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/125457
• . • .. • the National Circuit By Annette Camp Tuesday night July 19, the night before Santa Fe, tbe gang got togetber and had a cookout. Fifty pork chops -were barbequed, several dozen ears of corn, lots of french bread. barbequed beans and great time was had by all. The bench racing was utterly fantastic. At Santa Fe the next night Jim Me Murren moved UP again. He won his heat and semi. In the dash he did a real wheely on the start, but ended up in fourth spot. In the final he was third. Fred Nix was the winner, Dan Welty second and Darrel Dovel fourth. Jules Althor was fourth in his heat and a sixth in his semi. When Friday rolled around the gang was ready to go back up to Wisconsin for a Half-Mile Friday night. July 22, at Darlington. The races were cancelled due to over-watering of the track. making it muddy and unsafe to race. The three purses, Novice, Amateur, Expert, were divided equally between the riders who participated. The riders decided to put on a little show for everyone. just racing around, and called it a • boat race". Familiar to Ascot Park, Larry Rose 68x 'and Amateur Chuck Berry 93x, made their appearance here at Darlington. The next night, Saturday, there was a Half-Mile- at Farmer City. Illinois as well as one in Troy. Ohio. Billy Ershig and Texas novice. SY Slocum. went to Farmer City. Bill got' a fourth in the final. Dan Welty was the winner, Jim Corpe Nat. 48, was second and Mike Powell Nat. 43, was third. In the Amateur final it was Ben Breeding 27p, of Illinois the winner, with Keith Johnson in second on a newly acquired BSA. Howard Jacob 75p. was third on a KR. At Troy, Ohio Neil Kean won his heat with Ronnie Rall right on his rear fender. In the final it was again the same two battling it out for first place. This time it was Rall taking the win with Neil second. Red McKeen pulled in during his heat after Bates Molyneaux went down. Amateur Jack McNary ran BURT MUNRO By Wilson springe. A lifelong ambition to establish a land speed record for motorcycles' is again being culminated, for the fifth time, by an ageless New Zealander riding an equally ageless Indian motorcycle. Burt Munro/ of Invercargill, New Zealand. a 68-year-old grandfather with an insatiable quest for speed. is preparing his 1920 American-made Indian twin cylinder machine in San Gabriel for his fifth attempt in as manJ yea r s on the salt flats at Bonneville. Utah. early next month. Mechanical woes have plagued the leathery, bright-eyed New Zealander for the past four years together wit h unfavorable surface conditions on the bleak salt flats of western Utah. Unhampered by the fact the American Indian motorcycle company was dissol ved in 1954. Munro has formed rare engine parts by hand and' has been supplied with vital spare parts by his American sponsor Sam Pierce of San Gabriel, who maintains a gigantic stock of elderly Indian parts for devotees throughout the world. Using the basic 37 cubic inch Indian V-twin engine and transmission. Munro spent five year s designing and building an aluminum second in his heat. but had trouble getting his new Harley KR ride turned in the corners and finally got fifth. In the amateur final it was Jack Warren 7ge, taking the win. Dick Jennings 99y, of Riverside, California showed here and got a fifth in his amateur heat. (He is . here on his honeymoon as well as to race. ) The ne xt day was the e igbt star at Columbus, Ohio. It was cancelled. r't had rained the night before and even though the track looked good to most of the racers, spectator appearance wasn't, so maybe this was the reason for not running it. SOme of the boys took a midseason vacation and loafed around after Darlington. We aha have another broken hand. This was acquired by Jules Arthor, by falling in practice over the weekend. We are also glad to hear that Duke Olliges will be the starter at Springfield this year. He is professional racing's best starter and a great guy for the job. This weekend is a five race one, starting in Iowa, on Friday night, three a n Sat urday and Elkhorn on Sunday in Wisconsin. This week's article is dedicated to Bates Molyneaux #5e of Michigan. He was at one time Nat. number Fifteen and also Five. He was not well known on the west Coast, but was known by all the racers of the National Circuit and by all the racers who live in this part of the country. Bates had suffered very serious injury while racing some time ago, and was making a great comeback, almost always making the main event whenever he rode this year. This was really fantastic as his steel shoe leg was very noticeably crooked, but this did not hamper his fine riding ability. He died doing what he liked best at Troy, Ohio July 23. 1966 saturday night in the first Expert heat race. Bates Molyneaux we all salute you. ~Il ATTENTION COMPETITION llIDERS! A & A Manufacturing Now Features a Select Line of Quality Components for All cycles AIR CLEANERS COMPRESSION RELEASES ALT. COVERS-HONDA SCRAMB and more, MUCH MORE Mention Cycle News when Writing to A & A MANUFACTURING (!)~~ ¥eerJ"~ RON JONES PRESENTS IN EL TORO <1~ ~ RQCSfL Bkvd EVERY WEDNESDAY NIGHT 1036 EI Camino R.dwood City, Calif. Deal.r Inquiries Invlt.d Pi' gate opens 6 p.m., Practice 7 p.m., Racing at 8 p.m. FREE PARKING GENERAL ADMISSION $1.50 DIRECTIONS: On Santa Ana Freeway between Laguna CanJon & EI Toro Bob Eb.ling's DRAG RACING column was delaJed In the mall. Complete report next .Ii~t.u.rn~olffls·ijiiiiAi·Ci·iAi·is~aniCitiiOiineiidiiiiiil w.e;k.;._IIIIIIIl 1st 2S0cc Expert LEE STUMPENHAUS- GREEVES 200 Am..Ex. 2nd #1 BULTACO 3rd GARY CONRAD - GREEVES LEE STUMPENHAUS-GRE. 1st Sweepstakes 1st DAN CARLTON -GREEVES 2S0.cc Nov. 1st DAN CARLTON- GREEVES .2S0cc Nov. Main PRADO PARK 11 1st GORDON JOHNSON- GREEVES 2S0ccEx. HILL10PPfRS ROUGH SCRAMBLES 1st 2S0ccNov. 1st Th. bull that dazzled rac.rs at SeJmour, Wise. fair••, 2,S10 Ibs. of him••• and that's a lot of.,bull! streamlined shell to house the power plant and himself. Visiting Bonneville Salt Flats in 1956, Munro renewed his efforts after returning to New Zealand, finisl)ing his two-wheel. projectile in time to make runs in the fall of 1962. Hi;; best time in 1962 was an amazing 178.971 mph through the elctric timed traps. . Returning to his homeland and making modifications, Munro returned to "the salt· in 1963 and established a aneway run of 195 mph only to discover he couldn't make the required return run because of a burned home-made piston. Undaunted by a • minor setback', Burt spent another year rebuilding his trim streamliner and was back at Bonneville in 1964. A frozen wheel bearing forced him to "open it up" in his desperate attempt. However he was only able to salvage a meek 182.50 mpb and agaln couldn't make the return run for an official average speed. "When you remember that f am riding a 46-year-old engined cycle." laughed Munro, "I believe 1 have done pretty well. I've dreamt of making just one good pair of runs for 40 years and 1 am not gi ving up yet." After a complete rebuilding job at his modest home in the outskirts of Invercargill. Munro returned to Bonneville las t .year, but again fate was not on his side. A burned piston forced him to coast through the timing traps at a speed of slightly over 147 mph ... on one cylinder. "I retired 19 years ago so 1 could' devote more time to this project", said Munro with a wink, "my children are all grown up, f live a very spartan life on a small pension and this project affords me an object to strive for in life". Although Munro has forged, machined and fabricated his streamliner. spending approximately 7,000 hours on this project, many motorcycle enthusiasts have helped generously. The Champion Spark Plug Company donated many sets of special racing spark plugs for his ancient machine. In his 1966 attempt Burt has relocated his spark plug firing position using a rare 10mm plug. Tires, a very vital accessory, are donated to MunrO_by the Dunlop Company and a British oil concern has PIamised him special racing oil as long as he wishes to make runs. Veteran Indian motorcycle dealer Sam Pierce of San Gabriel. who still services and manufactures various Indian parts. has given Munro a panel truck for his trip to Utah along with many spare pirts and tools. As an example of ingenuity, Munro (Continued on page 23) ,,,,,'s LLOYD B. L1NGLEBACH-GREEVES lVersalile- STAN PHILLIPS - Gneres 7 GREEVES R0';H Smooth-- GREEVES WIN! -- It's easier on a Greeves. {{(~. DISTRIBUTOR, are slarting 10 coile in again --so see your Greeres Dealer NICK NICHOLSON MOTORS, 11629 Vanowen, North Hollywood, Calif. I IT'S HERE!! : ~NEW ZUNDAPP ISDT REPLICA) ,13112 hp from 100cc (with mufflers!) I Tracy's M/C Sales ! Burbank's 2 cycle Hdqtrs. , Burbank's 2 cycle Hdqtrs, I featuring I . Zundapp - Husqvama I Bridgestone - Greeves I SIS S. VlctorJ, Burbank I Ph. TH 3·0926 Mon.-Thurs.-l0-6 I FrldaJ til 9 - Closed SundaJ. I I Mention this ad I'or a special (leal. CYCLE STOP and YAMAHA in Oakland, California is Northern California"s largest BSA Dealer ~§A Largest Selection in the Largest Showroom Race Tuning for BSA and Yamaha IS OUR SPECIALTY 9-9 Mon.-Fri. Sat. til 6 Sun. 10-4 4351 E. 14 Street, Oakland, California Mention thi s ad for special consid.ratlon .-------------- Hodaka brigade led to vlctorJ bJ nlne-Jur· old Mike Lane of Bak.rsfield. Bakersfield Sprockets M.C. Nlte TT Scrambles Sprockets Park. SaturdaJ JulJ 30, 1966 90cc Amateul/ Expert lst Mlk. Lane HODAKA 90cc Novice lst Albert MJstron HODAKA Southern California M.C. Hare Scrambles VictorVille, SundaJ, Ju'J 31,1966 lst Trail Blk. Jack Morgan HODAKA SlIv.r CltJ Scramblers M.C. TT Scrambl.s Las Vegas, Nevada, JulJ 31, 1966 Powder Puff Motocross lst Shlrl'J Siagi. HODAKA Atascadero Ramblers M.C. Short Track Atascad.ro Sp.edwaJ, JulJ 24, 1966 90cc Expert Motocross lst Mike Lane HODAKA 2nd Rick Ell sarraras HODAKA 3rd Richard N.wbJ HODAKA Atascadero Ramblers M.e. TT Scrambles Atascadero SpeedwaJ, JulJ 24, 1966 90cc Amateur/Exp.rt 1st Rick Ellsarraras HODAKA 2nd Richard N.wbJ HOOAKA 3rd Mlk. Lane HODAKA That's.a whol. lot of HODAKABILITY SEE YOUR HODAKA DEALER 'f.~ 'jr AREA DISTRIBUTOR IN SOUTHERN CALIF. BELOW KERN COUNTY LINE H. A. NELSON (213) 243-1017 Glendale, Calif.