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EBR Black Lightning Hits California This Week

It’s been about a month since EBR Motorcycles filed a trademark patent for the “Black Lightning” name and a new photo is actually showing the bike for the first time before it will make its debut this week.
EBR Black Lightning 1 photo
Photo: EBR Motorcycle
EBR Motorcycles slipped this photo on the Internet recently, and it’s supposed to depict the upcoming Black Lightning model which is said to be available starting spring 2017. The model will be fully unveiled Friday at the Progressive International Motorcycle Show in Long Beach, California.

Looking at it, you’ll notice it comes with a lower seat, low foot pegs, and higher handlebars than the Buell 1190RX and 1190SX, which make it more enjoyable to ride in the city or on longer trips. The engine is also shared with the two models, and it cranks 185 hp, but it has been geared for more acceleration rather than top speed.

“What we did with the Black Lightning was to make it a little more urban friendly overall … there’s just a lot of things to make it more of an all-around bike but still have a 185-horsepower motor,” Erik Buell said.

The bike features a more upright position and even comes with an optional comfort seat, clearly marking EBR’s new direction towards road motorcycles. The company now focuses on these three models, but it’s said to be working on some new concepts that will be showcased at future bike shows.

Erik Buell made its name in the motorcycling world back in the ‘70s, when he, as a rider, managed to record the fastest qualifying time in the history of Daytona 200. That was quite big for a rookie rider who was traveling from one race to another in a van with two motorcycles in the back.

His first bike making company started as Buell Motorcycle and had Harley-Davidson as the major stakeholder. The company was revived later as EBR Racing and focused on race track machines. Now, with a new owner and name (again), EBR Motorcycle looks to be tapping into the road bike segment for people who want a large-displacement machine with racing heritage.
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