EA decade of rolling thunder
~
E
(Above) A pensive Dick Mann at
Loudon in 1971. He went on to take
the GNC title. (Below) Don Castro
flies at Peoria.
The once and future king. When Kenny Roberts was a Novice in 1970, Mert Lawwill creshed his H"ey-Davidson at
the Ascot TT. It took three of KR's friends to pick the bike up and hold it so Dan Mahony could take the picture.
By Gary Van Voorhis
8
The seventies. Here today, gone tomorrow. Ten years of AMA
Grand National Championship racing that started out being
called The Sport of the Seventies and took the checkered flag 10
years later as the Winston Pro Rolling Thunder Show. Two
hundred forty-seven Nationals and seven champions can provide
one with a lot of memories. Do you remember where you were in
1970?
Bruce Brown never won a National, but his classic film On Any
Sunday is one that is still as much fun to see today as it was at the
beginning of the decade. Brown, with the backing of avid
motorcyclist and
movie star Steve McQueen, could not have
imagined the impact it would have in turning on people to the
multi-facets of motorcycling and to Grand National
Championship racing in general.
Kicking off the eighties will be On Any Sunday II which shares
the title and spirit of the original although it is being created by
different folks. If the previews provide a glimpse of the heart of
the film then it too will turn a new generation onto the thrill of
the sport.
Everybody does their share of bench racing at one time or
another and most likely a lot of the stories start with a question like
"Do you remember ... ?" Bench race with us through the last 10
years. Hopefully, we'll jog your memory a bit and you'll be able to
fill in the spaces. We haven't covered everything by a long shot for
that would take this issue and the next and probably a few more.
Just read and enjoy. We'll see ya for the start of the next decade.
