Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

Everylhing's caming lagelher' By Charles Morey Chuck Sun, the "other American" racing in this year's 500cc World Championship MX Series, was back in the USA. It was the day before the Bel-Ray USGP of Motocross, and like the others who'd grouped in the parking lot outside Plaza Camino Real waiting to have their bikes put through tech inspection, Sun had a lot on his mind. For one thing. the helmet he'd ~n wearing in the European GPs wasn't Snell 75 approved, so naturally, it didn't pass inspection. ") kn~ better," Chuck shrugged, "but the Electro people havet)'t brought the new one over yet. They will, or if they don't I can wear another helmet." He had the situation handled. But it was an annoyance he didn't need to contend with at a time when his concentration should have been elsewhere. On the other hand. Sun had reason to celebrate. His return for the U.S. round of the se~ marked his reunion with Eric Crippa, Sun's former mechanic while travelling the AMA National MX circuit. Chuck was grateful, both for Eric's presence and because they had spent the past week sorting out the Open class Husqvarna to better suit his needs. Crippa, more than a good friend to the 22·year·old Oregon rider, has earned a enviable reputation as one of the top motocross tuners in the country. Most important, Chuck trusts and is able to communicate with him. Last fall, Sun was badly battered at the October 29 Trans-AMA MX Series race at Lake Whitney Cycle Ranch. Dirt clogged a carburetor jet, causing a wideopen-throttle effect. The resulting high speed crash pitched him and the Husky through the air into a massive oak tree, and he was taken to the hospital unconscious. Incredibly, no bones were broken, but a severe gash in his leg - a cut that went bone deep - required a long recuperation period. For Chuck, the '78 season was over. Sun doesn't let things keep him down for long, though, and when he went to Europe early this year, he was looking forward to a good season. It wouldn't be easy ... "Last year was a breeze. I went over there, and everything was all handled, you know? I just got the bike, and I rode. I was riding good at the time. I always seem to come on stronger near the end of the year, and that's when I went .over last year. I got really good results. "This year was a linle different. The first time I rode, after another injury, I broke my wrist." The fint injury was the Texas •• ? "Right. The Texas tree. So righi there, that kind of has a tendency to make your confidence ... slide down a bit." 28 When, where and how exactly did the wrist injury happen? "In Belgium at the end of January. It was the first time I'd ridden in Europe this year. It was a sand track, but it was really cold. It was, you know, 10below. Lots of snow on the ground, Sand whoop-dedoos all frozen solid. It was a really rough track. And I was feelin' good. That was probably the problemllf I hadn't ~n feeling as good, I'd have been riding accordingly. But" was feeling good and starting to cook around. "And then, the next thing I knew, it was ... it just kind of spit me off to tbe side. When I put my hand on the ground, it was broken. "This year, starting right off, I had three weeks to do nothing. And to heal up a wrist. Whenever I get time on my hands to think, sometimes I create problems. And from then on, it was a battle. "Sometimes when something's healing, it gets to a point where it's just fine. You can start gassin' again. But this time, it was like every inch I had to fight fori It's just now getting really strong, and I'm beginning to go a lot faster now. "I can't complain about the pain, watching Heikki go out there with his freshly-operated knee and JUSt smoke everybodyl You know, you've just got to overcome the pain. "The good thing about this, is that I had to elevate my condition and my concentration. Everything had to be higher to compensate for it. So, when this wrist gets really well, it's going to make me a better rider, quicker." And on top of everything else, the 500c:c class competition is pretty rough this year ... "Yeah. There have been six winners so far." (. .. in eight motos of racing, .. Editor.) How about a run-down on your season thusfar? It's been difficult getting information on you. "The first 45-minute moto I rode was the week before Austria, and I just barely squeezed by. That was an International in Belgium. I think I was 10th or something. "I went to Austria, and we just didn't have our bike. together. I was having a hard time testing; I couldn't tell what was good or bad because of my wrist. Everytime we'd test something, my wrist would get a little better, and I'd go faster. Then we'd have to change again. "And I couldn't communicate very well with my mechanic. He's Swedish, and he didn't understand a lot of the problems I was having. Where Eric ... I don't even have to tell him a lot of things. He just knows me, and he knows the way I like to have things. And he just does it. "So, there were problems there, but Austria was a complete disaster for me. I had to battle and struggle around the track for 18th place." Badstaru? "No, not so bad. I just couldn't ride! The track was neat, up on a hillside above a small village in the mountains. Really, really steep uphills, where if you made one or two mistakes, you'd have to turn around and go down and try it again. With rocks! With rocks on top of the hill. The tracks over there are ... it's hard to put it into words ... to give anybody an idea. Nobody seems to understand the difference between Europe and the United States. But it's just more difficult, more technical. There are mOTe, better riders. "Everybody asks, 'How would Hannah do if he went over there?' Well, Hannah would be ... top fiv.., I would think, in the 500cc series ... which is very good." Where would you rate younclf? "I should be in the top five. I'll be there soon. Everything's coming together. "OK, Austria was a disaster. I went to France the next Sunday. We got the bike a little more dialedin, and I was 10th in the first moto, which was a big improvement over 18th. The second moto, I was in 101h, and my wrist just ... gave out, and I dropped back to 201h. "Along with the pain comes a weakness, and my throttle control is way off. When you're coming off an off-camber hill, if you slid off these hills, you just tumble down the hill and crash. I couldn't shut off at the right lime, and I couldn't get it back on. My whole rhythm was off. "So, we went back to Sweden for the Swedish GP. We did more testing. got a little stronger and went to a smaller bike. We went back to standard instead of the 430cc, and I could handle it better. "I was 12th in the first moto, and I was ninth in the second moto. Sweden was more like an Americantype track, pretty fast and a f~ man-made jumps. But it was still rough. "Then I went to Italy. I was 12th in the first moto and 10th in the second moto. Twelfth doesn't me.an anything really. TlJerc;'~ ~o pc;>iDJS.. _.

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