Long-Term Yamaha R1: Rizoma ProGuard Test

Wrist: Zack Courts
MSRP (2015): $16,490
Miles: 2841
MPG: 33
Mods: Rizoma lever guard

As I set off on this journey to prepare this long-term Yamaha YZF-R1 for racing, my colleague and officemate Ari Henning warned me that it would be more time consuming than I thought. He was right. I eventually succeeded, and pitted my skills and the R1’s base-level KYB suspension against a fleet of Southern California club racers, but before I did that I had to do this...

Have you ever seen the video of what happens when your front brake lever touches the bike next to you on a racetrack? Here’s a clip from the movie “Fastest” in case you’re unfamiliar:

To avoid more scenes like that, many race clubs are requiring guards to keep anything from coming in contact with the front brake lever. This is right in Rizoma's wheelhouse. The Italian accessories company (rizoma.com) specializes in exquisite little bits for all manner of motorcycle, and they have a couple of options for brake lever guards.

The Racing and Street versions essentially do the same thing, and since Rizoma asks 298 euros (dayum!) for the Racing, I decided to opt for the Street edition. You can get it in the three colors (black, silver, or gold), which only changes the color of the piece that the 2mm adjustment screws thread through. My black ProGuard bolted up in no time, and adjusts about 20mm fore and aft in case I needed to tune how far it sits from the lever.

The Racing edition differs mostly in that it uses a kink in the guard, in order to allow the rider’s wrist to move more freely when leaning off a bike. When I learned that I thought maybe I’d made the wrong choice when I “cheaped” out on the 99-euro Street edition. But, I raced the R1 with Rizoma’s ProGuard system in place and didn’t even notice it.

A little more than a hundred bones isn’t chump change, but it’s in line with what other companies charge. I’ve heard people have minor complaints about brake lever guards from other companies, whether it’s being flimsy or too bulky, but this Rizoma piece seems great. Luckily I haven’t tested it yet, and I’m going to try to avoid going all Gibernau 2006 if I can.