Bottlehead race sponsorship

[Deluk]

Bonneville - I hope you are there and everything is running fast and smooth. An update would be good. Salty comments accepted. Ride safe. 

[RayP]

167 mph on a bicycle!



Doc, you better start pedaling faster.

More about motor-paced cycling.
http://carolineld.blogspot.com/2018/08/tommy-hall-edwardian-cycling-star.html

ray

[Bodyslam]

For those of you waiting for the news: Dan is now a World Champion!

The new Land Speed Record in this category is 87.85 MPH.

[adeep42]

Congratulations Doc. A great achievement!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Paul Birkeland]

Man, they must have needed a pry bar to get Doc B's hands off those grips.  That's really fast for a vintage Honda!

[Doc B.]

Hi guys,

It was a truly amazing experience. Just to clarify, as cool as it would be to be a world champion, what I have is the AMA National landspeed record for 350cc Modified Classic Gas category. The official average time is 87.876 mph, with a 89.773 return run my fastest speed. Corrected air density altitude was about 5200 ft. Today was verification of displacement, which means several hours of tearing down on these old Hondas. Pretty cool to have an AMA and FIM official shake your hand and say congratulations, you have the record.

Like the community here, the landspeed community is a family of amazingly nice and generous people. I made so many great new friends it is kind of like a dream. Huge thanks to bottleheads Michael Dunnigan (my teammate who also rode, cutting an impressive 83+ down run with a misbehaving clutch) and Jim Laurel, who with Kevin Curry shot a ton of gorgeous 4K video so we can have some home movies to remember the fun. Thanks also to Cindee Sherman, the ER nurse on our team who kept us all hydrated and electrolyted, flushed burning eyes, treated pipeburns, iced pinched fingers, and massaged cramps out on the hostile salt. Thanks to Jaylin Billig, my race coach who encouraged me to attempt to beat one of her many landspeed records. That woman totally rocks. And of course thanks as always to my Capo Corsa and love of my life Queen Eileen, for putting up with yet another of Doc's cockamamie schemes.

We're gonna start on our way back home tomorrow. If I have a chance I will try to post some pics, and we'll be back next week.

[JamieMcC]

Real happy for you Dan that's a wonderful achievement sounds like you guys had a really neat experience.
 

[Doc B.]

Man, they must have needed a pry bar to get Doc B's hands off those grips.  That's really fast for a vintage Honda!

Actually on the straight run it was handling beautifully. The salt was the best anyone has seen in years, like running on an empty four lane freeway. The bike wouldn't run for crap at low rpm (very common on the salt, lots of bikes had this issue). But at full song on open pipes it was glorious.

[mcandmar]

Congratulations, sounds like you had a blast which is the most important bit

[jtori]

Congratulations, Doc!!!  It's always gratifying to have one's efforts rewarded.  Relish the accomplishment .... and don't forget to celebrate the achievement!

[G.Kennedy]

Congrats Doc,

Come on down to El Mirage for the 2 day November event.  My buddy runs a 350cc Aermachii. Push rod class. He has the record at 126.020.

Last event of the season so we haul all the toys out, including some La Scalas power by a 12v T-amp.

[Doc B.]

126, man, I gotta get my game on! Is that partially streamlined? Been following a woman named Stacy London who runs an naked Aermacchi. Also way faster than me, and only a 250. Can't say I wish I lived in California any more, but I do wish I was closer to Bonneville and Elmo so I could get to events more easily.

Naturally I am already working on modifying the almost stock bike to get more power and less frontal area. Someone posted a formula for top speed somewhere, that was

v = ( 2 · P / (c · D · A) )1/3 X $$$$³

[G.Kennedy]

Yes. Mark has been working his bike for a number of years. His first passes down the course where almost in production trim and where sub 100. As the bike has morphed. He has picked off records in most of the 350cc classes. Gas/fuel/PS/ no fairing/ and now the M class is new to El Mirage he is picking those off this season. Changing configuration each event.

126 was PS/fuel.

I’ll try to upload a photo of the bike.

[Doc B.]

126 was PS/fuel.

Well, that makes me feel little better  My potential competitor has a lot of experience and ran in fuel class, but on gas (I ran in gas class). He ran 102 to my 87.876 - he very kindly let me get a record (old record was 62). Next year the gloves are off. I've been crunching numbers and it seems I was down on power quite a bit more than I initially thought, even though it sounded great and seemed to pull pretty well. Plus I had a slipping clutch. Need to find about 20 mph, and so here I go down the rabbit hole! Sure could use an abandoned stretch of road nearby for testing...

[G.Kennedy]

Yes. That’s the tricky part. Lack of test space. One small change has a big effect. Can ruin a weekend.

Mark did lots of dyno tuning for a bit. But it ultimately proved to be real hard on the transmission. He DNF’ed a couple events due to broken gears.

He lives down in the rabbit hole. A few engines, short stroke, long stroke. Always testing. Machine shop in his garage. 

He also has “The Mule”. An identical Aermachii frame. That is street legal. For breaking in motors and testing.

My phone pictures have the wrong extension. I’ll get them through photoshop and upload.