Track Motorcycles

KTM has revealed a new limited production track bike with the 890 Duke R engine in a bespoke chassis. The 2022 KTM RC 8C will be available for pre-order starting on July 22 at 10 am EST/7 am PST on KTM’s website for $38,999.

In our Best Sportbike Tire series, we compiled a list of sportbike tires primarily suited for spirited street riding. In this, our Best Motorcycle Racing Tires series, we’re catering to the hardcore track rider, or even club racer, who still fancies the odd street ride. If you fall in that category, this list is for you. Here we’ve compiled some of the best track rubber you can find while still being approved by the Department of Transportation. In case you didn’t get the subtle hint, you won’t find any slicks on this list, but what we have here are nearly as good. As with many things in life, there’s a catch – some of these tires you’ll have to get through your local track vendor and can’t necessarily buy online. To put a positive spin on this scenario, at least you can feel good knowing you’re supporting a local business. Better still, your local track vendor will have the best advice as to what tire pressures to set for your local riding areas. Where possible, we’ve linked to Motorcycle.com staff member reviews of said tire(s), so here they are.

Customization is a staple of motorcycle ownership, and when it comes to sprucing up the looks of modern sportbikes, there’s no better way to get dramatic and eye-catching results than to turn to aftermarket fairings. Then again, maybe you’ve had the unfortunate fate of crashing your sportbike and damaging the stock bodywork. Aftermarket fairings are a great way to replace your damaged bodywork at a fraction of the cost of new, while also injecting some personalization at the same time. Whatever your reason, you should look to Monster Fairings for your aftermarket bodywork needs.

Kawasaki‘s World Superbike racing team has begun testing of the 2021 Ninja ZX-10RR, revealing the superbike’s new look. As KRT riders Jonathan Rea and Alex Lowes take the new Ninja out on the Jerez circuit, Kawasaki confirmed the production model ZX-10RR, and presumably the Ninja ZX-10R as well, will be revealed on Nov. 23. (Updated with high resolution photos).

Dainese has long been a purveyor of innovative safety equipment for riders, claiming the first knee sliders in 1979, back protector in 1981, and carbon/Kevlar knuckle protection in 1995. In 2012, the Italian company made another first, becoming the first manufacturer to offer airbag protection in an off-the-rack (or custom) leather racing suit in America, the D-Air Racing. We are now seeing the third generation of D-Air technology used in the current race line-up as well as road applications available in multiple styles of jackets for both men and women.

As motorcycles become more reliable and maintenance intervals get more spread out, one consumable remains on a fairly frequent interval for motorcycles. Tires have made tremendous advances in the last decade, but they are still the most frequent maintenance items for motorcyclists. With the rates for mounting and balancing tires going through the roof (My local shop charges $60 for a pair of tires with the wheels off the bike.), buying a tire changer makes a lot of sense. I’d been eyeing No-Mar Tire Changers for quite a while before pulling the trigger and installing one in my garage. In less than a month and after changing a dozen tires, we’d have already spent about 35% of the cost of the No-Mar Classic HD Motorcycle Tire Changer at our local motorcycle shop, but what’s most important is how convenient it is having a tire changer in my garage available when I need it. I no longer have to load my wheels into my truck, drive to my local shop, wait an hour (or more) for them to be ready, and finally take them home to reinstall on my bike. 

From the world introduction of the KTM 790 Duke in 2018, detractors have commented on two characteristics of the bike’s front brakes. The first, the soft initial bite from the pads, I easily remedied with the EBC Double-H pads. (KTM PowerParts discs improved the braking even more.) The other characteristic that performance-minded riders expressed their disdain for was the amount of free-play in the lever before the brake was activated. I’m not going to call this a design flaw because I believe it was a deliberate decision on the part of KTM’s engineers. The 790 Duke was designed to be a street bike, and that little bit of free play can help less experienced riders avoid initial abruptness with their brake application – which is a good thing, particularly in a panic stop situation.

As we come to the end of 2019 and the conclusion of the first MotoE season, I think it’s fair to say the debut of Energica’s Ego Corsa MotoE electric racer was a success. Each race produced close battles (usually for the lead), the bikes go plenty quick, and though the sound of internal combustion is missing, it’s replaced with a soundtrack all its own. I like to think of it as the racing soundtrack of the future.

News flash: OEM suspensions are designed to a price point. So, unless you’re riding a flagship literbike, those suspenders are full of compromises. The stock suspension on the vast majority of bikes out there is designed for an average rider, going an average pace, over an average road. Get outside of those parameters, and the suspension’s performance is compromised.

Recently, Alpinestars threw open the doors at Willow Springs Raceway for a day of motorcycle-focused fun. With the famed Big Track open to all comers – many who were experiencing a closed course environment for the first time – it was hard for the attendees not to have a good time. All of this, however, begs the question: What’s in it for Alpinestars? Yes, we were all wearing gear made by the apparel company (and if we didn’t have any, it was loaned to us), but this wasn’t an introduction where we were to experience a new piece of protective riding gear. The point was, it seems, to simply have fun riding motorcycles with friends. Oh, and hopefully create some new fans of track riding. You see, some of the first time track riders were name-brand Alpinestars-sponsored athletes in other disciplines. You know, influencers who have the means to preach the racetrack riding gospel and hopefully get more people interested in riding motorcycles. 

My experience with the 6D ATS-1R started at WSBK weekend at Laguna Seca where I bumped into Bob Weber, who I worked with 20 years ago at Petersen Publishing. Since then he’s gone on to become one of the cofounders and the CEO of 6D Helmets. Bob asked me if I’d seen the latest version to the ATS-1, and I sheepishly admitted that I didn’t know it had been updated. I knew that Tom Roderick had really liked the original 6D ATS-1 back in 2016 when he tested it, but that was all I knew. 

The official line whenever I’ve spoken to Zero reps is that the company is in the business of making street bikes, not racers. But the hot rodding spirit is alive and burning when you look into the eyes of some of the people who work there, and so it only comes naturally that a core group of enthusiasts would take an SR/F and push its limits.

KTM released the 790 Duke as a 2019 model in the U.S., but it was available to much of the rest of the world for a year longer. In that time, reports of shifting issues have circulated among Duke owners. While some riders report false neutrals between the higher gears, others have said that, although the quickshifter cuts the ignition, the shift occasionally doesn’t happen. Factory Pro has seen this before, calling the issue lazy shifting, and has created a kit to almost completely resolve the matter on a wide variety of motorcycles, including the 790 Duke. However, to understand what makes this kit special, we first need to discuss how a motorcycle changes gears. 

Yes, that’s right, you get two pairs of boots when you purchase the Alpinestars Supertech R boots. There’s a catch, though. You have to wear both pairs of boots at once. Well, I suppose you could walk around your house in the inner booties so that your family can mock you, like mine did, when I first tried on the Supertechs, but really, the inner booties are a secret best kept between you and the outer Supertech boot. In case you’re wondering why two sets of boots, I’ll tell ya, and once you consider it, the idea makes a lot of sense. The two different boots that combine to make the Supertech R serve different purposes. 

Why introduce a new street tire to the motorcycle press on a race track? It’s a fair question with a relatively simple answer. Sporting rubber – even that designed for the street – has evolved so much in the past decade that exploring their limits can only be safely approached in a closed course environment. The designers clearly felt this way about the Bridgestone Battlax Hypersport S22 tire when they flew journos from around the world to the legendary Circuito de Jerez in Spain to see what this new rubber was capable of doing. That was their story at least, and we’re down with it.

The joy and fun of riding supermoto is something I personally love, but apparently this sentiment isn’t shared by most. It’s too bad, really. Supermoto offers all the fun of track riding for a fraction of the cost of taking your sportbike to a trackday. And if you’re a dirt guy, there’s even some of that, too. By their very nature, motocrossers are light, narrow, agile, and come packed with potent engines. Converting them into SuMos isn’t more than a wheel change, brake swap, and suspension tweak away, and yet the apparent demand is so small most OEMs – with the exception of Suzuki and its DR-Z400SM – haven’t taken notice.

It’s on rainy, cold nights like this one that I’m glad I have a garage. Looking at your motorcycle parked outside as it’s pelted with rain, sleet, hail, mud and other unpleasantness can make you weep with impotent rage. Cover it? Motorcycle covers are a hassle to put on and remove. First, you have to wait until the bike cools to avoid melting the cover to the exhaust. Plus, they can blow off your bike, get shredded and messy-looking, and trap moisture underneath, which can cause rust and mold. Nasty!

Markus Kramer said it so nonchalantly when I asked him. “Three months ago,” he said. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, so I asked in a different way. “You mean to tell me this motorcycle didn’t exist four months ago?” Again, the response was simple. “Yep.” Markus isn’t a man of many words, but that’s when I knew this ride aboard the GP2 Prototype from Kramer Motorcycles was going to be different. I shouldn’t have been surprised. Back when KTM’s 790 Duke was first announced, I knocked on Joe Karvonen’s social media door, asking the sole importer for Kramer Motorcycles USA whether the 790 Twin engine would make its way into a Kramer.

Looking for the perfect Christmas present for a MotoGP fan? If you’ve got 250,000 euros (US$282,000) available, then why not pick up one of KTM‘s RC16 MotoGP race bikes?

Harley-Davidson can’t seem to catch a break lately. The Motor Co. has come under fire for a multitude of different reasons, but mostly because everyone’s a bunch of whiners. That’s right, I said it. It seems like most people complaining about all the new Harley-Davidsons aren’t people who would consider buying one anyway, so what’s the point in voicing your displeasure other than for kicking someone while they’re down? Didn’t your parents raise you better? One of the new models coming out is the Street Fighter, which we can expect sometime in 2020, but Harley-Davidson, under Erik Buell’s leadership, used to build some pretty wicked bikes that were easily transformed into badass street fighters. Unfortunately, though, they went the way of the dinosaur.

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events Viewing Guide: August 24 – 31

“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes, the ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things. They push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.”

For those unaware, MotoAmerica took over the AMA Superbike Series in 2015 and is currently the premier motorcycle road racing series here in the United States. Its primary goal was/is to reinvigorate the sport of motorcycle road racing in North America, and to act as a feeder series to showcase riders and ultimately send them up through the ranks to race against the top-level big boys in World Superbike and MotoGP. Since its establishment in 2015, MotoAmerica has grown and evolved, and there are currently five classes: Superbike, Stock 1000, Supersport, Twins and Junior Cup.

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events Viewing Guide: August 17 – 24

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events Viewing Guide: August 3 – 10

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events: July 13-20

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events: July 6-13

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events: June 29 – July 6

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events: June 22 – 29

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events: June 15 – 22

Upcoming Weekly Motorcycle Racing and Events: June 8 – 15

The 2019 off-road new model bike season is in full swing, and Yamaha is the latest manufacturer to announce its full lineup of motocross and cross-country motorcycles. Over the past couple of seasons, Yamaha has made big steps in expanding its model range with the introduction of the FX models in both 250 and 450cc configurations. Additionally, it’s the only Japanese manufacturer to continue producing full-size two-strokes, including the YZ125 and YZ250 motocrossers, as well as the recently introduced cross-country oriented YZ250X.

There comes a point in every motorcyclist’s life when they reach a certain level and realize that tires aren’t all created equal. I’ve owned and ridden on just about every major manufacturer’s off-road offerings, but I never really gave too much thought to tire selection beyond condition type and price point. I always figured, if the knobbies still had a decent edge, I was getting about as much traction as I could get. I just chalked the faster guys up to being better, more skilled riders – which is true of course – but I didn’t realize how much of a difference a particular tire could make until one of my riding buddies, an ex-Factory Honda rider from the late ‘80s/early ‘90s, told me to check out the Dunlop Geomax MX3S.

Alpinestars has released its Spring 2018 collection, which emphasizes lightweight and breathable gear as well as technical apparel. We are also now beginning to see more Tech-Air compatible garments for the street with a focus on touring jackets for use in all weather conditions. 

What is there to say about the KTM RC 390? Well, for starters, it’s probably the lightest, snappiest and most sharp-steering scalpel of a bike the current small-displacement sportbike market has to offer. It’s no surprise why many junior and development race series like MotoGP’s ADAC, WSBK’s WorldSSP 300 class and MotoAmerica’s KTM RC Cup and now Junior Cup feature racing based heavily on the RC 390, who’s DNA is deeply rooted in Moto3 competition.

The 2018 Movistar Yamaha MotoGP team has unveiled its new liveries and motorcycles in Madrid just four days before the first official pre-season test in Sepang. The presentation was hosted in Spain due to the new five-year agreement signed between Yamaha Factory Racing and Telefónica Spain, which will see Movistar as the title sponsor for the duration of the contract.

These two bikes aren’t your typical Craigslist deal o’ the day or backwoods barn finds – they’re the real deal – untouched, unmolested, unridden and unbelievable. What we have here is a 1990 Honda VFR750R RC30 and a 1991 Yamaha FZR750RT OW01, and both are just about as factory floor fresh today as they were almost 30 years ago.

One does not simply walk off the street and into Honda Racing Corporation’s office, or any other major manufacturer’s building for that matter, and request to fill out an application to become the next MotoGP racer. Throwing a leg over a $2 million-dollar, 240-hp engineering work of art is reserved for those select few who were twisting throttles before they graduated from drinking out of baby bottles.

The clop, clop, clop of my steel shoe resonating through my helmet as I walked through the uncomfortable October heat at Perris Auto Speedway in my trusty NJK leathers as I headed toward the snarling motorcycle that was waiting for me.

For a lot of us motorcycle enthusiasts, our obsession with motorcycles or even motorsports in general began sometime during our youth. I don’t know exactly what it was about motorcycles that sparked my fascination. Was it the fact that they’re loud and menacingly fast or was it because my middle name is Danger and I have an audacious propensity to make my mom nervous? All I knew was that I was hooked and nothing was going to change that. Sorry, Mom…

There’s no denying that Supermoto is one of the most intriguing forms of motorcycling. It combines the best of motocross, flat track and road-racing. The light weight, speed and agility of a dirt bike paired with the glue-like traction of road-racing slicks can make any Average-Joe feel like a MotoGP superstar. Add professional skills into the mix and you’ve got yourself one helluva two-wheeled spectacle.

With the short attention spans of today’s society, speedway racing seems like it would be a perfect motorcycle sport to hook new fans. Here’s a great example of the intense, bar-to-bar action on display in the pro ranks, this heat from the FIM GP event in England earlier this year. So much action packed into less than two minutes of battle! Anyone who thinks GP and Superbike riders get sideways while racing will need their sideways-angle calculator recalibrated.

Here’s our weekly guide to the upcoming motorcycle events and rides that are happening within the next thirty days.

Here’s our weekly guide to the upcoming motorcycle events and rides that are happening over the next several weeks.

Racing fans regularly compare genres of racing to one another, and at the top level of motorsport is F1 and MotoGP. Thankfully for us, Brembo supplies the entire current MotoGP paddock as well as many teams in F1 and has compiled some analytical data from the Red Bull Ring in Austria that may fascinate you.

Here’s our weekly guide to the upcoming motorcycle events and rides that are happening over the next several weeks.

In 2016 the revised Aprilia Tuono 1100 rightfully earned its place as the winner of our Streetfighter category and runner-up for Motorcycle of the Year. Fast forward to 2017 and what we thought was already an incredible motorcycle just got better. Aprilia invited Motorcycle.com to the Circuit of the Americas to sample these upgrades in Texas.

Here’s our weekly guide to the upcoming motorcycle events and rides that are happening over the next several weeks.

Blessed with beautiful weather year round, weekend mornings at the Rock Store of southern California can rival the best bike shows around the globe. Eclectic characters come out of the woodwork every weekend to enjoy riding through some of the tightest, twistiest, off-camber, up- and downhill roads motorcyclists dream of. Their owners are pretty interesting, too. It’s not uncommon to see Jay Leno on one of his bizarre and rare machines or other celebrity motorcyclists such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Matt LeBlanc or Laurence Fishburne.

The chance to ride a real-deal 250 Grand Prix World Championship bike is the stuff dreams are made of. I grew up obsessed by 250GP racing. In my teens, in the 1990s I knew every rider, every race number, had the posters on my bedroom wall and all of the races taped on videotape! As soon as I got my Learners, I was on the road on an old RZ250FN, followed by a few TZR250s before I started roadracing on RGV250s in 1995. Even my RGV racebike was painted the same colors as the Ralf Waldman HB 250. Riding the RGV proddie, I dreamed of one day being a 250 GP rider.

Team Mugen presented the latest version of its TT Zero-winning electric racebike at the 2017 Tokyo Motorcycle Show. John McGuinness, and Guy Martin will ride the Mugen Shinden Roku (“roku” meaning “six”) in this year’s race.

Just in time for the holidays, Aprilia has announced it will be making its most advanced version of the RSV4 – the RSV4 R FW-GP – available to a select few (read: the uber-wealthy). In continuing with the Factory Works program Aprilia Racing launched last year to provide deep-pocketed customers with race-worthy RSV4s in both Superstock and Superbike trims to conform to national and international race organizations, the FW-GP represents the ultimate in Aprilia Racing technology that’s currently available to the public.

From the inauguration of KTM’s new RC16 MotoGP project the brand made clear it would eventually sell a track-only, customer-spec model somewhere in the six-figure range.

This concept by Honda R&D of Rome didn’t appear as part of Honda’s main EICMA presentation, but it just might be the coolest bike with a Honda badge at the show.

Dear MOby,

Discovery Channel’s newest motorcycle-themed mini-series, Harley and the Davidsons, airs this Monday, September 5th, at 9pm. Previews of the show depict what looks to be an entertaining, and somewhat historically accurate presentation of Harley’s early days, and the dangerous sport of motordrome racing. Discovery’s website dedicated to the mini-series offers a wealth of videos, historical photos, information, and this super-cool 360 VR video.

KTM‘s new MotoGP race bike made its public debut ahead of this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix. We’ve previously seen the KTM RC16 undergoing testing last October, but this is the first time we’d seen the V-4 prototype in full colored livery and, as KTM is fond of saying, just about “Ready to Race.” KTM has four more tests lined up before it plans to enter the RC16 at the Nov. 13 season-ending race at Valencia, Spain.

With the unveiling of the Indian Scout FTR750, American dirt-track racing will soon be blessed with a pair of 750cc V-Twin racers from a pair of American factories.

Husqvarna announced a revised FS450 supermoto for 2017, updated with air forks and traction control. The 2017 model is currently listed on Husqvarna’s U.S. site but U.S. pricing and availability is still to be confirmed.

Massimo Tamburini’s legacy emerges posthumously in his most refined superbike ever, the T12 Massimo – a 341-pound, 230+ horsepower sex machine powered by a BMW S1000RR inline-Four, and outfitted with the best from Öhlins, Brembo, and Marchesini. Started by the master and finished by his son, Andrea, currently, two prototypes exist, with plans to custom build final versions according to demand and who can afford the bike’s $342,000 price tag.