sidecar

This was originally inspired by How to be a good motorcycle passenger by Starrynight.

Motorcycle sidecars have been around for almost as long as motorcycles. Sidecars come in several forms. Some have an articulated joint that allows the motorcycle to tilt towards or away from the sidecar on turns. Also, the wheel on some sidecars is connected to the rear (drive) wheel, eliminating sidecar steering drag. The sidecar whell is usually parallel to the rear wheel. New, they usually cost between 2000 and 5000 dollars. They are sometimes known as hacks.

Sidecar driving is markedly different from standard motorcycle riding in several ways. The sidecar adds stability to the motorcycle, but also demands more attentive steering. Here is a list of sidecar steering problems and techniques, assuming the sidecar is mounted to the right of the driver:

• Countersteering is not used unless you want to crash.
• When turning right, the sidecar is likely to lift of the ground a little. Momentum causes the sidecar to want to go straight, causing it to lift.
• When braking, the sidecar, having a brakeless wheel, will cause a drift to the left.
• When accelerating, the motorcycle will drift right, unless the sidecar wheel is powered.
• Wobbling is a factor at low speeds.
• The passenger must know how to lean for stability. The passenger always leads away from the direction of the turn.
• During acceleration, the passenger should shift closer to the motorcycle for imporved stability.
• If you are not carrying a passenger, consider putting a weight in the sidecar for stability. Some manufacturers recommend 50-100 pounds.

Sidecars are rising in popularity again. Before buying, take into consideration that sidecars void many warranties. Harley, Honda touring, and Indian do not make accommodations for sidecars. There is now rally racing and motocross racing for sidecars. (www.sidecarcross.com). The passenger rides in the sidecar almost as if it were a chariot, moving to keep the motorcycle balanced and flat. Also, the TT races have been around for about 100 years on the Isle of Man.

Sources: many, many internet sites. The info was rather scattered about. Most helpful: http://www.ural.com, http://www.iomtt.com, and http://www.motorvation.com

The sidecar is my wife's favorite first drink when we go out for the evening. It has a lovely warming, and at the same time light enlivening, quality that makes it a great pre-dinner cocktail. In fact, some say it was designed as such during WWI for a customer who arrived at the Paris Ritz each night on a motorcycle with a sidecar. Like many cocktails, you can make a "Sidecar" with high or low quality ingrdients. If you want to go cheap, you can shake the following with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

• 2 oz Brandy
• 1 oz Triple Sec
• 1/2 oz sour mix or lemon juice from concentrate

For a high quality sidecar, do the same only with these instead.

• 2 oz quality Cognac
• 1 oz Cointreau
• 1/2 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice

In both cases, you can sugar the rim of the glass and garnish with a lemon sliver, or not, according to taste.

If you feel adventurous some evening, try making one of each of these and you'll see why my wife orders this as her first drink. The former tastes barely passable, the later tastes heavenly, and there's really no middle ground. So, from this one drink she can tell if she has to stick to straight alcohol that she specifies by brand name, or if she can order mixed drinks with impunity and not get burned. She's a tricky one, that wife of mine.

Sources:
http://www.drinkboy.com/Cocktails/recipes/Sidecar.html
http://www.webtender.com/db/drink/820

sidecar n.

1. Syn. slap on the side. Esp. used of add-ons for the late and unlamented IBM PCjr. 2. The IBM PC compatibility box that could be bolted onto the side of an Amiga. Designed and produced by Commodore, it broke all of the company's own design rules. If it worked with any other peripherals, it was by magic. 3. More generally, any of various devices designed to be connected to the expansion slot on the left side of the Amiga 500 (and later, 600 & 1200), which included a hard drive controller, a hard drive, and additional memory.