Television cameras on motorbikes

Soemone I know was wondering about the use of TV cameras on bikes, it
has intruiged me too, he writes:

Just watching some of The Great North Run on telly and started thinking
about the tv pictures of the runners that are shot from motorbikes.

Does anyone know if the bikes are specially modified to allow the
cameraman to sit backwards on the bike or do they just put up with being
uncomfortable?

Has anyone ever been involved in this type of filming? Either as rider
or camera operator?

How does someone get started in this? I'd imagine quite a bit of
specialist training was necessary.

Have so far been unsucessful locating any info about this using Google.

 

Its all a big con. Even something like a BMW tourer should win the Tour de
France easily but they always get overtaken by the pushbikes in the final
sprint.

 

I thought the point about something like the K1200 is that it has a reverse
gear, enabling the rider to operate the camera and film the cycle race while
reversing.

 

Andy Carvell wrote

Not really, basically all you need is the kit because as far as
examination of your skills are concerned it is piss easy to find out if
the cameraman is any good at a single glance. No argument.

Sky were advertising for sports cameramen recently, all the
qualification you needed was a professional camera.

 

Only cos the bloke on the BMW wasn't using his front brake.

 

In

Seem to recall hearing once that on the downhill mountain sections of
the Tour d'France the pushbikes were faster than the motorbikes around
the hairpins.



--
Steve Parry

http://www.gwynfryn.co.uk

http://www.arrivedeprived.org.uk/

K100RS SE
F650
(not forgetting the SK90PY)

 

What makes you think it's uncomfortable? Have you ever ridden pillion
facing backwards? It's a hoot.

Yes. http://www.geocities.com/benpitcher27/Champion_Interview

I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

 

S'true.

In the same way that 125s are faster round the corners than 250s,
which in turn are faster than the MotoGP bikes. A combined bike and
rider of around 80kg on tyres this wide <holds thumb and finger 10mm
part> is always going to corner faster than a bike/rider/pillion
combination of 400kg on motorcycle sized tyres, assuming it can get up
to the speed. On the downhill sections, it can.

 

Watched a program on the TV about that. It showed several shots of
up-side-down motorbikes with rider and cameraman trying to sort them
selves out

 

The physics of that are a bit scary.

I'd much rather have the wide motorcycle tyres TYVM.

 

No they're not.

Well, I realise it's because it makes you feel safer, but in fact, the
wider the tyre, the worse the bike steers. This is because, when lent
over on a wide tyre, the contact patch is significantly displaced from
the centre line of the bike.

 

Having done it, I'd rather have the pedal bike, seriously.

Less damage when you crash as well.

 

Champ says...

http://www.geocities.com/benpitcher27/NC-6.jpg

Nice cornering style, did you sign him up as a spare rider for team
UKRM?

 

Hmm, steers okay - but what about road holding?

Which would you lean over further in the wet, your motorcycle or your
bicycle?

 

Gawd, you've never lived.

IME it's much more scary on a push-bike, possibly due to lack of any
protection[1], possibly just that you don't feel like it _should_ be
going that fast.


[1] Although doing 50mph on a motorbike in shorts isn;t scary at all,
so I guess that can;t be it.

 

Yes... not something I'd be rushing to do right at the moment with the
riding position + neck I currently have

 

Well, plenty of mountains round here, and a pushbike or two to borrow
if you want...

 

Heh - I meant on a motorcycle. Going down the mountain would be good on a
bicycle - going up....?

Seriously, I was very tempted with Porl's jaunette earlier this year - if
another one occurs next year and my financial situation is improved, I will
definitely be up for it.

 

I meant both. Or either, as it were.

They do have pedals fitted, you know.

Well I'll deffo be planning to do something similar - can't guarantee
your finances though

 

Shit your googling must be even worse than mine.
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=...=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&selm=HAxqyC.2qD%40bath.ac.uk
or http://tinyurl.com/5ac89

--
Bob
vstun piss ted at yahoo dot com
If you want to email me you'll have to take the piss
As you can probably tell I'm heavily Dyslexic so errors
and omissions are not just excepted but expected.