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/126286
0) '"" IU ..0 S IU > o Z " Scene f rom the Jackhammer National Enduro. (A bov e) Ridge-running was interspersed with rock outcroppings. (Above rig ht ) There were some gnarly hills that got (right! gnarlier. . ?:' Bertram.wins ;j ackhammer National )En du ro by seconds 15 II By Mike Kinsella FOUTS SPRIN GS, c~ , OCT. 23 Exp ert 250 r ider Dave Ber tr am (H u s) edged out O p en Exper t Ran d y Carles (Hus) by sec'on ds in the tie breaker check wh en they b oth crossed the finish line with six -point scores. Open Expert George Hend rix (I T400C) took third overall with fi I f Gl a n~ a score. 0 seven . enn :T op heff (Mal) , another expert 'on an open class machi ne, finished Jfou rth with nine po ints. . The Oak land Motor Cycle Cl u b's Seven th Ann ual J ack h a m mer got in .gear at 7:30 a .m. Su nday as the first of ' some 700 ha rd -charging enduroists ' b egan mo ving across the start line and 'ou t onto the gritty. bone-dry trails of L Mendocino National Forest. The firs t speed ave rage was a brisk 24 mph , the loop began with a series of trai ls th a t took the riders g:aduall~ up a thousand feet or so In elevation to a place called Lett's La ke . The first real difficulty was a narrow path that dropped off steeply to one side and which was sligh tly off ca mber at th e turns . The still-fresh riders managed to bull their way th rough to the top of Miner Ridge and followed some very nice b lac k to p and gravel roads for awhile to the area of Goat Mountain where they came face to face with the big d own hill . The tractor trail dropped away below where the riders who had descended looked like so m a ny micro mo torc ycles on a slot race r track . Down th ey went through th e t hic k manzanita , falle n riders to the left of th em , ta ngl ed heaps of motorcycles to the right, ahead th e twists and tu rns, th e water bar drop offs and th e rutted trail waited to ' claim the ca reless. At last the valley floor was re ached a nd to look back was to see th e slbpe litt ered with men and machines like glittering ornaments on a Ch ristm as tree. Ac ross the valle y towards a ridgeline . th en the riders started climbing switc hb acks, and moving up mountain paths with the morning sun in th eir eyes until th ey crested the peak at 6,000 feet , working th eir way like trials riders through th e ou tcrop pings of basal t rock . The route started go ing down again . but by gentler logging ro ads and woods tra ils, to the first gas ch eck at 18.1 m iles and to a bit offree time . This was as far as many contestants got. Ma ny spent the greatest part of the day arriving here - strange thing th a t this traditionally rugged enduro attracts so m a ny people who only compete once or twice a yea r. The seco nd loop started with a mil eage correction to 50.0 m iles: the course was smoot h road for aw hile in tersp ersed with some woods riding cir cuits , some short , steep downhills and some tigh t stu ff at 18 mph and 27 mph . Things picked up again when the trail markers directed everyone down Little Sullivan R id ge and into a deep poc ket that lies between tha t ridge and Big Sulliva n Ridge . The route up Big Sullivan wasn' t too bad ; a little loose and crowded bu t ridable ; and of course th ere were fewer riders now to get in each ot he r's way. The riders go t back to the second gas check by a series of razorback ridges - it was like rid ing the apex of a triangle. The gas was a t 85.8 m iles and if you had been the first rider out you would have been ' traveling for something over four hours. A short break and a mileage reset to 90 .0 miles and off again to wh ere the flag men routed the su rvivors on to th e third loop . The thi rd loop still pressed man and m achine to make a ser ious effort th ere was no let up . The arrows took the motorcyclists through the lower elevations towards Stoneyford village , th rough Stoney Creek a n d then switched around back in the dir ection of the finish at Fouts Springs at 139 .1 miles . T he leaders began to come in at a little before 2:00 under overcast skies and a ligh t rai n . Oakland M.C. had a co ld beer and a fin isher pin for a ll those who completed the run . The clu b put on the usual .excellen t ride - everything first class and well organized. The rangers of the Mendoc ino National Fo r es t , th e Col usa Count y Sheriffs and of course the much appreciated , but little me ntioned , National Motor cycle Patrol wer e tremendously co -operative and helpfu l throughout the day. • 15