JOIN THE CAMPAIGN TO SAVE THE BRIGHTON SPEED TRIALS

UK’s longest running motor sport event under threat

Brighton, 23 December 2013: Calling all motorsport fans, we need your support to help save the Brighton Speed Trials. The Speed Trials is the longest running motorsport event in the UK and has become a world-famous action packed sprint. It is under threat by Brighton and Hove Council who want to refuse permission and block the event taking place on the seafront.

But you can help by signing our petition; either visit www.savebrightonspeedtrials.com or go directly to the petition which is on the Brighton and Hove Council web site and sign it now. Don’t delay; the council will be making a decision on 23 January 2014!

The Speed Trials has been running in Brighton since 1905 and is one of the highlights of the seafront entertainment calendar. Thousands of people come down for an entertaining fun-packed day out for the whole family to watch some of the UK’s best race cars and motor bikes compete along Madeira Drive. Over two hundred cars and motor bikes line up to take a timed run including road cars, race cars and drag bikes who compete to win the fastest in their class. A top six run-off to find the fastest car and bike brings the day to a dramatic close.

Brighton and Hove Council is planning to block permission for this annual event so we need your help. As well as signing our petition you can support the campaign by circulating the link to the petition to friends and family, facebook contacts and Twitter followers.

The Brighton Speed Trials is organised by Brighton and Hove Motor Club; the club’s Tony Watts said: “We are appealing to motorsport fans, local residents and everyone who enjoys a family day out at the seaside to help us save this historic event. The loss of the Brighton Speed Trials will be the end of an era for Brighton with over 100 years of history and entertainment in the area gone.”

The end of the Speed Trials will also have a financial impact on tourism and trade for retailers and businesses in the area as it brings thousands of visitors to Brighton.

Updates will be posted to Twitter, follow us: @SaveBST

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A survey carried out for the Motorcycle industry* researched the impact of bikers on the tourist industry and found that Motorcycle-related tourism spending in the UK is over £565 million each year, supporting over 13, 000 tourism jobs.

In recent years the most significant growth in motorcyclists has been in female riders and with this the rise in longer stays under bricks & mortar such as B&B's, hotels, cottages, etc, rather than just for one night... Many riders know there is nothing worse than arriving somewhere after a long ride, unpacking, showering, eating, drinking, sleeping and then up the next day to pack up and move on. With this there is a significant rise in finding a great Biker Friendly place to stay as a base for a few days and then to go out each day to tour and explore the area.

Hoteliers, cafes, pubs, event organisers and other tourist related organisations could be getting more money from the biker pound, by choosing the correct medium to promote themselves within, especially as many Bikers travel in the UK for their holidays, along with overseas motorcycling tourists spending over £17 million on trips here.

The traditional stereotype of bikers being free-spirited, leather clad hooligan is thing of the past, according to research** the profile of the ‘average biker’ in 21st Century Britain, a seemingly upstanding, 40+-something middle-class citizen who is a married, professional, family man, who almost certainly owns a car. Challenging the old perceptions of bikers even further, only 7% sport either long hair or a pony tail. This is probably because nearly 60% of those surveyed hold down a professional senior/management job, taking home an average wage 25% higher than the national average.

By simply advertising your business as 'Biker friendly' here on THE BIKER GUIDE is letting this niche audience know that you welcome them, which many times is enough in itself... by also offering drying facilities, garaged and/or secure parking is a bonus and not a necessary, for you to capitalise on this growing market.

Other interesting facts:

More than half of all motorcyclists are over 40, with the vast majority of motorcycle tourists being in this age category.

“The lack of interest in the motorcycle tourism sector may be due to a perceived image of rebellious youthful bikers which is at odds with their current demographic," (Dr Cater, lecturer at Aberystwyth University).

* by GHK on behalf of the MCI ** by Bennetts

OUR 2014 NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS!

• To bring you a free and easy to use website packed full of information for the Biker Community
• Include an extensive What's on guide for rallies, shows and events in the UK
• Expand the sections for Genuine Biker Friendly Accommodation, including Hotels, B&B’s, Campsites, Hostels and Pubs
• Give you lots of free to enter competitions for holidays, tickets to events, clothing, books, etc…
• Encourage audience participation, for recommendations, events, jokes, news and photos
• Have the most extensive motorcycle directory, which includes clothing, equipment, parts, touring and more…
• To regularly update, check and include news and information for our visitors
• Constantly grow the sections for Biker Cafes, pubs and meeting places
• We will continue to grow the website organically, opening new sections and pages with exciting content, rather than have annoying blank pages
• Never presume that we know more than our visitors or that we can guaranteed sun

What are yours?

Pata Honda’s World Superbike pairing of Leon Haslam and Jonathan Rea ended their riding year this week with a play on Honda’s new-for-2014 Fireblade SP at the Losail circuit in Qatar.

The lastest and sharpest version of the bike that Haslam and Rea race for the Pata Honda team in the World Superbike championship was being presented by Honda Motor Europe to motorcycle journalists from all over the world.

Boasting front and rear adjustable Öhlins suspension and Brembo monoblock brakes, the new Fireblade SP also features a blueprinted engine and a single seat unit to offer owners even greater focus on trackday action.

For Haslam and Rea the launch also offered an opportunity to re-acquaint themselves with the Losail circuit which returns to the World Superbike championship calendar in 2014 for the first time since 2009.

“What a week!”, said Haslam after returning from Qatar. “It was the best fun ever to ride around Losail with all the journalists on the Fireblade SP. It’s an awesome machine and the circuit lets you have a lot of fun, so I ended up doing about 300 laps, I think!”

Rea, who flew in from Australia, where he is spending the winter, also enjoyed himself, saying: “It was like ‘a-smile-a-mile’ and I had great fun with Leon, his dad Ron and my TT legend mate, John McGuinness. Sometimes I just think to myself: ‘I have the best job in the world!’”

Full list of 2014 DRE dates now released
• Brand new Ducati 899 Panigale and Monster 1200 models introduced to the program
• DRE 2014 enrolment to open online 16 December, 2013

The Ducati Riding Experience is set to continue in 2014, with the 11th edition of the Italian manufacturer’s highly successful riding school opening its enrolment online at Ducati.com on 16 December 2013.

Participants can look forward to using some of Ducati’s latest models, including the brand new, 148hp 899 Panigale Superbike for Racing 1 & 2 courses or the new Monster 1200 for the Intermediate course, Ducati’s latest generation Monster awarded “Most Beautiful Motorcycle of the Show” when unveiled at the EICMA show in Milan in November.

As usual, DRE has been carefully structured to cover all riding levels of motorcycle experience, from absolute beginners taking their very first steps on two-wheels in the Basic course, to the Master Racing and Troy Bayliss Academy courses for regular track-day experts wishing to further perfect their talent.

For DRE 2014, the Racing 1 and Master Racing courses take on a new format intended to provide participants with enhanced instruction for fast and safe riding with a dedicated classroom session prior to the track experience. To achieve this new format, the courses will spread over two days, during which Racing 1 participants will start the first afternoon with a briefing and theoretical exercises designed to lay a firm foundation of knowledge before practical tuition on the track. For the more advanced Master Racing course, participants will have a highly informative classroom session with Ducati’s official test-rider, Alessandro Valia, and Chief Instructor, Dario Marchetti, before taking to the track aboard Ducati’s impressive 1199 Panigale S Superbikes.

Participants of the highly prestigious Troy Bayliss Academy courses will be instructed in groups of five by none other than the triple World Superbike Champion himself. Academy students will ride the Ducati 1199 Panigale S further equipped with a Termignoni exhaust system.

Racing 2 courses, which remain unchanged, are intended for riders who already have track experience and wish to develop it further. In addition to many other details, they will work on areas such as increasing corner turn-in and mid-corner speeds and on how fully capitalising on every last hp of acceleration can achieve a smoother, more fluid and confidence-inspiring riding style.

Enrolment for Racing 1 and 2 courses is limited to 50 students, divided into efficient learning groups of just five, whereas the Master Racing course is open to just 12 participants, divided into groups of three. While all groups are guided by an expert instructor, all track-riding participants must be holders of Class A driving licenses without engine size limitation.

For non-track riders, DRE 2014 also offers a fully comprehensive range of courses from Basic to Intermediate. While learners in the Basic course will use the Ducati Monster 796, participants of the Intermediate course can improve their existing road skills to enhance their overall safety using Ducati’s own versatile Multistrada 1200 S, Hypermotard and Hyperstrada models and, new for 2014, the Monster 1200 with excellent user-friendliness and the enhanced ergonomics of an innovative adjustable seat height.

Within the cost of the courses, all DRE participants will be provided with a motorcycle and instructor as well as a welcome kit and lunch, while those who need to rent riding gear can do so during the online enrolment.

The team of highly qualified instructors is coordinated by DRE Technical Director and Chief Instructor, Dario Marchetti, and Alessandro Valia (Factory Test Rider and Chief Instructor of the Master Racing course). In addition to many more successful and celebrated riders, the list of DRE instructors include top names such as Troy Bayliss (2001, 2006 & 2008 World Superbike Champion and MotoGP race winner), Paolo Casoli (1997 World Supersport Champion), Manuel Poggiali (2001 125cc World Champion & 2003 250cc World Champion), Andrew Pitt (2001 & 2008 World Supersport Champion & World Superbike & MotoGP competitor) and Niccolò Canepa (2007 Superstock FIM Cup Champion & World Superbike & MotoGP competitor).

With DRE, Ducati will continue its close collaboration with FMI, ensuring constant improvement of teaching protocols and standards of excellence on all courses. Additional support will also be provided by official Ducati supplier Bosch, further establishing the successful technical partnership between Ducati and this premier German brand.

Ducati Riding Experience 2014 calendar

28-29 Apr Adria Racing 1 course

29 Apr Adria Intermediate course

29-30 Apr Adria Racing 1 course

30 Apr Adria Base & Intermediate courses

13-14 May Mugello Master Racing course

14 May Mugello Intermediate, Racing 2 & Troy Bayliss Academy courses

14-15 May Mugello Master Racing course

15 May Mugello Base, Intermediate, Racing 2 & Troy Bayliss Academy courses

09 Sep Mugello Intermediate & Racing 2 courses

09-10 Sep Mugello Master Racing course

10 Sep Mugello Base, Intermediate & Racing 2 courses

With more dates expected to be added, visit Ducati.com to remain updated on DRE 2014.

Ducati Riding Experience 2014 motorcycles

Base course: Monster 796

Intermediate course:

Monster 1200

Multistrada 1200 S

Hypermotard

Hyperstrada

Racing 1 & 2 course: 899 Panigale

Master Racing & Academy courses: 1199 Panigale S