Retailing for $1,099.95, the Dainese Veloster one-piece perforated suit is an affordable alternative to the more expensive offerings in Dainese’s closet. For sure, you’re sacrificing some of the features and benefits of the high-end suits, but primary protection remains as does comfort. Best thing, the Veloster is of the “In” boot variety, meaning, instead of stuffing bulky leathers inside your boots, the Velosters are designed to be worn over the boot.

In a scene right out of Talladega Nights, two Down Under drag racers competing in the 400 Thunder in Perth, Australia, finish by pushing their drag bikes across the finish line after both suffered mechanical issues. Quite possibly the slowest drag race in the history of motorcycle drag racing, but in the spirit of competition both these guys deserve to get thrown out of Applebee’s.

Its 2:23 am and I am lying in bed wide awake. I have my hotel window open and I am listening to the rain coming down. Just two weeks earlier if you’d  told me I was going to be in a tiny hotel room in Alcaniz, Spain, I would have laughed. But that’s where I am, and I am filled with so many different emotions. Different emotions because I am here as a guest to ride World Superbike Champion Jonathan Rea’s Kawasaki at one of my favorite tracks, Aragon.

As a racer I was always hopeful that I would get a chance on a proper World Superbike. I dipped my toe in the series in 2008, and even though the team I was on wasn’t run very well, I still enjoyed my time getting a taste of the championship I always wanted to race in. Now, I was here in a different role. Kawasaki USA asked me if I would be interested in coming to ride the bike that dominated this years series and do a write up on it. Without hesitation I cancelled everything  and boarded a plane to Spain. What was going to make this trip even cooler was the fact that Dainese was going to send my new D-Air suit from Italy right to my hotel — I was feeling factory already!

I think this is the first time I’ve been truly afraid of a motorcycle. And I mean fear. The bike is invaluable and has a lot of important history. Cagiva entered Grand Prix racing in 1990 and had to battle against the ultra-rich Japanese manufacturers with seemingly unlimited budgets, in a day when expenses and rider salaries were peaking. A cheap rider was at least a million bucks, and still the small factory with the big heart pushed on and, eventually, against the odds, rose to the winner’s podium. Had finances not restricted the forward progression, a world title might’ve been possible.

This Cagiva V593 belongs to huge motorcycle fan and avid collector, Steve Byrne. The bike holds a spot at Steve’s bar with Andrew Pitt’s world-title-winning Kawasaki ZX-6RR. Steve’s other 18 bikes live in the garage. When he heard that Paul Feeney, the then importer of MV Agusta in Australia, was selling the V593 that Kocinski won the U.S. Grand Prix on at Laguna Seca in 1993, and the Australian GP on in 1994, Steve just had to have it.

Suzuki announced its return to MotoGP racing with the new GSX-RR prototype and riders Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Vinales. The Japanese manufacturer last participated in the world championship in 2011 but stated it would eventually return, starting with a wildcard entry at the 2014 season finale at Valencia before joining the series full time in the 2015 season.

Bucking the trend of most of its competitors, the GSX-RR will not use a V-4 configuration. Instead, it is powered by a 1000cc Inline-Four engine like the also-new 2015 Suzuki GSX-R1000. Like other MotoGP participants, Suzuki is vague on the engine’s specs, saying only that it has a maximum power output of more than 227 hp.

As we previously noted, Kawasaki organized a “Bike Nite in the Daylite” on Friday, March 14th at the Daytona Int’l Speedway. With around 40 bikes assembled for the four prize category, all those involved with the show felt like it was a success.

This year marked the first time that the Most Unique Bike category was included in the mix. In previous years, the folks at Kawasaki noticed there were many bikes that didn’t fit the Best Cruiser, Best Sportbike, or Best Vintage Bike classes. So, they approached MO to see if we’d be interested in being a sponsor. Since we feel MO readers are unique among motorcyclists, we immediately signed up for the duty.

The entries in the Most Unique category ranged from KZs of various sizes to a ER–6N to a Concours to even a KLX250 in motard trim. The selection of the category winner was left to the folks in attendance who then submitted their ballots to Kawasaki reps. At stake was a 16 GB iPad and a cool trophy created by hand by Kawasaki employees. The Best in Show (with its trophy and $500 MasterCard debit card) would then be selected from the category winners by four judges from Cycle News, MO, Motorcycle Cruiser, and Sportbikes Inc. Additionally, MO partnered to offer our “Most Unique” category winner a free set of METZELER or Pirelli tires. Not bad, eh?

When Paul Taylor grants you permission to ride his super exclusive (meaning there’s only one) carbon fiber Moto2 race bike, it’s not something you turn down. While I’ve been fortunate enough to ride almost all of the latest and greatest production sportbikes around, there’s still nothing like riding a motorcycle specifically built for lapping a race track as quickly as possible. Production sportbikes are engineered with the track in mind, but with street compromises, because really, the vast majority of owners are likely to never bring their bikes to the track.

The Taylormade/Brough Superior Carbon Fiber Moto2 race bike is different. The brainchild of Paul Taylor and business partner/designer John Keogh, the one-of-a-kind racebike is intended to take on the Moto2 establishment by examining the racing motorcycle, inch by inch, and exploiting any advantage they could find. That means street concerns were thrown out the window in favor of extracting every last bit of speed possible.

The introduction of the Moto2 class into the world championship in 2010 was met with mixed emotions. Moto2 spelled the end for the beloved 250cc two-strokes, but it also opened up a new world for engineering innovation. Based around a spec Honda CBR600RR engine, the essence of the class was to have brilliant minds develop a chassis around it to lap a racetrack the quickest. Instead of hunting for horsepower, emphasis would be placed on engineering excellence and rider talent to win races.

By most accounts, the series is a success. The racing is extremely close, Moto2 machines are faster than their 250cc two-stroke predecessors, and the past two champions, German Stefan Bradl and Spaniard Marc Marquez are acclimating well to MotoGP competition, especially Marquez.

However, dig beyond the surface and a trend is already starting to emerge. Bradl won his championship in 2011 aboard a Kalex chassis. His only real title contender that year was Marquez aboard a Suter chassis. Between them, they won 12 of the 18 races that year. The following year, with Bradl graduating to MotoGP, Marquez made the rest of the field look like amateurs while he piloted his Suter to the 2012 title.