Outline of motorcycles and motorcycling


The following outline is provided as an overview of motorcycles and motorcycling:
Motorcycle — two-wheeled, single-track motor vehicle. Other names include: motorbike, bike, and cycle.
Motorcycling — act of riding a motorcycle, around which a variety of subcultures and lifestyles have built up.

Motorcycles

Description

  • Legal definition of motorcycle – a 'powered two-wheel motor vehicle'. Most countries distinguish between mopeds up to and the more powerful, larger, vehicles known as motorcycles. Scooters do not count as a separate category, and are deemed to be "motorcycles".
  • Some motorcycles have paired front wheels, or paired rear wheels, three in all. Motorized tricycles and sidecar outfits are deemed "motorcycles". Most jurisdictions do not consider three-wheeled cars to be motorcycles; but some grant low tax and driving licence exemptions to such vehicles subject to, say, weight and power limits.
  • Motorcycles can be described as all of the following:
  • * a component of transport
  • * a component of a mode of transport
  • * a component of road transport
  • * a type of vehicle
  • * a type of motor vehicle
  • * a type of machine
  • * sports equipment

Types

Types of motorcycles
The design of a motorcycle reflects the purpose for which it is to be used. The main types of motorcycle include:
  • Street motorcycle – designed for riding on paved roads; features smooth tyres with a light tread pattern and at least engine.
  • *Cruiser – mimics the style of American machines from the 1930s to the early 1960s, including those made by Harley-Davidson, Indian, Excelsior and Henderson; models evocative of the early cruisers make up 60% of the U.S. market
  • **Bobber – usually has had the front fender removed, the rear fender 'bobbed' or made smaller, and all superfluous items removed to make it lighter
  • **Chopper – has a longer frame design accompanied by a stretched front end. To achieve a longer front end, while the frame is being designed, the fabricator tilts the neck of the frame at less of an incline and installs a longer fork.
  • *Sport bike – optimised for speed, acceleration, braking, and cornering on paved roads, typically at the expense of comfort and fuel economy in comparison to less specialised motorcycles.
  • **Café racer – a type of motorcycle that has been modified for speed and good handling rather than comfort. Cafe racers' bodywork and control layout typically mimic the style of Grand Prix roadracers of the 1950s or 1960s with or without fairings. They tend to feature an elongated fuel tank, a small, rearward mounted and humped single seat, and low, race style handlebars mounted on the front forks.
  • **Streetfighter – a sport bike that is customised by removing the fairing, with other changes that result in an overall more aggressive look
  • *Touring motorcycle – designed for long-distance touring and heavy commuting; although any motorcycle can be ridden to tour or commute, manufacturers provide specific models designed to address these particular needs
  • **Sport touring motorcycle – blends performance with long-distance capabilities while providing comfort and relative safety to the rider, and tend to include accessories, such as a trunk or saddlebags for storage, to enhance the touring experience
  • *Standard motorcycle – versatile, general purpose street motorcycle, with an upright riding position.
  • **Universal Japanese Motorcycle – Japanese motorcycle with a transverse air-cooled four-cylinder engine in a conventional tube frame with a dual seat, mostly made in the 1970s and early 1980s
  • Custom motorcycle – unique or individually produced in a very limited quantity, as opposed to stock bikes which are mass-produced. Is usually highly stylised or has an unusual frame geometry or engine design. Many styles including café racer, streetfighter, and chopper began as customized motorcycles before manufacturers mass-produced bikes styled after popular custom machines.
  • *Rat bike – motorcycle maintained at little to no cost, or often of a deliberately exaggerated state of disrepair
  • Dual-sport motorcycle – type of street-legal motorcycle designed for both on and off-road use
  • *Enduro motorcycle – motorcycle made specifically for the Enduro sport, with the long travel and medium-hard suspension of a motocross bike enhanced with motorcycle features such as a headlight and quiet muffler to make the bike street-legal for parts of the track
  • *Motocross motorcycle – a light weight, high power, off-road competition race bike
  • *Supermoto motorcycle – a dual purpose, single cylinder, light weight bike fitted with equipment better suited to street riding or racing such as 17 inch front wheel and road tyres
  • Off-road motorcycle
  • *Motocross motorcycle
  • *Track racing motorcycle – customised for track racing, with no brakes and fueled with methanol
  • *Trials motorcycle – an extremely lightweight design, that lacks seating and that has suspension travel that is short, relative to a motocross or enduro motorcycle
  • Small class
  • *Minibike – sometimes called a mini-moto or pocket-bike, it is a considerably smaller motorcycle; most traditional minibikes use a two stroke engine to turn the rear wheel via a chain
  • *Mini chopper – mini choppers are scaled-down versions of choppers, and are usually constructed from 1" steel tubing or 3/4" steel black pipe; the tube or pipe is bent and then welded together to get the desired angles and shapes of the frame, which is usually custom made
  • *Moped – a type of low-powered motorcycle designed to provide economical and relatively safe transport with minimal licensing requirements
  • **Sport moped – a type of moped that resembles a sport bike
  • *Pit bike – a small off-road motorcycle originally used for riding around the pits or staging area of a motocross race; since the early 2000s, pit bike racing, a sport similar to motocross, has become popular in the United States, especially in Southern California
  • *Scooter – a step-through motorcycle with a seat, a floorboard, and small or low wheels. Most modern scooter designs have swingarm-mounted engines
  • *Underbone – a step-through motorcycle with a structural down-tube and conventionally sized wheels, but without a floorboard
  • Electric motorcycle – has an electric motor powered by one or more batteries or fuel cells
  • *Electric dragbike
  • *TTXGP race class
  • *TT Zero race class
  • Enclosed motorcycle
  • *Cabin motorcycle
  • *Streamliner motorcycle
  • Utility motorcycle
  • *Derny – motorised bicycle for motor-paced cycling events
  • *Blood bike
  • *Fire bike
  • *Motocrotte – Parisian sanitation motorcycle
  • *Motorcycle ambulance
  • *Motorcycle taxi
  • *Police motorcycle
  • Other designs and variations
  • *Feet forwards motorcycle – motorcycle on which the rider reclines with his feet positioned ahead of his body
  • Related three-wheeled vehicles
  • *Auto rickshaw
  • *Motorcycle combination
  • *Motorized tricycle
  • *Tilting three-wheeler

Design

Motorcycle design

Major component parts

Motorcycle components

Models

Manufacturers

History

Motorcycle history

Pioneers

First motorcycle ride – it is generally accepted that the first motorcycle ride was by Gottlieb Daimler's son Paul on a new machine called Einspur near Stuttgart in Germany on 10 November 1885. However, several pioneering engineers and inventors preceded Daimler, mostly with steam engines powering their cycles. These include:
Many pioneering engineers and inventors followed Daimler in using internal combustion engines. These include:

Innovators

Industrialists

Museums and exhibitions

There are a number of museums which feature collections of motorcycles, either as part of a larger exhibition of vehicles, or dedicated entirely to motorcycles. Some of those museums are listed below:

Motorcycling

Motorcycling

Safety

Equipment

Accidents

Types

Sport

Motorcycle sport – broad field that encompasses all sporting aspects of motorcycling. The various disciplines are not all races or timed-speed events, as several disciplines test a competitor's various riding skills. Riders have raced motorcycles for over a hundred years, with the first official competition recorded as the Paris–Rouen race in July 1894. This was quickly followed by races all over Europe and the US. In 1907, the Isle of Man TT races took over of the island's roads and has continued since. Motorcycle sport now takes many different forms, including:

Racing

Motorcycle racing – motorcycle sport involving racing motorcycles, on or off a track.

Organisations and clubs

Although motorcycling can be a solitary form of transport, there are clubs for almost every aspect; including charities, social clubs, criminal or outlaw clubs, lobby groups that guard against restrictive legislation, and specialist clubs for specific makes or types of motorcycle. Examples include:

Organisations

Motorcycle clubs

Motorcycle club – group of individuals whose primary interest and activities involve motorcycles.

Notable motorcyclists

Notable motorcycle sportspersons

Motocross riders

Motorcycling in the media

Film

Television programmes

Documentaries

Books

Exhibitions