View Full Version : Destroyer Performance
Looks like a whole bunch of Destroyers showed up for the Gainesville race. Running some
very good numbers. Had to run a 9.852 or better to qualify.
Have you had the Destroyer on the dyno or at the track yet? Curious to know how well it is
performing...
Rog
Soon, soon!!! Will be testing April 2nd, will keep you posted.
Mike
Testing in Tucson went well. Did not accomplish all goals but did learn a great deal about what the bike does not like!
The class held be old friend Gene was best time spent so far. would have taken several events to acquire this info, if at all. We believe we've achieved first goal of making what should be a qualifying ET. At this point we only have Gainsville to use as a gauge. Tripp Nobles and Gene are the only two how ran better times (at least last I looked) during class. Definitely would have been headed down some wrong tracks on setup and tuning.
Test and tuning day today. Lots of people and bikes, not sure how many runs we'll get but will post again when done.
Mike
Any more info on the Destroyer?
How did the Top Fuel bike do?
Curious,,,,,,,
Looks like you went out first round on the Destroyer. What happened?
Qualifying runs were:
9.737 134.79
11.911 99.67
10.045 135.01
On the Top Fueler, looks like Dorn went to the finals and took runner-up.
Yep on both counts. We were running with a 50lb defecit (780 vs 730 allowable min). The Vance and Hines guy was somewhat amazed we were running 9.730's with that. We actually ran a 9.700 at 136+ on thursday during class. On both the 11.9 and 10.04 runs the bike stepped out and Willie shut it down on the 11.9 because of this. Unfortunately, it stepped out again on our first round of elemination. It ran perfectly straight all day thursday. We think we caught a groove since it happened both times in the right lane. Willie was the rider for testing just to learn such things and our goal was just to qualify and get data. We'll have a new rider for Dallas and to finish out the rest of the year.
Steve's TF bike just would not run a bad time but was a real handful for him as well. Ran it off the end of the track in the semi's against Romine. Vancil beat him by .02 in the final but Steve left with a .16+ RT to Vancils .12+, so he actually made up 2/100's on the run!!! Vancil 207 vs Dorn 209 mph, that was a drag race and the fans loved it!!!!!!!! We'll be posting photos soon.
thats awesome Mike, thanks for the details.
I see that the lady rider from CA won the pro gas class there in phoenix. you any
closer to deciding on a rider?
john from tualatin
Down to two possible's, hope to anounce soon!
Derek Nanomaker has been selected as our official Destroyer pilot!!! It's been a while since he's raced but so far has progressed at a stellar pace. As a technician he is familiar with V-Rods and has Race Tuner experiance here at Latus. We welcome him as the final member of this team. As mentioned on the Top Fuel thread, we plan on particapating at the next four events with following events based on previous performance and logistics.
Thanks, Mike
Derek did an excellent job in St. Louis!!! Not posted on the AHDRA site was our first round elemination numbers. 9.239/141.39mph with 5.838 1/8 ET. The number one qualifier, Erick Ryder, was running record numbers and lowerd the times substantially (congratulations to Erick!!!). Derek's numbers did end up being the second best ET and 4th fastest mph of the weekend in the Destroyer class with 31 bikes, where the 1st, 2nd and 3rd times/mph were records!!!!!. Not bad for a guy who has only ridden the bike in two events!!! We ended up qualifying 3rd and went out in the second round (1st 16 bike field round) with a .355 light/9.334/138.9 (tying Nobles for 2nd quickest ET in this round but with a higher mph to Nobles 136.18). Derek is committed to correcting the RT issue with some encentives from us (pictures soon). Going in, our goal was to just make the top 16 field. Hope to continue progressing but also know that this will become more and more of a competitive class as time goes. No time to rest! Will report from Atlanta!
Regards, Mike
Hi Mike,
I have been watching your rider at the last few races.
Getting better and better. Congrats on the great outings.
Jack Wagner
Tri-Ryche Racing
www.TriRycheRacing.com
AHDRA PG 5
SS 6
Atlanta report. Out of 28 bike field we qualified 5th with a .02 spread from first to fifth. Unfortunately the best times and MPH are not posted on the AHDRA website because they happened in the first round of eleminations to get to a 16 bike field from the 28. We ran class low ET for the weekend with a 9.355 and fourth fastest MPH (Nobles and others also ran their best times in that round). We hope to talk AHDRA into posting this round in the future. In the second round of eleminations (our third) the bike missed a shift, but Dereks .024 light won the round. We made it to the semi's (first time) and lost to Noble's 9.500 with our 9.535. With Derek's .060rt to Nobles .070, it turned out to be very close at the end but Nobles bike just had more power on the top half. Derek just keeps getting better with every race and we hope to do same with the bike. Next report will be from Norwalk, June 10.
Just got the points posting after Atlanta; Derek at 15th of 54 registered riders with 180 pts, in just 3 races. Nobles no. 1 with 561, then Ryder, Ray, Stevens and Stratton for top five. Derek needs to gain 33 over the next five up to top ten.
Thanks, Mike
Ohio report; Man, this place LOVE'S drag racing!!! We qualified 3rd and ran the lowest 60 ft times of all entries with a 1.303 and unofficially set the 1/8 mile record with a 5.812 backed by a 5.817 (current record is 5.838). We did not realize this until on the plane back and so did not turn in our time slips to have the bike inspected and confirmed (some events may not recognize 1/8 mile times). If AHDRA does not confirm we'll just have to do it again. Anyway, we made it to our second semi-final but got a little flustered at the start due to an interuption after burn-out. One of the bikes that ran before us failed and the track had to be checked for oil. This upset our routine and we just got out of step afterwards. We and our rider keep getting better with each event and this is just one more learning experiance that ups our professionalism. Speaking of failures, 6 Destroyers failed at this event. Suspected to be 4 transmissions and two rod failures. Two others were not entered, rumored to be also failed (one suspected trans), for a total of 8 failed bikes between two events. This has everybody in this class worried about the life expectancy of the motors and will be carefully monitered as we go. Next race is Seattle and we may campaign two bikes at this event!
Thanks, Mike
Testing went well at Woodburn and it's official, we'll be running two bikes in Seattle. Scott Sayor will be on Destroyer One (Derek rides D2). Scott ran a 9.40/136 after just a few passes. Derek's bike struggled and kinda of mystified us for awhile. But after some change's, ran a 9.197/141.73 and then a 9.24/142. 1/8 mile ET was 5.809/118.38!!!! That was with a club/street race prepped track, hazing the tire and 1.344 60ft (we've run 1.30's on well prepped tracks). This was in competition legal form (weight, fuel, etc.). BTW, current records for this class are 9.224/142.62-1/4 and 5.838/118.95-1/8. We decided to rest Derek's bike and work on RT and Seat time with D1 for the remainder of the day. Hope to do similar in Seattle, of course there is the competition who also are not sleeping.
Mike
OK, Seattle is over. Nearly a clean sweep for Derek and Team Latus (only high MPH for event was not achieved). Number one qualifier and low ET for each round of qualifying, eleminations and event. We nearly missed one call due to radio problems and missed a shift in the first round of eleminations (still low ET for that round!). That was our "Mulligan". Track conditions seemed to be ever changing for the worse but it seemed to be affecting others more so. Our new rider, Scott Sayor, made a very good showing by qualifying 11 and going to the second round in the eleminations. Not bad for his first race. There were 18 bikes competeing with all but one (Stratton) of the "fast" guys attending. George Latus was there to enjoy in our victory (the first for our team) and a substaintial cheering section was on hand from many Latus employees and friends. Thank you all for the much appreciated support. Congratulations to Derek for a great win and to Scott for a great showing.
Mike
Well, it just was not our weekend, qualifying 8th out of 31 (or maybe we're just back on earth after the Seattle win). Installed a new motor for fear of run time on old and track failures of others. It seems that it takes about 3-4 races for the motors to loosen up and run numbers. Kind of a weird weekend in that most everyone was running 9.40's except Tonglet and Ray (I believe) turning in 9.28's each earlier in qualifying. Horne (#3 qualifier) took it home and was on game all weekend. Off to Bristol on the 10th.
Mike
We faired no better in Bristol than Iowa, qualifying 11th and going to the second round in eleminations!!! Seems the new motor will not respond to changes and will not make the power of the old motor, or we just had some good luck that is now used up. We'll be making some dramatic changes for Woodburn to hopefully correct this "slump". Derek did a really good job this weekend and pulled a .021 light to Horne's .047 in the second round, but Horne had a better bike and chased him down at the very end. Though most bikes were slower at Bristol, Tonglet did manage a 9.39 so we really can't blame the race track for our slow times. Hopefully, Woodburn will prove our theory on the motors and the bike will respond (we ran a 9.19 at Woodburn during a practice session with the bike in full race trim and weight).
Mike
WIN! WIN! WIN!!!! Both the Destroyer team and Top Fuel take home well earned wins. We had very high hopes for the Destroyers after testing on thursday. Scott is getting more and more comfortable on D1 and his RT's are very good. Chassis problems were finally corrected at days end and the bike was going pretty straight. Derek's bike ran a 9.29 off the trailer with the freshened "old" motor installed. After some chassis adjustments to account for track conditions he then ran a blistering 9.145 at 143.35mph. To make sure it was not a fluke we went back out and ran a 9.179/142 with AHDRA officials on sight. Again, the bike was in full race trim with a full load of fuel. The bike was trailered with no changes for saturday. Based on these results, we expected to begin qualifying with some spectacular runs. Of course, racing has a way of humbling us and we ended up qualifying third out of 15 with a best of 9.329. Scott found 10 place with a 9.485. In eleminations, we reviewed data and started making progressive changes toward an end. As can be seen on AHDRA's web sight, each run for Derek was a little better than the last even though track conditions were worsening. Derek has really improved his RT's and was extremely consistant with .03 lights. Scott had problems with his bike stepping out hard in the first round and had to back out to correct, but he pulled a great .003 light on that run. We need to get a bike under this guy!! In the final round Derek had his worse light of the weekend with a .063 to Ray's .032 but by 60 feet he was out front and never slowed with a great top end charge for a 9.329 and the win. We believe this moves Derek into 5th place in points. This win was the result of a truely team effort with everyone contributing their best to make the whole. No single person was responsible for the win and the win would not have come without the contributions of every single person. Special thanks to Sonny Burres and Dan Baisley for their always welcome help and advise, and Sonny's amazing intuition and ability to read the track.
Thanks, Mike
From Harley-Davidson Motor Company
August 28, 2006
Nitro Top Fuel Class Has Another First-Time Winner; Brancaccio Takes Win In Woodburn for Team Latus Motors
Liz Davis Beats 70 Competitors to Earn First ET Victory
WOODBURN, Ore. (Aug. 28, 2006) ? Team Latus Motors cleaned up at their own race Sunday, earning two AHDRA victories at the Team Latus Motors Harley-Davidson Northwest Nationals.
Brancaccio and the Steve Dorn-owned Team Latus Motors Harley-Davidson team beat Chicago Joe in the Nitro-burning Top Fuel class. Brancaccio won with a 6.845-second pass at 200.80 mph to top Joe's 7.414 at 199.20. Joe smoked the tires early but recovered to make it a race.
Brancaccio became the sixth different winner in nine events this season. Only points leader Mike Romine and the Salt Lake City Harley-Davidson team and Doug Vancil and the Vance & Hines Motorsports team have earned repeat victories in Top Fuel this season.
Tracy Kile was the top qualifier in the Nitro category with a 6.647 pass at 208.18. Brancaccio was fourth with a 6.675 while Vancil was second (6.653). Ron Houniet rounded out the top three with a 6.675.
Derek Nonnamaker gave Team Latus Motors its second win of the day, earning the trophy in the Destroyer category. Nonnamaker earned his second victory of the season by beating Michael Ray in the final round. Nonnamaker rode his Harley-Davidson to a 9.329 at 140.80 to top Ray's 9.399 at 141.30. It was the second consecutive runner-up finish for Ray.
Ray also earned the top position in qualifying for the second consecutive race with a 9.192 while Don Stratton Jr. was second with a 9.287 and Nonnamaker was third with a 9.329.
KW Seneca earned his third SEP victory by beating Robert McConnell in the final round. Seneca earned the win from the starting line as McConnell fouled. Seneca went on to ride his Harley-Davidson to an 11.537 pass. Eleanor Walker was the No. 1 qualifier in the SEP category with a best time of 11.508. Seneca was 14th in qualifying (11.610) while McConnell was ninth (11.575).
Liz Davis became a first-time winner in the ET category, beating Bill Rowe Jr. in the final. Davis's 11.499 pass was more than enough to cover Rowe's 11.607. Davis blasted past 70 other ET competitors to earn her first final round appearance.
Just three AHDRA races remain this season. The next AHDRA event is Jim McClure Nationals in Richmond, Va., Sept. 23-24.
Terry Brown just completed the racing season in Canada. Unfortunately the last race was called due to rain with Terry finishing 3rd in points for the CMDRA series. Terry set the ET/mph records early on (9.32) only to have them set again by another racer (9.28?). Congratulations to Terry and his team for a great finish. Latus Motors is proud to have been able to play a part in his success.
Mike
Richmond absolutely sucked for us and we went back to being rank amatures qualifying 19 out of 27 (even the motel sucked). We qualified worse than ever and just never got a handle on the bike or track. Tried several experiments which did teach us some things but did not help with our position. Went out in the second round to Tonglet. This will not happen again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (at least I hope not). I do not want to talk about it anymore :(
Mike
Did a little better here. Qualified 8 out of 30 but still could not do better than a 9.24 while 0's and teen's were common. Went out in third round against Ray (new record setter) with a 9.28 to his 9.12 even though we tree'd him with a .078 to his .091. Our bike just did not have the top end charge to stay ahead. Many new records with near perfect race conditions. We've lost our way but are confident we'll find our way back for Las Vegas. Derek did move back into fifth place in national points and currently sits first for western div. but Gene Thomason is only 4 points behind and could overtake that position if we continue to struggle in Vegas. Looking forward to running both Derek's and Scott's Destroyers in Vegas along with Steve Dorn returning to pilot his Top Fuel bike. Congratulations to Michael Ray on the new records and his win at the Rock!
Mike
Not a stellar performance due to machanical issues, guess it was our turn. We believe we had a bike capable of running in the top 5 but continued to be plaqued by stuff we just hadn't had to deal with all year. It looks like the "transmission thing" finally caught up to use on our A bike. We switched to the B bike and it decided to stay in third gear, another known problem that had, as yet, not shown itself on this bike. We did end the season with 5th place national and runner-up western division. We are very happy with the results for a first year effort among 52 points contenders and some of the best calibre of racers in AHDRA. The Destroyer class has proved to be VERY competetive. Congratulations to Michael Ray on his win at Las Vegas and taking the championship. Also, to all the other particapants in the Destroyer class, thank you all for making this one of the best and most fun race seasons yet. We were helped by many when we were in desperation and in turn were able to help others in kind. A special thank you to the Horne's for going way above and beyond in our time of need. From Team Latus Motors, thank you all and the best of luck in your racing futures.
Mike
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