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/126774
Voices (Continued from page 4) course Dunlop for their support of the racers by giving them a good price on tires at the track. We are especially grateful to our sponsors because it was the first time, to our know ledge, that this kind of support was given to a totally integrated race and race team, Team America. Lastly, a special thanks to Team America's incredible pit crew and scorers, who all did a great job. market exhaust systems for Yamaha RZ350s. When we finished, RSC Hyperformance pipes made by Noguchi happened to be on our otherwise-stock U.S.-model RZ350. The bike didn't sit idle after leaving the drags, and aher 300 street and racetrack miles, the silencer broke off the right exhaust pipe. A brace strap kept the silencer from actually hitting the ground, but exhaust from the expansion chamber no longer flowed into the silencer. Mr. Parker is editor of Black Biker... Editor. Published letters do not necessarily reflect the position of Cycle News, Inc. Send letters to Voices, Box 498, Long Beach, CA 90801. ~ ~ - By John Ulrich Last week we ran a dragsuip comparison of several afler- In Memorium AI Fergoda: 1907·1984 Longtime San Francisco area dealer Al Fergoda died of cancer at SL Francis Hospital in San Francisco on Wednesday, May DONALD H. PARKER Santa Fe Springs, CA .... ... -_ got Noguchi making new silencers not only for every pipe we've sold but the unsold pipes we have in stock as well. " RSC is located at 1840 Cheshire Bridge Rd., Atlanta, GA 30324; phone is 800/222-1452 or 404/876-3832. The pipes sell for $350 a set. • The RZ was loaded into a truck and transported 100 miles home; by the time it arrived, the brace strap had also broken and the silencer was 1'011ing around the bed of the tTUck. In addition, the R C Hyperformance stickers on the silencers had melted into ugly plastic smear and the baffle screens were rattling around loose inside the silencers. According to Stan Chiras of RSC, the company i aware of the problem and is notifying all customers that their ilencer will be replaced, free of charge, with silencers built of beller materials. "We stand behind our products," Chiras told us, "and we've 23. Fergoda's career in the motorcycle industry spanned over 50 years before he retired in the late 1970s. During that time he was a dealer for several makes, including Harley-Davidson, Norton, BSA, Lambretta, Vespa, Yamaha and Suzuki. He was also a competition referee for AMA District 36 as well as an announcer at many tracks such as Belmont Raceway and Bay Meadows, and racing events which were held at theSan Francisco Cow Palace. He is survived by his wife of over 50 years, BellY, and daughter Joy; an only son, George, died several years ago. Fergoda had recently turned 77. AI Fergoda was a native of the San Franci co area all his life and had been involved in motorcycles ince his teenage years. In the early 20 , Fergoda had a shop, at which time he met Hap Jones; a few years later AI became a co[£ee salesman for MJB -in which he rode a sidecar outfit with the car designed to resemble a giant coffee can - when he crossed paths with Dave Golden, who would become a motorcycle dealer himself. Both Golden and Jones - along with former Motorcyclist magazine publisher Bill Bagnall - became lifelong friends with Fergoda. When he wasn't a motorcycle dealer hi mself, Al Fergoda worked for others, including Claude Salmon and the legendary Dudley "Pops" Perkins. After ceasing business to take time out for World Warn, Fergoda started up another shop in the Marin County area. A few years later, AI returned to San Francisco and became a dealer for orton, then BSA. His most outstanding achievement as a dealer came in the late 1960s during what became the first motorscooter "boom" in the U.S. in which he pioneered the seiling of Vespa and Lambrella scooters. In time, Fergoda established himself as the largest Lambrella dealer in the country. With the decline of the scooter craze in the early '70s, AI acquired first a Yamaha dealership then a Suzuki franchise, maintaining them until finally retiring in 1979 when national motOrcycle sales pI unged. After that, AI spent his retirement years traveling with his wife and kept in contact with motorcycling only through clo e friends. Fergoda was hospitalized earlier in the year, apparently for diagnosis and treatment of cancer and leukemia. He last entered St. Francis on May 21 and was scheduled for release two days later, which was the day of his death. According to Dave Golden, Fergoda appeared to be in good health with no indication of the seriou ness of his condidtion. "He was always a lot of fun." remarked Golden. "And if there was ever a need, he was always happy to help out." • Freddie Spencer Team Honda - Winner - French Grand Prix Thanks for riding with Castrol- America's #1 Motorcycle 01/. Engineered for Performance CastfOl 401 Hackensack Avenue, Hackensack, NJ 07601