Is it just us, or is the future not as good as it used to be? When we were kids, science programs were full of predictions for the not-so-distant future. By now we should all have jetpacks on our backs, chicken dinners in a pill and holidays on the moon. Instead, we've got choked freeways, KFC in a bucket and vacations in Florida.
It's kind of the same in bike technology. Okay, we've got stacks of electronic gizmos these days, but apart from that the bikes we're riding about on today aren't a whole world away from the "motor-sickles" your dad might have dreamed of in the 1970s.
We're not, for one second, saying that the performance of a 2010 Honda CBR1000RR isn't better than a 1970 Honda CB750. But take a close look at the basic materials used and you'll find they're remarkably similar: aluminum engine cases, forged steel crankshaft and con-rods, aluminum fork tubes and steel springs in the forks and rear shock. Okay the new bike has an aluminum frame compared with the steel tubes of the CB750, and it's swathed in acres of swoopy plastic bodywork. But plastics aside, there are no exotic materials used in the CBR1000RR. Rather, those same materials have been refined, optimized and tweaked, then used to produce more performance, reliability and longevity.
But what other materials could bike firms be using? What's the amazing future we might have to look forward to? Here are a few ideas on what your grandson might find on his stunt bike...
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