Mattie660

Devastating combination I would think, if the Ducati is running faultlessly. I can see Lorenzo getting despondent though, if there are troubles with it.

On my old Suzuki V-Strom i used to tie a normal hiking backpack along the length of the rear seat and tail. There was not enough room then for a Top Case, but it worked fine. The tent was strapped to the bottom of the rucksack, just like it would have done if you were hiking. But rather strap the rucksack to the bike rather than wear it The good thing about the VFR is that it is easy to load side cases, or soft throw over bags - which are quite cheap. Then a roll bag above that. That gives plenty of carrying capacity. I have also found that the difference in packing size is not relative to the amount of time - that is a week camping requires essentially the same amount of stuff as a two or even three week camping trip. The big difference is between trips staying only in Motels, versus camping trips.

Walk into jewellery store: I would like to buy a fine watch . Would you like to look at Rolex, or Breitling perhaps ? No, I want to look at the range of CVSTOSS watches please . CVSTOS ? Yes, particularly the ugly one with somebody else's name on it - has to be bright horrible colour, and be almost useless for telling the time - oh, and nothing under fifteen big ones. . CVSTOS ? Yes. (some things just make me laugh !)

Excuse me, have you got the time - er, yes it is 93 No, I mean what is the time by your watch ? - yes, 93 Thanks.

Fireblade is tricky one to beat. I read that in 2014 one third of all sales of sports bikes over 1000 cc were Honda Fireblades, and at the end of the day it is about sales. On the Gen 8 forum here I have seen quite a few comments about pricing of the Gen 8, and it does boil down to cost - and not relative cost like arguing between a Ferrari and Porsche when you cannot afford either. So I can imagine anything new will be about cost, otherwise it will not sell. I notice that the Yamaha MT range have been huge sellers, probably a lot to do with what you get for their bargain price. Yamaha sold more MT range of bikes than BMW sold bikes in total, and Yamaha's new R1 is not particularly expensive either. So while we bitch about wanting the trickest latest high tech, it is most definitely with both eyes on the price tag.

I did this by using the fuse box under the seat. I pulled out the fuse for the headlights and put the positive wire in there, then put the fuse back in. The negative was wired to the (-) battery terminal. It then comes on and off with the ignition.

MCN - "Stoner set for sensational MotoGP return...with Ducati" Big picture article of Casey's return to MotoGP, as a test rider and wildcard entry. "Having Stoner involved will no doubt accelerate that development programme even further by putting one of the sharpest racing brains on the planet in the heart of their team." MCN - Nov 18 2015 Page 66. Honda can have Marquez, and good luck with all the falling off, and Ducati get Stoner. Best of luck to Ducati and Stoner for 2016.

No dude they completely change the bike from 2015 to 2016. Talking about sponsorship, not performance. My argument that it is difficult to raise sponsorship because Dorna is controlling tightly the TV rights. My argument is that this means sponsors do not get the exposure that they want, and so are not prepared to pay the high price, just to advertise to a smaller audience. I used Suzuki as the example, to show they had few sponsors, and the sponsors for 2016 are more or less the same as 2015. It follows that if sponsorship money is difficult to get, then big sponsors will have more of a say in what goes on in the team. This is my whole argument.

^^ There does not appear to be much difference from last (2015) season. Motul have been involved with Suzuki for many many years. Michelin, has replaced Bridgestone as tyre provider for the series. And Suzuki's own brand of motor oil will be their Title Sponsor. Maybe there is just more value in advertising themselves, rather than accepting a few $$$ to advertise someone else. I notice that the bikes in World Superbikes seem to be covered in sponsorship adverts.

I was reading that the current TV arrangements were causing concern for some sponsors, because I believe Dorna sells exclusive TV rights for coverage of MotoGP. This means that sponsors pay a lot of money to advertise to a small exclusive audience. Could this be why we have seen Suzuki has no major sponsor other than its own brand of motor oils ECSTAR ? Aleix Espargaro, Assen TT 2015

Tickets not on sale yet, but looking at maybe Mugello GP which is on 22 May. It seems you have to get in quick to get the best tickets ! Provisional calendar published on the MotoGP website: motogp.com Round Date Grand Prix Venue 1 20/03 Qatar Losail International Circuit 2 03/04 Argentina Termas de Río Hondo 3 10/04 Americas Circuit Of The Americas 4 24/04 Spain Jerez de la Frontera * 5 08/05 France Le Mans 6 22/05 Italy Mugello 7 05/06 Catalunya Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya 8 26/06 Netherlands TT Assen 9 10/07 Germany Sachsenring 10 17/07 Great Britain Silverstone 11 14/08 Austria Red Bull Ring 12 21/08 Czech Republic Brno * 13 11/09 San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini Misano 14 25/09 Aragon MotorLand Aragon 15 09/10 Malaysia Sepang International Circuit 16 16/10 Japan Twin Ring Motegi 17 23/10 Australia Phillip Island 18 06/11 Valencia Comunitat Valenciana - Ricardo Tormo

I prefer Stoner to Marquez. Stoner won a World Title on a Ducati - very cool. Apart from his riding ability Stoner always talked a good fight as well. I felt you could learn something by listening to him, his race analysis. Honda probably got more useful feedback from Stoner than they do from Marquez, granted that is just speculation on my part. I do not know how much influence the sponsors have on the teams. Two Spanish riders on the Repsol Honda team, coincidence ? hmm. Maybe Honda feel that they can sell bikes all over the world, and the nationality of the riders and sponsors do not matter. Perhaps that was the case, but now the cat is out of the bag, or at least suspicions have been raised because of 2015 season. So Honda had better be careful otherwise their reputation will suffer. So come on Stoner, get back in there. And glad the same rules will apply to all the bikes in the same race.

Has the 2016 MotGP World Champion been chosen yet ?

Contracts have been signed for 2016, but could they still be changed at this late date ? it seems there is an option in the contracts for Jorge and Yamaha to part company even now. In a TV interview Yamaha MotoGP boss said "very disappointed in Jorge Lorenzo" http://www.marca.com/en/2015/11/04/en/more_sports/1446667166.html It would be brilliant if they did ask him to hop it, clear off !

Yamaha will take on the forces of darkness that have shadowed the end of the 2015 season, and the force will be with them. ........and Lorenzo will be sacked from Yamaha.

Add MotoGP to the list of European sporting stitch ups. FIFA and the World cup was all just conspiracy theories until - World Cup in Qatar, in the Summer ! European road cycling was all conspiracy theories until - bags full of dope were discovered and reported. And now we have this, and people can smell a rat. Honda should distance themselves from this, otherwise they will be allowing the tail to wag the dog.

I saw the race, and before any post race analysis I could see that the Spanish rider Lorenzo was being protected to the finish line by the Spanish sponsored riders Marquez and Pedrosa. Right at the end Dani and Marquez got closer as if to make it look a bit better. In Europe we have seen other big sports scandals; Tour de France Cycling, and FIFA with the soccer World Cup fiascos - and thanks to the U.S. authorities for bringing that to the World's attention - perhaps they could have a look into MotoGP as well. That there should be some apparent fix, in a Spanish corporate dominated event, is not a surprise to me.

They are going on my Fireblade when the OE Dunlop Qualifier 2 have finished wearing out - not long to go now after 3,900 miles but they might last the winter. Tried to have these T30 EVOS put on the VFR but they had sold out, so had to have Continentals fitted at very short notice (wheels already off ! ) They will be my next tyres.

And while we are at it, I don't like Marquez's helmet 'cause its got an ant on it and looks silly.

I prefer the 98 Octane, or 100 V-Power if available. It runs better. The way to tell the difference is on a tour. Do the 3 hours in the morning on 95 Octane, run the tank low, then fill up with 98 - you can tell the difference to the way it runs. The same rule applies in reverse. Go from 95 Octane to 100 Octane Shell V-Power and the way the motor runs smoother is even more obvious. If it didn't make any difference I would not bother, I don't have shares in it. But to me the motor runs smoother on the higher octane stuff; maybe not any faster, or better fuel economy, but smoother certainly.

Dani Pedrosa and Valentino had a fantastic clean battle at Aragon - clean great racing, and Dani managed to keep ahead of Valentino. I think it was not enough this time to just try to deny Valentino a few points, but to put him on the deck with reckless dangerous riding that Valentino managed to side step due to his skill. I reckon Marquez is a danger, and will get someone badly injured or killed.

Any suggestions welcome. I fancy a trip down to Jerez, to watch either the MotoGP or World Superbikes. I know how quickly tickets can go, so thinking about making plans already (sadly IOM TT ferries are sold out so cannot go there :sad2:) So looking to do Jerez, any comments or suggestions welcome. Thanks a mundo.

Little write up, just in case anyone is interested for next time - race was last week end in September. When booking your seat, choose carefully as you cannot walk around the whole track, like you can at other circuits. Your seat number is where you will be. I chose a Grandstand "A" ticket opposite the start/finish line, which has its moments, but not a great view of the racing. You get to see all the razamataz, which is cool, but you cannot walk around the circuit. The circuit is easy to get to, and maybe 5 miles out there are traffic cones, and a one way system, and the traffic just rolls along with no junctions until you turn off. Lots of police directing things, easy as anything. Your parking is attached to your seating area. You park in the zone for your seating. I ignored it first time round, and went round again looking for other options. But there is no point. May as well park your bike near to where you are going to sit. You do not have to, but what is the point in parking 1 mile away and walking round on the road to where you are going to sit. All organised, you can leave your bike and helmet in a security section if you want to pay for it, but plenty of bikes did not even have locks on, that were parked in the general parking area. Not that much food and drink on offer, a beer/cold drink bar that also sold ham/cheese bread rolls, was all, and a couple of porta-loos. Some stalls selling T-Shirts. I think this is repeated in each grandstand section. If I went again it might be to a different seating area, with a better view of the circuit, maybe one of the banked areas. The best part was the trip down, and the location of the circuit. There are some great riding roads around there as well, if you fancy taking the scenic route back to your hotel. Lovely twisties through harsh spectacular country. Nearby town of Alcaniz gets completely packed with bikes. Weather was warm and sunny, but at this time of year that is not guaranteed. The race was okay, but the ride down, the ride in the morning to the circuit each day, and the scenic routes back to the Hotel were the highlights. The bikes all coming together and massing at the petrol stations along the way, is always good fun. Saw two new red Gen 8 VFRs, and plenty of older models. A few pictures: Suzuki Trackgirl by 660 Mattie, on Flickr The Greatest of All Time by 660 Mattie, on Flickr Dani Pedrosa by 660 Mattie, on Flickr Hot Persuit by 660 Mattie, on Flickr Champagne time by 660 Mattie, on Flickr Bikes leaving Aragon GP by 660 Mattie, on Flickr

It is theory at the moment ! But the picture in reply #133 you can see the big 50 litre roll bag on the back of the CBR, that is straightforward. The basis for the whole thing is a Hepco & Becker Sportrack. You remove the passenger seat, and replace it with the Sportrack, that is bike model specific. It provides an aluminium rack, with some slots to tie or loop bungee hooks through. It covers the plastics, and is nicely shaped to fit the specific model of bike. Onto the Hepco & Becker Sportrack, add an extension plate - this widens the surface area, and is ideal for securing a big roll bag (I used Cable Zip Ties !). For the camping trips (as opposed to hotel/guest house trips) the plan is to use the Sportrack and Autokicker Cargo Tailbag 50 litre. Onto this you have attachment points for securing a lightweight Ortlieb bag, that will contain the tent and mattress etc. This is all going to be made possible by reducing the pack load, returning to things learnt in my bicycle touring days. The nice big tent has been sold, and the big Trangia cook set and plates will stay behind. Camping equipment will be: Hilleberg Enan tent - weighs 1 kilo, packs very small, yet very capable. Vango Compact Gas Stove, and Hard Anodised Cook set (into which the little gas stove and little gas canister fit) tiny thing, and only a few $$. PH Design Minimim sleeping bag - down sleeping bag - does not even have a zip. Packs tiny, much smaller than a US size football Thermarest mattress - inflatable. They are the items that take up the most room. The tent is the most expensive item on the list, but I just sold my other one, which will cover 2/3 of the cost of the replacement. The next most expensive thing is the PH Design sleeping bag. I have the Minim already but it is not enough on its own for spring and Autumn/Late Summer - so will have to consider buying another the same, and taking two, or upgrade. You can design your own sleeping bag, according to your requirements, but it gets expensive. Might be better to take two, as they are so small. If hot, use one, if cold, use two. Warm clothing can be bulky, but can be covered by Marino Wool base layers. Change of clothes, and a few bits and pieces, and that is it. Should be possible on a CBR.

^^ Dustin^^ It sounds great riding in the US, riding across endless expanses of the US West - but I think continental European riding is different - not better or worse, but different. For continental touring bigger motors seem to be the best option, and my bikes have got progressively bigger over the years. This is what it is all about - loading some camping gear and heading off to France and beyond. And this is what the bike looks like, and will have to cope with German Autobahns, on the way to Austria, and on the way up to Scandinavia, across Holland and France, the Alps and the Pyrennes. You may also want to ride to a race meeting in France or Holland, or Germany, over a long weekend. So you will want to get a move on to get there and back in good time - this is the sort of thing I want to be doing. This is normal luggage for a camping trip. Personally, for what I am doing, and however good the VFR is, it is not in the same league as this - the CBR would sit between these two, which is where I am at ! - and the direction I seem to be heading in :) I do not want to talk the Viffer down, and I will always speak highly of it, but my motorcycling life was not going to stop there :-) Ride safe y'all :-)