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/126288
IAbove) Co-winner Brent Wallingsford blasts toward Nuevo. (Inset! Baja spectators. (Below) Bob Balentine teamed with Tom Kelly for the Class 21 w in, and second overall bike. Wallingsford/Hardenl Jtusky win Baja ' 0 0 0 km by nearly 1 an hour By Gary Laudig o ENSENA DA. B.C . . MEX . • NOV . 11 Brent Wallingsford and Scot Harden stormed their Dean Goldsmith-tuned 390 Husky through 1,000 kilometers of the rugged Baja deser t in 14 hours and 37 minutes to win the sea RE Baja l ,OOOkm by a half hour over the first car (d riven by Malcolm Sm ith) and by nearly an hou r over the second bik e. Secon d bike was the 250 KT M of T om Kelly a nd Bob Balent ine. who fin ished 15 hou rs a nd 10 m inu tes afte r th ey started . winning the 250 class . Pre-race favo ri te La rry Roesele r, along wit h pa rtner J ack Johnson. was lead ing the race by nine minu tes a t San Felipe . H eading towards Mike's Sky Ra nch. Roeseler crashed head -on with a VW Microb us d riving backw ards on the co urse. Roeseler was shaken up an d th e 390 Husky nearly totalled . Another pre-r ace fa vorite, the Harley-Da vidson team of Bruce Ogilvie and Bob R u tt en, d ro p ped ou t befo re check two . Placing his Husky in firs t ge ar . Bill T arling eased ou t the cl u tc h and headed down off the d usty hill . a nd the Baj a 1000km was o ffici a ll y . u nderway. Chuck Sugar (Sweet Ma x En t. Yam) left 30 seconds la ter. Lee Sch effers on th e controversial 900cc Harley Sportster started, then Larry Roeseler head ed out. Scot H arden of Las Vega s put his Hu sky through the gea rs kn owing he was six minutes a nd 30 seconds be hind th e lead er. Lynn Vick (H us). Ma rk Ed ison (Han). Mike C rews (Ya m) a nd Ra nd a ll Ne a l (Ana heim Sports Cycle H usky) all left th e line on sched ule. Once o ff of t he paveme nt , the cou rse sta rted int o som e ba rren rolling hills. It was in this section H ard en sta rt ed making his charge on th e leader. Roeseler wasn't wasting a ny time either, because by th e time the racers sta rte d blast ing t hrough Piedras Gord as (ali as th e Pepsi Sta nd). Roeseler had the lead. H a rd en picked off Doug O tt en , Carl Hailey (Hon) and Mark Edi son (Ho n). Joe Jo nes (H us) an d Lynn Vick (H us-A u to) were no t easy people to catch. The Class 21 (2 50cc) bi kes were t u r ned lo ose and as t he la st o ne cleared the pa vem ent , Roeseler was th rou gh Ojos Negros , th e lan d of th e rain rutted roads. John Moseley (Hus) . Al Bak er (Yam) , and Morgan Malocco Wa lli ngsford gets a w inner's kiss from w ife Penny. (Yam) had a good time flying down the long fast stretch of road out side of Ojos Negros. The cattle crossings were banked , ca using the r acers to get airborne, landing at least 15 ya rds down the road . J ay O rendorff (Yam ) had John Moeseley (H us) and Brad Holt (Yam) right beh ind him . mo re th an willing to change posi tions. T he ra cers could easily a verage 60 mph through here . When the cla ss 21 bikes reached thi s spot Phi l Stu m bo (Bul ), after sta rt ing three m in utes be hin d the lea der. ha d passed Don Reed (Yam). Lyle Taylor (H on) . Rick Go ld e n (Suz). Rich Goldbaum (Hon), and then went to work on the Ro n Bishop /Ca rl Cranke Can-Am . Passing in this section took lots of skill and concentration since the road was lined on both sid es with ba rbed wir e . Ha rl ey fl yer Bruc e Ogilvi e was rea lly smo kin' . This gu y is in such goo d sha pe. his change point was Valle De Trinid ad ; m ore than 300 miles in one stretch. 9