European Top Fuel Bike 2004 review

While the rest of the world's fuel bike scene is becoming increasingly dominated by Fuel Harleys, the real threats to Larry McBride's long reign at the top of the multicylinder nitro scooter class look likely to come from Europe. Following on in the footsteps of Brian Johnson's and Stefan Reisten's world level performances during the eighties and early nineties, the strength in depth of European inline fuel bikes is stronger than in North America and Australia, and there are at least a couple of runners who are strong bets to burst through the five second barrier in the very near future. The UEM Top Fuel Bike championship took in six rounds in 2004, bookended by the season opener and closer at Santa Pod Raceway, England, with events in Finland (Alastaro Raceway), Sweden (Mantorp Park), Norway (Gardermoen) and Germany (Hockenheimring) completing the multinational tour.

As currently fashioned, the class includes a smattering of funny bikes trying to keep up with the CH3NO2 bullets, but these take nothing from the quality of the fields, as has been evidenced by all six-second eight bike fields on several occasions over the past couple of seasons, and bump the championship numbers up to stratospheric levels - 2004 saw an astonishing 32 entries trying for the European title. And there are even more multicylindered nitro bikes out there; Finn Asserbo (Denmark) and Jean Claude Draperi (France) are proven runners on the circuit, Peter Svensson (Sweden) is talking about a return to competition with his 6.1 second billet wonder, Eric Muccignato (France) has recently brought the ex-Brian Johnson Imperial Wizard back to Europe after purchasing it from Jimmy Brantley, and the Brits Dave Newbury, Jeff Hill and Tony Kershaw all have Puma based machines at advanced stages of construction.

Couple all this with massive crowds for the European series (Mantorp regularly tops the 25,000 mark and Hockenheim gets closer to 50,000 spectators over the race weekend), and the widest reaching TV deal in world drag racing, and it soon becomes apparent that the long tradition of high quality nitro-fueled two wheel action is being more than upheld by the current practitioners.

1. Roel Koedam (Netherlands)

Kool Roel and his awesome 6.04 second 235mph bike have been the class act in European Top Fuel Bike over the past two seasons (and only headed in world terms by McBride and Webb). The Dutch team weren't quite as dominant in the points chase in 2004 as they were in 2003, with only 3 victories (out of 5 completed UEM events - the Finnish round being rained off with Koedam in the final - in comparison with a 5 out of 6 record in 2003). Having seriously threatened the five second barrier the year before, the huge gobs of horsepower generated by the Puma Yamaha (equipped with a 3 valve billet head and an Autorotor screw blower) has started to find the weak links in the drive train, chewing up 800 Euro sprags at an all to regular rate of knots throughout the season. Roel and crew chief Marius van der Zijden are working over the winter to replace the current transmission with a sprag-less Scott Owens model, once the team have shaken down the new combination, only track conditions and the sometimes fickle European weather can keep them from joining Spiderman in the hallowed five second zone.

2. Antonio Ferretti (Italy)

Having tested the European Series waters, Antonio decided to get serious a couple of winters ago and self-built this gorgeous Puma based machine for Italy's first real run at a UEM championship title. Ferretti and his crew (including brother Luigi who occasionally campaigns a Funny Bike in domestic and European competition) rapidly advanced along their learning curve this year, going rounds and posting 6.75 best on the way. Although the strain of running consistent low sevens and high sixes on a stock Suzuki cylinder head started to take their toll towards the end of the season, regular points accumulation (and the occasional snafus of some of the leading contenders) vaulted Antonio, acknowledged as one of the nicest guys in the pits, into a well deserved runner-up spot.

3. Eric Teboul (France)

When he's not running world record shattering mid five second passes on his truly stunning H2O2 rocket bike, Eric runs hard and fast on his swoopy Puma fueller. Teboul actually prefers the challenge of running quick on his former Euro record and title holding nitro streamliner. The 10 year old bike had a bit of a makeover in 2004, with the installation of a Vortex Pro head on the Puma bottom end, and initial results promised great things as the French team belted out a 6.40 for a new personal best at Santa Pod's season opener, but then the valves spent the rest of the season being nipped by the pistons, despite much machining and Gallic mutterings. With time to think over the winter, Eric should be back stronger than ever in 2005, and could well produce the 6.1 second performances the Cannes resident was hoping to achieve at the culmination of 2004.

4. Sverre Dahl (Norway)

Sverre is another European who will seriously threaten the five second zone in the near future. More knowledgable observers than me consider Dahl's Yamaha Puma bullet to be one of the most powerful fuel bike on the face of the planet, and given the way the chassis twists and flexes whilst propelling Sverre to some awesome low six second passes (a 2003 best of 6.14 at 236 mph), there is plenty more to come from the Stefan Reisten tuned beast.
Last time Sverre ran the full tour he won a deserved points chase, his 2004 season consisting of an event win in Norway and the runner-up spot in Sweden in the only two events the Norwegian entered this year. Hopefully, 2005 will see Dahl having the funds to run the full tour, if he does Koedam will have to be on his mettle if there is to be a Dutch threepeat.

5. Martijn de Haas (Netherlands)

Dutch rider Martijn and his brother Joeri are metaphorical minnows among the fuel bike giants with their MPM Oils backed Kawasaki Nitrous Pro Mod Bike. The points they accumulated by attending each and every round of the championship in 2004 vaulted them to the stratospheric heights of 5th in the series, despite not running truly authoritative numbers throughout the year. However, the season for de Haas could hardly be considered dull, and in the course of the year he managed to ride over a disintegrating exhaust system - which made for odd viewing as the bike spat off the primaries in a gradual sequence over the course of 100 yards - and then, more frighteningly, getting into a real mess after the cards fell in the right order and a string of PBs managed to get the bike into the final round in Norway. The resultant tumble after fluid got under the rear slick 200 feet out fortunately did no lasting damage to either the bike or rider and the ever smiling de Haas boys will be back in 2005.

6. Shaun Branch (UK)

Shaun and David Branch field the Special Branch racing Suzuki blown funny bike, and this season stepped up to the European tour (taking all rounds apart from the distant Finnish round) after many years of developing the unique Sprintex compressed alky combination, all based on the GSX, in UK competition. The Branch Engineering team are another that had an eventful series, receiving a disqualification in the first round of eliminations at the first event when the motor completely disassembled itself spitting the crankshaft over into opponent Eric Teboul's lane. This wasn't the first of their motors to suffer with the pressure of running at European level, but they were still running in the low sevens at the European Finals, enough to get into the final field of the year.

7. Nils Ole Lund (Norway)

Riding one of the most lauded fuel bikes currently active, Nils Ole Lund has the distinct pleasure (as you can tell from the permanently upbeat expression on his face) of riding the ex-Stefan Reisten Shark Magic Yamaha Puma that held the outright ET record back in the late 80's. The Norwegian has manged to get the bike down into the low six second bracket (a PB of 6.44/201), and has been a high points finisher in each of the past three seasons. There is little doubt that Ole Lund would have been up in the top five in 2004 had it not been for an offtrack aerial adventure on a demo run in Denmark - fortunately both bike and rider are repairable, and, hopefull,y Nils will be back at the track in 2005.

8. Steve Woollatt (UK)



English veteran Steve Woollatt has been riding fuel bikes since the early 80's, the latest version has been gradually evolving for half of that time and displays all the characteristic consistent rapid performance and immaculate presentation that has been the hallmark of The Dealer lineage. Powered by a Puma PBR, much of the 2004 season has been spent investing in a new clutch and a lot of titanium to lighten the bike, as a result Steve's speed jumped into the 218mph range and ETs now firmly in the mid to low six range. Woollatt has won numerous UK National Championships, but has only contested the Santa Pod rounds of the European championship - regularly advancing deep into eliminations and winning more than occasional event (including the 2004 Euro Finals) - if he can be tempted overseas a very high points finish would surely beckon.

9. Jon Leret (Norway)

Another of the Norwegian hitters in Fuel Bikes, Leret must be a candidate for the smallest rider to handle the power of an inline nitro bike. The Jan Egil Kongsrud tuned Puma has propelled Jon to PB figures of 6.41/215mph a couple of years ago at their home track Gardermoen, and the bike is another highly consistent mid six second runner, and a threat for event honours whenever the team show at a venue. Unfortunately the bike (as with Ole Lund) made a bid for high flying honours amongst the Norwegians after the throttle stuck open after a low six second semi-final match up with Sverre Dahl at Mantorp. Leret became detached from the bike at close to 200 mph, which was probably for the best as the bike buried itself deep into the gravel trap after a long aerial excursion. The bike suffered surprisingly little damage and Jon was quickly back on his feet (although the Swedish medical profession was called into question when they released Jon from hospital with the statement that "his head was okay"). Leret is a small guy with big character around the fuel bike pits and the team are ready for a prompt return at the start of the season.

10. Joey Bon (Netherlands)



Having pushed the ex-Motorcycles Unlimited Orange Crush bike (which passed through the hands of Brian Johnson, Mark Pemble, Henk Geeve, etc) since BJ imported it in the mid-eighties to an astonishing 6.77 best, Joey Bon decided to stick with the same Puma Yamaha drivetrain, and build a ultra long and low new chassis over the 2003/4 winter. The amount of work involved in producing the MPM Oils masterpiece meant the Dutch team missed the first couple of meetings of the year, thus delaying the shakedown runs. New bike clutch and handling gremlins prevented Bon from posting truly representative numbers in 2004, but they won't be long coming in 2005.

Bubbling under in 2004
A restriction to the highest points finishers does little justice to the depth of machinery in the Euro scene, so we'll extend this feature with a slightly indulgent look at the notable bikes and riders that just failed to make the top ten points mark in 2004, and offer a further scene setter for the forthcoming season.

Ian King (UK)

Having had a series of frightening engine blow-ups since taking the Euro Title in 2001, Ian King looks forward to the 2005 season with renewed optimism after most of the King Racing team's troubles were traced to seriously miserable boost from the blower that a duff sensor had failed to pick up. With a fully refreshed Opcon blower and the introduction of a new Puma Billet head (replacing the skulled stock Yamaha heads that had seen Ian run down into the 6.4's), the immaculately turned out bike and team will be right back in points contention as well as best appearing honours.

Neil Midgley (UK)



Proving that it's not just the nitro bikes that can run with the best, Neil Midgley pilots this consistent six second Suzuki Funny Bike that regularly gives the fuellers one heck of a fright, especially when accompanied with razor sharp reactions. Neil is the scourge of the UK Funny Bike scene and has been the only non-fuel bike to drop into the super quick all six second fields that have graced the Santa Pod asphalt over the past couple of seasons.

Peter Anderson Strom (Sweden)



Stromma's a serious dark horse when the tour moves through Scandinavia, the Suzuki based home made bike is a testimony to Peter's well developed engineering skills. With performance levels in the low sixes (despite a couple of outings a season), the gradual development of the bike (with a new Puppet inspired chassis for 2004) is closely monitored by the rest of the fuel bike field, with Stromma's pit area regularly visited by ruler and notebook carrying members of the 'opposition'.

Steve Carey (UK)



Sophomore Steve Carey is still learning the ropes with his PBR Puma. The bike is gradually been encouraged down towards the six second at a pace that Steve is comfortable with on the UK scene. It won't be too long before he joins Steve Woollatt in making a serious dent in the points ambitions of the European title chasers at the Santa Pod rounds.

Chris 'Cannon' Hannam (UK)



Another making a big splash at any meeting he enters, and at the opposite end of the rider scale from Jon Leret, is Cannon. Head of the eponymous Cannon Engineering company, Chris is also in the early part of the learning curve with his Puma Suzuki, built (like Ian King's mount) by fuel guru Frank Brachtvogel and Puma's Pete Davis, the ride has already given Cannon his first six second timing ticket at Gainesville a couple of seasons ago. Although the big guy currently has the bike for sale, hopefully a new crew member will come onboard to enable him to continue making an extremely sizeable impact on the Euro Fuel Bike scene.

Dr Ivan J. Sansom: European Correspondent
Dragster Australia Magazine: European Correspondent
Drag Racing Online: European Drag Racing Correspondent
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