Blogs : Neobike
The Uno
The Uno is an impressive sorta-one-wheeled design reminiscient of the Bombardier Embrio concept from several years back, which I covered here and here. The difference is, this one exists!Summer Riding in Vermont
Summer gets pretty warm for riding if you wear proper gear. Filling your pockets with ice cubes is one possible compensatory strategy. Another is heading northward and upward to where it's cooler.My old motorcycle pals Jon and Penny run a great little bed and breakfast up in central Vermont, the Caravan B and B. It would make a great home base for exploring the state on two wheels, not only because it's a cozy place to stay but because your hosts can tell you what roads you just shouldn't miss.
An Electric R1 for You?
California bike builders have made an electric R1 that is remarkably close to many internal combustion streetbikes in price and performance.It's possible that the electric motorcycle revolution is going to take off not by big manufacturers releasing production bikes, but by thousands of individual enthusiasts doing conversions like this.
Using a track-beaten 1999 Yamaha R1, the conversion cost about $15,000 total. It was the brainchild of Richard Hatfield, a motorcycle enthusiast and solar panel importer based in Burlingame, and Todd Kollin, who's been making electric bikes out of past-their-prime gas-powered ones for the last six years at his Oakland shop, Electric Motorsport. Right now, the shop does custom conversions of aging internal-combustion bikes, with a turnaround time of about 30 days.
Within a couple years, the two hope to make a comparably priced production version of the bike using a custom chassis, as well as a smaller, less powerful $6,000 to $8,000 model.
Read more in Susan Carpenter's article (with video) on the LA Times website
Neobike: Back to the Future
Neobike is a blog I wrote from 2002 to 2005, covering futuristic (and sometimes just weird) developments and trends in the motorcycle industry. Resuscitated here is the complete Neobike archive. The neobike slogan was "Motorcycle News from the Day After Tomorrow", reflecting its futuristic orientation. The whole thing arose because I was fixated on the idea that electric motorcycles were coming. I still think they are, just not as quickly... Given the age of the entries, you'll come across some broken links, but you'll also find stuff you never heard of before (and might never want to hear of again!).Return of the Ghostrider Robot
The Ghostrider robot motorcycle that was mentioned in [Neobike] in March and April last year is back. There's another DARPA Grand Challenge on for October 8, 2005. The robot is looking much better this year, to judge by the copious movie clips that Blue Team has posted. Except for the better-killing-through-technology part, it's wicked cool.Diesel motorcycles
I think the idea of a diesel offroad motorcycle is cool -- torquey, reliable, long-running. So what if it only makes 30HP? I'm a bit confused as to why these things are billed so heavily as "Made in the USA" when they are, as far as I can tell, based on the Kawasaki KLR. But hey, any action is good action in the alternative fuels arena these days.Helmet Mouse
This is a "no comment" kind of item. But if you need a computer mouse shaped like your Shoei X-11, soon you will be satisfied!Motoczysz Me
For some reason I haven't mentioned the Motoczysz project yet. OK, now
I'm mentioning it. It's cool. Czysz could be the next John Britten.
He's building a world-class racebike from scratch, more or less, with
some fairly radical innovations. Read about Alan
Cathcart's experience with the bike, or download groovy
desktop pictures to brighten your cube.
ENV Review
Today brings this enthusiastic review of the ENV electric motorcycle I mentioned a couple weeks ago."The prototypes are light, fast and utterly practical. They also look fantastic. If that sounds utopian it is because clean power on a stylish vehicle robust enough to go anywhere is exciting. Frightened petrolheads can relax: it is possible to go fast without burning carbon."
New rotor technology: ceramic composites
StarBlade
ceramic composite rotor blades "fit to an aluminum carrier ...
and will reduce the total weight 60-70% compared to the conventional
steel or stainless steel rotors currently found on most racing and
street bikes." Plus, they don't fade, are quiet, and cheaper and
longer lasting than carbon/carbon. Test rider on an R1 gave them a 12
out of 10. The reduction in rotating, unsprung mass is a big deal,
especially for racing applications. But with their other advantages
these things may actually see street use too.
Lo-Jack and then some
A new device promises to improve emergency response to motorcycle accidents in addition to making bikes harder to steal:The telematics technology measures axial angle and G force and reports them to a central unit that can alert the police and ambulance services of any unusual reading associated with a serious accident. The tracking technology then sends the location of the motorbike to the emergency services.Don't forget to turn it off on track days!
Motorcycle-specific GPS
The TomTom
RIDER is a GPS designed for motorcycle use. This seems to mean
that it is weatherproof, designed to be used with gloves on, and works
with Bluetooth headsets (what, you don't have a Bluetooth headset?).
It can be powered by its own internal battery or hooked up to the
motorcycle's battery. Available this summer, they say. Based on their
other products, I'm guessing the price will be well over $500.
New safety/food product
This just in: Aerostich and World Banana have joined forces to market a new brighter Hi-Viz colored banana. Aerostich, a leader in exposing people to the retina searing Hi-Viz yellow color, and World Banana, a fruit grower with operations in Belize and Honduras, will begin introducing the new Hi-Viz bananas to consumers immediately.
Sideways
Full props for innovation, but something tells me it would be a
dangerous thing if this
concept ever came in a motorized version.
Fresh from Neo-Tokyo: Stingray
Speaking of feet-forward, check out the Stingray, a Japanese creation
that just maybe was slightly influenced by the movie Akira. Aside from
the reclined seating position, hub-center-steering is the neatest
visible feature.
They're not real motorcycles, but in the Best Feet Forward
The Best Feet Forward Motorcycle Club is for fans of superscooters, enclosed two-wheelers, and other funny-looking motorcycle-like vehicles. Enthusiasts note that among other benefits these vehicles can be more fuel efficient and faster than traditional motorcycles because of their improved aerodynamics. No laughing at the picture, man, that's Craig Vetter!
Crash course in moto-prognostication
A famous man once said: "Those who forget the Suzuki RE-5 are doomed to repeat it." I think that's how it went. Anyway, if you're interested in the future of motorcycles it makes sense to have a grasp of the past. Here is an ambitious and not-too long page on the past and future of motorcycles, incorporating many of the items you've seen here at neobike.net over the past couple years. Lots of pictures, too, which is always nice. Now I can't decide whether I want a Honda VF500F or a Suzuki Nuda.Loud fuel cells save lives?
"The world's first purpose-built hydrogen-powered bike could be
fitted with an artificial 'vroom' because of worries its silence
might be dangerous," says this BBC report on a
new fuel-cell powered (i.e. electric) motorcycle.
Hubless Osmos Wheel
The Osmos
Wheel is a hubless wheel design that claims to reduce unsprung
weight, improve steering accuracy, reduce unwanted vibration, enable
crazy multiple-ring perimeter braking systems, and all sorts of other
good stuff. They've got a lot of neat prototype and concept images to
ponder, too.
