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/125670
1 ROCKWOOD SWOOPS 1ROOPS A1 ASCOT ~ . full time threat, as he uPset Rockwood By Dewitt Thuett ~ r.:J in the I!.eatrice and then came from fourth place in the final to run a closing second. Odom was also Triumph mounted. Next Friday Odom will JoinRockwood, Lawwill and Mark Brelsford to make it a four rider dash all the way in the final. A bombshell was dropped on the riders at the riders meeting whenReferee Chub Kellam announced that starting this Fri- ' day the minimum guaranteed purse will jump to a record $2100. This will be the highest paying nonnational purse in the land this year and will be up for grabs every Friday night. The new payOff could mean more than $2,000 per month to a good rider who's really on the gas. The Novice and Amateur winning purses will also greatly increase. Another surprise was Dusty Coppage and 'his new Yamaha 650. Coppage, long known for his TT racing, pulled a come from behind third place in the 15 lap GARDENA, CALIF. May 1,1970- Tom oJ Rockwood and his Triumph continued on C,.) what appears to be one Of the hottest in halt mUe racing, as the Gardena teenager swooped the troops Friday night in both the halt-mUe Main Event and the trophy dash. Rockwood and Mert Lawwill, the two riders that have gotten the new season Off to the best start ever, were not PaIred Off against each other this time. Mert, along with many Of the other top regulars, was forced to leave for the east early, leaving Tom to challenge the field by himself. However, the Lawwill -Rockwood duel resumes this coming Friday wl\en Mert returns once again. Tom took the point lead away from Mert on the basis Of his double win Friday night. The challenger this time was Jimmy Odom, who is bac~ in racing on a full time basis. Jimmy also appears to be a Gpath While Rockwood was turning in a smooth sl1d1Dg win in the expert class, the wins came somewhat harder in the amateur division. John Hate1ey won.his first halt mUe Of the season but not before s ome Don Emde mistakes that assisted his win . .. Big John" now becomes the first amateur this year to win a halt mile and TT final back to back. Emde came back to gain second with the again surprising and improving Mike Bradley in third. Ted Longwith was the last rider to make the final and then worked up to fourth. It is no longer a secret that the best two all around Novice riders anywhere are Kenny Roberts from Dlst, 36 and Gary Scott from the LA area, Dist. 37. Roberts made it two straight by winning the 250cc final in the junior division, winning if right fI'om the starting llne on his Suzukl. Scott was also running super quick until once again engine troubles dropped him back. He still finished fourth. Both Roberts and Scott won their hea t races, the third straight without a loss for Roberts. Scott has two out Of three. Bob Hill closed fast in the late laps to take second with fellow Yamaha rider, Al Baker putting on his best ride to date for third ahead Of Scott. Mel Lacher nipped Rockwood for fast Expert honors in time trials but engine problems cancelled him out in the heat race. Emde and Hateley were the two fastest amateurs and finished second and third behind Tom in the Dash, with Lacher in fourth. This coming Friday finds the time trials set for 7:30 p.m., with the first race for the more than $2,000 going at 8:15 p.m, (Results on page 19) final. Ascot T.T. Win .Retums To Coppage GARDENA, CALIF . AprU 30, 1970 - A new brand Of motorcycle appears to have made a new man out Of Dusty Coppage, as he and his new Yamaha 650 won the Thursday night Ascot TT for the second straight time. Two weeks ago the main was somewhat Of a "Gift" but no doubt about the one this time. Eddie Mulder was Off and • running in winning form . Coppage was chasing and chasing hard. Mulder was in winning form and would have beaten any rider but Coppage on this night. The two nicked bars, rubbed wheels, touched elbows and about everything else until Dusty squeezed by on the _ inside on lap 11. Once in the lead the gap widened, and Mulder now had a new challenger from the back in Tom Rockwood, who had started slowly and worked his way up from away back. Rockwood and his TT teammate, Skip Van Leeuwen, nearly cancelled each other out Of the race, when Skip fell Off right in front Of Tom. Tommy madealot Of fancy turns and got by with Skip getting back up to finish in 7th. Mulder topped Coppage, Dave Hansen ' and Amateur Ted Longwith in the trophy dash but could not hold Coppage in the big one. Lloyd Houchins was flattened hard in the heat race when he was broadsided by Hansen in one Of the hardest collisions ever in Ascot TT racing. So hard, in fact, that Houchins did not show up for the Friday night halt mtle, John Hateley agam won the Amateur the hard way by coming from last in his heat race to squeak into the semi. Again, John won the semi and then came from the back row in the final to win for the second straight week. The finish was a preview of things to come on, the halt mile the next night as Don Emde rolled in for second with Ted third. Hateley was Triumph mounted with Emde and Longwith on the BSA's . Terry Dorsch was fourth. A see-saw battle for the Novice win took place between Gary Scott on the Bultaco and Kenny Roberts on his Montesa, The two were even until the final lap when Scott put his best lap together and edged Roberts for the win. San Diego's Ray Vanderpool led a string Of Yamaha riders across for third place, with fellow San Diego rider Carl Byers in a close fourth . One Of the promising Novices, Loyal Penn, crashed in practice and was taken to the hospital with a possible broken collarbone. He was the halt mile point leader and one Of the top Novice TT point riders. TT action at Ascot resumes again this Thursday night with the riders switching from a guaranteed purse to a percentage Of the total gate. This should make things even l1vel1er on the track. (Results on page 19) Dust y Coppa ge tU llIId wi th Yamaha repeat win In the Thursday night Asc ot TT. CURNUTT "The WINNER'S A Event ll Figures Awailable rll' a WONDERLANr) NEW•••••••• EXCITING DESIGNS NEW•• •••••• EXCITING COLORS NEW••••••• ~'PDQ" FAST SERVICE NEW•.•••••• FACTORY-DIRECT , LOW, LOW PRICES ifrophyland ms Inc. DEPT. eN 799 W 3STREET, H EST8 IALEAH,F LORIDA 33014 PHONE (305) 822·4106 W ~l FREE lit" CATALOG SHOCKS .•, $3910 pro P /. ~~ '-",.;"= .,.. 0, 0., ,"0 .. -.,.£ ~~~."..... vr, +., ~ ~~ ~ J'~ ~ .~~..,.~ (t'~ ~ or (Fill 1.._