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
LATEST MCQUEEN • • • • • • Story and Photos by George B. Maness Rare indeed is the man who can participate to his heart's content in the sport or hobby of his choice. All of us at one time or another have daydreamed of owning a motorcycle for each of the various types of motorcycle sport. Alas, the green stuff - - and the time as well are not always as plentiful as we would like. One man who has at least the first part of that problem licked is the well known actor Steve McQueen. As a motorcyclist of no mean ability, Steve liilOwS just what he wants in the way of motorcycles, and as a very successful actor he has the where-with-all to acquire them. Known to most people as the star of the now defunct television series "Wanted--Dead or Alive" and his roles in such movies as The Great Escape, The Magnificent Seven, Love With a Proper Stranger, Soldier In The Rain, The Cincinnati Kid, and the recently released Nevada Smith, Steve is now in Europe for the filming of Day of the Champion in ·which he portrays a racing dri ver. McQueen started his motorcycle ment. With that big engine and tHe career in 1960 under the tutelage of the handling of the Metisse frame (and the inimitable Bud Ekins. He quickly learned famous Ceriani forks) McQueen certainthe ways of the desert, won a few novice ly has the proper equipment for nonevents and was advanced to Amateur AMA events. standing. In 1964 he was part of the American team competing in the InternationalSix Days Trial in East Germany. An accident eliminated him in that event and his movie career prevented him from making it to the Isle of Man for the '65 go 'round. Since then he has had little time for motorcycles because of an ever increasing schedule of motion pictures. The Trlumph/M.tlss. that SI.ve McQu..n will us. In ACA Motocross and roueh scrambl... Note the typically M.tlsse cas lank, seaV rear lend.r, side pan.ls and plaled Iralll4l. St.v. McQu..n's swlnelne pair-=-::- - til. Dunstall Dominator and the 6S0cc Trlumph/Matlss•• steve McQueen is a serious competitor and feels that to win, one must have the proper equipment for the job at hand. To make sure that he has that proper equipment, he has recently added two machines to tbe 'stable of motor-. cycles which includes his trusty, Triumph T~ desert bike, and gives him a grand total of 5 cycles. L..--- -="'..--- , ...--"ii', l-+. . , ~ The second machine shown in the photographs is a. Dunstall Norton 650 SS. Paul Dunstall is an Englishman who has built a big busine ss around supplying go-fast goodies for Nortons. His equipment is all top quality and riders of Dunstall-equipped motorcycles have won more than their share of production road race s in England. For the past couple of years Dunstall has been preparing complete bikes to the customers' specifications a nd McQueen's machine is one of these. The power plant is a much-modified 650cc Norton because it is pos~ible to realize much greater power gains from these engines than from the 100cc larger Atlas units. The. output of this engine is not known but 65 hp wouldn't be unlik ely. ALOT OF YOU THOUGHT WE WERE OUT OF OUR MINDS! A fEW WEErS AGO WE HAD A fULL PAGE AD IN CYCLE NEWS WHICH WE HEADLINED "MONTESA CLOSES/"NOT MANY Of YOU TOOr US SERIOUSL Y, BUT ON THE HAND, NOT MANY Of YOU TOOr TIME TO READ fURTHER. TOO BAD YOU DIDN'T. YOU MISSED THE BIG NEWS' WE'LL GIVE YOU ONE MORE CHANCE. PLEAS.E READ THE fOLLOWING CAREfULL Y. MONTESA CLOSES its Beverly Boulevard office to retail sales only. We are still sole U.s. Distributors of the Mighty Montesa Motorcycles from Spain. 14 0NJ E SACLOSE S its retail showroom at 3651 West Beverly' Boulevard. All inventory - 64, 65, and a few 66 Demos - are being sold at fantastic savings. As a maner of fact... MONTESA CLOSES' its pockets to profit IIItil the last of fhese special bites is sold (there are only 15). Make your own deal...but huny. MONTESA CLOSES its mouth before somebody else thinks we're squirrel enough to give up the honest motorcycles on the market and neither are our 262 dealers• • I • • • • MONTESA MOTORS, INC. McQu.en's Dunstall Dominator. CI.arly shown h.re are the clip-on handl. bars, "Manx" lorks,and the Oldani front brake. For ACA Motocross and rough Scrambles, Steve had Bud Ekins Motorcycles of She r man Oaks build a Triumph Metisse. The Metisse components are now quite well known here but this one is a little bit different. Until recently, the largest Metisse frame was designed for various 500cc engines. This year the FIM decided to run a 750cc class to stave off the two-stroke domination of International Motocross and the Rickman brothers, builders of the Metisse frames, quickly turned out a unit for that class. McQueen's bike is built around a 650cc· Triumph TR-6 engine that is basically stock. This engine has been mounted in the second frame that the factory put out for the larger powerplants which differs from its smaller cousins only in the size of the engine compart- ·5ole U.s. Distributor, 3657 Beverly Blvd., los Angeles, Calif. Telephone: NO 3-S2S5-Dept. C-S. Metl sse exhausl pi pes are well lucked In. "Inlak. holes In side panel glv. carbo clean air. • Shown In tills· vie.. 01 the "Nasly Norton" are the swepl back plp.s (lor cornerlne clearance), Ih. . .ven-eallon, alloy cas lank, r.ar-sat loot pees and the c.nt.r-mounl 011 tank. This fire-breathing engine has been mounted in Manx Norton frame (complete with the super forks these bikes are blessed with) and an Oldani front hub and brake assembly fitted. With the lights that the machine carries, one might think that it is to be used for production machine racing but such is not the case. Although the biKe appears suitable for production racing it would never pass inspection. With a few modifications it might become a threat in the ACA and AFM G.P. ciass. Roehr Brothers Sports Life of Bur~ bank now have this machine on display in their showroom. Peninsula Cycle Center Palo Alto, california Pacific Honda Pacifica. california Artesia Cycle Center Artesia, California Melvin C. Din'esen Cycles Bakersfield, California Roehr Bros. Burbank, California Carmichael Honda Carmichael, California H & H Cycle Sales Chico, California Ridgecrest Honda Ridgecrest, California Bill Robertson & Sons Hollywood, California Inglewood Tire & Auto Inglewood, California Honda of Pasadena Pasadena, California Crescenta Valley Sportcycles La Crescenta, Califorma Artisan Mlc Sales Roseville, CalifornIa Ye Olde Cycle Shoppe La Jolla, California Black's Cycle Shop Crescent City, California ----- :r--- Valley Cycle Shop Anderson, California Tom's Cycle Center Concord, California Another view 01 McQueen's Trlumph/M.ils.... This one emphaslz.s the lamllLar Cerlanl '4$uper Forks' • Frosty's Cycle Shop Litterock. California Don Vesco Mlc sales EI Cajon, California BHB Cyclery EI Monte, California Cycle Towne San Anselmo. California Monte Dennet Mlc Sales San Bernardino, Calif. Cycle Imports San Jose & San Mateo CaL • T & 0 Yamaha Sales San Pedro, California Roy's Mlc Shop Santa Ana, California Suzuki Cycle City Stovers Cycle Center Santa Maria, California Lodi, California Nielsens Hdwre. & Cycle Sales Moore & Sons Mlc Sale s McKinleyville, California Santa Cruz, California Humboldt Cycle Center Eureka, California Darrels Montesa Sales Mendota, California Stockton Mlc Center Stockton, California Fremont Cycle Fremont, California Thiel Motors Modesto, California Lamoreux M/c's Sunland. California Geo. E. Hall Mlc Sales Gilroy, California Steve Hurd Mlc Monte be lio, California Gifford Engineering Thousand Oaks, Calif. Gran Sport Import Mtrs. Glendora, California Honda of Ojal Ojai. California Hockies Mlc Torrance, California Hi Desert Cycle Center Palmdale, California Honda of'Oxnard Oxnard, California Honda of Ventura Ventura, California