May 31, 2023

Suzuki GSX-8S + Rennie Scaysbrook, Isle of Man TT Racer

1 hour 18 minutes

Motos and Friends is brought to you by the Yamaha R7, your gateway to a new generation of supersport machine.

In our first segment, Editor Don Williams rides the new Suzuki GSX-8S. This highly anticipated upright-naked sportbike features the all-new parallel twin from the big S, and we have been very excited to try it out. Don really liked the motor in Suzuki’s new V-Strom, so it’ll be interesting to see if it is perhaps even better suited to a street bike. The big question of course, is who exactly is the target rider for the 8S?

Speaking of sportbikes, the Isle of Man TT is arguably the most fearsome, intense—as well as the longest—motorcycle race in the world. The Superbike races are around 225 Miles and 1200 corners, including 2 full pit stops! It takes a very special level of skill, courage, and yes, a large dollop of insanity too, to ride in, let alone win, a TT race.

The TT is always the first week in June, so it's on right now—see the links below. Just in time for this year’s event, I chat with my Aussie friend, Rennie Scaysbrook. Rennie is the Road Test Editor for Cycle News magazine here in the US. As a fellow journalist, he and I have tested motorcycles at tracks all over the world; he’s a great guy, a good laugh. He holds the record for the challenging Pikes Peak Hill Climb, so as you might imagine, he’s an especially talented rider too.

Rennie rode the IOM TT last year in the Supersport category and acquitted himself well, despite some technical gremlins. He’s riding again this year for the Craig Wilson team, but this time he’s on a Superstock-class Honda Fireblade CBR1000RR-SP. Now that’s a whole different ballgame!

Rennie’s descriptions of riding the sections around the famed TT course are absolutely electrifying. Do you think you’ve got the mental fortitude, concentration, and level of skill that it takes to thread the TT needle on country roads through tiny villages at 195 miles per hour? Rennie’s take on riding the TT will likely answer that for you.

This chat is a doozy—so hold on to your hat for this one.