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/125848
was damp, fresh, and varied . The last two laps were bad as the stretch the club referred to with a stroke of originality as "Whoop-de-doo Canyon" de terio ra ted into about 870 miles of teet h-j arring lumps with the turns just close enough together so that it was hard to skim them at speed without overshooting the next berm. There was really nothing i m p o s s ib l e or unreasonable on the 14-mile co urs e . There was a just of lot of it. Even Malcolm commented th at it was a pretty rough course for a 10o..miler (Ac tu ally , 98 . But it felt like more.) Malcolm seized up his fresh bike for good about the third lap and there was a bit of dicing for the lead with desert ace Jim Fishback finally emerging in the lead on his old 383 CZ that he hadn't ridden since the Chec k Chase. Unofficially, Jim held the lead to the end and won the Fourth Annual Indian Gra nd Prix overall. C.H. faded back, to about seventh overall, as Dave Aldana on a 500 BSA{Tri umph British-type motorcycle moved up to third before running o ut of gas. Dave stole some pe trol and got going again and may have gotten back up to th ird . -, If he did n't, the best guess was that last year's o verall wi nner, Steve Subith on a 4 00 Maico, took that spot. Rick Lee kep t his 250 Ya mmerhamme r hum ming the w hole distance for a well-deserved second overall. Or so we thin k. Riders were so strung o ut after three laps, that you sometimes couldn't tell the players even with a program. Needless to say, these gentlemen were all Experts. First Amateur was probably Butch Linden , who kept it together all the way on a 125 Bultaco. Most of the non-Expert finishers made only five or six of the seven laps before getting the silver-spangled checkered flag. Cherry Stockton (Bul) was firstest most of the way of the more petite riders entered but we didn't see her after the tired, sweaty, dusty finish to confirm her as first PP Overall. Top Novice will have to be determined by the scorers. It got very strung out on those whoopie-doos and down hills . Personal thanks from a sore-muscled rider-reporter to Jim Dolan for two beer can s full of pre-mix and whatever the opposite of thanks is to the fishtailing Yamaha-ire who precipitated a classic tuck and roll at the end of the sandwash. Finisher and non-fi nis he r alike will agree , there is no thing else like the Soboba ru n. It is long, demanding, and requires all your skill as a m o t orcy cle racer, including scrounging skills to fin d gas for your van within a 15 -mile radiu s of the reservation. Let 's hope there is a Fifth An nual Indian GP; that those who wasted their energies carousing on Saturday n igh t don't ru in it for the real racers. Everybody who rode it, except Jim Fishback, is no doubt sure they can d o better next year. It is truly o ne of the classics in Southern California sportsman ra cing. - Malcolm Smith (Husl was first for the first two laps. Some of the co ntestants didn't make it through the moisture without a dab or dozen. Some who d id make it across wer e t oo ti red to care. Wheeze. Pant. Some of the imported squaws were even friendlier. Jim Fishback (CZ) was first for th e last tw o laps. Bob Maynard and Jeff Heinninger raced the 176 Can·Ams wh ich proved to be ungodly fast little bikes. The Indians were friendl y . The guys in t he funny hats are J. Heinn inger and M. Smith . 7