Jan 5, 2022

Max Biaggi is still living the motorsports dream. At age 50, the six-time world champion may not have expected to ever again taste that inexplicable mixed cocktail of speed and danger since retiring from competition in 2012. But now, committed to riding for Voxan Motors, the motorcycle arm of high-performance electric vehicle constructor Venturi, Biaggi has experienced something that is nothing like riding a powerful MotoGP racer. It is more like piloting a rocket.

“When I retired from racing, I closed an important chapter of my life,” the Italian commented, “I needed a break from the pressure and emotional stress linked to racing. I withdrew as a world champion and I was satisfied with it, because, even if I had a stellar career, the fans remember the last seasons.” And they are rarely favorable memories.

After some well-deserved rest, Max opened the door to a new challenge. “It’s difficult to explain the adrenaline you get when you ride a MotoGP. When visionary and pioneer Gildo Pastor told me about the unique, extreme Voxan project, all the longing for that adrenaline rush returned to the surface.”

Two years ago when the project began, Biaggi didn’t expect to feel like an astronaut. In November of 2021, Biaggi and the Voxan team flew to Space Florida’s Launch and Landing Facility at Kennedy Space Center to break the 408 kph (253.5 mph) speed record he’d set almost one year ago.

“It was incredibly emotional to enter NASA’s spacecraft launch structure,” Biaggi said. “It is such an iconic place and I had goosebumps thinking that I would reach new speeds on the same tracks where the space shuttle had landed. That’s something that only a few years ago would have been considered futuristic or simply impossible, considering that I am riding an electric bike.”

For eight days, the Voxan Motors crew did several tests, taking care of all the details and managing to set 21 new records. With a speed of 455.737 kph (283.182 mph), Max Biaggi and the Voxan Wattman claimed the prestigious world record in the “partially streamlined electric motorcycle under 300 kilograms” class. In line with FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) regulations, the Voxan Wattman’s speed was measured from a flying start over 1 kilometer in opposite directions, two runs performed within a period of two hours, with the final speed being the average of the two speeds recorded over these two runs. The Wattman’s GPS speedometer recorded a maximum speed of 470.257 kph (292.204 mph).

“When you see the instruments signaling 470 kph you don’t believe your eyes. Even for a MotoGP racer used to pushing 300 kph, this is something extreme. At that speed, the track suit vibrates and burns your skin, your eyes cannot see well. There is so much turbulence that you think you can hold on, but you can’t. You don’t look anymore at what is straight ahead. You need to look wider. It’s crazy.”

The silence of an electric motor becomes the rumble of a rocket. “When you break the wall of the air, the wind creates a really big noise. The sensation is like driving into, and then through, a wall.”

Biaggi recalls every single moment of that fantastic adventure. “Unlike the first time, I knew what to expect, and throughout the eight days we were at the NASA Space Center, I took care of all the details I hadn’t considered in the past. I am a maniac about this. I have always been. You can prepare everything at the best, but still, when you are sitting on the bike, waiting for the green light to start, a thousand thoughts pass into your mind. The gray ribbon of the track looks endless and infinite and merges with the sky.”

In his mind, Biaggi quickly rehearsed all the complicated procedures. “You try not to think that you will fly at half the speed of sound, with the wind trying to impose its will,” he said. “It’s all about power, stability, and aerodynamics. Plus, the problem is not only to reach the moon but also to come back,” he joked. “You need to brake, and at that speed it is not easy. You need to manage the rear tire and consider the temperature; that experience in MotoGP is an ally. All the senses come to support your instinct because everything is so surreal. To complicate things, you also need to brake at a specific place in order to avoid finishing off of track.”

To help Biaggi in this important point on the track, the Voxan crew placed cones indicating his braking point. “You won’t believe it: I asked for bigger cones because I was struggling to see them,” Biaggi continued. “The human brain is not used to running at that speed and all the references I had developed riding the most beautiful bikes on the planet were not useful. You need to reset everything and write a new chapter.”

Two years ago, when the collaboration started, their current speed record would have sounded like science fiction. In November 2020, the Voxan Wattman achieved a speed of 408 kph. In order to beat that record, the engineering team at Venturi/Voxan worked on the motorcycle’s air penetration and stability. While simulations in the wind tunnel play a crucial role, the R&D department has also enlisted the help of specialists in fluid dynamics simulation in search of their high-speed targets.

“In less than a year, they have succeeded in reducing the motorcycle’s weight while increasing its power and improving its stability. Following the records we set in November 2020 in the ‘over 300 kilogram’ class, these 21 new records set another milestone. Moreover, having reached 470 kph, we achieved the highest top speed ever reached by a naked bike. It’s an absolute record, considering not only the electric bike but also those powered by an internal combustion engine. In a word: this time we ride at a space speed!!” Biaggi concluded.

Original post: https://www.cycleworld.com/story/motorcycle-news/max-biaggi-sets-new-speed-record-voxan-electric-motorcycle/

Jan 5, 2022

Paul Smart, the legendary winner of the first Imola 200 in 1972, died yesterday at the age of 78 in a road accident in England. Smart was out riding his motorcycle, as he did every day.

Smart’s love for motorcycling began in his teen years. Since he was good at the game and fully enjoyed it, he attended the Charles Mortimer Race School at Brands Hatch, where he proved very capable. In 1966 Mortimer took him under his wing and provided support by letting Smart enter events on the school’s spare bikes. His first solid success came the following year at the Isle of Man TT, where Smart took second in the 750 Production class aboard a Paul Dunstall Norton Atlas. In 1969 he did it again.

That same year, Smart’s racing career exploded. He became a major star on British short circuits, riding a wide range of bikes ranging from Nortons to two-stroke Yamaha twins to Triumph Trident triples.

In 2006 Ducati honored Smart with a special-edition Paul Smart 1000 Replica LE, a limited-production machine based on the Ducati 1000 Sport S.Bruno dePrato

His legendary victory came in 1972, when Ducati hired Smart to race its new 750 SS Desmo at the Imola 200. His friendly personality meant he was popular with Ducati’s team mechanics. His ability to master a machine that was not only totally new to him, but had nothing in common with the British 750cc bikes he had raced until then, impressed Dr. Fabio Taglioni. Smart was fast and consistent in testing despite his lack of familiarity with Imola, an exceptionally demanding track. Although he found himself dissatisfied with the Desmo’s heavy front-end geometry, Smart promptly adapted his riding style, visibly leaning his chest farther into the corners.

For the Imola race, Smart would be teamed with—and pitted against—Ducati mainstay Bruno Spaggiari, a man of enormous experience with Ducati racebikes. Spaggiari was almost 40 years old, but still very fast. At the start of the race the pair took off; only Giacomo Agostini tried to stay with them. Spaggiari and Smart went side by side for the full distance, but Smart had gained a lead of a handful of yards by refueling time. He pitted first and took a full load of fuel; Spaggiari, very close behind, tried to make up lost ground by taking on less gas. The gamble didn’t pay off. Smart won and Spaggiari finished second with a dead engine.

Smart soon raced again for Ducati, on its 500 GP twin, but was hired by Hansen Kawasaki to race in the USA. He retired from racing in 1978 and graduated to the business side of motorcycling with notable success.

Smart married Barry Sheene’s sister Maggie, and the couple had two children: Scott, also a racer, and Paula.

In 2006 Ducati honored Smart by creating the Paul Smart 1000 Replica LE, a lovely sportbike based on the Ducati 1000 Sport S. The distinctive tribute bike is one of the all-time most desirable Ducatis.

In Paul Smart, motorcycling has lost a great champion; the world has lost a wonderful man. Godspeed, Paul. Your No. 16 Ducati 750 SS is waiting for you whenever you’re ready.

Original post: https://www.cycleworld.com/story/motorcycle-news/paul-smart-tribute/