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/1503939
FEATURE I 2023 ISLE OF MAN TT: PART 1 P88 Tuesday night goes off with- out a hitch. Three full laps in the bank is a good sign but the top speed is woeful. 160 mph down the Sulby Straight is something you expect from a mid-level 600, not a modified 1000. I know this has a large part to do with me as I've never ridden this particular CBR before yes - terday (the Kirkistown bike was a different model), and I'm not getting out of the Quarry Bends fast enough despite clicking top gear at top revs before the final kink. Wednesday night is much of the same, but the seat unit breaks on lap one just after Sulby and I have to ride the rest of the lap with my butt firmly placed on the seat, lest the entire fiberglass unit goes flying off. My main hope is I won't be black flagged for it. Darren and the boys strap the seat down with duct tape and send me out again, but the same top-speed problems persist. I am on a 127-mph lap to Ramsay (two thirds of the way around the track) so I know we have pace in the twisties, but handling issues are now creep - ing in and I am at a loss as to how I am going to go faster. The speed we have is not enough to qualify. I don't sleep well that night. Lying in bed, all I can think is how am I going to make this bloody bike go quicker? I know no new engine is coming, no magic horsepower trick, so if I am not pulling the revs the only solution is to gear the CBR shorter. A lot shorter. We go up two teeth on the rear sprocket, and I want the suspension looked at so out come the forks and shock and into the K-Tech van. As it turns out, the shock needs a full rebuild and although the forks aren't great, K-Tech gave them a freshen up with new oil and settings. I can feel the difference in the chassis the second I release the clutch and shoot off down Glencrutchery Road, and by the time I get on the gas out of Quarterbridge, the bike feels transformed. We are on for it, I know this can work, but then six miles later the gearbox does its venomous trick at Greeber Castle and the whole deal is over. WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES It's quite hard to believe not even 16 hours after the near catastrophic gearbox failure I find myself in a new team, with a new bike, new awning, new outlook. The atmosphere in the Kibosh Racing Team reminds me very much of one my dearly departed Godfather would have thrived in—polite piss-taking at its very British best. As Richard says, if you don't get the piss taken out of you at some point, you know the boys don't like you. An hour or so into my time at Kibosh, the exaggerated Aussie accents and swear words are flying around the tent, so I know I'm safe. My little team of Gabe, Oscar, Kiwi Simon, Andy and Maddi, who run errands while we work on the bike, gel perfectly. I'm not sure Gabe is quite ready for the onslaught of responsibility, but the little Italian takes it all in stride and assumes the role of team leader, ensuring the BMW gets through tech at the right time, tires are on, gas is in the tank, all the usual stuff required to make a bike work. I clean the bodywork and make sure I'm not too much of a nuisance. It's absolute privateer racing in the Kibosh tent, and I couldn't be more comfortable. (To be continued next week, the racing begins.) CN