Calvin Rayborn II ( – ) was a top American professional motorcycle road racer in the 1960s and early 1970s. Born and raised in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, Rayborn began riding

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

s at an early age. He began his racing career in dirt track events in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

and in 1964, he began racing professionally in the A.M.A. Grand National Championship, a series which encompassed events in four distinctive dirt track disciplines plus

road racing Road racing is a North American term to describe motorsport racing held on a paved road surface. The races can be held on a race track, closed circuit—generally, a purpose-built racing facility—or on a street circuit that uses temporarily c ...

. Rayborn excelled at road racing, winning his first AMA national at

Carlsbad Carlsbad may refer to: Geographical locations * Carlsbad, California, San Diego County, United States ** Carlsbad Santa Fe Depot, NRHP ID No. 93001016 * Carlsbad, New Mexico, United States ** Carlsbad Caverns National Park ** Carlsbad Irriga ...

, California in 1966. His prowess on road courses earned him a place on the

Harley-Davidson Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression along with i ...

factory racing team. It was with Harley-Davidson that he achieved his greatest success, winning two consecutive

Daytona 200 The Daytona 200 is an annual motorcycle road racing competition held in early spring at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona Beach, Florida. The race was founded in 1937 when it was sanctioned by the American Mo ...

victories in 1968 and 1969. He also set two 1970 motorcycle land speed records. He accomplished an impressive feat when he competed in the

Transatlantic Trophy The Transatlantic Trophy (initially called Anglo-American Match Races) was an annual series of motorcycle races between the United Kingdom and America held from 1971 to 1988 and again in 1991. They were mostly held over the Easter weekend at Br ...

match races in England in 1972. The Transatlantic Trophy pitted the best British riders against the top American road racers. On an outdated motorcycle with no experience on British race tracks, Rayborn won three of the six races. Rayborn won his last AMA National road race in 1972, at the Laguna Seca racetrack, near Monterey, California. Racing with a modified XRTT-750, it would also be Harley-Davidson's last National road race win. Towards the end of 1973, it was apparent that the Harley-Davidson team could no longer provide him with a competitive motorcycle for road racing, so Rayborn accepted an offer to race for the

Suzuki is a Japanese multinational mobility manufacturer headquartered in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Shizuoka. It manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs and a va ...

factory. In December 1973, Rayborn travelled to New Zealand to compete in an auto racing event. He also accepted an offer to race a Suzuki motorcycle at the

Pukekohe Park Raceway Pukekohe Park Raceway was a former car racing track that was situated on the outside of the Pukekohe Park Thoroughbred Racetrack, located in the surrounds of Pukekohe. The Raceway was opened in 1963 as a permanent track, replacing Ardmore Ae ...

outside of Auckland. Rayborn's bike was short of power and top speed so the bike was hurriedly converted to burn methanol fuel. Rayborn started the race and was up with the leaders when the bike's engine seized. In the ensuing crash he slammed into a wall close to the edge of the track and was killed. Rayborn was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999.

References

External links

* 1940 births 1973 deaths People from Spring Valley, San Diego County, California American motorcycle racers AMA Grand National Championship riders Motorcycle racers from San Diego Motorcycle racers who died while racing Sport deaths in New Zealand Motorcycle land speed record people World record setters in motorcycling Recommended read: Rayborn's Last Ride https://www.motorcyclistonline.com/rayborns-last-ride/ {{US-motorcycle-sport-bio-stub