Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

co .... By Ma~een Lee We were watching TV the other day (when we should have been doing some~ thing else l1ke cleaning leathers or somefo:l thing) but It was a Bor15 Karloff picture Z and we went to the same school (and no ~ funny remarks about that either!) when U along comes a certain scene. There's a ::... bunch of irate villagers chasing poor U Boris all around the countryside and guess where It was? Good old Corriganville. That Immediately got us thinking, will there be a Corriganville this year? You .know what the DIrt Diggers have v:> been going through the past few years trying to keep that great classic going. As if ESP had something to do with It, their President Jim Peterson phones up a few hours later with some Information, so here we go. Yes, there will be a Corriganville th15 year (well, alright, you've twisted my arm and I'll try to start ca11Ing It Hopetown) and sections of the course will be entirely new. Pete asked us to sit on a few of the detaUs for a bit so we will although we're busting to tell the good news. But here'S a couple of teasers for sta,rters. The International race will be a real wow and well worth riding, if you have the qualifications while parts of the course will be a photographer's dream. Now if you think about that for a while maybe you'll be able to guess what we already know. Not only that, the Bob Hope boys have done an abrupt face and are fullY co-operating so the 'Diggers won't have to go through their nervous breakdowns this year. To those of you who belong to District 37 clubs don't forget that the August Sports Committee meeting Is for rule <;hanging for the 1971 rule book. All year long suggestions have been made for changes and this will be the meeting where everything will take place, so Please, don't forget to communicate either In person or by writing if your delegates aren't going to attend, whaetyou would like to see changed. One I think that is particularlY important is penalties aga1nst clubs who.,consistently throw bad runs. Now the End'Does have just joined the District gtvlng us a total of sixty clubs, most of whom want dates for point , runs and there just aren't that many dates. How ·about something along the lines that clubs throwing bummers consistently (and everyone should be allowed to throw one bad one once In a whUe when rare circumstances pop up) not being allowed to bid for a calendar date until all the other clubs have fir,st choice? Or being allowed to pick-up cancellation dates if no other club wants them? Or not being allowed to throw a point run at all Privately owned, public motorcycle parks (c,urren~y called "recreational vehicle parks," a euphemism that doesn't even fool the little old ladies) are opening all over the country. Just about everybody, It seems, who owns acreage that's eating up taxes and not producing revenue, wants to start a motorcycle park,. And a few cycle buffs who see the country swiftly closing are buying up land to ride on before It 15 too late. One enthuslast In Georgia, a road man for an accessory distributor, found a promising section for a reasonable price, cashed h1s wife's Inheritance and bought a large parcel on e-z budget terms. The land is lightly forested, level to steep with a large, gentle valley In the center which is domInated by a broad, flat knoll. He showed me the place last time I was out visiting our Dixie office and I fl1pped over it. We soon hacked out 15 minutes of good, fast bike trails connecting a couple of neat hard p~ces. It was all overgrt:!'/ll with barbed vines and fallen trees, but there are hours of delightful trails, mUes and miles of natural zonk riding In that real estate. No wonder that I eagerly accepted the owner's invitation to help him develop the place. We decided to call It "Motorcycle Country." First I needed a motorcycle set up for the woods. The bike Lbroke trail with was a l75cc Yamaha CT-1 borrowed from an Atlanta enduro wizard. It was properlY prepared for southeastern woods riding with big Barum knobbies, dogchain brush deflectors connecting the pedals with the frame, finger guards and a spark arrester. Georgia enduro riders simplY knock down any trees In the trail smaller around than a beer can. Mangled little fingers is the mark of a fast woods rider. I bought a clapPed-out l20cc Kawasaki from said Enduro whiz for $150. After some expensive mending; it makes a pretty good work bike. The idea, as we saw it, is to develop the land for motorcycle pleasure without disturbing the natural beauty or sacrificing the ecology of the wild. I firmlY believe that motorcycles can co-ex15t with ecology as well as or better than horses (they don't eat grass) and so Motorcycle Country was planned from the start to be a showcase of cyclecology. We wourd not allow bulldozers or cars past the parking lot. Even the car park would be screened by trees and clusters of trees would remain In the parking area for shade and beauty. It meant a lot of hard, hand labor to hliul In materials and build the facilities, but we figure the results are worth it. Not a leaf or a root would be d15trubed unless it was absolutely necessaI:Y. EXamining the m15takes of other simuar "developments," I decided that the biggest m15take they all make is buying a bulldozer. They scrape and striP the land, making artificial tracks and erosion problems. What they end up with 15 a scarred, barren wasteland that looks too unpleasantly l1ke the cities and suburbs we are try- ' Ing to escaPe from by going Into the woods. Motorcycle Country, by contrast, 15 a nature refuge, where birds and fish, instead of poisons, control the insect population and Mother Nature 15 the head gardener (with a little help from her friends). Next week: How To Make A Motorcycle Couiltry. for a year? Hash It over guys. This 15 importantl Speaking of bikes again, we've often heard comments and commented ourselves that it's a pity, a few machines aren't seen more of and have more sponsored riders out. We've found some good reasons too. Did you know that some of the bike builders are supplemented by their governmel)ts, let alone being owned by large corporations with almost unl1mlted funds, for advertising, sponsorshiP etc? Others are purelY"privateers" trying to go It alone against the rising Inflation and they just don't have the bread. If you think about it, a lelt have been swallowed up by the big boys or vanished. AJS held on as long lS they could but succumbed to Norton- VIWers and Norton 15 a case In Itself. Even Triumph and BSA, as big as they are, merged. Greeves is one hanging on to being Independent and some of the motorcycle glamor would reallY go if the independents were all gone. To us a lot of the glamor went out of cars when Ford muscled In, with tons 'of money and broke Ferrari who sold to Fiat. So, if you're new to the sport and thInkIng about buying a new bike, don't forget the "little guys". Their scooters are every bit as good, sometimes better because they're not so mass-produced. Lotus cars have been world champion three times, won-at Indy etc. and come from a small little factory where Colin Chapman gets around to building them when he feels like it. Motocross Leathers: We specialize in only Bultaco 1241 W. Orangethorpe, Buena Park nl4) 522-6109 . HUSQVARNA Black with no plddlng - $40 2 colors with padding - $60 Miteo Bu't.eo Med-International 4190 Palm Ave., La Mesa, Calif. 92103 This Is thick, durable, nylon lined GENUINE cowhide. AMOR SALES Oistributed by Jo.~ Ma,lar" sa,s 3143 West Broadway 1223 AYI. I lancast.r (105) 942·9624 Vancouver, British Columbia (604) 732·9322 AMERICAN EAGLE - GREEVES - MAICO' all 400's In stock - Parts & service Imitation isthe sincerest lorm 01 IlatterJ. ~ '.slrale. ' "He, Mr. De.ler" We carryall types of insurance coverage - garage I iabi i ity fire - theft & dealer bonds Sare Up To 251 JOHN W. MAYNARD INS. ~441 Mo~r Ave., L.A., Ca. (n3) 836-5211 ~iZAZZ.~ That's right. R.D. Sportcycles, the nationally recognized motocross shop, is now the complete Road and Dirt motorcycle di scount house. ,.. HOls. of MAICO We at Bob Bailey's are pleased - that our competitors have seen fit to borrow our good name and reputation. several products can be mistaken for and sometimes are represented to be Bob Bai ley·s or "just as good." , Fortunately thousands of our satisfied customers have remembered there Is only ONE Bob Bailey Expanslon Chamber•.. it's the only 100% GUARANTEED expansion chamber on the market. Write today for further information. SALES - PARTS - SERVICE BOB BAILEY 17124 S. Western Ave,." Gardena, Calif. 90247 213-327-1420 327-8.538 Mall order processed sallie day received OPEN EVERYDAY MON·FRI. 9-9, SA T·SUN. '"' I.D. SrOITCYCLfS 20059 Roscoe BlVd., Canoga Park, Cal. 91. ."" (n3) 882-0. l

• Cover