Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

Cycle News 1977 01 04

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

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. $ .. '. ~ , ~ MO'onlight Madness Q1 ~. 6 hours only ~pr Sat., Dec. 18 ~~ 17~~ 6 PM - .Midnight ~r .Open Sunday, Dec. 19 Fantastic Savings.. all 1.976 Suzukls.............. • let's deal all 1.977 Suzukis•••••• ••••••• • let's deal Suzuki MX Bicycles available Reid's Super Gap MX Tires Reid's Super Caps $14.95 - $15.95 Reid's Super CMX $19.95 Children's Boots $39.95 Adult Boots $59.95 & up Children's Leathers $29.95 Helmets I. 0% off our low price Apparel I. 0% off our already low price FREE ' w inter tune-up w ith this ad FREE tire mount with any tire purchase do m ore work when 1 decided to start my own program and not sign with the factory for 1976 . But 1 believed that even if 1 didn 't get th e Number One in 1976. it co u ld m ak e th e differen ce in me getting the Championship or Number Two in 1977 . 1 know that ov~ r a three-year span I'll be in better sh a pe both financiall y a nd psychologi cally with my p rogram vers us what Harley-Davidson had to offer. 1 just didn 't feel that they had the effort that 1 needed . . "Equip ment is one thing that e ntered in to the decision , since Harley-Davidson didn 't have competitive road racing or short track efforts , Bu t politics entered the picture, too. 1 felt that Dick O 'B ri en , the team manager, had it out fo r me, that he was a lmost resentful toward ' me. You just can't buck O'Brien because he 's the boss of the whole p rogram . You can't q u estion a nyth ing - like complaining about the short trackers - if you want a sec ure job or income , wi t hout r e al izing the co nse q uences. 1 certainly realized th e co nse quences, a nd 1 was p repared to . go anot he r way when 1 came up agai ns t O'Brien d uring our nego ti at io ns for 1976 , and t h at 's exactly what 1 did. . " O ne of the actua l turning points for me wit h Dic k O'Brien was a t Talledega in 1974 , on the 250cc road racer. The motor had seized on me in practice o n Saturday. 1 had fallen off a t the end of th e front straightaway at about 90 miles pe,r hour, was skinned . up from head to toe. 1 came back into the pits from th e ambulance and the field hospital all bandaged up and with m y feel ings hurt a litt le , bu t 1 d id n't fee l th a t bad about crashing becau se t he m achine caused th e accident . All accessories SLASHED Hw y. 10 to Redlands and follow the search light ~d.~~t:it~.~~ad . . . . . . . .w . ~• •1 829 W. Colton Ave., Redlands, CA 714-793-2041 "O'Brien didn't take into consideration my feelings as a person . c . : " Fa lling off had tom the heels off . both m y boots. 1 was sitting in the pits the next morning putting on new boots. getting ready for practice. when O 'Brien came up . H e said for me to get out there and go fast because ') chose m y profession and tha t was the way it went. Which was true , but he didn't take into co nsideration my feelings as a person , even though the bike had seized on me. H e blamed me for not breaking in the bike p ro perly. "So 1 went back ou t in practice and did three la ps slowly . then started to speed up . At the end of the fo urth la p the bike seized up at the exact same spot at the end of the straigh t , threw me ever the bars , bro ke my co llarbone , and skin ned m e up over the places) had 'just skin ned the day before. 1 came in a nd O 'Brien wouldn't even spea k to m e. That's wh en 1 figured I'd do whar -I was being paid to do . but cert ainly nothing out of th e j1;oodness of m r heart . (Co ntin ued on pag e 30) ,. .... Bultaco Maico Ossa KTM ~L.a~· Call for Super 714,427·9166 Low 77 Ossa GP " Now in stock Prices 72 0 B r Oad W~a y . Chu la V ista. CA 9 201 0 f!ettBucto '" Ritr". Jac: ~el - . $,',m,I.•• Halle. Top - ,o ne $'1. ItllI all Hal - one 1111111' h' s a" TS hlrt - .S,S,m .l,. 1 , Swe atsh irt - long ."'"v.s . • m .l.• 1 Sfond CMc~ or t'ItOne or V "'" to Hooal." '032 SI;, On larlo , Cl IlI. " 712. CaM ,.. 5o """IIOCO O " ml fn t _ Hoo~'" THE FINEST COMPLETE LINE OF OFF-ROAD RACING MACHINERY EVER OFFERED '_ KTM Imports U. S. A. 9 825 Mason Aveo\ C ha ts wor t h Ca. 9 13 1 1 . ( 2 13 , SS 2 -S S 6 0 • Dealer Inquiries Invited 7 9::' _ w. 1I"'. nl' ''''''8' •'o0li' .' ~$ s. ... _ _ 51a'0'_ OrCN,,. 'tI _M_ !'PfCh..;. c.,.,• l SoQnatu" . ~ Ito _ e.n~ "'mco"C "d E op 0.1_ _ . eN _ 17

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