Arguably the fastest MX2 (250F) rider in the country, little “Beats” knows how to put a bike through the wringer. He’s also been riding Yamaha’s for nearly a decade, so he knows pretty much everything there is to know about these badass blue machines. Well, I mean, he is a pro racer, so he at least knows where gas and the water go … just kidding, Kyle!

But he really didn’t know anything about the new 250F until he tried it out at our press launch, so it was interesting to hear his feedback and see how he liked the changes (new bilateral beam frame, quicker revving motor, better handling, new ergonomics). So what did he think? Check out the video below to find out!

Go Beats go! It’s hard not to like a wee, teeny, tiny little guy like Beaton who can twist the throttle. You could put him in your pocket and take him with you to the track. He could even fit in a stocking at Christmas time. Christmas Beats!
The limited edition white version features some trick looking black Excel rims. Cool, eh?
The all-new bilaterel beam frame makes for incredible turning prowess, lighter weight and a better ergonomic feel.

Thin, fast and light! This is Beats’ Yamaha!
I taught Beaton how to do this … you’re welcome.Stay tuned for even more footage and feedback on the 2010 YZ250F from “The King of Canadian MX” Jean-Sebastien Roy. Coming soon!

DanBro

DanBro

Well, after my successful first race weekend I was officially hooked. I was very happy with my performance. The only thing that frustrated me was the horsepower difference from my current bike to the newer bikes of the other front runners. When we hit the back straights, I was being left behind, and it took everything I had to push harder and carry more speed than the others into every corner to regain back that difference, only to lose it all over again down the back straight and have to repeat everything all over again. The decision was made to get a newer bike and upgrade–I needed more HP….

I bought one of our factory race bikes, a 2006 R6 that was built by Z1 Cycletech and raced by Andrew Nelson in the 2006 Parts Canada National Pro 600 series with good success. I eagerly asked Zaid from Z1 if he could get the bike ready to roll for the last listed track event of 2006 with Pro 6 Cycle as I wanted to throw my leg over the bike for a test run to see if I needed to make any set-up changes to suit me.

The day went well; I got used to a new bike and had to quickly learn how to “GP” shift (or reverse shift) in a hurry. With the help from Accelerated Technologies we made a bunch of changes to the suspension to get some feel back in the bike for me. It was determined that we needed to do some spring changes in the forks and freshen up the rear shock in preparation for the 2007 season. The bike pulled way harder than my 2000 R6 (16 more HP in race trim will do that) and I found my entry speed into the corners scary as I must have been a bunch more kph going in than normal. It took some time to make that adjustment. Some friends of mine on the pit wall said you could noticeably tell the motor was done compared to a stock R6 motor. At the end of the day, I had a big smile on my face as this thing was a beast and I loved it!

Along with the suspension changes it was determined (primarily by my wife) that I needed a colour change because she couldn’t pick me out at distance as the colours blended with the other bikes. Since yellow is the colour that can be spotted by furthest from  the eye, I figured that I’d do the 50th anniversary paint scheme, with my own little flair of course. After many test sketches a final scheme was decided on so it was time for paint!!

Over the winter I got everything painted and ready to go and had to put my 2000 R6 up for sale to help pay for this new toy. It was a little sad to see it go as I had resurrected it back to life out of the jaws of destruction. But riding my shiny new 2006 race bike and hearing it scream as I twist the throttle made it all worth while…

Bryan Fil

Let me say it again… HOLY CR%P. This bike is awesome, Crossplane crankshaft with uneven firing order, Selectable drive modes… (What!) Inverted front forks, Radial front disc brakes, Variable intake, and new compact Deltabox chassis with fully adjustable suspension. I try to keep abreast of the latest technology but, put all this technology in one package… sick!

I fired it up… the sound was unlike anything I have ever heard, let alone ridden. Is it a twin? A triple? Doesn’t sound like an inline 4? I moved off casually, not knowing what to expect… a mid range surge… a top end rush…It delivered controllable power to the ground anywhere in the power band… NO, forget power band, there is no power band! Just start the beast and you’re in the power band. 20kph, 60kph, 100kph and above. Anywhere u twist the throttle it produces gobs of earth shattering torque and horsepower… I need to go change my pants…

Ok I just bought some stock in a dry cleaning business. I figured the cleaning business is going to boom if they are located next to a Yamaha dealership!
The R1′s power plant is so unbelievably good the guys and gals that purchase this bike are going to need to have their leathers laundered professionally EVERY single time they take their bike out for a ride.
Why aren’t our governments talking about this as a stimulus for the economy? ‘…No ticky / no laundry’

… No need to spend trillions of dollars bailing out the cage drivers, Put one of these in every driveway and we’ll have the sport population working over time to afford to buy more accessories, (and new riding gear). They’ll sell their cars and put snow tires on their new R1… they won’t want to give it up, it’s that good.

They’ll spend billions flying their bikes to far away places to find more roads, Infrastructure? They’ll lobby their politicians to build new twisty roads to the nearest 7 11 corner store… Take the long way home…

I have to stop. I need a dictionary. Think I’ll just use metaphors and similes to finish this blog:
More power than a locomotive, more reliable than my best friend. Cornering? Felt like it was on rails!! More of a rush than my 1st date kiss with a gal from Florida. Put a silly grin on my face bigger than that of the Cheshire Cat. The adrenaline rushing through my veins… feeling the ‘Fight or Flight’ syndrome… guess which option I chose.

I couldn’t finish the ride! I got off at an intersection and told Aaron he had to take her home. I’ve been riding long enough to know when I’ve had enough. It takes a bigger man than me to ride this bike on the street. While I’m riding it I’m invincible, I can do no wrong, it is confidence inspiring it makes up for all my short comings as a man, but then at the stop light, I couldn’t keep my hands and legs from shaking. “Aaron u take it”. The beast just purred and idled its unique 90deg uneven firing purr (sounded like it was laughing at me)

Can’t wait for the next track day. I’m a changed man… I have always considered my self to be educated and able to convey my thoughts and emotions easily through the spoken word… but this new R1 is beyond description. You’ll have to ride one for yourself and explain the silly grin that follows.

Did I say I can’t wait for my next track day???

Cheers Dre

By John Bayliss

This is the continuing story of “How the XV 1900 was born.”

Behind the scenes, extensive costing and engineering studies for the newly developed XV1900 custom bike are completed. If all goes well the project will get the green light and a development code will be issued. In the case of the new XV1900 the code was “06S” and during any and all discussions, the code name will be used until the model is released to the public.

While final detail work is under way, the engineering group will cobble together a running prototype. I used the word “cobbled” because some of the early “protos” look pretty rough. (You need to remember, the protos are for testing purposes… not styling.)

Testers from both Yamaha Japan and Yamaha USA will ride the prototype and provide feedback; everything from functionality to sound to ride comfort will be assessed.

Meanwhile, back in Japan, clay models are painstaking carved and sanded in a special studio right at the factory. (See examples of clay models here, left and right.) The clay model will be the final styling phase before measurements are taken for moulds and dies, etc.

I have been present when some minor changes are requested and believe it or not, the “artists” can manipulate the clay model right before your eyes!

After the initial stages of testing are completed, another testing “prototype” will be produced, although in a far more finished state. (See right, and below.) The test unit will be shipped to the US and tested on American roads. (Yep, right out in the public view! But from my own experience most passerbys never seem to notice.)

Every aspect of the test machine is evaluated, including suspension settings geared toward North American roads. Any issues or concerns will be reported back to Yamaha Motor Canada for improvement. Testing takes place right up until the first pre-production machines start to roll off the line.

So, if you think that Star cruisers are conceived, designed and built in Japan, think again!

Our friends south of the border can and should take most of the credit for the new XV1900 Custom (“aka) “Raider”.

Let me know if you like hearing the ‘behind the scenes’ development stuff. If you do, I’ll try to dig up some stories of previous models as well as the new ones. JB

By John Bayliss

On Sept. 10, Yamaha introduced a number of exciting new models for 2008. I would like to take you behind the scenes and provide some insights into how our latest Star cruiser, the XV1900 Custom bike evolved; you might be surprised…

Made in Japan right? Not so fast! Made in Japan yes, but conceived and designed in the USA. Here is how the process works.

Yamaha Motor USA (YMUS) has a full staff of product planners who attend key motorcycle events across the country. They talk one-on-one with as many customers as possible.

As they begin to develop a feel and direction for a new model, they contact Yamaha USA’s design company in Southern California, near where YMUS is based.

The design company takes the research info and produces a number of basic sketches of the new idea. The sketches are shown both internally at YMUS and to selected customers. A “whittling down” process will reduce the number of sketches from 15 or so down to the top 3 or 4.

Depending on the model, the planners will then host a focus group study for even more feedback. At this stage YMUS may stick to the final design ideas or continue to make changes based on feedback.

After much internal discussion, a final sketch direction is chosen. (See left and right here for sample bike sketches.)

The sketch is taken from paper and is duplicated in real life – yes, sir, a full-size prototype model with all the bells and whistles is produced. For the record, these models do not run but can be touched and sat on (very carefully please!) … they are real motorcycles for all intents and purposes – except for the riding part.

As the old saying goes; “a picture (or in this case a 3D model, see left) is worth a thousand words!”

Once the model is finished (which happens surprisingly quickly), the model is crated and shipped off to Yamaha Japan (YMC).

The YMUS product planners, including their in-house Japanese assistant, travel to YMC for the big presentation. Engineers, upper management and sales staff are all present at this meeting. Can you say “pressure”? Believe me, this is a stressful time for all involved!

During the meeting, the planners review their customer research, current trends in the biz, and describe their ‘target audience’. The bottom line is they make their best pitch for this new idea. Once they have everybody truly excited about the project, they unveil the 3D model. If all goes well, the engineers jump up and start checking out the model in detail!

After a period of time, the engineers will begin to assess what they can, and cannot, do. Some of the features of the 3D model may not be possible to duplicate due to mass production restrictions. It is not uncommon for other players/countries to join these presentations, too. Yamaha Europe,Yamaha Australia, and Yamaha Canada are often present, with the hope that we’ll buy into the project.

Stay tuned for part 2 to come in the next few days!

One thing I would like to clear up right off the bat, is although I have been involved in the bike biz for many years (at Yamaha for 20 of them), I do not profess to know everything about motorcycles.

Unlike my snowmobile counterpart at Yamaha, Chris Reid, who blogs at Sled Talk, I don’t have an in-depth knowledge of all the technical aspects of our bikes and scooters. However, between me and my work colleagues also blogging here about bikes, we petty much do know everything about bikes – and what we don’t know, we want to hear from you about!

I am an avid on road and off road rider, plus I also dabble in track days. Most weekends (when I am not working), I usually spend at least a few hours riding or wrenching, especially restoring some vintage bikes of my own.

I own 10 motorcycles, ranging from street and dirt to a R6 track day bike. My fav ride right now is an ’07 Yamaha FZ1.

In the off-season, I can be found snowmobiling, skiing, and playing on the Yamaha hockey team.

I’m looking forward to sharing stories here that people can’t find anywhere else – such as behind-the-scenes peeks at Yamaha product development, long before the bikes hit the market. Hope you enjoy the insights!

We have assembled a group of Yamaha Motor Canada employees who all love to ride and have some stories to tell. We hope you’ll check in often, and read what we have to say.

(As far as I know, Yamaha is the only motorsports company in Canada to host a blog where we interact with our friends and customers.)

If you have any questions or feedback for us, you’re welcome to add a comment and we’ll try to respond to as many as we can. There are some areas that we won’t be discussing (please see our Terms of Use) but for the most part, be nice and anything motorcycle-related goes!

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Cheers cr