Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

,.....; .... v ..0 o .... u o Doug Toland pilots Team Hammer's winning GSXR 1100 ahead of Front Row Racing II; Front Row took fourth. second Middleweight Superbike. WERA/EBC National Championship Endurance Road Race Series: Round 9 ·Team Hammer takes Roebling by storm By Larry Lawrence FAULKVILLE, GA. SEPT. 13 Dave Sadowski and Doug Toland piloted the Vance & Hines/Arai/Bel-Ray/Emgo/ D/ Dunlop/Cam 2/Pefformance Machine-sponsored Team Hammer Suzuki GSXRIIOO to a convincing victory at the Roebling Six-Hour. Sadowski and Toland completed 258 laps on the 2.1-mile circuit, finish- 26 ing six laps ahead of the second place Sol max Racing FZ750. Yamaha FZ600mounted Human Race Team finished 36 seconds behind Sol max. While Hammer extended their points lead in the WERAIEBC series, the battle of the top teams in the overall point standings remained very close. Toronto's M&M Racing dropped from second place in the standings after uffering a blown engine on their Ontario's Honda- Yamaha FZ750 in the first hour of the race. Cycle Performance, (Dean Swims, Ron Ewerth and Mike Harth), the team that took the Roebling victory in their only appearance of 1985, reunited for this year's race, running the same Larry Brown tuned Yamaha FZ750 uperbike. The Cycle Performance effort was back by AutoLitre Metzeler, Shoei, SuperTrapp, Wiseco. Tsubaki and Fox. The potential of the talent-Iadened Cycle Performance team prompted Team Hammer captain John Ulrich to instruct his riders to finish well, even if that meant letting Cycle Performance go if they pushed the pace too hard. lronica\ly, Cycle Performance's pre-race strategy was to let Hammer go if they were running a fast pace. "We're here to win some Yamaha contingency money," said Cycle Performance captain Dean Swims. "If we can win this thing like we did last year, that will just be icing on the cake." Planning race strategy and actually executing that strategy often are two completely different efforts. When starter AI Wilcox threw the green flag to start the race. Hammer's Doug Toland jumped out to an early lead with Ron Ewerth (Cycle Per(ormance) and Terry Bailey (Solmax Racing) in close pursuit. Donnie Rowe powered the Human Race Team's Lake Co. Cycles/Wolf Racing Products/Metzeler/EBCI Arai FZ600 into fourth place, just ahead of Darotune Racing's FZ750. The "zoomin' Humans" recruited Rowe for the Roebling race due to his proven record at this track. The addition of Rowe, along wi th another firsttime HRT rider, Fritz Kling, and regular Robby Braunscheidel, gave the team great depth. The be-conservative-and-finishthe-race strategy that Hammer and Cycle Performance planned to employ evaporated when Toland and Ewerth began a fantastic wheel-to-wheel battle that was to la t throughout the £irst hour. Team Hammer was the first to pit, coming in for a quick fill-up and rider change. Dave Sadowski blasted back on to the track, only 30 seconds behind Cycle Performance. Two laps later Ewerth rolled into the pits, and Dean Swims lOOk over only IOseconds down to Hammer. Within a matter of 15 minutes Swims passed Sadowski to put Cycle Performance into the lead. Swim.s gradually pulled away from Sadowski. but it was not to be Cycle Performance's day. The team's FZ coughed a few times coming down the front straight. and Swims brought the bike in. The crew swapped a battery and added some oil, and Swims was on his way again, but only for one lap. The motor started to seize and Swims pulled back into the pits; Cycle Performance was out of the race. Team Sawb II led the Middleweight Production charge; they completed 240 laps on a Yamaha Z600. good for eighth overall. Other early retirees from the race included Jones Racing, which completed II laps; M&M Racing, which dropped out on lap 29 with a blown motor; and Bailey's Boys, who retired after a crash on lap 32. With Hammer's grip on the lead fairly secure, (they were three laps ahead of Solmax at the end of the second hour), the attention swung to the race for second. Sol max kept the EBC/DunloplVeller/Kal-Gard FZ750 in second nearly the entire race, despite challenges from the Human Race Team and a hard-charging Front Row Racing. Front Row picked up rider Stewan Edenfield at the last minute, and Edenfield di played the same riding abil ities that he showed here last year, while riding for Team Savannah, which finished second. Edenfield, along with Greg Goulding and Glenn Cooper, pushed the Westside Yamaha/Kerker FZ600 to challenge olmax and HRT, before dropping back with rear-tire wear. Both Hammer riders clicked consistent I :22 lap times, running conservatively, yet still pulling away from the field. Dan Witmer and Frank Dinardo kept the WolfiSilkolene/ Champion/ Answer/Gaerne/Kiwibacked FZ750 DaroLUne Racing machine in a steady fifth. place throughout the race. Darotune battled early with fellow Canadians Cycle Speed Racing (FZ750) before Cycle Speed dropped back with a blown valve cov~r gasket. With the race winding down, Human Ra~e Team captain Dave Zupan put quick rider Rowe back on the bike in a final effort to catch Solmax. Rowe gained ground, but a broken exhaust pipe with three minutes to go thwarted his effort. At the finish Hammer was way out in front, with Solmax crossing the line 36 seconds ahead of HRT. Front Row limped in for fourth, and ihe consistent Darotune came in fifth. Team Gamma placed the ·Clinton Cycle/Kal-Gard/Diamond Suzuki RG500 in sixth with 242 laps completed; they were the only two-stroke among the top finishers. For Solmax riders Ronnie Owen, Terry Bailey and Dwayne Palmer, it was their fi·rst class win this season. Hammer's Doug Toland summed up the day of racing when he said, "I had a lot o(fun racing Ewerth in the first hour; it's great to have a challenge, once in a while." "Rocket Ron" Ewerth rode his Cycle Nuts &Bolts/Shoo/Auto Litre Yamaha FZ750 to an $1100 payday during Sunday's WERA Regional sprints. Ewerth won the A and B Production races on the 750, and took second to Greg Tysor in C Production on the 600. . The most exciting race for Ewerth ws the A Production contest. Tim Ledbetter, on a Suzuki GSXR750, andifwerth battled the entire contest. Ewerth made hi move with two laps to goo, drafting past Ledbetter on the straight, and outbreaking him going into turn one. Then Ewerth went as hard as he could to stay out in front. "He was really riding hard, using every bit of the track," said Ewerth. "Once I got past him, I thought he would be coming around me any minute. Fortunately I got a good drive out of the last corner and held on." Greg Tysor £inished third on an FZ600, bagging $900 in Yamabucks. Tysor had some pre-race practice Friaay night competing in a shontrack event, which he led before breaking. "That flat track racing is really a blast," said Tysor. "It was my first dirt race in a couple of years. I like to do that type of racing for fun. The road racing is fun also, and the money's a lot beuer." • Results 1. Team Hammer (Su.1 258 laps; 2. Solmas (Vam) 252; 3. The Human Race (Yam) 252; 4. Front Row II (Vam) 248; 5. Darolune Racing (Vam) 245; 6. Team G8mma(Suz) 242; 7. Team Samurai (Kaw) 240; 8. Sawb II (Varni 240; 9. Out & Out Racing (Varni 239; 10. Laid Back Racing (Yam) 237. HVYWT PROD; 1. 5olma. (Vam); 2. Cycle Speed (Vam); 3. Team Intrepid (Vam). HVYWT SUPERBIKE: 1. DarOlune Racing (Vam); 2. Cycle Performance (Vam); 3. Jones Racing (Vam). MDWT PRO: 1. Sawb II (Yaml; 2. Out & Out Racing (Yam): 3. Laid Back Racing (Yam). MDWT SUPERBIKE: 1. The Human Race (Yaml: 2. Front Row II (Varni; 3. Team Gamma ISu.). LTWT PROD: 1. Team Widman (Su.): 2. Team Slone (Yaml. SPRINT EXPERT A SUPER8IKE: 1. Troy 5ollinson. 8 SUPERBIKE: 1. Troy Sollinson; 2. Allen Smallwood (Yam); 3. Curtis Kicldighler (VernI. C SUPERBIKE: 1. Curtis Kicklighter (Vam); 2. 8ill Shecker (Vam): 3. 8uet< Clemson (Yam). o SUPERBIKE: 1. Bill Slicker (Yem); 2. Michael Nolan (Vam); 3. KeYin James (Yaml. A PROD: 1. Ron E_rth (Vam): 2. Tim Ledbener (Su.); 3. Greg Tysor (yam). C PROD: 1. Greg Tysor (Vam); 2. Ron Ewerth (Yam): 3. Curtis Kicklighler (Yam). o PROD: 1. Bill Sticker (Yam). F-2: 1. Kevin James. VINT 2; 1. Ted Hubbard (BSA); 2. Mark Barren IBSA). VINT 3; 1. Ted Hubbard (BSA); 2. Mark Barren (BSA). VINT 4: 1. Mark Barren (BSA). NOVICE B SUPERBIKE: 1. Paul Bray IVam); 2. Eric Wilson (Su.l; 3. Ronald Earl. C SUPERBIKE: 1. Glenn Cooper (Vam); 2. Scali Russell (Kawl: 3. David Dearillf1Kaw). SUPER8IKE: 1. Graham James(Yam); 2. Richard Fleury (Kiwi. A PROD: 1. Eric Wilson (Su.l: 2. Kenneth Anderson (Yam); 3. Ronald Earl. B PROD: 1. Paul Bray (Yam); 2. Eric Wilson (Su.): 3. M. Dee Hami~an (Yam). C PROD: 1. SCali RusseIiIKaw); 2. M. Dee Hamilton (Yam); 3. Glenn Cooper (Ylm). D'PROD: 1. Graham James (Yam I: 2. Nick Wayea..ur(Vam). F-3: 1. Dean Hill (Klw); 2. John Sanders; 3. Donald Esligner (Vam). CLUBMAN: 1. Dean Hill (KIwi; 2. John Sanders; 3. Ronald Fleury (Kawl. o

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