Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

I Local hotline ~ Drewisch was scored twice on the second to last lap and that he was twice given the white flag. Three days la ter he called the AME office and was informed that he had been awarded the win. Steve Stasiafky (Mai) moved in fro nt of the 250 Junior Class on the second lap and began to pull away from the pack. Meanwhile Bill Barker was recovering from a poor start (he tripped over his Bultaco as he ran to it) and by lap three he was in second. Barker gained steadily on Stasiafsky and by the sixth lap was within striking range. Flying over the first water crossing Barker stole the lead as Stasiafsky, who elected to take the wet route, was momen tarily held up with a faltering engine. Stasiafsky got it together again an d passed him back when Barker's front wheel washed out and he dropped his hike in a tight tum. On the ne xt lap Stasiafsky's Maico choked o ut in the water and wouldn't res tart. Barker went o n fo r an easy victory. Stasiafsky came back in the Open clas s on an other Maico, this one with a carefully tape d airbox, an d avenged himself for his earlier b ad luck. After so me early-mote d icing wi th Bob Bou rn e (Suz) , Stasiafsky ran away fro m • t he field and too k a decisive win. E Warre n Reid crests the horizon for the 125 Pro win. Jim West Memorial MX By Jody Weisel MOOR PARK, CAL. JAN 4 "I'm going to win the 500 Pros for Jim West," said Gay lon Mosier before taking his Wheelsmith Maico way out front in both motos at Valley Cycle Park. 360 riders and 1000 spectators carne out to honor the memory of National star Jim West, who 16 succumbed to injuries sustained during the Saddleback Trans·AMA. In the spirit of camaraderie Mosier, Brad Lackey, Danny Laf'o rte, T erry Clark, J o hn Derhammer, Bob Ellio t and Randy Berkeley gave t hei r purse m oney bac k to the benefit fund. Many o th ers co ntributed to th e success of the eve nt by donating ti m e, money , merchan dise and co ntingencies to the cause. Warren Reid (Ho n) and Dan ny LaPorte (Suz) took turns casting shadows on one an other throughout both motos of th e 125 Pros. Rei d 's FMF Honda held the margin at the flag over LaPorte's RM to gamer t he overall. Greg Robertson (C-A) berserked it with his "elbows up and duckbill out" style to third. 125 National Champion Marty Smith gave chase: to the ragged, but radical, Can-Am rider only to drop his Honda and out of th e race in the second moto, Mark Gambretta (Hon) went 3-5 to lose o ut to Ro be rt so n when Gambretta's Sambo's spo nso red Honda was swept o ut fro m under hi m in a foiled block pass. The 250 Pros saw the classic California kids Lal'o rt e (Suz) and Kenny Zahrt (Oss) doing the dueling until the Spanish chain came loose. Danny LaPorte to ok his U.S . Suzuki RM to a clean sweep of b oth motos wit h teamm ate Bob Elli ot giving Suzuki's B-team t he top two spots. Zahrt got his chain raile d bac k up in time to preserve third overall with a 2·5 score. Eddie Cole st yled his way to fourt h on a Steve 's Bultaco wh ile keeping the leaders in sigh t, The Op en Pro's became the focus of attentio n with Gaylon Mosier's bold statement pl ayin g over the lo uds peakers and the likes of Lackey, Jennings, Rubly, Thorwaldson, Clark, Messer and Lunde on th e line. Gary Sern ics, Tim Hart and Jimmy Weinert on the sidelines lending mo ral su pport. Per haps it was fitting that Jim West's old marque took the top two places as old friends Gaylon Mosier and Rich Thorwaldson put Maico on the leaderboard. In moto one Mosier's Maico was so quickly in the front that he contented himself with doing clickers off of the WFO jump on the second lap. Jeff Jennings (Suz) held a solid second while Terry Clark (Hus) and Thorwaldson solved the third place dice with the Swedish machine in front. John Derhammer brought another Maico in fifth . Gaylon Mosier left the 500 Pros behind in the second stanza as Thorwaldson gave chase through the dusk darkness. With the overall firmly in Mosier's hands, Thorwaldson settled for second. Terry Clark repeated his first moto third for third overall as Derhammer gave Maico three out of the four top p laces. And so th e hea ted competition of m ot ocro ss goes on. Yet it goes on w ith th e memory of J im West firmly entrenc hed in the hearts of racers everywhere. No one who knew him will ever fo rget his easy smile, frie ndly manner or fierce competitive nat ure. This one was for J im. • broken off at the top mounts, into the infield. The start of the 125 Junior class resembled that of a desert race. 85 bikes lined up for the single 45 minute dash, Lernans-dead engine style. Fourth out of the hole, Scott Spence pushed his Honda into the lead by mid-course, From then on he appeared to have the race sewed up, his lead increasing with each lap. Way back in the sea of riders, however, Dave Drewisch (Yam) was working his way up from a nearly dead last start. By the time the first lap was counted he was in 42nd place. He passed eight more in the second. By the second to last lap he had closed in on Spence, who was now more than a lap ahead of most of the other riders, and Drewisch was, in fact, scored as a lapped rider . On the final lap Drewisch zappe d Spence at the water hole, and as t he two crossed t he finish line Drewisch was given th e white and Spence the checkered. Sp ence was ush ered into t he win ner's circle , wi th cam eras and hugs , while Drewisch, no less chilled, w et an d exhausted, w as left bewildered. After lodgin g a pro test , it was disco vered that Junior Day at the Dunes If the flak doesn't get ya the torpedoes will. By Mike Hesse VALENCIA, CAL , DE C. 14 AME played host to a Junior extravaganza at Indian Dunes today an d offered as booty to the 125, 250, and Open Junior class winners a 125 Honda, Yamaha or Suzu ki. The course, an extended version of the Shadow Glen track, was bisected by the rushing waters of a healthy stream; the start fu nneling into a few hundred yards of twisting, turning sandwash on the far side, while good berms and a fast , sm oo th su rface comprised t he sectio n nearest th e pi ts and spectators. As o ne migh t expect, in order to gain access to eith er slice o f the tr ack it was to nego tiate the first necessary aforementio ned flow. The two water cro ssings acc ounted for th e king's share of t he day s DN F 's. The first o ne, though, was preced ed by a ramp which so me riders used to launch thei r machin es ove r the danger, while the less skillful, daring, or crazy, pl unged into the engine str an gling waters. One frustrated rider who solved the d ilem ma by taking the high road was seen cursing as he pushed his cycle, both rear shocks Tibblin takes shaky, dusty desert doin's By James Brammer SAN DIEGO, CAL., DEC. 14 It would not have been a good day to selI desert real estate. Winds gusting up to 90 miles an hour capsized twelve vehicles in the mountains before Interstate Highway 8, from Ocotillo to Alpine, was closed for twelve hours Sunday nigh t. Strong winds favored the Open class Husky riders who raced Sunday morning. Many riders left while the Imp erial Valley Motorcycle Club resurrected one 30 mile Voo p of a p lanned four separate loo~race at Superstition Mountain. Ro lf Tibb lin w on the th re lap , 90 m ile event, that started ab o ut he same ti me as an earth q ua ke in a dus t torm so thick t he sm o kebomb could n' be seen. Some guy on a 125 was sec o d m an to Ti b blin at the bo mb, but if t he wind aided h im then, it la ter handicapped hi m. Bounci ng along over newly for med san d dunes , Arnie Gruner lagged Tibblin

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