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
:t '" :; ~ t-----------------j motorcycles all weekend long, nothing Monterey Bay ;> beats camping am idst the veritable sea of trick and!or exotic bikes and their owners righ t there a t m e race track and enj oying fou r days of wide-open bench raci ng. Un fortua tely, unruly cro wds in the past ha ve made camping on m e lush , green la wn beside the lake prohibi ted , but me re are still p lenty of places to camp all arou nd the u ndu la ti ng ci rcuit. In fact, when there's no racin g goi ng o n , La gu na Seca is a ca m pgrou nd. Ther e are showers on the premises, but the long lines (t here're those wo rds aga inl) make LA. 's traffic problem look tame. Hearing th e announcers over me public address system is so met imes a problem, so tune yo ur radio to KTOM 100.7 FM/1 380 AM for live broadcasts during Sunday's races . As far as night life, it's hard to beat the partying a t me track. But for th ose who insist on acting moreor-less civilized, head i n to Monterey, where mere's a slew of happening clubs and bars. Be su re to chec k out The Club, Monterey's answer to New York's Palladium , wh ich is located upstairs in me heart of down town. '" z . Z FO RT O RO ,'". :>: '" '" ~ o :< ,. ~ ,.. '" o ;> u Carmel Bay much me same tod a y as they did when th e fishing industry thrived there, thanks to ca refu l restoration. Cannery Row . was immortalized by the works of the la te a u thor , John Steinbeck, ' whose hom e/ resta ura n t you can visit in nearby Sa linas. T he Mo nterey Aquarium is th e main dr aw, and well worth a visit, Speaking of restaurants, mere are just too many to list in the Fish erman 's Wharf/Cannery Row area; a short drive will tum up all manner of cuisine from stea k to seafood, Cajun to Mexican. Seafood fans will especially love the a rea's calamari (sq uid), although it ma y be hard to sto mach if yo u've just come from seei ng a live o ne at the aquarium l If yo u can't get there, fried calamari is so ld by vendors right at me race track. Back at Laguna Seca, mere's a lot more going on than the races fortunate for those who though t they needed to arrive on Thursday to watch three days of uninterrupted practice a nd qualifying ! All the OEMs will have new model displays and rider autograph sessi ons; check out th e gigantic" Honda Island" display. You can 't miss Manufacturers ' R o w , located o n the midway , where just abou t anybody who's a nybody in the motorcycle business has a booth . Do n 't forget to stop by the Cycle News booth to renew your subscription, 'a nd to get Team Lucky Strike Suzuki ri der Kevin Schwa ntz ' autograph duri ng one of his schedu led appearances. Also, the AMA will give you a handsome com mem ora tive bandana for joini ng or renewing your membership at their boo th . Autographs? You say you coll ect autographs? Be at the Monterey Sheraton Hotel betw een 5 a nd 6:30 Thursday night, when a number of G P stars are slated to appear there. If you p lan to purchase any souven - irs, buy th em ASAP! T-shirts, especially, are sure to sell out, and at the very least the lines will likely be longer than those fou nd at baseball stadiums on opening day . Lo ng lin es? Let it be known right now tha t there 's no thing lo nger than the line of cars waiti ng to get in and out of the track on race day. Some of th e track's access roads pass through the Ford Ord Military Reserva tio n, so watch yo ur speed. If you exceed th e seem ingly a bsurd ly slow speed limit, chances are yo u will be busted by radar and it won 't be cheap. The traffi c is slightly less timecons umi ng o n a motorcycle, but for those well -heeled spectators wh o truly beli eve " time is money ," TravelStar (800/ 541-1223) will be offering $52 round-trip helicopter rides between Laguna Seca and Monterey Airport. For real, died-in-the-wool enthusiasts wishing to immerse themselves in --U:o.UlD For. ma ny enthusiasts, riding their street bikes up. Highway I and cam p ing a t the track is half th e fun of th e United States Grand Prix a t Laguna Seca. • . D . Palladium, which is located upstairs in me heart of downtown . And finally, speaking of calamari, don't m issthe squids in the infamous burnout contest held at me race track . after Sa turday's practice is completed. This event is always a laugh-riot good time, as riders smoke their tires on a co ncrete pad o utside of tu rn four while the spectators in the grandstands ra te th em by che ering. Following the burnout co ntest, motorcycle ra cing movies will be shown in a tent adjacent to th e scoringtrylon, For West Coast mo torcyclists, m e U.S. GP is the u ltimate happening. And you can 't beat that with a sq uid stick! 01 For in fo rmation on events at Laguna Sua R aceway, call SC RAMP at 408/ 648-5111;fo r info on lodging or tourist attractions, call the Monterey Chamber of Commerce at 408/649-1770. 7