So you think your bike is fast

We are all proud of our V4 VFRs, but here is a look at very fast V8!
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A little history:
Of all the famous aviation pioneers who have been honored for their dedication to the dream of manned flight and their genius for making that dream come true, few can match the creativity and determination of Glenn Hammond Curtiss.

Born in Hammondsport, NY, in 1878, his insatiable curiosity, mechanical ability and ambition soon became evident. By the time he reached his teens, bicycles and speed had become a near-obsession with the young Curtiss. He was a champion bicycle racer for years and naturally progressed to designing and building his own machines. By 1902, Curtiss, with three employees, was manufacturing his own motorcycles under the trade name, "Hercules". In a measured-mile run at Ormond Beach, Florida, on Jan. 23, 1907, Curtiss's V8 powered motorcycle was officially clocked at 136.3 mph. On that day, and for years afterward, Glenn Curtiss carried the title, "Fastest Man on Earth".

The record held for 38 years!

If you are ever in the Finger Lakes Region of Central NY, visit the Curtiss Museum.
http://www.glennhcurtissmuseum.org/

 

That is in sane :crazy:
136 mph in 1907 :hss:
Thanks for sharing :thumb:

 

He only rode it once, to get the record. It had handle bars, but very limited turning.

He assistant had to push him along the beach to get it going because the gearing was so high.

He did more for aviation than the Wright Bros. ever dreamed of, but they got all the credit.

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On Keuka Lake, near Hammondsport. The Museum built a replica of the first flying boat, The America, and used original engines. It flew, this is a picture of it landing.

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I heard he was gay and stole most of the bike from Harley and Davidson.

 

I think he used this one:
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After his 'cycle years he started an aircraft factory here in Buffalo and built the WWI Jenny.

 

Naa! That's just not right. I have is from a source that that bike is the Harley owned by VFR777.

In my mini-mancave which in truth is more a burrow than a cave, I have an 8X10" print of the replica bike. At the same time I bought the Tshirt from the museum store in NY.

A couple of conflicting things. Some (real) sources state the Smithsonian has the original bike and some say the bike engine was further used in an aircraft. I have read two bios on Curtiss. Some of the ways the numbers crunchers work when writing about long gone machines is really kind of funny.

One guy states the V8 was a "whopping" 4000 CC's. making the displacement about the same as the V8 in a 32 Ford. ( A little deuce coupe , if ya know what I mean) Then it goes on to say the record stood until exceeded by a 24 litre Mercedes-Benz. No real mention that it was a car and that 24 liters are hell of a bunch more CC's than 4K .

Curtiss was one hell of a dude.. I think some of his aircraft still hold records..

 

I saw the replica bike, pistons have to be the size of thimbles!
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I did the sound system in a restaurant called "Flying Tigers" near the Buffalo, NY airport, they had on of the original P40's and pilot there!

He buzzed the restaurant at about 100', freaking loud!

BTW, He is the Curtiss in Curtis-Wright, they had factories in many locations, one near I grew up in NJ. He built most of the Navy's early aircraft.

 

I was doing the math in my head and rounding off a little too much. Going back the bore and stroke of the Ford model B engine was 3.62 X 3.75 " that works out to 3622 CCs.

Many of the Curtiss seaplane records were eclipsed but many held for years. The existing record was set in 1934 at a bit over 440mph.

I have not actually seen the replica bike. In the pic I have it looks full size and is shown in from of some greenery.

Bottom line? Airplanes haul ass..