Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

~~~~~~~~~~~~~:'" SPEEDWAY AND ME A NEW COLUMN BY ~ BARRY BRIGGS Sometimes I get to wondering what this speedway business is all about. It's tough for long-track meetings on either sand When I first got to hear about these on the human frame, tiring on the mind and a constant onslaught on the nervous or grass surfaces. These tracks are concrete tracks, I put down a short circuit on some waste land at the foot system. And the permanent risk and danger involved never comes home more clearly usually about 1,000 meters long, and than when a buddy is caught up in a fatal track accident. of my garden in Southampton and got require a totally different technique to The element of danger hit me fairly the Yamaha people (who sponsor me in speedway. the States) to send me over a 250 and squarely between the eyes just a N ow and again, I dabble at machine. After a lot of work, I got the few weeks back when Aussie star scrambling and trials, and I've also had a surface of my practice track bone hard Gordon Guasco died following a crash. go at ice racing, which is very popular in - not unlike concrete - and then spent Sweden and Russia. This is speedway on Apart from being a nice guy, Gordon several weeks getting the hang of things was a fine rider - a top star in the ice, except that broadsiding is out of the and generally annoying the neighbors. British League and virtually unbeatable question since you gain complete Sometime tliis year, I aim to do some around .the big Australian bowls. traction with the ice via two-inch spikes long-track racing in the States - on He lived for speedway and in the front and rear wheels. If you concrete circuits over V. mile and mile ultimately, he died for it. It took a little reckon it sounds frightening, just take raceways, too. Again, something new to time for his passing to really sink in my word for it - it is! me - and again, I'll be prepared. and once it did, the same old niggling All things considered,.my whole life Yamaha have sent me an exciting new worries kept running through my mind. is bound up in racing motorcycles. 650cc engine, which is at present in my Is it worth it? Should life be so full of Neither the engine capacity nor the shape Southampton workshop being fitted risks? Is it fair on my wife June and our or style of the track really concerns me into a specially-constructed frame. kids Gary and Tony? too much. Just give me a bike, lead me I'm told the engine will top 130 I never actually got around to to a track and I'll have!, go - it's as answering my own questions. Once the miles an hour, which sounds pretty simple as that. impact of Gordon's sad passing had wild. Then, if all goes well, I'll have a go Which brings me back to the faded a little, I just got on with the job at the Stateside long tracks during the American scene. Real speedway of racing. Let's face it, it's the only summer months. , meetings here are few, so I'm trying my ..4·time World Champion B~rry Briggs. Photo thing I know! So why_do I race? I'm going to be commuting to by Dennis Greene. himd at other forms of racing. I've America quite a lot this year - and Well, for a start, I'm a born already had experience of indoor short competitor. Secondly, I'm crackers coupled with my British League involving 19 clubs from all over dirt track (Houston), and this year, I'll about motorcycles. Put the two commitments, weekend sand and grass England, Scotland and Wales. be racing on short-track concrete ,together, and it stands to reason that I track meetings in Europe, international Every Sunday, I fly off to the surfaces for the first time on a 250cc just have to race. It's a natural instinct matches, big trophy meetings behind Continent - occasionally for legitimate machin~. It's something new as far as as far as I'm concerned - the same sort the Iron Curtain and World speedway meetings in Germany, Poland, I'm concerned - but don't be fooled of drive that makes people want to Championship meetings all over the Czechoslovakia and throughout into thinking that I'm coming here climb mountains or test new aircraft or Scandinavia, hut more often than not (Please tum to pg. 23) totally unprc;pared! go to the moon. Money? ,Well, that comes into it too. The lolly is not all important, but I can't deny that speedway has given me a lovely home in Southampton, complete with swimming pool, sauna . bath, a miniature golf course and all sorts of other luxuries that I never even dared to dream about during my childhood in Christchurch, New Zealand. But when it comes to the bit, I suppose the biggest factor that drives me on is a compelling need to win. Second best isn't good enough - I have to be up there in fron t. Some people say this is professionalism, but in plain, everyday words, it simply means that I hate being beaten! And when I am, ~ do everything possible t9 insure that I do better nex t time ou t. Being the top man at your job is a great feeling - a feeling I know well since I've won' speedway's World Championship on four occasions. That's a statement of fact, not an ex.pression of egomania. It's also true that I've won just about every other major trophy in British and European speedway at some time or other. And now'that speedway is on the' up and up in America, I'm aiming to pick up some silverware here, too! Mind you, it isn't going to be easy, because what you know as speedway in the States is vastly different from British racing. Take the tracks, for example. The most successful Stateside center is at Costa Mesa, where racing takes place on a tight l.80-yard circuit. .Now compare it with the English scene, where tracks vary between 300 and 420 yards long on average. The smallest is at Crayford (Kent), a Second There's a reason these champions'rode MAICO'S to their wins in 1970. Division circuit which is fractionally Ask anyone of them. And watch their performance in 1971! under 300 yards long. This season, former British champiOns Halifax will race on a new 448-yard track - the biggest in First Division racing. Quite obviously, a rider has to adapt his style considerably to tackle a tight little track like Costa Mesa, but the STEVE HURD ELSINORE GRAND PRIX , HEAVYWEIGHT principle remains the same. To be honest, I always enjoy myself at Costa Mesa - it's a little strange first time out, PR ESTON PETTY HOPETOWN GRAND PRIX 500 INTERNATIONAL but once you get used to it, everything I is fine. JOHN RICE HOPETOWN GRAND PRIX 500 EXPERT Back home, I have to adapt my style fro.m week to week in order to fulml all my commitments. From Monday to LARS LARSSON SAN CLEMENTE GRAND PRIX OPEN CLASS Saturday - every week between the beginning of. April and the tail-end of PR ESTON PETTY 250 EXPERT SAN CLEMENTE GRAND PRIX October - L ride for Swindon in the First Division of the British Speedway League. It's a touRh competition HEAVYWEIGHT BOB MESSER FOUR ACES GRAND PRIX ICO JOHN RICE III AMA MOTOCROSS dis'. 37 III CMC MOTOCROSS BOB BAILY III ACA MOTOCROSS 250" BOB HOM BERGER III ROCKY MT. SPEEDWAY ~mile 500" JERRY SJOMnlNG III SOUTH DAKOTA 500" AKE JONSSON III flM INTER-AM SERIES MAICO WON THE BIG ONES IN 1970 YAMAHA SPORTCYCLES JIM EINERSSON PACIFIC COAST tHAMPIONSHIP MX 500 BilL COOK PACIFIC COAST CHAMPIONSHIP MX500 NEW & USED SALES Parts-Accessories··Seryice , EAST Finiincing-Insurance EASTERN MAICO MASTER CHARGE-BANKAMERICARD Royal & Duke Sts. Reedsville, Pa. 17084 Discount to Ascot Racers GENE,H.. MYERS 4151 Redondo Beach Blvd., Lawndale, Ca. (213) 542-4047 WEST " CANADA COOPER MOTORS AMOR SALES LTD. 110 E. Santa Anita Ave. Burbank, Ca. 91502 3143 W. Broadwa,y V'ancouYe~. 8.C. • '" cs;; N ." .., ~ w Z W ...J C,) >- C,)

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