Your Bikernet Blog Editor got grounded from riding his bike out of city limits.
Well, actually, my mother has been sick consistently since she caught COVID-19 in January 2022. She has been in-and-out of hospital twice in past 30 days.
I needed to get some wheels rolling near my residence so that I am available for mom and also able to enjoy some outdoor excitement. I decided on a new adventure — a hobby for Skateboarding. How childish? Imagine your dad riding down the street on a skateboard.
Well, remove the stigma and join in.
Can you imagine anyone other than a lifelong motorcyclist doing something so crazy in his/her early 40s age? This skateboard is the only vehicular-thing with more than two-wheels that I own.
Below I present a few useful YouTube Videos I found that got me off to a “flipping” start. It’s not exactly a how-to but more of a how-others do it.
Do These 10 Things Make A Difference In Skateboarding?
How to Set Up a Skateboard for Beginners
HOW TO SKATEBOARD FOR BEGINNERS | HOW TO SKATEBOARD EPISODE 1
Both of these two YouTube Content Creators have done a good job — though you may find one more useful than the other when you visit their YouTube Channel….depending upon your skill level and natural aptitude.
What happens to old cars and motorcycles when there is a complete ban on manufacturing of new internal-combustion engine vehicles? Where do you get the petrol or diesel? How would anyone maintain or get insurance for these vehicles?
Curtailing tailpipe emissions is a centerpiece of the Biden administration’s clean-air strategy, and some lawmakers have pushed for a phase-out of gasoline and diesel vehicles within the next couple decades. Biden, the son of a car salesman and a collector himself, hasn’t shown an appetite to slap new rules at his fellow enthusiasts.
It’s nearly impossible to find industry experts or environmentalists who think such a ban would spell the end for classic cars but, growing sentiment against the internal combustion engine could cause collectors headaches in years to come.
An Environmental Protection Agency official told Hagerty Insider that the current wave of legislation and rule-making is aimed at mandating standards for new cars. “The public policy focus is on the future fleet, and what it will look like, especially on the pace of electrification,” this official said.
This is probably the weirdest motorcycle Honda has ever made, but is it collectible?
Quirky, weird, and car-like, the Honda PC800 Pacific Coast emerged for 1989 to woo people out of their Accords and onto two wheels. Amazingly, the bizarre touring motorcycle was manufactured through the 1998 model year, but many people today seem to have forgotten about it. If we didn’t know better, it would almost be like people have collectively tried to forget about the Pacific Coast. However, we figured now is a good time to revisit this now-vintage motorcycle and examine if anything about it could be considered desirable for collectors.
At the other end of the spectrum was the Honda Valkyrie Rune.
The origins of the PC800 go back to 1985 when Honda R&D Americas, Inc. was established in the name of efficiency. That characteristic is, after all, one of the main attractive elements of Hondas, so it seemed to make sense. That meant the same people were developing cars, motorcycles, and other Honda products. We know, we know, the jokes practically write themselves but we’ll leave it at that.
Perhaps the most bizarre products of this shift in strategy was the Honda PC800. Designed as a motorcycle for people who prefer cars, the design was friendlier and more approachable than what you would find with a Harley, Ducati, Suzuki, or even another Honda motorcycle.
The press for the most part were wowed by the PC800. It was portrayed as innovative, forward-thinking, and further testified to the master genius of Honda. Most definitely it was a gamble made at a time when the US economy was strong and companies were more willing to stick their necks out to take a gamble. After all, Honda risked losing a lot of its credibility with motorcycle riders for making such a soft, strange, car-like tourer.
For motorcycle enthusiasts, the PC800 Pacific Coast didn’t have much to offer. After all, it didn’t pack much power, thanks to it borrowing the V-twin from the 1988 Shadow VT800. The upswing was these rides were extremely low-maintenance, with features like automaker tensioners for the chains and hydraulically-adjusted valve clearances. To combat the vibrational tendencies of the 45-degree V-twin engine, Honda engineers not only used offset crankpins, they used four rubber mounts for further damping. After all, car people don’t like to feel that rumbling underneath them.
To make the Honda Pacific Coast even more approachable, engineers added a 5th gear to the VT’s transmission. Power was sent to the rear wheels via a driveshaft, too. A full-cradle frame with 2 rectangular spars on either side of the engine meant more cornering clearance, eliminating a riding difficulty literally felt by many 2-wheel newbies.
What really makes the PC800 car-like is the bodywork. Unlike most motorcycles, this Honda was clad from wheel to wheel is molded plastic. That large rear allowed for a car-like taillight strip. Plus, the rear was hinged, giving riders access to 2 storage compartments, hence it was called The Trunk. A hydraulic shock kept the lid open, just like what Honda owners were used to with their hatchback Civic or Accord.
All that plastic cladding around the engine added to the difficulty of performing maintenance on the PC800. Sure, it looked good to the car people and maybe it made the bike a little more aerodynamic, but when you had to change the oil, pull plugs, or do anything else, all that acreage of plastic was a pain.
Not everything about the Honda PC800 Pacific Coast was bad. In fact, there were some genius designs like fairing guards and pop-off mirrors to reduce the risk of damage if you tipped over the bike. The trunk was made to the watertight, so you can ride this bike through all kinds of nasty weather and not have to worry about your luggage getting soaked.
Honda went big on price for the PC800, charging $7,700 when it debuted in 1989. Americans were feeling playful then, gobbling up the majority made for the debut model year. However, a recession in 1990 cut sales in half. That prompted Honda to pull the motorcycle from the US market, only to bring it back for 1994 once the recession was squarely in the distance. However, sales never came even close to the over 7,000 units sold in 1989, with under a thousand sold most years until Honda finally gave the Pacific Coast the ax after 1998.
This means there aren’t too many PC800s out there. There’s a cult following for these motorcycles, with many former owners pining away after theirs. However, prices don’t indicate these have caught the eyes of enthusiasts or investors, which is good news for those who want to scoop one up for a good deal. At the moment it seems doubtful these Hondas will ever become serious collectibles, but they are an interesting specimen of an experiment by the Japanese brand.
by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com/
Decades-old motorcycles are not as widespread as cars. Whereas in the world today there are countless four-wheeled machines, in better or worse condition, going back perhaps a century or so, not the same can be said about two-wheelers.
That essentially means that when we come across a bike as old as the one we’re going to write about here, there’s reason to gloat. Especially because we’re talking about one that was built, in very limited numbers, in the years before the start of the second world war, but runs just as good as it did back then.
What’s being displayed in the gallery above is a 1937 Harley-Davidson UH. It is one of just 185 made in 1937, just a few short years before all civilian bike production would be halted to make room for the WLAs requested by the U.S. Army in the years that followed. Of the 185, this one here is probably the only one that (still) looks this good.
And it owes its looks to a restoration process that tried to stay as close to the original as possible.
Part of the U model family, the UH is powered by the same 80ci engine that was fitted on it back in the day. It runs, as it was rebuilt while keeping all the innovations brought by Harley to the U that year, including the recirculating oil system instead of a total-loss one, and dry-sump lubrication.
The engine sits inside the original frame of the bike, and so is that era’s dash, Parts of the bike hiding beneath the blue and white bodywork may seem a bit different, but that’s because many of the original parts have been chromed during the restoration process.
When the bike was made, it sold for a little over $400. Now, someone is selling it during the Mecum Glendale auction that starts on Wednesday, March 11, and they’ll probably get a lot more for it.
Classic Legends reintroduced Jawa Motorcycles in India on November 15, 2018, with three new models — Jawa, Jawa Forty Two and Jawa Perak.
Both Jawa and Jawa Forty Two get the same 293 cc, liquid cooled, single cylinder, DOHC engine.
The two models have been designed and developed from scratch.
Jawa Perak is powered by a 334 cc, liquid cooled, single cylinder, DOHC engine.
Jawa Motorcycles will begin the deliveries of its two new models — Jawa and Jawa Forty Two — from the fourth week of March. While Jawa is priced at Rs 1.64 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi), Jawa Forty Two is available for Rs 1.55 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi).
Mahindra & Mahindra’s subsidiary Classic Legends reintroduced Jawa Motorcycles in India on November 15, 2018, with three new models — Jawa, Jawa Forty Two and Jawa Perak. The online bookings for Jawa and Jawa Forty Two had commenced on the same day and closed on the midnight of December 25, 2018. With regard to Jawa Perak, which is priced at Rs 1.89 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi), it was announced that the bookings will open at a subsequent date.
Now, Classic Legends’ co-founder Anupam Thareja has said that the deliveries for Jawa and Jawa Forty Two across the country will start from fourth week of March as per the booking queue. By third week of the month, there will also be 100 Jawa Motorcycles showrooms in the country.
The moment of truth is here for #JawaMotorcycles. We were audacious and planned a 100 showrooms nationwide before starting delivery – that’s being done in record time by March 3rd week. Fourth week onwards, we will start delivery across the country as per the booking queue!
– Anupam Thareja (@reach_anupam) March 12, 2019
Both Jawa and Jawa Forty Two get the same 293 cc, liquid cooled, single cylinder, DOHC engine. It churns out 27 bhp and 28 Nm of torque. The motor complies with BS-VI norms. The two models have been designed and developed from scratch keeping in mind the distinctive character, unique sound, styling and riding experience. Jawa and Jawa Forty Two are tuned as retro and modern classics, respectively.
Jawa Perak is powered by a 334 cc, liquid cooled, single cylinder, DOHC engine. The powertrain develops 30 bhp and 31 Nm of torque.
With International Women’s Day on 8th March, we would like to showcase two stories from Women on Trikes series. Read how Susan and Nerolie got into triking and why they are living the dream with Trikes.
Susan – “Wild and crazy and it felt a little bit rebellious”
A surprise and spontaneous ride to high school on the back of a friends new Trike while living in a small country town in New Zealand, was the very moment I knew I wanted one. It was love at first ride, I was hooked.
At the time I was not old enough to have a car licence, but I will never forget how it felt to be on the back of the Trike. It was cool and it was different, lots of people had two-wheeler bikes, but this chopped up, backyard, custom made Trike was the real deal, it was wild and crazy and felt a little bit rebellious.
I moved back to Australia a few years later, and I never really saw many trikes. Every so often I would look around to buy one, but they were hard to find and never quite what I was looking for.
Most trikes were motorbike conversions but I wanted a long-raked style trike with a low centre of gravity but also one that would not spend more time in the garage being pulled apart and repaired. I’m not a mechanic, I just wanted to ride.
Life got in the way of my dream – kids, family, work all took priority for many years, and a trike was not something I could afford and it was not practical. How would I fit a baby seat to a trike?
In my early forties, the internet had made looking for a trike a lot easier, but they were still hard to find. I was prepared to travel to America to find a trike and bring it back to Australia, as there seemed to be a much bigger selection of trikes overseas than there were in Australia.
I finally came across the custom-made German Rewaco Trikes and could not believe my luck when I discovered they had a dealer in Australia.
I collected my trike around Valentine’s Day and it is still the love of my life. Since owning my trike and racking up nearly 50,000Ks I have met people from all walks of life, been involved in charity and fundraising events which give me a great amount of satisfaction but most of all I just love the wild, crazy rebellious feeling of cruising around Australia.
People young and old still stop and stare, and most fuel stops involve a conversation with a stranger asking what sort of motor it has. I still giggle at the reactions I get and the shocked whisper of “oh and it’s a girl riding it”.
Kids stare out the back window of their parent’s car waving at me, and I always wonder if one of them will grow up remembering the first time they saw my trike cruising down the highway and want one when they are older.
Nerolie fell in love with a Trike too
“Geez, that’s bright green, not sure about the colour. Then the green seemed to grow on us and now I absolutely love Kermmi!”
Growing up on a farm allowed me to ride motorbikes all the time…this sadly all changed once I moved into a town. Years went by and at the age of 38, I decided life is too short and went and got a motorbike licence. Read more…
I started with a Yamaha 650 Vstar. Due to an injury, I struggled to ride it or even get it out of the garage.
My partner Brendon and I had heard about trikes. We decided to look into buying one as this would enable me to still enjoy riding and it was something we could both still do together.
April 2016, we headed off to Bendigo to have a look at TOUROZ Trikes and maybe have a test ride to see if we liked them.
Col had a green and black demo RF1 LT sitting there.
First thoughts were: Geez, that is a bright green, unsure if I like that colour.
After some chatting with Col the green seemed to grow on us. Well the test ride did not happen, we said stuff it, you only live once!
We came home with that beautiful green machine nearly 3 years ago, and I haven’t looked back…
I absolutely love Kermmi. I feel so great riding, and the freedom you feel with no pain! I would not change it for the world.
By definition, depending on who you ask, a trike is anything with three wheels powered by a motor of some kind which basically leaves it up to one’s perspective…and imagination. Size, seating capacity, engine make, original build year and displacement, suspension, accessories, trim and colors are open for interpretation…and varying Federal and state regulations. We’ve seen them in the dirt, on the street, on the track and even in the air.
Classic Legends reintroduced Jawa Motorcycles in India on November 15, 2018, with three new models — Jawa, Jawa Forty Two and Jawa Perak.
With International Women’s Day on 8th March, we would like to showcase two stories from Women on Trikes series. Read how Susan and Nerolie got into triking and why they are living the dream with Trikes.
