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I am not going to tell you who won the sprint race in Aragon, because nobody saw it coming (sarcasm)... There are some lessons learned, however, at least to me. The Aprilia had a card to play in this race, but as it seems to be the norm, those who were expected were not the incumbent ones. I always had doubts about Maverick Viñales mental strength; he knows how to ride a MotoGP, but he seems to always miss the mark when everybody feels that he should have not. If anybody was beginning to doubt, Pedro Acosta has shown that he can be trusted, or was it because of Aragon? It is also good to see that both Gresini riders did well. I expect the race to be a bis repetita placent of the Sprint. No suspense!

@igor I recently replaced mine on my 2004 V11. The one sold by "Simon auto shop" looks identical to the Valeo original I purchased here in the USA for a lot more than 50 EUR... Now, telling if an equipment will fit just looking at a photo is impossible. You should be able to return it if it does not fit; but their webpage says it should fit. Check the end of the thread:

Seems like Marc Marquez has decided that he will resume with victory at Aragon this weekend.

I did not take it as such; we are all civilized on this forum... or we try to be! I was quoting from personal experience, because when I was young, my father thought it would be important to speak English, and I spent each and every summer vacation in the United Kingdom hosted by UK families, while all my friends enjoyed the French Riviera. Later on, I began my career as a logging engineer; the oilfield was dominated by the US at the time, most drilling companies were from the US. Being French meant automatically being taken as a lesser individual, until you proved them wrong. I have been sneered upon, but in my line of work, you grow a thick skin, or you don't last. It got better with time; but hostility based on your country of citizenship is not pleasant to deal with.

Second fiddlers move on up.... As Nakagami ends his MotoGP career, Thai hopeful Somkat Chantra takes his place. This maybe a clue to why Ai Ogura was picked over Roberts for the Trackhouse Aprilia. The Asian market is most likely an easier target than the USA one; at least it appears to me. Joe Roberts may not be the ideal pilot to captivate US audiences. I think they need more than one guy. Such as when Colin Edwards, Ben Spies, and of course Nicky Hayden were in the roster. They probably need names which are already established in the AMA Superbike championship to get a jump start. Guys like Josh Herrin, but at 34, he is already too old.

That's new to me. Since ever, the English have disliked the French... I was always under the impression there was some special relation between the US and UK; after all, the first states were mainly populated by Britons... That being said, it seem that Loris Baz and Josh Herrin are having a bromance being Ducati partners in Moto America 2024. They have hit it off on and off track... I will never understand how can Loris 6.4' can fit on a racing motorcycle. Most successful pilots are relatively small.

Joe Roberts will not integrate MotoGP on the Trackhouse Aprilia finally. Ai Ogura was chosen instead. It would be interesting to understand what was/were the reason/reasons that motivated the decision. Joe Roberts is in competition for the Moto2 title this year. So does Ai Ogura. Given that Trackhouse should privilege an American rider to entice American audience into the sport, it was an unexpected choice to take Ogura. Joe Roberts will be 28 in 2025, which will be a factor against getting a MotoGP ride in the next recruiting round since contracts are typically lasting 2 years, and 30 years old is a soft turn around point for rider performance.

It ends on November 1st each year, and normally starts on March 1st. This tour year, they offered the opportunity to get your numbered tour placard at an event gathering in February. Thus, you have plenty of time to do the 50 stops at your own pace. Some participants do it in one single trip. I wish I could spend more time on my runs, but I usually only do one overnight max. That said, this year, I will tentatively spend two nights because I am going to do the stops in the Texas Panhandle; this is going to be the longest run for this season. Here's the link to the tour's website: https://motorcyclegrandtouroftexas.com/ For 2025, the tour director said he is going to introduce a second set of stops in what used to be the former Texas boundaries. Imagine if someone was to do that using what used to be Louisiana initially.... the stops would run all the way up to Quebec in Canada... Actually, this is an idea. Maybe we should copy the Texas Tour to other States? it seems to be gathering momentum since this year he has introduced a numerus clausus for the participation. I don't think it was reached. This year, there are 1082 participants! at the time I am typing this, there are 30 who did the 50 stops. I have done 47.

I did post about motorcycle Taxi rides in Paris (France) before, but it seems that Uber is offering that option too now; Uber is offering that service in Buenos Aires at least. I would love to have the opportunity to do that here. Once line splitting in traffic jams gets approved. Obviously, it is a dream that will never become reality. Mainly because of the climate and probably the liability. I have been in many places where you can easily hitch a ride on a motorcycle inside congested cities, which we know is everywhere in the world. In Asia, it is very common to do that.

The motorcycle grand tour of Texas; 50 stops, each year different. I will soon know Texas like the back of my hand...

KTM is having a rough landing, suddenly; At the beginning of the 2024 season, Pedro Acosta incredible achievement seemed to be at the level of the expectations. Although the rest of the team seemed to be the true reflection of their competition state. Following the Austrian GP, with Brad Binder best KTM arriving at the 5th place, but with an 18 seconds gap to the top, there is not much to feel positive about. There are not struggling as much as the Japanese brands, but they had greater expectations to be able to compete for the championship this year. I am wondering if Ducati will keep dominating the field up until 2027, when the new rules come into play?

There is maybe a major factor that I should not forget; The heat and humidity here in the Bayou city. When I left home last Saturday, 5:00 am, just the time to put on my helmet and gloves outside, and you are already sweaty! without the sun pounding... I can't imagine going to work every day, and needing to take a shower and change before getting set. This week we are again under heat advisory, with temperatures at 104 degF;

I am yet to adjust to having more than one motorcycle. It is quite obvious that I will be riding the Quota much more than the V11; at least at the beginning, until I settle for what I prefer to do with one as opposed to the other. That said, even if I do not have to go anywhere, I always try to go for a little ride. Most of the time, I go to Brenham, or Navasota, or even to Iron Power Supply dealership. They have a lounge where I can sip coffee and look at Triumph motorcycles. When I lived in Paris, we would meet at La Bastille on Friday evenings, and go for a ride. But on week days, we would always congregate at a friendly bar. Just a meeting point where would end up our work day, before going back to our respective families. I don't see much of that here, so far. There was that Café named Wolfsmith of the Heights here in Houston, but most of the people there do not ride bikes. I went a couple of times, and I am the only one motorcycling there.

I am European mostly; in Europe, or at least when I lived there, our motorcycles were our day-to-day mean of transportation. Not something we would only use on our spare time. At the time, most of us could only afford one motorcycle; also because motorcycle insurance in Europe is much more expensive than here. After finding out about the guy that does the Motorcycle Texas Tour with his motorcycle on a trailer, it certainly educated me. But it is not only the bikes. I have neighbors who own exotic cars, and only take them for a spin on Sundays. I understand they don't want to put too many miles on them, but what is the point, then?

Meaning, 3500 miles in 12 years, that's about 300m/y. Am I the only one riding his bike every day?

Good for you! I would say you got it at a pretty good price. 12 years, 3500 miles.... I did that in one month! There is something I am missing here...

I did 1245 miles 17th and 18th of August 2024; That's about 2004 km. About 18 hours of riding time. I did 1926 miles in August, plus the local errands.

You asked for it!

When my home base was set in Paris (France), a member of my family worked for Euro Disneyland later Disneyland Paris since before the inauguration in 1992. I practically lived in the park and the Disney Village since I had unlimited free access. Disney also gave free access to children from a children only hospital, l'hopital Necker in Paris, with rare diseases, including cancer, most of those terminal. I saw many of these groups of kids, in the park as they were wearing a specific badge and were accompanied by nurses additionally to the usual Disney ushers. If you have never seen children in this state, this is heart tearing! you need not be told. One look... you get it right away. It makes you feel bad to be healthy! no kid should have his/her journey in this world complicated by medical situations so early in their lives. If you feel like you would like to contribute; I actually don't have anybody else to ask. I don't know anybody in the USA excepted from you guys. Here's the link: https://team.curethekids.org/team/600310

I will tell you the detail when I get the invoice today; To recap: -I purchased the bike in February 2024; I rode it from Arizona to here. -I got the State Inspection done right away, did the Texas registration. -I drove the bike to MPH Houston; the intention was to have a complete inspection and evaluation. I did the same with my V11 once it got here from Florida. Every time I gave away my motorcycle to MPH, it took no less than six weeks to get it back. Hence, one of the reason to have minimum two. I do not know why the output is so low, but I suspect I am not high on the priority list. Every time I go there to check, Davey is working on those vintage BMW. I actually see many more BMW than MGs. The Quota was promised to me for the beginning of July, but Davey went on vacation. Given that MPH is about the only shop that accepts to work on older motorcycles (except for Japanese), I am not going to make a big deal out of it. Life taught me to be patient. My V11 filled the void, and I cannot ride two bikes at once. I only use MPH for the major work. The one that requires equipment I do not have, and I also need to take into consideration that my garage is more a sauna than a place where a mechanic can accomplish great work. I do the routine maintenance, the one that I can complete quickly. I have been toying with the idea to sell my 911, and install a proper lift table, air supply, work bench... but this would not suffice; I need a full-blown AC to be able to do anything. It is not even a problem of being uncomfortable, but it is physically impossible. I perspire so much that my glasses fall off my nose each time I look down.

I am going to go get it tomorrow... It took six months!!! I am going to do a proper photo shoot with it.

According to one of those journalists that provide a GP debrief, it seems that Jorge Martin fell into a trap set by Francesco Bagnaia. Apparently, Pecco knew that Jorge was going to make a move, and he anticipated that he would not be able to brake to make the turn. This is another aspect of the racer we also need to factor in. He is capable of strategy, not only being fast on the bike. The journalist also touched upon the existing collaboration between Enea Bastianini and Bagnaia. Bagnaia explained that both riders frequently collaborate and help each others. Because they share the workload, it helps them to pick the best setup. Bagnaia explained that he did not have time to check the hard front, which Bastianini did. He simply walked to Enea and asked him what he thought. Enea told him that it was a no-go for the race. Next year, Bagnaia will not get that kind of assistance from MM93. This Austian GP was deemed "boring"; a Ducati show in KTM's territory!!

Unfortunately, those "marathon" rides are tiring, especially by this weekend's temperatures! as you go further West, it gets incredibly hot! I was impressed by the V11, which took it all without flinching. One thing I noticed, a lot of oil escaped from the final transmission oil breather. Probably due to the last portion of the ride, in sixth at 5k rpm, 104 degF temperature, long portions at sustained regime. Not sure what was the indexed one. Probably above 110 degF... if you open your visor, the hot air hits you like a blow torch! Unbelievable! Anyway, I will update the report later.

You are allowed 5 stops without your motorcycle, as long as you stand in the picture holding your flag.