David Armentrout - Speedway Bikes

Hill, Lee Sullivan. Motorcycles. Lerner Publications, 2004.

Morris, Mark. Motorbikes: Mean Machine. Raintree, 2004.

Canada and USA Speedway Motorcycle Racing

www.speedwaybikes.com/

American Motorcyclist Association

ama-cycle.org

FIM

www.fim.ch/

David and Patricia Armentrout specialize in writing nonfiction books for young readers. They have had several books published for primary school reading. The Armentrouts live in Cincinnati, Ohio, with their two children.

Speedway is a basic form of dirt track racing. Thats not to say speedway is easy. Speedway racing is physically challenging, and it can be dangerous. Riders must be in top form to compete in this extreme motor sport.

Riders scramble for the lead position as they enter the first turn.

It takes great skill to race in wet, muddy conditions.

, but it can be dirt, grass, or even ice.

The FIM (Federation Internationale de Motorcyclisme), based in Geneva, Switzerland, is the worldwide governing body for motorcycle sport and touring activity.

Speedway motorcycles are sturdy, but light, weighing about 185 pounds (84 kilograms). They run on a highly explosive fuel called .

The of a speedway bike is often compared to that of a Formula One racing car. Top riders go from zero to 60 in under 3 seconds and reach speeds greater than 80 miles (129 kilometers) an hour on the straightaways.

A rider pulls a wheelie as he rockets out of the gate.

and lean into the curves. Riders slide the rear tire sideways around the turns (called a power slide) and control their speed by dragging their left foot along the ground.

Speedway riders have a steel plate on the bottom of their left boot to keep it from wearing away.

A perfect power slide requires complete control.

The heaviest part of a speedway bike is the engine. Speedway bikes use powerful 500 cc, or four-stroke engines. This means the piston in the cylinder moves four times to produce power.

How a four-stroke engine works:
1. On the first downstroke of the piston, gas and air are sucked into the engine.
2. The piston rises and compresses the fuel on the second stroke.
3. The spark plug explodes the fuel and forces the piston down on the third stroke.
4. On the fourth stroke, the piston moves up and forces out exhaust gases.

The engines position on the frame gives the bike a low center of gravity.

A speedway meet will run approximately 20 heats. A typical heat pits four riders against each othertwo riders from two different teams. They race four laps around the track, hoping to reach the blackand-white checkered flag before the opposition.

A large crowd watches as racers leave the gate.

Speedway is typically a team sport, but some organizations hold individual competitions.

Fans love the drama and excitement. They sit on the edge of their seats waiting for wipeouts as riders power slide around the turns. Its over in less than a minute, and, in the end, the team with the most points wins.

Point System
Finish first3 points
Finish second2 points
Finish third1 point
Finish fourth0 points

Speedway racers dont mind taking time to greet fans.

If you think speedway events sound exciting, you should experience ice speedway. A frozen oval track makes all the difference. Ice bikes are like regular speedway bikes, with the exception of two fierce-looking tires. Because rubber tires slide on the frozen track, ice racers have about 300 1-inch- (2.5-centimeters-) long spikes screwed into their tires to grip the ice.

For safety reasons, guards cover both tires to prevent the spikes from jabbing other riders.

Riders collide during the last heat of the meet.

Ice heats are similar to regular speedway races. One difference is that riders dont power slide the rear tire around corners. Instead, they lean into the bends, sometimes scraping the ice with the left handlebar.

Both speedway and ice speedway are motor sports that require specialized bikes and equipment. Racing is not for everyone, but the thrill and excitement of a speedway event can be!

Spiked tires give bikes traction on slippery ice.

Did you know that Speedway got its start down under? Thats right, Australians turned American dirt track racing of the early 1900s into a whole new sport. The Aussies refined dirt track racing and invented the art of power sliding around 1925.

By 1928, organized Speedway meetings were taking place in England. Leagues began to sprout up all over, and by 1950 Speedway had became one of Britains largest spectator sports. Wildly popular today, Speedway enthusiasts around the world compete for the ultimate title in Speedway World Championship events.

A rider hits the dirt after his bike sheds a chain.

2006 Rourke Publishing LLC

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher.

www.rourkepublishing.com

PHOTO CREDITS: All images Mike Patrick

: Speedway racers line up at the start.

Editor: Frank Sloan

Cover and page design by Nicola Stratford

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Armentrout, David, 1962

Speedway bikes / David and Patricia Armentrout.

p. cm. -- (Motorcycle mania)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 1-59515-455-8 (hardcover)

1. Superbikes--Juvenile literature. I. Armentrout, Patricia, 1960- II. Title. III. Series.

TL440.15.A76 2006

629.227'5--dc22

2005010710

Printed in the USA