Around the year 2004 the market for mini motos and quads simply exploded. Originally, mini bikes were nothing more than scaled down push bikes with small engines attached, most commonly a Briggs or a Stratton which only delivered up to 5BHP! These original bikes lacked a formal breaking system and totally lacked suspension. Early bikes were made and used by engineers in the pits of racetracks (that is why they were called pit bikes) and actually they only provided a way of quick transport.

Yet these old models were the blueprint of today’s design. It was the Japanese company Honda that laid the cornerstones for the mini bikes to come. The bike that started this revolution was the Honda Z50 Mini Trail (or also called ‘Monkey Bike’). This could be stored easily in a truck or trailer for easy transportation. Bike parts for it were easily attainable over the world and they also were fairly cheap.

Modern mini bikes don’t differ too much from the earlier designs, they only have longer wheelbases, suspension and taller handlebars, as well as improved breaking systems. They allow adults to ride easily and safely. Also their durability has increased.

Now we all know that bikers are constantly on the look-out to improve their lifestyle, and so they also love mini motos especially when they can tune them into super pocket bikes! When a pocket bike comes out of the box, it won’t go that fast. But a seasoned bike owner knows how to fine- tune his motor and can turn it into a real racing machine.

They gladly take the extra time to tune and groom their mini moto or quad to perfection, but most of them take it easy. Just compare it with going to the gym: on your first day you won’t bench-press 300lbs at once, you have to build up to that.

Same goes for a mini moto. You are going to turn a lot of pressure on the bike, so you have to take good care of it and slowly break it in. Otherwise you will spend more time in service stations than on the track!

The components that need looking at are:

- the engine. A normal mini-moto has a two-stroke engine, but you can replace this by a rep engine. That one has a funky kick-forward starter and a wet clutch. When you take such one to a ride, it is just mental. With its power it really moves, but be careful. Because of the steering play and the small size, a driver who is not careful might hurt himself.

- the fuel mixture. When you break in the bike, you need a rich fuel mixture, about 25:1 ratio. You use this for the first three to four tanks and then switch over to a leaner fuel of 50:1 – now it has a lot more power.
- the brakes. Very important is that you check them regularly.

- the clutch. The bike you buy will probably have a centrifugal clutch assembly. There is a lot you can do here, if you don’t mind opening up the clutch and upgrade the inner springs so that they are more suited to your weight and performance preferences.

The modern arcades games of this age make extensive use of solid state electronics and integrated circuits. In the past, coin-operated video games generally used custom per-game hardware.

The new games are controllable via more immersing and realistic means than either computer of play console, and they feature specialized ambiance and control accessories, including fully enclosed dynamic cabinets with force feedback controls, dedicated lightguns, rear-projection displays, reproductions of car or plane cockpits and even motorcycle or horse-shaped controllers, or those that look like dancing mats and fishing rods. It are these accessories that side the game arcade of today aside from the home computer or play console, because they are usually too bulky, expensive or specialized to be used at home.

Arcade games can also be played on your own computer, and you don’t need to visit an arcade. Many developers are producing games in the arcade genre that are designed specifically for use on the internet. These games are usually designed with Flash, Java or DHTML and run directly from web browsers.

Although the arcade games had their heyday in the 1980’s they are still popular and many kids (and even adults) play games on their computer. The most popular games are the following:
• Need For Speed (or NFS) Underground. Here you step into the world of street races and tuned on cars. You get behind the wheel and you can win money to buy new spare parts. These you need to build a real racing machine. The game goes on in a dark street, and you have to develop skills to make it through.

• 2D Army Swat. Shoot the drunk terrorists but watch out for them shooting back!

• 12 Many. Here you are shown a screen of stars very quickly. You have to click in on the numbers of stars you saw on the previous screen. If correct, the number of stars is added to your score. If off by one star, you don’t earn any points but you don’t lose any either. You are allowed three errors.

• Whack your boss. It is ever so much fun to tell your boss off, or even be brutal to him. You can get creative with office supplies, and you don’t have to clean up the mess – this is done by the Cleaner.

• Sonic in Angel Island. A continuation of the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Fun stuff where you have to guide Sonic through another adventurous journey in Angel Island.

• Video Poker. Here you will play on screen, but first – just like in a real casino – you need to buy chips to play. You play against a machine. The aim is to get the perfect combination with five cards. The machine will offer you the possibility to take a card or refuse one. Because you can play for money, some people become addicted to playing and it is actually becoming somewhat of a concern, as even young people can play poker on the computer.