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Click on any image to get the bigger picture |
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The imposing Top Fuel bike belonging to the Magnusson Brothers pictured in the pits at Santa Pod. |
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David Emmerson's Wild Thing seen in profile and underlining just how close to the ground the rider (?) was. |
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Dutchman Jos Smit was a regular visitor to Santa Pod along with quite a few of his countrymen. This is his blown Kawasaki Top Fuel bike. |
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Jos Smit, like his fellow Dutchman Henk Vink, obviously subscribed to the theory that you just can't have too many race bikes. His Top Fuel bike is the foreground and behind it a matching Pro Stock machine. This picture was taken at the 2nd Transatlantic Bike Race held at Long Marston on 25 June 1983. |
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'Superbike' Mike Keyte came over from the USA to show the Pro Stock runners how it should be done by dominating the meeting. Judging by his running number, PRO 1, I imagine he knew a thing or two. Jim Reynolds confirms that this is Mrs Keyte getting a push on the bike at Long Marston on 25 June 1983. |
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Jack O'Malley brought his funny bike over from the US for the June 1983 bash at Long Marston. Jim Reynolds has refreshed my failing memory banks (well - failed really) by telling me that the bike did not race after suffering problems in qualifying. |
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Swede Stefan Reisten was another
international entry for the 2nd Transatlantic Bike Race at Long
Marston. Here he is in stage about to blast his
Shark Magic machine to an off the trailer 7 second pass to go top of the
pile. |
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This is Angus McPhail on board his Jade Warrior device at Blackbushe on 20 May 1984. Lorcan Parnell has been in touch to tell me that Wild Thing and Jade Warrior were two separate machines. He says that Angus McPhail still has Jade Warrior although the alloy monocoque is now too corroded to use. |
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The big name at the 3rd Transatlantic Bike Race held at Long Marston was Elmer Trett who brought his Mountain Magic fuel bike over. Here his wife and daughter are doing a spot of wrenching between runs. This picture and the next two were all taken at this meeting on 29 June 1984. |
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Mrs Trett is still hard at work in this rear view which shows just how big this bike was. |
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Elmer Trett blasts off the start line on his first ever pass at Long Marston, no dialling in or feeling his way just 7.38 seconds and 190mph! |
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BJ and the bike. Brian Johnson the 1984 IDBA World Champion seen in the pits with his all-conquering Imperial Wizard on 7 April 1985. |
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A better view of what it took in 1984 to show our American cousins the way home. This shot was also taken on 7 April 1985 at the Pod. |
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Tokyo Express was Barry Eastman's turbocharged funny bike. It is pictured here on 7 April 1985 at Santa Pod Raceway. |
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John Clift's Chain Reaction was the ultimate development of the British twin cylinder blown drag bike. The bike changed hands three times and finished up with Dutchman Gerard Willemse who did a complete re-build on the bike and won a European Supertwin Championship in the late 1990s. He also squeezed a couple of high sixes out of it! This picture was taken on 7 April 1985 at the Pod. My thanks to Ian King and Marius van der Zijden for providing the information on this incredible machine. |
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Rod Pallant's LA Hooker pictured in the pits at Santa Pod Raceway on 26 May 1985. |
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The Mecman sponsored bike of Swedes
Lennart Olofsson and Bo Christensson was a seven second runner. Lennart rode
the bike and is pictured with his back to the camera. I am indebted to Lars
Andersson for providing the details on this shot. Lennart Olafsson tells me
that the other chap in the shot was Kjell "Knappen" Karlsson who Lennart
describes as an outstanding mechanic but a poor photographer. |
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Alas I know absolutely nothing about this fantastic creation except that it may have been French. |
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The Imperial Wizard is fired up under the watchful gaze of Brian Johnson and Elmer Trett. |
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And to finish this page off what could be better than a little more of that Mountain Magic which is receiving some attention from either Elmer Trett's wife or daughter. That man really had things organised. In the background is the Imperial Wizard of Brian Johnson. |
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