by Davey Coombs
This Week in Kawasaki SX History: Oakland 1979
Thursday, January 27, 2011 | 12:15 PM
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PrintWe hope This Week in Kawasaki SX History provides an interesting trivia nugget for expert class bench racers every time we post it, but of all the topics and great races, this one may stand out the most. In 1979, Oakland's Alameda County Coliseum hosted one of the strangest days in AMA Supercross history. "Jammin'" Jimmy Weinert, a veteran Kawasaki factory rider, took the main event win with not one but two very peculiar additions to his equipment. First is the neck brace, which Weinert wore after injuring himself with whiplash, though many say it was just part of a psyche job on the part of the crafty Weinert. The second, and real story here, is the paddle tire on his back wheel. Everyone knew Oakland was going to be a sand race back then, and Weinert's mechanic Roy Turner picked up the sand tire on the way to the track. That tire was made for riding at places like Pismo Beach, not AMA Supercross! But the tire worked even better than expected, and Weinert, with the double intrigue of a neck brace and a paddle tire, won the race. Shortly thereafter the AMA banned such tires from competition, which means Weinert is the only man to have ever accomplished such a feat, with such a tire! It was also the last SX win of Weinert's legendary career. And with a career built on hijinks, tomfoolery, psyche games and gags, there may not have been one better for the Jammer.
Photo: Dick Miller ArchivesInterested in more, check out our "The Paddle Tire Race" feature from the May 2002 issue of Racer X Illustrated.
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By the look of those paddles, the old schoolers were shameless when it came to loopholes in the rule book. It's funny to think that two weeks ago we were all bent up over a 'speed sensor'!
Neck brace was really a motel towel that roy turner made into what looked like a neck brace, great psych job by turner and the jammer.
I believe Hannah used one many years ago at Millville, then they outlawed 'em.
The Jammer and Hurricane were the best ever at playing mind games with the other racers.
You should have seen the roost that thing was throwing!!
This is an excellent story, love the neck brace he's sportin'! I have a feeling the riders are going to be wishing paddle tires were legal again for this years Supercross. I think we're in for another great battle with the track being sand, it's a different environment! can't wait!
MxSxPlanet.com
I THOUGHT THE HURRICANE WAS THE FIRST WITH THE PADDLE TIRE
Not a good rule, IMO. The best tire for the conditions is what should be run - even today.
I was their. Every time Hannah would get close the jammer would just pull away because of the tire. If the tire was not used Hannah would have won this race.
The track was so sandy that after the heat races the riders were riding THROUGH the jumps becuase they were so dugout.
I was there and like one of the other posts said, this roost looked like a rooster tail that a jet boat can throw at the lake. Weinert would keep looking back at Hannah on the straights making sure he was getting a direct shot at Hannah's face. Hannah wore that long flat visor back then and he was pointing it down like a shield. It was an unbelievable race, Hannah did everything he could to get around Weinert, the tire just threw too much roost.
The story isn't correct at all, at least not according to Weinert. They didn't plan to use the paddle tire. They had it in the truck and decided to run it. It wasn't a set plan; at least it wasn't planned by the Jammer.
That was a sad day for me. I was pull'n for Hannah and he got schooled.
And that race was on TV also, and the coverage back then was way better than what we got from CBS last weekend!
Imagine it had been a FOUR stroke Kawi with a paddle tire. Wooh-ee. "Weinert buries twenty-six alive in Section A-105 with roost." Bob Hannah says "I mean, I shoulda seent it comin', but I coun't see sh&t!"
Raiders owner Al Davis, in attendance as well with Lyle Alzado and John Matuzak got a good laugh out of it according to those standing just out of eating distance.
Me and my best friend happened upon the Jammer leaving the riders meeting at I believe the 1976 Allentown, PA. National. I was about as star struck as any 12 year old could have been and the Jammer was by far the coolest pro MXer that I ever met. To this day I still remember our 5 minute conversation and was overjoyed seeing the recent Jammer reports and that he is doing well. Through friends I have gotten to know Tony DeStefano and the 2 competitors that Tony speaks with the most earnest respect about are the Jammer and the Hurricane. Nuff Said!
I was lucky enough to meet the Jammer at Unadilla last year on the Friday night in the paddock. He is the coolest MXer around by a long shot. Everyone else seemed so quiet and reserved, but Jimmy was great. Watching him driving away in Mike Leavitt's golf buggy and being thrown back by the vicious acceleration was the highlight of the evening.
My hat is doffed.
Just saw all the comments....& thought I'd post a few "corrective" comments: First....the "Holiday Inn Towel" neck brace was for real. Jammer took a head first digger on press day & couldn't even hold his head up at dinner that night....major whiplash...it was for real. Second.....this race was not the last race Weinert won....as stated in the beginning story. The "Jammer" also won the 5th race of the season @ Daytona....passing Hannah for the lead over a huge (for those days) jump....only 2 corners from the finish. The bike Jammer is on in the photos was hand built from a variety of different year parts....weighing-in @ 196 pounds. Finally...when I called our press guys @ the track on Wednesday before the race to see what the dirt was like....they said you won't believe it....it's like deep dry beach sand....I said perfect...see you tomorrow. I stopped by Dico & picked-up a couple of different paddle tires....Weinert didn't even know. When I showed up on Thursday...I showed Jammer....and he freaked out....he'd never even seen a paddle tire....and thought it would catch on the lips of the jumps & loop him out. I made him ride it in 1st practice....he was going by everyone....but was still skeptical. He had me put a nobby on for 2nd practice....and was going nowhere. When we rode to the pits after 2nd practice....his comment was....put that "fricken" paddle back on!....the rest was one of the historical moments in MX. Roy Turner
Roy, thanks for posting, all good info. During Jimmy's MX-Files, he talks about this race, which was the first S-X race I ever went to to. Weinert beat Hannah and Steve Wise for the win that day. When Weinert would go down the front straight, it looked like he was at the Sand Drags, with the amount of roost coming out. In fact, riders that were getting passed by Jim would take a complete different line, because you could tell that the roost was too much for them, meaning to see, and I'm sure it's not fun getting "Sand Blasted", espeically as hard as he was riding. Also, with that paddle tire, you could see that Jim was so much faster than all the other riders, just because the amount of traction he was getting..
Another note to this race, was that Brad Lackey was there talking to the crowd from the stadium floor earleir in the day, (this is when he rode for Kawi in the G.P.'s not US) and he announced that Kawi was going to comeout with there own single shock rear suspension bike, and call it the "Uni-Track". When Brad was racing the G.P.'s that year his Open Class bike had this "Uni-track" suspension. Also, this was Jeff Wards first face with Kawi as well. Many BIG things happened on this day in Oakland...
I raced that day also and remember a couple of things about it. First, I remember how psyched out everyone was during practice about Weinert's paddle tire. I remember bailing during my heat race so hard when I landed off this huge jump and my bike just stopped dead in the sand when I landed that I could barely get up. I don't even remember racing the semi, if I did. Back then if you didn't finish 5-15th in your heat you didn't go to the semi and my bell was pretty rung!
What I remember most was being woken up at like 6 AM by Weinert banging on my hotel room door after he'd been up celebrating his win all night...I opened the door and there was Jimmy holding a copy of the Oakland Tribune, hot off the press, screaming "I win the *$#@ing race and Hollywood (that's what he called me back then-thanks, Bevo) gets his picture in the fuggin' paper"!
It was pretty funny, a bigass picture of me off a jump, next to the headline, "Weinert's win aided by massage". We loved it and I still have the front page of the sports section. I'm gonna dig it up and scan it just to rub it in some more to Jimmy! Good times!
Roy said it all guys...In case you want to see for yourself...I just posted this this morning. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfnCE_dTmVA
Todd
The "psyche job" is still very much part of modern MX/SX but, The Jammer was the MASTER. All others pale in comparison, I mean c'mon, signing songs about your compet*tion (while playing guitar)??? Who does that nowadays??
Don't kid your collective meager minds Oh! Ye Young MX pseudo-experts. Knowing the years of industry "Tom Foolery", if you believe JS7's sensor affixed to his YZ was simply a "speed sensor"....We have this saying from the old country. BULLSH_T!!! Ever since that day in 1977 in San Antonio, that will live in infamy, "Let Brock Bye"..I trust Larry Brooks about as far as I trust Yamaha and Keith McCarty. Speed sensor my rear end.
Another of the firsts at the race was this was Doug "The Wheelie King" Domokos' first trip to the west coast. And everyone was blown away at his pre-main exhibition.