Motorcycle Terms
- airheads
- air cooled cylinder heads
- AMA
- American Motorcycle Association
- ape hangers
- very high handlebars, popular on custom bikes
- belt drive
- power is transferred to rear wheel by a belt rather than a chain or drive shaft
- riding bitch
- riding on the back seat (pillion) of a motorcycle [thanks to Mona for pointing out the mistake - we had "pinion" instead of "pillion"]
- bobtail
- post WWII craze where most body work was removed from motorcycles; made them lighter and faster
- boxer
- engine with two opposing cylinders, like most BMW bikes
- cafe racer
- British biker custom of racing from cafe to cafe, drinking coffee along the way
- cagers
- automobile drivers
- chopper
- motorcycles with extended forks, high handlebars (ape hangers) and no rear suspension
- clip-ons
- handlebars that are attached directly to the front fork instead of at the top of the fork; lowers the riding position
- countersteer
- pressing the handlebar in the direction you wish to turn; press right to go right, press left to go left
- cowling
- body work that covers the engine, transmission and/or mid portion of a bike
- crash bar
- bars that surround the engine on cruisers; useful for protecting engine in a crash and for mounting highway pegs to for a more relaxed riding position
- crotch rocket
- slang term for sport bikes
- drag bars
- short straight handlebars
- drag pipes
- straight exhaust pipes with no baffles
- dual bike
- an be used either on or off road
- fairing
- body part that protects bike and rider from road debris, wind and weather
- hard tail
- a bike with no rear suspension
- high side
- a crash where rider is thrown from the motorcycle and lands in bike's path
- knucklehead
- Harley-Davidson's first overhead-valve engine
- low side
- a crash where the bike slides out from under the rider and the rider lands behind the bike
- naked bike
- a bike with no fairing or other covers
- overhead cam
- camshaft rides above the valves and directly operates them, decreasing number of parts needed to run the engine
- panhead
- Harley-Davidson's second overhead-valve engine
- RAK
- ram air kit
- shaft drive
- power is driven to the rear wheel by a drive shaft instead of a chain or belt
- shaft drive
- power is driven to the rear wheel by a drive shaft instead of a chain or belt
- Shovelhead
- Harley-Davidson's third overhead-valve engine
- sissy bar
- passenger seat backrest
- soft tail
- a bike with a rear suspension
- springer
- a bike that uses large springs on the front forks to dampen road shock
- squid
- an under experienced rider who is taking too many chances; usually riding a sport bike; think flip-flops and shorts
- suicide shifter
- hand operated shift arm
- thumper
- large displacement single cylinder four-stroke engines; make a thumping sound
- touring bike
- bike suitably equipped for long rides
- trike
- three-wheeled motorcycle with no sidecar
- V-twin
- engine with 2 cylinders that point at the crankshaft in a v shape