With a new design and even higher standards, the 2010 MotoCzysz E1pc won the 2010 IoM TT very convincingly.  The competition did not stand a chance.  Here are some of the statistics from the E1pc’s race:

• New track record- 23:820 (96.820mph avg.)
• Fastest sector time- (every sector)
• Fastest through Sulby straight- 135mph
• Fastest recorded overall top speed- 140+mph
• Fastest over the grandstand finish line- 122mph

So while the top-speed of the E1pc through the Sulby straight was 135 mph (220 km/h), the next fastest bike came in at 107 mph (172 km/h).  When you consider the gap between those two numbers, you see exactly why the E1pc dominated its competition within the race and set new records all around.  The average speed of the bike was measured at 96.82 mph, which is also the closest anyone has come to the 100 mph mark (£10,000 prize provided by government of Isle of Man for first rider to reach the 100 mph average mark).  The bike was also untested before this race.  They were only able to finally get it put together a short while before the race, so imagine if they were able to do more testing and tweaking.  There are 10 individual lithium polymer cells that each weigh 19.5 Lbs and were hand-assembled by a company that builds batteries for none other than NASA.  The internal structure along with other components are kind of a secret right now, so not a whole lot is known about it.

Most bikes used modified motors taken from things like forklifts or high-power drills, but the motor used in the E1pc was built specifically for this bike.  It is dubbed “D1g1tal Dr1ve” and is a DC internal permanent magnet motor.  It’s an oil-cooled motor which has more power and torque than all three air-cooled motors used on last year’s model combined.  It is also smaller than any one of those motors.  It is able to provide its 100 HP continuously because of its design, unlike air-cooled electric motors, which usually only hit their peak power for a fraction of a second at a time.  One of the best parts about a small motor like this is the fact that it offers a virtually direct connection between throttle and rear wheel.  This eliminates the transfer of power through multiple stages, where at each intersection, the system is prone to some sort of power-loss.  The design of the bike was also taken into consideration, because when you’re traveling at over 200 km/h, that wind will hit back just as fast.  This is why they made the bike very sleek and as aerodynamic as possible.  All this being achieved after only their second year.  Big things can be expected from such a brilliant team.

Expect electric bikes to become popular very quickly.  They will be globally commercialized within the next few years and will eventually replace gas-powered bikes.

Source: [Popular Science]

This is my ultimate sports watching weekend. Please bless the person who put a satellite in the sky and started beaming sports from around the world to my television.

Follow this prescribed sports schedule this weekend and I guarantee a weekend of sheer pleasure.

(All times listed are in CET)

Saturday

16:00 – FA Cup Final – Chelsea v Portsmouth – On paper, this appears to be a huge mismatch. On one side, you have the Premier League title winners. On the other, a club surrounded by financial issues which has led to relegation. This should be a no brainer, right? Well, I’m not so sure. No one gave Pompey a chance in the semi-finals against Tottenham and they pulled through with an impressive 2-0 win in extra time. Portsmouth keeper David James was a brick wall between the posts for Avram Grant’s side. He’ll need a repeat performance against Chelsea’s potent offensive attack. John Terry will play despite a midweek training scare. The Blues’ skipper was thought initially to have a broken metatarsal bone in his foot, but I think that was the British media making a story out of nothing (as usual). Chelsea lifted the FA Cup in 2007, Portsmouth in 2008 and Chelsea again last year. It is Chelsea’s cup to lose. All the pressure is squarely on the Premier League champions to become the seventh club to win the English double.

FA Cup Final Betting Odds

20:00 – DFB Pokal Final – Werder Bremen v Bayern Munich – Bayern Munich still have dreams of winning the treble in 2010. They held off Schalke in the Bundesliga to win their 22^nd German Championship and today they have the chance to win the double (treble would come in the Champions League final on May 22^nd against Inter in Madrid). Bayern and Werder Bremen are the two most successful clubs in the history of the competition. Bayern have won a record 14 DFB Pokal titles, while Bremen have won six. No other club has more than four to their credit. This will be the third time Bayern and Bremen have met in the final. Bremen won the 1999 Pokal, while Bayern got revenge in 2000. Much like the FA Cup, Bremen and Bayern are the last two clubs to have lifted the German Cup. This will be a great match. No one is playing better in Germany than these two clubs this season and no two teams have played better in this competition in its history than Bayern and Bremen (side note: this trophy is supremely bad-ass).

DFB Pokal Final Betting Odds

Sunday

14:00 – Formula One – Monaco Grand Prix – It’s always a treat to watch the Monaco GP every year. It’s definitely the circuit’s premier race. The street course in Monte Carlo is just so damn cool. Last year Jenson Button won the pole and the race with Brawn GP on his way to the Drivers’ Championship. This season he has changed teams, but it hasn’t changed his success. Button has already won twice this season and he’s looking for number three. Fernando Alonso and his Ferrari have dominated the first two practice sessions, but will it translate to results come race time? It should be an exciting race as Button’s teammate, Lewis Hamilton, is hungry for his first race of the season. But, you can’t count out Sebastian Vettel or Mark Webber from team Red Bull. Vettel and Webber have each stood at the top of the podium this season. My trifecta – Hamilton, Alonso, Button. And, you?

Monaco GP Betting Odds

15:00 – Serie A – Siena v Inter / Chievo Verona v AS Roma – A win for Inter against Siena would hand them their 19^th Serie A title. Inter sit two points clear Roma and three points would seal the title. They could also clinch the title with a Roma draw or loss, but that’s not ideal. Even though Siena are guaranteed of being relegated, I know they don’t want to hand Inter the title. In their first league meeting at the San Siro, Inter trailed Siena 3-2 until the 88^th minute when Sneijder scored to level the match and then Samuel scored in stoppage time to hand Siena the loss.  Roma will need an away win against Chievo Verona in combination with an Inter loss if they are to win their fourth title. Inter defeated Roma in the Coppa Italia final and will face Bayern Munich for the Champions League title later this month. Winning the Scudetto on Sunday will give Inter the chance to become the first Italian club to pull off the treble.

Serie A Betting Odds

19:00 – La Liga – Barcelona v Valladolid / Malaga v Real Madrid – What a season for Real Madrid. 32 wins, 101 goals scored and 95 points in the league and they’re most likely not going to win any silverware. That’s because Barcelona has one more point than their rivals from Madrid heading into the final weekend of the season in Spain. On paper the final fixtures suit the Blaugrana, and they can be safe in the knowledge that whatever Real Madrid do in Malaga will be irrelevant if Pep Guardiola’s charges emerge victorious on Sunday night. Barcelona have yet to lose a league match at home this season. They have 17 wins and one draw at the Camp Nou. One more victory will give the Catalan side their second straight league title and 20^th in their storied history.

La Liga Betting Odds

21:00 – NHL Playoffs – San Jose Sharks v Chicago Blackhawks – The weekend comes to a close with Game 1 of the Western Conference finals in San Jose, California. The Sharks have been labeled as perennial chokers in the NHL playoffs, but this season it’s different. Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton are playing like they did in the regular season and Joe Pavelski is having his coming out party. The Blackhawks knocked out the Vancouver Canucks for the second straight year in the second round and looked very forceful in the process. The Hawks scored 23 goals against Vancouver and have Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews firing on all cylinders. The Sharks are 5-1 in the playoffs at home in the playoffs. They’ll have home ice advantage in this series against Chicago. Will that be the difference in the end?

NHL Betting Odds

That’s my perfect sports weekend. What’s yours?

Related posts:

• Champions League Final: Treble Charged
• Weekend Viewing Guide: May 1-2
• Can Inter win the Treble?

It’s interesting how similar politics are; at the highest level, it’s always childish and blown out of proportion. Take the latest accusations against F1 team Scudaria Ferrari Marlboro, for example. This week pundits have accused Ferrari of subliminally advertising for their main partner – Philip Morris (Marlboro brand cigarettes). What’s the real issue? Perhaps the fact that Ferrari is the only team to continue an alliance with a tobacco company, with the deal worth a reported $1 billion?

Might I say, in the words of Ali G: “Is you a bit jealous?”

A little tobacco advertising history

Before the late 1990′s, tobacco advertising was literally everywhere (not just in motor-sports either). Big tobacco companies would sponsor not only cars, but Grand Prix’s in general. They would even field their own race teams. It was big money.  (Who remembers the green Williams Kool cars? Or the Ferrari and McLaren Marlboro cars? )  – By the late 1990′s European countries outlawed the advertising of tobacco in sports. Every tobacco company had eventually pulled out of the Formula 1, with exception to Philip Morris.

Don’t confuse the lack of blatant cigarette branding with cigarette companies having to legally pull out of sponsorship. In fact, many cigarette companies still sponsored Formula 1 teams past 2000. They just used marketing that was compliant with the regulations. Much like what Ferrari is doing now. The fact that they’re currently the only team with tobacco sponsorship is raising flags, and these flag raisers are bitching about everything under the sun.

The accusations?

Pundits claim that the abstract bar-code that is used along with the teams red colour is subliminally advertising for the title sponsor. Very laughable. Or is it? Both sides have merit to this argument. It seems, though, that Marlboro and Ferrari have been well prepped for this backlash and have prepared a very convincing rebuttal.

Let me rant some common sense into these “pundits”.

There’s no doubt there is a lot of sneaky marketing going on, but is that a blatant infraction or just border-line immoral?  I’m going with the latter. Did Marlboro replace their long-standing word mark with this bar-code in hopes people would make the association? Seems that way. Does Marlboro have anything to do with the colour? Obviously this was a strategic benefit of partnering with Ferrari and Ducati MotoGP. To me, it’s an intentional coincidence.  WHOA, back up! Did I say “Ducati MotoGP”, too?   Yes, this might not help Marlboro’s cause, as they did the exact same switch in 2008 with their long time sponsored Ducati MotoGP team too. Now we start to see where this gets shady. It does seem to me that this is an unofficial rebrand for legal motorsport advertisements.

Let me just ask you, you stupid “pundits”…whoever you are:  Ferrari is going into their THIRD season with these graphics. Why the hell are you just bringing up these accusations now? Furthermore, considering where Ferrari stands with the FIA (they’re lovers you know, and Ferrari wears the pants), how the hell is any of this supposed to stand without hard proof?  What the hell are arbitrary accusations going to do?   If Philip Morris is paying $1 billion for title rights and a pseudo graphic to Ferrari, what do you think it’s worth to them to fight this? I’m telling you guys, DON’T PISS OFF FERRARI – or they’ll rain down on the FIA and sport their Marlboro word marks again…and they’ll probably have the sent of  ‘hand picked tobacco’ coming from the back of their Scuderia tail pipes, just in spite. Not to mention, blowing this up out of proportion just gave Marlboro more advertising than you can even imagine. Now you’re just rumour spreading hypocrites. Well done.

Who cares?!

So after all of this, what do you think? Do you even care? I’ve tried to make a connection with the bar-code. Visually, I can’t. I say scan the bar-code, if it comes up as a pack of Marlboro’s – book’em. If not, STFU – you’re giving cigarettes press when they don’t need it!  This is the only visual connection I’ve made today…

A better argument

After Marlboro was forced to stop using its branded “Marlboro” word mark on their sponsored vehicles, they started selling their smokes in VERY suggestive packs called “racing editions”. THIS, if anything else, is a case of trying to force an association without directly saying so. Bar-codes? They’re on everything, how do you think Ferrari checked out of the F1 showroom? DUH!

Here’s Philip Morris’ stance on advertising their cigarette’s (straight from their website);
- ” Since 1990, our policy has been to deny all requests for permission to use or display our brands in any movies or television shows or other public entertainment media.“   and also state that,   “Our marketing programs are designed to enhance brand awareness, recognition and loyalty among adult tobacco product consumers in a responsible way.”

Here’s Ferrari’s stance on the accusations:

” Scuderia Ferrari and Philip Morris International Sponsorship

Maranello, 29 April – Today and in recent weeks, articles have been published relating to the partnership contract between Scuderia Ferrari and Philip Morris International, questioning its legality. These reports are based on two suppositions: that part of the graphics featured on the Formula 1 cars are reminiscent of the Marlboro logo and even that the red colour which is a traditional feature of our cars is a form of tobacco publicity.

Neither of these arguments have any scientific basis, as they rely on some alleged studies which have never been published in academic journals. But more importantly, they do not correspond to the truth. The so called barcode is an integral part of the livery of the car and of all images coordinated by the Scuderia, as can be seen from the fact it is modified every year and, occasionally even during the season. Furthermore, if it was a case of advertising branding, Philip Morris would have to own a legal copyright on it.

The partnership between Ferrari and Philip Morris is now only exploited in certain initiatives, such as factory visits, meetings with the drivers, merchandising products, all carried out fully within the laws of the various countries where these activities take place. There has been no logo or branding on the race cars since 2008, even in countries where local laws would still have permitted it.

The premise that simply looking at a red Ferrari can be a more effective means of publicity than a cigarette advertisement seems incredible: how should one assess the choice made by other Formula 1 teams to race a car with a predominantly red livery or to link the image of a driver to a sports car of the same colour? Maybe these companies also want to advertise smoking! It should be pointed out that red has been the recognised colour for Italian racing cars since the very beginning of motor sport, at the start of the twentieth century: if there is an immediate association to be made, it is with our company rather than with our partner.”

[Sources: AutoBlog,Marketing Magazine, F1Network]

Related posts:

• Google How-To: Acquiring the Genius from your Competitor…
• Formula 1: 2010 Rule Changes

I must admit that the rule changes going into the 2009 season was WAY more exciting. Slicks and KERS were exciting new additions to the series; this year isn’t as exciting but will have similar affects on racing strategy.

Remember, KERS is NOT banned. The FOTA has agreed not to use it, but there are new rules that will help encourage its use… which is interesting. Here are the more exciting rule changes:

Ban on Refueling

Refueling has been banned for the first time since 1993 and constructors have been challenged with shoe-horning a 235 litre tank where a 120 previously fit.   The larger tank will prompt many creative solutions / pain-in-the-asses.  Proposed solutions are:

1) Increasing the wheelbase of the car by 15cm.
2) Move the cockpit forward slightly.
3) Shorter gearbox design.
4) Not seen in over a decade – Move the oil tank back to the rear of the car and house it with the gearbox.

While option 3 and 4 seem to be less invasive, it’s still impossible to know what solution will work the best. You can bet the big budget teams have tried at least two of these four proposed solutions.  Man, I hope Ferrari got it right!

Narrower Front Tyres

Front tyres are now 245mm down from 270mm. With last years return of the slick, this will help return proper balance of grip between the fron and rear.

No Wheel Covers

Used since 2006, these are banned to speed up pit stops.

New Points System

2^nd and 3^rd are no longer fruitful! Go for the gold, because the winner takes 25 now.  Second will get 18,  and third 15 all the way down to 1 for eighth.

Eleven Sets of Tyres

Down from fourteen sets in 2009, teams will have to work with less.

Minimum Car Weight

From 605kg to 620kg. This helps offsets the weight of a taller/heavier racer if KERS was ever added to their vehicle.

Related link: 2010 Season Changes to F1 Regulations

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• Formula 1: Marlboro’s Genius Marketing putting Ferrari under fire…
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• Friday Football Follies: March 5, 2010