My good mate, Kent Miklenda, the builder and rider of the Shadowfax Kawasaki, sent me an email today. We stay in sporadic contact and have done so over the years. Sometimes he disappears for long periods of time and, when he does, I know that he is off on some madcap adventure somewhere. Last time it was adventure riding and filming in the wilds of Sweden, you get the idea?
Most of the period photos of the Shadowfax in action have come from Kent though they represent only a fraction of what photos he took; almost all of his photos were destroyed in a fire in his studio in 2008. Others had copies at the time and he has been reconstructing his collection as best he can with the their help.
This photo is just so precious that it really needs archiving somewhere important. It shows the start of the Superbike Match Race Leg 2 at Macarthur Park in March 1981, Yes, that is almost 40 years ago.
But before I cover that, seeing Roger Heyes on the front row there reminds me of the race that had preceded the Match Race on the programme. That race was the Unlimited Production race. The race itself was a cracker, arguably one of the best races seen on the temporary street circuit in Canberra’s Tuggeranong Valley. The race as one of the most exciting that I ever commentated and I think I probably needed a voice box transplant at the end of it. It was held over 8 laps of the 2.8km circuit and the prize money made it well worth winning, $120 being the prize for 1st place and paying down to 5th place. There was a 750cc class run concurrently with prize money paying down to 3rd as well.
We paid prize money at every meeting and, with the help of our many sponsors, we managed to run every meeting at a profit or breaking even. With volunteer help, we never lost money on any of the meetings.
At the flash of the green flag, (no lights), the field boomed away Pole man, Dennis Neiil on the “works” Honda, got away well while Heyes, from grid spot #2, made a complete sow’s ear of the start, the bike refusing to start until the bulk of the field had disappeared over the crest of the hill and down to Turn 1. Once DID get started, Heyes turned on a barnstorming race to carve through a quality and win the race convincingly. It was a stunning ride and, though I saw Roger win plenty of other races during that era, I don’t think he rode better than he did that day.
But, back to the Superbike Race. Let’s look at the numbers, shall we? #42 is Paul Feeney on the Hannan, ex-Crosby Z1R superbike. #4 is, of course, Dennis Neill. Heyes in on #163 and the outside of the grid is #55, Canberra’s Mike (Shirley Temple) Howard. Also in picture is #111, Kent Miklenda on the Shadowfax Kawasaki, running without its fairing in order to sneak into the Superbike race. #97 is Glenn Taylor, #707 is Steven Brooks and #5 is Roy Chamberlain.
Neill won the race easily from Heyes and Miklenda, who had, earlier in the day, won the Unlimited C Grade nearly lapping the field in the process. Next home was Alan Blanco (listing the 4th place is important as you will soon see).
Immediately after the race, Heyes protested Miklenda on the basis that the Shadowfax was not an improved production bike and, as such was ineligible. Of course he was right, the Shadowfax was a prototype bike from the previous month’s Coca Cola 800 at Oran Park and wasn’t even vaguely eligible to race as an Improved Production machine. Nevertheless, there was plenty of sympathy for Miklenda on the day with many feeling that Heyes’s protest was altogether too precious after all he had finished in front of Miklenda anyway.
And, on the subject of the Coca Cola 800, it is pertinent to remark here that that race took place EXACTLY 40 years ago, on the 22nd of February 1981.
Finally it is also pertinent to note that Dennis Neill’s victories at Macarthur Park in March 1981 were to be the last of his career. Just a few weeks later he suffered his career-ending injuries at Bathurst. We were not to know at this time that we were seeing BBDN at the height of his powers and on the grid for the last time.
Don’t you just love old-skool racing photographs?
