He made his own barrels, flywheels, pistons, cams and followers and lubrication system. In their final form he in effect hand-carved his con-rods from a Caterpillar tractor axle, and hardened and tempered them to 143 tons tensile strength. He built a seventeen plate, thousand pound pressure clutch and used a triple chain drive. He experimented with streamlining and, in its final form, the bike was completely enclosed in a streamlined shell.The leaf-sprung fork was dispensed with and what appears to be a girder fork from a 1925 - 1928 Prince substituted.

Burt, then a grandfather, visited the Bonneville salt flats several times from 1962 onwards. In that year he set a then world record of 178.971 mph with his engine out to 51 cu.in. (85Occ). In 1963 a con-rod broke while he was traveling at an estimated 195mph. In 1966 it was displacing 920cc, when Burt, unhappy with some loss in top speed, completely rebuilt it again.

In 1967, with his engine punched out to 58 cu.in. (950cc) he set a class record of 183.586 mph. To qualify he made a one-way run of 190.07 mph, the fastest ever officially recorded speed on an Indian.

His visits to the salt were not without incident. In issue no. 1 of Motorcycle New Zealand, published in 1973 Burt is quoted as follows:-"At the Salt in 1967 we were going like a bomb. Then she got the wobbles just over half way through the run. To slow her down I sat up. The wind tore my goggles off and the blast forced my eyeballs back into my head - couldn't see a thing. We were so far off the black line that we missed a steel marker stake by inches. I put her down - a few scratches all round but nothing much else". At the time Burt was traveling at close to 206 mph!

Burt, then a grandfather, visited the Bonneville salt flats several times from 1962 onwards. In that year he set a then world record of 178.971 mph with his engine out to 51 cu.in. (85Occ). In 1963 a con-rod broke while he was traveling at an estimated 195mph. In 1966 it was displacing 920cc, when Burt, unhappy with some loss in top speed, completely rebuilt it again.

In 1967, with his engine punched out to 58 cu.in. (950cc) he set a class record of 183.586 mph. To qualify he made a one-way run of 190.07 mph, the fastest ever officially recorded speed on an Indian.

His visits to the salt were not without incident. In issue no. 1 of Motorcycle New Zealand, published in 1973 Burt is quoted as follows:-"At the Salt in 1967 we were going like a bomb. Then she got the wobbles just over half way through the run. To slow her down I sat up. The wind tore my goggles off and the blast forced my eyeballs back into my head - couldn't see a thing. We were so far off the black line that we missed a steel marker stake by inches. I put her down - a few scratches all round but nothing much else". At the time Burt was traveling at close to 206 mph!

His team at Bonneville consisted of Indian enthusiasts from all over the USA, who came voluntarily to provide help and encouragement. "Picked up a station wagon for $90 in Los Angeles last time," said Burt in the same interview. "It was the headquarters for Team Indian".

Burt Munro died in December 1978. The Indian, which had been his for 57yrs is in the hands of an enthusiast in the South Island. As well as the bike he left behind a legend of skill, perseverance, and courage which typifies the ingenuity and resilience of the New Zealand spirit, and of which all New Zealanders, motorcyclists or not, may be justly proud.

After a blow-up. The original engine no, 50R627 is visible. Rumor has it that Burt made his barrels from pieces of cast iron gas pipe, which he scrounged from the gas company after they had been dug up for replacement.

He reasoned that, after some years in the ground, they were well seasoned. He then made aluminum slices which he shrunk over the pipe to make fins.I can believe it looking at this picture (click for closeups and see the damage to cases & barrels)

• 1974 — Youth National Athletic Competition: broadsword form gold medal, optional empty-hand form gold medal, all-round gold medal;

• 1975 — Third Chinese Wushu Championships: long fist form gold medal, spear form silver medal;

• 1977 — National Wushu Competition: long-fist form gold medal, broadsword form gold medal;

• 1978 — National Wushu Competition: long-fist form gold medal, optional empty-hand form gold medal, broadsword form gold medal, all-round gold medal;

• 1979 — Fourth Chinese Wushu Championships: long-fist form gold medal, optional empty-hand form gold medal, broadsword form gold medal, sparring form gold medal, all-round gold medal.

Some of Huo's best-known fights were open challenges from foreign fighters.

It was a 1901 match with a Russian wrestler in Xiyuan Park, Tianjin that first made Huo famous. The wrestler had openly insulted the Chinese, calling them "Asian weaklings" or "Sick Man Of the East" because no one would accept his challenge to a fight. Huo either defeated the wrestler or the wrestler forefeited the match, which was widely publicized by news papers.

In 1909, Huo, accompanied by his apprentice Liu Zhensheng, traveled to Shanghai to accept an open challenge posed by a British boxer named Hercules O'Brien. The match was preceded by disagreement over what rules it would be governed by. O'Brien insisted on Western boxing rules limiting attacks to punches above the waist. Huo, on the other hand, was more accustomed to the rules of Chinese leitai challenge matches, which lacked such restrictions. They finally agreed that the first person to knock down his opponent would be considered the winner; however, the match never took place and Hercules O'Brien fled the area before the date of the match.

That same year, Huo opened the Jing Wu Ti Cao Hui (Jing Wu Men) martial arts school at Shanghai's north gate.

The 2006 Jet Li film Fearless (Huo Yuan Jia), described an event that took place on September 14, 1910. According to the film, this day is one of the most significant dates in Huo's life. Ever since the country's defeat in the Opium War, Chinese morale had been relegated to a depressive low. His victories had led to a gradual rise in Chinese nationalism. Fearing a possible rebellion, a meeting was called between the leaders of the four industrial powers occupying China at the time — France, Britain, Russia, and Japan. It was decided upon that each of these nations would send a combatant to challenge him in an effort to squelch Chinese optimism. On September 14, 1910, he fought and defeated each of his four challengers. Although the speculated rebellion did not ensue, Chinese pride soared; he became a legendary symbol for Chinese nationalism and is still regarded with great reverence today.

Huo died in 1910. It is often alleged that his death was caused by being poisoned by the Japanese. The films Fist of Fury (starring Bruce Lee) and its remake Fist of Legend are highly-fictionalized accounts of the events following his death. According to Huo's grandson, Huo's death came after the defeat of the 10 members of the Japanese Judo team. During a subsequent dinner with his opponents, Huo's illness (perhaps tuberculosis) prompted the Japanese to offer medical help, but he suffered a severe and fatal reaction to the medication given by the Japanese doctor. Recent films have also included a student by the name of Chen Zhen ( who was portrayed by Bruce Lee in Fist of Fury), who has been determined to be a highly fictionalized character. Jet Li's latest film, Fearless, is also greatly fictionalized as the stories about Huo's family and the actual matches were far from reality. The grandson of Huo Yuanjia, Huo Shoujin, filed a lawsuit March 7, 2006, claiming that the movie dishonored Huo Yuanjia by fabricating information about his life and portraying him as a wealthy man who was childless. Huo Yuan Jia's legacy was carried on by 3 sons and two daughters, and one of his great grand daughters still carries on his legacy as a renowned martial artist.

 my legs feel like logs! well i kinda underestimated the distance to walmart to buy a portable battery booster. i thought it was only 1 1/2 miles but it ended up being like 2 1/2 miles. i wished i would've walked in the rain after all cause that texas sun was hot as hell when you're on your feet. it takes me like 45 minutes to walk there but the walk back was a biatch. the battery booster thingie was heavy as hell and it took me a good 1 hour 15 mins to walk back. i'm too damn tired to even cook me something to eat even though i'm starving to death. lolz.

 on second thought i better get off my lazy ass and cook me some dinner after all. haha. take care everyone and have a great day.

omg i am having a really bad day! the regional manager is coming to our branch for our site inspection today. i wake up early, take a shower and dress decently per my asshole manager's instructions. go to my car and turn on the ignition and NOTHING happens. i mean wtf? i just put in a new alternator like 2 months ago and now i got a dead battery again? to top it off, it starts to rain. i call into work to tell my coworker i wasnt gonna make it in today. later i call my boss to tell him the same thing then proceeded to go back to my apartment waiting for the rain to stop. my plan was to walk to walmart like since i thought it was 1 1/2 miles away to buy a portable battery charger/jumper. i mean a taxi would be aight but i thought i could use the exercise and besides.. i'm just too damn cheap for a cab. lolz. well 4 hours later and it still hasnt stopped raining yet.

 decided to pay for my internet service early just in case that was the reason it stopped working. phoned in my payment and waited 30 mins and tried internet again. what do u know.. it starts to work again although REALLY slow. its worse than dial-up slow now. just great! gonna do a fresh install on my laptop and try again just in case its my machine. what a lousy day so far. anyways... gotta run so take care everyone.

 as i sit here and listen to one of my favorite cd's of the hungarian band named desperado, i wonder who the heck am i. foreals i must be one strange dude to some peeps. here i am an asian but have been spending the whole week listening to hungarian, romanain, russian, korean, and japanese music. when i'm on the road i'll turn on the mexican station and listen to salsa, meringue, and reggaeton. when i'm in my bad-ass mood i'll put on some hip hop and gangsta rap. if i wanna party i'll play some techno, trance, house, or dance music. every now and then i'll rock out with hard\classic rock or metal. when i'm skateboarding of course i gotta listen to some alternative\grunge. sometimes i'll be in the mood for country, and when i want something different i'll put on some opera, instrumental, or classical. for some strange reason me and r&b just don't quite get along. believe me i try. don't get me wrong.. i can dig r&b but its really not one of my favs. i can pretty much listen to everything. same thing with watching tv and movies. even though i don't understand the language, i love foreign films. my co-workers always gives me hell cause i be watching the mexican stations. no matter what foreign country i'm in i can watch whatever is on. the strangest this i've ever done was when i was in hungary, i was watching a tibetan movie which was translated into hungarian. i'm like a sponge, i soak up everything i see and hear. lolz.. i'm just plain weird.

 oh wells... back to the hungarian music again and then a little russian. what a way to spend a saturday night. lolz... at least i'm enjoying myself at home. peace out everyone.

 i've just finished watching a british movie about a group of teens in london called "kidulthood". it's a very raw movie in its depiction of violence, sex, drugs, and the various cliques which kids belong to. a movie like that kind of makes u think about what can go on out there in the real world. this young chick was constantly bullied by other girls that she finally couldn't take it and hung herself. another chick doesnt even flinch to give a drug dealer a blowjob in front of everyone just to score some drugs and money for shopping. later on she offers to f*ck with a group of guys cause she wanted to party and even offers to take it up the ass with one of them. all of this from a 15 year old chick. it seems kids are growing up so fast nowdays. half the stuff they're exposed to wasn't available when i was growing up. u were doing good to score some alcohol and if u got ahold of weed u were the ****. to find a girl u can make out with was a huge accomplishment. i don't know how realistic the movie was but i think it was quite close to the truth. i've met some young chicks who has been exposed to way too much for their age.drugs are so easy to get that the movie also is quite credible in that aspect as well. we all read about violence every day in the newspaper and see it on the tv and movies. sometimes watching something like that really makes me feel old. it seems not so long ago i embraced that lifestyle and culture.

is this a sign that i am finally growing up?