Remember that thread about the record speeding ticket issued to a motorcyclist in MN? Well, I couldn't find it. Anyway, I thought this article was relevant to the debate re: stock motorcycles capabilities and what model Honda was involved (I believe there was only speculation on this point in the original thread).

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040925/ap_on_fe_st/205_mph_ticket&e=1

Quoted: Remember that thread about the record speeding ticket issued to a motorcyclist in MN? Well, I couldn't find it. Anyway, I thought this article was relevant to the debate re: stock motorcycles capabilities and what model Honda was involved (I believe there was only speculation on this point in the original thread). story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040925/ap_on_fe_st/205_mph_ticket&e=1

I think its a bullshit ticket. The RC51 s a 190mph bike at most.

Heh, Just caught a speeding motorcycle this afternoon. Transplant from Texas just arrived here a month ago. Speeding 90+MPH, reckless lane changes and splitting lanes. Got a stern warning from the officer on the ground as he was receptive to the grilling. Planerench out.

ZX12 or a Hayabusa maybe

205 mph not possible on a stock bike. Maybe an amped 'Busa, Honda Blackhawk, or ZX-12, but even then only for limited periods. Even million $$$ MotoGP bikes are barely pushing past the double-deuce. They're reading it wrong.

Quoted: 205 mph not possible on a stock bike. Maybe an amped 'Busa, Honda Blackhawk, or ZX-12, but even then only for limited periods. Even million $$$ MotoGP nikes are barely pushing past the double-deuce. They're reading it wrong.

MotoGP bikes have about 250 hp. A landspeed 'busa is pushing 500 and the difference in top speed is 40 or so mph.

Quoted: I think its a bullshit ticket. The RC51 s a 190mph bike at most.

There was a news story about this tonight.  The manufacturer says the bike will not do over 185.  They are now questioning the timing of the officer who clocked him. After all the this he may just get his ticket dropped.  

Quoted: Quoted: I think its a bullshit ticket. The RC51 s a 190mph bike at most. There was a news story about this tonight.  The manufacturer says the bike will not do over 185.  They are now questioning the timing of the officer who clocked him. After all the this he may just get his ticket dropped.

I think that for being 25+ mph off they should either seriously reprimand the officer or drop the ticket. Sure, it may not sound like a big deal, he was still hauling ass, but when he signs his name on the ticket he damn well had better be right.

Shit, it's insane out there.

I've got a dirt bike made for tight wooded trails that'll do almost 100.  An enduro dirt bike!!

I ride like the crazed lunatic that I am... and I've never put it in the top two gears on a trail.

Of course if I ever get to the desert.... that's a whole different ball game.

Quoted: Shit, it's insane out there. I've got a dirt bike made for tight wooded trails that'll do almost 100.  An enduro dirt bike!! I ride like the crazed lunatic that I am... and I've never put it in the top two gears on a trail. Of course if I ever get to the desert.... that's a whole different ball game.

My XR600 will do 100, my GS500 will do near that. I need more power!

First time on a bike I did 100, I shit you not. On dirt knobees on a rough road. public road. in a 25 mph zone. I'll file that one under "thank God the Pierce County Sheriffs Department doesn't ever leave Tacoma".

I think that after the officer stopped him he should have let him off because this guy is gonna need all the money he can scrape together....for medical bills!

Quoted: I think that after the officer stopped him he should have let him off because this guy is gonna need all the money he can scrape together....for medical bills!

nah, at a certain point even the best gear wont protect you, your skin and organs will be eaten off by the pavement. Still, its good to wear a helmet, casue they can put you in a suit and still have an open casket.

Quoted: Quoted: Shit, it's insane out there. I've got a dirt bike made for tight wooded trails that'll do almost 100.  An enduro dirt bike!! I ride like the crazed lunatic that I am... and I've never put it in the top two gears on a trail. Of course if I ever get to the desert.... that's a whole different ball game. My XR600 will do 100, my GS500 will do near that. I need more power! First time on a bike I did 100, I shit you not. On dirt knobees on a rough road. public road. in a 25 mph zone. I'll file that one under "thank God the Pierce County Sheriffs Department doesn't ever leave Tacoma".

I'll admit to one or two infractions of the common sense laws that guide us all.    as well as the occational state ordinance.  I've tested (for a moment) the top end of this dirt bike, as I would with any bike.

That being said.  There will never be enough power to quench our thirst for it.  You obviously know about that.  Only enough power, that if we're really careful and practice alot, that we won't kill ourselves.

Mine's only a 450 EXC enduro machine at this point.  But I love it in the woods!

 I love my bike.

Quoted: Quoted: 205 mph not possible on a stock bike. Maybe an amped 'Busa, Honda Blackhawk, or ZX-12, but even then only for limited periods. Even million $$$ MotoGP nikes are barely pushing past the double-deuce. They're reading it wrong. MotoGP bikes have about 250 hp. A landspeed 'busa is pushing 500 and the difference in top speed is 40 or so mph.

What's your point? MotoGP bikes push maybe ~210 in current trim. 205 HP != 250mph. Not a chance. A highly modded showroom bike isn't going to sustain 205 mph for more than a few secs, if it can even get there. And, if this is a V-twin we're talking about, then a thrown rod is a more likely scenario.

I have never in my life driven any type of vehicle that kept me satisfied, as far as how fast it was. I'm including a Ford Lightning here.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: 205 mph not possible on a stock bike. Maybe an amped 'Busa, Honda Blackhawk, or ZX-12, but even then only for limited periods. Even million $$$ MotoGP nikes are barely pushing past the double-deuce. They're reading it wrong. MotoGP bikes have about 250 hp. A landspeed 'busa is pushing 500 and the difference in top speed is 40 or so mph. What's your point? MotoGP bikes push maybe ~210 in current trim. 205 HP != 250mph. Not a chance. A highly modded showroom bike isn't going to sustain 205 mph for more than a few secs, if it can even get there. And, if this is a V-twin we're talking about, then a thrown rod is a more likely scenario.

Not at all disagreeing with you. I am pointing out the immense amounts of power it takes to reach a high speed. It gets harder the faster you go too. Don't know where you got a figure of 205hp=250mph though.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: 205 mph not possible on a stock bike. Maybe an amped 'Busa, Honda Blackhawk, or ZX-12, but even then only for limited periods. Even million $$$ MotoGP nikes are barely pushing past the double-deuce. They're reading it wrong. MotoGP bikes have about 250 hp. A landspeed 'busa is pushing 500 and the difference in top speed is 40 or so mph. What's your point? MotoGP bikes push maybe ~210 in current trim. 205 HP != 250mph. Not a chance. A highly modded showroom bike isn't going to sustain 205 mph for more than a few secs, if it can even get there. And, if this is a V-twin we're talking about, then a thrown rod is a more likely scenario. Not at all disagreeing with you. I am pointing out the immense amounts of power it takes to reach a high speed. It gets harder the faster you go too. Don't know where you got a figure of 205hp=250mph though.

205HP != 250mph: '!=' is C++ lingo for "not equal", as in "205HP is not equal to 250mph"

Yes, up to & beyond a certain velocity, each extra MPH requires a HP^2 increase of magnitude. It gets to a point where the rider is struggling just to keep from flying off - & the engine is struggling to hold itself together. I keep wondering if rider-encased TRON bikes are in the future, but that would probably ruin the whole point now, wouldn't it?

Holy shit, there is absolutly no fucking way,  topped my 2004 nickey repli racer out  @ 185 and that's after dual akrapovik exhaust, k&n air filters, emission shit removed, and a PCIII w/ tweaked out map... cops (traffic quota cops) are so FUCKING stupid..... what a load of shit...  they're just pissed because they can't catch them

Hmm, I didn't catch the C++ bit, I don't know code. I know the record stands at 252 mph, I wonder how much higher it can go.

NPR interviewed the arresting officer.

He described the bike as "heavily modified".

I have no interest in going 205 on a public road. Well, maybe if it was closed to the public.

Horsepower = drag x velocity^3

I could find a record of a bike with 459HP going 230MPH.  Working backwards from that (and the assumption that the aerodynamic drag is equal (I know but that's all I got)) it would then require 325HP to go 205MPH.

185HP > 170MPH
220HP > 180MPH
259HP > 190MPH
301HP > 200MPH

Good aerodymanics could improve on this.

assuming the article got it right, it would have to be heavily modified:

"To get an RC51 up to 200 mph, they say, the owner would have to change the motorcycle's transmission, fuel injectors and gears — and might have to add either a supercharger or pump nitrous oxide or methane into the fuel system. "

It sounds like it takes a lot more than a filtercharger and some new pipes.

I've been BIG into sport bikes for years and have seen the other side of 150 a couple of times( years ago). There are guys with Turbo Hayabusas or ZX-12's that spend THOUSANDS to JUST hit a 201 or 202 at Bonneville. Getting past that aerodynamic wall at those speeds takes HUGE amounts of horsepower a stock bike can't get close to. I've ridden an RC51 (not at top speed) and while they are quick bikes there is NO WAY a stock or slightly modded one could get close to 200. It takes a seriously modded tubo bike ($$$) or full out race motor/chassis to approach the 200 mark.

Hey maybe its Imbro on a"harley"

Turbo 'Busa could do 200+, but not a stock RC51...NFW...

This is a dupe from an earlier thread. The bike was literally "clocked" from the air by an airborne traffic enforcement aircraft. As explained earlier, the inaccuracy comes from the calibration marks on the pavement being too close together to accurately gage vehicles travelling in excess of 120MPH. The skill of the pilot with a stop-watch is the only problem. He was reckless and should be treated as such. Planerench out.

Perhaps planerench can illuminate this analysis a little, but here's my stab at it.

Aerial timing involves two things: a stopwatch and a set of known markers on the road. Presumably (and I don't know for certain) the timing marks are exactly 1 mile apart. A vehicle traveling at 205 MPH will cover 1 mile in 17.56 seconds. Incidentally, 205 MPH equates to 300 FPS, for you Airsoft junkies.

Now, I think we have to consider something very imortant, here - reaction time. What is the airborne trooper's reaction time, i.e., how long does it take him to press the button on the stopwatch once he sees the vehicle cross the timing mark? Well, in my mind, it doesn't matter. Why not? Well, for a given human subject, it can reliably be assumed that the reaction time to start the clock will be the same as the time to stop the clock.

OK, so let's go on. If the trap (It's a Trap!) is only 1 mile, then let's look at how much minute lack of precision in timing affects the accuracy of the result.

(+0.50 sec) 18.06 sec = 199 mph
(+0.25 sec) 17.81 sec = 202 mph
(+0.00 sec) 17.56 sec = 205 mph
(-0.25 sec) 17.32 sec = 207 mph
(-0.50 sec) 17.06 sec = 211 mph

So a +/- 0.5 second change in precision of the measurement yields a +/- 6mph change in accuracy of the result. That's 3%, folks, which for a single reading seems pretty frigging close to me! The whole story on this remarkable event remains to be told, I think. If it is the officer's sworn statement that the vehicle passed the timing marks in the period of time required to show a speed of 205 mph, then it could very well be the case.

Now, if the timing marks are more than 1 mile apart, it's a whole new ball game, as the same variance in precision yields a decreasing variance in accuracy of the result.

Now to those of you that say it can't be done, I ask you if you've covered all the factors. If this guy had a 20 mph tailwind, wouldn't that effectively increase his potential aerodynamic top speed?

I, for one, think it's possible to build a road bike that'll go 200+. Whether or not one was clocked doing so in Wisconsin last weekend is apparently unresolved.

Thank you. Written better than I could have. And yes, Aerodynamics during that last 20MPH is the factor determining top speed. A tailwind would have contributed to a true reading of 205. Planerench out.

The trap is only a 1/4 mile. There is no way in hell a twin like the RC51 is breaking 200. More like 180.

I'd be shocked to see an RC51 break 170, on it's best day. They make less than 130hp, and are geared to do more like 166....

I'd be shocked to see an RC51 break 170, on it's best day. They make less than 130hp, and are geared to do more like 166....

wasn't it minnesota?

I don't know about an RC51, but most of the current liter class sportbikes will go faster than the "governed" 186 (300KPH).  There seems to be some international agreement among vehicle manufacturers on this.  Just read a road test of the C6 Corvette which coincidentally peaked at 186.  Several year ago I read in a bike mag that the speed was limited by the engine computer which is programmed to allow only XXXX RPM in top (usually 6th) gear.  At that time already, there were plug-in black boxes that would tell the computer the trans was in 5th and allow the engine to go to redline in 6th.  Quick and easy!  So the guy could have been doing somewhere near 200 on a relatively stock bike.  What the hell do cops know about "heavily modified"?  The cop in Chicago that clocked a guy on a CBR600 R4 last summer (?) couldn't believe he was doing 145 on Lake Drive.

Personally; I've gone 145 on an old ('88) Honda Hurricane 1000.  She was still pulling strong at that.  What a rush!  With a little practice, a guy could work his way up to higher speeds.  Not for the faint of heart though!  It requires a focused mind, as in "concentrate or die".  It's great for stress relief, as the experience is so intense that there is no room for ANYTHING else in your mind.

Ever wonder why there are a lot of late model crotch rockets for sale with low miles?  I talked to a second owner of a Honda RR919 a couple of summers ago.  He confirmed my opinion that a lot of people buy these machines and succeed in scaring the livng crap out of themselves the first time they really open it up.  The same guy echoed my thoughts in saying "you've got to be the master of the machine.  You are in total control; you can turn it on and you can turn it off".  I'd like to see 200 on the clock, even just once.  Yeeeeeeoooooooow!!!!

If I ever get a 205mph ticket I will frame it and hang it on my wall.  Fastest I have been is 152mph in my 95 Z28.

Just to let some of you know, he was one of about 4 bikes cited in the area.  From what I heard the Trooper in the plane saw him pulling away from another bike that was already going over 100 mph.

Also, from what I know of Troopers who use the stopwatch in the air and the Vascar in the squads, they will usually err on the side of the driver and give them a little extra leeway from start to finish.

200+ MPH on a bike = Organ Donor

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: 205 mph not possible on a stock bike. Maybe an amped 'Busa, Honda Blackhawk, or ZX-12, but even then only for limited periods. Even million $$$ MotoGP nikes are barely pushing past the double-deuce. They're reading it wrong. MotoGP bikes have about 250 hp. A landspeed 'busa is pushing 500 and the difference in top speed is 40 or so mph. What's your point? MotoGP bikes push maybe ~210 in current trim. 205 HP != 250mph. Not a chance. A highly modded showroom bike isn't going to sustain 205 mph for more than a few secs, if it can even get there. And, if this is a V-twin we're talking about, then a thrown rod is a more likely scenario.

The RC211V is pushing 250 rwhp.  Even the Proton is pushing aroung 210rhp.

If you put 4 wheels on a motorcycle, does that make it a quike instead of a bike?

Quoted: NPR interviewed the arresting officer. He described the bike as "heavily modified". I have no interest in going 205 on a public road. Well, maybe if it was closed to the public.

hehe...yeah...a pair of Yoshi's is "heavily modified."