One of the best 600’s you’ll find, previous owner one of GT Motorcycles technicians. Laser exhaust and standard system, braided brake lines, tail tidy and double bubble screen. Low mileage.

Colour: Blue
Year: 2005
Mileage: 2257
Location: Plymouth
Engine: 599cc in-line four
Ignition: Digital DC-CDI
Cooling: liquid system
Gearbox: 6-speed
Seat: 820mm (32.3 inches) high
Dry Weight: 161.9kg

GT Motorcycles is offering this bike for £5,499.00. Please contact us for information, or to organise a viewing.

Kawasaki have released more details on their flagship ZZR1400 sports tourer.

The bike will have the most powerful engine Kawasaki have ever produced for a motorcycle, with around 190bhp on tap, delivered from a 1352cc, four cylinder, fuel injected motor. The engine is brand new and is about as wide as the ZX-12R, it also features an oil cooler, as well as a conventional water radiator.

Like the ZX-12R the new 1400 features a monococque frame with the engine as a stressed member, and the airbox inside the frame’s top section. Inverted 43mm forks, set at a 23 fork angle, featuring 13 way compression settings plus 11 rebound options offer sharp, tweakable handling and steering. At the back, a Uni-Trak monoshock rear end, with gas reservoir and pre-load adjustment, complete a semi-sporting chassis package.

It probably won’t be an ideal trackday bike however, as the wheelbase is longer than the ZX-12R at 1460mm, dry weight of 218kgs and a 22 litre fuel capacity adding some more weight once rolling - though the fuel is stored under the seat.

But the sleek aerodynamics of the ZZR1400, the sheer lazy grunt of having 190bhp at just 9500rpm, plus the two-up riding comfort, will make this the Hayabusa and Blackbird beating superbike for 2006.

The seat height is just 800mmPrice is expected to be around £9000 OTR. Colours are blue or metallic grey.

(this article was taken from insidebikes.com)

Some info from Bonhams, who are selling a 1920s `Superbike’ amongst many other classic machines at Stafford this April;

bonhams to sell legendary 1920s ’superbike’ at the classic motorcycle show

Following on from its outstanding success in selling the Houseley Collection’s 1928 McEvoy-JAP (£67,600, Stafford, October 2005), Bonhams will sell a magnificent 1924 Montgomery 8/38hp v-twin on 23 April 2006 at The Classic MotorCycle Show in Stafford.

A rare example of one of the most famous British ’superbikes’ of the 1920s, the Montgomery, has been in the present owner’s hands for the past 29 years, having been owned previously by an elderly gentleman in the North Kent area. The vendor, a professional restorer for over 40 years, is the proprietor of world famous Vincent specialists Conway Motors.

Conway’s services are greatly in demand, which explains why this painstaking restoration, completed in January 2006 to concours standard, has taken so long to finish.

Like many of his contemporaries, including rivals Brough and McEvoy, William J Montgomery relied heavily on proprietary components, although the frame and forks were manufactured in-house. Montgomery supplied frames and its own sprung fork to George Brough in the latter’s early days.

In this v-twin’s case, components used include Enfield hubs, Sturmey-Archer gearbox and clutch, and a 997cc Anzani engine. The 57-degree, 8-valve unit was manufactured by British Anzani - the UK offshoot of the original French company established at Courbevoie, Paris in 1907 to manufacture aero engines.

A Morgan fitted with one of these Anzani engines set two world records in 1922, while Anzani’s overhead-camshaft v-twin was used by Claude Temple to set several motorcycle world speed records, the fastest at over 120mph.

The Montgomery was displayed on Bonhams’ stand at the Bristol Classic Motorcycle Show on 11 and 12 February 2006 and attracted some of the biggest crowds and the attention of countless photographers, both amateur and professional.

Bonhams will be displaying this wonderful machine (estimate £55,000-£65,000) on two further occasions prior to the Stafford Sale: at The International Historic Motorsport Show, Stoneleigh on 24, 25, 26 February and at the finish of the Pioneer Run, Brighton on 19 March.

Further entries to the sale are being invited by Bonhams specialists. For more information please contact Ben Walker on +44 (0)8700 273616.

(this article was taken from insidebikes.com)

The word from KTM after the Hell’s Gate event;

KTM’s reigning Enduro 3 world champion David Knight proved once again that when the going gets tough he certainly knows how to get going. Mounted on his 300cc KTM David once again dominated the Hell’s Gate race earning himself 8′000 Euro after managing to make it to the top of Hell’s peak ahead of his rivals.

Despite the special test used in the morning’s qualifying enduro featuring several ice patches David managed to win each of the three special tests to qualify first for the main Hell’s Gate race. Finishing ahead of Britain’s Wayne Braybrook and Italian Maurizio Micheluz, Knighter simply did enough to ensure he would start in pole position for the four-lap main event. While David claimed the number one qualifying position, KTM’s Dakar rider David Casteu finished in 10th position, putting himself in a strong position for a good result in the Hell’s Gate race.

With four laps of an extremely difficult and in places very icy track ahead of him Knighter lead from the start but was soon back in second place after getting caught up in the first river section. Not too worried about being in second position as he started the second lap David moved to the front of the race - a place he would stay until the end.

But winning the ‘06 edition of Hell’s Gate proved to be anything but easy for David as the near 15 minute lead he had opened up during the second and third laps was reduced to just three and a half minutes at the end of the race following difficulties with his lights.

Enjoying a comfortable lead the lights on David’s bike failed to work just when he needed them, the result of a small crash. Managing with just his helmet lights, David soon found himself in complete darkness as they too stopped working. Able to cautiously make his way towards the final Hell’s peak hill the reigning ‘05 overall ISDE winner managed to stay ahead of the rapidly approaching Braybrook in second and add victory to his other winning rides in ‘06 at The KTM Tough One and the Genoa International Indoor Enduro. In placing his KTM on the top step of the podium David was presented with a cheque for 8′000 Euro by event organiser Fabio Fasola.

For KTM’s other David (Frenchman David Casteu) the event proved to be a challenging but enjoyable one. Having to adjust to life on an enduro bike and not on a rally bike, Casteu was one of just six riders to finish the event. Despite not being able to match the pace of the enduro and trial specialist ahead of him, Casteu entertained the many spectators that attended the event with his determined riding.

David Knight: “This year’s Hell’s Gate race was certainly difficult for me. The track had a lot of ice in places, which made the morning’s qualifying race interesting. Winning the morning enduro was good because it gave me a good position on the start for the main race. I had a small problem on the first section of rocks and got stuck a little bit so I didn’t really lead the race until the start of the second lap. I pushed hard during the second and third laps to open up a lead and I think I was about 10 or 15 minutes ahead. Just as it started to get dark my lights stopped working. Then I tried my back-up lights and for some reason I couldn’t get them to work either.

Making things worse was the fact that my helmet lights only lasted for about five minutes before they stopped too. Then I was really in the dark. Thankfully, I made it to the last hill of the race and with the help of the spectators I made it to the top. Winning the race for the third time is great.”

David Casteu: “The Dakar is certainly a difficult race but Hell’s Gate is difficult in a very different way. Although it is very short it is very hard but very enjoyable. After spending so much time on a rally bike it was a little bit strange riding on an enduro bike again but with the support of my friends I am really pleased to have finished the race. I didn’t have any problems during the race but I was close to not making it to the finish because of how far I was behind David Knight. Anyway, I did make it and I am extremely happy to have finished.”

Results - Camel Hell’s Gate Race

1. David Knight KTM 4 laps

2. Wayne Braybrook Honda + 3.30 minutes

3. Paul Edmondson Honda + 15.30 minutes

4. Gregory Eyries Yamaha + 1 minute

5. Graham Jarvis Sherco + 13 minutes

6. David Casteu KTM + 6 minutes

(this article was taken from insidebikes.com)

Suzuki GSX-R1000

One of the nicest K3’s we’ve seen. This immaculate low mileage bike has a Yoshimura can, plus the standard item, a clear double bubble screen, crash bungs, tail tidy and headlight cover.

Colour: Blue/White
Year: 2003
Mileage: 2799
Location: Plymouth
Engine: 988cc in-line four, fuel injected 6speed
Power: 164.00 HP at 10800 RPM
Torque: 83.3ft.lbs at 8400 RPM
Fuel Capacity: 18.00 litres (4.76 gallons)
Dry Weight: 168.0kg

GT are offering this bike for £5,999.00.

The latest from the Suzuki Superbike squad, who are looking ahead to the AMA season for 2006;

Team Yoshimura Suzuki’s Mat Mladin, Ben Spies and Aaron Yates have completed a productive and relatively successful two-day test of their 2006 GSX-Rs at California Speedway in Fontana, California.

“This test was really just final preparation for Daytona,” said Yoshimura Suzuki Team Manager Don Sakakura. The biggest priority for us was for Ben to focus on developing the new GSX-R600 and he spent the whole day riding that bike.

This was a hard test for us, said Spies (pictured). But it was good. This is the first test where we’ve had real race suspension on the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R600. We’ve just been making little changes, taking small steps at a time. We got a decent setting today and we know what direction we need to go in to make it better.

Team mate Mladin finished off the test with the fastest lap time on his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 Superbike, posting a best of 1:24.448. Mladin and his crew had been focusing on 2005 and 2006 suspension components and engines.

It was a good test, said Mladin. The last time out, we put a couple of things together that we liked. We tried the 2005 and the 2006 motor and I preferred the 2006 version. This test wasn’t ideal for lap times, with the wind and everything, but we found some stuff that we liked and that’s what we’re here for.

Unfortunately for the team, 2005 AMA Superstock Champion Aaron Yates was absent, having broken his right shoulder blade on the first day of the test. According to Sakakura, Yates should be healed in time for the season’s first race.

Going into a ‘right - left’, I got into a tank-slapper and went off over the front and landed on my shoulder, said Yates, who went to the doctor after the incident. Most likely, I won’t need surgery and I’ll be ready for Daytona, he added.

Next for Team Yoshimura Suzuki is the season-opening round of AMA Superbike Championship, scheduled for March 8-11 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.

(this article was taken from insidebikes.com)

The Long Way Round TV show has won a Broadcasting Award; here’s the word from BMW GB;

When Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman set off on their fascinating Long Way Round journey, they probably never imagined that it would achieve the success that it has. The television series that was aired on Sky has just won the Broadcaster Award for the Best Multichannel Programme.

For this award, judges were looking for the outstanding original production commissioned by a UK digital-only television channel, with its first transmission during 2005. Repeats and acquisitions were excluded. Judges searched for shows that were original, brought something new to the market and struck a chord with its audience.

“This is a fantastic award to win,” said Russ Malkin, the producer and director of Long Way Round. “Ewan and Charley’s journey has really caught the imagination of so many people that the success of the project has thrived. Since the series was shown on Sky in the UK, it has been released internationally and we are now getting a whole new wave of positive feedback from around the world.”

The Long Way Round book published by Time Warner Books won the UK 2005 Travel Book of the Year Award, outselling its closest competitor – Michael Palin – by 100,000 copies. The DVD went platinum in the UK, Australia and New Zealand and was also the number one selling DVD in Canada.

Long Way Round was executive-produced by Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman, Russ Malkin and David Alexanian.

Charley Boorman’s latest project – Race to Dakar – will be aired on Sky in October this year.

(this article was taken from insidebikes.com)