2013 TECH BRIEF
(Above) In the neverending quest for quicker lap times, more power is often not the answer. (Inset) Jodi Christie’s tuner John Sharrard is hoping that the latest front and rear suspension components will pay dividends.
able, you need to build the bike in terms of components. Jodi Christie’s crew chief John Sharrard has been busy with brand new CBR600RRs and CBR1000RRs in preparation for his works Honda Canada program under the Accelerated Technologies banner. “It’s an honour, it’s exciting,” comments Sharrard from his race
shop outside Peterborough, Ont. “But you also pull out a lot of hair getting up to speed. We had teams calling us about the new bikes, since we’ve been running Hondas for several years. For instance, we now have a good relationship with the Geico Honda group in Al- abama. “It’s a challenge to get communication going with the new
stuff, and it helps to have ongoing relationships here and there,” admits Sharrard, who was a top racer before becoming a builder and crew chief. “People like Rick Hobbs (a Canadian who took Steve Crevier
to our Superbike title in 1989) who is working with Josh Herrin’s Yamaha Team in the U.S., and HRC MotoGP team member Yuji Kikuchi (who tuned for Michael Taylor’s Kawasaki Superbike pro- gram in the ‘90s) provided direction and resources, and every lit- tle bit helps. “We’re trying some new things this year in terms of suspension,”
continues noted chassis guru Sharrard. “All four of our bikes are using the new K-Tech pressurized fork cartridges, and we’re already satisfied that this is a step forward for Jodi.” For years, Sharrard has worked hand-in-hand with Montreal
performance shock builder Elka, and there are also some devel- opments on this front for the upcoming season. “We plan to debut a new Elka Stage 5 shock,” explains Sharrard.
“This is a design that was engineered to work with the high flow rate demands of cross-country ATV racing. It’s lighter, and smaller. We’ve been working on this project for a year now, and we had a successful test at Calabogie last fall. Michael Leon is also working with the new Elka Stage 5 with his new MV Agusta.” When it comes to the realities of putting a Superbike under our
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