Chapter 4: Marcy and I Get Motorbikes

I had only spaced out for a few moments. My two sets of memories would likely blend together more when I went to sleep tonight. It’s not like I have a split personality. I only hear one voice, Mason’s, with the combined memories of two different worlds.

I came back into the conversation when Marcy asked which motorbike I thought we should get. Dad had already decided we would get the same model.

I said, “I think the best choice is the Honda. It has a 4-stroke engine, so you don’t have to deal with 2-stroke oil. It handles like a bicycle, and we are already familiar with how bicycles handle.”

“The Vespa is a scooter, and the wheels are too small for it to handle well. It is comfortable and reliable, but it is also really expensive to service. Everything is tucked behind the body of the scooter.”

“With the Honda, it has a splash shield; you take off a few bolts, and the splash shield is easily removed. Everything can easily be serviced then.”

“We should choose the Honda models that come with the splash shield. Since it rains here every day during summer, I’d prefer dry feet and legs. The puddles here can get pretty deep.”

Another thing is that Hondas come in many colors. Other motorbikes and scooters come in one or two colors.

The biggest advantage is that Hondas will run almost forever with minimal care. They are mechanically superior to every other bike in every way. They will last and last.

( I almost said, “At this time.” I had lived well beyond this point; I saw no need for monster-sized Honda Goldwings here. ) The maximum speed limit here is only 50 mph with severe punishments for speeding. We would never need anything more than the Honda GL 500 Silver Wing introduced in the 1970s. It was a small, full-dress bike that would putt-putt along at 70 mph all day long and got great fuel economy, too.

I had no idea what bike is the king of the road here.

I somehow remembered that none of the motorcycles sold here were Made in Japan.

They are all built here by North Americans using parts manufactured here in our republic. They do this under license from foreign countries. After WWII, Germany and Japan could pound sand as far as licensing designs went.

Many people here have only motorcycles, scooters, or motorbikes. Cars are less common. People buy them almost exclusively if they have families or are wealthy.

That begged the question: are we wealthy? We don’t have a big family.

The only imported material we use for the bikes here is rubber. We import that from Belize, which is also an English-speaking republic.

Dad’s car is a ‘Miller,’ which looks somewhat like an updated Model T. It is a short, compact car with an off-white canvas foldable top.

Dad’s car is light gray. It has a small 4-cylinder flat-four engine in the back. It is a distant ancestor of the original archaic VW design, with a twist. It has a flat-four engine with rotary valves. That type of valve does not have the drag of normal piston valves with their springs.

A lot of horsepower is lost making the cams press the valves down against the stiff force of the valve springs. It’s more than just the springs. There’s also drag from the cam chain or belt, the cam support bearings, and associated gearing, to name a few. A poppet valve design wastes a whole lot of power due to friction.

The Miller, like the VW, is rear-wheel drive (RWD). The ragtop raises and lowers manually. Its transmission is a two-speed hydraulic automatic. Like all bikes and motorcycles here, the wheels have spokes. Spokes reduce weight and require less metal and rubber.

The tires look more like fat motorcycle tires because the car is lightweight, much like our 60s-era VW Bug. The Miller also has a limited cargo area: a small slot behind the rear seat.

This vehicle was never meant to go very fast. Nobody is in a hurry here.

I get a Zen vibe when I see how people here are usually happy and enjoy life more. Without the craziness of people racing around crazily, everyone is calmer and more laid-back. These must be Mace’s memories.

I doubt Dad’s Miller weighs more than 1,500 pounds. Why should it? The max speed limit here is just 50. The government restricts horsepower for good reason. Safety! The car also gets outstanding gas mileage at 50 MPG.

When I died in 2038, our public roads were too crowded, and people drove like maniacs.

I remember the mid-1970s. “Drive 55 to Stay Alive,” or something like that. We had an oil shortage, so we had little gasoline. Accidents and fatalities during that period were really low. I was one of the few who hated it when they removed the speed restrictions. Probably me and one other guy in the US.

As a motorcyclist, I used to drive a lot of country roads typically posted at 45 or 55 mph. It is a lot more fun to just tool around that way. Driving like a chicken with its head cut off is not fun.

Driving on Florida roads where everyone goes 65 or 125 always made me real nervous. My 3rd wife hated it more than I did. Tickets alone did nothing to slow anyone down there. It had reached total lunacy.

When I took those slow roads like Route 1 or A1, I enjoyed the drive or ride and did not get tired. At high speeds, the engine and road vibration sucks the energy and life from you. Ya, it’s fun for a while. But if your wife makes you stop for a drink and a pee every hour on the hour, are you really making good time on the road?

Because the rotary valve engine has much less friction, it has smaller, more efficient pistons. They put out 34 horsepower. 34 horsepower is more than enough for a car built like a lightweight tin buggy. They built it this way because of the Appalachian and Rocky Mountain ranges. It still has enough oomph to climb those hills.

The engine is air-cooled from below, with a grille in the back where the warm air exits. The cylinders have fins, plus the engine sits atop the transmission and rear axle. Larger 6- and 8-cylinder versions of this gas engine are used in over-the-road trucks. They have 6-speed transmissions. 8-cylinder trucks are used in more mountainous areas.

Dad is an over-the-road truck driver here. In my world, Dad drove a city bus.

Most trucking here moves farm trade between the 37 Provinces of RONA. That’s the Republic of North America. Most Long-distance travel and heavy transport is by rail, boat, or barge. Trucks move important items or items not close enough to a rail hub or waterway. Important often means fresh produce. Florida supplies many foodstuffs to the Eastern Seaboard and a little of the Midwest. We supply most vegetables to the cold north during winter.