Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1960's

CYCLING THROUGH CENTRAL AMERICA PART "-' = ~ SALES Co) SERVICE HOCKIES MOTORCYCLES HO DAKA GREEVES OSSA Compl,t. Macbln. Shop Fa cilities 22025 So. F iguerpa Torrance, Cal ifornia (213) 328-1242 CROWELL'S CYCLE SHOP BULTACO EL BANDlDO 350 &360 S ID P K LATES 525.00 10427 Prarle Av.. Inglewood 2, California After tea ching history to high school students for five yea r s in Marathon, Florida, Julian Clinkscales, a thirtyseven-year-old bachel or , dec ided to call it quits and take a trip around the world on his BMW. Julian planned to sail by freighter fr om continent to conti nent and in turn cycle across each country. Us ing a world globe as a reference he considered the most favorable international climates and the best season of the year in which to tour each country. When feasible, the former tea cher would try working at various jobs to help defray expenses , as well as doing plenty of sight-seeing. (He would also use American Express travelers checks and their offices as a mail stop.) In June, when the school term had expired, Cllnks cales visited his family. who own and operate a large pecan grove near M 0 n t g 0 mer y , Alabama. Shortly thereafter, packing little more than a camera and clothing necessities in his saddlebags, he headed west. Wheeling from sunup to dusk, the hard-ridlng cycle aficionado crossed the country in three days. His first prolonged stop was to be spent picking fr ult in the lush fruit orchards of the Wenatchee Valley in the State of Washington. For the ensuing three months , liVing in small town hotels and using his bike for transportation, Julian followed the harvest on the West Coast. Tough Enough ' By December he had gradually drifted to Southern Cali for nia, his classroom muscles now toughened by the strenuous farm work. With winter approaching and the be. ginning of the dry season in Mexico and Centr al America, Clinkscales decided it was ti me to head so uth of the bord er . Desirous of crossing part of the Southwest on his two- wheeler , J ulian headed east for Nuevo Laredo and the Mexi can bor der . On the long, nat stretches of Texas highways , he opened up the throttle and continuously cr uised at top spee ds . Any fear s of running out of gas on the barren pr ai rie r oads wer e alleviated by his oversize gas tanks. Incl uding two reserve tan ks , he could r un up to 400 miles before stopping to r efuel . Upon r ea ching Laredo, Texas, the wander ing teacher had cover ed about 30,000 mil es throughout the United Sta tes s ince acquiring his German machine over a year ago. With no more than r outi ne maintenance it had per f o r m e d beautifully. TOP TRADE m Ot~ NEW ~ 'l., 00 ~ ..... .,; ~ -.:: ~ 10:1 1 B y J a ck Maloney ~ appreciated the opportunity to speak English and enjoyed the American's travel tales. The following morning Clinkscales cr os sed the GUatemalan border at Tapachula and followed the coastal road into the capital. He was surprised upon seeing numerous soldiers patroling the highways as well as policing the streets of downtown Guatemala City . . The new government, it seemed, was trying to discourage and put an end to raids on border towns by Communistinspired bandits. (Continued Next Week) F rom Nuevo Laredo it was appr oximately 3100 mil es if a motorist follo wed the famed Pan-A merican highway all the way down to the Panama Canal Zone. The warm Texas wea ther su ddenly became cold, influencing the travellng Floridian to stay over for two days in a Laredo hotel, waiti ng for it to turn warm. His r emovable saddlebags were a gr eat convenience when checki ng in or out of hotel. However, it was still freezing when Cll nkscal es cr ossed over the Sierra Madre (Occidental) mountains to Monterrey, the col d finally for cing him to stop about 220 miles fro m Nuevo Laredo in saltillo, a srna' mountain village. In the morning, ~eaving Saltillo, Julian continued on his way, again cr os s ing rocky desert territory and ever climbing the steep, cli ff- hanging roads. a In The Boonies The only sign of visible lif e In this desolate Mexican country was an occasional small wayside village or a few grazing herds of livestock. Cows, goats and horses continuous ly wandered on and off the main highway. In the daytime they could readlly be seen; however, at night they presented a constant riding hazard. Two hundred miles south of Saltillo, Clinkscales stopped for the night in zacatecas, an old Spanish mining city, understandably chllly at an elevation of 7,000 feet. The next morning, which was clear and sunny , he headed south for Guadalajara and the Pacific Coast, the country changing from desert to semi-tropi cal. Vegetation and crops were abundantly growing in the inhabited valleys of this lonesome countr y. It was early evening when J~ reached Guadalajara, where heavy ci ty traffic moved at a fast pa ce, and was in complete contr as t to the sparseness of the rural areas. The foll owing mor ning, whll e having his cycle serviced at a motorcycle sh op (BMW dealer ), C II n k s c a I e s was appr oac hed by a wealthy Mexican ranch owner, who spoke excellent Engli sh and offered to buy his bike. Despit e the fact that the for me r teacher could have made a good profit, he declined, as the sale would have been lllegal in Mexico. Rela xing a few days in Guadalajara, Julian was sur prised upon learning that the young and lovely des k clerk at his hotel was al so the owner. After taking her for s everal r ides in the su r rou ndlng countryside, they became well acquainted. Two young and very pretty cocktail waitresses , who wor ked in the hotel' s lounge, he also took for r ides on the back of his machine . 'llIIink lIIe Benelli i50cc is lIIe fastest 250cc in lIIe country' (Gordon J'M lnes Editor Cycl. Maeuln.) FOR DEALER INFORMATION IN SELECTED AREAS Write: Jesse C. Levine National Sales Manager COSMOPOLITAN MOTORS, INC. DepL A., 5521 Wayne Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19144 (213) OR3-9513 Pause That Refreshes The form er teacher quic kly lea rn ed that his cycle was an open invitation and an easy way to meet native senor itas . As a r es ult he stayed a few more days in Southe rn Mexico than anticipated. When stopping in small villages, Clinks cales found out that most of the Campesinos, especially the childr en, were curious about him and his motorcycle. He was often asked: "Are you an Americana?" " Where are you fr om?" " Wher e are you going?" etc. Sometimes Julian gave a few of the little boys and girls a r ide around the village square. From the deli ghted chlldrn he always learned a few more words of Spanish. After staying two nights in Moralis, wher e Mexican life still moves at a slow and easy pace , the lone rider hea ded for Mexico City. Travel was diffi cult as the road wound tedl ously through rugged mountaln tops. The country was inhabited maiilly by primitive Indians, Reaching Mexico City and maneuvering through onrushing tr affic was similar to that of any large American city - danger ous . After a night club tour and watching the excitement of a Sunday bullfight , Cli nks cal es started for Guatemala. The mountainous terrain gave way to dense jungle vegetation and flattened out as he foll owed the coastal road paralleling the Bay of Tehuantepec. It now became hot enough to use his cycle fan. Stopping by a roadside stand to get a cold drink, Julian was approached by one of four Mexican men whohad stopped in a small truck. The driver, who wanted to buy Cli nkscal es ' wrist-watch, became indignant when he refused to sell it. AT LAST SUPER TUN~D PIPE FOR BULTACO Custo m fitted , tuc ke d i n 2 1/ 2 more i nc hes. All o ws Greater L eg Room. ALSO Upswept Desert Pip'e [or NEW 350 & 360cc Bultsco EI Bandido Designed [or more horsepower available through W ELTV'S MOTORCYCLES 21114 Devonshire St. Chatsworth, Calif. 91311 (213) 341-3840 Expert service 01 all makes & models Pipe Designed and Built By TORQUE ENGINEERING NOW What? Five minutes after the men had departed in their truck, Jul ian became dis mayed upon discovering that his ignition key was mis sing from his motorcycle. One of the tru ckers had s urreptitiously ta ken it, leav ing him stranded in the middle of nowhere. He didn' t carr y a spare key. A s hor t tim e later, two Campss tno truckers also stopped for a drink. By crossing and connec ting sever al of the exposed wires, one of them s howed the worried cycli s t how to s tart his keyless engine. That night, stopping in a small vlllage at a large guest house , the chagrined exteac her was extremely plea s ed when the proprietor, a University of Mexico medi cal student , r efused any sort of payment for the night 's loding or br eakfast. He PIRELLI TIRES STArlDARD ON CLYMER INDIANS Word was jus t received at Cosmopolitan Motors , Inc. exclusive U.S. importer and ditributor of Pirelli ti r es that Floyd Clymer , manufac turer of the new Indian line of motorcycles, has select ed Pi relli as standard equipment on all his cyc les . Mr . Clymer said the r ea son he selected Pi relll is " thei r world wide popularity and the fact that there are so many good sub-distributors and dealers replacements can be had from hundreds of Pirelli de a le r s across t h e United States ." Clymer is al so considering PireUi ,for his new Mammoth cycle. BRIDGESTONE «Ii ~GTR THE HO TTEST 350 GOING ....... For til, unto.- ot your nea' ist So. C>lt: IIcCuI_ DI.tr.lnc. (213) 772·2101 ..::l ;:... Co)

• Cover