Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

7" Wheel Travel for YZ 80 E l\!Iini by NORTHERN DATRINE CURNUTT Mini Mono s ho c k fo r MX Rebu ildable ga s/oil Shock custom set to ride r weight 6 month warra nty against leakage bolt on insta llatio n $74.50 complete w it h spri ng set to rider weight DEALER INQUIRY INVITED Mail order Write or ca ll CURNUTT SHOCK CORP. 75992 Baseline 29 Palms. CA 922n , 714-367-9179 Ca lif. r esidents add 6% sales t ax M ud was a defin ite factor in the Quicksilver Enduro . w ith long, deep, watery holes. " ST ICK-EM -UP" Over 400 different trick sticke rs in stock Send $2.00 for pictur e catalog and free samples to : Cliff J oh nso n Ent. 512 Fontonett Ave . Dept. CN Livermore, CA 94550 Now looking for Dealers - . Distributors - and Inte rested Sales Peop le Call: 4 15-443-{l854 B- hAl'.EWElEIB HEiNDA Husqvarna MalDrCyCIes - Parts - Service 605 Frw y. at Car son 11747 E. Car son St. Lak ew ood. CA 90715 213-860-1354 714-521-7112 ... 34 Van Leeuwen Ent. Oi. trib utor Goody• • r S mith Gog gl•• Repr...nting Le.ter Whe. I. Ker k er EXM Ullts 11k 10621 M.gnol.. 81. .. North Hollywood. CA 91601 21J.-.eooo Hendrix wins Quicksilver Enduro with borrowed bike By Mike Kinsella CLEA R C REE K. CA . J AN . 22 The ha rdest winter rains in several years had hit the site of the Quicksilver Enduro with th e force of a high pressure hosing on a sand pile . The d rive from King City east to Middle Cr eek in the San Benito Mountains was stu dy of wha t da ma ge natural for ces could inflict on the arrangements of men . Newly-cleared mudslides indica ted th at th e road had be en closed off not long ago : m issing pav ement and gaping washout s brought an insta nt replay of old war flick s to mind . around the next corner might sit a squat. grey ta nk with its gun barrel leveled on your van 's windshield. Every street was fat with greasy. brown wat er and every low place in the road was filled with a laye r of slick m ud . To the 'riders the study gave way to a qu est ion : If the road to th e event was in bad sha pe . wha t co ndition was the co urse in? T he Sa lin as Ramb lers labored throu gh th e deluge a nd t hr ou gh th e three or fou r su nny days prior to the event with the de te rm ination that t he run would go "ra in or sh ine. " Last minute cha nges are acid to a wellpla nned enduro. T he BL M didn't want the co urse to cross cree ks. yet what had been a dry gully for three years was now hu b -deep in water. T he re was water everywhere . On Su nd ay morning. starting a t 8 :0 1. 700 riders would begin to see how the Ra m b lers had co nte nded 'withe these problem s. Five Expert riders crossed the sta rt line on t he firs t mi nute . sp las hed throug h poo ls of rai n water a nd began to climb a rutted jeep trail through low foothills of green m anzanita . The speed average was 18 mph and the road su rfa ce moist and ta cky. The speedometer check was posted just three mil es from the start line. T his should be a red flag to th e rider who knows the rule book; the first chec k co u ld be in th e next five mil es. But th e temptation to gas it was great and many burnt th e check, located at six miles out: The going got rougher as the trail continued into the high pine ridges . The first stee p clim b was followed by a long . swooping downhill tha t emptied out in a na rrow . flood ed ravine. T he rocks be ne at h were wet a nd slippery. the ravi ne was a ma ze of d ropoffs and cu t-de -sacs a nd , at one po int. bikes were ba cked up in a sho rt -lived bot tle neck - a large , fla t. slick roc k many co u ld n't m ake without pushi ng . After a series of narrow p aths that thread a long gia nt heaps of old silver m ine ta ilings was check two at 16.8 mil es. Many rid er s were a littl e la te . So me where between here and th e th ird check George Hen d rix - who won thi s end u ro with a score of ni ne dea lt with a brok en speedomete r on a borrowed Husky 360 WR and Hu sky rider Ra nd y Carles was on his way to second place. He edged out Ben Bowers by seco nds as they bo th finished 14 poin ts do wn . Bowers. riding his first District 36 end u ro in a long tim e . quickly adjuste d an overly ric h ca rbure tor on his Bul taco. T he ro ute led down to the Clear Creek Ca m p and a 15 mi nute gas·up layover. Most riders were la te be yond care a t this poi nt: those close r to their schedules were surprised to find check four cle verly p laced just outside the camp a t 43.8 m iles. T he second loop bega n at 24 mph over goo d. wide trail. W ithin a few miles riders were encou ntered co ming back dow n th e co urse . which meant a serio us bottleneck had ' developed a head . A few m inutes later. after a brisk ridge climb . th e bottleneck came into view. T went y or 30 C riders were tryi ng to squeeze th rou gh a ga p on ly wid e eno ugh to ad m it one a t a tim e. , T he ga p was a sho rt sec tio n of bare roc k . stee p . a nd now very slick . Dens e manzanita enclosed the trai l so there was no bypass rout e. T he fifth check was at 56 .8 m iles: riders began to ho ur out but few quite th e ride. Hou red out or not . the course was fantastic . T he mud m ay ha ve been deep here and there , the terra in a little difficu lt and tiring. the know ledge th a t a finisher pin is not in the works a lit tle dispiriting but· the sensa tio n of traveling over dust -free fun trails was m ore than worth th e ent ry fee . The Ra m b lers threw in a trick section towards th e end: A long. fast . gentle uphi ll. At the top was a wat erbar across th e trail behind which was a small pond of sou py slime for th e rider - usually airborne - to plop down in . The worst part was feel ing the icy wat er co mi ng over the top of your boots and then tri ckling down to your toes. T he run ended at 83.8 miles. Everyone was ' smiling. t here was nothing an enduro rider co uld compla in a bou t on the Qu icksilver Endu ro . Timossi tops Hocking at SHR marathon By Tom Anderson BR ENTWOOD . CA .J AN . 22 The tu rnou t a t the Sand Hill Ranch m a rathon was fan ta stic when we fina lly had a break in the wea ther ; a nd it provided us with a sunny day . Rick Timossi came out with his Maico a nd led the ent ire race in the Open di vision . He was challenged b y R ic h W ilson who pushed T imoss i for about five laps. and then Rick H ocking passed Wilson to ta ke over second place. Hocking tri ed to move up the ladder but was never a ble.to ca tch the fast Timossi. The 250cc class sho wed a good turnou t also . R ick Lewis ha d h is KTM in th e lead for the first th ree laps, t hen Wes Morr ell took the lead ,?n lap fou r a nd led the balance of th e rac e. Secon d p lace went to Ga ryJ ohnson on his 175cc Ya mah a . Dave W ilkerson led th e 125cc class with th e J oh nson/ Sitn ik team seco nd a nd Chuck Aks la nd from Manteca th ir d . T he 100cc class was won by the team of Hou ser and Olson rid ing a Suzu ki. J oey Sch lag . riding his 80cc m inibike ran second. pu shing the Hou ser /Olson team a ll th e way. The next m arathon will be Sunday. Feb . 12. Resu lts in Resu lts Sect ion . •

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