Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126541
00 ~ (Left) T.-ry VlII'ICe (flIr Ianel hlIncIed Bo O'Broch18 . . tim defeat In over. year. (Right! Funny Bike winner Jon Baugh Jokes with Uncia Vaughn. Vance, Baugh haul at Indy NHRA Top Fuel/Funny bike meet By Greg Guarinello INDIANAPOLIS, IN, SEPT. 5·8 Terry Vance and Jon Baugh wowed the predominately automobile-orientated crowd at Indy with stellar clockings and close side by side racing at the 27th annual NHRA U.S. Nationals. Riding for only the third time this season in Top Fuel Vance cop~ the gold for th~ • Y"'U • second ume. Baugh, the Onent Express team rider, garnered his fint Funny Bike crown of the 1981 season. Top Fuel J: 14 =. sU::: Terry Vance the her qualifier, 'um~ his out on Teson and Bernard Yamaha ridden b Jim Be rd Vance euily took theYwin with a ~25: IeCOnd run, at 187.11 mph to Bernard's 8.501/175.74 after wasting the blower. RUII Collins was the next winner when the rejuvenated Honda ran a 7.555/191.08 to outlast the Kawasaki of Wayne Davia. Davia ran an 8.451/182.18 in 108ing. Sam Wills took the Motorcycles Unlimited Kawasaki to a spot in the semis with a 7.446/189.0'1 p.- over the Team Johnlon bike ridden by Larry McBride, who was only able to card an 8.146/166.55. Bo O'Brochta ended the round by really laying a number on the "Redneck Express" of Hickman and Hand. Bo took the Terminal Van Lines/Murdoch Racing Enterprises/ MTC Engineering·backed Kawasaki to the second best clocking ever in Top Fuel when he ran a 7.182 at 195.54 mph. Chris Hand could never have made up the difference running an 8.041/171.42. ~ semis opened witl.t Vance taking on his fonner boa, Colhns. Vance left the li~ fint with ~~ in hc:'t punuit. At mid-track Collins machlDe veered sharply toward the centerline. In attempting to correct the problem, Collins put the J)fg machine into a fIShtail which forced him to back off the throttle. Collins' problems coupled with Vance's 7.597117~.12 .was enough for Va~~ to ~arn ~ way IOto the fmal. Colhns losmg tune on the run was a 7-769/167 .28. On the ~er side of the ladde.r. the student, Wills, and the teacher, O'Brochta, were having at it in a duel of their own. Wills took a slight lead off the line and was hoping to extend it. However, about 200 feet out Wills had a chain let lOOle and the violent snap almost put Sam over the handleban. Meanwhile, O'Brochta was setting the new Top Fuel ET record when he ran a ~.2~5 at 185.95 mph. That was not WIthin 1 % to back up the 7.182, but the faster run backed up the record 7.295_ For the second time this season the final would come doWn to O'Brochta and Vance. This time, though. they would have a ~hole night to make ready as the skies opened up as the - finalists were awaiting the call to the starting line. When Tuesday morning came the Vance • Hines team and the Terminal Van Lines team were ready. When the light turned green Vance laid a one bikelength holeshot on the Kawasaki. The lead held up through low gear as the Suzuki was really humming. When the two bikes plugged into high gear, O'Brochu came around Vance momentarily. As he did, though, the blower belt on the O'Brochta machine came loose and flew off, signaling the end of the Kawasaki's race to the winner's circle. Vance, meanwhile, had his own problems as his bike suffered internal damage when he shifted into high gear. As Vance crossed the finish line ahead of O'Brochta the left side of the Suzuki was coated with oil. Vance's winning time was a 7.499/175.07 to O'Brochta's 7.564/185.95 mph. Vance became the fIrSt rider in over a year to defeat O'Brochta on the race track. Funny Bike Watching Funny Bike qualifying was worth the price of admission as no fewer than three machines went under the existing A/DT 7.92-second ET record to get into the field: Jon Baugh with a 7.90, Terry Kizer with a 7.80 and Ken Blackburn with a 7.75. One unusual note was that the Murdoch Racing Enterprises-backed machine of Vince Santangelo did not make the field. In fact the swift rookie never even made it down the track. Plagued with mechanical problems on all four attempts, Santangelo was relegated to a spot on the sidelines for the one race he really wanted. Eliminations got underway with Ken Blackburn, on the Bill Hahn-owned Turbo, spotting Steve LukClll' Kawasalti a big starting line advantage only to run him down from behind. Blackburn ran a 7.854/169.49 to Lukos' 8.522/155.58. Next up was Baugh to face John Sands' Honda. As Baugh entered the starting line beams he received word that Sands had broken and he took a 7.882/165.55 bye run. jon's earlier 7.90 pass backed up his 7.88 as the new record in AlDT. Terry Kizer was due to face Ken Landwher on the next pairing and the Mo Panons·owned. Mr. Turbo/MTC Engineering·sponsored machine was looking to take the record away from Baugh. As Landwher brought his Campus Kawasaki to the line Kizer seemed to lose fire. Upon restarting him Kizer's crew noted that they Dad a serious problem and shut the bike off, allowing Landwher the single. It was later detertnincd that Kizer had exploded a rotor in the burnout. Meanwhile. Landwher ran an 8.7!l2/155.17 for his spot in the semis. Jim Yodoclt, the Suzuki-mounted rider from Catawissa, PA, ended the fint round on a high note when he defeated the Kawasaki of Bob Litton. In winning the round Yodoclt ran a 7.989/164.55. This was the fIrSt seven second pass of the "low bucks" racer's career. Litton was sent packing when he could only run an 8.256/162.16. The fint race of the semi-finals was the fastest Funny Bike race in history. Baugh, on Jack O'Malley's Orient Ex· press Kawasaki, took a tough holeshot victory over the quicker bike of Ken Blackburn. Baugh's reflexes and a 7.847/165.15 earned him a spot in the fmals over Blackburn's 7.798/164.15. Blackburn and his bike owner were not completely disappointed though as they did manage to back up their 7.75 second clocking to snare the A/DT ET record away from Baugh. On the other side of the ladder, Jim Yodoclt was putting it to Ken Landwher to earn his way into the final. Yodock ran an 8.145/165.15 to Landwher's losing 8.546/146.45. The finals, which were held on Tuesday due to rain, saw Yodoclt's Suzuki in against Baugh. This was the fint time in the fmals for Yodoclt who was NMRA's'l in Competition Elim· inator in 1980 and had stepped up to Funny Bike for '81. Though Baugh has been in the finals before, this was his fint time this season as he and Jack O'Malley have been sorting out their new bike and their new completely overriding transmission. When the two riden were finally given the call to fire, both were ready. After their usual burnout routines, the .pair advanced to the line and bumped IOto the heams. When the green hit Yodock moved fIrSt. In doing so, he spun the rear tire and a haze of grey smoke came out from under the rear wheel. By the time he regained traction, Baugh was headed on down the track and ultimately to the winner's circle. Baugh ran a stellar 7.886/164.55 while Yodoclt, who smoked a piston on the run, settled for an off pace 8.557/ 149.99. The win was Baugh's fint at an NHRA nent. •