The other point to remember here is that Jemma is experimenting and is not using it flat out all the time as you increase the speed of any vehicle(bike) without making substantial changes to brakes and suspension or road holding capabilities the vehicle(bike may be come more unstable ) as has been mentioned before we need to keep motored bikes in a low profile otherwise authorities will end up legislating them with high $ law requirements and then it will cease to be a cheap hobby/form of transport and we will have lost a great way of enjoying our freedoms at a lower cost .
Roy
well... sort of.
I ran the whole trip flat out to see what I could manage. Since I have gotten back I have found that the pivot bolt on the springer was spinning around on its own and I think I have managed to partially strip one of the threads on the back axle
which is really concerning me.
However, when I ride I stick to the rules of the road and the conditions and I dont do silly things. The one thing guaranteed to get us into legal trouble is barrelling down the pavement and hitting someone at top speed. A 200lb bike and rider combination hitting you at speed could do alot of damage.
While I personally like the idea of high performance modding these bikes (says lil miss nitromethane...), I would be lary at doing speeds approaching 60mph on them because if something fails at that speed you are gonna have real problems and you might involve others in the resulting accident.
The golden rules:-
1. Maintainence, Maintainence, Maintainence. check and double check everything - if it moves and it isnt supposed to move; locktite it, if it doesnt move when its not sposed to, keep an eye on it, then when it does, locktite it.
2. ride within your personal abilities and the conditions. Yes you can slap the throttle wide open on a wet road, but be aware the next thing you will be slapping is a nearby tree or your nextdoor neighbours brand new Chrysler.. with your head.
3. NEVER EVER EVER, repeat NEVER drink or take impairing medications before riding. That includes Codiene and other licenced painkillers. I know it should be self explanatory but Im putting it in anyway.
4. Wear a helmet/hard hat. Yes I know I didnt used to. I will now, because if my brain is smashed to smithereens or smeared over the blacktop like so much cream cheese I am no use to anyone. We all say it wont happen to us, and then it does, and the best we can manage are variations on the theme of dribble. I can assure you, while you may not see yourself as important or be concerned about your safety, your friends and family do and are!
5. Secure your bike... not only are these machines relatively rare, they are also in many cases expensive. they are also a self propelled weapon in the wrong hands. You can rest assured that the sort of person who will steal such a machine is not going to bother about safe riding. And who will get the blame? The MB community.
*rant mode: off*
Jemma xx