I can make all the excuses you like, but after over a year i finally took the bike back to the runway for testing and boy did i have a great time.
The plan had been to do coast down testing with the bodywork but it was just too windy and with strong gusts up to 25 mph, which in a streamliner is dangerous, same with trying out the parachute release, if the wind tugged me out of true i could end up in a barrel roll and real trouble, so it was naked testing only.
So the bike was set up with variable fixed stabilisers, the retracting mechanism still being under manufacture.
The testing started with me being towed behind my car and trailer just to see if i could still get it to lift off the stabilisers. this didnt go as well as it had a year ago and i just couldnt understand why. Whilst counter intuitive we raised the stabilisers so there was more air underneath them when on the move and upright, and this was a revelation, now the bike didnt bounce off the stabilisers wheel but it allowed me to control the bike and do the correctections, straight and stable, comes to mind. So stable i could take one hand off the steering to pull the tow rope release!!
Later we decided it was going so well, we should try pulling away under its own power and using the new electronic gear change.
Promises made that i would just pull away in first and see how it felt...
Well the red mist came up the engine sounded so crisp, before i knew it i was in 3rd and doing the right side of 60 mph.
Several more runs and the gear change was proving the issue, could select 4th or higher, just once did i get into 4th, couldnt see all the instrumentation, so need to move som estuff, but did see the start of turbo boost coming through at 3-4lbs of boost, i need at least 8lbs to make the power.
But the positives were, easy to pull away from a standing start, engine runs really sweet, boost coming through, i can get it off the stabilisers and still focus on direction and changing gear.
next time out hopefully will do the coast down test to determine drag coefficient and parachute release, purely using its own engine, and maybe even retracting stabilisers, feeling elated.
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