Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1960's

Cycle News 1967 01 12

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

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CHAMPION'S RACING SCHOOL By Melvin Shapiro World champion MotO-Cross rider Torsten Hallman conducted a three day racing school and riding clinic under near perfect conditions of clear skies and damp terrain over lush foothills on the outskirts of Riverside. Friday morning some 20 eager students were greeted at K&N Motorcycles by Torsten Hallman, and local riding star Malcolm Smith. Smith functioned as Hallman's assistant for the three days activities. Students ranged in age from a Hodaka mounted l6-year-old to a few "old men" in their forties including your correspondent. Riding experience ranged from not-so-much to a helluva lot. There were desert and TT riders, including one rider making the trip from northern California. Lesson #1 - Stand On II! Arriving at the school site Hallman and Smith used a basic course with each section functioning as a lesson for a particular type of technique. First section was a big dip into a climb, sweeping bumpy left to a platform. and off on a downhill into another tight dip. The technique, as long as the body is willing, is to stand on the pegs at all times. Not acquainted with this style I was surprised at the instant control available. Novice riders who had never ridden power-on down a hill' were soon able to handle this section with a combination of throttle, rear brake, and judicious use of front brake. Hallman demonstrated each point he was teaching (did he ever!). Watching Hallman and Smith demonstrate was like watching a ballet. A short loop was set up with a small jump at the bottom, up a hill and sweeping right down again to a level approach to the jump. Hallman observed the group riding over the jump. Stopping them Hallman asked" why do so many of you have your wheel so high in the air? ••. there is nothing up there' for you. You want to go straight ahead ...you lose time up in the sky!" Hallman's point was that the proper landing attitude should be about 20 degrees. rear wheel down first of course. After a demonstration the group tried again and most were able to get the idea. However, reversing direction and having to jump off or down hill and land properly. was a much harder lesson not mastered by all. Friday's activities concluded with a half-hour race over the basic course. The desert riders present (correspondent included) more or less agreed that the half hour race plus the rest of the day's riding was much more strenuous than most desert runs ... try staying up on the pegs most of the time. You'll see. Saturday a few new faces appeared, joining the stiff and tired group from the day before. The lessons of the day included: high speed handling over small bumps such as road crossings. (Just bring the front wheel up a bit and set it on the other side), handling on bumpy sections, TT or moto-cross starts. up hill trials type riding on criss cross trail of steep slope, more practice on the short jump course, wheelie demonstration and lessons (correspondent couldn't get his Jawa up but Smith proved the old Jawa could dance quite well on on~ wheel). Again, the day concluded with another half hour race on the basic course. CARLSBAD SPORTSMEN ROAD RACES THIS SUNDAY, JANUARY 15th: Break out the go-fast jobs and watch them run this coming Su..nday at Carlsbad Raceway as more than 100 riders in all classes open the '67 season of pavement pounding at the home of the west coast national event. The races are open to all riders, licensed and non-licensed in classes from 50cc's on up to and including the open class for machines over 500cc's. There will also be a "Production" class for street machines 250cc and under so lads with frustrations to be road racers can get in on the act for the first time. AMA sportsmen events are open to all the pro's also whether they be novice, amateur or expert classed riders. The Playboys M.C. who are again sponsoring the event are going to have another first in that they will split all classes and have riders with liUJe or no experience racing by themselves and the pro's and riders with proven road WEEKENDS ON WHEELS By Peter Rachtman It's been almost a month since I last wrote a column for Cycle News. This hiatus was an experiment on my part to see if I would be missed .......I wasn't! Nonetheless, I am very slow to take a hint, and now, since I know no one cares, I will continue with my confused commentary On the state of motorcycling today. ·.... ... ........... Ha Iman (right) helps to recover a runaway 90 cc Hoclaka Beer and Sympathy By the time Sunday arrived, some of the old men were taking hours to get their boots on. Some of the younger ones were moving rather slowly also. But no t Hallman and Smith... they were emitting steam and whatever it is that champions are made of. Hallman first walked the class over the entire course pointing out how to avoid bumps and plan new paths and routes within the course as it begins to wear from use. At one point of the walk Hallman and Smith both ran to the pit area, grabbed their Huskys, and rode back to better demonstrate a point being made. There were down hill practice on the trials type criss cross of the previous day, flattracking, and up and down a hill full of steps lessons. The demonstrations were fantastic. Some of the students got quite good at it... some had big trouble. Your correspondent crawled out from under his Jawa and his eyes were wet). Another half hour race for all and suddenly school was over. The faculty and student body, tired and bruised, made way to a local pizza house for beer and sympathy. Hallman stated he would return next year possibly with more European riders of his caliber. We hope the school will becom e an annual event. Smiling Malcolm Smith will, perhaps, conduct a desert riding clinic sometime next year. TROPHY FOR OUTRIDERS The largest group of outriders attending the RRC Installation Dance, January 28th will receive a trophy, RRC Chmn. J.M. Jones announced Jan. 2nd. To be eligible the outriders must be seated as a group rather than scattered throughout the hall. The dance will be held at the Anaheim Bowl in Anaheim, Admission $1.50. GO SUPER FAST with CYCLE CITY OSSA - BENELLI - SUZUKI Complete Machine Shop 2142 Lone Beach Boulevard Lone Beach - 591-1389 CANOGA PARK Twi\f~~p~ ~~ 7233 CANOGA AVE.346·3700 SIMPSON WANT THE BEST IN CYCLES AND SERVICE? USE THE DEALER & SERVICES DIRECTORY MOTORS 5475 San Fernando Rd. West Los Aneeles 39, Calli (213) 247-3068 DISTRIBUTOR of JUDSO:'ll products (im.. ludinJ.! C}c1e·Tron transi... tor i:;:-ni; lion) and FRANCISCO OILS .nd chcmi<:al'. Now that Callfornia has a governor and senator who are both film stars, I would like to start a campaign to draft Steve McQueen as Our Director of Parks and Recreation. With more than 600,000 motorcycl e enthusiasts in the state, our sport is probably the most neglected as far as having any organized recreational areas. With McQueen in public office. I am sure that we could have hundreds of acres set aside for our trailing, hill climbing, etc. I don't know how many horsemen there are in California, but it is staggerwhen you look at the tremendous amount of land that was set aside and maintained for their use exclusively. ·.. ................ It's been exciting to notice the changes that have taken place in Cycle Magazine since Ziff-Davis has taken over its publishing. Gordon Jennings and his staff should be commended for turning out the first "class' publication in the field. Their articles and layouts are. great, and their new approach to motorcycling journalism is sure to keep the competition on their toes. It's also good to note that Modern Cycle magazine has gone monthly. Their format seems to show signs that they will be trying to pick up the younger enthusiasts as readers. The days of the motorcycling magazines merely reprinting press releases that are supplied by the manufacturers are over. Competition always improves the breed, and it will be interesting to see how all of the magazines fare in light oUhe new competition from a large and powerful publishing company. racing experieac:e flICiac iB auoCber class in eaell cubic iBeIl iii villioa. The newer guys may be out looking for the trophies Ilut many of tile pro's are out to shakedown their Daytona jobs for the coming national speed week in mid-March. TriulIIPh, BSA, yamaha and Kawasaki all have new stuff for Daytona arid the Carlsbad events on January 15th and again on February 12th are the times the various distributors and riders have a chance to try them. Pit gates at Carlsbad, located just south of Oceanside, will open at 9 p.m. and close at noon. Practice for all riders runs from 9:30 to 1 p.m. The Playboys have more trophies than Sammy Tanner to give to the front runners in all classes this weekend. Actual racing starts at 1:30 p.m. with machines under 250cc's using the new shorter course for the first time. The bigger machines. 250cc and over, will again run on the same track that- is used for the 75 mile national in September. Carlsbad's Daytona preview Is coming this Sunday and don't bet that one of the entries won't win the coming 200 mile national in Florida. ·.................. I was talking with Dean Wixom recently about long distance road riding. Dean and his brother manufacture those excellent fairings and saddle bags in Long Beach. He really qualifies to comment on extended road trips having made severs,l journeys on his BMW that were in excess of 2,000 miles. To a week-end :0 = os ..., rider like myself, my first question is always "Why?· ...and I think Dean has one of the best answers and explanations for the "road riding mystique'. According to Dean, motorcycling trip is the only way to really experience all of the various elements of a journey. The sights, smells, and weather are all too often lacking when we travel by other means. "After taking a trip by bike, the same journey by automobile is about as adventurous as watching a wide screen movie. In a future column, we'll interview Dean and attempt to build a guid e for preparing for an extended road triP. As in planning for marriage, the proper preparation can prevent a lot of unpleasantness along the way. .Cycle-Delics -.........Week). ....... (Trip of the .. If you're looking for an escape from the freeways, with winding mountain roads, beautiful views and plenty of places to rest en route, it isn't always necessary to leave Los Angeles. Griffith Park consi sts of more than '1,000 acres and abou t 25 miles of roads that make an ideal afternoon outing. On a clear day, the view from the Observatory is spectacular. Both Vista Del Valle Drive and Mt. Hollywood Drive also have terrific views. Travel Town is an interesting place to stop. It is an outdoor museum cOnsisting of old steam engines and railroad cars. The steamers are all donated to the city and come from as far away as Hawaii. While On the subject of trains, the L.A ,L.S. Railroad is located on Zoo Drive just east of Travel Town. It is the meeting place for one of the most unusual group of hobbyists. LALS stands for the L{)s Angeles Live Steam rail road and has several home made working steam engines, They run on an expansive layout consisting of bridges. turntables, etc. Most of the engines are about 6 to 8 feet long and pull some scale freight cars that occasionally carry passengers. If you don't mind crowds, the new zoo is worth seeing; but that is really a whole afternoon in itself. . There are also several restaurants and snack bars, making it easy to spend and entire day at the park. Now. if they would just let us use those bridal paths for trail bikes...perhaps one day a week.... ·....... ........... GOOQ(jE411 Our sportis really getting art.y ...have you heard that a Bell 500-TX helmet is on permanent display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York••• along with some modem furniture and some other gadgets, it's supposed to be one of the best designed items in our modem society. ~ ., BLUE STREAK MOTOR RACER r.ow A vailable in These Sizes 2.75x18 & 3.00x18 3.00x19 & 3.5OX19 Dirt Track SHELS Y Special Tires Commit Soon Artesil Blft. EN T.1139 W.(213) 3n-61&& Gardena, Calif •

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