P184
50
Years Ago
JANUARY 13, 1970
LOOKING BACK
With the closing of the 1970s, we acknowledged who we felt
were some of the most prominent people who made the world of
motorcycling a much better place over the past decade. Those people
included Dick Mann, Lewis McKey, Bernie Schreiber, Kenny
Roberts, Steve Baker, Dick Burleson, Marland Whaley, Gary
Jones, Jimmy Weinert, Bob Hannah and many more… We featured
an interview with Lewis McKey, aka Phantom Duck of the Desert,
and Marland Whaley, and profiled enduro legend Dick Burleson…
We covered Scot Harden's win at the Beatty-to-Vegas desert race…
We warned our readers about booby traps being constructed in the
California desert that could be fatal to motorcyclists.
40
Years Ago
JANUARY 9, 1980
We ran an oil painting titled "First Turn" on the cover of Cycle News 50
years ago. It was produced by artist Carl Bartlett who painted it from
memory of his racing days in Illinois. We liked it so much it was featured on
the cover of our final issue of the year… We featured an interview with two
flat track racers—Abram Drain and Ben Hunter—who we said were the
only two black men in professional motorcycle racing. (A good read to this
day.)... TV actress Barbara Eden, of the hit show I Dream Of Jeannie,
learned how to ride a motorcycle, and we were there to cover it.
(Left) We were there when actress Barbarta
Eden, of TV's I Dream Of Jeannie fame
learned how to ride a motorcycle. (Below)
We interviewed flat track racers Abram
Drain and Ben Hunter who were, at that
time, the only black men in professional
motorcycle racing 50 years ago.
