Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

or shifting systems, I would really be interested in talking LO you regarding any of these problems. Any knowledge or mechanical advice dealing with the rectification or solution LO these problems would greatly help me get back on the road (i.e. Sears Point, Riverside, Willow. etc.) much sooner. Please feel free to call me anytime before II :30 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. Call collect - I'll pay! STEVE E. HOLT 415/967-8321 Los A1LOs, CA WEST America's weekly motorcycle newspaper Published letters do not necessarily reflect the position of Cycle News. Inc. Send le~ers to Voices. Box 498. Long Beach. CA 90801. holTon ClaYlOn, Publisher Mikt Klinger, ComplroLlu Skip Johnson. Associate Publisher. National Sales Manager Caroline Gendry. £-ucutivt! Suutary to the Publisher Recent deaths close Saddleback Editori.1 John Ulrich. Editor Dal~ Brown, Senior Editor Kit Palmer. Assistant Editor Mall Hilgenberg, Assistant Editor • Advertising Terry Prall, Sales Manager Mike pencer, Sales Manager Linda Brown. Advertising Coordinator Nancy Waslell. Advertising/Editorial Assistant Kellie TTuelson, Advertising AssIStant By Rex Reese LONG BEACH, CA, JULY 16 A number of fatal accidents earlier this year have resulted in the closure of Saddleback Park, leaving its future opera-· Graphics .nd Production Lana Bryson. Managa Lor,i Tyson. Crap-hie Artist Larry Gill. Graphic Artist Marion Hamshita. Typography heila Larsen. Typography Dennis Greene. Laboratory Accounting/O.t8 Processing Donna Bryan. Accounts Reuivable Coord;nalor GenC\'3 Repa 5, Assistant Terry Dailey. Credit Manager Circul.tion Rheba Smith. Manager Michelle Hanna. Assistant arah Taylor. A.ui.rtanL Debbi~ Walker. Assistant Lyna Hood. Assistant O..ler 5.1" end Service Tim Ryan. Dealer Sales Manager W.ntAds Bob Elliott. Want Ad Sales Service .nd Support Chris Ailcheson. Reupl;o"isl Gregory Hanson. SrbS West 2201 Cherry Ave.. Long Beach. CA P.O. Box 498. Long Beach. CA 908010498 (213) 127-7433; L.A. Line 636·8841. E.st 1190 Firs< Ave.. Tucker. GA, P.O. Box 805. Tucker. GA 30085-0805. (401) 931-7850. • Cycle News/West (USPS 141-340) is pub· lished weekly except the £irst and last week of the cal~ndar year for $25 per year by C)'de News. Inc.. 2201 Cherry Avenu~. Long Beach, CA 90806. Second class postage paid at Long Beach. CA. POSTMASTER: Send form 3579 to Cycle Newa.. P.O.1Iox498. Long ........ CA 90801 -G4!I8. Subscription rat~: One year. second class mail. $25; twO )'ears. second class mail. $45; three years. second class mail $68: 25 wec:ks. $13. Foreign rdtes available on request. Cycle News welcomes unsolicited editorial material including stories. C'driOOns. photos. etc. Such material. ir published. becomes the exclusive property of Cycle New'. Such acttpted mat~rial is subject 10 revision as is necessary in th~ sole discretion or Cycle Ne,,·s. Unsolicited material which is not used will bt- returned if accompanied by a self addressed stamped envelope. All unsolicited material will be handled with reasonabl~ C'dre. how~v~r. Cycle News assumes no responsibility for th~ safely. loss ordamag~ losuch material. Reprinting in whole or part only by permission of the publisher. Advertising rates and circulation information wiIJ be sent upon requesl. See S.R.D.S. Copyright I!> Cycle News. Inc. 1984. Trade.... rt< Cycle News Ngioterecl U.S. Pet...t Office. All rights reoerved. ON THE FRONT PAGE: Ricky Gra- hem. '10.000 richer for IHding tIM Cemel Pro S..... et tIM helfwey point. telta ebout hi. title che_ in e profile th8I beglne on 4 .... 22. Photo by Dele Brown. Yeah. Motocross Moml Springsteen should quit Several times in your paper we have read about the Gale Webb afety in Sports show. We finally got to see one of her shows at the en!Tance 10 the Rose Bowl Supercross. What a great way to entertain people who showed up early for the races. She was not only riding this large ramp herself, she was constantly talking about motocross. bicycle motocross, safety gear and all of her sponsors. She never really slOpped for a single moment, always screaming and yelling. She cornered all ages, and because we're adults, we can't believe how excited we got watching her and her riders. It sure go·t us primed up for the races later! Keep up the good work, Motocross Mom! I think that it"s time for Jay pringsteen LO step down from the HarleyDavidson dirt track team and give someone else a chance at a factory ride. Jay has been one of the be t riders in the history of mOlOrcycle racing, but I've heard enough about his illness. I'm sorry that he gets sick the way he does, but it's timdor him to give a deserving privateer a ShOl at a factory ride. I'm sure, on one of Jay's beller days he could still beat the best of them on any track, bul. .. Maybe it's time for Clyde Denzer to offer him another job - technical advisor, public relations, anything - just give his present one 10 someone else. DENNIS MACK Half Moon Bay, CA MR. &: MRS. SULLIVAN Torrance, CA No Eddie at Laguna After reading the interview about Eddie Lawson not racing at Laguna Seca this year, it sure put all my plans in a big mess. Since Eddie only races twice in America this year, (once in Daytona 2500 miles away, and in Laguna Seca 600 miles away) you would think Yamaha would like to see Eddie win one for all his fans here in the states .who have been following his races in Europe this year. Since Ted Dann and I bought Eddie his first Yamaha road racer back in 1977. (which he won with in DaylOna that year) I k.now what a great rider Eddie has become. The only reason I can think of for not lellinghim race is that maybe Yamaha is worried too much about Freddie Spencer and Honda. Well if a person is going LO be World Champion, his sponsor shouldn't try and avoid facing the competition. So Yamaha, don't worry about Freddie and Honda; you already have the smartest and best rider going, so let Eddie do his thing at Laguna and give his fans something LO talk aboul. MIKE STEWART Reno, NV As we reported recently, Harley-Davidson will be making Springer's bikes available to "deserving privateers" on a race-to-race basis... Editor. Dear Mr. President What has happened LO our Republican party in California? Senator Pete Wilson, with his wilderness bill, has sold us out to the Democrats. That"s 1.8 million acres of natural resources and wilderness gone forever. SenaLOr Wilson has just given away the state of California for his own political gain. I have not seen such appeasement since Chamberlain. Please, Mr. President, veto this bill. JIM CROCKETT Fresno. CA This is a copy of a telegram sent to President Ronald Reagan concerning the California wilderness "compromise," which is now before Congress... Editor. Honda CB700S DNF Help! To anyone out there in motorcycle land who happens to own a 1984 Honda CB700S Nighthawk and has experienced any difficulties or problems (even the slightest) with the transmission, shaft drive line, clutch tion in doubt. Shutdown of the entire park to both racers and recreational riders came sometime early last week, but was not discovered until riders arrived at Saddleback for a scheduled CMC motocross this Sunday, only to find its gates locked. Just the week before at a CRC motocross, rider activity was restricted LO the Imernational !Tack and its pit areas in the from of the park. The remainder of Saddleback, beginning at the road leading toward Webco Hill, was bannered off-limits. Theclosurecameapparemlyatthe request of the Irvine Co., which owns the land, when park operator Marvin Hendricks had his $5 million liability insurance policy, which covers the park's operations, ,cancelled by its carrier. Not affected is race event liability insurance handled by the K&:K Insurance Co. of Ft. Wayne, Indiana, for some promoters using the track. When the park closed, it was apparently the culmination of circumstances which have surrounded the deaths of three riders and one park employee. No information is available at this time about the deaths of two of the riders, except that one occurred on an ATV. The employee death occurred in early May during a CRC event when Everett Gram rolled a water truck down an embankment near Webco Hill. But the last straw in the sequence of tragedies came with the death of 10-year-old John Shaver in early June in a head-on collision wi th another rider on a trail in the park. According to sources, Saddleback "has lots of blind spots on its !Tails," and the accident could have even happened to more experienced riders. One prominant race promoter told us that Saddleback has been "running dose to the bone." The promoter, who asked to remain unidentified, said that lack of maimenance to the park's trails and roads has them "to the poim where it's dangerous to ride them." The future of Saddleback is uncertain. One source says that it's not known if the park will re-open. Jerry Collins, a spokesman for the Irvine Co. which owns the park and leases it to Hendricks, said, "When and if he (Hendricks) obtains insurance, we expect him to resume operations." Hendricks was unavailable for comments at presstime..

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