Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

8 I had the interest all along, I just hadn't had the time. Suddenly it was summer and I didn't have to hit the books. Three weeks later you got your first official national win in Colorado. Colorado was the turning point for me. I'd gotten onto a fitness program, running and working out, and practicing. The biggest change was mental. I tried to be myself more instead of what I thought the serious racer should be. The serious racer puts the straight face on and really doesn't smile much. But, me, the racer, is joking and happy and smiling at everybody until I get to the first section. And then I put my race face on. Before I had never really felt that I could beat everybody. In Colorado, I had a good first lap and it was an easy trial. I had never done well in an easy trial befoTe. Then on the second lap I just said: Well,l'm going to win today. I didn't know why. I just had that feelingand that was it. Then you lost by one point in Wyoming and went home for six weeks in a tie for first place. Yeah. I got a job building a cabin for Norm Sayler up at Donner Ski Ranch. I put in my eight hours every day and I'd go out and ride for a couple of hours and then I'd run and work out. I just got into this groove. So practicing at Donner really prepared you? The best thing that happened to me was losing by a point in Wyoming. That ticked me off so bad. I thought about that all the way home. One point. One point. One point. It really motivated me to work hard. I kept thinking maybe I got a little tired and lost that one point because of fatigue OT lack of concentration. That's what I told myseH to get more motivateO to work harder. And, also, working up there with Norm, the analytical wizard, helped. Every night after practice I'd describe a section and what I thought I was having a problem with and we'd talk about it. And I'd go out then the next day and sure enough, what he said the problem was, that was it. I refined my style and constantly tried to become more efficient. What's your strongest trait? I don't like to quit. What's your philosophy of life? Why don't you ask me the definition of happiness? Happiness is the exercise of vital powers along lines of excellence in a life affording them scope. That's the Greek definition of happiness. What about hobbies? Tennis. Skiing. You're a Louis L'Amour fan. How many of his books have you read? I think I have about 50. I've read them all about four times. During the summers I read some new.ones and all myoid favorites. Why Louis L'Armour? He writes about the kinds of guys I could imagine myself being in the Old West. Had I been raised a bit differently or maybe taken a different fork in the road way back I could easily be just a total outdoorsrnan, anti-civilization, do-it-on-your-own survivalist. I really love that kind of stuff. I did a lot of that when I was younger. Louis L'Armour's books allow me to use my imagination, put myself into those places. His books are not only a story but a history. When you were in Europe traveling by yourself, did you begin to fmlike you were the lone rider? I used to joke about it and call mayself the Lone Ranger because I was the. only ltaljet rider out there. What would be your most memorable experience in trials? Eating five sundaes in one day. No, really, there isn't anyone thing. There have been times of elation. The time in the van when I found I had clinched the championship. Another was in Spain when I got my first FIM points overseas. Probably one was when I walked into the importer that day and they were waving a contract in front of my face. Your biggest disappointment? I guess my biggest regret was I didn't get a chance.. .I'm not whining or anything... that I didn't get a chance to stay in Europe and ride as a member. of a team on a bike that at that time everybody knew was a good bike with the tires everyone was using. I hate to keep harping about not having those tires, but it made a big difference. How much of an innuence has Bernie Schreiber been on your career? He was my idol. The guy I looked up to. The great thing about Bernie was he wasn't too big to take the time to talk and be nice to a kid coming up. He wa n't above calling me on the Phone and asking if I wanted to go practicing. And he'd listen to what I had to say. I remember Bernie and Andre Plouffe (SoCal number one in 1979) in-about the same way. I used to call up Andre and just ramble on about everything and he'd listen patiently. Bernie used to come over. He'd set up these killer sections and I'd just wheeze and grunt and push and he'd clean them. Of course, I'd never clean them that day but I'd go back and ride them and ride them. I can still go back to Chatsworth and show you all the different sections that Bernie came out and set up. How much of your development came from that opportunity? I can't put an exact percentage on it, but it was a definite help to be exposed to the best rider in the world and learn what he was doing. Bernie, at that time, was the pace-setter in Europe. He was the guy who was doing the wheelie turns for the first time. Basically, I was seeing all the latest tricks and I'd never been out of California. That's the physical part. And the mental part: having someone like that around that I could idolize, aspire to. Was it a shock going from national to world rounds? It was but it wasn't ... I had a lot of preparation riding Bernie's sections and southern California trials. I guess it ~as because of Bernie and Marland that the philosophy in southern California..was: If you can make it, it's not hard enough. If you aren't crashing five times out of 10, make the stuff a little harder. Find a higher step. But southern California isn't pUlling out top national riders right now. There's a decline in top riders and total riders. Is that a result of tougher ~ctions or just a cycle? You have a percentage of the people doing any sport that will be the best. And as the number of people participatinggoesdown, your output of top athletes will go down. Trials is really a difficult sport in that respect. In racing, the good riders go faster, but in trials the good riders get through and the others don't. And it's really no fun when you aren't making it unless you have that attitude that we used to have -that I still have - well, I'm not making it, that's because I'm not good enough so I better get better. In trials, when you're crashing in a section, you're looking bad. Everybody is looking. I can really relate to people who don't get a charge out of that. As a consequence the difficulty in sections declines. Using SoCaI as an example: I'm not there any more, Marland quit, Bernie hasn't been there for years. That inn uence isn't there to perpetuate the old philosophy. What prepared you beller for Europe? Riding nationals or practicing with Jemie? More than anything it was the growing up and practicing in southern California - that tough trials environment that prepared me mentally. Plus my own trait, not wanting to quit. Should national trials be easier to appeal to more riders or tougher to develop potential world champions? I feel if trials is going to keep people in the sport it has to be presented the way.they want it. The majority of riders, the mainstay of Ihe national group, the support riders, don't want killer trials. These are gun who work hard, have families, guys who are coming from place where theydon'l care about world riders. They never had a guy like Bernie around to show ihem how Europe was. They want to come to a national' and have fun. They're all privateers, it's costing them money, and they don't have fun when they're fiving every section. I think that we're going to have to do more trials like Colorado for example. Split the upport rider more. Have more championship-ooly sections. Splitting the sections has helpea. It's just going to have to be that the national class is a lot harder than the support class. I hear that Europe is beginning to find out what America has already found out that if you try to kill everybody in the nationals the people aren't going to do it. Did Colorado and Wyoming this year hit the mark? For the support riders probably. That's my rational brain talking there. In my heart I want to see it tough and brutal and more of the old philosphy of developing more guys to go to Europe. If there's no one who wants to do that then ... Would a super class help? What good is it going to do to have 10 guys in a super class? You prefer tougher trials? Of course. It's to my advantage. I'm better that way. But this year I was mentally able to handle the easier trials. There's been controversy over the U.S. world round, that the last two didn't stack up to Donner in '82Whal can I say about Donner? It was a spectacle. Donner did a lot for the sport. Definitely more good than any harm. It showed people that had never really understood what the top trials riders can do on· trials bikes. Donner, with the big rocks and the grip, really shocked people. It was obvious that was what the people wanted to see. They were running from section to section. Was 113 points off Eddy Lejeune too tough a trial? I think, in retrospect. you can say it was too hard, but it accomplished wha,,1 think needed to be done. It showed people just how incredible trials is. Donner really illustrated the outer limits of trials. The organizer took a lot of abuse and a lot of lhat should go to me. I talked to him a lot. gave him a lot of advice. So did Bernie. It could have been a turkey because the guys doing it had never seen any world rounds. So it turned out to be a bit tough but it was sure a lot better than being a turkey. Some of the Europeans ask why it isn't at Donner more often or every year. I've talked about that. Why not have the American round in the same place all the time. If it was in an attractive spot like Donner, maybe we could get some TV coverage like the world motocross championship at Carlsbad. Every ·year, it's in the same place. Everybody knows it's going to happen. But, on the other side of the coin, it's one of the few chances Americans have to see the world's bestand we have to give everybody an opportunity to see it. What's the plan for 1985? Defend the championship. I'd really like to do Trial des Nations. I think it's going to be in Italy. I can'tdo the Scottish Six Days because of school butlhat'S one thing I'd really like to .do again. I was happy as heJlto freeze to death every day. •

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