Photos from our Brands Indy track day 16/8/10

How did we manage to arrange another glorious day for a track session?  I really though that our luck was going to run out this time when the long-range forecast was warning heavy rain….gulp!  I was wondering exactly how good the rain setting would be on the S1000RR, but to be honest I really didn’t want to find out.

We had another good range of bikes out on track with an R1200RT and HP2 sport joining the usual suspects.  In fact, the RT made for a glorious sight as David kept a good pace through the bends with various track exotica keeping a slightly bemused distance.  Next time I think the panniers should stay on!  The HP2 was also a wonderful site, and sound, as it circulated in the sub one minute bracket drawing loads of attention.

The next date is 30 September on the Brands Hatch GP (long) circuit, which should be an absolute blast.  If you are interested in coming along then hopefully you can now see that all bikes are welcome and all abilities of rider should have a go.  Contact Jason at MSV on 01474 875219 too book your place (£209) and make sure that you have either one or two piece leathers on the day.  If you let Jason know that you are with Bahnstormer then we have garage facilities booked and will be able to look after you.

 

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Bahnstormer Track Day

Bahnstormer invites you to our third track day of 2010 and our venue will again be the brilliant Brands Hatch Indy circuit with our friends from MSV.  Whether you are a track day enthusiast or this is your first time we will guide you through the whole process to mae sure you get the most out of your day.

If you are interested then please call the Sales Team at Bahnstormer on 01420 587 007 and we will give you details as to how to book on.

Places are limited so make sure you book early!

Green Laning with Bahnstormer

Every week we organise off roading on the green lanes around Bahnstormer.  This particular film was taken on Water Lane about 2 miles from the dealership and we have loops of about 90 miles of legal byways to explore.  If you would like to join us for an outing one evening then log onto Facebook and become friends with Bahnstormer Enduro where we post the when and where you need to be.  All abilities welcome, though you will need adequate protection!

Onboard the BMW S1000RR at Brands Hatch with Bahnstormer

Come with us around Brands Hatch onboard the fantastic BMW S1000RR Superbike.  This was taken at the last Bahnstormer track day.

bahnstormer customer track day at brands hatch

Our second track day of the season found us once again at Brands Hatch, and what a day it was. With bikes ranging from high performance sports bikes, BMW S1000RR, Yamaha R1, Suzuki GSXR’s, to BMW’s K1300R and F800R, there was something for everyone. Thanks to all our customers who took part and are champing at the bit for the next one.

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New products in at Bahnstormer

New Fluorescent BMW System 6 - £375

BMW has added a striking new fluorescent yellow to its System 6 colour range to give the wearer greater visibility in traffic.  For those who are not already familiar with the System 6 design, it is a flip-front with an integral drop-down tinted visor, double glazed anti-fogging main visor and an Alcantara® and Coolmax® removeable, washable lining. To wear, the System 6 is light (1570g) and quiet whilst the lining materials ensure that your head is kept cool and calm.  Because the flip-front works on a quad-joint mechanism, even when the front chin section is raised it keeps a compact, more aerodynamic profile.  Pockets are provided to take communication systems (Intafone Bluetooth system – £179) and of course BMW’s stereo Bluetooth intercom (£275 – special offer price).  Adding a high degree of passive safety to an already comprehensive offer should really make this a winner.  Come and see it in store at Bahnstormer – you won’t be able to miss it! 

BMW Rallye GS Pro boots - £245

Next in from BMW comes the eagerly (for me anyway) awaited Rallye GS Pro boot.  Seriously impressive construction sets it apart from previous incarnations of BMW’s off road specific footwear.  A strong Nylon® and integrated sprung-steel anti-crush midsole, corrosion resistant steel toe tip and a 3mm thick leather and formed plastic upper are reassuring for safety.  Comfort comes by way of a removable waterproof Neopren® liner sock with gel padding and the ability to hand wash, plus a new ankle joint system that allows freer movement while retaining maximum support.  Fasteners ooze quality and give the boot a very durable feel.  This is a welcome return to form from BMW and puts the GS Pro boot right up there with the very best available.  £245 and now in store at Bahnstormer in sizes 41-48. 

If you have any questions or would like to order any of the above then please contact our Parts Department on 01420 587 007 or email customer.service@bahnstormer.co.uk

BMW celebrate 30 years of the GS

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BMW launched the brand new GS (Gelände/Straße or off-road/road) concept to audiences attending the September 1980 Cologne bike show.   The R80 G/S showed that it was possible to have a machine that was as capable of off road use as it was touring or just day-to-day fun. We can look back at the runaway success that the BMW GS has been from the staggering 500,000 customers who have now owned one.

The origins of the GS can be traced back as early as 1964 with prototype boxer twins being used in the German Off-road Championships.  BMW’s own testing engineer, Laszlo Peres, developed this concept further with his own GS 800 and motivated the BMW testing department to start working on close to standard enduro conversions.  However, a decision to go live with this project was shelved whilst customer demand for sportier pure road machines grew with bikes like the R90 S.  A downturn in BMW sales forced a wind of change in the management team at BMW Motorrad and the R80 G/S was born.

BMW had been beaten down by the overwhelming surge of motorcycles being brought in from the Far East and were now being regarded as conservative and sales continued to fall.  Their answer to this invasion was in the new 3 and 4 cylinder K-Series engines but in reality they were years away from being brought into production.  Their only route in the short term was to repackage the existing boxer engine in more exciting ways and so started the BMW assault on the off-road sporting arena.

In 1979 the German motorsport authorities created a 750cc and over category that allowed BMW to enter an 800cc 124kg road legal enduro machine.  Laszlo Peres rode the new machine to second place in the German Championship followed by a class win the following year with Richard Schalber onboard.  Their off road prowess was sealed with a brace of victories at the International Six Days Trial.

The production R80 G/S produced 50bhp, came in at 200kg and quickly silenced the critics who saw such a concept as being just a poor compromise.  It featured cutting edge technology such as the ‘monolever’ single-sided swing arm and was the first type approved enduro machine to reach 168km/h in testing.  In 1981 BMW sold over twice their planned volume of motorbikes and 1 in 5 sold was a G/S.

The next chapter of the GS story is probably the most evocative; the Paris-Dakar Rally.  BMW Motorsport teamed up with a small specialist firm, HPN, to take the R80 G/S to victory in the hands of Hubert Auriol, finishing 3 hours ahead of the nearest competitor in the 1981 race.   1983 saw BMW tuner Hebert Scheck take the R80 G/S up to 980cc and 70bhp giving rider Auriol his second Dakar win.  1984 gave BMW a ‘one-two’ with Gaston Rahier coming across the line ahead of Auriol and prompted BMW to come up with the first R80 G/S to bear the Dakar name as a production special.

The ‘Paris-Dakar’ was released for sale with a 32 litre fuel tank, single seat, crash bars and Michelin rough tread tyres and sold nearly 3,000 machines.

A new model variant, the R100 GS, was released in 1987 and sported the now famous ‘Paralever’ rear suspension system that eradicated the undesirable shaft-effect on the rear end and a new telescopic fork design.  1993 brought the first 4 valve boxer engines appearing in the new R1100 GS and new features such as switchable ABS and catalytic convertors and the brand new ‘Telelever’ front suspension.  It’s double front mudguard design set it apart from the crowd and would become iconic.  Further models such as the F650 GS were launched and again the Dakar name returned in the form of the F650 GS Dakar, with its 21” front wheel and off road orientated suspension travel.

BMW returned to the Paris-Dakar after the enigmatic John Deacon and Jimmy Lewis had taken the R1150 GS to compete in the 1999 UAE Desert Challenge.  BMW pared down the machine’s capacity to 900cc and the R900 RR was unleashed.  In the 2000 Dakar, BMW took an astonishing one-two-three-four finish with a mix of F650 RR and R900 RR machines.

From this point on, BMW were on a roll.  Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman brought adventure riding and the BMW R1150 GS to the masses with the Long Way Round project.  Seeing the importance of the GS phenomena, BMW spearheaded its new direction in motorcycling with the lighter, more powerful and dynamic R1200 GS.

The latest R1200 GS TU to hit Bahnstormer now sports a DOHC engine producing 110bhp that is really a wonderful thing to ride.  BMW commemorates its 30 years of success of the GS with a range of special edition models that echo the original R80 G/S colour scheme of white with a red saddle and special decals.  Information about these great new models can be found in the ‘Enduro’ section of our main website.  Launch day is the 19^th June and orders are being taken now.

Bahnstormer Track Days

Now you have your S1000RR, HP2 Sport or other sports BMW, what do you do with it?  Well, to find out more about track days we visited the MSV team down at Brands Hatch to experience their take on what fun is all about.

An early start was required to get a couple of S1000RRs in the back of the van plus sandwiches, crisps, water, chocolate and some leathers all packed in to be at Brands by 7:30am-ish. We had previously booked Cadwell some weeks ago but wimped out last-minute because of the possibility of snow  (and some teasing about ‘the mountain’, which in combination with ‘the snow’ and ‘the cold’ had put us right off if we’re honest). This however, was much more like it as the sun was shining early and the forecast looked good.

We are a big fan of Brands Hatch as a venue because it’s only an hour to get there and the facilities are great. MSV had kindly organised a garage for us to use in the pits and once we had offloaded and got the bikes through scrutineering, it was straight into the briefing session to make sure we new which way round the track to go and what the flags all meant.  Again, all credit to MSV for organisation and making it a really simple process.

Steve and I had joined the ‘intermediate’ group, though I suspected Steve (Swanny) to be a bit of a ringer. Novice riders were well catered for with some further hand holding in the briefing session whilst the more experienced riders got on with the sighting laps. We got ourselves kitted up while John went in search of a good vantage point for taking some photos.

Our first 20 minute session was fantastic and any pre-track nerves quickly got dispelled as we settled into the course and got to grips with the phenomenal performance of the S1000RR when finally unleashed on the track. When we had previously wondered about all the efforts some of the riders were putting into set-up, with their tyre warmers, track stands and endless tweaking, Swanny and I had decided on just reducing the pressure in the tyres and leaving it at that. Once out there though it didn’t matter as people got on with their own pace and there was no issue of being too fast or too slow.

In my second session I took advantage of MSV’s instructor service to get some pointers on what I was doing right and wrong. Brendan followed me for three laps and then we swapped around to get the lines right into Druids and Paddock Hill, the latter being basically aim at the marshall’s hut until you can see the whites of their eyes and then turn in! A de-brief at the end of the session just helped me get my posture improved upon and then off to the next session to put it all into practice.

After lunch, Swanny and I were getting into the swing of things and really finding out about what makes the S1000RR such a special machine. We were able to take a decent amount of speed through the long sweeping Clearways corner before the straight and found ourselves going around the outside off all sorts of track exotica from Ducati, Honda and Kawasaki. The straight itself just allowed 5th to be engaged at an eye-watering 140mph before braking hard into the famous Paddock Hill Bend and being compressed against the tank as you sling shot up to Druids.

So, now we understand what this is all about and what an attraction it is! If you have ever thought about a track day but were put off by the unknown then fear no more – it is truly fantastic.  We have teamed up with those nice people at MSV to offer you the opportunity to try this out for yourselves.  So, let us know if your interested as we have pencilled 24th May 2010 (Monday) as our next outing. We will have our own garage again, so we are all together, and we will look after you whilst you play! Email customer.service@bahnstormer.co.uk or call us on 01420 587 007 to reserve your slot – £165 per rider.

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Bahnstormer’s Latest Photoshoot

BMW RR Race Leathers in Kangaroo £1,475

BMW RR Race Suit in Kangaroo

We like to make sure that you are all kept up to speed with the latest offerings here at Bahnstormer and we persuaded Andreya to help show them off at their best.   To be fair, Steve helped too but only on the promise that he wore a dark visor! 

Draggin Jeans, which have just come in, are a great way to get around on your bike and retain the cool look and comfort of jeans.  Prices start at £149.99 for the ‘Biker’ jeans with Dyneema and Kevlar lining to give great abrasion resistance.

The new range of BMW RR leathers and helmet have also just landed to compliment our Gimoto offering.  The price for the RR Sport helmet comes in at £400, whilst the one piece kangaroo hide leathers are £1,475.  Gloves finish the suit off at £155.

Another new arrival is BMW’s latest collection of t-shirts.  The ‘Jump 2′ shown here has a cool raised pattern, but there are loads to choose from.

Finally, slip-on exhausts for the S1000RR from BOS, Akrapovic, and Arrow come in at a range of prices to finish off your bike within budget.  Come and have a look at our ever-growing cabinet of bits for the RR.

Draggin Jeans 'Biker' £149.99

BMW T-Shirt from a range £22

BMW Akapovic End Can for R1200GS MU & Adventure £510

BOS End Can for S1000RR £349

Tamsin Jones comes to Bahnstormer

Tamsin at the Dawn 2 Dusk, Red Bull Romaniacs and desert racing

The ultimate, most gruelling and dangerous off-road event, the Dakar Rally, took place in South America this year.   The route, a staggering 9,000 km in 14 days, started and finished in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and took the racers through the Chilean Atacama desert, renowned as the driest desert in the world, to the mountains of the Andes.  The race started on the 1st Jan 2010, while most of us nursed hangovers at home, and finished on the 17th with cars, trucks and of course, motorbikes entering into the furore.

Every year the Dakar’s mysticism draws desert racers like moths to the flame with treacherous conditions, ridiculous distances and all through staggeringly beautiful scenery.  Very few people can claim to have tackled such an event and only the very few can claim to have successfully finished.  Tamsin Jones is one of those very few and also gained the accolade of first Brit over the line, a truly amazing achievement.

Tamsin started motorcycle racing in 2002 on a Honda MTX 125 and straight away won 1st female at the Hafren Rally. A year later she changed to a KDX 200 and won the Dyfi rally and started competing in local Hare & Hound events. In 2004 she was riding a KTM 250 EXC in local enduros, winning 1st female at the Vale of White Horse and Waddon events.  She also competed in Long Distance Trials and won the Caerphilly Long Distance Trial Girlie Cup twice and competed in 2 overnight trials earning Silver Awards for these. 2005 she competed in the Snowrun enduro, Welsh 2day Enduro and Dusk till Dawn.

2006 & 2007 – British Ladies Enduro Champion

2007 – Only female finisher in the Red Bull Romaniacs 5 days xreme enduro

2008 – First female finisher in the Red Bull Romaniacs 5 days xtreme enduro

2008 – 4th Clubman (1st lady) in the 12 hour Dawn til Dusk

DESERT RACING

Competed in her first desert race in Qatar in 2004

2006 – Turaeg rally – 2nd lady

2006 – El Chott rally Tunisia – 1st lady and 16th overall

2007 – Turaeg Rally – 1st female

ADVENTURE RIDING:

Rode 8 days, off – road to the tip of Australia in 2006

Rode from Mauritania – Timbuktu Mali in 2008

2009

Won first female at the Welsh 2 day enduro, Isle of Man 2 day enduro and first marathon clubman in the 24hr Dawn til Dusk enduro.

Tamsin will be here at Bahnstormer on Monday 26th April 2010 from 2pm onwards to talk about her Dakar experiences with video footage and images.  Take this opportunity to meet her and see what an amazing achievement she has made in off-road motorbiking.