A Dream That Came True: Riding the Kawasaki ZX-12R Ninja

The Kawasaki ZX-12R Ninja, one of the fastest, most powerful bikes I've ever ridden!

‘Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly,’ said poet Langston Hughes. And while I don’t think he had motorcycles in mind when he wrote this, it certainly does apply to bikes as well – dreams of riding insanely fast bikes that are, on the face of it, well beyond your means. Let me explain.

A Quick Chat with Kevin Schwantz

No. 34, Kevin Schwantz, the most spectacular rider on the track in the 1980s

In 2006, when I was working for BIKE India magazine in Pune, I had an opportunity to do a (very brief) interview with Kevin Schwantz, winner of the 500cc motorcycle grand prix road racing world championship in 1993. While some other riders have won more world championships and have more race wins to their name, Schwantz’s flamboyant riding style and his all-or-nothing approach to motorcycle racing stand out to this day – something that legions of his fans will attest to. I have been a huge Schwantz fan ever since the late-1980s, when I first started watching motorcycle racing on television (and sometimes on video cassettes, whenever I could get my hands on those) and often found myself rooting for the Suzuki rider.

This particular interview with Schwantz, which I did in 2006 on behalf of BIKE India, is super-short but I still wanted to preserve it, hence posting it here, hoping it’ll remain here forever.  

Thunder from Down Under: In Conversation with Casey Stoner

Aussie rider Casey Stoner won his last MotoGP world championship in 2011, with Honda

In 2012, I had an opportunity to interview then-reigning MotoGP world champion, Casey Stoner, a month after he’d announced his retirement from the sport. Here are some excerpts from that conversation.

MotoGP represents the most formidable form of closed-circuit motorcycle road racing. With 1000cc engines that produce up to 330-horsepower, MotoGP bikes weigh less than 160 kilos and hit top speeds of about 350km/h. In recent years, advanced electronics and traction control systems have made it a tiny bit easier to control these machines, but you still need superhuman talent to ride these beasts at competitive speeds around some of the most demanding, challenging race circuits in the world.

MotoGP is a demanding sport – physically and mentally – and those who race in MotoGP are some of most capable athletes in the world. Australian rider Casey Stoner, with his two world championships, is right up there with the best. Riding for Ducati, he took an amazing 10 race wins in 2007, winning his first MotoGP world championship, and repeated the feat in 2011, winning his second championship with Honda.

Now 27 years old, Stoner is widely considered to be the fastest man in the world on two wheels – one of the most talented motorcycle racers of his time. In a shock move, Casey announced that he will retire from MotoGP at the end of the 2012 season. In this interview that I did with him [on behalf of Man’s World magazine], Stoner talks about the sport he loves most, the changes he thinks it needs and his rivalry with Valentino ‘The Doctor’ Rossi. Here are some excerpts:

Past Perfect: The Love for Retro Motorcycles

The Honda CB1000F, a modern bike designed to look like a much older machine. Looks good, sounds even better and goes really hard. What's not to like?!

For motorcycle manufacturers, retro design is definitely a thing right now. The trend is at least partly driven by Gen-X buyers who have relatively large disposable incomes and who are yearning for bikes that look like the ones they fancied in their youth. Nothing wrong with a bit of rose-tinted nostalgia, when some of these retro-styled machines are actually not bad at all.

Please note, the new, retro-styled bikes only look like machines from the past. Apart from the styling, everything else – engine performance, chassis and suspension, tyres, brakes, electricals and electronics – these bikes are fully modern. And that’s a good thing, because these days, unlike how it used to be 50 years ago, everything just flat out works and works well. Engines are more powerful and reliable than ever before, oil leaks are a thing of the past, tyres really stick to the tarmac with the kind of grip riders could only dream of in the way-back-then, suspension is adjustable and actually works without wallowing all over the place, and brakes make the bike stop, period. Also, electronics like ABS and traction control have taken rider safety to a whole new level, which was unthinkable a few decades ago.

Ducati Monster 821 Riding Impression

Though not the most powerful Ducati I've ever ridden, the Monster 821 was still a lot of fun

Over the years, I’ve had an opportunity to ride various Ducatis, including the hardcore 848, Hypermotard 1100S, Monster 795, XDiavel S and Monster 821. The 821 I rode in 2016, when I was working with Auto Tech Review magazine. Here is the piece I wrote about the bike at that time.

 Launched way back in 1993, the very first Ducati Monster was the machine that kick-started the ‘streetfighter’ segment in Europe, which has now become very popular. Designed by Argentinian industrial designer, Miguel Galluzzi, the first Monster was powered by a 900cc V-twin borrowed from the Ducati 900 Supersport, and had a steel-tube trellis frame that was based on the Ducati 851 superbike chassis. With more than 350,000 units of the Monster having been sold since 1993, the bike remains one of their most successful products for the Italian company and there have been many iterations of the bike over the last two decades. Coming to the 821, let’s take a look at the suite of technologies underlying this Monster, which make it an excellent sportsbike.

In Conversation with Dick Powell, Designer of the Rotary-engined Norton F1

Above, from left: Richard Seymour and Dick Powell, designers of the legendary rotary-engined Norton F1, a quite unique motorcycle from the early-1990s, which still has its own dedicated fan base today

Dick Powell is co-founder of Seymourpowell, a well-known UK-based design company with a formidable portfolio of work. Set up in 1984, Seymourpowell has designed everything from cordless kettles mobile phones, cars, trains, planes and, yes, motorcycles. Along with the other co-founder, Richard Seymour, Dick Powell designed the rotary-engined Norton F1, an iconic machine and one that I’m a big fan of. Back in 2016, I had an opportunity to do an interview with Dick Powell and ask him a few questions about the legendary Norton. Here are some excerpts from the conversation.

Ducati XDiavel S: Italian Easy Rider

The Ducati XDiavel S remains one of the most beautiful motorcycles I've ever ridden

It’s hard to slot the Ducati XDiavel S into a specific segment or category. Is it a sportsbike? A cruiser? Touring bike? The reality is, the XDiavel S is a machine that dares to defy segmentation – brimming with cutting-edge engineering, design and technology, it’s a bike that looks like a cruiser, has the engine performance of a sportsbike, and with its adjustable ergonomics, it’s comfortable enough for long-distance riding. Even the handling is not too bad, as long as you keep in mind this isn’t exactly a Panigale.

I got to spend a few days with the XDiavel back in 2017, when I was the executive editor at Auto Tech Review magazine. Here’s what I wrote about the bike at that time.

From the Archives: In Conversation with Pierre Terblanche

Pierre Terblanche has done some phenomenal work for Ducati and other motorcycle brands

For motorcycle afficionados, the name ‘Pierre Terblanche’ needs no introduction. Born in South Africa, Terblanche is one of the most well-known, widely respected motorcycle designers in the world. With a Masters degree in transport design from the UK’s Royal College of Art, Terblanche has, over the last 40 years, worked with Volkswagen, Cagiva, Ducati, Piaggio, Confederate and even Royal Enfield. The bikes he has designed include the Cagiva 900 Gran Canyon, the 1^st generation Ducati Multistrada and Hypermotard, the Ducati SuperMono, the Ducati SportClassics, the Ducati 999, the Ducati MH900e, the Confederate X132 Hellcat Speedster and the 1^st generation Royal Enfield Himalayan. He also redesigned the Ducati 851 which then became the 888, and he designed a spectacular bunch of concept bikes for Moto Guzzi, which were shown at the 2014 EICMA. More recently, Terblanche designed a futuristic concept bike, which you can read about here.

In 2013, I had an opportunity to do an interview with Pierre Terblanche (who was working for Confederate Motorcycles at that time) for one of my other websites, Faster and Faster, which I had to shut down in 2017. I wanted to preserve this interview, hence putting it up here, where I hope it’ll remain forever.

From the Archives: In Conversation with Damien Basset

French designer, Damien Basset, who is currently design director at Peugeot Motorcycles, used to work with Ducati earlier. He’s the man who had designed the first Ducati Streetfighter, which was launched in 2009 and which was offered with a choice of 1099cc and, later, 849cc V-twin engines. I had an opportunity to do an interview with Basset in 2009, for Faster and Faster, a motorcycle website that I used to own at that time. I had to shut down that website in 2017, but wanted to preserve this interview, hence posting it here, where it will hopefully remain forever.

From the Archives: In Conversation with John McGuinness

John 'Morecambe Missile' McGuinness has won an incredible 23 races at the Isle of Man

For anyone who loves motorcycles and motorcycle racing, John McGuinness needs no introduction. Also known as the ‘Morecambe Missile,’ Guinness is one of the most successful motorcycle road racers, an Isle of Man specialist, having won an incredible 23 races at the most difficult, most dangerous road racing circuit in the world. Only Joey Dunlop and Michael Dunlop have won more races at the Isle of Man, while both McGuinness and Mike Hailwood have an equal number of Senior TT wins at the IoM, at seven races each.

Born in Morecambe, Lancashire, in the UK, McGuinness started competing in motocross at the age of seven and had his first taste of road racing in 1990, at the age of 18. His first race at the Isle of Man was in 1996, on a Honda RS250 and since then he’s won 23 races and is still going strong, having taken 5^th place in the Senior TT at this year’s Isle of Man races, at the age of 52.

I had an opportunity to interview John McGuinness back in 2012, for Faster and Faster, a motorcycle website I used to run at that time. That website no longer exists but I wanted to preserve this interview, hence posting it here, where I hope it’ll remain forever. It goes without saying that I’m a huge fan of McGuinness. Anyone who races 200bhp, 300kph motorcycles at the IoM has to be barking mad and McGuinness is right up there with the maddest of the mad. But anyway, here’s my little interview with the great man.

American Biker: In Conversation with Erik Buell

Erik Buell, genius engineer and builder of some truly unique motorcycles

The United States doesn’t have much of a domestic sportsbike industry. European and Japanese sportsbikes and superbikes are popular in the US, but American manufacturers like Harley-Davidson and Indian stick to making cruisers and touring bikes. For the last four decades, however, one American has been trying his damnedest to change that. He has taken some pretty hard knocks along the way and his company has gone bust more than once. But like an extra-resilient phoenix, he rises from the ashes again, again and again. Most would have given up a long time ago. Not Erik Buell though. The man is indomitable.

Target Design: In Conversation with Hans-Georg Kasten

Hans-Georg Kasten was one of the three men at Target Design who were responsible for designing the 1980s Suzuki Katana. He is now the Managing Director of Target Design 

Launched in 1981, the Suzuki Katana 1100 had relatively conventional mechanicals – the engine, chassis and suspension were pretty standard for its time – but the styling was radical, and made the motorcycling world sit up and take note. The bike was Japanese, of course, but was designed in Germany by Target Design. There was a three-man team that worked on the Katana’s design: Jan Fellstrom, Hans-Georg Kasten and Hans Muth. Back in 2012, I had an opportunity to do a brief interview with Hans-Georg Kasten, who is now Managing Director of Target Design. Here are some excerpts from that conversation.

Past Perfect: Honda CB1100RS

1980s-styling, modern-day brakes, tyres and suspension. The Honda CB1100RS, which is now sadly out of production, is my dream bike. How times change!

‘We look before and after, and pine for what is not,’ said English poet Percy Shelley, two-hundred years ago. The English poet was definitely no biker-boy, but what he said does apply to motorcycles as well. Well, at least for some of us. Let me explain. When I was young, I lusted after the latest, fastest, most powerful sportsbikes and superbikes – Suzuki GSX-Rs, Yamaha FZRs, Honda CBRs and Kawasaki ZXR Ninjas. Exotic Ducatis and Bimotas. And BMWs, which were always a bit weird. These were machines I only saw in the pages of second-hand foreign magazines like Cycle World and Bike, copies of which I was sometimes able to get in bookshops in Hazratganj, in Lucknow. At that time, I used to have a Yamaha RX100, which had an 11bhp, two-stroke engine that loved to rev its heart out. Eleven horsepower isn’t really much, but the magic was in the way in which the Yamaha engine delivered that power – instant acceleration and long wheelies in 1^st gear. I can’t begin to tell you how much I loved that Yamaha.

Down Memory Lane: Jawa 350 vs Yamaha RD350

The Jawa 350 and the Rajdoot Yamaha RD350 were sold in India in the 1980s
Note: These pics are for representational purposes only - the two bikes you see here are not the actual machines that I wrote. Using these pics only because I don't have pics of the actual bikes that I rode

For as long as I can remember, my life has pretty much revolved around motorcycles. Through school and college, instead of paying attention to my studies and trying to make something of my life, all I ever did was ride motorcycles, read about motorcycles, and watch 500cc motorcycle GP racing on TV. Years later, when it was time to go out and get a job, I’m thankful I was able to get one where part of my work entailed riding motorcycles and writing about them.

In 2005-2006, when I was in Pune, working with BIKE India magazine as executive editor, I wanted to do a story on the Jawa 350 and the Yamaha RD350, two bikes that came to India in the 1980s, did not do very well and were ultimately axed from their respective manufacturers’ line-ups. Though the bikes did not do well then, there are revered among enthusiasts now and the RD350, especially, is practically worshipped by fans of two-stroke engines.

Fast Past: Riding the Enfield Fury 175

Back in the early-1990s, when I was in college, in Lucknow, I had a Yamaha RX100 as my daily runabout and I absolutely loved that bike. Small, light and revvy, my RX was always raring to go. On the street, it would make mincemeat of Yezdi 250s, Kawasaki-Bajaj KBs and assorted TVS-Suzukis. The RX would explode off the line, wheelie endlessly and scrape its footpegs in fast corners even as its skinny tyres scrabbled for grip. Only the mighty Yamaha RD350, which was thrice as powerful as the RX, could bring the latter to its knees. But there was actually one more bike at that time, which wasn’t very popular and which was in production only for a very short time, which could occasionally keep up with the RX100. And that bike was the Enfield Fury 175, which was essentially just a rebadged Zundapp KS175 of East German origin.

Suzuki Hayabusa: Death Metal

Back in 2016, the editors of Motoring World magazine arranged for me to keep a Suzuki Hayabusa for 2-3 days and ride it to my heart's content. The experience was quite unforgettable

It was early-2016 and I had just moved from Pune to Greater Noida. I had been working with MV Agusta in Pune, a very short stint that barely lasted three months. I had moved to Greater Noida in search of work, hadn’t found anything and was bored out of my mind. One day, I was talking to Kartik, at Motoring World magazine, and asked if he could arrange for me to ride or drive a really fast machine, since it had been quite a while since I’d had a go on anything with a few hundred horsepower. Kartik asked me if I’d be interested in doing a story on the Suzuki Hayabusa and, of course, I jumped at the opportunity. Here are some excerpts from the piece I wrote for the magazine:  

With a top speed of about 300kph, the Suzuki Hayabusa can keep up with just about anything on two wheels. At least in a straight line. And that’s nothing short of amazing, because the Hayabusa, which was launched back in 1999, is now all of seventeen years old. To give you some perspective on how old that really is, 1999 was when the Euro was first introduced, Keanu Reeves starred in the first Matrix movie, the Khmer Rouge was officially disbanded in Cambodia, movie DVDs were still a novelty and listening to music meant buying a CD rather than downloading an MP3. Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp hadn’t been invented yet, and people used to have actual face-to-face conversations rather than only chatting on WhatsApp, can you believe that?

Ducati 848 Evo: The Italian Stallion

The Ducati 848 Evo. Hard-core, committed, brutal. Unrelenting. But such a memorable ride...

Back in 2012, I had an opportunity to ride a Ducati 848 Evo and write about it for Man’s World magazine. And not just a short ride either – the Ducati team allowed me to keep the bike with me for 3-4 days, which was just incredible. Apart from its drop-dead gorgeous Italian styling, red paint and single-sided swingarm, the 848 Evo was powered by a 140-horsepower twin-cylinder engine; zero to 60kph came up in just over 3 second and top speed was over 260km/h. Here are some excerpts from the article I wrote for MW.

Even before you begin to experience its incredible performance, the first thing about the 848 Evo that grabs your attention is its styling. No matter how many times you’ve seen the bike in pictures, the first time you see it in the flesh, it’s still stunning – the aggressive stance, the pointy snout with the twin headlamps and their angry glare, the carefully sculpted bodywork and tail section, and that utterly gorgeous single-sided swingarm, which puts the bike’s beautifully-machined Y-spoke alloy rear wheel up on full view on one side, are all deeply lustworthy. Gianandrea Fabbro, the Italian designer responsible for the 1098/848’s styling, really has done an outstanding job with this machine.

Dancing With the Devil: One Week with the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-14R

The seven days I spent with the Kawasaki ZX-14R were some of the most memorable days of my entire life. I love this bike so very, very, very much!

 

Back in school and college, I was obsessed with buying and reading car and motorcycle magazines. Indian magazines that were available in the 1980s were Car & Bike International, and the Indian Auto Journal. These I bought and read every month, but what I really waited for was to get my hands on hard-to-get second-hand copies of foreign motorcycle magazines. Since there was probably not much demand for these, such magazines were only rarely available, but when I did find copies, I would buy as many as I could with whatever money I happened to have at that time. American magazines like Cycle and Cycle World, British magazines like Bike, Performance Bikes and Superbike, and the Australian magazine TwoWheels. New copies simply weren’t available in Lucknow but I was only too happy buy old copies, which were also reasonably cheap.