Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

~ ~ ..... s-. c, < Runner-up Lane Leavitt tackles Sunday's ninth section. Winner Marland WhBley lost just 23 points o ver the w eeke nd , Whaley fakes V.O. T.E. two-day frials By Bill & Shayla Mark ham Photos by Bill Markham TEXAS CANYON. CA . MAR. 24·25 Riders came from northern California, Canada, Colorado, Utah, and even ou t of the woods to ride the big two-d ay Valley Observed T rials Enthusiasts/ American T rials Association St. Patrick Trials. Da ys of rain hadn't stopped the V. O.T.E . club from putting out 102% in laying out fantastic loops. both 22 Saturday and Sunday, with challeng· ing and exciting sections. Marland Whaley (Mon). just back from the Observed Trials World Championship rounds , was ready to ride but found Lane Leavitt (Bul) to be no easy task - after the first loop on Saturday. they were tiedl However. by the next day. Whaley got down to brass tacks and captured first place with 23 points. Leavitt gave a great ride of 31 points far second place. Third place went to Martin Belair (Mon) who had 78 points. and Dave Boston (Bul) rode a close fourth with 82 points. In the Amateur class , Ron Benigar (Bul) had moved ahead of Bruce Davis (Bul) on Saturday. but on Sunday. Davis kept his feet on the pegs and came up to win the class with a total of 107 points to Benigar's 109. George Avery (Bul) was just two points behind to take third . Tim Weis (Bul), on a winning streak in the Novice class . dropped 66 points for first place and Brent Ba tt in (Bul) was a 7l-pointer for second. Charles Inman (Bul) had 78.2 points for third and Robert Mennell (Bul) outrode Mark Bembaum (Bul) by .4 points to , win fourth place. Senior A was dominated by Bob Nickelsen with 53 points for first place. Nickelsen rode his new 185 Honda Enduro bike ~hich he has converted for trials riding and says that when he gets lower gears and the carburetor right it will be a great trials machine! Gil Smith (Bul) and Tom Buriman (Bul) tied for second with 90 points; Smith taking it with more cleans. The Senior B class had a 25·point tie for first be tween Ted Goddard (Bul) and J ohn Strasser (Bul) . Goddard was first with more clea ns and St r asser was second . Bill Markham was hot on their fenders with 26 points for third pla ce. The Begin ner class showed a tie on Saturday but Denny Wolff (Bul) came out on top on Su nd ay with a total of seven po ints. Kurt Hathaway (Yam) had II points for second and J . Marshall took third place with 16 points. Cindy Scott (Hon) was first in the Kids class with a total of 20 points. while Andy Tincup (Yam) was second with 55 points. The Kids' sect ions were set up close to camp and were maneuverable as well as fun . A new twist to trials this time was a setup of club teams in some of the classes. The Expert class was won by the V.O.T.E . club (T eam BAB) and the ITA teams walked away with th e Amateur, Novice and Senior A classes. Most enjoyed this new wr inkle in competition ' and the sport will undoubtedly see more teams c~mpet· ing in the future . Saturday's first rider led ' out at 9 a .m. , followed by one rider per minute. Finish time for the day was five ho urs plus one extra hour of grace. Two 20·minute loops of 22 sect ions each kept the riders hustling to finish on timel The Saturday loop had some downhills and long uphills , a large under-the-road tunnel . and then about five miles of rocky cr eek bed; a com bi na ti on of endless rocks and wat er , sometimes a foot deep I Riders who weren't in good shape found th eir arms and legs giving out! After section 16, riders took a side trail through waterholes where fourth gear obliged them with cool splashes of water. It was then rocky gullies and more water for the rest of the loop . .. super fun terrain! Section 10 was the p istol for Amateurs and Experts. Entering up a long rocky ravine, riders then made a sharp 90 0 right tum , then a goo sharp left - fighting poor traction in the loose dirt to make it u p a six-foot, offcamber rock ledge. From the ledge riders dipped back into a rocky ravine and out the exit . Dave Boston was the only Expert to clean this one on the first loop. Amateur Mike Bern ba um 's bike beca me airborne on the offcamber and did an "end o" - sending Bernbaum into an acrobatic feat which la nded him spread-eagle in the section with a cut hand. He went on to finish the trial . none the worse for wear! Novice riders had root problems on section 171 They entered up a long rocky creek bed with water running down it , then made a sharp left up a three-foot bank full of wet . slippery roots . Those that made it up did a slow but sharp turn around a tree back into the watery creek bed and out the exit! Senior B and Beginner classes also . combated roots on section 22, entering over a watery creek bed with a high root sticking out of the slippery rocks , then a sharp right turn through more rocks and out the exit . After a good night's sleep . plucky riders checked their positions from the newly posted Saturday' results to get a bearing on their Sunda y strategy. Beginning at 8:30 a.m . , riders set out. at one- minute intervals, on a 17-rnile , 20-section loop; working thei r way to the top' of a four- mile summit by way of a long rocky gully. followed by a long. steep . hand -cut trail. Continuing on across the summit. they dropped back d own 10 a watery creek bed of rocks and . at some points. two foot wa terfalls. This brought th e riders onto the Saturday-loop side trail whe re fourth gear again cooled everyone off through splashing waterholes. The Sunday sections were a little tougher for Experts and Novices than those on Saturday; Amateurs and Senior A's - about th e same; Senior B's and Beginners a little easier. Section nine was ve ry p icturesque under trees and amongst some beautiful and unusual stone format ions. Amateurs and Experts entered under a tree then made a sharp right. positioning their bikes just so in order to lift the front tire up and across a' big double tree trunk . Pos itioning was again important immediately in order to hop across a bed of unusual slab- type rocks where most dabbed . A left turn through more rocks was followed with a slow 180 0 turn around a tree between more rocks and out the exit. Section 15 was an exciting one for Senior B's and Beginners. Riders entered up a watery creek bed, then tried to maneuver between two tight large rocks uphill - scooting over rocks at the same time; then a right turn up a bank. across a flat but rock y area back into the creek bed (more rocks!) and out the exit. , A real splish-splasher was section 17 for the Novice. Amateur and Senior A classes. These riders entered down into a waterhole nearly to the top of most engine cases (a real laugh -genert), continuing on upstream over large rocks while fighting splashing, dabbing and boots full of water! Exit was finally with a sharp right. Experts entered the same way but rode straight across the stream. hopping over a large rock to a small flat area where they positioned their bikes to negotiate their way up an almost 90 0 rock slab covered with running water . Riders punched it wide open to get to the top a nd then picked their way up rocky steps to make a right turn ento a rocky off-camber which sat above a beckoning waterhole! More rocky steps and sharp right turn gave them the exit! Greg Byers was the only rider to clean this seciton on the first loop. This was one beautiful section and everyone enjoyed it. The V.O .T.E . club and this Texas Canyon picturesque terrain made a great combination for this event! Riders were d elighted at th e scenery and enjoyed the event regardless of their finish ing score. a

• Cover