Who remembers Thompson's Ridge ?.

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Permalink Reply by Wally Meier on August 16, 2015 at 12:50pm

Hi Bret I worked at RIR for years so I do! How many remember that before Mickey came along it had been covered with ice plant!

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Permalink Reply by timothy price on August 16, 2015 at 12:58pm

in 1978 family friend rolled his class 5 on it TWICE (Danny York supreme auto body car )

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Permalink Reply by Wally Meier on August 16, 2015 at 1:22pm

In 1985 or 86 Mark Wiexaldorfer a Team Honda rider made a 95+ mph pass on the ridge during a heat race on a ATC 250R with a transplanted 480 motor in it!

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Permalink Reply by Wally Meier on August 16, 2015 at 5:53pm

I've always wondered what happened with him and Sundahl. I ripped Mark off I used to sport 3Wheeling decals on my Hondaline (moto 3) helmet ala Weixeldorfer.

Gluce, it sucked what happened to Williams and Mike Chester. Ace could have been amazing.

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Permalink Reply by GTX - HEMI on August 17, 2015 at 2:33pm

@wally......back in 87-88 I entered the Hilltoppers GP at Riverside with my Suzuki quad 250 we raced with motorcycles on the same course. The MC guys didn't like the quads and 3 wheeler's in the same race because going through Thompson's ridge we didn't need a berm to turn in the S'es we just sprint car'd the corners and of course the bikes would get us down the straights. Fun times there were about 8 of us guys that were racing GP's everywhere...we raced in Mexico, Indian Dunes to name a few. At the time Wayne Mooradian of PEP built our engines and suspensions. In the 87 Hilltoppers GP Wayne's PEP rider Ron Baker won because he didn't have to stop for fuel. (found out later from Wayne they took the Suzuki gas tank and heated it up and pressurized it for more capacity).....some fun times..back then there were over 500 entry's in all classes......

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Permalink Reply by will on August 17, 2015 at 2:55pm

I believe it was the Viewfinders GP that you remember. During those years the Viewfinders ran many a fantastic GP at RIR. The Hilltoppers were putting on GP's in Rosarito in those days.

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Permalink Reply by GTX - HEMI on August 17, 2015 at 8:51pm

Will.....you are correct about viewfinders and Rosarito was one we raced also.....it's hell getting old.....

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Permalink Reply by Wally Meier on August 17, 2015 at 9:14pm

GTX that's cool glad you got to race out there...to funny about the guy's from PEP increasing fuel capacity, innovation gotta love it! I really enjoyed using hog rings to put the fences back together that were opened up so they could run the GP course in the areas outside of the actual track! lol! Never attended one of the GP's but always heard they put on good events. I remember a late 80's editorial in Dirtwheels by Dennis Cox he had run one of the GP's at Riverside on a new LT 500. He stated that on the asphalt wide open that the stock front fenders were catching air and causing the front tires to float, fun times!

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Permalink Reply by GTX - HEMI on August 18, 2015 at 10:11am

catching air...your right we either trimmed the front fenders or cut holes in them...also the area that was built for testing if a car was water tight was used...it was a long concrete trough filled with about 12" of water....if you weren't careful this would end your day.....

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Permalink Reply by Wally Meier on August 24, 2015 at 5:59pm

I had an 87 lt 500 I swapped out the plastics for aftermarket "race cut" front fenders. If I remember correctly the trough was originally built by Fleetwood to test Motorhomes in.