Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

1 Screamin Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson V-Rod quite unlike the other Harley-powered bikes that have come before it. Rather than a nerve-grating blaaahhh sound, the V-Rod's tones are tight and focused. It's loud, to be sure, but also very athletic-sounding. Tonglet heats up the bike's 10-inch Mickey Thompson drag slick as Vance and Hines stand off to the right of the starting line, watching closely. Four tenths of a second after the amber bulbs on the tree, the green light flashes. Tonglet is already away, clicking through the gears as the the V-Rod roars. The bike spins the rear wheel, maybe a little too much, and Tonglet drifts to the left. He stays in the throttle, however, and clicks off the fastest pass ever recorded by a Harley-Davidson in NHRA Pro Stock competition, 7.57 seconds at 171.51 mph. Both Vance and Hines have mixed emotions. "We're not even anywhere close to where we thought that it should run, so we're not really happy with a 57," Vance says. "We are happy that the bike is improving, but we're still chasing our tail because everything is so new. We're confident that we are going in the right direction. We'll get it." Still, while the number isn't quick enough to qualify, it is already quick enough that others in the class are raising their eyebrows at the thought of the V-Rod's performance potential, and perhaps rightfully so. After all, the class participants themselves voted, through their Pr02 owners organization, in favor of petitioning the NHRA to do whatever necessary to help get Harley up to speed. It's a move that could potentially leave the class with its proverbial fly open if the Screamin' Eagle starts to, well, fly, according to Pro2 president (and K£,.N Filters Suzuki rider) Steve Johnson. "I always thought that the Harleys were just for picking up chicks and that the Japanese bikes were for raCing," Johnson jokes. "In all reality, though, I'm pretty big on the business of the sport, and 1 think that this will help the business of the.-sport tremendously. On the small side, I don't want anyone getting an advantage to beat us, but we all voted, through Pr02, to allow for bigger engines and fuel injection, the stuff that would be needed to build a competitive HarleyDavidson. That's not saying that it's going to be easy. The whole class could have said, 'No way. You're getting a million bucks to race this thing, so build it to our specs and race it that way.' We want quick satisfaction. We want them to have all the tools to make it as fast as possible as quickly possible, and that run right there was the biggest thing that they've done with it. They could throw it in the truck right now and they're good to go." Johnson is not alone in that thinking. Two-time and defending NHRA Pro Stock Bike Champion Angelle Savoie is all for the emergence of the factory-backed Vance £,. Hines effort. "I try to stay out of the technical side of it, but I think it is a beautiful motorcycle, and I am really glad it's here," Savoie says. "It is drawing a lot of attention to our class, and if the Screamin' Eagle can get the fans excited, then I am fully supportive of it. I know that you can never count out Vance £,. Hines, that's for sure." Back at the truck gain, and l:iines stands off to the side of the bike, studying it, thinking. The missing horsepower - power that he knows is supposed to be there - is still eluding him. "We had trouble with our computer yesterday, so that run was just the result of us putting our heads together and making our best guess on the tuneup," Hines says. "A 68 to a 57 it's still three tenths off. It was running too lean. We've been working with the Holley people all weekend, throwing new fuel maps in it. Overall, it's working pretty well mechanically." But it is crunch time. The team has one last shot at making final eliminations, but the bump spot has been lowered to 7.43. Hines will need to pull off a miracle, and yet because he is who he is, no one has given up hope yet. In fact, extra moral support is coming out of the woodwork. Some of Harley's top brass, such as Harley Genuine Parts and Accessories V.P. Ron Hutchinson and even Willie G. Davidson himself, are on hand to provide encouragement. The "G Man" himself might as well qualify as a bona fide member of the team, haVing designed the carbon bodywork and graphics that adorn the Screamin' Two legends: Vance shares a smile with Willie G. Davidson. The uG Man" was elicited with the performance of the V-Rod after so little test time. "I'm proud of this program," he said. 16 APRIL 1 0, 2002' cue I • n __ !II; Eagle V-Rod. He is not just a fan of motorcycles, but of racing. "I've been following this stuff all my life," Davidson says. "I have a garage full of hot rods and motorcycles. Drag racing has a rea grassroots appeal, and I think if you combine that with the magnitude of NHRA and the television programming on ESPN2, this is a logical brand extension for us." And like just about everyone who has seen it, Davidson is thrilled with the Screamin' Eagle V-Red's appearance. "It's a work of art," Davidson says. "We're proud of the way it looks and the way it sounds. I just hope that we can make it into the program, but if we don't I know that we have already done some good today." The team's hopes for a Cinderella story are shattered like a glass slipper against the rocks when Tonglet and the V-Rod slow to a fourth -round pass of 7.69 at 165.46 mph in the heat of the day. Just like that, Vance £,. Hines' qualifying string is broken, and despite all that they have accomplished at Gainesville, there is little that can be said to console the team. "It stings," Vance says. "We take a lot of pride in our accomplishments and in this class - heck, we helped invent it - we're not going to go one day - let alone a season - being happy about not qualifying. I really thought that we could come here and be deep in the field this weekend." That might be all there is to say, except that when Tonglet does cross the finish line this time, he turns on the win light against qualifying partner Tom Micelli. For a brief instant, the crowd goes Wild, a small indication of why Vance £,. Hines chose to take up this challenge in the first place. That gets Vance the dreamer to thinking again. "When you think about the up side ... taking a market like Pro Stock Bike and growing that market by 50 percent.. ." Vance says, as if ready to reveal reasons for the team's decision to take on the program. But he pulls the punch. "Well, let's just say that we're a long way from that point yet." Tong....s last pass on Saturday was slower than the previous one, which was a V-twIn-rec:ord 7.57 seconds at over 170 mph. Despite falling to qualify, the t - . is confident that it can gR the job done in the future. Before that, says Hines, there is much work to be done on this bike. "We want to spend more time on the dyno and work with the ignition and the fuel injection," Hines says. "This bike is a little heavy right now, but we already have a new chassis that will save us about 10-12 pounds over this one. Weight reduction will be a year-long, ongoing project." All this parts-swapping and dynoflogging, and the next round in Houston, Texas, is only four weeks away. "That sounds like a lot of time," Hines says, "but it ain't. And I don't want to go to the track hoping that we will make it in just because there aren't that many bikes there. I really have high hopes that we can qualify it everywhere we go." Later, after the hubbub of activity has died down in the Screamin' Eagle pits, Vance and his longtime buddy and business partner, Hines, meet in the team's semi trailer to mull things over. "Byron's not real happy with me right now," Vance says with a grin. "I ought to duct tape you into the corner of the trailer," Hines replies with a smile of his own. It's a lighthearted exchange, the kind which suggests that after years of friendship, each knows what the other is thinking. Perhaps Vance dreams of a day when half of any given NHRA Pro Stock Bike field is loaded with V£"Hequipped Harleys. He places full faith in Hines' handiwork to get them to that point. Hines, on the other hand, is probably more interested in what else can be done to improve the VRod before Houston. The big picture, all that other business-type stuff? Hines knows that there is nobody better than Vance to deal with that. It appears as though Gainesville was only the starting line. While the outcome is not assured, it is clear that, once again, there's no stopping Vance £,. Hines now. aI

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