Rich Oliver, racing the No. 97 Marlboro Yamaha YZR500 GP bike, gets the jump at the start of a WERA Pro Formula USA race at Willow Springs Raceway, in Rosamond, Calif., in April of 1991. Starting alongside Oliver is Muzzy Kawasaki’s Scott Russell (22), Valvoline Suzuki’s Britt Turkington (28) and Yoshimura Suzuki’s Chuck Graves (24). (Larry Lawrence photo)

Rich Oliver, racing the No. 97 Marlboro Yamaha YZR500 GP bike, gets the jump at the start of a WERA Pro Formula USA race at Willow Springs Raceway, in Rosamond, Calif., in April of 1991. Starting alongside Oliver is Muzzy Kawasaki’s Scott Russell (22), Valvoline Suzuki’s Britt Turkington (28) and Yoshimura Suzuki’s Chuck Graves (24).

The race ran in extremely windy conditions. That wind had a major effect on the ultra-light GP machine of Oliver’s. “Every time I would brake hard for turn one the back wheel would start to come off the ground,” explained Oliver. “The cross wind in that turn was really upsetting the chassis. It got really hairy in there a couple of times.”

Oliver battled with several riders for the lead, including Mike Smith and Graves, before getting a handle on the heavy winds and pulling away to a 4.56 second margin of victory.