Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

Gary Scott had to fight a family feud with brother Hank to win the !&stest mile dirt track in the world and a leg up in the race for number one, Gary Scott nips brother Rank at Syracuse Mile, ,S p r i n g e r third By Jack Mangus SYRACUSE, N.Y ., SEPT. 11 Privateers Gary and Hank Scott turned in another of their "brother acts" as they finished a side-by-side 1-2 ahead of the three man HarleyDavidsonfactory team in the 4th Annual Syracuse Gold Cup Mile. The event, the 23rd round of the '77 AMA Grand National Championship/Camel Pro Series , was run in unseasonably cool and windy weather, and drew a crowd estimated at 15 ,000 by the city's daily newspaper. For Gary Scott the win provided more Self-satisfaction than a National victory would, given normal circumstances. While running in third place in his heat race, a spot which . would have advanced the former . Grand National Champion to the National , Scott's Evel Kneivel Special H ·D engine blew , dropping out of the race on the final lap. 6 "Boy, I couldn't begin naming everybody who' pitched in and helped. Sal (Acosta) put my spare bike's engine in the chassis after he removed the blown engine, " said Scott after he went back out and won his semi race. The switch was made in what appeared to be record time . For Hank Scott it marked the third consecutive Sunday he had finished second in a National aboard his Carl Patrick tuned XR. That fact failed to bring a smile to his face during winner's .ci~cle _cere~onies and the general air of bad feehngs between he and brother Gary still surround their limited contact.' For third place fin isher Jay Springsteen, the points earned moved him four points ahead of teammate Ted Boody, who finished fifth behind Corky Keener. Springer's total stands at 202 , Boody's at 198 with Gary Scott moving past Ken Roberts into third with 181 to Roberts' 179. For KR it was another in what has become a series of frustra ting weekends on the d irt ovals of. the eastern U .S. Parking his monoshock Yamaha in favor of normally rearsuspended bikes , Roberts finished fifth in hie heat and after dicing with Gary Scott in the fi~t semi for the lead, went wide in turns 3-4 on the final lap and dropped to fourth at the finish . Qualifying Corky Keener turned in his first fast time of the year, failing to break Rex Beauchamp's track record of' 36 .871 seconds. with his 37.401 lap. Springsteen was second fastest with a 37.405 lap. . Heats Harley teamster Ted Boody, who was celebrating his 19th birthday, was off the line first and led Scott Drake and pole-sitter Corky Keener across the line at the end of the first lap. Keener drafted by Boody on the back straight on the third lap and that was that as far as the win was concerned. But Boody had more problems as Gary Scott was knocking on his door. The pair crossed the line side -by-side on the white flag lap, the ninth, but then Scott's engine broke in turns 3-4 on the final lap and Boody was home free with second and Scott Drake, who had been running a distant fourth , advanced with Keener and Boody into the National. That final advancement spot could just have easily gone to Vince Mead as he and Drake carried on a race long duel. Heat number two was all Jay Springsteen's after Dan Gurneysponsored Chuck. Palmgren led the first two laps . Springer and Palmgren crossed the start/finish line. in a near .... ' . . .~ ~ dead- heat at the end of lap three and Springer dove under' Palmgren going into turn one . Palmgren then got tangled up in a duel with Canadian Doug Sehl that lasted down to the checkers and included a strongrunning Bubba Rush for awhile. At the finish it was Springer, Palmgren, Poole's Cycle sponsored Sehl into the National and the rest of the field, including Kenny Roberts to semis . K&K Insurance /KK Motorcycle Supply sponsored Steve Morehead and H ·D /Bel·Ray Lubricants sponsored Bill Eves carried on a f O-Iap war in th e third heat and at the flag it was Morehead nipping Eves, despite the fact that Morehead's Edgar Fuhr tuned Harley was smoking. The pair led Zanotti Enterprises sponsored Steve Eklund into the National. Eklund had broken away from a four 'm a n dice on the seventh lap. ' Oregon's Frank Word, III , aboard a S.O.S. Electric and H -D of Douglas Co. sponsored XR jumped the start of the fourth heat by a country mile, but although starter Mike Anthony pulled the red flag out of his flag stand, he never waved it. He didn't have to. For at the end of the first lap it was Pennsylvanians Willie Crabbe and ' Billy Schaeffer leading the field across the line. Crabbe, fresh from a win in the previous night's AMA Eastern Regional Championship short track in Afton , N .Y. , kept his M&J Cyc1es/Lancester (Pa.) H·D-sponsored XR in front for two laps, but he got involved in-a war with Hank Scott, KK Motorcycle Supply/Smitty's H D-sponsored Ricky Campbell , and Mert Lawwill Products -sponsored Mike Kidd. The war sorted itself out, and at the flag it was Kidd with a substantial lead over Crabbe; , Scott and

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