Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

series. Along With a few other members of the press, I mounted a d irt-modified 883 and took a few laps around the Pomona Half-Mile ov al. No, I didn't slid e. As a matter of fact, I don't even think I broke 60 mph on the straights. Needless to say, I was anxious to avenge my poo r dirt track showing, and a modified Honda XRI00 seemed like the perfect machine on which to do so. The first step was to find a bike. like many dirt bike enthusiasts, I just so happened to have a 1988 XRloo in the corner of my garage. Actually, the mini bike belonged to my lovel y wife . ("Hey honey, would you mind if I borrowed your bike for a Cycl Netos test?") e As soon as the project was okayed by the Boss Woman, the bike was off to see the wizard. I knew I was in for a pleasant surprise when Nye chuckled, rubbed his hands together and said, "I'll handle it." A few weeks later (I told Frank to take his time.), the rebo rn machine was delivered. No longer did my wife's cute little XR look like a toy - it looked like a full-blown dirt tracker. Wide rims, slick tires, an oil cooler, and a seemingly endless list of other goodies had transformed the once-doci1e-looking machine into a very serious-lookingptece of equipment. , . Bringing the larger 128cc engine to life was as easy as it had ever been, but the deep, throaty exhaust note made it immediately clear that the powerband had been beefed-up' cons id er ably. The Engines Only /Su pertrap p exhaust is a fi ne piece of work, and tho ugh it requires that the right side panel be cut to accommodate the larger muffler, it is tucked out of the way and never burns the rider's legs. Believe it or not, power starts down low and pulls hard throughout the powerband. The modified engine is nothing like the stocker - it hits hard (as hard as a 12&c four-stroke engine can hit) and pulls strong. Don't be misled, though, the bigger motor can still be putted around by a beginner. As I took to the eighth-mile short track at San Bernardino, California 's Glen Helen Raceway, I must admit that I was a bit nervous about the mini street tires that replaced the familiar knobbies. Surprisingly, a few laps was all it took for me to feel comfortable, and before I knew it I was sliding through the corners. Oh, I had my share of low-sides, mind you. As a matter of fact, I ripped the butt out of the leathers that I wore that day. But by the end of the afternoon, (Above left) Nye makes a trick Pro Unk bike stand that fits under the blke's footpegs. (Above right) Engines Only supplies an Earl's all cooler with their Stage II klt. The modified engine Is worlds stronger than the stoc ker. (Left) The Works Perf ormance Shoc k performs well. and resi sts bottoming fairly well . even under hard landings. I felt comfortable flicking it into the corners and controlling the slide with the throttle. I was ready to race! With residen t speedway ace and track racing guru Scott Rousseau serving as my mechanic/coach/back-up-driverin-ease-l-got-hurt, I.set off to compete in my first dirt track race only two days after taking my first spin on the bike. My dirt track debut would be at the Willow Springs Pro-Am Regional IT. I was glad to be racing in a IT - at leas t the jumping part would be familiar. Practice was a disaster. Not only did I choke and forget everything I learned d uring my one-day crash course, I locke d up the rear brake entering tum one and promptly slid off th e track and into th e hay bales. Once I remembered to slide to scrub off speed I was okay, and by the end of the practice session, I was read y. I won 't go into great detail about the race, but I ended up fourth in the l00cc class after a race-long battle w ith the third-place finisher. He was faster in the turns, but I was better over the jump. While the other riders slowed and stood up to brace themselves for the tiny bump, I kept the throttle pinned and bunny-hopped the little bike like it was a BMX bicycl e. I was surprised th at the lan d ings were as smoo th as the y were, and I gather that l owe the plush landings to the Works Performance Shock and Lindemann Eng ine ering revalved forks. There was no comparing them to the stock units, which would have bottomed out severely under such load s. Before the race, I was concerned that the engine might blow up when run wide open fo r a n extend ed period of time. Needless to say, it held up fine. And like a stock XRloo motor, it feels as if it will run wide open forever w ithout a problem. The next weekend, I changed the rear tire, installed a stock front wheel, and bolted on the front fender so th at my wife could take a spin on "her bike." She was relieved to find that aside from the new exhaust pipe, the bike looked the same as it ever had. Though she was bit intimidated by the louder exhaust note, she soon fell in love with the extra"oomph" that the motor delivered. "This is cool," s he said. " H e y, maybe now I'll le t yo u enter me in another one of those women's motocross races again." Forget it. I'm changing the tires and going flat trackin'. Watch out, Ricky Graham. . m WHO VA' GONNA' CALL? American Honda 1919 Torrance Blvd. Torrance, CA 90501 310/783-2000 Engines Only 165 Cristich Ln. #E Campbell, CA 95008 408/371-6871 . WHATTHj;v COST ' . ' , . ,. . ., ,: .' . . '.. .' _ . : " ; : ; ' . . . Stage n ·~2OCc Kit{Cylinder. and carn exchange)> .';" -.' ·. , ::•. : . .. : . , ..: .. : ·. .. .$399:95. . . Exhaust w ith 4" .Supertrapp .;" . :,<.';." : ,.; ..:..t , "' " •• :. ~ ' •• '. . ' , : .. : •• i, ...·c. ' .' :$199;) 5 ·. Aluminum/titani um motor-mount kit . ... .• ., .: ; . : ; : ::, " ,.. . . • . . $89.95. :~~;~~~~f~:~~~ ~~ . ..::'.:.:.:'.:.i:::< ::':.: '.,~.:,:,:,:.:~'~',: " . m:~t: Wide 16~riril ·: . ·, .': .... , ..: : ' :. ~ ,:_:.~ ': ": ;. ..' '.. : '. " ; ,. ,-,:.: .. :" : .:: ; _ '.: . " ';:...-: $4~.95 . Large-diameter spokecenversion': ;'. .: ':., '.:: : . :.. : . : .'," .' . '.: ." , ' .. .'• .$99.95 Tapered steering head bearings ..,.: '. ,.; , ". :. ' .' . , .'. •.: :;' : •.. .: :. $49.95 , .Pro.Link Bike Stand : . . '.' . : . . .- : ': . : . .: . , . , . . . , .< :..: :..:: :.'. ... ." $34.95 ' . ~~~~_c :;.;.;;";, \.:;i;::\·{~·~Yt \!:.~~~ Works 'PerformanCe Shock (with LIndem ann Engineeringmods) ..:- ... . : .... ' $325.00· . ' ~=; ~~~.~O,i~ ~~ :·': ·:·;i.::·:.:·::.' : ::.:'~·:·:.;:':·.:::..:.;...:.;.);.:.::~., .~:::..$~:~: 31

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