The race at Daytona this year was to be the start of something special. History was made . The first Long Rod BMW ever to race at America's premier "Horsepower Track" showed up and turned some of the fastest times ever turned by any BMW twin , two valv e or four valve. This two valve old style engine got in some laps down in the 2:11 range and this bettered or at least equaled the previous best times which had been set by the four valve Krauser bikes from Germany. As someone who wrote about the short rod /long rod controversy almost two years ago I feel somewhat vindicated that these ideas were finally tried at a real horsepower track like Daytona. Last year I predicted that Chris and the crew at CC products in San Jose would get a bike in the top te n this year but I never dreamed that it would be with a old style bike instead of the new type 259 like they tried last year. The Legends bikes ran very well this year and this was to be the last race with the "old style" 259 engine. BMW had decided t o offer these wonderfully prepared bikes for sale to collectors and to replace them with the new(after 6/94) style engines which I talked about in the April issue of ON. I believe that these newly prepared bikes will be faster than the old type 259' s because of the reduced oil misting system which will ensure that almost no oil molecules at all get into the combustion chamber to rob power up top.
The times that Gary Nixon was clocked at were very revealing to those of us who are trying to project a racing future for the new 259 engines. His best time of the week was a 2:17 flat and this was most likely one of the fastest Legend laps ever on the full circuit course (21/2 miles). We can compare this time to the laps next year that the new bikes will turn. Ironically , the private entry R1100RS from Rockville Maryland was unable to get any lap times below 2:22 and this could have been because of exhaust system choices or chip changes that were made. The Legend bikes were all running opened up exhaust systems, disconnected O2 sensors, non ABS brakes, and rigid mount bars. I could not ascertain whether or not the rev limiter had been disconnec ted or not but the bikes had strong top end on the high banks, possibly in the 145mph range but not the 150 mph plus range that had been talked about last year. One should remember that these bikes are geared for only 143 at 7900 rpm's and unless the lim iter is bypassed 145 is about it. .
This brings us back to the Long Rod twin from CC Products. That it could run a full 5 to 6 seconds faster than the factory bikes is truly impressive. Besides being of older technology engine and frame design the CC entry had a driver/rider that mus t have been over 6 feet tall because he looked like some type of parasail sitting on top of the bike rather than a rider tucked down around it. even more remarkable then that this pilot could do the excellent job that he did. Still, those of us track s ide could not help but wish and wonder what laps times would have looked like if a smaller ,gunfighter type rider like Geoff McCarthy for instance or a veteran warrior like Fred Eiker had been on board. I'm sure that a smaller young wiry type could have gotten this bike down in the 2:08 range which would have but them right in the hunt for top honors in the GP II Twins Class where they still managed to take a third place --the highest a BMW twin has placed in this class in any ones recent memory. .
Personally, I am very happy for the entire team there at CC Products. Over the thirteen years since I first talked to Chris Hodgson by phone until this very day I have always respected his efforts and his "go for it" attitude of engine and bike building . So often however, this "get on the edge" type of mechanics led to careless errors, often small things that were heart breakers to the crew and riders alike.. Last years effort on the R1100RS was an example. The bike was faster than the Legends but C hris could not keep it from spraying oil out the valve covers. A black flagged bike does not instill confidence in a young rider whose father is watching so there went that effort. A number of years back I remember Chris had helped prepared an excell ent bike for Dave Karten that from the start ran well and was hunting the leaders. While running in great position near the end of the race a set screw on the Dyna III cam rotor backed out from vibration, timing changed, and the race was over for CC. I remember thinking at the time how dumb a mistake that was, because I had lock-tighted those set screws on White Dog before taking it to a win at LaCarrera in 1987 and knew they {in California} should have known better. .
It was always something with these guys even though their heart was always 100% BMW and their desire to compete and win could not be questioned. During the five or so years that San Jose entered BMW's at Daytona, they only actually finished a bike two t imes in the "Big Twin" class. Chris H. had been a part of that effort before founding his own company now known as CC Products. More recently in early 1993 Chris actually purchased his old work place and now owns San Jose BMW lock, stock, and barrel. I believe that San Jose's race record will be quite different during the coming years if this group of family and friends continue to learn from their past mistakes. .
San Jose entered Daytona from 1977 thru 1982 and at times could get their 750 vintage twin to finish but the big twin was always a problem. Some of the early failures that led to big DNF's were exploded gearboxes, holed and destroyed pistons,broken cran ks, and massive bearing failures. Meanwhile Chris was learning by trial and error just exactly what a old style twin engine could and could not do. His work years with San Jose ended in 1981 and he founded CC Products in 1982. From the start this new small company begin offering parts and services for twins that would help them bring out that hidden horsepower we all know they have. He helped many private racers with their engines during the eighties decade and offered several parts such as roller lif ters, reduced ratio rocker arms, roller reduced ratio rocker arms,and high wedge light weight pistons that were not available from any other source. The CC shop became a hotbed of engine experimentation ," on the cusp" frame building , and a head quart ers for advanced brake and handling modifications. .
Some of these bikes begin to show up at Daytona but it was not until 1990 that CC products entered the race officially. This first time resulted in bearing and rod failures, the next years saw crank shaft failures due to excess oil pressure and hot oil to the wrong places. They skipped 1993 and entered a R1100RS in 1994 which was blacked flagged for spitting oil out the valve covers. This brings us back to this years 1995 race and CC"s entry on a rebuilt and highly modified "old style " race bike. What exactly did they do this time that they had not been done before? .
The CC "old engine, old style" entry finished in the top ten overall in the new, and highly regarded, BEARS race while posting a third place in the Formula II twins class --- The best that any BMW has done in a big bore twin class since the truly legen dary win in 1976 in which highly modified R 90S's took the overall win in super bike production and BOT's. More over, this Daytona 95 entry turned the fastest lap times ever posted by any BMW at that track ever. The Krauser bikes of a few years back wer e close but did not have the top end of this California bike which turned consistent laps in the 2:10-2:12 range. .
Kurt Mund , who was the tall rider and pilot , was able to pull 8500 RPM's on the high banks while running a 2.62 rear drive . This enabled him to run above 155mph and gave him enough speed to lap both David Karten and Devin Battley who were both exper ienced BMW racers running on well prepared bikes. David has run his old style, and fast, BMW twin all over the East coast and abroad, while Devin has also mustered numerous wins on BMW twins of different sizes. What were the reasons that this particula r BMW twin this particular year was able to run that fast when so many others have tried over the years? Of course many improvements and modifications were discovered over the years that have led CC to this engine. Rerouted oil passages made sure tha t cool oil got to the main bearings first and not after flowing to other stressed areas; oil rerouting allowed for a oil pump "slim down" that gave more power (people forget how much HP is required to run a cam driven oil pump) to the rear wheel because it used less power to lube itself;ultra thin NPR rings insured minimum cylinder friction while maintaining full compression at higher RPM's (thick rings can't bounce, shutter and recover round as fast a thin ones can) while allowing for all three rings t o be placed closer together (longer rods); a K 75 clutch mated to the old style crank insured no slips when power shifts occurred; a Dyna III type jet ski ignition was modified and adapted to the front of the crank thereby eliminating any "snatch" irregu larities that result from chain driven cam mounted ignition systems; jelly cell batteries of very high energy and ultra light weight helped insure full juice to total loss system;Red Line 100% synthetic lubricants in the engine, gearbox, and rear end a llowed more power to be used by the rear wheel and for that power to get there faster; and this list could go on and on --- basically the CC boys used every trick in the book that they knew about that had proven it self in the past. .
All those DNF's over all those years had been analyzed and filed away by Chris and his "do or die, and try again" attitude prevailed with this effort. But that still was not the reason this bike was so fast. This engine is different in a very fundamental way that goes well beyond good preparation, great driving, innovative design, and the like --This was the first truly LONG ROD BMW TWIN to ever run at Daytona and this single change alone is what separates this bike from all other twin efforts that have preceded it. The horsepower increase up top is unbelievable and this Long Rod engine is producing over 110 HP at the crank. As some of you can surmise I'm very proud to have written about the advantages of Long Rod technology in the November 1993 issue of BMW Owners News in the article entitled "Long Rod Versus Short Rod: The Debate Continues" and to have predicted the inherent and long term advantage of this design, especially for high performance applications. .
Was this benchmark showing at Daytona a fluke? Absolutely not -- as of this writing this bike is leading the points chase in Formula II BOT AHRMA race events having placed in the top three in all five races that have been held since Daytona. With Kurt M und driving and his good friends Jason Freeland and Chris Hodgson turning the wrenches on this exceptional machine, this "old engine" BMW has become the dominate force in this class for 1995 and will surely be back for more at Daytona next year. .
The Long Rod advantage is proven and now Chris can concentrate on improving the bikes breathing with high lift rocker arms, Micro Polishing of cam and crank surfaces, 40% lighter and much stronger that the best aluminum -- Carbon /Carbon pistons, titani um or ceramic valves, Kevlar / Carbon Powder Wheels with rim mount Kevlar disc, aluminum drive shafts, under-engine rear shock system, and magnesium calipers all the way around. In the meanwhile we can all just imagine what it will be like when all the t hings that have been learned and applied to this bike over these past fifteen years are brought forward and assimilated into the new type 259's during the coming decade. .
Here is a very special thank you to all the gang there at CC Products for the wonderful effort and pivotal achievement that was demonstrated at Daytona 95. Long Live the two valve twins and the people who build and ride them. .
With respect to all, .
Jim (Dr. Curve) Roche.
Any questions ,comments, or corrections may be directed to me at ; Phone (904) 224-7054 or E-Mail jroche@mailer.fsu.edu or FAX (904) 644-8977.
P.S. Just so you will know --the rod length ratio on a stock old style bike is 1.91 while the above talked about bikes rod length ratio is 2.15 --- 17mm longer rods than stock. .
"LONG RODS, OLD ENGINES, RECORD LAP TIMES, AND TOO TALL DRIVERS; THE REALBMW STORY AT DAYTONA 1995".
Jim(Dr.Curve)Roche jroche@mailer.fsu.edu high performance old twins