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Alan Lampkin cleans the fourth trap on his way to victory in the first international clas s observed trials held in America. However the results are under protest.
Don Smith wasn't the only one troubled by the terrain in the tenth trap.
Alan Lampkin wins
disputed event
By Tod Rafferty
Pho tos by Chris Ost lind and Raffe rty
ORANG E, CAL., JA N. 6
America's first international trials
meet coincided with Southern
California's first monsoon of .
the
season and the results were gnm,
if n ot chao tic. Spectators sta yed
away in large groups an d most of
the riders ended wishing they'd
done th e same. It was mess y.
6
Five sec tions were deleted at the
outset, and the schedule of four loops
over 20 sections became three tours of
15 sections. Some traps were rerouted
at the last minute, b ut three days of rain
had
tu rned
Sadd leback 's
sand/clay/whatever surface into greasy
gumbo which only got worse as more
tires churn ed through it.
The standard grace period of one
hour was extended to two ho urs, but
because of lo ng delays at so me sections
many top-ranked rid ers were in la te,
which mean s d isq ua lification. Two of
the nastiest sections became virtually
un rideable by the time half the field had
completed their first loop. Upon
arriving at the section for the second
time, many of the early starting riders
were ahead of later starters who had yet
to rid e the trap. A co urse marshall told
the second lap riders that they'd have to
wait until everyone had made their first
attempt. For some riders it was a
45 -minute wait.
There had been a few one-mark rides
in th is trap during the early going, and
several threes, but it had become a
five-star mo ther in a short ti me. John
Hemingway di d some magic o n his 12 3
Cota and rode up and across a steep
rock wall to exit the section, drawing a
collective "WOW!" from the spec ta to rs.
As it became more obvious that the
two sections were unnavigable , the
decisio n came to just scratch it. For the
rid ers wh o had been held up , severa l o f
whom stood to win the eve nt, it became
impossible to make up the lost time.
Naturally , all the riders boogied off to
the next section, creating another
