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/125830
Page 5 October 16, 1973 AND we think we've got land problems. There is virtually no trailriding in most of Western Europe .(or Eastern Europe, for that matter) due to population density and the fact that most of the land has been privately owned for generations. Somo Belgian riders practicing for the recent ISDT had to pick days when they knew the local gendarme would be in a differen t' area to do their woods running. The lack of casual trailing does mean tha t any off-road riding tends to be motocross or trials with the result that some of they Yurpeens get pretty dam good at those two aspects of the spon. POLITICAL ENDURO: It really soned out the .men from the turkeys. By the time that the last loop started, machinery and entrants were scattered along the trail like sand fleas. Attrition was mind pogg1ing. Then the results were computed and our endurable· politician came trucking in here Monday with the results. The Under 16 winner was Richard Cording. The Team tropby goes to the Don W. Voyer family. Although there is some doubt as to the legality of her en try, Ileana Liel is the unofficial Over 107 winner. Powder Puff honors go to Marsha Camp. The unclassed class winner is Michael A. Navetta. The man who will take home the Lion's share of whatever we scrounge up for prizes' is (are you ready?) Stephen Hollen! Congratulations. Contrary to what some guys tend to believe, the works CZs do not have electronic ignition. They do have factory mechanics to time and maintain them, however. Everything else in the way of components is surprisingly CZ-stock. You know. Mikuni carb, Koni shocks. nylon cables; except the engines are magnesium. If you should drop one of the side covers, it floats to the ground like a falling leaf. They're rather light. NATIONAL ENDUI\O: There are tough / enduros. practically impossible enduros. and then there is the Black Coal National Enduro. Rain. impassable terrain. and a super tough, challenging course of 125 miles cut the finishing field to two riders...Jack Penton (Pen) a'nd Bill Kain (Hus). The two enduro aces managed to finish the run but only barely. just making it to the finish before the one hour grace period expired. Jack Penton edged Kain tor the overall win by one point. All the rest of the field was scored by individual check points. Upon being presented with an of-fish-u11 Cycle News hot hat at the Motocross des Nations, 250 World Champion Hakan Andersson put it on, whereupon it came down to around his ears since it was a "Large" and Hakan is not, "How bad is it?" he asked of everyone in particular. Pretty bad, Hakan, pretty bad. Team Sweden still was second, so the hot hat alone doesn't necessarily mean you can beat Roger DeCoster. Another note ,on Honda Elsinore pistons: They're now available in oversizes, so don't toss out your 80 dollar barrel. A GELLING RUMOR: Honda's 750 won't have shaft drive. Their 950 four will, though. The 1386 will be. driven by a Gilmer belt. Dave Pessy seems to have been picked up to fill at least one of the empty seats in thi Honda motocross line up. Pessy will be ~iding the western swing of the TransAMA series and has already begun winning local events on his new Elsinore. Gary Jones may have won the U.S. 250 motocross plate for Honda but he 3n't riding for them anymore. Despite everything you may have read, the Jones family's relationship with American Honda is, as they say in the trade, terminated. We won't even try and guess who really did what to whom or why. The Jones bought some Maicos. Movie star Mert Lawwill receives every flat tracker's secret dream. a chromed sprocket from Circle Industries' Doug Ward. It was his simply for ~tting fast time at Ascot. Aggie smiles at his reflection in the chrome. THE LATEST Rolf Tibblin broke his heel and his ankle when his factory Husky seized on the pavement at Riverside. Rolf put his foot down to save it (which he did) but his foot kind of ate it. Rolf won't be at the Baja 1000 or Barstow to Vegas. The doctors gave him three months to mend; folks who know him say he'll be around sooner. Tommy Brooks caught his knee between the gas tank and bars while desert racing and the resulting surgery will keep him out for a while. No Barstow to Vegas,for Tommy either. Parnelli J ones was disqualified from the SCORE thing for too much practice. He kept going out with other classes during practice, and Mickey Thompson finally disqualified him. Car guys..:hurumph! One staffer was surprised this (Monday) morning when he turned on the news and saw results and a little bit of film from 'the Ohio TransAMA. Good work, Channel 2 and CBS. What are you other guys doing? The winners of the Political Enduro receive free entries into the URA enduro of their choice. This year was the first time that any of the first three finishers have gone the full 250 miles at Ontario. . ELSINORE OWNERS; HOLD OUT! Wait for the new trick, improved, unbreakable, and otherwise neat rings that the factory will soon release. IT MAKES SENSE. American Honda will be sponsoring enduro riders in addition to their motocross effort. Apparently, about three top riders from each area across the u..S. will receive a "good dea'" on their bike and help .with parts and riding gear. The MT 250 two-stroke will probably be the major tool in Honda's sponsored enduro efforts but we wonder why they don't put more emphasis on the"XL250 and the new XL350, too. Yamaha has probahly sold more dirt and dirt-oriented bikes than any other manufacturer importing into the U.S. It therefore befuddles us why they haven't let anybody know that they have won their first motocross World Championship. For the several thousand who haven't heard about it, the 250 World Champ ain't Joel Robert anymore. It's Hakan Andersson and he did it sponsored by ·Yamaha. Let's have a round of cheers and general hurrahs for Hakan. Thanks. And now we're not going to do anymore of Yamaha's advertising for them. If things go according to plan. Ontario was the last unsilen(:lld road race ever to be run by the AMA. Norton Villiers Triumph has not yet signed an agreement with Cosworth to develop. a motorcycle engine. But they might. Britons Gordon Crichton and Johnny Fitzpatrick are preparing two 500cc Triumphs in Greeves trials frames for the Rams' Hare 'n Hound October 28. The two airport workers got the idea to go desert racing after seeing "On Any Sunday." They plan to race for charity , hoping to raise funds for paralyzed children in England. Both lads are employed by BOAC, and the company has offered to put some money into the charitable ,venture. Fitzpatrick is a former professional speedway rider and is looking forward with enthusillsm to his first race in "the great American desert." After we noted that the silencer/spark arrestor on the-new Yamaha 250 MX seemed to restrict power, the folks at Skyway called with a solution. Seems you ohly have to cut one and an eighth inches off the pipe and drop the carb needle one notch. Instant power. BL~ SHOWDOWN! What may become the precedent for determining the legality of the BLM desert plan was scheduled for court hearing in San Diego on Tuesday, October 9. The BLM is seeking an injunction to halt a race planned by the EI Cajon M.C., the same club being sued for $7.000 for alleged damages infl icted by one of their events last year. Kevin Mldlam, attorney for the EI Cajon M.C., intends to challenge the right of President Nixon to regulate off·road vehicle activity in the absence of any federal legislation permitting him to do so. Nixon's executive order simply 'decreed that regulations be put into effect. If the EI Cajon club is suc:caUfuI, the whole BLM desert plan would go right down the tube. A full report on the case will appear in these pagis next week. Triumph Motorcycles, Inc., is moving its corporate hc.adquarters from New Jersey to Duarte, Califomia. They will maintain warehouse facilities' in Baltimore, Maryland. Did you realize that among the top Jen in National standings there are only two, Gary Nixon and Rex Beauchamp, who don't call California home? Cash money road racing retums to SoCal when the ACA throws its money race at Carlsbad on October 21. . The Joint Council on Off Road Use of Public Land is organizing a gian t telegram protest of the BLM Desert Plan. Here's how it works...you call up Western Union's local office and tell them you want to send a political telegram to President Nixon. It will cost you only two' bucks to send him ·ten words on how you feel about EO 11644. Do it on October 12. The Stanislaus Trail Bike Association is doing nice things for trail riders up in Stanislaus Coilnty, Califomia. Their secretary, Sharren Jacinto, was recently appointed to a four year term on the County Park Commission. Gary Scott and Gene Romero were discussing the course and so on at Ontario while OJle of our staffers was looking on. One oI them tumed to 01U' man aQd asked, "Which one is turn six?" Our man, of course, knew.