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/125791
.... . TO GO FAST QUIETLY : .... '" 01 IX) '" ~ w Z W ...J U >- U Handling is the second thing you'll like about the Penton; that's after you've started it. straight lines and sharp angles rather than in curves. Speed along straigh t lines is much more efficient for any of the applications the Pen ton was designed for, and if you can go in deep and square off the corners, it all works very well. Once the first time rider accustoms himself to the handling, confidence in the bike comes naturally. Go very fast on the straigh ts, deep in to the comers and get on the excellen t brakes. Downshift two gears (maybe only one if you're very good or the corner is wide) • and accelerate toward the next comer. The only problem encountered with the 125 Penton was a characteristic which is chronic with new SachsJDKW engines. ''''hen it's new. the rings haven't seated and there isn't that much low "end. You have to keep the engine singing, as in many racing ligh tweigh ts, or it will bog in the corners. 1f you have the right gear, you can keep it up there and revving. The mid-range on the Penton is impressive. This is where it should be ridden. The bike looks a little beefier all around than previous models and it turns out this is more than optical illusion. The triple clamps are larger and have more friction surface with the for~ tubes. The tank is pretty good sized but doesn't look like it holds sligh tly over three gallons, which it does. The frame looks longer and makes the Penton look The new "8" type engine puts out increased more like a big bike. It does have a 55 power; neut;als have been taken out. • _ • !.nch wheeJbas~, ,!"hich has to be one of the longest of any 125. This is rellected 'in the forgiving ride and generally stable feeling associated with pushing the bike at any speed. The increased size of the 125 still permits a sitting height of 31.5 inches, which is about right for riders of average build when racing anything but flat track or TI. On the au t-of-the-crate test bike, the 27.5mm Bing carb was not dialed in quite right and throttle control was very important. You had to be sensitive to a tendency for the carb to load up when backing off abruptly and then dumping the fuel to it, as in coming out of tigh t corners at the end of long straigh ts. Rolling off and on with finesse was a definite requirement at low speeds. At high speeds, the engine didn't seem to want to do anything butrun. The most lasting impression the Penton leaves is that of quality. There don't seem to be any obvious shortcuts in the way it's built or assembled. Hardware is top drawer stuff (Magura levers, for example.) and waterproofing is not an afterthought. All of the adjusters, chain guides, and other stuff that can pass unnoticed if they work right, but are a pain when they don't, are actual pieces of heavy duty machinery that are there to do a job without breaking. Very little on the machine is there as a gesture of intent or for eye-catching marketing appeal. The cables have lube nipples, which is just one of the really small details that I indicate the general approach John Penton seems to have taken with the "machine. The bike shows its Six Day Trials heritage. Finally, one of the most important things to happen to a racer in years. It's quiet. There is a big, flat-black pipe tipped with a gian t-size muffler that works. The Penton has shown that you don't have to be noisy to be powerful. It won't make any enemies for motorcycling through excess decibels. Run quiet, run fast. The enduro package is $ 100 extra. The 125 goes for about nine and half bills at most dealers. PERRIS TO REOPEN Jerry and Grace Burton announced that they intend to re·open Perris Raceway this month. The first race will be held Saturday evelling, July 15 and will be the normal program. The club house appears to be still standing, b.u t is not serviceable. It isjust a burnt out shell. It was first rumored that an electrical fire caused the damage, bu t the official results of an arson investigation indicate that it was a Molotov cocktail thrown by a person or persons unknown. The track would have been in operation the Saturday of the fire, but the main electrical junction box was destroyed and it t09k a few weeks to get the place re-wired. Look forward to the same tme even ts that we have enjoyed in the past.