The FIM Magazine - Ride with Us - N° 72

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MOTO2 LOSAILRISING SUN GREETS DAWN OF NEW ERA

TONI BOUNEW FORMAT – SAME WINNER

JOHNNY AUBERTA VERY DISCREET CHAMPION

WITH US !R I D E

T H E F I M M A G A Z I N E

.72 MARCH APRIL 20105 Editorial

RIDE

6-9 The storm before the cloudMoto2 losail - Rising sun greets dawn of new eraFIM MotoGP World ChampionshipGALLERY MotoGP

10-11Loris capirossi – 300 upItaly’s other MotoGP hero

13 FIM INSIDEStANDINGS

14-18 Retrospective 24 Hours of Le MansQTEL FIM Endurance World ChampionshipRIDE

20-21New era for SidecarFIM Sidecar World ChampionshipRIDE

22-23Thomas Betti, first winner in the historyFIM e-Power International Championship

25 FIM INSIDEPADDoCK SuPERCRoSS

26-27Interview Ryan DungeyA phenomenal rookieStANDINGS

28-32 New format - Same championBou triumphs for fourth year in a row

34-35 FIM INSIDEPADDoCK SuPERCRoSS

36-37Let it snow!FIM Snowcross World ChampionshipvINtAGE

38-44History of individualMotocross World ChampionshipstECH tALK

46-50Pushing performance & packaging limitsDeveloping a short-circuit winning electric SuperbikeGALLERY ENDuRo

52-55Johnny Aubert – PortraitA very discreet champion

57-58 ROAD BOOK MAY/JUNE

Publishing Director: Guy Maitre

Chief Editor: Isabelle Larivière

Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme11, route Suisse – 1295 Mies – SuisseTel : +41-22 950 95 00 – Fax : +41-22 950 95 01@ : [email protected] website : www.fim-live.com

Photos: David ReygondeauStan PerecRizla Suzuki MotoGP Press ServiceAcorn Woods CommunicationsJake Miller - G2F MediaYouthstreamFIM Archives & Collection C.Lavery (Vintage)Chip YatesEric Malherbe

Lay-out & Printing: OIKO SERVICE srlvia Po 7466020 S.Giovanni TeatinoChieti - Italy

FIM Magazine n° 72 Issued March-April 2010

Past issues available on request

The articles published in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the official position of the FIM.

The content of this publication is based on the best knowledge and information available at the time the articles were written.

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FIM MAGAZINE .72 /// MARCH APRIL 2010 5

EDItoRIALDear Readers,

This first quarter’s results are certainly very positive. The Winter FIM World Championships of Indoor Trial, Ice Speedway, Indoor Enduro are completed and almost all of them have achieved the success expected. In April, we are eagerly preparing for the beginning of other Championships such as Superbike, which has started very well and of course MotoGP, with the introduction of the new Moto2 class. Fears over the disappearance of the 250, one of the most successful FIM championships, have vanished completely. In Qatar, 41 riders (a record participation), a dozen chassis manufacturers and many new teams and sponsors marked a significant beginning to Moto2. The rest of the season will tell us on which riders we should concentrate our attention and which of them will begin to mark the history of this new class and stir our fans’ enthusiasm.

Moreover, the expectations that we had with the FIM Endurance World Championship were met. At Le Mans we had a record participation of teams, which had been unthinkable until recently. The work done in the past three years has begun to bear fruit because quite clearly the interest in this historical discipline has grown: it comes from everywhere and it promises to continue expanding.

During the weekend in Le Mans, the FIM Sidecar World Championship also began. A few weeks before the start of the season, our sponsor told us that he had great difficulties in setting up this championship, so we quickly assumed the responsibility of organising it on our own. We have, for some time, been concerned by difficulties encountered in the FIM Sidecar World Championship. This discipline has been a part of the motorcycle world and the motorcycle sport since the very beginning of the modern motorcycling era (1949) and there is a strong passion for this discipline in several European countries. Unfortunately, this championship has been so weakened that its future existence has been called into question. However, as we have done on other occasions in recent years, we will make every effort to give new life to this championship.

The FIM has been involved for two decades with new activities such as those related to road safety, the environment, the promotion of motorcycling sport among women and the youth. In this edition of “Ride with us!”, we report on the new FIM Road Safety award which will be presented to the Asia Injury Prevention Foundation at the FIM Gala in the autumn. In supporting this work – with our partners – we can save a million lives in the next ten years. Motorcycle riders (and passengers) are a substantial proportion of those who lose their lives on the world’s roads every year – currently estimated at one million three hundred thousand per annum. In our sport we know what works for safety – since motorcycle racing began we have worn helmets! This is why I also appeal to our sports stars and their team managers to lend their support to this message and promote the campaign.

To conclude, I cannot avoid mentioning something that is currently affecting the lives of millions of people and an infinite number of activities not only in Europe but also worldwide: the volcanic eruption in Iceland. This forced us to postpone the FIM Road Racing Grand Prix of Japan and it has also created an incredible amount of mobility problems for many of the people involved in our championships, including our own delegates and officers. Hopefully, this unpredictable and inevitable turbulence of nature will soon cease as, worldwide, this will cause significant economic losses. We cannot do anything about it; we can only organise ourselves differently to cope with this situation.

It will be with great pleasure that I will see you again in the next FIM Magazine.

vito IPPoLIto FIM President

FIM MAGAZINE .72 /// MARCH APRIL 2010 5 5 5

6 FIM MAGAZINE .72 /// MARCH APRIL 2010 FIM MAGAZINE .72 /// MARCH APRIL 2010 7

tHE StoRM BEFoREtHE CLouD“At tHE GLoWING oASIS oF SPEED ...”

ISOLATED IN THE DESERT AT ITS GLOWING OASIS OF SPEED, THE QATAR GP WAS ISOLATED ALSO

BY CIRCUMSTANCES IN 2010. FIRST RACE OF THE YEAR, IT WAS FOLLOWED TWO WEEKS LATER

BY POSTPONEMENT OF THE SECOND ROUND AT MOTEGI, BECAUSE A DRIFTING CLOUD OF

ICELANDIC VOLCANIC ASH HAD STRANDED NEARLY ALL THE RIDERS IN EUROPE.

It was lucky that Losail had given the racing year with a highly promising beginning; instead of anticlimax, the tension increased by a notch or two.

The first of 18 rounds in the 62nd year of the World Championship, the seventh Qatar GP was a landmark event in at least one way. It saw the birth of an all-new racing class: Moto2.

Tailored to straitened times, designed to iron out machine differences and instead

to highlight riding talent, Moto2 did not disappoint. The on-track action was close all the way down a massive field of 41 motorcycles, and the result was a real surprise.

The 125s had similar fun in store for the small crowd of dedicated trackside fans – and a world-wide TV audience of millions. But MotoGP is the main event, and this too was a feast of tension, and of surprise.

At a crucial time, when a replacement to

the current 800cc generation is under consideration, and when the long reign of Valentino Rossi – by now statistically one of the greatest ever, as well as the most popular ever – must be drawing towards some climax, a lot was resting on the outcome of this event.

With no untimely weather interruptions, and thanks to a major blunder by the fastest MotoGP rider of them all, Losail came up with positive answers to most of the important questions.

The significant change for MotoGP for 2010 is the restricted allocation of engines: six, for the full year.///

/// R I D E


MotoGP: NEW oRDER, SAME WINNER

The significant change for MotoGP for 2010 is the restricted allocation of engines: six, for the full year. Endurance is a serious factor. Yamaha and Suzuki had revised their engines; Honda’s end-of-2009 motors were already sufficiently durable – their modifications were electronic, in search of more usable horsepower. But Ducati had a whole new internal rearrangement for their 90-degree V4, with revised “big bang” firing intervals, also aimed at a friendlier throttle response.

Honda had another change: switching to the Öhlins suspension favoured by the rest of the grid. Andrea Dovizioso had some experience from last year, but factory Repsol Honda team-mate Dani Pedrosa was coming in cold. And it showed.

Rossi and Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo were happy with their new M1s, but Jorge was carrying a hand injury from an off-track fall in the winter. On Yamaha’s Monster-backed B-team, all eyes were on rookie Ben Spies, fresh from winning the World Superbike title at his first attempt.

A group of top ex-250 rookies caught the eye: champion Hiro Aoyama on a new private Honda team, Alvaro Bautista joining 300-race veteran Loris Capirossi at Rizla Suzuki; Marco Simoncelli teamed with Marco Melandri on the San Carlo Gresini Hondas; Hector Barbera on the new Aspar Ducati.

But all were overshadowed by the growling and howling red Marlboro Ducati of Casey Stoner. The 2007 champion had leapt to the top of the time sheets in the final test round at Losail, and he dominated the same way throughout practice, finally claiming pole ahead of Rossi by 0.355 of a second. Team-mate Hayden had also picked up the pace.

The race looked a foregone conclusion. Pedrosa took a familiar jack-rabbit start, but as they started lap two of 22, Stoner swept past. He’d got by both Hayden and Rossi on the way.By lap six, he was better than two second

ahead. Time to slack off. He explained later that by doing so he had unwittingly unloaded the front tyre too much. He never got past turn four, the bike slipping away in a classic low-sider.

Rossi now led, but an on-form Dovizioso had him under severe pressure, with Hayden in very close attendance to both. The Honda even led briefly on lap 16, using the power of his very rapid Honda on the straight.

Rossi secured the win at the end after “three or four laps at the maximum.” His first opening-round win since 2005 was by just over a second.

By now it was his team-mate chasing. He’d closed down a clear margin on the leaders. On the second-last lap he passed both the Ducati and the Honda, to make it a convincing Yamaha one-two.

Hayden, in by far his best-ever race on a Ducati, was determined to make the rostrum, and put yet another pass on Dovizioso on the final lap. But for once the Honda had a speed advantage and the Italian powered past again on the drag to the line to take third by inches. Spies had qualified 11th and played down his chances. Then he rode like

a demon, pulling through from seventh on lap one until he was closing on Lorenzo.

He was fifth; early leader Pedrosa seventh behind Randy de Puniet’s privateer Honda. Three seconds away, Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha) had passed Capirossi’s Suzuki at the mid-point, and held it off to the finish.

Aoyama was tenth, well clear of his fellow ex-250 rookies, who were scrapping at the back. Simoncelli beat Barbera; luckless Bautista crashed out on the last lap, having been between the pair. They beat a dismal Melandri; Kallio and Espargaro crashed out.

Great action, but what did it all mean? Rossi considered the 25 points “like gold dust”, because he knew his Yamaha was seriously down on top speed, with the Honda now vying with Ducati a full 10 km/h faster. Also because Stoner would certainly have won, if he hadn’t fallen. But “if” is a poor currency in racing; it is not the first time the Australian has crashed out of a race.

The prospect for the rest of the year is highly charged.

The prospect for the rest of the year is highly charged.///

R I D E ///

The paddock establishment had taken to the new class with great enthusiasm and in great numbers. Most of the 41 riders were in teams that had slipped straight over from the discontinued 250 class; the response to the new four-stroke cost-control class had been better than anyone had expected.

But how would the new control-engine 600cc racers (GP racing prototypes in every other aspect of design) play with the fans?The sight and sound of more than 40 bikes taking to the track en masse for the first practice had even the doubters smiling in anticipation.

There was one pre-race back story. Former 125, 250 and MotoGP race winner Toni Elias, demoted by his Gresini team, was a hot favourite for the new series, and shortened the odds still further with dominant testing performances. But then he had crashed in the final tests, and was now still unable to walk, with wrist injuries as well.

Amazingly, the tough Spaniard qualified on pole, led the first lap, and was in a close battle for the front until the pain finally slowed his pace in the closing laps.

By then, surprise winner Showa Tomizawa (Technomag-CIP Suter) emerged from the shadows of a privateer 250 debut to take the lead on the sixth lap – a lead he would never lose. He was more than a second clear by half-distance, and with the benefit of a clear track he kept on stretching to win by better than 4.5 seconds by the end of the 20 laps.

He had escaped from a front gang that had been five-strong.

By the end, second was still hotly contested between 250 veteran Alex Debon (Aeroporto Castello FTR) and French parvenu Jules Cluzel (Forward Suter) . Cluzel seemed to have it won, but Debon dived past again to take control to the flag.

A couple of seconds adrift, Elias got back ahead of returned GP veteran Robbie Rolfo (Italtrans Suter).

Other fancied runners Alex de Angelis (RSM Team Scot Force GP210) and fellow front-row starter Stefan Bradl (Viesmann Kiefer Suter) were out on the second corner after the former high-sided right into the latter. The final front-row start, Julian Simon, rode straight into the pits at the end of the first laps to retire.

Significantly, the loss of three top riders was hardly noticed, with close battles for all the positions. Another veteran, Mattia Pasini (JIR Motobi), got back ahead of a charging Thomas Luthi (Interwetten Moriwaki) for sixth, with Simone Corsi (JIR Motobi) close behind and Gabor Talmacsi (Fimco Speedup) dropping off the back. And there was a huge battle for tenth, won convincingly in the end by Sergio Gadea (Tenerife Pons Kalex).

It had been a fine start to the new class. Moto2 has had its opponents, but at Losail the depth and quality of the racing put all the arguments into the past.

At the pre-race riders’ safety commission meeting, both Rossi and Capirossi reflected the general enthusiasm for the ultra-close new class. “They both said,” confided another delegate, “that they wished they could have a go.”

Moto2 – RISING SuN GREEtS DAWN oF NEW ERA

Most of the 41 riders were in teams that had slipped straight over from the discontinued 250 class; the response to the class had been better than anyone had expected.///

/// R I D E


The first race of the season was an epic battle of seven riders that was still so close in the final laps that it seemed certain that not everybody would make the finish. And that it would be decided on the last corner.

Well, nobody crashed, and new Bancaja Aspar rider Nico Terol disproved the second. Waiting patiently in the pack until lap 15 of 18, the 21-year-old then took the benefit of the tussle between the rest to escape with a series of fastest laps. He was a full 2.3-seconds clear by the end.

The rest fought it out all the way. Efren Vazquez (Tuenti Derbi) had led the most laps, and he did so again in the sprint to the flag. It was by inches over pole starter Marc Marquez (Red Bull Derbi) and Vazquez’s team-mate Pol Espargaro.

First to fourth was an all-Spanish sweep. Then came German Sandro Cortese (Avant Mitsubishi Derbi) and Switzerland’s Randy Krummenacher (Stipa-Molenaar Aprilia), almost side by side with another Spaniard, Tito Rabat (Blusens Aprilia)

Last year’s title runner-up Bradley Smith found his Aspar bike short of speed, but

clawed his way back to eighth ahead of the Aprilias of Koyama and Masbou,

The last surviving two-stroke class, and the last basically unchanged since 1949, had proved one thing: cost-cutting agreements

with Aprilia, which directly or indirectly supplies all but one of the machines, had helped to keep things close. And 125 racing is alive and well.

by Michael Scott

125cc: SPAIN RuLES

First ever Moto2 podium: winner Showa Tomizawa (Technomag-CIP Suter), second AlexDebon (Aeroporto Castello FTR) and third Jules Cluzel (Forward Suter).///

The first 125cc race of the season was an epic battle of seven riders won by Bancaja Aspar rider Nico Terol.///

8 FIM MAGAZINE .72 /// MARCH APRIL 2010

R I D E ///


LoRIS CAPIRoSSI – 300 uP AND StILL GoING StRoNGItALY’S otHER MotoGP HERo

A SMALL EARTH TREMOR SHOOK THE PADDOCK AT SUZUKI, AT THE JAPANESE GP, OPENING

ROUND OF THE 1990 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. IT STRUCK DURING THE BUILD-UP TO THE START

OF THE 125 RACE, WITH A FIELD INCLUDING CURRENT TEAM OWNER AND THEN MULTIPLE CHAM-

PION JORGE MARTINEZ. FANCIFUL PADDOCK SOULS TRIED TO FIND SOME PORTENT IN THIS. AND

THERE WAS ONE TO BE FOUND. BUT IT ONLY BECAME OBVIOUS MANY YEARS LATER.

This was the first grand prix for a rider who would set many records over the 21 years to follow. His name was Loris Capirossi.

The teenager from near Imola started his GP career as he meant to go on. He finished his first race fighting his way to the front of a close group disputing sixth, then went on to win three times later in his first year, to become 125 World Champion at his first attempt. By then, he was still just 17 years and 165 days old. He is still the youngest-ever World Champion.

Loris’s impact was immediate and sustained. A tiny figure with long hair, a snub nose, and an infectious grin that revealed a crooked set of teeth, he rode like a dogfighter. Since then, at the age of 37, the hair has become close-cropped and the teeth have been expensively regularised. But the grin has remained unaffected.

Something else is also the same. “I love to ride the motorcycle. For me the feeling is the same – I like to try to find the limit, and I have always been aggressive.” As long as that feeling lasts, he plans to carry on.

Speaking good English now – he learned the finer points, he admits, listening to American country music – Loris can look back on a career that has kept him at or near the top for all 21 years, peppered with 29 race wins, 41 pole positions, and 99 rostrums. And marked by controversy as well, as his aggressive style has got him into trouble.

Loris won the 125 title for a second successive year in 1991, and moved up to the 250 class, still on a Honda, where he

was challenging for the title by his second year. He narrowly lost out to Harada’s Yamaha in 1993 and to Max Biaggi in 1994, but was off again directly to the 500 class. In his first year, on a private Honda, he made the rostrum once. Then he switched to a factory Yamaha in former champion Wayne Rainey’s team, and won in Australia.

He was now one of a handful of riders with wins in every class, and had already been racing for seven years. But he was still just starting.

The next move was backwards. In a way. Loris was given a chance to join the

all-Italian Aprilia team, and he jumped at it. Having been twice so close to adding that title to his two 125 crowns, he wanted another chance.

It was now that he ran into a purple patch ... both of results, and of trouble. He was censured for dangerous riding after a start-line collision in Mugello, and then more seriously was disqualified from the final round of 1998 after colliding with his team-mate (the same Harada), thereby winning the 250 crown he sought.

Outraged by the accusations, backed by Aprilia, Loris protested his innocence – and

“ Since 2006, I always sign contracts for one year only, because maybe at the end ofthe next season I want to stop. I want to decide by myself".///

/// GALLERY


PADDoCK ///

Loris made a landmark 300th start at Qatar this year, more than any other rider in history. His records stand in other areas. He has:

Scored points a record 246 • times (after Qatar) ;taken part in almost 40 percent • (39.3) of the 760 GP events since 1949 ;Won GPs on seven different • motorcycles, including Honda, Yamaha, Aprilia and Ducati;With Rossi, he is one of two • riders to win on 500s, 990s and 800s ;He needs one more podium to • make 100 - only six riders have achieved this.

was successful. His appeal was upheld, his result reinstated. But he was champion anyway.

Switching to Honda the next year he was third overall, and now it was time for yet another change. It was time to go back to the 500 class.

In 2000 and 2001 Loris rode for a private Honda team, adding a win at home in Italy in his first year, finishing third overall behind new champion Rossi in the second. Then in 2002 he was one of the defenders of the faith, racing the two-stroke 500 Honda against the new-generation 990cc four-stroke MotoGP bikes. He finished eighth, twice making it to the rostrum on an outclassed motorcycle.

The roller-coaster was about to climb the heights again, with a second all-Italian dream. Ducati had announced it would be joining MotoGP in 2003. And Loris was thrilled to be one of the riders.

Another purple patch followed on the bright red Marlboro Ducati, as Loris played the leading role in establishing the independent Italian marque as a highly competitive challenge to Japan. In five years with the team, he took Ducati’s first MotoGP victory at Catalunya in 2003 after pressuring Rossi into a mistake, then added seven more race wins, his last in 2007 in Japan.

Up against the formidable Rossi, his best championship finish was third in 2006. A year that was nonetheless disastrous. At the seventh round at Catalunya, Loris arrived sharing the points lead with eventual champion Nicky Hayden. In that race, team-mate Sete Gibernau collided with him at the first corner, triggering a multiple crash and

ending the injured Capirossi’s title chances on the spot.

And in 2008 came another career changed.

Dropped by Ducati, he was eagerly snapped up by Suzuki, confident that his vast experience could help the least successful team back towards a challenging position.

It does mean he has more or less abandoned serious hopes of adding a top-class crown to his 125 and 250 titles. “The dream is to

try to win that also, but I know that is not really easy. I lost the title in 2006. That was the closest, for me. The rest is difficult, but I really believe 100 percent in Suzuki still working really hard to try to improve our project.”

Loris has no desire to retire, but knows the time must eventually come.

“ Since 2006, I always sign contracts for one year only, because maybe at the end of the next season I want to stop. I want to decide by myself. I don’t want to have a contract to decide for me. My feeling until now is 100 percent. I feel really good. I really enjoy riding the bike. When I am home for more than two weeks, I want to come back. This is why I am still here after 20 seasons,” he told me, shortly after signing up for his 21st.

Dorna and the FIM laid on a special presentation to honour

Loris at Qatar, and he was also given a special concession – racing with the number 300 on his bike (normally, three-digit numbers are not allowed). One more honour for the diminutive racing giant.

Another compliment came from Rossi, observing how Loris is still just as aggressive and competitive as ever. “It gives me power, when I look at the young guys coming up, to see how Loris still races so hard.”

by Michael Scott

FIM President Vito Ippolito and Loris Capirossi.///


GALLERY ///


by Brigitte Zufferey

tHE FIM CoMMISSIoN FoR WoMEN IN MotoRCYCLING WELCoMED MS FRéDéRIQuE tRouvé, REPRESENtAtIvE oF tHE FIA WoMEN AND MotoR SPoRt CoMMISSIoN

WoMEN IN MotoRCYCLING

During the last FIM Conference Meetings held in Geneva on 27 February 2010, the CFM was very pleased to welcome Ms Frédérique Trouvé, Manager of the newly created Women and Motor sport Commission of the FIA (WMC). Ms Michèle Mouton, President of the FIA Women’s Commission, sent greetings to the CFM members and apologised for her absence due to other FIA commitments.

Ms Trouvé outlined the process which led the FIA to create a Women’s commission. The FIA WMC will start its work at its first meeting at FIA Headquarters in Paris on 26 April 2010. The FIA WMC is also open to men (ex. the manufacturer’s representative is a men and any financial partner will be invited as an observer).

The FIA ASNs (the FMNs in FIM’s jargon) and newly elected FIA President, Mr Jean Todt fully support the creation of the FIA Women’s commission.

As the FIM and the FIA have a number of FMNs/ASNs which are affiliated to both organisations (i.e. Poland, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Germany to mention just a few), it has been discussed to share names of contacts for women activities within those Federations.

From left to right: Lila de Soysa (ITTF), Stefy Bau (MX Expert USA), Mishaal Al Sudairy (President of Saudi Arabian Federation & UAM Vice President), Brigitte Zufferey (FIM) and Frédérique Trouvé (FIA).///

FIM – FIA FutuRE CoLLABoRAtIoN

A brainstorming session took place during the meeting and the following ideas put fourth:

Representatives to attend each • other’s Commission meetings

Joint events (motor sport and • motorcycling)

Share marketing and • communication strategies to enhance the message that concrete actions are taking place for women in motor sports.The FIM/CFM and the FIA/WMC joining forces will no doubt give a great push forward all activities related to motor sports.This first meeting was very much appreciated by all the participants. It was also a great opportunity to meet with some FIA/FIM affiliated members as

well as various FIM Commission members and FIM staff members to explain the objectives of the collaboration between the two organisations.Both FIA and FIM representatives will attend the 5th IWG International Conference on Women and Sport in Sydney in May 2010 to present the progress made for women in motor sports within the two organisations.At the end of the day Ms Lilamani de Soysa, ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation) Project Consultant and a very well-known personality in the world of Women and Sport, joined the group and pictures of the Commission with Frédérique and Lila were taken.

From left to right: Frédérique Trouvé (FIA), Aleksandra Knyszewska (PZM), Andrea Zólyomi (MAMS), Sarah Schilke (Mktg Expert USA), Stefy Bau (MX Expert USA), Iris Krämer (DMSB), Susanne Huettinger(OeAMTC), Nabiha

Nouar (FRMM), Lila de Soysa (ITTF), Brigitte Zufferey(FIM), Monica Lazzarotti (FMI), Nita Korhonen (SML) and Lene Fevang, (NMF) – Missing: Beaulah

Schoeman (CFM President) .///

2010 FIM RALLY IN HERENtALS - BELGIuM - 21-24 JuNE 2010

CFM WoMEN’S PRoGRAMME

MX initiation for women in Balen Honda Park• Trial Demonstration - AXO Fashion Show (FIM Marketing)• Screening test for female riders with a local driving school•

Inspiring talks by Women Riding Solo•

Event coverage by Flair Magazine Belgium•

Information on this event: http://www.fimrally2010.eu

WHAt’S NExt FoR WoMEN WItHIN tHE FIM?

The promotion of women for positions in decision-making is part of the Top 15 Strategic Priorities of the FIM Strategic Plan.

A significant budget to achieve this goal has been established and agreed by the FIM Management Council.

FIM INSIDE ///


REtRoSPECtIvE 24 HouRS oF LE MANS QtEL FIM ENDuRANCE WoRLD CHAMPIoNSHIP

KAWASAKI WON THE 24

HOURS OF LE MANS FOR THE

FIRST TIME SINCE 1999, IN

FRONT OF YAMAHA AUSTRIA

AND THE STUNNING SUZUKI

OF THE RAC 41 CITY BIKE

TEAM.

As the practice sessions showed, the GSR Kawasaki team with Julien da Costa, Olivier Four and Gregory Leblanc was in a great shape. With the best time at the end of the qualifying sessions, the GSR confirmed by clinching the Superpole thanks to the best time made by Julien da Costa in 1m37s783, ahead of Vincent Philippe for the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team, Matthieu Lagrive on the BMP Elf 99 Suzuki and Gwen Giabbani for the Yamaha Austria Racing Team.

At the start, Vincent Philippe was the most incisive for the SERT but the crash of Guillaume Dietrich at 16h30 changed the conditions. Coming back to the track

12 minutes later, the factory Suzuki was riding slowly and could not be avoided by Victor Carrasco who was riding the Yamaha of the BK Maco Moto Racing Team. Both machines were completely destroyed and forced to retire.The leadership was then an affair between the Yamaha Austria, GSR Kawasaki and the Honda BMP Elf 99. In the group of leaders were also the Honda National Motos, the BMW Michelin, the Yamaha France GMT 94 Ipone and the Suzuki RAC 41 City Bike.

The BMW Michelin, at first losing time because of a hose problem, was then obliged to retire because of electrical problems. Sebastien Gimbert, who was

The 24 Hours of Le Mans remain a magical event, for the teams as well as for the spectators. 92,000 persons watch the 33rd edition of this classic season opener. In 2011, the Bol d’Or in Magny-Cours will open the Championship in April, while the 24 Hours of Le Mans will be held in September. ///

/// S t A N D I N G S


riding this factory BMW, would keep the best time in the race with 1m38s425. The Honda National Motos, having grabbed a good third place, would lose this place because of an engine problem following a crash. The Honda BMP Elf 99 lost one hour in the evening following electrical problems and would received the chequered flag in the 15th position.

The Yamaha GMT 94 Ipone, behind because of a lack of development in its new Bridgestone tyres, lost time through a broken exhaust collector. The Yamaha 94 of David Checa, Gregorio Lavilla and Kenny Foray however would finish fourth in these Le Mans 24 Hours.

On the GSR Kawasaki, Julien da Costa, Olivier Four and Gregory Leblanc took the lead after two racing hours and did not let it go. The Yamaha Austria of Igor Jerman, Steve Martin and Gwen Giabbani was the only one able to worry them but an engine overheating as from half of the race would keep them away from fighting for the victory.

Thanks to a regular race, the private RAC 41 City Bike Suzuki, with Greg Junod, Gregg Black and Olivier Depoorter, finished on the third degree of the rostrum.

Favorite in the Superstock class, the Junior Team Suzuki lost time because of several

mechanical problems and a crash. With the best place in this class on Sunday morning, the Suzuki Team Motors Events lost ground because of an accident and a crash. The Suzuki Qatar Endurance Racing Team, waiting for its time, got its chance and won the Superstock class.

The next appointment in the Qtel FIM Endurance World Championship is on May 22 in Spain for the “8 Horas Nocturnas de Albacete”.

by Valérie Moreno

tHE 24 HouRS oF LE MANS IN NuMBERS

15 nationalities at the start• 55 teams at the start• 36 teams at the finish line• 33 teams classified• 828 laps made by the winner• 3,465.16 km, distance made by the winner• 144,382 km/h, winner average speed• 92,000 spectators•


S t A N D I N G S / / /


The weather was perfect for these 24 Hours of Le Mans with sun and a dry track from start to finish.

The Qtel FIM Endurance World Championship is a success. The maximum number of teams is at the start of this 33rd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

2009 Qtel FIM World Champion, the Yamaha Austria Racing Team scores big points in relation to its adversaries for the 2010 title thanks to its second place. The winner, GSR Kawasaki, did not enter the whole 2010 Qtel FIM World Championship.

Untouchable in the Superpole and dominating in the race, the GSR Kawasaki takes the brand back to victory. Julien da Costa, Olivier Four and Grégory Leblanc take the lead after two hours of racing.

16 FIM MAGAZINE .70 /// NovEMBER DECEMBER 2009



There was repeated overheating for the Yamaha Austria. As from half of the race, Igor Jerman, Steve Martin and Gwen Giabbani have to ride « economically » to help the engine and keep their second place and reach the chequered flag.

The private team RAC 41 City Bike performs some great racing. In the right group as from the start, Greg Junod, Gregg Black and Olivier Depoorter know how to manage their race and take advantage of the problems of the favorite teams to get to the rostrum.

Lacking development with their new Bridgestone tyres, the Yamaha France GMT 94 Ipone can never fight for the lead but David Checa, Gregorio Lavilla and Kenny Foray make a great race which take them to the fourth place on the finish line. With good performances during practice and at the beginning of

the race, the Honda BMP Elf 99 of Matthieu Lagrive, Damian Cudlin and Werner Daemen loses its chance for a podium during the night because of an electrical problem.

FIM MAGAZINE .70 /// NovEMBER DECEMBER 2009 17 16 FIM MAGAZINE .72 /// MARCH APRIL 2010

S t A N D I N G S ///


The Swiss Kawasaki of the Bolliger Team Switzerland runs a remarkable race until the third position on Sunday morning. A clutch problem with four hours to go makes them lose their place on the podium.

The Qatar Endurance Racing Team’s Suzuki wins in the Superstock class. Anthony Delhalle, Alex Cudlin and Rashid Al Mannai spend 547 of their 801 racing laps in the lead.

Everybody is smiling on the podium. Kawasaki retains victory in Le Mans thanks to the GSR team, Yamaha Austria saves big points for the 2010 title despite overheating worries and the RAC 41 City Bike reaches the top level.

Julien da Costa and Olivier Four are beside Gregory Leblanc at the finish line. They are the architects of this fantastic win for the GSR Kawasaki team.

by Valérie Moreno




FIM INSIDE ///



The Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme wants to develop this championship as well as its audience and the interest for this spectacular and historical discipline of Road Racing since 1949.The first of five events of the 2010 Championship took place in mid-April in France, on the Bugatti circuit as an opening event for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Finn Pekka Päivärinta, 2008 FIM World Champion, together with the Swiss Adolf Hänni for the Team Suzuki Finland, won this first race of the 2010 Sidecar World Championship. Päivärinta and Hänni dominated the practice sessions and the whole race ahead of the current World Champions, Ben and Tom Birchall, who made the best lap during the race in 1m43s058. The Germans Kurt Hock and Enrico Becker completed the podium.

This race was marked by the retirement of Gary and Dan Knight’s team (second in practice) during the first laps with a broken engine, and also by a bump between the machine of the Germans Mike Roscher and Andy Wolfram (6th in qualifying practice) and that of the Australians Adam Treasure and Darren Dewhurst.

The next round of the 2010 Sidecar World Championship will be held in Schleiz, Germany, on May 9.

NEW ERAFoR SIDECAR2010 SEASoN oPENING IN LE MANS

THE 2010 FIM SIDECAR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP IS

OPENING TO NEW TIMES. BECAUSE OF DIFFICULTIES

ENCOUNTERED BY ITS PROMOTER, THIS SEASON’S

FIM SIDECAR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WILL BE

MANAGED BY THE FIM.

/// R I D E


R I D E ///


tHoMAS BEttI, FIRStWINNER IN tHE HIStoRYFIM e-PoWER INtERNAtIoNAL CHAMPIoNSHIP

THE FIRST ROUND OF THE FIM e-POWER INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP TOOK PLACE ON THE

FAMOUS BUGATTI CIRCUIT IN LE MANS, A SUPPORT CLASS OF THE 24 HOURS MOTO EVENT, THE

OPENING ROUND OF THE QTEL FIM ENDURANCE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP IN FRANCE.

T he br and new F I M e - Powe r International Championship series opened in an unusual silence when the competitors made their first historic laps on their electric powered motorcycles. For this first season, the number of participants in the FIM e-Power International Championship was low but the event opened a new path in the development of the motorcycle with a complete respect for the environment. The e-Power motorcycles showed a respectable performance with all participants in good spirit and form in a new series where electrical technology has a huge potential for development.

Thomas Betti, first winner of this new FIM e-Power International Championship, took pole position and victory in Le Mans. At 29, this Italian firefighter from Rimini enters history by his victory in the f irst international race of electric motorcycles.

On the Betti Moto, built by his father Luciano who also participated in this event, Thomas Betti finished ahead of Reiner Kopp Munch’s Racing Team on a Laverda framed electric motorcycle and Christian Amendt (Epo-Bike.de) the team on a Honda framed motorcycle.

Betti Thomas completed his best lap in 2’21 but he admitted having driven in economic mode to manage the available charge during the last laps.

The nex t race of the FIM e-Power International Championship will be held on 22 May as a prologue race to the “8 Horas Nocturnas” of Albacete in Spain.

by Valérie Moreno

The Italian Thomas Betti enters history by winning the first FIM e-Power race in Le Mans.///

/// R I D E


e-PoWER BIKES HoW tHEY WoRK?

It is possible to describe an e-Power in four simple points: electric motor, electrical source of energy, electrical controls and the chassis and brakes, but it’s the rider who gives “bite” to the machine.

The working principle is simple: an electric current controlled by means of an electric-electronic system (the so-called “driver”) is sent from the electrical source of energy (often stored in large battery arrays) to electrical motors which push the machine.

To go into more depth, we can start breaking down the different challenging technologies, because the rules are open to almost any technology of any kind.

ENERGY SouRCESThe energy onboard is often stored as a chemical energy, converted into electricity by means of batteries or fuel cells, delivering DC power in the main power line. Since the storage capacity of batteries is pretty low (equals 0,5 litres of racing gasoline), the machines must be 10 or 20 times more energy-efficient than standard racing motorbikes to reach the same performance.

The main challenges are currently to raise the stored energy onboard, decrease the weight and cost of the battery packs, and achieve a perfect energy balance within all cells.

CoNtRoLS Electrical, electronic and mechanical equipment is another key to making a safe and driveable machine.

Safe because even if there is less energy onboard (than in standard fuel tanks), there are plenty of electrical protections in a very mature technology status which can be directly used on this machine and enhanced to decrease its weight.

Driveable because the way you can manage the power changes dramatically compared to a standard motorbike. You can put up to 200 bhp for a second in the wheel!

The controls transform the power pack energy into energy usable in the motors in the most efficient way, reaching levels of 92% or above. The standard combustion engine (which transforms chemical power into movement) has an efficiency of only 20%.

Getting more robust, efficient, affordable, lightweight technologies and expert people in these fields are urgent needs for the upcoming teams.

MotoRSIn this very first season, e-Power is allowing the use of 2 driving wheels, by means of any motor technology either AC or DC or both,

with or without permanent magnets, air or liquid cooled.

e-Motors run surprisingly smoothly and with a continuous amount of torque available on demand. There is no need for a clutch nor by a gearset which save a lot of weight in the machine.

Pioneering a new field, there is a first bike mounting the motor inside the wheel, with no chain and no other transmission losses of power.

CHASSISRegenerative braking and any chassis smart controls are allowed to start exploring a new universe of efficiency. The possible amount of regenerated energy of an e-bike is a mere 10% of an F1 vehicle, so this may enable new energy harvesting technologies to cover longer distances achieving higher average speeds.

Racing on e-Power bikes is the best opportunity to make the future now!

by Oriol Gallemí

e-Power bikes are driveable because the way you can manage the power changes dramatically compared to a standard motorbike. You can put up to 200 bhp for a second in the wheel! .///

R I D E ///

HELMEt CAMPAIGN LAuNCHED IN SENEGAL

MoBILItY,tRANSPoRt, RoAD SAFEtY AND PuBLIC PoLICY

The Asia Injury Prevention Foundation helmet charity is the first winner of the new FIM Road Safety award. The presentation will take place alongside awards to the FIM World Champions at the 2010 FIM Gala Ceremony which will take place on Friday 3 December in Estoril, Portugal.

The United Nations has cited the AIP Foundation as a “best practice” example in preventing injuries and cutting the death toll. Motorcycles and scooters are a major form of transport in low and middle income countries and equipping riders and passengers – especially child passengers – with affordable helmets suitable for use in tropical climates is making a real difference to safety.

AIP Foundation’s CEO Greig Craft has written to the FIM saying, “On behalf of the entire AIP Foundation team I thank the FIM for this tremendous honour. As our efforts in road safety expand throughout Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East, we hope to continue to work with FIM to promote helmet wearing, road safety legislation and public awareness education worldwide”.

Readers will be aware that FIM is supporting a global campaign – based on a successful model implemented in Vietnam – to promote helmet wearing. The first country in the rollout of this programme is Senegal on Africa’s west coast. – Well known to many racers as Dakar is the capital. Funded by the FIA Foundation and the World Bank this first phase of the project aims to raise awareness of the role helmets play in reducing head injury.

The children featured in this photograph – courtesy of the FIA Foundation – are wearing Vietnamese manufactured tropical helmets supplied by the AIP Foundation. – One thousand two hundred and fifty helmets for children were donated at the launch. The launch also featured a concert starring Senegalese musician DJ Awadi in Ziguinchor, one of the areas of Senegal most affected by road traffic crashes involving motorcyclists.

“We need a hard-hitting campaign that will instil in people the realization that serious crashes can and do happen. Our challenge is to overcome the objections and the lack of education of people

who do not wear helmets, and stop this growing public health crisis in Senegal,” said Greig Craft, CEO of the Global Helmet Vaccine Initiative.

Rita Cuypers, FIA Foundation Director of Campaigns, attended the launch events. “Encouraging widespread helmet is a cost-effective way to quickly reduce road casualties during the Decade of Action. We encourage other donors and governments to support the Global Helmet Vaccine

Initiative. With sufficient funding and political determination GHVI can work with countries like Senegal, and NGOs, to build sustainable programmes to deliver safe and affordable crash helmets,” she said.

NEW FIM RoAD SAFEtY AWARD

SWEDES JoIN FoRCES to PRoMotE tHE SPoRt to NEWCoMERS

SVEMO has a long and successful partnership with the Swedish road rider organisation – SMC. This extends to international work as for years the SMC has been a strong presence in the non sports side of the FIM work. “SMC Sport” is a new department set up to promote motorcycle sport and support SVEMO by encouraging more Swedish road riders to take up racing or trials riding. This will be promoted through MC Folket the national motorcycle magazine of Sweden produced by the SMC.

The Swedes also have a long association with the California Superbike School and promote their courses to riders. Hearing this news at the recent FIM Conference meetings it was great to see the fantastic display of historic racing machines provided by SVEMO. The 1970s Kawasaki was the favourite with us here at Ride with Us! So here again another chance to see it.

by John Chatterton-Ross

An Indian manufacturer, TVS has been working with Italian suspension specialists Paioli on an innovative new low cost system to improve emergency braking on motorcycles. Our photograph shows the specially adapted TVS Apache 180 RTR motorcycle. It incorporates a, “semi active front fork” which alters suspension movement under emergency braking. Disconnecting the effects of strong braking from suspension

movement is not a new concept in motorcycling. Here the system that alters the hydraulics is activated by a solenoid. So does it work? We were certainly impressed by the films of initial tests undertaken which showed considerable improvements in braking by even a skilled test rider. The report on this work was given at a workshop held in The Netherlands in February as part of the EU financed PISA project in which both

companies were involved. Speaking to engineers from Paioli they admitted that though the tests are encouraging things are still at an early stage. Tests have been on smooth surfaces and not all roads in India are smooth! It is an important issue, as so far more advance technologies such as ABS are still too expensive for machines sold in emerging markets in Asia and Latin America.

INDIAN MANuFACtuRER tEAMS uP WItH ItALIANS to RESEARCH NEW BRAKING tECHNoLoGY

FIM INSIDE ///


Q: When did it sink in that you had won the title?

Ryan Dungey: It really didn’t hit me until I was back home in Florida after the St. Louis round, but even then it didn’t really sink in I guess until after the championship celebration on the podium in Seattle. Having that No. 1 plate handed to me was something I will remember for the rest of my life.

Q: Your family has been important to your success. How have they reacted to your Supercross Championship?

R.D.: They have been there with me at every single race in my career. They’ve obviously been huge in getting me to where I am today, but seeing the looks of enjoyment on their faces while I was up there getting my No. 1 plate was something pretty cool.

Q: How about the Rockstar Makita Suzuki team: Roger, Ian, Goose, all the guys. How important is it to have a team like that behind you?

R.D.: What more needs to be said about the Rockstar Makita Suzuki guys? The championships tell the story. I mean Roger De Coster is “The Man” for a reason. He brings so much experience to the team; he has done it all in our sport. And Mike Gosselaar is such a good mechanic, and a good man to have on the line, too. Ian on the motors, Adam on the suspension, Ray and Shane…all of them…what a great team!

Q: You’ve been riding with Suzuki for a long time now and the relationship you have there seems very strong. As the season wore on, you had a lot of responsibility on your shoulders. At some point does it get to you? How do you deal with the pressure so well?

R.D.: Like I said earlier, I feel really comfortable on a Suzuki. It’s my bike. And the responsibility really ramps up once you move to the big bikes. I mean people told me that it would be different but I couldn’t imagine how much different it was. And the fact that I was in the championship hunt from the start probably added to the pressure build-up. It was OK though; it’s what I’ve wanted since I was a little guy. I mean it’s what all of us want, right? The shot at winning the 450 Supercross title? Absolutely.

Q: the race in St. Louis was described by Ian Harrison as being “high intensity.” When you are in a race like that, where you and villopoto were turning laps one second faster than the heat races, do you focus more on your lines, the other rider, or a combination of things?

R.D.: I try to stick to my game plan in those situations. We prepare for races like that. They’re definitely high intensity and you have to try to remain calm and remember to ride your lines and stay focused on your race, and not what’s happening around you. And when you crash mid-race, you have to really rely on your fitness at that point because your heart goes through the roof.

Q: You have won quite a few titles now in your young career. How do you keep focused on winning these titles...or do you just concentrate on race to race?

R.D.: I definitely try to be prepared for long seasons. It takes consistency to win championships and to be consistent you have to be prepared. I just concentrate on race to race. This is a long season in the 450 class and you have to be prepared for the ups and the downs so that you can handle it all and keep moving forward.

Q: Will you approach the last Supercross race with a different mindset?

R.D.: I can’t afford to let my guard down at all. I mean it is nice to have a title wrapped up early but I want to continue to move forward and try and win heading into the Outdoors. We can’t get complacent.

Q: What is your focus going to be heading into the Nationals?

R.D.: We will take the necessary time to get the bike ready for the Outdoors. We’ll be out in California before Hangtown working hard on getting ready for 12 big races this summer.

by Cassandra Clawson

INtERvIEWRYAN DuNGEYA PHENoMENAL RooKIE

RYAN DUNGEY, THE 20-YEAR-OLD ROOKIE FROM BELLE PLAINE, MINNESOTA,

IS OFFICIALLY THE 2010 AMA SUPERCROSS, AN FIM WORLD CHAMPION.

THE SECOND AND YOUGEST ROOKIE EVER TO TAKE THE TITLE.

/// GALLERY


Ryan Dungey was born on December 4, 1989. His hometown is Belle Plaine, Minnesota, although these days he lives in Tallahassee, Florida, so he can take advantage of good weather for testing and train with 15-time AMA Champion Ricky Carmichael.

GALLERY ///


NEW FoRMAtSAME CHAMPIoNBou tRIuMPHS FoR FouRtH YEAR IN A RoW



The eight regular contenders in this thrilling stadium-set discipline once more favoured the current force in World Trial with four of the collective heralding from Spain. Winner in 2007, 2008 and 2009 Bou would be challenged by Albert Cabestany (Sherco), former multi number one Adam Raga (Gas Gas) and Jeroni Fajardo (Beta).

Trial legend Dougie Lampkin may have moved onto other projects with his Extreme Enduro dalliances and focussing purely on the Outdoor contest, but the UK was aptly represented by James Dabill (Gas Gas), whose results over the five rounds would indicate an excellent rate of progression for the 24 year old. Staple member of the troupe, Takahisa Fujinami (Montesa Honda), would be trying to exert some disruption amongst the Spanish quartet, while 2009 Junior World Champ Alexz Wigg (GRB, Beta) and Loris Gubian (FRA, Gas Gas) were able to digest the didactic worth of the skills and mastery of the numerous winners ahead of them.

The World Championship was enacted over five events, visiting Great Britain, France and Spain, with the first occurring in something of a Mecca for Indoor Trial; the Sheffield Arena in the north of England. Previously a fortress for Lampkin, Bou is now laying claim to UK shores and with his mighty clear in the final stage of the elimination process – while Cabestany, Dabill and Raga all failed - the Catalan had his second British win in succession. Dabill’s surprise 3rd position in front of his home crowd (shocking the ‘Armada’ at the first attempt) meant that the series began with an interesting twist and a vibrant atmosphere.

THERE WERE T WO CONCRETE FACTORS

APPROACHING THE BEGINNING OF THE 2010

SPEA FIM INDOOR TRIAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

BACK IN JANUARY. FIRSTLY THAT 23 YEAR OLD

TRIPLE FIM WORLD CHAMPION TONI BOU ON

THE REPSOL MONTESA HONDA WOULD

CERTAINLY BE THE MAN TO BEAT AND SECONDLY

THE ANTICIPATION OF A NEW FORMAT FOR THE

EVENING EVENTS WOULD CRANK-UP THE

DRAMA OF THE TRIAL, WITH ELIMINATION

STAGES NARROWING THE ROOM FOR ERRORS

FROM THE MAIN PARTICIPANTS.




Two weeks later in Marseille Cabestany – riding a new Sherco model that had reverted back to two-stroke engine technology – threw his cap into the ring and usurped Bou. The veteran, under pressure, had to clear the last water section to seize victory from his countryman and duly performed. Bou saw a costly dab across the damp boulders bump him to second on the podium as Spanish might was reawakened in France with Raga (now fully fit and beginning to find form after his knee injury sustained during 2009) and Fajardo filling the first four positions.

As ever, the obstacles and sections of the Indoor circuits were proving to be tough riding tests for these peerless athletes. The combination of naturally themed ‘landscapes’ with rocks and tree trunks were offset by harshly-scaled blocks and shapes that often meant fierce step-up leaps and only centimetres of manoeuvring room while poised higher than 5-6m above the ground. The elimination rounds through semi-final and Last Chance sessions into a four rider Final increased the urgency and intensity of the Trial in the formative stages.

The participants had to hit their marks right from the ‘go’ or a podium shot would elude them. At round three in Barcelona, just one week after Marseille, Cabestany could not stretch his momentum. It was not only the riders of the Enduro World Cup that were spinning a lap around the Trial zone at the Palau Sant Jordi in the Catalan metropolis as Bou also had his rivals running in circles and getting dizzy with his continuous displays of determination and precision.

The authentic home GP for the Spanish quartet fell into the hands of Bou as he gained the upper-hand on Cabestany, and Dabill again gave Adam Raga plenty of food of thought as he aced his second podium of the season. The former champion was left cursing his luck after a broken swing-arm ended his night and any slim hope of interfering in the title dispute now locked between Cabestany and Bou. Toni was tremendous in Barcelona, dropping only six marks in a competition that must rank as the hardest of the campaign, especially considering the dirty state of the sections in the wake of the mud and dust thrown-up by the activities of the Enduro racers.

Adam Raga, Madrid Round 4.///

James Dabill, Madrid Round 4./// Jeroni Fajardo, Barcelona Round 3.///



Barcelona would be the first of three Spanish events in the run-in to the championship climax. The capital city and the Palacio de Deportes de la Comunidad de Madrid housed a more spacious lay-out for round four and it was here that Bou really placed one hand on the 2010 championship. After Repsol Honda MotoGP rider Dani Pedrosa had whistled around the stadium on a Trial machine to demonstrate the popularity and reach of the sport on the Iberian Peninsula, it was down to business.

Instead of watching the figure of Cabestany, Bou had to keep an eye on the re-invigorated Raga who pushed the number one entering the Final stage. Bou had taken a slight advantage with 2 marks on the large concrete pipes as the others all picked-up 5 marks for non-completion. Earning his third win of the year from Raga and Cabestany, Bou could afford to be a little conservative for the final meeting.The splendid Mediterranean island of Mallorca and its capital Palma de Mallorca was the setting for an impressive curtain-closing spectacle of 2010. With 20 points now awarded to the winner and

Bou carrying an advantage of 13 over Cabestany there was little the 2009 vice-champion could hope for, unless severe misfortune were to strike the Montesa-Honda pilot.

Cabestany tried gamely to keep pace but Bou was six marks the better in the Final as Jeroni Fajardo beat James Dabill to notch his first rostrum celebration of the year. Out-of-sorts Raga did not make the cut once more, but held onto third place in the final championship standings by just one point from Dabill.

The 2010 SPEA FIM Indoor Trial Championship was once again all about Bou, simply the most powerful figure in the Trial World today.

by Jake Miller

Madrid Arena./// Albert Cabestany, Palma de Mallorca Round 5 .///

The 2010 SPEA FIM Indoor Trial Championship was once again all about Bou, simply the most powerful figure in the Trial World today!.///




toNI Bou

Fresh from winning his fourth successive SPEA FIM Indoor Trial World Championship, twenty-three year old Toni Bou – Repsol Montesa was suitably delighted about his latest achievement. “It feels good now that I have the title and that the pressure has gone. Although I knew I only had to finish fourth to win the championship, with the new system it is very easy to be out of the final without making too many mistakes.”

Bou continued with a large smile on his face. “All season I have felt confident with my riding and I have had a very good feeling with the bike. I have worked hard and so have my team for this moment so I am happy both for myself and also for them too. Overall the season has gone almost perfectly, we had a small problem with the engine in Marseille, but anyway that was a difficult Trial to win as Albert (Cabestany) rode so well there again.”

“I can’t say this title feels the same as the first title, as that was a special moment in my life and one that I will never repeat again. This title feels different, but still very good. I want to enjoy the victory, but already I know I must begin to work again, as I have the start of the outdoor championship coming very soon.” Ended Toni.

by Jake Miller

2010 SPEA FIM INDooR tRIAL WoRLD CHAMPIoNSHIP

StANDINGS

1. Toni Bou - 95;

2. Albert Cabestany - 77;

3. Adam Raga - 45;

4. James Dabill - 44;

5. Jeroni Fajardo - 42;

6. Takahisa Fujinami - 29;

7. Loris Gubian - 15;

8. Alexz Wigg - 14;

9. Dougie Lampkin - 5;

10. Alfredo Gomez - 4;

11. Michael Brown - 3;

12. Alexandre Ferrer - 1.



FIM WoMEN RIDE CAMPAIGN

MARKEtING/CoMMuNICAtIoNS NEWS

LAIA SANZIt IS So tECHNICAL!

LESLIE PORTERFIELD (FIM

S P E E D W O R L D R ECO R D

HOLDER), LIVIA LANCELOT (FIM

WMX WORLD CHAMPION) AND

LAIA SANZ (FIM WOMEN’S

TRIAL WORLD CHAMPION)

HAVE ALL PARTICIPATED IN

THE FIM “ WOMEN RIDE”

CAMPAIGN FOR PROMOTING

WOMEN IN MOTORCYCLING.

TODAY LAIA SANZ TELLS US

ABOUT HER PASSION ABOUT

TRIAL!

FIM: As a kid you were you into Barbies or motorcycling ?

Laia Sanz: I’ve never had any ‘Barbie’ dolls. I preferred to play outdoor games, active games such as riding my bike. I was very active when I was a young girl.

FIM: When did you discover the motorcycle world? At what age did you start racing? Did you get your passion from somebody else; can you explain to us how it all started for you?

L.S.: When I was 4 I was used to watch my brother and my father practicing Trial with friends, I really enjoyed it. I think they transmitted their passion for this sport to me. I started to ride Trial bikes at the age of 7 and I immediately enjoyed it!

FIM: Are the bikes identical for both female and male riders. From a physical point of view, how do you deal with this?

What kind of training are you doing?

L.S.: Well, actually the motorcycles are the same for both female and male riders in Trial. This discipline is very technical and agility is more important than strength, so this is an advantage for girls. On the other hand, Trial is very demanding physically which is an advantage for the boys. Being a professional rider, my training is crucial for being as fit as possible and to achieve good results, so I train a lot. For me the best way of training is to spend hours on my Trial bike to improve my physical condition and my techniques. It is the only way to be good at Trial and again as a professional my target is to win races!

FIM: What do you say to people who think that motorcycling is not for girls?

L.S.: Well, I will tell them that they are wrong. I really think that most sports are accessible to girls, Trial in particular because

the most important skill for a Trial rider is agility, which is a female quality! Trial is for everybody!

FIM: Did you choose this sport for passion only or because it is even more challenging to compete against male riders because it is mostly a man’s world isn’t it?

L.S.: Passion with no doubt, I like Trial very much! I first started Trial for fun and I enjoyed it so much that I decided to become a professional rider.

FIM: Have you already experienced racing in any other motorcycle sport?

L.S.: Yes, I tried Enduro. I have an Enduro bike that I sometimes use in my training programme. I took part in an Indoor Enduro race in “San Jordi”, and uring last winter, I spend some time in Morocco and I tried Enduro in the dunes.

The view of Women in motorcycling has changed. People can see that women can be good performers, but also real women, attractive and feminine!.///

/// FIM INSIDE


FIM: Have you ever ridden a MotoGP bike?

L.S.: Yes, in Valencia during the MotoGP weekend Repsol and Honda gave Toni Bou and myself the chance to ride Dany Pedrosa’s bike. It was a great experience and a nice way to reward both of us after the season.

FIM: Have you ever sustained any serious injuries? How did you recuperate and what keeps you riding!

L.S.: I have been quite lucky so far and also Trial is a ‘safe’ sport. Not so many falls. During a race in Scotland I hurt one of my knees. The tendon was damaged and even if I couldn’t perform fully for almost 18 months I was still able to participate in the races. The best way to recuperate is to train and keep training and now I am fine. This is very hard, a lot of sacrifices! What keeps me riding? Passion!

FIM: Is it a “plus” to be a woman in the motorcycle world today?

L.S.: It’s quite new for people to see women in motorcycle racing so they notice you more easily and pay attention to you. So this will hopefully help me to find more sponsors!

FIM: Do you think that the view of Women in motorcycling has changed over in recent years?

L.S.: Yes, I think so. A few years ago, people thought that the women riding bikes looked more like boys than girls. Year after year the mentality is changing. They can see that we can be good performers, but also real women, attractive and feminine! The proof is that the woman’s market is growing little by little thanks to the women who like me are riding motorcycles. It seems that we are one of the new targets for the motorcycle industry.

The FIM Women Ride campaign is promoted through the FIM Communication Platform (FIM-LIVE.COM, the FIM Magazine Ride With Us!, FIM YouTube Channel, the FIM TV Magazine – FIM Moto Show) and official Championship programmes. If you need more information about the campaign please contact Isabelle Larivière at [email protected].

by Isabelle Larivière

During the MotoGP weekend in Valencia, Repsol and Honda gave Toni Bou and myself the chance to ride Dany Pedrosa’s bike, it was a great experience! .///


FIM INSIDE ///


LEt It SNoW!oR “SNoWSCootERS FoR DuMMIES”

Snowmobiles were originally intended as winter utility vehicles to be used in the snow or on ice, far away from the roads or the trails. They are not the result of the work of any inventor in particular but rather the fruit of a process of advances in engines for the propulsion of vehicles and supporting devices over snow and ice. The word “mobile” indicates a clear link with the automobile. However, an open two seater “moto-bob” appeared already as early as in 1914. It was based upon an Indian motorcycle. A first practical snowmobile was built around 1955 by “Hetteen Hoist & Derrick Co”. Don’t know them? Does the name “Polaris” sound familiar?

The first modern, open cockpit, one or two-person snowscooter appeared around 1960. It was called the “Ski-doo” (another classic) and was the “brainchild” of yet another big name on the snow scene: Bombardier. And that was the start of what we might call a “manufacturer boom” which saw them copying each other and improving the product individually. At on point in time, there were over a hundred different manufacturers with a with a peak sale of 500’000 units in 1971 which has never been equalled ever since. But the fuel crisis of 1973, bankruptcies, succeeding recessions or the selling of smaller companies to bigger contenders have reduced the number to the big four: BRP (Bombardier Recreational Products), Arctic Cat, Polaris, Yamaha and smaller specialised companies such as AD Boivin (Snow Hawk) or Alpina Snowmobiles.

Snowscooters are largely used to travel or for leisure activities in arctic zones or those parts of North America where the snow cover is stable during the winter.

In Northern Europe, snowscooters are gaining in popularity but their environmental impact is in debate. First there are the emissions. A vast majority of the snowscooter available on the market have 2-strokes engines although some manufacturers have 4-strokes in their range and less polluting/”clean 2-strokes” are currently being developed. Then there are the sound levels. In Quebec, sound levels have to be 78dB/A or less at 20 metres from the snowscooter path. “Silent track technology” to reduce the mechanical sound and tracks have been developed and are already standard on some production

models. Another topic is the damage snowscooter tracks cause to the terrain around heavily used paths. Where have we heard all this before? Yes, motorcycles and snowscooters are battling the same demons.

This is a far as the product goes, now for the competition. Just like those magnificent men in their flying machines, the “snowmobilers” had the competition in their veins (or must we say sleds). The first snowmobile races go back to 1926 and counted 104 participants. And since then, it never stopped. The USA, Canada, Russia and the whole Scandinavia

REMEMBER THE MOVIE “THOSE MAGNIFICENT MEN IN THEIR FLYING MACHINES”? WOULD YOU

BELIEVE THAT THE STORY OF THE “SNOWMOBILE” OR WHAT HAS NOW BECOME THE

“SNOWSCOOTER” GOES BACK TO THAT ERA (MID 20IES) OR EVEN AS FAR AS THE EARLY 1900S.

IT MAY NOT

Riders lined up for 3 races awarding FIM World Championship points.///

/// PADDoCK


are snowcross competition havens. Strange enough, it lasted until 1992 before snowmobiles made their entry on the FIM scene, first as a European Championship with an upgrade to World Championship status as of 2004. One explanation could be that the official snowcross bodies in some major snowscooting countries are not the same as the ones representing the FIM in that same country (USA and Canada for example).

The number of events and the competition format changed throughout the years but it seems that this year’s concept may be the best compromise. The FIM Snowcross World Championship was organised in Mala/Sweden after all national and classic events had been run. It paid off because top North-American riders also made the trip. Riders lined up for 3 races awarding FIM World Championship points. In front of 10’000 spectators who braved

the cold, the “number 1” on the North American scene, Tucker Hibbert, took home the FIM Snowcross World Title. The flamboyant American won 2 out of 3 races and took one second place. The silver and bronze medals went respectively went to Johan Lidman/Sweden and Cory Davis/USA. All three were racing Artic Cats.

Referring to the first phrase of this article concerning the “wonderful men”, there are still some other snowscooter activities: drag racing, hill climbing, freestyle all of them in snow or on grass. Finally, there is the “pimp your sled” or the customising which often results in the creation of the “muscle sled”…

by Dirk De Neve

Snowscooters are largely used to travel or for leisure activities where the snow cover

is stable during the winter.///

In front of 10’000 spectators, Tucker Hibberttook the 2010 FIM Snowcross World Title. ///


PADDoCK ///


THE HISTORY OF MOTOCROSS

BEGINS IN THE EARLY 20TH

CENTURY WHEN THE FIRST

EVENTS TOOK PLACE IN GREAT

BRITAIN, SPECIFICALLY DURING

THE 20S WHEN THE FIRST

“SCRAMBLES” WERE HELD,

DIFFERENT FROM THE TRIALS

(OBSTACLE CROSSING) AND

RELIABILITY: THE IDEA WAS

OFF-ROAD SPEEDING, AND THE

WINNER WA S THE FIR ST

CROSSING THE FINISH LINE...

HIStoRY oF INDIvIDuAL MotoCRoSS WoRLD CHAMPIoNSHIPS

The first known event was held in Surrey in 1924. The name Motocross, mixture of motorcycle and cross-country, from Belgian origin, would come up later.Once the Second World War ended the sport started to grow from a national to an international level with the very first team event known as Motocross des Nations, raced with 500cc machines and taking place in 1947 in the Netherlands. Although the Belgian rider Auguste Mingels was the individual winner, the team classification prevailed and Great Britain claimed the first Trophy. From then on this special event was

held regularly every year.In the early 50s, Individual Motocross racing started to grow fast, with many events held in various countries. This led the FIM to introduce a European Championship in 1952. The subject had been studied for a couple of years; the Belgian Federation made the first proposal at the Milan Congress at the end of November 1950. After a long discussion it was decided to …postpone the decision to the following year in Paris. It was then decided that four races would count towards the Championship, no manufacturer classification (only as of 1969), the minimum length of the race should be 40 km if there was qualification session, and 45 km if there was not any. The maximum cubic capacity was 500cc.

The series counted with events in Imola (Italy), Dodington Park (Great Britain), Namur (Belgium), Ettelbruck (Luxembourg), Saxtorp (Sweden) and Montreuil (France). The four best results were taken into account. Each event counted two heats and a final, the classification followed the same points scale as in Road Racing (8, 6, 4, 3, 2, 1). The winner was Belgian Victor Leloup riding a FN machine. He was followed by fellow countryman Auguste Mingels, British rider John Avery and two more Belgians, Marcel Cox and Nic Jansen. Worth to be noted, some reports mention at the British round the presence of an American rider, a certain Bud Ekins…

The beginning of the Belgian legacy: Victor Leloup won the first ever 500cc European Motocross Championship in

1952, riding a FN. ///

/// vINtAGE


1957 winner of the first Motocross World Championship was Swedish Bill Nilsson riding an AJS. It was announcing a period during which three nations would dominate Motocross: Great Britain, Belgium and Sweden. The first European Cup for 250cc motorcycles was created to match the popularity of this upcoming discipline. This Cup lasted only two years, the first one won by German rider Fritz Betzelbacher (Maïco) and the second by Czech Jaromir Cizek (Jawa) before becoming a European Championship in 1959. The Belgian rider René Baeten (FN) finally won the 500cc World Championship in 1958 after finishing second twice. The Swedish riders - riding Swedish made motorcycles - clinched both individual titles in 1959: Sten Lundin on a Monark in the 500cc, and Rolf Tibblin on a Husqvarna in the 250cc. In 1960, Bill Nilsson (Husqvarna) was back at the top in the 500cc while in the 250cc Dave Bickers took the two stroke Greeves to victory. – which he did again in 1961, while Sten Lundin, this time on a Lito (also a Swedish motorcycle) took back the 500cc World title. In this year 1961 was held the first Trophée des Nations (with 250cc machines), and in 1962 the 250cc Series became a World Championship. The first 250cc World Champion was the legendary Husqvarna rider Torsten Hallman – another Swede. He won the title for two consecutive years, while his fellow countryman Rolf Tibblin was taking both 500cc titles, also riding a Husqvarna. Great Britain saved the Trophée des Nations in 62 and the Motocross des Nations in 63 from the Swedish dominance. But in 1964 things changed. An upcoming talent on the Motocross scenery suddenly hit the records: Joel Robert from Belgium steered his CZ to victory collecting the first of six titles - a record which would

remain unbeaten until 2002. In the 500cc the last British reaction came up thanks to Jeff Smith and his BSA clinching the title in 64 – taking the title from Tibblin at the very last race - and 65 – ahead of a certain Paul Friedrichs who was about to make himself known - but it was the swan song for representatives of a declining empire. The British 4-stroke, heavy machines, originally made for the road, were about to give way definitely – and the riders too.

Auguste Mingels won this European Championship in 1953 and 1954, also riding a Belgian FN motorcycle. The number of rounds went from 6 to 8 (five counting). Another Belgian, René Baeten, f inished second in both years. British riders were expected to fight for this title, as they were dominating the Motocross des Nations, for example John Draper and Leslie Archer. But another country was also reaching the top in Motocross – in both individual and team – at that time: Sweden. Bill Nilsson won his first Motocross in 1954 in his own country. In 1955 it was the turn of John Draper to clinch the title, riding a BSA, with only two wins but a constant regular performance. He was followed by Leslie Archer (Norton), winner of four out of nine GPs of 1956, ahead of John Draper and Nic Jansen, followed by two Swedes, Sten Lundin and Bill Nilsson. At the end of the season, the FIM decided to upgrade this 500cc Championship from European to World status, and to create a European Cup for the 250cc class in the following year.

FRoM EuRoPEAN to WoRLD CHAMPIoNSHIP

Runner-up behind his country-man Auguste Mingels in 1953 and 1954 and behind Swede Bill NIlsson in 1957, Belgian René Baeten finally clinched the Motocross World Championship crown in 1958.///

Swedish riders were on top of the game since the late 50s. Torsten Hallman won four 250cc World titles (1962, 1963, 1966 and 1967), all on Husqvarna.///


vINtAGE ///


Politically the mid-sixties were the edge of the Cold War, and in the sport there was also a kind of confrontation for prestige between sportsmen from the Western and Eastern countries. The first one to get an Eastern country flag on the top was a Russian rider – or Soviet, as they called themselves until 1989. Viktor Arbekov, onboard a factory CZ, won the series, which was quite a surprise against Joel Robert and Dave Bickers. Then Torsten Hallman struck back twice in a row and got the 66 and 67 titles just ahead of Joel Robert. But time for the Belgian was coming… Robert would win five consecutive 250cc World Titles from 1968 until 1972, the year of birth of his countryman Stefan Everts, the man who would break all the records 30 years later. Robert’s dominance was total until 1972, exactly as the one of Giacomo Agostini at

the same time, in the Road Racing Grand Prix…In the 500cc, the East German Paul Friedrichs, also CZ factory rider, would conquer three consecutive titles (66, 67 and 68). Another Belgian was showing up at the horizon who would also become a world-known figure until today: Roger de Coster.

In 1968, Swedish rider Olle Petterson was the first one to use a new machine in the World Championship from a new country in the 250cc class. After having invaded the Road Racing Grand Prix, the Japanese manufacturers were preparing their landing in Motocross: Suzuki, which had been preceded by Honda and Yamaha in Road Racing, was the first one to enter the scene. Petterson’s best results were two second places, in Belgium behind Sylvain Geboers, and in the Netherlands behind Joel

Robert. It was the first signal of an invasion. In 1969 Petterson was also the only one in the 250cc and finished third behind Joel Robert and Sylvain Geboers – both still on factory CZ. But it was the turning point. In 1970 there were three yellow bikes in the 250cc – Joel Robert was the first Motocross World Champion on a Japanese motorcycle, Sylvain Geboers was second, they had four victories each. Roger de Coster still on a CZ, finished third ahead of the Finn Heikki Mikkola riding a Husqvarna. The third Suzuki, serving as testing machine in the hands of Petterson, finished in seventh place. In the 500cc, the Swedes – riders and machines – still dominated: Aberg won his second title ahead of Kring and Jonsson, Hammargren was fifth, all on Husqvarna, of course.

Belgian Joel Robert won his f i r s t 2 5 0 c c Wo r l d Championship in 1964 at the then incredible young age of 20. He then added f ive more in a row from 1968 to 1972. He was the first rider to win a Motocross World title for a Japanese manufacturer (Suzuki - 1970). His record six World titles stood fort many years, beate n onl y by Stef an

Everts in 2003. ///

/// vINtAGE


East German rider Paul Friedrichs dominated the 500cc class with his CZ from 1966 to 1968. Two -s troke engine s would rule the class until 1993. ///

In the 250cc class, Joel Robert took two more World titles with his common facility – both times ahead of Hakan Andersson and Sylvain Geboers. In August 1972, after four consecutive wins which ensured the title for him, he took part in the 500cc Belgian Grand Prix in Namur, and bended his knee. It was the end of a brilliant career, Joel would not win anymore races nor titles as a rider. Many years later he would be team manager of a Belgian team back to the top in the Motocross des Nations, but this is another story.

The 500cc Suzuki would come in 1971 in the hands of Roger de Coster, who would clinch the first of his five titles…a Series only interrupted in 1974 by the “Flying Finn” Heikki Mikkola and his Husqvarna. In 71, the runner-up, and strongest opponent, was Ake Jonsson on the Husqvarna, but in 1972 De Coster finished a long way ahead of veteran Paul Friedrichs still on a CZ. The first Yamaha was on the track, the rider was another Belgian, the tal l Jaak Van Velthoven.

In 1973, there were some changes in the rules, particularly the introduction of minimum weights for the motorcycles and the two heats counting points towards the Championship – no longer one result only. In the 500cc, Roger de Coster still was the only one riding a Suzuki for his third title, while Yamaha gave out big bore motorcycles to various riders, such as the Husqvarna, Maïco, CZ brands did. One Kawasaki appears also in the classif ication in the hands of a certain Brad Lackey.


vINtAGE ///


In 1975 the two other titles also went to Belgian riders. Roger de Coster got his 500cc title back and the 250cc title finally went to Harry Everts, riding a Puch, ahead of Andersson’s Yamaha. As Heikki Mikkola failed in his second try to get the 500cc title, he went back to the 250cc class in 1976 and beat Moisseev, while in the 500cc De Coster and Wolsink finished first and second, the Belgian beating the Dutch by a few points. The following year, Mikkola went back again to the 500cc and this time, riding a Yamaha, managed to beat De Coster and Wolsink. In fourth place appeared Brad Lackey riding a Honda…In the 250cc Guennady Moisseev clinched his second title, this time without any discussion, ahead of Kavinov and Malherbe. It was a triple KTM. In 1978, Moisseeev made it again and took his third 250cc World title, at the end of a long battle against Thorleif Hansen. At the United States Grand Prix, the local riders started to win regularly, the American motocross was in progress. In the 500cc class, Mikkola clinched his third title way ahead of Lackey and De Coster.The 1979 season came next. In the 250cc, the Swede Hakan Carlqvist took the title on a Husqvarna while in the 500cc Honda finally arrived with big means: Graham Noyce and André Malherbe were factory riders in charge of capturing the title, facing Wolsink and De Coster (Suzuki), Lackey (Kawasaki) and Mikkola (Yamaha). A winning bet: Noyce won the title but the battle was hard. The 500cc class was attracting the attention of everyone, the factories were investing more and more, but for how much time?

In the 250cc, Yamaha struck back with its YZ 250 equipped with the Cantilever rear suspension, which the Swede Hakan Andersson took to its first title. German Adolf Weil, riding a Maïco, was the strongest opponent, even beating Mikkola for second place. Swede Thorleif Hansen took his new Kawasaki to fourth place, ahead of a trio of riders who would become known for different reasons: Soviet rider Guennady Moissev (KTM), Czech rider Jaroslav Falta (CZ) and US rider Jim Pomeroy (Bultaco).

In 1974 Heikki Mikkola went to the 500cc class and succeeded: in the first three Grand Prix, he won five heats against one only for Roger de Coster. The Finn would maintain his advantage until the end. A second Suzuki finally arrived, for the Dutch rider Gerrit Wolsink who finished in fourth, behind Adolf Weil. In the 250cc, the fight between Moisseev, Falta and Harry Everts ends with the title going to the Russian, as Falta was penalised with one minute after the finish of the second race of the last Grand Prix for a jumped start.

In 1973, the 125cc class was launched as a European Championship which was won for two consecutive years by Belgian André Malherbe on a Zündapp. In 1975 it became a World Championship, which was kind of an exclusive Championship for Suzuki and in which almost all riders’ titles were for Belgians. By doing so, Suzuki became the first manufacturer to ever claim a title in all three classes and clinched ten consecutive titles in the 125cc. The first three went to Gaston Rahier, one to the Japanese Akira Watanabe, three to Harry Everts – the last one in 1981, two to Eric Geboers and one to Michele Rinaldi until finally the Finn Pekka Vehkonen reached the title riding a Cagiva in 1985.

The "Iron Men from Europe": 2 legends from the 70s: Belgian Roger De Coster (right) won five 500cc World Championships (71, 72, 73, 75 and 76), but had to fight hard against the “Flying Finn” Heikki Mikkola (left), who grabbed the 500cc Motocross crown in 1974, 77 and 78. The Finn also won the 250cc World title

in 1976 and was the first rider to win titles in two classes.. ///

Motocross started to grow in America at the end of the 60s, and develop very quickly. In the 70s, Brad Lackey was one of the first US riders to make the jump to the World Championship. He won the 500cc title in 1982. ///

/// vINtAGE


Motocross was developing very quickly, the manufacturers were heavily present, not only in the 500cc but also in the other classes, mainly Suzuki. Malherbe (80, 81 and 84), Lackey (82), Carlqvist (83) won titles which appear today of gold but past time.

However, in the 250cc, a young Georges Jobé took the title in 1980. Everybody was foreseeing a great future, but injuries made him lose the 1981 title against Brit Neil Hudson and the 1982 one against American Danny Laporte – who was the first American World Champion, one week before Brad Lackey in the 500cc class. In 1983 Jobé took the 250 title back and went to the 500cc. End 1983, an earthquake shook the world of Motocross: Suzuki announced its withdrawal from the 500cc and the other companies reduced their budget. The best riders managed to find a new ride, but the trend was on. The British Dave Thorpe came to complete a big Honda team. Between 1985 and 1992, it claimed all 500cc World titles: Thorpe and Georges Jobé each earned three. Eric Geboers won another two, and he was the first rider to become World Champion in the three solo classes, after his title in the 250cc in 1987: he was then called Mr 875. Then the Austrian Heinz Kinigadner took the 250cc title for KTM twice, in 84 and 85, followed by French Jacky Vimond, Eric Geboers whom we just mentioned, John Van de Berk and Jean-Michel Bayle, both respectively 250cc Champions after a title in the125cc. American riders Trampas Parker and Donnie Schmitt followed in the 125cc, then in the 250cc, and the Italian Alessandro Puzar in the 250cc then in 1995 the 125cc after Dutch Pedro Tragter and American Bob Moore.

EIGHtIES: tHE tuRNING PoINt

But at the beginning of the 90s the 500cc class was declining more and more. The manufacturers concentrated their (reduced) investments in the 250cc class (except maybe the Europeans). And the 250cc became the top class: all the first riders in the classification were riders supported by the factories.

The 90s in the world of Motocross started with the first title in the career of Stefan Everts, in the 125cc class in 1991. He was followed by South African Greg Albertyn who took one 125cc and two 250cc World Titles. T h e n Ste f a n Eve r t s started his series of titles in the 250cc by winning three consecutive times (95, 96 and 97). French rider Sebastien Tortelli also passed by the 125cc World Championship, which he won in 1996, before winning in 250cc i n 1 9 9 8 . F e l l o w countr yman Freder ic Bol ley succeeded to

Tortelli in 1999 and 2000 winning two consecutive 250cc titles. The French riders were in good form as Mickael Pichon took the next two titles in the 250cc class, in 2001 and 2002, while Italian Alessio “Chicco” Chiodi dominated the 125cc Championship for three consecutive years from 1997 until 1999, then followed as of

2000 by South African Grant Langston, British Jamie Dobb and Frenchman Mickael Maschio.

With the lack of interest from the Japanese manufacturers in the 500cc class, it was time for European brands to take over: Jacky Martens was the first one winning a 500cc title riding a 4 stroke

machine (Husqvarna) since Jeff Smith on his BSA in 1964. In this class, with the exceptions of Marcus Hansson in 94 – first Swede to become 500cc World Champion since Aberg – on a Honda and New-Zealander Shayne King in 96 on a KTM – all World Champions would be riding a 4 stroke machines. This would also be the case in the 250cc and 125cc as from 2003. In the bigger class came Smets (three titles on a Husaberg and two on a KTM), Bartolini (one) and Everts (two) on a Yamaha until 2003.

Two Belgian riders who put their marks on the Motocross scene of the 80s : the f lamboyant André Malherbe (left), who won the f irst two 125cc European Championships in 1973 and 74 and ragged up the 500cc title in 1980, 1981 and 1984 and stubborn Georges Jobé (right) who won the 250cc titles in 1980 and

1983, and the 500cc in 1987, 1991 and 1992. ///

The 125cc class became a World Championship in 1975 and was dominated by Suzuki and the Belgian riders for almost ten years. Greg Albertyn (n° 10 on the left) was the first South African rider to win a Motocross title (125cc in 1992; 250cc in 1993 and 1994).

Also on this 1992 photo: French rider Yves Demaria (n° 4 who would be MX3 World Champion many years later 2004, '06, '07), Dutchmen Pedro Tragter (n° 3, 125cc Champ in 1993) and John Van de Berk (n° 92, 125cc and 250cc Champion respectively in 1987 and 1988). ///


vINtAGE ///


Life is a series of moments—nothing more, nothing less. At every instant we all have the choice: Seize the moment and let your spirit soar, or let it pass. If you ride a GSX-R1000, it’s clear where your heart is pointed: the ultimate experience, and the taste of victory that accompanies it. Introducing the next generation of the top-performing sportbike. With superlative power, a lighter, more compact chassis, and more responsive suspension. Every moment from here on is more distance between yourself and every would-be competitor.

Victory is fleeting, but all so majestic.

2003 was the first time in the history of Motocross World Championship that all three classes had World Champions riding 4-stroke machines. In 2004 the classes were then renamed. The 125cc was called MX2, as most machines were 250cc 4-stroke bikes - 2-stroke 125cc were still allowed. The 250cc class was renamed MX1 hosting 450cc four stroke machines beside 250cc 2-stroke, as the former 500cc class became an open class, the MX3 – with the cubic capacity limited to 650cc.

This decade, though, will be remembered for the dominance of Stefan Everts. After two seasons that had been ruined by injuries, the Belgian clinched four consecutive titles in the MX1 class from 2003 to 2006 and took his 10th World title and his 101st GP victory in that last year of professional racing before retiring and becoming Team Manager for the factory KTM Motocross Team. After two years the Belgian celebrated the first World title as a team manager with Tyla Rat tray winning the MX 2 World Championship in 2008.

The last three seasons in the MX1 saw Steve Ramon, David Philippaerts and Antonio Cairoli as new World Champions. In the MX2 the names of Ben Townley, Antonio Cairoli (twice), Christophe Pourcel, Tyla Rattray and Marvin Musquin are on the list of Champions, while in the MX3 Yves Demaria (three times), Sven Breugelmans (two) and Pierre-Alexandre Renêt complete the list of World Champions.

Last but not least, it is almost 100 years after the origins of such an established sport as Motocross which has now included a Women’s World Championship in 2008 with the first Women’s World Champion being French Livia Lancelot, succeeded by German Stephanie Laier. This series started in 2005 as World Cup (winners were Stephanie Laier in 2005 and Katherine Prumm in 2006 and 2007) to be promoted to the World Championship status in 2008. Moreover a Veterans’ World Cup has been created in 2006.

by Marc Pétrier

FouR StRoKE ENGINES tAKE ovER

Although the first rider to have won titles in the three classes is Eric Geboers, Stefan Everts won one title in the 125cc class (91), three in the 250cc (95, 96, 97), then added two in the 500cc (2001 and 2002), followed by another four in the 250/MX1 (2003 – 2006). Record holder of a total of 10 World titles and 101 GP wins, he is the man of all Motocross World records. And if we add the four titles of his father Harry (one in the 250cc/'75 and three in the 125cc/'79, '80, '81), there are 14 World titles in the family… Oh, the i r nat ional i t y? As George Clooney would say: "From Belgium, where else?". ///

/// vINtAGE


Life is a series of moments—nothing more, nothing less. At every instant we all have the choice: Seize the moment and let your spirit soar, or let it pass. If you ride a GSX-R1000, it’s clear where your heart is pointed: the ultimate experience, and the taste of victory that accompanies it. Introducing the next generation of the top-performing sportbike. With superlative power, a lighter, more compact chassis, and more responsive suspension. Every moment from here on is more distance between yourself and every would-be competitor.

Victory is fleeting, but all so majestic.


Caption: Chart comparing the force at the rear wheel produced by an AMA 600cc racebike in each of the six gears (blue lines) and the force provided by the electric motor (solid green line is continuous and dashed green line is maximum)

Photo Credit: Ben Ingram. ///

Chip Yates (USA), licensed AMA Pro, FIM World Supersport & rider of SWIGZ.COM Pro Racing's Electric Superbike.///

ONE AMERICAN TEAM TAKES A LONG

VIEW OF ELECTRIC RACING BY BASING

THEIR POWERTRAIN OF TODAY AROUND

THE BATTERIES OF TOMORROW.

There is something I find irresistible about challenges that seem impossible or conventional wisdom suggests have too much technical risk. After learning about the FIM’s creation of the 2010 FIM e-Power International Championship for electric motorcycles, I convened an ad hoc team of electrical engineers late in 2009 to analyze several approaches to developing a winning powertrain solution. Almost immediately we came to the same conclusion as many others in this burgeoning industry – current battery technology severely lags behind electric motor capability. This situation imparts two choices on the zero emissions entrepreneur, 1) wait for battery technology to catch up, or 2) participate in battery advancement by building the best bike possible today, with an eye on the future.

We chose to accept the shortcomings of lithium batteries (headlined by poor energy density) in the near term, but the racebike we have developed at our California-based SWIGZ.COM Pro Racing headquarters anticipates the continued strong improvement of batteries by its very design. Rather than commit to a bike that will be obsolete by season’s end, we designed a true “superbike”

PuSHING PERFoRMANCE& PACKAGING LIMItSDEvELoPING A SHoRt-CIRCuIt WINNING ELECtRIC SuPERBIKE

/// tECH tALK


Caption: MoTeC Advanced Central Logger (ACL) being programmed at SWIGZ.COM Pro Racing headquarters in Orange County, California - Photo Credit: Chip Yates. ///

platform with a 145 kW liquid-cooled electric motor making 400 Nm torque coupled to a 500 amp liquid-cooled controller that can spin the power plant up to 8,000 RPM. Although this may sound like an indulgent design stance from a horsepower perspective, it came from a combination of what is now affectionately called “Chip’s laptime doctrine” coupled with the subsequent result of much calculation by our MIT engineers to develop a platform we can grow into as battery technology comes to us.

In addition to being the team owner and chief designer, I am also a professional roadracer and I have every intention of continuing my personal improvement as a rider during the course of this electrical venture. So I insisted to the team that our electrical bike surpass the performance delivered by my AMA 600cc internal combustion racebike and this directive led us to develop the bike around delivering a specific laptime at a specific circuit. We started with the onboard data collected during my AMA pro race at Laguna Seca during the 2009 Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix weekend featuring the FIM MotoGP World Championship.

Our program engineers created a complete MATLAB model of our electrical bike’s physical features and after converting and importing our Laguna Seca track data, were able to trade-off numerous AC and DC motor options, with and without a gearbox to s imulate la pt ime s a n d ove r a l l per formance. We chose a 145 kW permanent magnet brushless DC motor costing €18,500 and with enough torque in the right places to obviate the need for any transmission beyond the custom ground jackshaft that gears our motor down to where the f inal drive utilizes standard racing 520 chain and sprockets. The included chart shows our electric motor force at the wheel in green lines (continuous and maximum) overlaid with our AMA 600cc performance in each of its six gears represented in arcing blue lines.

Next we looked at kinetic energy recovery systems (“KERS”) that could package on a 260 kg racebike to ensure a vehicle range of 40 km at full pace. Ultracapacitors and hydraulic launch assist type solutions were discarded for packaging and eff iciency issues, leaving us to create our own innovative and patent pending mechanical KERS arrangement capable of generating consistent peaks of 250 amps in the heavier

braking zones. To make use of all this “free” energy, we set off in search of a battery that could be charged at around 10C without exploding or catching on fire.

And it was this search that led us to appreciate the sore subject of batteries suitable for world championship racing. With America arguably lagging behind the rest of the civil ized world on green initiatives, we found an abundance of overly optimistic spec sheets but precious few legitimate domestic sources of lithium-ion batteries to meet our high performance criteria. What we really want is a top batter y OEM such as LG Chemical , Samsung, Panasonic, or Johnson Controls-Saft to bring their very best technology and custom packaging to our unique racing a p p l i c a t i o n . U n f o r t u n a t e l y, t h e development time from conception to reality was so tight on this program that we had to quickly impose a stop-gap solution in order to get the bike on the racetrack no later than May, 2010 and thereafter our focus will be to improve the battery pack when a suitable OEM partner, such as those firms listed above, comes on line.

With no other option, we placed an order directly with a Chinese manufacturer for


tECH tALK ///


360 cylindrical LiFePO4 lithium-ion batteries rated at 10 Ah and 3.2 Volts DC per cell. Our cells arrived by air freight but not in time for us to enter the f irst FIM e-Power electric race at Le Mans. The disappointment of missing Le Mans was partially offset by the euphoria we felt when the FIM announced a new FIM e-Power race at Laguna Seca (tbc) over the MotoGP weekend of July 24-25, 2010. Not only is Laguna Seca my favorite track, but you will recall that we designed our bike based on Laguna Seca laptime data!

The first thing we did upon receiving our battery order was to subject several sample cells to a tirade of charge and discharge abuse commiserate with a lap at race pace to determine temperature rise and to see if any permanent damage would occur in the form of increased internal resistance. The results were marginally acceptable – the cells exceeded their 10 Ah rating when used according to the manufacturer’s specifications, but since we are pushing the limits through aggressive charge and discharge cycles each lap, the cells are unlikely to be viable af ter a few race weekends. On the positive side, our lap simulation tests revealed no overheating or other hazardous conditions with these cells and our battery pack has a ram air cooling feature to assist with temperature management during race conditions.

With the motor, controller, and battery pack in place, the choice of an electronic control platform became critical because it is where the tables, algorithms, and logic reside to prevent our 400 Nm of torque from generating the ultimate highside with me as the unwitting passenger. We considered systems from AiM Sport, EFI, and Magneti Marelli before settling on MoTeC. Our final analysis was helped along greatly by MoTeC Systems USA West, who came on board as a sponsor and committed

one of their very capable application engineers to our program. We initially planned to use a conventional MoTeC ECU and even purchased the MoTeC 880 ECU and paired it with a digital display called the Sport Dash Logger (SDL) with 8 MB of data storage (which we have since redirected to our FIM World Supersport bike).

After understanding the absolute level of precision control we need to have over the electric motor to make it a potentially

MoTeC Advanced Central Logger (ACL) being programmed at SWIGZ.COM Pro Racing headquarters in Orange County, California - Photo Credit: Chip Yates. ///

145 kW liquid-cooled electric motor undergoing weight reduction procedures at SWIGZ.COM Pro Racing headquarters in Orange County, California - Photo Credit: Chip Yates. ///

/// tECH tALK


championship-winning machine, MoTeC introduced us to their Advanced Central Logger (ACL). Priced at around €6,300 the ACL is used by top racing teams who make use of its 1 GB of data logging, two separate user-configurable CAN network busses, and fast Ethernet download capability. In addition to data acquisition, the ACL’s 30 real-time advanced maths channels and stacks of user-configurable tables are being deployed to completely control all of the complex and disparate systems on our bike

as if they were one, making it our de facto ECU. We have directed one of the ACL’s CAN busses to talk directly to our motor controller and the other CAN bus to talk to our MoTeC Sport Dash Logger (SDL) digital dashboard and configurable Shift Light Module (SLM), which will convey the status of the battery pack and other critical factors to me during the race. The electric powertrain requires us to log numerous channels of temperature for the battery pack, motor coolant, and controller coolant

loops in addition to a full suite of superbike chassis sensors and inputs totaling 55 pins of data communication.

Taming a 145 kW electric motor with instant torque response to feel as natural and controllable as the motors we motorcyclists are used to on the track is no easy feat. For example, the amount of KERS regenerative braking effect (feels like braking but is actually recharging the batteries) I get at the end of a long straightaway depends on my speed, what the battery pack voltage currently is, what lap I’m on, what my lean angle is, and so on. Likewise, when I want to drive hard out of a corner and I open the throttle to 100%, the ACL will decide whether I should really get the 100% I’ve requested or something less, and it makes that decision based on battery status, lean angle, speed, wheel slip, how long until the race ends, how good a job I’ve done at regenerative braking, etc.

For a less-powerful motor, it would be easier to just put a variable resistor on the throttle and let the rider do his or her best to keep the front wheel down and try to conserve battery power to make it to the finish. Since we have committed to building a proper superbike with a 145 kW motor, we don’t quite have that luxury. I plan to be near the pace of regular gasoline powered racebikes and at those kinds of laptimes, a

500 amp liquid - cooled electric motor controller for the SWIGZ.COM Pro Racing electric superbike (note blue coolant

fittings) - Photo Credit: Chip Yates. ///

145 kW liquid-cooled electric motor undergoing weight reduction procedures at SWIGZ.COM Pro Racing headquarters in Orange County, California - Photo Credit: Chip Yates. ///


tECH tALK ///


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LIVE WORLD MX ON MOTORS TV!

2010 FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

LIVE MX1, MX2 & WOMEN’S MX

For more information:

www.motorstv.com

rider can’t be expected to do everything a regular racer does plus tame 400 Nm of torque while monitoring battery levels and wondering if the bike will finish the race. I do have some ability to make changes during the race such as controls on the handlebar that allow on the fly A/B map switching as well as 12 positions of torque/traction control but for the most part the MoTeC will provide the decision making.

The ultimate output of all our sensor fusion and data processing is the simple sending of a torque command to the electric motor controller. The details behind how we are processing all the salient factors prior to making the torque command decision comprise our “race f inishing software” with the goal of maximizing performance (i.e. winning the race), while minimizing rider discomfort (i.e. not high-siding me by sending 400 Nm to the rear wheel all at once). The logic we employ and the speed at which we process all the data available will bear heavily on our success and, tangentially, should provide meaningful advances in the field of electrical powertrains to OEMs interested in applying race technology.

by Chip Yates

Caption: Block diagram of the electric superbike showing the MoTeC ACL’s dual CAN busses in the center of the action - Photo Credit: Chip Yates (PowerPoint Native File). ///

MoTeC digital Sport Dash Logger (SDL) is customized to show us critical information about the electric motor, controller and battery pack conditions during the race - Photo Credit: MoTeC Pty Ltd (used with permission). ///

/// tECH tALK


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LIVE WORLD MX ON MOTORS TV!

2010 FIM MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

LIVE MX1, MX2 & WOMEN’S MX

For more information:

www.motorstv.com 50 FIM MAGAZINE .72 /// MARCH APRIL 2010

/// GALLERY


JoHNNY AuBERt – PoRtRAItA VERY DISCREET CHAMPION

T W ICE ENDURO WOR LD

CHAMPION, KTM FACTORY

RIDER , JOHNN Y AUBERT

QUIETLY FOLLOWS THE PATH

OF STEPHANE PETERHANSEL.

UNTOUCHABLE IN 2009, HE

TAKES UP THE CHALLENGE TO

CHANGE CLASS IN 2010 AND

T O C O N T E S T T H E E 1

CHAMPIONSHIP RIDING HIS

250CC 4-STROKE KTM.

He has the serene smile of a person who has known concern. There is no mask on Johnny Aubert’s face and his icy-coloured expression shows the heat of a man who has become a champion. From his house he has been renting down in the South of France with his girl-friend Geraldine and their little daughter Emma, he welcomes us without artifice or tricks. No trophy, no picture on the wall glorifying the champion, no expensive toy for a capricious child: this happy dad holds in his strong arms a little girl whom he is feeding from a baby’s bottle. A classic image of a family back together after months on the road and in competition, at the end of an E2 class Enduro season that Johnny dominated for a second consecutive title.

“I heard people saying that my title had no value this year. It looks like it was easy to win because Juha Salminen was on a BMW which was not working.” He is not losing his temper, he does not rebel, he just wonders, but at almost 30 years of age he is used to healing his soul with much care. This allows him to keep the necessary distance with the unfairness of hasty judgments and the lack of acknowledgement which damages confidence. Even that of a world champion. Principally that of a world champion, because Johnny Aubert is not an Enduro World Champion like the others.

“I could have ended badly”

Johnny was born in 1980 into motorcycling. In his family, you don’t live, you ride! Particularly a certain Jean-Jacques Bruno who marked French motocross by being the first Frenchman to win a Grand Prix heat, one year before his nephew little Johnny was born. He would be the boy’s guide when he took part in his first races when he was four years old: “During the race I used to stop to help my pals who had crashed to ride again.” Until the mid 90s, teenager Aubert

gets deep into competition, wins and hopes. “At home no one asked any questions. All this was normal. I dropped school because my career of motocross champion was mapped out.” But then, every individual has his own rhythm. Young Johnny was slower than it seemed. “Motorcycling was never leisure like it was for the other kids who went for a ride after school.” The kid gets burned: bad choices, injuries, headbutts and lack of motivation: the happiness of the early times gives way to hangovers at 20 years of age. In 2005, Johnny is 20 years old and decides to stop his motocross career. “When I looked back there was nobody anymore. I could have ended very badly; luckily there were some people in the shadows who were still watching me”. Lacking glory, victories and money, Johnny learns life and notices something essential missing: self confidence. Fuel would again come from the famous uncle. Jean-Jacques Bruno puts his favourite nephew in contact with an Italian Yamaha team who is running in the World Enduro. “Why me?” Why not? One day’s riding later, and despite a twisted ankle, Johnny goes back home with a two-year contract in his pocket. Doors of providence suddenly open. Would Johnny Aubert have been born in September 2005 in Italy riding a 450cc Enduro Yamaha? 4th in the 2006 Enduro World Championship in the E2 class, third in 2007, World Champion in 2008 with Yamaha and 2009 with KTM, Johnny is in orbit. Everything succeeds for him. Life of a champion, life with his family, at 30 years the kid from Maubeuge makes his way. His own. Not that of a kid trained to lift the trophies on a rostrum, but that of a man who sees further than his horizon of a rider…

“I know I will not do this all my life. For the moment, my family is making a sacrifice for my career”. His girl-friend put her profession aside to be able to follow her man. This travelling life has not always been easy to

GALLERY ///


JoHNNY AuBERt

Born 31 May, 1980 in Maubeuge• 1.83 m / 83 kg• Lives with Geraldine• One son, Ugo, born in 2005, one • daughter Emma, born in 2009

First race in 1984 in Arleux• 1996: Junior French Champion• 1998: 125cc Supercross French • Champion

1999: 125cc Elite French Champion• 2001/2003: 2• nd in the German Motocross Championship

2005: 4• th in the Enduro du Touquet

2006: 4• th in the FIM Enduro World Championship, E2 class

2007: 3• rd in the FIM Enduro World Championship, E2 class

2008 &2009: FIM Enduro World • Champion, E2 class

2010: FIM Enduro World • Championship in the E1 class on a KTM

/// GALLERY


manage; especially since little Emma was born. It is also difficult to have a social life with all these trips, these training sessions and the races at the week-ends. “Our life is pleasant, we travel a lot, we meet a lot of people, but we have few friends and when everything stops, as already happened to me once, there’s nobody left.” So what? “Well, if I find a less dangerous activity tomorrow, which offers an equivalent effective comfort for my family, I will stop. And this will allow Geraldine to take up again the profession she likes. Each one has his turn to be happy.”

Johnny says he rides to be a champion, but he also rides for the money and life’s comfort. “I don’t think I would be able to ride again for nothing. It is a funny profession we have as riders. Considering the risks taken, you need a counterpart. I understand the riders who ride for nothing, because they really want to get there. But I think it is stupid because you rarely get there like that.”

“titles spoil human relationships"

Johnny is like that: straight, honest and terribly frank. “I am not always an easy person to live with. At the beginning of the season, when pressure increases, I am unbearable. I

am aware of this and I don’t like it. I would like this sport to have a less wearing effect”. Johnny does not go around the subject, even if his natural shyness leads him always towards a controlled sympathy. Like a day recently when he received a phone call from Stephane Peterhansel who wanted to congratulate him. “I have a lot of admiration for Stephane, as I do for the riders I saw in the MotoGP paddock in Valencia at the end of the 2009 season. It’s funny because when I was a kid, my father wanted me to do road racing. My thing was motocross. I never

had the opportunity to go on a circuit and I confess I really would like to. But not like JMB because what he did is fabulous. No, just for fun because, among all disciplines, it is the one that makes me dream.“ Johnny is a big fan with this innocence that riders have when they wonder why one can be a fan of their own achievements. “Sometimes it happens that I am riding with people just for fun and they put themselves in impossible situations just because they’re afraid I would be bored by riding with them. This is useless! We’re just riding, not racing. Titles alter human behaviour. I want to have the life of a normal guy. Maybe in ten years I

will miss all this…” Certainly out of decency, we did not talk about the recent death of Tim Potisek, but we mentioned the risks that a rider takes. A rider and twice a dad (Ugo 4 years, Emma 8 months) and twice World Champion. “I wanted this second title. A title means a lot of risks. Moreover, I even stopped winning races in the overall classification during the season. Nothing would be gained by this except taking risks.” And Johnny gets nervous without a louder voice. “And this second title is a reflection of everything I have done in my life: it is normal! I was French Junior Champion at 13 years, this is normal. All the good results, the good performances I made, everything was normal or in spite of…Last year I was told I had won the World title because Salminen broke his bike one day. This year, I have won my second title because Salminen did not have the right motorcycle, etc. I never heard or read that I had deserved a title or a victory. It is not me who is good, it is the others who are bad. It is annoying, but now I am used to it…” Johnny is not bitter and he likes what he does. Nobody gets to the top of the world hierarchy by chance. You need a daily commitment, know how to manage the pressure, never neglect the training sessions, etc. Without doubt these are some of the reasons why he is not riding in the E2 (450cc) class this season, and is attempting the challenge of winning in the E1 class (250cc) with KTM. “It was not easy at first, I did not immediately find my bearings with my new 250. I rode a lot this winter to understand how to use the cubic capacity. It is very different from the 450 with which I was riding without overdoing it. I had to put pressure on myself and I know that this season will probably be more complicated”. The kid who did not really have the choice of riding motorcycle or not has become a man. It is with sport, competition and the motorcycle is with what he grew up and of which he is made. But, as he says himself: “thanks to the motorcycle, the after-motorcycle will be better.

by Eric Malherbe

“At MY PLACE”

After the first two rounds of the FIM Enduro World Championship held in the E1 class, Johnny Aubert stands in second place of the provisional classification behind Antoine Meo. “I am at my place, said the double E2 World Champion. I made a couple of mistakes in the special stages. I am discovering the small cubic capacity class and my riding style is not exactly adapted to the 250cc yet. However, I am quite confident because before the start of the competition, I did not really know where I was compared to my adversaries. To fight for victory in each special stage is a first great satisfaction. To finish in tenth position would have been a great disappointment, but this is not the case”. After the Portuguese round, Johnny Aubert is once winner and three times second in competition, being six points behind the leader Antoine Meo. The duel between both French riders continues and the KTM factory rider is running after his third consecutive World crown, the first one in the E1 class.

GALLERY ///


D I RT Y ?“So much fun”Livia LANCELOTFIM WMX WORLD CHAMPION

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WRide-DirtyC02.pdf 25/02/10 16:23:39


M A Y

09FIM SUPERBIKE & SUPERSPORTWORLD CHAMPIONSHIPMonza ITaLY

FIM SIDECAR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPSchLeIz GeRManY

FIM SUPERSTOCK 1000CC CUPMonza ITaLY

FIM MX1 & MX2 MOTOCROSSWORLD CHAMPIONSHIPaGueda PoRTuGaL

FIM WOMEN'S MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPaGueda PoRTuGaL

15FIM SPEEDWAY UNDER 21WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP - QR 3GdanSk PoLand

FIM SPEEDWAY UNDER 21 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP -SCANDINAVIAN QR 5hoLSTed denMaRk

15-16FIM FREESTYLE MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPSanLIuRfa TuRkeY

01 AMA SUPERCROSSAN FIM WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SaLT Lake cITY, uTah uSa

FIM SPEEDWAY WORLD CUP QUALIFYING ROUND 1LonIGo ITaLY

01-07FIM CROSS-COUNTRY RALLIES WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RaLLYe de TunISIe TunISIa

FIM CROSS-COUNTRY RALLIESWORLD CUP - QUADSRaLLYe de TunISIe TunISIa

FIM CROSS-COUNTRY RALLIES WORLD CUP -WOMENRaLLYe de TunISIe TunISIa

02FIM ROAD RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND PRIXJeRez de La fRonTeRa SPaIn

FIM MOTOGP ROOKIES CUP JeRez SPaIn

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FIM SUPERMOTO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FINALcaSTeLLeTTo dI BRanduzzo ITaLY

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FIM JUNIOR ENDURO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPLoVeRe ITaLY

FIM WOMEN'S ENDURO WORLD CUP LoVeRe ITaLY

FIM YOUTH ENDURO CUP 125cc 2-STROKES LoVeRe ITaLY

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27-01/06FIM CROSS-COUNTRY RALLIES WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPSaRdeGna RaLLY Race ITaLY

FIM CROSS-COUNTRY RALLIES WORLD CUP - WOMEN SaRdeGna RaLLY Race ITaLY

FIM CROSS-COUNTRY RALLIES WORLD CUP - QUADSSaRdeGna RaLLY Race ITaLY

16FIM SUPERBIKE & SUPERSPORTWORLD CHAMPIONSHIPSkYaLaMI SouTh afRIca

FIM MX1 & MX2 MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPBeLLPuIG SPaIn

22QTEL FIM ENDURANCEWORLD CHAMPIONSHIP8 HOURS OF ALBACETEaLBaceTe SPaIn

FIM e-POWERINTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPaLBaceTe SPaIn

FIM ENDURANCE WORLD CUP 8 HOURS OF ALBACETE aLBaceTe SPaIn

29FIM LONG TRACK WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP Q. ROUND 1 aRTIGueS de LuSSac fRance

TEAM SPEEDWAY UNDER 21WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP - QR 1 PLzen czech RePuBLIc

30FIM VETERAN MOTOCROSS WORLD CUP GLen heLen - San BeRnaRdIno uSa

FIM MX3 MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP kozanI GReece

FIM LONG TRACK WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP - FINAL 1PfaRRkIRchen GeRManY

31FIM SUPERBIKE & SUPERSPORTWORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SaLT Lake cITY - uTah uSa

RoAD BooK ///


J U N E

FIM SPEEDWAY WC GP QUALIF MEETINGS - ROUND 4 BaLakoVa RuSSIa

FIM SPEEDWAY WC GP QUALIF MEETINGS - ROUND 5 GoRIcan cRoaTIa

FIM LONG TRACK WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP- FINAL 2 ST MacaIRe fRance

12-13MAXXIS FIM ENDURO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP kWIdzYn PoLand

FIM JUNIOR ENDURO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPkWIdzYn PoLand

FIM WOMEN'S ENDURO WORLD CUPkWIdzYn PoLand

FIM YOUTH ENDURO CUP 125CC 2-STROKESkWIdzYn PoLand

13FIM MX3 MOTOCROSSWORLD CHAMPIONSHIPhoLIce czech RePuBLIc

FIM SIDECAR MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPcheRnIVTSI ukRaIne

05-06 SPEA FIM TRIALWORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MoTeGI JaPan

FIM JUNIOR TRIAL WORLD CUPMoTeGI JaPan

FIM YOUTH TRIAL WORLD CUP 125cc MoTeGI JaPan

FIM SPEEDWAYWORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GPcoPenhaGen denMaRk

06FIM ROAD RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND PRIXMuGeLLo ITaLY

FIM MOTOGPROOKIES CUP MuGeLLo ITaLY

FIM MX1 & MX2 MOTOCROSSWORLD CHAMPIONSHIPST Jean d' anGeLY fRance

FIM SIDECAR MOTOCROSSWORLD CHAMPIONSHIPWSchoWa PoLand

FIM WOMEN'S MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPST Jean d' anGeLY fRance

12FIM SPEEDWAY WC GP QUALIF MEETINGS - ROUND 1 fJeLSTed denMaRk

FIM SPEEDWAY WC GPQUALIF MEETINGS - ROUND 2TeRenzano ITaLY

FIM SPEEDWAY WC GP QUALIF MEETINGS - ROUND 3MISkoLc hunGaRY

20FIM ROAD RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND PRIX SILVeRSTone GReaT BRITaIn

FIM SIDECAR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RIJeka cRoaTIa

FIM MX1& MX2 MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TeuTSchenThaL GeRManY

FIM MX3 MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SenkVIce SLoVakIa

FIM WOMEN'S MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TeuTSchenThaL GeRManY

22 -24FIM RALLY heRenTaLS BeLGIuM

26FIM ROAD RACING WORLDCHAMPIONSHIP GRAND PRIX aSSen neTheRLandS

FIM SPEEDWAY UNDER 21 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP - SEMI-FINAL 1kRSko SLoVenIa

FIM SPEEDWAY UNDER 21 WC - SEMI-FINAL 2 LandShuT GeRManY

18-20FIM MERITUM RENDEZ-VOUS eTTeLBRuck-WaRken LuXeMBouRG

19-20MAXXIS FIM ENDUROWORLD CHAMPIONSHIPSPuchoV SLoVakIa

FIM JUNIOR ENDURO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPPuchoV SLoVakIa

FIM YOUTH ENDUROCUP 125cc 2-STROKESPuchoV SLoVakIa

FIM SPEEDWAYWORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GP

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26-27SPEA FIM TRIAL WORLD CUP QUALIFYING ROUND 2foRT WILLIaM GReaT BRITaIn

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FIM YOUTH TRIAL WORLD CUP 125cc foRT WILLIaM GReaT BRITaIn

27FIM SUPERBIKE & SUPERSPORTWORLD CHAMPIONSHIPMISano San MaRIno

FIM SUPERSTOCK 1000cc CUP MISano San MaRIno

FIM MOTOGP ROOKIES CUP aSSen neTheRLandS

FIM MX1 & MX2 MOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP keGuMS LaTVIa

FIM VETERAN MOTOCROSS WORLD CUP keGuMS LaTVIa

/// RoAD BooK


Riders believes that in the 21st century, peopleshould not be isolated from the health care theydesperately need, simply because health workers donot have reliable transportation.

Even when vehicles are available, they quickly breakdown if no one has the expertise or resources tomaintain them. Riders ensures vehicles are kept running day in, day out.

Motorcycling is the only sport ever to have given rise to a major humanitarian organisation. Better yet, the health care professionals we support use the very thingthat binds the motorcycling community together – the motorcycle.

RIDERS FACTSNumber of employees in Africa – 259Number of vehicles managed – 1,414

Number of people reached – 10.8 millionCost of reaching 100 people – $15

To find out more about Riders and how we are helping people receive regular health care, visit our website:

www.riders.org

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The FIM Magazine - Ride with Us - N° 72

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Transcript of The FIM Magazine - Ride with Us - N° 72