Bucket Racing - Further Development

Further Development

Many of the competitors machines in New South Wales have reached a new level in mechanical performance and presentation. As the rules developed the choice of machines expanded to encompass two classes. The original race bikes remained as Superlites and a new class was developed, Motolites. This new class allows the choice of an engine type and capacity and unlimited development of any other part of the machine. The capacity sizes are: 111 cc Air-cooled 2 strokes, 85 cc Water-cooled 2 strokes, 159 cc 4-valve single-cylinder 4-stroke, 185 cc 2-valve single-cylinder 4-stroke, 159 cc 2-valve twin-cylinder 4-stroke, 200 cc 2-valve air-cooled single-cylinder 4-stroke.

The open rules encouraged the use of newer and better frames and running gear. Popular combinations have been Honda RS125 frames with Honda CR85 engine, Yamaha TZ125 frames with Yamaha YZ85 engine, Moriwaki GP80 race bikes, Honda/Jiangshe 185 cc engine in a variety of frames and water-cooled 4 strokes such as the Honda CRF150 and CBR150. The commonly sought after horsepower figures to be competitive are 28 hp for a two-stroke or about 25 hp for a four-stroke.

In New Zealand the rules have developed slightly different classing of bikes with the maximum engine size in Formula 4; two strokes up to 100 cc water-cooled or 125 cc air-cooled and 4-strokes up to 150 cc water-cooled and Formula 5; 50 cc 2-strokes and 100 cc 4-strokes. The rules of what else is used in the building of the motorcycle is broader, allowing a lot more variety of bike parts being used, with the development of some very different and interesting machines with mixed results in performance. for full rules see www.bucketracing.co.nz or MNZ rules