July
First race prepared MV Agusta F3 unveiled
20 July 2012 by
This MV Agusta F3 is the first race-prepared F3, built by British firm WPR Racing with development from the Italian factory. The bike is set to make its debut this year with Thundersport GB, before a...
Suzuki Inazuma first ride: "A doddle to ride"
19 July 2012 by
Suzuki UK has just announced that its new roadster won’t arrive in the UK until September, but MCN managed to secure an exclusive first taster at the factory’s top secret Motorcycle Technical Centre...
Video: Schwantz's post-sports bike picks
19 July 2012 by
Growing out of extreme sports road bikes, but unwilling to give up your mojo at the same time as your GSX-R? Ex-GP world champion Kevin Schwantz is your personal shopper. The 1993 500cc world champ...
Bikers ride with Mandela's message in Delhi
19 July 2012 by
Over 150 volunteers celebrated the 94th birthday of renowned South African anti-aparthied activist Nelson Mandela by riding their motorcycles through the capital and spreading his message of peace and change. Organised by the South African high commission on Wednesday evening, members of motorcycle group Free Soul Riders (FSR) rode from the high commission’s office in Vasant Vihar area to Raj...
Get 'em young!
18 July 2012 by
This is young Oliver (age 20 months) at his first trip to Cadwell Par, to watch his uncle Joe in his first ever race. By the end of the afternoon he was desperate to get on the grid and wouldn’t give...
Poll: What is your ideal capacity for a Japanese sports bike?
18 July 2012 by
600cc supersport bikes were once championed as the perfect bikes to tackle Britain’s twisty, undulating back roads. But recent sales figures show a surprising lack of interest in the supersport...
Ohlins launch online magazine
18 July 2012 by
Ohlins Racing has launched a free online magazine called Performance, which offers readers a chance to go behind the scenes at a MotoGP round. Subscribers to the magazine will be entered into a draw...
July 18: Bikes on the Box
18 July 2012 by
KEY TO CHANNELS. DRT – Discovery Real Time DSC – Discovery Channel DHD – Discovery Channel HD EXS – Extreme Sports Channel EUR1 (2, HD) – Eurosport 1 (2, HD) MOT – Motors TV CH4 – Channel...
Do local councils really know their roads?
18 July 2012 by
Do local councils really know best when it come to rural roads? Take a look the photo of the white arrows marked on the B4077 in Gloucestershire… apparently encouraging us to ride/drive on the RH/side...
You ask/You answer: I think my biking mates may be dangerous
17 July 2012 by
For the last year I’ve been going out on rides with a group of people I got talking to at a local bike meet. To start with I didn’t really see them because I was so slow that they just cleared off (I...
Poll: What puts UK Fireblade buyers off ABS?
17 July 2012 by
Quick question for you: how many new Fireblades were sold in Germany without ABS last year? Answer: none. Every single one bought was the ABS-equipped model. For Britain, 35% of Blades had ABS, in...
Poll: How soon will China make a market-leading bike?
17 July 2012 by
Next week’s MCN features a road test of a Chinese designed and built 650cc parallel twin naked bike called the WK650. It’s at the forefront of a new breed of Chinese bikes with ever-increasing build...
New MCN July 18: Kevin Schwantz takes over MCN
17 July 2012 by
In this week’s MCN, out July 18, 1993 GP world champion Kevin Schwantz guest edits the paper and chooses the best road bike for grown ups. Once you’ve grown out of sports bikes, what’s the next best...
The cost of giving up
16 July 2012 by
My other half bought a Harley-Davidson 1200 Sportster a while back and enjoyed the experience of riding it. However, that faded along with the British summer and she recently sold it on to a new home. She rang her insurers, MCE and cancelled the insurance and expected to get a refund of her premiums. Almost two weeks later, she chased up the refund only to be told that she would have to wait up...
MoT shake-up planned
16 July 2012 by
Motorcycles could face tougher MoT-style tests under EU proposals. A planned Europe-wide annual inspection could be more expensive and complicated than the MoT bikes currently undergo in the UK. The...
Biking roads could be hit by 40mph plans
16 July 2012
Popular motorcycling routes could be among those affected by plans to reduce 60mph rural speed limits to 40mph. Councils should consider the reduction on roads with ‘many bends’ and a ‘considerable...
MZ Skorpion Sport - less than 30 left
13 July 2012 by
Launched at the same time as the firm’s unfaired Tour version, and seven years previous to the fully-loaded Traveller incarnation, MZ’s Skorpion Sport was a breath of fresh air, and on the face of it,...
New helmet creates a buzz
13 July 2012 by
The new Cromwell Mosquito open-face helmet is a real eye-catcher; perfect summer riding attire for the discerning city, scoot or classic bike pilot, we say. Beyond satisfying the relevant safety...
Panniers with a personal touch
13 July 2012 by
Sick of the homogenised, mass-produced world? Welding genius Roger Munsey has put his 27 years of experience to good use in setting up Ard Cases, his own bespoke hard luggage firm. All his luggage is...
Destination dealer: Blade Motorcycle Village
12 July 2012 by
ADVERTISING PROMOTION Blade Motorcycle Village was officially opened last Saturday and Sunday with an all-action launch weekend attended by over 800 motorcyclists. Blade’s motorcycle division has...
New Suzuki Inazuma 250 details confirmed
12 July 2012 by
Suzuki’s new 250 commuter, the twin-cylinder Inazuma will go on sale from September priced a competitive £3499 OTR and capable of 85mpg, it has been confirmed. The all-new, liquid-cooled roadster,...
Husqvarna TR650 Strada and Terra revealed
12 July 2012 by
The Husqvarna TR650 Strada and TR650 Terra are two new models from Husqvarna which are expected in UK dealers around September/October. They’re essentially the same bike, with the Strada the more...
Become a Riders for Health hero with MCN
11 July 2012 by
Don’t miss your chance to help raise money for biking’s top charity – Riders for Health, which provides bikes for medical workers in Africa – and be in with the chance to win exclusive paddock passes...
Poll: Which 2013 bike are you most looking forward to?
11 July 2012 by
After weeks of extracting information from industry sources and sending spy photographers around the world, MCN will next week reveal every major new 2013 bike. So which of the biggest models listed...
You ask/You answer: How do I stop my wife riding?
11 July 2012 by
My wife has been riding pillion with me for years but now she wants to learn to ride. I really don’t want her to do it – she’s a bloody awful driver and has dreadful hand-eye coordination. I’m...
BMW makes ABS standard on all new models
11 July 2012 by
All new BMW motorcycles will come with ABS as standard when the 2013 models go on sale. BMW has opted to fit all their models with ABS from 2013 due to the European Union’s requirement that all...
Stop one-piece leathers from falling down!
11 July 2012 by
The Paddock Belt is a simple way of ensuring your one-piece leathers don’t end up around your backside whether you’re walking around a bike meet, race meet or just have a drinks stop on a Sunday...
Poll: Tempted by a Chinese bike?
11 July 2012 by
According to figures from the Motorcycle Industry Association, by the end of July new Chinese bikes will outsell new Japanese machines in the UK for the first time ever, mostly as mopeds or...
Aprilia RS250 Simoncelli tribute
10 July 2012 by
It’s not quite finished yet but here’s what I’ve been working on for the past couple of months. It started out as a fairly scruffy Aprilia RS250 which I stripped, cleaned, serviced, MoT’d etc. I...
Video: Travis Pastrana in latest Ken Block gymkhana video
10 July 2012 by
Freestyle motorcross rider and general dardevil Travis Pastrana is featured in rally driver Ken Block’s latest gymkhana video. The gymkhana videos feature Block driving and drifting his rally car...
Lamborghini Murcielago vs BMW
10 July 2012 by
The driver of this Lamborghini Murcielago crashed into an Italian BMW dealership completely destroying a row of new bikes. No one was hurt in the incident which occurred on July 6 in Mariano,...
Chaz Davies exhibition in home town Presteigne
10 July 2012 by
A museum is celebrating World Superbike racer, Chaz Davies’ career in his home town of Presteigne, Wales. Davies recently grabbed his first WSB podium finish onboard his ParkinGo Aprilia RSV4,...
New MCN July 11: MV Agusta Brutale 675 first ride
10 July 2012 by
In this week’s MCN, out July 11, we ride the all-new MV Agusta Brutale 675 in Italy. The Brutale 675 is aimed squarely at Triumph’s class-leading Street Triple, but can the Italian manufacturer...
Jul 11 Bikes on the Box
10 July 2012 by
KEY TO CHANNELS. DRT – Discovery Real Time DSC – Discovery Channel DHD – Discovery Channel HD EXS – Extreme Sports Channel EUR1 (2, HD) – Eurosport 1 (2, HD) MOT – Motors TV CH4 – Channel...
Schwantz at Mallory Park
09 July 2012 by
A picture I took of Kevin Schwantz riding at Mallory Park during the Festival of 1000 Bikes.