I’m not certain what happened to Alan Carter’s Team MacLean Honda RS250, but I’m pretty certain his tail pipe isn’t supposed to be pointing in that direction. This photo was taken at the 1987 AMA 250 Grand Prix race at Road America. Carter ran fifth at this point in the race and that’s where he finished, but earlier he’d been in a fierce battle for second with teammate Kork Ballington and Red Line Oil Honda’s Rich Oliver. It could have been during that battle that someone hit his tail pipe and bent it out. Today Carter has a well-received bio book available here.

The tail pipe of Alan Carter’s Team MacLean Honda RS250 is cocked to the side late in the 1987 AMA 250 Grand Prix race at Road America. Carter managed fifth in spite of the bent pipe. (Larry Lawrence photo)