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/126403
i DAYTONA '79 _ ~ t ,. .) .L . 0') t"- ~ O') ...... I • . ." ~ Daytona marked t he first of five events In the AMA Amateur National Road Race Championships. Over 300 riders entered for a shot at the gold. Steve Hawkins 1 21leeds the Mediumweight Modified Production class off the line. Hawkins fi nished fourth after 011 on the track caused a resta rt, Chris Roberts 1 3171chases Duncan Mllcetic 1791as Sam Williams ml follows. Roberts grabbed wins in Heavyweight Modified Production and GP claases. Amateur Road Race Kentucky.'s Chris Roberts wins a pair By Mike & Anne Adair DAYTONA BEACH. FL. MARCH 7 Three hund red am a teur riders from 27 states, Can ada and the District of Columbia slugged it out on Daytona's infield ro rd course, each going for a piece of the gold and points in the A MA Amateur National Road Race Champions hips . Ke nt u ck y's Chris Roberts rode the same Kawasaki to wins in the Heavyweight Modified Production and Heavyweight Grand Prix events . A very happy Roberts said after his final win. "I've never won a race before. I can't believe it . two firsts!" Fortunately. th e weaiher for the 1979 edition was as good as last year's weather was bad. Daytona is t he first of five stops on the circuit. which in cludes races sponsored by AAMRR. CRA, Nelson Led ges a nd the Florida Grand Prix Riders , Canadian Richa rd Jag~'. Kawa saki scored the first class win in the Stock Lightweight class . topping North Carolina's Harry Vanderlinden and Colorado's Terri Wischhoefer, Racing at the same time. Dallas Yamaha's David Langley outlasted. North Carolina's John Hasty in a wheel-to-wheel Modified Production Ligh tweight class thriller. Hasty's Yamaha apparently seized near the end . Langley said . " My mecha nic. Gary DeGeorge. set the bike up with a Lectron Ca rb and it's super. I loved my first race at Daytona and hope to find a TZ to ride next yea r!" Syd ney Tunstall's 4 -stroke Ducati thundered to a second place finish behind Langley. . In a star-filled Medium Weight Stock class, National Numero Uno Gilbert Rutherford squared off with Florida's number two gu y. Steve Hawkins. Rutherford dumped the clutch on his Yamaha and the Canadian was long gone. Boulder. Colorado's Rick Orlando picked off Florida's Rick Von Pusch for second spo t. Orlando said later. "My RD 400 is sweet , but the 79 RD 's are something else. Rutherford has one and I hope to get one later this year. " Hawkins waited for the Modified Production Mediumweight event to show his stuff and led Ru therford . Dominic Traina . and Norm Meyer in to the infield. On the next laps Rutherford then Hawkins wiped out in tum one . The race was red flagged . Hawkins explained . "Apparently some · guy collided on the start and laid a trail of oil through turn one. Ma n . I didn' t kno w wha t hit mel" Haw kins again led the restart , but Barry Schwartz on a black Yamaha 500 sing le th um ped by for the lead. Daytona's Den nis Hayslett move d his Hawaiian Tropic Kawasa ki up and challenged Schwartz in the best race of the day , T he Kawasak i rul ed the straights and the Yamaha ruled in the turns; the race going back and forth to th e ' checkered flag . Schwa rt z was accused of cutting the course and penalized a lap. Ontario's Martin Schaubert finished seco nd ahead of John Alger. Hawkins clung to fourth . New Yorker Duncan Milcetic led Ohio's Sam Williams. Chris Roberts and Edward Van Ellen through the infield in the Heavyweight GP class. Williams passed Milcetic, but Roberts' Kawasaki screamed to his first race win ever . The Owensboro. Kentucky native. who works for Donald Robert s Constru ction Company. said. "It got scarey a couple of times , I had too much tire pressure and it was like riding on ice. " Roberts quickly added a mate to his first trophy in the Modified Production Heavyweight class, moving past Dennis Hatch. J oh n Gam bill. and J erry Brown for an impressive win . Brown and the Sto ck Heavyweight class shared the track with the GP he avies, Brown , co-sponsored by La dig Cycle and Twincycle of Akron , Ohio. took the big Kaw all the way. Brown said. " It was a pretty exciting race. The br akes went out. I slid a few times a nd then som e guy kicked a pylon back at mel" Houston's Tommy Shields and Seat-