Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

Getting the Garter or, the Red Tape Enduro We almost lost the Red Garter National Enduro this year. In fact, if it hadn't been for the tenacity of 0 -37 legislative officer John Clauson, backed up by George Putman and several other concerned Dirt Diggers, the event woul d already be written off and cancellation notices in the mail to the pre-entries. What happened is an example of what a few vicious little peop le can do whe n motorcyclists leave them the whole arena unopposed. Beginning late last year, the Dirt Diggers began to unravel the long roll of . red tape that lay between them and a Forest Service permit to run in the Los Padres National Forest, as they had done before. Step by step they plodded through the paperwork jungle with little hint of trouble until the first week in April, with the event barely a week and a half away. That's when they learned that Forest Supervisor Robert Lancaster, in a letter dated March 26 (which finally arrived April 3), had denied their special-use permit, The letter said, in part: "The reason for the denial is that the proposed time is during . . . the nesting period of the quail ... We have also received a petition from a number of landowners in the area indicating their opposition to the running of the enduro ..." The letter went on to the effect that the Dirt Diggers are nice guys and motorcycles have a legitimate right on the land, but this time, fellas, you've been had. On April 2, Johnny Clauson had the word from the discouraged Diggers and got on the hom to Cycle News, among others. Checking from our end revealed that there was also trouble with the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors over permit to camp on private property. The Board, too, had received letters and a petition against the enduro, and was under the impression that 1500 to 2000 people planned to camp in and about the small community of Ventacopa, California. Rising to the occasion, the County determined that the Diggers were in violation of zoning ordinances (no camping permit) and should be issued an injunction forthwith. Only then did they contact the Diggers, to find that the club, under pressure, had already moved the starting area and would be camping a limited number of people on Federal land in the Ballinger . Canyon area. none on private land. In short, the Board of Supervisors had been goaded into spinning its wheels for nothing. By this time, a pattern was beginning to emerge. A fact-finding trip to Ventacopa, coupled with more research, confirmed it . One family who owned several parcels of land in the area, had spearheaded a pressure campaign against the enduro because they didn't wan t wholesale motorcycle riding to get started there. The family had stirred up the Forest Service, the Santa Barbara Board, and possibly the Fish and Game people as well, creating the impression that they spoke for all the property owners ound Ventacopa. ' T hey had also irculated a petition , obtaining some 42 ignat ures, which they copied and shot ff to the various agencies. It turned out that thirty of those ignatures had been obtained under uestionable pretenses from the embers of a ne arby commune. A okesrnan for the co mm u ne , basically a eligious group, told Cycle News the e t i t i on e r had given them the rnpression the event was to be an ntcmational motocross, complete with housands of rowdy spectators. When hey learned it was only an enduro (one r two of the men used to ride dirt and ew the difference), the commune a people wrote the Forest Service to withdraw their signatures. This bit of in fo would have remained conveniently buried but for the persistent digging of the numbers of bike people who were now involved. By April 3 , Clauson, the Diggers, M.O.R.E ., and AMA District 37 were all making calls up and down the chain of com m an d above and below Lancaster 's office. The sudden pressure from bikers triggered a last-ditch meeting in the District Ranger's office to reconsider the whole tang led hassle . Attending were the landowners, George Putman and Don Hanna of the Dirt Diggers, John Clauson and Sam Co ok from D-37, Forester Paul Rich, representatives of three county Sheriff's departments (Kern, Ventura, Santa Barbara) two Fish and Game people, and Cycle News. Ted Zrelak, the District Ranger presiding, looked and sounded like a harassed public servan t who fervently wished all these people were on somebody else's back. Step by painful step, all the obstacles were discussed and dealt with. Camping on private land, even with the owner's permission, was out. Could the club enforce this? Yes. Fish and Game not only wanted to curtail the enduro, they wanted to talk about ending ' a ll motorcycle riding in the Ballinger Canyon area. George Putman said, "You may find that motorcycles are actually good for the game, in that they drive hunters away. I know places that used to be alive with rabbits five years ago. Now you don't see a single jack or cotton tail, because hunters have shot them all dead! Yet where motorcycle traffic discourages intense hunting, the small game is everywhere." Fish and Game started to bargain. Would the enduro be confined to existing trails a quarter of a mile from quail watering spots? Yes. The landowners remained. Could the enduro be routed around their land? Yes. Then they could not object, so they left, Was the April 13 date critical? Could the club hold the event some other time? Yes, but postponement would cost them the National sanction. The club already had 52500 sunk in the enduro, so losses would be substantial. Point by point , extra conditions were heaped on the club and objections bypassed or overcome. Finally, Ranger Zrelak concluded, "Well, if you can solve the problems we've discussed, I see no reason why we can't go through with your permit." The club finally received its permit at noon Friday, the day beforethe event. Surprisingly, the enduro itself came off beautifully as Ron Schneiders reported last week. The Diggers had nothing but praise for the cooperation they had Saturday, not only from the Forest Service, but from the various sheriffs agencies that worked with them the day of the event. Analy sis One small group of people, by puffing themselves up to appear bigger than they were, nearly persuaded a willing bureaucracy to deny hundreds of citizens their access to public land. They were able to pull it off (almost) because the bureaucracy had never heard from us! Right. With the exception of one or two rangers who had worked face-to-face with the Diggers, no one had heard of us, or the enduro, until the landlords stirred them up. The bureaucrats need to be reminded constantly that we have a legitimate right on multiple use land. The quail issue was largely a red herring - this time. It will return as an issue, because the Fish and Game people came to the meeting speaking not for the quail (which are not an endangered species), but for the hunters who have hunted small game to death any p lace that motorcycles are not. Now they want it all, and if we don't give the affected agencies some measure of our numbers, the hunters could get it all while we were looking the other way. The name of the game is pressure-group politics, and it will be played whether we ask to be dealt in or not. At stake is our continued access to public land. The Red Garter enduro was saved by the skin of our teeth, but this is only the opening round. Lane Campbell a tachometer, which is immediately consigned to that junk box in the garage attic. Well, this is fine but it usually leaves the speedo mounted in a somewhat vunerable place. Most 100cc models come with just a speedo mounted right in the center up closer to the rider and also more protected in case of a crash. The mounts only cost a buck or two and can be in most cases bolted right on with minimum work. Mu ch more sanitary. Enduro product evaluat ions Fogeater ® Goggles Manufacturer: National Jlydron Inc. Address: 1633 Rothsville Road Rothsville, PA _ 17573 Telephone:" (717) 626·2028 ISOT Qualifie r The big thing coming up for Southern California enduro riders is the ISDT Qualifier out at Barstow April 27-28. The Qualifier is being hosted by the Shamrocks MC, the same club who put on one of the best qualifiers last year. That one was held in June and it was well over 100 degrees so the Shamrocks got ' the date moved up this year, hoping for weather in the 70s. At this writing the Shamrocks have 152 entries, about 50 more than last year. Also different from last year, some District 37 desert racers have en teredo They just migh t pull a surprise if they can grasp the rules to their advantage. Some of the local hot shoes include Mark Adent on a Penton and Tom and Cordis Brooks on Bultacos. The Desert MC has five club teams entered led by the bearded District 37 Enduro steward Stan Baldwin. Other local clubs entered are the Prospectors (three teams), Chaparrals (two teams), Checkpoints (one team) and the United Racing Association (one team) of which I am a member. Some of the better Northern California riders are coming down to try their luck in the desert, including Ben Bower who blew everyone's mind at t he Red Garter. Factory teams entered are Penton (three teams), Bultaco (two teams), Rokon (one team) , Husky (one team from Fort Hood, Texas) and the Ossa team with Dave Latham and Charlie Vincent. It should be an interesting qualifier! Word is the course is 229 miles each day , starting and ending at the Holiday Inn in Barstow. The loops are approximately 52, 61, 63, and 52 miles respectively. There wi11 be three special tests each day, two cross country and one acceleration. Oh yeah, the rumors are really spreading hot and heavy abou t a rock section reported to be 20 miles long and a real bike breaker. I wish to calm your fears at this time. It's only 12 miles long. Since the 1973 ISDT was held in the United States for the first time a lot of interest was generated in this event. If you aren't doing anything the weekend of April 27-28 come on out to Barstow and check it out. Watch how some of the best riders around tackle the desert. You just might learn something. Ever had your goggles fog up on you at the worst possible time? You can buy a c ure now. I tested one of the new goggles from the National Hydron Company and was very impressed. No matter how slow I rode or even when I stopped the goggles refused to fog up. They coat the lens on each side with what t hey call Hydron ® which prevents the len s from fogging , pure and simple. I was m ost imp ressed with t hem an d the vision was very good also. You should try t hem for fit on over your helmet though. The model I tested (No. 90-57.95) didn't see m to fit over a Bell Magnum helmet properly. I didn't have any problem with my helmet though. You can b uy not only goggles but visors, flip-up shields, and bubble shields from the National Hydron Company. Bell Fog-Free Distributor: Webco, Inc. Don 't want to go out and buy a new pair of goggles? Well, try spending a buck and get a little bottle of Bell Fog-Free. It doesn't do a 100% job of preventing your goggles from fogging up but I could estimate it does d o about 90%. No too bad of an investment for 10 0 pennies. Just put a couple of drops inside y our lens an d wipe off and presto: Pretty close t o a fog free goggle. Honda's Red Garter If you noticed the results of the Red Garter Enduro it was most interesting to observe that three of the first four places were MT -250 Hondas. Winner Jay Tullis and fourth place Marv Munyon were on factory sponsored bikes while second place Mike Adams was on a MT-250 that was so stock it wanted to make you cry comparing it to your jazzed up -trick-super enduro bike. He even ran the stock trials tires which every magazine that has tested the bike has sworn wouldn 't work in a serious enduro or off-road work. All I know is there is a lot of talent o n t hat bike and if he ever decides to trick his bike out he is going to be doubly tough to beat. Was that Malcolm Smith I saw riding Buddy Up with some foxy tootsie at the Red Garter? Some guys bring extra water in case they break down. Others bring food, or tools. But or Malcolm . .. Speedo crash protection Most Japanese enduro bikes come equipped with both a speedometer and VHT Expansion Chamber Paint Manufacturer: Sperex Corp. Address: 16131 South Ample Ave. Gardena, Calif. 90248 Telephone : (213) 323-6162 Your old pi pe looking ratty? A can o f VHT Expansion Chamber Paint will even w ork on four stroke pipes. I had a new Skyway welded on my pipe for the Red Garter Enduro an d used the pain t to to uch up the pipe and silencer. It looked real nice and seemed to hold up OK. I don't think any paint will hold up by the header pipe though so don't expect miracles there. This paint won't do it either. Just too much heat comes out there. The can holds enough to paint your pipe many times over so the cost per application is reasonable. Larry Langley 17

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