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/125755
.- Barstow-to-Ve .... CD ,..: u o " ~ w Z w ~ U >- U .., . Some 3000-odd bikers (or 3000 odd bikers) wait at the start line. The crooked line was caused by a jeep with a broken NorVil's Mike Jackson came in 15th. He fan out of gas but carried a spare quart. just in case. By David Swift (With a lot of help from Ed Drechsler and Bobi Culp) Photos by Swift and Drechsler LAS VEGAS, NEV., Nov. 27, 1971 J.N. Roberts, riding 170 miles of desert in a little over four hours with 26 stitches holding his face together, was officially declared a Legend by desert racers everywhere as he won the San Gabriel Valley's fifth Barstow-to-Vegas Hare and Hound. It was the fourth time J .N. has won "the world's biggest race"; last year 2000 riders entered and this year the classic was a whopping 3500. Experts and Amateurs started near Barstow at 8 a.m. and headed north a couple of miles to the bomb, hung a right. and went to Las Vegas. Strange things were going to happen during the trip, of course. Roberts and Rich Thorwaldson, already in hot contention for the coveted District 37 Heavyweight crown, immediately began a battle that lasted 40 miles through the ftrst gas check. J.N. was the first one into the pits but Rich was the first one out, thanks to the st:;i~ mechanism. the rest of the race, until the last leg. Somehwere along the line, something happened which cost Martino a considerable amount of time. Whatever it was, Whitey, as usual, wasn't talking. Meanwhile, J.N. just bombs along. Imagine taking the wife to Vega. for the big holiday weekend in your old DeSoto. two-door. You 've just topped Halloran Summit and you drop 'er into third. the speedometer needle hovering dangerously close to 60. Suddenly Madge points and shouts "Looka dat!" There goes a blue-helmeted figure on a funny·looking motorcycle a quarter mjle to your left, bouncing, swerving, dancing past immovable rocks, bushes, and assorted debris. It's J.N. Roberts and it looks like he's laughing all the way, and he's passing you. Onward he goe's despite the fact he lacerated his face 10 days ago when a movie stunt went sour. Roberts arrived in Las Vegas a Little over four hours after the start. His first words: "It was the roughest yet." Following J.N. and Thorwaldson to the first check were next year's 250 champ Larry Pfutzenreuter and young Jeff Wright on a L75 Puch Giantstomper. George Walker was 21st. The second leg was a roughie with fields of Lava rock and, guHies but the roughest thing about was its length. This stretch made a tremendous difference in the run and may cause the sponsoring club a bit of embarrassment. Checkers' 1O'second pit stop. Thorwaldson, experiencing more of Last year's luck, dropped the battle with a flat tire. With the extra load on his engine, he subsequently ran out of gas before he could reach the second gas check. (Actually. he probably would have run but anyway. More on that later.) Roberts, riding the 420cc Husqvarna that carried him a whole 25 miles of the Larry Pfutzenreuter crosses under the freeway at State line. recent Mexican 1000, rode into the second gas stop two hours and 15 minutes after the start of the race. Next in Line, some 15 minutes back, was Whitey Martino, the current Heavyweight champ. Martino suffered a bad crash several months ago and has finally recuperated. This was his third race since then and he maintained a strong second throughout Pfutzenreuter ran out of gas even with a 3~-gaJlon tank. Wright also ran out, as did the aforementioned Thorwaldson and scads of other serious competitors who don't make a habit out of running out of gas. On a map, San Gabriel Valley M.C. pointed out that this section was 40 miles. One fellow said he rode the course with an odometer and found this particular section to be more Forth