Jack would have liked that Kevin made the seat, primary cover, chain guard, and linkage out of lightweight aluminum, but not that Kevin installed a BSA drum brake in the rear wheel. Kevin cleaned out space in his home garage, used a magnifying glass to study three vintage photos of the complete bike in order to compile a parts list, and started a build that took four years to (almost) finish. While Kevin had never built or restored a motorcycle, he’d followed in Jack’s shadow and spent weekends underneath hot rods or his ’68 Pontiac Beaumont, and after 22 years of working at the same steel company, he flowered into a damn fine welder and fabricator.
A year later, the guy called and admitted he didn’t have the time or skill to bring the bike back to its former glory, so Kevin scrounged up the cash to buy a bare frame, a couple of crusty wheels, and the forks his grandfather had drilled into. Kevin didn’t have the money to buy the drag bike, so all he could do was tell the new owner that it had sentimental value and that he’d appreciate a phone call if he ever decided to sell. He chewed on the idea for decades, but it was never the right time, and then Jack passed away in 2014 and his belongings were sold off with his estate. In the ‘80s, when little Kevin visited grandpa’s shop, he’d saddle himself on the forgotten frame, tuck behind its low handlebars, and make motorcycle noises until Jack yelled, “Get off that thing before you hurt yourself!” Kevin had no idea how the complete drag bike looked until he was a teenager when Jack shared with him a few black-and-white photos, which is when Kevin first had the idea to rebuild and restore his grandfather’s drag bike. The interest in and the energy of these events is equally wild, and just confirms how racing-crazy the people of Thailand are.When dragsters became Jack’s fix for speed, he parted out the bike and shoved the gutted frame into a corner of the shop. While you’d hope safety is taken little more seriously - most are wearing cotton shirts and jeans, or motocross-style jerseys - they are largely wearing proper motorcycle helmets, although we did catch one rider comically relying on nothing more than a bicycle helmet to save his thinking cap. They then reach down with their left hands and shift the transmissions the rest of the run, while hanging onto the bike and operating the throttle with their right hand only. But to make them quicker yet, the riders take aerodynamics to extremes and actually switch positions before mid-track, laying down superman-style on a flat saddle they’ve replaced the more traditional motorcycle seats with.
#Drag racing motorbike Patch
In fact, we’re going to show you a few of their wilder forms of acceleration contests over the next couple of weeks, but for now, let’s focus on these not-so-sketchy bikes that have been made oh-so-sketchy.Ĭoming in at just 150cc’s, these likely home-brewed motorcycles perform quite admirably for their measly engine displacement and the whole inch or two of tread patch making contact with the ground. Can you put wheels and and an engine on a cereal box? They’ll freakin’ race it, no questions asked. These guys will race absolutely anything. What Thailand’s racers lack in technology and money for advanced machines, they make up for in enthusiasm. But voluntarily dangerous? Think again, because that honor might just be bestowed on a hearty bunch of young men in Bangkok, Thailand that cajones bigger than their engines. So you thought Top Fuel Motorcycles or Eric Teboul’s rocket-powered bike are the most dangerous two-wheeled machines in the sport of drag racing? In terms of sheer speed, there’s little argument against that statement.
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