Cars and bikes I’ve come across in my travels

Alzero said:
I’d never heard an Italian pronounce Laverda before, very different from the way Americans say it. We emphasize the second syllable and they put the stress on the first and last: LA-ver-DA vs la-VER-da Or maybe it’s just that guy’s provincial accent?
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In 2008 at the AMA Mid Ohio meet, Laverda was the featured marque. Mr Laverda, Giovanni, his son, and Cor attended, they brought over a 500 twin racer and the V6. (thank you Bob A.) Mr Laverda gave a talk, which I recorded, My memory of how he pronounced his surname was Lav-a-da. Since then, I have always tried to follow suit.
 
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I think it's more La-vair-da. Accent on the first syllable, which then makes the 'vair' very short. Unlike the majority of words in italiano where the accent falls on the penultimate syllable.
 
piranha-bro2 said:
I think it's more La-vair-da. Accent on the first syllable, which then makes the 'vair' very short. Unlike the majority of words in italiano where the accent falls on the penultimate syllable.
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Agostini certainly pronounced it that way at Eastern Creek when he tweaked my orange Club NSW t-shirt and said I would have to change it to a red/silver one, however, Piero pronounced his own name as La-veh-da with all 3 syllables being equally short and rather flat. I was quite shocked to realise I'd been pronouncing it wrong all these years though thought better of correcting him...
 
My profound annoyance that day at Eastern Creek was waiting decades to hear the V6 in all its glory and then having Ago start one of the MVs and to my disgust thinking it sounded better. I still find that hard to take. My delusions shattered. To think at least that MV was a triple so that's something.
 
It would transcribe as LA.......verda.

I remember an apéritif at the Trofeo Rosso track week end in central France when we'd got the Italians and the V6 up there. The year it went down on some oil.
During the evening apéritif, a couple of "historic" bikes were fired up, the Guzzi V8 replica, and an ex Pasolini Benelli four. I was sat behind with my glass of sangria and much preferred the Benelli.

Paul

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The most unexpectedly satisfying historic bike exhaust note I remember was the blown AJS V4. Sounded like a smallblock Chevy on straight pipes.
Surtees blown BMW just sounded like a British parallel twin. as did the Roarer The MV six wouldn't run reliably on all cylinders very like the Guzzi V8.

I was looking after an Aermacchi at the Pukekohe meeting where Ago turned up with the six. We were on the dummy grid when the ex Aermacchi works mechanic who was looking after the six came over and grabbed the macchi. Leaned it one way and the revs went up, leaned it the other and they dropped. Handed it back and said "Bene, bene, ver good " I'd been playing with the carburation all weekend. I remarked to the Macchi owner that I was bloody glad he hadn't asked for help with the six....
 
GregT said:
The most unexpectedly satisfying historic bike exhaust note I remember was the blown AJS V4. Sounded like a smallblock Chevy on straight pipes.
Surtees blown BMW just sounded like a British parallel twin. as did the Roarer The MV six wouldn't run reliably on all cylinders very like the Guzzi V8.

I was looking after an Aermacchi at the Pukekohe meeting where Ago turned up with the six. We were on the dummy grid when the ex Aermacchi works mechanic who was looking after the six came over and grabbed the macchi. Leaned it one way and the revs went up, leaned it the other and they dropped. Handed it back and said "Bene, bene, ver good " I'd been playing with the carburation all weekend. I remarked to the Macchi owner that I was bloody glad he hadn't asked for help with the six....
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Boxer twin has the same ignition phasing as a 360° twin, it HAS to sound similar!

Quite normal for side-mounted float bowls. Same happens with my Matchy thumper with the Amal GP, even the Laverda tiddler does it!

Came away with my ears ringing after standing behind the MV6 being warmed up at Spa some years back. Never actually heard the Guzzi V8 run on all pots. Patons on full song are nice, but Manx and G50s will remain my favourites.

piet
 
How to upset a Triumph owning "patriot":
Point out to him that Triumph was a company started by Siegfried Bettmann, who had emigrated from Nuremberg, part of the German Empire, to Meriden in England in 1883.
Confusion between motorcycles produced by the Coventry and Nuremberg Triumph companies later resulted in the Nuremberg motorcycles were renamed as "TWN", standing for Triumph Werke Nürnberg.
Here's a TWN Triumph 'Cornet', parked beside mine, this morning. A successful model, with a 200 cc Cornet split single two-stroke . A split single has one "divided" cylinder (with 2 bores) but only one common combustion chamber and spark plug.

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Another Yamaha product. I rode one back in the day and liked it, not a sport bike and I was into sports then. But I’d like to try one again now to see if it was better suited to me now that I’m older and slower.

Maybe that’s a theme for a collection? Bikes that were a new approach that failed in the market: Honda Pacific Coast 800, GTS, Nikken, Tesi, Suzuki Rotary. Any others?
 
Alzero said:
Another Yamaha product. I rode one back in the day and liked it, not a sport bike and I was into sports then. But I’d like to try one again now to see if it was better suited to me now that I’m older and slower.

Maybe that’s a theme for a collection? Bikes that were a new approach that failed in the market: Honda Pacific Coast 800, GTS, Nikken, Tesi, Suzuki Rotary. Any others?
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Honda NR750
 
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