Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

6Jl 4apa?8'ealeg TRUE ROMANCES AND GRIT DEPT. What well-known Powder Puffer has been rumored to be trying to spark a torrid romance with the younger brother of newly crowned US. Speedway Champ, Rick Woods? Give up? So do we. What do you think this i.s, a Hollywood gossip column or something? However, Bazooka Pete is reconsidering his decision on releasing the "how·to" information for Indoor Bulldozer, pending a review of the laws concerning what you can send through the mails. Chin up, Dana. * * * The Cal Poly Penguins Motorcycle Club recently had a 1969 369cc Husky Enduro stolen from their club garage. (Engine No. 671723.) They are offering live entries in the top teQ minutes of their upcoming 23rd annual' High MOWltain Enquro as a r~ard for information leading to the re turn of the Husky. * • • Entered in the 2S0 Support class at the Carlsbad Hang Ten Tran~ma was tast year's National No. I, Dick MalNl. He didn't make it into the motos but this year's NO'. I, Mark Brelsfard, was there, though n g Q. N l"- e> ,; o Z II) ;: w Z W ...J U Westem Auto, who paid contingency via Davis Tires, were also good enough to set up a press information room, which was a very handy innovation. At least, the rurnars were more centralized and the press had direct access to the rad io net. 0'. course, "sunspots" compromised the value of the radio, unfess you wanted to know the Colorado weather. * • • Why do people keep sending us money;> We know we are loved, but we still don't feel easy- about accepting gifts. Why don't those people who have sent us me>ney' for Cycle News Pwducts or whatever, but have never gotten a reply, send us thdr address so we can l'igh ten • the load on our guilty hearts. A"d in the future, pJease be sure to 1DcI~de your address when you are reqaestlDg some of our nifty items. • • • The motorcyclist whose bike was stuck in the mud was calmly digging the wheels (ree until beset by a farmer who proceeded to badger him with questions. "What are you doing, mister, digging yourself out of the mud?" "No," replied the cyclist, "It just died and I'm giving it a decent buriaL" * * * We noticed in our local Long Beach paper, the "Press Telegram", that the Hang Ten motocross received about six inches of print, while the Hell's Angels were given four times the space because of U.eir murdering and sue". It seems to us that I' smart promoter will call a major news but"eau at nine on the morning of his event and teJl them that a bunch of bodies were found buried on the course and tllat some peepfe ttl_ said that the A"98ls were going to uneartll them to lIerform some penerse rites. It should get to U.e radio. stations in' time to double t.he crowd and twe would be reporters fOf" every ",ajor publication on hand for tile race. Maybe Saddleback could try it for their Trans-AMA ... By special arrangement with the AMA and the FIM, a team of motocross sidecars from Europe will appear at Saddleback Park, December 3rd, at the Cycle World Grand Prix in an exhibition race. Four teams, composed of Ton Van Heugten and Jan' Jansenl from Holland on a Norton 750 powered Wasp rig, Lorenz and Samuel Haller from Switzerland on a Honda 750 four powered Wasp, R;kus L~s Ind Bart Notte" from Holland on a Norton 750 Wasp, Ind West German champions Herbert Simon and HaAS Peppinghaus on I Norton 750 Wasp, wiN attend. The four teams will Iiso demonstrate their spectacular skills It the Trans AMA motocross in Puyallup and Carnegie Cycle Park. The exhibition eve"t is what is hoped' to- be the forerunner event for a motocross sidecar class in the Trans AMA series in 1973. "Cycle World" magazine, promoters of the final Trans AMA at Saddleback, and Norton Villiers are the organizers of the first appearance of motocross sidecars from Europe and are behind the move to have the enormously crowd pleasing event included on the American professional m.otocross scene as it is in Europ·e. Their first appearance will be at Hopetown. In order to defray transportation costs, they plan to sell the hacks before returning to Europe. * * • • • The Ascot National' 01 several weeks age> will be on ABC's Wide World of Sports on Saturday, November 18. • • * Dave Aldana finished fourteenth overall in the 2S0 class at the Hang Ten TransAMA at Carlsbad. His riding style was a cross between a Slinky toy and a shock spring. But it does get h.im around a course pretty fast. * • * • More POOP on P. 4 (Surprise!) Contrary to rumor or what you may have seen reported elsewhere, oCal road racer Dick Kilgro is alive and wel~ except for a broken collarbone and lots of cuts and scrapes following his 120 MPH crash while practicing at Willow Springs. Dick was so mew hat less than pleased with his Grant helmet which virtually e pJooed upon impact leaving his head without protectioa as he rolled and slid down the asphalt. His displeasure was heigh tened when he learned that the track doesn't carry ~ . insurance for practice sessions. * • • While on the subject of helmets we will relate a conversation that we had with Baron Von Essen, the FIM European observer for the Hang Ten motocross, at a dinner thrown the night before the US. GP by "Cycle" magazine for hungry motorcycle racer, vendor, writer types. The FIM affiliates in some countries in Europe won't approve the full-coverage, Bell Star type of helmet because they feel that they are more likely to break the user's neck and they impair vision. We contend that the extra weight '(which is the only thing that could cause fuller helmets to break the neck as far as we can see) is more than off-set by the extra protection that one receives against having one's facial bones planted in one's brain. Our personal experiences indicate that the window cut in the Star type of helmet offers as much peripheral vision as the more conventional types of helmet (unless your face is off·center like the editor's). * * * * • • Thc good ole AMA is I"",,ling Lhe Dirt Diggers because the sidecar thing at Hopetown wasn't billed as an exnibition. Well, it isn't a race, the Luropeans in the ha k will be running an exhibition .. .race. Is very body , uh. happy? Photo courtesy of "Motor Cycle News". The Japanese dropped a few bombs at the Tokyo Motorcycle Show. Yamaha beat everyone to the punch with a Wankel which is designated the RZ-201. It is to go into production some time next year and its twin rotor engine 'displaces the equivalent of 660cc and claims 68 BHP. Water cooling is used and the machine sports three (count them) disc brakes. A twin disc is mounted up front a single disc slows the rear wheel. Carburetion is th rough two Keihins of the type found on the Honda 450 and Yamaha's, new DOHC four·valve per cylinder SOO. Styling is very Japanese. * * * .......... _ ..-.-:r-_ Honda dropped a bomb of their own. Their was a 125cc trials/trail machine called the Bials. • • * Photo courtesy of "Motor Cycle News:' ~ ..- .. '>- :.J

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