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Monday, 28 November 2005 |
Motorcycles are descended from the "safety" bicycle, bicycles with front and rear wheels of the same size, with a pedal crank mechanism to drive the rear wheel. Those bicycles, in turn were descended from high-wheel bicycles. The high-wheelers were descended from an early type of push-bike, without pedals, propelled by the rider's feet pushing against the ground. These appeared around 1800, used iron-banded wagon wheels, and were called "bone-crushers," both for their jarring ride, and their tendency to toss their riders.
Gottlieb Daimler (who later teamed up with Karl Benz to form the Daimler-Benz Corporation) is credited with building the first motorcycle in 1885, one wheel in the front and one in the back, although it had a smaller spring-loaded outrigger wheel on each side. It was constructed mostly of wood, with the wheels being of the iron-banded wooden-spoked wagon-type, definitely a "bone-crusher" chassis.
Daimler's wooden-framed "bone crusher"
"Who invented the first motorcycle?" It seems like a simple question, but the answer is a bit complicated.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 20 January 2008 )
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Thursday, 24 November 2005 |
The 11 mile stretch of road on US Highway 129, which crosses the Tennessee and North Carolina state lines, is a popular site for motorcyclists. It is known as The Dragon because of its 318 curves. Motorcycle riders come from around the world to try their hand at taming The Dragon.
Riding The Dragon is unlike any other experience. Traffic is minimal because it has become known as the motorcyclist’s domain. Those that aren’t on bikes are people in cars looking for a rush of adrenaline. As the popularity of The Dragon grows, so will the traffic. Be aware at all times. Generally, the route is fairly unpopulated, as it is surrounded by land owned by the Great Smoky Mountain Park Service, Alcoa Aluminum Company, or the US Forest Service.
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Tuesday, 01 November 2005 |
Life in the American Northeast is good, at least for off-road enthusiasts: While us Northeast natives don't have many designated riding areas, there are ample trails within an hour's drive and numerous sanctioned events take place every weekend. The problem, of course, is that with the first signs of winter the riding season comes screeching to a halt. So it's a little cold out, and maybe there's some snow on the ground -- what's the big deal? God forbid we have to put on some thermal underwear or maybe give the bike a few extra kicks to get it started! Riding in the winter is fun and that's what this sport is all about. Just remember to wear clean thermals in case of an accident! And we'll admit that -- in the past -- we've occasionally succumbed to this strange motorcycling hibernation as well, but we've shed our lame attitude and graduated to the ranks of the die-hards. Either that, or all those aerosol fumes and cleaning solvents we've been sniffing have dissolved an excessive amount of brain cells. In any case, we've decided to beat the winter lethargy that usually sets in and just ride. |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 03 January 2007 )
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Tuesday, 25 October 2005 |
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The automatic transmision has been with us in the automotive world for over 50 years now yet the motorcyle industry seemingly has passed this technology by.
Most scooters have had constantly variable belt drive systems for 30 plus years. Honda and Suzuki had an automatic of sorts in the early 80s that consisted of an automotive type torque converter coupled to a two speed transmision but it lacked in almost every area. Very slow with its limited gear ratios and very inefecient with the lack of a lock up on the fluid torque converter.
The torque senseing variable belt drive as developed by the snowmobile industry has more recently been adopted by the ATV makers as a popular option on four wheeled ATVs . The ever increasing size and power of these machines has pinpointed flaws in the durability of these systems for vehicles expected to operate a lot of miles and under constant load such as a long range crising motorcycle.
Enter the latest phase of development. The Honda HMT (hydraulic mechanical transmission) being offered on Hondas Rubicon series of four wheelers. Read on for an exerpt from the Honda web site
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Wednesday, 19 October 2005 |
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By Will England
There's been a certain amount of discussion about the concepts of horsepower and torque, how they relate to each other, and how they apply in terms of automobile performance. Although nearly everyone participating has a passion for automobiles, there is a huge variance in knowledge. It's clear that a bunch of folks have strong opinions (about this topic, and other things), but that has generally led to more heat than light, if you get my drift :-)
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 20 December 2005 )
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