Today in motorcycle history, November 19, 1914

                                 



  

  

  

  Phelon & Moore (P&M) introduce their 4-speed, 770cc V-twin motorcycle.

  On July 7, 1914 P&M revealed partial details of their prototype 90-degree V-twin, their first deviation from their award-winning, single-cylinder bikes. The V-twin featured a 4-speed transmission at a time when the American V-twins (i.e. Harley-Davidson, Indian, Excelsior) were still using 2-speeds. The 770cc P&M V-twin was rated as a robust 6 hp. Sadly, it appears that only a handful of the V-twins were built, though it appeared in catalogs until the fall of 1916. The 4-speed used on the V-twins was re-introduced in 1922 on the one-lung models when the motors were increased from 499cc to 555cc.



  Did you know that the 1905 P&M models are considered the 'first completely chain-driven motorcycles' and that their 498cc models competed in the first International Six Day Trials (ISDT) that were held August 18-23, 1913 on Carlisle in Cumberland, part of a region of North West England known as the ‘Lake District’ and finally, that the Royal Flying Corps used P&M motorcycles during the First World War?  

  Today in motorcycle history proudly supports the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD). www.nabd.org.uk

Today in motorcycle history, November 18, 1976

  

  The Walton's, "The Great Motorcycle Race" airs on Thursday night at 8:00pm on CBS.

  A synopsis of this evenings episode...

  General Store owner, Ike Godsey, pushes his Harley-Davidson VL motorcycle (with a sidecar, no less) toward the Walton’s house hoping to borrow some tools to fix his bike. Jim-Bob (the youngest Walton boy) locates the problem, then, to show his appreciation, Ike offers Jim-Bob a spin on his Harley. After seeing what a natural Jim-Bob is, Ike gushes and says he can borrow it anytime! Jason (a Walton brother) comments to Ben (another Walton brother) that when it comes to Jim-Bob, "Anything with an engine and wheels on it, is duck soup for him!".

   While at the house Ike announces that he and Corabeth are trying to adopt a baby. 

  Meanwhile, Jim-Bob is riding Ike’s bike with Patsy Brimmer in the sidehack, Olivia (momma Walton) becomes upset when she learns Ike has allowed her baby boy, Jim-Bob, to ride his 'murdercycle'. John-Boy (oldest and wisest Walton brother) tries to calm Olivia by saying it's nearly impossible for Jim-Bob to get hurt because there is a sidecar on the bike (wisest Walton brother?). Jim-Bob is soon seen by the family contradicting John-Boy’s statement by riding the bike like he's Evel Knievel with the sidecar tipped up in the air.


  While delivering the latest edition of John-Boy's 'The Blue Ridge Chronicle', Ben and John-Boy learn that Eddie Stoker is sponsoring a motorcycle race in Rockfish next Saturday. They strike a deal with Stoker to place an ad in the newspaper and tie it to posters that they will place around the county.


  At Ike’s store John-Boy puts up a poster announcing the 'Overland Motorcycle Race', the keen-eyed Jim-Bob notices the motorcycle race advertisement and then, just like that, Corabeth receives a call that their baby has arrived. Ike hurriedly asks Jim-Bob to lock up the store while he and Corabeth rush off to pick up the baby. Before leaving Jim-Bob asks Ike if he can borrow the bike. Ike says he can do anything he wants with the bike. Taking him literally, Jim-Bob removes the sidecar and drives Patsy over to Mr. Stoker’s place to sign up for the race.

  Jim-Bob tells Olivia he has entered the race. She is upset with Jim-Bob for doing this while John-Boy is away working at the Cramer place. Jim-Bob tells her, "I'm different from Ben, Jason, and John-Boy, I'm going to drive motorcycles and, someday, airplanes, too." He adds, "You gotta understand, I’m growing up!" In the end, she agrees to let Jim-Bob enter the race but reminds her youngest son, "You just keep your eyes on the road."



  It’s race day and with family and friends looking on, Jim-Bob begins his first motorcycle race. After the first lap Jim-Bob rounds a curve and dumps his bike, much to the to the shock of the Waltons. He eventually picks himself up and returns to the race. Soon, several riders crash and Jim-Bob maneuvers around them to find himself in fourth place. With only about ten feet to the finish Jim-Bob overtakes the rider in front of him to win third place. He receives a kiss from Patsy, admiration from Mr. Stoker, and congratulations from Olivia. All is well in Walton World once again.


  "Jim Bob won a box of candy from the soda shop in Rockfish, and for the rest of us it was an unforgettable memory, the day our youngest brother took his giant step into the world."

 

  Episode trivia to impress your friends with: Ike Godsey’s motorcycle’s Virginia license plate number is 4893, Jim-Bob is number 8 in the motorcycle race. Jim-Bob's third place reward is a ten-pound box of candy.

  Today in motorcycle history proudly supports the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD). www.nabd.org.uk

Today in motorcycle history, November 17, 1906

  

  The son of a blacksmith, 'Dream' maker Soichiro Honda is born in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan. 

  It would a great mistake to consider Soichiro Honda just a motorcycle or car manufacturer. Honda considered himself an engine manufacturer, whether it be motorcycles, cars, trucks, lawnmowers or generators.

  The son of a blacksmith and jack-of-all-trades, he spent the early part of his life immersing himself in all things mechanical. Often hoping things would break down so he could take them apart and improve them, a trait that would follow him throughout his career.  

   At age 16, Honda left school and moved to Tokyo, where he developed his lifelong passion for mechanical engineering. In 1922, be began working as an apprentice auto mechanic for Arto Shokai. His success at Arto Shokai afforded him the opportunity to open a branch of the company in Hamamatsu. Soon, he would patent a new procedure for casting metal wheel spokes.

  In 1934, he rented a factory, hired 50 workers and began manufacturing his own die-cast piston rings, using the knowledge he had amassed casting spokes. His early efforts were dismal failures. In "Six Men Who Built The Modern Auto Industry", Richard Johnson writes: "He finally took his problem to a professor at Hamamatsu Technical School, who quickly alerted Honda to the problem - a necessary ingredient, silicon, was missing from the metal's composition." At age 29, Honda enrolled in the mechanical engineering department at Hamamatsu Technical School. But in typical Honda style, once he got what he needed, he left school refusing to take the final exam, and was never awarded a degree.

  After the war, Honda sold the company to Toyota and used the proceeds to found the Honda Technical Research Institute in October 1946. In 1948 he started producing a complete motorized bicycle, the Type 'A', which was powered by the first mass-produced engine designed by Honda. The Type 'D' in 1949 was a 'true motorcycle' with it's two-stroke, 98cc, 3 hp motor cradled nicely in a pressed-steel frame that became the very first model in the legendary 'Dream' series. The Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan lists both the Type 'A' and the Type 'D' models as two of their 240 Landmarks of Japanese Automotive Technology.

  My friend Glen Murcer has a red 1967 Dream that he rides only twice a year, June 1st and August 29th. Why only on those days? Because he's a freak.

  Today in motorcycle history proudly supports the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD). www.nabd.org.uk

Today in motorcycle history, November 16, 2012

  Seven historic figures took their places among motorcycling’s greatest legends at the 2012 AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.





  The Hall of Fame Class of 2012: the late Rod Bush, KTM North America president and industry visionary; Rhodesian World Championship roadracing tuner Nobby Clark; the off-road phenom and racing champion Ty Davis; 1975 AMA Supercross Champion Jimmy Ellis; pioneering female motocross racer Sue Fish; World-Class bike restorer, London born *Brian Slark; and the late iconic race starter "Airborne Al" Wilcox.

   *Brian Stark was a moving force in the creation of a vibrant motocross-racing community in the United States in the 1960's. Brian helped organize motocross tracks, promoting the sport by teaching famous people-including then-teen heartthrob Bobby Darin-to ride motorcycles and importing and building Rickman Metisse and Cheney motocross bikes.

  Slark also helped create the World-Class Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum in Leeds, Alabama.

  Today in motorcycle history proudly supports the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD). www.nabd.org.uk

Today in motorcycle history, November 12, 2007

  

  

  

  Five-time National Scrambles Champion, "Stan The Man" Engdahl suffers a massive heart attack and dies in Lindsborg, Kansas.

   Stan Engdahl was a legitimate legend on the dirt tracks of the Midwest. His racing career spanned an incredible 60 years from the 1940's to the 1990's. During that time, Stan won more than 600 trophies, including 5 National Scramble Championships and 16 Kansas State Championships. Also known as "King of the K" because every trophy and championship he won was on a Harley-Davidson K Model.

 

  Engdahl credits his wins to the innovative and creative ways he and his pit crew came up with ideas to make those K Models lighter and more powerful. According to a 2004 Salina Journal (Kansas) article written about him, Engdahl and his crew "ran the oil through the motorcycle frame, which eliminated the weight of the oil pan. They hollowed out bolts, changed the engine timing, and regularly monitored the horsepower." Engdahl cut extra grooves in the tread of his tires or sanded down certain parts of the tread to handle the corners better. He was also known for making oil tanks out of old shot up road signs.


  Stan Engdahl earned a reputation as one of the most passionate and toughest dirt track racers in the United States. That reputation was never more apparent than when he won the 1962 Kansas Scrambles Championship. He entered the race with two broken bones in his right leg following a racing accident a few weeks earlier. "The race officials weren't going to let me race in Wichita that weekend because I couldn't get protective gear on over my cast", he said. "I finally convinced the officials to let me race, but I had to sign a special waiver before they'd allow me on the track." He taped a piece of wood to his leg to reinforce the cast and then tied his leg to the frame of his motorcycle prior to the race. "The officials thought I was nuts…they might have been right….but I won my third State Championship that day," stated Engdahl proudly.

  Today in motorcycle history proudly supports the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD). www.nabd.org.uk

Today in motorcycle history, November 11, 2015

  

  Today is Veteran's Day in the US, so I thought what better time to talk/write about military motorcycles.  Then I thought the World Wars, Harley-Davidson, Indian, Norton and BSA were too obvious.  These three bikes are in use in current 'hostile environments'.  

  Zero MMX

  Designed and built by Zero Motorcycles in Scotts Valley, California.  The blacked-out Zero MMX was developed for US Special Operations Forces, this super high-tech bike gives the rider stealth movement across rugged terrain in near silence and with minimal heat recognition.  Built to military specs, including a specialized dash with toggle switches for all controls, keyless ignition, removable power packs, a total blackout mode and the bike can operate submerged in up to 3 feet of water.

  Besides being silent, the electric motor delivers almost 100% of its torque on demand – 68 ft/lbs and 54 hp – and uses regenerative braking and rolloff to recover power. While developing the MMX, Zero made a number of innovative designs that are being used in their new civilian models, like the off-road MX and its street-legal version, the FX. Available at a store near you!


  Hayes M1030

  Okay, riding anything with a motor in the middle of East Bumfuck means at some point you gonna need to refuel. The friendly and resourceful folk at Hayes knew that at times the availability of gas would be limited, so armed with a siphon hose and breath mints they set to work on an engine that could run on almost anything. Anything. The M1030 runs on diesel, biodiesel, JP8 aviation fuel, and three more fuel types used by the military that I'm not allowed to tell you about.

  Oh yeah, did I mention that on diesel, its primary fuel, it gets an amazing 96 mpg while cruising at 55 mph, giving it a range of over 400 miles.




  Christini AWD 450

  Ridden by Navy SEALs and Army SF in Afghanistan, the AWD uses an innovative all-wheel drive system propelled by a 450 four-stroke motor. This gives the Christini some awesome off-road capabilities, able to pull fully armored troops loaded with gear over crappy terrain that would leave a normal dirt bike cryin' for momma. The bike also uses an automatic clutch, heavy-duty suspension, foam filled run-flat tires and GPS navigation.

  Today in motorcycle history proudly supports the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD). www.nabd.org.uk

Today in motorcycle history, November 10, 1973

  


  

  The motorcycle racing legend, "Smokin’ Joe" Petrali dies from a heart attack in Casa Grande, Arizona.

 

  From the mid-1920's to the mid-'30's, you'd be hard-pressed to beat Joe Petrali whether competing in board track racing, dirt track, speed records, endurance races or hillclimbs.

  "Smokin' Joe" began the hillclimb portion of his career in 1929, when he won both the 45-inch and 61-inch  AMA National Championships aboard an Excelsior at Muskegon, Michigan. The 61-cubic-inch (1,000cc) Excelsior that Petrali had custom-built was affectionately dubbed "Big Bertha." Riding Big Bertha, he would win the first 6 races he entered on the 1930 hillclimbing circuit.

  Sadly, like so many other businesses, the Great Depression took its toll on Excelsior and the company ceased production early in 1931. Petrali found himself without a ride but word was out and before long he received a phone call from Milwaukee and was signed by Harley-Davidson who were well aware of his hillclimbing exploits.

  The 1931 season proved Petrali and Harley-Davidson were a hard to beat team as Joe would win 8 of the 16 dirt track and hillclimb AMA Nationals that year. The following season, Petrali earned the distinction of being the only rider in AMA history to win both the dirt track and hillclimb National Championship in the same year. He repeated that feat three more times in 1933, 1935 and 1936!

 "Smokin' Joe" Petrali was at the peak of his form in the early '30's. He won with such regularity that the races where said to be somewhat boring with the outcome rarely being in question. In one particularly impressive stretch from May to August of 1935, Petrali won every Class A National race – 10 in a row!

  Today in motorcycle history proudly supports the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD). www.nabd.org.uk