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We will know when Yates explains what caused him to suddenly slow down. Beaubier was not expecting it, could not avoid rear ending him. If I am not wrong, racing bikes gear boxes no longer have false neutrals, so it's something else.

Beaubier launches himself on Yates' bike... scary!

I just finished watching Race 2, waiting for Race 3; It seems to me that Jake Gagné has it under control. Nobody can get close to him on this track. A bit like Pecco Bagnaia in Austria.

Exactly! I don't know if it is because I am old(er), but the modern bikes/cars don't do it for me.

This morning I added 20ml of the precious Liqui Moly MoS2 Anti-Friction for gears; I quote: Content details: Stabilized solid lubricant concentrate suspended in mineral oil. Thanks to its high MoS2 content and special additives, it is suitable for all manual motor vehicle transmissions and differentials without limited slip function. Application: Miscible with most commercially available oils. After a quick test drive, I can affirm: -There is no more gear noise, and the gears shift very smoothly. That's even more incredible because I did not use the magic ingredient in the gear box. Prior to this topic, I scrubbed the net, and found one Guzzi forum where this Molybdenum Sulfide requirement was discussed. As here, most of the owners never used the additive and never had any issue; including one who proudly quoted more than 100,000 miles done. In any case, I will be laughing out loud from my grave, when my final transmission will reach 500,000 miles, going strong in the hands of its new owner!!!

The Metzeler Sportec are the cheapest you could get at the time I did the pricing survey. Hence, they were sold out.

that weight is mentioned in the operator's manual: 214 kg maximum (from memory), passengers, luggage, accessories, pets... of which distribution should not exceed: front 48kg and rear 166 kg You need to make sure the missus does not indulge in culinary products....

Most likely why they went from Dragon to Angel? It is also interesting to note that tires/tyres brand vary according to where the motorcycle gets exported. I am guessing because there is no motorcycle tire company in the USA, you got the tires that were the cheapest to get for Moto Guzzi?

@dowieze As much as the community tried to provide you with their best advice, tire/tyre pressure will remain one of these open debates, no matter which forum you turn to. Since the English Grand Prix, Silverstone 2023, MotoGP has introduced a tyre/tire pressure rule. There is a unique tire/tyre supplier for all the MotoGP motorcycles, and there is a set pressure that has to remain within tolerance during the entire races. This rule was introduced for safety. We have Aprilia, Ducati, Honda, KTM, Yamaha, and up to 2022, Suzuki. Different bikes, same tires/tyres, same pressure for everybody. As @docc said, Moto Guzzi's recommendation were issued in the years 2000; The tires initially listed were: Bridgestone BT 020 (Still available today) Michelin Pilot Road (Still available today as Pilot Road 4) Metzeler Sportec (Still available today as Sportec M7) With a single passenger, the front tire/tyre pressure indicated is 2.2 bars, rear is 2.4 bars; 2.5 bars if you have a passenger. The operator's manual suggest to add 0.1 bar to front and rear for use at high speed or continuous highway. All pressures to be measured with cold tires/tyres. As with all the suggestions above, run your own tests. With the tires/tyres which equip your motorcycle. Find the sweet spot, variegate pressures and find what suits you most. There is no unique recipe, based on your tyre/tire brand and model, and your expectations and preferences. If you don't want to dwell upon it, just go with what pressures Moto Guzzi says, and you should be fine.

I strongly encourage you to take the Pistaccio tour, because you may be interested to understand how they manage to get Pistaccio trees to grow there. It was not a given. The wine they make (the place is also a winery) is not as remarkable. I still purchased some, and brought back enough Pistaccios to last me for one month after I gave away so much. There are others point of interest in Alamogordo. The White Sands Park is amazing.... try to stay there at night....

I got the reply from the Liqui Moly customer service: Here's the recommendation: Motorbike MoS2 shooter 20mm for all your needs: https://www.liqui-moly.com/en/us/motorbike-mos2-shooter-p004197.html#20296 He very politely and politically avoided direct answers to absolutely all the technical questions about the gear oils, mineral, synthetic, additives, and of course, he remained non committal about use of Molybdenum Sulfide in engine oils. To sum up, if the manufacturer's recommendation matches, then it can work for your application. We can happily lay this topic to rest, without many new certitudes; one more "what oil works best in your V11 engine"....

Exactly... the "right" oil; Moto Guzzi's advises to use 80W90 mixed with Molybdenum Sulphide; Are you going to ruin your final transmission if you don't? Are you going to increase the longevity of your rear drive if you do? Will using the right oil make you feel more comfortable? I am just digging into the topic for the sake of getting opinions. Who was even aware of the initial requirement to add MS for just the final drive? and why only the final drive and not the gearbox?

My first recommendation would be to brush up on your Latino Spanish; I was in El Paso earlier on this year on my way back from adjacent New Mexico. My second recommendation is about the weather; it gets hot there too. Since you are from Florida, I am guessing you are prepared... If you are Guzzi mounted, staying for week-ends, you absolutely need to go to Alamogordo (NM). The White Sands National Park has been designed with a V11 in mind... You also have Pistachios and Wine... Closer to you is Van Horn Texas, gateway to the Guadalupe Mountains National Park.

Motorcycle Tire (sorry, here we say tire, not tyre) guide published by the motorcycle industry council with the assistance of US Tire manufacturers. It does not specify the air pressure for your Guzzi, but there are many other information that may be of interest. Here's the Bridgestone's guide for proper inflation of motorcycle tires.. a nice read too.

I found this oil, still from Motul: Motul 31721L Gearbox 80W-90 Molybdenum Bisulphide (MoS2) Reinforced Extreme Pressure Gearbox and Differential Lubricant I also looked at the Molybdenum Sulphide additives and found that some only work with mineral oils, not synthetic ones. Dupont (reputable chemical company) has one: "Molykote M Gear Oil Additive" Finally, there is some interesting information about the use of Molybdenum Sulphide in oil, initially not used in engines directly because it would accumulate in the sump/crank case. I read that there are now oils that include it, with Liqui Moly being one company that allegedly does. Liqui Moly was one of the few companies that answered my query. I am going to check if I can get some more information.

The actual standard is no longer 80W90, but rather 75W90. Besides, Gear Oil has also embraced all synthetic recipes. In any case, I am not worried about the 80W versus 75W given the temperatures in Texas. I ordered the Liqui Moly Molybdenum disulphide which I will add to 80W90 Motul mineral oil to make 0.370 liter.

You must have noticed, in your V11 Owner's manual's lubricant table, the rear drive needs a mixture of 80W90 0.350 liter and 0.020 of ROCOL ASO/R. According to ROCOL's technical data sheet, ASO Oil is a Molybdenum disulphide oil reinforcement for non-EP mineral oils. However, a 5 liter jerrycan costs around 500 USD depending on the website, with a shelf life of 2 years from date of manufacturing; This Liqui Moly MoS2 seems the better alternative: Who here adds 0.020 liter of Molybdenum disulphide in his rear transmission mineral oil? Why only in the rear drive and not in the gear box?

Now that I have put some miles on the Le Mans since the left cylinder boot slipped from the left admission pipe, creating an air gap and ultimately causing the V11 to limp on one side, there is solace. The V11 runs a lot better through to the 3000 rpm mark. Long runs at 55 mph (3000 rpm) no longer indispose the Guzzi. This is a considerable improvement from as long as I can remember. I am not going to say the V11 is perfect. But the strong coughing I was invariably experiencing around the 3k mark is no longer there. What I get now, are small burps mainly when I am in the city, and while changing gears at low revs; below 3k. It does seem to indicate I had an air leak for a while. The evidence being the pipe is blackened in front of the rubber boot. The right hand side is not. You remember that we did have a conversation about rubber boots: Nitrile, Viton, Kalrez... I don't know what material is used to make those admission boots, but they are exposed to UVs. It is obvious they need to be replaced on a 19 years old motorcycle.

Decided to check how arduous riding in this weather still is.... a little 139 miles loop to Brenham via Sealy Tx and back through the 290. I was not disappointed! it is not even the temperature, but the heat index. Opening your visor in the suffocating ambient air does not provide any relief. They are announcing a "colder" front coming next week. I am looking forward to it.

This is not necessarily an easy documentary to watch, since the majority of the dialogs are in French, without any subtitles. There is some English, German, Italian too. It mainly revolves around the French pilots of the time, but not only. You can also catch a few glimpses of Ago, Sheene, Jack Findlay, and even a young Roberts. This documentary is particularly relevant to me, because I got my motorcycle license in 1973, purchased my first bike, a Suzuki T-350, and tried to go to as many of the tracks I could. I had the chance or the privilege to meet most the pilots in the film, especially Barry Sheene. The documentary explains the life of the Grand-Prix racers at the time; the struggles with finding the budget to race for the privateers which form the basis of the group. Few pilots were actually factory or importer hired. Agostini was one of lucky ones. Most of the others had to work during the week, and drive to the race track on the week-end. They had no support, and had to do everything themselves. Unlike today, the practice runs would determine if you could participate to the race. Therefore, their participation to the Grand-Prix was not even guaranteed for those obscure pilots. Kenny Roberts was the first who brought out the spartan financial awards in Europe compared to the USA, with a larger number of spectators in Europe, he said the money compensation should be increased. Many of the pilots in this documentary passed away in racing accidents later on. Michel Rougerie, Patrick Pons... fortunately, many others have survived and are still active today. By the way, Patrick Pons won the Daytona 200 in 1980; the same year he passed away at the British Grand Prix. (Ago and Jarno Saarinen did win the Daytona 200 too). Agostini being the obvious example of those still being active today. In any case, a very authentic and brutal testimony of what Grand-Prix racing was in the 70's.

This is true for any brand; not specifically for HDs.

I almost purchased a brand new Centauro when they came out... I was in Pavia. I got seduced by the aesthetics. I liked the upper part of the bike which is in complete harmony from front to back. No disrupting line. Just a very pleasing continuity.

my kind of Lamborghini Countach or Miura... Just as flashy, but much more reliable... runs on 87 Octanes too....

This guy was really daring to continue driving with that kind of unhealthy noise. Like with many Italian exotic cars, it is not the purchase price, but the amount of money required to keep them running. They are not very reliable. Thrilling to drive certainly, but not for too much time.