Norman man in cross-country Motorcycle Cannonball race
More InfoCannonball race
The cross-country Motorcycle Cannonball race that began at Kitty Hawk, N.C., with up to 100 riders on pre-1916 motorcycles, is scheduled to make two stops in Oklahoma on Sunday. The bikers, about 45 of which were still in the race as of Wednesday, are scheduled to stop for lunch in Ada between 12:40 and 2 p.m. at Hallie Brown Ford Fine Arts Center, 1100 E 14, where the machines will be on public display. They are scheduled to spend the night in Lawton, about 1,800 miles into the 3,300-mile trip, at the La Quinta, 1408 NW 40, and at Quality Inn, 3110 NW Cache Road. For more information, go to Motorcycle Cannonball Coast To Coast Vintage Motorcycle Race.
Still, the Norman man said this week by phone during a stop in the cross-country Motorcycle Cannonball run, "this is a piece of cake." At least when compared with the riding Blissit was used to when he raced motorcycles on dirt tracks, off-road courses and across the desert around Las Vegas, he said.
"This is a walk in the park."
The idea to ride the Cannonball came from John Hollansworth, 79, of Hot Springs, Ark., a former Indy car and Sprint car race driver.
"We're just two crazy guys," Blissit said.
Hollansworth called Blissit, a renowned classic car and motorcycle rebuilder, about doing the race, a 3,300-mile trek from North Carolina to California on motorcycles — the kind built before 1916.
The ride was named for Erwin "Cannonball" Baker, who set many records, including a transcontinental mark on an Indian in 1914. Hollansworth found a 1914 Indian — basically a primitive "stretch bicycle" with a primitive motor on it, as Blissit describes it — in California and had it shipped to Blissit's shop in Norman.
It was supposed to have been restored, but when Blissit first saw it only 60 days before the race, it was a mess. The rod bearings were so worn the pistons slapped the cylinder heads, wheel bearings were shot and the bike's only brake (a "band" drum on the rear) was worn out. The suspension (one leaf spring in front and two in the rear) sagged.
"The thing was junk," he said.
Blissit dismantled the bike and called on friends at local machine shops to help repair and fashion replacement parts. He scoured suppliers around the country to find others.
"I wore out a UPS truck," he said.
He reassembled the vintage machine, adding modern electrical lights powered by a battery (no generator or alternator), and drove it several hundred miles. Some of the new parts, such as a rocker arm, failed, so he repaired an original rocker and installed that.
The idea was for Hollansworth to drive the bike. On Sept. 10, he set out with up to 100 others on all manner of vintage two-wheelers, from BSAs and Excelsiors to a Militaire and a Flying Merkel. On the first day, however, Hollansworth suffered a minor injury moving the bike and Blissit, still the oldest rider left in the field, took over as driver.
Blissit, although used to rough rides, said wrestling the old machine through twisty roads, mountainous terrain and urban traffic with "basically ... no brakes" was harrowing. The Indian is nothing like a modern cruiser. With no seals on the crankshaft or pushrods, the "total loss" engine spews a quart of oil every 50 miles. Just to change gears on this three-speed, you have to depress a spring-loaded "suicide" clutch with your left foot and use your left hand to grab the shifter on the right side of the tank.
"It's kind of like herding cats," Blissit said.
To get the most out of the 61-cubic-inch V-twin four-stroke, which can crank out only 7.5 horsepower, the driver must also adjust the spark timing and the fuel mixture on the fly. To keep the battery from running low, Blissit switches on the lights only when he needs them.
"It's a thinking man's game," he said.
Despite a large contingent of factory-supported classic Harleys, Blissit's knack for coaxing the most from the old Indian had him finishing first on several of the first few days of the race.
The bikes, 45 of which remained in the race as of Wednesday, are divided into three different classes. Riders must check in at specific stops where everyone spends the night. Scoring is complicated, with advantages given to smaller and older bikes and points deducted for various infractions, so it's hard to know who's technically in the lead at any given time.
And despite a penalty the Hollansworth/Blissit team incurred for switching riders, Blissit, whose wife, JoEllen, calls her husband a "competitive neurotic," figures he'll have a shot. Of course, with bikes that are almost a century old, just finishing will be an accomplishment, he figures.
"I'm just proud to be part of this history."
More InfoCannonball race
The cross-country Motorcycle Cannonball race that began at Kitty Hawk, N.C., with up to 100 riders on pre-1916 motorcycles, is scheduled to make two stops in Oklahoma on Sunday. The bikers, about 45 of which were still in the race as of Wednesday, are scheduled to stop for lunch in Ada between 12:40 and 2 p.m. at Hallie Brown Ford Fine Arts Center, 1100 E 14, where the machines will be on public display. They are scheduled to spend the night in Lawton, about 1,800 miles into the 3,300-mile trip, at the La Quinta, 1408 NW 40, and at Quality Inn, 3110 NW Cache Road. For more information, go to Motorcycle Cannonball Coast To Coast Vintage Motorcycle Race.
Still, the Norman man said this week by phone during a stop in the cross-country Motorcycle Cannonball run, "this is a piece of cake." At least when compared with the riding Blissit was used to when he raced motorcycles on dirt tracks, off-road courses and across the desert around Las Vegas, he said.
"This is a walk in the park."
The idea to ride the Cannonball came from John Hollansworth, 79, of Hot Springs, Ark., a former Indy car and Sprint car race driver.
"We're just two crazy guys," Blissit said.
Hollansworth called Blissit, a renowned classic car and motorcycle rebuilder, about doing the race, a 3,300-mile trek from North Carolina to California on motorcycles — the kind built before 1916.
The ride was named for Erwin "Cannonball" Baker, who set many records, including a transcontinental mark on an Indian in 1914. Hollansworth found a 1914 Indian — basically a primitive "stretch bicycle" with a primitive motor on it, as Blissit describes it — in California and had it shipped to Blissit's shop in Norman.
It was supposed to have been restored, but when Blissit first saw it only 60 days before the race, it was a mess. The rod bearings were so worn the pistons slapped the cylinder heads, wheel bearings were shot and the bike's only brake (a "band" drum on the rear) was worn out. The suspension (one leaf spring in front and two in the rear) sagged.
"The thing was junk," he said.
Blissit dismantled the bike and called on friends at local machine shops to help repair and fashion replacement parts. He scoured suppliers around the country to find others.
"I wore out a UPS truck," he said.
He reassembled the vintage machine, adding modern electrical lights powered by a battery (no generator or alternator), and drove it several hundred miles. Some of the new parts, such as a rocker arm, failed, so he repaired an original rocker and installed that.
The idea was for Hollansworth to drive the bike. On Sept. 10, he set out with up to 100 others on all manner of vintage two-wheelers, from BSAs and Excelsiors to a Militaire and a Flying Merkel. On the first day, however, Hollansworth suffered a minor injury moving the bike and Blissit, still the oldest rider left in the field, took over as driver.
Blissit, although used to rough rides, said wrestling the old machine through twisty roads, mountainous terrain and urban traffic with "basically ... no brakes" was harrowing. The Indian is nothing like a modern cruiser. With no seals on the crankshaft or pushrods, the "total loss" engine spews a quart of oil every 50 miles. Just to change gears on this three-speed, you have to depress a spring-loaded "suicide" clutch with your left foot and use your left hand to grab the shifter on the right side of the tank.
"It's kind of like herding cats," Blissit said.
To get the most out of the 61-cubic-inch V-twin four-stroke, which can crank out only 7.5 horsepower, the driver must also adjust the spark timing and the fuel mixture on the fly. To keep the battery from running low, Blissit switches on the lights only when he needs them.
"It's a thinking man's game," he said.
Despite a large contingent of factory-supported classic Harleys, Blissit's knack for coaxing the most from the old Indian had him finishing first on several of the first few days of the race.
The bikes, 45 of which remained in the race as of Wednesday, are divided into three different classes. Riders must check in at specific stops where everyone spends the night. Scoring is complicated, with advantages given to smaller and older bikes and points deducted for various infractions, so it's hard to know who's technically in the lead at any given time.
And despite a penalty the Hollansworth/Blissit team incurred for switching riders, Blissit, whose wife, JoEllen, calls her husband a "competitive neurotic," figures he'll have a shot. Of course, with bikes that are almost a century old, just finishing will be an accomplishment, he figures.
"I'm just proud to be part of this history."
