Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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nought between them as they struggled shoulder to shoulder for the lead. Then, in an instant, Taylor clipped Boulger's bike and spewed crazily out of control. Taylor thumped heavily onto the track and did not move. He also was rushed to the hospital and admitted in a serious condition. He was unconscious at first and it was feared he had sustained head injuries but fortunately this theory was later proved incorrect and Taylor, a 43-year-old veteran of the sport, was discharged. He resumed racing the following week. scene ~ By Peter White w Z w favoritism, including John Langfield (NSW) , Kangaroo Test team captain Chum Taylor (WA) and former Scottish champion Bill Landels (NSW). Boulger was rated highly but, was nevertheless, something of a surprise winner. He is a First Division heat leader in the British League with the Midlands based Leicester Lions team. Placed second in the championship final was local Perth rider Bob O'Leary who scored 13 points. Third was New South Welshman Langfield with 12 points. The 20 heat series was marred by two separate accidents which shocked the 20,OOO-odd crowd_ Early in the evening Trevor Harding (WA), who rides in all white racing leathers and is commonly known as the "White Ghost", crashed into the wooden safety fence at over 60 mph when he clipped an opponent's back wheel. Harding catapulted into the boards head first'and crumpled to the . track as spectators sat stunned. He was rushed to the hospital suffering from multiple body 'injuries and admitted to the intensive care unit. Since then he has been listed as critical and as long as two weeks after the pile-up he was- still fighting desperately for his life. He has a badly broken leg, fractured jaw and serious groin and internal injuries. The second accident occurred in the last heat - a vital one for all four contestants. Two riders - Boulger and Chum Taylor - were unbp.ten and the winner of that particular race, therefore, would have been the champ. The other two riders - O'Leary' and Langfield were also high on the score chart and victory for either could have thrown quite a different light on the placings. The race turned out to be a dog-fight between the Big Two, Boulger and Taylor, and for two laps there was ~ u > u Top Australian Speedway star Trevor Harding "The White Ghost" shortly before his dramatic crash. Photo by Bill Meyer. South Australian speedway dirt track star John Boulger is the new National Champion of Australia. He won the title with a flawless 15 point maximum at ~e ~!¥emont speedway, Perth. . Sixteen of the country's best riders went to the tapes to do battle for the treasured trophy and it was fitting that the youthful interstate visitor Boulger should come up trumps. The blonde-haired, 25· year· old plumber from Adelaide has been rated as Australia's number two in world class competitions for several years now and deserves this success. Top Aussie Jim Airey did not compete in the championship final as he had not contested the' qualifying round in his home state (New South Wales). He was defending champion and had hoped for an automatic berth in the final but this was ruled against by the Australian controlling authorities. His absence left the championship wide open with a number of riders from various Australian centres sharinJ( AUSTRALIA SERIES BLEAK TIME FOR INJURIES It's been a hard season Down Under this summer. . Before Christmas we lost leading sidecar rider John Dunne in a track pile-up, top solo rider Gordon Guasco similarly and now comes news of another race death. . Killed was 25-year-old up-and-coming solo prospect Lex Fielding, of Brisbane. Fielding, married with two young children, was competing for the home side in a team event against the British tourists as the Bundaberg circuit. Another competitor fell in a handicap race and Fielding struck him and then crashed into the fence. He suffered severe head injuries and died almost instantly. MAUGER RETURNS AUSTRALASIA eeFieeeeFie,eiEEEE!FeeFF;FFF;,e •• e,,;e,e'E;FE'E" Viewfinders M.C. Presents LIMITED ENTRY Only offiCial Viewfinders entry blanks accepted, list previous riding experience. £ Entry fee $6.50 i Entries Open Mar. 1st Close Mar. 31st "Entries received before Mar. 1st will be returned" • i • i • .... fr••~o.'o rW. wi'..., r,s'ricti••s' i : 1 hour before race time. 40 to 1000 acres of beautiful trail country less than 2 hours from LA. Perfect for club or group buying, or for individual leasing back to clubs. Excellent financing, and low down payments. Call now...this land is appreciating "25% ~ery year! Bob Emley,agt., 213/331-1958 P.O. Box 16n. Covina. Ca. 91722 --- ... & Rescle 3 Crews MXRIDERS Hard time getting parts and accessories? WE STOCK EM! NO OVERNIGHT C~ GATES OPEN . 6:00 A.M. celli" Trillllph Headquarters HI DESERT LAND _"'-"'" Kids under 12 and over 65 - FREE. CYCU CITY ¢m·b South Oraace Mo'ie Slars CaCessiolS AD.' III.'W _ _ PAD, . . . . . • • • • t 10 $ (714) 496-1001 1st Dist. 37 G.P. of the year i --, • t t All riders sign World Champion Ivan Mauger has lieen contracted to ride in several big meetings in Australia and New Zealand this month. It was originally thought Mauger would spend the English winter resting with his family in Manchester (England) 34198 Coast Highway Dana Point, Calif. 92629 4th Annual a.-: , . . . "", . . . .ex, lMII'IfIBaT., . ."aar ' • TO ...z..." FFFii •• ' e e l ' e i F i i ••••• ' •• , ; , . , • • • • • • • • • • • : •••• , ••••••• ' " i E P ' GRAND~PRII TEST The sixth Test between Australia and Great Britain resulted in another draw for the second week in succession. The match, which was held in Brisbane, wound up at 54-54 and gave Australia the speedway "Ashes" by virtue of a 3-1 victory. Of the six Tests held, Australia has won three, the British one and two have been drawn. Now Britain will be ou t to save some face by winning the seventh and concluding Test back in Sydney on January 30. ******************* •• *•••• **•••••••• *•••******. ' •••• eFiFF. WINS RAIN OR SHBIIE 1I8.Inl.I Lhiversity Honda Bultaco Kawasaki & e/z -_.._- '1 water crossing at least 1 mile paved road 5908 Roosevelt Way NE Seattle I/IkSl 981C.J5 Mail entries to: Viewfinders M.e. 7439 Craner Ave. Sun Valley. Cal. 91352 SEND FOR FREE CATALOGUE 1 1:1EIEI:lI:lI::III::II::IICICICIIlIl:lI:EIE':lI:I'::I'::II'::I'::I'C'C'C'Il'Il'a:,1:'1:':!':I':I':J'J!'J!'iJ'C'!J'Il'Il'!:'a,1:':I':I'::II'::II'::I'::I'C'C'C'C'Il:'I:E'1:1:':1':1'::11':1:' i' IfDIA: i~U~a'~ !B"ll I " .. , , , , , , " , . ",S(, "".1::11" Ii,",'" ~. i I I I ' " e " " It SAT & SUN APRIL17& 18 ~~~RUN . : ~.... but he succumbed to the persuasive powers of Liverpool promoter Frank' Oliveri and Kiwi boss Harley Arthur and is now back in his native haunts. It is a brief whistle-stop tour for Ivan the Great, jetting between Aussie and New Zealand virtually from day to day to keep pace wi th th e bookings. Mauger rode his flTSt meeting at Liverpool (NSW) in the Gold Cup trophy series but struck machine problems and fmished out of a place with only nine points. Winner was Denmark's Ole Olsen (.15). Second was Jim Airey (14). The following nigh t Mauger rode at Western Springs (NZ) and cleaned house. He is due back in Australia within a few days to again tackle the might of the Liverpool internationals. Ivan will again be attached to Belle Vue in the British League First Division this term and will be aiming for his fourth successive world championship_ The final will be held in Gothenburg, Sweden, on September 10. HURD ENDORSES CHAIN LUBE- JEECO "In the past two months I've had the pleasure to test a special kind of chain lube," writes Steve Hurd, California desert racing star and Silver Medal winner in the past International Six-Days Trial. "If used as directed," Hurd goes on to state, "J eeco Grafiplate is all we've' ever looked for in chain lubrication. It keeps your chain free from dirt and sand, which means less sprocket wear and longer chain life." Concludes Hurd, "I will totally endorse this product 100%." BAKERSFIELD DRAGS INFO' A full schedule of Bike Eliminations - Fuel & Gas Dragsters plus Street Bikes - was recently added to the upcoming Bakersfield Championship Drag. "There appears to be a tremendous amount of interest in drag bikes; from a participant and manufacturer level as well as among the spectators", said promoter John Durbin. He added, "Weare weighing the possibility of holding a National Bike event with a record cash purse later in the year at Bakersfield, therefore we are going to test local interest by including a full-scale bike program in our 13th Annual Fuel & Gas Championships at Bakersfield, March 5-6- 7." The Bike payoff features a $1000 cash purse, divided into two categories, Top Bike Eliminator and Street Bike Eliminator. Top Eliminator includes all Fuel and Gas Bikes and will be run on·a heads-up basis - winner receiving $500, Runner-up $150, while 3rd and 4th spots each taking home $50. The starting field for Top Bike Eliminator will be comprised of the 8 low-e.t. qualifiers during Friday and Saturday's qualifying session. Street Bike Eliminations will feature all Street Class entries on a handicap basis. Winner of Street Bike Eliminator will earn $150, Runner-up $50, with $25 going to spots 3 and 4. Class trophies will also be awarded winners in separate class eliminations. Additional information can be secured by contacting John Durbin or Ernie Hashim, c/o Kern Co. Racing . Assn., 701 Baker St., Bakersfield, Calif. 93305, or phone (805) 323-4472. . INDOOR SHORT TRACK ON RISE Indoor short track racing is defmitely on the rise as was indicated at the Minneapolis Auditorium where 3,000 attended a recent event. Perennial Novice Jim Fortune turned up the winner on a Bultaco to no one's surprise as he had woh ·the trophy dash at the Madison Square Garden Yamaha Silver Cup and placed well in the Main. Second went to Mike Matthews and third to Bob Raymond, both on Bultacos. LIMIT SET ON SCRAMBLES The February meeting of District 36 referees was its usual action-packed affair with one interesting sidelight. The body decided that no club could charge its scrambles riders more than it charged the specator and an additional amendment limited the rider charge to $2. 'rhis does not affect how much a promoter can charge a spectator, but does limit the clubs. The legality surrounding this preceden t-setting rule is yet uncertain but will defmite1y create a furor among the promoters' and clubs that have had higher rates set for