Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1960's

2 BERRY VISITS n. ,apl. 4l daced Idmself as a _n ..110 bad lDberi:: ted Ids job, and would need belp to do ~ It. He'd alllO Inberited a noWoo-..ell...... omce, a mapzine that no one reads and ~ pro blem !I, but • by God" be'd go to bat 0) for us. AS a westerner bimself be thoapt .... It would be pretty bad If be couldn't v; come out bere wben we were baving .... troubles and listeo to us first band• ~ With a smaller number of representatives on hand than usual and no advance e notice of Mr. Berry's appearance, the ~ attending representatives were able to ~ keep questions coming for the entire CI) hour and a half period. Naturally, a lot of the questions re~ garded the Dirt Diggers and their probo r.l lems, hut representatives asked about ~ several subjects. Berry said that he r.l hadn't wanted to write the letter to the ...:J Dirt Diggers in which he had to reject C,) their reapplication for charter, and he ;:.., read a copy of this addressed to Tom C,) Hoyle, President of the Dirt Diggers. It stated that their request for sanction was turned down because of their affiliation with another associatiOn. At this, Larry Reed the District Referee and a Dirt Digger, left the table and Jean Carter who had been seated with the group on the main noor, stewed up onto the stage to fill the vacancy. A representative stood to ask "What is the AMA doing for tbe Sporting rider?" He continued his point that, • every year 58000 goes to the AMA from here, and wbat representation are we getting for wbat we are paying Into the organization? The average working man seated In the hall right here can't anord to take a day off from work to go to City Hall to defend causes when the need comes up. Do we bave a public relations man that we can call on when we need one wbo will do these things for us?" Berry replied that as to Governmental Relations the AMA has done nothin g. Tbe Motorcycle. Scooter and Allied Trades Association (MS&ATA) has been handed that cbore. Wben problems come up, the local clubs and dealers etc•• should start the action and the AMA will provide counsel to assist tbem. A representative asked, ·Where was the AMA during steve McQueen's fight for the Malibu Mountain section?" (McQueen was fighting to hold on to part of the area for motorcycle trails etc., and he received no help.) ·Where was the AMA in tbis case?" (McQueen finally had to drop his fight because of business commitments,) Berry spread his hand s and said he apologizes for his inadequacies, wt he tries. Buck Smith of the Shamrocks asked how the Sports Committee got involved with the fight between the AMA and the Dirt Diggers. Jean Carter replied that the Committee got involved because the Dirt Diggers were a member cluh and that the Commi ttee helps any club that gets into trouble when they are part of the District. Berry was asked who elected him to his position. He said that he was not elected but appointed bY the Board of Trustees. Clarification was asked for on the ruling about dual-sanctioning of events. Berry had a copy of a large rule book on (Continued on pale 23) .o ~~~ Specializing in • "For Yamaha Parts • For Yamaha Service • For N_·Usecl Yamahas s.. Ie. c.IW. ow-. y. . . . . ~ Pierce Motor Center AT 6-2.550 927-933 So. Son Gabriel 1tYd. • Son ~I • cu 3·1310 GOOQ(jua BLUE STREAK MOTOR RACER ow Available ID These Sizes 2.75x18 & 3.00x18 3.00x19 & 3.5OX19 SHELBY ~!f:.cll Tires rNl.lat •. ~ Iia 1;'1 GInIIa, COIIIinC Soon canf (2]3) 38-1111 COOLIES COLUMN A little crossed up and IIot oetlle scent of lIM pld aad "DrJ. Etldlellulder "'_s .,. Inlllitable and det...ln.uon to win IS lie hi. Trhaph to Y1ctDrJ at the _ _ P_II TT Jlltloal. Lick of IpICI precluded .... Inel.sloe of till. pllotocrlllb In lISt . . . . . Paorll Pictorial bat IUcl! I ,ODd ....t de_s to be _ . r- p_' By Wes Cooley 6- Days Trial Report I just received the report on our Silver Vase 6-day trails tearn. Bud Ekins and his crew fared pretty well in the Silver Vase competition considering the last minute change of equlpment. Bud am bis brother Dave Ekins both won gold medals. Charlie Hockie won a silver medaL The U.S. Team finished 13th over-all, with first place going to West Germany. As a matter of interest, the west German team was riding a 50cc Hercules, a 175cc ZundsPIl. a 100cc Zundapp and a 125CC Zundapp. which just goes to show you don't need a lot of inches in order to win an event in world competition. There was some talk about the possibili ty of starting a trials committee in the U.S. so that next year the trials team which would repre- sent the U.S. in competition would be a good representative sample. The trails committee would promote some trials events. thus giving the riders some experience in this type of competition and also allowing the U.S. to select the best possible team to represent this country. Tbis is something we desperately need and we hope that Ekins is still interested in setting up such a committee upon bis return. At the A.C.A. short track events on Thursday night at SOuth Gate, a few 0 f the riders are having the oppor tunity to ride some JAP's on exhibition. We hope this bit of training will come in bandy in the near future. There is much talk at the present time about bringing back the old 500cc speedway events one nigh t per week. Road Racing The fall road racing season in the So. Calif. area will get under way on Sunday, September 25th, with a national points race to be held at Willow Springs Raceway. This will give many of the top road racing stars in SO. Calif. an opportunity to compete after a two month lay-ort during the hot spell which gave the racers an opportunity to get their equipment in shape. One of the top 500cc road racing champions in the United States. and at one time second place in the world's championship point standing. Buddy Parriott, will be out defending his title against TOny Murphy, the 250cc and 3SOcc 1965 champion. TOny will be competing on a 500cc Manx. as well as unnamed llghtweight equipment in tbis event. The first race will get under way at 1:00 p.m. All International classes including 100cc and a prnduction race will make up the propam. _ By Boxy Rockwood THE FINISH LINE Another national at Ascot in the record books and another carbon copy runaway by Sammy Tanner and his BSA. finely tuned by C.R. Axtell. Ammy now joins Eddie Mulder as the only other three-time national event winner this year with only two more nationals to go. Ascot is fast becoming the hOllle of falling stars. There were many last Saturday night who fell by the wayside in the heat races and finally in the main event. The three riders that were most inr pressive were Mel Lacher. Gary Nixon and Roger Reiman. Lacher because he has finally found how to handle all that horsepower and Nixon and Reiman because they again blew in cold and rode like the champions they really are. Nixon's heat race ride against Hammer. Haaby and Lawwill was a classic and again proves that if desire is combined with ability, then it can be done. The same goes for Reiman, who is not primarily known as a half-miler but you would have never guessed it in the heat race, when he held off the veteran Elliott Sch ultz fran wire to wire for the last transfer spot to the national finaL Again too it was Bart Mat1lel sbowlDg the fans why be is the nlllllber one rider. Bart rode a great one in both the heat and final and anytime you can finish econd to sammy in his backyard on national nipt-yOU bave ridden a great ODe. This columnist and many others felt that if Harley-Davidson was gcing to win one. this had to be the year. Had it not been for sammy it might bsve happened with Markel and Lacher running two-thme in the tinaL This is the first time that Milwaukee has put two of the top three into the winner's circle in the eight-year history of the event. Now comes Cadsbad this lUIday and 8SA flDds itself a definite underdog with H-D and Triumph ready to do bIlttle. Cal Rayborn, who was ellminated in the beat race saturday night, bas never lost at Cadsblld on the big hikes and-is ready to wID his first national tiUe. Gary Nixon is ready wlth his Triumph and so is BuddY Elmore. These two ha ve won all the major road races this year and will be out to shut off Rayborn's water in the first major road race in California since 1954. The big bikes have long held the limelight in AMA road racing but the last few years, particularily this year, the lightweight 250cc jobs have begun to cut into the picture with the formation of the factory teams of Yamaha. Suzuki am Harley-Davidson. Yamaha has won the vast majority of the major li ghtweight road races the last three years but it could all change this sunday. Suzuki has been building and improvIng since their first outing last March at Daytona am will meet the Yamaha challenge for the second time this coming Sunday. The high-torque Harley Sprints will figure strongly. as the carlabad course is much shorter than Daytona and it will SIIIIIlY Tann.r SUlTOunded by Idlnlm.. leave much more to the rider rather than the horsepower. Rayborn ran the pants off Nixon in tbe 250cc Des Moines road race which Suzuki did not enter. All three will be meeting only for the second--and final, time this year. They could steal all the thunder from the big jobs. The best thing that ever happened to road racing on the national circuit came about in the rule changes this year when they eliminated time trials. All the riders now square off against each other in heat races to determine where they line up in the feature. The Des Moines heat races, also the Daytona heats, were tropby dash classics and they should be the same this Sunday at Carls bad. The Ciirlsbad event also carries many more national points than Ascot and Sacramento and there is a real scramble still going on for the top ten places that the national point fund pays. Tbe cadsbad course is the most exciting of all the current courses In tbat the action is right in front of the faos over 90% or the time. It is Ibe ouly track that gets the riders airborne at over 100 • mpb. Rayborn is the early favorite with Nixon a shade behind. Gary has the edge on Markel in this one, but don't sell the champ short. They are a tossup in the las t one at sacramento. Tbe 250cc race should be a three way photo finish between Nixon. Rayborn and Hammer. You have watched them on dirt for years but wait till you see them do the same on pavement. The tilree braDds IDvulved all bave stated tbat wiaaiac Ucbtwetcbt road races reaI1y helps sell 2:10' to tbe street riders. Aed wIIer'e Is the blUest -.diet . . caUJonda? • •

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