The Big Red Machine
THE BIG V8 bikes at Ponde Sand Drags are mind-blowing—the noise, the rooster tails—are sure to have the adrenaline pumping of anyone within ear-shot. From a spectator point of view, the bikes are totally awesome. There are usually five or six V8’s running, and Bernie, on The Big Red Machine, a 400 cubic inch V8 Chev monster, has won the last three years in a row.
“You’re sitting on the start-line, you grab the handbrake, you increase the revs until the clutch starts engaging, the lights go green, and then you hang on for grim death,” said Bernie. “120 metres is a Hell of a lot of distance to be racing this machine in the sand. But the most difficult and dangerous part is still to come—as soon as you back off, all the weight goes on the front wheel and it digs into the soft sand. You have to put all your strength into the handlebars to keep it going straight or you’re history.”