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/125825
September 11, 1973 Page 38 H';¥'tJIHe tJ/ ~ 7k ~ ~ " Brings You SPECTACULAR 30 DAYS 6 Sept. 7...... Sept. 14 . . . . .. Sept. 15 . . . . .. Sept. 21 . . . . .. Half MHe . T.T. Steeplechase • Rock Festival & Half-Mile Final West Coast Regional A Half Mile - $3000.00 Purse Sept. 28 . . . . .. National Tune-Up Half Mile Oct. 5 ... : .. Golden State T.T. Championship $2,000 Purse + Novices & Juniors· Oct. 6 . . . . .. 20 Lap National Half Mile Experts Only (Last Nat'l of '73 Season) t1 A Master Sammy shows how it's done. Sammy Miller Trials School IRVINE, CAL., AUG. 25 "Don't snow yourself over with a lot of this technical garbage until you've had more practi~e," Sammy Miller told the smaIl group SEE JOSE FELICIANO - B. atlCANO BRAHMA SATURDAY SEP1'EMBER 15 2 : 00 P.M. ROCK FESnvAL ~ CONCERT ARENA ' $5.50 TICKET INCLUD~S FESTIVAL AND FINAL WEST COAST REGIONAL HALF MILE SATURDAY NIGHT SEPT.15 SPECIAL OFFIiR FOR RAC! FANS Adult Reserved 9-12 Child 8 &. General 'Adnlission 20 Lip National $1 $1 Hllf·Mile Oct.6 AnnUliI I Golden State TT Championship Oct. 5 Two Night $4 $10 C.ombinAtion $1.50 U"d~r General Admission FREE FREE FREE ENCLOSED IS MY CHECK FOR _ MAKE CHECK OR MONEY ORDER PAYAIlLE TO LOS ANGELES INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY c/o ASCOT PARK. 18300 SO, VERMONT. GARDENA. CALIF, 90247 (NO DISCOUNT PASSES APPLICAIlLE ON COMIlINATION TICKETS) NAME: ' PHONE: _ ADDRESS, --'- ,---- STATE _ ZIP _ ~--------------------------------~ of American Expert and Master trials riders that turned out for his trials school at Saddleback Park. The best in America look somewhat amateurish next to the performa!!ce of the European 'trials greats, andt Sammy's school was held to help prepare the American Trials Team for the FIM World Champion Trials to be held in the United States in 1974. Talking about a rocky section he had laid ou t for the class to ride so he could analyze their individual performances and offer irnprovemen t advice,' Miller said, "Riding this kind of stuff here isn't riding rocks. The rocks are so hard and dry they migh t as well be tarmac. You can get away with murder here; you couldn't get away with -it if there was a stream running down over these rocks, and they were all covered with slime." Riding ,tec!lniques were also discussed. "People would be better off riding sections than riding 'wheelies," the Master commented while watching several students wheelie over obstacles. Tires received attention also. It seems that the new Full Bore trials tire offers increased traction by utilizing a bigger tread imprint area than other tires. However well the tire may work, it violates FIM tire standards, according to Miller. "Someone could have saved a lot of money if he had done his homework." One student riding a Bultaco that Miller had helped design attracted the, teacher's attention with a larger than stock tire on ,the front end. "I designed that with a certain tire size, and if you go back to stock 1 think it will solve some of your problems," Miller runs 7 PSI fron t, 5 rear in his Dunlop tires in' dry areas, and 6 PSI front, ,4 rear in bumpy or wet sections. A Bultaco with tw'o bull elephan ts ' playing battering ram in its crankcases and a sticky throttle punctuated Miller's cau tion. "The average machine preparation and tire changing ability is getting pretty bad." He urged riders to polish up in these areas as well as practicing their riding skills. "It will take you about six months to crack off all of your bad habits. That's the big thing about trials. You don't become World Champion overnight. If you did, we'd all be World Champion." One student wanted to know if there was really an' advantage to machines larger than a 250. "It·s like all things in life," answered the professor, "there are good engines and bad engines. A 250 seems. to be a 'much more flexible engine... the 325 (Bultaco) isn't as happy revving. The Kawasaki 450s used in the ' Scottish Six Days were unusable, that's why they're going back to the 250." Miller, now riding for Bultaco, thus made it quite evident that he spoke what he believed, not what commercialism dictated. Riders picked up a few new trials terms, too, such as "Hurp End Bend". The term reTers to a bend shaped, in the words of Sammy, "like a lady's hurp end. " There were spectacular successes after a little coaching, and spectacular failures in spite, of a lot of coaching. Some Masters cleaned Trials sect[ons laid ou t for the class, some never quite made it. One actually tumbled down the hill of one section, out of shape, elephants battling and engine wailing. Even in trials, learning can be painful. • Sammy and Marland Whaley got along just fine. •