[Unkle Krusty]

Yes, cooler air is denser but not as dense as a street rider doing the ton. But that's not using the same unit of measure! :smile:

On the sail boat we can carry larger sails, for the same amount of wind, during the day when it is warmer. Many off shore sailors will shorten sail in the evening as a precaution.
The downside of doing the ton on Saturday night, is it is cooler for the rider. That too helps with the density of the guidance system.

UK

 

[Unkle Krusty]

old English, middle ages. A 'tun' was a barrel, or in other uses 100 cubic feet. The second use is how describing 100 as a ton (a later variation of the word), particularly 100 mph, came about.

There are three variations of the word - ton/tonne/short ton. One ton is 2240 lbs, a tonne is 1000 kilograms (2204 lbs) and a short ton is 2000 lbs.

In the 50s and 60s in England, the Rockers (those who rode motorbikes, greased their hair, wore leather jackets and listened to Rock 'n' Roll as opposed to the Mods who rode scooters, used hair spray, wore the most up to date fashionable clothes and listened to pop music) would meet at the Ace Cafe on the main road (the M1) north out of London. In those days, a 350 cc was a large bike, a 500 was a superbike, and very few bikes could do 100 mph/the ton. These Rockers would race from the Ace Cafe to some other point and back and there'd probably be much exclaiming that they'd done "the ton" in the process. To win these races the bike owners would remove any unneeded weight from the bike and these became known as Cafe racers.

In the early 60s there was a pop song titled "Just For Kicks" by Mike Sarne. This included the words:

If there's one thing that I like it's a burn up on my bike,
A burn up with a bird up on my bike
Now the M1 ain't much fun until you try and do the ton
A burn up on my bike, that's what I like

I managed to get the song title wrong, and misspell Mike Sarne's name.
But. I have done the ton on the M1, on a motorcycle.

UK

 

[rje58]

I've had my Suzuki SFV650 over 100 several times, in the three years I've owned it. Not something I do very often. The speedometer is a little optimistic, so I have to hit around 103-104 on the speedo to actually be doing 100 mph.

 

[SemiFast]

Just guessing here you know but,
I'd guess that the bike I ride these days would indicate about 163~164 on the optimistic spedo with a tail bag on the rear seat.
I'd also guess it would indicate a little less without the tail bag. I guess the tail bag might (probably) fill a void, reducing drag.
Just guessing from what I've read on the net.

I'd guess that the bike I had previously might indicate 170 on its digital spedo if you held it long enough, I guess.
I'd also guess you'd need a tire that provides enough traction or that little 600 might break loose the tire and 'free spin' then indicate some crazy high MPH starting at about 165.
Like I said, all of this is nothing but guesswork. I read about it on the internet....

 

[mike721]

If you go through South Dakota it won't be hard, the interstate speed limit is 80, last summer I was riding with the cruise control set to 90-95 and just blending into the flow of traffic. I didn't try a speed run but I'm sure I was on the high side of 100 passing trucks that were going 90 mph quite a few times.

I can state that I never managed to hit the ton on my old Vstar 650, I can neither confirm nor deny that the darn thing refused to go over 97 mph on my GPS even downhill even if I was laying down on the gas tank. The speedometer probably said about 110 though. Theoretically.

Both of my Visions are governed to 120, which would theoretically have read exactly 119 on the GPS on both of them while the speedometers were theoretically reading 125. In either 5th or 6th gear. Theoretically on a long straight stretch of Rt 24 at 4 Am.

My Kingpin (same engine as the Visions and 300 pounds lighter) can easily get up past 100 and quickly too but things get VERY windy sitting upright with no windshield around 100 so I never hit the theoretical 120 mph governor on that one.

Is it bad that I'm humming the "I can't drive, 55" song while I'm typing this post?

Around here, the only place that is open and straight enough to do that
kind of speed is route 80. And there are New Jersey State Troopers hiding
all along that road. No thanks.
I did over 100 on my BMW many years ago up in New York somewhere.
No need to do it again. I prefer the twisty back roads of Jersey where
50 feels like 100.
Now if I make it out west where the road is open and straight enough,
maybe I'd try it again. But not around here.

 

[mike721]

If your Indian is like my wife's (Indian Stage 2 cams, LLoyds intake, true dual exhaust with no cats and the PCVX.. I have no idea which flash she is running) she claims to have gone about the same, 125 on the GPS, 135 or so indicated on the speedometer. She thought it was still accelerating and hadn't hit the limit yet but she was so far ahead of my stock Vision at that point she rolled off and waited for me to catch up

Ever since my very first bike that couldn't do triples downhill and with a tailwind, all the rest have had to prove they could. Got tickets in several states to prove I've been there as well unfortunately. It's getting harder to find a safe(r) place to do it these days. I noticed just recently that the place I like to open mine up now has cop patrolling randomly. I see a ticket in my future. The max I've done is 135mph on my BMW K100LT. Been tweaking the maps on my Indian but the max I'm getting with it is just 125 according to the GPS. That 135 was just the speedo but I still had 1 more gear. I just ran out of road and guts. My first Harley wouldn't do it stock but after much changing I finally got it to 105. That was a 85 Electra Glide. My next one would hit it but 110 was it's max. I do like to see what they can do. Still in break-in mode on my new truck but tried it a few weeks ago. What a fail. Speed limiter kicks in. Now in search for a tuner device to get into the brains of the thing and give it some guts. But I'll hold off until I get passed the break-in part. But I don't see much available in my limited searching. At least nothing as easy as my PVCX for my Indian. But looking none the less.

 

[perl]

i try it here last night to see what the KTM whats make of. i hit 180km thats is i beliv 111mph so much wind so it is hard to hold it. then i relax down to 100km. i still not fell so safe on that bike.

 

[Kiwi Steve]

200 km/hr on my Honda ST1100 in Central Queensland Australia through the cane fields, that's 125 mph. Only did it once, went back home and crossed it off the bucket list:

Max out the bike DONE! (However the bike could probably have done 220 km/hr - 140 mph, but I'm saying I maxed it).

 

[lions_lair99]

I've only rode twice since getting my bike, about a year and a half ago, that I didn't break 100. But it will break 100, between here and the first red light. It will do 98 @10,500 rpm... in 3rd gear.
2005 Katana gsx 600.

Sent from my Note3 using crapatalk

 

[4x15mph]

I think I would be more inclined to do the ton with a tourer and a large windscreen. I approach my bike with caution since there is little limit to what it can do (140mph, 0-60 in ~3.x secs) but I did use to max out my smaller bike (400cc). I have more fun in the curves and taking off from lights, hitting 70 in 2nd gear knowing that I could get to 100 with a few more seconds.

Deer, rocks (hit one last week), gravel (hit some yesterday), and other unknowns keep me in check. I would absolutely do 100+ on the track and I am looking to sign up for a day at the NJ motorsports track.

 

[Porky]

100 mph on a modern Superbike is like 50 on your cruiser or touring bike. Some of the ones I've had can hit the 'Ton,' in the 1/8th mile, 179 in the standing mile and in the upper 9's in the quarter but not with my corpulent rear end on them.:grin:

Hitting 100 mph and even cruising at that speed for long periods of time is very easy to do on a well maintained motorcycle that has sufficient power to do so.:smile:

I had just bought a new 1997 Goldwing and much to the chagrin of my LEO Harley buddies that I was traveling to SD with, to attend the Sturgis Rally, That year I left my HD Electra Glide at home in Southern California.:sad: We rode most of the 1,600 miles, 800 or so per day @ about 80 mph indicated and we made good time.:grin:

When we got to Montana, there was no daytime speed limit at all, as long as conditions were safe for the speed. I rode at least 75 miles @ an indicated 100 mph and the WING felt like it was doing 50:smile_big:

" In the late 90's Montana had no speed limit during daytime hours. The law was that drivers were allowed to drive at speeds considered "reasonable and prudent.":surprise:GOOGLE

Some roads in Texas now have 80 and 85 mph speed limits and normally, Folks in a hurry drive maybe 10 mph faster:wink2:

"Portions of the Idaho, Montana, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming road networks have 80 mph (129 km/h) posted limits. The highest posted speed limit in the entire country can be found on the Texas State Highway 130, and it is 85 mph (137 km/h)." :smile_big:GOOGLE

I will probably not exceed 50 mph on my ride to work this morning as I enjoy the winding and curving Rural roads in my area:kiss:

Sam:nerd:

 

[Unkle Krusty]

200 km/hr on my Honda ST1100 in Central Queensland Australia through the cane fields, that's 125 mph. Only did it once, went back home and crossed it off the bucket list:

Max out the bike DONE! (However the bike could probably have done 220 km/hr - 140 mph, but I'm saying I maxed it).

Well done Steve.
The big bikes with large fairings can get a lot of turbulence around 185 and up. Many will do 155 comfortably all day. Over 90mph and near 100 for the mph crowd. Used to be only the cafe racer types could or would run steady over 90. But that was before there were four lane highways everywhere.

Down in the state forests, bottom right of Lake Taupo, the main road has mile markers. We ran 15 miles in 10 minutes in my 39 Ford hearse. That confirmed my math for gear ratio, tyre slippage, and mph, as I did not have a speedo. So when we did the ton, we knew it was factual. Plus the Ford Zephyr that was pegged next to us on the Southern Motorway.
For those that cry BS, we were not running the stock 85hp side valve motor, or the cable brakes, or the original gear box and rear end.

UK

 

[FlipFlop]

On the Blackbird, and the R1 100mph came easy, on my 600 it was obtainable, on my 500's I would be wringing their neck to get there only after modifying them. The Goldwing, Winger, well as I roll on its throttle it easily gets up to 85 mph and the steering gets scary light. The front fairing I think it is causing lift, so not going to try it until I get to riding it more.

 

[Unkle Krusty]

On the Blackbird, and the R1 100mph came easy, on my 600 it was obtainable, on my 500's I would be wringing their neck to get there only after modifying them. The Goldwing, Winger, well as I roll on its throttle it easily gets up to 85 mph and the steering gets scary light. The front fairing I think it is causing lift, so not going to try it until I get to riding it more.

Yes. That is the feeling the heavier bikes with fairings give you. Same feeling I get when riding Yami my 79 XS11. The lighter sport bikes go dead straight, no wiggles at speeds well over 100.

UK

 

[hogcowboy]

On the Blackbird, and the R1 100mph came easy, on my 600 it was obtainable, on my 500's I would be wringing their neck to get there only after modifying them. The Goldwing, Winger, well as I roll on its throttle it easily gets up to 85 mph and the steering gets scary light. The front fairing I think it is causing lift, so not going to try it until I get to riding it more.

Yes. That is the feeling the heavier bikes with fairings give you. Same feeling I get when riding Yami my 79 XS11. The lighter sport bikes go dead straight, no wiggles at speeds well over 100.

UK

Yep, even my Indian gets light at 105 -110mph and higher. There was supposedly a lot of work done with it's fairing design but that's a lot of wind resistance out front. I'm not sure how Harley's shark nose does. I know in crosswinds it's much better but straight on speed I have no idea. Heck, I don't even know if they can do it. Never heard anyone claiming anything. Someone has bound to have done it. It's sorta in most of our blood to try I think. I suspect it also gets light. But at what speed?

 

[GatorJoe]

Never heard it called hitting the Ton before, or don't recall hearing it anyway .. Us Crackers in the South refer to it hitting the Dollar Mark .. Both my Rides will cruise at 85 MPH Comfortably and hit 100 easily .. So consider it all I need .. The 2000 FXR4 is the only Bike owned since retired that didn't do this with Ease, although would quickly reach 85, then edge into the mid 90's a bit slower, so settled for that with the underpowered EVO because of it's Looks, Style, and Excellent Handling .. With EVO Reliability to back all this up ..

 

[SemiFast]

Hey Gator,
I never heard it called hitting the ton either. I've always called it High Rollin.
Running at or near top speed is called On The Big End. Both are probably just regional slang and I think High Rollin might only be my term for it.
What do you call it in your regions guys?

 

[Porky]

Actually, 100 mph isn't really anything to brag about unless you are on a 250 or something. Now in the day, in England, where I believe the saying "Doing the ton," came from, it was a big deal to 'brag' about since their bikes in stock form were so SLOW. I know there were a few exceptions:smile_big:

100 is the new 50:smile_big:

In 1992, my best friend, a Sheriff with the 'City of Industry' sub-station, in LA county, bought a new Harley FXR and it was beautiful and he was in love. I was riding a 1991 FLHS:grin:

Five of us decided to ride to Furnace Creek, in Death Valley, stay the night and then go north to Lone Pine/ Bishop, and ride up to the portal of Mount Whitney and take HWY 395 back through the Los Angeles area and on to San Berdoo and Hemet the next day. Total was approx 600 miles.:smile:

I let my Brother ride my 1987 Kawasaki KLR 650 so he could come along and enjoy the mini vacation.

There were 3 Electra Glides, 1 new FXR and then the KLR 650.:smile:

Inevitably, we had fun doing some races from stop lights up to about 60 mph or so and the KLR always won. then we had the roll-on competition from 60 or so and the little KLR stayed right with the Electra Glides till about 80 mph or so.:wink2:

On Interstate 15, approaching Baker where we would exit to enter 'Death Valley,' with no one around, we all wanted to do a 'top speed' test:

My FLHS maxed out at 115. I had a 'Sportster ECM' and had re-jetted the 40mm Keihn carb.

the other 2 Electra Glides, hit their stock ECM rev-limiter at 105.

The KLR was just a little behind at 100+-.

The new and stock FXR had to really struggle to hit 95 mph.:surprise:

Needless to say, my Bud was very upset:crying: I put a Cam in it along with some good pipes and an S&S Super 'E' carb and then the thing came alive---up until it hit the factory governor/ rev limiter @ 105 mph.

Funny sidebar: My Bud and I both had 1962 Honda 305 Superhawks and both ran right at a 100 mph top speed and hummed like a sewing machine while doing so and they were stock:smile_big:

When you have a open class superbike or similar, 100 mph is just an easy over-rev in 2nd gear:surprise: The 1199 Ducati Panigale accelerates to 100 mph in 5 seconds:surprise:

At the time of its release Ducati claimed that the 1199 Panigale was the world's most powerful production twin-cylinder engine motorcycle, with 195 bhp (145 kW) at 10,750 rpm, and 133.0 N⋅m (98.1 lb⋅ft) torque at 9000 rpm on an engine test stand.[5] With a claimed dry weight of 164 kg (362 lb) and a kerb weight of 188 kg (414 lb).[6] Ducati said the 1199 had the highest power-to-weight and torque-to-weight ratios of production motorcycles.[5]

Motorcycle Consumer News tested the 2012 Panigale S at 128.1 kW (171.8 hp) and 117.1 N⋅m (86.4 lb⋅ft) torque at the rear wheel, with a wet weight 193 kg (425 lb).[2] They measured a 0 to 60 mph (0 to 97 km/h) time of 2.98 seconds, a 0 to 1⁄4 mi (0.00 to 0.40 km) time of 9.91 seconds at 145.95 mph (234.88 km/h), and a top speed to 177.6 mph (285.8 km/h).[2] Braking performance was 60 to 0 mph (97 to 0 km/h) in 119.1 ft (36.3 m) and average fuel economy was 6.9 L/100 km; 41.1 mpg‑imp (34.2 mpg‑US).[2] Motorcycle Consumer News ranked the 2012 Panigale S with the best rear wheel horsepower to wet weight ratio, 1:2.47, of any bike the magazine had ever tested, as well as the 5th highest rear wheel horsepower, and the 10th highest top speed.[2] Wikipedia.

Long winded again:wink2:

Sam:nerd:

 

[Critter]

I must be the lonely outsider here. Never seen a need to find out how fast my bikes or cars are. I know they are quick but no idea what the top end is on any of them.

 

[Eye_m_no_angel]

I once wasted a lot of money trying to go fast. Then I realized that no matter how fast I could go there was always someone who could go faster, I wasn't really impressing anyone in a positive way, and I had thrown away a bunch of money I could have used for other useful things.

Besides, there's really not all that many riders that can keep up with my stock Harley Road King anyway. Most of them never even make it past the first state line.