The last time Top Fuel Motorcycle legend Larry “Spiderman” McBride visited famous Rockingham Dragway in the North Carolina sandhills he stunned the two-wheel racing world with unprecedented speed of 255 mph.
The rapid run came last Sept., as McBride was defending a slim five-point lead over veteran Sam Wills in the ManCup Series. McBride went on to win the race and the championship.
This season McBride finds himself in unfamiliar territory, chasing points, entering the event 19 behind Valdosta winner Dave Vantine.
“It’s still early in the season but it’s important to not fall too far behind in a five-race series,” McBride said. “Dave is going to be tough to beat all season.”
At the season-opener McBride encountered a problem in the final that made it extremely difficult for his team to stage his Trim-Tex-backed motorcycle “Star.” After a total overhaul of the machine McBride feels confident the team has found the problem.
“We were not exactly sure what was going on in Valdosta but I think we got to the bottom of it,” McBride said.
When asked if fans will see a repeat performance of his rousing 255 mph speed from last season, McBride said it’s not a goal, but certainly a possibility.
“We want to win the race. We never try to go after the big speed but that is what this motorcycle likes to do,” said McBride, who improved to a career best 258 mph in Valdosta last November. “If we have to go fast to win, that’s what we will do.”
For all their continued support with this new machine, McBride thanked his primary sponsors; Trim-Tex Drywall Products, Pingel Enterprise, Drag Specialties-Parts Unlimited, Final Swipe Merchant Services, Web-Cam, APE and Kibblewhite Precision Machining.
Vance & Hines Motorsports, Red Line Synthetic Oil Corporation, Federal Mogul, PR Factory Store, Ferrea Valves, World Wide Bearings, Vanson Leathers, Belt Drives Ltd, Simpson Race Products, Nitrous Express, EK Chain, Arias Pistons, Cometic Gaskets, B&J Transmission, Carolina Cycle, L.A. Sleeve, PJ1, Mickey Thompson Tires, Valco, Goodridge, Carlisle Belts, ProJack, Bullseye Visual and Gates Belts.
