Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

EIDUIO ESSEITIALS ,... Ol > :; ., ~ w Z W ...J U :> U Part III: Out Upon The Enduro Trail By Ron Schneider; Riding an enduro requires a somewhat different attitude than riding a race, even though the two are quite similar in many respects. There is only one importan t thing in riding an enduro and that is to lose as few points as possible and the good enduro riders are always scheming and working toward that end. Always get to an enduro early enough to take advan taRe of whatever advance information is available. Sometimes this information might take the form of a complicated schedule which' can be reduced to simpler or more readable chunks. At the very least, you'll want to convert the key times to the real times corresponding to your riding number. Sometimes you can talk to members of the sp onsoring club or local riders and find out something about conditions that will help. If all the local bikes are covered with mud up to the gas tank and are running sprockets only two inches smaller than the rear tires, a quick change in gearing might be appropriate. Th"re are a certain number of chores that must be done before starting any enduro and its wise to plan. As soon as you get up, set your E.T. clock ahead so that you will know at any given moment how much time you have before you must staTt. It should be set so that at the moment you leave the starting line, the E.T. clock reads 12:00. Taking for granted that your machine is well prepared beforehand. remember to check all the little details. Make a list if necessary. My routine goes as follows: Set the odometer back to zero. Check the gas. Tape my route sheet to the tank. (If you remember to do this after you gas up, you won't spill gas all over the route sheet). Put the number on my helmet or number plate, whichever is required. (Use hlack contact shelf paper for this. It works great.) Check all tools and spares which I plan to carry which are not in my tool box. (My tool box takes time to get into so I alway,s carry an adjustable wrench securcd to the bike by rubber bands, a plug wrench in a little socket and some extra oil in case I should run out of gas and have to fill from some unexpected source.) Once the bike is completely ready to go, I lay out what I am going to wear for the event, but 1 avoid making a hard and fast decision un til shortly hefore start time. Wearing the wrong garb often makes the difference between finishing and not finishing. Your body is very adaptable to changes in temperature, bu t not infinitely so. Wear your Belstaff when its 100 degrees in the shade and you'll surely cook; pneumonia is the fate of the rider who elects to ride in a sweatshirt when the temperature drops below 50. Goggles are very importanL You sh.ould have both clear and tinted ones available. Use the tinted ones whenever Jo•• M.,."II '.slr••ce S.'S "Her Mr. Dealer" We carryall types of insurance coverage - garage liabilityfire - theft & dealer bonds S.re Up To 25~ JOHN '0 MAYNARD INS. 3441 Motor Ave., L.A., Ca. ln3) 83&-5211 cz , THE SPECIALTY MACHIN E so LD & SERVICED IY THE CZ SPECIALISTS NOW IN STOCK watching some of the real pros in the game. The first thing to implant in your mind is the necessity for passing. It seems to be almost a law of nature that when you get to a section where you must really "get it on" there's some yo-yo in front of you who's got it off! Once in a while you'll run into a courteous rider who realizes that you're faster than he is (otherwise you wouldn't be on his tail), so he moves over for you. It's almost worthwhile to stop and take a picture of this fellow because he's a pretty rare bird. The rest of the time you're'Roing to have to pass in spite of the other rider. He may be just a heginner who is unable to control himself well enough to let you get by, he may be unaware of your presence, or he may be one of those jerks who wants to race with you in spite of the fact that he's riding a full gear lower than the terrain will allow! You have to get around and auickly. Everyone must form his own set 'of rules or ethics or whatever you want to call them for this passing situation; here, are mine. If r think a rider isn't aware of my presence, I come right up behind him and holler, sqearn, blow my hom (Yep I do have one!) and sometimes, if it's practical, I shift momentarily to a lower gear and let the engine scream right behind his left ear. If I sense that the rider is a real beginner who either doesn't know hetter or can't control his bike well enough to let me safely past, I take to the rough or grit my teeth, curse all novices and wait. I take no chance on causing him to fall. My personal belief is that riders of lesser experience and . ability have a righ t to be on the trail and more experienced riders should help, not hinder them, in their efforts to learn. So even though I might wish he were on the moon, I don't try to Rut him there. The klutz that wants to ra<:e is something else again. Passing in close quarters is part of racing, so if that's his game, I play it and he better not make any mistakes or he gets used for traction! Keep in mind that if you can catch him and pass him, you're the better rider, so in one of those situation where only one rider can come out rightside up, you've got the better chance. A bottleneck is a place where only one rider at a time can get through, except when some 103 pound rider has wedged a Triumph Twin in the spot and nobody can get through. Nothing can spoil a run faster than a bottleneck and all organizers are aware of it, but unfortunately a bottleneck doesn't always look like one when the run's being laid out. In California when a bottleneck develops all the riders queue-up like they expect to be served tea and crumpets, or something. It's an old British custom that we Californians have mixed up a little. Actually the (Please turn to pg. 31) oVII 1,000 ACCESSORIES fOI MOTOICYCLE AID I.DEI All I..test equipment and iIlppam fOf' road" dnen and competition. BELL, GRANT. H·A STAR yfety helmets from $9.95. Wond famous BELSTAFF ridinS ;ackets and suits for rain and ridin•. ,line le

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