Articles by Mike Ryan

Suzuki's exciting DR-Z400SM 2012 supermotard is now available in Australia, resplendent in a fierce new colour scheme.

Honda has announced the development of two new engines; one for midsized motorcycles and the other for scooters.

MotoGP's Marco Simoncelli traded two wheels for four last week, when he took Mikko Hirvonen's Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team Fiesta RS for a spin in the UK. The event, held at Carlisle airfield in Wales, was arranged by Castrol who sponsor both the WRC Team and Simoncelli's 'Team San Carlo Honda Gresini' MotoGP squad.

Leg 3 of the Australasian Safari - from Sandstone to Laverton - was the toughest so far, and featured the longest stage of the event at 317.94 kms. In a day marked by accidents and navigation challenges, some high profile competitors severely dented their chances of Safari success.

The 2011 Australasian Safari's third leg saw a change of scenery, change of pace, and change of leader as XXXXXXX as the slippery grasslands that characterised the opening day's stages gave way to more open tracks that saw the overall pace increased.

The 2012 provisional calendar for the FIM Superbike World Championship has been released. There are still a few 'blanks' in the calendar, but the most notable inclusion for 2012 is a Russian round, to be held at the 'Moscow International Raceway'.

MX fans around the country are advised to keep an eye and ear out for a distinctive 1992 Yamaha YZ 250 - the last race bike of multiple Mr Motocross champ, Craig Dack, which was stolen from the CDR Rockstar Yamaha workshop in Geelong on Sunday morning.

The Smith brothers were strong again in leg 2 of the 2011 Australasian Safari, but consistency from KTM's Ben Grabham meant he won the leg by less than a minute from Jacob Smith.

Pretty scenery proved pretty treacherous for moto and quad comeptitors in the 2011 Australasian Safari. The long grasses and wildfloweres through much of the leg one section of the course meant riders couldn't see rocks and other dangers that lay hidden under the greenery.

With some riders still talking about the possibility of boycotting the Japanese MotoGP round over safety concerns around the Fukushima nuclear accident, Loris Capirossi may be forced to miss the race at Motegi for different reasons following his crash at Aragon.

Green conditions, long grass and slippery tracks made a change from the usual extremely dry and dusty conditions for the prologue opening to the 2011 Australasian Safari. The conditions made navigating and slipping the biggest hurdles of the 19km course for the moto and quad riders, which set the start order for Leg One of the race.

In 2011, the VACC Safe Routes Scooter Rally will celebrate its sixth year in bringing awareness to the cause of 'safe routes' for scooter riders in inner urban areas, as well as making motorists and politicians aware of the value scooters play in reducing inner city congestion.