Top Dead Center

Stay tuned for lock to lock speedway action. Paul

throttle without break

a

profile on the Bladder micro road racer

and Tommy G cams up our Harley.

Hey guys, welcome to T DC. I'm Alan Avers. Now, imagine this. Your bike has a rubber band front suspension,

no shocks. It can't turn right

and it's got no brakes.

Well, if you're a speedway guy,

no problem

could get injured.

You never know what's going to happen. What bites this quick and somebody makes a mistake or is not concentrating on their line and where they're running

and gathering their speed up in momentum. You know, anything can

go.

It's good stuff. Racing. Speedway racing is by far the most exciting two wheel sport

in motorcycles. You've never seen it before. Watch out, hold on.

Motorcycles are 500 ccp

drunk singles on Methanol with no brakes

and they race in a series of heat, semis and mains all culminating

with the

winner being crowned on the night. So it's very exciting, colorful, fast paced and unpredictable racing.

The hardest thing about speedway is, is everything you've got in about 30 seconds. Good 40 seconds for a race, no gearbox straight drive, drop the clutch and go. No, no shifting, no time to shift gears.

You're just locked together. Your elbows are touching and you're just hoping the guy doesn't make a mistake. So you go right over the top of him

because if the guy in front of you makes a mistake, both of you guys are gonna be down faster than you can blink.

No blinking here as the top racers came out for this one off event that didn't lack action nor personalities. Oh, they're gnarly guys. And,

and the only thing more colorful than the racing is the racers themselves

guys. Like client Mike

Faria, 46 years old, two time national champion wearing the mullet

and, uh all the way down to the new guys, the young guns like

Bill

Genero

who came back special from England for this event

and is all balls.

You guys wouldn't understand how hard it is over there.

There's no slow guys over there. Every race you can always get beat by, by one person over here. You know, who's going to beat you, you know, who's not going to beat you

over there. It's just,

you know, you never know who's gonna win and who's gonna lose. All the guys slot in there somewhere in between

that, you know, from the experienced

national champions to the red hot rookies. I'm uh 16 and just coming up racing with speedway bikes right now. First year professional coming up doing some good things and we're just trying to keep it rolling. Win some races. You know, there's not many young guys here doing it and we're trying to keep the sport alive. You know,

it's fun. We have no breaks, you know, we're going fast looking it sideways and

trying to keep it real deck down the gold

lame and keeping it real was the race starter, Jerry King who's been working speedway for 30 years.

I really enjoy it. It's just been a fun thing for me and

I wouldn't change it in any way, shape or form.

I love motorcycles.

My folks wouldn't, we have a motorcycle. So I joined a highway patrol. I got a motorcycle and the gun,

no charge.

The Vegas track was bigger than the bull rings. These guys usually battle on

wedge mean a change in race strategy tonight. Probably. No letting off.

Um

Yes, let off, let the tire, the rear tires hook up, catch up.

But in that case, uh it's a lot easier to ride on the gas.

A lot of concentration on the gates and the starts, the starts mean a lot of speedway.

Um You get underway like I said, in 2.3 seconds from 0 to 60

the takeoff is everything and the highly concentration in the first corner to make sure that you make the right move and not the wrong one. So you're not end up in somebody else's bike or on the ground.

This track may have been larger than normal, but that didn't mean they weren't slapping some metal. That's pretty tight. Sometimes we can be 23 inches away, rubbing in the corner, throwing elbows, knees, you know,

it just depends on how comfortable you are riding with the guy next to you. Oh, it's super tight. You really gotta hang on, your muscles, gotta be prone to it and you need to definitely do a lot of practicing. These are some of the hardest motorcycles in the world to ride. You just really gotta hang on, holding on in the scratch. Main event was Billy

Diro who pulled off the Euro speedway special to get by Scott Brandt for the win, Eddie Castro Duke or

Molino and Andy Northup filled out the top five score card at the inaugural Great American speedway shootout. This is my life. This is what I do for a living. So

I wasn't, you know,

I was expecting, you know, to get top three and you know, it went, it's just a bonus. So,

you know, I went out there, track was kind of bad at the beginning and then at

the end of the race at the end of the night, you know, it was pretty good. So

did the big swoop around the outside and

one every time you race like Scott Grant and uh

Eddie Cash or they're the top guys over here. So,

you know, it's always, they're always gonna give you, you know, a tough race out there. And

I just, you know, I've been on a high lately racing and,

you know, just keep going. You know,

now that has got to be one of the wildest rides in motor sports

or maybe the second wildest coming up speedway side cars. Who are you calling a monkey?

All right, guys, you want some thrills on your next date? Ask her if she'd like a quick ride in your side car.

Sidecars are nuts and they're a bunch of freaking mountain men. I don't know where we come up with these guys, but, uh, we keep producing a new group of sidecar racers and not even the speedway riders will race side cars. So it is pretty crazy.

Hey, Brad, take another look. Brandy mcelroy looks like the California girl next door. Except she likes to put on leathers and drag her butt in the dirt.

I like that. Huh?

Hermit.

99 Cent store had a couple of bloody butts and, uh, learned my lesson to keep up a good car mat. I'll buy behind Joe Jones wasn't letting on if a bloody butt was the reason he didn't want his fiance to ride monkey. You know, she wanted to do it. And I said no way. And it took her about, you know, two months of, uh, you know, talking me into it and finally said, let's go to the practice track and roll with it.

Turned some good lap times and went ahead and gone racing

and they've been racing together now for three years, cementing a cosmic connection over true love and a torn to

conform.

We definitely have to work hand in hand

and be like, totally connected with each other. I mean, the connection there is just absolutely perfect

and

she's very, very telling that she does her job, well, she gets in tight spots and basically just lets us go out there and win races

when it comes to marriage. Some guys popped the big question on a beach somewhere but Joe Jones ain't one of those guys. I just came out of turn four, wasn't thinking crossed over the infield plowed into the landing ramp,

got a little dazed. And then, uh, you know, I asked her the question, you know, at least that way if she said no, I could have told her I hit my head too hard. Joe and Brandy weren't the only couple to make the side car love connection. We actually met about 18 years ago, but we've never been single at the same time. And then all of a sudden she came back and was watching me race speedway

and then she said, if I bought a side hack, would you drive it? Of course, I would. And then that kind of sparked a new romance. And next thing we know we went, got a house and move way out in the mountains and build our bike and

now we're out here rolling around.

These love teams are doing more than rolling around in Vegas. Randy and Joe won their heat race and Mark and Jackie took the win in the main event which impressed former speedway champ turn promoter, Brad Brad Oxley.

There's a couple of gals out there, not my gal

been a couple of guys do have their gals out there and actually two of the Bear,

three best teams and the winning team tonight

was uh with a gal as the monkey.

So it's great to see the gals out there. I'm scared to death for them every single week, but they seem to get through it with all that said, we know what question is on your mind.

Does Jackie or doesn't shoot? I have a mud slap on my ass. I would rather have that than my ass in the dirt

and that my friends are words to live by

speedway racers use ja motorcycles from the Czech Republic. But the Czechs are also known for another racer, small but fast and fun. The bladder is next.

Ok? You may be a little low on cash,

but that doesn't mean you have to give up your dream campaigning a GP racer.

Uh

the thrill of road racing, knee down sweepers tucked in straightaway, white knuckle turns tack needle quivering tires at their limit.

You're not playing games, you're headed to the podium.

Sure. You can have a high dollar factory ride like the big guys. But your proof a gifted privateer can win it all on a shoestring budget

and you're doing it your way with trick suspension, gum ball, slick slotted disks, a shark nose bearing and a liquid cool 12,000 RPM engine.

It's time your exotic European stretches its legs.

Ok. Walter Mitty. You may be serious, but isn't it a bit small?

Dimensionally challenged? This tiny Czechoslovakian GP bike tips the scales at just 55 pounds

but don't confuse size with performance. These are serious contenders in the PV. RN America's fast growing pocket bike racing series

here and abroad. Road racers of all ages battle it out for bragging rights

and the world's most fun and affordable GP series

at 3100. A copy pocket bikers expect a lot and get a lot with this top of the line racer,

chainsaw skills activate the 39.8 CC water

cooled reed valve, two stroke

delivering a stout 10.5 horsepower 12,500 RPM.

A two quart fuel tank sends premix through the teeny 17.5 millimeter del

Auto carb,

a

mini centrifugal slipper clutch spins a tiny chain taking the B one to speeds up to 60

MPH.

Mechanical front and rear discs on alloy wheels handle the stops.

Its rigid trellis frame can handle riders up to 242 pounds. A remarkable 4.5 times. The bike's dry weight

until your factory ride comes in. This package of mini technology will keep your ego and your wallet intact.

Proof positive. That size does matter

as long as it's small.

Next Tommy G installs hot cams in our Harley project of the week.

Hey, guys, we're back on T DC.

I'm Tommy G

I told you size matters,

which is why today we're going back to our twin cam Harley and we're gonna make it bigger. We're gonna finish installing Edel

Brock's Big Boar kit,

taking our 88 and Charlie to 95. Here's what we've done so far.

We disassembled the top end of our stock 2002 super glide.

We had the cylinders board at home to give us an extra eight cubic inches of displacement.

Next, we installed the kit's bigger Ford pistons, reinstalled the cylinders and bolted on a pair of high flow performer RPM cylinder heads, performer intake manifold and the kit's bigger 42 millimeter carb

that leaves only one important step left to do.

Back in 99 Milwaukee came out with a twin cam motor.

It was a big step for Harley featuring separate cans for each cylinder.

Today,

we're gonna replace those stock cams with these hotter ones for Metal Brock.

These cams will support over 100 horsepower to the rear wheel.

It'll take a few special tools and a little time to get these in.

Let me walk you through it.

Always take your time on important projects like this pop up. Work is fun and satisfying,

but don't rush any of the steps.

The rocker arm covers are next to come off the front and rear cylinders.

Then on both the rocker arm assembly and mark them so they don't get mixed up.

Now you can take out the push rods.

OK? We remove the cam cover

and the rocker arm assembly.

But before we pull out this cam shaft assembly plate,

I got a really good tip for you.

Remove the spring from a paper clamp. Its tension will hold the lifters against the lifter bores, keeping them from dropping down. When you pull out the cams

to get to the cams pin, the chain tensioner away from the chain

lock, the cams pockets so they can't turn

and unbolt and remove the sprockets and chain,

then remove the screws holding the cam plate and carefully withdraw the assembly with the cams intact.

Now, we'll press out the stock cams and press in the new ones from metal brock.

The stock cams bey and enter chain will come out together,

then turn the plate over and press in the new cams.

The cam plate assembly is now ready to be placed back in the engine.

Now, remember tighten all hardware to correct torque specs

reinstall, the cams brocket and outer chain

followed by the cam cover.

Ok.

Now we can pull the clips out

and let the lifters touch the cams.

Now we can drop our push rods in

the factory push rods are non adjustable, but the performer units can be adjusted,

set them for zero lash and install them through their sleeves with the adjusters facing down.

Then reinstall the rocker arm assembly over the push rods followed by the rocker covers.

Don't be afraid of projects like this. It'll take a little time but it's well worth it.

The settle bro kit,

it's gonna make your Harley crazy

great. And maybe next week we can get started on my bike.

But until then I've got some great new products to show you first. A new MX goggle from Scott.

It's called the ultimate high voltage and it features special chrome lens and amplify contrast and depth perception. It also has ram air vents to reduce fogging.

New strap clips provide even tension and a removable no shield provides protection from roost. It also has silicone on the strap to keep it from sliding on the helmet. Chad reed wears them. And so can you for under $50?

Ok. Now everybody knows a riding jacket can provide great protection, but the problem is they can be a little uncomfortable in hot weather. Now, V and leathers has solved the problem with their new VMX mesh riding jacket. It comes in men's and women's sizes. It's a heavy black Corum

mesh that features extra panels for protection in the elbows and in the shoulders. A VMX looks cool and is cool for those days when you'd rather not wear anything. A

van and retails them for 100 and $19 and they come in sizes extra small, 24, extra large.

Now, bike batteries are hot cellars in the spring because winter inactivity literally kills them off. You can end battery replacement with this 1.5 amp charger and maintainer from U was a

smart shot will charge 12 volt batteries automatically switching to float mode to hold the exact charge until you're ready to use it.

It has reverse polarity, overcharge protection and led monitors. MS RP is just 5995.

Now, for our last product is one we plan on putting on my bike. It's a performance clutch kit from Barnet performance products. This wet clutch kit is complete with a set of aluminum drive plates with bonded friction material and matching steel driven plates burnished to slide smoothly on the hub

kit, come with heavier heat treated springs for maximum lockup

with a retail price of only 100 and $36. There's no excuse not to step up to a performance clutch when it's time for replacement.

Well, that's all for T DC today, but next week it's off to Hollister for a weekend of vintage Motocross lifestyle and vintage Motocross action

ride safe and we'll see you then.