Gurney’s AAR Alligator A6

At the 1962 Daytona Continental 3-Hour Race, Gurney held a commanding lead when, with the finish line in sight during the race’s final lap, his race car’s crankshaft broke. Gurney slowly coasted his Lotus to within a few feet of the finish line, where he stopped and got out of the car to survey the situation. With less than a minute to go, he hopped back into his car to resume his charge to the finish line. Using the engine’s starter motor to slowly propel at a speed that could make only a snail dizzy, he took the checkered flag and with it, the race win!

Five years later, when he teamed with another legendary racer, A.J. Foyt, to win the LeMans 24-Hour endurance race, Gurney started a tradition that continues today: during the post-race celebration, he shook the winners’ champagne magnum until the bubbly sprayed wildly. Gurney then pointed the open bottle at the anxious photographers and spectators nearby, where the two American drivers continued hosing champagne on everybody within range. Gurney earned rights to spray the bubbly at Spa Francorchamps after winning the Belgian Grand Prix in the race car, the Eagle, Mk1, that his own race shop — All American Racers — had developed and built. He and his car were the first, and so far only, Yankee-Doodle Dandy duo to do so.

As for Gurney’s run for the presidency, his birthdate of April 13, 1931, meant that he was ineligible for the presidential office in ’64. On Election Day, he would be only 33 years old; U.S. Presidents must be 35 or older. Off came the campaign buttons and bumper stickers that Car and Driver magazine had so enthusiastically handed out for the past few years. Meanwhile, Gurney quietly resumed his day job as a racing hero.

Ironically, though, in 1962, Gurney had been eligible to be Vice-President…of Montesa Motors’ new North American import division that he, along with Kim Kimball, had formed to sell the Spanish brand motorcycle in America. Kimball served as El Presidente for the fledgling company’s U.S.A. outpost, Gurney was its VP.

Turns out that Gurney the car racer harbored a lifelong passion for motorcycles, too, a fever that had been coursing wildly in his veins since he was a teenager after spotting, of all things, a Whizzer bicycle conversion. By 1959, he entered the annual Big Bear Run, placing 21st in a field of 700 motorcycle off-road specialists. Moreover, in the April 1968 issue of Cycle World magazine, Gurney revealed this about his connection with motorcycling: “In no other way can a man get closer to a machine; with a motorcycle, you [and the bike] likely become one. It’s a fabulous feeling. Cars aren’t that way.” Those words left no doubt about Gurney’s dedication to two-wheels.

Gurney clung to that philosophy throughout his career in automobile racing, too. It was a career that included founding All American Racers, a company that achieved great success in automobile racing, including winning the Indy 500. The shop’s success continued until it shut down a few years following Gurney’s passing. A major component of the late Dan Gurney’s two-wheeler passion survives to this day, the motorcycle that Gurney and members of his talented AAR crew had jointly created and perfected. Let’s visit the Alligator. Don’t worry, this Alligator won’t bite. On the contrary, this is one of the most friendly and easy-handling motorcycles ever to traverse America’s highways and byways.

Evolution of the Alligator begins

The Alligator’s concept took years, even decades to develop, most of its R&D taking place in between AAR’s hectic automobile racing endeavors. Ultimately, the A6 Alligator officially debuted April 24, 2002, during a special event held at Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California. Following a brief ceremony, the bike sprung forth from a huge “Alligator” egg fashioned from white styrofoam, his son Justin at the bike’s controls. All American Racers was poised to build 36 A6 variations, the production number paying homage to the number 36 painted on Gurney’s Eagle for his historic win at the 1967 Belgian Grand Prix. Those 36 Alligators also were to be painted in the same white-on-blue colors — the official international racing colors for American cars that the Eagle proudly wore at every Grand Prix.

Now let’s cut to the chase, the Alligator doesn’t look like any ordinary motorcycle today. Start with its recumbent seating position which follows several earlier pioneering concepts, among them the Ner-A-Car, English Quasar, and in 1975, the Magnacycle, a motorcycle created by former AAR employee Jerry Magnuson.

Gurney settled on the Alligator’s recumbent format to take advantage of its comfort factor. He didn’t enjoy scrunching his 6’4″ body over a motorcycle’s intruding gas tank before stretching for the bike’s handlebars. Gurney especially noted that when seated on a conventional sport bike, he felt he was about to fall forward when reaching for the handlebar. A recumbent layout allowed him to feel more at home. He could sit in a semi-reclined seating position, his splayed arms reaching comfortably for the handlebar’s left and right handgrips. He was able to enjoy a similar and more familiar seating position — much like that found in a formula race car.

The lay-back recumbent format allowed Gurney to create and engineer unique and purposeful features for improved performance that otherwise might be foreign to the motorcycle community. To do that, Gurney did what he did so well in automobile racing — he chose function over form for the Alligator’s overall design. Gurney often said that the Alligator’s primary benefits were “comfort, aerodynamics and predictability of its handling,” ultimately virtues that helped it perform so well under most conditions.

Predictability of its handling is perhaps what the Alligator offers most. Its 17-inch magnesium cast wheels with conventional tires were (and still are) common fare for many contemporary sport bikes, yet through careful design and engineering, the Alligator sits considerably lower than traditional motorcycles. The net result is a chassis that offers a lower center of gravity than a typical motorcycle, which delivers quick, responsive steering and handling through turns, especially at speed.

Cycle World‘s editor David Edwards wrote this when describing his seat time on the Alligator that the magazine tested for its November 2002 issue: “Scorch this thing through the gears and you feel as if you’re astride a cross between a mini formula car and a motorcycle. With the ground streaking by a foot-and-a-half beneath your butt, the sensation of speed is intense!”

Like most moto-journalists of his time, Mr. Edwards was a competent rider with some racing experience on his resume, but he was not a world Grand Prix road race champion. So, let’s turn to four-time 500cc Grand Prix World Champion, Eddie Lawson, who spent a day aboard an Alligator chasing and dicing with Gurney who, as AAR’s president, also brought his own — and highly “modified” — Alligator for the occasion. To gain a better understanding of Dan Gurney the racer, you should know that the AAR crew back at the shop had affectionately nicknamed Gurney’s bike, “Blackie,” in reference to its extensive use and application of lightweight (and black in color) carbon fiber that Mr. Gurney insisted using on his personal Alligator. (And here’s another insider factoid: in the true spirit as of a racer, Dan Gurney always insisted on having the fastest equipment on the track!).

The testing with Lawson in attendance took place on The Streets of Willow (a small track adjacent to the original full road course, Willow Springs Raceway). The Streets form a short, twisty track known for its tight turns that tax the steering and front end of most vehicles, Alligators included. Recently, when asked about that test session, Lawson recalled: “They (Gurney and AAR) asked me to help them solve some of the chatter in the front end.” The goal was to smooth the ride, which they apparently succeeded in doing.

Of course, the test session led to some hot-dogging by two of America’s greatest racers in their respective specialties. Dan passed Eddie and Eddie passed Dan, and so on. The occasion also gave the four-time 500cc world champion a chance to fully acquaint himself with the Alligator. Years later, Steady Eddie offered this: “It was so different than what I rode [Grand Prix and Superbike],” pausing to pinpoint some of the Alligator’s unique handling traits. “It was especially fun to launch hard from a stop. The bike just hooked up and went, no jacking like on a conventional bike, so it hardly veered left or right.” You can almost envision the look of surprise and glee that Lawson must have had, concealed only by his Bell helmet. After years of grappling with angry two-stroke race bikes, the former Grand Prix great was treated to a ride that offered a controlled launch, every time. It must have been a big change compared to those growling four-cylinder two-stroke GP bikes, known for their explosive power back in the 1980s. For his efforts that day on The Streets of Willow, Gurney later gifted Lawson an Alligator of his own. The bike’s manufacturer number? “021” to honor Lawson’s AMA Expert number when he notched two AMA Superbike titles alongside a pair of AMA 250 Grand Prix Championships for Kawasaki during the 1980s.

Steve Anderson, who penned the 2002 Alligator road test for Cycle World, confirmed Lawson’s observations, writing that the Alligator offered “The right balance between weight transfer and tire traction to produce outstanding drag strip launches.” Most of all, though, Anderson felt that the Alligator’s major characteristic was “the predictability of its handling.”

One more thing: CW clocked the Gator’s top speed at 133 mph! “Fastest street-going Single that we’ve ever seen,” wrote Anderson. And get this: The Alligator was capable of launching from 0-30mph in 1.1 second! More about that engine performance elsewhere in this narrative.

And, one more thing: CW’s road test editor and a seasoned racer himself, Don Canet, noted that the Alligator springs “out of the gate like a Pro-Stocker.” Now that’s stability!

Okay, I’ll stop with the “one more thing” thing after mentioning the Alligator’s stopping performance. Canet brought their test Alligator from 60mph to 0 in 114 feet, a truly remarkable stopping distance for any motorcycle.

Take a knee

A glance at the Alligator, while static in a parking lot, might suggest that you’re observing a glorified scooter. Wrong, and first-time Alligator riders soon realize that they, too, can drag a knee through turns with this bike. However, dragging knees is a technique usually reserved for road racers who do so to “read” the road. So what gives? The Alligator is not a road race bike…not even a sport bike. So you’d think, anyway.

Here’s what former AMA Superbike racer Thad Wolff discovered. When hired to ride an Alligator for a magazine’s road test photos, the first turn he exited told him how agile the bike felt, and that its cornering clearance felt amazingly friendly, “So I tipped it to the side in a turn, and I could easily clip the pavement with my knee,” recalled Wolff. “I had on Levis, so I didn’t push it too hard, but, yeah, I could easily drag my knees!”

Jimmy Gurney, another of Gurney’s sons and owner of the A6 Alligator (#003) featured here, confirmed Wolff’s experience: “I have wooden pucks stitched to my leather riding pants so that when I ride I can drag a knee if I feel like it,” said Jimmy. “This bike handles really well.”

That kind of handling didn’t happen overnight, so, let’s check out the chassis, which originated decades ago from an early Honda XL350. AAR’s hard work evolved into what amounted to the first official Alligator frame. And with every subsequent modification, the bike’s center of gravity moved closer and closer to the pavement. Gurney’s wish was finally coming true.

As time allowed, Gurney and the AAR guys altered the stock frame, fitting and welding in new sections to improve handling through strength and suitable geometry. The team’s hard work eventually led to a suitable workhorse frame that included a bevy of specially-fabricated parts whittled from material such as common thick-wall aluminum and more exotic 4130 chromoly steel, both known for their high strength and light weight. The final Alligator variant, known as A6, mounts a 43mm Showa front fork with twin Progressive rear shock absorbers with adjustable compression and rebound damping to fine tune handling.

The bike’s 3.3-gallon gas tank is conveniently positioned beneath the rider, and the engine’s hand-made airbox, fashioned from carbon fiber, is positioned slightly above and behind the engine’s downdraft intake system, itself a technical and masterful modification by AAR’s engine crew, who reconfigured a single-cylinder Honda XR650L engine’s intake and exhaust runners for improved fuel and airflow. The accompanying electronic fuel injection was developed by Pactel which includes a dedicated wiring harness and electric fuel pump positioned in the low-slung gas tank beneath the seat.

Gentlemen, start your engines!

Although AAR team members didn’t necessarily monitor their shop time during the Alligator’s gestation period, many insiders agree that much of the engine’s evolution (from a small 350cc single and later a Honda 650cc single to become the 708cc single-cylinder A6 monster engine that registered 56.4hp at 7000rpm on Cycle World‘s dyno) rested in the hands of AAR’s race car engine specialist Drino Miller, who was assisted by Glen Blakely, while Jimmy Thrall laid out the final exhaust system.

When the engine development had peaked, the combustion chamber had stretched vertically and horizontally to a whopping 708cc (104.8mm x 82mm bore and stroke), with compression ratio set at 12:1. The hand-fabricated exhaust and muffler assembly found its path beneath the lower frame member to retain the 18-inch seat height so that cornering clearance wasn’t affected.

No doubt, since its inception in 1965, AAR’s shop crew included some extremely talented team members. Yet nobody was necessarily designated as the Alligator’s Project Lead, although a bulk of the final production that led to the A6 rested in the hands of Justin Gurney (another of Dan’s sons) and experienced AMA Expert and AMA Hall of Fame member, Chuck Palmgren. Palmgren, in particular, had a history with Gurney that dated back to 1972 when AAR and Palmgren helped make Yamaha’s 750cc four-stroke twin-cylinder engine (based on the XS650) competitive in AMA Class C dirt track racing, winning two dirt track races, a half-miler in New York and the big-daddy Indianapolis Mile in 1972. Justin and Palmgren’s combined experience with AAR helped form the nucleus for the random R&D that progressed as the program gained traction through the years. Critical portions of the work took place during any given hiatus of loftier (read: profitable) projects that were, at times, put on temporary hold due to a multitude of reasons.

In addition, fabricators include names like the legendary Phil Remington, Brett George and many others who put their respective talents towards developing the Alligator until that first modified XL350 officially became prototype A1. And as frame geometry and other dimensions began to coalesce, the fabricators continued experimenting with various metals, tubing diameters and wall thickness to suit the design.

Development and test riding continued through the years, eventually leading to prototype A2, and later A3. The three prototypes now reside in the Barber Motorsports Museum. Out of respect for A1, team members respectfully dubbed it “Grandpa.” That’s how attached these professional racers grew to the Alligator project, the team consisting of fabricators, welders, engine specialists, and others.

All in the family

As the A6 Alligator project took shape, AAR began taking customer orders. Hollywood celebrity and passionate motorcycle gearhead Perry King signed up for 01. Later, realizing the importance of the bike’s number, he relinquished that first Alligator to Robert “Pete” Petersen, founder of Petersen Automotive Museum, opting for 02 for himself. Bike 03? That’s the one featured here, owned by Dan Gurney’s son Jimmy, who helped with the bike’s development. And, like father, like son, almost immediately Jimmy figured his bike needed some components that aren’t necessarily found on the “OEM” parts manifest.

Start with 03’s air box. Placed alongside a “stock” Alligator, Jimmy’s airbox is taller. As he tells the story, he spotted its large-size mold sitting unattended in the shop, and figured: “Why not? “So I asked John Engfer, who did much of our carbon fiber work, if he could build one for my bike.” He obliged, and almost overnight Jimmy’s Alligator could breathe a little more deeply and freely than before, plus you’ll find a Megacycles camshaft and a Barnett clutch lurking behind the engine cases.

And, because what goes in must come out, Jimmy considered that a free-flow exhaust was in order, too. Fabricator Jimmy Thrall answered the call, and with the new pipe installed, Jimmy Gurney had one fast-moving Alligator. One problem: Papa Gurney spotted the new airbox and commented to son Jimmy, “Hey, yours is bigger than mine.” Dan also questioned Jimmy’s new and much louder exhaust. But the horsepower figures Jimmy’s modified intake and exhaust revealed on the dyno changed his father’s opinion quickly. Keeping in mind, too, that Dan Senior’s unofficial mantra was “biggest and best and fastest,” he conjured a similar system for good ol’ Blackie. Ditto for the airbox.

The friendly family feud continued, as did the rides that Dan Gurney took with ol’ Blackie. However, a few years later Dan had begun a new project, one to improve handling of a Harley-Davidson Dyna-Glide, a bike he felt possessed handling potential (here we go again!). While test-riding the Dyna on one of his favorite Southern California roads, — legendary Ortega Highway — Gurney suffered a heart attack while still in the saddle. Fortunately, he crashed within spitting distance of the Cleveland National Forest ranger station so he received immediate first-aid. He survived that ordeal, but there was enough cardiovascular damage to force Gurney out of the saddle for good, separating him from the passion he had held on to since that strange looking Whizzer contraption crossed his path so many years ago.

“The date of my father’s last ride,” recalls Jimmy, “was July 10, 2011.” We can only hope that during that final ride the modified Dyna and Daniel Sexton Gurney were, in his unforgettable words, “as one” — one more time. MC