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/125885
THUNDER a a aI I ~~ 1 1.~1 at November 10 i l\ Shadow Glen Track MOTOCROSS For great racing and good t imes Gates open , ....6 :30 AM Sign-Up 6:30-8:00 AM Practice . . 7 :30ยท8:30 AM First Mota 9 :00 AM $3,000 Rider Medical Insurance w ill be in effect, 100 % T roph i e~ Beginners, Juniors, Intermediates pl us Min icvc le, Old Timers & Powder Puff . Tro phies awarded sa me day. Plus Expert $500 Purse, gua ranteed Sportsman Classes. 1975 Cards are available now. $8.00 Mail. $ 10.00 post , Expert Classes $12.00 Mail , $15.00 post. A.M.E., P.O. Box 1421 , Reseda, CA91335 213-881-5778 ABC LEATHERS AND BELL HELMETS WE REALLY GOT IT TOGETHER! so riding back in the van after load in g the racer , we talk about inj ury a nd p ain . Carl accuses Ha n k of being a crybaby a fte r cutt ing his finger a nd asks Gary if he's the same way. "1 ha te to admit it, but I am," Ga rv admits. " It seems the lillie things really bother me and I'll complain abo ut them, like hurt ing my finger or something. " Gary has not complained once, nor wiII he, a bout a foot an d ankle that have six broken bones . He is philosoph ica l abou t h is injury on the Albany Mile sand trac k a nd rela t es it in detail. " 1 o n ly had one tear-off left an d di d n ' t wan t t o th row it away because the n I kn ew I wo uldn 't be able to see lat er. I co u ld o n ly see a lit tle bit off to my le ft and not a t all straigh t ahead o r to the rig h t. I w ip ed off th e tea raway wi.th m y glo ve bu t the sa nd had al ready dr ied so I only smea red it. T hen I co uldn't see at all and it was too late. I we n t righ t in to th e fence, hi t a pos t and broke m y ankle without ever ge lling off the bike. It was actua lly a cheap lesson. 1 lea rn ed no t to gel into that situation again. \ \'h e n a racer allows as how a broken leg that keeps him out of two Nationals is a "cheap lesson" in the development of a career. h e is a professional. Gary is very unemotional about it all, already planning for next season. \Vife Donna makes iced tea for us as I try 10 figure some way to overcome Gary's na tu ral reserve and social "correctness. t. Do nna and Gary were high school sweethearts before m arry in g. She is refreshing in th at she has definite opinions and views of her own, which she will offer if asked , th ough she stays in the bac kgroun d d uri ng mos t of my ho urs wi th the Scotts. Shc appears to have adap ted well to bei ng a racer's wife witho u t losing any o f her own ide nt ity. I ask her if Gary is hard to live with before, or after he lo ses. a race. " No ," she rep lies quickly. "Lle 's very even-tempered. It 's th e rest of us who gel excited or upse t. li e's p roba bl y harder to live with wh en he 's not rac ing t ha n wh en he is." "Yeah, I thi n k I was p retty o rnery the fir st wee k wi th m y leg in a cast . . . " " . .. bu t he's reall y se ttled dow n no w ," Do nna fini sh es for h im. Ga ry 's eve n tem p era m ent ca rries o ver into compe ti tion. "I know I'm out there to d o a job a nd I try to have the best pr ep aration before a race , th en go o u t there an d do it. " U Like to see wh at we 've been do ing sinc e we jo ined the Bell team. For a copy of our new brochure with pros Kenny Roberts and Brad Lack ey in AB C/ BELL leathers, write now to " Leathers" ABC /B ELL Dept. H 9802 South Atlant ic Ave. South Gate , Ca. 90280 Win one thing at a t ime ":\ly brother, Hank, thinks different ly," Gary sm iles a rare whi te-toothed grin, "I1e thinks he 's won the race, or hasn't won it. when he 's s ti ll in the van . I j ust do one thing at a time and concentrate on making it into the Nali,?naJ. I'll try to set a good lap lime an d Just worry about that. Not worry, reall y , just wo rk 0 '" it. T he n I' ll try to do we ll in my heat . If I win the heat, good, The n I've made it into the Main an d then I start thinking about a good sta rt , I'll have m y lines p ic ked out from pract ice bUI I still have trouble wi th sta r ts, So m e guys slip the cl utch the whole way to th e first turn . So me guys ju st drop th e hamm er - Ba m! I kno w th e righ t way to do it : quarter throttle a nd cl u tc h ju s t at th e . p ressu re po rnt b u t when that adre na lin starts p ump in' " "Yeah ," I offer , "i t short-circu its yo ur b rain. Th ere 's a d ir ec t connection from eyes to throttle hand, " I don' t feel foo li~h saying it when Gary agrees. ASIde from wha tever mental mechanics make Gary Scott go like he does, his bike preparation starts with the frame and engine. It has become appa rent just being around him that he knows motors and frame design a nd the necessary modifications that make them right for him much better than most of the young Experts. lie attributes some of it to the fac t that he built his own bikes during his first year on the National circuit when he finished second as a privateer. " If something was wrong I bad to fig ure out what it was , get th e engine out of the frame, fix it , get it back in and see how it worked. I learned a lot th a t way:' It is no t always so obvious b ut the a rt of nat trac king is more than gassing it har d and turni ng left. Gary ta lk s q ui c kly and expertly of weigh t tra nsfer, engine h ei gh t a nd p la c emen t. fram es th at handle going in a nd fra mes th a t handl e coming ou t o f the turn , and th e effo rt to get a m achine that does both well. Aft er may be a n hour of such one-sided d isc ussio ns , h e dismisses th e store of professio nal knowle dge a nd th e my riad options in setting up a wi nning Na tional n a t track machine with , " I can 't keep up wit h it li ke I di d at first. Then t here a lways comes the t im e when yo u shoul d go back and try some of th e th in gs that didn' t work the first tim e Con tin ued on page 3 6 ABC CUSTOM LEATHERS DIVISION OF BEL L HELMETS INC, 9802 So uth Atl anti c Ave .. So uth Gate. Ca. 90280 Please se nd me you r ne w lea the rs bro chure-: Name _ Street Addr ess City _ Stale I am inte rested in 0 compet ition I be long to a motorcycle club o , Zip 0 off-roa d _ o s tree t Name of club OSSA ~, BANDIT DIRT BIKE WESf Doug Douglas Motorcycles 247 69 E. 5t h St., Sa n Ber nar dino, CA 92410 71 4-884 4962 Sales Service A ccess or ies Custo m Pan ing 7139 Canog a Avenue Canoga Park . Calif. 91303 (213) 340-6521 13