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/126327
(AbovelHarry Klinzmann and Dave Emde (56) tangled in Superbike Production. (Below) Mike Baldwin (43) led the Superbikes into the last lap, but Wes Cooley (34) won. . (Abovel Freddie Spencer won his t hird Novice' race in f our attempts this year. (Below) The Gipe/Esta ff chair won the sidecar race. . sideways allowing Cooley to slip past. Cooley stre tched h is lead on the back straight with Baldwin closing the gap as they reached the ch icane . Theraw horsepower of Cooley came into play ,where it counted, and he led Baldwin .to the checkers , holding j ust enough edge that Baldwin couldn't draft and slingshot past. "E verything worked for me on the final lap ," sa id a jubilant Cooley. "Mike and I were just having our own little race, a nd it was a ball. " . " It was possible for me to win, " said .Baldwin . " Bu t I got sideways in th e infield on the final la ps and th at cost me the win ." It was smiles all around for John Fuchs and h is sponsor Ra ndy Carabelli . T hey have been trying for five years to make a big score , and this was it . " I rode m y best ride ever ," sa id Fu chs. " I .a rn jazzed m ore than ~nybody can realize ." . Results , 15-LAP FINAL: 1. Wes Cooley ISull; 2. Michael Baldwin IM·G); 3. John Fuchs (Han); 4. Ku'n Liebmann • IDuel; 5. Richard Schlachter IDuel; 6. Kun Lentz IDuel; .7. Steve Mallonee (Kaw); 8. David So" IKawl; 9. Mal colme Tunstall (Due); 10. SteVe Epstein (Suzl. / Spencer, Chivington .top Novices By Gary Van Voorhis LONG PO N D, CA , AUG . 13 .Fred d ie Spencer and Dan Chivington resumed a battle th ey had sta rted at Loudon ea rlie r in th e season ; but the outcome was the same. Spencer, on th e Lubri-Lon/ Vi vian C ycle / Amsoil-sponsored Yamaha tuned by his dad, was again the winner over Chivington 's selftuned Yam aha from Chivington Honda of Marion, OH . And again Chivington would not let Spencer shake loose and. have as eas y a time of winning as he did at Daytona. Third place went right down to the final lap and the final h igh speed charge to th e flag. Privateers James Adamo and Nick Richichi had waged a race-long duel - shortened to 10 laps from 15 by the lateness of the hour and threatening weather - with Richichi winning as Adamo ca me up with undisclosed problems and coasted to a stop sh ort of th e finish line. _ Mike Callahan posted th e fa st heat win in qualifying and put his A&M Harley-Da vidson/Super T oad Racing Yamaha squarel y on the pole. Sp encer, al ongside , .d id n 't see m to mind as he j um ped to the lead as th e green fla g wa s wa ved . Chvington , Richi chi , Adamo and Callahan tucked in behind. Callahan d eparted th e battle on la p two in a cras h; he was sh ake n up . Spencer and Chivington continued their show in first and second fo...t he balance of th e ra ce leaving much of the attention to focus on Richichi and Adamo trading posi tions. . Gle n Shopher kept everyone honest with a not-too-d istant fift h pla ce ride that turned into fourth on th e linallap. "It wasn't as easy as it might hav e looked ," said Spencer in t he winner's circle . "T he breather was lea ki ng gas, and it pretty well covere d the windshi eld of my fairi ng . I co nti nua lly h ad to wipe it off so rh at I could see ." Chivington rem a in ed ver y quiet and let his ride speak for itself. If you ha d n't seen the race you would ha ve th ough t Richic hi had won by the wa y he was acting. "It was m y best race ever. Damn, I'm happy;" Richichi was' hovering about a foo t off th e ground and didn't expect to come down for a few days. Results 1. Freddie Spencer (Yam); 2. Dan Chivington (Yam); 3. Nick Richichi lYam); 4. Glen ShopherlYam); 5. Frank Steinhausen (Yam); 6. Gerold Smith IYam); 7. Alan Lane lYam); 8. ISSlYam); 9. Barry Bordner lYam); 10. Billy Addington lYam). ' Gipe/Estaff take command of sidecar' • series By Gary Van Voorhis LAKE POND , PA , AUG. 13 "We knew we 'had to get a run on the FiIlery/Quinn rig if we - were to get past them," explained winning driver Gary Gip as passenger Pet e Estaff nodded in agreement. " O u r chair had the advantage in the infield, but was down on power on the long straights since we are running a stock engine . W e went around them as we were exiting th e infield, and that was that. T he fact th at th ey had some engi ne problems in the fi na l laps als o took off some p ressure ." T he Pocono win ad ded to a seco nd p lace at Sears Poi nt ' and a win at Loudon p ut Californians Gipe a nd Estaff squarely on top of the sidecar championshi p standings . Consistency has been .the strong suit of the .GP Racing/ Pete's sponsored pair. Second place in the war of attrition went to "oldtim ers" Fred Hopp and Bill Alston on their self-sponsored, Kawasaki-powered rig. Hopp and Alston are 46 and 36, respectively. ' T he R -M Works Racing Yamahapowered three-wheeler of Ro y Richard and Dave McKenna took third to round out the six-rider champagne jam. Ia n Fillery and Steve Quinn were crowd fa vorites at the start based on a beau tiful draft and slingshot move th ey had p u t on Gipe/Estaff to winthe qualifying heat in the final feet. The pair lived up to their reputation by im m ed iately grabbing the lead as Gipe/Est a ff. Hopp/ Alston and Ri ch ard/ McKenna tagged a long. Self-sponsored Robert Oliver and Brad Sisk hustled their Honda threewheeler in fifth jus t barely ahead of the Kawasaki of Robert McGuire and Bradley Fulker. T he pair had a good di ce going in the middl e laps of the 11lap event until they each coasted to a stop with engin e problems. The decisive move by Gipe/Estaff came on lap six after they had spent three laps probing the defenses of Fillery/Quinn . In a-power play to see if the Fillery rig was slowing, Gipe maneuvered past as the two sidecars exited the in fi el d onto the back straight. His guess was right as Fillery continued to slip slowly backwards. " N um ber One , th a t's us!" shouted a very happy Gary Gipe. "Three thousand mil es is a long way to travel to ra ce . but it was worth every mile." Results 1. Gary GipeiPeter Essaff (Kawl; 2. Fred Hopp; 3. RoV Richard/David M cKenna (Yam); 4. Neil Munrommothy Munro (Kaw); 5. Ian Rll er/~teph8n Quinn IKawl ; 6. John Dailey; 7. Robert Oliver/Brand Sisk tHan): 8. Allan StaplesiGary Deil lock IKaw/; ,9. Robert McGuire' 8radley Fulker IKaw l; 10. Richard Shrader. . 13 .