EICMA Motorbike exhibition

Hi guys! I just spend a week in Italy for the EICMA motorbike and bikecycle exhibition. I had also a chance to test my new CRF450. On Tuesday Honda Europe had a presentation of the new models and I was involved in it together with World Supersport champion Kenan Sofuoglu. We were dressed in black and with black helmets mirrored visors down we rode the new bikes on the stage one by one incognito. Only after the presentation we were called back on the stage and revealed that it were us, the two Honda world champions who took the bikes to the stage!

On Wednesday I went to our team’s workshop in Piacenza and tested the new 2011 CRF450. It turned out to have changed quite a lot from 2010. The suspension felt a lot better, especially the front forks. They a now a lot stiffer and carrying the load much better without being too harsh. It will be a lot easier to find a good settings for Enduro working with this stock suspension than it was 2010. Tullio Pellegrinelli already did a little re-valving for the forks and it felt pretty good even on the stones straight away! The engine feels endurized actually! I liked it a lot on a fast stony trail that had couple of slow and difficult stony uphills. It has more low rpm torque without edgy feel to it and has a lot smoother power delivery all the way. The feeling is that it would be easier to build my race bike for 2011!

In the evening we had a dinner together with two mechanics of our team who have worked hard for the results also but are not getting much credit for their job. Bravo Teti and Alessandro! Without you it would have been difficult...

I was back at the EICMA from Friday to Sunday and spend hours signing posters at our teams sponsors stands. I met also a truly talented Italian rider, Paolo Patrizi. HM imports also bicycle trial bikes and Paolo is their rider. I saw him playing around with he’s bike at the HM Honda stand and was impressed. How can you jump so high on a bicycle without a ramp?

I was invited also to the a prize giving ceremony at the Honda stand. In Italy Honda is organizing Honda Italia Racing Project (HIRP) with the intention of finding young ambitious motorcycle talents. After several tests they selected 24 riders of age from 9 to 12 years old. The riders will be educated and will have an opportunity to race on Honda costs for the whole season. It was nice to present the prizes to these kids and who knows one day some of them will become a world champion also. There’s no hurry though. Kids should have fun that’s all. I started racing myself at the age of 16. It was my decision. I am thankful to my dad that he never pushed me to start racing and I think that’s why I am still at the top at the age of 36!