2008 Honda Cbr600rr Sportbike (denver Co) on 2040-motos

Moto blog

Bahrain track days

A few months ago, expat (and ex racer) John Beddall made contact to ask if I fancied doing some track day instruction out in Bahrain.  After thinking about it for two seconds, flights were booked and a plan was put in place to look after around forty riders for a day at the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC).  Young Taylor Mac was also recruited to look after any tasty riders that I couldn’t deal with   The Brits out there love their bikes, however, quite a few locals also turned up plus a few others from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.  Most were on high end Superbikes, like S1000s, Panigales and RSV4s but there was also a healthy number R6s and new 675Rs.   Although this fabulous Hermann Tilke designed circuit is around ten years old incredibly it has never hosted a bike race.  The highlight of the year there is F1 but being owned by the Bahrainian Royal family, there is no desperate need for the circuit to operate as a profitable business.  The track reminded me of Qatar but much more interesting as some great undulations have been built into its desert location. We shared the track with Supercars on the day (20mins on/20mins off) and as you might imagine it was betty swollocks for seven hours in the 30 plus temperatures.  As usual there was a few offs with poor old RS1000 Aprilia mounted Andy breaking his femur early in the day.  Two other buddies appeared to swap bikes mid air in another incident but fortunately escaped unhurt.In the evening everyone stayed for an al fresco dinner in the paddock with the craic going on for hours as the Fosters kept flowing.   All in all it was a brilliant trip and it has left me thinking there could be cost effective ways of getting Brits out there for track days next winter.  I'll keep you posted.Cape Town next to make my racing comeback at the Killarney 8 hour on a CBR150 Honda.  Hopefully I can manage the beast, I'll post a full report next week.

Casey Stoner To Be Named MotoGP Legend

There’s no question Casey Stoner was (and still is) one of the best riders ever to throw a leg over a motorcycle. His accomplishments on two wheels, especially his championships on both Ducati and Honda machinery, are proof. Next week at the MotoGP round at Phillip Island in Australia, Stoner will join a distinct group of riders as he will be officially inducted into the MotoGP Hall of Fame.

Andrea Antonelli Dies After Moscow World Supersport Crash

Italian racer Andrea Antonelli succombed to injuries suffered in a crash during the World Supersport race at Moscow Raceway in Russia. The Go Eleven Kawasaki racer crashed on the final corner of the opening lap in very wet conditions, and was struck by Pata Honda racer Lorenzo Zanetti. The race was immediately red-flagged and Antonelli was taken away by ambulance while medical staff attempted to resuscitate him, but the 25-year-old was pronounced dead at 2:10 pm local time.