Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

~,MERT ~ t.:l Z WINS ASCOT HALF MILE By Dewitt Thuett Photos by Dennis Greene t.:l GARDENA, CAL, April 17, 1970- Hang onto your hats, the Ascot half mile sea;,., son Is under way eacn and every Friday U night! While the crowd hung onto their lids last Friday night the riders, especlally the Experts, let it all hang out in the best season opener yet., - National champMert LaWw11i showed uP to Introduce the new Harley-Davidson 750. Sideldck Mark Brelsford showed uP on the older 750 that , won the Ascot national and state title for Lawwillin '69. t3 f1n1sh line and five officials ruled it a tie. The Dash was a bash all the way with Lawwill topping Brelsford,' Rockwood and Lacher. By now everybody knewthat big things were coming in the final. But first came the Expert Semi-Main. This event has long been one of the nightly Barn-Burners as it Is the last chance for the money and the final. Five riders rode it down to the wire. First time Experl Terry Donaher on the ancient Velo 500 uPset the troops and won. Rockwood had to gas it full bore on the last turn to take fourth and final transfer. Houchins and Shorty Seabourne Main Events at Ascot on the same weekend. ' Mark jumped to a good lead over Mert with Rockwood passing five riders in the first two laps. Tom then went to work on fellow Triumph rider, Gene Romero. Gene held for two laps before giving way. Next it was Rockwood catching Lacher. Mel tried to hold and diced back and forth for three laps before Tom went blasting by and into a distant third with the two Harley riders a full straightaway in front. Lawwill was hanging close in second but unable to close the gap on his young run. The Main Event time was the third fastest ever turned on the fastest half mile in the West. Tod Slnan f1na1ly put it all together to take the Amateur Main Event win over the returning Ric Holly who raced in the East most of last season. Don Emde showed the same class that he displays in road racing to f1n1sh third over Kris Bakke. Milo Walz started a three rider chain reaction type spill in the Amateur Semi that took Freddie Edwards high intO the air and into the crashwall, Eldon Hinkle also went down hard. Surprisingly all Tom Rockwood slips under Mark Brelsford In the third to last lap of Friday night's half mile duel at Ascot Park. Mort La_III won the final on his speelaltwln carb XR 750, aiD Brelsford was there to make It one-lwo for Harley-Davldson before Rockwood made his bid. Tom Rockwood showed uP on the new Danlly Macias 650 Triumph and therein lies the story of the first half mile of the new season. Mert, Mark and Tom took three of the top four times in time trials with Dave Smith and a Triumph tak1ng the other. Mert opened the action with a heat race win over Gene Romero and Rockwood with the fastest five lap time ever recorded for a season opening heat race. Brelsford countered with a win over •69 point champ Mel Lacher and Lloyd Houchins and a near identical time as Lawwill's. The final heat race for. the Experts produced one of the few dead heat ties In the history of the track. Paul Conserrle and his 750 Norton caugh~ Smith at ,the were sandwiched in between for second and third. Seabourne did not get the new D1ck Kelm Yamaha 650 completed in time (or the race so Shorty was once again riding the 500 BSA single. Once again he did everything but fall completely off on two occasions but stayed uP to-make the final. Ascot has recorded many thrillers over the years since 1957 but the Expert final last Friday will rank with the best. Lawwill and Breslford started uP'front, Rockwood started last, outside in row two. It was an instant lead for Brelsford as he was set to go for a win to match his TT win from the night before. Only one other rider had ever won back to back sideldck. Rockwood kept closing by two and three lengths a lap. On the tenth lap Brelsford came out of turn two too hot and the back wheel did a dance. This shot Lawwill into the lead and now Rockwood was just a few lengths back in third. Tom moved by Mark for second two laps later-and two laps were left to go. The crowd, right down ,to the youngest Idd, was on their feet the last tworounds with Rockwood now closing on Lawwill. The Triumph TIger and the national champ took it down to the wire with Mert still holding at the f1n1sh to extend his win streak to four straight from the end of last season to the start of the new year. All three riders will again be on hand this coming Friday nlght for a repeat three later got uP and walked away but did not return for the restart. Gary Scott was handed the NoYlce Main Event win on the proverbial platter when Kenny Roberts dropped out while running far out in front during the early laps in the 250Cc final. Mechanical troubles plagued a total of four of the ten rider field. Ron Moore leaped for Joy in the pits , after the race when he found out he placed second tn a close battle down to the wire with Loyal Penn. Tom Lafortune was fourth with Cross Country ace, Al Baker, in for fifth. The riders split a $2,000.00 opening nlght purse which promises to be even greater this Friday. (Results on page 27) Brelsford Mak,es It Two In TT two By Dewitt Thuett Photos by Dennis Greene .......~.• _ GARDENA, CAL ., AprU 16,1970- Ascot's weekly Thursday night AMA TT races found Mark Brelsford and his Harley Sportster powering their way to the 15 lap Expert Main Event win. Mark became the first Expert this year to win twice. He now has two wins and a second in three times out on the Gardena twister. It was a clean sweep of the heat race, Trophy Dash and Main Event for the second year Expert from San Bruno. Mark's teammate, Mert Lawwill was absent and back home getting the half mUe machines ready for the following night. Brelsford cut the three races in a quick and clean style with perfect starts off the line each time out. Point leader S1dp Van Leeuwen did the chasing In both the heat race and the final to finish the night with two second places. Sldp crashed hard In practice and came up with some bent fingers on his le ft hand that did not appear to slow him down to any great extent, however. . Gene Romero grabbed of f the other Expert heat race win before taking a pair of third place f1n1shes In both the Dash and the final. Lloyd Houchins unloaded on the first lap of the final with eight other Ellperts turning in , all directions to miss him. One rider went right over the top of the downet1.maeJl1ne fipt goIng: l8P ana Tom Rockwood went down, got back was again running, nearly a half a lap behind the next place rider. From then on it was second year Expert Brelsford up front and second year Expert Rockwood playing catch-up from the back. Tom did catch uP and passed four riders to f1n1sh seventh before the laps and time ran out. ' Al Kenyon upset John Hateley In one of the Amate-r heats with Ted Longwith dotDg the sarne to Tod Sloan In another. Terry Dorsch took the heat race win in -. his first ouUng of the night and then topped John and Tod in the final for his first feature win of the season. Steve Bast came Into the Amateur final as an alternate but came from the back to f1n1sh a strong fourth behind A scot ' s three top rated Amateurs in the battle between the Triumph's and the BSA's. Novice pre-race f avorite , Gary Scott, riding a three In a row win streak In the 250 class, was pushed all the way back to fourth place as Merced's Kenny Roberts poured it on for Montesa all the way to win by a wide margin. A pair of Yamahas ridden by Bob Hill and Carl Byers did the chasing for second and third with SCott in fourth on a Bultaco. The weekly Thursday night TT's conUnue again this week with race time set for 8:00 p.m, Special discount coupons are available In CYCLE NEWS , • , •• (Results. 011 page 27) up and on

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