The Battle of the Twins
The Battle of the Twins
DAYTONA'81
Gentlemen, Start Your Thunder.
Peter Egan
To many, the Battle of the Twins at Daytona this year was an event for Real Motorcycles. Those who might wonder what exactly was meant by Real had only to listen to the field of big Twins warming up on the grid. All 66 of them. The Superbike Fours and GP twostrokes might have the unmistakable wail of thoroughbred race engines going for them, but the Twins produced a deep, motors-from-hell bass that shook the earth when they fired up. “Those things don’t rattle windows,” one of the organizers shouted over the noise, “they break them.”
It was an unusual field by traditional Daytona standards, a mixture of professional and novice riders astride all variety of 500 to lOOOcc Twins. Fully half of the field were Ducatis, joined by a dozen BMWs, half as many Harleys and Moto Guzzis, a smattering of Triumphs and Nortons, two Vincents (with non-Vincent frames, Allah be praised), a Yamaha, a Moto Morini and a Kawasaki 750. It was the first year for the Twin class at Daytona, the race being the brainchild of one Jess O’Brien who put it all together with help from the AMA, the Florida GP Riders’ Association, and several other clubs. O’Brien thought there might be some crowd appeal in a race for bikes not powered by inline Fours, and he was certainly right. Excitement ran high in the grandstands and on pit row.
The field was divided into three classes: Grand Prix, for all-out race bikes; Modified Production, for highly-tuned road bikes; and Stock Production, which allowed only the removal of stands, turn signals, etc. and minor relocation of exhaust pipes. There were highly interpretive notions of race preparation evident on the grid, ranging from bikes like David Emde’s spotless San Jose BMW to older budget efforts held together with red silicone sealer, used safety wire and flat black paint. The classes were flagged off with great smoke and thunder in three waves.
It didn’t take long for a combination of brakes, chassis, power and enthusiasm to separate the riders as they came off the banking onto the infield. Jim Adamo and his Berliner/Reno Leoni Ducati took the lead on the first lap, closely pursued by Emde’s BMW and David Roper on a Team Obsolete XR Harley. Emde and Roper swapped 2nd place back and forth for most of the race, until Roper dropped back with a rough-sounding engine and Emde retired in a trail of smoke.
When the checkered flag dropped Jim
Adamo had won by over half a minute. It was suggested that much Chianti would probably be drunk that Friday night in Daytona’s better Italian restaurants. Ducatis had finished one, two and three. Adamo crossed the finish line on fumes after switching to reserve two laps from the end of the 13-lap race and sloshing his tank to stay running. In the Berliner/ Leoni pits Adamo and Leoni grinned broadly and shook hands with a line of well-wishers, among them several elderly Italian-speaking men in broad-cut suits and suspenders, giving congratulations with that faintly pontifical gravity that only aged Europeans can muster.
Almost as happy as Adamo was Rich Schlachter, who managed to finish 2nd overall on a Modified Production Ducati despite starting in the second wave with only a distant view of his competition. Schlachter rode the G.V. Performance Ducati originally intended for Ted Boody, who broke his collarbone in a crash during practice. By coming in 2nd overall Schlachter won the Modified production class. Malcolm Tunstall, on a GP Ducati, finished 3rd overall.
Happily, even fans of non-Ducatis Twins were able to go away with some satisfaction. John Tesauro’s Guzzi finished 3rd in GP, John Long’s BMW took 2nd in Modified Production, followed by Dwaine Williams’ Norton and Ely Slchless’ Triumph. The lone Yamaha on the track, a kitted-up 650 Twin ridden by Yur Bergbaum, was 1st in the Amateur division of Modified Production. Another Ducati, piloted by David McClure, won the Stock Production Class, but a Harley finished 2nd, ridden by Jeff Hover.
There was something special about the Twin race; racing enthusiasm combined with a genuine love for machinery. The crowd, riders and owners all felt it. When the Twins fired up on the grid a man behind the pit wall said, “Good Lord, listen to that sound,” and in Daytona on Friday night we overheard a man at the bar asking a friend, “Did you hear the Twin race?” Hearing or seeing, it was worth the price of Friday’s admission. Jess O’Brien tells us there are more Battle of the Twins events in the works for upcoming Nationals this summer, possible at Elkhart Lake and Laguna Seca. We hope so.
It was the kind of race that sends those of us who are susceptible to such things wandering through the paddock comparing brands of two-cylinder motorcycles, dreaming up race projects and muttering those solemn words, “Next year.”
