TOP OIL TEAM PREPARED TO SET NEW WORLD LAND-SPEED RECORD “Ack-Attack” Team Already Has Unofficial Motorcycle Land-Speed Record LAKE GAIRDNER, AUSTRALIA A team of veterans from the American motorcycle racing community will try for a new world land-speed record here on the morning of March 6, 2006 with a custom-built 900-horsepower streamliner motorcycle. Sponsored by Burlingame, California-based Top Oil Products Company and led by noted motorcycle designer Mike Akatiff, the Top-1 “Ack-Attack” team’s record run will be witnessed by officials from the Federation Internationale de Motorcyclisme (FIM), the international sanctioning organization that certifies motorcycle world land-speed records. The Top-1 team has already set an unofficial motorcycle land-speed record of 328.3 miles per hour on October 16, 2004 at Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah, which was certified by Bonneville Nationals, Inc. and the Southern California Timing Association. The Down-Under Version of Bonneville While most enthusiasts associate land-speed records runs with Bonneville’s annual Speed Week, world records can be set anywhere that conditions permit. Similar to the Bonneville Salt Flats, Lake Gairdner is an ancient lake bed with an ultra-smooth salt-covered surface that’s ideal for high-speed runs. While Lake Gairdner boasts deeper, smoother salt deposits than the revered Bonneville course, it involves a two-day drive through the desolate outback from the city of Adelaide, Australia to reach the 100-mile- long lake bed. Because of Lake Gairdner’s remote location, the team must bring along a large supply of spare parts and special equipment. A 15-mile straight-line course has been set up on the lake bed seven miles to build up speed, one mile to officially record the streamliner’s speed, and another seven miles to slow down. On its first run, the Top-1 streamliner will be piloted by Sam Wheeler, a 62-year-old veteran of many land-speed record runs on streamliner motorcycles. Also on hand for several runs will be FIM record holder John Noonan, who recently set a new 252.7 mph world record for open-wheel motorcycles. Looking more like a sleek airplane fuselage than a conventional motorcycle, the Top-1 streamliner is about 20 feet long, with small “outrigger” wheels on each side that can retract like aircraft landing gear once the bike is underway. Beneath its carbon-fiber skin, a sturdy frame of chrome-moly tubing links the cockpit, wheels and powertrain, which features two heavily modified Suzuki Hayabusa motorcycle engines. Modifications include Carillo connecting rods and JE racing pistons. Dual-Engine Turbo Power With a combined displacement of about 2.6 liters, the twin four-cylinder 1300-cc engines make use of a single exhaust-driven turbocharger and wastegate for a total of more than 900 horsepower. An intercooler increases intake air density by circulating ice water through the radiator-like device from a 15-gallon reservoir under the driver’s cockpit. Water from a separate 30-gallon tank in the nose of the streamliner is circulated through the liquid-cooled engines, a measure that actually reduces air drag by eliminating the need for a radiator and air intake. The nose-mounted water tank also contributes to the streamliner’s high-speed stability, not unlike a lead-weighted dart. Conventional motorcycle controls include a throttle on the right handle grip and a left-side clutch lever, which are coupled to both engines, while a left-foot shifter operates both transmissions simultaneously. The drive chains from each engine-transmission unit are connected to a common intermediate shaft, and a larger single chain drives the rear wheel. An “under-drive” unit on the intermediate shaft allows overall gear ratios to be changed quickly and easily. The Top-1 Ack Attack streamliner rides on ultra-high-speed Mickey Thompson automotive tires seven inches wide in front and nine inches at the rear. The tires are mounted on special two-piece wheels fabricated from 7075 aircraft-quality aluminum, 16 x 7 inches up front and 18 x 9 inches in back. Safety Features Abound Adjustable-ratio steering gives the rider lots of control at low speeds (along with the retractable “outrigger” wheels) as well as good stability at higher speeds, while a full roll cage, seven-point harness, Halon fire system and a separate cabin air intake provide the rider with state-of-the-art protection. In addition to the streamliner’s disc brakes, two parachutes can be triggered, one at a time, to help slow the streamliner after a speed run. If the chutes ever fail to deploy, water can be diverted to spray on the brake discs to maintain their effectiveness at high speeds. If the bike ever loses control, both chutes deploy together automatically to bring the bike to a quick stop. This system was already put to the test last year when a crosswind toppled the streamliner at high speed the rider walked away, and the bike suffered minimal damage. Akatiff also developed a special feature to protect the rider in the event of a serious end-over-end accident. The tube frame is designed to break away and allow the cockpit to separate from the heavy powertrain section, when a third parachute will then deploy automatically to bring the cockpit section to a stop. About Top Oil Headquartered in Burlingame, California, Top Oil Products is a highly successful U.S. exporter of quality lubricants. An independent, privately held company, Top Oil has three manufacturing locations in the Los Angeles area and eight overseas offices covering the Pacific Rim and Latin America. Top Oil offers a full line of Top-1 branded automotive and industrial lubricants that include synthetic motor oils, gear oils, industrial oils, fuel and oil treatments, greases, coolant and brake fluid. Founded in 1979 by William A. Ryan, Top Oil Products won the state of California’s Exporter of the Year award in 1985 and, more recently, was the recipient of the prestigious “E” award for Excellence in Exporting from the U.S. Department of Commerce. Twice-daily updates from Lake Gairdner will be posted at http://www.topoil.com/ Mike Akatiff said, “We’re using Top-1 synthetic oil in our streamliner, and we want to make Top-1 the fastest oil in the world. Top Oil is based just a few miles from us, and they have been a great supporter of the Ack-Attack team, including arranging and paying for all of our shipping and travel to Australia.” About Mike Akatiff Mike Akatiff is a well-known motorcycle engineer and AMA dirt-track and desert racer who built race bikes under contract with BSA Motorcycles for AMA champions Jim Rice and Dick Mann before starting his own company in 1971 to design and manufacture racing and custom motorcycle parts. In 1987, Akatiff founded another company, ACK Technologies, which is the largest manufacturer of aircraft altitude digitizers and emergency location transmitters. In 1997, the Federal Aeronautics Administration appointed him as a designee with authority to perform conformity inspections and grant FAA airworthiness certificates. Akatiff began the design and construction of the Top-1 Ack-Attack twin-engine motorcycle streamliner in 2002, setting an unofficial land-speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats less than two years later.