Ups And Downs

UPS AND DOWNS

ROUNDUP

UP: To Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) and Honda, for giving Indycar fans a glimpse of motorcycle roadracing. Honda hired Erion Racing rider (and CW tester) Doug Toland to parade a CBR900RR at select events this past season, but the exhibitions became impromptu stunt shows when Toland, ever the entertainer, began dragging his knees in the corners and doing stand-up wheelies on the straights. Now, even the car racers line pit wall to watch.

“Frankly, I was concerned that the bike might pale in comparison to a 240-mph Indycar,” says Honda spokesman John Stillman. “But it was just the opposite-the crowds went crazy.”

DOWN: To California lawmakers, for introducing legislation that effectively bans two-stroke dirtbikes. New emissions regulations slated to go into effect on January 1 will make it illegal to register a two-stroke manufactured after that date for off-road use, thereby restricting them to closed-course events.

The AMA and its District 36 region are negotiating with the agencies involved to resolve the issue. Adding fuel to the fire is the AMA’s contention that data contained in California Air Resources Board (CARB) documents is flawed, with exaggerated emissions levels derived from 1970s-era dirtbikes and severely overstated annual usage.

UP: To the Hotel St. James, for its fine interior decorating. One of the rooms in the hotel, located in Bordeaux, France, is decorated in moto-deco motif, with a HarleyDavidson motorcycle parked inside. Says manager Jean-Marie Amat, “You wouldn’t believe the uses some guests have found for that machine.” Very amusing, except-how would he know?