American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 249 April 2020 | Page 18

Royal Enfield and AFT
Forge Partnership
Öhlins USA has renewed its
partnership with the AFT series
for a fifth consecutive season in
2020. "After another season of
invaluable support for the
athletes of American Flat Track,
the industry leader in suspension
technology will enhance its
presence at series events in 2020
and will build its profile within
the AFT NBCSN telecasts.
Premiering this season, the
Daytona TT NBCSN telecast will
feature Öhlins and highlight the
sophistication of its technology
and its influence on performance
in AFT competition."
The Benicia, California based
'brick and mortar' PG&A retailer
Cycle Gear has renewed its AFT
partnership as The Official
Motorcycle Retailer of AFT for a
third consecutive year. A sister
company to RevZilla, and now
J&P Cycles, Cycle Gear has over
140 stores in 35 states and will
again present various
promotional events leading up
to select AFT rounds including
bike nights, pre-race parties and
giveaway opportunities
including the chance to obtain
race day tickets. AFT will again
be featured as a contributing
sponsor at each bike night while
assisting with the in-store
giveaways and the promotion of
the series at
www.cyclegear.com.
The Cat Rental Store has
renewed its AFT partnership
naming it as the Official Heavy
Equipment Rental Store of AFT
for its second consecutive year -
AFT found that access to
Caterpillar's top-of-the-line
earth-moving equipment proved
to be an invaluable asset in its
commitment to providing the
best racetracks in the world for
both fans and athletes alike.
AFT and Arai Helmet, Inc. have
signed a multiyear partnership
agreement naming Arai Helmet
as the Official Helmet of AFT.
Noted for its "Glancing Off"
impact energy distribution
technology, Arai
"pride themselves
on finding more
protection within
the limits of a
helmet."
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American Flat Track proudly has
announced the inaugural year of
partnership with Royal Enfield North
America with a multi-faceted plan to
grow the visibility of the manufacturer
within the sport.
In addition to becoming an Official
OEM Partner of American Flat Track,
Royal Enfield will be bringing its fleet
of motorcycles right to the fans within
AFT's Fan Zone activations at select
rounds of the 2020 season. Those with
motorcycle endorsements will even be
able to take a spin on the RENA
machines (Royal Enfield North
America) with exclusive fan demo ride
opportunities at eight AFT events, with
the potential for additional rounds to
be added and announced at a later
date.
As an added element of entertainment
for fans, Royal Enfield's recently
announced BUILD TRAIN RACE
program will bring its all-female flat
track motorcycle program to select AFT
rounds in 2020. Using the Royal
Enfield INT 650 as a base, four women
will customize and race their machines
across the country, showcasing their
various levels of ingenuity and skill.
AFT fans can look forward to the
premiere of all four bikes and their
builders at the 2020 Yamaha Atlanta
Short Track presented by Law Tigers on
March 28 at Dixie Speedway. The
quartet of riders/builders will again
compete at the So-Cal Half-Mile on
May 9 at Southern California Fair and
round out their cross-country
exhibition at Laconia Motorcycle Week
for the Laconia Short Track on June 13.
"This partnership represents a major
step for Royal Enfield's efforts in North
America," said Breeann Poland,
Marketing Lead - Americas. "As we
continue to grow our awareness,
getting our motorcycles in front of
enthusiasts is critical, and AFT has
offered us a fantastic opportunity to do
just that."
SBS Street Brakes Catalogs
for USA and Europe
Understanding the differences
between OEM model
availability, designations and
brake product approvals better
than most, Danish motorcycle
brake pad manufacturer SBS
Friction has released separate
2020 catalogs for both the
European and US markets.
The massive new catalogs are
available online and in print
and contain all the new brake
pads and bike models, including
cross lists and 1-1 scale
drawings of each pad.
The catalogs also detail an
update to their well-known RS
racing compound that is on its
way later this year and, above
all from the custom market's
perspective, details where
cruiser, bagger, custom and
Touring applications are
concerned (V-twin and
otherwise).
Also of value and importance,
SBS are comprehensive and
detailed about the formulation,
properties and applications of
each brake pad compound,
AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - APRIL 2020
which use NRS technology
(Nucap Retention system - an
indestructible, hook based,
thermally resistant
mechanical attachment
solution capable of lasting
across the brake pad
lifetime) and information
about the R90 type-approval
that is required for all
replacement brake pads
throughout the European
Union and in non-European
countries that have
adopted ECE regulations.
Though demanding, R90 is a
dealer, customizer and rider
state-of-the-art regulatory
assurance of quality and safety.
It calls for brake pads to be
tested in an inertia
dynamometer instrumented for
continuous recording of
rotative speed, brake torque,
brake line pressure, number of
rotations after brake
application, braking time and
brake rotor temperature.
Under R90, replacement brake
pads and brake shoes are
permitted to deviate
from the frictional
characteristics of their original-
equipment counterparts by not
more than 15%. The tests
required by R90 include
bedding (burnishing),
performance check, brake tests,
cold performance equivalence
and speed sensitivity tests.
SBS says that most of its
products for street use have
been approved by now, with
only a few awaiting testing.
www.sbsbrakes.com
www.AMDchampionship.com