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/126060
Ventura, Aug. 3 Story & photos by Dennis Greene For over a month Bobby Schwartz has been in the first race of the night and has yet to lose. He again carried his team, The Ventura Sharks, to victory over the San Bernardino Sizzlers. It was a close match with the Sizzlers leading by four points in the first half. It wasn't un til , Randy Marsh and Sonny Nutter t urned in a clean sweep in the eighth race that the Sharks took over. Another sweep in the te nth race by Bobby Schwartz and Scott Sivadge pu t them out in front by four points. The Sharks dropped two points in the 12th race when Dan ny Becker crashed, but split the six points in the final race to put the Sizzlers away 40 to 38. Tom Ferris is a storybook case . Just .over a month ago he moved to Southern California after riding a season up north. In that month he has ' won several Division Two events and each time was moved back ten yards. After a couple more wins in Scratch Racing, he got his chance in Division One and is still going strong. l1e now has had ten yards added to his handicap and still won tonight. Jeff Peltier may be the next story, as he won his first Handicap Main. There are only seven weeks left at Ventura so Jeff will have to hustle to get moved up. Speedway scrim mage . One-on-o ne action features Steve Sehlan se r vs. Larry Kosta at Ve ntura (above l: an d Steve Nutter vs. Bill Cod y at Co sta Mesa (bel ow). ... San Bernardino, Aug. 4 By Rex Reese The Sizzlers had their work cut out for them as the L.A. Sprockets would be tonight's guests. The first heat looked like another L.A. runaway as Bruce Penhall and Steve Fortune collected four points over Larry Shaw and Billy Meister. The tide then reversed itself in the next heat when Ron Preston and Mark Cherry put a sweep over Steve Columbo and RobMorrison , From here on out, the going remained tough as either team had an advantage of only a couple of p oints, an d at some times L.A. ana Berdoo ran dead even. . , And so it was, 36-36, in the last regular heat, which left Preston and Cherry to defend honor and country against Mike Bast and Gene Woods. Preston and Cherry got swept under the carpet as L.A. finished up a close one, 41 -37. The Second Division money madness ~ continued into its second week as $.127 .92 was donated out of the stands to the winner of the Scratch Main. Grant Murray pulled a slight lead, but was headed off by Kevin MacDonald who went on to win over Larry Kosta and Dick Pruett. In the Handicap Consolation, Mike Bast was called by the ref at least twice for rolling starts. With Jim Fishback on the same line with Bast and Gene Woods, the crowd saw the event as Native Son versus Foreign Devils. On the start that did go, many members of the crowd claimed to have seen Bast get another rolling start on Fishback and Woods. But the ref didn't call it and the race was on, catching Jim and Gene with their pants down. Bast Won it, Fishback came in last, and the booing began. It lasted for a whole ten minutes and the crowd was getting very ugly. As the cops began to appear from o ut of the woodwork, the promoter headed off disaster by paying Fishback, Woods and Bast the same win money. . the Semi, however, Mike slipped to second trailing Gene Woods; but things were back up to par as Mike won his first scratch heat and scratch semi. Not too bad for Number One. The opposition was shaping up on its side, too. Bobby Schwartz, Scott Sivadge, Bruce Penhall and Billy Gray all placed in the money in their heats, did primo in the semis, and were ' on their way to do battle with Bast in the Main. Meanwhile, the Second Division gang had progressed to their Main with Kurt Strommer performing the most controlled ride of the bunch. With a 30 yard lead, Kurt won. In the Handicap Main, the smart money was on Bast, but his bike broke leaving Gene Woods to take over the top spot and the trophy girl, with Billy Gray second and Dennis Sigalos third. Since Mike didn't win the handicapper, the Scratch Main would be no sweat since he wo n it last week. Irwindale , Aug. 5 From the gate, Mike was out front but By Rex Reese not alone as he was in a neck-and -ne ck Anybody with any sense in their heads duel with Billy Gray! For three laps could sense that Mike Bast would wind Bast and Gray provided the crowd with up dominating the entire night of open best to-the-wall racing of the season. racing as he does in the team and Suddenly on the final lap, Billy got the handic~ events, It looked that way / upper hand and to the wild surorise of • 0;; . . . . . ." . ·· when- BaSt" eas"y PiCk"eil up his heat. In' ~ • everyoocy, d"' · not· b" ... • tf ·-· "u,,"' •• ' JU aCK 0 untr me checkered flag came out. Bruce Penhall rolled in for second ... and Mike Bast came in third. Costa Mesa, Aug. 6 Story & photos by Dennis Greene The Orange County Eagles, or Turkeys as some Bakersfield Bandits fans see them, went down to defeat by two points to the League-leading Bandits. It was no easy job for Team Captain Jeff Sexton, who saw his team trailing all nigh t by four pain ts. Three times the score was brought even, but eight of the , 13 events went to the Turkeys - oops Eagles. Going into the last race the Eagles were still ahead by two points and it looked as if the Bandits might get shot out of the saddle. Team owner Marshall " Digge r" Helm raised his bro ken arm like an old locker room pep talk to his team and they came ou t racing, turning in a sw eep for the win. Select Vans and AI Martinez are big backers of Speedway and sponsor several riders. T hey got together to produce the first armual match race between their.riders, Jim Fishback, and Bruce Penhall fo r Martinez; Mike Muntean and Bill Cody for Select. Th~ 1'M r"I1l~ ~riftr",!d(tb'Cddy' oUrcr tohflt! first time in several years, he kissed the trophy girl. . Handicap racing added a new name,to the record books, Bryan Buffington got his chance in Division One and went all the way to win. Rod Cowell came back after a year on the road racing back East to win the Second Division Main. Bakersfie ld, Aug. 7 Story & ph otos by Dennis Gree ne Saturday night the League-leading Bandits took on the Ventura Sharks for the last time this season at their home track. The first four events we re a draw, both teams gettingthree points in each race. It was Bert Harkins who put the Bandits on the road to victory as he and his teammate St eve Nutter got the first sweep of the night. The Bandits carried that advantage fo r the next three events when J eff Sex ton and Brian Short got the Bandits' second clean sweep, p u tt ing them out in front by eight points. The eight-point advantage was short-lived as Scott Sivadge and Bobby Schwartz came righ t back with a sweep for the Sharks, leaving the Bandits with just a four-point lead, which they carried all the way t hrou gh to the end. Final score 41 to 37. iJ . • ••• ~est\ftl m tt~su1ts 'S~ctlC;ri. · . .. . .. . 33