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/1183666
CN III ARCHIVES BY LARRY LAWRENCE T he 1979 Daytona International Lightweight race was loaded— and then some. The 100-mile 250cc road race featured future GP legends such as Freddie Spencer, Randy Mamola, Eddie Lawson, Kork Ballington and An- ton Mang. There was also a slew of talented American road racers like Mike Baldwin, Nicky Richichi, John Long, John Bettencourt, Dan Chivington and Rusty Sharp. Throw in a gaggle of fast Brits and Canadians and you were look- ing at one of the deepest fields ever assembled in the history of the race. The starting grid even included a young Northern Irish rider by the name of Joey Dunlop. The race turned into an epic three-way battle involving Ma- mola, Spencer and a speedy, up-and-coming rider from Man- teca, California, Skip Aksland. Even though it was a 26-lap race around Daytona International Speedway's road course, there P106 "I didn't have any 250 points, so I started midpack in the heat race," Askland remembers. "On the warmup lap, the clutch exploded. The clutch plates were broken. So I came in from warmup, and I hollered at Kel to hurry and come over, that I didn't have any clutch. He looked and saw the clutch plates were falling out, and he said, 'Okay, just kind of stay be- hind the line, and when you think they are going to throw the flag start pushing with your feet as fast as you can and jam it in gear.' I'm like, 'Oh great, what a way to start the week!'" Askland did as Carruthers in- structed and it worked. He kicked his factory Yamaha into gear, it bogged, but he eventually got rolling. Once underway, Skip was flying on the factory special, riding MX style, shifting without a clutch, and made it all the way up to sec- ond at the finish, behind Mang on a factory-backed Kawasaki. was a lot of strategy and intrigue— before and after the flag—that went into that race. And it wasn't just a battle of riders. Three of the best tuners in the business—Kel Car- ruthers (for Askland), Erv Kanemo- to (for Spencer) and George Vukmanovich (for Mamola)—were in a showdown as well. Askland scored his factory ride with Yamaha at Daytona by way of a favor from a friend. "Kenny [Roberts] had broken his back in Japan testing his 500 for the upcoming grand prix sea- son, and he requested for Yamaha to let me fill in for him at Daytona," Askland recalls. "So, I rode the factory 750, and 250, also. Un- fortunately, the 750 broke on the second lap [of the Daytona 200] while I was running in second place." Mechanicals nearly cost Ask- land his shot at being in the 250 race as well. The qualifying heat races were gridded by points, and WHEN SKIP BEAT THE BEST Skip Askland (center), Freddie Spencer (left) and Randy Mamola on the 1979 Daytona podium. PHOTO: HENNY RAY ABRAMS