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/126766
Born Sara Ann Schlachter, April 23, to two-time U.S. F-I Champion Richard hlachter and wife Susan of Old Lyme, CT. • DAVID! Engaged Jim Ryan. 29. advertising manager for Motorcyclist and Dirt Rider magazines. to Jenny f'loyd, 26. To be married July 24 in Laguna Beach. California. Surfaced Peter Locasio, formerly with Kawasaki. Hester Communinllions and Stadium Motorsports. now ad manager forTekLronix, a $1.3 billion hi-tech rnanufacLUrerof eleclt'onic and computer hardware. Moved Road Rider magazine, from 920 Glenneyre, Laguna Beach, CA to P.O. Box 6050, Mission Viejo, CA 92690,714/240-6001. Merged Motorcycle Retailers Association and National Motorcycle Dealers Association, imo the National Motorcycle Retailers Association with offices at 1522 K St. Suite 704, Washington, DC 20005,2021682-1559. Helen Ford of MRA wa named chairman of the board and Bob Myers of MDA was named presidem of the new organization. Filed A lawsuit against American Honda Motor Company, Inc. by the newly-formed National Motorcycle Retailers Association, to prevent Honda from selling ATCs to U-Haul rental agencies. NMRA comends the proposed sale violates franchise agreements. Terminated Kamifugi/ Higa & Associates, an advertising firm, by Bel,Ray Company, Inc.. which is currently conducting an agency search. Appointed Neville Edmond Goss of England, deputy presidem of Ihe Federation Imernationale Motocycliste; formerly FIM vice president (since 1981); presidcm of the FIM Technical Commission from 1978· 1980; concurrentlv chairman of the Auto-Cycle l nion. Changed Date of the French Road Racing Grand Prix at Paul Ricard, from June 10 to June II. to avoid a conflict with tennis finals at Roland Garros. Engaged Adrian McKay, 33, press support coordinator for American Honda, 10 Steve Pavich. 35, a U.S. Customs agent. In Error The results that accompanied last week's coverage of the National Motorspons Association/Kawasaki World Mini GP at Saddleback Park. The NMA's PallY Moorewood says that South Carolina Yamaha rider Damon Bradshaw should have been credited for three class wins: the 83cc Stock 9-11, 83cc Modified 9-11 and I05cc 9-11 categories. Also should have been credited: Jimmy Button (Hon)and Hank Moree (Kaw), second and third in the 83cc Modified 9-11 class, and Butch Smith (Hon), second in the Junior Cycle Stock 9-11 ranks. on €VEwlhin4 By David Aldana The Match Races The Match Races this year were all held at Donington Park in England and were promOted by a new group of people. It wasn't a team race like it was before, when it was an eight-man U.S. team vs. an eight-man English team. There were sti 11 16 guys, but it was every man for himself. Guys were racing each other for the publicity, everybody wanting to prove they could race with the world's best. Mike BaJdwin crashed trying to race with those guys, so did Wes Cooley. Wayne Rainey took himself out in qualifying. Three guys - Freddie Spencer, Randy Mamola and Kenny Roberts - broke the track record in practice, before we even gottoqualifying. So you can see that Crom the very beginning guys were on the gas. The purse money and scoring system hun the team concept. Only the top 10 riders in each race ~ot points, and only the top 10 overall got purse money. The series paid 0 Iy $1500 for the first rider overall, in six races. Tenth overall paid $150. So a guy could beat the world's best, like Randy Mamola did three times, and then get less then $1500 for the six races. As it turned out, Randy got the most points overall and won exactly $1500. I made money on the deal because of the stan money. But we (Don Vesco and I) got most of the private RG500 I rode LOgether Sunday night, shipped it Monday and were in the paddock at Donington Wednesday morning, trying to buy tires and the pans we needed to finish it off, at outrageous English prices. I finally gOt on the track Friday, and my best finish was ninth, I didn't win anything. But because only the top 10 places paid points, there was no incemive for a guy racing back in 11th or 12th place to try to block guys on theother team or try to back each other up. The gu ys back in 11th or 12th could have made a real contribution to the team in previous years, but this time they might as well have not been there. Another thing that hun the team concept was that the organizers had half the Americans stay in one hotel and half in another. We used LO all stay in one hotel, talk about strategy and make plans over breakfast, eat sandwiches for lunch in a special catering bus at the track, talk some more during dinner back a t the hotel. We were transported back and fonh between the hotel and the track in a team bus. This time we each had to get our own rental cars and wander around the pits trying to find something to eat at lunchtime. The factory guys stayed at a better hotel than the privateers. It was just a bunch of guys racing; the "American Team" won because the four fastest guys in the world happened to be from America. Still, all eight Americans felt honored to accept the Winner's Silver Cup on behalf of the American fans who couldn't be at the races. • Suzuki's new RG500 street bike is besed on the recebike cempeigned by Rendy Mamola, shown here et Daytona in 1981, Suzuki's RG500 racebike uses a stepped Square-Four engine configuration with rotary valve induction. Bore is 54mm, stroke 54mm for 499cc. Suzuki builds' street-legal RGSOO Suzuki Motor Co. Ltd. of Japan has developed RG400 and RG500 two-stroke Square-Four street bikes based on the RG Grand Prix racebike ridden by Randy Mamola last year. The machines, which feature rotary-valve induction and variable exhaust port timing mechanisms similar to Yamaha' Power Val ve system, wi II be officially introduced at the Cologne (Germany) Show later this year. The company is also in the final stages of developing the DR600SS, a four-strolte Single. with four valves and a dynamic balancer. "We have'basically taken an RG500 and put lights on it." said Mr. Telsuo Hirano. overseas marketing manager for SU'llIki. Hirano said the machines have between 80 and 100 horsepower. Suzuki calls its variable exhaust port timing device SEPC (Suzuki Exhaust Port COlllrol). The 400cc version of Ihe bike will be sold in the Japanese market. wher(' gelling licensed 10 ride machines over ,lOOcc is an expensive and difficult process, The 500cc version of the bike will be old in other parts of the world. The bikes feature Suzuki's new twin-piston calipers and forks equipped with ami·dive, Rear suspension is single shock with adjustable damping. _Bolh machines have quare-tube aluminum alloy frames and aluminum alloy swingarms. The revelat ions were made last week in Australia by Hirano. Mr. S. Kamiya. general manager of Suzuki's Motorcycle Engineering Division II. Mr. T. Mizuki, general manager of thecompany's Produc't Planning Division. and Mr. T. Shigeno)'a. staff manager of Suzuki's Overseas Operations Division Planning Department. Shigenoya worked at U.S. uzukimost receml)' as National Service Manager - for II yean before returning to Japan in the lale 1970s. According to the Suzuki men. final engineering details 10 be worked out for the RG400 and the RG500 are (Continued to page 18) 3