Compass Expeditions is excited to release the dates for the 2015 circumnavigation of the entire South American continent the 360 Expedition. Our 128 day, 33,000 km Expedition will depart Santiago, Chile on 21st Feb and return to Santiago, Chile on 28th Jun 2015.

“This is one of the biggest rides on earth and covers an impossible diversity of landscapes, cultures and riding experiences” say Jerry Cook founder of Compass Expeditions. “The greatest ride on earth” was how one client put it after completing last year’s inaugural 360 Expedition.

“This expedition is a ride of superlatives as we ride the mythical Patagonia to the worlds southernmost city of Ushuaia before turning northwards through Argentina to Iguazu Falls. From there we move along the coast of beautiful Brazil until reaching Brazil’s mighty Amazon River, where we’ll move at a leisurely pace by boat to the former rubber export capital of Manaus. Riding north again by motorcycle we’ll cross through a land that time forgot to Venezuela, home to Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The lost World”. This region is a spectacular surprise with it epic scenery and the worlds tallest waterfall in Angel Falls.

Heading south we’ll pass through the rider’s paradise of Colombia, past rumbling volcanoes in Ecuador, explore ancient cultures in beautiful Peru, witness the incredible Uyuni Salt Flats of Bolivia before heading across to the Atacama Desert, The highest and driest desert in the world and then finishing the epic adventure back in Santiago”.

128 Days of spectacular scenery, good company, multiple cultures and languages and with a support vehicle to carry your belongings.

The beauty of this ride, besides the fantastic achievement of circumnavigating the most vibrant continent on the planet, is that you can choose to ride your own motorcycle or rent one of ours. All shipping of the motorcycle is included to the start point and home from the end, all accommodation is included, many meals and a host of excursions compliment the trip and get you immersed in the various points we explore.

www.compassexpeditions.com

Sunday 4th May 9am - 5pm

Winner of 8 World Championships between 1964 & 1977, and affectionately known as the Prince of Speed, Phil Read MBE, will be at the cafe on Sunday 4th May, occasion of the cafe's annual Italian Bike Day, launching and singing copies of his autobiography "Rebel Read, The Prince of Speed".

Published by Redline Books, it tells the story of Britain's most successful living motorcycle road racer, who started out on a bike bought by his doting mother in 1956, and entered big-time racing with an Isle of Man TT victory in 1961. Three years later, in 1964 (this year being the 50th anniversary) Phil took his first World title - also the first for the manufacturer that he was riding for, Yamaha.

Four more Yamaha mounted titles followed, and in 1973 and again in 1974 two more titles with the Italian MV Augusta Team. His eighth World Championship, on a 810cc Honda, was the Formula 1 TT race of 1977 - on very wet roads!

Meet Phil and read his frankly told story of life in the grand prix circus, the glamour, the danger, the money, the politics etc.

www.redlinebooks.co.uk

www.ace-cafe-london.com

The Motorcycle Off-Road Experience (MORE) is holding another 4 day mini off-road ‘try out’ festival, which will be held 20th to 23rd of June at the AMCA track at Bevercotes in Nottinghamshire.

This is for anyone aged 16 or over, who has not ridden off-road before, and is suitable for road riders, or complete novices.  All bikes, protective clothing and training will be provided for a subsidised fee of just £25, for a whole morning or afternoon session.

Places are allocated on a first come first served basis, via an online booking system, which goes ‘live’ on Saturday May 10th at 10 am.  Most of the places for a similar event last year went within the first hour of going live.

A women only session will be held on the morning of Friday 20th June, but women are obviously welcome to attend any session.

See the website:  www.rideoffroad.co.uk

And like the facebook page 

A dry but windy Anglesey circuit greeted the BHR brigade for round 1 of the 2014 season.

The entertainment began with the Ducati singles and Formula Bantams sharing the track, Rich Hawkins taking his first of many wins over the weekend on a 349 Mk 3 Duke. Nick Bramley took the first Bantam race honours with Michael Brown, Ian Scutt and Mike Powell pecking at his heels all the way to the flag. These four had some great dices over the weekend, each grabbing a win.

Some very funky paintjobs were being shown off on the packed scooter grids, Damon Tunnicliffe’s mean looking fully faired Lambretta taking him to the front in most of Saturday’s outings. More beautifully turned out bikes graced the ‘big bike’ startline, the Rob North Rocket 3s of the Woolleys putting in good performances, but the fight for top spot all day was between the Seeley G50 mounted Ian Sheltner and Mike Bevan on a 750 Seeley Norton. Rich Hawkins rode the wheels off his Ducati again to take the 250/350 races and the world’s oldest rider/bike combination of Mervyn Stratford and his bionic Rudge bossed virtually everyone else about.

The pre ’72 unlimited 3 wheelers showed everyone how to have a good time throughout the weekend. The Quirk’s Vincent powered outfit just seemed to have the legs in the early stages, but the Tuer’s very rapid Morgan and Eddy Wright’s 750 Bella BMW soon made sure the spectators were on their toes.

Misfortune dogged many of the BEARS riders on Saturday, not least novice Robin Webster who threw his very nice Laverda 500 away in the first race whilst leading, causing the red flag to come out. With a depleted field on Sunday, Nigel Clark took charge with some strong showings on his 950 V7 Guzzi. Rich Hawkins had it all his own way again in the Ducati class, with Andy Hunt looking the strongest of the 250 competitors over the weekend. The four key Bantam jockeys fought hard again with Mike Powell hopping onto a Seeley G50 between the Bantam races to contest the 351-500 specials championship. Some cracking racing saw Powell and Ian Sheltner share victories, with Dave Matravers, also Seeley G50 mounted, join them up front and grab a win for himself in race 4.

Tony Perkins rode his 500 Rudge with style and class keeping Stratford in his sights, and showed many of the newer and larger capacity BEARS the way home in the mixed BEARS/pre 48 races. Saturday’s sidecar madness continued on Sunday with the Quirks, Tuers and the Wright/Clarke combo knocking lumps out of each other. Sheltner, Bevan and Tim Woolley fought it out in the ‘big bike’ class.

Over the weekend John Woods had it all his own way in the ‘Zip’ scooter class, winning all of his five races. Graham Buller put in some great rides over the weekend on his Norton to show he is one of the key contenders in the pre’63 350 class.

The 750 Crick BSA outfit of Phil Holt/Jeff Gamble swept the pre’72 750 sidecar races, with the 1300 Vincent outfit of Bishop/Howes proving to be the frontrunner in the unlimited to ’58 three wheeler class. Two BMW ‘Flying Brick’ big wheeled outfits joined the sidecar party, and what a curious sight they were. Mr Lorriman’s machine sported the number ‘13’, but the pilots, outfits and passengers stayed in one piece and enjoyed the action.
The unlimited capacity sidecar races must mean there are some hard fought battles ahead. The Tuer’s Morgan turned into a ride on mower more than once over the weekend in a bid to make up a place, the Quirk’s Vincent pulling off the same trick and demolishing a corner sign.

Ian Sheltner proved to be a hot contender in more than one of the solo classes, but by the final races on Sunday a lot of riders were really finding their feet again after the winter layoff. With some new riders getting up to speed quickly too, we should have a great season ahead. 

Stuart Swift is about to embark on one of the biggest challenges of his life. A dream he has held for more than 40 years. The Michelin-sponsored rider will travel to the famous Bonneville Speedway in an attempt to break the 250cc motorcycle world land speed record.

Lining up with world-class riders like Toseland, in the centenary year of Bonneville speed racing, Stuart, a 51-year-old RAC patrolman, is looking to take the top spot in the 250cc production motorcycle class.

Riding an Aprilia RS250 fitted with Michelin’s new Pilot Road 4 tyres, Stuart will need to beat the current record of just over 136 mph held by British rider, Mark Jordan. To qualify for the world record, Stuart will have to ride faster than the existing record three times, and then an average speed of two runs over the three mile course will be taken for the final figure.

Stuart said: “I’ve been interested in Bonneville since I was seven years old, but it wasn’t until I was thirteen that I got my first bike, a Honda ST50. This attempt will fulfil one of my lifelong dreams and I truly can’t wait to line up on the salt in August this year. I’ll be wearing number 58 in honour of one of my heroes, the late Marco Simoncelli 2008 250GP World Champion.”

Stuart has spent years researching and developing the Aprilia’s engine himself, being a firm believer that a world record beating engine tune cannot be bought – hence the difficulty in breaking these records.

Of course tyres will play a crucial role in the attempt. The surface at Bonneville is unique, as it can vary between compact, hard salt and softer, looser patches. In places grip can be reduced to as little as 20% when compared with asphalt. Using Michelin’s new Pilot Road 4 tyres will help combat the wide variation in available grip.

Michelin Technical Manager, Tony Charlton said: “When Stuart contacted Michelin with his idea to break the 250cc World land speed record, we knew we could help. Michelin has a range of motorcycle tyres for every bike and surface, and the Bonneville salt is one very special surface. We chose the new Pilot Road 4 because it has been designed for optimum performance with excellent grip and stability over a variety of surfaces, whilst being able to cope with the extreme heat that Stuart will have to contend with.” Talking of his Michelin sponsorship, Stuart said: “The support I have received from Michelin has been outstanding. I don't know why, but ever since I was a young boy I’ve always had a fascination for Michelin tyres. I had them on my pedal bikes and on all of my motorbikes. If it was on two wheels, it had to be Michelin. Now I just can’t wait to get out to Utah and hopefully break records with the new Pilot Road 4 tyres – and have plenty of fun while doing it!”

Find out more about the new Pilot Road 4 at www.moto.michelin.co.uk