Elastic Trickery
TTXGP...Electric bikes grand prix racing.
FIM ePower…International race series
Isle of Man TTZero
Despite the political arguments and internal power struggles it seems that in one form or another the future of alternative powered “motor”cycles is on the near horizon.
Looking back into the depths of history, it’s a well known fact that racing improves the breed. From the beginnings of road racing in places such as the Isle of Man on what today look like slightly modified bicycles we have arrived at a point where the supersport machines we take for granted can lap a given circuit at a pace that was fast enough to qualify for a world championship only a few years ago.
While I suspect that the oil giants will be reluctant to give up their golden goose quite as easily as they would have us believe and more oil deposits will be discovered over the coming decades, thereby providing government tax funding and billion dollar profits for the supplying countries and refining companies. Alternative fuels are an interesting subject for someone who enjoys messing around with the oily bits under the fairing, such as me.
Like the video format battles of the 80’s that saw the phillips 2000 and betamax systems consigned to the scrap heap, leaving us with the technically less impressive VHS system, there will be winners and losers in the TTXGP/ePower/TTZero battle.
It might be, as is usual in these cases that the one that comes out on top isn’t the best solution.. Looking at the political wrangling from the outside the TTXGP looks to be a winning strategy. From small beginnings that included the 1 lap TT race in 2009 there is a 13 race series planned this year. With rules drawn up from a wiki based set of technical rules that can be updated by interested parties. It is in my opinion an original, forward thinking and modern way of going racing. The bikes will be technically interesting and development will be rapid.
The FIM empire, as usual appear to be in it for the money and the TT have aligned themselves with the FIM for the first time in decades in what appears to be an attempt gain credence from the great god of international motorcycle racing by dumping the TTXGP after one year to run their own organised event amid rumors of racist comments and underhand dealings.
What ever happens, the bikes that come out of the series may provide a future for high powered two wheel machines that our descendants may look back on with the same quizzical eyes that we view the 1910 devices that rumbled around that early dirt covered TT course.
Meanwhile back in the present, my old technology, fossil fueled dinosaur will keep me going for the foreseeable future of my biking lifetime, although I wonder if we will look back at the halcyon days of the £5/ gallon petrol when the TTXGP is ruled by Valentino Rossi’s younger brother.
FIM ePower…International race series
Isle of Man TTZero
Despite the political arguments and internal power struggles it seems that in one form or another the future of alternative powered “motor”cycles is on the near horizon.
Looking back into the depths of history, it’s a well known fact that racing improves the breed. From the beginnings of road racing in places such as the Isle of Man on what today look like slightly modified bicycles we have arrived at a point where the supersport machines we take for granted can lap a given circuit at a pace that was fast enough to qualify for a world championship only a few years ago.
While I suspect that the oil giants will be reluctant to give up their golden goose quite as easily as they would have us believe and more oil deposits will be discovered over the coming decades, thereby providing government tax funding and billion dollar profits for the supplying countries and refining companies. Alternative fuels are an interesting subject for someone who enjoys messing around with the oily bits under the fairing, such as me.
Like the video format battles of the 80’s that saw the phillips 2000 and betamax systems consigned to the scrap heap, leaving us with the technically less impressive VHS system, there will be winners and losers in the TTXGP/ePower/TTZero battle.
It might be, as is usual in these cases that the one that comes out on top isn’t the best solution.. Looking at the political wrangling from the outside the TTXGP looks to be a winning strategy. From small beginnings that included the 1 lap TT race in 2009 there is a 13 race series planned this year. With rules drawn up from a wiki based set of technical rules that can be updated by interested parties. It is in my opinion an original, forward thinking and modern way of going racing. The bikes will be technically interesting and development will be rapid.
The FIM empire, as usual appear to be in it for the money and the TT have aligned themselves with the FIM for the first time in decades in what appears to be an attempt gain credence from the great god of international motorcycle racing by dumping the TTXGP after one year to run their own organised event amid rumors of racist comments and underhand dealings.
What ever happens, the bikes that come out of the series may provide a future for high powered two wheel machines that our descendants may look back on with the same quizzical eyes that we view the 1910 devices that rumbled around that early dirt covered TT course.
Meanwhile back in the present, my old technology, fossil fueled dinosaur will keep me going for the foreseeable future of my biking lifetime, although I wonder if we will look back at the halcyon days of the £5/ gallon petrol when the TTXGP is ruled by Valentino Rossi’s younger brother.
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