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/127413
stayed with it. But we had a great time ridi ng with the group. To this day, ma ny of us are still riding together." One thing that so 'many off-road greats have in common is that they grew up close to prime riding areas . So close that riding out of one's garage was the norm. Hatch is one of those lucky ones. "We've got about 200 miles of trail right around my house - a lot of trees and tight trails. We used to go riding at least every other day and p ut in a good 50 miles worth of riding. This really helped me out a lot." It wasn't until about two years ago whe n longtime ' riding buddy Ray Davis and Hatch began competing together in as ma ny National Enduros as their budget would allow. Hatch ha d relatively good success, which really sparked his interest in enduros. H is sudde n appearance at the top of the charts turned a lot of heads, incl uding Charles Halcomb's. " Actually, I was first alerted to Hatch by Hawkins and Dave Bertram," said Halcomb, who heads up Suzuki's off roa d competition effort. "They told me to keep an eye on him. In 1989 at the Speedsville Nationa l Enduro in New York, he rode a Suzuki RM250 with stock tires - it was reall y muddy that day - and he kept right up with Randy and Dave, who were on the same minute as Steve. That's all it took to convince me to help him out. Shortly thereafter we nicknamed him the " Monger," because he gets the job done! Not always pretty, though, but he gets it do ne." Hatch made a lot of friends along the way, such as 1990 National Reliability Enduro Champion Bertram, and Hawkins. Bo th Bertra m and Hawkins, who are veteren Six Days riders , soon talked Hatch into riding the ISDE Q ual ifiers (same as the National Reliabili ty Enduro Series). "I really didn't know much about the Six Days. It was something that I had seen and read about, but I never really thought I could do it, mainly because it takes a lot of money. I guess it was a lways a far-o ff dream.. one I though t would never be feasible . "Then I rode my first Qualifier in Tulsa and did pretty well, and I thought, 'this Qualifier stuff might be right up my alley.' "After doing well in Sweden, I decided I really wanted to do good this year (Czechoslovakia), so I set my mind to it, trained, and did everything I could to get ready for it." All of Hatch's training and mental preparation paid off. Not only did Hatch, Lewis, Smith and Rhod es win the Junior World Trophy, but Hatch was the top American finisher. "The more it (the Junior World Trophy win) sinks in, the more I realize what we accomplished. We accomplished something in motorcycle racing that will be remembered 10 years fro m now , just like when Malcolm Smith, Dick Burleson, Ron Bohn and Ed Schmidt last won it (the Silver Vase class, now called the Junior World Trophy) 18 years ago. I' m glad that my name will be a pa rt of hi story, . just like their names. "Next year I hope to q ual ify for the team again, and I hope to finish among the top three, just to show that our win was no fluke. But the Six Days is tough and anything can happen." While Hatch was busy zeroing checks in Czechoslovakia, back home in New York, he was missing the first two weeks of a new semester at Courtland State College, where he is working towards a degree in economics ' and management science. "This .happened to me last year in Sweden, too. It makes it tough. I ha d Champion ship Cup Series P.O. Box 447 Skyland, NC 28nS tel: (704) 684-4297 fax: (704) 684-3819 for another great season Fielclsheer HINDLE EXHAUST SYST~MS Kawasaki .KERKER@ METZELER M·ichelin ~ ~~ETlS ..vrlC-/NG ~ ii'- ~.BI " WI'ECD YAMAHA YOKOHAMA What Is Your Problem? Tell It to the editor, write him a letter. STOP! YZ'S FOR LESS SAVE IT with a sleeve from (Limited Time) !iJ05IHIDMUIA DON'T TRASH THAT ·WORN H0 NDA- CYLINDER L.A. SLEEVE CO. '92 YZ250 10% OFF! '92 YZ125 10% OFF! • Parts Discount to All AMA riders w ith purch~sel • We stock YZ Partsl BREWER Cycles Inc. Henderson, NC (9 19) 492-8553 NC WATS (800) 368-2580 Los Angeles Sleeve Co . has sleeves to repa ir your worn Honda CR-250, 125 or ATV. We also stock piston kit s, rebu ilt cylinders, Big Bore kits and connecting rod kit s. For more information contact: LOS ANGELES SLEEVE CO., INC. (31 0) 83 11 Chelle Ave ., Santi'! Fe Springs , CA 90670 FAX (31 0) Deal...., ean or writ. for your f, •• catalog and decals. 945-7578 698-7029 65