Imagine the scene. You've scored your dream job at last-designing new sportbikes at a big Japanese firm. It's your first day and you're in the deep end, working on a new flagship superbike.

Steering dampers have moved in and out of fashion over the years. Back in the 1970s, they were regularly fitted to ill-handling bikes in an attempt to shore up the basic inadequacies of chassis design. The likes of Kawasaki's H1 two-stroke triple wore a damper to help counteract the frenzied flexing of the under-engineered frame and running gear during cornering.

With the rolling chassis mods sorted, we moved on to the motor, but talk about jumping the gun....

2007 Yamaha YZF-R6
We all know the Italians have a knack for matching a motor to a style that oozes sensuality and class-the net result is an intoxicating, addictive mix. But living with such a creation day-to-day is not easy for the average working man-owning a piece of rolling red art can be a labor of love, and also a pain in the wallet. With these thoughts in mind William Song set out to combine the practicality and reliability of a high-tech Japanese 600 with the lines and looks of something a little (alright-a lot) more exotic.

From the specs sheet it would appear that way. Gone is the tall and lazy Mille, and in its place is the V4 powered RSV4. It'll be strange to hear the new engine tone from an Aprilia.Big news is that Aprilia is taking this bike racing in the 2009 WSB Championship, but even better is that the bike will be available to the public.
The 65-degree, 999cc, V-four motor offers a claimed 180 hp at the crank and uses ride-by-wire technology. The wheelbase is relatively short and the V-four layout allows the bike to also remain quite narrow-both ideal for going uber quick on the track.
As we'd expect from a focused racer, the components are of the highest spec: Ohlins forks, shock and steering damper, Brembo monobloc brake calipers and marchesini aluminum wheels.
For more info and a cool video on this amazing ride head to www.aprilia.com.

At Suzuki's 2009 model launch held in Paris yesterday, Suzuki Europe unveiled its all-new GSX-R1000 K9.*

Cupertino, CA (25 September 2008) - Ducati North America is pleased to announce the latest additions to its iconic Monster line of "naked" sport bikes, the Monster 1100 and 1100 S models.

Eric Whitcomb tries to make his ZX-636 resemble a lo-lo after landing his signature bunny hop while at Spring Break Bike Week in Rosarito Beach, Mexico. It looks like the big guy might want to explore the world of aftermarket suspension upgrades before his bike breaks in half.

In 1984, two-strokes ruled, rather than damaged, the planet. Yamaha RD350LCs and Suzuki Gammas ran rings around bikes twice their size, providing laughs for hooligan pilots everywhere. While Yamaha made lumbering FJ1100s for men to go touring, they also built RD500s on the back of GP success for boys who could afford the finance. In truth, the RD was a complex, cobbled-together rush job and Suzuki's later square four RG500 was faster and angrier. But it didn't matter. The clock was ticking on the two-stroke sensation and draconian emissions legislation meant the end of the road for high-performance strokers. Until the day global warming theories are debunked, we can but dream that Yamaha will resurrect its biggest LC. And what a dream it would be.

One of the most highly anticipated unveilings of the year has proven worth the wait. And, as usual, there's a mild bit of disappointment.
So why not give the bad news first before we get to the good stuff? OK...the new R1 is ugly. There, we said it. Not CBR1000RR or ZX-10R ugly, but then not too far behind either.
On the positive and, well, groundbreaking side, the new R1 features a "big bang" style engine. We've been instructed to not refer to it as such, so we won't, but it sort of is.
Does that make sense?
Briefly, a traditional inline four cylinder motor's firing order offers one bang per 180° turn of the crank, but the new Yamaha motor fires in a different order. It's staggered in a 270°-180°-90°-180° order. This was experimented with a few years back in BSB and is also direct trickle down from the M1 MotoGP bike, which is where the term big bang came from. But we're not supposed to connect the two.
It should sound significantly different than a traditional inline four and also have better low-end grunt.
That's the major news on the new R1.
Look for a first ride soon in SSB!
www.yamaha-motor.com

The supermoto craze that took Europe by storm in the nineties didn't really catch on in America as strongly. That's certainly not because there's a lack of hooligans that favor a bike designed for anti-social antics, but more due to our country's vast spaces. Simply put, these bikes aren't made for mileage. Instead, they're more comfortable as inner-city street killers or short-shot canyon blasters-so that's exactly what we did with them.

Back To The Future
Bringing Dead Bikes To Life: Kawasaki Zx-8r
In 1996, Kawasaki replaced its ageing - but successful - ZXR750 with the ZX-7R. With a host of engine and chassis enhancements, including ram-air, 6-piston brakes and fully adjustable suspension, the 7R continued the sales success and earned itself a reputation for possessing the most stable and precise front-end in its class. What the 7R lacked in agility against the GSX-R and YZF 750s of the day it made up for in predictability and brutish good looks. But without any further revisions the heavyweight 750 faded into the background, leaving the GSX-R the sole survivor of the 750 race. It was discontinued in 2003. With a WSB racing pedigree in the hands of Scott Russell, we feel it's only right to re-introduce the ZX-7R as the ultimate trackday tool to take on the GSX-R. It's had its own way for far too long.

Heavy updates make the entry-level Ducati Monster 696 a streetfighter with enough brawn to back up its bark.

Sometimes in life, things don't go quite as planned. Maybe you miss that A on a paper by 1 point, your car breaks down on your way to a date with the girl of your dreams or you end up getting injured while at the top of your game. James "Bubba" Stewart has been climbing his way to the top in the dirt industry since 2002 with accomplishments that include several AMA 125 National Championships and being named Rookie of the Year. Stewart's rise to the top peaked in 2007 when he took home the coveted AMA Supercross Championship.

The World Superbike Championship will have a new entry for 2009, and that means we'll supposedly be able to buy the same bike at our local dealership. Named the S1000RR, the BMW sports an inline-four-cylinder engine, aluminum twin-spar frame and standard swingarm and conventional USD forks. Though BMW hasn't officially released specs for the new model, what we can assume from this race version is that it'll have Brembo calipers, OZ wheels and Ohlins forks (not the gas-charged ones seen here). There doesn't appear to be any BMW funkiness other than the apparent ABS brakes, but we're not staking any bets until we see the final version.

Five years in the making and it's finally here. The most eagerly awaited V-twin superbike since the Ducati 916 is alive, but does it kick?

The world around us is shrinking. Cell phones are tiny, iPods are nearly invisible and our wallets are damn near empty. Is there really a place for king-sized killers in today's hybrid world anymore? SSB proves there is with a balls-out run on the biggest bikes to the city of excess-Las Vegas.

First Ride
2008 Triumph Speed Triple
There is an argument to be made for stripping a sportbike of its bodywork, adding straight bars and calling it a day. After all, it's more comfortable for real world riding and arguably more aggressive looking. But the downside is that it's still a rather soulless sportbike that's simply had its pants pulled down.

Back in 1985 when men where men and torque was king, the original Yamaha V-Max kicked off a whole new class of motorcycles with its brutal mid-range power and overabundance of torque. There were minor upgrades over the years but for the most part it was left largely unchanged-including the less than notable handling.
Star Motorcycles launched a reinvented 2009 V-Max in a cloud of smoke and rubber aboard the flight deck of the USS Midway in San Diego, and the spectacle was approapriate. With a huge 1679cc V4 motor packed in a newly designed cast aluminum frame, the reborn bad boy is not for the weak at heart or wrist.
In order to keep the bike compact, the redesigned engine uses both chain and gear driven camshafts. Yamaha's Chip Controlled Intake (YCC-I) sportbike technology for increased mid-range and high-end power has also made its way into the mix.
Helping to put the power to the pavement is a redesigned chassis that uses the engine as a stressed member of the frame. A slipper clutch helps control the claimed 197 hp and 123 ft lbs of torque-that's right, nearly 200 hp!
Huge 52 mm oxidized titanium coated forks hold 320 mm wave-type disc brakes that include ABS. Rear suspension utilizes a single shock with a link-type cast aluminum swingarm.
Keeping with the hot rod heritage is a multifunction single gauge that displays the speed along with a huge tachometer and shift light. An additional gauge pod mounted on the tank handles the rest of the information duties including odometer, clock, trip, fuel gauge, gear position indicator, temperature, mpg, intake air temperature, throttle valve opening angle, stopwatch, and countdown indicator.
With a limited run of only 2,500 units, a sell out is all but certain.
Interested buyers should head to the local dealer between now and October 31st and plop down a $1,000 deposit against the $17,990 price tag to guarantee a bike.
For more info check out
http://www.starmotorcycles.com.

While an ocean of blue separates our two countries, Japanese riders are up to date, if not even ahead, of custom bike trends. The American culture, fashion and lifestyle are highly respected in Japan but are not necessarily carbon copied.

Juan Carlos Perez's heavy throttle hand made his 1515cc Hayabusa levitate at the recent opening round of AMA Dragbike in Valdosta, Georgia. Thankfully, the 17-year-old Pro ET racer hung on and rode it out without a crash.

The world of aftermarket bolt-ons is vast and potentially confusing. From chromed windscreen spikes to titanium axle adjusters there's something for everyone, but a common plague for many do-it-yourselfers is to end up with a Frankenbike of mismatched performance and bling bits-none of which make much sense aesthetically or performance wise.

Rockers, supermodels and movie stars all have one thing in common-they're only hot until the spotlight fizzles out. Most realize that the lifespan of their lavish lifestyle might be short, so they live it up while the going is good. Enormous mansions, vacation villas and ultra-fast rides usually top off their opulent lifestyles. But what happens when the bubble bursts? The repo man comes collecting, naturally. Just ask MC Hammer about that.

How long have you worked at Classic Components and what is it?
I've worked at CCI for about 12 years. Weare a custom chrome-plating and metal-finishing business specializing in motorcycles.We're also set up to tear down and reassemble bikes, and all of our work is done in-house.