Trailer is packed and I am out the door! I feel really good about the bike and it's potential speed this weekend. Weather reports says 107 today and 104 tomorrow so that will play a factor in power. I am set to run in the 59th spot so I should run by 10:00 A.M. tomorrow at which time the temp will be near the mid 90's to 100 which is what temperature I ran at last month. With all that being said conditions as of now appear to be similiar to last months. Due to the heat I may only make one run, just depends on what happens. Sitting in leathers, gloves, and a helmet on a air cooled bike can be quite warm!

My friend Dave (Darthrider) from the Motorcyclist Cafe' will keep you guys posted as to what is going on and I will be back Sunday evening or Monday morning with a full report and some pictures.

Scott
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/Buell%20re-build/100_2771.jpg

Give em hell!

Kick some ass jarhead!

Semper Fi

Best of luck!! Hook them sumbitch up!

OK, I'm signed up, registered, logged in, locked & loaded to post El Mirage updates for Scotty !

Anybody got a late model Sporty for cheeep ?
I'm Jonesing bad to build a Storz XR1200...

By the way...you guys are a class act to help Scott's race program like you did ! We got the same thing started over on our MotorcyclistCafe.com forum , but you guys started it.

Well.....WELCOME here too!!!!!!:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap

We're all anxious to hear how it goes this weekend!:):):)

Just do it!!!!

:banapart:banapart

Go at it!!!:tour:tour:tour

That bikes looks like it is going 200 MPH sitting still.:D

TOTALLY BADASS!!
DC

Ride Fast. Ride Safe. We look forward to the updates

Hey guys...I heard from Scotty.
He said it was 113F. on the way to the track, 109F. at El Mirage (aka "One Hot MoFo").
He got through Tech Inspection fine and the inspectors liked the way the bike was built. Those guys are not there to let you in if they can, but to keep you out if they have to, to keep you from hurting yourself or someone else. To get a compliment from them is real cool.
He said he will run about 10:00AM and will let us know what happens.

Go Scotty ! :tour

Go Scotty!

Hope ya kick ass Scott!

Scott just called and things are going well with one run completed, and at least one more coming up.

His speed was 167MPH on the first run, despite still having a problem in the 4-5 shift. The shift was completed but the resultant loss of 1/16 of a mile on the very short 1.3 mile course prevented a higher speed. This was exacerbated by the "higher gearing" of the new rear tire which is ~1" taller than the old one. The engine has the power, it just takes a little longer to "spool up".

The engine is red-lined at 7500 RPM and the run finished at 7200 RPM which is a "calculated" 175 MPH. The difference in that and the actual timed speed of 167 MPH was "8 MPH worth of wheelspin". Again, this is a good thing as wheelspin can be dealt with, and with present gearing the bike is theoretically capable of ~184 MPH, well over the El Mirage class record of 178 MPH.

Scott is experienced & smart and knows not to state that as a prediction, but as a goal. Only inexperienced racers predict how fast they are "going to go".

El Mirage, with the short course, is more like a "long drag race" where acceleration is important in achieving top-speed goals. Bonneville is *much* longer and somewhat more forgiving of missed shifts and minor wheelspin, as there is more course length & time available to deal with them. A careful "milking" of the throttle often mitigates or eliminates wheelspin, but it takes time & distance. Not to mention skill!

There was also a minor oil leakage problem, this time from the transmission which may have been over-filled. This is easily fixed.

A record at El Mirage would certainly be nice and is a goal, but this meet is really just a "tune-up" race in preparation for the Bonneville Salt Flats, later this year.

Some interesting things:
Fast Guy John Noonan earlier ran 218 MPH on his Hayabusa powered sidecar racer ! Then went out on his totally un-faired 'Busa and ran 240 MPH. John now officially has the "fastest sidecar in the world" and the "fastest open bike in the world"...along with dozens of other records and titles. This guy just oozes SPEED and is a really nice guy!

Noonan told Scott he is so impressed with his program *and* the generous support of The XL Forum and the Motorcyclist Cafe' , he wants to put stickers from *both* forums on his 'Busa Land Speed Racer for the upcoming Bonneville meets. This will really be nice publicity for both groups...Way to go guys!

Bob Mooreland on the "Spyke" partial streamliner with 2 X 145CI S&S engines just ran 208 MPH, adding 1 MPH to his own record.

The North American Eagle "unlimited car world record" contender just showed up for a tune-up run. (I tried to show the website URL and an image, but the software says I can't until I have made 15 posts.) Just Google "North American Eagle" if you are interested.

Scott *thinks* there will be a video of the Bonneville Buell's run available next month.

More later.

Go Scotty!

TotalyAWSOME Scott.
Were all pullin for ya. thanks for the updates Darth keep em coming

Hey Scott, the bike looks great! It sounds like you're doing very well for a 1.3 mile run and you're just about ready for Bonneville...... Good luck today!!!

Bummer !
After sitting in line a l-o-n-g time, then sitting in the start-line in full non-vented leathers for another long time in the 108F. heat, Scotty was next to go when they cancelled the meet !
But a 35 MPH cross wind is a good reason to cancel.

He's really pumped though...El Mirage was only a tuning race for him, the bike performed well and has run well for 2 meets with speeds "knocking on the door" for a record, even though a totally "clean" pass has not yet been run. And more importantly, it ran very consistently while Scott addressed a series of minor issues.

The bike continues to get better with each run and modification or upgrade.

An air shifter for easy, consistent shifts has been added to the list of "must haves" and Scott said the bike is *so* much easier to ride with the new tires, wheel bearings and steering damper. And as we all know..."easier to ride" means safer & faster.

There is another El Mirage meet in July but he will have to play that by ear, depending on when the bambina arrives!

I know he will do this personally too, but he asked me to relay his sincere thanks and appreciation for the support and encouragement from all of us.

Way to go guys.

Go Scotty!

Hey guys, I posted this the other day on the MotorcyclistCafe' forum...a lot of the guys were getting interested in Scott's race program but most of them know little about Land Speed Racing.
I thought it might be of some interest here...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scotty, me boy...you are a class act my friend and it is an honor to be somewhat involved in your race effort, if only through a tiny donation, a steady stream of Good Texas Vibes, and the admiration and respect of a Cafe' Bro.

And one thing I truly hope we all appreciate..."just" going fast in a straight line is nowhere, NOWHERE as easy as it might appear.
I can jump on the Speedy, ride out in the country, pin her ears back and go somewhat fast. If I loaded her up and took her to El Mirage or Bonneville, and she & I performed flawlessly, I would be handed my head on a rusty old Coors tray at the end of the day.
Stock or near-stock motorcycles are fun to ride there, but will not set records. Highly-modified & developed ones will. Maybe.

One of the fascinating things about Land Speed Racing is how easy it looks and how difficult it actually is.

The altitude at Bonneville is very high high so you can't jet & tune until you get there. There are no practice or tuning sessions, you must jet, tune, adjust gearing & tire pressures, and debug the nits inherent in any racing machine at the same time you are attempting to qualify to attempt a record run. Bonneville temps can run from the 40's in the morning to well over 100F in the afternoon. Humidity is normally *very* low and air density is all over the map.
The surface of the salt can change in a matter of hours, sometimes minutes, from so hard you can barely drive a spike into it, to a loose, wet slop that can be scooped up and shaped into "snowballs".

Supercharged, alcohol/nitro-methane burning 300 MPH roadsters can leave small, nearly invisible tracks that can instantly upset handling, stability & direction of the hapless motorcycle pilot.

The big, black-smoke belching trucks with 2 LARGE V-8 engines, two superchargers & four turbochargers can leave *deep* ruts on their 250 MPH runs that will trap your front wheel, get you "cross-rutted" and put you on your fast ass in an instant if you are not really paying attention, possess the proper skill-set, and have good basic handling augmented by an effective steering-damper for the times you just can't miss the ruts.

Cajones Grande are required...this stuff can hurt or kill you.

The salt can be concrete hard in places, and large soft, mushy, wet pools in others at the same time, same run. You can imagine what happens to that surface when a heavy or "super-fast" vehicle (over 300 MPH) plows through it.
Cross-winds are always a problem and often change directions 180 degrees and back again on the same run.
On any machine capable of speeds over, maybe 180 MPH or so, wheelspin is often a constant and always a problem.

You are hot, blinded by sweat, more uncomfortable than you have ever been on a motorcycle before, trying desperately to "get under the paint" to reduce wind-resistance just a small fraction more, "milking" the throttle as power increases and traction diminishes, watching your instruments & track markers, adjusting your strategy for which sets of timed sections you need to go fastest in, listening closely to the motor, feeling for mechanical vibrations that signal an impending part failure, looking for hi-traction & problem-free lines, memorizing locations of good & bad spots & lines for future reference, doing the balancing act of going fast enough to qualify or to set the record, while saving enough of the engine for another run...and more.

If setting Land Speed Records was easy, everyone would be doing it.
They are not.

As our departed hero and Bonneville legend Don Vesco once said, "Land Speed Racing is the last truly amateur motor racing left on the planet".
That doesn't mean it's a bunch of know-nothing Piss Willies twisting store-bought throttles up & down the track. It means there are virtually no real sponsorship deals, no paid professional teams, no racing of super high-tech machines built in factory race shops, no lucrative TV and product endorsement deals.
What it is, is a bunch of dedicated, highly motivated hot-rodders & speed junkies, breaking their personal piggy-banks to build their own speed devices to compete against their friends for a fifty-cent piece of paper and a $10.00 trophy.
When all that changes to professional, corporate programs, and sadly that is already begun, the speeds will go up but this grand sport, invented on the days the first motorcycle & car was born, will die.

So, a tip of the Arai to Scotty, and Randy for what you guys do.
Bonneville is hallowed ground and you guys are helping to keep it so...

Great job sharing a little history and the results Scotts test and tune run. I have been 170 in acar but never on a bike. Sounds like fun in a wierd sort of way.

good job scott keep up the the work and you'll make it

YEEEEEHHAWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap: clap:clap:clap:clap:banana:banadanc:banana:banadan c:banana

Sounds pretty good for a tuning run. Keep up the good work.

Great tuning run Scott!

Here is the photos me and the family got at the event yesterday.
Scott

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2772.jpg


Bob M's twin engine
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2774.jpg


http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2775.jpg


http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2777.jpg


http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2783.jpg


http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2780.jpg


Wille B and the sidecar
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2779.jpg


My father-in-law and nephew
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2782.jpg


I think this picture is great! It makes me think of how things might have been in the old days.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2784.jpg

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage021.jpg

Bill Ross and his record setting Guzzi at 161 mph
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2785.jpg

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2786.jpg


Reminds me of my days in the Marines
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2787.jpg


Sheri B and her Buell Sidecar
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2788.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2792.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2801.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2805.jpg



My trailer tire on the way home........it's a long story that deals with a moron at the tire shop Saturday before I left who said the tire was fine prior to me leaving for El Mirage.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/100_2809.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage001.jpg


http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage003.jpg


http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage004.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage005.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage006.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage007.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage008.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage009.jpg


John N with my nephew and the really fast side car! Thanks John he really enjoyed that and the ride on the pit bike.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage012.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage014.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage017.jpg




http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage024.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage025.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage027.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage037.jpg



http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage040.jpg



And these really fast guys were there getting ready to do some testing.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r98/isiahstites/El%20Mirage/ElMirage041.jpg