From a press release:
WORLD PREMIERE OF GURNEY ALLIGATOR MOTORCYCLE
Dan Gurney introduced his Alligator motorcycle at the Petersen Museum in Los Angeles on April 24, 2002. Chassis No.1 is presented to Mr. Robert E. Petersen for permanent display at the museum.
PRODUCTION OF “36 LIMITED EDITION” HAS BEGUN
It was a spectacular birth: Alligator Chassis No I cracked through an enormous Styrofoam egg to the delight of the press and many fans who gathered at the Petersen Museum on Wednesday night for a celebration. It was the first glimpse the public got of the finished Gurney ALLIGATOR motorcycle, an exclusive single cylinder niche bike for the street which has been developed over 2 decades.
Production on a “36 LIMITED EDITION” has started. The number 36 is significant as it was the number that donned the Formula I Eagle which won the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, exactly 35 years ago, a first for an American built car and driver/constructor and an achievement that has not been duplicated yet. The first 36 Alligators will commemorate and feature the colors of the car that made F I history. With the Alligator motorcycles being designed and built in the very same facility as the F I car, Dan Gurney hopes to make history on an entirely different front.
This radically different looking motorcycle with its low center of gravity has been developed over 2 decades and has been called “revolutionary” and “representing a breakthrough” by many of the 89 riders that have logged countless test miles on the 5 prototypes preceding the final version. It is a feet-forward single cylinder (modified Honda air-cooled 650cc engine) with electric start and fuel injection delivering around 70 plus horsepower, weighing approx. 320 pounds with a top speed of approx. 140mph.
The Gurney ALLIGATOR has a look and riding feel unique and different from anything on the road. Unlike other motorcycles, the rider sits below the top of the tires with feet in a forward position. The fuel tank is mounted below the seat and behind the engine. Gurney originally moved in this design direction because he is tall and many bikes made him feel as if he were pitching forward when going downhill. The Alligator is this concept taken to its logical extreme. What works so well for tall people works equally well for people with shorter legs. They do not have any trouble getting on or off the bike, are no longer worried about falling over at a standstill and being closer to the ground, they feel much more comfortable and safe. This low CG concept has been developed and refined over the years into something quite extraordinary: a motorcycle with a confidence inspiring riding feel, obvious and significant aerodynamic benefits and most of all: a fun factor to match.
The ALLIGATOR name, which has been trademarked, came about because of the bike’s long, low appearance. The name was also chosen to reflect the American aspect of this intriguing machine, as the Alligator is a species of North America not found anywhere else in the world.
In the modern day world of design by computer, committee and consensus, this machine is the product of one man’s idea in the tradition of the great motormen of the past. “To go where no man has gone before ” has been a Gurney trademark in the motor racing world for four decades. With the introduction of this revolutionary exclusive motorcycle for the street, a new chapter has begun.