Exciting news in vintage roadracing!

grandpaul

grandpaul

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The American Historic Racing Motorcycle Assn. (AHRMA) has approved the "NexGen" Superbike class for 2013.

The details are not final, but preliminary lineup of approved bikes includes-

Bimota YB4, YB4IE
Buell RR1000/RR1200
Ducati 851/888
Honda VF700F, VF750F, VFR700F, VFR750F, RC30
Kawasaki GPz750 (83-87), ZX7/ZXR750/ZX750R/ZXR750RR (88-92)
Suzuki GSXR750/GSXR750R (85-92)
Yamaha FZ750/FZR750R/FZR750RR (85-91)

I know, most here don't consider these bikes "vintage", but AHRMA came to the realization that they had to move with the times or risk losing a generation of bikes and younger riders.

It is unbelievably easy to attend a track day type racing school in your area, then get cross-licensed with AHRMA and go racing on some world-famous tracks including

DAYTONA
Barber's
Road America
Willow Springs
Miller Motorsports

All you need to do to prep your bike is remove lights, install number plates, set up a catch pan, and safety wire a few of the nuts & bolts.

YOU HAVE NO EXCUSE NOT TO!!!
 
I could see a GPZ, a GSX and even an Interceptor being an affordable race bike,
but a Buell RR1200?
Are there even that many of them out there that throwing one down the track while
novice racing would be even remotely practical?

How many of them were even produced?
 
Well, two things for sure, within that range of qualifying models, there are available everything from cheap to outrageously expensive, and fast to very fast.
 
1200c.c. Harleys versus 750.cc. metric bikes.
that's par for the course!
 
Mark said:
1200c.c. Harleys versus 750.cc. metric bikes.
that's par for the course!
Click to expand...

Since the Daytona 200 miler rulebook from before the mid 1970s -no change theren then.
 
Mark said:
1200c.c. Harleys versus 750.cc. metric bikes.
that's par for the course!
Click to expand...

When DMG took over AMA, they put the last Buells in against 600cc Supersports - and that was the one with the Rotax motor.

Buell won that first season under the new rules, then H-D pulled the plug on Buell
(and sold MV Agusta back to the Castiglionis for 3 Euros and 35 million in loan guarantees)
 
grandpaul said:
It is unbelievably easy to attend a track day type racing school in your area, then get cross-licensed with AHRMA and go racing on some world-famous tracks including DAYTONA, Barber's, Road America, Willow Springs, Miller Motorsports, All you need to do to prep your bike is remove lights, install number plates, set up a catch pan, and safety wire a few of the nuts & bolts. YOU HAVE NO EXCUSE NOT TO!!!
Click to expand...

Fun and games and wallowing in consumerism is always "unbelievably easy" for those who have the extra cash, you left out that part, the tens of thousands of dollars to have a reliable bike, truck race tires, and the gas and fuel, food and lodging it will take to criss-cross the country. And throw in a couple more thousand for a new set of leathers and up-to-date helmet. But then maybe you were only pointing your ideas at a certain percent of the population?
 
Money is always a factor.

Many typical classic bike owners are AT LEAST IN A POSITION to consider activities such as amateur motorcycle racing with a realistic possiblity of actually doing it.

I'm somewhat confident that AT LEAST one other person from this forum will get on the track next year, due to this new class opening up.

I see that as a good thing.
 
beng said:
grandpaul said:
It is unbelievably easy to attend a track day type racing school in your area, then get cross-licensed with AHRMA and go racing on some world-famous tracks including DAYTONA, Barber's, Road America, Willow Springs, Miller Motorsports, All you need to do to prep your bike is remove lights, install number plates, set up a catch pan, and safety wire a few of the nuts & bolts. YOU HAVE NO EXCUSE NOT TO!!!
Click to expand...

Fun and games and wallowing in consumerism is always "unbelievably easy" for those who have the extra cash, you left out that part, the tens of thousands of dollars to have a reliable bike, truck race tires, and the gas and fuel, food and lodging it will take to criss-cross the country. And throw in a couple more thousand for a new set of leathers and up-to-date helmet. But then maybe you were only pointing your ideas at a certain percent of the population?
Click to expand...


Maybe he just thought that a little encouragement might help some people give it a try. But of course your typical response is to be negative about it??????? I can only imagine what it would be like to deal with you on a daily basis. I really feel for those people.
 
Snorton74 said:
Maybe he just thought that a little encouragement might help some people give it a try. But of course your typical response is to be negative about it??????? I can only imagine what it would be like to deal with you on a daily basis. I really feel for those people.
Click to expand...

I am all for a little encouragement. But Zuniga's comments are more misleading and outright silly to suggest that adding a class to vintage racing makes it "unbelievably easy" or suddenly affordable to race motorcycles. Just as it is silly to suggest that there is "no excuse" not to be able to go racing. I know a lot of hourly wage-slaves who like motorcycles and some of them even ride them, but they need every dime they have to pay rent, utilities and feed their families.

So my comments were not meant to be negative, just much, much more applicable to the real word and the majority of the population of motorcyclists in North America.
 
Is it okay to say "piss off" on this forum? Since i don't use that expression, I hadn't thought to ask before.
 
grandpaul said:
Is it okay to say "piss off" on this forum? Since i don't use that expression, I hadn't thought to ask before.
Click to expand...

Life is too short to waste time with negative people, let it pass

Jean
 
4 miles per lap at significant speeds, the carousel, what's not to like?
 
bwolfie said:
I for one am tempted to get into some racing. I live fairly close to road america, and could see doing a few outings each year.
Click to expand...

If you live close to a track where AHRMA races they you are lucky, that will save you a lot of fuel traveling.

The thing I see with racing 80s sport bikes though, is that for one they are going to be very fast, and a lot of their engines have some miles racked up on them. They are very well made and reliable bikes but at the speeds they are going to be hitting racing them is a very serious thing and they will have to be gone through and brought up to top condition no matter if it is an old street bike or race bike dragged out of mothballs.

These bikes with their multiple cylinders, valve trains and carbs are more labor and cash intensive to rebuild and tune up than 60s bikes for sure.

The big-bucks boys will bring out their Ducati superbikes,RC30s, GSXR Limited editions and zx7RR bikes which are already going for Norton Manx prices. Maybe we will see that talented Yahoo Scott Russell back out on a ZX7 Kaw?

I would like to see a catch pan that would keep one of these wet-sump bikes from oiling the track when a rod goes at 170mph, it would have to be the size of a claw-foot bathtub.

Anyone with any common sense or grip on reality can easily see that by no means is this going to be any cheaper than any other vintage class for anyone that does it correctly and safely, and it well may be one of the more expensive classes to run.

If vintage racing is going to really be made affordable, then it will have to incorporate rev-limiters, compression limits and street tires to eliminate the need to spend silly money on it. British twins and singles should all be limited to WM2 rims, 6000 rpm @ 9:1 compression for instance, that way a guy could race with a stock engine for a long, long time for the smallest outlay in cash.
 
I think you are missing the point about vintage racing, most of the guys race to go fast on a track where everyone goes in the same direction, no cars around, they do it for fun, not to win so a cheap or rather inexpensive bike with a few mods to make it safe like lockwiring bolts and removing unnecessary stuff is the entry ticket. I have seen many guys racing RD400s, Honda 350s or 400s, Kawasaki 550s... most of these bikes looked very stock.

Even if a bike is fast, you don't have to run it at top speed to learn as you go. At my age, IF I had time and cojones to go racing, I would only go as fast as needed to have fun doing it, not try to outgun the young daredevils!

Jean
 
beng: wrong attitude

jeandr: right attitude.

See? It's easy.

P.S. AHRMA is an AMATEUR sport. No cash prizes. Nobody wants to end thier productive lives for a 4 x 6 piece of particleboard with a sticker on it. It's for FUN.
 
tell that to people like pat mooney, tim joyce and dave roper to name just a few. these guy's are extremely fast and take it VERY serious. the average joe has NO business on the same track with them to just go out for a wobble around.

grandpaul said:
P.S. AHRMA is an AMATEUR sport. No cash prizes. Nobody wants to end thier productive lives for a 4 x 6 piece of particleboard with a sticker on it. It's for FUN.
Click to expand...
 
It doesn't mean they can't be serious about what they do and they WILL race with someone who is on equal footing, if there is no one, they will race against the clock, just as the guy who comes in last does. We all can choose where to spend money to have fun, it probably cost just as much to drink a case of beer at a bar each night as it does to go racing with a Honda CB350... choose your poison :!:

Jean
 
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