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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126498
o 00 0') ..... The fiberglass shell of Don Vesco's new double KZ1300 streamliner is strewn about as his crew makas last minute adjustments, Vesco's only run was aborted during the tow start when Vesco's goggles and the 'liner canopy fogged up due to the cold and damp of November, later it rained, ending all chances in 1980, In 1981, Vesco hopes to surpass the current wheel-driven land speed record of 409 mph. Rain stops Vesco for '80, ne By Dorde Woodruff Photos by Terry Whytal and Woodruff WENDOVER, UT, NOV. 11-12 Winter carne to Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats at 11 p.m. on Tuesday, November 11. Don Vesco's two-year effort to build an all-new streamliner had corne to a fast-paced completion only two days before, The beautiful new bike's first and only day on the salt ended in a late· afternoon initial pass aborted during the 6 tow start. Don's glasses and cockpit canopy fogged over so badly that he couldn't see the tow vehicle ahead of him. He had never tried to run before when it was so cold and damp; also the new cockpit is more air· tight than the one in the old 'liner. That night it rained hard, the first of the winter's rains that would keep the salt flooded until late next spring. If the salt had been any good he would have felt worse, but the new course prepared especially for' him by AMA referee Earl Flanders was soft and mushy. Flanders had done the best he could with non-optimal condi· tions. july's salt was exceJIent but un· usually heavy rains came in August. Then winds in September pushed the left over standing water to the east and onto the track prepared in early sum· mer for Utah Salt Flats Racing Associ· ation weekend meets and for the South· em California Timing Association's Speed Week. Consequently, in order to get the 10 to Il miles Don needed, referee Flanders had to prepare anew, on slightly higher and drie.r ground even further east. The jammer streamliner crew, at the salt for the last USFRA meet of the season on Oct. 25-26, drove the new course on the 24th and pronounced it good. But the salt wasn't dry enough to withstand additional moisture, and it rained the night of the 25th. In summer's hot days, the course would have dried out nicely again, but not in the short, cool days of fall. Vesco's new 'liner was slated for completion in 1979, but problems major and minor delayed it over and over. Don was in the process of rearranging his life last year. Selling his San Diego Yamaha dealership was time-consuming, as was setting up a new household in Laguna Hills and a shop in which to build the 'liner in Laguna Niguel. Delivery of many components of the big 'liner was slow or, in the end, non-existent and last minute substitutions had to be made. One source of difficulty was the engines chosen. Although superbly fitted to the task because of their size and good engineering, KZ1500s are designed for touring. Race components are about as available for them as for CadiJIacs. . Not seeinjt an early end to his efforts on the new bike, DOn spent some time running the old one. In june, a geareddown attempt to secure fast time of the meet on the short dirt course at El Mirage dry lake resulted in a nasty spiJI which sidelined the veteran bike, although the frame was almost undamaged. After that he gave the new 'liner his undivided attention. The original plan was to run at Speed Week, then for a month on private time afterward, if necessary. But the last known cost of hiring the salt under AMA and FIM sanction is an expensive $2500 a day, and the money that Kawasaki gave Don two years ago to build the bike had shrunk with inflation. When everything was tallied, he decided he could only afford to spend four days on the salt, even with a few fellow Salt Flats racers who hadn't been able to make it to Speed Week, or wanted another chance, or sought drier salt, to share some of the cost. After giving up on being ready in time for Speed Week, Don and his crew thought the bike would come together for the USFRA meet, and then for the weekend of Nov. 1·2. A small group had already gathered at Bonneville for the weekend of the 1st, so Don felt committed to let them run on the frrst two of his four days. All but one of the high-powered racers who ran then or later when the big 'liner fmally arrived had no better luck than the main man. Old BonneviJIe hand Woody Leone of Beaumont, TX, brought a brace of beautiful, wind·tunnel-tested, partially· streamlined, white Can-Am 175s, prepared for the changes that would enable him to set eight records, more than anyone has done at one meet. But not only did an engine seizure at IIO mph on his very first run ruin his plans, but the bike flew up in.to the air and came down on one leg, severely injuring it. After a week in a Salt Lake hospital, doctors were satisfied with his progress, however. Tom Elrod of Austin, TX, who last year joined the exclusive company of riders who have set records over 200 mph without a streamliner, knew that he wouldn't get anywhere with his powerful double·engined Kaw on Speed Week's damp course, and was back for another try at regaining a record lost to Dave Campos' H·D in 1974. The bike ran well at first, then boggled. On teardown, Tom found that in the rear engine, the large intake valves had been tipped by the exhaust valves due to too much over· lap in the timing. He ground them smooth and had the bike all ready to go, but Don was forced to postpone again, and Tom couldn't stay. SCOtt Spittler of Brigham City, UT, a helicopter pilot with some years of flat·track and drag-strip experience, set a SCTA P·I!lOO class record during Speed Week with his Suzuki GSlloo, ran again on Tuesday, setting AMA records of 151.555 in the same Production class, and 156.050 in the M·C1500 class, making only the four requisite record runs. With so few riders, a separate time for qualifying isn't necessary. Scott intended to up his SCTA speed, but time was short after Don decided at 2 p.m. that he would be ready to run that day and the course was opened. SCOtt didn't have time to find the optimal jetting for the cold, damp weather. Drag racer Tony Dell has set four national records in the AAJ Altered class in West Coast drag meets this summer with a trusty 1325cc '78 ZI·R owned by George' Gjonovich of HP (pe.rformance shop and books). With the bike set up for Bonneville, they were running in the right neighbor. hood (mid I 60s) for the open frame records but not ~uite fast enough for partially streamltned. They decided their fairing was having a negative effect since the front was lifting, but they didn't have time to test this theory. Vesco crew' members jack Dolan and Lou Nauert, both with very fast Kaws, hadn't been able to get away from work after the last postponement. The disjointed AMA mini-meet was not as productive of records as it should have been, but it did demon· strate one of the options available to Salt Flats racers. There's plenty of time during streamliner turnarounds for others to run. Although USFRA meets are not SCTA, AMA or FIM sanctioned (yet - the FIM has been approached), times are just as carefully clocked, and again, the many runs possible are a golden opportunity to tune for the congested days of Speed Week. The H-D jammer streamliner sponsors have offered to subsidize the four '81 USFRA meets on the condition that they are on three·day weekends, making it easier for out-of-state riders to attend. Don, who by breakfast time on Wednesday, if not before, was talk· ing 1981 already, will come to the first USFRA meet in june or july (depending on when the salt is dry enough to prepare), then run later on - AMA private time. Each streamliner Don has built has been successively bigger, faster, and more sophisticated. The decade-old 'line that crashed at El Mirage was a much re·done compromise. Take the Gilmer belt system which joined the two KZIOOO engines, for instance. There was only room in the crowded engine compartment, designed for much smaller, unblown engines, for 22-tooth puJIeys (belt sprockets), while engineering dictated 45-tooth or at least 41-tooth pulleys. Consequently, although Don thought of ways to mitigate the strain on the belts over