AUSTRALIAN HONDA ST OWNERS NATIONAL RALLY 2012

OzSTOC (Australian Honda ST Owners Group) are having their National Rally on the 13th & 14th of April 2012, it is being held in BlackHeath New South Wales.

Accomodation is available with a number of Motel/Hotel's & Tourist Park being available.

The Blackheath Tourist park is offering a discount for anyone attending the OzSTOC Rally, just pass on the message your attending the rally.

There will be rides, Vendors on show, BBQ's, Dinner's, lots of socializing to be had!.

Get your wheels Serviced and Cleaned
Book your Holiday's
And let's get together for the first ever official Australian St Riders OzSTOC Rally!

www.ozstoc.com

 
Twitter: @OzSTOC
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OzSTOC

An All - Australian Dream Team for Stauffer and Maxwell at Suzuka 8 Hour

The thirty-fourth annual Suzuka 8 Hour Endurance Race presents a rare and immensely exciting opportunity for the Team Honda Racing Riders Jamie Stauffer and Wayne Maxwell.  The pair has been named as the team representing Team Sakurai Honda, at this year’s event.
 
In a break from the traditional team formation of two bikes and a Japanese lead rider, the all-Australian line up of Stauffer and Maxwell will field just one Honda CBR1000RR and form the team in its entirety.  The riders currently race in the Australian Superbike Championship for the Factory Honda Superbike Team under the guidance of Team Principle Paul Free of Motologic.

With the support of HRC behind Team Sakurai Honda and the fact that the riders are team mates already in Team Honda Racing; Stauffer and Maxwell believe the team stands a very good chance of winning.
 
Both Australian riders have experience at the prestigious Suzuka 8 Hour Race.  In 2007 Stauffer teamed up with the late Norick Abe to finish a very strong ninth.  That same year, a very busy year for Stauffer, he also won the Australian Superbike Title.
 
Stauffer:  “I am really excited to be returning to Japan to compete in the Suzuka 8 Hour Race and I feel honoured that Team Sakurai Honda has chosen Wayne and I to compete as an all-Australian team.  The opportunity for us is fantastic.  The team itself is a highly professional and successful team and I believe our chance for a podium is very high.”
 
In 2010 Maxwell competed with the then Dream RT Sakurai Honda Team at the Suzuka 8 Hour teamed up with Chojun Kameya so he is no stranger to the team.
 
Maxwell:  “Last year I competed with Kameya-san in the Suzuka 8 Hour Race with the Honda Dream RT Sakurai Honda Team which was an incredible experience.  This year, the team have decided to run an all-Australian team with one CBR1000RR which is definitely an honour.  I firmly believe we stand a strong chance to take a podium position.  The formula is looking good; Team Sakurai Honda is an outstanding team, Jamie and I are current team mates on a CBR1000RR with Team Honda Racing and both Jamie and I have experience at the Suzuka 8 Hour Race.  Is it a wining formula?  I can’t wait to find out!”
 
When the invitation was extended to Team Honda Racing’s Team Principle, Paul Free for his riders to compete together as the team for Team Sakurai Honda he was understandably very excited.
 
Free:  “When Sakurai-san floated the idea of utilising both our riders in their team to compete at the Suzuka 8 Hour Race I was thrilled, the Suzuka 8 Hour race is such a highly regarded and represented event.  Over the years we have seen some extremely well-known Aussies compete and win this event, and to put the two Team Honda Racing riders out there on an HRC-supported CBR1000RR with a team like Team Sakurai Honda, I believe Jamie and Wayne have a fantastic opportunity to do extremely well in the race.”
 
The dream begins with testing at Suzuka International Racing Course, the Suzuka 8 Hour circuit, on the 12^th, 13^th and 15^th July with the main event being held later that month on the 31^st July. 

Related Articles:

Maxwell reports in from Suzuka 300

Maxwell Finishes Fifth At First Time Suzuka 300

An All - Australian Dream Team for Stauffer and Maxwell at Suzuka 8 Hours

MAXWELL SECOND QUICKEST AT DARWIN ASBK BATTLE

Honda Number One In 2010 Motorcycle Sales

Retaining the number one ranking year after year, Honda is again Australia's largest selling motorcycle manufacturer according to official 2010 retail sales figures released by the FCAI (Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries).

Comfortably maintaining its market lead for 2010, Honda headed the overall sales figures for the year with 23,086 units sold, and topped several key sales categories including overall road bike sales.

After reigning supremely in the 2010 Australian Superbike Championship and the Phillip Island 6 Hour, the famed Honda CBR1000RR is also Australia's number-one selling super sportsbike.

In national scooter sales, Honda led with the two biggest sellers; the Lead 100 and Today 50.

Honda also dominated agricultural ATV sales with the top three highest selling models; the Honda TRX250TM, TRX420TM and TRX500FM.

For junior riders the Honda CRF50F was by far the most popular choice in 2010, making it Australia's number-one selling fun bike and the highest-selling off-road motorcycle.

Impressively, Honda models made up four of the top 10 best-selling off-road bikes (Honda CRF50F, CRF250R, CRF450R, CRF230F) and five of the top 10 best-selling fun bikes (Honda CRF50F, CRF70F, CRF80F, CRF100F, CRF150F).

TONY HINTON:

"The FCAI sales comparisons are obviously an important industry tool to measure our market performance, and once again the results are extremely positive for Honda.

"As well as our overall number-one ranking, it is fantastic to have such strong retail figures across the board in many diverse motorcycle and ATV categories in a challenging environment.

"We are extremely proud of our position as the market leader in Australia and we work very hard as a company to maintain that year in and year out with competitive pricing and outstanding service.

"I think, ultimately, our leading sales figures reflect the exceptional quality, performance and style of Honda products and the well-earned public confidence in the Honda brand."

“Dream Team” take out 2010 Bel Ray Australian Endurance Championship

The duo of Josh Brookes and Wayne Maxwell have led their Demolition Plus GAS Honda team to victory in an absorbing 2010 Bel Ray 6 Hour Endurance Race, the Australian Endurance Championship.

A picturesque Phillip Island played host to a brilliant weekend of racing, with the “Dream Team” of Brookes and Maxwell completing 215 laps in the six hour race to finish ahead of Team Honda Racing and Team Suzuki.

After impressing with their speed in qualifying and earning the Superpole, the GAS Honda were the team to beat and delivered on their pre-race favourites tag.

A delighted Brookes praised the efforts of his GAS Honda crew, singling out the riding of his teammate and close friend Wayne Maxwell for special mention.

“To be partnered up with Wayne, who is one of my best mates, was a real thrill and all the people involved in the Demolition Plus GAS Honda team are all old friends, who I’ve been involved with for many years so it was a great environment to be a part of,” he said.

The British Superbike Championship rider spoke glowingly of the Phillip Island circuit, with the sun-baked track taking the weather element out of the equation.

“The weather didn’t play any part in the race at all and the track conditions were perfect all the way through,” he said.

“This allowed us to work on fuel strategies and tyre management, and in the end it couldn’t have been better.”

In their return to the Australian Road Racing scene Team Honda Racing captured second place overall with riders Jamie Stauffer and Glenn Allerton taking a deserved podium position.

Team Suzuki rounded out the podium, with the duo of Josh Waters and Shawn Giles finishing third overall.

In a brilliant display from young duo Kris McLaren and Nick Waters, the pair earned a fourth overall finish for their Ankermann Motorsports Honda team and claimed victory in the Superstock 1000 class.

Among the other class winners were the talented Triumph Australia trio of Christian Casella, John Chiodo and Aussie abroad Jed Metcher, who combined to take out the Supersport class ahead of Troy Herfoss and Brodie Waters of Team Suzuki.

The RidingSA.com team of Danile Falzon, Levi Day, Liam Wilkinson and Michael Brenton claimed the Superstock 600 crown, while Team Cessnock were winners of the Production and Veterans classes.

For more information and results visit http://www.ma.org.au

Melbourne revs up for Motorcycle Expo

Doors to Melbourne's Convention and Exhibition Centre will open at 10am tomorrow to reveal a 15,000 sqm, multi-million dollar showcase of gleaming new motorcycles and products, plus the weather-friendly indoor arena that will host multiple daily freestyle motocross, street bike stunt, trials and mini moto shows from the best in the business.

The Australian Motorcycle Expo makes an anticipated return to Melbourne for the tenth time - the first since 2008 - and over 25,000 enthusiasts are expected to visit from Friday through to Sunday.

The all-ages event will offer reprieve from a predicted wet end to the week, and won't be too hard on the hip pocket, either, with the family pass offering best value for 2 adults and 2 children - just $46 for a full day of entertainment.

Show highlights are set to include:

New bikes from big name brands

Ducati's all-new Diavel, Kawasaki's 2011 ZX-10R, BMW's K 1600 GTL, Aprilia's Dorsudoro 1200, Honda's CBR250R, Triumph's Speed Triple, Yamaha's YZF-R15, Suzuki's GSX-R600 and many more will headline, with over 500 bikes from all categories set to be displayed.

Special guests galore

Kawasaki World Superbike rider and Aussie, Chris Vermeulen, BMW Motorrad Vice President of Design David Robb, motorcycle adventurer and author Steve Crombie, Suzuki champions Troy Herfoss, Josh Waters and Shawn Giles, the dominant KTM Off-Road team, V8 Supercar driver Todd Kelly and many more will feature on stage, as well as meeting with visitors.

Custom bike competition and creation

The final leg of the three-show East Coast Custom Australian Custom Bike Championship will be held, with over 40 entries set to fill the floor, the most of any state. With a number of bikes worth well into six figures, there is plenty of power and pride on show. Even the original winner of the first Custom Bike competition is here, a re-vamped Triumph. The Grand Prize winner will take home an incredible S&S ‘X-Wedge' engine, and the people's choice prize is a Brute VI belt drive.

The 48-day Harley-Davidson promotion is receiving plenty of traction nation-wide as dealers compete against each other to build the ultimate Forty-Eight Sportster machine. A number of their custom creations will be on display, along with the manufacturer's complete 2011 lineup. Visitors can also visit the Harley-Davidson fit shop and change parts including seats, pegs and handlebars, on-site.

Yamaha Action Arena Entertainment

Street bike stunts will be added to the mix in Melbourne for the first-time. Triumph rider Lukey Luke will show off his skills alongside the Yamaha Showtime FMX team and the always-entertaining mini-bike crew from Brown's Grafix. Also on hand is trials rider Jack Field, performing the world's smallest backflip from a jump height of just 30cm on a full size motorcycle. The 30-minute main show will be held three times each day.

$40,000 Visitor Grand Prize

The grand prize winner of a custom chopper from Australian Motorcycle Imports will be drawn at 4pm on Sunday. Cards will be available upon entry, and once completed should be placed in the barrel at the Australian Motorcycle News stand. The winning entry will be drawn from the 2009 Sydney, 2010 Gold Coast and current Melbourne exhibition.

Head to motorcycleshow.com.au for further details, maps, timetables and venue information. Free motorcycle parking is available.

Adults: $18

Concession: $13

Children (5-15 years): $13. Under 5 FREE.

Family (2 adults, 2 children): $46

Friday: 10am-8pm
Saturday: 9am-7pm
Sunday: 9am-5pm

Related Articles:

Kawasaki to Host Chris Vermeulen, Todd Kelly at 2010 Australian Motorcycle Expo Melbourne