Vreeke’s Only Concern Is to Bring the Opposition to Its Knees

Wrestling alligators might have been Jim Vreeke’s idea of fun if he had grown up in a different part of the United States. In Europe, he might have settled for being a soccer fan.

Instead, Vreeke grew up in Simi Valley and did what came naturally to a number of guys who grew up around him: He bought a motorcycle.

He then settled for a life of relaxation. A chance to be with friends in the clean desert air. An opportunity to unwind, to enjoy himself. Just Vreeke, his pals and their bikes--scraping knees at 100 m.p.h.

“It’s exciting, adventurous dragging your knee at 100 m.p.h.,” Vreeke said. “But I wouldn’t call it scary. Sometimes if you get a little sideways in a corner it gets your heart going, but I wouldn’t say I was scared.”

Blackbeard might have turned gray over Vreeke’s idea of adventure. Motorcycle road racing would be instant cardiac arrest to most people, so it might seem strange that Vreeke thinks of it as a good time.

It’s 20 guys, or so, flying around a track at top speed. In the corners, it’s choreographed motion as the riders shift their weight to keep the bikes balanced. The bikes are manned gyros--complete with an engine that has the horsepower of a car. In a spill, the only thing saving a rider from an instant skinning is a helmet, boots and a body suit made of leather.

Maybe Vreeke is crazy. Maybe the years of physical abuse have taken their toll. Maybe Vreeke only thinks he’s happy.

He doesn’t show it if he is. He has a quiet manner. He’s collected, steeped in thought before climbing aboard his 750cc motorcycle. While loosening up, he thinks of every corner and of every motion possible. What the other riders might do in any given situation.

He knows the Willow Springs International Raceway well. He should. By his estimation, he’s taken about 2,000 laps on the 2.5-mile, nine-turn course.

Vreeke’s seen guys spill and badly injured in his five years of racing at Willow Springs. He got another look at a crash on Sunday when two riders in front of him collided. One bike, ridden by Doug Toland of Buena Park, went harmlessly off the track. The other flew off the circuit while its rider, Doug Polen of Denton, Tex., did cartwheels. Surprisingly, Polen was unhurt.

Serious injury is something that has eluded Vreeke, too. Once, in 1982, he dislocated a shoulder, sprained an elbow and both ankles in a crash, but he doesn’t consider that serious. Real injuries are counted in the number of broken bones in this sport.

Lack of injury--which meant less intimidation toward going fast--may have helped Vreeke become the successful racer he is. Coupled with his experience, Vreeke has won the Kerker Superbike Championship twice at the track and is currently second behind Earl Roloff Jr. of San Diego in the new Formula USA series. He has won four of five Kerker Superbike races, and is expected to win his third straight championship in that series.

Started this year by track owner Bill Huth, the Formula USA circuit does the inherent insanity of motorcycle racing one better. A contestant can ride any motorcycle, with any engine, using any fuel. The circuit runs on the last Sunday of each month and will end in November.

Vreeke wasted no time in entering the 10-race series in which the points championship prizes include a new truck and $3,000 in cash.

“I was all for it,” Vreeke said. “I thought it was a great idea having something with just about no rules. Just as long as it’s a motorcycle, you can run it.”

If there was some kind of future Vreeke had in racing motorcycles, one could understand his love for it. But there isn’t. Vreeke has already tried racing the Nationals circuit in which his best finish was fourth at Willow Springs in 1984.

Most sponsors, Vreeke said, are looking for younger riders. Besides, he has a good job as a computer programmer and doesn’t want to jeopardize it by traveling around the country. So he keeps racing as a hobby.

“If you’re serious about racing, then you’re going to ride 100% all the time,” Vreeke said. “If I don’t feel like racing, I won’t even go. But I’ve never done that. I’m always ready to race.”

Just to enjoy.