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/126011
DIANE COX Lovely lady, rapid racer E.. • ~ E l{') ....... O'l -::l'< '"' By Jerry Mathel IlJ .0 0 Of f the track Diane doesn't give the slightest imp ression that she is th e very swift, agressive rider we have com e to kno w. Diane likes th e sam e thin gs most o ther teenage girls like, pretty clothes, going out, and boys. She works at a regular weekday job at a drug store in her hometo wn of Salem, Oregon. Cycle N ews talk ed with Diane and her dad , Richard Cox, at th e Sid ewinders track Championship : CN: How did you get started in a racing career? DC: I first started racing mo to cross when I was abo ut 10. The first race I rode was at Silverton on a Ho n da gO. I remem ber it fell o n top of me and I was n 't big en ough to lift it off. I rode the Powder Puff clas s fo r a while but pretty soon there wer en 't an y other girls riding. So I star te d riding with the guys. I go t m y professional license wh en I was 16 . I'm 18 now an d this is my first year as an AMA Expert. CN : How much of the pro circuit did you get to ride this year? DC: Mo st of m y racin g has be en right here in th e North west . We went to Houston and to so me of th e races in California, b u t Sidew inders and Castle Rock are p re tt y much my home tra cks. CN : I understand you were fast qualifier here at Sidewinders a fe w weeks ago. Is TT racing your favo rite? DC: J ride a lot of TT because th at's wh at the re is t he most o f in th is area , but I reall y lik e ·flat track th e best. I gue ss th e San Jose Mile is my favorite track, I reall y like th e miles. I tried road racin g, first on a 125 Su zu ki, and th en on a Yamaha TZ· 250 at Po rtland In tern a tio n al Ra cew ay, b ut I don't real ly care for asphalt. CN : Have you gotten much help from sponsors? DC: Torco Oil had given us a lo t of help with supplies and gett ing us to some of the races. K RW Helm ets had given us a lot o f stuff and Suzu ki Sport Cen ter in Sale m has given us a whole lo t of help but we real ly are n't spo nsored. I h ave two Triumphs and they be long to Dad and me . We h ave to pay for most of the stuff for them . CN: I always see your Dad with you at the races. Is he your tuner? DC: No, Jim Hershback from Suzuki Sport Cen ter does most of the tuning. He sets m y bikes up and keeps them running. Dad does a lot too. He can do most things on them at the track. CN: What are your plans for next year? DC: We want to go to as many Nationals as we can . We' re going to Houston for sure . We want to save up as much money as we can and may be ride some of the Eastern an d Midwestern races. I rea lly don 't know j ust ho w much 111 be able to ride next year, it takes so much m o ney. I've already sent in my entry for the Ascot Na ti onal an d for sure I don't want to miss San J ose . CN : (To Diane's Dad) Richard, a sponsor would really be a big help wouldn't it? RC: Oh it su re wo uld, that 's what we've bee n hopin g for . It 's real ly hard when you have to pay for everyth in g yo urself', DC: My 750's pretty fast but it su re would be n ice to have a b ike that was as fast as m ost of the o the rs. Particularly on t he longer tr acks li ke th e miles, I just don 't have th e horsepower th at th e Har leys have . CN: Besides racing, you have a fu ll t ime job don't you ? ~ U 0 ... DC: Yes, 1 work at t he Pay -Less Dr ug Store in Sa lem. CN: How do they feel about your racing? DC: The m an ager h as be en just great, they give me the days off I need. They seem to th ink it's swe ll. . CN: Do you have any long tenn plans for your racing career? DC: Oh, I don 't real ly know how much longer I'm going to race. I don 't th ink I w an t to do this the rest a f my life. I think I' d rather have a car eer :Is a housewife. My real bi g goal right n ow, is to get en o ug h Nation al p oints to get a National number. I've reall y got my heart set on th at . So far this ye ar I hav en't picked up any p oin ts but th ere are still two more Nationals th at 1 will be riding. • Dian e rod e those tw o Natio nals since this in te rv ie w was taped. Th e closest she got to th ose co veted Nat ional p oints was at San J ose, where she got t o the Troph y Final, bu t h er bik e ex p ired from th e effort. It's iro nic an d d isappointing tha t in th is era of lib erated wome n, t he nat ion 's o nly lady Expert pr ofess ional motorcycle race r should co n tinue to be limit ed by h er equip men t, rath er than by her sk ill - wh ich is considerable, and still growing. 41