George Nachtsheim:
CLASS OF 1958
Vista High SchoolClass of 1958
Vista, CA
George's Story
2018 Bonneville update at the bottom:
Life
Semi retired living in Littleton, Colorado with my wife Marsha. Stay busy with skiing, fishing and hunting traveling in our fifth wheel and manufacturing my line of fishing rod holders which I sell through out Colorado. My health is good with no issues. Life is good.
To those that missed the 50th reunion ------------ too bad. It was great!
For the last 4 years I've been involved with racing a Triumph powered motorcycle, that I built from the ground up, at the Bonneville Speedway in Utah. I am attempting to set a new land speed record for 650cc push rod engine motorcycles. The existing record is 116.541 MPH and last year I ran 108.907 MPH. I will be out at Bonneville again in August 2012 with plans to beat the existing record by several miles per hour. Any classmates that are interested are welcome to come out and watch, it is very exciting racing.
Update: 08/17/2012, Just got back from the Bonneville Speedway in Utah. This year didn't go as I would have liked, the salt flats are a very fickle place to race as the atmospheric conditions change hourly. In trying to keep up with the changing conditions we were re-tuning the engine after each run (3 miles down the salt). The top speed I was able to accomplish this year was 106.180 MPH. I made a total of 7 runs and on the last run I had jeted the engine too lean and burned a hole in the RH piston. Oh well, that's racing! Rebuild the engine and go back next year.
Update: 08/16/2013, We did it! Over the winter I rebuilt the engine and decided to change class by adding a turbo charger. It took all winter to complete the job finishing up and getting it running just the week before having to leave for the Bonneville Speedway. We breezed through tech inspection and after the drivers meeting on Saturday morning got in line to make our first "shakedown" run. It was 1:00 PM when I got to run and everything went well, I clocked 99.656 MPH. By the time we went back to the pits to check the bike out it was getting late in the afternoon and we opted to wait untill Sunday morning to make another run. We got to the line and made our second run at about 9:00 AM, 101.011 MPH. Good enough for a record in the new class. The following morning, Monday, we are out to the start line at 7:00 AM, I make my backup run,104.266 MPH! We've got the record at an average of 102.638 MPH. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday morning we spent tuning and changing jetting and gearing. Thursday afternoon we're back out to see if we can break our own record. I take off from the start and the bike feels good. I'm in 4th gear by the time I hit the 1 mile mark, the bike is running smooth and straight, the 2 mile marker goes by. It feels like a fast run! The 3 mile marker goes by and I shut it down, it felt real good. My crew gets out to pick me up and gives me the news, 116.057 MPH! We take the bike back to the impound area and secure it untill the next morning when we can make a backup run. We're back out bright and early Friday at 6:00 AM and back to the start line at 7:00. I'm off and running, it feels like another good run. All of the mile markers go by and I shut it down again, since this is the last day of Speed Week for 2013 it will be the last time that I shut it down on this course. My crew gets to me and lets me know, 104.648 MPH. Not as fast as yesterday but good enough for a new record, 110.352 MPH.
I'm planning on going back to the speedway in October for a 4 day event called "The World Finals". Check back in October and I'll let you know how I did.
"The World Finals" was rained out, you can bet that I'll be back out to the salt in August 2014!
I just got back from 2 weeks of elk hunting in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, the elk won.
NEW FOR 2014:
Bonneville Land Speed Racing Update:
We went to the Bonneville Speedway in mid August, the day before the salt was suppose to open for us to setup our pit areas the skies opened up and we got 2" of rain in 45 minutes! As a result the Speed Week event was canceled and re-scheduled for September 27th through October 3rd. My wife Marsha and I will be leaving home on Wednesday September 24th to head for the re-scheduled event.
Check back with me after Oct. 5th for the latest results when we get back home. UPDATE: Sept/Oct. meet rained out also!
For those classmates that are following my escapades at motorcycle racing, go to YouTube and type in my name, it will bring up an 8 minute video of 2 of my record runs from last year, August 2013, take a look!
George
07/26/2015
Just found out that our racing at Speed Week has been cancelled again this year due to poor salt conditions. I'm still holding out hope that we can get in some racing this year, maybe at The World Finals September 29th - October 3rd if the conditions improve.
08/21/2016
Just returned from the Bonneville Speedway at the Bonneville Salt Flats near Wendover, Utah. First time in 2 years that we were able to race! I was able to bump-up the record in the 350 cc M-PF motorcycle class, Modified - Pushrod Engine running on Fuel. Raised the existing record, set in 2012, by 8+ MPH riding a 1957 350cc Triumph 3TA bike that was originally owned by a friend of mine back in the '50s by the name of Danny Macias. Danny passed in 2007 due to a home accident and I was able to buy the bike from his daughter and son-in-law. In 1960 Danny set 2 AMA records with the bike at Bonneville and at the time of his passing, at age 83, was preparing the bike to go back and try to better his own records. RIP Danny!
As for my own 650cc Triumph, I had a lot of small unexpected problems that kept me from raising my existing record of 110+ MPH, but did manage to run over 103 MPH. Got to start getting ready for next year!!!
George
09/05/2017
Again returned from the Bonneville Speedway at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah last week with another new World Land Speed Record. I took the 1957 350cc Triumph 3TA up 7.370 MPH faster than last years record - new record now 94.922 MPH! It took me three 3 miles runs down the course to set the new record. Still working on my turbo charged 650cc Triumph bike and hope to have it ready to go and try to beat my own record again in October 2017 at the SCTA sponsored World Finals. Stay tuned!!!
George
The World Finals set for October 3rd - 6th 2017 was cancelled due to an excessive amount of water on the Bonneville Salt Flats. Going to have to wait until next August to try out the newly rebuilt turbo charged 650cc Triumph.
George
April 2018
Just returned home from Austin, TX over April 20, 21, 22, I was invi...Expand for more
ted to show my World Land Speed Record holding Bonneville race bike at The Handbuilt Motorcycle Show. This was the 5th year of the show and they had over one thousand applicants of which only 158 were chosen to show! A real honor to have my handy work chosen to be exhibited. A long drive but in the end worth it!
Getting both bikes ready to race at Speed Week in August - got records to bump up!
August 2018:
Marsha and I went back out to Speed Week at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah last week. I took both race bikes, the 957 350 cc Triumph T21 and my turbo charged 1959 650 cc Triumph TR6. This year I installed a small "drag race" fairing on the 350 cc bike and entered it in the 350 cc MPS-PF class (Modified, Partial Streamlined - Push-rod Engine, Fuel). After two disappointing early runs I decided that last years fuel was not cutting it! Off on a 4 hour trip to Salt Lake City for a new bucket of fuel. Dumped all of the old stuff and refueled with the new, back out to the start line and qualified by turning just a bit faster than the existing record, the next morning bright and early out to make my back-up run. Success - a new record in the books at 92.052 MPH!
I managed to make just two runs on the 650 cc Triumph, first run it was too high geared, turned 101.722 MPH. Back to the pit area and changed out the rear sprocket, back to the start line - off and running, a real strong run until I hit a rut in the salt surface that put the bike into a high speed wobble! Took me 1/4 mile to get it back under control - turned only 99.563 MPH. My crew was heading home on Thursday so we did the same. Planning on going back with just the 650 cc bike for the World Finals - a 3 day meet starting October 2nd. Stay tuned for more! --- UPDATE: Rained out!
August 2019:
We went back out to race at Bonneville Speedway and on Thursday evening before the racing was to begin Saturday morning, it rained postponing the racing until Tuesday. After being in line for 16 hours, they shut down Tuesday afternoon and we got back in line Wednesday morning, I was able to make one run. the salt conditions were terrible and rather than risk life and/or limb we called it quits and went home!
August 2020:
Back at the Bonneville Speedway! This year the conditions were better than last year even though it had rained onto the salt a week and a half ago. The crews from the SCTA got busy and were able to drag to smooth the two courses that they set up this year, both were nine miles long! Because of the COVID-19 virus there were fewer competitors and even fewer spectators. But with the rules for "Social Distancing" and masks in place we thought it safe to go! The lines were short and I got in 6 three mile runs in over the week. the runs averaged between 99 MPH and 109 MPH with one run at 110.774 MPH exceeding my existing record in the class, but because of a rough spot in the course I could not hold the speed through the three mile mark as required to establish a new record.
All in all we had a great time, my daughter Candice and her husband John came out from their home in Rancho Cucamonga in their motorhome and spent the week with us helping however they could and a distant cousin and his wife, Mike and Shelly, came out from Harstine Island, Puget Sound, Washington and spent 4 days with us, a pleasant visit. Oh yeah, they brought a ice chest full of fresh oysters and cooked fresh oysters for the gang! UMM UMM!
After we had been home for 18 days I checked with the SCTA and found that there had NOT been a single case reported of anyone testing positive for the virus after attending, well after the acknowledged incubation period.
Another race coming up in late September, stay tuned for updates!
Well we went back out to the Bonneville Speedway with my 1957 Triumph 350cc T21 for The World Finals! More social distancing and face masks! Racing started September 29 through October 2. For this event I had the bike setup to run straight methanol as a fuel. On the first run down the salt I had an issue with the clutch not releasing as it should, back to the pits and spent a couple of hours fixing that problem only to have one of the pushrods in the engine break. Put out a call for a spare and a lady friend from Colorado Springs was coming out our way, she stopped by another friends house picked up the part and brought it out to the salt flats for us. A couple more hours of work the next morning and the bike was back up and running. In all I was able to make 4 down runs, all were consistent, 88 - 89 MPH, but not nearly fast enough to regain the record that was taken from me last year. so it's back to the drawing board, so the saying goes, try to figure out what I need to do to get the bike up to the speed that I need, 104+ MPH! Already making plans for next August and Speed Week. Stay tuned again and I will be letting you know just how it goes.
August 2021
Got back from Speed Week 2021 at the Bonneville Speedway, Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah,
This year the salt was as flat and hard as I have ever seen it in the twelve years that I have been attending! As a result I was able to bump up my World Land Speed Record with the turbo charged 650cc Triumph motorcycle by .6 MPH from 110.352 MPH to 110.997 MPH! Not as big an increase as I was hoping for, but enough to get me another trophy! On the first run down the salt, when I shifted into 5th gear at about the 1 mile marker, I run on the "short course" total of three miles, the bike just seemed to flatten out and not increase the speed, ran 102.639 MPH. Changed the gearing on the bike by changing the rear sprocket and went out again the next day, got up to 108.773 MPH. Better but still not good enough. made one more gearing change and ran 118.183 MPH! now that's more like it! That run qualified me for an attempt at the new record which I did the next morning. On this run something in the engine or the turbo caused the bike to emit a lot of smoke from the exhaust, but still I was able to run 103.812 MPH which when averaged with the qualifying run raised the record to 110.9975 MPH!
Now I'm waiting for a new set of pistons for the 350cc Triumph and I will be getting that one all back together, along with the new titanium valves and bronze valve guides, for another attempt at regaining the two records that I have held with it up until last year when they were both beaten. Again, stay tuned for the results as I will be back out to Bonneville towards the end of September 2021.
The new pistons never arrived in time for the September event, gonna have to wait until next August or September.
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