Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1960's

THE Sunday morning threatened Imminent ratn, but soon the overcast was burning otf. There were no planned actlv1ties, so some tour members flnally made It up the hill and across the bury railroad tracks to Inspect the old Territorial Priso n. The breeze, which had been caressingly mild, began to strengthen Into a treeshaking wind. In Joe Henry Memorial Park, campers hur r ied to take down their tents and pack their machines. Others took tempor ary r efuge in cafes for breakfast or brunch. By noon, most ot thos e attending the 1968 Yuma Prison Run were on their way home . Once agatn, all roads from Yuma were filled with motorcyclists, tbls time warding otf the wind instead of the bugs. Those who were headed back to Califor nia chose one of two ma jor routes: through San Diego or through Indio. Those who went the southern way fared best. Blowing sand and high winds stopped many around Indio, They holed up in gas s tations, restaurants, or even under overpasses to es cape the wind. Most walted It out, but so me _ according to the rumor - called ahead for aid in the form of pick-ups or trailers . After suns et, the winds finally diminished. Then the Yuma Prison Run riders (who had become mor e or less Indio prisoners on their own), climbed back on their motorcycles and, under a waning, windwashed moon, headed toward the ultimate destination of any run: home. (Res ults on page 16) 1968 YUMA P R I S o N RUN Story a nd Photos by Roger Hull .Approximately 1000 motorcyclists Invaded the city of Yuma, Ar izona on the weekend of March 16 and 17. They took over, meeting at every Inter s ection and ambling up and down every street. Small groups of riders, standing about In parkIng lots , waved at other small gr oups cycling by. In short, for two days , Yuma belonged to alien motorcyclists. What's more, It's happened to Yuma seven times In as many years. Local newspapers took note of tbls "rumble," but other papers across the country didn' t bother. Maybe It was because the townspeople of Yuma look for war d to tbls annual return almost as much as the ci tizens of San Juan Capistrano anticipate the return of the swallows. (And, strangely enough, both events usually occur ai about the same time .) Unlike the swallows whose flocks seem to grow smaller annually, the Yuma Invaders grow larger each year • Sponsored by the Nor walk Centaur s Motorcycle Club (which doesn' t have a s ingle member living In Nor walk), the 7th Annual Yuma P ris on Run started fro m anywhere and fln1s hed a t the Joe Henry Memorial Park In Yuma at L p.m, Saturday, March 16. (That was 2 p.m., Arizo na time , a compli ca tion which confused a good many Cali forn ia r iders who insisted on maln1alnlng Pacific Coast Time on their watches.) The Centaur s had received 44 5 mall entries prior to the tour, expected a hundred or so post entries at Yuma. But, by noon, the line at the post entry table stretched back Into the eucalypytus trees of the park, and later beca me even longer . " Our official total Is 847 registrations," Paul 1mset, President of the Centaur s, reported. " But we know that there are a couple of hundred who haven't signed up. Anyhow, It' s the biggest turn out we've ever had ." The host club, which totals 11 members ended up with about 100 motorc ycli ng tourists per member . They. s tarted to arrive - solo, In pat rs, and In group s Friday evening . (Had they been going to Capistrano, they would have been known as «scoutsv.) By Saturday mor ning, the highways leading toward Yuma wer e dotted by machines - and the machines were dotted with bugs. The area was Infested with large Ins ects which exploded In a brilliant yellow acr oss sever al Inches of windshield. A smaller type, splashed a pr et ty pur ple . The r es ult was that most of the motorcycles lined up at the sign-In poin t looked like some s ort of pop art exhibiti on; a one- man show by Jackson Pollack. Cyclists congregate at the fin ish, Joe Henry Memorial Park. Fie ld meet c ontestants try their hand at the • sl ow race. " It's what's Up FRONT that COUNTS! The huge croup of parade participants head for K..~edy P ark. After de-bugging, the first scheduled event of the weekend then began - the parade. It for med at the olf1cial finish area (which also served as cam pgrounds for those who did not detect to the lessrugged comfort of a motel). Although not ali tour members took part In the procession across town to Kennedy Memorlal Park, most did. The parade through Yuma has come to be one of the major events of the tour. One motorcycle patrol otflcer who held up traffic at an Intersection for more than 20 minutes while the tour paraded by was as ked If he had counted. "I tried," he said, shaki ng his head, "but I lost track along toward the last there." How many had he reached when he became confused ? "Well, damn nea r 700." There were at least that many at Kennedy Park for the Judging and field meet Saturday afternoon. The temperatur e roamed up to the low 80' s while entries in the best dressed judging gathered under the deser t blue s ky, which was slashed by streaks of cir r us clouds . The fir st judging was for club entrie s then for Individuals . Meanwhile , at th~ far si de of the park, the field mee t got underway. Spectators wandered back and for th, occasionally pausing to s tar up at the ae r obat r ics performed by the Blue Angels. (In addition to the motorcycle r un, Yuma was having an ai r s how at the nearby Marine facilities .) Starting at 5 0 ' cloc k, the bean s upper was available at the H.H. Donker s ley Post of the American Legion, just a few blocks south of the Par k ac tiviti es. Once wor d got around that chow was ready, the tleld meet lost many of its watchers and the crowd around the Judging acti: vities melted away. Hungry riders ate together at the long tabl es where everybody knew ever ybody els e whether they had met betor e or not. The major mean s of starting a conversation with a stranger was: "Watch out for that tort1Ila sauce - it ' s hot enough to try your fillings." After a couple ot hour s of tree-time the tour r econvened for a dance (wes ter n style combo) and presentation of the trophies . Soon atter the 8 p.m, start, the Hal l was tilled with dancing, laughing r iders. Many displayed club uniforms or colors. Among the bouncing mass were spotted such gr oups as : Los Cabeller os , Singing Wheels , Valley Vagabonds , Oxnar d MIc, Overlanders, Nuggets, Lucky Wheels, Freight Jockeys, Crowns, Jaspers, HI- W Kings, Saddlelites, Pacific ay Coas ter s, Road C r u I s e r s , Spinning SPokes, Arizona MIc, Mary 'S Men, Ar tes ia Pioneers, Silver Eagles, and the Riding Roulette s . Trophies, handed out In two sessions, were cons truc ted as little woodenprison cells , complete with a s mall prisoner, topped by a rider and his mac hine When all the awards had ben pr e: sented, it was nearly closing time. Because of the difference In state laws bars can stay open one hour longer Winterhaven, over on the Cal ifor nia side of the r ider . Some cycli s ts took advantage of this extra hour , Other s had a midnight snack In Yuma and decided they preferred an extra hour ot s leep • u: A.C.E. RIM ~ACK Dlllri buled by: AMERICAN COMPETITION ENGINEERI NG 163 S. 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