Kuhn goes for Big Twin in 2011

By John Hopkins

TORONTO, ON – Hamilton, ON road racer Lee Kuhn will likely be dropping a cylinder in 2011.

After campaigning a Triumph 675 Daytona last summer the 23-year-old has plans to race in the Harley-Davidson XR1200 Cup on the Parts Canada Superbike Championship tour. Kuhn will also likely race the bike in selected Superior Propane SOAR Superbike Series events.

“I just think it will be really cool; it’s something new,” said Kuhn, who is displaying an XR1200 at the Inside Motorcycles booth in this weekend’s Canadian Motorsports Expo. “I like the spec series idea and it’s cool to be riding a Harley.”

The XR1200 Cup is a new support class for the 2011 national road racing tour. Similar classes were introduced as part of the AMA Superbike Series in the United States and the British Superbike Championship last season.

“I’ve watched almost every race from the British series,” Kuhn said. “Those races were so competitive; no one was breaking away in front. This is the sort of series that will come down to the rider, not the bike.”

Kuhn placed 12th last season running a partial schedule in the national Amateur Sport Bike class on the Triumph, with a top finish of fourth in the penultimate round at Atlantic Motorsport Park. He competed in the Honda CBR125R Challenge in 2008 and the Suzuki SV650 National Cup in 2009.

“The XR1200 weighs quite a bit more than anything I’ve ever ridden before,” Kuhn added. “But I think it will suit my riding style. I really sit up on the bike and a like the flat track style, throwing it around.”

The Canadian Motorsports Expo runs through the weekend at the International Centre in Toronto. For more information go to www.canadianmotorsportsexpo.com.