IN
THE
WIND
P36
More than just a name change, the
CBR650R is trying to gain a more
sporting reputation for itself than its
garnered in the past.
KYLE
REDMOND
TO SHERCO
T
he announcement by Team
SRT that it would not field any
off-road teams for 2019 left a lot
of racers scrambling for a ride
for the upcoming season. From
EnduroCross to Hare Scrambles,
National Hare & Hounds and
extreme races everywhere, Team
SRT had a major presence in
off-road, but one of its stars, Kyle
Redmond, announced he has
found a new home. The Enduro-
Cross veteran and extreme en-
duro star will be riding for Sherco
and Team Topar for 2019.
"Switching things up for 2019,"
Redmond said. "Came out to
Arizona to try out the Sherco for
the first time and felt great on the
bike. Thanks for the opportunity,
Wayne Dickert, and all the spon-
sors."
Redmond will take on AMA
EnduroCross, among other races
for the 2019 season. He is already
taking a liking to the 300cc two-
stroke Sherco, which he will likely
be competing aboard. CN
HONDA
REPLACES
CBR650F WITH
CBR650R
A
merican Honda will ditch
the unloved CBR650F for
the 2019 model year, bringing
in its place a new CBR650R.
The 650F had been a
mainstay of American Honda's
lineup for years but failed to
gain the kind of army of sup-
porters seen in Europe with
its middle-of-the-road styling
between sport bike and touring
machine. The new 650R aims
to change that, with Honda call-
ing it the "Future of the Modern
Sportbike" in their marketing
jargon.
As such, it will use new
bodywork and more aggres-
sive styling to put it closer in
line with the CBR600RR and
CBR1000RR, both of which
are at the pointy end of the
sport bike scale. The 650R
gets a higher revving engine
that climbs 1000 more revs
than before, which will deliver
a claimed 94 horsepower, four
more than in 2018.
A new chassis is lighter and
stiffer, resulting in a 13-pound
weight reduction, and the
Honda Selectable Torque Con-
trol system takes care of the
traction control duties.
Previously, the 650F ran a
conventional telescopic fork by
Showa, although the new 650R
will get 41mm Showa Separate
Function Forks, giving it a bit more
sporting cred.
No word yet has been pub-
lished from Honda as to the
650R's MSRP. CN
EnduroCross veteran Kyle Redmond
has joined the Sherco family.
