When word got out about the RS 660, we were all pretty gosh darn excited. We rode the RS last year and, despite not being able to firmly place it in a particular motorcycle genre, were pretty impressed with its peachy little engine, the way it handled and its space-age tech. That said, the...
When you’ve sold as many Monsters as Ducati have – more than 350,000 – you know you’re onto a winner. But whilst the Monster 1200 always seemed to be exactly what it said on the tin (a Monster), its smaller sibling, the Monster 900 never seemed quite as monstrous as I’d have liked….
BMW has finally given the S 1000 R a long-overdue update; it’s 5.1kg lighter, it’s got a new chassis and yes, before you ask, it does include the newer spec S 1000 RR based engine… sort of. Ok, it’s not in the same 200bhp+ state of tune and you don’t get shifting cams, but essentially, it’s…
There’s nowt like spanking a screaming supersports weapon in the Spanish sunshine, which is exactly what we did during the 2017 Yamaha R6 press launch at Almeria. 17 years after the original release, the class stalwart gets humble yet effective updates for this season, including bastard Euro4 compliancy and... Read more
My head is buried in the R6’s new dash; I’m almost chewing on the needle as it flirts with the redline. Every limb contorted behind its fresh fairings in a desperate attempt to maximise straight-line speed. My wrists are aching from wanking pinning the throttle and Almeria’s relentless nature... Read more
Another week, another launch, and this time it’s the turn of Baron von Tumble to offer musings on KTM’s 1290 Super Adventure S and 1090 Adventure. Hopefully by now you will have clocked the 1290 R in Peru, and its sister model is more of an everyday, techno-laden Tarmac... Read more
This wasn’t just a press launch. KTM’s 1290 Super Adventure R gig in Peru was also a deeply rewarding challenge. Riding 200km in a desert on Dakar terrain, aboard a 160bhp, 240+kg adventure behemoth in 40-degree heat sounds like a job best left for Sam Sunderland, not some balding... Read more
In recent years, press launches have slowly found a consistent home in Spain, so it was nice taking a long-haul flight to sample Yamaha’s MT-10 SP. Home of some of the world’s sexiest roads and backdrops, Cape Town hosted the updated Öhlins-infested MT and a bonus chance for a... Read more
With the exception of Fatima Whitbread, brutal has never been associated with beautiful: a motto perfectly suited to Yamaha’s MT-10. An ingenious concoction of R1-derived sportiness and sheer naked lunacy has given us way more to cogitate than its Johnny Five aesthetics, proving that beauty isn’t purely skin deep.... Read more
Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Is it a sportsbike? Or is it a more placid tourer? We’re still not sure after the world press launch, but it’s impossible not to enjoy time in Ducati’s intriguing SuperSport saddle. We splashed our way around Monteblanco circuit (on full wets)... Read more
