Manx Surprise

Professional photographer Robin of Northline Photography sent me this complimentary shot from the Manx last week... one of the best pics I have of the fortnight.

This has spurred me on and now plans are now afoot for the 2012 season.

Thanks Robin!!

Suzy V at Brands

'Suzy V' Gets Some Fairy Dust

Last weekend I picked up the Suzy V (Suzuki SV650 race bike) from Gary at SDC Performance. Gary built the bike for me last winter... and after she went so well at the Manx GP with a stock engine, I took her back to Gary for a toon-up.

Check out those bling cam covers on Gary's next SV!

There were a few race bikes being built up... including another carby SV.

Gary's been involved in racing for many years

A beautifully built, never raced CBR1000... and some of Gary's many trophies. Gary is after the British F1 sidecar Championship this year!

Back to Suzy V... Gary whipped the engine out and sent it to his Dad and well known tuner - Mike Smith. An engine rebuild with Blueprint, porting, Kent cams and a sprinkling of magic fairy dust.
Standard SV: about 72bhp at the wheel
Suzy V in 2010 (stock engine with MHP pipe): 75bhp
Suzy V now: 85bhp!

That's a whopping 13% gain! I hope the known SV weakness, the bottom-end holds together and she's reliable. Gary has done some risk mitigation on that side for me too... so here's hoping. Looking forward to getting her on track!

Converting Bikes and Manx-proofing

Been a lot of motor-sicle activity happening since my house move 2 weeks ago. I was racing flattrack at Buxton yesterday... loads of pics and a few vids to show... but first things first so I'll run some chronological posts.

Not many posts lately because I don't have internet or phone at my new house yet... and still working oooop north and not spending much time there. Besides, when I've been there between unpacking some cups and a plate and searching for my iron, I've been working flat-out on the bikes...

I converted the Duke II Flattracker from a MOT-friendly streetbike back to a dirt machine...

Looking prettier in race trim... 1970 BSA A65 Thunderbolt 'Dick Mann' streettracker lurking in the background... looking even prettier!

Got the sick talon 19" rear wheel fitted... just slotted straight in. Waiting for a steering stem (yolk spindle) to fit the flattrack front-end.

That 17" front looks teeny compared to the pukka flattrack rear.

As soon as the Flattracker was done and ready to race, I continued Manx-proofing the SV MiniTwin...

Any critical bolt that work loose and cause disaster is drilled and lockwired. It's a pain in the arse with a 1.5mm drill bit through stainless steel... uses quite a few of those wee bits. It's mandatory for the daily scrootineering, but more importantly: peace of mind. Good to know that at 140mph over the jumps your brake calliper bolt won't work loose    :-)

 The bike may not look much different to when I got it back in December... but I've spent many hours prepping it. She just needs some vinyl number-boards, numbers and some sponsor's decals... then she's ready to plummet down Bray hill on the adventure of her lifetime!

Got wisteria growing in my garage roof cavity... an autumn project... we've got bikes to prep and race!