Originally Posted By: hatt
Those were drivers back then. I think I heard one time that Ronnie Sox could shift a four speed faster than he could a shift a Lenco. Drag racers today time the tree and just hold on.
Very true. And remember, no rev limiters or shifter lights on those things back then. They had to watch the tach, and "feather the pedal", to keep the RPM's in the specific range they needed for leaving. Then pound the throttle as they dropped the clutch, and release the "Line Lock"..... All at the same time. Leaving the starting line back then was "multi tasking" before they invented the phrase 40 years later. Now they just mash it to the floor and wait for yellow.
Even Pro Stock Bikes had no limiters. I remember seeing old videos of Terry Vance sitting on the starting line after staging, goosing the throttle open and closed on his Suzuki, waiting for amber.