| Author | Message | ||
     Xb9er |
probably because BMW was the pioneer for street bikes with crazy HP numbers and great electronics; they had the early market share in that segment. EBR will do fine and gain ground in that market share as long as they promote the RX/SX hard. Commercials are still the best way for promoting and capturing your message. So far, EBR is trying to capture their message through racing, why not, its a proven campaign, but the times have changed here in the U.S. and racing has become a secondary thought. Yamaha will do well with the new R1 because everyone knows Yamaha and everyone knows Rossi. EBR is still young, but that is no excuse to not be currently working hard on making the RX competitive in WSB if that is the campaign route they are going with. On the flip side, none of us really know what EBR is doing right now. Erik is a smart man and knows how to be successful. | ||
| Classax |
"The housing is slightly different externally to fit the new WSBk suspension, but the brakes are exactly the same"~ Erik Buell facebook Q&A You are right to a certain extent they went into the WSBK gunfight with a nearly all production knife and only managed to run at the back of the grid, with a team that was assembling engines wrong, refusing to listen to the riders, and second tier riders who had only raced on one of the tracks before. All while the new rules penalize any engine mods slowing development. It could have been way better but it easily could have been much worse. The owners group seems to be adding folks at the rate of a new one every three days, so someone is buying them. As has been pointed out BMW has exactly lit up WSBk but they are killing the market as will the new R1 because of spec sheet buying. Ride the bikes and you'll find the zx10 puts its power to ground better than both the RSV4 or BMW. I wish EBR success (and 30 more HP)but if they are going to do WSBK, the folly of missing testing opportunities is a lesson they apparently have not learned from the abysmal "learning year". | ||
| Hughlysses |
Is there any requirement to use the actual riders who will compete in WSBK 2015 for testing this week? | ||
| V74 |
Anyone read the SX road test in this week's MCN written by a journalist who competes at the TT?interesting comments about the brakes. | ||
| Neutrum |
on speedweek, i've just learned, that ebr is talking to niccolo canepa (ducati evo) and josh herrin (caterham moto2) as riders for the next season. interesting. but a bit late. http://www.speedweek.com/sbk/news/67032/Superbike- WM-2015-Noch-11-freie-Plaetze.html | ||
| Classax |
Herrin is NO alien but He is STTUPID fast on a liter bike! The most awesome thing in that whole blurp on EWC is that they signed a three (3) year commitment, so that's 2015 and 2016. I hope they are testing at Jerez next week at least. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Very interesting. It sounds like EBR is just looking for one rider, which would mean Geoff May will return? | ||
| Riohondohank |
Larry Pegram posted that he was in Paris at the airport on a layover. Is he headed to Jerez? | ||
| Hughlysses |
I love Larry's post on FB:
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| Court |
:-) | ||
| Jscott |
Interesting for sure… http://www.moto.it/superbike/sbk-fabrizio-a-jerez- sull-aprilia-del-team-red-devils.html "Instead, start a new chapter for Niccolo Canepa will race in 2015 in the ranks of the Hero EBR team , a team that will be completely new , especially from the technical point of view . After the first year of apprenticeship EBR seems willing to get serious , strong support of the Hero Indian producer for more than six million motorcycles a year." | ||
| Davegess |
Anyone read the SX road test in this week's MCN written by a journalist who competes at the TT?interesting comments about the brakes. Any chance to post a summary? Togh mag to get here in the states. | ||
| Classax |
Hmmmm... bold move. Getting a guy who has score points on your main competition is a good step. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Confirmation of the story, apparently from a Spanish site: https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=es &tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fsuper7moto.com%2Fdirectorio% 2Findex.php%2Fsbk%2F4164-niccolo-canepa-nuevo-pilo to-ebr-hero.html
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| Court |
 There was never any doubt. . . . . Armed with a years worth of lessons and experience . . . I expect them to be back with a determination that will amaze even long time Buell aficionados. You have to understand the way Erik Buell thinks . . . . the entire idea of going away would have made the "RELENTLESS" and "NEVER GIVE UP" t-shirts tough to sell. This is great news for my travel schedule as well . . . | ||
| Hughlysses |
Posted to Geoff's FB page about 4:20 PM EST:
Hopefully that means he will be riding for EBR next year, OTOH that sure sounds like they won't be testing next week. | ||
| V74 |
"These brakes are not race bike like,like a ducati streetfighter, for example, but they are more than strong enough and have a lovely progressive feel. Some modern race brakes are so strong they are like an on/off switch, but these are really progressive. Personally I use the back brake a lot,especially in tricky conditions like those during our test,and not only was the rear rather poor but it was hard to reach with the toe of the lever being too short." | ||
| Neutrum |
http://www.speedweek.com/sbk/news/67222/Buell-(EBR)-Das-naechste-Himmelfahrts-Kommando.html pegram will be head of team and rider... i don't know... i'm out, this is ridiculous (Message edited by Neutrum on November 24, 2014) | ||
| Simond |
Nico Canepa would be an excellent choice for EBR. I hope the story is true. | ||
| M2typhoon |
Never trust what a German says about America. | ||
| Hughlysses |
This was posted to Facebook about 5:50 AM EST this morning:  | ||
| Jscott |
If the rumors are correct this will be an interesting announcement. | ||
| Court |
That's an accurate statement. Quoting Paul Harvey . . . . "stand by for news!" I've heard a lot of whispers . . . can't wait to hear the public announcement. | ||
| Firstbuell |
RE: EBR's 2015 plans - here's what RRW's Michael Gougis had to say earlier this season [post-Assen] on his excellent blog - scroll down about 80% to "Erik, Take A Step Back" ".....It's time to take a step back. Getting hammered on the world stage can't be doing Erik any good. EBR needs to succeed on the national stage. Before taking on Assen or Aragon, it would be smart to win at Road America or Road Atlanta. Right now, all EBR is doing is making Ducati look like geniuses simply because they can get a 1200cc twin to live for a full race distance....." http://motorbikeroadracing.blogspot.com/p/words.ht ml | ||
| Hughlysses |
~5 hours since the above post and no announcement yet. I guess "shortly" is a very subjective word. Well, Geoff is still hanging out in Italy at least until January according to his post to FB (see above) which seems to indicate he'll be around for next season. Speedweek says Larry Pegram's going to run the team and apparently they think he will also ride (!). They also say Niccolo Canepa will ride for EBR. IIRC, one of the articles said the team has a $6M budget this year. That sounds humongous, but is it? I'm thinking to attract a rider of Canepa's caliber, they had to not only pony up plenty of cash, but convince him they're serious about being competitive this season. Alright already, let's have an official announcement!  | ||
| Fast1075 |
The "same old, same old" will not work. Last season had the "newcomer" excuses and what seems to be ineptitude, if not outright incompetence in the team, and with a bike that would be impossible to win on. Geoff is a great rider, an outstanding spokesman, and all around great guy, but is no "alien". Yates is, well, Yates. Pegram will bring a lot to the team that is needed. He is fiery and focused, and the the team sure needs some of that. Nice guy in general, but a seething vat of don't piss me off or do anything to sabotage the effort underneath. And don't for a second discount his people either. Canepa is something that is also needed. Not quite an "alien", but very, very talented, and is a proven rider on a V-twin. I REALLY want to see them do better. | ||
| 1313 |
Well, Geoff is still hanging out in Italy at least until January according to his post to FB (see above) which seems to indicate he'll be around for next season. What I gleaned from Geoff's comments (and other's comments) on his FB page led me to an entirely different conclusion... Perhaps it's just me? 1313 | ||
| Hughlysses |
What I gleaned from Geoff's comments (and other's comments) on his FB page led me to an entirely different conclusion... Yea, on second thought I suppose he could just be hanging out in Italy until he moves back to the States. On a related subject, has anyone seen ANYTHING about Aaron? Hopefully he's home and recuperating. | ||
| Ljm |
When I asked the factory a few days after Losail, they said he was recovering well and would be headed home in a few days. Now that a couple weeks have passed, I imagine his has by now. | ||
| Crusty |
That's an accurate statement. Quoting Paul Harvey . . . . "stand by for news!" I've heard a lot of whispers . . . can't wait to hear the public announcement.  |
