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/125634
Sunday's 125 Mile Nallonal eets underway. Cal (25) Rayborn led the first five laps. By Dewitt TImett Photos by D. Greene and E. Raits SEARS POINT, CAL., Sept. 6, 7, 1969AMA national road racing returned to the West Coast for the first time in three years and it looks like the new Sears Point' Raceway is just what the doctor ordered. The 2.5 mlle track, located on the north edge of San Francisco Bay, hosted the best in road rac1ng last weekend and enough happenings took place to fill a book. SuzuJd, which bad been'chasing HarleyDavidson all year long in national pavement races, put everything together th1s time and won the1r first national title in the profes$Dal ranks. Second year expert Art Baumann gave the more than 20,000 Bay area fans a silo" in the 125 mile final. The favored Cal Rayborn led the first five laps before being passed by Baumann who was never to lose the lead. ~>,; .00> _ The 50 laP national final hosted all of the factory teams with SuzuJd now becoming the first Japanese machine to win a big bore national in the USA. It was also the first time since 1967 that a 500Cc machine has won a national road race. It was also the first national win for Baumann who jumped from the Yamaha team th1s year to the Suzuki brand. Rayborn drOPped out of the race running in second place about fourteen seconds back of Baumann on the 17th laP. From that point on it was Baumann and the SuzuJd breezing along with the race reverting to second through tenth place. The two qual1fytng heat races saw Rayborn the winner of one and Yamaha mounted Ralph White on a private entry the winner of the other. White's win was the first by a private entry over the various team riders in many an outing. White dropped out of the final with engine troubles on the 14th laP runn1ng in fourth position. .. ~. Rulon GUlbranson and Dean Hummer cUd the expected' they won eolne away and took the best ' part of tile $600 purse. .. Effervescent Gatorade (or ;omethlne) was shared by Saturday's top three: Vvon Duhamel, Ron Pierce, and Art Baumann. The Harley teams good luckf1nally ran out on all but one rider. Rayborn, Mark Brelsford and Jimmy Odom all dropped by the wayside during the event. ThaUs, all but Markel who crashed in practice, was carried to the starting line for the heat race and did not come to the line for the final. H- D lost the services of Walt Fulton a week earlier when he crashed hard in aCanadianroad race (Mossport) and was replaced by Odom who rode a surprisingly good race before his engine quit. The good luck for Harley came to Mert Lawwill who fiuished fourth. This gave Mert a stretch on the nat1ooalpoints over Rayborn that may be Ullbeatable with only three more national races rema1n1ng on the schedule th1s year. All are on the dirt. Roger Reiman returned to cycle racing and placed th1rd for the best showing by the brand that has dominated big bore racing the past two years. Yamaha 350 honors went to first year expert Ron Pierce who f1n1shed second to Baumann. Yamaha dominated the top ten places on Sunday with five riders inside the select group. SuzuJd nearly scored a 1-2 f1n1sh with Ron Grant, Baumann's teammate, runu1ng in a strong second until the'Z8tblaP. Grant had taken over second when Rayborn dropped out but engine troubles forced him to the pits. Pier.ce then moved into second and held it to the f1n1sh by about a th1rd of a laP over Reiman. Ninety degree cloudless weather greeted the fans and riders and the track heat was estimated at 105 degTees. Chuck Palmgren, the Triumph team hope, pulled out of the race due to the heat while runuing in seventh on the 34th laP. Canadian Yvaon Duhamel had his troubles but came from the back to f1u1sh m8th place. Yvon crashed in practice on Friday, crashed again with a seized engine in the heat race on Sunday, and borrowed spare parts from Dan Vesco to make the final. Then Duhamel fouled his sparkPlugs on the first laP, pitted, changed plugs and came from nearly two laps off the pace to fiuish in the top ten. Factory team riders and machines again dominated the national with rookie Tom Rockwood the first privateer across the f1u1sh line in sixth place aboard the Mel Dinesen Yamaha 350. Baumann and Pierce were the two riders with the best averages in the two day event. Yamaha again swept the 250 class final, taking seven of the first ten places with factory and private entries. Pierce, a member of the American Yamaha factory team, scored his first major win th1s year by leading the 250 final from wire to wire. Duhamel chased all the way but had to settle for second in both the heat and the final for his first 250 defeats of the year. Saturday's 250cc championship eets started on the 2.5 mile, 11 turn course. 125 MILE SMRS ~~ SEA Interna POINT Top, Vvon (5) Duha left, champaCDe shower when you're tired, tile