Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

\VIST America's only weekly motorcycle newspaper Sha ron Cla yton , Publisher. Caroline Gendry. Executive Secretary to the Publisher. Nancy Gorak. , Mark.eting/Promotions Executive Secretary. Editorial Charlo Mor~. Managing Editor. Dale Brown, Editor. MarJe. Kariya. Editor . Advertising Skip Johnson , National Sal es Manager. Terry Pratt, Sales Manager. Linda Brown. Adw-rtising Coordinator. Graphics and Production Judy Klinger. Production Manager. Krist in Cooper, Graphic Art ist . Monic a Bauman. Assistant. Marion H ata shita , Typognpby. Iknnis G reen e . La bo ratory. Accounting Mike Klinger, Manager. Jea nn e Hammond. Accu. Receivable. Donna. Bryan. Ast. Acrts. Rece ivable. T erry Dailey. Credit Manager. Circulation Rbcba Smith. Manager. Shirley Short . Sarah Taylor . Micbdle Allan. AJlista n ts. Duane Jobnson. Dealer Sales Mgr . Want Ads Leslie Tharp, Want Ad Sales. Service and Support Chris Aitebcson, Receptionist. Jim Leal . S&S. West 2%0I Cherry A ve.. Long Beach. CA P .O . Box 498, Long Bea ch , CA 90801 (215) 427 ·7455: L .A . Line 656 ·8844 . East 4190 Fint Avt:. , Tucker, GA . P.O . Box 80~ , Tucker. GA 50084 . (404) 954·78~0. Cycle News /West (USPS 141 ·540) is published weekly except the lint and last week of tbe calendar year for Sl8 pc r year by Cycle News . Inc .. 2201 Ch erry Avenue , Long Bea ch , CA 90801. Second c1_ pooug< paid at Long Bea ch , CA . POSTMASTER: Send form ' 3619 to Cycle News. P.O. ' Box 498, Long IleKh. CA 90801. SubKription rates: One year . second clul mail, $18 ; two yean. second class mail $30 ; th ree years. second class mail, $41 ; es weeks . 110 . CycIc News welcomes unsoli cited edi to rial material including stories. cartoons, pho<... et c . Such material. if published. bccomea the exclusive property of Cycle News . Such accepted material is subject to n:viaion as is necessary in the sole discretion of Cycle News. Unsolicit ed material which is not used win bereturned if accompanied by a self · add ressed ....mpcd envelope. All uOllOlicited material will be handled with reuonablc care, however, Cycle News . Ia.. nes no roponsibility for the safrty. loa or damage to such material. Reprinting in whole or pan only by permission of tbe publisbcn. Advertising rates and circulation infonnalion will be sent upun ~ucxt . Sec S.R .D .S. Copyright Cycle New•• Inc. 1980. TI'IlCIett>lirk Cycle News regillt..ed U.S. P8tent Office. All rlghta reaerved. 4 ON THE FRONT PAGE: Craig Vetter's Mystery Ship, the .10,000 motorcycle whose creator expects to see it more often in offices than on the roed. First up-cIose look begins on p. 24. Photo by Charles Morey. Hiking in the mountains. riding in the dez I was surprised this week to see Miles Brubacher's letter (Sierra Club writes BLM). I have known Miles since 1954 when he first joined the Sierra Club and when he also started riding in the din . Even though he is a loyal Sierra Club member, he rode the Barstow to Vegas with his two sons this year in support of our right to use the desert and in defiance of the BLM . I know because I rode with him . Unfortunately. he failed to make the one point that we have all been trying to get across for years . When he goes hiking, it's always in the mountains somewhere. and when he rides bikes it's in the desert . but he does not . repeat , does not go hiking in the desert. Now if he could just convince his fanatic friends .. . THOMAS K. McGEACHIN Santa Monica, CA AMElHonda series opener a success - thankst AME wishes to thank th e many supporters who made possible the success of the first race in the Honda American Minicycle Championship Series, The Western Championship, with close to 500 participants. The sponsorship of Honda , the participation of the new Honda minicycle team and of the R&D Suzuki. Yamaha and Kawasaki efforts demonstrated that this series has a new kind of appeal. George Holland of R&D Suzuki pulled off a magnificent triple in th e 12-16 Expert 85cc Stock, Modified and 105cc m in icycle divisions to become Western Champion. George Holland , Erik Kehoe, Larry Brooks, Troy Blake and Champs from each region will be participating in the CR80 Challenge at our Grand National Final on August 1-2-5 at Lake Whitney Cycle Ranch in Texas. AME also wishes to thank the support sponsors for this l O-race series (the next one is at Austin MX Park in Texas on June 8) . These sponsors were Hondaline , Kal -Gard, Duralube, ProTrac Trailers. E.C . Birt, Super Seer, NO, Dunlop and Bosch . It was an unusual pleasure to present the first race. which like all of the races in the Series, featured 4' tall trophies and the giveaway of two or more motorcycles and lots of other goodies. JERRY SHORE President American Motocross Enterprises Reseda, CA Oregon Nat1 Enduro not too easy Anion Oz's story of the Oregon State National Enduro (Cycl e News 120) missed the point. Oz spent so much time airing complaints of the event being too easy that he forgot to report the facts of the day. I was one of the "Su nd ay riders" entered in the event. I was also one of the many that houred out on the bottlenecks. I can understand the AA riders wanting a little more challenge. but don't forget the "Sunday riders " are paying the bills . If it were not for the riders with less experience and skill entering and riding, even a National enduro could not support itself, The whole point of an enduro is that every one is equal. This is an amateur sport; there are no " Pro's. " There are riders that are paid by manufacturers to ride or use their products. But even they are not real Pros, there is' no prize money. Everyone rides for the same trophy. As far as speed averages are concerned, the Lobos advenised the event as a time keeper enduro. I think the Lobos did a hell of a job, and I commend them . MIKEJAMES Medford. OR U.S. sp eedway wins - history repeats Congratulations to the American speedway riders competing in England this year. It looks as though they are headed for the top in international competition. It 's been too many years since an American team defeated the British and it's good to see it happen .. . again! Too bad your correspondent John Hipkiss was not aware that history was simply repeating itself before writing the "Ya nks Are Great In England" ankle that appeared in the June 4 edition of Cycle News. In 1957 , a group of American speedway stars enjoyed an incredible season in England. The entire team was from southern California (most of them lived in Pasadena). That was the year Jack Milne won the World Speedway Championship Final at Wembley Stadium in London , followed by two other Americans , Lammy Lamoreaux and Cordy Milne, in a 1-2-5 sweep for USA. The five other members of the ' American T eam arrived too late to compete in t he ch am pionship, but joined with the Milne Brothers and Lamoreaux to de feat the British in five straight test matches. So powerful was the American Team that a new team representing the British Empire was formed to compete against them. This team included th e best riders from Australia and New Zealand in addition to the best from the British Team . Again, the Americans were vic~orious in every test match of the series. Pete Colman, Byrd McKinney, Earl Farrand, Shorty Campbell and Manual Trujillo . rounded out the eight-man team . Each was a champion in his own right and competed in thousands of races throughout the world during the heyday of speedway (AMA Class "A" Short Track) in the 1950s and 40s. Old time fans will remember that regular weekly events were held as many as seven times per week during the 50s and five nights a week in California following WWII . It's time for Americans to dominate the world speedway scene again, and it looks as th ough 1980 will be our year. PETE COLMAN Balboa, Island, CA Comer sponsor correction Having just read the coverage of the Untied States National Trials rounds number one and two , in the June 11 issue of Cycle News West, I would like to bring something to your attention. The Tryals Shoppe of Tennessee has sponsored me in the past, but is not currently supporting my effort. I presently ride for Bill Brokaw's Motor City Yamaha in Colorado Springs, Colorado and the United States Montesa importer, Cosmopolitan Motors. I would like to see them get plenty of credit for their enthusiastic support of my 1980 campaign. Thank youl CURT COMER Colorado Springs, CO The Greek sh oots back I would have replied sooner to Moto- cross Action Magazine editor Dick Miller's comments (Cycle News West Voices, May 28, 1980) on my recent guest editorial in Cycle News regarding the poor condition of outdoor motocross in America under AMA sanction, but I have had a difficult time keeping up with the latest issues while spending the past five weeks traveling and reporting on the AMA Nationals across the United States. It seems my illustrious colleague agrees with my opinions that the sport would be much better off without the AMA ineptitude that is preventing the growth of motocross and perhaps even killing it , though in the same letter he tries to discredit my ability as a journalist and questions my proposed knowledge of motocross. That reads pretty hypocritical to me . What did I ever do to you , Dick? Is it just that you want everyone to think of you as the uncontested "Mister Know -It-All of Motocrou"? Miller makes several seriously erroneous statements requiring enlighten-

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