Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

u.-d in the institute'. techniclll mining program•. More information i. available by calling 602/869-9644. New Zealand bound: Bruce Lind and Jack Hart, 1983 AMA National Sidecar Road Racing Champions will race at four tracks·in New Zealand late in December. The pair are making the trip to contest the Brut 33 Gold Cup Series with sponsorship help from Barnett, Hitachi/Maxco, Insulate Industries, Don Crosford, D, Voler Inc. and the Wanganui (New Zealand) Motorcycle Club. One of 1984 Camel Pro Series Champion Ricky Gr.ham's RS760D Hond. dirt-trackers will be displayed at the L.A. Trade Tech open house in Lo. Angele. on December 8. More information is available by ceiling 213/7460800, ext. 212 or 201 or 202. Wrong: Last week we said Larry Huffman's Motorcycle World radio show aired on KEZY I\90AM and KWDJ 92.7 FM in southern California at 9:00 a.m. Sundays. It really airs at 9:00 p.m. Sundays. Difficult concept, that a.m. vs. p.m.... CMC ha. expanded into promotion. and marketing with CMC Marketing; services available include producing radio .nd TV spot commerci.... buying radio and TV .chedule.. producing pre.s reI. . . . and sponsorship proposa". More information is av.ilable by ceiling 714/261-6116. RISK .By John Ulrich Kevin Schwantz is 20-years-old, lives in Houston, Texas; can be a real wise-ass on occasion; and rides motorcycles. You may not have heard of him before, but most likely you will. Because this kid Schwantz is the next great American road racer, and he's liable to end up World Champion if the success and fame and glory and riches he's sure to earn along the way don't sidetrack him first. Schwantzspent 1984 racing a stock FJ600 Yamaha, using it to beat guys and machines he shouldn't have been The Specialty Vehicle Institute of America is looking for ATV ridin,g instructors; interested and qualified adults will be trained to teach the SVIA Rider Skills Course. The SVIA is a non-profit trade organization founded by ATV manufacturers Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and Kawasaki; more information is available by calling 714/241-9256. • nical consultation to Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in Phoenix, Ariwna, by Harley-Davidson Motor Co. as part of a special arrangement for the Institute' to provide training in service and overha ul of Harley-Davidson motorcycles; more information is available by calling Motorcycle Mechanics Institute at 602/869-9644. Named l\NYIY\RCYC' ~ 1~ IINOOSTRYI.J "ANGES Quit After six months, Cycle World Executive Editor Ken Vreeke, 26, to "seek my fortune elsewhere." Despite some reported friction due to editorial philosophy, Cycle World Editor Paul Dean reports that "We're still on good terms. Ken 'Conducted himself very professionally in cleaning up his editorial commitments before leaving." Named A distributor for Redline oil products, Bickel Racing; operated by Kurt Bickel, 1984 AFM Formula III (250cc GP) Champion. Supplied Motorcycles, engines, special tools and weekly tech- able to get near. He jumped on a borrowed-at-the-Iast minute Ninja 900 for the first time at the WERA National Finals in Atlanta last month, got four laps of practice, and beat Randy Renfrow (FJllOO) and Dale Quarterley (Ninja) in the Heavyweight Production (stock) race. (Schwantz was disqualified, seeing as he wasn't officially entered in the race, and Renfrow, better known for riding an RS500 Honda into the winner's circle at AMA/Winston Pro Formula One races, was credited with the wit:J.) Schwantz first caught my eye in the \vERA/Dunlop National Endurance Series. I knew he was good from watching him on his FJOOO, sHthering around corners faster than that stock street bike could possibly go. He didn't seem to slow down much in the rain or at night and nobody forded the twin river at Texas World Speedway better than Schwantz did when the eight-hour there was hit with a flash flood. The big question was whelher or not the kid could ride something with real power and racing slicks and big brakes and short handlebars; lots of guys can fly on production bikes and can't make the transition to seriou racebikes. But I figured it was worth finding out; I liked Schwantz despite his bravado and wise-cracking, and it seemed to me that at his core wa a serious racer who wanted to go fast and race and win. I'd heard that two-time U.S. Superbike Champion Wes Cooley and Yoshimura R&D of America had gone their separate ways after almost a decade of stormy success, and that Yoshimura had headed out to Willow Springs and Riverside with a parade of potential pilots, ho'lding tryout sessions. The way I heard it, Quarterley and New Zealander Robert Holden and California fast boys Jim Vreeke and Todd Brubaker had all swung a leg over Cooley's Superbike and had come back in with a new respect for Mr. Cooley's abilities none of the would-be successors had I Technical Service Representative for Husqvarna Motorcycle Company in San Diego, California, Charlie Halcomb. Endorsed The Great American Motorcycle and ATV shows, by the American Motoccyclist Association; membership promotions will be conducted at an AMA booth at each show, and AMA members will receive discounts on admission. Licensed To make jewelry bearing the Harley-Davidson trademark, Stamper Black Hills Gold Jewelry, by Harley-Davidson Motor Co., Inc. Scheduled 'Wanted Suggested rule changes Scheduled The 1985 24-Hour or modifications for speedway racing, by the AMA nonhern California and southern California Speedway Control Boards, prior to a joint meeting early in December, date to be announced; proposals accepted in writing by George Rich, 1850 D. Greenleaf Ave., Anaheim, CA 92801. The 1985 Budweiser/Kerker 100 Superbike race, for April 27-28 at Willow Springs Raceway; the change from 1984's September date makes this the first west coast superbike race of 1985. West, part of the WERA National Endurance Series, for September 7-8 at Willow Springs Raceway; the first pre-entry was from 1984 winners and two-time National Endurance Champions Team Hammer. Donated To charity in the Monterey, California area, $500,000 in the 1984 season, by the Sports Car Racing Assn_ of the Monterey Peninsula (SCRAMP), operators of Laguna Seca Raceway; another $250,000 was paid to the Monterey County Depanment of .Parks, which owns the facility. been able to get near Cooley's lap times or even get comfortable riding the Yoshimura Suzuki, It took a lot of talking for me to convince Yoshimura R&D's Suehiro Watanabe to give chwantz a tryout. Yoshimura's crew had left the other test sessions disappointed; they'd been bombarded by dozen of other aspiring uperbike heroes, including some who had no right to be asking and others, like Scott Gray and Russ Paulk and New Zealander Richard Scoular, who were well-qualified for the ride. Watanabe's phone was ringing off the hook, his mailbox threatening to burst at the seams from the volume of applications and pleas for a ride, a tryout, a chance.. It's no wonder Watanabe was keptica I. On the other hand, the last time 1 recommended a rider to Yoshimura was in 1980; that pilot, Mike Spencer, rode well for Yoshimura and went on to come within one low-speed crash of winning the U.S. Formula One title the next year, riding for Team Honda. 'So Watanabe agreed to put Schwantz aboard Cooley's bike for an Paid Contingency money from BMW of North America, to the top BMW riders in the 1984 Bo'IT series, $5000 going to Devin Battley, sponsored by San Jose BMW; $4000 to Bert Stuckert, sponsored by Fletcher Cycle . Salesof ew Jersey; $3000 to Marvin West, sponsored by Euro-Cycle Imports of Oklahoma City; $2000 to Phillip Friday, sponsored by Cyclesmith BMW of New Jersey; $Jooo to Richard Weber, sponsored by California BMW of Mountain View, CaHfornia. The program will continue in 1985. ARRA race at Willow ~prings, December'2. Willow Springs isn't a racetrack Kevin Schwantz competes on monthly. In fact, he had only raced at Willow once before, on his FJ600, in June. So I invited him to come out and ride Team Hammer's 24-hour bike in practice at the track on December 1. Schwantz had never ridden anything with clip-on bars before" he told us when he showed up. Never ridden anything with a GP-style shift pattern - down for higher gears before, either. Never ridden anything with 13-inch brakes. Team Hammer crew chief Ken Hoogland and I wondered if we were doing the right thing. None of it seemed to maller. Schwantz looked relaxed on the bike, listened to suggestion , and brought his lap times down steadily, from I:37s to I:36s to I:35s to I:34s. We changed the gearing and threw on a new rear tire - the one he started with had been u ed three hours at Elkhart Lake - and he turned I:33s. We talked about his approach to turn eight; he went back out and did I:32s on an endurance bike with a wellused, tock GSl150 engine and full lighting equipment. It turned out that Schwantz has been competing on motorcycles for 12 years, starting on a TY80 trials bike, progres ing through motocross to flat track and finally, two years' ago, getting into road racing on street bikes. The Yoshimura o'ew turned up late Sunday morning; Schwantz had time for just three laps of practice. Then he turned I:30s in winning the Formula One race, beating both Vreeke and B.rubaker, who were riding their own Superbikes on their home track. Schwantz won again in the Superbike race, earning 300. When he left the track he was heading for dinner with Watanabe, and by the time you read this Kevin Schwantz will hav~.signed a deal to race Yoshimura Superbikes in 1985. • $-0 Q.) ..0 e Q.) u Q.) o

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