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/125864
Bea uc ham p held the lead th ro ugh lap six of the third heat, but Pennsylvania 's Billy Eves took it away and went on to win and place his Triumph in the National. Behind t hose two, Chuck Palmgren, aboard his Dan Gurney sponsored Yamaha, and yet another Harley factory rider - Gary Scott argued over third with Scott prevailing. The fourth and final heat was all Hank Scott. The younger brother of Gary rode his Drew Pate Harley to a relatively "easy" win with Jim Rice and Dave Sehl making it a 1-2-3 heat for the orange and black Milwaukee marque. Dick Mann had his Champion Frames/Hap Jones Yamaha in the hunt but the motor sickened on the eighth lap and Bugs was sen t packing. 00 ...... Semis Only the winners of the two semis would advance to the National and included in the list of semi competitors were three Grand National Champions - Kenny Roberts, the current Number One, Gene Romero and Mark Brelsford. Ha r ley mounted Doug Sehl took the lea d and held it for five laps in the first semi only to have "something in the top end" let go. Roberts, who had been running a distant second, inherited the lead and went on to the win a good distance ahead of h is team mate, Gene Rome ro. Semi number two turned out to be the race of the night. Chuck Palmgren took the lead at the drop of the green and was apparently on his way to the win when Rooney Bailey unloaded . heavily in tum three on the fourth lap. The race was red flagged and a single file restart set up. Palmgren took the lead again but couldn't lose young Steve Baker who moved his Yamaha alongside and then ahead of Palmgren on the seven th go-around. The pair crossed the start/finish line side by side for the next two laps and coming out of tum four it was either one 's race. Suddenly, out of nowhere, if a dose third can be considered that. came Harley-moun ted Teddy Newton. Newton blew by Palmgren and Baker at the line for the win and the final transfer spot. Stirring up the limestone in th e fights to make t he Main. Ricky Campbell leads this cha rge. Bart Markel , perhaps t he best half-miler ever, built th e winn ing Harley. Race of th e night came in the second Semi as Chuck Palmgren (38) and Steve Baker went around the o val like this - but Ted dy Newton blew by them at the line after runni ng thi rd. Nat io nal Harley-Davidson owned the starting grid with the exception of Mike Kidd, Billy Eves and Kenny Roberts. Keener was the odds-on favorite, but trackside observers remarked that Dave Sehl had won the event three times . The 20.lap National was all Corky Keener. By the t hird lap he had pulled o ut a lead that he length ened every lap until he settled down with certain victory in hand at t he . hal fway flags. Behi nd Kee ner , positions changed on each lap . Georgia's J immy Maness he ld down second for three lap s only to have Dave Sehl take it away . Billy Eves un loaded in tum fo ur on the second lap and Rex Beauchamp went out on lap eight with mechanical problems . Lap nine saw Maness shoved back to fourth by Gary Scott, Mike Kidd began to d raw the allen tion of the sellou t crowd when he diced with Mert Lawwill for several laps before beginning another charge that would eventually land him on the victory podium. Keener was long gone by the 15 th lap when Gary Scott got by Dave Sehl for the runnerup spot. The only change after that was provided by Kidd as he berserked his way around Maness on the seventeenth lap and nailed Sehl on the last circuit to take third. Corky popped the cork on the winner's c ha m pagne and dousing himself gave Scott and Kidd the same treatment. Off to the side of the celebra tio n , Bart Markel and Robby Boone were hugging each other. Bart's wife, JoAnn, told the world that this was the greatest National she had ever seen because. "Bart wasn't racing so I wasn 't as nervous as [ used to be . But he prepared the bike and 1 feel that's as good as winning as a rider. Oh, that Corky! " • Gary Sco tt blurs past feet up. Mike Kidd intruded his Triumph int o th ird and approved of the champagne shampoo being given to Corky Keener. Results T RO PHY RACE: 1. Ch uck Palmgre n (Yam). 2 . Dave Ather t on (H-D) . 3. Scott Drake (Tti). 4. Keith U llc k i (H-D). 5. Steve Baker (Yam). 6. Mi ke Joh n so n (H-D) . 7 . Frank Gil leSPie (Yam) . 8. Da le Furst ( H-D) . 9 . Denny Palmgren (H-D) . 10. Gene Romero (Yam). N AT IONAL : 1. Corky Keener (H-D). 2. Gary Scott (H·D). 3. Mike Kidd fTrl) . 4. D ave sem (H ·D). 5 . Jimmv Maness (H-D). 6. Hank Sc ott (H-D). 1 . Mert Lawwill (H-D). 8. Ji m Rice ( H·O). 9. Ted dy N ewton (H· D) . 1 0 Charlie Seale (H·D) . II. Ken Rob e r ts (Yam). 12. Scott Brelsford (H-D). 13. Rex Beaucnamp (H -D) . 14. Billy Eves (Tri). 7