o
00
0')
....-4
(Above) Burteaon'. c:oIorfuI-yetfrosty pI8tea. (Left) Burleson on the
trIIII. about to peas another rider.
(Below) Burleson'. secret
w.span:
- eIec:tric grips.
This photo brings two things to mind: uBrrrrr'" and "Ouch'"
AMA National Championship
Enduro Series: Round two
Burleson thaws
Stone Mountain
National
By Gary Van Voorhis
Photos by Skip Johnson and Charles Morey
SHAW GAP, GA, MAR. 2
"The best plan for today," said a smiling Dick
Burleson "was not to crash, You could go fast,
but there was a point where too fast meant
checking out the snowl" Burleson had just
carded the overall win in the
Georgia Crackers M.C-sponsored
loo-mile Stone Mountain National. And by doing so, "King
10
Richard" had moved into the top spot
in the point sundings and on his way
to, perhaps, a seventh consecutive
National title.
Taking the AA class win, with Husqvarna's Burleson out of the way, was
Yamaha's John Fero while in the A
classes the overall went to Huslty rider
Terry Cunningham.
Cunningham grabbed his averaU
title by vinue of tie-breaker checIr.
scores as local rider Chuck Gray tied
Cunningham on points lost with 46.
Winner of the 250cc A class, Gray
turned in an exceptional score on
check three by dropping a scant 11
points to Cunningham's 18. The surprising score prompted more than one
rider to wish aloud that he had found
the line Gray was riding.
The 23rd edition of the Stone Mountain event almost met with disaster in
the form of freezing rain and then
snow mixed with temperatures that
never got above the freezing marIr. and
a biting, cut-to-the-bone wind that left
aU present thoroughly chilled_ E
moving the key time bad two bours t
.
10 a.m. didn't appear to be
until the sun poked through snow·
clouds 20 minutes before the first rider was to leave. Of the 552 riders preentered, a little over 200 aetuall
staned. And only 120 finished. Con·
sidering the cold, it was ludy that tha
many finished the III (actual) mi
run.
KTM's Frank Gallo typified man
riden: Uln the woods I was fine beca
you worked hard enough to keep wann
so there was no problem. But at
second gas stop we bad a long pave
ment stretch to tbe gas and bad agai
to the trail, and that's where I froze.
actuaUy had to stop and warm up be
cause I couldn't feel my fingers 0
toes." Others abo complained of n
being able to "feel" the brake or c1ut
or throttle.
Burleson had what he called, "My
secret weapon - literaUy, the hot
up." Former enduro/IliDT rider" J
HoUander baa a patent pending 0
heated hand grips. "They are wired t
the magneto, " said Burleson, "10 W
(Continued to poge 12
