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Like stopping other riders leaning onto you into corners
Watch out at Laguna for pikes and axle blades .....
And in saying that, I would have thought things like winglets were "dangerous protrusions"? but surely the FIM would have OK'd it
The wings are not meant to be effective in Germany. They're aimed at places with faster straights, and don't really come into their own until the bike is well north of 200 km/h. They then start to keep the front end down, which means riders use less rear brake to achieve the same thing, which means more power on the floor and better acceleration. They might help a bit up the hill at Laguna, and certainly at Brno.
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Ooooh! I`m waiting for the back brake,wings,backing in comments.C`mon BM you`re up.
That accords with what I said exactly. You can sink the front end with the rear brake ...... known quantity
Doesn't accord with Ereb's theory of deliberately using the back brake to skid it into a corner at all, especially when the back end is in the air
The wings have nothing to do with Ereb's theory.
Though Reg. probably disagrees with me
That accords with what I said exactly. You can sink the front end with the rear brake ...... known quantitybut it will lose speed, and does seem an inefficient way of controlling front lift, so the winglets may be clever But thats on acceleration, nothing to do with Ereb's theory on backing it in
whats your point?
Doesn't accord with Ereb's theory of deliberately using the back brake to skid it into a corner at all, especially when the back end is in the airMaybe they can fit winglets at the back to keep it down on heavy braking into a corner ..... just so Ereb can do some skids
The wings have nothing to do with Ereb's theory.
Though Reg. probably disagrees with me
Thought that would wake you!!!
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Thought that would wake you!!!
Don't know why cos there's no real link, unless you are just after some entertainent ..... in which case, standby .... I'm sure Ereb or Reg. will be by shortly with some theory linking God, Drumsticks and the back brake
Don't know why cos there's no real link, unless you are just after some entertainent ..... in which case, standby .... I'm sure Ereb or Reg. will be by shortly with some theory linking God, Drumsticks and the back brake
Theres entertainment there for sure.
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Don't know why cos there's no real link, unless you are just after some entertainent ..... in which case, standby .... I'm sure Ereb or Reg. will be by shortly with some theory linking God, Drumsticks and the back brake
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Bingo !!
EUREKA!!!....although it was New Zealand not the UK. Thanks to CycleWorld for the article.Pics at bottom.
Burt Munro, Kim Newcombe and John Britten have achieved legendary status in New Zealand motorcycling engineering. Add to this list Dr Rodger Freeth, whose experiments with aerodynamics in the 1970s have been revived with the restoration of his winged TZ750.
In the mid 1970s all the top racers owned a Yamaha TZ750. Johnny Cecotto, Steve Baker, Kenny Roberts, Tepi Lansivuori, Don Castro and even Giacomo Agostini are names synonymous with one of the greatest racing motorcycles of all time. Closer to home the Marlboro Series introduced the TZ750 to the New Zealand racing scene by the likes of Warren Willing, Jeff Sayle, Wes Cooley, Marco Lucchinelli, Hideo Kanaya and locals Trevor Discombe, Stu Avant, Bob Haldane and a young Rodger Freeth.
The first run of 220 TZ750As was built in 1973 to controversially homologate them as production bikes to debut at the 1974 Daytona 200, in the Formula 750 series. Paul McLachlan bought the 162nd TZ750A in Australia in 1975, He eventually sold the aging twin shock TZ750A to Rodger Freeth in February 1977.
In late 1977, one of New Zealand's most controversial racing motorcycle experiments was banned by the then controlling body, the NZACU. In an effort to make his superceded model more competitive, Rodger Freeth, a 22-year-old university student, designed a set of aerofoils to fit onto his TZ750A.
Freeth utilised the now ancient Auckland University computer to generate a long print out of down force versus drag, at different angles and speeds. Freeth graduated with an Astro Physics Doctorate PhD in 1984, earning him the title, Doctor Freeth.
The final aerofoil dimensions are 700mm wide by 245mm deep for the rear wing, and a combined width of 660mm by 130mm deep for the front wings. The front wings are fixed to the lower fork sliders to act directly on the wheel, rather than the suspension. Interestingly, the very front of each wing, right next to the mudguard, is not secured. This means the front wings flap around under braking although we taped these up for my test. The front wings themselves appear to have a low incidence level, and are non adjustable.
The large rear wing has a thick chord ratio with 300mm of vertical height adjustment. It has an angle of attack adjustment at the base of the wing, with a built-in shear pin in case he encountered unwanted positive lift! The key reason for the aerofoils was to get extra down force on the tyres in mid-turn, to improve cornering speed.
Freeth first practised on the aerofoil-shod Viko TZ750A at Pukekohe on the same day that Mike Hailwood rode Bob Haldane's TZ750 OW01 replica, in preparation for Hailwood's famous 1978 Isle of Man TT comeback. Freeth's winged TZ750 can be seen in the background of Hailwood's short 1978 documentary, "One Day in June", part filmed at Pukekohe.
With an up-rated OW31 engine, Freeth raced the TZ at Manfield on September 17, 1977, but encountered problems from other riders, who were concerned about safety issues when Freeth's winged TZ was leaned over in the corners. Bill Biber rode that day and recently said he was also concerned what would happen if other bikes sprouted aerofoils, and they became locked together in a corner. Freeth reckoned the aerofoils made a big difference down Pukekohe's then bumpy back straight. At Manfield he practised with both wings fitted. Trouble beckoned when he was told by NZACU steward Jim Doherty to remove the rear wing, which he did, and raced with only the front wings fitted.
The following month Freeth went to Hawkesbury, an awesome 7.2km undulating country road circuit, near Blenhiem. The National Open Production champion was permitted to race with the wings because the local race stewards lacked clear NZACU direction on the day. Again, with only the front wings fitted, Freeth diced for the lead with John Woodley on a Suzuki RG500, to finish second to Woodley in all three wet races.
Jim Doherty was then called up to attend a November meeting at Pukekohe, to make a final decision on the aerofoils before practice began. "I wasn't happy with it on the grounds of safety. There was concern expressed by the top riders at the time as to what the result may have been if they were mixed up in a crash. The top riders back then were very close, and raced only inches apart, so I considered the aerofoils unsafe. Roger was pretty disappointed, but he didn't say anything to me," Doherty said recently. Freeth rode the meeting without the aerofoils but the publicity generated by the ban created huge industry and media interest, which didn't hurt Freeth or his Viko sponsor.
The machine was long forgotten until four years ago when current owner Trevor Taylor bought the ex-Freeth Viko TZ750A from Masterton's Ross Gregory. Formerly of Gregory Yamaha, Gregory purchased the TZ from Freeth in the late 1970s. As my race sponsor a year or so later, I recall the TZ750 tucked away in a corner of his workshop for several years, without the wings. In 1980 I was competing at a Wairarapa sprint meeting on my RD400F when shop mechanic Gordon Wyeth used it to record a flying speed of 142.85mph, the only time I was aware of it being ridden.
Over two decades on, Taylor located the TZ in pieces. "I walked into Ross Gregory's garage and it was covered in TZ750 engines and things. I then went around to Spike Taylor's place and the Viko remains were there with the tank, front mudguard, the rolling chassis and the original set of crankcases, which had long since been blown up," Taylor explained. "The fairing and seat weren't there, but the tank had the original paint and colours on it, so I recognised it straight away."
The frame had been cut and welded in several places but still retained the Paul McLachlan fabricated box section swingarm which ran in non-standard taper roller bearings. He also made the exhaust pipes, still on the current machine, although his laid-forward shocks had become vertical units.
A couple of years later more pieces of the jigsaw puzzle emerged. "The rear wing and one of the original front ones was given to Dave Morley because he's got Rodger's early Suzuki McIntosh framed machine, and they thought it was off that. As soon as Dave realised that it was off this bike he very kindly gave them to me," Taylor said. For authenticity, the rear spoiler has been left with the original paint on it. But with only one front wing, which was falling apart, Taylor had to fabricate replicas. The original wings were made with an aluminium spine and fiberglass covered polystyrene. As an aircraft engineer, Taylor made up patterns from balsa wood and fibreglass to make stronger but slightly heavier replacements.
With a different seat and no instructions, old fittings, telltale boltholes or knowledge of how Freeth mounted the rear spoiler, Taylor had to figure it out himself. He mounted it directly off the back of the rear sub-frame and through a widened TZ350 seat. "I'd never seen any pictures of how it was actually done. All I've gone from is a three-quarter picture I've seen from an old magazine, so I've got no idea."
Recent enquiries revealed Freeth's mechanic at the time was Wayne List, now at Kawasaki NZ. List confirmed that the rear wing was in fact connected directly to the swingarm. "It was quite sophisticated. The aerofoil was fixed to the swingarm and moved through the frame support on a recirculating linear bearing so there was no friction when the suspension moved. The bearing system is the tricky bit and where all the set-up time was spent, because you have to make sure there is no stiction to interfere with suspension travel," List said. "Rodger's theory was through sweeping corners there would be down force on the tyres which would allow more drive and speed."
It wasn't until the Post Classic meeting in April 2004 that the Viko TZ750A was exhibited in full aerofoil trim, the first time in 27 years.
Track test in next month's issue.
Words Terry Stevenson
Damn krazy Kiwi`s!!!
Burt Munro, Kim Newcombe and John Britten have achieved legendary status in New Zealand motorcycling engineering. Add to this list Dr Rodger Freeth, whose experiments with aerodynamics in the 1970s have been revived with the restoration of his winged TZ750.
In the mid 1970s all the top racers owned a Yamaha TZ750. Johnny Cecotto, Steve Baker, Kenny Roberts, Tepi Lansivuori, Don Castro and even Giacomo Agostini are names synonymous with one of the greatest racing motorcycles of all time. Closer to home the Marlboro Series introduced the TZ750 to the New Zealand racing scene by the likes of Warren Willing, Jeff Sayle, Wes Cooley, Marco Lucchinelli, Hideo Kanaya and locals Trevor Discombe, Stu Avant, Bob Haldane and a young Rodger Freeth.
The first run of 220 TZ750As was built in 1973 to controversially homologate them as production bikes to debut at the 1974 Daytona 200, in the Formula 750 series. Paul McLachlan bought the 162nd TZ750A in Australia in 1975, He eventually sold the aging twin shock TZ750A to Rodger Freeth in February 1977.
In late 1977, one of New Zealand's most controversial racing motorcycle experiments was banned by the then controlling body, the NZACU. In an effort to make his superceded model more competitive, Rodger Freeth, a 22-year-old university student, designed a set of aerofoils to fit onto his TZ750A.
Freeth utilised the now ancient Auckland University computer to generate a long print out of down force versus drag, at different angles and speeds. Freeth graduated with an Astro Physics Doctorate PhD in 1984, earning him the title, Doctor Freeth.
The final aerofoil dimensions are 700mm wide by 245mm deep for the rear wing, and a combined width of 660mm by 130mm deep for the front wings. The front wings are fixed to the lower fork sliders to act directly on the wheel, rather than the suspension. Interestingly, the very front of each wing, right next to the mudguard, is not secured. This means the front wings flap around under braking although we taped these up for my test. The front wings themselves appear to have a low incidence level, and are non adjustable.
The large rear wing has a thick chord ratio with 300mm of vertical height adjustment. It has an angle of attack adjustment at the base of the wing, with a built-in shear pin in case he encountered unwanted positive lift! The key reason for the aerofoils was to get extra down force on the tyres in mid-turn, to improve cornering speed.
Freeth first practised on the aerofoil-shod Viko TZ750A at Pukekohe on the same day that Mike Hailwood rode Bob Haldane's TZ750 OW01 replica, in preparation for Hailwood's famous 1978 Isle of Man TT comeback. Freeth's winged TZ750 can be seen in the background of Hailwood's short 1978 documentary, "One Day in June", part filmed at Pukekohe.
With an up-rated OW31 engine, Freeth raced the TZ at Manfield on September 17, 1977, but encountered problems from other riders, who were concerned about safety issues when Freeth's winged TZ was leaned over in the corners. Bill Biber rode that day and recently said he was also concerned what would happen if other bikes sprouted aerofoils, and they became locked together in a corner. Freeth reckoned the aerofoils made a big difference down Pukekohe's then bumpy back straight. At Manfield he practised with both wings fitted. Trouble beckoned when he was told by NZACU steward Jim Doherty to remove the rear wing, which he did, and raced with only the front wings fitted.
The following month Freeth went to Hawkesbury, an awesome 7.2km undulating country road circuit, near Blenhiem. The National Open Production champion was permitted to race with the wings because the local race stewards lacked clear NZACU direction on the day. Again, with only the front wings fitted, Freeth diced for the lead with John Woodley on a Suzuki RG500, to finish second to Woodley in all three wet races.
Jim Doherty was then called up to attend a November meeting at Pukekohe, to make a final decision on the aerofoils before practice began. "I wasn't happy with it on the grounds of safety. There was concern expressed by the top riders at the time as to what the result may have been if they were mixed up in a crash. The top riders back then were very close, and raced only inches apart, so I considered the aerofoils unsafe. Roger was pretty disappointed, but he didn't say anything to me," Doherty said recently. Freeth rode the meeting without the aerofoils but the publicity generated by the ban created huge industry and media interest, which didn't hurt Freeth or his Viko sponsor.
The machine was long forgotten until four years ago when current owner Trevor Taylor bought the ex-Freeth Viko TZ750A from Masterton's Ross Gregory. Formerly of Gregory Yamaha, Gregory purchased the TZ from Freeth in the late 1970s. As my race sponsor a year or so later, I recall the TZ750 tucked away in a corner of his workshop for several years, without the wings. In 1980 I was competing at a Wairarapa sprint meeting on my RD400F when shop mechanic Gordon Wyeth used it to record a flying speed of 142.85mph, the only time I was aware of it being ridden.
Over two decades on, Taylor located the TZ in pieces. "I walked into Ross Gregory's garage and it was covered in TZ750 engines and things. I then went around to Spike Taylor's place and the Viko remains were there with the tank, front mudguard, the rolling chassis and the original set of crankcases, which had long since been blown up," Taylor explained. "The fairing and seat weren't there, but the tank had the original paint and colours on it, so I recognised it straight away."
The frame had been cut and welded in several places but still retained the Paul McLachlan fabricated box section swingarm which ran in non-standard taper roller bearings. He also made the exhaust pipes, still on the current machine, although his laid-forward shocks had become vertical units.
A couple of years later more pieces of the jigsaw puzzle emerged. "The rear wing and one of the original front ones was given to Dave Morley because he's got Rodger's early Suzuki McIntosh framed machine, and they thought it was off that. As soon as Dave realised that it was off this bike he very kindly gave them to me," Taylor said. For authenticity, the rear spoiler has been left with the original paint on it. But with only one front wing, which was falling apart, Taylor had to fabricate replicas. The original wings were made with an aluminium spine and fiberglass covered polystyrene. As an aircraft engineer, Taylor made up patterns from balsa wood and fibreglass to make stronger but slightly heavier replacements.
With a different seat and no instructions, old fittings, telltale boltholes or knowledge of how Freeth mounted the rear spoiler, Taylor had to figure it out himself. He mounted it directly off the back of the rear sub-frame and through a widened TZ350 seat. "I'd never seen any pictures of how it was actually done. All I've gone from is a three-quarter picture I've seen from an old magazine, so I've got no idea."
Recent enquiries revealed Freeth's mechanic at the time was Wayne List, now at Kawasaki NZ. List confirmed that the rear wing was in fact connected directly to the swingarm. "It was quite sophisticated. The aerofoil was fixed to the swingarm and moved through the frame support on a recirculating linear bearing so there was no friction when the suspension moved. The bearing system is the tricky bit and where all the set-up time was spent, because you have to make sure there is no stiction to interfere with suspension travel," List said. "Rodger's theory was through sweeping corners there would be down force on the tyres which would allow more drive and speed."
It wasn't until the Post Classic meeting in April 2004 that the Viko TZ750A was exhibited in full aerofoil trim, the first time in 27 years.
Track test in next month's issue.
Words Terry Stevenson
Damn krazy Kiwi`s!!!
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Thats very "special"
Wonder how the wings on the forks felt for corners
Wonder how the wings on the forks felt for corners
Thats very "special"
Wonder how the wings on the forks felt for corners
Titanium sliders would be nice on the ends.
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c'mon rog Berrybullshit
Do you know how advanced is the aero these days in motogp? I hear the guys on Eurosport occasionally mention Ducati's aero guy, phillip morris or something. How big is his team? Is there a lot of windtunnel going on? What do they know about creating downforce when the bike is lent over?
Excellent, i'd love to read something of that nature. Although i find the whole thing a bit worrying
