1978 Behn Monoshock Frame

Engine as a stressed member. With the engine installed the frame became triangulated. We had special bolts made to secure the engine which were almost a press fit into the Kawasaki engine cases. The four inch diameter backbone was bent to allow Kawasaki Z1-cam cover removal. The large diameter gives great torsional strength but the tube only had a wall thickness of .0625" (1.5mm). Without the engine to complete the triangulation the frame would flex. We shipped the frames with a "faux engine strut" to keep the frame stiff until the final engine installation. A Colin Chapman, Lotus-esque, approach to chassis design. Light to win races which it did.

Amortisseurs DeCarbon monoshock with custom valving. Timken bearings in neck and swingarm. Mild steel DOM tubing. Might as well have been from the Twilight Zone when it showed up in 1977. Competitors liked to protest it when it was winning. Our answer at the time was anyone could order one.

Contrast our frame to the, at the time, state-of-the-art "Featherbed" frame design that everyone used...even the factory racers from Japan. Both designs won races whereas center hub designs from various designers like Andre de Cortanze (ELF), James Parker, Bimota, Mead & Tompkinson (Nessie) and others never had racing success.

No one really did anything innovative for many years until Pierre Doncques (Godier Genoud) and John Britten came along. Their monoshock designs also won races. In the 1970's the Behn Monoshock won multiple 24h races, something that was still possible in that time frame. Individuals could still outdo the factories...akin to F1 designers like John Barnard and Gordon Murray before 500 engineers got involved. 

You do it when there is a faint light at the end of the tunnel...then "pied au plancher" (pedal to the metal).

Those days are long gone.