Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

ski," said the 1990 125cc World Cham pion. But Schmit won 't be home for lon g, as he plans to con test some of the preseaso n warm-up races in California. "I 'Il either race the GFI Win ter Series or CMC Golden State Nat ion als, depending on the location of the race. I· might even ride Ana hei m (ro und three of the Camel Supercross Series) if I'm used 'to my new Yamaha." Sch mit recen tly switched from th e Bieffe Suzuki team to ride Chesterfieldbacked Yamahas in the 1992 World Cham pionship 250cc MX Series. Su perSports, promoters of the January II Orlando Supercross, are planning a speci al halftime tribute for Jeff Ward, who plans to retire from AMA pr ofessional competition at the end of the '92 season. Ward, the on ly rider to win Supercross, 125, 250 and 500cc National Championships, will likel y recieve many other tributes throughou t th e season. I There 'will be no Pee Wee halftime exhibition races during the 1992 Camel Supercross Series. Our sources say that th e events were elim in ated due to concern about th e yo u n gs ters participating in tobacco (Camel) and beer (Coors) company-sponsored events. ' WorldSports is curren tly working with th e AMA to develop a Regional Amateur Supercross Championship program. "We found tha t a Nati onal Ch ampion ship wasn 't workabl e, amateurs won't travel across the country," said SuperSports ' Bill West; whose brother J erry heads WorldSpo rts. "We wan t to have a reg ional championshi p so that riders don 't have , to travel." " Last week, we received a phone call Ken Lilly of On Track Promotions announced that th e openi ng round of th e n ine-race 1992 Motorcycle Asphalt Racing Series will be held at Volusia County Speedway in Barberville, Florida, March I, and Experts will compete for a $10,000 purse. Last year, Expert and Junior racers were combined, but this year's series will offer separa te Expert, Junior and Pro'Am races. For more in formati o n, contact Lilly at 803/272-9938 or 803/ 626-7959. Motocrosser Donny Schmit recen tly returned to h is home in Minnesota from ,Europe, where he competed in the World Cham pionship 125cc MX Series a nd post-season European supercross races. " I'm planning to play some hockey , ride my snowmobile and Rule changes permit two-strokes in AMA Grand National comnetition I 2 n an effort to in crease the amo u nt of available production machines for AMA dirt track compe ti tio n, -th e class structures an d ru les regard ing machinery that may be raced have been cha nged. . Perh aps the biggest cha nge is th e inclu sion of 335-500cc single-cylinder twostrokes amo ng the approved motorcycles tha t may be used in Grand Na tion al! Camel Pro Series sho rt track and TT even ts. Previou sly, Grand National competitors were restricted to 361-600cc single-cy linder four-strokes and twincylinder 750cc fou r-strok es. , Whi le th e two-s tro ke machine's motor, carburetor, fork, shock , suspension linka ge, etc., may be mod ified, no alteratio ns ma y be mad e to the fram e and swinga rm . To be approved for National dirt track competitio n, machi nes must follow the same guidelines as National motocros s machines. "I th ink th at it's a good idea at the Pro-Am level," said 600cc Nation al Champion Chri s Carr. "Bu t I don 't think we need the extra con troversy at the Nati on al level. I know Steve Wise pulled it off on a motocrosser a few years ago , but with our new bikes, I can 't see a two-stroke bein g that much better. Un less someone like Jean-Michel Bayle sho ws up, I can' t see myself bein g passed by a two-stroke." .Pro-Arn and Junior riders will also ben efit from the new ru les. Pro-Am ride rs can compete in three different classes: the first is ope n to 250cc single-cylinder two-strok es or 0-35Occ singl e-cylinder four-strokes, the second all ows 335-500cc single-cyli nder two-strokes or 361-600cc single-cylinder four-stro kes, and the third allows 601cc-750cc twin-cylinder four-strokes onl y. The rul es require the stock fra me and swingarm on 335-500cc single-cylinder two-strokes. Junior riders have the optio n of fielding 335-500c single cylinder two-strokes against 361-600cc single cylinder fou r-strokes in short track events, and may also choose to field a 750cc twin-cylinder four- stroke at mil e, half mil e and TT even ts. At Junior/Expert 600cc Nationals, 335-500cc single-cylinder two-stroke mach in es will be allo wed to compe te aga inst the usual 361-600ccsingle-cylinder four -stro kes. The rules regarding stock frames and swingarms apply to all two-stro kes in 600cc National com petition. , "T he dir ection that th e AMA hopes to take, is towards 100% production eq ui pment ," said Merril Vanderslice, Nat ional T echnical Manager at the AMA. "We were successfu l in taking mo tocross in that dire ction, and we hope to do so with dirt track as well. ' "We also ho pe tha t th is will mak e it easier for someo ne to go dirt tracking. There are so many hoops that riders are forced to jump through, that sometimes it hardly seems worth it," he added. "T he cost of avail able production four-strokes is astronomical. This should open the door for a lot of people; can you imagine how many 500cc motocrossers are laying around in these gu ys' garages? Another plus will be the many new manufacturers that can become in volved. " Putnam Park, the I.8-mile road race course near Indianapolis, Indiana, has announced it will run two AMAlCCS and three WERA meets in '92. The AMA/CtS even ts will take place May 23-24 and August 8-9, with the WERA running on May 9-10, June 13-1,4 and J uly 4-5. In addition, an open practice session will be held on the Friday afternoon prior to each of th e five,race weekends, and a WERA rider's school will be held on May 8. Improvements to the facility are ongoing; a 26-acre paddock/parking area has been leveled and seeded, and before the track reo pe ns in March the pits will be widened by 10 feet and the II OO-foot long staging/ paddock area alongside the p its will be paved. "We know we already have th e finest racing surface in the coun try," said Richard Diasio, president of Putnam Park Corp. , "These impr ovements mark the beginning of what one day will be one of th e fin est. raci n g facilities in th e Midwest." After sponsoring Ronnie Jones for the past three seasons, George Garvis, owner of Garv is H on da T own, has decided to reti re from Grand Na tio nal Championshi p / Ca me l Pro Series competition. " Ron nie has done a great job for me, it's been a good three years," said Garvis in a phone conversa tio n from his dea lership in Des Moines, Iowa. " I'm just tired of all 'the travelling an d on ly breaking even after so much har d wo rk. Honda isn't interested in supporti ng dirt track, so all of the expenses ha ve to come ou t of my pocket." Jon es, the th ird -ranked dirt tracker in the nation for the past two years, is uncertain about 'what he will ride in 1992. " I gu ess it' s time to get on the phone," said the Oklahoma rider. "I'd lik e to find another Honda to ride sin ce I've got ten so used to th em, but if I have to switch brands, I will. I rode Harley-Davidsons as I came up , th rough the ranks so I guess I could ride on e agai n.'.' he insisted on , raci ng h is H onda." Sakaida has never spo nsored a race team before, but looks forward to hi s first year. "Motorcycle racing is the only motor sport that you can get in volved ,in without spending a sixdigit figure. I think he's a damn good rider and I hope we win some races," he added. Poovey campaigned th e last three races of the 1991 Camel Pro Series for the Bubba Shobert team , aboard a Honda RS750, with backing from Wayne Rainey Racing and Otsuka Electronics: Lack of support from Honda in 1992,however, has forced Shobert to withdraw from the circuit. "At this point, it doesn't look as if they 're too interested, and I can 't see spending my own money, " said Shobert. " Who knows, though, if they change their mind, maybe I'll sponsor another rider." The 6th Annual World of Motorsports Show will take place January 9-12 at the Santa Clara Convention ' Center in Santa Clara (not San Jose , as an itern in th is section regarding the weekend's Motoring Press Association banquet h ad it last week), California. Rod Lake's vintage bike collection will be on display. Round two of the GFI California Winter MX Series at Perris Raceway has been changed to a two-day event. Beginner, Novice , +25 and Mini classes will run on Saturday, January 4, with the Intermediate, Pro , +30, +35 and +40 classes schedu led for Sunday, Jan uary 5. The AHRMA West Awards Banquet will be held on Saturday, January 18, at the Picadilly Inn in Fresno, Californ ia. In add ition to presenting year-end awards, the draw in g will be held for the Vin tage Iron-restored 1974 Honda CR250 tha t was won - and then do na ted - by Barry H iggins for accumula ting th e most points in the '91 AHRMA Na tional MX Serie s. Banquet tickets are $25 for adul ts and , $12 for chi ldren under 10 and they can be ordered from AHRMA, P.O. Box 882, Waus au , WI ~4402-0882. The banquet isn't the only AHRMA activity that weekend in Fresno. On Saturday, J anuary 18, a swap meet and bike sho w will be held at Vintage Iron, 4774 E. Carmen, from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, January 19, will feature a vintage MX play day from noon to 4 p.m. at San Joaquin Raceway. For more in form ation about either event or the banquet, call 209/552-9053. Eaken-Sponseller Racing i s swi tch ing brands for th e 1992 Camel Pro seaso n. Aft er fielding H onda RS750s for th e lik es of Rodney Farris, Steve Morehead and Ricky Graham th e past severa l years, Skip Eaken and Mike Spo nse lle r will field a HarleyDavidson ' XR750. Larry Pegram ret urns as th e team' s on ly rider , an d w ill compe te a boa r d th e T exas H arley-Davids on -own ed XR750 th at was p rev io usly ridden by Terry Poovey. " I spent over six months hand -b ui ld in g that motorcycl e," sai d Poovey, referring to the Harley. " It 's a good bike, but I just cou ldn' t adapt to it . I had to switch back to H ondas.' Kenny Roberts confirmed on Tuesday , December 10, that Marlboro has indeed dropped its sponsorship of his U.S. team th at competed in the WERA Pro Series. "It was budget cuts across the board," Roberts said. " It kind of tied everybody 's hands. I don't have a n y plans yet. The program was originally to bring up younger riders, but then we brought in th e 500s. It's a little earl y for our American plans to be done. I'm go ing to Japan shortly and I'll find out what I want to do with the 500s. We'll know (after the trip) if we want to race 'em or sell 'em." Poovey will con test th e 1992 season aboa rd his personal Honda RS750 with fin an cial backing from Sakaida and Sons, a tru cking company based in Reseda, California. "I lik e the spo rt , especially the long history it has," said owner Ted Sakaida, a longtime Harley en thusia st and dirt track fan. . " I wanted Terry to ride a Harley, but Roberts also commented on the -EOssibility of there not being a U.S. Grand Prix in 1992. "It's not official yet," Roberts said. "It's very possible, but it 's not dead yet. Last year it just started, to get the kind of support the industry has to give it here. It will be a real setback to American racing if we lose the GP. Nothing else comes

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