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How close to production bikes were the late 90s Superbikes?

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Hesketh308
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Joined: 12 Oct 2018
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PostPosted: 16:40 - 12 Oct 2018    Post subject: How close to production bikes were the late 90s Superbikes? Reply with quote

Hi all,

I have recently been watching old clips of BSB races from 1999 and 2000, with Hodgson,Walker,Reynolds,Bayliss and Hayden. The racing is fantastic, and it was at a time where a BSB rider could enter the very popular WSBK rounds, and be competitive, if not win outright.

With the current state of WSBK and Kawasaki domination with electronics rumoured to be more sophisticated than current MotoGP bikes, I've been curious just how far away from production spec the Superbikes would have been in the late 90s, from the Foggy-era on to the early 00s. This goes for BSB and WSBK.

I think it's madness for WSBK to be dropping the Superstock class from next year, and adding yet more Superbike races. It seems BSB have the rules just about right in terms of machine specs, and its regular for a different manufacturer to finish in the first 5 positions.

I can't help thinking that reducing the spec of WSBK to a more Superstock level would greatly increase the racing, and get more manufacturers involved.

I just wondered if the large gap between WSBK spec machines and production bikes have always been a world away from each other, or if this is something that has developed over the last decade or two.
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Old Git Racing
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Joined: 08 Aug 2009
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PostPosted: 19:13 - 12 Oct 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

I think the gap between bikes you could buy in a showroom and race winning superbikes started in the 90's, possibly the 80's. The manufacturers started making homologation specials that you could buy and ride on the road and gave them a base for a race winner. Could you win on one, not a chance at world or national level without throwing money at the race kit, engine and suspension.
Nowadays it has escalated even further, 20k ish for a set of forks?
I think they have dropped the superstock class because they want WSB to be more like at so whats the point in having it.
Also dont get the idea that a superstocker winning in WSB or BSB just has its lights removed, sump plug wired, sticky tyres and off we go. Bet the top bikes are in the 40-50k region to build and tune.
The time when a true privateer could win died with the demise of 2 strokes, TZ yamahas and RG500 suzukis. Not cheap at the time but at least if you were the best rider you had a chance.
Personally I think WSB is the most boring category of bike racing at the minute, including superstock. The junior superstock is the best race of the weekend.

OGR.
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MarJay
But it's British!



Joined: 15 Sep 2003
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PostPosted: 20:57 - 12 Oct 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

I remember WSB bikes around the late '90s and early 2000's made a good 150bhp, on a stock 120-130bhp. They were tuned, but a modern superstock would make more power.
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Suntan Sid
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Joined: 07 May 2009
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PostPosted: 22:44 - 12 Oct 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

Old Git Racing wrote:
The time when a true privateer could win died with the demise of 2 strokes, TZ yamahas and RG500 suzukis. Not cheap at the time but at least if you were the best rider you had a chance.


Spot on! Thumbs Up

As far as I'm aware the only purpose built, true, race bikes are in the three MotoGP classes plus the Patons, used in road racing, in the lightweight and classic classes, everything else is merely a tarted up road bike.
If you go and watch the Classic TT and Manx GP you can see the massive difference between real race bikes and the modded production bikes.
Watching at the end of the Cronk-y-Voddy straight, there is a short incline and a crest just as the bikes start a, flat out, right hander, (11th milestone). Just on the top of that crest, where the bikes are starting to lean into the corner, there's an undulation in the surface.
Without fail, all the production based bikes are tying their suspension in knots, resulting in massive wobbles, throwing the bikes wide into the corner.
In contrast, the real, non production, race bikes, 250 and 500 strokers, plus the Patons, are rock steady, no drama whatsoever!
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stinkwheel
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PostPosted: 23:12 - 12 Oct 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

As above, you could buy homologation specials like the RC30 of some of the SP Ducati models but they were rare and expensive.
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Diggs
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PostPosted: 02:56 - 14 Oct 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ron Haslam 1986. I have vague recollections of marshalling this and Ron's bog-standard VFR...

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=ron+haslam+transatlantic+challenge+vfr750&mkt=en-gb&httpsmsn=1&refig=86ba9627663f4fcdbc01172f562e9b55&sp=-1&ghc=1&pq=ron+haslam+transat&sc=0-18&qs=n&sk=&cvid=86ba9627663f4fcdbc01172f562e9b55&ru=%2fsearch%3fq%3dron%2bhaslam%2btransatlantic%2bchallenge%2bvfr750%26form%3dEDGNB2%26mkt%3den-gb%26httpsmsn%3d1%26refig%3d86ba9627663f4fcdbc01172f562e9b55%26sp%3d-1%26ghc%3d1%26pq%3dron%2bhaslam%2btransat%26sc%3d0-18%26qs%3dn%26sk%3d%26cvid%3d86ba9627663f4fcdbc01172f562e9b55&view=detail&mmscn=vwrc&mid=E0CA2DDC29E1E3A3775AE0CA2DDC29E1E3A3775A&FORM=WRVORC
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almostthere
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Joined: 28 Oct 2013
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PostPosted: 20:44 - 20 Oct 2018    Post subject: Flights to Jerez? Reply with quote

A friend of mine has booked an apartment to watch the Jerez 2019 moto gp I've been invited and will be meeting them there (they live in Spain) but I can't find any direct flights,
Anyone been how did you get there? I did think of riding down stopping at my parents place near Valencia but I thinks it's going to be too far and costly and I can't take too much time off work Sad
any ideas will be much appreciated Thumbs Up
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