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/125563
.. "" , BUSHMASTERS BEAUMONT MOTO-CROSS BASH Story and P hotos Sunday, May 19, turned out to be a real scorcher as the temperature got up Into the n1neties 10 the badlands south ot Beaumont, Ca11t. where the Bushmasters M.C. held their last mota-cross ot the season. The tra1lblkes got ott to a roaring start at 10:15 a.m, and Don Grieve led the pack across the meadowtrom the starting 110e into the brush-covered hilly area with Earl Roesler right on his taU. Don's younger brother, Ron Grieve, was In third post tion with young Larry Cook maldng every ettort to get that position for himselt. The course wound up over a big hill and down Into the draw on the other side then up a short rough hill and onto an old smooth firebreak with some wicked ottcamber turns on It , the worst at which was the last one which turned left justas the trall dropped down over the edge ot the hlll. Then across a double road, Into a big gulley, through a slldey, T .T . type right bander and a ditch, an easy left band curve, more ditches and turns and then over three fast wheelle hills . Don Grieve began to. pull a way. A hard lett and right, one more gulley and then came the big downhlll where Roeseler started galnlng again. At the start of the stralght- ~ Ri ch Walden away was a hill which r ose gradually but dropped a way quickly and Roeseler must have set som e kind of distance record on that tlrst lap as It began to look as though he would never come back down to earth. On the third lap Ron Grieve pulled a boner and Larry Cook wasted no time grabbing third place, which he held until the end. In the fifth lap Roeseler wrested the lead but Don edged him outln the last third of the lap and pulled away tor the win three laps later . They say practice makes perfect and Bob R1ley did his best to prove that old saying as he spent the night at the course getting In lots of practice and by the end of the first lap of the 250cc Moto he had a 30-second lead over Jimmy Thomas and was lapping riders by the third laP. J im Piette, B1II Gaines and Chris Smith, all Novices, were battling it outfor third place. Filially, on the third lap, SmJth passed Gaines but Johnny Isaacs came up trom behind and passed them both. Two laps later Isaacs' passed Piette to take third and began to move up on Thomas but was unable to do the job 10 the three laps which remained and had to settle for third behind Rlley and Thomas. Triumph mounted Jim Francis leadlne C.P. Calvert ( BSA). Open cl ass wimer John Bailey ( Bultaco) over an easy rl Ie. Jack Mllne(Husqvarllll ) shows fine Jum form. p Big John Balley really showed them how as he pushed his big Bultaco Into an early lead 10 the big bike moto and was never passed. David Hernandez was Impressive on his Husky as he challenged BaIley for a lap and a halt until mechanical dltflculties forced him out for a couple of laps . C.P. Calvert look over second place on the second lap ahead of a determined Dale Eckhardt whopowereo his big Matchles s around Calvert's Victor to take second on the fourth lap, The positions r emained the same for the remaining laps with Balley taking an easy win. In the second 125cc moto Don Grieve again look the lead at the start but this time It was Larry Cook who was behind him. Cook was followed by Earl Roeseler and Ron Grieve . A real battle was going on tor the lead as Grieve's lighter Hodaka would galn 10 the tight turns only to =l lose ground to the more powerful Yamaha ~ ot Cook In the taste r sec tions . On the ~~~C:d ~l~ ~efO~~o~ only to lose It In the turns. Then, Grieve began to pull away as Cook began to tire and the n Roeseler took over second on the seventh lap. With only a lap to go Grieve had to stop to change a plug, giv1llg the win to Roeseler , followed by Cook, Ron Grieve and Steve Jackson. Bob R1ley repeated his win 10 the second 250cc moto, Jim Piette was rlgbt behind him at the start followed by Bill Gaines, Jimmy Thomas and Bruce Kawell . Thomas passed Gaines late 10 the tlrst lap and Kawell also passed him when they reached thestralghtawayal the start ot lap two. Ray McCarty had been way back in tenth place but by the fourth lap he was up to Gaines and then passed him on the wheelie hllls and moved up to challenge Kawell. Kawell managed to stave at! the determined McCarty until his Husky let him down in the sixth lap. At the tinlsh it was Riley, Piette, Thomas, McCarty and Ga1nes. The starter forgot to tell the Open Class riders about a change in the course when one section became 100 torn upand John Bailey look the old, longer way around and couldn't tlgure out how he had lost the lead at the end of the first lap. On the second lap he was shown the right direction and began to close on Dale Eckhardt, taking the leail at the start of the thlrd Iap, BaIley was never passed and look the win tollowed by Eckhardt, J im Francis, C. P. CalvenandBobMolI. In the third 125cc moto Don and Ron Grieve look an early lead foll owed by Earl Roeseler, Artis Kellogg and Larry Cook. Cook passed Kellogg late 10 the firs t lap and Roeseler got by Ron Grieve early in the thlrd lap and look the lead fr om Don before the lap was over. Cook got around Ron Grieve 10 the thlrd lap and moved up to challenge Don Grieve. Then, on the last lap Cook got by Don to tlnish second behind Roeseler. The last 250cc moto was almost a repeat of the second moto with R1ley, Piette and Thomas leading. The battle was for fourth place between Allen Welco me , on aGreeves, and Yamaha-mounted Bill GaInes. GaInes led for the first couple ot laps and then Welcome look over for the next two but Gaines was bound to get fourth and with three laps to go he let out the stops, passed Welcome going down the bad downhlll and was never pushed again, There was a false start on the last big moto and on the restart three riders killed their engines . Two gave up In disgus t but Jo hn Balley, the third rider , was the re to r ace and he really new. By the end of the second lap he was third behind Eckhardt and Robert Walling . BaIley got by Walling on the third circuit and started alter Eckhardt, who had tremendous lead. With only two laps remaln1ng Eckhardt blew the win when he went down 10 a cloud ot dust on one of the bad turns on the firebreak and couldn't restart in time to f1nish any better than fltth behind Balley, Moll, Walling, and David Hernandez. 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