Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

~VfND ~ BYPAPA Wfm.fY 00 0') _ _ "' Roben Wehman, head of Spectro Oils of America, will be holding two seminars in California in which he will cover every facet of motorcycle lubrication, according to a press release from Spectro. l:he first seminar will be held on Monday, March 30, from 3 p.rn. to 9 p.m. at the Hanalei Hotel in San Diego. The second seminar will be held on Monday, April 6, from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Marriot Airpon Hotel in San Francisco. For more information, contact Marty Miller of Spectro Oils West at 714/989-7070. Three-time World Champion Freddie Spencer will attempt to compete in the opening round of the 600cc World Championship Road Race seri.. on March 29 in Suzuka, Japan. Spencer, who fractured his collarbone and shoulder blade during practice for the Daytona 200, sew his doctor for the final time on Thursday, March 19 and was scheduled to leave for Japen on Friday, March 20. "The doctor said the fracture is healing good and I've been hning ecuacope therapy twice a day," Spencer said. "I've been trying to lift a little weight this week and I haven't lost too much strength. But three weeks isn't tIftOU9h time. I'm going, but 6070" is all I'll be. I'm going to go out and ride even if it's just to try end score points. It's hard for me to just go around and not give 100%, but there are 16 races and by Spain (April 26) I should be 100%:' Current 250cc World Champion Carlos Lavado is another world-class r.ider on the injured list and the Venezuelan's injuries may force him to miss the opening round ofthe 1987 250cc WorJd Championship Series at Suzuka. Lavado crashed in a test session near his horne in Venezuela in February, breaking his left wrist and right ankle. Lavado won the 1986 title on a Yamaha V-twin. Australian Kevin Magee has been recruited to ride a Yamaha V-four in the March 29 Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka, Japan. After impressing Yamaha officials with fast lap tim.. during a recent Formula One race at Suzuka. the Marlboro Australia rider has been added to Yamaha's forces in the opening Grand Prix. World Champion Eddie Lawson. Tadahiko Taira, Randy Mamola. Mike Baldwin, Christian Sarron and Magee will ride Yamahas at Suzuka. The future of the Australian venue for the 1988 ISDE looks to be in trouble. According to an article in the Australian REVS newspaper, the FIM is on the verge of taking the 1988 ISDE away from Australia and giving it to France. Reportedly the FIM Trial and Enduro Commission members became upset over an editorial that appeared in Australasian Dirt Bike magazine. 2 Australian motocrosser Craig Dack has chosen to compete in Europe rather than the U.S. The current Mr. Motocross title holder has secured a ride in three French international races and the first three 500cc motocross GPs on Kawasakis through the French motorcycle magazine Moto Revue. If everything goes according to plan. Dack will stay in Europe for the entire year. The opening round of the ISDE Reliability Qualifier Series in Post, Texas, March 21-22, saw Husky rider Fritz Kadlec capture the overall, edging out K.TM-mounted Kevin Hines. They also took first and second in the 500cc class, while Yamaha rider Rick Daniel finished third. In the 250cc class, Hondamounted Kurt Hough claimed the victory·, while Hough's brother, Aaron, captured the 125cc class win on a Honda. Honda's Drew Smith topped the 0-350cc Four-Stroke diVision, and Husky rider john Haaker wrapped up the 500cc and over Four-Stroke class win. HIRED: John Westcott by Kayo Corporation as racing services manager: Westcott will attend AMA Camel Pro, AMA CCS, and WERA racing events, serving as traekside technicel rep for Yokohama Tires. 0.1.0 Chain, GS Batteries and Kerker Exhau.t Systems: for more information contact Kayo Corp. 201/6269207 or Westcott 616/4836796•. Doug Polen (Suz) won both the Suzuki GSXR750 and GSXRII06 National Championship races at the March 21-22 CRRC road race meet at Texas World Speedway in College Station, Texas. Mike Harth (Suz) finished second to Polen in both races. Starting slots are still available for the 37th Annual High Mountain Enduro on March 29, according to the organizing club, the CalPoly Penguins M.C. Tha starting area for the event is Turkey Flats in the Las Padres National Forest, 36 mile. northeast of San Luis Obispo, California. Dale Walker, holder of over 40 National drag bike rel'ords, will begin hosting sessions of Dale Walker's Motorcycle Drag Raring School on Wednesday, April I, at Fremont, California's Baylands Raceway Park. Fee for the one-day school is $250 and will include use of Kawasaki 1000 Eliminators that have been specially prepared by Walker, videotape analysis of your performance, and personal instruction in all aspects of drag racing, For a free brochure or to sign up for a school (classes wi II be heId every Wednesday and two Saturdays per month), contact: Dale Walker's Motorcycle Drag Racing School, 311 Chesmut St., Santa Cruz, CA 95060, 408/427-3625. EXPANDED: Maxima Racing Lubricants facilities .in EI Cajon. California: the larger facilities include two new blending tanks and mixer, a new promotional produ~ion room. enlarged R&D facilities. double the pallet racking inventory area, and larger ordering and accounting office spaces: in addition. a new BOO-telephone order desk has been added (800/ 346-8761 - in California, 619/ 442-9723): Dick Lechien. cofounder and president of Maxima. also announced the addition of a Team Maxima racing services van which will provide racing and technicel services to all Maxima Support riders at AMA National MX and Supercross events. and other selected races: Mike Fisher Sr. has been named Team Maxima race service director. Daniel Huskey, 18, a top 250cc Expert class desert racer from Boise, Idaho, is paralyzed' from the chest down as a result of injuries sustained in a crash in a March 15 desert race. Huskey was leading the 9O-mile race when he crashed at the 6O-mile marker. A Uust fund has been established tO'help defray the astronomical medical bills, and contributions can be sent directly to Huskey's father, Dean Huskey c/o Huskey A.E. Suzuki, 2301 Overland Rd., Boise, ID 83705. Cards and letters for Daniel can also be sent to that address. Contrary to a report in last week'. Cycle News, the National Motorsports Association (NMA) will have liability insurance coverage for mini riders under age 12 who wish to race in the 16th Annual World Mini Grend Prix, slated for April 10-12 in Las Vegas, Nevada. An association spoke.man added that the NMA also will have liability coverage for younger riders at the NMA-sanctioned Ponca City Grand National., which will be held in Oklahoma August 2-9. Following a March I test session at southern California's Willow Springs International Raceway, it was announced that Geoff McCarthy has been Chosen to ride a Ducati 750 FIB for Cagiva North America. The bike will be prepared by Tim Pennell of Surmymead (California) Motorcycle Specialists, a Cagiva/Ducllti dealer. McCarthy is scheduled to contest Pro Twins races as well as the April 11 La Carrera Road Race in Mexico. • H-D petitions fTC for termination of import tariffs WASHINGTON, DC, MAR. 17 Harley-Davidson,Inc.,theonly U.S.-based motorcycle manufacturer, announced in an unprecedented action that it is petitioning the International Trade Commission (ITC) for termination of import relief for heavyweight motorcycles. The tariHs were imposed in April, 1983, by President Reagan in a landmark decision after Harley proved to the ITC that the deliberate flooding of the U.S. motorcycle market by japanese. competitors, in the face of a sharp market decline, was threatening the American motorcycle industry. "We have informed the ITC that we no lon~ need tariff relief to compete With the japanese," said Vaughn L. Beals jr., Harley's chairman and chief executive officer. ."We're taking this action' now because we're sending a strong message out to the international industrial community: U.S. workers, given a respite from pl"edatory import practices, can become competitive in world markets. But, I want to stress that U.S. industry must also be aggressive and take the initiative to regain competitiveness," said Beals. In 1982, Harley was able to prove threat of injury to the lTC, showing that its japanese competitors had substantially increased their invmtories of heavyweight motorcycles (700cc and above) in the U.S. market at a time when market demand declined sharply. Harley had already taken painful steps and laid off employees to bring production and inventories into line with market conditions, yet the japanese continued to export motorcycles to the U.S. in record numbers. A nearly two-year glut of unsold japanese motorcycles in the U.S. resulted in price cutting which, if permitted to go unchecked, could have destroyed the American motorcycle industry, Beals said. . Upon ITC recommendation, President Reagan imposed additional tariHs on imported heavywei~ht japanese motorcycles, under Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974. The additional tariff was to be effective for a five-year period ending in April of 1988, at annually declining rates of 45%, 35%, 20% and 15% and 10%. The tariff rate quota was applicable to countries which imported more than 5000 motorcycles with engine displacements of 700cc and above. "At the time of our original petition in 1982, we promised the govemmerlt that we would return to competitiveness with the japanese if we were given some time and brea. thing room to finish the .revitalization programs we began prior to the japanese disrupting the market with excessive inventories. We've accomplished what we set out to and we simply don't need tariff relief any longer," said Beals. Deputy U.S. Trade representative Michael B. Smith said, "It's (the petition for removal of tariffs) never happened before. It's truly unusual We don't know of any incident when this has been done before... Hal Sundstrom, the ITC's director of public affairs, agreed with Smith and called the petition "an unprecedented action." "As a result of our revitalization programs, Harley-Davidson's share of the heavyweight motorcycle market has climbed 50% from a record low of 12.5% in 1983 to 19.4% in 1986," Beals said. "This share includes that porTion of the motorcycle market from 650cc and up. And at the premium end of the heavyweight market (over 85Occ), HarleyDavidson is now the market leader, with 34% of the market share. Our market shares are up on vinually every continent," Beals continued. "We've proven that we no longer need the additional tariff relief to be competitive with the japanese, and we want to thank our friends in Washington and the Reagan administration for providing the time we needed to return to competitiveness." A major element of Harley's revitalization pro~am was the incorporation of leading-edge manufacturing techniques such as just-In-Time inventory principles, Employee Involvement and Statistical Process Control, Beals said. "We were among the first companies in the U.S. to study and implement these techniques, long associated with japanese manufacturers," Beals said. "These techniques, paired with a company-wide commitment to improved quality, resulted in a new Harley-Davidson that is recognized the worl'd over for premium quality products. " Rich Teerlink, president and chief operatin~ officer of Harley's Motorcycle Dtvision, said this "new Harley-Davidson" runs its p"lants with two-third less inventory than in 1981, has improved productivity by , (Continued to page 13)

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