Dog Section will be 'barking' at you..

Durham Constabulary's four legged '"friend's will once again be at BikeWise to show off their skills along with their handler's.

The display by the dog section is always one of the most popular attractions at BikeWise as it give's everybody an opportunity to see what a valuable asset the dog's are to Police Officers during the course of their work.

The dog section will also be promoting their new ‘Paws Up’ scheme, which is a benevolent fund for Durham’s retired Police Dogs
Times of the displays will be posted closer to the date of the show.

If you are a Twitter user then keep up the date with the work of the dog section by clicking on the link and Following at : @DurhamPoliceK9

Air Support will be dropping in again

Find out about the role of the helicopter from the Air Support Crew who will be bringing one of the Police helicopters to BikeWise 2014.

You’ll get the chance to view the helicopter from close up on the ground & remember to bring your camera along.

For more info on the NPAS please click here : https://www.durham.police.uk/Information-and-advice/Pages/National-Police-Air-Service-(NPAS).aspx

Scottish tribal music comes to BikeWise 2014

Another first for BikeWise 2014 - Clann an Drumma have been Scotland's leading tribal band for over 15 years.

Originally founded by Joe Kilna MacKenzie, the band have brought Scottish tribal music to worldwide audiences.
The band have just released their 5th studio album, Bloodline, and have had great success in the Highland Charts in the USA with all previous CDs, holding a place in the Celtic Hall of Fame.
They still have their feet firmly fixed to the ground though - no venue or occasion is too small or too big! This year they hope to make BikeWise 2014 a memorable one.

For further info on the band visit their website at : http://www.clannandrumma.com/

or their Facebook page at : https://www.facebook.com/ClannAnDrumma

Kimera to rock BikeWise 2014

BikeWise welcomes back local band  KIMERA for our 2014 show

The band have been regular visitors to the show over the years and will be performing their covers of Alanis Morissette, AC/DC, Bon Jovi, Journey & loads more.

If you want to see the band before then visit their website at : www.kimeraonline.com for gig dates

Follow the band via their Twitter feed at : https://twitter.com/KimeraBand

or on Facebook at : http://www.facebook.com/KimeraOnline

Paul Swift makes a BikeWise debut

New for BikeWise 2014 is local Darlington based Paul Swift Precision Driving

Paul Swift is a seven-time British Motorsport Champion and a multiple Guinness World Record holder. He began performing stunts on the family ride on lawn mower back in 1986 at the tender age of seven.

Following in the footsteps of his legendary stunt driving father Russ Swift, Paul became part of his fathers team performing in a half-scale Mini Cooper.

At sixteen, Paul began competing in Motorsport and rapidly moved up to the National Autotest Championship. Over the following eight seasons, Paul secured both the MSA Autotest Championship three times and the BTRDA four times, winning over one hundred events outright along the way.

Following this success, Paul gave up his job as a Mechanical Engineer to concentrate fully on establishing Paul Swift Precision Driving Ltd.

Today, with over twenty-five years experience, Paul Swift Precision Driving is now the global leader in precision driving, providing the professionalism and experience of some of the best drivers available in the world today.

For more info please click here :http://www.paulswift.com/

Next Meeting(s) of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club

The next meetings of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club will be on  :

Monday 23rd June at Karting NE (Warden Law)

Sunday 29th June at Carrville Park & Ride, Durham.

Monday 7th July at Karting NE (Warden Law)

Sunday 20th July at Police HQ, Durham  (BikeWise Show)

Monday 21st July at Karting NE (Warden Law)

Tuesday 29th July at Karting NE (Warden Law) : NE Championship

Are you Riding to Work on Monday ??

Ride To Work Day 2014 will take place on Monday 16th June so be sure to put the date in your diary!

To kick off the event RTW have launched a competition to win some Harley-Davidsoon prizes, click here to enter.

Once again they will be calling on motorcycle dealers, biker cafes, pubs, museums and of course workplaces to celebrate Ride to Work Day, planning events to take place all over the UK. They’re looking forward to seeing lots of free biker breakfasts, group ride-ins, special offers, discounts and much more!

Over the past few years, they’ve had thousands of riders joining in on Ride to Work Day and have had many photos and stories to tell about how much their lives are improved by commuting on a motorcycle or scooter. Find them on Facebook and Twitter to keep up-to-date with the latest Ride to Work Day news and join their community of happy commuters!

Remember if you are planning an event for Ride to Work Day this year, please let them know the details and they can promote it for you – email info@ridetoworkday.co.uk.

Brazilian Police gear up for the World Cup

With the World Cup ‘kicking off’ this next week the Brazilian Motorcycle Police have been having a busy time preparing for one or two escorts !!

	Click on pictures to enlarge

FIFA world cup 2014 Brazil
There are approximately 600 motor officers of the Brazilian Federal Highway patrol in all Brazil, the number may vary in states depending on the displacement of games and selections.

Groups of motor officers will be escorting the teams and chiefs of state and other representative figures, other groups of motor officers (that are called MOTOPOL) will reinforce security in critical areas nearby the stadiums and highways and also give support to the escorts. Groups can be remobilized , according to demands.

At 600 units in service it is believed that the Brazilian Federal Highway Patrol may be the largest single agency employing Harley-Davidson Police Model Motorcycles

Many Thanks to Officers : Emerson Luiz & Allan Oliveira for the information & pictures

Next Meeting of the BWMBC

The next meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club will be on  :

Sunday 8th June at Carrville Park & Ride, Durham.

Usual start time of 1030hrs with signing on from 1000hrs.
We will be a bit short handed at this meeting so please if you can help to set up the track or take it down at the end it would be appreciated.
Any cancellation due to bad weather will  be posted on the website / Facebook/ Twitter by 0915hrs

John McGuinness wins his 21st TT Race

Mugen Shinden rider John McGuinness set a new lap record for electric bikes to claim his 21st TT win and move within five victories of Joey Dunlop's record.
Despite suffering with a wrist injury, McGuinness, 42, completed the one-lap sprint at an average speed of 117.366 mph on the Mugen Shinden machine.
He said: "It's been a tough week but it is great to get one for this incredible team. They are very clever people."
Bruce Anstey made it a one-two for Mugen, 23 seconds down on McGuinness.
McGuinness set a new race record for an electric bike at the TT
The Morecambe racer, who will not race in Wednesday's Supersport race, added: "I was gutted to lose this race last year but I've made the top step now.
"That is probably me done in terms of race wins this week - I've yet to make a decision on whether I'll race in the Senior.
"I'll come back fitter and stronger next year."
Former winner, Rob Barber (Buckeye CurrentRW-2) from Bury, was a further four minutes and 30 seconds behind Anstey in third.
Barber, who won the inaugural TT Zero race in 2009, finished less than a tenth of a second ahead of fourth-placed Rob Wilson of Team Sarolea Racing.
American Mark Miller, another previous winner, was fifth and Timothee Monot sixth.

Karl Harris has died in a crash at the TT Race’s

It is with much sadness that we have to report that former British Supersport Champion Karl Harris has died following an incident on the second lap of today’s Superstock TT at Joey’s.
The 34 year old was riding the Moto Breakers Kawasaki ZX-10R and is believed to have made contact with another rider on the mountain section of the course.
The Sheffield rider had enjoyed a long and successful racing career having exploded onto the scene way back in 1999 when he won the European Superstock Championship onboard a Suzuki GSXR750. His victory propelled him into the spotlight and after a year in BSB he then switched to British Supersport where he won the championship onboard a GSXR600. He went on to win the Supersport title two more times riding for the HM Plant Honda team.
Harris also spent a large part of his career competing in BSB and despite coming incredibly close on numerous occasions he never actually won a race. His best season came in 2006 when he finished fifth in the overall standings behind Ryuichi Kiyonari, Leon Haslam, Gregorio Lavilla and Jonathan Rea. Shane Byrne was one place behind Harris in sixth.
In more recent years Harris continued to make selected appearances within  the British Championship and in 2012 he made his TT debut onboard the SMT Honda posting a lap time in excess of 121mph.

Karl attended our BikeWise show in 2005 & 2006 whilst riding for HM Plant Honda.

A statement from race organisers reads:
ACU Events Ltd regrets to announce that Karl Harris, 34, from Sheffield was killed during the Superstock Race at the Isle of Man TT races today following an incident at Joey's on the second lap of the race.
Harris, a professional motorbike racer, made his TT Races debut in 2012. He was a triple British Supersport Champion and British Superbike podium finisher.
Harris appeared on the racing scene as a teenager in the 1990s, when he rode for Team Great Britain in the Superteen Championship. From there, Harris went on to win the 1999 European Superstock 1000cc Championship before spending a season in the World Supersport Championship.
He was best known for his British Championship career. He was the dominant force in the British Supersport Championship in the early 2000s before becoming a prominent front-runner in the Superbike class for the factory Suzuki, Honda and Yamaha teams.
Harris won three British Supersport Championships between 2001 and 2004, the first for Crescent Suzuki and the remaining two for Honda Racing, before progressing full time to the premier Superbike category in 2005. His best season came in 2006 when he finished in 5th place overall recording 6 podiums. In total, Harris notched up 12 BSB podiums.
The ACU wishes to pass on their deepest sympathy to Karl's family and friends.
Gary Thompson, TT Clerk of the Course, ACU Events, said: "Karl was one of the great characters in the race paddock. His infectious enthusiasm and sense of humour lit up many race meetings. He was a hugely talented racer and will be sorely missed."
The Coroner of Inquests has been informed and an investigation into the circumstances of the accident is underway.

TV schedule unveiled for Isle of Man TT

ITV4 have released details of their planned coverage of this year's Isle of Man TT which includes an extra 1-hour show versus last year bringing the total up to 15 x 1-hour shows over the 14 days. 

So get your favourite chair sorted, TV planners fired up and attack that Series Link button with the following:

DATE	TIME	PROGRAMME
Mon 26th May	21:00	TT 2014: The Michael Dunlop Story
Tues 27th May	21:00	TT 2014: A Very British Challenge
Wed 28th May	21:00	TT: Class of 2014
Thurs 29th May	21:00	Preview Show
Fri 30th May	22:00	Qualifying
Sat 31st May	21:00	Dainese Superbike TT Race
Sun 1st  June	21:00	Sure Sidecar TT Race (1)
Mon 2nd June	21:00	Monster Energy Supersport TT Race (1)
Tues 3rd June	21:00	RL360 Superstock TT Race
Wed 4th June	22:00	Monster Energy Supersport TT Race (2)
Thurs 5th June	21:00	Sure Sidecar TT Race (2)
Fri 6th June	21:00	Pokerstars Senior TT
Sat 7th  June	21:00	Bikenation Lightweight TT
Mon 9th June	18:00	Review Show 1
Mon 9th June	19:00	Review Show 2

The presenting and commentary team of Craig Doyle, Steve Parrish, Steve Plater and Jamie Whittam remains unchanged whilst this schedule announcement comes off the back of a recent and brand new 5-year deal between ITV and the producers of the TT shows, North One Television.

BBC NI has the 2014 North West 200 covered

Tuesday/Thursday will be streamed live on BBC Sport NI and on Radio Ulster MW 1341

Saturday race day streamed lived on BBC Radio Ulster 10am - 1pm MW1341 and from 1pm 94.5FM

HIGHLIGHT PROGRAMMES ON BBC1

Friday 16^th, Sunday 18^th, Monday 19^th at 10.35pm

For more info please visit the NW200 website : http://www.northwest200.org/default.aspx

Dave Coates set for a 19th BikeWise

Dave ‘wowing’ the crowds at last years BikeWise

Yamaha MT-09 (New for 2014 season)

Once again our local Darlington based world record holder - Dave Coates will be performing at BikeWise 2014 on his Yamaha's.
This is Dave's 19^th consecutive BikeWise - a fantastic achievement and we are now seeing second and third generations of families enjoying the skills that Dave shows on two wheels - long may it continue.

Dave will be performing a couple of shows during the day ( times to be finalized and published later on this site ) and he will be available at his van throughout the day for autograph's, photo's and any questions you might like to put to him...

Dave will be using his new Yamaha MT-09 at the show

To learn more about Dave, visit his website at : http://www.davecoates.co.uk/

Next Meeting of the BWMBC

The next meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club will be on  :
Sunday 18th May at Carrville Park & Ride, Durham.

Usual start time of 1030hrs with signing on from 1000hrs.

We will be a bit short handed at this meeting so please if you can help to set up the track or take it down at the end it would be appreciated.

Any cancellation due to bad weather will only be notified via our Facebbook page for this meeting.

Scottish Mini Moto Championship : This Sunday at Karting NE

Hi everybody

Here are the instructions from Alan McIntosh for the Karting NE (Warden Law)  event, this Sunday (11^th May 2014).

“If you need to know anything about the track here is their web site address.http://www.kartingnortheast.com/

Sign-on will be from 11am till 12.30. The riders briefing taking place at 12.30 in the signing on area with the first practice to start at 1pm on the dot. Please can you let me know if you’re not attending so I can use your allocated transponder. Thanks!

All the new 910s novices out there you will have to change your front sprocket from a 6 tooth to a 7 tooth. This track is longer you will need to do this to stop the bikes from over revving.

This weekend there will be only 2 Junior Groups as the track is so big it can accommodate this. All juniors who took part in a full seasons racing last year will start in group 1 all others will be in group 2. Again this will change after qualifying with the top 25 going in group 1.”

Format for QUALIFYING practice will be:
Open Class: 2 x 8 mins.
Junior Group 2: 2 x 10 mins.
Junior Group 1: 2 x 10 mins.
Production Light, Middle and Heavy: 2 x 10 mins.
Feathers: 2 x 10 mins.

Format for RACES will be:
Open Class: 4 x 6 lap races rotating grid.
Junior Group 2: 3 x 6 lap races.
Junior Group 1: 3 x 6 lap races.
Production Light, Middle and Heavy: 3 x 6 lap races.
Feathers: 3 x 6 lap races.
Weights for Classes :
Junior A :  7 to 9 years.
B and C split at 45 kilos.
Feathers up to 45
Lights 45 to 60.
Middle up to 75
Heavys 75 and over

Please try and support the event - McIntosh is having to travel a long way to put this event on and it benefits our riders of the BWMBC - giving them the chance to compete in a racing championship, which in later life I've no doubt will be the topic of conservation in many of our families homes.

If you have any queries about the championship and whether you or your equipment are suitable then please ring Alan McIntosh on 07801 822 845 or 0131 654 0786.  Alan is a real enthusiast and really wants our riders to have fun on their bikes.
Remember to bring your families & friends along to create a great atmosphere for our young riders.
In the event of a bad weather forecast, McIntosh will make a decision prior to the event with regards to any cancellation so please check our website or your emails.
Fingers crossed for a great weekend, hope to see you all on Sunday
Bob

6,000mile solo motorbike challenge to the Artic Circle for brain injury charity Cerebra

Local rider Gordon Stuart, who promoted his charity ride at BikeWise 2013  will set off on Saturday the 24^th May, from St Marys Lighthouse, Whitley Bay at 0900hrs on a 6000 mile charity motorcycle ride in aid of brain injury charity Cerebra.

Gordon said :

“In May and June of 2014 I will ride my motorbike from my home town of Whitley Bay in the North of England 6,000 miles to Nordkapp in Norway, the most northerly point in Europe and deep inside the Arctic Circle, and back home in just 3 weeks. This will see me ride and average of nearly 300 miles every day for 21 days straight on some of the most challenging roads in Europe. Not only will this test my physical strength of riding a 250kg motorbike for 8 hours a day, but also my mental fortitude of riding solo in foreign countries for 3 weeks straight. I attempted this trip back in May 2011 but unfortunately was involved in an accident on day 8 of the trip in Sweden and fell short on the trip by 1,000 miles. This time I'm determined to make it all the way.
The reason I am taking on this challenge is to raise money for brain injury charity Cerebra. Cerebra have helped my little brother Robbie ever who suffered an acquired brain injury at the age of 9 months old which has left him with severe learning difficulties. They have also provided much needed assistance to my family, especially my mum who has dedicated her life to looking after Robbie.
Please take the time to follow my progress, share what I'm doing with others and if you can donate some money via my virgin money giving page you'll be doing a great thing for a great cause. If you need anymore motivation, please time the take to think how sore my backside is going to be after 21 days sitting in a motorbike.
Ride safe.
Gordon”

Gordon deserves all the support we can give him as this ride is a huge personal undertaking, 300miles a day for 21 days in some severe weather conditions all in aid of charity !!  Gordon is hoping to be at BikeWise 2014 on Sunday 20^th July where you will be able to talk to him about his ride.

Good Luck & Safe Ride Gordon from the ‘BikeWise Team’

If you can help Gordon achieve his aim of raising £2500 for Cerebra please click on the link below which will take you to his Virgin money giving page : http://www.virginmoneygiving.com/arcticride2014 

Gordon also has a Facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/arcticride

For more information on Arctic Ride 2014 visit http://arcticride.blogspot.no/.

Follow Gordon on Twitter at @arcticride2014.

Photos online from Monday (5th May) at Karting North East

Photo’s are now online from Monday evenings meeting at Karting North East (5th May)

Some valuable practice on the big track in preparation for Sunday’s Scottish Mini Moto Championship.

To view the photos please click on the picture, which will take you to the photo gallery of the BikeWise MIni Bike Clubs website.

Please then click on the thumbnail icon for Monday 5th May and you will be taken into the album where you can view at full size or as a slideshow etc…

Looking forward to some close racing on Sunday.. Practice starts at 1pm with racing all afternoon. Entry to the circuit for spectators is free and there is ample tarmac parking, toilets & a cafe.

Todays meeting CANCELLED

Today’s meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club has had to be cancelled due to the adverse weather conditions.

Heavy rain fell overnight and is still falling this morning, leaving us no alternative than to cancel on safety grounds.

Karting NE is still scheduled to run tomorrow, Mon 5^th and then the Scottish Championship is being held next Sunday (11th May) at Karting NE.

Next Meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club

The next meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club will be on  :
Sunday 4th May at Carrville Park & Ride, Durham.

Usual start time of 1030hrs with signing on from 1000hrs.
The forecast for the weekend is mixed so please check the website or Facebook/Twitter on Sunday before traveling if you have any doubts.
If we need to cancel due to adverse weather we will post on the above and also send out an email to members.
Scottish Mini Bike Championship is to be held at Karting North East (Warden Law) on Sunday 11th May.