2001

Year: 2001

Month: ALL

Labour’s roads minister interviewed on bike policy

03 June 2001

EVERY four years, something strange happens to politicians. Suddenly, their horizons broaden. They develop keen interests in anything from farmers to bone marrow transplants, so quickly it makes...

Yamaha Bulldog revealed

03 June 2001

Yamaha’s new Bulldog BT1100 is revealed today for the first time. The Japanese firm claims the Bulldog is specifically designed to meet the needs of the European market. Yamaha reckons its new machine...

Our first long term test on a Buell

03 June 2001

I was shaking. Part cold, part anticipation, part excitement. But mainly fear. I was just about to to pick up my Buell X1 Lightning. Problem was, I had not ridden a motorcycle in 15 years and I don’t...

Joining our cameraman at his proper job

03 June 2001

David Jefferies shows the skills needed to wield the MCN onboard camera

Rival parties pass their verdict

03 June 2001

Conservatives " Labour have been all mouth and no delivery in their integrated transport strategy. The Government doesn’t even measure journey times in congested cities. If they did, they’d find motorcycles to be the shortest. Labour should be promoting two-wheelers instead of clobbering motorists. We will do our utmost to empower bikes. In congested areas in particular, motorcycles play a great...

The advantages of lightweight wheels

03 June 2001

WHERE do you start when you want to modify your bike? A bit of engine tuning first, maybe upgrade the brakes to suit the improved performance and as it goes along add rear sets and finish off with a spangly new paint job. But would you add lightweight wheels? For most of us, light wheels are something of a luxury item. They cost a fortune, admittedly look good but surely they can’t make that much...

The view from the mudguard…

03 June 2001

The TT might not be on for the racers, but we can still marvel at what they do.

Enter the 200mph ZX-12R

03 June 2001

The last time I rode a ZX-12R, it topped out with a less than hyperbolic 183mph, or 12mph slower than a politically castrated 2000 Hayabusa, leaving in its wake more questions than answers. But let...

Rare Ducatis become available

03 June 2001

Just when you thought Ducati’s super-exclusive MH900E was impossible to get hold of… a British dealer has managed to bag a couple. But if you want one you really shouldn’t hang about. DK has just two...

Long term test: Life with an FJR

03 June 2001

I had said farewell to my ZX-12R in mid-December. It was mid-May before I finally got my hands on the FJR. I hadn’t even ridden a push bike in the intervening time. You will therefore understand my...

Out and about: Hunstanton

03 June 2001

Hunstanton hands over a prime parking spot to motorcycles, close to the bandstand and nestled between amusement arcades and cafes. There are some good routes to it to be found if you scour your map of...

Missing the TT?

03 June 2001

Let Steve Hislop bring it a little closer…

Suzuki plans 650cc scooter

03 June 2001

September will see the launch of Suzuki’s new Skywave 650 – a big bore scooter aimed at bikes like Yamaha’s T-max and Honda’s Silverwing. Like its competitors, the bike will use a two-cylinder engine...

Kawasaki comes up with a Sportster rival

01 June 2001

Kawasaki is launching a budget cruiser aimed at the Harley Sportster market. The bike will join the firm’s VN1500 family next year, say sources close to the factory. The Japanese firm’s VN range...

Strange tales from when the racers are at play

01 June 2001

There’s a clapped-out cliché that’s been pinned to the noticeboard of many a place of employment over the years which reads as follows: " You Don’t Have To Be Mad To Work Here – But It Helps! " While many workplaces aren’t exactly the lunatic asylums they’d like to think they are, the bike racing industry can rest easy in the knowledge that, for them, this shop-soiled sentiment rings remarkably...

Now this is gonna hurt…

01 June 2001

Not your average tank-slapper

Government orders dark visor tests… at night

01 June 2001

The Government is ordering tests on dark visors… AT NIGHT. The decision (and we wish the testers the best of luck) has been taken after an initial report suggested dark visors are fine for daytime use...

Are "real world" bikes the future?

27 May 2001

Sports bikes have a tradition of outselling all other types of motorcycle in the UK, and the latest sales figures show they’re still our first choice. But they also reveal something else. Though the...

Death of the TL1000S

27 May 2001

The TL1000S is no longer being made or officially imported to the UK. Stocks of the Suzuki sports twin you now find in dealers are the last there is. And although the TL1000R will remain in production...

Major revamp for Blade leads rush of new Hondas

27 May 2001

Honda is bringing us a new Blade, as our artist’s impression shows. It’s an entirely new machine, not due to hit the streets until 2004. But there are also major changes coming this September, as our...

Hitch a ride with Ronnie

27 May 2001

Ride with the man who gives David Beckham hair tips

How to avoid aches and pains when riding

27 May 2001

Wrists If you ride a bike for long enough you can fall foul of an affliction known as carpal tunnel syndrome. The ‘carpal tunnel’ is a bracelet of bones and ligament at the base of your hand and...

Ready for the gun…

27 May 2001

36 bikes, one corner… you work it out

Some more dirt to roll around in

27 May 2001

Scenes from the 2000 Motocross des Nations, MX’s World Cup

Magni’s retro masterpiece

27 May 2001

The late ’60s and early ’70s will be remembered for plenty of things. It was the era of Afghan coats, stacked boots, keep on trucking badges and hair that was long at the back and short on...

Cache of Ducatis on sale at cost price

27 May 2001

A batch of two-year-old Ducatis which have never turned a wheel are being offered exclusively to motorcyclenews.com users at cost price. The 1999-spec bikes are to all intents and purposes brand new.

New deals add up to our biggest savings on new bikes yet

20 May 2001

Visit our Bikemart section right now and you’ll find some of the biggest savings on selected new bikes we’ve ever been able to offer. They include £1500 off a 2001 ZX-6R, £1800 off a 2001 R1 and £1400...

Kawasaki's fastest yet

20 May 2001

Feared by rivals, loved by tyre companies… the ZX-12R

First ride on Voxan’s new Scrambler

20 May 2001

Voxan’s new Scrambler is cute, stylish and a joy to ride. The French firm build their own motors and bikes with such panache that you’d be forgiven for thinking they come from a little further south…...

First ride on Honda’s VTX1800

20 May 2001

You want big bore? You want V-twin? You want cruiser? Well they don’t come much bigger bore and certainly no more V-twin or cruise-worthy than Honda’s new VTX1800. It’s strangely ironic that in a...

FJR to get ABS as option

20 May 2001

Yamaha is planning to offer ABS as an option on its FJR1300. Yamaha’s. Dan Harris, said: ” The bike has proved incredibly popular, but a lot of fleet users, such as the police, are reluctant to use...

SP-1 owners watch this

20 May 2001

V-twins do nice wheelies, as we can see here

Foggy feared retirement. Now he’s loving it

20 May 2001

MISERABLE? Bitter? Or loving his life and more secure than he has ever felt before? Carl Fogarty is a relaxed man a year after the crash that ended his career. He’s bouncing back to life and changing...

VFR800 owners watch this

20 May 2001

Being a capable all-rounder doesn’t mean it has to be boring

What’s changed for wife Michaela?

20 May 2001

IT’S not just Carl Fogarty who’s life has been changed by his retirement – his wife Michaela has also had to make some serious adjustments. She said: ” Sundays will never be the same again – Sunday...

GSX-R750 owners look here

20 May 2001

The mad, bad world of the GSX-R laid bare