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Road Test: Peak Practice
By Bertie Simmonds on 20/04/2008 21:24:25
Once a year, at Shrove-Tide, Ashbourne becomes the Wembley of the Peak District.
through the roads of the town, across fields and even along the bed of the local stream. The violence of this game is countered by some of the most beautiful scenery in Great Britain.It's here that we're heading to, to start our test and this promises
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Used Test: Yamaha Fazer 1000
By Bertie Simmonds on 16/08/2008 21:50:12
Eagerly anticipated but horrendously expensive on its launch, the Fazer needed a price cut before gaining the popularity it deserved. But what about a used one?
When it was launched back in 2001, the Fazer 1000 was being touted as a sports bike alternative. In reality it was very close to a sports bike, but mainly on price: a whopping £8100, or nearly £1900 dearer than the Bandit 1200! An R1 was only a grand more. A year later Yamaha too...
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Used Test: Suzuki GSX1400
By Bertie Simmonds on 13/09/2010 14:19:12
It looked like a pit-bull, even if it was more of a lap-dog to ride. Blessed with good looks and mucho torque, Suzuki's GSX1400 has proved to be a popular retro bruiser bike in used circles
Click to read: Suzuki GSX1400 owners reviews, Suzuki GSX1400 specs and to see the Suzuki GSX1400 image gallery.Back in the days when wearing Brut 33 was considered foreplay, real men rode bikes like these. Retro bikes from the 1990s cashed in on naked nostalgia with a raft of ma...
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Road Test: I am not a number
By Bertie Simmonds on 19/04/2008 22:21:20
If only bikes were available on prescription to combat the misery of the Great British Winter
, as if he'd piclocked the winner already...Continue the tourer test
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Used Test: Kawasaki ZZ-R600
By Bertie Simmonds on 09/04/2008 23:13:49
Like Barbara Windsor, it hasn't been considered sexy for years. So what's kept the ZZ-R600 on Kawasaki's books all this time? It's the fastest, squashiest, flying sofa has ever seen, that's why...
.Front suspension: It's okay but veers towards sogginess quickly: this is exacerbated by the bike's weight and makes for a disconcerting lack of feel on the road. Firmer fork springs are virtually a must on older models. Be aware that pre-1995 bikes had
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Used Test: Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa
By Bertie Simmonds on 10/04/2008 19:17:39
Half elephant, half cyclops, but all-conquering when it came to the title of King of Speed in the late 1990s, the Hayabusa is still the yardstick for sheer velocity and a fantastic cult motorcycle.
The figures take some beating: 192mph, 157bhp, a quarter-mile in just 10 seconds and you could have all this for just a shade over £3,000. Suzuki's Hayabusa came on the scene in 1999 and the lumpy looks were for a reason: this bike was one of the first to be designed with a lot o...
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Used Test: Aprilia RSV-R
By Bertie Simmonds on 10/04/2008 19:28:42
The original Ducati spoiler is more practical and arguably more exotic too. Plus the spec'd up 'R' version can be had on the used market for as little as £3,000. But beware, she has a few issues up her skirt.
on in 1999, but they got it right first time. The RSV-R appeared a year later. It was capable of giving anything a run for its money on a race track but it's comfy on the road and doesn't have any major reliability issues either. The 1,000cc RSV-R is the mid
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Used Test: Suzuki GSX-R1000
By Bertie Simmonds on 05/08/2008 22:31:27
Upon its launch in 2001, the Suzuki swept all before it. Six years later it is still arguably the best of the litre sports bike brood, but how does it handle in the fiercely fought second-hand sector?
It's funny how bulbous the original 2001 GSX-R1000 now looks next to the lithe and silky-smooth 2006 GSX-R, R1 and Blade. But half a decade or more ago this was the latest 'big thing', a machine which made the likes of the FireBlade and R1 also-rans. Its 988cc motor produced more...
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Used Test: Suzuki DL1000 V-Strom
By Bertie Simmonds on 09/04/2008 23:01:00
Handsome is as handsome does. And if that's the case, many owners reckon the V-Strom is drop-dead gorgeous and offers plenty of smiles for the miles.
Varadero. Beef-up the handling though, and you had a back-road corker on your hands. Things get better still away from that soggy front-end and dubious finish. Comfort is damn good and that motor never gives up the ghost. Keep on top of the finish, as most
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Road Test: VFR800 VTEC vs. ZZ-R1200 vs. FAZER 600
By Bertie Simmonds, Gus Scott, Simon Bowen, Daryll Young on 21/04/2008 21:49:21
Three different bikes, three different prices and three different ways to sports, tour and commute. These bikes are living proof that in the world of motorcycling, you can indeed have your cake, take it to the South of France and eat it...
, but the post '93 models are much better put together, as well as having a twin-ram-air snout which made them the fastest things on the road until the advent of Honda's Blackbird in '97.For 2002, Kawasaki moved the ZZ-R away from their own ZX-12R and made
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