Kit Palmer | December 3, 2023
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Let the Wheelie Wars Begin
Cross-ups, one-handers, can-cans, clickers, stoppies are all cool things to do on a motorcycle but, like many cool things, often lose their luster over time. But the one motorcycle maneuver that will never not be cool is the wheelie. Even your basic wheelie is cool and has been ever since the first two-wheel vehicle, albeit pedal-power or motor-driven, rolled this earth. Wheelies are so cool—and, of course, fun—that companies have developed machines to teach you how to do them without worrying about looping out. But that takes the fun out of it, doesn’t it? Cycle News even named its news section at one time “The Latest Poop, By Papa Wheelie.”
Yes, wheelies are cool, and the longer the wheelie, the cooler. That’s why, back in the day, when the sport of motorcycling was gaining in popularity worldwide by leaps and bounds, everyone wanted to ride on the rear wheel longer than their buddies. Some, however, had higher aspirations, like riding a wheelie longer than not just their buddies but everyone.
Tilson Shumate broke Doug Domokos’ longest wheelie record on his modified (check out the radiator) Cagiva off-roader at Ascot Park in 1983, sparking the beginning of the “wheelie wars.”
One such rider was Californian Doug Domokos. From the late 1970s through the 1980s, there was arguably none better, and he was the first to make a living out of riding a motorcycle on one wheel. Domokos was hired by Kawasaki just to ride wheelies in 1978. A few years later, Honda signed him to a wheelie contract and built him a special CR250R to make it a little easier for “The Wheelie King” to do his thing and wow packed stadiums at supercross races during intermissions, where he’d attempt to wheelie a full lap around the track without setting the front end down. He was successful 99.9% of the time. Successful or not, fans loved it.
During this time, Domokos held the record for the longest wheelie at 61 miles, and then the wheelie wars started to take hold.
Enter Tilson Shumate. The 30-year-old from La Mirada, California, wanted to break Domokos’ record. Shumate billed himself as the “Wheelie Champion.” On December 6, 1983, Shumate departed for Ascot Park, where he’d attempt to break Domokos’ record, and Cycle News was there. His first attempt failed at mile 48 when his Cagiva two-stroke off-roader started to overheat; the bike’s radiator wasn’t getting enough airflow while in the wheelie position, so adjustments had to be made.
We reported that Shumate and his crew decided to modify the radiator to sit perpendicular to the wind when the bike was in wheelie position. By discarding the number plate, bending the radiator mounting brackets, and adding various sections of tubing, Shumate had a radiator that worked effectively, even if it wasn’t an aesthetic triumph.
Shumate then set out again for the record. This time, he got it despite being unable to see over the high-mounted radiator. The radiator also affected the bike’s balance point so much that Shumate almost threw in the towel after two laps. “I thought I should stop,” he said. “But I decided to keep going for a few laps; I didn’t want to be a quitter. Then I had too many laps to quit, so I kept going.”
Domokos attempted to get the wheelie record back a few days after it was broken by Shumate, but failed. He eventually succeeded with a 145-mile wheel stand the following year. That record has since been broken. Domokos passed away in 2000.
With darkness rapidly approaching, Ascot officials turned on the track lights, and Shumate wheelied on into the night. After reaching the 100-mile mark, he wanted to go for more, but handicapped by cold hands and a weak battery that stopped spinning the front-wheel gyro motor, Shumate set the front wheel down at 102 miles, a new wheelie record.
Two days later, Domokos arrived at Ascot to get the record back. Again, Cycle News was there. His goal was 150 miles on the back wheel. His first attempt ended early when the wire rigging on his support harness failed twice. Day over.
Domokos and his Honda crew returned two days later with a beefed-up harness but only made it 42 miles, complaining of a numb throttle hand. He tried again but only went a few miles before the front wheel dropped when his rear wheel slipped sideways on the dry, slick ground. He tried again, only to have the harness fail for a third time.
“This is ridiculous,” a frustrated Domokos said. “We’re going to get it fixed right and then come back on Saturday morning, so we’ll have all day.”
Not exactly. Heavy rain that left the facility slippery and muddy delayed things, but Domokos and crew eventually got to work. This time, the harness held together, but the icy-slick surface required Domokos to reduce his speed, and by mile 84, his front wheel was down again.
“My hand’s numb,” said Domokos as he pulled off the track and stretched the fingers in his right hand to restore circulation. Later, he said, ”I’m not worried; I’ll get the record back. I’m the reason these guys [like Shumate] are out there doing what they’re doing.”
Several months later, Domokos did get the record back. In 1984, Domokos wheelied into the Guinness Book of World Records for riding the longest wheelie ever. He rode his bike on one wheel for 145 miles at Talladega Speedway. The record would stand for eight years before it was crushed by—not Shumate—but by a Japanese rider, Yasuyuki Kudo. On May 5, 1991, Kudo rode a 13-horsepower Honda TLM220R two-stroke trials bike on the rear wheel for 205.7 miles.
It wasn’t until 2017 that someone came along and broke Kudo’s long-standing wheelie record. That someone was fellow countryman Masaru Abe, who wheelied a 125cc Yamaha Jog scooter for 310 miles at the Kawaguchi Auto Race facility in Saitama, Japan. He finally let the front wheel down after 13 hours on one wheel. He was so exhausted that he was partially conscious when he got off the bike. Check out this video of Kudo’s record-breaking wheelie.
VIDEO | World Wheelie Record by Masaru Abe Clocking 500.53 km
Yes, wheelies are cool. And they always will be whether they are for three feet or for 300 miles. But the 300-mile ones are way cooler. CN
