It's the official launch of the British Super Bikes season today (Wednesday) at Snetterton. But yesterday, we were invited down to Brands Hatch for some early testing.
A few interesting points come out of the rulebook: the use of different materials being illegal is the reason behind many of the changes for all Ducati R versions. For example, beryllium valve guides and titanium valves have been used on showroom bikes just to allow race teams to have every last advantage. The rev limit on the 1199R is also 500rpm higher than the S, allowing BSB (and I'm guessing other national series - CIV etc.) teams to access more power at maximum revs.
The team are running two riders again this year, but instead of two in the top class, they will be running one EVO rider and one in Superstock. This year, the riders are Matteo Baiocco - 15 (Baiox) on the EVO bike and (General) Lee Johnston - 18 on the stocker.
Yesterday, the team were testing base setup for both riders. Both were changing suspension and tyre pressures throughout the day and although track temperatures were 8 degrees below those recommended by Pirelli, both riders were pushing through to the top of the timing charts. When I left, Baiox was running in second - this was his first visit to Brands Indy. Given that the first race is in less than a month at Brands, you could say that the test could be representative of the expected weather here. I've had enough tho - I'll be in Nice that weekend : )
Baiox was running his number 2 bike yesterday. It is largely the same chassis as run last year, but with some internal work on the motor to reflect the development done for the 1199R.
The bike is meticulously prepared and after every session, the mechanics were cleaning it thoroughly to present their sponsors in the best way and to check for loose components or damaged parts.
The bike is a real work of art, mixing Corse parts with production.
On the right of the bike is the red transponder, the plugs for sensors and suspension potentiometers and the red Anderson plug for a remote battery.
Here, Ducati Corse engineer Giovanni is helping to measure compression. Wilf, on the laptop, is receiving data through the cable that is plugged into the telemetry systems.
Changing preload the hard way...
You can just see the potentiometers in pictures 2, 3 and 4 above. Sad to see damage on the fork lower, but it's a race bike, not a show bike.
The Evo bike has no traction control, instead, the ECU can be mapped to back off the mixture at the point where it's about to pop the wheel: effectively, it's closing the throttle for the rider. One less thing to think about. The setting can be applied to specific throttle openings, not to the engine speed.
Lee is one of the nicest guys in the paddock. He races because he enjoys it and it shows, but when he's on the track, he's very serious.
Practice was mixed, with Evo and Superstock bikes going out together in the same sessions. Lee was able to match the pace with the Evo bikes and was regularly running mid-pack. He should have an interesting season!
Lee's getting good value from his ride this year - talking suspension with Ducati Corse...
...and his bike gets it's own heater. Red, of course!
Pro-bolt are sponsoring the team this year and have provided trays of titanium fasteners for the bike. Also visible here, the front mudguard has a small piece of Ventureshield to protect it from the front paddock stand. A nice touch.
Not quite track-ready. The shock needs to be put back, but again, the potentiometer is in place.
Excellent swingarm protector in carbon with Kevlar for the contact points.
Pit lane limiter and map selector buttons again.
Telemetry plug.
I just wanted to take it home : )
So, a great couple of days with the team and the riders. Thanks to all at MotoRapido Racing and the sponsors for your hospitality. It was a real pleasure to spend time with you all.
Most of the teams were present, from Supersports through to near-WSB spec machines. In common with many championships, BSB has been introducing rules to make racing cheaper for teams. Electronics packages are standardised throughout the paddock: no traction or wheelie control and a standard ECU.
For Ducati teams, the ECU change means that they cannot easily use the data, maps or development gathered from other teams throughout the world. They must develop their own and create wiring looms, specifically for the series electronics. I'm not convinced that this can result in a reduction of costs, but what do I know - I'm not running the team!
No traction or wheelie control puts more focus on the rider. Instead of just opening the throttle and letting the electronics sort it out, they have to ride on feel - old school! This might not sound like it leads to a significant reduction in costs for the teams, but in WSB, engineers map the TC to each corner on each circuit for each rider. With two riders in a team, that's two engineers and two more salaries to find.
An outline of the BSB rules can be found here: http://www.bikesportnews.com/download/news/647D2E60-0362-1026-DB22E622C51F920E.pdf
A few interesting points come out of the rulebook: the use of different materials being illegal is the reason behind many of the changes for all Ducati R versions. For example, beryllium valve guides and titanium valves have been used on showroom bikes just to allow race teams to have every last advantage. The rev limit on the 1199R is also 500rpm higher than the S, allowing BSB (and I'm guessing other national series - CIV etc.) teams to access more power at maximum revs.
The Moto Rapido team
The team are running two riders again this year, but instead of two in the top class, they will be running one EVO rider and one in Superstock. This year, the riders are Matteo Baiocco - 15 (Baiox) on the EVO bike and (General) Lee Johnston - 18 on the stocker.
Baiox was first in the Italian Championship in 2011 and 2012, riding the 1198 for Barni and is a WSB test rider for Ducati.
Yesterday, the team were testing base setup for both riders. Both were changing suspension and tyre pressures throughout the day and although track temperatures were 8 degrees below those recommended by Pirelli, both riders were pushing through to the top of the timing charts. When I left, Baiox was running in second - this was his first visit to Brands Indy. Given that the first race is in less than a month at Brands, you could say that the test could be representative of the expected weather here. I've had enough tho - I'll be in Nice that weekend : )Baiox was running his number 2 bike yesterday. It is largely the same chassis as run last year, but with some internal work on the motor to reflect the development done for the 1199R.
The bike is meticulously prepared and after every session, the mechanics were cleaning it thoroughly to present their sponsors in the best way and to check for loose components or damaged parts.
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The bike is a real work of art, mixing Corse parts with production.
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| Remote span adjuster and thumb brake | |
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Here, Ducati Corse engineer Giovanni is helping to measure compression. Wilf, on the laptop, is receiving data through the cable that is plugged into the telemetry systems.
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The Evo bike has no traction control, instead, the ECU can be mapped to back off the mixture at the point where it's about to pop the wheel: effectively, it's closing the throttle for the rider. One less thing to think about. The setting can be applied to specific throttle openings, not to the engine speed.
Lee Johnston's Superstock bike.
Practice was mixed, with Evo and Superstock bikes going out together in the same sessions. Lee was able to match the pace with the Evo bikes and was regularly running mid-pack. He should have an interesting season!
The 2013 Number 1 Evo bike
When I realised that we were looking at the number 2 bike, I sneaked into the van for a quick look at the number 1. This is a proper R, fully kitted. Obviously I wasn't able to get much information on it before the official press presentation (today), but here it is. Lovely!
So, a great couple of days with the team and the riders. Thanks to all at MotoRapido Racing and the sponsors for your hospitality. It was a real pleasure to spend time with you all.
I had so many pictures from the day that I haven't been able to use. Please take the time to browse the album here:
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| Ducatis at Brands BSB Testing |
and Bournemouth Kawaski here:
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| Bournemouth Kawasaki BSB Testing Brands 2013 |
WARNING - 'orrible green content.
I did take pictures of the Hondas and Yamahas on the day, but my camera rejected them.
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