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/126818
Warren Reid has signed wi th AT K Leitn er to race an ATK 560 Fo u rStroke in selected Wor ld Championsh ip and American National Cha mpionship MX events. Reid was recently in Austria for a round of the 500cc MX GP series. He's sla ted to compete in the American round of the series on June 30 in Carlsbad, California. ........ ~y 'P~'P~ Wf~LfY Australian Geoff Ballard, a membe r of the '84 . American ISDE team, became ill during the April 14 National Championship Hare Scrambles in Redd ing, Cal ifornia. Tests conducted in a California ho spit al revealed Ballard is suffering from mononucleosis and he will be sidelined for at least a m ont h. The Can-Am factory rider is recuperating in Georgia. Honda officials have confirmed that the company is deve loping a turbo-. charged. 250cc four racebike for possible use in the 1986 500cc GP season. The new engine is a four-va lves-percylinder" twi n wit h double-over head cams and oval pistons - derived from the N R500 four-s troke road racer which appeared in 1982. Freddie Spencer may ride the new machine. Here are more details on the Honda GP road racer that will be auctioned off this September by Harrah's Auto Collection in Reno, Nevada (Cyc'e News, April 10). It's a 1960 RC160 260cc, f our cylinder Honda works bike. Features include one-piece cylinder/ upper crankcase casting, f o u r valves per cylinder, gear-operated double overhead cams, close-ratio six-speed transm ission , and a ha nd-formed aluminum fairing. Claimed power is 47 bhp at 14,600 rpm; maximum engine speed is 18,000 rpm. The condition of the fabled racer is reported ly "like new." Tuxedo-clad BruCe Penhall made a few laps for the crowd after christening Ascot's new South Bay Stadium speedway track by riding around the 1 / 7-m il e oval and spraying champagne. Little known fact: The U.S. Co nsumer Product Safety Com mission is an independent regulatory agency of the federal government, and as such has the power to reca ll or ban products it deemsu nsafe. iThe CPSC can enact a ban or reca ll o n its ow n, without any a pproval from Congress or the Presiden t; the agency has in the past banned a nd recalled products. The C PSC was established by the Consumer Product Safety Act of 1972 and became operational on May 14, 1973.The CPSC's 1985budget request for $35 million says the agency is " ... charged by Congress with the respon- . sibility for preventing deaths and injuries which resu lt from the use of cons umer products." The CPSC is currently investigating ATV safety an d is considering a ban and recall; the agency has also expressed interest in off-road motorcycles. 4 Accord ing to Nick Marchica of the Consumer Products Safety Commission, the CPSC has no interest in motorcycles " Except motorcycles which are not registered and li censed for highway use. " By Marchica's definition, expressed in a phone interview April 19, the CPSC Is interested in all dirt bikes and all types of competition machines not registered for street use, including bikes for road racing, dirt track, motocross, speedway and drag racing. Does this mean we'll see speed limiters on Top Fuelers7 Stay tuned ... Italian ma nufacturer Moto Laverda will not import any 1985-model motorcycles into the United States. California sales represented the largest market for Laverda, and new bikes had not been approved by the Ca lifor niaAir Resources Board (CARB). The U .S. importer has ass ured its dealers that there remains sufficient unsold inventory of 1983 and 1984 models to last for the rest of the year. Input is needed immediately on the Bureau of Land Management's management plan for the Yuma, Arizona area . The BlM is evaluating ORV lands near Interstate 40, the Colorado River and Havasu City/Lake Havasu. To inform the BlM of the importance of off-road recreational areas, write to J . Darwin Snell, Bu reau of Land Management, Yuma District Office, P.O. Box 6680, Yuma, AZ 86364. Fa ther's Day weekend, J une 15-16, is the schedu led da te of the Sun Valley GP, part of the AMA National Championship Hare Scrambles Series. Incl uded in the activities are a golf tournament and a mountain bike race. For information, send a selfaddressed stamped envelope to the Dirt M.C., Rt. 3. Box 240, Caldwell. ID 83605. 208/459- 1811 or 20817264005. Team Yamaha's Broc Glover filed a protest against Honda's David Bai ley, after the Houston SXwhen (according to Glover) Bailey overshot 8 turn in the second main moto and didn't re-enter the track at the exact spot where he left it. Glover's protest was denied that night by race officials, but Glover has appealed that decision. • May 4-5 is the date the United Sand Association (USA) is schedu ling sand drags at Glen Helen Raceway, near Sa n Bernardino, Ca lifornia. Entries are $20, $15 for USA members. Call 714/877-5045 or 714/882-998 I for details. . The last race weekend at Corona, California's Corona Raceway w ill be April 26-27-28. April 26 w ill feature the last night motocross after 16 years of regular Friday night MX; Saturday, April 27 w ill feature half mile and short track at night;i1nd Sunday, April 28 will be the last SMX motocross. More information is ava ilable from 714/ 736-1706 or 714 /689-1913. The 1985 Can-Am Road Raci ng Series kic ks off Apri l 28 a t Seattle Interna tio na l Ra cewa y; o ther series events are scheduled for May 19a t Westwood, Brit ish Co lu mb ia, May 26 at Port land Interna tio nal Raceway, September 22 at Seattle, September 29 at Portland. an d October 20 at Seat tle. Series even ts are sanctioned individually by the Was hington Motorcycle Road Racing Assn. (WM R RA), Oregon Motorcycle Road Raci ng Assn . (OM R RA) . and Westwood Motorcycle Racing Assn . (WM RA). For more information call 206/363-3597. Danny " M agoo" Chandler won the second round of the 600cc Motocross World Championship, in France. Chandler won the f irst mota and took second in moto two behind Br itain's Dave Thorpe (Han). Eric Geboers, Belgium, f inished second overall with a 4-3 score, while Englishman Kurt Nicoll went 7-6 forthird . Belg ium's Andre Malherbe (Hon) finished second in the first moto and placed out of the top 10 in the second but still leads in points w ith 40. Chandler and Thorpe are tied for second with 36. On Saturday, Ap ril 27, Continental - Motosport Club (CMC) will hold a special Saturday motocross a t Carlsbad (California) Raceway. Entries for sportsmen classes are $5; Pros are $10; gate entry is $3. Call 714/261-6116 for · detai ls. U.S . Suzuki has posted a contingency program for the remainder of the 1 9 8 6 AFM racing season . Suzuki riders who f inish in the top f ive in the 600cc Stock Production, Kerker Superbike, and Open Stock Production classes are eligible.. First place earns $600. For details, write U.S . Suzuki Motor Corp., Racing Department, 3261 East Im perial Hwy., Brea , CA 92621 , 714/996-7040. Fibre-Tech's Pol i-T ra iler division has introduced a fiberglass motorcycle trailer to its product line. Write 9 19 South 4th Street, Independence, Kansas 6730 I, 316/331 -8840. The Bureau of Land Management EI Centro Area Resource Office has filed letters of intent with California's Green Sticker fund for ORV projects in Sa n Diego and Imperial counties. Funds are proposed for McCains Valley, Yuha Desert, Grey's Weiland Buttercup. A request for Ca liforn ia Green Stic ker funds has also been made by the U.S. Fores t Service for th e Cleveland Na tio nal Forest, in R iverside County. Requested funds will be used to expa nd the park's existing ORV area by p urchasing private p ro pert y near Corral Canyon. The California Vintage Racing Group (CVRC) has set its road raci n g schedule: Willow Springs Raceway, April 27-2 8; Sears Point, May 18-19; laguna Seca, July 13-14. For information, write 6398 Dougherty Rd. #34, Dublin, CA 94668,415 /829-6091. Oneof speedway rider Steve Lucero's bikes was sto len from the parking lot of Shakey's Pizza on Newport Boulevard in Costa Mesa, Ca lifornia. Theft occurred about 11:30 p .m . The bike has a Weslake motor in a Godden frame , wit h red and black fenders with Lucero's name o n them. Earlier in the evening, Lucero had blown up the bo ttom end of the motor in a race. There is a reward for informa tio n lead ing to the machine's recovery. 'Ca ll 7141780-7171 for deta ils. (Continued to page 32)