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/861665
to be Hudson's day as he came out with a 281 mph run in the afternoon. Lamb, eager to keep his new- ly earned record, answered back with a 285 mph run right behind him. But it ultimately came down to the return runs as to who would come away with the record. Hudson neared the 300 mph barrier as he sailed through the mile-long trap at 289 mph, shattering Lamb's record from the day before by nearly 20 mph with a combined speed of nearly 285. Lamb's return was 275 mph for an average of 280.8 mph, an all-time best for the Dallas Honda dealer, but not enough to regain his record. Lamb was far from disappointed, however, and didn't hesitate to congratulate Hudson on their historic shootout that went down to the wire on the final day of the Top of the World Land Speed Trial. The Salimbeni Genetti Racing team consisted of Mike Salimbeni and Nick Genet aboard a naturally aspirated Aprilia RSV4 RR. Ironically, it seemed the only non-turbo bike had the least amount of prob- lems on the salt. The duo was able to hit personal bests of over 200 mph, but found themselves a bit out of reach of the world record in the class. But on Sunday night, the team inquired with the FIM steward about an alternate plan: what if they took off the fairing and went for the naked 1000cc record? FIM official Charlie Hennekam confirmed they were eligible to compete in the class, so the next morning, they stripped the bodywork from the RSV4 and promptly claimed a new world record at 192.8 mph. The Ack Attack team had more than its share of issues in Bolivia, which started with a late arrival. The team ended up only having two days to run on the salt instead of the intended five. It simply wasn't enough time to work through the issues they faced, most of which centered around altitude. The ultimate undoing of the Ack team proved to be complications with the turbo. In the team's best run, Rocky Robinson hit 387 mph as he approached the timed mile, but then blew off the turbo manifold and lost power. A follow-up run was attempted after repairs were made, but the turbo again lost pressure, this time in a different spot, demonstrating that the difference in atmospheric pressure was simply too great (or too little, rather) for the system to handle. "We're very disappointed, of course, but we gave it our best shot. This is not an easy thing to do. We still hold the record, we can say that, but this was just not our time. I'll tell you this, if any- body beats that record, I'll take my hat off to 'em because it's a really hard thing to do." Jean Turner IN THE WIND P36 Dallas Honda's Al Lamb (left) congratulates Ralph Hudson on breaking the world record that Lamb set only the day before. Hudson's new class record is 285 mph.