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/126315
third places were another story as Joey Purdue (a Rookie Expert competing in his first National) , Billy Schaeffer and a cookin' Chuck Palmgren battled to the flag. Palmgren controlled the destiny of the plaeings as he shuffled from second back to sixt h and then came on to regain second on the final lap from Purdue. Steve Morehead. Gary Scott and Steve Eklund began heat three as a sixwheeled freight train . Scott soon found himself and his KK Supply Harley quickly dropped to the caboose section while Morehead sought to show Eklund the rear tire of his KK Insurance/KK Supply XR . Morehead and Eklund traded the lead on laps four and five , but then Eklund came on strong and the finish was an equidistant affair for the trio with Ek lund in a secure lead. Lo uisville has Ha rley-Davidson written all over it, but someone forgot to tell R ickey Campbell. Campbell and his KK Supply/ Kennedy Trium ph -sp onsored Triumph terro r ized an l l vrid er Harley horde for five of the 1O·lap affair in he at four. Skip Aksland ("Hey. a m I j azzed . Do you know I've never even made it out of time tria ls here before. ") nipped by Ca m p bell on lap five for the ultimate victory. Terry Poovey, on the T ed Poovey/Bel-Ra y/Fox Distributing/Mid ' City Harley-Davidson XR dropped Campbell to third a lap later. Semis Sem ifinal time fou nd a lot of " na me" riders gazing upon their last chance to make the National. It was nitty-gritty time with only the winner from the two events going on the run for the glory . Billy Schaeffer's 'Iea d in semi one was short- lived as Kenny McDonald , a boa rd the injured Lance Jones' Sure Fire Distributing XR (jones broke his right ankle while hang gliding prior to the Denver National) put the blitz on . McDonald held th e lead while Jackie Mitchell moved his Bel- Ray Harley into position to grab the lead three laps from the end and take the victory. - - It took Hank Scott a trio of restarts before he co uld find his way to the checkered flag . Ha lfway through the race Dave A ldana and Scott Pea rson tangled in turn two. The res ults was a lot of mangled machinery and one bruised and badly-shaken Pea rson . Scott's constant shadow was Corky Keener who tried . but failed to find a winning line. l Trophy race In a total turnabout, the winning ways that had eluded Keener in his " heat and semi suddenly appeared in _ wthe Trophy Race . Keener was unbeatable as Kenny McDonald and ~ Steve Freeman, riding for his new sponsor , E&H Cycle Sales, found out. " I had the track wired," said Keener as his patented smile lighted up his face . "I can't explain what I did different . Hey , that's the way it goes. " National The one thing on everyone's mind on the starting line was the track: Do you run it high in the cushion , low where the groove normally is. or p lay it in the middle where there was just a hint of the deep stuff? Most p referred the center of tht: track. Lovers of the cushio n were annoyed. for the limestone was too deep to go fast. " Lovers of the groove wh ic h has formed 11 at Lo uisville in past yea rs were t disappointed for there was none to rt.speak of. Tires , gearing and other subjects 1 took a backseat to the task at hand as , 14 riders awa ited the green starting light. The consensus of opinion was that to be caught on the line or to get away slowly would be d isaster. It proved to be correct. W ithin on e lap of the start, the top five finishers were set. True, there would be a little shuffling . but the majority of shuffling was at mid-pack or further back. A quiet and purposeful Ted Boody exploded from a normally poor starting position in the middle of the one row start to grab the lead and stake a claim to it as he broke free from the rest of the pack. Springer, Eklund . Hank Scott ("How I managed to get such a good start from the insid e pole, I'll never know."), Brow and Morehead followed in a free swapping mass of action. Brow made his move to fourth on lap two stick. The action, although still close in the front ranks, was just as heavy from mid-pack on. A thoroughly jazzed Chuck Pa lmgren had his Dan Gurney Racing XR moving through the ranks (Palmgren had wanted to "win this sucker badly. " Ignition problems would slow his charge near the end.) with Mike Kid d in tow. Ski p Aksland a nd Ga ry Scott were a lso m ak ing d et ermin ed charges. J ackie Mitchell then moved u p to chall enge the Palmgren/ Kidd/ Aksland/ Scott/Campbell express. Mitchell then hi t a rut in turn three on la p six ("1 thought I was going over the bars twice. ") that m ade him rethink his challenger role. Aksland caught fire on lap nine and moved by Kidd, disposing of Palmgren one lap later. The action returned to the leading trio as Springer. who had been seeking Boody's weak spots for three laps. moved alongside and then past as they hit turn one on lap 10 . Eklund then moved in for the kill and got pa st Bood y on lap 12. " 1 had the darn thing wired ," said Boody later. "but I got tired from running in the rough stuff. I could have run off and hid ," The disappointment showed on Boody's face . Skip Aksland's disappointment was tempered with a knowledge that his dirt track equipment and ability to run on eastern tracks is in good shape. Aks land, while running in a pack vying for sixth stuffed it into turn three and went down in a cloud of dust. "Losing t he points hurt ," com mented Aksland . By lap 15, the ac tivity h ad ceased in the top five places with Springer, Ekl und . Bood y, Brow and Hank Scott droning on toward the checkered flag. Steve Morehead appeared safe in sixth unti l two laps later when an audible clanking on his engine signaled its .demise. Rickey Campbell, playing a waiting game, had his patience payoff as Palmgren's battery went sour dropping him to eighth. One only had to view the standing, cheering crowd as Springer took the checkers to know that it was a popular victory. Eklund noted later that he "shou ld have tried the low line earlier," Brow and Hank Scott were also lamenting problems. " I chose the wrong tire front and rear," wailed Bro w. " I had no rear brake and a terrible vibration ," said Scott . " It could have been a different race. " • Terry Poovey (18), Corky Keener 1621 and Sk ip Aksland battle in a heat race. Poovey and Aksland made the National; Keener won the Trophy race. Scott Pearson (95 ) and Steve Morehead lead their heat around the first tum. Steve Eklund 1111 and Gary Scott IS)are eating the roost. lAbove) Springsteen pasaed Boody midway through the 2G-Iap featura to take a lead he never relinquished. Eklund Ibelow) passed Boody as well, two laps later, to take second in the race and the point standi ngs. Results NATI ONAL: 1. Jay Springsteen (H·D); 2. Steve Eklund (H·D); 3. Ted Boody (H-DI; 4. Garth Brow (HOI; S. Hank Scan (H·DI; 6. Mike Kidd (H·D); 7. Rickey Campbell CTril ; 8. Chuck Palmgren IH·D); 9. Gary Scan {H-DI; 10. Terry Poovey IH-DI; 11. Joey Purdue (H-DI; 12. Jackie Mitchell (H·DI; 13. Steve MOfehead (H-DI; 14. Skip Aksland {H-D!. TROPHV RACE: t . Corky Keener IH·DI; 2. Kenny McDonald (H·DI; 3. Steve Freeman IH·D); 4. Bubba Rush (H-Dl: 5. EddieLawson(Yaml;6. Randv Goss (H· 01; 7. Billy Schaeffer (H·DI; 8. Scon Drake (H·D); 9. Don Bailey (Vaml ; 10. Tom Berry (H·D!. AMA GRAND NATIONAL CHAMPI ONSHIP CAMEL PRO SERIES POINT STANOINGS : 1. Jay Springsteen (91 ): 2. Steve Eklund (73); 3. Skip 1 Aksland 1 ; 4. Garth Brow (551 5. Gary Scon 145 ; 6. 681 ; Ted Boody {431; 7. Alex JOfgensen 1321; 8. Terry ; ; Poovey 131 1 8. Hank Scon 131 1 10. Mike Kidd (24!. MANUFACTURERS POINT STANDINGS: 1. Harley· 3 ; Qavidson It 051 2. Vamaha 1691; 3. Triumph 1 11 4. ; ; ; Norton 120; 5. Bultaco 11 31 6. Ossa (111 7. Kawasaki 1 11 01;8. BSA 191: 9. KTM lSI. 11