Russ and his Monster triple engine Honda

Hey joe got any stories about this guy?

Russ, now there’s a guy that’s done it all, I have a lot of good and bad memories about my friend Russ. I’ll relate to one that comes to mind mostly because it short and to the point.

It was at Irwindale Raceway on a Saturday which runs all day into the night. Russ had his triple Honda (ugh) there and having a lot of trouble getting it down the track. There was a lot of Bike Clubs at this race, The Hash***, The Var***, just to name a few. Now these guys bet big money at the races when it gets down to Harley against Honda, especially if it’s between Russ and Me. Russ and I have this Friend/Competitor attitude when were at the same race and the Spectators think it’s an Enemy/Competitor attitude which raises the stakes in the betting. Because of the round coming up was against Russ, I had already been approach by some of the clubs asking me how I felt about the upcoming race, you know, do you think you will win, will you get this guy, shit, blow him away? I understand that day there was around Ten Grand bet between two clubs alone.

Time for the race, every spectator there had filled the stands and along the fence, anticipation was at a high, the guy in the tower was really talking it up over the loud speaker. Russ and I are coming down the fire up road, both lit off and come around behind the starting line. There is a large group surrounding Russ getting him ready for the Burn out, I have my teenage Son ready with the colored water ready for our burn out. Both Bikes make great long Burn Outs. I have to stop here and remind every racer to remember the correct way to stage, (back then anyway) one lights a light and then the other, now it’s time for the racer that lit the first light to light his and so forth. Well, this big Triple Honda has to warm up a little longer than the rest of us and were both at the staging area and I’m look over waiting for Russ to get ready and were sitting there and sitting there and these two crew guys are running around his bike looking things over and this Monster is Idling around 4000 thousand or so, smoke coming from every place. Now, every body knows my Double Idles so low (just under a thousand) that it’s impossible to hear especially over the Honda’s three motors. Finally Russ stages a light, I pull in and stage my first light, then it begins, every Spectator thinks it’s a burn down. It’s time for Russ to stage is other light, waiting, and waiting, finally I see what is going on. My Double will lean over on the out board bearing support for the clutch and sit up right so I lean it over, stand up and cross my arms and look over at Russ and he is bend down ready to go, looks over and see’s me standing and pulls in and lights is last light. Now it’s time to race, I immediately stage, we get the go and Russ right out of the gate smokes the tire and I’m gone.

As it was, I won the race, turning an 8.10, 176. After the race Russ accuses me of doing a Burn Down on him.

Was it a Burn Down, what do you think????

Granddaddy Joe Smith

Would you ride one and Who brings the Spectators

Yeah, I have the same feeling today, but if you could take one back 35 years I bet I could make some great runs.

You have to admit it takes all kind of racers, drivers and riders to make Drag Racing what it is today but it would be a pretty sad if every one rode only what you ride, there would be no Drag Racing, not today, maybe fifty years ago when thats all there was around but stock cars and bikes.

It seems that the argument right now is mostly between riders from the past and Sport class bikes from the past and present, the ones that buy and ride a street bike and just because it is a fast bike at the drags it's still just a street bike, the same bike you can ride to work every day. Don't come back and tell me it's because you did this to it and that to make it go faster and quicker because that's exactly what the bikes up ahead of you in the bigger classes do to make there bike go faster, being it fuel or what ever. Isn't that what Drag Racing is all about. I wouldn't want the Top Fuel and Funny cars today to go the same speed and ET as the one you buy off the show room floor that it is representing.

I said before, I raced my whole career on a Top Fuel bike without Wheelie bars but wheelie bars that's how they do it today. A Harley, whether the parts look like a motor or not that runs in the sixes at over 200 MPH and "Spiderman" that just ran another ET in the fives and has gone almost 250 MPH, well I don't know how you could put that any place but the thing that every body's wants to see.

I think we, the ones that have concern for what is happening to Motorcycle Drag Racing should let things lie, and do for our selves, meaning AHDRA, they seem to have plenty of spectators, it sure impressed me at Las Vegas.

You are entertaining Spectators while racing

When you are racing you are putting on a show. The deferents is from the spectators point of view it is entertainment while watching you race and when you sit on the bike it is racing. Just because it's called entertainment doesn't make you lesser of a racer.

Look at the AHDRA Spectator Gate

I don't know what else to say, the thing we lost is the "All Bike Meet" instead of this segregation we have now. I don't see it ever coming back, that's what I meant by this post.

My Example: You could have 50 bikes of different classes, and have 100 spectators, throw in 10 Fuel Bikes, get another 100, throw in 10 Funny Cars get another 100, throw in 10 Top Fuel Dragsters, get another 100 and in my day, throw in 10 Fuel Altered and get another 500. The more variety of pro stuff you have the more spectators you have and still when the street stuff comes to the staging lanes the stands began to empty. It's been that way since drag racing started.

The AHDRA has replaced this with an all Harley Field and fills the Bleachers in a good fashion. Maybe that's what the Oriental Bike side of Drag racing should do. As far as West Coast Motorcycle Drag Racing goes, it will never get any better than what you've had. It was the same in "my day", if I wanted to race I had to travel and if you think it was all paid for my Sponsors you are out of your mind. I had a house payment, car payment, insurance's and paid someone to watch my belongings at home for the ten months a year while I was gone. Not only did I race while touring I also work in sales for a few company's, it wasn''t all glory. As far as the entertainment I felt I was doing it was also to help keep Motorcycle Drag Racing an interesting Sport to the Spectators so that we could keep racing. That along was payment enough for me.

Spider

Why do you think the Man and Machine looks like this. He wants to look Professional (as he is) to his fellow racers and the people in the Bleachers. He is a Drag Racer that Thrills and Entertains Spectators.

Empty Stands

To all those that don't believe they are entertainers while racing.
While you are busy racing, doing the thing you probably love to do. You are entertaining the Spectators, why do you think they pay all that money to watch you. So be on your toes, make good launches, win if you can, because you are the ones that are being watched. Unless the stands are empty.

Life style event

You may be right, but it was a hell of a lot of Spectators. And when the big boys ran they were in the stands. They also had an event that had over a Hundred entries of a little bit of every thing on an index race that took the length of the event. Winner was $25,000 and runner up was $10,000. I saw the last 14 or so races for the win, I thing the bike that won was a V-rod and the runner up was a Dresser. Anybody can correct me if I'm wrong. I have to admit it was exciting as hell. I believe there was even some bikes in there running fuel but I can't be sure.

PS I watched some Fuel Bikes run well over 200 and in the six's. WOW, it was my first time.