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/125860
Smoke, dust and ,ca tu c sspines: Athrilling saga of 300 desert streakers. By Philip Briggs PHO E NIX, A Z., AP R. 28 Dust. . .can't see the gro und under my fro nt wh eel. . .a deep rut, the bar s twist o ut o f my hand s an d I 'm down . . .ca n 't even see the bar s now, and my head and arm s are tangled up in th em... riders, o the r riders ca n't see me ! Befo re I can m ove I feel th e impact as a bike hits m y rear wheel. As I scramble off the t rail, leaving t he bike to fend for itsel f, I th in k, t his is o ne hell of a way to tr eat a scribe. Show a lit tl e resp ect ! I w on der if Cycle New s will p ay m y doctor b ills. I 'm in the hills 10 get a close-u p look at the co urse, (an d the ride rs) of the Deser t Streak, o ne of the few deser t races held in our area. Sout he rn Arizo na is n o t exactly a hot bed of desert raci ng. Those desert runs we do have are in fr equen t, unsan ction ed and in fo rmal. The Streak was b ein g sponso red by a co u pl e of lo cal shops a nd , (wonde r o f wonders), the ow ner o f the land on which ' it was hel d. T hi s ar rangem en t cuts o u t red ta pe , allows use of virgin deser t , and even in th e lan d o f High Chap arral, lim it s your racing country. The co urse w as a sh ort 12 mile loo p . T he race was five la ps , after a run to th e b om b start. The riders st ar ted in two waves , Ama te ur/ Expe r t firs t, Novice, Pu ffer s and Old Ti mers last.. .sort of a Euro-har e Scrambl es. • T he bom b run sta r te d typical Moj ave desert ; ta lcum powder fine silty so il, w ith sca ttered greasewood bus hes . Ab out halfway to th e bomb t he terrain changed to Sonoran desert charac ter; p alo verde tr ees , brush, grass, ro cks, and waist-high staghorn cho lla cactus! T he st uff was thick eno ugh t ha t you could n' t see lines very far in advance, and although you co uld b ull yo ur way through som e of it a t speed, if yo u hit one of those cho llas your ridi ng gear was ventilated! Then there was the d ust hidi ng it all from view for tho", back in th e p ack . Ben ch racing legends were born in the dust and cac tus today. Th e s tar t of th e race was marred by a few . o ver -eage r riders spon taneo usly jum pi ng the banner. Abou t 25 split, ~~tt.~tJ~\)\)\. ~ """,. .to ~ tuneLebikeshotwthe a rn to "\\\'" a BURAK TUNING SCHOOL for performance , fu n & eco.nom y. Ohhhh h noooooooo! D ODOMETER KEEPS MILEAGE ON ANY DIRT BIKE ";i~i~i~~;~ Trained Mechanics are desperately needed IDr the hua:t metercycte service market. M AKE$8,000 to $12,000 yearly as a Motorcycle Mechanic Inv""'Q" " ou. " .0 ........" ....' ",I,n,nQ P'Clq''' ''' BURAK BYE-PRODUCTS 589 95 15170 Rayme r 51. • Va n Nuys. CA (213) 780- 1768 on .I ll "'''/0' l)' ~ "5 .Inri ( r ( ,.. ~ of' ",,' v.r.. ...•.,.,..,,"C'" I.p, , ,no ..ho" , C',," w!> "D .. Inr m,no B uOQi"1 p l ol"" • • " ".nlp D ., .nd " II pn,,·,.. ~ 0 ' ... _ito""'''''' 1I!'~" ' '''9 '( .... du ~ .. II you .r. 11 or o lde , .. nd ••nl .. '''Vh-pa y car••r 'n the boom' ftQ mo lo rc yc le Ind u Sl,y-ac:l now! WHITTIER HONDA Moto rcycle T ra iler s Bell Hel mets Full Bo re Prod ucts •Electronic· Accunte· •Trip&Total· Reliable· APPLI ED DESIGN CO. P.O. BOX 942 • PALO A LTO , CA 9430 1 1 151 326 -7449 4 Ca ll (816) 421· 3901 Today -----_.---------._----o• • nte sti STANDARD H CHNICAl lNSTITUTE .. ,,"" ~ ..o ... 011". 161ll ",,{C ..r " .. r . " .. "y\ C,t, Un '011 Name . Add ress _ _ 14:.124 E. Whitt"" Blvd. (213) 698-0065 Co m plete st ock of parts an d accessories for street and dirt. 18 o ss~ C;tyI St.te BUYING? SEL LING? Cycle News Want Ads do it. _ Phone Age _ VET Approved for Veteran s ' Benefits -----------------------