At this year’s Black Hills motorcycle rally, which ran from August 3 -9, there was something else going on besides the usual carnival of tattooed one-percenters, smokey burnouts, and T-shirt vendors. For the first time in the history of this, the world’s largest motorcycle rally - there was someone on hand explaining and extolling the benefits of ethanol-blended gasoline. A display from the U.S.-based Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) was apparently present at the Buffalo Chip Campground, in Sturgis, South Dakota, which is the biggest, busiest, and rowdiest one of them all. Over its one-week period, the Sturgis rally is expected to draw at least half a million motorcyclists, from around the world, and lots of them will be pitching a tent at Buffalo Chip.

"Every one of those individuals that will be up there on their motorcycles also will return home to a car or truck, lawnmower, weed-eater or whatever," explains director of market development for the RFA, Robert White. "And at this campground, there will be 50,000 people camping in a 50-acre space." White plans to give away T-shirts, mount a static display and put images up on the campground Jumbotron between musicals acts, which include the likes of Toby Keith and Aerosmith. White and the RFA’s goal is to heighten awareness of ethanol not just to motorcyclists but to anyone who uses a small displacement internal combustion engine. Leaf-blowers, jet-skis, lawnmowers, ATVs and anything else that runs on gasoline are all fair game.

I’ve been to Sturgis, and, since they can’t drink it, it’s questionable whether the participants there will care much about ethanol fuel, or even be able to see White’s various displays. That said, it will demonstrate that ethanol is more than a passing fad. Indeed, the U.S Energy Act, which came into effect last year, dictates that the energy industry must quadruple its ethanol output by 2020, and it’s going to find its way into gasoline, at almost every level. Better get used to it, ethanol is here to stay.

But how do motorcycles react to the stuff? Is it okay to run it? Will it damage anything? Is there a performance loss?

It seems to depend on the bike and the ethanol content. Two-stroke engines won’t like it at all. But four-stroke, liquid-cooled bikes may be okay. They tend to handle gasoline additives and octane fluctuations better than their air-cooled counterparts. Operating temperature is crucial in the latter, and when you mess around with the octane rating (the majority of air-cooled bikes require 91 octane or better), power and fuel consumption may be compromised. As well as burning hotter than gasoline, ethanol also contains less energy, and according to Consumer Reports, more ethanol content means lower fuel economy. At this point, low ethanol content - say E10, which is 10 per cent ethanol and 90 per cent regular gasoline - isn’t much of an issue, and many bikes are already certified to run on it. Harley-Davidson products, for example, can handle E10, no problem. Stray beyond that, however, and there could be difficulties, mainly in the area of seals, gaskets, and sensitive metals. "We do not encourage a higher percentage of ethanol as this may have various adverse effects on various components including O-rings, gaskets and the metal inside of the fuel system," explains Harley-Davidson Canada’s Alex Carroni.

Step up to an E85 (85 per cent ethanol and 15 per cent gasoline) blend and everything changes. Yes, liquid-cooled, four-stroke motorcycles will run on it, but you can’t just start pumping it into your bike. If you could find a gas station that dispenses the stuff, that is. If your bike has a carburetor(s), you’ll need to re-jet it and tinker with float levels, timing, and so on. As well, E85 also doesn’t store well, and over a relatively short period of time - say two or three months - it can damage non-metallic parts. Apparently, it can also stir up any sludge and gunk present in your fuel system, leave a gummy deposit on moving parts, and adversely affect engine lubricants. In short, if the bike isn’t modified to run on E85, just say no.

Indeed, the worlds’s largest motorcycle organization - the American Motorcycle Association (AMA) - has serious reservations about increased ethanol content in motorcycles. Some states are contemplating a mandatory move up to E20 at the pumps, and, until research proves that this won’t damage bike engines, says the AMA, it could be disastrous for some motorcycles. "The AMA supports the use of cleaner-burning fuels, but we are concerned about premature engine damage or failure while a bike is being ridden on a highway if the allowable level of ethanol is raised to 20 percent," said Imre Szauter, AMA legislative affairs specialist. "We are also concerned about any degradation in performance, fuel economy and rideability that may result from the long-term use of blended fuels with greater than 10 percent ethanol."

The votes, as they say, are still coming in.