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/126037
A funn y thing happened on the way to a Supercross win. Jim my Ellis go t a little out of shape com ing around a comer, did a two step (above) and drove head on into a stack of haybales. Af ter a little back flip (above right) he did som e quick pick 'em up action to get back up and win th e overall. Jackie WiertZ (Marcel's brother) is contesting 500 international motocross rounds on one strange Honda. The former 250 Elsi sports a 353cc Bultaco barrel and piston , ever since Jackie discovered that the two bikes share the same stroke d imension. ITH E'LATEST IO P BY PAPA WULEY notice the trick Did anybody magnesium brake caliper units, from various sources, repl acing the st ock Yamaha un its on cer tain TZ750s at Daytona? Most notably Cecotto' s and Roberts'. Su percross.ups: Kent Howerton has been fined $50 following a shoving incident with Jimmy Weinert after the Dallas Texas Stadium event. Also fined for separate altercations were Trey Jonki, Bob Harris and their mechanics. The cause of these incidents can be found in the story on page six. Last week's Ascot special feature began with recollections of AI Gunter racing there in the 60's. Shortly after the issue went to press we learned that AI had taken his own life, shortly after being ' released from the hospital where he was recuperating from severe racing injuries suffered last season. AI's next-of-kin, at this writing, were still being sought for notification. i Mike Runyard separated his shoulder at the Houston Astrodome and sat out the Dallas event as did Gary Semics with an ' injured wrist. Husky is reportedly setting up one of the finest Warranty prorams we've ever heard of. If the stories are true the first 90 days will be covered by an all encompassing no questions asked pol icy on Husqvarna motorcycles, free parts, free labon, no B.S. Wow! Folks who read an article in P.I.T.S.top, the NorCaI trials paper, about an Americ:lm Honda rider support program, hold those resumes. A check with Rick Barrett at his office revealed that the info had gone out in error and Honda has all the supported riden it needs, While Kawasaki U.S. caught up on three months' missed development time (that being how long th e facto ry "withdraw al" from racing lasted). Kawasaki GB deliberately passed up bo th Daytona and Caracas in order to be ready for Imola with team riders Mick Grant and Barry Ditchburn. 2 ~ Lou Lind en and Rex Draym on have bee n appoin ted to a Cen tral Region Competition Committee by W/ERA to 'act as rider/as so ciat ion liason, .. Would you believe? REAL ' ROADS to/from the Hangtown track! Eight lanes of slate·surfaced access road have been built for this year's version of the Hangtown Classic, near Plymouth; CA. Diggers North tell us tickets are available at Tiketron outlets. What many fol ks don 't re alize is the heavy importance of two day , four moto events in the Supercross Series , since th is year the AMA pays points by moto finishes, rather ' than by overall standing at agiven event. We hear there's a reformed British speedway rider named Slim Bressler who rides a tricked-out Montesa in Northern Cal. Likes to sucker people into these nasty canyons and then ride away like the wind. Dirty 01' man. According to DMV figures, the percentage of motorcycles vs. ail other vehicles in California slipped from 4.16 to about 4.03 percent from 1974 to 1975. Total registrations dipped slightly: also . One th ing th at 's still active is Honda's Club Bike pro gram, in which trials club s an d associations are given a loaner T L-125 for use in introducin g new riders to trials. Call (2 13) 32 1·868 0 and ask fo r Rick Barrett to get details and • conditions of the pro gram . . Last minute reminder - Bakersfield Dist. Mult iple Use Advisory Board (BLM) meets March 25-26 at the Federal Bldg., Bakersfield to consider, among ' other things, the disputed tortoise preserve and special design for Jawbone Canyon. Anyone may address the Board Thursday afternoon, March 25, by calling (805) 861-4191 in . advance. MOTO ·ENTREPRENEUR: Steve Stackable Ultra-Lite Products is based at 910 Jewel, Austin, Texas and distributes Bel-Ray. Fox Shocks, Banke pipes. The owner is some national motocrosser whose name escapes me. The Motocross Cat is coming out with a line of products to include Ace bandages, rubbing alcohol, band-aids and life insurance. Anyone can have high school bands and pompon girls fo r a half-time show - to be different, you gotta have motorcycle races! And that 's ' what's going to happen at the Long Beach USGP March 27-28, where, if every thing goes right, Kawasaki . will put o n a roadracer exhibition between car race heats. Top name riders have been co ntac ted to ride various sizes of KR and show the door-slammers where it 's at. And if you diehards really co mplain , the y might e~~ ~row. ~~ one .t? ken 'p?~pO~_ ~?: Arizona State Senator Lucy Davidson (D-Tucson), an outspoken mot9rcycllHlater (calls them "organ transplant machines") found herself "horriTKld" that she 'd signed to co-sponsor the Arizona he!met law repealer, thinking at the time that the bill required 'he lmets . Sounds like you Tucson types got a real wonder-winner, . there_ By mutual agreement, Central .Road Racin g Club (CRRC) will run its races with W/ERA san ction, paying W/ERA points. Accord ing to W/ERA Coordinator Ste ve Riley, th at means 11 or 12 races in Texas this year, some run by W/ ERA, some run by CRRC, but all paying po ints into the same championship. Rick Hocking has confirmed that he'll defend his undefeated streak in the March 28 Cal Rayborn Memorial half mile at South Bay Speedway. now. And this item fro m our frei nds at P.tT.S. : A mountain lion will no t attac k a person riding with Rcnthal handlebar s. Howev er, th at pers on mu st be riding wit h Renthals very fast , .. Italian breast-beating Dept.: Morbidelli claims to have 60 bench horsepower out of their 215 pound 250 twin, with which Paolo Pileri (current 125 king) hopes to knock Walter Villa out of the 250 world championship. Villa, .meanwhile, unoficially knocked 2.2 seconds off the 250 lap record at Mugello, site of the coming May 16 Italian GP. What was that about the BS stops when the green flag drops? Gilding the Lily Dept: The Dutch Benelli importer in Amsterdam has a new street organ (it says here) . It's a 750 Sei bored to 900cc and kitted with a six-into-one exhaust. They also have indoor trials in Holland. And 1 always thought the Dutch were sane . . . . .., Moto rcycle Safety Foundation, with a few extra years ' experience cranked into the program , will revise its widely-distributed Beginning Rider Course instruction pa ckage. The new Motorcycle Rider Course (MRC) will be available to educators and communities by Fall "76. Ban krupt Cheney Developments Limited, though in receivership, will continue to build bikes until outstanding orders are cleared up. : according to present director . Ian England. After that, the firm plans to quit making complete motorcycles. Last we saw of "The Godfather" Harry Oxle y. he was headed for Israel with seven American speedway riders - Rick ' Woods, Sonny Nutter, Dubb Ferrell, Steve Bast , Scott Sivadge, Bruce Penhall and Mike Curoso for a " U.S. vs. The World" test match concurre nt with the Hebre w Nat ion als. Riders will be paid in Swiss Francs. What do you mean , you don't believe it? Malcolm Rathmell (Man) padded llis world trials title lead to 15 points by winning the French round while Martin Lampkin (Bull lost second in the meet by tenths of a point to Yrjo Vesterinen (Bull. The Finn's performance leapfrogged him past Charles Cautard (Bull in the unofficial standings. 'Following Lampkin in the French results were Manuel Soler Bulto (Bull. Coutard, and Nigel Birket. Yamaha's Mick Andrews finished tenth and remains fifth in the world order. Bay Area woul d-be road racers are asked to write AFM North at P.O. Box 705 , Brisbane, CA 94005 for license applications and info . This portion of Papa's column was brought to you by your friendly local press, release factory . . Did you know that for 22 cents a minute, you can leave a recorded message for President Ford? Just dial (202) 456-1414 between 11 p.m. and 8 ·a.m. and lay your opinion on him. Be polite, though. You never know who else might be recording.