Big bike exhibition at Cowles Stadium

Press, 10 March 1984, Page 8

Big bike exhibition at Cowles Stadium

The New Zealand Bike Show this week-end at Cowles Stadium will let motorised and pedal-driven cycle enthusiasts display their wares and skills to the public. The show opened to the public yesterday at 1 p.m., and will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today and tomorrow. All leading motor-cycle manufacturers have their latest models on display, and a variety of stunts and races, some involving the public, are also planned. A televised B.M.X. race meeting run by the Hornby B.M.X. Club will be held at 10.30 a.m. today, and at 3 p.m. there will be a “best youngster versus the stars” B.M.X. event The races will be run on an outdoor B.M.X. track near Cowles Stadium. At 10.30 a.m. tomorrow the public will be able to ; see the highly demanding sport of motor-cycle trials riding, in which riders will manoeuvre their machines over a series of man-made obstacles, including a car, without putting their feet down. At noon tomorrow, volunteers will be invited to cram more than 20 people on to a motor-cycle and ride a set distance to get into the “Guinness Book of Records.” A similar stunt is planned on a three-wheeled farm trike. A New Zealand skydiving

record will be attempted by the Canterbury Skydiving Club at 12.30 p.m. More trials stunt riding is planned for Sunday afternoon. A glossy array of gleaming new machines are on display at the show. Honda unveils its new flagship, the VF 1000 E, which arrived in New Zealand only on Tuesday. “It develops 116 horsepower and travels up to 234km/h — it is not for the faint-hearted,” said the publicity officer for Blue Wing Honda, Ltd, Mr Max Farquhar. AT the other end of the scale is Honda’s NCZ 50 motocompo, a tiny machine, which folds up to fit into the back of a Honda City car, is fully automatic, and has a top speed of about 35km/h. Honda is also displaying its new scooter of the “Japanese Vespa” variety, the 125 Lead, as well as its new VF 500, CBX 750, and other models. Most of the new models being brought out by Suzuki will not be released until May or June, this year, although it has some new ones at the show. One, the LT2SO, runs on four balloontyred wheels, and has hydraulic suspension and a reverse gear. Mr David Burrows, from Doug Cresswell Suzuki, said the fourwheeled machine was more stable than the three-

wheeled bike which has become popular on New Zealand farms. Suzuki is also displaying a four-wheeled younger brother to the 250 cu cm machine, the LTSO, as well as a new dirt bike, the RH2SO, a cross between their present trail and enduro models. Kawasaki launches a new 900 cu cm superbike, as well as a 600 cu cm dirt bike with water-cooling and electric start. The show was too early for Yamaha’s new models, although its latest machines are on display. A number of special displays feature classic machines, racing bikes, and dragsters. The “plastic fantastic,” a racing machine built for the Wanganui racer, Dave Hiscock, is on show. The machine won the New Zealand Designers’ Award this summer, and its revolutionary lightweight frame attracted considerable interest among overseas manufacturers when it was ridden in an Isle of Man race last year. New bicycles from Pantha and Tarini are on show, and the Pantha B.M.X. brand will feature in force at the B.M.X. exhibition meeting. Admission to the show is $3 for adults, $1 for children under 10, and $7 for families. Admission to outdoor events is free.