Running Two Bikes, and Spokesman for loosers

1972, Indy. I got permission from Steve Gibbs to try and qualify both of my bikes and got hurt when a rod broke right off the starting line and ended up in the hospital and Sonny Raz was in a different Hospital, the year he lost part of his hand. NHRA rules were you could not ride two bikes in the same class, I could choose one I wanted to ride and get another rider for the other but I would have put it in the trailer.

There was a bad issue at Bowling Green one year (which was a NHRA Sanction track) when TC rode two bikes in the same class and collected the money for both and left the track. Everybody came to me to be spokesman for them and we all went to the tower, about 25 or 30 crowded in the lower of that little thing and I got in a loud debate with one of the official, we were really going at it and I mention all these people would like something done. He said what people and I looked around and every body had left and I was the one that looked like a fool.

Nothing was done and I never got over that disloyalty.

The year Boris won

That was 1972 the year Boris won. Sonny had a metal set up to the handlebars to shut off his fuel to the injectors and it broke, he replaced it with a piece of string, on the next run it got burned off, I was at his pit area when he was trying to do something about it so he could run again. The shutoff set right on top of the primary chain cover. He wouldn't listen to me, said it would be alright. Well, he did just what you said, he said he didn't know anything was wrong until he went to hold up the bike with that hand to unfasten his helmet and the bike fell over. The only thing he really had left was his fore finger. My Son Gene rode to the hospital in the ambulance with him. My run was right after the track was ready to go. I show up with both of my bikes, my race bike and my exhibition bike. I qualified my race bike and went to the NHRA Steve Gibbs to get permission to try to qualify my other bike; of course I could only run one. The race bike had a 4 ¾ inch stroke and the exhibition bike was a 5 inch stroke. It had already gone 174 but it was pretty slow due to the fact I had it set up with tall gear for speed. I had set it up for Indy already and got it ready for a run. Coming off the line I was carrying the front wheel and a rear rod broke, locking up the engine and pitched me over the handlebars. I stuck my left hand out to break my fall instead I broke some ribs and punched a lung. Sonny went to one hospital and I went to a different one. Can you imagine, your hand goes between the front engine sprocket and chain?