Flat track Laverda

I did a Speedway Skool with Ivan the teacher. Still remember him saying in a quiet voice. You’ve got to learn to fall off safely before you learn to ride fast.
And when you are riding fast, you’re not having a real go if you don’t fall off.

We’d be circulating in a group, and he walked around to different track positions, when the flag he carried dropped, we had to drop. If old mate in front of you dropped early it was ride over him or take evasive action. My arse, legs, elbows and and fingers hurt for days after skool was over.
 
the video is not of DTRA "regular" meetings but a fun event run by (at the time) Sideburn magazine and using DTRA for the track stuff as managers, its a fun event where no one is refused entry, the chopper class being particularly fun, as is "inappropriate" road bikes. They also organised the "Icequake" races in Italy which was also huge fun, both were taken over by channel 4 and (I think) died a death, certainly for icequake, but not sure of "dirtquake"

The regular DTRA meetings are still a lot of fun, but the emphasis is much more on the racing, everyone mucks in, it is truly one of the best clubs that I have been involved with, excepting ILOC, which continues to give me great pleasure.

CLEM
 
chrisk said:
I did a Speedway Skool with Ivan the teacher. Still remember him saying in a quiet voice. You’ve got to learn to fall off safely before you learn to ride fast.
And when you are riding fast, you’re not having a real go if you don’t fall off.

We’d be circulating in a group, and he walked around to different track positions, when the flag he carried dropped, we had to drop. If old mate in front of you dropped early it was ride over him or take evasive action. My arse, legs, elbows and and fingers hurt for days after skool was over.
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That was the first thing I heard from a speedway rider, that you had to drop immediately if someone fell in front of you. It must be hard with red mist in your helmet but a great safety procedure. Might be hard to do with ice speedway.
 
chrisk said:
Makes me think Ivan’s record may stand for a 500 single.
But that’s not what the 140mph Yanks are riding..... is it?
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Okay ..... so then we really are comparing kumquats to jackfruit ......... the 500's would run circles around the big twins on a speedway circuit and the big twins would clobber the 500 at the Sacramento mile.

If I'm wrong then I'm going to enter an RZ350 in MotoGP.

Jim
 
Seen this some time ago - still fascinating though! Very unique set-up of this flat-track bike and amazing what is possible with this narrow kind of bicycle tyres ...
 
helicopterjim said:
Okay ..... so then we really are comparing kumquats to jackfruit ......... the 500's would run circles around the big twins on a speedway circuit and the big twins would clobber the 500 at the Sacramento mile.

If I'm wrong then I'm going to enter an RZ350 in MotoGP.

Jim
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“Black Erna” - Otto Lantenhammers 120hp / 120kg 1000cc Weslake- melted tyres apparently!
 

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Exmoor beast said:
“Black Erna” - Otto Lantenhammers 120hp / 120kg 1000cc Weslake- melted tyres apparently!
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Corrr, that engine in a flat track frame would have those Yankees holding the forks with both hands down the straights!

Weslakes were a great engine in their day, Saw a couple do big ends, one was in the pits warming up :rolleyes: when it clattered to a stop.
 
piranha-bro2 said:
That vid of the five bikes looks a trifle absurd - not sure what it is but it looks a bit contrived to me.
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Fore some reason I find that weird looking skinny wheeled bike hilarious. It just makes me laugh to look at the bloke sitting up like he's on a bar stool, but wearing shoulder pads like an American footballer. He'd be buggered if there was a right hand corner though. :D

Apparently it's called Auto Racing. Here's Guy Martin having a go.

 
chrisk said:
Re Julian’s oil pickup discussion, where’s the sump oil go on these bikes?

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Loved the Rob North BSA (could have been a Triumph T160?). To answer Chris' question, it's got a dry sump, goes to an oil tank behind the left-hand sidecover. Interesting bike, belt drive primary conversion, fancy 3-1 exhaust, lovely sound...
Cheers,
bazzee
 
Lads: Back about 1998 or so I attended the last AMA mile dirt track at Del Mar (north of San Diego).
There was a demonstration of TWO TZ750 trackers ridden by Jay Springsteen and Scott Parker. Since
I wasn't at Indy in 1975 to see Kenny Roberts win,watching those two legends came pretty damn close.
Both of those guys were not parading but balls out and the sound and spectacle was unbelievable. But,
back on topic,for real Italian stand up and be counted racing try a Benelli 650 as a dirt tracker. Back in the
early 70's a guy connected to Cosmopolitan Motors bravely attempted to race one so kudos to anyone
trying the same with a 750SF.
 
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