Published by award-winning filmmaker, Peter Starr, Taking it to the Limit offers readers an insight into how over 40 successful motorcycle racing films were made in a 20 year time period, including the award-winning film, Take It To The Limit.

Taking it to the Limit includes previously unpublished stories about some of the world’s greatest motorcycle stars, some of which include Kenny Roberts, Barry Sheene and the story of Mike Hailwood’s initial return to the Isle of Man in September 1977. The era covered by Taking it to the Limit is one of those that is generally lauded as a “Golden Age”. The stars, the films and now the book, collectively, is one of the most unique tomes to be offered on that era of motorcycle racing. 

The iconic film, Take it to the Limit, won premier awards at the Chicago International Film Festival and the Houston International Film Festival in 1980, the year of its release. Peter Starr, the producer of this film and author of Taking It To The Limit is an inductee of the American Motorcyclist Association Hall of Fame and has gathered a remarkable collection of stories in this book that will fill many of the gaps still left in the coverage of that era.

Taking it to the Limit is accompanied with a free DVD showing clips from many of Starr’s most popular films. The book, with 50 signed copies available, costs £45 and is available from www.mortonsbooks.co.uk

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About the author

A former employee of Triumph Engineering in Meriden during the early 1960s, Starr emigrated to the USA in the mid-sixties, initially to continue his racing career but soon learned that his talents, and thick English accent, were better served as a radio rock ‘n’ roll disc jockey on various American Radio stations peddling the British Music Scene to an enthusiastic young audience. This was followed by a stint as a record producer in Hollywood where he worked with artists such as the Brit Spencer Davis.

This led to the opportunity to return to the motorcycle culture, and to make BAD ROCK the first of what turned out to be over 40 films on motorcycle sport. Starr’s motorcycle films have been honoured by 14 international film awards and, in addition to the AMA Hall of Fame, he has been inducted to the Trailblazers Hall of Fame and the HotShoe Hall of Fame. Currently Starr lives in Los Angeles where he produces documentaries and television commercials and serves as the medical research director of a Medical Foundation.

The KICKBACK Custom Bike + Stunt Show takes place this weekend and here's a quick reminder of what's happening.

Saturday 2nd April show opens from 11am - 6pm.

Showcasing the amazing customs and classic specials plus features such as 'Force of Nature' the amazing steam powered rocket bike on a static display where you can meet it's creator Graham Sykes.

The judging takes place throughout Saturday for the 2022 National Championships with the Awards on Sunday to be presented by Henry Cole.

Throughout both days the incredible 'Two Brothers Stunt Team' will be performing the most excellent stunts and tricks.

Enjoy a sit-down breakfast or lunch in the Stockman's Cafe and there'll also be coffee, tea and beers to keep you going through the day inside the main hall.

On Sunday KICKBACK opens at 10am with the Awards at 3pm. Again the stunt show will be performing three times throughout the day with the event closing at around 4.30pm.

For camping, tenting and motorhoming you can book at pitchup.com just search Three Counties Showground Worcestershire.

To get the discount ticket offer click here.

When you get to the Showground please enter via Brown Gate and park up near the Wye Hall for free.

If you are coming on your bike you can park up INSIDE the Main Show hall, if there's still space.

Showground post code is WR13 6NW.

There is a 'cash on the door' option.

Kickback | Facebook

AFTER THE INDONESIAN RACE, APRILIA RACING SEEKS CONFIRMATION ON THE TERMAS DE RIO HONDO TRACK

After a two-year absence in 2020 and 2021, skipped due to the health situation, MotoGP returns to do a round in Argentina on the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit. A race the not only embraces the passion of all South America, but which also represents an important sign of gradual return to normalcy for the Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing Championship circus.

The start of the season was important, both for Aleix and for Maverick. While the former solidified his good performance in Doha with a solid race on the Mandalika circuit too, for Viñales, the Indonesian race represented a potential turning point in his progress adapting to the new Aprilia RS-GP.

Both are therefore headed to Argentina with the right dose of enthusiasm, with the goal of further confirming the progress demonstrated thus far by the entire Aprilia Racing Team.

ALEIX ESPARGARÓ
"I am extremely happy to be returning to Argentina to race. It’s a country where you really feel the support for our sport, as well as a track where I have always felt rather good in the past. We got off on the right foot this season and now we have two races in a row ahead of us where it will be fundamental to hold the line and earn as many points as possible before returning to Europe."

MAVERICK VIÑALES
"If it were up to me, I’d have raced in Argentina as soon as the Indonesian race was over. At Mandalika, we made an important step forward in terms of settings which did not come out fully in the race due to the difficult conditions, but which makes me highly optimistic for the upcoming rounds. I'm convinced that we are extremely close to finding full confidence but in the current MotoGP championship, every tiny improvement takes a lot of work for both the team and the rider. It’s a matter of putting a lot of details together and creating a perfect synergy but we are on the right path."

Danny Kent and Christian Iddon star on the opening episode of The Inside Line, as it returns for a second series, and this time, the podcast is now a video series, too.

Watch the video on YouTube here.

Watch on Facebook here.

Chris Moss returns as the show’s host, and in this episode he goes under the skin of BSB with Buildbase Suzuki’s 2022 superbike riders, discussing everything from injuries and the mental challenges as well as the physical ones, to rivalries and on-track (and off-track) aggression, how to set up a superbike, the effects social media can have on your confidence or mentality, handling PR duties, and this season’s aims and ambitions.

Official testing for the 2022 Bennetts British Superbike Championship began today, at Snetterton, with the opening round of the season taking place on 15-17 April at Silverstone.

Follow Kent, Iddon, and the Buildbase Suzuki team’s season on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

After the exhilarating start to the season with the win in Qatar and the adventurous challenge under the rain at Mandalika, the MotoGP paddock moves to two circuits which are almost new to Team Gresini MotoGP. In a matter of seven days, the Italian team will tackle the #ArgentinaGP and the #AmericasGP.

Gresini Racing never raced as an independent team at Termas de Rio Honda, even though the Faenza-based squad logo did get a taste of the podium under the ‘Sol de Mayo’ (May sun): we have to go all the way back to October 23rd 1998 to relive Alex Barros’s third place finish in the Argentine Grand Prix at the Juan and Oscar Galvez circuit.
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The team only did one appearance at the “Circuit of the Americas” in 2013, with Alvaro Bautista crossing the line in 8th place. There are fond memories of racing in the United States of America for the team, however, as Marco Melandri clinched a third-place finish in 2006 and 2007 at Laguna Seca, while Alex De Angelis was second at Indy in 2009.

Enea Bastianini has a fourth place as best result in Argentina (2018, Moto3 class), while in Texas he finished second in the same year and above all he was sixth last year in his MotoGP debut season. Fabio Di Giannantonio also holds good memories of both tracks: he was on the podium at Termas in 2018 and at Austin the year before (both in Moto3).

ENEA BASTIANINI #23
“I like the Argentine track a lot and due to Covid it’s been a while since we last went there, so it will be great to return. We come from a strange race in Indonesia: conditions were not the best, but we still improved a lot in the wet and that’s not a small thing, so I’m happy. CoTA is quite a particular circuit, and it won’t be easy to get up to speed there. I think it will surely be simpler with the Ducati 2021 compared to last year… I can’t wait to get back on the road.”

FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO #49
“Finally we go back to Argentina… We did not go there in the last two years and I think it’s a really nice track. It’ll surely be dirty, a little bit like Mandalika, so I don’t exclude that the dry set-up we found in Indonesia may work as a solid basis for that circuit as well. What about America… one of my favourite stops of the year: it’s a very demanding track, but I’ve always done quite well and been quick, so honestly I cannot wait to racing there with the MotoGP. Surely the speed will be incredible, with very hard braking, I’m so looking forward to it".