After many very successful seasons with the traditional injected Zodiac Top Fuel Harley ‘Godfather VI’, the team switched to the new, in-house-designed, supercharged 1680cc ‘Godfather VII’ machine. With all the new technology, Roel Koedam, the team’s rider after Ton Pels’ retirement, debuted the bike with a big bang at the Euro Finals 2008. The 2009 season was planned to be a test year with the blown Godfather VII. So it proved, and there were promising results but also new problems. “The valve train gave problems and when we solved one thing there was a next weakest spot. Rocker arms, tappets, bearings, we designed them in-house and at the end found the right ones,” explains Vincent Pels, recalling the first season with the new technology. “With everything we learned in 2009 we imagined we’d be ready for the championship in 2010.”



“We started the season with 15% more boost from the supercharger and a different fuel system set-up. The Easter Thunderball was our first test before the UEM European Championship kick-off in Hungary. On the first run we blew the exhausts from the bike but the next run was a 6.593sec at 205.17mph. Roel lifted at 1000 feet but still clocked two new personal bests for the new bike so early in the season. Later that weekend we blew the exhausts again and had a fire. It looked spectacular but it only burnt some body panels, wiring and air hoses, so the damage was not too bad. But we already knew we had a fresh problem. Owing to the higher pressure, the temperature was rising too much. We started in Hungary with more fuel to keep the temperatures down, but all the things that had worked on the injected bike did not work on the blown bike. Even Top Fuel car parts did not last.”

At Alastaro, Koedam lost in the first round against Job Heezen, racing the Godfather VI machine the Zodiac team had previously used. At Mantorp Park, Koedam qualified sixth but had serious engine problems and at Gardermoen the pistons were the main problem. Ton and his son Vincent, the driving forces behind the team, had to repair so many parts, they even had to skip the invitational race at Hockenheim. “In the meantime we worked hard to solve the temperature problems. We started experimenting with new Nimonic exhaust valves, guides from a new exotic material called MoldStar 90 and it all seemed to work well. But it’s drag racing so at the Euro Finals something different happened. We lost oil pressure and a rod left the block”, remembers Vincent. So the Euro Finals qualifying was an early and disappointing end to the team’s season.


A burnout at Santa Pod Raceway

But next year Zodiac Racing will be back. “With the 4-valve heads, the exhaust valve seats are the last weak spot we are encountering with the heat issues. So for next year we are working on newly-designed, alloyed-copper combustion chamber inserts, known as ‘skulls’. The valve seats are then directly machined in these skulls, which makes the heat transfer a lot better. Our goal is to start the season with two complete engines and another one for spare parts. With the parts we designed last year and the new parts we are working on, we can be one of the frontrunners again. There are not so many teams that can run a 6.50 in their second season with a blown bike. Although we expected to be a step further this year, we are confident that we can make that step next season and fight for the championship again.


With no reverse, these bikes need crew assistance

Our plan is to do the whole UEM tour and try to run at a test weekend before the first race in Hungary. Roel is already looking forward to the new season. In a few weeks he undergoes surgery and gets a new hip. After two or three months of recuperation, we hope he will be able to get back on the bike again and, with luck, for the first time in two years can race pain-free again. We are looking forward to the new season and the next challenge too,” says Vincent Pels. “And of course we want to say a big thank-you to our main sponsor, Zodiac Performance Products for Harley-Davidson and our loyal co-sponsors, SuperTrapp Performance Exhausts, Accel Motorcycle Products, Spectro Oils of America and Kibblewhite Precision Machining Inc. for valve train components."