|
Joey Dunlop
Dies in Motorcycle Crash
 A
great tragedy has occurred in motorsports with the passing
of a true legend, Joey Dunlop. Tens of thousands of people
were in attendance for his funeral earlier this month in
Belfast, Ireland. Often called "The King of the Road" by his
fans the Irish racer had a very prolific career spanning
several decades. Dunlop, who had won at the Isle of Man TT
races 26 times and was the Formula One world champion five
times, was killed while competing in a road race in Estonia.
His bike slid off the track in a heavy rainstorm during the
race. The mourning of the entire nation evidenced the true
scope of this loss for Ireland. Businesses were closed and
even religious groups suspended protests out of respect for
Dunlop and all he meant for Ireland. Joey Dunlop was 48 and
is survived by his wife and five children.
World's Fastest
Ural
If you read MMM's road test of the Ural
sidecar rig
last spring you know that speed is one of the things Ural
doesn't have. So it came as a bit of a shock when I saw that
a group calling itself the "Siberian Speed Team" or SST is
going to attempt to set the world speed record for 650 cc,
pushrod, gasoline fueled, stock sidecar class on a Ural. For
those who aren't familiar with the Ural, it is essentially
is a clone of a 1930's vintage BMW with a sidecar attached.
Built in Russia, their design has changed little in the past
sixty years. Known for their reliability not for speed, the
Ural has makes roughly 35 horsepower in stock trim and has a
terminal velocity of 65 mph. The funny thing is that 65 mph
will be enough to take the record because there is no
record. The 650 cc, pushrod, gasoline fueled, stock sidecar
class is empty meaning the team will only have to make a
their run and the record is theirs. The pilot of the Ural
speedster will be Freeda Cole, a 53-year corporate
executive. SST is very confident that will not only will
they set the record but also that it will high enough to
prevent anyone from beating it for sometime. According to
team sources they have a tuned machine already running at 90
mph. After they conquer the stock class their next goal is
to go after the modified streamliner sidecar record
currently held by a Triumph at 101 mph. To follow their
progress check SST's website www.narma.org.
Excelsior-Henderson
the Second Verse
There is a bit of news out of the now long dormant
Excelsior-Henderson plant, it was announced last month that
the Bankruptcy Court has approved the reorganization plan
filed by E-H earlier this year. The plan basically sets
forth how the secured and unsecured creditors would be
repaid and also has no provision for any current stockholder
to retain or obtain any future equity in E-H. "We believe
the proposed plan of reorganization represents the best
available alternative for the Company and it's creditors."
said Dave and Dan Hanlon, co-founders and co-CEOs of
Excelsior-Henderson, "It is also a good alternative for the
surrounding community as we expect manufacturing operations
will resume in Belle Plaine. However it is highly
unfortunate that all equity shareholders, common and
preferred including ourselves, lost our entire equity stake.
There are a lot of shareholders and motorcyclists who have
believed in us and the Company, and it is unfortunate that
we are all sacrificing. We regret that a plan could not be
developed by the Company and E H Partners which provided for
continued participation by the Company's equity holders.
Regardless of these short-term setbacks, we remain
steadfastly committed to the future of Excelsior-Henderson,
and we hope others will also." You can see a copy of the
disclosure statement and the plan of reorganization online
at www.mnb.uscourts.gov.
Go to the "High Profile Section" and click on case #
99-46679.
Buell
Recall
Buell Motorcycle Company, Harley-Davidson's sport and
sport-touring motorcycle division, has announced a voluntary
recall of several '99 and '00 models. The models affected
are the 1999 and 2000 Cyclone M2, the 2000 Lightning X1 and
the 2000 Thunderbolt S3/Touring. All total 11,000 machines
are affected by the recall. The problem is related to the
rear shock absorber. If you own an affected machine and have
not received a recall notice from Buell contact your local
dealer to schedule the service. Despite the recall company
officials say they are on track for their production of
10,000 bikes.
M.M.M.
|
Archives,