Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

Schultz ran an 8.292/159.20 in the semi on his Ft. Myers, '84 GPz Kawasaki for the win over Suzuki-mounted Phil Tanne,:\, (7141. with one of the most sano (read: show quality) motorcycles in NHRA competition, Schultz was clearly the favorite to win the class after round two of qualifying was over. Although Terry Vance (11 won his second-straight NHRA Pro Stock title, Although Vance held on to the low he lost in the final round to David Schultz (51. E.T. spot with his 8.28~ in that initial session of qualifying, he faltered in the second one, turning a time in the mid-8.40 range. Schultz stepped up with an 8.~1, beueririg his first try of 8.~5. From there, Schultz would get only quicker, finally meeting Vance in the title round and beating him with an 8.28 followed by a 6. Schultz put on a great show at the World Finals. His Kawasaki, equipped with a King racing computer from Kenny Bernstein's shop, the first-ever engine data recording device fitted to a drag racing motorcycle, dipped into the 8.205 no fewer than three times on a day that was less than ideal for the bikes, air· and tractionWIse. Still, Schultz had a tough time of it with the competition. He had to out· power and outride all four of his opponents, who strapped some substantial holeshots - in the mid· to high0400 range - on him. The finish was close but Schultz nipped Vance as they crossed the lights in To give credit to thosecompetilOrs, the final. It was Schultz's first-ever NHRA Pro Stock win. any reaction time below a .490 is great for a Pro Stock bike which suffers from too much horsepower combined with too little tire. The average rider is not able to yank the throttle open and/or pop the clutch after he sees yellow. If he did, the rear tire would spin hopelessly on the starting line. Instead, he usually rolls on the throttle and feeds out thecluteh, which slows down his reaction time. However, some riders have auempted to overcome that problem somewhat by the use of a large (for bikes) Goodyear car slick instead of the smaller By John Brasseaux/NHRA Goodyear motorcycle slick. Photos by Bob Johnson Photography A good example of this was Schultz's third-round, semi·final opPOMONA, CA, ocr. 26position, Phil Tannery. Running with a Goodyear car tire designed for a Stock Eliminator"machine, Tannery laid down a .~2~ R.T. in the first round to trailer a quicker John Mafaro. That is a very good reaction time for cars, but an astounding one for' a Pro Stock motorcycle. In the second rounG, Phil cut a .449 light in over the last twO years. In that . Alt~is race, V":flce didn't cover the a defeat of Steve Miles. In the preperiod ,77% of the time drag held wllh a CTI~shi,ng performan~ advantage, he dldn t set any Nauonal viously mentioned third round, , " ~ race fans have read, tYPically, records and he didn't garner yet though he went out himself, he still "Terry Vance took control of anothd NHRA "Oscar." left first with a very decent .479 R.T. qualifying on his very first pass, had The only point in the£ifth and final Before putting out Tannery in that round, Schultz blasted an 8.29 to vaneveryone covered by alleasttwo-tenths motorcycle race of the season where in eliminations, went on £0 win the Vance was out in front of anyone else quish Anthony Anderson, who despite running with the smaller motorcycle event, and set a new National record was on his very first pass. tire, left on a great .4~9 IiSht. In the for E. T. and mph, as well." But, there After that, on David Schl,lltz out of is a difi(erent story to ten tIN Tfrrll' ~, FMt My ,IPlOrida, tOOk l!OO r ~ irst· lafiZa;SCluilc£ ewCOMei""" ~ Pro Stock competition, around. the show and won the ftt'l~I9nH"'iIP":)i J1 - NHRA Pro Stock Championship, Series: Final round Schultz over Vance in World Finals This Pro Stock story from the 22nd Annual Winston World Finals at Los Angeles County Fairgrounds is not going to read like seven out of the past nine Pro Stock reports have Dave Earll. Earll, also riding with a motorcycle tire, reacted with a very good R.T., a full 10th ahead of Schultz, but could not beuer him in the E.T. ~nment. On Vance's side of the ladder, a steady string of mid-8.~O times was his oHering for the day - good enough for three rounds of competition, but not good enough for the fourth. After the first round of qualifying, when the 8.28 came up on the scoreboard, the rest of Vance's pit time was , spentsearching for a way to overcome the clutch/transmission/tire slip that was plaguing every run. At the point where it occurred, usually right after shifting into second gear, the rpm would shoot way up, the bike would lurch forward, then catch again, and continue on the run. The clutch and tranny were carefully looked at, then the tire was checked over. In the end, a patch of the track surface itseH was suspected to be the cause of it all. In a second round baule with Mark Sauro, to give an example of his mechanical woes, Vance reacted at the stan with a 0447 light, something he said he has never done before. It seems the clutch was slipping and rolling his Suzuki forward after he staged, thus reducing his roll-out distance and lowering his R.T. Before that, Vance survived with an 8.~5 against a A58-initiated 8048 from Jim Beatty, and advanced to the final at the expense of Tommy Bolton and his beautiful Suzuki, 8.~9 to 8.46. Schultz was able £0 make up for the Vance holeshot on that final run at the first mph light, resulting in almost identical speeds for the two riders. After Schultz and Vance had slowed to a stop, they had to look at each other on the return road and each ask who had won. The outcome, sure quieted the crowd that had all day been cheering for Vance, a southern California resident and one of the best known motorcycle racers in America. But, Schultz picked up a vociferous following of his own with the win. His first NHRA win since Pro Stock motorcycles became a part of the Na,tional event circuit is one he will remember for a long time. Schultz managed to earn enough points £0 finish sixth in the points race this year, despite missing the Gatornationals. After knocking 0[£ the Vance and Hines' machine in the final, David Schultz has quite a deal of celebrating to do befo!!; he and Vance meet t igain at the G.1\6.1l1£tionals in March of next year. •

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