Vintage Superbike Heavyweight Class Preview

vintage superbike heavyweight

WORDS: JOE W. KOURY (EXCERPTS OF THIS ARTICLE COURTESY OF CYCLE NEWS/LARRY LAWRENCE DECEMBER 6, 2017 ARCHIVES: SUPERBIKE RACING PRE-1976)

Here’s a little background on American Superbike racing. Superbike was once broken down into two and then three classes. The first Superbike race to be held as part of an AMA National Road Race at Laguna Seca in 1973 featured Heavyweight and Lightweight classes. Then later, there were three classes: Heavyweight, 750cc and Lightweight. AMA Superbike racing— like many other championships, most notably AMA Supercross—began small, with just a few events before finding an audience and blossoming into a full-blown AMA National Championship. In the case of Superbike racing, the class emerged from production racing in club events across the country, most specifically in Southern California. By the late ‘60s and early ‘70s big four-stroke street bikes like the Honda CB750, Kawasaki Z1 and various European models such as the Ducati 750S, BMW R90S and even a few Triumphs, Nortons, Laverdas and Moto Guzzis were being raced by club racers. Superbike Production racing was catching on quickly because fans could relate to the machines since they were almost exactly like the production models they might buy off the showroom floor. The other factor was Yamaha’s sheer domination in American road racing. By the mid1970s, Yamaha TZs were almost required if you were to have any shot of winning an AMA National Road Race in both the main National class and the Lightweight (250GP) class. In 1976, Reg Pridmore and Steve McLaughlin dominated the new series riding the Butler & Smith-prepped BMW R90S. Wes Cooley (Suzuki) and Eddie Lawson (Yamaha) would dominate Superbike racing until 1982. Honda fielded a team in 1982 that swept the Daytona Superbike race with Freddie Spencer, Mike Baldwin and Roberto Pietri. This would be the final run of the 1000cc era. Superbike racing switched to 750cc machines the following year. AHRMA’s Vintage Superbike Heavyweight (VSBHW) class harkens back to that same era of 1000ccbased machines with its own mix of highly developed race bikes. The top five finishers in 2021: David Crussell (Kawasaki GPz1000), Jesse Davis (Yamaha XV920), Curtis Adams (Honda CB750), Alexander Cook (Moto Guzzi Le Mans) and Will Brint (Honda CBX). 2022 promises to be an exciting year for this historic class.

In addition to the build, prep, throttle twisting, and normal trophies and awards, there are some special perks for competitors in the Featured Vintage Cup including: • Early access to paddock for pre-entered VSBHW racers • Racer spotlight features in AHRMA MAG • Class champion on cover of AHRMA MAG • Enhanced trophies throughout the season • Special awards for the series champion • Articles and photos on the Roadracing World website: www.roadracingworld.com • Roadracing World print magazine exposure for AHRMA and VSBHW riders Check out the eligible model list, review the AHRMA Handbook and go find a suitable platform.

Build it! Race it!

Here’s a breakdown of AHRMA’s eligible Vintage Superbike Heavyweight models. (Review the AHRMA Handbook for more details at https://www.ahrma.org/ahrma-handbook.com):

ENGINE TYPE EXAMPLES DISPLACEMENT LIMIT (cc)

Pushrod Twin H-D Sportster, XR1000, BMW twins, Moto Guzzi unlimited

Pushrod Triple Triumph Trident, BSA Rocket 3 unlimited

OHC twin Yamaha XS650/750, XV750/920 unlimited

Six-cylinder Honda CBX (early and Pro-link)

Four-cylinder OHC Unrestricted intake (two-valve)

Four-cylinder DOHC (four-valve) Kawasaki KZ900 (Z1), KZ/GPz750, Suzuki GS750, Honda CB750 SOCH, CB750 Nighthawk Honda CB750 DOHC, Suzuki GS750 (four-valve) 1047 stock bore

931

931

Four-cylinder Restricted Honda CB900F, Yamaha 900 Seca, Kawasaki KZ1000, GPz1100*, ELR, Suzuki GS1000 twovalve, GS1000S Katana, GS1100* 1025

* GPz1100, GS1100, and XS1100 fours may be used but must displace less than 1025cc and use 29mm restricted or stock carburetors. See AHRMA Handbook for details

ABOVE (clockwise): Dennis Parish (1T), WIll Brint (118), Jesse Davis (03), David Crussell (117), Alexander Cook (092), Will Brint (118), Curtis Adams (045);

PHOTOS BY ETECHPHOTO.COM

LEFT: Start of race 1982; L-R: Rusty Sharp (99), Steve Wise (38; number hidden), Roberto Pietri (88), Steve McLaughlin (43), Eddie Lawson (21) Wayne Rainey (60)

PHOTOS COURTESY OF DENNIS PARRISH

A look back

AMA Superbike Results

FINAL 1976 AMA SUPERBIKE POINT STANDINGS:

1 Reg Pridmore BMW 69 2 Steve McLaughlin BMW 36 3 Gary Fisher BMW 33 4 Cook Neilson Ducati 33 5 Mike Baldwin Moto-Guzzi 32

FINAL 1977 AMA SUPERBIKE POINT STANDINGS:

1 Reg Pridmore 2 Cook Neilson 3 Mike Baldwin

BMW/Kaw 71 Ducati 68 Moto Guzzi 56 4 Ron Pierce BMW 53 5 Kurt Liebmann Moto Guzzi 26 Arthur Kowitz Kawasaki 39 Malcome Tunstall Ducati

FINAL 1978 AMA SUPERBIKE POINT STANDINGS:

1 Reg Pridmore 2 John Long

Kawasaki 54 BMW 54 3 Paul Ritter Ducati 47 4 Harry Klinzmann BMW 46 5 Wes Cooley Suzuki 15 Malcome Tunstall Ducati

FINAL 1979 AMA SUPERBIKE POINT STANDINGS:

1 Wes Cooley

Suzuki 58 2 Ron Pierce Suzuki 55 3 Freddie Spencer Kawasaki 51 4 Richard Schlachter Kawasaki 45 5 Harry Klinzmann Kawasaki 30 50 Malcome Tunstall Ducati 52 David Aldana Suzuki

FINAL 1980 AMA SUPERBIKE POINT STANDINGS:

1 Wes Cooley

Suzuki 128 2 Eddie Lawson Kawasaki 121 3 Freddie Spencer Honda 111 4 David Aldana Kawasaki 99 5 Chuck Parme Kawasaki 62 25 Carry Andrew Kawasaki 33 Malcome Tunstall Ducati

FINAL 1981 AMA SUPERBIKE POINT STANDINGS:

1 Eddie Lawson Kawasaki 125 2 Freddie Spencer Honda 115 3 Wes Cooley Suzuki 91 4 Mike Spencer Honda 84 5 Harry Klinzmann Kawasaki 8 Carry Andrew Kawasaki

FINAL 1982 AMA SUPERBIKE POINT STANDINGS:

1 Eddie Lawson 2 Mike Baldwin Kawasaki 151 Honda 142

3 Wayne Rainey 4 Wes Cooley

Kawasaki 114 Suzuki 109 5 Steve Wise Honda 104 16 Harry Vanderlinden Kawasaki 20 David Aldana Suzuki 23 Carry Andrew Kawasaki 28 Arthur Kowitz