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/128306
in Motorcycling Angry []ff-Roader§ Strike Back? This billboard was spotted on Highway 93 just outside of Kingman, Arizona. Actor Matt LeBlanc and friends stri ke a pose at the Apr ilia exhibit during the 2004 Cycle World Interna tional Motorcycle Show in Lo ng Beach, California, on December 13. LeBlanc, one of Hollywood's most passionate moto rcycle enth usiasts and already an Apriliaowne r, visited the Aprilia stand to take de livery of his newest dream bike, the first Aprili RSV 1000 Nera a to arrive on U.S. soil. Only 200 of the $40,000 moto rcycles will be produced. The Nera is a special edition based on the company's RSV Mille Facto ry. It has tons of addition al goodies thrown at it, such as forged magnesium wheels, carbon fiber bodywork and tank , tita nium gold painted frame , titanium nuts and bolts. The motor's performance has also been increased on the Nera ed ition. After all, one can't be expected to pay $40,000 for a bike that's only as fast as the $IB ,ooo version, right? Speed Art Few will dispute the fact that the Ducati Desmosedici is beautiful, and most will even go so far as to con sider it art. World-renowned photographer Gerard Ranci nan takes it a step further, letting his imaginatio n totally run wild. In his series of photography titled Speed Art, Ranci nan de picts the evolution of the Desmosedici and the bike's pilots, Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi, fro m the inception of the project to the far-away future . Rancinan uses allegory to depict four points in the bike's evolution, including image one (Genesis): image two (Breakaway); and this image, number three, entitled Tomorrow 3053. The following is Rancinan's synopsis of what the photo is meant to convey. We wonder if Bayliss and Capiross i knew what they were getting into when they signed on the dotted line for Ducati. "Suddenly, the whole Earth is swept by a glacial wind. Wrapped in its icy white cloak, every trace of the past becomes invisible. Silence reigns; all is still. The worl d seems frozen for all eternity. And yet out of this seemingly terminal mist, hulking, antediluvian 114 JANUARY 14, 2004 • CYCLE NEWS reptiles coming ponderously into view. The only link with previous eras : the iguanas who, defying evolution, desperately cling to life. We are in the Year 3053. Troy and Loris have braved the passing of time . Are these t he same rider s who, a thou sand years befo re, clamb ered from the test tubes in their laboratory? Or are these figures t heir clones? It is hard to give an accurat e answer; the two men have unde rgone deep metam orphoses. They are more slender now, as if their bod ies had been whittled down by wind and speed. Their skeletal structure has taken on an aerodynamic form; finlike bones jut from the ir backs. They have become mutants. At that very instant , the bike also undergoes a startl ing tran sformat ion: Its streamlined back section becomes yet more pronounced, taking on the fo rm of some kind of flying object. Still encase d in ice, its muta tion is not yet complete." Immobile in this strange landscape, Loris is lost in reverie: "So metimes I wonder what the future holds for motorbikes," Ca pirossi said. "W hatever happe ns, we should remember that te chno logical prowess is entirely depe ndent on people. Behind all that monstrous power are people. Engineers and designers work 'round-the-clock to improve the machines. The riders play an interface ro le; their physical sensations are a vital part of the research process. Progress is a subtle mix of experience and skill. Perhaps it will take an entirely unexpected form in 1000 years! If I let my imagination run wild, I can see a bike of the future which inco rpo rates aviation techno logy, a bike that doesn't touch the ground. Who knows?" Hmmmmm. 40 t h Anniversary Wild Hor§e§ Amer ican Iron Horse has just released its 2004 line-up of choppers, wh ich includes the bra nd-ne w LSC. Th e bike is a stretched , slammed hard tail with a huge 2BO-profile tire out back. The bike features a I I I-cub ic inch ( IBI8cc) motor with a right-side drive . The com pany has a cou ple of new prop rieta ry features that w ill be introduced on the 2004 model line including: a crank-tr iggered ignition, new clutch, and smoot h-radius brake ca lipe rs. American IronHorse designs and manufactures more than 300 of its ow n components in house including ite ms such as the wheels, brakes and seats . T he LSC will be released in the spring with a suggested retail base price of $22 ,500. The bikes come w ith a two-year unlimited mileage warranty.