KEEPING THE DREAM ALIVE…

If riding a 500cc GP bike sounds difficult, you should hear what it takes to keep one running. To find out the score we had a chin-wag with chief mechanic Nathan Colombi…

“You’re talking about a bike that warps the reality of performance, and that comes at a price. Back in the day, when Roberts won three races on this bike in the 1999 season and finished runner up in the world championship standings, Suzuki ran this bike at full chat, pumping out 192bhp. But they also had the parts needed to keep on top of its rigorous servicing demands. You could only get 600km out of a set of pistons and the rings needed replacing every 300km. For a factory race team that would’ve proven tricky enough, but when you consider this bike was different to the models that came the year before and after it, you’ll realise finding parts for one is nigh on impossible. There were only ever four built and there weren’t bucket loads of parts kicking around back then, let alone now. That’s why we’ve richened the mix and knocked off the revs to help prolong its life. It only gets run two or three times a year, and never for prolonged stints at max pace. It’s just the nature of the beast. If it were to throw a rod it would become an ornament; unlike the earlier RGs, there are no spare cases kicking around. And good luck if you need a new set of carbs. They were one of the only parts to pass from model to model. Over three years there were probably 12 RGVs built, but only eight sets of carbs – which cost £75k a pop back in ’99. Keeping the RGV in running order is a labour of love, and we’ve had to reproduce as many parts as possible to keep this dream alive. The bike now runs a Nova gearbox, reproduced pistons, cranks and oil pumps. We can replate the bores, but it would be virtually impossible to produce new cylinders with any integrity. It’s like all good things in life; when it’s gone, it’s gone.”