By Ben Purvis
New British company White Motorcycle Concepts is aiming to prove its radical aerodynamic idea by taking the land speed record for electric bikes . Founded by Robert White , an engineer with a quarter of a century ' s experience in race vehicle development ( on both two and four wheels ), White Motorcycle Concepts has developed a machine with a huge reduction in both frontal area and drag coefficient . The company hopes to use it to establish a British land speed record for semi-streamlined electric bikes later this year , hitting around 200 mph on a tarmac runway , before heading for Bolivia in 2022 ( Salar de Uyuni - the world ' s largest salt flat ) to target the world record , aiming for more than 250 mph on the salt flats . Dubbed WMC250EV , clearly shows the aerodynamic concept - there ' s a huge duct running all the way from the nose to the tail . This duct reduces the bike ' s frontal area , but just as importantly it means that air hitting any part of the front of the bike doesn ' t have to be moved far , either laterally or vertically , to either slip past the bike or through the duct . That gives an edge over traditional speed record bike designs , where the
rider lies almost prone over a long , low chassis to reduce frontal area . In its most extreme form on the WMC250EV , computer simulations and real-world wind tunnel tests have both shown the bike to have 70 % less drag than a Suzuki Hayabusa , often cited as the most aerodynamic road bike on the market . As well as the duct , the WMC250 uses two-wheel drive , with four electric motors in total - two driving the rear wheel and another two inside the front hub . In its initial form , the bike has a total of 100kW ( 134 hp ), but that figure will rise considerably before the attempt at the world record . With minimal drag and both wheels driving the bike , the WMC250EV should have an edge over conventional designs .
Parts Europe is getting INTENSE
First seen at the Parts Unlimited and Drag Specialties Dealer Expo at Louisville , Kentucky , in February 2020 , the Tazer MX PRO eMTB by INTENSE represented a first ( and innovative ) major play on the burgeoning eMTD and pedelec market by a major motorcycle industry aftermarket parts and accessories distributor . A year on , and with huge growth in the sector seen on both sides of the Atlantic during the pandemic , Parts Europe has now teamed up with Barcelona based INTENSE Europe to offer its dealers exclusive access to the line . " Having seen the success in North America , we couldn ' t be happier to bring the Tazer MX to Europe with such a strong partner . We are truly stoked to offer a MX-specific eBike to the powersports customer , backed by Parts Europe ' s unrivalled service ," said Werner Kastenauer , INTENSE Europe Managing Director . Parts Europe says it will be offering
" this new top quality Tazer MX PRO eMTB exclusively to a selected number of powersports dealers in Europe who would like to develop their way into the eBicycle / eMTB world , and to powersports dealers who are working already with eBicycles . " We are fully committed and dedicated to support the participating powersports dealers with the same reliable service they already experience in the motorcycle and ATV business ," says Anthony Damevin , Purchasing Manager at Parts Europe . A well-known name in the U . S . MTB market , founder and CEO Jeff Steber ' s original designs back in the early 1990s were heavily influenced by his knowledge and love of MX bikes . Wellknown names like Mike Metzger ( the Godfather of FMX ), Jeff Emig and Shaun Palmer were all part of INTENSE ' s story in the early days . In more recent times , INTENSE Factory
Moto Future
Testing has shown that the duct ( and front drive ) massively reduces front end lift at speed , meaning there ' s as much as five times more load on the front wheel than on a normal motorcycle at the same speed . White Motorcycle Concepts is preparing to reveal a second machine using the aerodynamic duct idea . Called the WMC300FR , it is a threewheeled scooter , based on Yamaha ' s Tricity 300 , to show that the aerodynamic gains are worthwhile even at city speeds . The 300 cc engine will be assisted by a hybrid system , and along with the duct , reducing drag by 25 %. The intention is to achieve performance near that of a 500 cc bike while slashing CO2 emissions by 50 %.
Racing ' s Aaron Gwin ( a former MX racer ) and INTENSE co-owner and 4x Supercross and 3x Motocross National Champ Ryan Dungey have been waving the INTENSE flag . " The pedal-assist Tazer MX PRO is based on our successful 155 mm rear travel Tazer eBike , but what sets the MX model apart is its MX-inspired component package - one that will be easily recognisable to any MX fan . The Tazer MX PRO features products from the likes of Öhlins , Renthal , Magura and ODI , all well-known motorcycle industry names . " Add to that seamless pedal to wheel power transfer via SHIMANO ' s awesome new EP8 motor and drivetrain , and other top components from the likes of DT Swiss , Cane Creek and SDG , and you have a super highquality build . " The Öhlins TTX22M coil shock and DH38 170 mm triple clamp fork help to complete the MX look and feel ." www . partseurope . eu
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