Laurent Hoffmann and Franck Petricola will make their debut at the 2014 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy as part of the experienced Ice Valley by Motorsave team.

Double International Road Race Supersport Champion Hoffmann will step up to the 1000cc class and ride a BMW S1000R in the Dainese Superbike, RL 360⁰ Superstock and PokerStars Senior TT Races and he will also contest the two Monster Energy Supersport races on a Honda CBR600RR.

Having taken his first title in 2012, the Belgian rider dominated the 2013 IRRC Supersport 600cc Championship on his ZX-6R Kawasaki, never finishing lower than second. He opened his account for the year with a win at the opening round at Hengelo before taking double victories at both Oostende and Chimay and of the ten races held during the season, the 30-year old won five and took second in four others. Indeed, only a retirement in the final race of the season at Frohburg spoilt his 100% podium record.

In what was a very successful season, he – along with team-mates Nico Hautekiet and Jan van Steelandt – also finished second in the 600cc class of the Spa-Francorchamps 6 Hour Endurance Race. A former Belgian Supersport Champion, Hoffmann has also enjoyed success on the road circuits in the Czech Republic, taking a hat-trick of victories at Terlicko in 2012 and is eagerly looking forward to making his Mountain Course debut.

Petricola will also be BMW-mounted for the 1000cc races and will compete in the 3-lap Bikesocial.co.uk Lightweight TT on an ER6 650cc Kawasaki. The 30-year old is another regular in the IRRC Championship and enjoyed his best season last year with 11th overall in the Superbike category. His best result, sixth, came at Chimay and he ended the year strongly with six successive top ten finishes and took a brace of thirds in the Lightweight Races at Horice and Terlicko.

Team owner Paul Shoesmith commented: “I’ve seen just how good Laurent and Franck are up close having raced alongside them in the International Road Race Championship across Europe so I am delighted to be welcoming them to our team for this year’s TT Races. I'm sure they will both give a good account of themselves. They are both working hard on their circuit knowledge using on board footage and they both gained a lot from a recent visit to the Island. They are putting everything into getting themselves ready for their debut this June.”

Regardless of your skill level there's a Triumph Adventure Riding experience perfectly suited to you.

The fun-filled courses are run by expedition specialists Trailquest whose expertise means you'll be in safe hands no matter how confident you are off the beaten track.

Based in the Malvern Hills the Triumph Riding Experiences will give you a taste of riding off-road, through woodlands, over a variety of surfaces and teach you bike control when ascending and descending tricky terrain.

For those after a more comprehensive experience intermediate and advanced courses are available - but however you're progressing the team will always tailor your day to suit your specific needs with specific attention on making it an entertaining and fun day!

All our courses are run on the superbly agile Tiger 800XC, our ultimate option for serious off-road riding, but we'll also cater for those who choose to bring their own bike along.

Courses are available from £240 including your loan bike - see our website for more information and a comprehensive list of course pricing. Alternatively, if the course is for someone else the team will be happy to provide gift vouchers to use at a later date.

If you want a taste of the action without booking a full day's training make sure you join us at Triumph LIVE at Gaydon Heritage Motor Centre on July 12th where the Triumph Adventure Riding Experience will be providing trial sessions.

Contact the Triumph Adventure Riding Experience team on 01531 650252 to book or visit www.trailquestadventure.com for more information on courses.

APRILIA STARTS THE NEW WSBK SEASON WITH ONE WIN AND TWO PODIUMS.

GUINTOLI TRIUMPHS IN RACE 2 AT PHILLIP ISLAND AND SHOOTS TO THE TOP OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP. APRILIA – REIGNING CHAMPION – IS NUMBER ONE IN THE MANUFACTURER STANDINGS. MELANDRI SECOND IN RACE 1 AND THIRD IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP.

Phillip Island (Australia), 23 February 2014 - On the Australian Phillip Island track for the opening round of the 2014 World Superbike season, Aprilia wins with Sylvain Guintoli in Race 2, takes two podiums in Race 1 and immediately takes back the top spot in both the Rider and Manufacturer standings. It was an extraordinary weekend for the Aprilia Racing RSV4s, key players in both races.

The first part revolved around the duel between the two Aprilia standard bearers, Melandri and Guintoli, along with Irishman Laverty who, after making a comeback on the leading pack which also included Giugliano for a long time, kept his rivals in check in the final laps. Marco Melandri made an excellent second place finish, crossing the line just ahead of his team mate Guintoli (third) who had led the pack at the beginning stages of the race for a long time, however costing him wear on his tyre so that in the final laps he had nothing left on the rear to be able to fend off Laverty's attacks.

In Race 2 the leading pack also included Rea, Baz and Sykes, making a comeback from the rear spots. Guintoli led the first part of the race and after being overtaken by fellow leaders Baz and Laverty once, he took back the lead in the 12th lap. Two laps later an engine failure for Laverty - riding second at the time behind he French Aprilia rider - with a consequent oil spill on the track, forced Laverty to withdraw and the marshals to suspend the race. This meant that the finishing order was decided by the last lap completed which had Guintoli winning in front of Baz and Sykes.

With this performance the Frenchman provides an encore of last year's success (also with the Aprilia RSV4) and, thanks to his third place in Race 1, puts him in the lead for the Rider Championship. Sylvain's win and Melandri's second place in Race 1 place Aprilia at the top of the Manufacturer standings, an excellent bounty for the new season.

After his nice second place in the first race Melandri had a bit of a moment during the eighth lap of the second race, running on after braking too hard and having to re-enter the track in 14th place. From there he made a bold comeback to finish in eighth place, earning 8 points that put him in third place in the rider standings.

Sylvain Guintoli: “In Race 1 maybe I had a little too much faith. I started off strong and toward the end I lost the right feeling with my rear tyre. The conditions were much different than they had been over the last few days but we did a good job anyway. In the second race I tried to look after my tyre and it worked. If I think about everything that happened during the winter I can't help but be pleased with our weekend. I'm finally back on the top step of the podium. I want to thank the guys who looked after me during my recovery. I'm pretty tired now but I'll have a month to recover before the next round”.

Marco Melandri: “Race 1 went well. I got off to a good start and then I was able to ride smoothly in the first few laps to conserve my tyres for the end. Unfortunately after the halfway point the bike was sliding around a lot. I wasn't able to be incisive so when Eugene took the lead I preferred holding onto second place. In Race 2 I wanted to use the same tactics again but to overtake Rea I braked harder than usual and the rear wheel came up so I was forced to run on. I'm disappointed because I threw away some important points. I'm sure I still need more experience adjusting to the way the bike reacts and adapting the settings to my riding style. The track conditions also brought out some problems that I had never had before. Now I need to get a handle on the situation so that I'm ready for the next race”.

A NICE SECOND BEST TIME FOR MELANDRI AND GUINTOLI LAGGING A BIT OPEN APRILIA'S 2014 WORLD SUPERBIKE SEASON.

FIRST DAY OF PRACTICE AT PHILLIP ISLAND WITH THE MORNING SESSION THWARTED BY BAD WEATHER AND A VERY HEATED AFTERNOON SESSION.

Phillip Island (Australia), 21 February 2014 – This is just the first day of practice in a World SBK championship that promises to be well balanced, long and exciting. But the Friday practice and qualifiers that were held on the magnificent Australian circuit at Phillip Island put the first rankings on the record.

The Aprilia Racing Team took to the track for the first time with the RSV4 in its new silver livery which has already gained popularity with fans and the team.

Melandri, in his first round with the Aprilia RSV4 reigning Manufacturer World Champion, put a nice second best time on the boards. After the first morning session that was basically abandoned due to the wet asphalt and changing weather conditions that hindered a decisive choice for bike setups, the games got underway in the afternoon session. Melandri lapped quite a bit (20 laps), working on various setups and trying several technical solutions in anticipation of Saturday's Superpole and – above all – the races on Sunday. It was only in the last few minutes that he went out on the track with his sights set on a fast time and he hit the bullseye with a 1’31.137, just 37 thousandths of a second behind Lowes and ahead of Giugliano, Sykes, Rea and Laverty.

Marco Melandri: “This was not an easy day because of the weather, but it was definitely positive. Even with only one session we managed to follow the scheduled testing programme with good results. There is still room for improvement in many areas, but we are able to lap fast easily and that is a good starting point for Sunday's races. Tomorrow I'll try to focus efforts on speed and on the fast lap for qualifying because with times as close as they are starting as far up front as possible will be important”.

The day didn't go quite as well for Sylvain Guintoli, winner on this track at the world championship's opening race last season. In the 16 laps he put in the best time the Frenchman put on the boards was 1,31.759 which relegates him to tenth place, although the gap is just 66 hundredths of a second from the leader. The French rider took advantage of the session to try out a few setup solutions on his RSV4, identifying the path he needs to follow in the weekend ahead. The small gaps (the top 11 are all within less than a second of one another) is indicative of just how well balanced this Superbike season is right from the start.

Sylvain Guintoli: “The first day went well. I was trying to confirm a few setups that we had to try before the race, so we used this session to check them. I wasn't looking for a top time. Besides, the strong wind bothered my riding quite a bit. Tomorrow we'll try to pick up the pace now that we know which direction to go. We need to prepare as best as possible for two long and difficult races”.

Argentina will be again the scenery for Desafío Ruta 40 (Road 40 Challenge), an international sport competition that has been propelled for 5 years from the National Ministry of Tourism. This race, which links the Patagonia and Cuyo, and it goes through a mythical itinerary in unique destinations with unique and beautiful landscapes, identity and culture.

Unlike the last two editions, the competition will go through the Road 40 from South to North and from San Carlos de Bariloche, then Zapala and Malargüe, and finally in San Juan.

Competitors will find new paths in complex and challenging roads in the most impressive landscapes of our country.

In this edition, driver will visit the provinces of Río Negro, Neuquén, Mendoza and San Juan.

Under the Dakar format, the Challenge gathers together the world’s top competitors of Cross Country Rally that will race 3508 kilometers in six days.

As it was the case in other sport events that we have supported, Desafío Ruta 40 – Dakar Series has turned into an efficient tool to get to know our tourists offers, which are incomparable in terms of quality services and friendliness of our staff.

The city of San Carlos de Bariloche with its traditions and snowed hills will be the chosen one to open this new edition of the Dakar Series in our country. After that, the competition will go to Zapala where the Laguna Blanca National Park is located and then it will visit the city of Malargüe. This city has the so-called culinary roads where the trout and the chivito (baby goat). After that stage, it will finish in San Juan, the land of the sun and the wine.

We are glad to host, once more, competitors, travelers, and organizers with the commitment of providing them an excellent stay and the certainty that they will come back to get to know our country better.

Carlos Enrique Meyer
National Ministry of Tourism
Republic Argentina

www.desafioruta40.com.ar