Feet forwards motorcycle

A Feet Forwards (FF) Motorcycle is a class of motorcycle design that seeks to look at the two-wheeled concept afresh, and create a wholly new form of practical personal transport. The name "feet forwards" refers to the rider's position, with feet ahead in a sitting position (like a car), rather than below and astride, as with conventional bikes. Some feel the name does not convey the true goals of the FF design enthusiast, since there are other types of motorcycle (e.g. choppers) that have a feet forwards position. An alternative name sometimes used is Single Track Vehicle.

The thinking behind FF motorcycles is that essentially modern motorcycles are simply well-developed motorized bicycles, and as such have many drawbacks. Chief among these are:

• Safety - riders involved in an accident are at significantly higher risk of injury or death compared with car drivers.

• Weather - motorcycles do not offer the advantages of an enclosed car in inclement weather.

• Convenience - conventional motorcycle riders need to wear special clothing such as a helmet and leathers.

• Dynamics - motorcycles have a relatively high centre of gravity that erodes stability, and reduces aerodynamic performance.

• Skill - motorcycles riders need good training and practice to become skilled at riding.

Likewise, in dense urban environments, the car has a number of drawbacks:

• Road occupancy - a car takes up vastly more space than a single person, and most cars usually carry only one person. Similarly the area occupied when not in use (parking) consumes a vast amount of space that could be better utilised.

• Environment - a car uses a lot more fuel than a motorcycle for the same journey. It is also more expensive in terms of resources to build in the first place.

• Journey times - a car is generally a lot slower than a motorcycle for city journeys due to congestion.

The FF motorcycle is an attempt to marry the advantages of bikes and cars, while avoiding the drawbacks of either. In addressing these issues, most FF designs arrive at a low-slung enclosing body between the wheels, with the rider in a reclining position. To accommodate the increased cabin length, a longer wheelbase that that generally found on a conventional bike is used.

The first recognisable FF design was the Ner-a car, built in the 1920s. It had a feet-forward riding position but in most other respects was similar to a motorcycle, lacking an enclosing body. The first recognisably modern design was the 1975 Quasar, built by Malcolm Newell and Ken Leaman. The design was not a commercial success - just 22 examples were sold - but it generated a great deal of interest, and started others thinking about the FF concept.

To date a number of FF concepts have been tried, but so far nobody has managed to come up with a commercially successful design. In recent times there has been a considerable revival of interest in the scooter as a means of personal transportation, and in some respects these vehicles have features in common with FF motorcycles. Whether the remaining evolutionary step to true FF takes place remains to be seen.

Problems faced

The problems faced by the designer or marketer of an FF motorcycle are many. While to some the advantages of such a design are self-evident, there are a number of problems to be overcome. Some of these are perceptual - existing motorcyclists tend to be resistant to the idea, arguing that it's not a "proper" bike, and there is nothing wrong with the standard form of motorcycle. To car drivers, many of the disadvantages of the car are simply put up with and the overall convenience is hard to give up. Many car drivers would not consider a conventional motorcycle or scooter as an alternative, seeing it as a far less convenient and less safe option. To these people, an FF motorcycle needs to be seen (and hence marketed) as a two-wheeled car rather than an enclosed motorcycle.

Legislation also currently tends to work against the FF approach. For example, under current regulations, one would require a motorcycle license to operate one, so unless a car driver is willing to undergo the extra training required to obtain this, they are not able to simply adopt an FF machine. Likewise, cities do not legislate favourable terms for such a vehicle, for example by allowing them to use bus lanes or other special car-free routes. This is a classic chicken-and-egg situation, since until there are significant numbers of FF users on the road, there are unlikely to be special traffic laws to accommodate them.

There are some engineering issues too, though experimental designs so far built show that overall these can be overcome. Chief among these is the problem of stability when stationary. Designs such as the Quasar require the rider/driver to use one foot to stabilise the machine when stationary, by putting his foot out of the open side onto the road. This approach inherently precludes the use of a fully enclosed body. Most modern attempts use automatic stabiliser wheels, which pop out automatically when the machine's speed falls below a preset value. Another approach, patented by Honda, is to use a narrow tricycle arrangement, where there are a pair of rear wheels, which are connected to the body in such a manner as to permit this to tilt into corners as a normal bike does. At very low speed, the trike unit locks upright to the body, stabilising it and holding it upright. This approach seems promising, but there are question marks about what happens if there is a sudden strong gust of wind from the side when in the locked position.