Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1151987
IN THE WIND P24 Famed Race-Bike Builder Ron Wood Passes Away R on Wood, perhaps best known for building the legend- ary Wood-Rotax flat-track racing machine, passed away late last month. He was 90. Wood had been involved in racing for years building Ducati- based short track bikes, but rapidly rose to prominence in 1978 when a Norton he built won the AMA Grand National race at Ascot in May of 1978. Alex Jorgensen was at the controls. It marked the last time a Norton won in AMA Grand National competition. In the 1980s, Wood became a distributor for Rotax engines used in flat track racing. With no flat-track frames available to fit the single-cylinder, four-stroke Rotax motors, Wood began building his own frames, which launched the famous Wood-Rotax racing motorcycle in 1983. Wood-Rotax was a ready-made flat track racer, and the machines won countless races. For a time, Wood made a deal with Harley-Davidson where his Wood-Rotax machines were rebadged as Harley-Davidsons and were raced in short track and TT events by Harley factory riders. Many of the nation's top flat track racers ran a Wood-Rotax at one time or another during their careers. The bikes were considered the standard short- track machine of choice from their introduction in the early 1980s until DTX motocross-based ma- chines became the standard in the 2000s. In 1986, Wood and Steve Jen- tges designed and fabricated the Wood-Rotax SJ676, a road-racing machine built to compete in AMA 250cc Grand Prix competition. Doug Toland, Andy Leisner, Kevin Atherton, Chris Carr and others competed on the Wood-Rotax road racer. At the time Cycle magazine called the Wood-Rotax "The World's Fastest Single." In his later years, Wood built a BMW F800-based flat track machine. It was one of the most unique motorcycles built for flat-track racing. In 2016, Dalton Gauthier raced the Wood BMW to victory in the GNC2 class at the Arizona Mile. To date that was the only national-level flat track win for a BMW-powered machine. Dalton Gauthier wrote on his Facebook page: RIP Ron Wood. Thanks for letting me be part of your legacy and memories. A true legend of the sport. Thanks for everything! You will be missed, dearly! God speed RIP. Larry Lawrence Seely Announces Retirement C ole Seely, of the Honda HRC factory team, announced his retirement from professional racing. After dealing with injuries the past few years, the Californian had just returned from an injury when he suffered another injury that sidelined him for the rest of the 2019 MX season. Seely has since decided to put his professional racing days behind him. "These past two years have been very difficult," he said. "Last year's injury was severe and very tough on me both mentally and physically. I fought hard to return this season, but it was much more challenging than I anticipated. Now with this recent shoulder injury, it's just another set- back. This decision definitely wasn't easy, but I think it's the right choice. I'm grateful for having been given the opportunity to do something I've Legendary flat track tuner Ron Wood passed away at the age of 90. Cole Seely, who spent nearly his entire pro career on a Honda, has announced his retirement from professional racing.