Roundup
ROUNDUP
CYCLE WORLD
WINNING THROUGH MODERATION
Not too many types of motorcycle competition can be won by going slowly. A slow race requires it, a poker run doesn’t depend on it, but a fuel economy contest makes the most of it.
Several economy runs have been held this past year with some interesting trends appearing in the different contests. Harley-Davidson Sportsters have been doing consistently well, running something over 100 mpg in most of the contests. Before the Aspencade contest Harley’s west coast test fleet manager, Jack Malone, decided to enter a simpler project bike than the factory efforts. He began with a Sturgis because it is the highest geared of the stock Harleys and he didn’t want to change gearing. His idea was to come up with simple modifications that an owner could do to his Harley just before an economy run that would provide over 100 mpg economy. His solution was to disconnect the rear cylinder of the Sturgis by pulling the pushrods out. It’s a simple matter on a 80 cu. in. Harley, and Jack reports his one cylinder Sturgis was running pretty well when he bent a knee loading a bike and wasn’t able to run in the event.
That run was won by a 400cc Suzuki that turned in 168 mpg. In the hills around Ruidoso the bikes can coast down and chug up, there being no time limit.
Craig Vetter has his own ideas of how to get economy in a practical motorcycle and he has built a streamlined open machine to apply those ideas. Next, he sponsored a fuel economy run to test his machine. The Vetter fuel economy run was held in San Luis Obispo County, on the California coast, where bikes couldn’t take advantage of the few downhills because the tight corners and marginal pavement held down speeds. To make things more realistic, Vetter ran through the course prior to the event and his time of completion was made a control time for entrants. To qualify, a rider had to complete the course within 10 min. of the time it took Vetter to ride the course.
Before the run this was expected to equalize the competition and keep the smallest bikes from going too slow. As it turned out, it wasn’t enough. Cycle World’s Honda C70 and MB5 were able to run the course in the hour and 40 min. it took Vetter. And the C70 turned 198 mpg to win the industry class. The top private entrant was a Honda XL80, ridden by Mike Hishiki, that was stock except for clip-ons. It got 189 mpg. The top three finishers were all stock, an XL250 coming in second with 147 and a Suzuki GS425 getting 139 mpg. Streamliners didn’t do well. Honda entered a full streamliner designed by Paul Van Valkenberg. It was dumped several times and eventually finished too late to qualify. Vetter’s streamliner was crashed by a magazine editor and had to be hauled in. Dan Hanebrink of Energy Efficient Vehicle Systems had several of his motorized bicycles at the run, one fully enclosed. The one that finished the run was too slow to qualify.
If there is a message in the results it is that small, stock motorcycles, ridden carefully, can be amazingly economical. Next year may be different, though. Vetter is planning a faster route that should be better suited to bigger bikes and those with some streamlining. The route will run from San Luis Obispo up to Laguna Seca the day before the Laguna Seca roadrace.
We may not get 198 mpg next year, but we’ll try to keep our trophy.
RALLY WITHOUT SIDESTANDS
Without staging any games or having any judging contests, the Griffith Park Sidecar Rally has managed to survive and thrive. This past year was the 10th Griffith Park rally, and it was bigger than any previous rally as 300 sidecarists showed up for the annual fall event. It is becoming quite a tradition, so much so that the Nevel company air-freighted a pair of sidecars over to display and sidecar enthusiasts have come from various other countries to attend this country’s largest annual sidecar gathering. This is a casual event, anyone can attend and look at the unusual machines. If you’ve never seen a Neval or a Watsonian or any of the more unusual three wheelers, the Griffith Park rally is held the weekend before Halloween each year at one of Los Angeles’ nicer parks.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
While discussing new models with the PR guys for Honda, they mentioned that some new Hondas would have overdrive transmissions. An overdrive is a nice device, we offered, remembering the little lever at the bottom of the dash on our ’50 Ford. No, it’s not that kind of overdrive, they say. It’s a top gear that’s higher than normal.
To avoid confusion and preserve the language as our fathers taught it to us, we’ll provide a definition of overdrive. An overdrive is a supplemental gearbox that, when engaged, raises the overall gear ratio and drops the engine speed. About the closest thing to an overdrive on a modern motorcycle is the second transmission on the Honda CB900 Custom. Indirect top gears are not overdrives. Indirect gear ratios have been with us for years and have been the norm for Japanese motorcycles.
MORE BRITISH BIKES
Don’t let anyone tell you there are no more British motorcycles. Not only is the British motorcycle industry surviving, but it’s growing. The newest models to be introduced are from Armstrong and CCM. CCM, you may recall, has been producing the BSA-Single engined offroad machine for several years.
Of late CCM has been making trials bikes, using a Hiro 310cc two-stroke engine in a lightweight steel frame. A 245cc version, again using a Hiro engine, is scheduled to be introduced soon. Trials bikes make sense for a small company to produce, because there are relatively few parts and many of them can be bought from outside suppliers, such as the Marzocchi suspension used on the CMT310 and CMT245, as the bikes are called. The frame is simple to make and uses the engine for a stressed member with an alloy skid plate beneath the engine. One novelty on the machine is the gas tank, which CCM says is made of Kevlar with “cold cast micronised aluminum” lining, whatever that is.
If going slow isn’t of interest, consider the Armstrong 35, a successful 250cc roadracer. This year the Armstrong CM35 won the 250cc TT, the first time a British machine has won the race in 36 years. Not all the parts are British, the CM35 using lots of outside-produced parts, too. Suspension in front uses Marzocchi forks. In back there’s a progressive-rate single shock system. Brakes are Brembo, two discs in front and one in back.
A Rotax two-cylinder engine is used, with the cylinders set in tandem, one behind the other, with the carburetors on the sides of the case where the rotary valves operate. Armstrong is now developing its own 350cc engine to expand the model line.
If the Armstrong or CCM is just what you’ve always wanted, there’s CCM Imports, Rt. 1, Huntley, 111. 60142.
FUNNY PICTURE
If you can: A) Name the people in this photo: B) Name the place where this photo was taken; C) Name the photographer; D) Come up with a rational explanation for what is going on; You will then know more about this photo than we do. This is not a contest and you will win no prizes.
Wide spacing of gear ratios, such as that used by Honda on some 1982 models, does not constitute overdrive.
All that aside, it’s nice that Honda is offering wide ratio transmissions on some of its 1982 motorcycles, because we think it’s a good idea.
THAT’S INCREDIBLE
No, this hasn’t been on That’s Incredible yet, but it could well be. The head of Wisconsin’s Department of Transportation has written to the state legislature that he doesn’t favor reinstating a mandatory helmet law for motorcyclists. Secretary Owen Ayers wrote “Such a law would undoubtedly create animosity among motorcyclists and dealers and probably prove to be counterproductive over a period of time.” Citing a department of transportation study that showed a high incidence of head injury to motorcycle accident victims that were wearing helmets, Ayers said “It was the department’s conclusion that efforts should focus on preventing accidents from happening in the first place through widely available rider training and education of the "other’ motorists about the rights of motorcycle riders in traffic.”
Wisconsin has a program to educate motorists of motorcyclist’s rights and has *fiad a decline in fatal motorcycle accidents since initiating that program.
TRAVELING LIGHT
Some riders might consider leaving the trailer behind as traveling light. Others might go so far as to take off the fairing, or maybe even ride a smaller bike, like a 400. Bill Herndon has gone a little farther down the small-is-beautiful highway. He rode his 50cc Honda MB5 from Mexico to Canada and is claiming his trip to be the “World’s first successful United States 50cc Continental Crossing.”
Okay, going from south to north across the U.S. isn’t the same as crossing a continent, and Marco Gardoqui did ride his 50cc Derbi across the U.S. during his 12,000 mi. around the world trip a couple of years ago, but Herndon’s excursion is still entertaining.
After four and a half days of riding north on various highways between Tijuana and Rykerts, British Columbia, Herndon climbed off the tiny Honda at 5:49 p.m., 1604.7 mi. from the start. This wasn’t a straight-through run, though the rest stops were short. The highest mileage day accounted for 427 mi. There were no mechanical failures on the tiny Honda, though the Dodge chase van accompanying the bike required repairs to the exhaust system.
After reaching Canada, Herndon turned around and headed for the coast and back to Southern California, still riding the MB5. At his return the bike had logged 3391 mi. in eight days. He had put $49.03 worth of gasoline in the tank, averaged 92.6 mpg and used two spark plugs.
Although they aren’t seen in this photo, other photos along the way show some large black objects around the engine of the MB5. Herndon explained that the black blobs were dummy cylinders, tin cans painted black and hung onto the motorcycle to make it look larger to policemen who might object to its occasional freeway travel. It was his father-in-law’s idea, and it must have worked because he didn’t get stopped on the freeway.
MOTORCYCLES OKAY
We knew it all along. Motorcycles are okay. Now the state of California knows it, and, better yet, the state is telling other people.
First came the experiment allowing motorcycles on selected car-pool bypass lanes. After a one year experiment, the state transportation department found that there were no problems with allowing fuel efficient motorcycles to use the bus and car-pool lanes.
This does not mean that motorcycles are allowed in all bus lanes. Only the metered ramps marked “motorcycles okay” are allowed. Motorcycles are specifically not allowed to use the diamond lanes on freeways reserved for bus and car-pools. In brochures the state has sent out to motorcycle clubs and dealers, the program is explained and the state encourages rider education programs.
