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The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) is an American nonprofit organization of more than 200,000 motorcyclists that organizes numerous motorcycling activities and campaigns for motorcyclists' legal rights. Its mission statement is "to promote the motorcycling lifestyle and protect the future of motorcycling." The organization was founded in 1924 and as of October 2016 had more than 1,100 chartered clubs.
AMA Superbike Championship is an American motorcycle racing series that has been run every year beginning in 1976. For most of its existence it has been considered the premier motorcycle road racing series in the United States. It is sanctioned by the AMA American Motorcyclist Association since its inception, and the promotion of the series has been licensed to several organizations over the years. Since 2015 the series has been run and promoted by MotoAmerica, who also manage several other AMA professional road racing championships, including the popular 600cc Supersport class.
Universal Japanese Motorcycle (UJM) is a US motorcycling media term for a general-purpose style of Japanese standard motorcycle that revolutionized the industry and made motorcycling in America more accessible during the 1970s and 1980s. By around 1990 its popularity began to wane as the market fragmented into more specialized designs.
A sportbike, or sports bike, is a motorcycle optimized for speed, acceleration, braking, and cornering on paved roads, typically at the expense of comfort and fuel economy by comparison with other motorcycles. Soichiro Honda wrote in the owner's manual of the 1959 Honda CB92 Benly Super Sport that, "Primarily, essentials of the motorcycle consists in the speed and the thrill," while Cycle World's Kevin Cameron says that, "A sportbike is a motorcycle whose enjoyment consists mainly from its ability to perform on all types of paved highway – its cornering ability, its handling, its thrilling acceleration and braking power, even its speed."
The Daytona 200 is an annual motorcycle road racing competition held in early spring at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. The 200-mile (320 km) race was founded in 1937 when it was sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA). The original course used the beach itself before moving to a paved closed circuit in 1961. The Daytona 200 reached its zenith of worldwide popularity in the 1970s when the race attracted the largest crowds of any AMA race along with some of the top rated international motorcycle racers.
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The Kawasaki Z1 is a four-cylinder, air-cooled, double-overhead camshaft, carbureted, chain-drive motorcycle introduced in 1972 by Kawasaki. Following the introduction of Honda's CB750 in 1968, the Z1 helped popularize the in-line, across-the-frame four-cylinder, a format that became known as the Universal Japanese Motorcycle or UJM.
Marty Smith was an American professional motocross racer. He competed in the AMA Motocross Championships from 1974 to 1981. He won three AMA National Motocross championships, all aboard Hondas, and was runner-up twice. With his long hair and Southern California surfer looks, he was a popular figure among race fans.
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The Kawasaki GPz750 Turbo was a sportbike manufactured from late 1983 to 1985, with two model years – the 1984 E1 and the 1985 E2. Differences were minor, a twin "push/pull" throttle cable for the E2 and different brake caliper stickers. The bike was manufactured in Japan, with parts also shipped to the US and assembled in Kawasaki's Nebraska plant for the US/Canada market to bypass the import tax levied on bikes over 700cc at the time by the US government, a protectionist move designed to save Harley-Davidson which was having financial problems at the time.
The Kawasaki Kz1000 or Z1000 is a motorcycle made in Japan by Kawasaki, manufacturing commenced in September 1976 for the 1977 model year. The Z1000A1 was an upgraded model to replace the 1976 Kawasaki KZ900 (Z900), which in turn replaced the Z1 launched in 1972 in the Z series. It has an inline-four cylinder engine and a 5-speed transmission, in a 'one down and four up' configuration. Producing about 90 hp, it was one of the fastest production motorcycles of the era. The police model continued in production until 2005.
Gene Romero was an American professional motorcycle racer. He competed in the A.M.A. Grand National Championship from 1966 to 1981 sponsored first by the Triumph factory racing team and then by the Yamaha factory racing team. Proficient on oval dirt tracks as well as paved road racing circuits, Romero won the 1970 A.M.A. Grand National Championship and was the winner of the 1975 Daytona 200. After retiring from competition, he became a successful racing team manager with Honda and, helped the sport of dirt track racing by becoming a race promoter. Romero was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1998.
The Triumph X-75 Hurricane was a 'factory special' motorcycle designed by fairing specialist Craig Vetter. The X-75 had swooping glassfibre bodywork, a three US-gallon petrol tank, lowered gearing and a distinctive triple exhaust on the right-hand side. The motorcycle is credited with creating a new class of motorcycle, the cruiser.
The 2011 AMA Pro American Superbike Championship was the 36th running of the AMA Superbike Championship. The championship covered 8 rounds beginning at Daytona International Speedway on March 11 and concluding at New Jersey Motorsports Park on September 4. The champion was Josh Hayes riding a Yamaha.
The 2011 AMA Pro Daytona Sportbike Championship was the third running of the AMA Daytona Sportbike Championship. The series covered 8 rounds beginning at Daytona International Speedway with the Daytona 200 on March 12, and concluding at New Jersey Motorsports Park on September 4. The champion was Danny Eslick riding a Suzuki.
Gavin Trippe was a motorcycle racing promoter, journalist, and publisher who was inducted to the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2005. He died following an automobile accident in California.
Craig Vetter is an American entrepreneur and motorcycle designer. His work was acknowledged when in 1999 he was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame.
The Vetter Streamliner was a feet forwards motorcycle made by Craig Vetter in 1980–1981 to demonstrate high fuel economy with an aerodynamic fairing.
Forced induction in motorcycles is the application of forced induction to a motorcycle engine. Special automotive engineering and human factors considerations exist for the application of forced induction with motorcycles, compared to other forms of motorized transportation.
References
- 1 2 "1980 Mystery Ship — Craig Vetter's Limited-Edition Rolling Artwork", American Motorcyclist , American Motorcyclist Association, 56 (7): 79, July 2002, ISSN 0277-9358
- ↑ Goddard, Nick (February 15, 2013), Craig Vetter on Living Better on Less Energy, Hell for Leather online magazine, archived from the original on February 18, 2013
- ↑ Hall, Landon (June 30, 2009), "Found on eBay: 1980 Mystery Ship", The Classic Life blog, Motorcycle Classics, archived from the original on July 10, 2010
- 1 2 3 Johnson, David (May 1995), "The wreck of the mystery ship: Craig Vetter's forgotten motorcycle", Cycle World , 34 (5): 80
- ↑ Schmitt, Dan. "Barber Vintage Motorcycle Museum". Team Chicago Challenge. Retrieved 2013-04-12.
- 1 2 Wasef, Basem; Leno, Jay (2007), "Craig Vetter's Mystery Ship; The Childhood Fantasy Bike", Legendary Motorcycles: The Stories and Bikes Made Famous by Elvis, Peter Fonda, Kenny Roberts and Other Motorcycling Greats, MotorBooks International, pp. 67–71, ISBN 978-0-7603-3070-8 , retrieved 2011-08-29
- ↑ Johnson 1995: "If I make 200 I'll lose my ass," [Vetter] said. "There's no way I can make money on the Mystery Ship. There's too much time and money invested in it."
- ↑ Brown, Don (July 2004). "The Hurricane Dialogue: The True Story of the Triumph Hurricane as Told by the Men Who made it Happen". Ed Youngblood's Moto History. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012. Retrieved 2013-04-10.
- ↑ "Craig Vetter: Fairing and Motorcycle Designer, Innovator, Racer", Motorcycle Museum Hall of Fame, American Motorcyclist Association, archived from the original on June 13, 2010, retrieved 2012-10-26
- ↑ "Dads Motorcycling: It Runs in the Family", American Motorcyclist , American Motorcyclist Association, 54 (6): 26, June 2000, ISSN 0277-9358