Minutes of a Motorcycle Addict
Two wheels good trip. Four wheels bad trip.
| This 2004 Moto Guzzi Breva 750 is Wife's (Sølvi is her real name) current day-to-day steed. It has real grunt for being a 48 hp twin, but it's Guzzi hp, so it actually kicks when opening the throttle. I have just (March 09) finished an overhaul of it, following a paint scheme she had thought out. The tank, side panels, rear and fly screen have been painted pearl white and red, the wheels are red while the valve covers and metal side panels have been powder coated in an aluminium-look. I think it came out ok. Didn't take too long either - what did take time, though, was waiting for the parts to get painted... | Before (Photo: Sølvi 2006)
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Racing
Here's Wife on her 1998 GSX-R 600 track bike. She got it, track licence and gear for her 40th birthday in 2007. The picture is from the spring 2008 when she had her first track day after taking her licence. The bike was sold in Sept 08, as we started to look for a suitable object for her to run in classic racing. | Photo: HP 2008 |
Classic racing
So here it is, the Guzzi SP1000 that is about to become a classic TT racer. I'm rebuilding the bike to be classed into the so-called "Forgotten Era" class 7A, which is bikes up to and including year model 1979, displacing max 1300 cc. The SP1000 was first produced in 1978, so even if this one is a 1981 it's still eligible to contest in the 7A class. This particular bike we bought from a guy in Sweden in June 09. There is a lot of work to do on it to make it somewhat raceworthy, especially on the engine and suspension, but hopefully we'll get there within season's start next year. The Tonti frame is very rigid though and good for this type of racing, and it steers pretty quick for a Guzzi. Progress reports will be posted in the "Down the Road" column. A special thanks to all the guys in the Moto Mental Guzzi racer's crew who are helping me with tips, hints and good advice on the rebuildling, and of course to my pal Tor who's always helping me out with his broad knowledge of Guzzis. | |
No more custom
This 1998 Yamaha 650 Drag Star was Wife's first bike when she got her license in late 2004. She only had it that fall. When the spring arrived she concluded that it was 1) too lazy, 2) too low, e.g. no room for proper cornering without scraping the pegs, 3) too wiggly when cornering, 4) bad brakes, etc. So the road to the Breva was pretty short. | Photo: HP 2004 |
