It’s electric
Okay, let’s start by answer some burning questions. Yes, it’s electric. Yes, you miss sound and vibration. Yes, you miss shifting gears and the feeling of being directly connected by the clutch. And yes, you have to get used to it. But no: it is not the end of the world!

Electric motorcycles have been around for a while now and there are still die-hard motorcycle enthusiasts who maintain, with some persistence, that they never want to be seen on such a thing. Or that ‘the fun stops as soon as you can’t put any more petrol in it’. Or something like that. And then the comments come from the other side, it becomes a fight and the conversation, if it ever was one with so many rigid attitudes, gets bogged down in a kind of bingo card with cliché remarks and it’s done, until the next time. This is that next time, so I’ll get right to it.

Especially with a back-to-back comparison, it stands out even more; you miss some of the sensations you would normally get on a petrol powered motorcycle. But that doesn’t make it bad; it’s just different. And I’m certainly a firm believer in internal combustion engines myself. The bonus of sound, feeling and experience is not something you can ignore. Do yourself a favor though, you might want to keep an open mind.

The Experia Experience
The Experia is Energica’s latest model and after a supersport, naked and retro naked, Energica has now gone for a real Adventure bike style. Pretty ambitious, because you immediately think ‘cases, payload, aerodynamics and mileage’. Not the things you think of with an electric motorcycle, so my curiosity was piqued. Quite simply, if they have an answer to this, you could call it a breakthrough. If this succeeds, every other genre is a cinch and you have swept aside almost all, if not all, objections.

Energica does not cut back on materials or suppliers; the Experia is no exception. And they go even further, because for an Adventure bike you need even more than the minimum. Different suspension, luggage racks and panniers to name but a few, but also totally new bodywork, without losing the characteristic Energica look. New on the Experia are the charging ports on the side, with 2 different plug options. There are different power settings, with a possibility for a custom map. This allows for a personalised power delivery and regeneration. The electric motor itself has been improved for economy and performance. Just take a look at these specifications:

POWER: Continuous: 60kW/80Hp at 7000 rpm – Peak: 75kW/102Hp at 7500 rpm
TORQUE: 115 Nm / 85 ft lb. – 900 Nm / 664 ft lb. at wheel
TOP SPEED: Limited at 180 km/h (112 mph)
ACCELERATION: 0-100 km/h (0-60 mph): 3.5 sec
RANGE:

• City: 420 km (261 miles)
• Combined: 256 km (160 miles)
• Extra-Urban: 208 km (130 miles)
• WMTC: 222 km (138 miles)

Nimble
The single biggest advantage that Energica has now embraced is mass. Indeed, up until now, electric motors have still been on the heavy side. That’s fairly inevitable, the batteries and motor are just heavy. But… an average Adventure often is too. And with that Energica erases one of the biggest objections; the Experia is not much heavier than an average competitor with a claimed weight of 260kg.

In terms of ride quality, we’ve never had anything to complain about with this brand, and now that the details have been addressed as well, we can get ready for an exhilarating ride. And am not disappointed immediately after. The best part: the instant power delivery. Holy cow this thing goes. As the speed increases, so does my confidence.  There’s something about the sound the electric motor makes that makes it addictive. The Experia also feels lightfooted, almost nimble; a rare combination on an Adventure bike of this size. Those that are brave could venture off road. We stuck to the tarmac this time, but see no problem in the Experia going anywhere a BMW GS would go.

Energica has mastered the art of mass centralization. Their engineers have succeeded beautifully in getting the center of gravity in the right, balanced place so that you can actually just point and shoot. Just like a regular motorcycle. The frame is top-notch, the suspension is great and the controls are intuitive. It’s incredibly predictable, overwhelmingly powerful and super comfortable. Maybe except for the windscreen, which is adjustable, but not super effective.

Got juice?
And that load capacity? Look at the specifications and you know. Of course you have to recharge every so often, but now you only have to combine that with a cup of coffee instead of a three-course lunch. And you were on vacation, right? Who’s in a hurry then? With the various connection options you can charge wherever you want, whether it’s at a Tesla fast charging station or a half-decayed, cobwebby outlet in a farmer’s barn. Okay, the latter will take longer and you have to make sure that you do not start a fire, but it is possible. Literally anywhere. And once full you can really go a long way with it, before you have to look again. I would like to try it in practice for a realistic impression though. But it already promises a lot and it is anyway better than what we were used to so far. Only question I have is how it will work with a passenger and luggage added to the mix, but that too is a nice idea to figure out.

CAPACITY: Max. 22.5 kWh / Nominal 19.6 kWh – lithium polymer
LIFE: 1200 Cycles @ 80% Capacity (100% DOD)
RECHARGE:

• Fast Charge DCFC Level 3 Mode 4: 400 km/h o 6,7 km/min (248 miles/h o 4 miles/min)
• Slow Charge Level 2 Mode 2 or 3: 63,5 km/h (39,5 miles/h)

So. Conclusion? I think it’s swell. As I said at the beginning, it’s irrefutably different, but that really doesn’t make it, by any means, totally and utterly, the end of the world. If electric motorcycles really do go this way, I’m looking forward to it. One by one the differences and objections will disappear and you’ll just be left with a super-thick, really cool motorcycle. And if you disagree, you are welcome to prove me wrong.

Photo credits: Vincent Burger

Energica Motorcycles

Another one
We see a great number of modified and customised Triumphs in our mailbox and to be honest, we really can’t get enough of them. As we see more Triumph builds, our expectations unintentionally increase to new heights. When we first received the pictures of the Triumph Speed Triple we are featuring today, we got really excited! Not only because we enjoy a good Triumph build, but also because it is something out of the ordinary.

Rise from the dead
What many people seem to forget, is that Triumph Motorcycles were going to some bad times financially in the 1980’s and early 1990’s. Sales weren’t any good, and the Hinckley made triple-cylinder engine motorcycles were not the success formula Triumph was hoping for. Not until 1994, when Triumph presented their very first powerful naked bike, the Speed Triple. It was a moderate success, but still good enough to put Triumph back on the map. The 885cc Daytona derived motorcycle proved that it could compete with other European motorcycle manufacturers. A few years later an updated model followed, the T509 which made instant fame for its bug-eyed front. As a matter of fact, this model become so successful, both in terms of performance and reliability, that it earned another update, with a bigger more powerful engine, measuring now 955cc and pushing out a whopping 108hp and 98 Nm (72 ftlb) of torque in 1998. It is this model that single-handedly propelled Triumph out of the red figures financially, and brought in the dough that financed the rebirth of the famous Bonneville.

Hooligan bike
The Speed Triple that Stan van Ijzerdoorn from the Netherlands used as a base bike for his build, is 2005 model 1050 Speed Triple. It is a hooligan bike of the highest order, with an incredible 131hp and a brick-pulling 104 Nm (77 ftlb) of torque. Impressive figures on their own, but when you realize that this Speed Triple weighs in at a neat 189kg (416lbs), you’ll start to understand why it is an absolute beast to ride. The single-side swing arm adds to the sexiness of the bike. Stan, who in his daily life runs a Crossfit box, got his hands on this Triumph to spend a little R&R time during the COVID lockdown. This gave him the time and opportunity to build something remarkable. A solid foundation if you ask us, but not an easy one to pull-off, especially as a novice builder.


If it ain’t Dutch, it ain’t much!
Yet, Stan did a tremendous job completing this build. The list of modifications is extensive, and when considering that almost all the work was done by himself, we can only take our hats off to him. Stan bought a TiG welder and started practicing until he mastered the skill, leading a over 25 parts that were fabricated by himself on this build. The subframe and buddy seat were handmade, the battery box was relocated, all lights were swapped out with LED units, a minimalistic speedo was added, the handlebar got upgraded, and whole lot of paint work, from the wheels and swing arm, to the frame and fuel tank. What stands out the most, is the combination of gold and black. The color combination was originally also used by Triumph, only now it has been in a reversed order, creating a totally different impact.


License? What license?
Now here is the interesting bit. Stan has a passion for motorcycles and has done motocross for a number of years. He enjoys working on motorcycles; however, he doesn’t ride street legal motorcycles. That is because he never got around getting his license! We have been assured that it is on the top of his priority list, so we’ll have to take his word for it. For now, just like Stan, we will have to use a bit of our imagination to know how this bike rides. It MUST be fun to ride!

Builder details:
Stan van Ijzerdoorn
Instagram

The Roll Royce of motorcycles
Every serious motorcyclist will have heard the name at one point in his life: ‘Brough Superior’.
George Brough was the son of William Brough, an English motorcycle producer who had been building motorbikes in England since the turn of the century.

But growing up between motorcycle parts George wanted more and was ambitious enough to start his own brand just after the war in 1919. The son was convinced he could improve on his father’s designs, and made sure all motorcycles produced in his factory were high performance and of superior quality.

To achieve this all motorcycles were actually assembled twice. The first round was to make sure all parts fitted properly, whereas the second and final build was after all materials that needed to be painted or plated had been given the required treatment. After that all machines were test ridden to make sure they performed up to specifications.

It goes without saying that the Brough Superior were expensive and clients came mostly from higher echelons in British society.

Lawrence of Arabia: Eternal Brough Superior icon
Lawrence of Arabia, also known as Thomas Edward Lawrence or T.E Shaw (when he enrolled in the
Royal Air Force), was a British author. He owned no less than seven Brough Superiors. He was a fanatical rider. His Broughs were so important to him that he used to write about them in letters and in his books. The ultimate brand ambassador. Each of his Broughs was given a name that was similar to a royal lineage, going from George I to George VII.

In his book The Mint, Lawrence dedicated an entire chapter (The Road) to the pleasure he had of riding across England in the morning to get the best ingredients for a brunch.
This chapter is still considered as one of the most beautiful odes to riding motorcycles.

Ton up
Brough Superior was the first brand to have produced motorcycles that could go ‘Ton up’ (above 100 mph) even before the expression became common in the British café racer scene in the sixties.

The original factory produced motorcycles between 1919 and 1940. After the war it ceased production. It was not until 2014 when a by French motorcycle expert Thierry Henriette bought the rights to the brand name.

Presenting ‘The Lawrence’
After relaunching the iconic brand with Lawrence of Arabia’s legendary ‘S.S.100’ in collaboration with Aston Martin to create the only existing bike of the brand, French owned Brough Superior decided to set out to produce the most high end motorcycle of the world, the “Lawrence”.

In line with the original way of producing more than a century ago, modern day Brough superiors are also hand-built using only the best materials available (titanium, carbon fibre, aluminium), the production of the Lawrence benefited from the excellent network within the French aeronautical while it was being developed.

Launch delayed
A highly anticipated revelation of the bike was scheduled for the EICMA 2020 fair in Milan, but the show was cancelled due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Lawrence was only recently released to the public online.

This new model represents a milestone for Brough Superior. Inspired by the mechanical architecture
of the S.S.100, the Lawrence has unique curves that were only possible to be created by using
carbon fibre. The frame of the motorcycle is in titanium, and its fork is a Fior type in aluminium.

The engine has entirely been developed internally by the Brough Superior engineers. The production
technology and the engineering skills that are required to build this bike partly come from the
aeronautical industry that is very influential in the region of Toulouse, France. The world’s leading
spaceships, satellites and aircrafts are also produced in the same region.

Limited edition
The original brand only manufactured only 3.048 motorcycles during the factory’s lifetime.
Only 188 editions of this 21st century edition will be produced. The number 188 is echoing the
birth date of T.E. Lawrence: 1888.

With the high standard of quality it is hardly surprising the price tag is in the upper regions as well. The French factory has set it around 66 000 euros, the definite price depending on local taxes.

The proud owners of the brand name describe the birthplace of their latest brainchild as “a mesmerizing place where ideas take shape into beautiful objects.”
Each part of a Brough is thought, drawn and designed by the Factory’s engineers and designers. It is
then hand-built with the finest existing materials by Brough Superior’s craftsmen.
Welders, polishers, painters and saddlers are working in harmony within the headquarters of the
company.
Some parts like wheels and swingarms are cnc-ed by local machinist partners. Their expertise allows Brough Superior to meet the same quality requirements as in the aeronautical industry.

The BikeBrewers team is in high anticipation of an invite to travel to the South of France and fly this baby around in the lovely French countryside in search of the right ingredients for a decent picnic.