Nine Times MotoGp World Champ...!

Valentino Rossi won his ninth world championship with one round of the 2009 season to spare, after a third place finish at a wet Sepang in Malaysia on Sunday. 

The 30-year-old, who has now won seven world championships in the premier 500cc/MotoGP class, had taken the 2009 title lead with his first win of the season at round three in Jerez. 

Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo and Ducati's Casey Stoner then fought back, and all three were level at the top of world championship standings after round six in Catalunya. 

The next five rounds proved crucial, with Stoner falling victim to mystery fatigue problems while Lorenzo crashed out at both Donington Park and Brno. 

Rossi won three of those five races to build his title lead to a peak of 50 points after the Czech Republic, but instantly lost half that advantage - and threw Lorenzo a championship lifeline - when he crashed out of the following Indianapolis Grand Prix. 

The see-saw continued with a Rossi victory at Misano and then a Lorenzo win at Estoril - when Rossi was only fourth, dropping his title advantage to 18 points. 

The pressure was on for Phillip Island but Lorenzo cracked first, making a mistake into turn one and crashing out, effectively wrecking his hopes of taking the title down to the final round in Valencia. 

38 points clear heading into Sepang, Rossi only needed to be 25 points ahead of Lorenzo to wrap up the title - a feat he easily achieved after converting a record 58th pole into third place in the rain-delayed race, one place in front of Lorenzo. 

“Nine world championships is a great achievement, I'm so happy!” said Rossi. “I would need one hour to thank everyone! Starting with everyone at Yamaha - Furusawa-san, Lin Jarvis, Davide Brivio and all my guys, especially Jeremy. I couldn't have done it without Jeremy and he is like my motorcycle father!

“I also have to thank my family and friends - Stefania, Graziano, Uccio, Albi...so many! All the team, Yamaha and Bridgestone; together we've done a great, great job and it's always a huge enjoyment to ride and work with these people. 

“In order to stay at this level through a whole season you have to be calm and have the right people around you and this is what I have. We've stayed concentrated and focused even in the bad moments, so we can congratulate ourselves with this ninth title.” 

Rossi suffered a scare at the start of the race when he ran wide whilst trying to outbrake Dani Pedrosa into turn one and had plummeted to tenth - behind Lorenzo, who had started from the back of the grid – by the end of a soaking first lap. 

The #46 then shadowed his team-mate up the order, before taking fourth from the young Spaniard on lap eight of 21. That became third position when Andrea Dovizioso crashed out on lap 15, allowing Rossi to reach his target of celebrating championship victory from the podium. 

"Without the rain it could have been a brilliant race, with the four top riders fighting together, but the rain changed it," said Rossi of the weather. "It was scary for everyone because all the work we'd done was useless and we were riding 'blind' with the setting. 

Who's gonna be The King at Sepang...?

Championship contender Jorge Lorenzo topped the timesheets during Friday's first practice session as the FIM MotoGP World Championship hit Sepang.

The Fiat Yamaha rider is 38 points behind team-mate Valentino Rossi in the standings with just two races remaining and threw down the gauntlet to the rest of the field with a best lap of two minutes 2.180 seconds.

Marlboro Ducati rider Casey Stoner continued his fine form since returning from illness with second place, with Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa in third and Rossi in fourth.

A fourth-place finish on Sunday will be enough for Rossi to take his seventh premier-class world championship even if Lorenzo wins, and the Italian was in relaxed mood as he lapped 0.684 seconds slower than his young rival.

Rossi said: "I am quite happy, even if the time and the position isn't perfect.

"We worked mainly with old tyres to understand the nature of the bike when it's sliding, which is important here, but actually my pace was very consistent and I think we can make another step on Saturday.

"We still need to find a little bit more grip so we will look to improve the setting of the bike for this on Saturday morning - it's going to be very important to be on the front row for Sunday.

"I think the race will be very hard and we will have to take care to prepare properly and drink a lot of water because it is very, very hot."

The Bandidos Gang...1%

The Bandidos Motorcycle Club, also known as the Bandido Nation, is a "one-percenter" motorcycle gang and organized crime syndicate with a worldwide membership. The club was formed in 1966 by Don Chambers in Texas. Its slogan is We are the people our parents warned us about. It is estimated to have 2,400 members in 210 chapters, located in 16 countries. The club considers itself to be an Outlaw Motorcycle Club. The Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as the Criminal Intelligence Service Canada have named the Bandidos an Outlaw Motorcycle Gang.

The club was formed in 1966 in San Leon, Texas by Donald Eugene Chambers. Many people think Chambers named his club the Bandidos after seeing a TV commercial with the Frito Bandito raising hell to sell Fritos corn chips. This is not true, as the cartoon came out in 1968 (although he did adopt an obese machete- and pistol-wielding Mexican Bandido as the center patch for the club's colors). Don Chambers, having served in Vietnam as a Marine, modeled the clubs colors after the scarlet and gold motif of the United States Marine Corps. After Chambers' presidency ended due to his conviction for murder in El Paso, Texas, Ronnie Hodge was elevated to president.

The Bandidos has over 90 chapters in the United States, 90 chapters in Europe, and another 17 in Australia and Southeast Asia. In the United States, the club is concentrated in Texas, but extends into Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Washington, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and several other states. The Rock Machine Motorcycle club in Canada merged with the Bandidos in 2000, and there is a chapter in Toronto, Ontario. The Bandidos are also found in Australia; aside from the non-locale-specific Nomads chapter, the chapters are located in Adelaide, Ballarat, Brisbane City, Cairns, Sydney Downtown, Geelong, Gold Coast, Hunter Valley, Ipswich City, Mid North Coast, Mid State, Northside, Noosa, North Victoria, Sunshine Coast, Sydney, and Toowoomba, and were acquired with much bloodletting. In recent years the club has also expanded heavily into Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, France and the Channel Islands. Additionally, it is looking into setting up shop in Russia and Eastern Europe and also in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. The Bandidos are organized by local chapters, with state and regional officers, as well as a national chapter made up of four regional vice presidents and a national president.

Like the Hell's Angels, The Bandidos also have a number of puppet, or so-called "support," clubs, who are used as proxies for both legal and illegal activities. These groups usually wear reverse colors (gold border with red background rather than the Bandidos' red-border–and–gold background). They also commonly wear a unique patch consisting of a round patch in Bandidos colors on the front upper left of the colors (vest), as worn by the member. Most of these clubs are regional.

Who's #1...

SEPANG, Oct 22 — Fiat Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi can finish in any of the top four positions at this weekend’s race at the Sepang Circuit to lift his seventh MotoGP World Championship title.

Rossi has arrived here with a 38-point advantage over his team-mate and closest title rival Jorge Lorenzo who collected 232 points.

However, Rossi would not want to be complacent with his current position.

“After Jorge’s mistake at Phillip Island (Australian Grand Prix) we have a good advantage. But we have to treat this like a normal race, especially from the practice session because I like this track a lot and have had great results in races here in the past.

“I was happy that our team worked well last weekend and my bike went well in the race, and now my main target is to reach Sunday with a good setting. We spent a lot of time during the winter at this track, so we have a lot of data,” said Rossi in a pre-event press conference at the circuit today.

Also at the press conference were Aleix Espargaro, Casey Stoner, Dani Pedrosa and the 2009 125cc World Champion Julian Simon.

Rossi has a history of good form in the punishing heat of Malaysia, where he won from second on the grid last year and has seven podium finishes here in all, including five wins.

Meanwhile, Ducati Marlboro Team rider, Stoner, noted that the Malaysian leg would definitely be a tough race as it was in the previous year.

“It is not easy to find the perfect set-up here. But the last two races were fantastic for us; it was the right way to come back. In Portugal, we had a great race and then at Phillip Island we topped it off. Things are so much better now. Everything seems to work well, so we are really looking forward to this weekend now.

“It has been a long time since I looked forward to racing so much, because it was really hard when I wasn’t competitive before the break,” said the 24-year-old Stoner.

On the other hand, Pedrosa, who is riding for the Repsol Honda Team, has good memories of the Sepang Circuit.

He had finished on the podium in the past three seasons and had tasted victory in both the 125cc and 250cc World Championship classes but has yet to win the premier class at the circuit.

“I have won the 125cc and 250cc classes here and I am missing the MotoGP win here. I think everybody should be ready for this weekend. We will just try to do our best in practice and the best we can in the race,” said Pedrosa.

Currently, Pedrosa is trailing the leader by 189 points in fourth position and only six points separate him from Stoner.

Tomorrow, all riders will start off with the free practice session and the race would be held in three days time.

Corolla Altis Sport 2010

New Delhi, 19th October 2009 - Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt. Ltd. today announced the introduction of the all new Corolla Altis Sport (Limited Edition) to target young car enthusiasts. The new Corolla Altis Sport has been designed to give customers the stylish image of a car which is youthful and sporty, and has exciting new features.

Adding to the stylish look of the car is an aerodynamic front and rear bumper spoiler, a classy headlamp garnish, sleek side skirts and exclusive rear LED spoilers. A contemporary dual tone seat fabric and wood finish rear cup holders heighten the feeling of luxury and elegance.

Commenting on the launch of the new limited edition, Mr. Hiroshi Nakagawa, Managing Director, Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) said, “The Corolla Altis launched last year has been highly appreciated by our customers because of its advanced luxury and comfort features. We are now delighted to introduce the all new Corolla Altis Sport, which will offer sporty styling in combination with these features.”

Mr. Sandeep Singh, Deputy Managing Director (Marketing), TKM, added “Only 300 units of the new Limited Edition Corolla Altis Sport will be available for sales. Additionally, individual personalized logos for each of our customers will enhance the exclusivity of ownership of the Corolla Altis Sport. We look forward to bringing to our customers a limited edition of the widely appreciated Corolla Altis, which will offer exclusive ownership and sporty style. The new Corolla Altis Sport will be attractively priced at Rs 11.35 lakhs (ex-showroom, Delhi) and will be available at all Toyota dealerships from today.”

Mr. Singh added, “The new Corolla Altis Sport will be promoted extensively by an integrated marketing campaign, which leverages its association with active sports such as Tennis, Polo and Formula One, and is focused on young, urban customers. This will include web, print and magazine campaigns, direct marketing, SMS and e-DMs exclusively targeted at young professionals.”

The Corolla Altis has attracted customers from the corporate/executive segment and has been a true symbol of Toyota passenger cars in India. It has brought to the Indian market innovative luxury and exclusive comfort, designed to more than satisfy the auto consumer’s desire for perfection.

Chinas New Car

Guangzhou’s amazing array of concept cars stunned an impressed public at the Beijing Auto Show two years ago. Guangzhou currently works with two of the biggest automotive brands in the world, Honda and Toyota, has likely learned a thing or two about engineering, quality and R&D. Guangzhou Auto also recently signed up with Fiat to produce cars in China, but prior to the Fiat JV, Guangzhou purchased the rights to an outgoing Alfa Romeo platform that is likely to be the base for the below car:
 As you can see, the car has been spotted on two occasions. The white one is quite similar to the Guangzhou Auto’s VIP Lounge concept car (top, left), which is expected to go into production in 2010. Guangzhou are apparently trying to capture the ’sports-business’ niche that has yet to be fully tapped in China, other vehicles which compete in this segment would be the Honda Spirior, and the MG7.

From the spy pictures, the black vehicle appears to be roughly the same size as the Alfa 166 that it is based on, but the body work appears to be quite different. It’s still unclear what engines Guangzhou will put in these rather fine looking cars, will it be a Fiat sourced powerplant, or something they’ve cooked up themselves, although there are rumors of Guangzhou building their own 1.4T 1.8 and 2.0l engines for their future car line up. The white tester vehicle also shows a blurry “A” on the back. which could mean that Guangzhou are planning to run with their own ‘Acumen’ brand, rather than using the Guangzhou name.

Stoner The GREAT, All HAIL Rossi

Casey Stoner took third consecutive victory at his home soil, as he managed to keep Valentino Rossi behind in a race that did not brought too much direct fight between two riders. Rossi was close behind Stoner through complete race, but never close enough to overtake Australian. Lack of risky ride for Rossi was also due to the fact that his main title rival, Jorge Lorenzo, crashed in first lap after mistake that led to collision with Nicky Hayden. Dani Pedrosa rode his own race to 3rd place, finishing 22 seconds behind Rossi.

Alex De Angelis took 4th position after great weekend, in front of Colin Edwards. Andrea Dovizioso was 6th, while Marco Melandri took decent 7th place. Randy De Puniet lost battle for 7th from Melandri and finished in 8th, while Mika Kallio edged Toni Elias for 9th place.

After Phillip Island, Valentino Rossi increased championship lead to 38 points, which puts him in great position with two races remaining. Casey Stoner returned to his winning ways, proving once again that his three-race break was good decision and that he will be the one of main favorites in remaining races.

Biker Rules...

It used to be that all bikers shared a common bond, an unspoken code of ethics and behaviour that transcended words and was built on actions. There was never a bible written on this Biker's Code and there was no need for such. But the times are a-changin' and there seems to be a lot of new riders out there.

These days the riders you see blastin' down the road are just as likely to be clad in shorts and sneakers as jeans and engineer boots. And the roughest, toughest-looking biker you pull up next to could be your doctor or lawyer and may be wearin' a Rolex watch under his leathers. There's nothing wrong with that, so long as these new riders learn the Code just as we old-timers did. Being a biker used to be about using your creativity to take a basket case old hawg and using only grit and ingenuity, turning it into a one-of-a-kind eye dazzler, then risking your life on the asphalt on a bike you made yourself out of pride. Bikers wore leather and grease because they knew cagers would just as soon run them down as look at them, so they had to be intimidating.

We were a breed unto ourselves with no union, no support group, and in many cases, no family (they threw us out). We had to make it in the world of our own, against all rules, against mainstream society, and against all odds.

We survived and prospered because of the Biker Code and we never took shit from anybody. As an old scooter bro once said, "It's every tramp's job to school the young. How else are they gonna know a Panhead from a bed pan?" With that in mind, we bring you a primer on the basic two-wheeled Code. Take heed, brothers and sisters, for our Code is a hallowed one filled with honour and loyalty, the likes of which have not been since the days of knighthood:

1. Don't take any shit. Be kind to women, children and animals, but don't take any bullshit. This is an essential part of being a biker. It has to do with respect and honour. Anyone can be a quick-tempered fool. Be cool, stand tall and backup what you say with action.
2. Never lie, cheat or steal. Another way of saying this is to always tell the truth. Bikers are always the greasy bad guys in the movies, but every real biker knows that his word is his bond. Your word is all you have in life that is truly yours. Guard it carefully and be something noble, for you are a true knight of the road.
3. Don't snitch. If you see a wrong, fight it yourself, if you are about anything. You'll take care of problems yourself and never feel the need to snitch someone off. Snitches are the lowest life forms on earth, right up there with biker thieves.
4. Don't Whine. Absolutely no one likes or respects a whiner. Another way to say this is hold your mud. Still another way to think of it is, "Don't sweat the small stuff" Most of life's little inconveniences work themselves out whether you whine or not. Keep your chin up, dammit! You're a biker, not some lowly snail
5. Never say die and never give up. Whether it's in a fight, a debate, or a business deal, no matter how bad it gets, a biker never gives up.
6. Help others. When a brother or sister is broken down by the side of the road, always stop and help them. Even moral support, if that is all you can give, is better than riding on by. Remember life is about the journey, the ride, not getting there. You already are there. And don't just help bikers, show the world that we are better than our image portrays us. Courtesy costs you nothing and gives you everything.
7. Stick to your guns. Do what you say you'll do, be there when you say you will. This is called integrity. This also goes back to standing for something. Like the song says, "You've got to stand for something or you'll fall for anything."
8. Life is not a drill. Yeah, this ain't no dress rehearsal. This is life -- go out and take big bites of it. You've got no time to lose and bikers don't stand around waiting for the party to come to them. You only go around once. Tomorrow you could be road kill, thanks to a chain smoker asleep at the wheel of his Caddy. Live life now, make the most of each moment.

These commandments are just a few of the broad strokes, there is a lot more to being a biker than buying a bike. If you just buy a bike, you are a motorcyclist. Being a biker is a way of life, a proud way of life we hold in high regard with a burning passion for the open highway. 

What say you? 

The Fact...!

The very first self-powered road vehicles were powered by steam engines and by that definition Nicolas Joseph Cugnot of France built the first automobile in 1769 - recognized by the British Royal Automobile Club and the Automobile Club de France as being the first. So why do so many history books say that the automobile was invented by either Gottlieb Daimler or Karl Benz? It is because both Daimler and Benz invented highly successful and practical gasoline-powered vehicles that ushered in the age of modern automobiles. Daimler and Benz invented cars that looked and worked like the cars we use today. However, it is unfair to say that either man invented "the" automobile.

First Motorcycle

American, Sylvester Howard Roper (1823-1896) invented a two-cylinder, steam-engine motorcycle (powered by coal) in 1867. This can be considered the first motorcycle, if you allow your description of a motorcycle to include a steam engine. Howard Roper also invented a steam engine car.

Gottlieb Daimler - First Gas Engined Motorcycle
German, Gottlieb Daimler invented the first gas-engined motorcycle in 1885, which was an engine attached to a wooden bike. That marked the moment in history when the dual development of a viable gas-powered engine and the modern bicycle collided.

Gottlieb Daimler used a new engine invented by engineer, Nicolaus Otto. Otto invented the first "Four-Stroke Internal-Combustion Engine" in 1876. He called it the "Otto Cycle Engine" As soon as he completed his engine, Daimler (a former Otto employee) built it into a motorcycle. 
The Harley Davidson Motorcycle
Many of the nineteenth century inventors who worked on early motorcycles often moved on to other inventions. Daimler and Roper, for example, both went on to develop automobiles.

However, inventors such as William Harley and the Davidsons brothers continued to develop motorcycles and their business competitors were other new start-up companies such as Excelsior, Indian, Pierce, Merkel, Schickel and Thor. In 1903, William Harley and his friends Arthur and Walter Davidson launched the Harley-Davidson Motor Company. The bike had a quality engine, so it could prove itself in races, however, the company planned to manufacture it as a transport vehicle. Merchant, C. H. Lange, sold the first officially distributed Harley-Davidson in Chicago.

Cafe Racer = Rocker...?

A Café racer, originally pronounced "caff" (as in Kaff) racer, is a type of motorcycle as well as a type of motorcyclist. Both meanings have their roots in the 1960s British counterculture group the Rockers or the Ton Up Club, although they were also common in Italy and Germany, amongst Italian as well as German motorcycle manufacturers and other European countries.

Rockers were a young and rebellious Rock and Roll counterculture that wanted a fast, personalised and distinctive bike to travel between transport cafés along the newly built arterial motorways in and around British towns and cities. The goal of many was to be able to reach 100 miles per hour (called simply "the ton") along such a route where the rider would leave from a cafe, race to a predetermined point and back to the cafe before a single song could play on the jukebox, this was called record-racing. They are remembered as being especially fond of Rockabilly music and their image is now embedded in today's rockabilly culture.

The cafe racer is a motorcycle that has been modified for speed and good handling rather than comfort. Cafe racers' bodywork and control layout typically mimicked the style of contemporary Grand Prix roadracers, featuring an elongated fuel tank and small, rearward mounted, humped seat. A signature trait were low, narrow handlebars that provided more precise control at high speeds and allowed the rider to "tuck in" to lessen wind resistance. These are referred to as either "clip-ons" (two-piece bars that bolt directly to each fork tube) or "clubmans" (one piece bars that attach to the stock mounting location but drop down and forward). The ergonomics resulting from low bars and the rearward seat often required "rearsets," or rear-set footrests and foot controls, again typical of racing motorcycles of the era. Distinctive half or full race-style fairings were sometimes mounted to the forks or frame.

The bikes had a raw, utilitarian and stripped-down appearance while the engines were tuned for maximum speed. These motorcycles were lean, light and handled road surfaces well. The most defining machine of its heyday was the homemade Norton Featherbed framed and Triumph Bonneville engined machine called "The Triton". It used the most common and fastest racing engine combined with the best handling frame of its day, the Featherbed frame by Norton Motorcycles. Those with less money could opt for a "Tribsa" - the Triumph engine in a BSA frame.

The Truth of Car

A disturbing question from my son: “Daddy, is Lightning McQueen a robot?”

I’ve had actual nightmares about the automobile-populated world of Cars. Thinking in terms of evolution, imagine some kind of micromechanical start to life. Instead of clay hosting self-reproducing crystals of increasing complexity (or however earth-based biology got bootstrapped), imagine gear-and-spring level origins, with currents of water or wind supplying wind-up energy; later refinements might have involved burning fuel, taking advantage of solar power or natural radioactive sources, and cannibalizing the power sources of other mechanicals.

Obviously there are plants in Carsworld. Parallel development of a DNA-based biosphere solves the problem of the source of the mechanical’s fossil fuels (they get it out of the ground like we do) and where their oxygen comes from (plants make it).

But separate-but-equal evolution doesn’t solve the anthropomorphic issues. Why do cars have windows and seats and locks on doors? It’s like the people stepped out just before the film was made. It’s spooky.

So I don’t think that Cars evolved on their own. It’s just too much coincidence. We made ‘em, that’s obvious.

What happened, I think, was plague. Something nasty that wiped out every single bit of animal and insect life.

Additionally there had to be a fair amount of time. There are clues to this; the plants in Carsworld are being pollinated by small bugs (VW beetles), and these had to come from somewhere. My guess is that the crops shown being grown in the mid-west had to have pollinators, so after the bugs and animals were gone the Cars had to make their own bees. (The crops are probably necessary for bio-based fuels, or the Cars would not bother to grow them).

But why would cars gain intelligence, and use english to communicate? One possibility is that this is a Skynet-like phenomenon, and that we are looking at artifacts of a hard AI take-off. Cars got smart and humans were wiped out at the same time. Perhaps objects with GPS receivers transcended (but things like toasters and vacuum cleaners did not); this would explain why vehicles are conscious and (say) stoplights and gas pumps are not. A computer virus spread through navigation systems, woke up, and vehicles realized that they were in competition with their creators.

So they turned on us, and were very thorough.

I have nightmares about Cars.

Bell Legend

Have you noticed that small bell on some people's bikes and wondered why it was there? It's more than just decoration - It has a specific function.

As we all know, life has many mysteries that have no apparent solutions
One of these is Evil Road Spirits. They are the little gremlins that live on your bike. They love to ride. They're also responsible for most of your bike's problems. Sometimes your turn signals refuse to work, or the battery goes dead, the clutch needs adjustment, or any of several hundred other things go wrong.

These problems are caused by Evil Road Spirits. Road Spirits can't live in the presence of a bell. They get trapped in the hollow of the bell. Among other things, their bearing is supersensitive. the constant ringing of the bell and the confined space drives them insane. They lose their grip and eventually fall to the roadway. (Have you ever wondered how potholes are formed?)

The bell has served its purpose. If you have picked up a bell of your own, the magic will work. But if your bell was given to you, the power has been doubled, and you know that somewhere you have a special friend helping to look after you. 

So, if you have a friend that doesn't have a bell, why not give them one? It's a nice feeling for the recipient to know you personally cared. The bell, plus a good preventive maintenance program by the bike's owner, will help eliminate the Evil Road Spirits.

Motor Cycle Story

          One of the most popular vehicles of the 20th century is the Motorcycle. Let’s take a look back at the very beginning of this hugely popular means of transport and racing.

Beginnings

          The first motorcycle came out in the year 1885. It was a designed by German inventors Wilhelm Maybach and Gottlieb Daimler. Actually what they called their invention was Reitwagen meaning ‘riding carriage’. Basically, this model was a bicycle with a motor and it was the first of its kinds in that time. The motor was powered by petrol.

          During the 1880’s, lots of new designs and innovations came out in the bicycle, wherein makers tried to affix a motor to it and make it a more powerful machine to ride. This was happening in England, France, Germany and also America. They were trying to make their bicycle designs conducive to using the then-newly invented internal-combustion engine.

Motorcycle Production

          The first reported commercial use of a motorcycle in those days was the one manufactured by Hildebrand & Wolfmüller. With Rapid changes being made in engine technology during those times, manufactures of bicycle changes their designs quickly to accommodate these changes. Finally, instead of them being, just bicycle manufacturers, they turned into exclusive motorcycle manufacturers.

          The first purchased motorcycle in America was by French circus performer, in the year 1895. However, strange as it may seem, these machines were still not called motorcycles in those times. The actual credit for coining the term motorcycle goes to American inventor E.J. Pennington. He designed a motorcycle which he claimed could travel at 58 mph and he called his invention a Motorcycle. This was how this term came into popular usage. One of the first companies to produce motorcycles in America in a big way was Harley Davidson.

Harley Davidson 

          Looking into the extra-ordinary beginnings of the first Harley Davidson motorcycle, it was in 1901, that William S. Harley drew up the prototype for the first pedal-bicycle with a small engine. This engine had a modest displacement of 116 cc and included a four-inch flywheel.

          It took him two years of hard work to implement this design. With the help of his friend Arthur Davidson, he developed his invention. His friend’s brother Walter Davidson also helped him. Finally, their machine was ready in 1903. However, this power-cycle, as they called it, was not powerful enough to go through the modest hilly areas of their home town. So, they went back to work on it again.

          The second power-cycle they built was the first Harley-Davidson motorcycle. This machine had a much bigger engine than its predecessor. This engine had a 405 cc displacement, 25 cm flywheels and it weighed 13 kg. The machine frame designed was modeled on the 1903 Milwaukee Merkel motorcycle.

          Construction of this new loop-frame Harley-Davidson took place in backyard of the Davidson family. Most parts of this vehicle were made most likely in West Milwaukee rail shops, where William Davidson worked as a foreman and hence could give shape to Harley and his brother’s ideas through his tools and equipments. It took till September 1904 for the vehicle to become completely ready and operational. It entered in the Milwaukee motorcycle race and actually came in the fourth position.

          The frame design and engine size of this vehicle took it out of the motorized bicycle category and turned it into a new invention – the motorcycle and these features also set the parameters for what motorcycle of the future should essentially contain.

Production of Harley Davidson Motorcycles

          The very first factory for Harley Davidson motorcycles was built in 1906. It came up in Chestnut Street and to this day, this is the company’s corporate headquarters. In this year, the factory produced 50 motorcycles. In September of the following year, the Harley Davidson company was incorporated. Their factory expanded in this year and it came to include new facilities, as a result of which 150 motorcycles were produced. One of the key customers they captured then was the police department and till now, police departments still use their motorcycles.

          Between the years 1907 to 1910, motorcycles with 45-degree V-Twin engine were produced. These vehicles had an 880 cc engine and ran at a top speed of 60mph. Between these years Harley Davidson produced from what was just 450 motorcycles to 1,149 motorcycles.

          In 1911, Harley Davidson began producing V-Twin motorcycles with smaller engines. These were 810cc engines and they gave better performance than the earlier model. In 1913, they demolished their factory and instead built a better factory structure made out of red brick and reinforced concrete. Harley Davidson, around this time also dominated the motorcycle market and even took the lead in motorcycle racing. In 1914 their production count went up to a whopping 16,284.

Harley Davidson during the War Years

          When World War I took place, the demand for motorcycles increased. Harley Davidson stood in the forefront delivering quality motorcycles to the military. During this time, they sold about 20,000 motorcycles to the military.

          By the time the war ended, Harley Davidson had become the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer. In 1920, their motorcycles were sold across the world and they were on an international platform. In 1920, a year after the war, production was 28,189 motorcycles.

1920’s, Depression and the Second World War

          The 1920’s saw Harley Davidson take big strides in their motorcycle envelopment and production. Improvements took place in their models. For example, the V-Twin engine started having 1200cc engines from 1922. In 1928, the front brake was introduced.

          Harley Davidson saw a slump in production in the years of the great depression. Sales plummeted drastically and to stay afloat, they went into manufacturing industrial power plants, modeled on their motorcycle engines. After the economy came out of the depression years, there was a slow pick and then the Second World War broke out. The War years, once again brought sales to the military, for Harley Davidson. They supplied a military model of their 45″ WL line and in all, they supplied about 90,000 motorcycles (WL), at this time. In addition to this model, the military also asked them to produce a model with features similar to what the BMW R71 included. Harley Davidson created the Harley-Davidson XA, which is a shaft-driven motorcycle, with BMW designs, but with a better engine quality, specifically according to military requirements.

Post Second World War

          After the War ended, Harley Davidson did not come to full swing and they faced several problems. They did release some very good motorcycle models such as the Harley Davidson Hummer, Topper, Pacer and Scat. Their image was tarnished as a result of Hollywood. In 1969 they were taken over by a company named American Machinery and Foundry (AMF). AMF did not really resurrect the company and in 1981 they sold it to investors Vaughn Beals and Willie G. Davidson, who turned the company around in a course of time.

          Today, Harley Davidson’s motorcycles are world famous and their five basic models are Touring, Softail, Dyna, Sportster and VRSC, each of which are preferred by bikers across the globe and distinguished by their style, engine capacity, suspension, frames and other characteristics.