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/127255
~ ~ LAGUNA SECA PREVIEW Aspectator's guide to Laguna Seca . y Brian C,atters o n t's hard to get past the fact that the world's best motorcycle road racers are corning to California for the 3rd Annual United States Grand Prix, but if you can just wipe off the race face for a moment, let us tell you there's a whole world waiting to be discovered just outside th e gates of Laguna Seca Raceway. If you don 't know it a lready, Laguna Seca is in Monterey (tha t's with one 'r', not two as in the Mexican city), a vacation paradise situated on a peninsula call ed, wonder of wonders, the Monterey Pen in sula. The raceway isn 't really in Monterey; it's actually located a few miles in land on Highway 68, betw een the cities of Monterey, Carmel and Salinas. For many motorcycle enthusiasts, half the fun of the U.S. GP is. gett ing there. Whether you're corning from San Francisco, Los Angeles or points else w h ere, it 's impossibl e not to discov er excelle nt roads en route. The • best-known is California's legendary Highway I, whose twisting tarmac' alternates between offering dizzying views from high above th e Pacifi c Ocean, and passing close enough to feel th e spray. It is heavily patrolled by th e CHP, however, so try to play down your " Eddie Lawson a t the Nurburgring" impressions. Once in the ar ea, you 'll find a multitude of tourist attractions - the first of wh ich is not really in the area I There's more to the Grand Prix than the racing While you 're vaca tioning in Monterey, be sure to visit Cannery Ro w (above) and Fisherman 's Wharf (below). at aliI If you 're corning from the south , be sure not to miss H earst Castle, located in San Simeon, about 100 miles nearer to the equator than Monterey. Even if you're not corning from the south, it 's an en joyable ride/drive down Highway I from Monterey, even in an econo-box rent-a-racer. Bui lt by publishing tycoon Wi lliam Randolph H earst, the castle is visibl e fromthe road, so it 's hard to miss but it is easy to get shu t ou t by th e long lin es. It 's best to call a few weeks in advance for ticketin g in format ion, a nd leave p lent y of time in yo ur sch edu le as there are a number of different to urs thro ugh the various SCHEDULE OF EVENTS Th ursday, April 5 Untimed practice 250cc 5OOcc Sidecars ' ; ',' '.' 1:00 p.m. ·2:00 p.m. 2:15 p.m. · 3:15 p.m. 3:30 p.m. '. 4:30 p.m. Timed qualifying 250cc .500cc Sidecars 9:00 a.rn. - 9:40 a.m., 1:00 p.m. - 1:40 p.m. , .10:00 a.rn. . 10:40 a.m., 2:00 p.m. . 2:40 p.m. 11:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m., 3:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Ap ril 7 Ti med qualifying 250cc 9:00 a.m. - 9:40 a.m., 11:00a.m. - 11:40a.m. 500cc 10:00a.m. - 10:40 a.m., 2:00 p.m. - 2:40 p.m. Sidecars 11:00a.m. - 11:30 a.m., 3:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. 250cc Consolation Race, 10 laps, 21.9 miles . .•. . .... . . . . . . .. . . ... . . . . .4:00 p.m. Sunday, April 8 6 parts of the cast le. If you're in a hurry to get to the races, or don' t want to Friday, April 6 250ccSighting Lap 250cc Grand Prix , 30 laps, 65.732 miles 500cc Sighting Lap 500ccGrand Prix, 35 laps, 76.687 miles Sidecar Sighting Lap Sidecar Grand Prix, 30 laps, 65.732 miles : 10:45 a.m. , .. 11:00a.m. 1:15 p.m. 1:30p.m. 3:00'p.m. 3:15 p.m. make a day of it, perhaps it 's best saved for the return trip. Another horne worth visiting , and a lot closer to Laguna, is the "T or House," built on a Carmel hill by po et /playwright Robinson Jeffers. The English tudor-like dwelling is adorned with gift stone from 'aro und th e world, and is a wonder to behold. Advanced reservations are required. Carmel, by the way, is a tiny-bu ttrendy burg that's horne to a number of celebrities incl uding three-ti me Grand National Champion Bubba Shobert, who resid es in neighboring Carmel Valley, an d silver screen toug h guy Clint Eastwood (who u n til recent l y was the town 's real -life mayor.) If you 're a go lfer, you won't want to miss the Laguna Seca Golf Classic at Carmel's Ranch o Canada Golf Club on Friday , April 6. The event promises to feature some of the most im pressive duffers in the motorcycle and insurance industries. You'll also want to take in 18 ho les at the world-famous Pebble Beach golf course - tha t is, if you can afford the green fees (lost balls?) and get a tee time! It's located off of scenic 17-Mile Drive, a privatelyowned toll road tha t offers one picturesque view of the coastline af ter ano the r, but · which u nf o r tu na tely p ro h ib i ts m oto rcycl es. It 's worth borrowing a car for an afternoon just to see the Drive - and ma ke a po int of telling the ga te attendent how you ' feel about their anti-bike policy. Fis her ma n 's Wharf and Cannery Ro w are Mon terey's most p opu lar tourist at traction s, and both appear