Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

9IN THE WIND Dan: S mith (KTM) clinched his fifth consecu tive National Hare & Hound Championship' by finishing second overall behind Larry Roeseler (Kaw) at the fina l round of the AMA National Championship Hare & Hound Series held October 14 in Wells, Nevada. Ted Hunnicutt (Kaw), who had to win the event in order to dethrone Smith, crashed and broke a finger. m Texan K evin Schwantz (Suz) beat his teammate Niall Mackenzie (Suz) in . the Big Road Race at Sugo, Japan , on October 7. Schwantz topped Mackenzie by seven seconds, Newly-crowned 250cc World Champion John Kocinski won the 250cc race on a preproduction V-twin Yamaha TZ250. John Kocins ki. who won the recent Solo Moto Superprestigio International road race in Calafat, Spain, likes Spain so much he's planning on vacationing there this month. "I like ita lot there," Kocinski said. " T he people are great. It's just a neat place. I'm going to meet my mechanics there and j ust ,have some fun. I'm going to ea t pizza, drink beer and do all the o ther things I haven't been able to do. I get to be normal for a month. " Road racer Fred Merkel is considering setting up a new 'team for the 1991 World Championship Superbike Series. The two-time World Champion is looking to form another team within th e current Rumi/RCM team with Californian Rich Arnaiz as his . teammate. Italian Baldassarre Monti has already re-signed with Rumi and will be on a separa te team . Monti already ha s spo nsorsh ip tied up for 1991 wh ile Merkel is still searching. Merkel invited his former tuner Merlyn P l u m l e e , who tuned Doug Chandler's AMA Superb ike champio nship-winn ing Kawasaki in 1990, to Monza for the Italian round of the championship. Plumlee is likely to join Merkel 's new team in 1991 as his tuner while Merkel's current tuner Norris Farrow will oversee both teams. " Me and Merlyn have been friends for ' a long, long time," Merkel said. "He built all my engines in America and I can 't think of a better engine man. He's ready for a change of scene." At th e Italian round of the World Championship Superbike Series, Merkel was still unsure if the Rumi team would travel to the final three rounds in Malaysia, Australia, and New Zealand in November. The team receives a Iive-Iigure bonus for finishing in th e top three of the championship, but with Merkel now 43 points behind Fabri zio Pirovano that money now seems out of reach . . .. Desert Bill dead for 1990 " We'll have to weigh it up and see whether it's worth going," Merkel said. " We ' migh t be better off saving our money for next year." enate Bill II ,the so-called California Desert Protection Act, has been stopped in its tracks - at least for this year. California Senator Alan Cranston, sponsor of the bill that would lock out motorized recreation users from millions of acres in the desert, declared the bill dead for the remainder of this year 's session after facing stiff opposition in the Senate's Energy and Natural Resources Committee. On Tuesday, October 9, Cranston shelved the bill which would designate 8.4 million acres of California desert as protected wilderness and create a I.5 -millionacre national park in the Mojave. Cranston blamed Republican opposition and accused Senator Pete Wilson (RCalifornia) of engineering the political ma neuver that prevented approval of the bill by the Senate's Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Although Wilson, who is running for governor in California this year, denied responsibility for the maneuver, he says he continues to oppose Cranston's bill beca use it fails to provide adequate access to the desert. ' , Cranston said he would resubmit the bill in January when the new Congress convenes. Committee Chairman j. Bennett J o hnsto n (D-Louisiana) and Senator Dale Bumpers (D-Arkansas), chairman of the Subcommittee on Public Lands National Parks and Forests, say they will push for a vote on the bill in committee and on the Senate floor next year. Robert Rasor, AMA vice president of government relations, 'said, "Cranston's, decision to drop SII stands as a testament to the determination of off-highway riders and o ther multiple use advocates who have worked hard to help protect the desert for the people and not from the people. The tug-of-war over the desert has spanned six years, so we may see some kind of compromise in the future. But in the meantime, we had better be ready for battle again next year." S Mike Parks of Baltimore, Maryland, died in a commercial diving accident in Greece , New York, on October 4. Parks, a ' member of the Gunpowder Valley M.C., was a three-time AMA District 7 Senior A class champion and a well -known Senior class contender on the Grand National Cross Country circuit. he was also the force behind the Whiskey Ridge GP which is held in Sharpsburg, Maryland. This year's Whiskey Ridge GP, which takes place on October 21, will be dedicated to Parks. Suzuki's B ob Hannah returned to the " Unadilla Valley Sports Center's MX course during a special practice session two days prior to the October 14 final round of the National Championship I25/500cc MX Series at the New Berlin, New York facility. With Guy Coope r in 'co n tention to win the l25cc National title, Hannah, who was regarded as the King of Unadilla, took to me track to show Cooper the best lines. At the same time Honda's Rick J ohnson. rwho was crowned King of Unadilla when Hannah retired in 1989, was showing teammate Mike Kiedrows ki his best lines around the famed circuit to give him a better chance of defending his l25cc National title. According to Scott USA's B e vo Forti, many felt that Hannah was the fastest rider in the practice session. of awards, followed by dancing. Associate sponsors of the evening's festivities will be the Coors Brewing Company and Seals Communications Corporation. A limited number of tickets are available to the public at $100 per couple. The reservation deadline is October 26. For information, contact Pat McCoy of the AMA at 614/891-2425 . Special room rates at the Hyatt Newporter are available to guests mentioning the AMA Awards Banquet. Hotel information is available at 714/729-1234 . MX mechanic B rian Lunniss will leave Honda to go to work for Yamaha where he will be Damon Bradshaw's mechanic. Lunniss made the announcement at the final National Championship 125/500cc MX Series round at Unadilla where his rider, Rick J oh nso n , won the 500cc class . Other famous riders that Lunniss has tuned for include John DeSoto, Bryar Holcomb, Billy Grossi, Graham Noyce, Donnie Hansen, Bob Hannah and Warren Reid. World Champion Wayne Rainey has been busy since finishing the Grand Prix season in Australia. The Californian recently returned from Europe where he competed in the Guidon d'Or, a Superbikers-type event' in Paris. Rainey won the race on a water-cooled Yamaha YZ490, beating French ISDE ace Stefan Peterhansel and Eddie Lawson; Broc Glover finished fourth with Wayne Gardner sixth on a CR500 . Rainey also was introduced to rock group Milli Vinilli in a Paris nightclub. Rainey then went to his home in Sitges, Spain, where he vacationed with his wife Shae and Kenny Roberts and his wife Pam. Then it was off to Switzerland for th e Marlboro Parade, an exhibition ride through the streets where he met FI World Champion Alain Prost and former F-I driver James Hunt. And the traveling isn 't over for Rainey. He's planning to attend a Save The Children fun ction in England in November _ The 1990 AMA Professional ' Awards Banquet will be held Saturday evening, November 3, at the Hyatt Newporter in Newport Beach, California. American stars from all forms of professional racing, both national and internati onal , will be honored for their accomplishments in a gala evening hosted by ESPN broadcast personalities Dave Despain and Larry Maiers. n.j. Reynolds, sponsor of the AMA Camel Pro Series and AMA Supercross Series , will be the major co rpora te sponsor of the even ing, which will include a cocktail reception, formal dinner and presentation before heading to Ireland for a Gary Cowan Benefit. After that it 's off to Greece to do public relations work for Marlboro. After returning from Europe to his Downey, California, home Wayne Rainey was give n a 'unique opportun it y. to witness the landing of the Space Shuttle from the runway at Edwards Air Force Base in southern Ca lifornia's high desert on Wednes day, October 10. "I was right on .the runway with these biochemist people that were there in case of a toxic leak," Rainey said. "I had on a fireproof suit and was in the group of biochemist - I don't know what they would have done with me if there was a problem." Rainey ended up getting to within 30 feet of the Shuttle after it had lan ded. "It was quite an experience, especially when you think about how far it had gone on its four-day trip. I was excited." In TheAMA/CC&~wardsPartywill be held October 28 in the ballroom of the Daytona Beach Marriott starting at 9 p.m. According to'theAMAlCCS, this year 's party will feature a less formal format with more emphasis o n partying in addition to the awards presentation. 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