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VOLUME 56 ISSUE 22 JUNE 4, 2019 P123 Graham proved the previous year that the big XR could win in the Dome when he took the TT vic- tory en route to ultimately winning that year's AMA Grand National number-one plate. The race was held in the cavernous Houston Astrodome, home to the NFL's Houston Oil- ers and MLB's Houston Astros, the first indoor stadium on this scale, the Astrodome was known as the Eighth Wonder of the World. In spite of the massive size of the stadium, the racing surface was small compared to standard outdoor racetracks, and one rider compared racing in the Dome to playing a 33-rpm record at 45 rpm. Everything happened fast. The Dome had been host- ing AMA Nationals since 1968, and with strong promotion from promoter PACE, combined with an experienced RJ Reynold's advance media team, the race traditionally drew in big crowds. Houston fans needed a dis- traction in '83. The nation was in the middle of a deep reces- sion, but the Houston area was especially hard hit as it was also going through an oil bust. Unem- ployment was more than double what it had been just a few years earlier. As a response, PACE offered weekend tickets as low as $10 to get into both Friday and Saturday's races! The final ingredient, which made for a race happening was that Houston was the opening weekend of the 1983 AMA Grand National Championship. There was always the excitement of the start of a new season, with riders often racing for new teams with shiny new bikes, and still-to-be- broken-in racing leathers. Eklund started the night off right by topping Time Trials. Law- son, making his Yamaha debut, was second fastest on his factory XT. Scott Parker was third on the big Harley XR. The Can-Am/Ro- tax bikes seemed to be the sweet spot for the TT. Of the 12 fastest qualifiers, six were on Can-Ams, four on Harleys and two on Ya- mahas. Shobert (Can-Am), Lawson (Yamaha), Scott Pearson (Can- Am) and Roberts (Yamaha) won their respective heat races. Eklund and Gary Scott made the main by way of their semi wins. Ronnie Jones got in by means of the last chance qualifier. Two-time Houston TT winner Eklund very nearly didn't make it through the first lap. He was involved in a crash that saw his leg sucked up and wedged between the fender and rear tire of Rod Spencer's Yamaha. For- tunately, the red flag came out, and Eklund was able to make the restart. A second start was also red flagged when Graham and Rob- erts tumbled hard in the first turn. Roberts got up and found he was beaten up pretty badly and his hand was not quite working right, so, perhaps thinking of his real job starting in a month or so, he decided to sit out the restart, and out went one of the pre-race favorites. Finally, on the third start, the race stayed green, and it was Shobert blasting into the lead with Lawson, Pearson and Graham right on his tail. Mickey Fay, on a factory Honda, and Eklund were both on the move into the top three. Eklund was going high using the cushion, while most of the other riders were using the inside line. "I hoped no one noticed," Eklund said of his secret racing line. The line proved to be the win- ning strategy, and Eklund got around Shobert and then the leading Fay to take the point and finally the checkered flag, with Fay second and Graham third— Can-Am, Honda and Harley- Davidson. As a result of his victory, Eklund became the first three- time winner of the Houston TT. Afterward, Eklund admitted he was lucky he was able to hold on to win. Late in the race, his Can-Am lost its brakes, "I thought it was over for me at that point," Eklund said after the race. "I thought I'd lost it." Fans went away from Houston that night knowing they'd seen something special. Big names, cool machines, hard luck, and charging from behind to win—all the elements you need for one happening TT race. CN Subscribe to nearly 50 years of Cycle News Archive issues: www.CycleNews.com/Archives