With the sudden influx of pocket bikes, many Americans may believe that this is a new sport. But small, motorized bikes have been around since the 1950s. They appeared shortly after mechanized racing karts became common. There were silly contests like “jousting”. Two horsemen rode against each other while holding rolled newspapers and attempting to blow up a balloon tied to their opponent’s helmet. After the 1960s, mini bikes became relatively rare in the states.
During the 1970s, pocket bike racing became a serious sport in Japan. They used inexpensive, low-tech bikes for racing. In the 1980s, Italians took the sport to a higher level and began competing with higher-quality, high-tech bikes. Still, the bikes they first used were powered by relatively weak motors with no more power than an electric screwdriver.
By the late 1990s, the sport had spread throughout Europe. In 1996 the Swiss Pocket Bike Championship was created. This championship grew to include other pocket bike clubs to eventually become one of the largest in the world. More than 120 people compete in 8-11 races each year. The races, which take place on different tracks, are divided by age and gender of the participants, as well as by the type of pocket bike (junior, stock or racing).
Pocket bike racing remains one of the fastest growing sports in Europe and is also spreading to other countries in Asia and North America. In some European countries, the races are even televised. Italy is still the number one producer of Minimoto, although the machines they create now are much more powerful than previous models. The Chinese have recently started making bicycles, which, although they are of much lower quality than their Italian counterparts, are much less expensive.
Many of the best motorcycle racers learned their sport for the first time on a Minimoto. World champions who started out with pocket bikes include Valentino Rossi (Italian), Loris Capirossi (Italian), Nobuatsu Aoki (Japanese) and Daijiro Kato (Japanese). However, an English motorcycle instructor named Alec Tague holds the latest land speed record. Alec, who is 39 years old and 5 foot 10, hit 78 MPH on his 12-inch bike. The old record, held by American Dave Myers, was 63,888 MPH.
Modern pocket bikes that have not been upgraded generally have between 4 and 14 horsepower. Entry-level bikes produce 3-4 hp, while racing models can be rated at 11-12 hp. Most bikes weigh around 40 pounds and cost anywhere from $ 200 for a low-end Chinese model, up to $ 5,000 for a well-designed, premium Italian bike.