Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

ton, Dave Bert ra m , La rry Roeseler, Terr y C unnin gh am , Ed Lo j ak , Kevin Hines, J eff Russell - have in co m mon ? T h ey are a ll form er Husq varna rider sI Co ngrats are in ord er for Cagiva North America . They bough t a co m p any tha t had a stra nglehold ~>n Ame rica n off-road raci ng an d in Ju st a few short yea rs took it from fir st to last in that m arketplace! G ood job, Cagiva ! America's ' motorcycle newspaper Volume XXVI Sharon Oayton, Publu lan Mike Klin ger , Com ptmlln Skip J oh nson. A'u oOaU Pub lish"1 Nalional Sal~.s M a ruag tT Jad Ma ngus. Assoc uu e Pu bliJhn lE,ditor R ~ Smith, CiJ'cul4li on Ma ruzgn Carolioe Gmdry. Ex«utnw S«rt'ta ry 1 o th~ Publisher Edito rial J ack M..anRtJ!i. Edi tor Kil Palm er, Assoc iate Ed itor Pau l Carru thers , Associate Editor Nat e Ra uba . As.sociale Editor Bria n Ca tterso n . Assod att' Edit or Ken Fau g h t. A ssu tatil Edit or Edwina Man gu s. Calm da:r Editor Advertisin g Skip Johnson . Na t' l 54lt' s M anagtT ~ I i ke Ch urch . S~io , Sa les Mana gn Terry Pro StTUOT Sales Managn m, Mark Thome, H'estt'T11 Sales ManagN' Ro n Davidson , Wt"Jtl"Tn SOUos Maruagn ~lar k Mitchell . f4s/~ Stzk s ManagtT Thomas R. GOnl rr . EA.JttT n Sale.i Man4gtT Debbi e w ell er , Westn n .i d Coo rdvuuor Car la Borden, Eastern Ad Coo rdi nator Graphics and Prod uction Ma lco lm wilson, Production Managn Dennis G~. LAb. Tech , Statty Gut'!o(. C?aphic .'b tu, jimmie O'IkIl. Graphic Artut Ma nd y Loa , r.raphlc Arl ist Micha el Gr uszka , G rap hic .... n ist Carolyn Branha m. T YfN Jl't ttT Arien ne T etias. TYPl'JdttT Accounting /Data Processing Don na Brya n, AeeLs R u~ivabl~ Coordinator Ge neva Repass. AJolislan t Fra n Hamwey, Crf'd i t Circulat ion Sara h Taylor . Anistant Alma Anguia no , An isla nt Mar ita Ada ms• .... .uiJtan' Herla ne R ich mo nd. Assistllnt Carol Scanne ll, A.uiJ ltmt Circulation Development Ron Davidson. ManagtT Wan t Ads J oan Russian . Wa nt A d Sales Sarvice and S uppo rt Chris Aitcheson . H r adq lUlJ1 R u t'ption ist tTJ Leo nard H MT inK. Snvrcr and Su pport Nationa l Head qua rters 220 1 Cherr y Avt ,. Lon g Beach. CA 90806. P.O . Box 198. Lo ng Beach . CA 9OR01·0498 (2 151427·7455; 215/656-8844 . FAX (2 13) 427·6(>85 Ea st er n Offic e 4i90 Firsl Ave.• Tucker. CA. 30084; maili ng address P.O . Box 805. T ucker . G A 30085-0805. (4IH ) 934·7850. FAX (404) 934·3 112 Cyck News (USPS 1i 1·3iO ) is p ubl ished wn'kly except 'he firsl and la sl week of the ca len da r year fot $50.00 per yea r by Cycle News, Inc.. 2201 Clary Aven ue, Long Beach , CA 90806. Seco nd cbn po!ol3~ pa id a l Lo ng Beach . CA. and ..ddi tional rrui ling offices.. POSTMASTER: Send l onn 3579 10 Cycle ~~: ~&.ig8. Bo x 498. Lo ng B~h. CA C:; To de termine t he ex pira tion date of your .ubacripti o n. check t he four numben on the first line of your . dd ..... I.bel. The first two digit i indicate t he l••t iuue number you'lI receive end th e l••t two char.cten Indicate the yeer o f t he laat iuue . Su bscr iptio n ra in : Ra les (o r the Un ited Sunes a nd its possess io ns for ou r ye- (50 Issues). •ar, $50.00; two years ( 100 lSSUes ). S95.00; six mo nth s. .(25 i~\ues). S26.00; tr ial sub (15 issues). S I9.00. Canada a nd Forei gn . a nt: ye-., (SOissues). S90.00; • two yean ( 100 i~ues ). SI75 00. six m Onlhs (25 l!>Su n ). S45.00. u ia J sub ( 15 issues ). $38.00. Cyc le S t WS welco mes unsolicited edi to ria l ma terial incl ud ing srories, cartoons. photos, etc, Such matert a l . if p ublished . becomes the exclusive p ro Pc: l y of CycleNews-:Such accepted r rna reria l is subject 10 revrsron as IS nn:ns.ary in the sa lt: d iscretion of Cycle News. Unsolicited ma terial wh ich is not used will be returned if ac co m pa nied by a self ad d ressed sta mped en velope. All u nso lici ted mater ia l will be han dled with reasonable care, ho wever , Cycle News assum es no respo nsibil ity for the sa (tty . loss or damage 10 such mat eria l. Reprintin g in who~t: or pa n on ly b y ~ rm i 5A io n of lh t: p ubhsher. Advert ising r.lln a nd eirru la lio n lO(ortrui lion will be stnl upon Kq UOI. Stt S.R.O.S. Wi' BPA AUDITED '-"1' CIRCULATIO N Copyrigh" Cycle N..... Inc . t 989. Tradamark Cycle News regiatered U.S . P.te nt Office. All rights reserved. 4 Hannah supporter I couldn 't go without co m m entin g on Rick Johnson's personal interview in the January 25 issu e of Cycle N ews. Johnson sla m med Bob Hannah 's " pe rso nality towa rds peop le" a nd (said ) that he's n ot " approac h ab le for little kid s." On seve ra l occas io ns I' ve seen Hannah ign h el mets, post ers, Tsh irts and wh a tever fo r kids o f a ll ages until th ere weren 't a n ymore to sig n. Bob H annah 's co nt rib u tio n to m ot ocross as a ri der a nd spokesma n is en ormo us. Improvem ent over a predecesso r is grea t, but it can' t be acco m p lished by dero ga tory co mments. Joh nso n 's nega tive cr iticism did noth in g but co m prom ise his ow n professiona lism a nd ma turi ty and did nothin g positive fo r th e sport. MI KE KULP Bothell , WA Lag una Seca d r eam i n ' Someo ne on H o nda Street is having a n ightma re. It's Edd ie (Wh o?) Lawso n. Oh no ! Fredd ie's ba ck I Eddi e awa kens to find tha t th e Marlb o ro Ya maha th a t he's forsaken ha s been absco nded by his a rch n e m es is, Fa st Fred d ie. Ca n t he a lm igh ty Honda Hol y Grai l va n qui sh th e resurgent Yamaha forc es? O r. wi ll Schwantzen egger usurp th e throne with hi s om nipoten t PepsiSuzuki? Most importantl y, ca n th e Ya n ks keep th e Wo llon go ng Wizard " Down U nder?" Serio usly, I doubt if a ny th in g th at a n yo ne says will d iminish Edd ie' s acco m p lish me nts. Nor shou ld Freddi e be forever flag ella ted for h is p ast three seaso ns ' p erformance. From .ou t here on th e frin ge it seems as if a ll th is silly seaso n soap o pera tumult ha s crea ted m ore tha n a 'few wet blankets. Wh at more co u ld we ask fro m th e upco mi ng specta cl e ? We're presented with th e prospect o f six America ns - ridi ng four different mak es o f 500s - .raci ng for th e World Cha m pions h ip. Six Wo rld Ch am pionshi ps a mong them. An d each o f them has won or go nevery, very fast a t La guna Seca . I ca n not wai t. DAVID GA WRELUK McCausland, IA C ircus-cross7 T he An ah eim S u p ercross wa s af?3in an awesom e di sp lay of th e hi gh level our rid ers hav e brought to th e sport o f m ot oc ro ss. Obstacl es like stadi u m wh oo ps, five-foot sheer faces, double a nd tripl e ju mps are no problem for th e factory stars. Or a re th ey? J eff Ward will be o u t for weeks with a cra cked an kle, the result o f crash in g during p ra ctice o n th e triple jump. The same jump resulted in a back injury for new sta r Damon .Bradsh aw when he j u m ped o ff hi s mot orcycle to " voi d serio usly injuring a fall en Fred Andrews. J eanMichel Bayle, th e 125cc MX World Cham pi on, wa s a lmost knocked , u nconscious on th e firs t lap of th e fina l; he cras hed o n a double jump. Did anyo ne notice how ma ny top riders were looking u p in traffic to make su re someone wasn 't jumping over or on them? Even the leaders ha d trouble with th e tra ck. How abou t R ick Johnson cas in g his Honda and almost cra sh in g on th e triple jump o n laps 13, 14 a n d 15? Johnny O 'Mara wa s sensa tio na l for 10 laps until his Suz uki 's fram e broke. Is th er e a problem with th e 1989 RM frames? No wa y; th e problem is with th e promoters wh o thi n k supercross fans wa nt to see circus-cro ss. I beli eve mot ocross fans want to see tech n ica l, close ra cin g w ith acceptable sa fety levels for o ur to p ride rs. Team manag ers should work together . with promoters to ass u re sa fer co nd itio ns for their ex pe nsive tea m rid ers who deserve a lo n g a n d p rof itable career. Mo tocross isn 't for wimps, but neither shou ld it require a kam ikaze p ilo t's license. TOM WHITE Wh ite Bros Garden G rove, CA T eam Green's Jose Gon zales said Ward su ffe red " torn ligam en ts in his foot. " Ward rode a heat race at Seatt le th is past weekend, bu t packed up aft er that race and we nt hom e. It was at first feared that Bradsh aw had ruptured his sp leen or suffered a back inju ry, but Yamaha 's Ken Clar k repor ts that hospital test s were negat ive an d Bradshaw was released from th e hosp ital, beat" u p but non e th e wo rse for wear. Bradsh aw spectated at th e Se at t le Sup er cross . .. Ed itor. . Fox on R.J , Fox Racing USA ap precia tes havin g worke d with Ri ck J ohnson th rou gh a m ajor p ortion of hi s career. Fox Racin g US A wi sh es Ri ck J o hnso n co nti nued success in hi s career. Wh ile we wo u ld have p referr ed th at R ick J oh nson co nt in ue to wea r o ur cloth in g , we a re p leased th at he will be wea ri ng ano ther independent lin e of af ter market clothi ng (] T ) ra ther tha n Hondal in e. Our co n cerns in this a ffair were to defen d o ur co ntractua l rights a nd to prevent a p recedent wher eb y a m o torcycl e ma n ufact u rer co u ld .force a rid er to wear th ei r ow n "'lin e o f clothing irrespective of th e rider's desir es. We fee l th at a ll m or o crosser s ben efit whe n rid ers are free to choose th eir clo th ing line independentl y o f th e motorcycle th ey ride. If this was no t th e case co mpetition in th e clothing market wo u ld decrease. In th e lo ng run the co nsu me r wo u ld be payin g hi gher prices and ha ve fewer cho ices. Altho ugh this affa ir .h as ca used h urt feelings on both Ri ck J ohnson 's an d Fox Racing 's p ar t, we h ope th at in th e nea r fu tu re both parties ca n . put these matters behind th em. GEOFF FOX Presid ent, Fox Racing USA Ca m p bell , CA Off-road quiz Do yo u know the o ne th in g th at a ll th ese riders - Dick Burleson, Dan Smi th , Randy H awkins , Mik e Mel - GA RY CH RISTOPHER Mason, MI Wind (Con tin ued from page 2) By Ferracci and KK Motorcycle . Supply. Ca n adia n Nati on al Superbike C ha m pio n Rueben McMurter will ride the Honda VFR750 tha t Bubba Sh obert used to win th e 1988 AMA Su perbi ke C ha m p io ns h ip in th e Daytona 200. McMurter reportedly ma de a n u mber o f phon e ca lls to HR C in J a pan, who owns the bike, a n d th ey agreed to let American H onda loan the bi ke to McM urter . McM u rt er wi ll b e Roth rna n ssponsored a t Dayto na. Trivia buffs take note: on ly three riders have acheived a " Grand Slam" in Nationa l Championship competition. D ick Mann . Kenny Roberts and Bubba Shobert have each won at least one short track. half-mile, mile. TT and road race National during their respective ' careers. Is there a chance for another rider to add his name to that li st ? Yes. Kawasaki rider Doug Chandler lacks only a road race National victory to joi n that el ite group. En glish raci ng co m mentator a n d journa list Chris Carter has ta bbed Fren chman Bruno Bonhuil as a rid er to wat ch in th e 250cc International Li gh tweigh t race . " He's one o f th e n ew wave of French GP riders," sa id Ca rt er. " He has 'a lot of tal ent a nd Daytona is a good place for him to m ake a name for himself by start ing th e season with a good ride." Experienced cornerworkers are being sought to work at Daytona International Speedway during Cycle Week '89. March 3 - 12. Cornerworkers will be provided w ith lunch each day. special event sh irts and other goodies. For more information. call Roger Lyle of the M id-Atlantic Road Racing Club in Wheaton. Maryland, 301 /9332599 , T eam Tuf's Mark Barnett; who s u ff~red broken ribs in a practice session last m onth, says , " T he y (ribs) are healing well and I hope to be back in action for th e final two races of th e Florida February MX Seri es a t Gainesville (February 19) a n d Dade Cit y (Feb ru a ry 26). ': Th e former Nat ional Champion rnot ocrosser, who is making a retu rn to raci ng a fter a two -yea r absence , was . joined by his wife Nea ta a n d so n Adam a t th e final round o f the Florida Winter AMA MX Series. Barnett said they were on hand to chee r for h is teammates. Harley-Davidson's race team d irector Bob Conway has announced that Harley will field ' a four-man team in Camel Pro Series competition th is year . Head ing up the team is Grand National Champion Scott Parker. (Con tin ued to pag e 13)

• Cover