Larry "Spiderman" McBride is the
elder statesman of Top Fuel motorcycle drag racing. Partnered
with brother Steve, the McBrides have been racing supercharged,
nitro-burning motorcycles for over 20 years.
McBride has left his mark on the sport. He
was the first rider to run under the 6.50 second elapsed time
barrier, setting the record of 6.49-seconds in 1991 - a mark which
could not be broken for three years. He also garnered the 1991
AMA/Prostar Top Fuel Championship.
The McBride brothers operate Cycle Specialists
in Newport News, Virginia, a performance motorcycle shop. In addition
to Harley-Davidsons and import "hop ups", they specialize
in preparing Yamaha FJ-1200 engines for the legends race car series.
McBride received the "Spiderman"
moniker in 1980 at the NHRA U.S. Nationals when an announcer commented
on his trademark riding style of "crawling" around on
the bike to keep it in the groove.
