Biking Techniques (Part 15)

Drafting

A consequence of the bike being an aerodynamic brick is that it leaves a big hole in the air behind it. A following rider can sit in that hole and let the bike in front punch through the air for him. In fact, if they get close enough, the bike behind starts to fill in that hole for the bike in front, smoothing the airflow off the back, and so not only does the drafter get a tow, the draftee gets a push.

When the speed of a bike running alone is mainly governed by drag -- as it is for all bikes -- you can go much faster running with someone else. In fact, especially in the lower-powered bike classes, you may not be able to run at the front in a race if you can't run with someone else. It's like NASCAR at Daytona -- you have to run with someone, preferably a large train of someones, or you get hung out to dry in the airstream.

But drafting has many dangers. Tucked in behind another bike, you get a restricted view of the track. You can lose your site picture and orientation. If the rider in front slows unexpectedly, wheels can touch which will launch you both into something that would be a shoe-in for "greatest .mpg crash videos." You tend to fixate on the bike ahead of you, and not notice when the braking point is coming up. If you're catching up the bike in front, your bike will start to accelerate rapidly when it gets into the slipstream, and you can be sucked right into a collision.

So for today, while you can use drafting to a limited extent, please leave plenty of room and drop out of the draft well before the next corner. Collisions between bikes on the track are very bad news.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Biking Techniques (Part 14)

Cornering

Going round the corner is much more important than reducing drag. For one thing, you're going slower in the corner anyway, so drag doesn't count as much. For another, your exit speed depends more on taking the corner correctly than on reducing drag. Sure, as you exit onto a straight, move across further into a tuck as the bike straightens up, but it's not as important as getting the corner right.

Having said that, there are some very fast corners where it will help to stay in a tuck. If you can take a sweeper flat out without coming near touching down, for example, you'll be faster if you can stay in a tuck through it -- and remember you can still lean in some while maintaining an aerodynamic tuck. But again, get the corner right first before you worry about drag.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Awana Ride's Video by Captain Nik (BMW BoxerCup) Part 2

This is the second video, on the same day, made by him. But this time, the part 2, downhill. For the part 1, click here.



Anyway, enjoy.

Biking Techniques (Part 13)

Braking

When you brake, on the other hand, you want to slow down. Heck, why not use yourself as an air-brake? Sit up, let the wind resistance help pull you down from top speed. Let that squared-velocity drag work in your favor. Not only does it help out the brakes, but it is braking that doesn't come out of your traction allowance.
Be careful when you do this. You don't want an unexpected slam of air to pull you off the bike, and you still need to keep a light touch on the bars. But sitting up helps slow you down, and puts you in a better position to see the corner.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Awana Ride's Video by Captain Nik (BMW BoxerCup)

This is a video made by Captain Nik on his BMW BoxerCup, at Awana, Genting Highland, Selangor, Malaysia, 'the motorcyclists heaven' for those from Kuala Lumpur to do knee-scraping. There's several others superbikers joining it to make this video successful, lol. This is the part 1, the uphill. The part 2, the downhill, I'll update later.

Anyway, enjoy!

MotoGP Championship 2007 Round 2 at Gran Premio bwin.com De Espana, Jerez, Spain (Final Result)

Valentino Rossi have won the race. Dani Pedrosa second and third is Colin Edwards. Pity to John Hopkins, as he fell down after several laps, after he overtook Nicky Hayden for 5th place. But then, he continued, to finish at last place, that is 19th place.

Overall, the race it is quite boring since Rossi left Pedrosa ahead for about an average 2 seconds, then.

But still, hail to Rossi!

Below are the result obtain from MotoGP.com (click it for a larger view):

Biking Techniques (Part 12)

Straight -- Reduce drag

On the straight, your goal is to offer the smallest drag you can. The two ways to do that -- which cooperate in terms of the rider position -- are to reduce the frontal area and to smooth the airflow.

Reducing the frontal area has been understood for at least a century. Crouch down on the bike, bury your head behind the gauges, lie down over the tank -- riders have been doing that forever. It's still what you need to do on an unfaired bike. Just remember you still have to have your arms loose, you still have to be able to see, and you still have to be able to control the bike.

With a faired bike, the method is slightly different. You want to be not only tucked down behind the screen, but you want to present a smooth profile for the air to flow off the screen, over your back, and on to the tailsection. So you don't want to be totally out of the airflow, you want to become part of the shape of the bike.

In this photograph from a WERA race at NCMS some years back, the rider is well tucked in behind the fairing. Her elbows and knees are out of the airflow while still retaining control of the bike, and the air flows smoothly over the screen, and with the rider low on the tank the airflow is smoothed from the rider's back across the tail section of the bike.

Photo by Martyn Wheeler

Again, bear in mind that the priority is to control the bike. All the speed in the world will do no good if you run into the starter's stand. Remember also that some steep front-end geometry can start to wobble if you put too much weight on the front, so don't overdo it. But every little bit you can do to reduce the drag is squared in effect.


From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

MotoGP Championship 2007 Round 2 at Gran Premio bwin.com De Espana, Jerez, Spain

It will be today.

If you all will watch it in ASTRO, the time will be at about 8 pm.

If you want to watch it in RTM 2, the time will be at 12 am.

Click here for the qualifying result.

Awana Ride's Video By Adilz

This video was made by Adilz, a mpsortbiker, in Awana, Genting Highland, Selangor, Malaysia quite a few months ago.

The motorcycle he's been riding on that time is Hyosung GTR 250, a Korean made motorcycle.

Enjoy!

Biking Techniques (Part 11)

Aerodynamics

Basic Principles

Unlike most racecars, a bike is a brick. Having the rider stick out in the airflow, and not being able to fair in the front wheel, leaves a lot to be desired for aerodynamic efficiency. The bike tries to make up for it with power and low weight, but that only goes so far. To push the top end of speed and acceleration, the bike needs some help from the rider.

Aerodynamic drag increases with the square of the speed. Double the speed, and you get four times the drag. What that means in practical terms is that around 120mph, bikes run into what feels like a brick wall of air, and increasing your speed only a little needs a phenomenal amount of power. It also means that any difference the rider can make to drag will be multiplied and give big benefits. Even faired bikes are designed around a rider. The bike itself needs the rider in the right place to smooth the airflow.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Biking Techniques (Part 10)

Use the Bike as Designed

On the street, you can get away with all sorts of odd ways to use a bike. On the track, we use each part of the bike as it's designed. We slow down with the brakes, speed up with the engine, and keep the clutch out except when shifting.

Brakes are for braking

Most modern bikes on good tires have enough traction to stoppie -- lift the rear wheel from the ground -- under braking. At that point there's no more rapid slowing to be achieved. So the brakes are more than enough to do the slowing down for you.
Not only are the brakes more efficient at slowing the bike, but they're the only method you can really modulate to manage your traction. It's hard to modulate engine braking with the throttle.

That means no engine braking! If you're slowing down, you should be on the brakes. Don't get off the throttle unless you're braking.

Engine is for accelerating

The only thing the engine is intended to do is propel the bike. Forwards. Use it for that, not for a brake.
That doesn't mean pull in the clutch while you're braking. The natural engine braking you get by being off the throttle will help you slow down for the corner without locking the rear wheel. What I do mean is that you don't use engine braking unless you're on the brakes as well.

Clutch is for shifting (down?)

On the street, some riders tend to coast around really tight corners with the clutch in. On the track, that's asking for trouble. When you pull in the clutch, you give up some control over the bike, and that is a very bad thing.

So the only thing you use the clutch for is to shift. Even then, it's a very brief and light tug and release, not a full-blown haul it to the bars and back. Depending on your bike, you'll probably only need the lightest touch on the lever to perform an upshift, and may not need it at all. You will need it for downshifting, but by blipping the throttle to match the revs, you again won't need it all the way in.

Note that when we talk about clutchless shifting, we are not talking about speed shifting, jamming into a higher gear, or anything ham-fisted like that. You ease off the throttle a touch, snick the shifter lightly into gear, and back on the gas. If you need anything more than the lightest "snick" on the shifter, you're not doing it right -- or the bike design won't let you do it easily -- and go back to using the clutch. There really isn't that much to gain by clutchless shifting, so it's not worth spending a lot of effort on learning it.

Pegs are for feet

The footpeg is exactly that, a peg for your foot. It is not supposed to be something to scrape across the ground all the time. While it's usually the first thing on a bike that will touch the ground when you reach the limits of lean angle, it's not supposed to be dragged along the road as a matter of course.
Yes, it looks and feels cool to drag pegs. Yes, Joe Racer uses it as a measure of how well he's cornering. But aside from coolness and street cred, scraping pegs doesn't really serve much purpose.

The reason pegs have feelers is to make sure they're the first thing to touch down. The reason most footpegs are on springs is so they don't lever the bike off the ground when they touch. That doesn't mean they're supposed to be used that way.

Treat scraping the peg as you would a warning light on the dash: it tells you that you leaned too far this time. Ideally you want to have the bike skim along with clear space of half an inch or so between the peg and the road. Any closer than that and you run the risk of a bump -- or imprecise throttle -- bouncing the bike off the road. The peg scraping says, "you got away with it this time." Next time, use less lean angle: take a later apex, so the bike's unwound more to vertical at that point in the road, or slow down so you don't scrape when you flick the bike into the corner.

If you find yourself consistently scraping pegs talk to me and we'll address ways of finding more clearance.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Biking Techniques (Part 9)

Be Aware of Your Body

No matter what you weigh, you're a significant part of the weight of your bike/rider unit. Also, particularly with high-spirited sportbikes, it's easy to make inadvertent control inputs that can upset the bike. So be aware at all times of what your body is doing, what position you're in, where you have your weight, and so on.

Loose arms

Motorcycles steer themselves very well. All the rider needs to do is make it lean, roll on, and it'll happily complete the turn, unwinding the corner by itself. An ideal situation would be to ride around the track with no steering input at all, as anytime you steer you scrub off speed.
Motorcycles are also self-correcting systems. If some sort of wobble or glitch happens, the bike will tend to sort itself out. It might be unpleasant while it does it, but it generally will recover.

Your bike can't do any of that unless you, the rider, let it. To do that you must keep a light touch on the bars -- hard enough to steer, but light enough to let the bike even itself out. So your arms should be loose at all times. Try not to put any weight on your arms, even when braking. You should be able to flap your elbows -- do the chicken dance -- at every point on the track.

Body position

You need to be aware of how you carry your weight on the bike. You need to be able to move that weight around. That is best done on most bikes (forward control cruisers excepted) by using the ball of your foot on the peg. Keep your feet back and in, move them forward to brake or shift, then right back with the ball of the foot on the peg.
I see a lot of riders with pigeon feet, splayed out on the bike. All that does is makes it hard to shift your weight around, and gives you a fright when your boot touches down. Keep your feet in.

Keep your weight balanced with the wind pressure, your back, your legs, your butt. Remember to distribute your weight evenly so you don't tire out one set of muscles. Leave your arms free and loose.

Lean In

To balance the bike in the turn, and to increase your ground clearance, you need to lean into the corner. In this context I don't mean lean the bike in, I mean lean yourself relative to the bike. As you turn in --before, ideally -- move your inside shoulder forward and in, following with your upper body. That not only moves your weight where you need it, but it puts your arms in a better position to steer into the turn. Keep your body leaning in until the bike straightens up coming out of the turn, and then it's an easy movement from the lean in to a full tuck.
Go back to the two pictures of riders leaning in and out. Notice how the riders in the second picture are leading with their inside shoulder, and how much more comfortable and relaxed they look.

Hanging off

You don't need to hang off unless you're dragging bike parts consistently. Hanging off moves you around on the bike, changes your physical position and view, and alters the way the bike responds -- exactly what we don't want when we're concentrating on line and smoothness.
So I don't want anyone hanging off -- not at first, anyway. If you're dragging parts, you've reached the maximum speed you can do on that line -- and there are things you can do to reduce the need for clearance in a turn by changing your line, without hanging off. If you're consistently dragging, talk to me and we'll work on it -- which may include hanging off if you want.

Breathe

Or, to be more accurate, pay attention to how you breathe. Your breathing should be healthy deep breaths, no gulping of air, no short sharp breathing. The Buddhist concept of mindfulness begins with being aware of your breathing. The ideal is to keep the awareness of your breath while you are putting your focus onto the track and your ride.
The starting point is to be aware of your breathing and how it affects your riding technique. Are you breathing quickly, from fear or adrenaline? If so, the rest of your body is probably also tensing into a fight-or-flight reaction. This is the time to take a couple of healthy breaths and relax. Check yourself as you hit each straightaway, and try to have relaxed breathing as you enter the curves; it should help you to remain relaxed and responsive as you ride.

Head Position

Keep your head vertical as much as you can. No matter how much the bike or your body is leaning, keep your eyes level with the horizon. This helps you keep your view of the track consistent, without your picture constantly swinging from one angle to another. If your sight is consistent, you'll find it easier to be aware of where you are, and keep a good flow of vision without being distracted by changing viewpoints. It'll also help you judge lean angles more consistently.
Notice how in this picture (taken at TrackDoD 1 at Oak Tree) the rider's eyes are level, looking through the turn. The rider is hanging off, leaning hard, but his attention is focussed exactly where it needs to be. Keeping your head level helps you do that.

Photo by Mike Ragsdale

Be Smooth Yourself

The bike can't be smooth unless you are. When you lean in, when you sit up or crouch down, don't jerk around on the bike. Take the time to move smoothly so you don't upset the bike. That means leaning in before you brake and downshift for a corner -- you need to avoid bouncing the bike around with your body.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Biking Techniques (Part 8)

Ride Your Own Ride

On the track this is even more important than on the street. Your braking points, your lines, your style -- all are probably different from the person in front of you, whether they're faster than you are or not. So all you achieve by following someone is to take what might not be a bad line, but probably isn't the right one. It's much better to block that other bike out of your site picture and take your own way through the corner.
Remember this too: even if their line was great for you, if you follow it the best you can do is to be as fast as they are. You'll never be faster than they are.

Some people like to talk about a guideline for where to brake -- "wait until the guy in front of you brakes, count to two, then brake" (or some variation on that). I don't think I need to point out that sounds much better in a bar than it does in reality.

The other danger in watching the bike ahead of you is target fixation. You can get your attention taken by this other bike to the extent that you lose your site picture, and blithely forget to brake (really, I've done it myself). So try not to let that other bike intrude on your site picture -- be aware of them, but don't focus on them.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

How Close?

The first time I watched this, I was petrified. That time, I got it from a forum. I got this video from youtube.com. This is just a reminder for drivers out there. Think again, take longer to look at motorcyclists.

Biking Techniques (Part 7)

Shifting down

One difference between shifting down on the racetrack and shifting down on the street is that on the track you only downshift when you're braking. You downshift to get into the right gear for a corner, and since you're accelerating all the way up to the moment you brake, you'll be braking when you downshift. A downshift must be done properly to be smooth. This is a point where you really don't want to lock the rear, and so you must match the rpms properly.

In the MSF, they just teach you to roll the throttle on to match the rpms. That takes time and can be harder to judge. They don't teach the throttle blip method because it's harder to explain and teach to new riders. If you have no trouble doing it the MSF way, continue to do it, except remember that on the track this might be harder because you're always braking hard at the same time.

Blipping the Throttle

What some people find much easier -- and I would like you to try out to see if it works for you -- is to blip the throttle as you downshift. The sequence is: pull in the clutch, and as you shift just blip the throttle hard with the ball of your hand (like you were trying to impress someone on the sidewalk), then let the clutch out. You'll find that if you blip the throttle hard enough, the revs will match themselves. Also, because the revs match so well, you'll need only a slight touch on the clutch to make the shift. Try this first with the engine off -- squeeze the brake lever hard, and practice rolling the throttle with the ball of your hand. You should be able to maintain a constant pressure on the brake lever while you're doing this.

Multiple Downshifts

To make things more complicated on the track, most of the time you'll be shifting down more than one gear. There's a number of ways to handle this. What I normally do on a very familiar bike is to keep the clutch in and blip the throttle for each downshift. That does increase the chance of ending up in the wrong gear if you miss a shift, so if you're going to get away with this you need to know the bike well enough to detect a missed shift without having to let out the clutch. Unless you have that level of confidence, you'll be more secure releasing the clutch for each downshift. If you're not blipping the throttle, in fact, you really need to do this to make sure you're matching the revs properly. Multiple shifts take time, so it's best to start downshifting as soon as you can, when you start braking. Most modern bikes slow down rapidly enough to change down all the gears as quickly as you can, but to start out allow more distance for braking and shifting until you are sure you won't over-rev the motor doing this.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Biking Techniques (Part 6)

Shifting up

It's more important to do an upshift right than to do it fast. Don't rush it, just do it like you would on the street: ease off the gas for a moment, pull in the clutch a little, shift, and let the clutch back out as you roll back on to full throttle. Nothing new there.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Biking Techniques (Part 5)

No coasting

On the track you're braking, cornering, or on the gas. Period. There's no neutral throttle, no coasting along at a constant speed while you decide where to brake, you're always working the bike in one way or another. So no backing off halfway down the straight -- if it feels too fast, look up and further ahead.
Of course there are exceptions to being fully on the gas. Sometimes you'll need to ease off from full throttle to stay behind another rider if you can't pass before the next corner, or if you're riding in another bike's draft. But anytime on the straight you are not riding close behind another bike, you should be fully on the gas.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Biking Techniques (Part 4)

Countersteer

Today I expect you to use countersteering on the track. You're accustomed to using it on the street, and there's enough to get used to today without introducing other ways of steering. I'll just say there are other ways, and leave it at that; I'll may talk about it in more detail later today.

There are in fact two problems with countersteering when you're right at the limit: it uses up front traction, and it moves the front of the bike towards the outside of the corner when you're already near the edge of the surface. So today, I want you to keep a traction reserve under braking, and don't go to the absolute edge of the track on corner entry.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation

Review on Kuala Klawang Road or known as TT Kong (Stage 1)

Last Friday, me and my cousin, Muzz, have made some scenery shots at this road. The rider was me and he's the cameraman. We rode all the way until the end of stage 3. They've repaired the road. But still, in stage 3, there's still some sand patches on it.

This road is one of the favourite spots in Kuala Lumpur area for knee scraping. TT Kong is derived from the name of a village on that area, that is Titi Village. Village in Chinese language is Kong.

These are some of the pictures we've taken on that Friday before and in stage 1:

At this first T-junction, take right. Then, as soon you're turn right, take a left turn.

Then, you'll meet up another T-junction. Then turn left for the second stage.

Evening Tea (Teh Tarik Session, TTS) at Genting Sempah and PERKIM, Kuala Lumpur

Last Saturday, we're having our evening tea at Genting Sempah. Most of us were from Shah Alam. We tend to make a new spot for TTS (evening tea session) since our previous spot in Shah Alam and Kuala Lumpur feels quite lame.

They met up at Projet, Gombak, at 9.30 pm. I joined them later at Genting Sempah at 10 pm, since, my motorcycle made some problems, huhu.

There's about 6 motorcycles there. Guess what, I met my old friend, there, Zam. I think, the last time we met was in Kuala Klawang and that was 1 year ago. He already bought a new Perodua Myvi instead of a new superbike, haha.

We were there for 2 hours. Then, we change our spot to Kuala Lumpur, PERKIM, next to UMNO building, to meet some friends there. Met some superbikers there.

We departed to go home at about 1 am. I would like to thank for those who's inviting me to join it. And not forget to Shahril, for lending his RM5 to me, haha.

MATTA Fair 2007 (1)

MATTA Fair 2006 Penang, Malaysia

For those who like to travel a lot out there, you'll be happy to know that there'll be MATTA Fair 2007 (1) that will be held on the 16th to 18th March 2007. The fair will be held at Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC), KUala Lumpur, like previous years. Visitors can expect attractive bargains and packages on offer, during the three day event.

With enough floorspace for over 880 Booths, the fair will occupy Halls 3, 2 & 1 of PWTC. The organisers are presently taking reservations from operators and exhibitors. Exhibitors will be categorised and organised into the various halls in general, as follows:

Hall 1 and 2
• International packages
• Airlines
• Cruises
• NTOs

Hall 3
• Domestic
• ASEAN
• Travel related products and services
• Special category group

A nominal day entry fee (usually RM3) will be levied on all visitors. There are two entrances to the exhibition halls; Hall 3 from PWTC and Hall 1/2 from Jalan Ipoh (across the river).

Between Air Asia’s 1,000,000 ticket giveaway, the Malaysia Airlines Travel Fair, the launch of Air Asia’s budget long haul flights (FAX), and MATTA Fair 2007 (I), holiday makers are really spoilt for choice. While it is great to have so many available options, decision making becomes more difficult.

Consumers are presented with the question of whether to commit to a package now or hold out for the next fair hoping for a better deal. From experience, there’s no such thing as a ‘best deal’. Prices fluctuate depending on the market and it goes either way.

I personally feel that if you’re seriously planning a vacation, then go for the best possible deal now instead of waiting and hoping. Granted that there is the possibility of it being cheaper a month later, but it is better to confirm things in advance to avoid frustrations or headaches.

When visiting travel fairs, it is best to have an objective in mind. Don’t go in there without first knowing where you want to go. That is an open invitation to get yourself fleeced. Either that or you’ll walk out of the fair feeling frustrated.

The alternative to visiting the fair proper (which might be troublesome due to traffic jams and crowds), you can also give a call or walk into your closest travel agency. They usually have the same bargains on offer at their agency offices as they do within the exhibition itself. That way, you avoid the queues and crowd. The downside to this is that you must have already done your homework in advance and know what the individual agencies are offering in order to make a comparison.

But regardless of whether you’re making an effort to check out the fair or going through a travel agent, take your time, think things through and don’t get pressured into making a purchase from the very convincing sales personnel. As always, I wish you good luck with your travel and vacation plans. - boredworkers

These are MATTA Fair full announcement:

MATTA Fair 2007

Dear All

MATTA FAIR^TM 2007 (16 – 18 MARCH 2007)

MATTA and the Organizing Committee are pleased to inform that the MATTA FAIR^TM 2007 will be held from 16 – 18 March 2007 at the Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur.

The MATTA FAIR^TM 2007 will showcase a comprehensive range of travel and holiday products from all over the world in one place. During these three days, visitors can expect to find attractive bargains and great value in all the packages on offer.

MATTA FAIR^TM 2007 will comprise of Halls 3, 2 & 1 with over 880 Booths available. The designation of the Halls are as follows:

HALL 3: DOMESTIC / ASEAN / TRAVEL RELATED PRODUCTS & SERVICES / SPECIAL CATEGORY GROUP.

HALL 2 &1: INTERNATIONAL PACKAGES / AIRLINES/CRUISES / NTOs

Hall 3 will have a direct access. Halls 2 & 1 will also have direct access via Jalan Ipoh as well as excess via Hall 3.

In Halls 2 & 1, we have allocated a total of 6 designated Premium Areas for exhibitors taking a minimum of 30 booths. Please see attached floor plans and the terms and conditions in bidding for these 6 Premium Areas (please refer to clause C 1 of the Rules & Regulations).

Enclosed herewith, pleased find the Participation Kit with detailed information and the Booth Booking Form for your registration. Selection of booths will be on a balloting basis and priority is based on the week Full Payment is received by matta secretariat office in Kuala lumpur (please refer to clause 4.0 (a-i) of Rules & Regulations).

Please note that MATTA Secretariat office in Kuala Lumpur will begin accepting the Booking Form for registration from 10.00 A.M. monday, 8 january 2007. booth selection and briefing will be on FEBRUARY 6, 2007 at dewan tun hussein onn “b”, putra world trade centre. kuala lumpur. (please refer to clause 4.0 (j) of Rules & Regulations).

Members of MATTA who had participated in MATTA Fair September 22-24 2006 and have been issued with credit note letters by MATTA are to bring these letters when making payment. Fax or email bookings with FULL PAYMENT will be processed at the end of the business day. FULL REGISTRATION consists of duly completed Booking Form together with Full Payment of Booth / Space Booked, Registration Fee and the Refundable Security Deposit.

Thank you. See you at MATTA FAIR^TM MARCH 2007!

Yours sincerely,

M A T T A

DATO MOHD KHALID HARUN JP

ORGANISING CHAIRMAN

MATTA FAIR^TM 2007

Review on MotoGP Championship 2007 Round 1 in Losail Qatar

Although I couldn't watched the MotoGP Championship in Losail, Qatar, because I had a trip to Teluk Senangin on the same day, I managed to get the reviews and informations that regards with it. I was so astonished with the performance of the Ducati especially on top speed. Rossi was 2006~2007: 324.7km/h ~ 309.9km/h, and the Ducati's machine 2006~2007: 326.5km/h ~ 324.7km/h. The race was won by Casey Stoner, from Australia, Ducati Malboro Team. The runner up was Valentino Rossi from, Italy, Fiat Yamaha Team and third was Dani Pedrosa, from Spain, Repsol Honda Team.

Below were the news I obtained from The Star News. I arranged it base on the news timeline.

Rossi in pole position

DOHA: Valentino Rossi put Yamaha on pole position for MotoGP's Qatar season-opener with a blistering last lap in qualifying yesterday.

The Italian pipped Australian Casey Stoner, on pole for Honda last year and now riding a Ducati, by just 0.005 seconds in near-perfect conditions.

Rossi's Texan teammate Colin Edwards completed the front row for today's race.

Speed king: Italian Valentino Rossi of Yamaha (right) races with Shinya Nakano of Japan during free practice at the Losail International Circuit on the outskirts of Doha on Thursday. – AFP

Rossi, determined to regain the world title he held for five years before being dethroned by American Nicky Hayden last season, is chasing a hat-trick of wins in Qatar and the pole was the 46th of his grand prix career – matching his racing number.

“It's extra special for me,” he said. “I hope this is a good omen for tomorrow. It was a great qualifying session,” added the 28-year-old. “The last 50 metres was a great show. I was not sure if I had finished on top as all the riders – Casey, Colin and me were very fast.

“We expect a good performance during the race as the bikes have a good grip on the track with the tyres,” he added.

MotoGP has reduced the engine capacity this year from 990cc to 800.

The Yamaha riders were fastest in the third free practice yesterday morning with Edwards lapping in 1:56.057 and Rossi trailing behind by 0.215. Stoner was half a second behind the Texan.

The Australian got his own back in the final qualifying session, but was unable to displace Rossi from the top.

“This is a great start and we are obviously going to get better as the season progresses,” said the Australian. “All the riders are very good and are clocking good times. I am sure this is going to be great season.”

Hayden, who had a poor practice session on Thursday, turned in a better performance yesterday but starts on the third row after qualifying ninth fastest.

The Kentucky rider's Spanish teammate Dani Pedrosa, expected to be Rossi's main rival this season, will start fifth in 1:55.361.

Honda's Toni Elias was fourth while Suzuki's John Hopkins ended up sixth ahead of Ducati's Loris Capirossi.

Elias, Capirossi and Honda's Marco Melandri all went off track into the gravel while Japan's Shinya Nakano (Honda) and Jeremy McWilliams (Ilmor) has minor crashes. – Reuters

First win for Stoner

DOHA: Australian Casey Stoner upstaged former world champion Valentino Rossi to take the first win of his MotoGP career in the Qatar season-opener yesterday.

The 21-year-old Ducati rider, starting alongside pole-setter Rossi, seized the lead at the end of the first lap and smashed the race lap record on his way to becoming the first winner on an 800cc machine.

Despite the Italian twice going past, Stoner used the Ducati's impressive power advantage at the Losail circuit to take the chequered flag with a 2.8 second advantage.

“The team's been working great,” said Stoner, who made his MotoGp debut only last year.

The top three: Ducati rider Casey Stoner from Australia raises his trophy after winning the Qatar GP in Doha yesterday. Valentino Rossi (left) of Yamaha finished second while Dani Pedrosa of Honda came in third. – AP

“We struggled in a few parts of the track during the race where Valentino was a bit quicker but I just used what we had to our advantage.

“I think I did my fastest lap on the last lap so we were there, we had it.”

Rossi, winner in Qatar for the past two years and starting on pole position on a much-improved Yamaha, said he had done the best he could.

“Compared to first race of the last season, this is a good result. I am happy. There is not much difference between the two bikes (Ducati and Yamaha) but Casey rode a perfect race and I had no chance,” said the Italian.

Honda's Spanish title contender Dani Pedrosa won a close battle for third place with Suzuki's American John Hopkins, who injured his hand in pre-season testing and ended the race grimacing with pain after a brave ride. – Reuters

These are the results I obtained from MotoGP website. Click the pictures below for better view.

Unofficial Report of Motorcycle Convoy to Teluk Senangin in Perak, Malaysia.

Malaysian's government already launch the Visit Malaysia 2007 Campaign early this year. Click HERE for more info. There will be a lot of interesting places to visit here.

Hello to all of you. Yesterday, Kabuki Riderz Motorcycle Club had made a trip to Teluk Senangin, Perak, Malaysia. The trip consisted students from Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN) and some people from a motorcycle forum, Malaysian's Bikers Community Forum (MBC). We have planned it for more than a month and the trip was successful. I'm just came from Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, just to join them. Everyone really has enjoyed themselves.

Back then, I was from my grandmother's house in Seremban. I departed at 12.30 pm.

The group of convoy will start to depart from UTP at 4 pm. I reached in Tapah at 3.30 pm. From there, I thought I couldn’t catch up with them and therefore, I used the old road rather than the highway, a shortcut.

I got lost in Tg Tualang area but thank God, I met them at a junction in Bota Kanan. From there, I joined them.

We reached in Teluk Senangin in late evening. Then, after that, we start a meeting regarding with the activities that will be done later. It was lead by Mr Ikmal Hisyam, our team leader for this trip.

The view at that beach are quite nice. And it provide more privacy rather that other beaches in Perak. The facilities are still good although the water from the shower are smelly. Haha. We have booked about 8 chalets. In the chalet, they only provide some electrical plugs, some lights and a fan. This place is good for those who love nature and rather sacrifice comfort.

Then, we prepared all the equipments and things that regard to this trip. In the picture, you can see that Mr Ikmal was very excited to put up the banner, hahaha. The girls were preparing the foods and drinks with some helps from the guys, and others were busy to set up a camp fire and tents.

Then, after doing their tasks, most of the guys enjoying themselves by playing some beach's sports. The girls enjoying themselves by playing net ball and others enjoying themselves by watching the view.

Then, I took the opportunity to take picture with the girls. This is the time for me to get know with them, although not really close, haha.

Then, the guys, after tiring playing the beach's sports, they took a dip into the sea. Mr Ikan^Laga was the first to jump into the sea. He's the one who's wearing a goggle. Haha.

Then they decided to arrange themselves to form some alphabets for the word 'KABUKI', lead by Mr Tonton. In the picture below, we can look that he's really pleasing himself for doing it. Hahaha.

And, the moment that most of them have waiting for, 'Barbeque!' The girls really have made the chickens really delicious, with some help from the men, hahaha. The foods on that day are really delicious. I also like to thank to Mr Faizul's parents to cook some food for us. We really appreciate it.

The men also wanted to try to make the chickens taste delicious. They're trying to compete against the women by cheating it. The girls used only some paper plates, but the guys have used the current technology to compete against the women, the electric fan, haha.

These were the foods were cook by Faizul's mom. His mom cooks it for us with the helps of others. We can see that Mr Bob was really excited about it, haha.

Since we couldn't get some fresh water, we have to import it from outside. They're preparing hot water for tea. Seems that Mr Tonton very enthusiats about it.

The ice breaking session. Lead by Mr Ikmal. Mr Feno and Mr Nazli seems want to bash each other by making a lot of jokes, haha. In this session, each of them introduce themselves. Funny thing was, haha, most of them were bashed with some jokes when introducing themselves, haha. The girls always have been asked for their phone numbers, haha.

Mr Blizzard and Mr Tonton were trying to attract some girls by singing some songs and amazingly, they're singing it very well. Mr Tonton sang with his Kapok guitar. Then, Mr Feno came. The songs become haywire. Hahaha. Mr Bouncer also joined them. Thanks to Mr Meor and the others (sorry because I couldn't memorize most of the names) for bringing up the camp fire. Huhu.

That night, there's a little bit of downpour. Since that camp site became cooler from time to time, most of us take advantage to sleep, including me. Astonishingly, I could slept well. But, there's others went for fishing that night.

Day 2. There's some of us try to woke up the others for Subuh's prayer, and sadly, not all woke up. Haha. Then, at dawn, some of the guys took a dip in the sea. Then, the girls joined it later.

Then, the girls and the guys took the opportunity to catch some sort of sea shell creatures. In Malaysia, we called it 'Remis'. It can be eaten but, you'll have to cook it first.

They caught it a lot. Almost full in the plastic bag. They also put it in other 2 bottles. Then, they cook it as a supper before our breakfast meals arrived.

After we're finished packing, there's came for the photo session. MBC people also joined it. We left Teluk Senangin at about 12 pm (correct me if I'm wrong since my wrist watch gone missing). Everyone enjoyed it. They're hoping that there'll be next activities in the future.

I would like to thank all of you for making this trip to become successful, especially the girls and the guys from UTP, UNITEN and MBC. Hope there'll be next event like this in the future.

Thank you.

photo by qebalt

Again about the 'LARGE' demonstration group in Korea!

I got it from the motorcycle-usa forum. The link is Joong Ang Daily. Hope their efforts are worth doing it. They also have the right of using those roads. We also hope that their government take this matter seriously and have some better solutions to these road users.

From Joong And Daily:

Motorcyclists call for right to ride on the open road

March 02, 2007

	Motorcyclists gather in Yeouido, western Seoul yesterday, to protest the government’s 1972 ban on motorcycles on highways. By Kim Sang-seon

Looking to put their two wheels on four-lane highways, more than 1,500 bikers gathered at Yeouido in Seoul to protest the government’s rules keeping them off expressways.
The protesters planned to ride en masse to World Cup Stadium, but the police only allowed five bikes at a time at certain time intervals.
The bikers said riding a motorcycle on the expressway does carry some danger, but they said it is no higher than on city streets.
“Most motorcycle accidents happen on city streets rather than highways,” said Hwang Sang-gil, former president of the BMW Motorrad Club in Korea. “If proper protection is worn and the riding is done safely, there isn’t a big threat to the rider’s safety.”
Peter Kim, head of the Korea Motorcycle Reference Group, said the Korean motorcycle industry has been damaged by the government’s policy. “The Korean motorcycle industry is so small compared to the car makers. The government should stop its policies against bikes. It will help the industry and would also ease the traffic and parking problems.”
Motorcycles were banned on highways in 1972 when the government decided they were too dangerous.


By Hwang Young-jin Staff Writer [yhwang@joongang.co.kr]

Funny Pictures.

These are some funny picture I took it from the internet. Maybe some of you have seen it, but anyway, I still want to share it with you all. Enjoy!


This picture show 2 people try to act like 2 biker trying to scrap their knees. Haha. I think the one on the left try to look like he's overtaking the left one from the inside.


This picture showed 2 people try to act like a biker and a pillion doing knee scraping together on a bike, haha. We can see that the front one is serious about it. Haha.


This third picture showed a man also trying to do knee scraping in the toilet and he's look very serious about it too. The best thing is, he wore a helmet, hahaha.


Knee scraping on a superbike? Duhhhh. He can do it much better. He's doing head scrapping!


You think that you can knee scraping only on the bike? You can do it on anything even though on a car.


Too bored while working? Take any of your company's trolley and do this, haha. Make sure your supervisor didn't notice it.

Very 'Large' Demonstration’s Group In South Korea

These were the motorcyclist’s demonstration in South Korea on 1st March 2007, to demand lift for motorcycle ban on expressways, ‘car only’ roads, overpass & etc. in Seoul Korea. Due to police, motorcycles have been surrounded by police bus they were stuck for more than 2 hours.

I found it in the motorcycle-usa forum. It was posted by a Korean, who is the forum’s member. Looking at the pictures, I was amazed of their unity, their biking spirit.

I have searched any news from the internet that regards to the demonstration and couldn’t found one. I hope that if any of you found it through out the net, can share it here.

Lets us stop opressions against motorcyclists!