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/125625
Note now MacDoulfe has twisted nls neck to avoid Injury to his back. He sustained a sliCht neck sprain and will have to talk out of the comer of
It's a nice, ne"OUBY feellnr you set
on the start:1ng l1De for the first ttme. I
sat there amonc all those rea111ve rlICers and tried not to look too DerTllUS.
Ten 0' clock rolled aroUDd and tile
starting banner was dropped. EDc1Des,
about one hlllldred of them, eJlPloded1Dto
noise and everybody was d!. EYerybody
but MacDouffee that Is. I had lorgotte11
·to turn the gas on and by the time I was
started some of tile dust bad seWed.
I bounced almost througb tIleftrstloop
and l1na1ly caught sight of the grove at
trees that marked the finish. My lboaIbt
at the time was, "My Goodness, I b&ft to
do that two more times?"
Well, I did It two more times and got a
little faster. A l1tt1e too fast, I expect,
for I got a heavy taste of sand IIaJ1way
through the last loop. Dave warren 1IIIS
there and got a good action sbot. Note
how I agUely twisted my neck to keep
from hurting my back. I got back 011 and
managed to pass one guy who had gone by
me. He was Ia.ughlng so hard I hope he
lost control and crashed himself.
The finish line was easy to 11Dd, what
with all the campfires burning so brightly. Denise was waiting for me with a jar
full of Gator Ade, and sml11ng because I
had finished. She brought me a toothbrush
and I got most of the sand out from between my teeth by bed time.
SundaY was more of the same, only I
was a little faster. It still Idnda hurt to
have those girls on Hodakas pass me but
you've gotta keep plugging away. Guess
It'll be a wh1Ie before we are reaQy ID
tackle the Speed Week festiV1t1es at
Daytona but it's best to aIm h1gh...
~sm"~~a~~M~.(D~W~~P~toJ • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •~
•
By Leon MacDouffe
All you motorcycle riders out there
-wIlo have never raced one of the famous
Southern Callforn1a desert events may
have wondered from time to time whatlt
feels like ID get out in the sand and
churn up the rea.! estate.
We talked to Jack Ross, president of
the GreyhoundS M.C., several weeks ago
and he told us the Ponderosa would be an
Idea.! place for a beginner so we agreed
to show up saturday and SundaY. That
was k1nd of a mistake; I had tile pre-race
jitters for two weeks.
Being a rank, ranIt, novIce, I squeezed
tennis IJa.1ls and rode every night after
work at Dominguez Hills trying ID beat
mY tired bodY InlD shape. The first night
Denise and r went out there r rode hard
for what seemed like hours and then
came back to the truck. "Get back out
there, you big sissy, you've only been
riding for ten m1nutes," Denise said
encouragingly. It went like that for the
weeks prior ID the race; each day I'd
increase the time until I could stay out
for about an hour of riding without my
arms fa111ng off.
Some guy named Gary Batley came out
there one day and was watching me ride.
He gr1nned a lot and said he had never
seen anyone ride quite I1te that. Guess it
was a compliment•••Gary lives right
across the street and said he was attracted by the durability of my Matchless. He said anything that would keep
runnlng after being on Its side in the dirt
so much must be a good machIne.
Denise and Wb1zzer and I went to Ascot
the night before my big race just to get
in the right mood and then left for the
desert 1mmed1a.tely after. Our old Ford
truck chugged fa.1thtully through the San
Fernando Valley and climbed out of the
Los Angeles Ba.s1n. We thought the smog
was unusually heavy for nighttime but It
turned out to be the windshield. The truck
Is so old, the windshield has started to
purple like the old glass hoWes people
hunt in the desert.
We stopped in Lancaster, Cal., at
Denny's restaurant for a. spot of breakfast and were treated to the local loudmouths beating their chests in pride at
being able to drink a pitcher of beer and
then finding a pIa.ce to ea.t. Guess there
Isn't much else to do in Lancaster unless
you have a motorcycle...
We found the Ponderosa area fUteen
mUes east of town on straight, lonely
Avenue J and drove a.s quietly as we
could through the campsite until we found
a space. We got in two hours of sleep
before the first two-stroke alarm clock
went off. Jack Ross briefed me on race
procedures and suggested I go around the
course once to find out what it was like.
I did and we almost packed UP and went
home right there. The torture started
right at the beginning. 100 yards of deep
sand Is a hell of a way for a novice to
begin his racing career. The sand was
nice compared to the whoop-te-doos,
though. Miles and miles of roller coaster
personally formed bY the Marquis de
Sade made up two-third of the nine- m11e
loop. Denise and I tried to do all the last
minute essentials and soon race time
was uPOO us.
Bergquist
TEALS ANOTHER
IIIUIDIDO
st OVERALL
Desert Turtles M.C. Hare Scrambles
July 4, 1969
1st OVERALL
Larry BergqUist
EI Bandido 3&Occ
43.5 H.P,
580cc power - 250cc weight
e
tnnel
'lie AFM 250 mile Production Road Race
l!l69
Cleghorn & Eric Leighton
co Metralla MK II
otocross Winner
Eugene, Ore.
_ a_ - _Paul Johnson -- July 3, 1969
Bultaco PurSCIlg
_
_Winner of 250cc Heal, T. D., Main, Hand. Main
Aurora Speedway - July 4, 1969
Paul Johnson - Bullaco PurSalg & Sherpa S
Wins 125cc - 200cc - 250cc Classes
Aurora Speedway - July 5, 1969
Paul Johnson - Bultaco PurSCIlg & Sherp
Wins 125cc - 200cc - 250cc Classes
Asbury Park, Ore. - July 6, 1969
Paul Johnson - Bullaco PurS~"'''I''''1"·
Wins 125cc - 250cc Main &T
Plus Sweepstakes (ridin
BULTACO EI Montadero 360cc Enduro.
The Dirt Bike You Can Ride On· The Street
Functional Beauty: Black and White with red
striping • swing arm pivots through the rear engine mount • Femsa system • geared primary
drive • 32mm Amal Concentric carb • 4 speed
drum-shifter box • new air filtration system •
reinforced wheel hubs • heavy-duty rear chain •
heavy-duty alloy rims •
ENGINE
Number of cyl inders . . . . . 1
Cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 2 stroke
Bore and stroke
. 85 x 64 mm.
Oi splacement . . • . . . . . . 362.8 cc.
Compression ratio . . . . . • 9:1
Brake horsepower . • . . . . 32.5 HP
Alloy cyl inder head hand alloy cylinder with
hardened liner
GENERAL MEASUREMENTS
Gas-tank capacity. . . . .•
2'1> U.S. gallons
(9,5 I itres)
Wheel base. . . . . . . • . •. 56" (1420 m/m)
Handlebar available on upper yoke or stanchions
clip-on
Saddle height above ground 31" (785 m/m.)
. 10.4" (263 m/m.)
Ground clearance
Footrest height
. 11.2" (285 m/m.)
Height of air intake
. 29.5" (750 m/m.)
Weight (empty)
. 251 Ibs. (114 Kgs.)
So. of Kern Counly Line
Easlern Slates
BULTACO WESTERN
CEMOTO EAST IMPORTING CO.
10Q2Q Chandler Blvd.
No Hollywood, Cailf. 91601
P.O. Box 20
,Schenectady, N. Y. 12301
(213) TR 7-2400
No. of Kem Co. Line
(518) 372-4721
BULTACO AMERICAN, LTD.
2765 Scott Blvd.
Santa Clara, Calif. QSOSO
(408) 241-4672
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