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Is the Yamaha YZF-R6 Performance of a High Tech Motorcycle
Motorcycles are a rite of passage for most young boys. It is the first true freedom they find to get out and go places and literally the first motorized vehicle many of them own because of the economics involved in owning a vehicle and the fact that most young boys are not well off financially.
The Yamaha YZF-R6 or the R6 as it is more commonly referred to is a sporty and fast bike that is going to excite almost anyone that sees it or rides on it. The heart pumping bike in 2006 touted a staggering 17500-RPM redline. If that were indeed the actual RPM of the engine, the bike would be up somewhere close to the performance of a high tech and high dollar formula one race car.
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The Ducati Desmosedici
Until 2002, world class motorcycle racing was best represented by the 500cc World Championship. Riders took lightweight 2-cycle motorcycles at criminal speeds and required extremely skilled riders. Many of the major factories such as Honda, Yamaha, and Aprilia were represented but Ducati, the most traditional and successful racing bike was not. Ducati stayed out of the 500cc class because of the 2-stroke rule. The motorcycle racing governing body that regulated MotoGP decided however to allow the introduction of 4-stroke motorcycles in 2002. This opened the door to Ducati and others and set the scene for technological revolution.
Ducati engineers went to the drawing table and plugged hundreds of engine layout combinations into specialized engineering software. According to the computer models, the perfect combination of cylinders, valves, and layout was a L-4 cylinder, liquid-cooled, DOHC, Desmodromic, 4 valves per cylinder, gear driven camshafts engine. What followed were 5 years of trial and error and finally an incredible winning streak in 2007. By this time the public was clamoring for a street legal version of the bike.