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/1367911
CN III ARCHIVES BY LARRY LAWRENCE H e wore plain two-piece black leathers, with the back half numbered with shoe polish and his low-cut, tan, leather construc- tion boots exposed his white gym socks, but regardless of his distinc- tive "look," Leo Payne was a na- tional drag-racing legend. From the 1950s through the 1970s, Payne set numerous records on his highly modified Harley-Davidson Sport- sters. His custom-built machine, dubbed "Turnip Eater," was also the first non-streamliner to go more than 200 mph at the Bonneville Salt P 152 LEO AND HIS TURNIP EATER fastest Sportsters in the Midwest. Payne began racing and winning local drag-racing events, which helped spread his reputation. He was one of the first motorcycle drag racers to use the burnout method of warming his rear tire and these tire-smoke-filled pre-race rituals often psyched-out his opponents. Payne became known for his lightning-quick reaction times. He claimed the quick reactions came from his job at Quaker Oats, where he would sharpen his sense of timing by pitting his reac- tions against the start-stop lights of box-filling machines. As a mechanic, Payne was especially skillful at modifying carburetors for drag racing. He helped support his racing by rebuilding carburetors for hun- dreds of Sportster owners and this ultimately attracted the attention of popular aftermarket performance company S&S Cycle. George Smith, of S&S, contacted Payne Flats in 1969. Payne was a master at building special carburetors to run a nitromethane/gas combina- tion and his designs helped S&S Cycle launch a successful line of racing carburetors. Payne was born in St. Louis on March 10, 1931. He was raised in Flora, Illinois, and attended Boys Town in the 1940s. He bought his first motorcycle when he was 19, but the Korean War cut short his new hobby. After the war, Payne moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and went to work part time for a Harley-Da- vidson dealership. It was there that he began to modify his bikes and quickly earned a reputation as having one of the fastest Sportsters in the Midwest. Flats in 1969. Payne was a master went to work part time for a Harley-Da vidson dealership. It was there that he began to modify his bikes and quickly earned a reputation as having one of the Leo Payne's Harley-Davidson "Turnip Eater." Payne's Turnip Eater set several records, including hitting a top speed of over 201 mph, en route to an average of 196.512 in 1969.