Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128243
• • Happenings In Motorcycling Polaris Industries and the National Hockey League 's ( N HL) M inneso ta Wil d laun ch ed their latest part nership in it iat ive tod a y w ith t h e unv eiling of a c us to m- p a in t e d, Wi ld th em ed V icto r y V eg a s motorcycl e and Po lar is snowmobile. The Victory m otorcycle along with a Pola ris snowm obile will be th e star attracti ons of an online auction , t ak ing p lace from November 10 thr ough December 18 for th e motorcycle and Feb ruary 2 through March 17 for the snowmobile with proceeds to benefit the 10,000 Rinks Foundation. Fans will be able to acc ess the 2003 Victory Vegas Motorcycle auction online via the Internet at www .wild.com. T he 10 ,000 Rink s F oundation i s a n onp rofit organization that rai ses money for youth hock ey and other commun ity gr oups . The 10 ,000 Rinks Found ation pr imarily focuses its efforts on partnering with key amateur ho ck ey organiza t ions and supporting numerous yo ut h -orie nted gr oups th roughout Minnesota and the upper Midwest. "W e are ex cited to partner with Polaris on this unique online auction opportun ity offered to " ,.., Wild fans : sa id Heather Mc Ginty, executive di rector of the 10 ,000 Rinks Foundation. "Th e proceeds will raise money for our 10,000 Rinks Fou ndati on to help support yout h hockey across Minnesota ." The custom Victory Vegas and /or Polaris XC 60 0 snowmobile will be on dis play at Wild home . games; at the Hockey Lodge located in the Mall of America during the weekend of Decem ber 5 7; and on nongame days it will be displayed in the Hockey Lodge at Xcel Energy Cente r. By AL A N CATHC ART • "1'" ~.I~- 9!XJ@C!!J[JiJ@ 5J[JiJ@ 9!XJ@C!!J[JiJ@ !?@f? @ @@@@ @@C!!J@@ Th e Full Ci rcle Found ation put m ot orcycl e stars Tra vis Pastrana and Yamaha's J ami e Hack ing into Go Karts at the SKUSA'S Sup emationals to rai se m oney fo r the Full Ci rcle Foundation. Th e goal of the nonprofit Full Circle Foundation is to establish a facili ty in the State of Nevada dedicat ed to the research and rehabi litati on of spinal cord injuries tha t result in paralysis of the spinal co rd. Full Cir cle seeks to contribute to th e deve lopm ent of a cure by benefiti ng ground · breaki ng m ethods of research and treatment already under way. D ur ing a break i n the action of th e celebr ity act ivi ties, motocro ss legend and Full Cir cle F ound a ti on spokespers on Da vid Bail ey demonstrated h is hand -con trolled go kart and hi s still thriving need for speed. Bailey spent time on th e t rac k with Al ex Tag liani and his tire -smoki ng tw in ICC -po wered shifter kart and extreme ath lete Shaun Palmer, who got a taste of Pastrana's Ch am p io n Racing Intrep id ICC machine. Find out more ab out the Full Circle Foundation at www fullcirclefoundation.com. - • • .... A V-twin Supermoto Rivalry Already? . A prilia is set to have fierce competition in the V-twi n off -road m ark et - and maybe the middle weig ht sportbike sector, tool - from its It ali an riva ls Vorl Th e dirt bike manufacturer did not, in the end, move into the loosely affiliated Mondia l co mpa ny's Monza factory this sum mer as was originally projected, as there wasn't apparently enough space there for the m bo th to m eet the increased demand for their products. Vor co nti nues to gr o w apace, with 1100 b ik es built in j ust six months sin ce th e company was acquired in April by Mondial boss Roberto liletti, who retains th e co nt rolling interest in the m arqu e through his Brescia-based IBS merchant bank . liletti targets a 3D-percent increase in prod uction fo r Vor's 2004 m odels. Th ese will be headed by the 57 0/ 60 5/ 620 Supermoto models currently showing well in racing at all levels, a new 450cc MX bik e, and especially the firm's jewel-like new fue l-injected EN-E 250cc four-stroke engine. designed by noted progettista Giovanni Mariani and lau nched at Milan with reve rsed cylinde r for forwa rd -facing intake. ultrashort-stroke 82 x 473mm dimensions, gear-dri ven sohc format - in spite of which it revs to the 13,000 rpm rev limiter, very high for a sin gle-cam moto r - and either a five-speed gearbox for motocross guise or six -speed for endu ro . Producing 3 7 bhp at 11 ,000 rpm, the engine weighs a mere 46 pounds. including the electric start fitted as stock, thanks to the fact that there's no need for a balance shaft, says Mariani. Under Mariani, Vor has also produced a p rototype of the inevitable 450-600cc V-twin ver sion that it aims to launch early next year · just in time to give Aprilia some competition. This was on display at Milan in pro totype form on the Bizzarin i stand under the VGM-V2 label, fitted In a supermoto chassis and in 654cc guise , measuring 87 x 55mm • though Mariani says he can produce a 450cc version very easily. Producing 82 bhp at 8100 rpm in its current Bizzarini SM I format. the eight-valve sohc60 ·degree V·twin engine features Weber-Marelll EFI and wou ld make the basis of a fabulous road bike, VGJII _ VZ 0 says Mariani. Maybe Vor m ight like to provide a middleweigh t rival to its Mondial cousi n's Honda SP2/RC5 I -engined Piega Superbike! As if Aprllla's SXV 4 .5 wasn't enough of a shocker, Vor is also jumping on th e V-twin supermotobike bandwagon. Versi ons of the model, now only known as the VGM-V2, could displace an ywhere from 450·600cc. To cas t your vo te, lag a n to http://www.cy clenew s.com. Which racing series do you think was the most excitin g in 2DD3? A, M ofoliP B. Worli! Sup erbike D. AMA 2 S0 National M otoc ross F. AMA Superbike E. AM A Supercross Ii , FIM Worla Championship Mo tocross H. lir and Natio na l Cra ss Country l AMA Re J. AM A li rand Natio'na l Dirt Tra ck _ Bull Supermoto K. Formula USA Pro Singles Series L. FIM Supe rmoto World Cha mpio nship cue I e n e vv s DECEMBER 3, 2003 7