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February

New MotoGP helmet designs

09 February 2009 by Rob Hull

New MotoGP helmet designs

MotoGP testing doesn’t just give us an insight into what’s new with each manufactures prototype 800cc machine and who is going to be on form – it’s also a good sign of what products we could see in...

Zen and the art of motorcycle purchases

09 February 2009 by Derek Taylor

Zen and the art of motorcycle purchases

I would like to say thank you eatcs01 and BIKEFAR for your comments about what I had to say. If I may, I would like to say that  I have as recently as last summer spent a very enjoyable week floating...

Video: Triumph Daytona 675 2009 v 2008

09 February 2009 by MCN

Video: Triumph Daytona 675 2009 v 2008

Triumphs quest for domination of the 600cc supersport category took another leap forward with the introduction of the 2009 Daytona 675. While at first glance the new 675 looks identical to the...

Video: 600cc Supersport track shootout

09 February 2009 by MCN

Video: 600cc Supersport track shootout

The 600cc supersport class is one of the most fiercely contested, with bikes such as the Honda CBR600RR and Triumph Daytona 675. The supersport shootout at Calafat had one aim  – to find out which...

Beware of scammers!

09 February 2009 by Ross Allison

After reading this weeks MCN which I buy every week, I came across an artitcle about cyber scam crooks, which has happened to myself. I recieved emails from a guy called kelvin brooks wanting to buy my bike and willing to pay the full asking price and shipping cost, which i thought was to good to be true. After recieving a couple of emails from him telling me he would like to send me a cheque for...

Top five products for the Kawasaki ZX-6R

09 February 2009 by Marc Abbott

Top five products for the Kawasaki ZX-6R

The 2009 Kawasaki ZX-6R has been hailed as a massive improvement on the old model. We put the 2009 model up against its rivals on the track in the February 4 edition of MCN to see which is king of the...

BMW S1000RR in detail

09 February 2009 by Andy Downes

BMW S1000RR in detail

BMW recently released the first images of its all-new superbike – the S1000RR – in road trim. The BMW S1000RR been seen in race-trim before, but are there any differences between the two? Compact...

Snow ain't new ya know!

08 February 2009 by BusaBeater

I remember the winter of 1981(?) – I had a Honda CB250N Superdream. That year it snowed heavily for a few days, then the temperature went down to around -26 degrees in Staffordshire. The compacted snow froze solid. Road salt didn’t work, all the controls on the bike froze up, trucks were abandoned everywhere because diesel went like jelly. I only had the bike back then, but still travelled back...

Pan Handling in the Snow

08 February 2009 by adamcollinge

I got caught out on the A37 at Clay Pigeon on my 1300 Pan on Friday 6th Feb. It was raining in Weymouth when I left home and only started snowing just before the kart track; however within half a mile it was thick snow with stranded lorries on the downward decent into Hollywell Cross. I carefully dropped the speed right down and kept in second gear as I decended only dabbing the rear brake and...

Tough Bike, Tough Times

08 February 2009 by Jon Fife

Tough Bike, Tough Times

Seattle, Washington. February 05 2009. Simple fact, as the economic crisis of 08 and 09 deepens more folks are becoming more creative. Jon Fife of Seattle, Washington is case in point. Unable to...

CBT Instructors demonstrate riding on ice

07 February 2009 by STEVEACER

CBT was cancelled today because our training pad was a sheet of ice so we made a film clip on the ice.

Fell off in the snow

07 February 2009 by Rilusi

Nearly forgot. I fell off on my way home. Taped my indicator up & hammered the brake pedal back into shape then went to work on it the next day…. on Icy Snow.

A bike is for life...

07 February 2009 by Rilusi

A bike is for life...

A bike is for life, not just for sunny weekends

Launch report: KTM RC8R

07 February 2009 by Trevor Franklin

Launch report: KTM RC8R

KTM’s new RC8R is one of the best sports bikes on the planet, says MCN’s Trevor Franklin who has just ridden the bike in Portugal. The new bike is the long-awaited ‘R’ version of the already popular...

BMW Snowmobile

06 February 2009 by Kes

Snowmobile or what! Exeter to Dorchester late Thu night 5 Feb 09 riding into teeth of a full-on North Pole blizzard in Devon on ….. BMW 1200RT. Made it…? yes. Fall off? twice! Damage…? None found yet! Couldn’t stay the night so pressed on for home. Passed loads of lorries and cars who’d given up and decided freezing to death all night was preferable to anything else. Steady 30 mph using as much...

Mission Motors announce 150mph electric bike

06 February 2009 by Antnee_

Mission Motors announce 150mph electric bike

Mission Motors have unveiled a new electric motorcycle with a stated top speed of 150mph and 100 lb-ft torque and a single speed. Front and rear suspension is from Öhlins and the brakes are from...

10% off Sidi motorcycle boots with MCN

06 February 2009 by James Keen

10% off Sidi motorcycle boots with MCN

MCN has teamed up with TopGear Superstore to offer you 10% off Sidi motorcycle boots through the MCN Shop. That includes everything from full-on race boots like the Vertigo Corsa Air, right down to...

Video: MCN’s Honda CBF125 in the snow

06 February 2009 by Chris Newbigging

Lightweight bikes are perfect tools to carry on motorcycling through the snow, as our Honda CBF125 demonstrates in this video. MCN’s Steve Farrell rode the bike 80 miles from MCN’s office in Peterborough to North London, but before he left we had some fun in a deserted car park! See MCN February 18 for Steve’s report on how the bike faired through slush and ice.

Car driver's illegal parking angers motorcycle lobby

06 February 2009 by ojosef

Car driver's illegal parking angers motorcycle lobby

An article was published in today’s (6/02/09) West End Extra, the article is on the back of an incident that happened last month [view full details of it here], a campaigner took photos of cars parked...

Have you bought a new bike?

06 February 2009 by MCN Newsdesk

Have you bought a new bike?

Have you just treated yourself to that great bike – new or used – that you’ve been lusting after for months? British bikers are ignoring downturn paranoia and flooding into dealers to take advantage...

Snow blog: Daytona 675 vs Speed Triple… on Neighbours!

06 February 2009 by Marc Abbott

Snow blog: Daytona 675 vs Speed Triple… on Neighbours!

After three failed attempts to get a spinning Seat Alhambra off the driveway, I resorted to a day of igloo-building and brandy drinking. Tucked up in the cosy confines of Abbott Towers, and after a...

Salt shortage forces councils to leave roads untreated

05 February 2009 by Chris Newbigging

Salt shortage forces councils to leave roads untreated

Depleted grit supplies are forcing local councils to only grit major A-roads, motorways and bus routes leaving other roads at the mercy of the elements. The Local Government Association said council...

Top 5 naked roadsters for under £3k

05 February 2009 by James Keen

Top 5 naked roadsters for under £3k

A budget naked middleweight is the swiss army knife of bikes. If you need one motorcycle capable of commuting, touring and weekend scratching then they offer a good compromise between practicality and...

Thanks to all and bye for now

05 February 2009 by Nick Withey

I started biking about 20 years ago and knew nothing about the sport that was going to be so much part of my life. Over the years I have meet a lot of good people and I will always treasure some of the best biking trips that some can only dream of, from a non fault crash to scrapping the pegs, from track days to off road days, R.A.T. Days, bike safe, Brands Hatch, NEC, I have done it and loved...

World's biggest MCN reader!

05 February 2009 by Nick sanderson

World's biggest MCN reader!

This is the biggest MCN reader from team fatboys! We think he was browsing MCN for a track day to book (snow one takes him serious). On the left is Tim in the middle is Dani on the right is Nick.

Carve your way through the snow with this bolt-on kit

05 February 2009 by MCN Newsdesk

Carve your way through the snow with this bolt-on kit

We’ve all been struggling to get in during the bad weather but this conversion kit from 2moto could have us praying for more days of snow. The kit costs $4250 (£2,910 at the current exchange rate) and...

Ducati bosses’ pay slashed

05 February 2009 by Steve Farrell

Ducati bosses’ pay slashed

Ducati bosses have had their pay slashed and bonuses cancelled as the economics crisis tightens its grip on the bike market. The firm said senior executives had voluntarily taken a 10% wage cut after...

Snowbike!

05 February 2009 by Steve Lynham

Snowbike!

HWe only had one customer turn up today…. He’d popped out to get his latest copy of MCN! All the best from all at Steve Lynham M/C Repairs.

Cyber scammers target bikers

05 February 2009 by Steve Farrell

Cyber scammers target bikers

Emails attempting to obtain thousands of pounds are being sent indiscriminately in response to classified ads for second-hand bikes. Biker sellers are sent cheques for thousands more than the asking...

Suzuki GSX-R1000 K8 issues

04 February 2009 by Donny Don

I write on behalf of my best friend Paul. Paul worked & saved very hard in order to buy a top of the range motorcycle last year, He has been back on the road only 6months prior to then. I begged him to purchase a Blade, blades being well known for easy riding & build quality. But no, my friend Paul was having none of it, he wanted the top dog performance bike- the GSXR1000 K8. Paul is a...

Forcefield unveils new back protector and windproof kit

04 February 2009 by Michael Carroll

Forcefield unveils new back protector and windproof kit

An improved range of Forcefield base layers are now on sale. The firm has added windproof fabric to the range of shirts (£60), trousers (£45), and balaclavas, neck warmers, and gloves (£20 each).

Capping a classic Royal Enfield

04 February 2009 by Michael Carroll

Capping a classic Royal Enfield

Hats off to Royal Enfield for this stylish new cotton baseball cap. The one-size-fits-all hat has the company’s logo embroidered on the front. They cost £10 from from www.watsonian-squire.com,...

Suzuki GSX-R1000s ‘recalled’ for extra frame bracing

04 February 2009 by MCN News Desk

Suzuki GSX-R1000s ‘recalled’ for extra frame bracing

Owners of 2005/2006 Suzuki GSX-R1000s can to hear from Suzuki soon, following reports of frames cracking around the headstock. VOSA hasn’t deemed the incidents – which occurred following ‘extreme...

New fuss-free portable footpump

04 February 2009 by Michael Carroll

New fuss-free portable footpump

Ditch your bulky footpump for this lightweight version, designed for touring. About the same size as can of chain lube, the pump works up to 160psi and comes with a range of adaptors, all wrapped up...

New MCN February 4: World first 600 shoot-out

04 February 2009 by James Keen

New MCN February 4: World first 600 shoot-out

In this week’s issue of MCN, on sale Wednesday 4th February, the full 2009 crop of 600s race each other on track in a world first test. The Honda CBR600RR ABS takes on the Kawasaki ZX-6R, Yamaha R6,...

No Charges: Ace Cafe to MCN Show video report

04 February 2009 by ojosef

No Charges: Ace Cafe to MCN Show video report

Thank you to everyone that came along to “THE BIG ONE” on Sunday 1st February 2009, even though it was freezing cold, it was our biggest turnout to date, video report 6 minutes watch here, and some...