CONNOR PENHALL CUSTOM 2-STROKE SPEEDWAY BIKE: TWO-STROKE TUESDAY

Since hitting up Costa Mesa Speedway a week or so ago all we can think about is this cool one-off machine built by speedway world champion Bruce Penhall for his son Connor Penhall. So that is our main focus on this week’s Two-Stroke Tuesday. We have a product from Ride Engineering featured in 2-Stroke Hardware and our 2-Stroke Behind The Build section brought to you by Fly Racing gives you an exclusive look at our KTM 500 project with the crew at The Ride Shop AZ. We have four different two-stroke videos in 2-Stroke Theater for your viewing enjoyment. If you like all the custom builds this week don’t miss the exclusive link at the bottom of this post to another insane 500cc project.

The original bike was built for Connor in 2001 when he wanted to give speedway a try. Andy Johnson and Donnie Odom sponsored Connor and he raced a few local races but gave up the Speedway racing because of his passion for motocross and off-road. After Connor passed away, we wanted to track down his old speedway bike, restore it. The bike is on display in the Connor Concrete Cutting office to give everyone a little reminder of his passion for two wheels.

That long cylinder looking piece is actually the gas tank.

The engine is out of a Kawasaki KX85 that was completely rebuilt by Brandon Peterson at AHM Factory Services in California

Naked this is what the bike looks like. Chassis was built by a gentleman named Robin from Sweden. Speedway racing in Sweden is practically a religion.

This masterpiece of an exhaust was built by Randy Blevins

The fork set up is wild! Those rubber band looking pieces provide small amounts shock absorption .

KX85 power plant with a ton of bling.

Just a little reminder of CP81.

Connor’s bike was restored by Rodd “Sledge” Saunders.

2-STROKE HARDWARE

RIDE ENGINEERING STABILIZER MOUNT

This Bar Mount has a one-piece top that is designed to resist bending much better than the stock bar mount with and adjustable plate that will hold a Scott’s or GPR steering damper. Bar mount height remains the same as stock and the bar position can be adjusted forward or back. Precision machined from aircraft quality aluminum, there is a 6mm difference between the forward and back mounting positions. We also machine our own stainless steel posts that prevent over tightening, unlike the cheap bolts used by other competing brands. Posts can be unscrewed and replaced if bent.
Contact: www.rideengineering.com

Applications:
KX125/250 05-07; KX250F/450F/KLX450R 05-19 & ALL RIDE KTM/HUSKY CLAMPS
MX-SM100-00 (SILVER)
YZ250F/450F 14-19; YZ250FX/WR250F 15-19; YZ450FX/WR450FX 16-19 & ALL RIDE YAMAHA TRIPLE CLAMPS 05-19
MX-SM125-00 (SILVER)
CR125/250/CRF250R/450R-X-RX-RWE 02-19
MX-SM106-00 (SILVER)

2-STROKE BEHIND THE BUILD

Locating a 2020 KTM chassis was definitely the easiest part of the build. After all, the chassis is still in production. It is a little harder to find during a worldwide pandemic, but if you are willing to spend enough cash, it can just appear out of thin air. Acquiring the chassis was still only the first step in Weisman’s process. The frame would still need to be modified pretty heavily to accept the Kawasaki KX500 two-stroke powerplant, and with builds like this, things rarely go as planned.

2-STROKE THEATER

If you like the custom 2-Stroke build on this week’s Two-Stroke Tuesday then you won’t want to miss this 2018 CR500AF build we did earlier this year. Click the image below for more.

You may be in a situation where you can’t buy your new motorcycle locally. In these situations, it would make sense to try out a company like A1AutoTransport Inc that can transport your motorcycle to you.