SlingVTR understands perfectly: It's EMBARASSING.
as a sport model.I suspect anyone seeing them on the racetrack would be enlightened. The XR1200 support race classes for the superbike series in the USA and Canada are back again, (and we had 883 Sportster and Buell stuff in the past as well). Eric and Ben Bostrom were dirt track guys who raced 883s. I remember later seeing one of the Bostrom's riding SMOKING FAST when "testing the waters" of 750 Superport on a CBR600. The guy was heads above the others riders. But back to the 883 class --- Laguna Seca back in the early '90s. They were loud like Nascar, but slow. The racing was nose-to-tail, and Laguna is very tight/slow circuit, and a best case for showcasing slow bikes, but engines expired often. Oil containment was a problem. They soiled the track and were a detriment to other race classes because of this.
Harley's big marketing budget works --- race promoters and sanctioning bodies are eager to please companies with open wallets. This is probably the ONLY reason that they are on the track. And people will race anything, including lawn tractors. Even 20 years ago the race hogs were way below par. That was the 883 Sportster class then - probably because the lower-output engine was more reliable than the XR1000 (if it existed back then in production trim). The Sportster engine and frame are OLD OLD OLD.
The 23 second difference in lap time on a typical circuit, say with a 1:30 lap-time is so unbelievably huge, ESPECIALLY when comparing a normal street guy on a VTR1000, (NOT a VTR1000SP/RC51 as I fathom from his posting "my vtr" and the info in the avatar) "than the fastest XR all weekend" being RACED by professional, paid, athletic 20+ year veteran ex-WorldGP/WorldSBK/NationalSBK riders like MacKenzie and McWilliams on the XR. Sooo it's is EVEN MORE ASTOUNDINGLY pathetic for the XR. It means the difference in lap-times is probably closer to 35 or 40-seconds a lap!!
A stock Ninja 250 would blow the doors off an XR1200 by a good margin too, or an OLD Suzuki SV650. Way more advanced frame, engine, rims, tires, etc. Sure the XR has been updated - but by how much? That Evolution engine dates back to 1984 (i think) --- I dont care what suspension is bolted to that frame, it's 1970/1980 street bike technology. A 1960 vintage Norton Manx will probably smoke the thing too
because it's not dragging an extra 150 pounds of steel around the track. Sportbike builders know the most important adage for roadracing is LIGHT is RIGHT.The sportster frame worked as a dirt track racer because the traction is much lower on dirt compared with a road circuit. Dirt flat-track racing doesnt stress the chassis nearly as much. The XR750 was designed for dirt track and had a long history mainly because it was the only bike used for dirt-track racing, which is largely an American only sport which in turn is completely unappreciated by Europeans and Japanese who have a long history of roadracing (both on closed-circuits and open-roads). Kenny Roberts smoked Harley on the dirt tracks with the wild Yamaha TZ700/750 roadracer when "set up" for dirt-tracks and the TZ was quickly banned.
The efforts and skills Erik Buell applied in tackling a sportbike using ANY Harley engine is under appreciated. The magnitude of his 20+ years of effort is pretty astounding! Buell designed some magnificent solutions yet it wasnt until he was able to have Rotax design the 1125 engine (a design itself based upon the earlier Aprilia RSV1000 engine Rotax made), that he finally found a satisfactory package. I must admit the easly Firebolt's were very cool street-fighters, but that is as close to a pure sportbike as he really ever got. Engineering a work of art from opposing worlds -- flaws and all. Very cool for a street bike.
I never see XRs on the street. They probably do not sell well here. Harley owners and Harley dealers do not understand sport bikes at all. They understand cruisers, choppers, baggers... custom and chrome, and touring bikes. This is partially why even a miracle man like Buell failed for Harley in the end. But really I think Harley failed Buell. Most every other manufacturer, including Hyosung builds a much better sport bike. Sportbike riders want performance not dead weight.
But as in cars, even a 1955 Chev Nomad is no match for an AC Cobra or a race bred Ford GT40.
Here's a pic of a classic XR750 dirt tracker. This is what an XR is supposed to look like and many aftermarket firms have made nice dirt track replica XR street bikes over the years. Harley is late to the game and missed the mark by 20 years+ especially if one were to even hope to compare it to ANY sport bike built in the last 20 years. Those thick-headed apes at Harley have learned nothing from Buell, but lucky for them they have cruisers down 100%
