I Want To Reach And Maintain 40MPH..I Am So Close!

The 5-0

Hawaii
To be considered a "bicycle" under Hawaii law, a vehicle is required to be human propelled only.
A scooter with a motor of any kind must meet the State of Hawaii's safety guidelines as required of mopeds.

[Sec.291C-127] Coasting prohibited. The driver of any motor vehicle when traveling upon a down grade shall not coast with the
gears or transmission of the vehicle in neutral or with the clutch disengaged. [L 1971, c 150, pt of Sec.1]
Sec.291C-202 Moped equipment requirements and inspection. (a) Every moped offered for sale for use upon, sold for use upon, or
used upon the roadways and highways shall be equipped with:
(1) A motor having a maximum power output capability, measured at the motor output shaft, in accordance with the Society of
Automotive Engineers standards, of two horsepower (one thousand four hundred ninety-two watts) or less and, if it is a combustion
engine, a maximum piston or rotor displacement of 3.05 cubic inches (fifty cubic centimeters) and which will propel the moped,
unassisted, on a level surface at a maximum speed no greater than thirty miles per hour; provided that those mopeds, including
those modified pursuant to section 291C-206, registered prior to April 23, 1998 shall continue to be subject to the prior
thirty-five miles per hour maximum speed limitation; and
(2) A direct or automatic power drive system which requires no clutch or gear shift operation by the moped driver after the
drive system is engaged with the power unit.
(b) The director of transportation by rules and regulations, pursuant to chapter 91, shall establish criteria which shall
comply with approved federal regulations for the following moped equipment: brake system; fuel system components; exhaust system
components; steering system; handlebars; wheel rims; fenders; a guard or protective covering for drive belts, chains and rotating
components; seat or saddle; lamps and reflectors; equipment controls; speedometer; retracting stand; horn; and identification
markings.
(c) The director of transportation by rules and regulations, pursuant to chapter 91, shall establish criteria and procedures
for the annual safety inspection of every moped. Safety inspection criteria shall include the criteria established by the
director of transportation under subsection (b). [L 1978, c 175, pt of Sec.15; am L 1979, c 107, Sec.2; am L 1998, c 25, Sec.1]
[Sec.291C-203] Certification of compliance. A person engaged in the business of selling mopeds shall provide to the director of
finance of the county in which the mopeds are sold a certificate from the moped manufacturer that each class, type or model of
moped offered for sale or sold meets the performance and equipment requirements of this part. [L 1978, c 175, pt of Sec.15
4. HRS_0291C-0191.HTM
[PART XVI.] SPECIAL RULES FOR MOPEDS
[Sec.291C-191] Definition. As used in this part "FMVSS" means Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard as prescribed in Title 49,
Part 571, Code of Federal Regulations. [L 1978, c 175, pt of Sec.15]
 
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I Need To Slow Down.

Originally Posted by Mountainman
good point HY

and I have fallen short a few times myself here
wasn't the right THING to do or say

at times it all boils down to what we do or what we do not do
what we say or what we do not say

I have pushed the -- ride that THING a little far at times

some of the high speeds mentioned for MBs are a little crazy
most do not have the skills to be riding at those speeds

we wish to share in this thread -- The Safe Top Speed
not the speed attained by a few daredevil's

ride that thing

Guilty as charged.

I need to slow down. My quest for 40mph is probably too dangerous for me.

Dropping maximum speed down to 30-35mph on the highway.

I might buy a moped/motorscooter to ride above that speed in traffic.:D
 
Conventional bicycles are not the best vehicles for attaining high speeds,for the following reasons:
High CG (center of gravity),makes fast stops difficult and hazardous,even with good brakes, especially at high speeds.
Poor aerodynamics,power requirements increase rapidly with speed (third power law).Because of relatively low rolling resistance,wind drag predominates even at relatively low speeds (above 10-15 mph).So speeds above 25 mph are uneconomical in an absolute sense,although still much better than cars of course
Limited high speed manoeverability.at high speeds directional changes can only be made by using the gyroscopic effect to 'lean' into a turn (also called counter steering),without this effect it is not possible to lean and consequently to execute a turn,that is to change direction quickly.On a bicycle the gyroscopic moment is limited because of the relatively low weight of the wheels relative to the total mass of rider+vehicle.This reduces high speed agility.Heavier wheels & tires would help,(which is a good idea in any case for safety reasons).If you want to travel above 30 mph,get a good moped or a small motorbike.My first motorcycle a DKW 125 cc,could hit 50 mph (with no head wind) and got over 100mpg and handled pretty well.The drum brakes could have been better it was a decent commuter vehicle (if it didn't rain)
 
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:unsure:Yep, keep speeds down on "The Dragon Lady".

Looking to install steel front wheel.
 
Super,the problem with riding around is that everything is A OK then all He** breaks out,and you find out what your ride isn't capable of,which is of course a bit late,as I had occasion to find out a couple of times, and survived more by luck than skill,but it taught me the precautionary principle,check your brakes& be mentally prepaired for trouble& to take action without freezing up.You have no time to mull things over.I once saw someone on the Kurfursten Dam in Berlin on a motorcycle once plow into a truck the came from a side street, which he could easily have steered around ahead of.He froze& hit the brakes.It killed him.
 
yep, disabling panic and / or the inability to purposely steer into a "possible" injury to avoid "certain" death are MAJOR contributors.

i was once a passenger in a car involved in just this kind of accident. the driver was so busy yelling and waving their arms around about "what the H#!! is that guy doing ?!!?, get out of my lane !! " that we went straight on in to the collision.

steve
 
SPEED KILLS it's a proven FACT.Like the old saying goes,don't do the crime if you can't do the time.Same with riding MB's,don't go fast if you can't handle the Consequences.

Pretty Simple IMO.:D:D
 
SPEED KILLS it's a proven FACT...

Nope.

Speed never killed anybody.

What kills is the sudden impact. Calculate the G forces involved in stopping a vehicle from X mph to zero in one foot. It can be transients of hundreds to thousands of G's. The human body is remarkably resilient, but exceed its limits of material strengths and the results are catastrophic.

I watched a Cessna 150 crash years ago, and was the first person to reach it. The pilot and copilot were dead, chests utterly crushed by the impact with the yokes. The young lady in the back seat died as I reached her - securely belted in, no head damage - but both of her feet were torn off at the ankles by the transient G forces, and her neck was snapped forward.

Speed is great - control is much, much, MUCH greater.
 
Ode to going 40

I guess it would be nice to go 40. I was on the sidewalk yesterday and 15 was too much, but even if I could go 40 on Bell Rd, I would be nuts to try it I would get killed, They don't see Motorcyles or people walking and if they do they don't care, so me I would just be a light thud sound in passing.

It would be nice to go 40 on a nice flat road with that kind of limit. Now where would I find one of those? My street has a posted limit of 25, I think I will NOT break the law. If I lived in Glendale, AZ I would be hard pressed to find any street, that was not a freeway, where even cars can go over 40. You leave Phoenix and the limit drops to 40 from 50 or 45.

It would be nice to go 40 this summer, the breeze created will make 110F feel like 85F. It would not be bad at night when the temp drops to 90F. I have my dual flashlight headlights so folks will see me, but those coming up from behind will still ignore me.

It would be nice to go 40, the sound from the bike will totally overcome the ringing in my ears, but I can do that at home watching the Speed channel and cranking the volume.

It would be nice to go 40 and I will I just will get with the rest of the world and use the metric system just like the 48cc bike I am riding does.

It would be nice to go 50 ...

LoLAZ

Like SimpleSimon said though speed is not what kills it it the abrupt changes in motion that do all the damage.
 
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