Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126501
_tllera Caillorala·Arlz.a.·
larger field, considering the singular
two-hour race set aside for the racers
and spectators.
The start was clean, with no mishaps at the desert transition, although
one could hear the spokes singing as
the racers launched off into the riverbottom area from the eight-foot dropaway. First. lap honors went to
Phoenix's Gary Dircks (Yam), riding
out of Bob Whanon's new Bell Road
Yamaha dealership, holding a very
slim lead over Chris Howard from Las
Vegas. Dave Gerig (Hus) held third
and Bob Reisinger (Kaw) was fourth.
Last year's winner Chappy Blose was
entrenched in 10th spot, but not for
long, as he was moving up at the rate
of one position per lap such that he
held futh on lap six. Dircks relinquished
~he lead· to Howard on lap five with
Tim Locey (Yamaha Motor Corp.) in
third.
Significant rearrangement took place
on lap six, where Locey went into the
lead with Reisinger second, Dircks
third and Howard fourth. Pole sitter
Dave Miller, SCORE Class 58 star, was
now getting lapped by the first seven
riders, with ll-minute laps the standard.
Tucson's resident insane penon,
Carlos "The Flyin' Chicano" Serrano,
was moving up from 16th on lap two to
ninth on number seven. But on lap
eight, the whole story was rewritten:
Reisinger grabbed number one,
Howard second and Dircks third.
Serrano fell to unspecified mechanical
woes while Craig Adams' KTM propelled him into sixth. From then on, it
was pretty much follow the leader, ex·
cept for Blose getting around Dircks
in the back section for a solid third.
On the final lap, it was clearly
Reisinger. Howard and Blose up front
with neither of the latter two having
any chance to reel in the leading
Kawasaki. Adams saw a positive sixth
place ($250) dissolve into a 10th $50
when he experienced mechanical failure 100 yards from the checkered flag.
Pushed on by the vocal urgings of
spectators, Adams resisted the DQprone help of bystanders and sprinted
the remaining distance to the flag
after seeing his lead blown away.
Former AMA 250cc National Motocross champ Tony D made a rare appearance on his road to recovery from
a potentially disasterous eye injury a
while back. His seventh-place finish
should have been a good training ride.
Cycle World's Don Griewe took fifth,
Las Vegan Kevin Welch (C-A) got
sixth, Gerig was-eighth, local star Kent
Miller (SW Yamaha) was ninth and
Adams an exhausted 10th.
The Tucson, AZ, branch of PM
Magazine, a TV news show, was on
hand to videotape the Pro and sidecar
events. In fact, their daring cameraman hefted a stone heavy video
camera and rode the asphalt section
on Rob Evans' 750 Yam/Wasp sidecar
... one handed.
Results
OPEN NOli: 1. Bob Pongrotz IHonl; 2. Billy Stamey
(Vom); 3. Mike Stone lHonI.
250 NOI/: 1. k""';n Chinesaz IVaml; 2. Danny Hatfield
(Vam); 3. Ricky Beck (Yam).
125 NOli: 1. WflllAf1'/ Charles IVaml; 2. Mark Zela
(VarnI.
OPEN BEG: 1. Raben Todd (Hus); 2. Chucl< Raysbrool< IVarnl; 3. Tim Love IkIWI.
250 BEGII: 1. SmoI