SHARKER -MONOCOQUE

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The basic fundamentals of motorbike design have remained pretty much the same over the last 50 years, but that could change if the Sharker ever lands in a showroom. While most cars switched to monocoque construction back in the ’60s or ’70s, motorcycles have stuck with a traditional supporting framework, sometimes with an added fairing for aerodynamics, pretty much since they were first invented.

The Sharker breaks this tradition by using its sexy carbon bodywork to support the rider, engine, and wheels, resulting in both lower weight and improved stiffness. Performance is impressive, with 140 horses ready to propel the Sharker to over 60 MPH in four seconds. Top speed can vary between 125 and 174 MPH depending on gearing choices.

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via DVICE

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MONDIAL 1957 125CC DOHC

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The Fratelli Boselli Mondial motorcycle company exploded onto the motorcycle racing scene in 1948, where practically straight off the drawing board their brand new double-overhead camshaft 125cc machine set speed records in the standing start ¼ mile and kilometer sprints.  While the motorcycle division of F.B. Mondial was new, the Boselli family had roots in the Italian motorcycle industry which reached back to the 1920s, when Guiseppe Boselli was a partner and in the G.D. marque, and raced their machines.  His friend Oreste Drusiani manufactured the engines for the G.D. and later the C.M. motorcycles of Bologna; Guiseppe was on the Board of both companies. 
In 1929, Guiseppe convinced his brothers (‘fratelli’) to start a company (F.B.) making commercial three-wheelers, within Drusiani’s industrial space.  These vehicles were successful pre-war, but the factory was destroyed in the mid-1940s. By 1946, the factory was back in production of commercial vehicles. 

Alfredo Drusiani, son of Oreste, designed and built a very advanced Double Over Head Camshaft (dohc) motor in 1948, which must have set Guiseppe’s dormant racing ambitions alight, for he immediately purchased this prototype engine and set about creating a motorcycle in collaboration with young Alfredo.  While certainly not the first dohc engine, such a technically advanced specification was unheard of in the ultra-lightweight 125cc capacity, which was dominated at that time by two-stroke single-cylinder machines of very simple design.

Drusiani’s engine used a short vertical shaft beside the cylinder to drive a train of 5 gears above the cylinder head, the outermost of which incorporated the camshafts.  The crankcases had no ‘splits’, being a unitary casting with access ports to assemble and repair the crankshaft, gearbox, clutch, etc.   The stroke of the motor was nearly ‘square’ at 53×56.4mm, which meant, in conjunction with the extremely precise valve actuation provided by cams directly above the valves, the engine would rev freely and provide excellent power.

The first race of the new F.B. Mondial, in September 1948 at the GP of Nations (Faenza), ended prematurely when their petrol tank split.  There had been so little time to refine the new machine, that a Moto Guzzi  tank had been used on this test mule.  Shortly afterwards, in October, using crude aluminum fairings, World Records were set in the standing start ¼ mile and one kilometer 125cc class.  Later that month Mondial tasted success on the GP circuit, with a win at Monza.

Development of this remarkable little motorcycle coincided with the introduction of the Grand Prix World Championship racing series in 1949.  With quite a jump on the competition, Mondial won every single race in the 125cc series in 1949, 50, and 51, while rivals MV Agusta and Benelli developed similar machinery to contest this runaway success.  MV Agusta finally pipped Mondial in the 1952 World Championship by four points.

Alfredo Drusiani left the company in 1953 to found Moto Comet, and during his absence Mondial did not seriously contest the GP circuit, concentrating successfully on the Italian championship and long distance road races such as the Giro d’Italia and Milano-Taranto.

After the failure of the Moto Comet venture, in 1956 Drusiani returned as race chief of Mondial, and redesigned his 125cc engine, while adding a 250cc dohc GP machine to the roster, both of which were housed in updated chassis.  ‘Dustbin’ fairings, which totally enclosed the front wheel, were incorporated for the first time on these machines, following their use by competitors in the preceding years.   The tail section was also enclosed, leaving only room for the rider’s legs within a wind-cheating ‘egg’ which boosted the top speed of the motorcycle by as much as 20mph.

While racing results for ’56 were mixed, Drusiani was busy creating wholly new 125cc and 250cc engines, using a cascade of gears to drive their double overhead camshafts rather than the old shaft-and-bevel arrangement.  Echoing their 1949 season, Mondial won both the 125cc and 250cc World Championships with this new design.  The enclosed aerodynamic bodywork was refined further to the elegant state seen on the motorcycle for sale.

The 1957 Mondial GP racer as seen here proved to be the ultimate development of their racing efforts on the International level, for at the end of the season, Mondial, in concert with Gilera and Moto Guzzi, withdrew from GP competition, citing the ever-rising expense of development coupled with a weakening market for their products.  Shades of 2010!

This 1957 125cc Mondial dohc GP racer was sold by the Mondial factory in the late 1970s to Piero Nerini of Prato, Italy, as part of a clear-out of the race department’s remaining spares and motorcycles.  Nerini retained these motorcycles for nearly 25 years, before selling his collection.  John Goldman purchased this machine and three other racing Mondials from Nerini at that time.   While the 1957 racer was complete and in good condition, many parts weren’t correct for the year, and the important bodywork was missing – a typical scenario, as factory machines were loaned out to racers after 1957 for various competitions, and full-enclosure fairings were banned at that time due to safety concerns.  Thus, original ‘dustbins’ are extremely rare.

Goldman, ever the stickler for authenticity, sought the help of Giancarlo Morbidelli (whose own motorcycles won the 125cc and 250cc GP World Championships in 1975-77) to assist with bringing the Mondial back to a fully correct and accurate state for the 1957 race season.  Morbidelli currently owns a private motorcycle museum in Pesaro, Italy, which features hundreds of important motorcycles, and is renowned as a restorer with a passion for accuracy and authenticity in the motorcycles he displays.

Moved by the importance and rarity of Goldman’s 1957 Mondial 125cc GP, Morbidelli agreed to restore the motorcycle in the workshop adjacent to his museum, to its exact 1957 racing specification.  One significant hurdle, the missing bodywork, was overcome when the artisan who originally fabricated the Mondial fairings in 1957 was contracted to create a copy of his own handiwork from 50 years prior, using the only known surviving set of Mondial 125cc bodywork as a pattern.
It took Morbidelli several years to locate original parts for this project, and with the completion of the bodywork and mechanical restoration, the Mondial was handed to restorer Roberto Totti of Bologna for the final painting, chrome, and assembly.  Totti is considered one of the top restoration specialists in Italy, and he completed this Mondial in 2009.

The Mondial racing team in 1957 for the 125cc class included Tarquinio Provini, Cecil Sandford, and Sammy Miller.  This machine was raced either by Miller or Sandford, as Provini (who won the 125cc Championship that year) preferred the 1956 engine design.  It is not known whether Miller and Sandford rode one machine exclusively for Mondial during the year, but each man did well in the Championship that year, with Miller gaining 4th place, Sandford 6th. Thus, this Mondial has an excellent pedigree as a factory race machine, and is considered the most correct and accurate restoration in existence of the ultimate Mondial racer.

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DUSTBIN FAIRING

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BMW K1200GT touring motorcycle with full fairing
A motorcycle fairing is a shell placed over the frame of some motorcycles, especially racing motorcycles and sport bikes, with the primary purpose to reduce air drag. The secondary functions are the protection of the rider from airborne hazards and wind-induced hypothermia and of the engine components in the case of an accident. There may be a front fairing, as well as a rear fairing component. A motorcycle windshield may be an integral part of the fairing.

The major benefit of a fairing on sport touring and touring motorcycles is a reduction in fuel consumption. The reduction in aerodynamic drag allows for taller gearing, which in turn increases engine life.

The importance of streamlining was known very early in the 20th century. Some streamlining was seen on racing motorcycles as early as the 1920s. The effects of aerodynamic drag on motorcycles are very significant.

The term fairing came into use in aircraft aerodynamics with regard to smoothing airflow over a juncture of components where airflow was disrupted. Early streamlining was often unsuccessful resulting in instability. Handlebar fairings, such as those on Harley-Davidson Tourers, sometimes upset the balance of a motorcycle, inducing wobble. The first factory installed full fairing was that installed on the BMW R100RS introduced in 1976. This marked the beginning of widespread adoption of fairings on sports, and touring types of motorcycles.

Originally the fairings were cowlings put around the front of the bike, increasing its frontal area. Gradually they had become an integral part of the design. Modern fairings increase the frontal area at most by 5% compared to a naked machine. Fairing may carry headlights, instruments, and other items. If the fairing is mounted on the frame, mounting equipment on the fairing reduces the weight and rotational inertia of the steering assembly, improving the handling

Types

Streamliner: This is a full fairing as found on land speed record machines. The entire body of the motorcycle is covered to provide the lowest drag coefficient ratio attainable. The NSU Dolphin II (Delphin II) is a streamliner.
Dustbin fairing: A single-piece, streamlined shell covering the front half of a motorcycle resembling the nose of an aircraft, sometimes referred to as torpedo fairing. It dramatically reduced the frontal drag, but it was banned by Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) from racing in 1958, because it was thought that the frontal point of wind pressure made them highly unstable even with small amounts of yaw.Other reasons cited for the ban were to ensure adequate steering range (lock-to-lock) and stability against crosswinds. FIM regulations forbid streamlining beyond the wheel spindles and require the rider’s arms and legs to be visible from the side.
Dolphin fairing: It was called so because in early models the front wheel mud guard streamlined with the rising windshield part of the fairing resembled the dolphin’s beak from the side view. They had become the norm since the ban of the dustbins

Harley-Davidson police motorcycle with “batwing” fairing
Full-fairing: Bodywork that covers both upper and lower portions of the motorcycle, as distinct from a half fairing, which only has an upper section, and the lower half of the motorcycle is exposed. The fairing on a race or sport bike is meant as an aerodynamic aid, so the windscreen is rarely looked through. If the rider is sitting up at speed he will be buffeted by his rapid progress through the air and act as a parachute, slowing the bike, while if the rider lies flat on the tank behind the windscreen he generates much less aerodynamic drag. The high windscreen and handle-bar width of a touring fairing protect the upright rider from the worst of this, and the windscreen is functional. Full fairings can also provide protection to the engine and chassis in the event of a crash where the fairings, rather than the engine covers and/or frame, slide on the road.
Suzuki SV650s with half fairing and an aftermarket belly pan.
Half-fairing: Fairing that features a windscreen and fairing extending at least below the handlebars, even as far as down to the sides of the cylinder block, though generally half-fairing doesn’t cover the sides of the crankcase or gear box. A number of half-faired models have aftermarket kits available to extend the original half-fairing into a full fairing. Due to the popularity of these kits some manufacturers have started to supply their own full-fairing conversion kits and even offer their half-faired models new with a full-fairing kit fitted at the factory.
Quarter fairing: A windscreen and minimal fairing extending around the headlight fixed to the triple clamp; also referred to as a “bikini fairing”.
Belly pan: Quarter and half fairings are often paired with a belly pan below the engine for diverting air flow away from under the engine to reduce aerodynamic lift, as well as cosmetic reasons. Some track day or racing rules require belly pans to catch leaked fluids

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Independent Motorcycle Designers Achieve- OHIO

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Fred Hayes with his diesel streamliner, which finished in second place at the challenge, achieving 144 m.p.g.
LEXINGTON, Ohio — Motorcycle tinkerers questing after high fuel efficiency were forced to consider everyday practicality at the 2011 Vetter Fuel Economy Challenge at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course last weekend.

An industrial designer best known for his work with motorcycle fairings, Craig Vetter founded the efficiency event in the early 1980s before taking a break for a few years to raise a family. He decided recently to revive the event, with a new focus on developing two-wheelers that could transport people and their effects comfortably at real-world speeds.

John T. Gurley
Craig Vetter.
This year’s contenders were required to create bikes that could sustain 70 miles per hour running into a headwind, provide a comfortable riding position and carry four bags of groceries onboard as a demonstration of everyday usefulness.

“I don’t want to end up with museum queens,” Mr. Vetter said here on Sunday. “I want to change the world and carry four bags of groceries.” About 20 entrants answered Mr. Vetter’s call.

Today’s motorcycles generally return fairly poor mileage for their size and weight because the market has emphasized high performance above other factors. But with escalating fuel prices and rising awareness of carbon emissions, it does not seem inconceivable that a manufacturer might create new products that incorporate some of the ideas seen in the home-builts on display here.

Charly Perethian, a longtime efficiency chaser from Dahlonega, Ga., took top honors on a machine based on the Honda NX 250 dirt bike, which achieved 153 miles per gallon over the 110-mile highway course. For Mr. Perethian, winning with 153 m.p.g. might have seemed perfunctory at best. He prevailed at the 1983 Vetter Challenge on a 185 cc Yamaha-powered bike that went 372 miles on a gallon of fuel, earning it a spot in the Smithsonian’s collection. That bike, however, was a peapod-shape micromachine that traveled at 50 m.p.h. with its rider tucked tightly inside. It was hardly comfortable, and there was no room for cargo.

A streamlined diesel-powered motorcycle ridden by Fred Hayes of Hesperia, Calif., earned second, at 144 m.p.g. Hayes Diversified Technologies, Mr. Hayes’s company, supplies the United States Marines with Kawasaki KLR 650 scout bikes equipped with special diesel engines.
Mr. Vetter placed sixth, achieving 110 m.p.g. on a bulbous yellow machine derived from a Honda 250 Helix scooter.

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MICRO CARS

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Bubble car is a subjective term used for some small, economical automobiles, usually produced in the 1950s and 1960s

 Varieties


The Messerschmitt KR175 and KR200, and the FMR Tg500, had aircraft-style bubble canopies, giving rise to the term bubble car to refer to all these post-war microcars. Isettas and others also had a bubble-like appearance.

 Bubble cars became popular in Europe at that time as a demand for cheap personal motorised transportemerged and fuel prices were high due in part to the 1956 Suez Crisis. Most of them were three-wheelers, which in many places qualified them for inexpensive taxes and licensing as motorcycles.

 Most bubble cars were manufactered in Germany, including by the former German military aircraft manufacturers, Messerschmitt and Heinkel. Automobile and motorcycle manufacturer BMW manufactured the Italian Iso Rivolta Isetta under licence, using an engine from one of their own motorcycles. France also produced large numbers of similar tiny vehicles called voiturettes, but unlike the German makes, these were rarely sold abroad.

 The United Kingdom had licence-built right-hand drive versions of the Heinkel Kabine and the Isetta. The British version of the Isetta was built with only one rear wheel instead of the narrow-tracked pair of wheels in the normal Isetta design in order to take advantage of the three-wheel vehicle laws in the United Kingdom. There were also indigenous British three wheeled microcars, including the Trident from the Peel Engineering Company on theIsle of Man.

The introduction of the Austin Mini in 1959 is often credited with bringing about the demise of the bubble car. The Mini provided four adult seats and more practical long distance transport often at a lower cost.

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macminn’s-lemans-coupe

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 Road & Track magazine, August, 1960. It is interesting to me how a styling exercise can turn into a major project with so little to really go on as to the odds of success, either as a competition car or a design that could be successful in the marketplace. There were so many unknowns and uncertainties. But that is the charm of that era, that people were caught up in their dream and willing to invest their money, time, and talent. Those days are long gone.

Illustration from Stother MacMinn’s book, Sports Cars of the Future.


When John Bond, publisher of Road & Track. began to visualize an ideal American car to compete at Le Mans, he based his hypothesis on the idea that possibly someone of limited means but immense ambition would build it. Under the title of Sports Car Design and as No. 39 in that series, the description commenced in November 1957, and ran through the January, February, and April issues of 1958, with a complete analysis of structure, detail, accommodation, and body form, all carefully coordinated toward creating a serious contender for the famed 24-hour race. Chassis components were all derived from available manufactured items, with the exception of the frame itself, and this custom-fabricated item was kept as simple and inexpensive as possible, being merely two parallel box-section rails.
A number of people wrote, expressing definite interest in attempting the project, and the series of articles actually did trigger three dedicated Southern California enthusiasts into action. Marvin Hortan, an electronics technician for a ram-jet manufacturing corporation, father of three, and a solidly qualified amateur sports car engineer, had long had dreams of an ideal sports competition car that was far from anything offered by current manufacturers. Although his chassis concept differed somewhat from Bond’s, he felt that the general body envelope suited his purpose very well, an opinion shared by friend and electronics co-worker Ed Monegan, whose long experience in high-speed boat building was to provide invaluable. Using the published body drawings as a rough basis, they completed a full-size lines loft in June of 1958 and began a wood frame for the male body plug, which was three-quarters complete in August, when they contacted the author. A clay model that had been used as a basis for the design was transferred to Horton’s Pacoima home where the work was being done. In consideration of the high-speed runs to be attempted with the car, Hortan decided to raise progressively the rear of the body, beginning amidships, in order to cancel more of the top surface negative pressure behind the cab, and add more in the underpan area. This change, accomplished in the wood frame stage, resulted in an upswept “platform line” crease on the body’s side, but provided a more efficient tail conformation.
Clay, as a mold plug medium, was prohibitively expensive, so plaster was used to fill in the frame. It took several months to refine the surfaces and general shape with a grinder, primer, putty, and endless hours of patient work.

About February of 1959, Alton Johnson, another enthusiast with real and individual ambitions and extensive fiberglass experience with the Victress Manufacturing Company, had nearly completed a chassis of his own, with dimensions coincidentally close to the original Bond idea. He contacted Horton, and it was agreed that for his help in finishing the body plug and mold he would receive the first shell.

The mold was completed by June of 1959, and a superlight basic body form, sans windows and rear wheel cutouts, was cast and transferred to Johnson’s operation area at Victress.
Horton then returned to his own chassis fabrication, which was completed and running by February of 1960, having been delayed by an Olds engine installation in a Studebaker and a compete one-off Formula Junior project. On the coupe, he elected to use wishbones and longitudinal torsion bars (machined from pre-1949 Ford driveshafts) for the front suspension, but a transverse leaf spring (as suggested in the article) provided weight support for the independent rear. A space-tube frame, tied in with a structural aluminum reinforced fiberglass driveshaft shaft tunnel provided the lowest possible seating between side members, and a firm body mounting. His program is due for completion about mid-summer of this year.


johnson had his own chassis enclosed in the first body by August of 1959, when it was possible to run an airflow observation test at the Riverside International Raceway. White wool tufts for determining air-flow direction were easily visible against the dark grey primer, and sections that had already been cut out of the body for the two headlight tunnel openings were carefully taped back into place to provide a completely smooth form. Howard Miereanu (now a General Motors designer, but then a student at the Art Center School in Los Angeles), possessor of a Bolex 16-mm motion picture camera, was perched in the passenger seat of an accompanying car and panned past the coupe which was run at steady speeds of 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100 mph down the 5,100-ft back straight of the race course. Viewing this film at slow speed later confirmed theories that some of the top boundary layer could be diverted around the corners of the cab by use of a sharply peaked cowl and windshield, and that the general air flow was true to the developed contours with a minimum of turbulence.


One of the world’s greatest automotive aerodynamicists, upon analyzing a still picture of this test, expressed concern over the sharp edges of the fender sections as a barrier to smooth cross-flow, and the obvious desirability of a complete undertray (which Johnson’s car did not have), but satisfaction with the flow behavior around the cab.

Johnson has since built an entirely new chassis for his car, using the original Chevrolet engine, but an all-independent wishbone suspension with coil springs, and disc brakes, all of which should be covered by a revised version of the original body by mid-summer.

Since Horton’s “original” car will probably be licensed about the same time, or possibly earlier, it should make this dual culmination of Bond’s far-reaching suggestion a most exciting reality.

Sports Car Design Realized
Road & Track’s Le Mans Sports Car Design, as built by a small group of enthusiasts
By Strother MacMinn
This article was first publish 
Photos of the LeMans Coupe from Hot Rod Magazine, June, 1960, and photos of an unrestored surviving car owned by Geoffery Hacker.

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Motorcycle Accident Causes and Factors

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In 2006 about 4,935 people were killed riding motorcycles of different kinds (see above). A major Motorcycle accident study analyzed information from thousands of accidents, drew conclusions about the causes and looked for ways people can avoid accidents. The “Motorcycle Accident Cause Factors and Identification of Countermeasures,” was a study conducted by the University of Southern California, with funds from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, researcher Harry Hurt investigated nearly every aspect of 900 motorcycle accidents in the Los Angeles area. Additionally, Hurt and his staff analyzed 3,600 motorcycle traffic accident reports in the same geographic area. Below are some of the findings.



People who ride motorcycles know that any accident can have catastrophic results. Even when cyclists ride carefully, obey traffic laws and use protective equipment, they can be seriously injured or killed when they collide with a car or truck. The injuries they suffer are often very serious because motorcycles provide very little protection in a crash. Head or brain trauma and disabling leg and foot injuries are among the serious injuries that motorcyclists suffer.



Motorcycle Accident Study findings:

1. Approximately three-fourths of these motorcycle accidents involved collision with another vehicle, which was most usually a passenger automobile.

2. Approximately one-fourth of these motorcycle accidents were single vehicle accidents involving the motorcycle colliding with the roadway or some fixed object in the environment.

3. Vehicle failure accounted for less than 3% of these motorcycle accidents, and most of those were single vehicle accidents where control was lost due to a puncture flat.

4. In the single vehicle accidents, motorcycle rider error was present as the accident precipitating factor in about two-thirds of the cases, with the typical error being a slide out and fall due to over braking or running wide on a curve due to excess speed or under-cornering.

5. Roadway defects (pavement ridges, potholes, etc.) were the accident cause in 2% of the accidents; animal involvement was 1% of the accidents.

6. In the multiple vehicle accidents, the driver of the other vehicle violated the motorcycle right-of-way and caused the accident in two-thirds of those accidents.

7. The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents. The driver of the other vehicle involved in collision with the motorcycle did not see the motorcycle before the collision, or did not see the motorcycle until too late to avoid the collision.

8. Deliberate hostile action by a motorist against a motorcycle rider is a rare accident cause. The most frequent accident configuration is the motorcycle proceeding straight then the automobile makes a left turn in front of the oncoming motorcycle.

9. Intersections are the most likely place for the motorcycle accident, with the other vehicle violating the motorcycle right-of-way, and often violating traffic controls.

10. Weather is not a factor in 98% of motorcycle accidents.

11. Most motorcycle accidents involve a short trip associated with shopping, errands, friends, entertainment or recreation, and the accident is likely to happen in a very short time close to the trip origin.

12. The view of the motorcycle or the other vehicle involved in the accident is limited by glare or obstructed by other vehicles in almost half of the multiple vehicle accidents.

13. Conspicuity of the motorcycle is a critical factor in the multiple vehicle accidents, and accident involvement is significantly reduced by the use of motorcycle headlamps (on in daylight) and the wearing of high visibility yellow, orange or bright red jackets. (Note: the statistics which have just been released here in Australia – August 1996, DO NOT SHOW that “Lights on” legislation has worked!)

14. Fuel system leaks and spills were present in 62% of the motorcycle accidents in the post-crash phase. This represents an undue hazard for fire.

15. The median pre-crash speed was 29.8 mph, and the median crash speed was 21.5 mph, and the one-in-a-thousand crash speed is approximately 86 mph.

16. The typical motorcycle pre-crash lines-of-sight to the traffic hazard portray no contribution of the limits of peripheral vision; more than three- fourths of all accident hazards are within 45 degrees of either side of straight ahead.

17. Conspicuity of the motorcycle is most critical for the frontal surfaces of the motorcycle and rider. 
18. defects related to accident causation are rare and likely to be due to deficient or defective maintenance. 

19. Motorcycle riders between the ages of 16 and 24 are significantly over-represented in accidents; motorcycle riders between the ages of 30 and 50 are significantly under represented. Although the majority of the accident-involved motorcycle riders are male (96%), the female motorcycle riders are significantly over represented in the accident data.

20. Craftsmen, laborers, and students comprise most of the accident-involved motorcycle riders. Professionals, sales workers, and craftsmen are under represented and laborers, students and unemployed are over- represented in the accidents.

21. Motorcycle riders with previous recent traffic citations and accidents are over represented in the accident data.

22. T he motorcycle riders involved in accidents are essentially without training; 92% were self-taught or learned from family or friends. Motorcycle rider training experience reduces accident involvement and is related to reduced injuries in the event of accidents.

23. More than half of the accident-involved motorcycle riders had less than 5 months experience on the accident motorcycle, although the total street riding experience was almost 3 years. Motorcycle riders with dirt bike experience are significantly under represented in the accident data.

24. Lack of attention to the driving task is a common factor for the motorcyclist in an accident.

25. Almost half of the fatal accidents show alcohol involvement.

26. Motorcycle riders in these accidents showed significant collision avoidance problems. Most riders would over brake and skid the rear wheel, and under brake the front wheel greatly reducing collision avoidance deceleration. The ability to counter steer and swerve was essentially absent.

27. The typical motorcycle accident allows the motorcyclist just less than 2 seconds to complete all collision avoidance action.

28. Passenger-carrying motorcycles are not over represented in the accident area.

29. The driver of the other vehicles involved in collision with the motorcycle are not distinguished from other accident populations except that the ages of 20 to 29, and beyond 65 are over represented. Also, these drivers are generally unfamiliar with motorcycles.

30. The large displacement motorcycles are under represented in accidents but they are associated with higher injury severity when involved in accidents.

31. Any effect of motorcycle color on accident involvement is not determinable from these data, but is expected to be insignificant because the frontal surfaces are most often presented to the other vehicle involved in the collision.

32. Motorcycles equipped with fairings and windshields are under represented in accidents, most likely because of the contribution to conspicuity and the association with more experienced and trained riders.

33. Motorcycle riders in these accidents were significantly without motorcycle license, without any license, or with license revoked.

34. Motorcycle modifications such as those associated with the semi-chopper or cafe racer are definitely over represented in accidents.

35. The likelihood of injury is extremely high in these motorcycle accidents-98% of the multiple vehicle collisions and 96% of the single vehicle accidents resulted in some kind of injury to the motorcycle rider; 45% resulted in more than a minor injury.

36. Half of the injuries to the somatic regions were to the ankle-foot, lower leg, knee, and thigh-upper leg.

37. Crash bars are not an effective injury countermeasure; the reduction of injury to the ankle-foot is balanced by increase of injury to the thigh-upper leg, knee, and lower leg. 38.The use of heavy boots, jacket, gloves, etc., is effective in preventing or reducing abrasions and lacerations, which are frequent but rarely severe injuries.

39. Groin injuries were sustained by the motorcyclist in at least 13% of the accidents, which typified by multiple vehicle collision in frontal impact at higher than average speed.

40. Injury severity increases with speed, alcohol involvement and motorcycle size.

41. Seventy-three percent of the accident-involved motorcycle riders used no eye protection, and it is likely that the wind on the unprotected eyes contributed in impairment of vision which delayed hazard detection.

42. Approximately 50% of the motorcycle riders in traffic were using safety helmets but only 40% of the accident-involved motorcycle riders were wearing helmets at the time of the accident.

43. Voluntary safety helmet use by those accident-involved motorcycle riders was lowest for untrained, uneducated, young motorcycle riders on hot days and short trips.

44. The most deadly injuries to the accident victims were injuries to the chest and head.

45. The use of the safety helmet is the single critical factor in the prevention of reduction of head injury; the safety helmet which complies with FMVSS 218 is a significantly effective injury countermeasure.

46. Safety helmet use caused no attenuation of critical traffic sounds, no limitation of pre crash visual field, and no fatigue or loss of attention; no element of accident causation was related to helmet use.

47. FMVSS 218 provides a high level of protection in traffic accidents, and needs modification only to increase coverage at the back of the head and demonstrate impact protection of the front of full facial coverage helmets, and insure all adult sizes for traffic use are covered by the standard.

48. Helmeted riders and passengers showed significantly lower head and neck injury for all types of injury, at all levels of injury severity.

49. The increased coverage of the full facial coverage helmet increases protection, and significantly reduces face injuries.

50. There is not liability for neck injury by wearing a safety helmet; helmeted riders had less neck injuries than unhelmeted riders. Only four minor injuries were attributable to helmet use, and in each case the helmet prevented possible critical or fatal head injury.

51. Sixty percent of the motorcyclists were not wearing safety helmets at the time of the accident. Of this group, 26% said they did not wear helmets because they were uncomfortable and inconvenient, and 53% simply had no expectation of accident involvement.

52. Valid motorcycle exposure data can be obtained only from collection at the traffic site. Motor vehicle or driver license data presents information which is completely unrelated to actual use.

53. Less than 10% of the motorcycle riders involved in these accidents had insurance of any kind to provide medical care or replace property
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Aerodynamics

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Aerodynamics
Aerodynamic design can greatly improve fuel efficiency.
In fact, it is one of the ares that gives you the most “bang” for the buck.
However, recent road testing has confirmed a statement made to me by Craig Vetter, one of the leading aerodynamic designers around… that at lower speeds the effectiveness of aerodynamics drops dramatically. Therefore, I’m focusing on reducing weight instead; the high cost of aerodynamic additions proved too much for my budget and did not gain me noticeable efficiency improvements. I’m leaving the rest of the page below unchanged just for reference and general information. My current design has removed even the windshield to reduce weight. In reducing weight, however, I have improved aerodynamics in one area; I have reduced the cross section of the bike. By removing panniers and the aluminum water tank I have improved air flow. I’ve also removed the engine guard and one meter and the battery compartment, all of which will improve the aerodynamics of the bike
Aerodynamically, you can improve performance in three key areas:
Front End Improvements
As you punch through the wind, the design of the front of the motorcycle can do a great deal to reduce turbulence. The smoother and rounder the shape, the more easily air flows around it. Therefore a windscreen is perhaps the single easiest modification that will improve fuel economy that you can make. Which is why one of the earliest modifications to the bike was it’s simple but effective windscreen

Back End Improvements
It may come as a surprise to realize that the the design of the back end of the bike is also critical to efficiency; a sweeping design helps the air “pocket” you have created to close behind you with a minimum of turbulence.
Here’s one very efficient design we’re considering!
The rider
Yes, what the rider wears is important too. In fact, – and somewhat obviously – the thinner the rider, the lower the wind resistance and the better efficiency. Time to lose some weight!
But a well designed aerodynamic helmet and aerodynamic clothing can help as well. Smooth clothing, with a minimum of pockets, flaps, belts and other items that could flap in the wind, is critical. On the other hand, I’m not wearing a pink corinthian leather jumpsuit for this trip, either. So I’ll stick with my armored jacket and just keep my head down!
Speaking of that… do you think those old bikers greased their hair back for aerodynamic reasons?

aerodynamics

Grease n Gasoline