When Steve heard that Paul Feeney, the then importer of MV Agusta in Australia, was selling the V593 that John Kocinski won the US Grand Prix at Laguna Seca in 1993 and the Australian GP on in 1994, Steve just had to have it. Naturally, when Steve offered me a ride I didn’t hesitate in saying yes, I could not get on a plane quick enough. I think this is the first time I’ve felt true fear from a motorcycle.

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The bike is invaluable and has a lot of important history. Cagiva entered Grand Prix racing in 1990 and had to battle against the ultra rich Japanese manufacturers that had seemingly unlimited budgets in days when expenses and rider salaries were peaking. Still the small factory with the big heart pushed on and eventually, against the odds, rose to the winner’s podium. Some believe that the odds of them winning a world title was more than likely, had finances not restricted the forward progression.

Eddie Lawson gave Cagiva their debut victory on a drying track in the 1991 Hungarian Grand Prix. Lawson left Cagiva before he retired from racing but other stars were drawn to the passionate Italian team with Randy Mamola, Mat Mladin, Doug Chandler also riding the bike at one stage their careers.

But it was the determined and highly talented John Kocinski that gave Cagiva the most champaign, winning at Laguna Seca in what was to be the final grand prix in the USA for 12 long years. After completing the season on the updated V594 John finished the 1994 championship in third position but sadly that was the end of the line and Cagiva went broke.

The Ride
I’m pacing around nervously as the bike gets warmed up by the legendary Dick Smart, it is a nerve wrecking time as it is probably the most expensive bike I may ever get to ride. Daryl Beattie obviously picked up on my panicked pacing. “Just stay relaxed and ride it normally. It’ll just feel like a superbike, only faster and lighter. Watch those carbon brakes until they’re up to temp,” Daryl Beattie, along for a ride, reassures me in that weird way a surgeon reassures you before cutting your chest open with a hacksaw, “Keep an eye on the temperature too and watch the powervalves, they seem to be jamming up a little at 9500rpm”…

The next minute I’m being pushed down pit lane by ex Mick Doohan GP mechanic, Australian Dick Smart, just like the professional riding you see on the TV. I let the clutch out and the V4 fires into life. The racer comes out in me almost straight away. I’ve already got my knee down by turn two.

The first run down the back straight of Queensland Raceway I short shift and load the bike up, holding the throttle open in third gear to clear it and after a few coughs the digital tachometer suddenly screams past 9500rpm. I can feel my shoulder joints pulling apart as I shift at 12500rpm before grabbing the brakes for turn three, they felt just like normal brakes in that moment due to them still being cold.

Out of turn three I feed the throttle on slowly to lean the engine out a little and get through that rough patch at 9000rpm. Again, the engine clears its throat and I’m struggling to hold on, let alone keep the front wheel down. All I can feel is wheel-spin then the front wheel lifting up, this thing hammers. I’ve never felt acceleration like it, not even on a turbo or a World Superbike or drag bike.

I’m cautious through the two left-handers on my first time around but I feed it on a little on the short straight before turn six, just to get a feel for the power delivery. Onto the chute for the first time the engine coughs again but once it clears, the bike explodes in a surge of acceleration and shifting through the ‘box via the electronic reverse-pattern quick-shifter delivers a feeling like no other. Nothing feels like this – no four-stroke could be this exciting.

I feel like the Cagiva GP500 has knocked 20 years off my age, I’m 20 and fearless again. I squeeze the Brembo front brake lever at the end of the straight. One finger is all it takes but I have this picture in my head of the rotors suddenly getting up to temperature and locking the wheel before I can modulate the pressure. But soon I’m trail-braking into corners and I’ve got the hang of feeding the power on progressively out of the turns. I can’t believe how much concentration this bike is sapping from me.

The Dunlop tyres are up to temperature now and with more confidence in them, I’m pushing the Cagiva further and further on its side every lap. But I’m more than aware that I need to stand the bike up as much as possible before opening the throttle. Make no mistake, this ain’t no proddie or 600. Wind it on mid-corner on this thing and I’m going to be flying pretty high.

The chassis is ultra-stiff and the bike is so light. You’d really have to have an intimate relationship with the machine and a lot of laps under your belt to decipher confidence-inspiring feedback from it. Once you knew the bike, though, it’d be a brilliant talker. In my short session I was just relying on my past experience with slick tyres and knowing how far to push them at my very moderate pace.

The rear Ohlins GP-spec shock is predictably stiff and, to be honest, probably in need of a service after sitting around for so long, especially with my weight on it. The front suspension action is firm but nowhere near what I’d imagined. In fact the machine is riding the nasty bumps at Queensland Raceway quite well, with the exception of getting air over the bumps at the end of the main straight.

The session is coming to an end and my dream is almost over, just as I start to get smooth and comfortable, I put in what I feel are a few half decent laps about as quick as I could go on a stock 1000cc roadbike.

Not surprisingly the V593 feels better the faster I go and on the last lap I do just what Daryl said. I ride it like I’d ride a normal bike running into the turns fast, standing it up and winding it on harder and taking it right through to 13000rpm, 1000rpm short of redline. On the last lap I feel like I’m detached from the world. Like I used to feel when I was on a hot lap and in my ‘groove’ in my racing days.

No bike has made me feel like that since I stopped racing and I don’t think anything else ever will. I think I’m in love. I ride back into the pits and hop off the bike feeling eerily calm and sedate. The 1993 Cagiva GP500 represented the pinnacle of the Italian firm’s 500cc Grand Prix competitiveness. It was passion and drive that got them there, however, a World Title was not meant to be as they ran out of money soon after during the following season on the V594 version, the last of the GP500.

World Champion John Kocinski Talks 

Sitting down with the legendary John Kocinski, I got to learn more about the bike that had a short lived life in GP racing but a long lived legacy. John spoke about the team’s passion and excitement that surpassed the want to make money out of the sport, which is what motor racing should be about.

JW – It has been said that this was the bike that turned Cagiva from also-rans to almost wins and if you didn’t take the ride Cagiva would have pulled the pin. What is your take on that?

John Kocinski – Yes, it is probably true but a lot of my greatest memories have been when I rode for Cagiva. It was a company of great passion.

JW – When you think back on the V593 and V594 and the results, particularly the wins you achieved on the bike how do you feel?

John Kocinski – It is one of my greatest accomplishments to win on a machine that no one else other than Eddie Lawson has won on. It was heartbreaking when Cagiva could not continue in 1995 because we were so close to having a machine that could win a World Championship.

JW – How much of the work, in development terms, was done when you arrived at the team?

John Kocinski – Obviously, there had been work done, but it was far from complete.

JW – What were the strengths and weaknesses of the V593 and V594?

John Kocinski – The strengths were the agility and steering. The weakness was the power band.

JW – Was this motorcycle capable of winning the title?

John Kocinski – Yes, most definitely.

JW – Were you keen to stay on for 1995 if the team had survived?

John Kocinski – Absolutely. I loved the team, the engineers, I had great mechanics. It was just a matter of making some small improvements to the power delivery and handling.

JW – Daryl Beattie said that overall he rates the bike well and that both yourself and Eddie Lawson proved that it is a reasonable motorcycle. But were you guys over-riding to compensate for lack of performance or was the bike really that good?

John Kocinski –  No matter what machine you ride there are always issues. But definitely in 1994, the machine was the best it had ever been. I think the results say the same.

JW – What did it for you with 500s – the challenge, the acceleration, the adrenaline or the fear?

John Kocinski – That’s exactly what does it, I think, for everyone. The challenge, the acceleration, the adrenaline and fear.

JW – Give us one word that sums up the Cagiva.

John Kocinski – Passion.

500c Legend, Daryl Beattie Chat

Catching up with ex 500 GP racer, Daryl Beattie, after his laps on the Cagiva, it’s safe to say that he’s hooked again despite not riding a 500 GP bike since he retired back in 1997. There were some similarities between the motors on the Cagiva and his old Yamaha but the frame was a new experience for Daryl. “That’s the most fun I’ve had since I retired in 1997,” declared Beattie as he tried to wipe the smile off his face after leaving blackies all over Queensland Raceway on the V593 Cagiva GP500.

“That’s the most laps I’ve done on a track for years. I’ve only done those commentating laps at Australian Grand Prix but as soon as I left pit lane all the memories of 500 GP came back. Nothing beats a 500.” Admitted Daryl, “I felt good on the bike and it all started to come back to me.

“I remember this bike well and always wondered what it would be like to ride. It feels similar engine-wise to the Yamaha I rode in 1994 but it handles better. It’s really sweet and the carbon brakes are just awesome when you haven’t used them for a long time”.

Daryl says he always knew the Cagiva was a competitive machine in the right hands, “The King (Eddie Lawson) did a lot for Cagiva and Kocinski had some good results on the bike. There’s no doubt that it had more potential so it is a shame that this was the second last one.”

“It feels really good to ride a race bike again. You just can’t beat the way they steer, stop or accelerate. The thing just wants to wheelstand in every gear. Unreal…. I’ve gotten a taste for it again so I’ll have to talk Mick (Doohan) into coming out to some ride days with me”!

1993 Cagiva GP500 V593 Specifications 

POWER: 195hp@12600rpm
TORQUE: 75.5ft-lbs]@12000rpm
WET WEIGHT: 130kg
FUEL CAPACITY: 21 litres

ENGINE: Liquid-cooled, 80-degree V4, twin crank, two-stroke, 56 x 50.6mm bore x stroke, 498cc, two twin-choke 36mm electronic power-jet flat-slide Mikunis, crankcase reed-valve induction, pressurised airbox, titanium expansion chambers with carbon-fibre mufflers, electronically controlled cylindrical power valves – five transfer, three exhaust, electronic ignition with programmable advance curve linked to throttle opening, exhaust powervalve and carburettor power jet, NGK plugs, single plain piston ring pistons, needle roller small-end and roller big-end bearings, straight-cut gear to clutch from right-hand end of lower crank

GEARBOX & CLUTCH: six-speed cassette-style, ten possible ratios for first and fourth, seven for second and fifth, nine for third and sixth, drum selection, electronic quick-shift, dry multi-plate, seven friction and six steel plates, six springs

CHASSIS: Twin-spar aluminium with adjustable steering angle, carbon-fibre swingarm, Wheelbase: 1390mm, Rake: 23°± + 1 degree, Trail: 95mm\
SUSPENSION: Fully adjustable inverted carbon-fibre Ohlins forks, Ohlins fully adjustable shock
BRAKES: Twin 320mm carbon-carbon front rotors, Brembo four-piston monoblock calipers and Brembo radial master-cylinder, Brembo pads, single 190mm carbon-carbon rear rotor, Brembo twin-piston monoblock caliper, Brembo pads
WHEELS & TYRES: Ferrari hollow-section carbon-fibre wheels, 3.5 x 17in, 6.0 x 17in, Michelin slicks

PRICE: Over one million dollars

1993 Cagiva GP500 V593 Gallery

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So when the chance came up to ride the very last version of the famous and successful TZ250 I couldn’t say no and just quietly I was quite looking forward to it. This bike was a little special though, it had come directly from the Garage 4413 team who campaigned it to the runner-up slot in the All Japan 250cc Championship. The bike’s current owner, Harry Danilidis, purchased it from the team two years ago, straight after the Championship.

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Harry chose it simply because, in his own words, ‘it was a pure race bike and the last of its breed’. Harry’s passion for the bike is evident when he lets us know that it only did one season and was never crashed so therefore the spares kit is still full. It made me feel quite privileged to be given an open pit lane, a clear circuit and a brand new set of soft compound Bridgestone slicks to use as I saw fit.

On the technical side, the bike is a kitted TZ250-5KE and the final evolution of the original TZ250. In standard trim the bike puts out a claimed 93hp but with the addition of the kit that is boosted significantly to 105hp. The cylinders are factory items but the porting is done in-house by the team. A few other parts are sourced from ‘The Japanese Tuning House for Yamaha GP bikes’.

The ignition system is Yamaha along with the dry clutch and the factory exhausts. Trevor Lusby of Scott’s MC was our mechanic for the day and looks after the bike. He mixed the fuel at a fairly conservative fuel/oil mix for us journos and has jetted the bike slightly on the rich side just to be safe and taking into account the cool morning temperature.

I had previously ridden a GSX-R750 earlier in the day testing some Pirelli tyres and that is usually considered a pretty nimble bike in terms of the big four-strokes so when I jumped on the TZ and accelerated out onto the private circuit more affectionately known as ‘The Farm’ I knew I was on the right bike. Anyone who has ridden at The Farm will know that there is absolutely no rest and corner after corner that includes a five-changes-of-direction chicane to give a grand total of 29 corners. If there was any bike you would want under you while negotiating 29 corners per lap then this little Yamaha is the one.

As I wound up to speed and got used to the two-stroke again, the brakes were the first thing that took me by surprise with their incredible stopping power. The Nissin calipers give great feel and that coupled with the Bridgestone front tyre soon pushed aside any concerns I had of stopping without the assistance of the engine braking that I have come to rely on. I simply just squeezed the TZ’s brakes a little harder and never missed an apex all day.

I have to mention the Bridgestones that Trevor had fitted for me because from the moment I went out and got the bike on my knee, they gave me great confidence and feedback. The front actually seemed to get better and better the harder I pushed it and although the rear started to slide on the corner exits towards the end it was very predictable and a lot of fun. This was typical of a soft compound tyre getting a little hot and starting to move around a little.

The engine pulls from as low as 6-7000rpm exiting the slow turns but builds revs really quickly as I went up through the gears all the way to the shift point about 12,500rpm via the quickshifter. It flattened a little right at the top but as Trevor mentioned earlier this was due to him going on the rich side with the jetting. This also made it a little rough on initial opening from closed throttle at low rpm.

The real reminder that you are riding a true race bike comes when going back down through the gearbox. Rushing into one of the turns in fourth gear then banging it down all the way to first reminds you how easy and quickly this is done on a two-stroke. I went down three gears while braking really hard with the rear wheel barely touching the surface and there wasn’t the slightest unsettling from the rear during the downshifts.

Initially looking at the bike I assumed it would feel very cramped and small with the high footpegs but once I was on the bike and lapping I had plenty of space in the turns and no problem getting tucked in down the two straights.

The TZ gives the feeling and response that I remember chasing on the four-strokes for years. The little Yamaha turns in very easily without being unpredictable and comes into an apex time after time and holds its line on the exit because it steers on the throttle.

Finally I have to bring up the five-corner chicane again because on most bikes you would be thinking, oh no not again but on the TZ you finding yourself looking forward to reassuring yourself that it really is that easy. Sadly though, these pure race bikes were built for one reason and are destined for museums, parade laps and passionate collectors. Very few will have the opportunity to sample these thoroughbreds, which is a shame.

Jeffs Thoughts
I’ve wanted to ride a proper late model 250GP forever. Having raced 250 proddies for years and being part of a top running Honda team in Japan that ran 250 GP bikes (I was riding 600s and 1000s), I’ve always drooled over 250 GP machines. But a few things stopped me ever racing one – mainly money and my fat arse! 

The first thing that grabs me is the size. I’m 25kg heavier than I was last time I rode a 250… Once I squeezed in I was OK. And after the initial amount of clutch slip and rpm took me a second to get used to after so many years of four-stroke riding, I was off up the chute. The bike was hot and the tyres too so I wasted no time. I put my head down and ran the bike through to 12,500rpm. I like to do that – rather than ease into a shock of power just get the shock over with! Once I had a feel for the powerband and throttle I was off.

I’ve done a million laps of The Farm and never been fully satisfied on any bike I’ve ridden on the challenging layout. There is always a section that doesn’t suit a bike in some way. But not this time. The TZ250 is perfection.

The bike was jetted on the rich side so it was a matter of rolling off the throttle very gently mid-turn to lean the bike out then it would snap into its powerband and that sticky rear Bridgestone would step out. So much fun! The gearbox actuation was incredible and the quickshifter sensational.

But the big thing for me was the performance of the front-end – the tyre, brakes and forks all worked together to give feel and accuracy that I simply have never felt before. No chance of running wide or missing an apex whether on or off the brakes. The chassis was inch perfect everywhere and the most amazing section, the Famous Five Esses, was a dream on the 100kg 105hp pure racer.

The bike was so well presented and it was a real honour to ride it. I can honestly say I’ve never had so much fun on two wheels. It’s over and above the ride on John Kosinski’s Cagiva 500 or Broc Parkes’ ZX-6R. It was just a dream come true for this boy racer!

2009 Yamaha TZ250 5KE SPECIFICATIONS 

Price: N/A
Power: 105Hp
Wet weight: 95kg

Engine: Yamaha 5KE 250cc two-stroke GP engine, SJK internals
Bore & stroke: 54 x 54.5mm 
Displacement: 249cc
Compression: 7.2 – 7.7:1
Fuel delivery: Keihin flatslides
Exhaust: Yamaha Racing
Gearbox: Cassette-style adjustable ratios
Clutch: Dry
Final drive: Chain

Chassis: Aluminium, hand made
Wheelbase: Variable
Rake & trail: Variable
Suspension: Front: Showa; Rear: Showa
Brakes: Front: Nissin/Brembo Rear: Nissin
Wheels: Front: 2.75 x 17 Magnesium Rear: 5.50 x 17 Magnesium
Tyres: Bridgestone slicks

2009 Yamaha TZ250 5KE Gallery

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As soon as I got my Learners, I was on the road on an old RZ250FN, followed by a few TZR250s before I started road racing on RGV250s in 1995. Even my RGV racebike was painted the same colors as the Ralf Waldman HB 250. Riding the RGV proddie, I dreamed of one day being a 250 GP rider…

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Fast forward 22 years and I find myself about to ride a RSW250 Aprilia thanks to the owner, Harry, who kindly offered us a spin. Things have changed with my 250 GP aspirations, though, not only am I over 40, I also weigh more than the bike! Now that is funny! No lap records, then. At least that is my excuse…

About the bike. It is trick. It is expensive. It is rare and absolutely stunning. The peak of two-stroke development is right here under the fairings… This is the Aprilia Racing RSW250 ridden by Eugene Laverty in the 2008 250 Grand Prix World Championship. It is the real deal and very, very rare, not to mention priceless. The swingarm alone is worth are fifty grand!

The RSW250 was made by Aprilia from 1991 to 2007. It has been ridden to world titles by the likes of Max Biaggi, Valentino Rossi, Marco Melandri, and Jorge Lorenzo and has won countless memorable races. With just over 100-horsepower at the wheel and weighing in at less than 200-pounds the power-to-weight is over one to one.

The frame is hand made aluminum, as is the fuel tank. The seat unit and rear hump is a complete A kit part only for factory teams, all carbon-fibre monocoque, and the wheels and swingarm are carbon-fibre also. The engine is cast magnesium and every single nut, bolt, axle and washer is titanium. The massive ram air system and airbox is also carbon-fiber, as is all of the bodywork. It truly is a work of art and at this level of racing, you can see where a million bucks goes…

The 249cc 90-degree V-twin two-stroke revs to over 12,000rpm and is the absolute trickest little engine I’ve seen. The opportunity to actually get in there and have a good look was heaven, as these bikes were always so guarded when they were competing of course.

What is immediately apparent is the size of the engine compared to a production 250 two-stroke. There is nothing there that is not needed and everything has been developed and refined to be absolutely as compact and lightweight as possible.

The clutch is tiny, as is the gearbox and cases. The other side has the small magneto flywheel and ignition pickup. The expansion chambers are gorgeous – titanium with carbon-fiber mufflers, and the airbox and carburetors are so, so mind blowingly trick. Just look at those pictures and drool!

The wheels are factory items that simply cannot be bought. Ever. Brakes are factory spec monobloc radial-mount calipers with cast-iron rotors. Carbon-fiber is available for some situations also. Ohlins factory suspension is at both ends. Rumor has it the forks are worth 20 grand each. The triple-clamps are titanium and the handlebars carbon-fiber. Everything is tiny, compact, almost under-engineered.

What may seem like a simple two-stroke is far from it. Aside from the technology in the tuning of the porting, combustion chamber, crankcases and expansion chambers, there is a complex fueling and powervalve system along with full data logging and even traction control. Yes, you read that right.

The datalogger system, which is the factory Aprilia one that came with a staff member for the teams, provides all aspects of data from braking to suspension and ignition and jetting. The software tells the team what jetting to change after each session, based on the live atmospheric conditions and data from the previous run.

The traction control system is an ignition curve based one that uses an algorithm to determine rear wheel slip based on throttle position, wheel speed, gear and so forth, similar to what is now used in modern motocross and enduro two-stroke factory race bikes.

Everything on the RSW is hand-made and a work of art. From any angle, it looks amazing. Actually, I have blown up one of the photos we took and I have it as a poster above my workbench in my garage. This bike makes me feel young I guess… All of those dreams I had as a teenager about racing in 250…

THE RIDE
Nerves. Adrenaline. Excitement. Those three things that make you feel just a little bit sick in the stomach, well, they are all off the chart as Harry warms the bike up (see the video, it sounds so awesome).

I close my visor as he rolls the bike out into pit lane. If I’m riding a 250 GP bike, I’m walking out to it like a boss, visor down and cameraman snapping away! Ha!

I hop on the bike and immediately think, ‘How the hell and I going to fit in this’… I think back to when I was 19 and skinny and I just squash myself into Laverty’s ergonomics. The nerves settle a little as I blip the throttle and get the engine up to temperature. My old two-stroke days are flooding back to me and there is a crowd gathering around the bike. It is loud. Very loud…

A huge amount of revs and clutch slipping, along with a lot of leg paddling and I’m off up pit lane. I just ride straight past the person checking wristbands, I’m not stopping again! I short-shift in the lower top-end via the ultra-slick factory quickshifter and do my usual checks into turn two, like feeling the front and rear brakes and generally getting into a relaxed riding position.

The bike was straight off the warmers and what blows me away is I’m scraping my whole leg in the second corner from pit lane and carrying more corner speed than I have on any bike for years, and it is my out lap! When you ride road production bikes for so long, it is easy to forget how a proper handling thoroughbred feels and there is no comparison to any street going bike at all, not even close. The RSW is beyond telepathic. It’s an extension of my body – more than a bike; well that is how it is making me feel.

Watching GP rider’s highside for a few decades is in the back of my mind exiting the turns on my out lap but I’m soon surprised at the amazing tractability and drive of the RSW. It is jetted a little on the conservative side, so hasn’t got that razor’s-edge sharpness to the throttle, but still it is on song and almost four-stroke like in some aspects. It pulls third where I would have expected second, or where a TZ250 or RS250 Honda would need a lower gear and or more RPM. Amazing stuff by Aprilia.

The gearbox is ultra-close-ration and the quickshifter super sensitive. The engine starts making power from as low as 8000rpm but really comes alive up top, where is pulls harder than most 1000cc bikes around while feeling like it is the weight of a bicycle. Steering is insane. At first I am oversteering and hitting inside ripple strips as I’m just too used to conservative geometry and weight.

But once my brain slows things down a bit I steer with a bit more finesse and find some rhythm there. The same goes for the brakes, one finger and even then I almost go over on the first lap. They are as strong as the best street sport bike, say an S 1000 RR or Panigale, but then double the power and sensitivity and imagine the bike also weighed a third as much, that will give you an idea. Comparing the RSW brakes to an RSV4, say, is like comparing RSV4 brakes to a 1972 RD250…

I settle down and start my session proper. Tucking in on the front chute I’m chasing gears as the engine revs so quickly it is incredible. The straight disappears faster than usual and suddenly I’m into the ultra fast turn one. I touch the brakes gently with one finger and pop it down to fourth gear. Getting back on the gas, I cannot believe how rapidly the 250 accelerate towards turn two.

In fact I have to grab fifth gear. I’m in shock and arrive at my usual braking point for T2 faster than I would on any superbike. I ride straight past my braking point, in fact still on the gas, and don’t start braking until I’m turning in. It is no problem; the RSW just goes deep, stays tight and hold a perfect line through the double-apex corner. I feel like I can put the bike anywhere, anytime.

Getting the rpm right is not as crucial as it is on a TZ or RS, so although high corner speed and high rpm are still definitely required, there is some forgiveness there for a lard-ass like me who doesn’t get it inch perfect every lap. The bike hauls out of turn two, over three and is on the back wheel cresting the hump into turn four.

Having watched Biaggi and Co on video replay thousands of times here from the 1994 and 1995 races, I actually have one of those dream moments where I feel like they must have felt. It is surreal. I guess it is like a person with a passion for music suddenly finding themselves playing a stadium!

Up the hill out of five, with the engine in the sweet spot, the bike pulls with amazing urgency up this steep hill and again does the same to Corporate Hill, another bumpy long left-hand crest. Braking into the turn nine hairpin, I feel like my hands are holding the front axle! I’m waiting for Biaggi, Waldman, Capirossi or Harada to dive up the inside!

My lap ends and I’m in. Rolling into pit lane, after watching so many legend 250 riders at Aussie GP’s ride down this entrance, I feel like the luckiest man alive. That’s one dream ticked off the bucket list…

PRO RIDE ­­– PETER GALVIN RIDES THE RSW250
Seven-times Australian 125 GP Champion and ex World 125 GP rider

At first I thought Jeff’s message was just a joke. We had a factory 250 Aprilia from former GP rider Eugene Laverty to test at Eastern Creek. Let me think about that for a micro-second. I’m there! Thanks to the generosity of the owner we had a few sessions at Sydney Motorsports Park. To say I was excited was an understatement. One look at it and I couldn’t wait to get on it.

As soon as you hop aboard you know Aprilia has done their homework. The attention to detail and craftsmanship is, as you would expect, world class. Ergonomics were like a hand in a good fitting glove. No adjustments required. We fired up the 250 and warmed it up to operating temperature on the stand. The engine felt smooth and responsive if not a bit rich, which was OK for the day.

The first lap out, the most notable thing was the chassis feel. All my preconceptions had to go out the window as I was expecting a very stiff chassis like the 125. However, I am greeted with a firm but still flexible chassis with excellent feel just like the Honda 250 GP bike. This was a bit of a surprise in a good way. Having ridden Honda most of my career it made me feel right at home and immediately comfortable.

The chassis was only the start of the good times. The V-twin engine was just special. With strong torque off the slow and mid speed corners it was surprising how early you could get on the gas off the turns even with lower than optimum rpm.

It was far more forgiving than the 125, that’s for sure, even if I failed to keep the engine operating at the top end of the rev range. And, I have no doubt we could have improved this even further if we have had more time to finely tune the carburetion settings.

The Aprilia’s ability to pull strongly up hills between Turns 5 and 6 and 6 and 7 was another one of its strong points. Coming off Turn 5 was important for a good run up the hill and together with the resurface, great suspension and a bit of confidence it would pull like a train and was quite exhilarating when you got it right.

With the modification of Turn 6 after the track was extended the entry speed into Turn 6 has increased allowing a higher gear to be maintained making a nice connection through to the high speed Turn 7 left hander around Corporate Hill. As usual a bit bumpy there on the inside of the turn but soaked up nicely by the factory suspension, which leads to the next point.

Fitted with factory Ohlins suspension front and rear and with little set-up it also was a good compliment to a strong all round package. If anything the rear suspension felt a bit firm for my weight particularly in the high speed corners, which in turn led to a slight lack of confidence to keep the throttle wide open when required. Again it was only a set-up issue and more time on the motorcycle would sort those minor issues out.

On slow and mid speed turns the suspension was so good I had trouble finding the limit initially and still had problems at the end of the sessions. Pushing it further each lap it was very surprising just how hard you could go. The fresh tyres certainly didn’t hurt either.

The other major strong point was the brakes. As expected we were blessed with the almost ubiquitous Brembo mono-block callipers as fitted to a large proportion of racing motorcycles worldwide. This was another area where you had to redefine your limits.

With such a lightweight motorcycle and such powerful brakes you had to rethink your braking markers each lap. I used the entry to Turn 2 to keep pushing the boundaries. Each lap I found myself braking deeper and deeper with almost no rear brake at all and the motorcycle remained stable and predictable at all times.

While all these components were first class it’s the blending of the parts to produce a sound workable motorcycle that really makes the Aprilia RSW250 stand out. Bringing all this together has built a fast yet highly agile motorcycle that is fun and very exciting to ride.

Yes, you have to concentrate and keep the engine working within a relatively narrow rev range to obtain maximum performance but I think that is a large part of the challenge and satisfaction from getting it right.

With high hopes prior to riding this motorcycle, my expectations were exceeded. One of the greatest benefits of this Aprilia RSW250 is its high power to weight ratio and relatively simple engine configuration. In its finest form it illustrates perfectly what a basic two-stroke engine can achieve.

There is no doubt this is one of the best motorcycles I have had the opportunity to ride. I would love the chance to set up the suspension and carburetion to better understand its full potential. As a fan of two-strokes, it was a sad day when they were no longer eligible for Grand Prix racing as I believe they produced some of the best racing to be seen during the 1980s and 1990s plus early 2000s.

2007 APRILIA RSW250 SPECIFICATIONS 

Price: Around five new RSV4s
Power: 110hp – 110hp@13,000rpm
Wet weight: 200lbs

Engine: 249cc 90-degree V-twin two-stroke, full data logging, digital ignition, traction control
Bore & stroke: 54 x 54.5mm
Displacement: 249cc
Compression: 12.0:1
Fuel delivery: 42mm flat slide VHSE magnesium carburetors
Exhaust: DLR carbon-fibre mufflers and Aprilia Racing titanium expansion chambers
Gearbox: Cassette-style adjustable ratios
Clutch: Dry
Final drive: Chain

Chassis: Aluminium, hand made
Wheelbase: Variable
Rake & trail: Variable
Suspension: Front: Factory Ohlins; Rear: Factory Ohlins
Brakes: Front: Brembo
Wheels: Carbon-fibre
Tyres: Racing slicks

2007 Aprilia RSW250 Gallery 

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