Pedal Faster!

Fantastic Motorcycle Photos



Been there.

I stumbled across a blog chock full of fantastic biker-y photos and just had to throw out a link.  The image to the left is but a sample of the wonders and surprises that await you.

So, get yourself on over to The World Is Flat and check it out.

(Photo swiped from http://aproposfoto.blogspot.com/. I presume Michael Schmidt holds the copyright.)

Paul Teutul Sr. to Appear on Thump's Celebrity Apprentice

Orange County Choppers (OCC) will again be in the limelight as founder, Paul Teutul Sr, appears on Donald Trump's Celebrity Appentice. This is a must see as far as I'm concerned. Whether you're a fan or not, this should make for interesting TV. Here's an article in motorcycle-usa.com by Bryan Harley that gives the details. Here's an excerpt:

"Senior’s business acumen will be put to the test as he gives up building motorcycles for a short stint to become one of 18 contestants who will be divided into groups to work as a team on different business-oriented challenges. In the case of 'Celebrity Apprentice,' contestants compete to raise money for their designated charities. Paul Teutul, Sr.’s charity-of-choice is the Make-A-Wish Foundation." -- Bryan Harley

Read the article.

Craig Vetter Wants to Save Gas

Almost every motorcyclist has heard of or used the Vetter windshield. Vetter is an accomplished designer. Now he's trying to promote the use of efficient streamlining on motorcycles to push the miles-per-gallon (MPG) much higher and thereby reduce gasoline consumption. Here's an article in montereycountyweekly.com by Randall Pierson that discusses how Craig is making this happen. Here's an excerpt:

"Like a lot of people, 69-year-old Craig Vetter begins his days at a local coffee shop just down the road from his house in Carmel Valley. It’s how he gets there that’s different. 
He drives there in a two-wheeled, yellow motorbike-type contraption clad in a pod of plastic and milk carton cardboard. It’s round at the front and pointed at the rear, like a two-tone comet. 
Since the mid-’60s this self-styled 'inventor, entrepreneur, patriot, husband, father and man of God' has applied the principles of aerodynamics to motorcycle design. He’s not trying to break speed records, and he’s not concerned with fashion and style. His goal is to decrease dependence on foreign oil." -- Randall Pierson

Read the article.

Getting Used To A Slower Pace

For about a month, I rode the Vespa in to work instead of the Triumph.  The Vespa, since it has a 250cc motor, is technically freeway legal, but I take surface roads instead.  80 miles per hour on a scooter, even a big scooter like the GTS, is a bit too thrilling for me.  Especially because that's the upper limit of it's speed, and traffic here generally moves slightly faster than that.

Rather than be a sitting duck on the freeway, I buzz along the city streets to work, and just enjoy the extra torque of the big motor (as compared to a 150cc scooter) on quieter roads.  Slow is fun, especially when there are interesting things to see along the way.

The Triumph, however, let me know it was getting a bit lonely and jealous of the Vespa, so I decided I'd resume riding the freeways on the Speed Four and let the Vespa chill in the garage for a bit.

Apparently, my traffic and speed tolerance went way, way down over the last month.  I read a journal of a bicycle tourer recently, who said that riding in a car, experiencing the speed and peril of fast traffic, after several months on a bicycle was absolutely terrifying.  My experience was similar. 

It was hard to keep my speed up, because it just seemed too dang fast.  I had to keep a close eye on the speedometer to keep from holding up traffic.  And other drivers are maniacs, swerving from lane to lane and invading my personal bubble too often.  The ride home was the same.

This morning's ride in wasn't as bad, but still a bit too thrilling.  Makes me think I might start riding the back way on the Triumph, at least while it's cool outside.  A bit of tranquility while riding is a good thing.

Or, maybe I'll keep riding the freeway and get my nerve back.

How Wrenching On Your Own Bike Makes You More Awesome



That's one sexy rotor

This was going to be a post about how to change the stator on a Triumph Speed Four.  Then I remembered that there are about five other Speed Fours on the road, so it wouldn't be especially useful for very many people.  Also, as repairs go, it's pretty darned simple.  The most challenging issue is finding the cause of the problem.  The rest is spinning a wrench, which you can probably find a video about on YouTube if you need a little extra help on the Righty-Tighty, Lefty-Loosey concept.

Cost savings aside - which were substantial in this case, a few hundred dollars at least - there is a great deal of value in pulling your bike apart, fixing the problem and then putting it all back together the right way.

For one thing, it takes a good deal of courage just to start the job if you don't already have experience working on mechanical things.  I pulled a lawn mower engine apart and put it back together back in high school and I still get nervous before tackling a new repair.  And the idea of checking the valve clearances on this bike makes me break into a cold sweat.

Next up, it forces you to be persistent.  Especially when the bike is your main mode of transportation.  Nothing ever goes smoothly, there's always a challenge of some sort.  For example, rare is the repair that doesn't require removing other critical parts - hoses, the gas tank, a carburetor, etc. - in order to get to the broken one.  After the troubleshooting, removing those bits is usually the most difficult part of the job.  And then you've got to get them all back into place.  A lack of persistence means a non-running bike (case in point, the VX800 languishing in my garage...).

Taking a closer look at the issue of parts you have to remove in order to get to the part you're interested: working on a motorcycle forces you to be careful and methodical.  It's best to learn this lesson before you find yourself staring at a Ziploc bag containing a couple different springs, several bolts in varied sizes and a note that says "carb and fuel pump."  You'll have a chance to learn this lesson again when you drop one of those bolts into some inaccessible part of the bike and spend an hour trying to fish it out with a flashlight and a wire clothes hanger. 

Along the way, you'll get plenty of opportunities to practice your troubleshooting skills.  Motorcycles are reasonably simple machines, but they're still made up of several systems that have to work together correctly in order to deliver the necessary air, fuel and spark the motor needs in order to run.  Every system added increases the complexity a bit, and modern bikes have quite a few systems. 

Which leads into the final point.  To the uninitiated, a motorcycle may as well be a kitchen appliance, just like cars.  It's a hunk of metal that does a particular thing.  When it stops doing its particular thing, call a repair shop.  For those of us in the know, a motorcycle is far more than an appliance, and deserves personal care and respect.  Working on your own bike lets you get to know each system, and see how they work together.  Ultimately, you end up with a much better understanding of how your bike works, which is a very good thing.

Especially when you finally run into something you can't/don't want to do and the mechanic tries to tell you the problem is that you're low on blinker fluid.

As in every situation, knowledge is power, and doing your own wrenching will increase your level of knowledge in a hurry.  When you use the skills you developed (while trying to get your own infernal machine on the road again) to solve a problem for someone else, they will be impressed.  Beers and high fives will be forthcoming, and you'll be glad for the bloody knuckles and frustration you endured trying to get that confounded oil filter loose.

New Kawasaki ZX-14R Pecundangi Hayabusa di Lintasan Drag

sahabat otoMan ,

       kali ini kita akan membahas tentang motor yang ajaib. wew ,,knapa di katakan ajaib cek it dot aja yuk mari,,, capcusss broooo >>>

Akhirnya mega superbike keluarakan Kawasaki yang ditunggu-tunggu yakni ZX-14R muncul juga. Namun baru beberapa hari dilahirkan, ternyata moge flagship Kawasaki ini langsung tampil “tengil” dengan menantang Suzuki Hayabusa yang merupakan motor tercepat pendahulunya.

Dalam video ini di perlihatkan jelas si bayi ajaib mengeluarkan taringnya ,,, dan sangat gahar siap mengalahkan sang kakek moyang dia,,

Dengan kapasitas yang lebih besar yakni 1429cc dibandingkan Hayabusa yang “hanya” 1340cc, tentu ZX14R dengan mudah mengasapi jagoan Suzuki ini. Apalagi ZX-14R telah dilengkapi berbagai fitur teknologi terbaru seperti teknologi kontrol traksi bernama S-KTRC yang lebih advance dibandingkan pabrikan lain.

 wkwkwkkw gmna ajaibkan,, hahah bayangin kalo itu  manusia hahha baru lahir langsung jadi direktur,, wkwkkw.. ok gann sekian dulu pembahasannya,,(otoMan)