Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

--=p ee dllfla y S _ Ermolenko jams at Inland Motorcycle Speedway By Scott Daloisio SAN BERNARDINO. CA . SE PT. 18 Current number th ree in the world "Sudden" Sam Ermolen ko clos ed the season j us t as he started it by sweep ing the Ronn ie Correy (31 1) spins out in front of Tim McCasland at Ascot South Bay Stadium while IMS w inner Sam Ermolenko watches. Ed Ca stro (Pro R ider/KNAC/ T he Chums Weslak e) we nt arou nd leader . David H ancock o n the final lap and wo n hi s first 1985 Ascot So uth Bay Stadi um H and icap m ain event. H an cock had th e lead o ff the zero over Jeff Jones and Cas tro. J ones went widein tu rn fo ur a nd let Castro th rough for seco nd. Castro immed iat ely turned up the heat and began 10 close the gapon th e leader, Bobby.Ou ~Ovt-d i.n to thi rd o n the secon d CIrCU li bu t Iu s cha nces of catchi ng H ancock and Castro in th e remaining three la ps were sli m as th ey were flyi ng arou nd the fin ely-groomed oval. Castro made hi s first cha llenge a t th e end of th e fourth la p whe n he m oved o utside H ancock. H e stayed th ere unti l th e ba ck chu te when h e took th e lead a nd the event ua l wi n . H ancock fin ish ed in seco nd w ith Oil in th ird . Ma rk H at el y took h ome the honors in bo th hi s heal a n d th e Second Division m ain event w ith a pa ir o f sizzlin g displ ays aboard h is Weslak e. Mark Broo ks fetched second wi th Lou is Ko ssuth thi rd . S teve L yo ns (L yo ns' Racin g Jawa ) won the T hird D ivision gold wh en he beat Ken Bern ' and Steve Donovan . The n igh r's action wa s marred by a n asty cra sh involving J im m y G en rile, J oe Kreisberg and Mike Go light ly in th ei r Second Division heat . G en tile wheelied o ff o f four to sta n th e actio n . Tha t ca used Kreisberg to go down w it h G entile pil in g into hi m. G oligh tly th en went d own ver y.ha.rd a t th e en d of th e fro nt ch u te. Kreisbe rg ca me back for th e res.ta n even th ough it wa s later determin ed t~ at he had bro ken a bone 111 hi s wrist . Go light ly was rem oved by a m bu lance to th e hospital. Even thou gh in itia l indica tions were much more serio us. a II he recei ved wa s a cracked wri st . Results SCRATCH MAIN: 1. M ike Faria (J awl; 2. Alan Chr ist ian (Wes ); 3 . Ste ve lucero (W es); 4 . Lanc e King (Wes) . HANDICAP: 1. Ed Castro (Wes); 2. David Hancock (W es); 3. Bob Ott (Gdn); 4. Alan Chri stian (Wesl ; 5. Lance Ki n g (W es); 6. J eff Jo nes (J aw) . SECOND DIV: 1. Mark Hately (Wesl ; 2. Mark Broo ks (Ja w) ; 3 . louis Kossu th (J aw) ; 4 . Randv Sk inn er (Wes); 5. Gar y Hi ck s (Wes); 6 . Don Butl er (Wes). THIRD DIV: 1. Steve Lyon s (Jaw) ; 2. Ken Berr y (Ja w ); 3 . Steve Donovan (Was); 4 . Duane Blake (Gdn); 5. Kelly Inma n (Gdn); 6. Chris Land (Wes). Faria wins Ventura Track Championship VENTU R A. CA. SEPT. 17 28 For the first tim e since he moved so u th in 1982, " Flyin' Mike" Faria didn 't win th e points race at the Ventura Racewa y, but he di d wi n abou t ever ythi ng else. H e wo n the m ost mai n event s (n ine). the National qual ifi er. and at th e 15th season-e n de r, the 1985 Ventura Track Championsh ip . Seven d ifferent ride rs h ave won th e tit le since 1978, th at en ded ton ight wh en Faria mat ched hi s 1983 performance . N ot only d id Faria win. but he wa s perf ect - w in n in g a ll five o f his rides. Lance Kin g defeated "S udden Sa m" Ermolenko in a runoff for seco nd after they ende d up kn ot ted a t. 13. Steve Lucero scored a sol id dozen ; defending ch a m p Kell y Moran won o nly once a nd en ded up with 10; a nd crowd favori te "S how time" Bo b Oil lost h is chance when h is bik e wo u ldn't fire fo r hi s seco nd ride. a n d h e en ded w ith nine. In Faria 's first ride. he o u rga ted an d o u tro de Erm o lenko , wh o co u ld get no closer th an 30 yards o n th e fina l revolution. Alan Chris tian fou nd h imself in fou rt h beh ind Ed Cas tro. Faria ha d no trou ble w ith R onn ie Co rr ey (a lt ho ugh he might next year) in h is seco nd ride. again wi nning eas ily. . Th e th ird tim e o u t wa s certa in ly no cru ise, and went a long way toward decid in g the w inner. Joe Kreisberg sat o n th e pol e. lined u p next to Mo ra n , Kin g and Fari a. Kin g a nd Fari a went wh eel- to-wheel to tur n two wh en Fari a took the leadon th e o u ts ide . a nd went o n to the win . Moran fin all y passed Kreisberg o n the th ird lap for a poin t. On thefourth try. Fa ria go t a nothe r great gate a nd pu t a wa y two more tough competitors - O il a nd Lucero . Faria got th e best sta rt aga in in th e decid ing event 25. but Andy Northrup sp un o u t arou nd turn three and Kei th Larsen laid i t down bringing o ut the red flag . Faria repeated hi s performan ce o n th e restart a nd won easily. receiving a sta nd ing ovation . Fa ria has no w wo n 40 trophies in four sea so ns o f Tuesday nig ht speedway. It took o vera ll leader M ike Bast 10 years to w in 44 ti mes . Gary H icks finish ed second to Steve F u rma n in hi s heat . bu t ca me back to win h is sem i a nd the main even t to become th e 1985 Division T wo Track C ha mpion . Results TRACK C'SHIP: 1. M ike Faria (15); 2. Lance King (13); 3. Sam Erm olenko (13 ); 4 . Steve Lucero( 12); 5. Kelly Moran (10 1 6. Bob Ott (9); 7. (TIE) Ala n Chris ; tian/ Mark Dwy er (B); 9. Mike Ma zzacane (7); 10 . (TIE) Ron nie Correy/ Ed Castro (6). SECOND DIV; 1. Gary Hicks; 2. Rick Vanderham; 3 . J immy Gent i le; 4 . Archie Perez. Scratch p ortion o f the program in th e Cycle Ri der. In c. Trophy Seri es at J ohn LaDouceur's In land Mo torcycle Speedwa y o n a ch illy Wed n esday n ight. Ermol en ko (P ick Your Part Auto Salvage/Pacifi c Coas t Lam in ating Jones Goggles / Arai / Q&E /ST P / R K Racin g C hai n / American M ikun il AI Reed 's Po lish ing/Frame Shop /Car T unes / Ka l-G ard Weslake) drew th e po le a nd gra bbed th e lead as usua l o n th e sta rt . As th ey ca me o ff turn two. Er mo le n ko imm ed iat el y beg an to draw away from th e pack while To ny Br ig g s we nt i ns ide Al an Chris tia n for seco nd . Mike Faria . wh o had no clu tch left from th e sta rt , was running last u nti l la p two w he n he pu lled into the infield. Ermolen ko was on a run a nd co nt in u ed to open hi s lead wh ile Bri ggs o u tba u led Ch ristia n for seco nd . At th e checkered. it wa s Ermolen ko by a half straigh ta way over Brigg s a n d Christian . R ich Swea ney (joel Guth Const.! lee's Racin g/ Sco tt Goggles Weslake) hammered the field three times from th e lO-yard line a nd wo n th e H and icap main. The real show in th e ma in was co mi n g from th e back of th e pack with Faria a n d Ermolenko locked in a wi ld baul e as th ey cu t th ro ugh th e pack. They were goin g a t it in a fierce wa r whil e Sweaney ra n way ou t fro nt. Ennol enko a nd Faria sa ndw iched Tim McCa sland in turn o ne on la p four an d found themselves locked in a ba ul e for seco nd. Faria took seco nd as th ey carne o ff tu rn two . bu t Errnolen ko was right nex t to h im again as they entered three a n d he stayed there unt il he h ooked up and whc elied a t th e end of the lap . From th at poi nt on. Faria maintained a sma ll ma rg in over Ermolen ko a ll the wa v to th e checkered . but th e wi n was a li Swea ney's as he fin ish ed far a hea d . Mark Brooks (Pa in two rks j a wa ) closed o u t th e IMS Divisio n Two season by reco rding a n impressive win in both is heat a nd th e m a in . Second spot \.... s tak en by J ordan Duncan a wi th R i c k Vand erham third . Jim Peery o f Ventura won th e final Th ird Division main o f th e seaso n over Tod Bert ra nd a nd Kent Bo wser. H ank th e Crank o f Mentone won the All American Ch opper Race Final whe n he fini sh ed ah ead o f "Dirty" Di ck Wei ss. wh o won th e event back in 1981. Sonn y Mace a nd Dexter. Saturda y n ig h t SeptemberZd, IM S will wrap-up th e 1985 seaso n with th e 18th runni ng of the Ca lifornia State Ch ampio ns h ip. Bobby Schwanz wi ll be ret urn in g from Engla n d to defend h is 1984 cro wn; he wi ll be cha lle nged by all o f the IMS regulars. Results SCRATCH MAIN ; 1. Sam Ermolanko (Wes l; 2. Tony Briggs (GM); 3. Al an Christ ian (GM ); 4. Mike Faria (J aw). HANDICAP: 1. Rich Swea ney (Wesl; 2. Mi ke Faria (Ja w ); 3. Sam Er mo lenko (Wes) ; 4 . Alan Chris tian (GMI; 5. Tim McCasland (Wes); 6. J eff Jon es (Wes). SECOND DIV: 1. Mark Brooks (Jaw); 2. Jordan Duncan (Gdn); 3. Rick Vanderha m (Wes); 4 . Walt Farn um (J aw ); 5. Man y Vanb largen (Jaw); 6. Ken Bidney (J aw). THIRD DIV: 1. Jim Peery (J aw); 2. Tad Benrand (Gdnl; 3. Kent Bowse r (Gdn): 4. Kelly Inman (Gdn); S. John Dunn (We s); 6. Wayne M anc h est er (Ja w l. CHOPPER FINAL; 1. Hank The Crank; 2. Din y Dick W eiss ; 3. Sonny Mace ; 4 . Dext er. Houston, Sisemore bomb Baylands By Bill Spencer FREMONT. C..A. EPT. 12 J ohn H ouston , Jr. repea led hi s H andi cap win of a few weeks back wh ile J im Sisemore wo n h is first Scratch Mai n with onl y two week s of T h ursday nigh t Cl ass A Speed way ra ci ng left a t Ba ylands Raceway Park. Ro bert " Kid " C urry was working o n h is 12th stra ig h t ma tch-ra ce series. but g loom foreb oded i n th e fir st event o f th e ni gh t whe n he crash ed wh ile in th e lead. Bart Bast ap peared to be th e gu y to beat . wi th a hea t wi n a n d then a close fini sh to Mike Parso ns in th e semi . whi le H o usto n did lik ew ise in hi s qualifi ers sell in g the stage for th e main. Dave Cox led th e p ro cession on th e H ea th R aci ng Specia l wi th M ik e Parso ns a nd crew in tow. Cox got off w ide o n the seco n d turn a t th e halfway point wi th Parsons fo llowi ng su i t on th e next set of corners. H ousto n got by and set sail for the ch eckers w ith Bast in lOW over 16-year-old SCali Bra nt a nd Pa rsons. Scra tch actio n wa s a t its finest with Pa t Linn dominating the first h ea t ov er Si semore. w hi le Steve Martin took th e MPE/Oilzall specia l 10 w in th e second heat . Dua ne Yarrow sizzled the track a nd dazz led the crowd with a good o utside win in hea t three. Bra nt a n d th e Bru ce Porter Raci ng / Bra nt En g. to p pe d th e final heat. L in n ap pea red to be th e man after winning hi s h eat over Kid Curry. whil e Bra nt held off the Sis emore cha rge . When i t came green tim e in the ma in . how ever . it was the VacAero Maely in charge. From th e pole th e la nk y racer held o ff the ad va nces of Li n n a n d Bra nt in a grea t d isp lay. Linn wen t to th e hi gh line rig ht awa y with Bran t ho lding low . looking for a li ne tha t never ap peared. Brant fina lly went sea rch ing fo r a no the r lin e. bu t settled back to th e ins ide for second with Linn unable to find enough room 10 keep it high. wide and Iast. T h e feat ur ed match race proved exci tin g as Kid Curry met Pa t Li nn. wi th nearl y 400 in pot overage on th e line. Curry was seeki n g h is 12th straight win . but Linn . (Peterich Cycle/ H i-P oint/ co u / Arai ) wired the sta rt a nd held a n o utside line for the fir st win. an d th en narrowly los t th e second round. In th e rubber match. Curry ca me on stro ng from a bad gat e. bu t had 10 back o u t of one co rner wh en it a p p ea red th at he had a cha nce for a p ass . and Li nn ra n away with th e cas h . Pru nedal e Club-sponsored Vance Feli cio di d th e Green H orn et num ber for hi s fans with a Divisio n Two win over. once a ga in. Ken Weddingfeld o n th e H ap J ones ' Dist/M P E/Sa n J ose H onda model. T erry Sparks too k ho m e his first ever Di vision T hree m a in win in a su rv iva l baili e th a t saw G ordon R udy seco nd over Kenn Sjostra n d , • Results SCRATCH MA IN: 1. Jim Sisemora; 2. Scott Brant; 3. Pat Linn; 4. Kid Curry. HAND ICAP; 1. Jo hn Houston ; 2. Bart Bast; 3. Scott Brant; 4 . M ike Parsons; 5. Dave Cox; 6. Steve Crawford. OIV. TWO: 1. Vance Felicio; 2. Kenny Weddin gfel d; 3. Nick Geran io: 4 . Jeff Sames ; 5. Mike Kapser; 6. Scott McNeil. DIY THREE; 1. Terry Sparks; 2. Gordon Rudy; 3. Kenn Sjostrand; 4 . Las Kers; 5. Scott Spivey; 6. Dan Neilson .

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