamed “The Isle of Man Dainese Superbike Race”.

The Isle of Man has long been regarded as one of the premiere races in motorcycling, as well as one of the most dangerous. Riders like Joey Dunlop have helped cement the iconic status of the time trial, while his death has also reinforced how dangerous the race still is. The TT races are extremely dangerous because of the high speeds on very narrow, twisting streets, roads and lanes flanked by stone walls and even buildings. Between 1907 and 2007 there have been 225 deaths during official practices or races on the Snaefell Mountain Course.

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Rumors

Harley-Davidson Working on A Liquid-Cooled V4 Engine?

By Jensen Beeler 04/20/2009 14 Comments

There’s a rumor going around that Harley-Davidson is working on a water-cooled, four cylinder, v-twin motor with a displacement somewhere between 1,300cc and 1,600cc. The good, the bad, and the ugly after the jump.

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Racing

Petronas Sponsorship Worth $24 Million to Fiat Yamaha

By Jensen Beeler 04/20/2009 No Comments

You may remember that , sponsoring the Rossi/Lorenzo duo in MotoGP. While Petronas has worked with Yamaha for eight years in a variety of fields, this marks their first collaboration with them in MotoGP, and it is costing them a pretty penny: $24 million for three years, or $8 million a year. For this sum, Petronas branding will appear on the Fiat Yamaha team’s bikes, equipment, and uniforms. Looking closer at the deal we see how large of a deal this is when compared to other similar sponsorships in MotoGP, while also at the same time, how the actual sum paid might be much less than $24 million.

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Bikes

BMW S1000RR To Be Priced Against Japanese Superbikes, Cheaper Than Ducati & KTM

By Jensen Beeler 04/17/2009 5 Comments

BMW Motorrad USA will show the S1000RR superbike in the United States for the first time this coming Memorial Day weekend at the Miller Motorsports Park World Superbike round, with the bike hitting US dealership floors by January 2010. Pieter de Waal, Vice President of BMW Motorrad USA, has revealed that BMW intends to position the S1000RR against litre-class superbikes from Japan.

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News

Vectrix Motocycles on the Chopping Block

By Jensen Beeler 04/17/2009 1 Comment

Electric motorcycle manufacturer Vectrix looks to be in financial dire straits yet again, and is reportedly looking for either a buyer, or possible merger in order to bail itself out of the deadpool.

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Racing

Kawasaki Secretly Signed on as Sole Motor Provider for Moto2?

By Jensen Beeler 04/17/2009 3 Comments

Visordown is reporting that they have a source who has uncovered an unofficial report that Kawasaki has been chosen as the sole motor supplier for the new Moto2 race series. The source goes on to allege that a deal has already been signed for Kawasaki to supply the one-make motors for the class, despite . Apparently, the deal has been done on down-low in order to keep Kawasaki involved in the MotoGP racing series.

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Bikes

The Ducati Desmosedici’s Carbon Fiber Frame

By Jensen Beeler 04/16/2009 1 Comment

Ducati at the Qatar GP race last week release more photos and information on the . Ducati calls this “the next step in the advancement” of their GP series motorcycles. The objective behind the new frame is to create a chassis set-up in which each element carries out a specific function, to obtain the desired rigidity with as little weight as possible, thus attaining maximum efficiency.

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Bikes

2009 Yamaha R1 Reportedly Heavier and Less Powerful than the 2007 R1

By Jensen Beeler 04/15/2009 No Comments

Performance Bikes magazine is reporting that their independently conducted dyno tests show that the 2009 Yamaha R1 makes less power and torque than the 2007 R1. Furthermore, Performance Bikes also got a chance to throw the 2009 R1 onto a scale, and found that the bike weights more than the 2007 version as well. In the liter-bike class its all about stronger and lighter, crossplane crankshaft or not, so is the 2009 R1 all its cracked up to be?

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Racing

Spoiler Alert: Hiccup to Its Start, But the Qatar GP Is In The Bag

By Jensen Beeler 04/13/2009 No Comments

After being rained out yesterday, the Qatar GP, at the Losail International Circuit, finally got its green flag today. There was however a good omen to the start of the season, question mark riders Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden made it onto the starting grid and finished a respectable result. We don’t want to give away anymore of the MotoGP season opener, so continue reading for all the spoilers.

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Bikes

Further Aprilia RSV4 Specifications Revealed

By Jensen Beeler 04/13/2009 No Comments

The Aprilia RSV4 is set to go on sale soon this summer in Europe, and later in the year here in the US. As such, details about the bike are starting to emerge, as well as a plethora of promotional materials. Continue reading for the official technical specifcations of the RSV4, and pictures from its press only track debut.

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Banter

Pimped Out and Stretched Japanese Scooters

By Jensen Beeler 04/13/2009 4 Comments

The United States hasn’t really embraced the scooter culture as much as Europe and Japan have. The gallery after the jump either explains why we’re the better, or the lesser for that trend. You make the call.

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