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450cc Super Singles Will Race at Mid Ohio

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450cc Super Single racer

The 450cc Super Singles class will be racing at Mid Ohio, September 19-21. The new class is made up of road racing bikes that started life as 450cc MX bikes which are then transformed into lightweight, single cylinder racers.

We’ve written about this new class before and it looks like it’s about to hit the track. This could be interesting.

From the AMA press release:

AMA Sports, the amateur racing arm of the AMA, is proud to welcome Gavin Trippe and his 450cc super singles to the AMA Sports Road Race Grand Championships, set for September 19-21 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio. The 450cc super singles showcase an exciting new breed of road-racers that are powered by 450cc four-stroke engines sourced from top-line motocross bikes and streamlined with custom fairings.

Trippe, a driving force behind the new race bikes, will be on hand as part of the event. A member of the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame, Trippe is regarded as the founder of the Superbikers event in the 1970s, which pitted racers from numerous motorcycle racing disciplines against each other on tracks that included elements of motocross, road racing and dirt track.

“We are excited to have Gavin Trippe and his amazing super singles race bikes at the AMA Sports Road Race Grand Championships,” said Anthony Grilli, National Technical Manager for AMA Sports. “With the core of modern motocross machinery and wrapped in MotoGP-inspired composites, these bikes are a thrill to watch as they battle for track supremacy.”

“When I hatched the idea for the super singles, it was at Mid-Ohio in 2006,” Trippe said. “I was watching some supermoto bikes going around and I thought to myself, ‘Those things are flying!’ That’s where it all started. Now, to be going back to Mid-Ohio with the next generation of these bikes, at an event such as the Road Race Grand Championships, it’s exciting.”

Link: AMA
Link: 450moto.com
Related: Dirt Bike Based 450cc Racers
Related: Roland Sands 450 Single

Photo: Jay McNally

Comments

  5. Get a KTM enduro…they are often able to be registered as a streetbike where most other MX/enduro bikes aren’t. The key is not having a big “OFF ROAD USE ONLY” printed on the title.

    At least they didn’t a few years back when I worked at a KTM shop, that is.

  6. Phoebe, as jp says, if the MX bike is street legal to begin with, the road race version, if equipped with lights and such, should be legal, too. It’s just a custom MX bike.

    And wouldn’t it be interesting if these started turning up on the street? How long before the manufacturers take notice? Or if the series itself is popular, how long before the manufacturers notice?

  7. was looking at the Yamaha DRZ450 befor i got the Buell bug. sick bikes. would love to have the race bike stripped to a naked version.

    how about getting one of those gas tanks for a dirt bike?

  9. looks like the tank is in conjunction with the rest of the conversion. Im thinkin of getting more fuel capacity for longer trail rides. keeping the stock or modified stock seat.

  11. Derek,

    From their “about page” …

    “Concept road racer based on the universal 450cc single cylinder motocross unit and frame, available from all the main OEM’s – Honda, Kawasaki, KTM, Yamaha, Suzuki, and coming soon from BMW and Buell.”

  12. The Blast uses a pushrod motor, so would have a hard time competing with the DOHC motors in most of the MX bikes.

    Heck of a lot cheaper though, and I have heard of modified (both in displacement and compression) making int he neighborhood of 40-45 HP so wouldn’t be that bad of a motor to use.

    For that matter, the old air cooled Honda XR650 motors made about that IIRC.

  13. i have heard of a DOHC Hemi conversion for a Harley big twin. maybe something similar for the Blast.

  14. The complete bike is way out of my price range, but I wonder how much doing the actual conversion costs? I would make it a naked streetfigher/cafe-styled bike. I guess it would just need the tank, tail and front and rear suspension (fork, wheels, brakes)?

    Oh, and I own a Blast which I’ve modified streetfighter-style. The engine’s not bad for what it is, and there’s kits to bore them out to 600cc, and you can do headwork, cams, and all that too.

    I’d rather have the Honda single, though. Way more aftermarket parts for the engine, for starters.

  16. With regards to the mentioning of Buell on the 450moto.com website, I think they were referring to the rumoured Buell dirt bikes that were being talked about many months back, before the plans for Buell developing such machines were put on hold or scrapped. If Buell does ever produce these machines, they would be a great potential addition.

    I think it would be cool if they eventually include other manufacturers like Husqvarna, TM or Husaberg in such a series. If I’m not mistaken, all three build 450cc single-cylinder four-stroke machines.

  18. Dr. Gellar,

    “With regards to the mentioning of Buell on the 450moto.com website, I think they were referring to the rumoured Buell dirt bikes”

    You’re probably right. On the other hand, if someone were to look at the Blast as a platform for some sort of inexpensive racer, it might have its own appeal.

  20. I can agree with you on that kneeslider. Such a make-over could transform the Blast into a very cool machine. To me the Blast has lots of potential. It’s just that in stock form the bike seems so…ugly. I’d love to see the engine used in a cafe-racer or scrambler-style street bike. Something stylish and light-weight.

    From reading much regarding the proposed idea of the series, I get the impression that ideally they are looking at running near-identical 450cc motocross/enduro/supermoto machines. Hence I doubt they have (or had) the Blast in mind. This may explain also why other more exotic makes like the ones I previously listed aren’t mentioned either.

  21. I kind of wish they made a “Super Blast”, or a Blast-S or something. It’s really not a bad bike, but it could definitely use more power. Actually, there’s a few things it could use: a fork brace, a steering stabilizer, adjustable suspension (on the rear shock at the very least), a tachometer, lower handlebars, and an intake system that isn’t so weird and bulky.

    I’ve taken care of some of these problems by modifying my Blast. Pic of my Blast.

    But still, compared to say, the Ninja 500, there’s no comparison. The Ninja is better in every respect. I got the Blast because I was able to get it for a steal.

  22. Funny how things are alwyas coming back to Buell … 😉

    Now, supermoto bikes based on modified motocross / dual sports can really fly and are fun to ride, due to light weight and particular engine, but mainly because of it’s handling capability (geometry and ride position, …). I know I have one.
    But if you put racing handlebars / fairing on a supermoto, it doesn’t make the handling better, it just makes a slow race bike ? Just a question …

  23. Nicolas, hopefully there is no misunderstanding that these bikes will be competitive with even the least of the 600-fours. Sure they will handle great, sure they will be quick but there’s only 50-60 HP there. Good handling and light weight can’t make up for half the power. A Blast makes around 35 HP and the motor weighs more. Being a push rod motor it’ll never be able to spin high enough to catch up with the 450F bikes.

    I really like these bikes. I’d love one for the street. Not because I think it would somehow be better than what’s already available but because it’s different, because it’s a small cap single, because it’s light, because it doesn’t try to put out 100 HP and doesn’t care that it doesn’t.

    I don’t own a Blast because my knees hit the “tank” in an uncomfortable way, the styling is a bit odd, it’s too low to the ground (I’m 6’3″), I have doubts about its reliability… Don’t get me wrong, the Blast is a good bike and more companies need to build bike like it. Buell could also stand to have an updated, sportier version with a 550 Rotax single in it. I have a GB500 and a Motard’d XR650L. Neither are fast (around 30 HP each or so) but they are good fun, different, and return 50 – 60 MPG. They’re also no match for a Ninja 500.

    The manufacturers could sell quite a few thousand of these in road form, even if they cost just as much as a 600-4. There are manufacturers that make business plans on less volume than that.

    In the mean time, it’ll be cheaper to buy a Ninja 250, eBay the motor, and install a 450 motor in it.

    -todd

  24. “I really like these bikes. I’d love one for the street. Not because I think it would somehow be better than what’s already available but because it’s different, because it’s a small cap single, because it’s light, because it doesn’t try to put out 100 HP and doesn’t care that it doesn’t.”

    Exactly! Modest but usable power + a light and competent chassis is a winning combo in my book. I’m jealous of your GB500. I wanted to buy one, but unfortunately it’s out of my price range, and probably will be for a long time.

    Btw, as an aside, you have reason to doubt the Blast’s reliability. They really don’t make them to last. It’s not a bike I’ll be hanging on to for the rest of my life, I can tell you that. And I agree with you about putting a Rotax in a small, new Buell bike. 7 or 8 years is a *long* time for a bike to be produced with virtually no changes at all…the Blast is long overdue.

    Sorry to derail the topic, Kneeslider!