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THE HONDA CR 750 Page 6
John Long's CR 750 Honda
In 1970 the Honda factory ran a machine similar to John Long's
at Daytona. The Honda factory machines were designated CR750 and
they were highly modified. The engines were highly tuned so Dick
Manngeared his machine up and just stayed in touch with his rivalswho
soon fell by the wayside. He was the only Honda home but was also
in first place.
The CR750 was remarkably standard but did have a special crankshaft
as well as better pistons, con-rods and camshaft. the frame was
basically standard as were the forks and front brakes.
Dick Mann's qualifying speed was 152.7mph which made him 4th
fastest, well behind Gene Romero on a 3 cylinder Triumph at 157.34mph.
From the start Dick Mann instantly took the lead but was soon
overtaken by Romero. Romero ran off the track and the lead was
taken by Hailwood until he dropped a valve on his BSA. Ron Grant
on a Suzuki 500 took over but eventually seized. Gary Nixon led
until his Triumph gave piston trouble and Dick mann quietly took
the lead. Coaxing the Honda along Dick maintained a comfortable
lead and took the chequered flag by 10 seconds. he set a record
average race speed of 102.69mph.
Bill smith said, "the Hondas were very highly tuned with extremely
high lift camshafts and it is not suprising that 3 of the 4 broke.
Dick's machine had the lowest horse power of the four."
Photos from AMCN Nov 19 1990
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