The opening event of the 1985 eastern Canadian roadracing season took place at Shannonville Motorsport Park May 4-6; forty years ago. The start of the Castrol-backed National tour took place on the six-turn version of the Nelson track – the other layouts had yet to be constructed!
1985 marks a historic period in road racing, since the new era of sports bikes launched via two very specific street machines, built with competition in mind. Suzuki’s new oil-cooled, alloy framed GSX-R750 made a much-awaited debut, as did Yamaha’s steel-framed, five valve cylinder head equipped FZ750.
At the time, there was a tariff dispute going on in the US, with the purpose of protecting their domestic motorcycle manufacturing. Some Japanese 750 designs were available as 700s, but at the time to avoid the additional tax, Suzuki opted not to import the new “Gixxer,” and their first-gen 750 Super Sport wouldn’t be for sale in the USA until the following season.
On the other hand, Yamaha went all-in on their all-new FZ, and there were lots on track from the start of the season at Daytona’s famous 200-mile race. Among the front runners was Canadian ace Rueben McMurter, formerly supported by Kawasaki and Honda – “the Rueb” was third in the AMA Pro National series in 1984 with a kitted VF750 Interceptor superbike backed by Bar Hodgson’s Toronto “Super Show.”
McMurter went to Daytona in 1985 to debut his new Yamaha Canada supported FZ750 backed by dealer Sport Afield II/Shoei but wound up on the works bike of the injured Wayne Rainey. He earned a strong fifth in a deep field.
Meanwhile, Suzuki Canada’s top road racer of 1984, former flat track star Michel Mercier, had team manager George Morin and tuner Mike Crompton busy building their much-anticipated GSX-R750 – Mercier’s initial Superbike platform was a prototype show bike that was missing some chassis components!
Mercier would eventually have five machines in the back of his cube van for the season, including the much-anticipated Pro 600 Production class RG500 Gamma square-four two stroke – due for delivery in June, if you had connections.
This was the start of the homologation special era, and would yield limited edition, rare and expensive “R” versions of Honda’s V-4 (RC30), Suzuki’s in-line four (GSX-R RRs) and the Yamaha five-valve designs (0W-01) – all would win Canadian Superbike crowns.
In a weekend when close to half the bikes on the grid were brand new, the GSX-R was out in force, with little pre-season testing. Hard to imagine, but this era had no aftermarket bodywork, little in the way of chassis parts for forks and shock and required stock exhausts (limiting cornering clearance) for the pre-Supersport Production era classes.
Many of the top runners got on track during “Promoter’s Practice” on Friday and then enjoyed Saturday’s warm and sunny May conditions for the afternoon’s season-opening Heat races. Remember, this was 15 years prior to the advent of electronic timing! Grids for the main races Sunday were established by the results of the shorter Saturday 5 lap heats.
Photos by Colin Fraser
In the premier Cycle Canada Magazine Pro Open Superbike Feature Heat race, McMurter battled with Mercier and the FZ kit bike of Yamaha Canada/Snow City/Canadian Tire backed Superbike rookie Clive Ng-A-Kien. Unfortunately, this would be the last dry running prior to the next round at Mosport International two weeks later.
The next day, on a slippery surface already suffering a turn five oil spill, Mercier and McMurter mounted their wet weather tires and fought for first in Open Superbike – but both struggled.
Coming through from the back of the grid was the battered Suzuki GSX-R750 of reigning number one Paul MacMillan, renowned for his “rain meister” skills. MacMillan had opted to park his title winning, old-tech Suzuki Katana 1000 and race his hastily repaired new Gixxer, taking advantage of the new machine’s famously light weight.
Mercier recovered to place second while McMurter was third, ahead of the Pro Cycle backed kitted VF750R Honda Interceptor of Nova Scotia’s ace privateer Peter Lusby.
The first “old school” finisher was the air-cooled, twin shock Kawasaki KZ1000 of Roy Hare in sixth, followed by Ng-A-Kien and Yamaha TZ mounted Ralph Murphy.
The earlier Pro 750 Superbike race hosted many of the same Superbike entries, the class newly minted for the latest machinery and soon to become the National Feature category. MacMillan earned the 750 SBK victory too, after Mercier and McMurter, running side by side at times, both slid off in the miserable conditions.
McMurter salvaged second from third overall Lusby, while MacMillan’s Brooklin Cycle Racing team-mate, Rookie Pro Mario Duhamel, was a solid fourth on his proddie-class GSX-R. Veteran Norm Murphy on a Honda placed fifth, ahead of local Rod Brant on an ex-McMurter GPz 750. Production class ace Al Royer took his Yamaha RZ350 to a surprise seventh from Ng-A-Kien’s FZ750.
Duhamel was one of the stars of the miserable day, walking away with the Pro 750 Production race from Yamaha RZ500 mounted Daniel Poulin. Third overall was Mercier, riding the GS550F that he had used with such distinction the season before – now looking elderly and soon to be replaced by the first RG seen in North America, but a solid platform for the wet!
Most of the same racers lined up for the Open Production opener, with Duhamel earning another success, followed by Mercier and the RZ500 of former western front runner Brien Smith. Honda mounted the year before, Don Gray-Wheeler was fourth on his new FZ750, with RZ350 twin mounted Randy Rhem fifth.
Mercier made the most of the poor conditions to overpower the Pro 600 Production class on his air-cooled Suzuki in-line four-cylinder GS. Brit John Morris earned second on a Yamaha RZ500 – the Mercier/Morris duo would have several good battles before Morris tragically died at a flat track later in the season.
Third in Pro 600 Production belonged to Rhem, with Smith fourth and frequent middleweight class king James Pletsch fifth aboard his Stratford Cycle Yamaha RZ.
Top Amateur at SMP on the Nelson track forty years ago was the Honda VFR500 Interceptor of Richard Pilon, who won in MacMillan and Duhamel style in both Amateur 600 Production and Amateur 600 Grand Prix. Top two-stroke racer was RZ500 v-4 pilot Phil Whetstone, runner-up in GP and third in 600 Production, while scoring the win in 750 Production! At the time, racers were only permitted to enter three classes per weekend, regardless of bikes used.
Competitors still involved with racing today included dry 750 Production heat race victor David Grummett (GSX-R), who now manages the MotoRACE Shannonville Regional Series with his family. 2025 Super Sonic Roadracing School boss and MiniGP Nationals founder Toni Sharpless netted third in Amateur Superbike with her new Suzuki.
