Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1960's

~ t Co." •••4 fro. ,.,. 13 tn the center of a very busy Par18 street ~ with gobs of tramc comtng at him. A truck nearly bit the guy and the wbole street was tied uP. From the blast of the ~ multitude of borns we heard, we gather~ ed that another battle of passion was t.:l sbaping UP beh1nd us. Cbert and I really -.J giggled over that Uttle episode. U Even simple everyday processes Uke going tID the tIDllet can be a whole new experience tn Europe. Once tn France we stopped at a roadside rest tID eat lunch and go tID the can. Cheri went tn the aide marked "dames" and I wenttntID the other side marked "messielD's".I opened the door tID one of the stalls and found, . notbtngl Just a square porcelatn recess tn the floor with a bole tn the middle. Then I recalled hearing about tbls type of tID1let from someone at bome. Nowthe operation for tbls model Is pretty stmple, and being pretl;y almple myself, I 80ClD bad it figured. In the procelatn recess are two foot sized protrusions wblch are for, you guessed It, your feet. You step ootID the feet prints, back over the hole and !loPe you don't fall In. Now, step two. How tID fiush said tlDUet? I searched all about the stall and only found a sort of chrome buttlDn on the wall. I pushed It. The entire room Qusbed. I fought for my Ute. I stepped back ontID the two feet prints tID get a Uttle b1gber ground. Ftnally the deluge ceased. What a diabol1ca1 deY1cel Gettlng back to the car Cheri was laugblng at me because of my wet pants and shoes. She knew what bad ba,ppened because she bad a a1m1lar experience and ber boots were wet also. Be forewarned If you stop at a French tlDUet of tb1s type. Either wear b1p bOots, or make SlD'e you step out before you fiosh. Then push the knob, and run for yOlD' Utel In many ElD'opean publlc toUets they have what Cberl and I refer to as the "Special assistant to the commode", or more simply, the "tIDllet lady". These lovely ladles are even tn the men's room and they are stationed near or tnside the door. The restrooms are free tID enter, but you must pay the Uttle lady to get out. The tariff Is usually about $.04 tID $.08 and they wW make change If need be. The first time I found out about tbls business was a time when I was tn Brussels with John Banks. We passed through a train ststlon 011 our way UP tlDwn and decided tID visit the men's room. I was somewhat surprised at seeing a women tn the lavatlDry, but I just passed it off as another European custom. Everytbtng WIlIIt f1ne until I started out the door. Then &be got me. I didn't know what she wanted at first but I savia small plate with cotns tn it. John came tID the rescue and aplatned tb1s bit of folklore tID me. He didn't know bow it or1g1nated, but apparently the toilet ladles get 110 salary but the two francs theY get from CIl G "1ft 01 'Uf.' &0 "'B~" O~ wear. The best ihtng abOut EuroPe tID me Is the ractng. That Is what I came for. I came tID learn .how to ride a motorcycle. It Is dlfflcult to come from the higher echelon of motocross In the U.S. tID start at the bottom all over again tn Europe. ThIs year bas been very discouraging to me at times. I knew I would not come over here and blow all the "big kids" off. The "big kids" go fast and ride rough. The courses bere are mucb rougher than bome. You cannot visuaUze bow mucb rougber they are. I wrote at the first of the year that I rode a course where both ends of the suspension bottlDmed at the same time, but I found I could go faster than the "big kids" througb tb1s type of rough. I did not know why I could go quicker then, but I found out later. From the first of the year I rode with Curnutt sbocks. I use them tn the States as well. The sbocks are what enabled me tID get through the bOIIecrushtng bumps at a higher rate of speed than the others. On the day of that race, there were six broken frames during the COlD'se of the event, and many destroyed sbocks. Well that course was not the '1S10.S, (J1I••E.S A" LO'rE. E ••S? ·"'!rJ/~_A1.AII" flrat IInl. flrat flrat Firat .-ch per-. Two traDc:8 Is 0DI7 $,.04. Sometimes at ntcht we go tID the maries. That Is IUlOtber dtrect link with bome. Most maries are tn EncUsh, and tb1s Is bow the Belgians pick uP our language SO eas1ly. The most expensive seats tn any Gent theatre, are only 50 francs ($1.00). Their sbows are different from ours tn several ways. First they don't have pop corn. Booooor Next the goodies are brougbt around tID the audience by girls rather than having a central snack bar. In Holland they serve beer tn the ctnemas. One tblng we have noticed Is the lack of drlve-tns In Europe. We have seen only one, and that Is on the outskirts of Antwerp. Apparently It ratns too much tID make them profltable. Eatlng Is a wbole new tblng bere. For $,,20 you can buy an order of Belg:tan "frltes" wbich are frencb fries. They are served with a cbotce of pickles,. onions, stew, bot mustard, tartar sauce, or the most popular, mayonna1se. The last Item may sound bad, but until you have tried It, don' t knock It. It Is really good. KetcbuP doesn't exist on frencb fries bere. Another deUcacy Is escargots or snalls (I pass). We eat a vast array of foods now, from Swedish meat balls tID "dagsbolel" wbicb Is a sausage based meat wrapped tn veal. The only tbtng we are missing Is Mexican food and good pizza. I am cIitnlr for a bunch of tacos, or eocbUadas•. or a huge pizza. RACING CASTOR Flnt.- Cutor lube thlt blends perfeclly .nd pennonenlly with g..... Clstor lube containing a seal Porservlll.1 and conditioner. eastor lube that lea.e. no carburetor or crankcase deposit•. Ca.tor lube that practically ellmlrillte. smoke, seizures and Firat Castor tube to recommend a 32 to 40 to III__ MII! 1 ga.. oll ratl~ for Firat Caator lube to pro.a Its superiority through performance lor the paot decade. 10D' CYCLE 80WL firsts D.nis Robln.n,. aateur, Wins !J heat raclS and !J main eVES for lIIe lOOcc Hlp Point Trophy. FInishing third Ov. ." on the "Btu"'ltt/t" Hodaka Van Tech. Dependability Pars Off Proof Positive K_, Roberts 250cc Expert High Point 250cc and High Point Overall WillDer, riding the Aksland ~zuki using "Bte.ttt,a«" •••' f " f•• GO ,.II., ,,.'.s.f ilst is , ••11 - f••, ••, ...... "Btuut,all" "Btu"'latt" "EJ:eet,a«" RACING CASTOR GOLD LABEL POWER 800STER SUPER FILlll Mfd. B, Addzlp Acldltlves 143)·37 Flut Strllt E.sCllon. Calif. 95320 (1Il!) 131·7512 ro\lllbest circuit have on the year I ran tntID a circuit that was so rough my sbocks proved tID be stronger than the shock mounts. I severely bent the sbock mounts and even broke one on • the swing arm assembly. The start system at the International motocrosses Is predominately the metal gate. There Is a bar about ten 1nches off the ground and stretcblng clear across the start area. You put your front wheel against the bar, engage the clutch, and walt for the bar tID pivot away from you and drop. There Is no cheatlng on tbls type of bar. Three weeks ago In France I started against a "suPer-bar", the hlgbest gate I have ever seen. In the typical French fashion of overdoing a good tbtng, they had a start gate that was 20 Inches high. It WItS a huge cbunk of tubing, wire, levers, and pulUes. At the starts you could look down througb the metal-work and see the triggering device being pulled to drop tile gale. Then, the cumbersome gate would begin tID move, and with agon1Z1ng slowness, the bar would fall forward Uke the door to the Inner Sanctum, and crash to the ground lettlng you take off. It was dumbl In the actual combat of the race you wtll find the competition to be about ten times fiercer than tn the U.S. Ifyou pass a man tn the U.S., be usually stays passed, but tn Europe they don't give uP. You may pass the same guy five or six times tn one race. Or someone you pass tn the early stages of the race wWgo on tID win. Each race I learn sometbtng new, and now I am trying to apply my newfound knowledge to go faster. You cannot compete here unless you can do everytblng by tnstlnct. If you have to tb1nk about a move, it takes too long. You must react tID reacb the top of the heap. After the event comes the worst part of the day: worse than that bad down-blll, worse than that handle-bar-deep mudbole, worse than the off-camber sections, and worse than the 70 mph down blll jumP. The trauma I am ta1Jdng about Is collectlng your bard earned pay. If you are lucky, the organizers wU1 be organized. That means you wW getYOlD'bread around 7: 30 at the track. If you are unlucky, and tbls Is typical, you wU1 have to go tnto the nearby town to some tiny beer Jotnt and walt until 8:30 or 9:00 tn the eventng. There Is always a crowd of other riders who are just as anxious as you tID get their money and a lot of complatntng goes on. But the complatnts never helP. Just a wbile ago we went tID a race where they paid the tropbles tn a large hall after the race. The presentatlOII did not start until 9: 00. Then after a long and drawn out atfalr, It was announced that the money would be paid at a bar just down the street. So everyone bad tID pue 1ntID their cars and drive three mUes tID a bar. We waited until 11:30 before we got paid. Now we are coming bome. In my letters I ban tried tID give an Idea of what it Is Uke to Uve and race tn Europe. I know I cannot say tbls Is how It Is, or that Is bow It Is, because eacb person who comes here wW have different experiences. But I do bope that all Americans wbo come tID Europe enjoy their stay as much as we haft. /tt#IIIIJ/;" AtOll"tI I ~~ By Maureen Lee The scrambles stewards, espec1al1y tn the Ugbtwe1gbt and ultra-Ughtwelght divisions have mentioned some pbone calls they get every time the potnt standtngs are prtnted tn the papers. Apparently some riders tb1nk they receive potnts every time they ride at the local tracks and then get a Uttle sbook when they ftnd out they don't have as low a number as they feel they've earned. So If you're a rider who Is not too clear on tbls, we'll explatn. No, you don't get DIstrict 37 potnts when you ride the un-sanctioned night races at Perris and Elstnore or the Sunday races at Adelanto and Hunt1ngtlDn. What you do get Is Vllluab1e experience on those tracks for the point runs thrown there and most of these tracks keep their own point system for their own races. Trophies are awarded at the end of the year along with other goodies. You should have seen the size of the Perris tropbles last yearl BIggest we've seen tn many a moon. But the only way tID lower that plate number or tID transfer from Novice on uP to Expert Is by riding the potnt runs thrown by a District 37 sanctioned club. , That remtnds us of a story about a baPpentng when these night races started. An Expert card bolder showed UP tID ride one and naturally went to enter the Expert Division. He was asked If he bad ever ridden those races before and the answer was no. The poor boy was put In the Novice class wblcb he proceeded tID blow tn the weeds but what all and sundry said to blm when they saw the results was rougb to say the least! Cberry picking was a mUd termr But they have changed tbtngs. stnce then but that tale makes a good bit of bench racingl We swallowed some pride the other nlgbt and went tID see "Hell's Angels '69" and have tID admit we enjoyed It. Why? It was downrlgbt groovy tID see guys we know In the Viewfinders doing the rtding In It, the pbotographY Is excellent (better than the picture) but best of all? The chase scene with Eddie Mulder being the "Hare" with the others the "Hounds" across great desert country. There was no identlflcatiOll, naturally, that It was "Squirrel" (who once held number OIIe heavyweight scrambles plate for you newcomers), but anyone wbo bas watcbed him ride KNEW it was Ed; b1s style Is unmistakable. It was bitcbln'l Bit we Uked best? Followtng the stlDry plot, the Angels take tID d1rt bikes tID bead out tntID the desert chasing three people. Some scenes couldn't be shot, around them with lonr shots etc. Have you ever seen an Angel trying tID ride a HusqvarDa down a shale blll? Their bag, as we know, 18 tbe road, and the marie, tID anyone who knows even a bit lI!Iout r1d1ng bikes, points out dlfferences tn a burryl R1d1nC dtrt and r1d1ng road are two different breeds of cat; you can groove 011 the road and really goof tn the dtrt. With the popularity of the M1n1- TraU bikes there Is 0118 scrambler wbo Is baving real fun with them. Larry Taylor and friends get t1Dgether tn bls back yard one nlgbt a week for racing. Larry sets UP tile program .. complete~' he says~ "I have an A Main, a B Main, a scratch Main and an All-Comers." Trouble Is the backyard.doesn't have a decent rose bush left. We hear rumors the Jack Rabbits are going to have a mini bike race at their potnt run tn Elstnore_.wonder If they know of the existence of the newest club, "The Mtnl-TraU Mob?" These cats would do anytbtng to win, Including cutting course or riding backwards on the trackl

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