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/1542354
Test E-1_ Joke Zemke's Formula Xtreme Hondo CBR600RR Bv Srwe Arus PHoros BY Krvrn Wrxe I l:::ffifi:':*"ff:fi H its 2006 cBR6ooRR Formura I I Atreme macnrne - ano the). I I did exactly thar. The resuh was Jake Zemke standing atop the podium in a little ra.e they call the Daytona 200. With Yamaha announcing it wor.ild field a two-rider factory team in Formula Xtreme this season with an all-new R5. Honda knew i! had to make some changes to the CBR600RR FX machine if they wanted to keep the Daytona 200 crown that they have been wearing for the past two seasons. Despite announcing that the factory team would focus its effort on Superbike only for the full season, Honda stayed fully committed to having riders Zemke and Miguel Duhamel run the 200- And they fully intended to keep that big trophy sirting in the lobby of their Torrance, California, headquarters. And when Honda pus its mind (and money) to something, chances are, they get it. Yamaha came out strong in testinS, but when it came race time, Hondas led the way - nearly flag to flag. Duhamel looked set to make it three Daytona 200s in a row when a mental lapse saw him fly- ing over the 'bars coming out of turn one. This put Zemke into the lead - and it was a spot he kept for the remainder of the 58- lap race, ensuring that a Honda would sit atop the podium. New Erion Honda recruitlosh Hayes put in an impressive ride to finish second aboard another CBR600RR, with Jason Disalvo the only non-Honda on the box on his Yamaha. For first-time Daytona 200 winner Zemke, this was the biggest win of his career to date. ''Everybody knows about the 200," said Zemke, still beaming weeks after winning the race. "lt's something, as a kid, that yo-r always look at the narnes on the list ofthe winners on *le Daytona 200 By Honda, and it's a who's- who list. l'm proud to put nry name up there." Yours truly was lucky enough to be invited out to the all-new Hiller Motorsports Park in Salt take City, Utah, to throw a leg over Zemke's race-winning CBR, putting the final laps on the minaature beast before it gets retired to ofle of Honda's museums (something I was reminded of before every session that I dad on the middleweight machine). After sit- ting a day out due to snow (yes, you read that correctly - it was snowing when I arived in Utah), the weather cleared up and we were able to flog the bike on Miller's beautiful west track in low 60- degree temperatures. The track was wide, llowing and billiard-table smooth in all but one area (for more info see "lnside Line" page 70), providing a perfect place to test the prowess ofthe 500cc rocket. American Honda also tugged along Duhamel's backup bike (the other was still in slight disrepair after the turn-one get- offl, to allow us to get more time on the 600s they are so proud of. And Honda has every reason to be proud. After my first session on the number-98 machine it was easy to see that Honda didn't sit on its lau- rels this past off-season. They made one heck of a weapon out of the CBR600RR. I had gotten a chance to ride Duhamel's FX bike at the end of the 2004 season, which won the championship and the Daytona 200 in what was the first year that FX became a 600cc-based class. That was well over a year ago, Even so, it was easy to tell that American Honda has taken several steps in improving the CBR FX bike. They now run the latest ohlins gas-charged fork, changed from the Showa units they ran until the end of last sea- son, and as a result, the handling of the CBR is alrnost telepa$ic. Th;nk aboot tumirB, and the CBR has you dragging your knee quicker than a druggie can get a fix. i I j I I6 APRIL 26, 2006 CYCLE NEWS 0 I -lr ) \\. dru l- a .) I li / .L- .Lag tg= I, * r \ a-- __ --,.- \ Weop. on (wep'en) noun: something used to injure, defeot, or destroy; a meons of contending o$oinst onother.