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/127549
One good turn EDITOR'S -MG P O E E AH N .( deserves another... By Donn Maeda . ,.-''--- - - - - - - -- -- - - "N 0 way. there's no way you'll ever talk me into racing desert." I told my fellow Cycle News editor. Kit Palmer. the resident desert rat. "Desert racing is too dangerous!" Yeah. maybe I did grow up racing A TVs, but I've since ditched that extra wheel and evolved into a real off-roader: a motocrosser. The only desert riding I had under my belt was a Thanksgiving trip to the desert aboard my threewheeler, and I got lost. No, not just lost - I mean LOST. It was over three hours before I found my way back to the campsite, and another hour or so before everyone that had gone looking for me returned. Besides, what abou t all those stories I'v e heard abou t people riding into mine shafts? What about the enviro nme nta l zealots and the trap s set by those yahoos? Besides, desert racers just han g on. p in it, and sit on the rear fender. Pr ejudices are a fu nny thing. though. as I discovered last year wh en I attended my first dirt track race. I thought the racers would be a bunch of boring old guys that j ust rode aro und in circles, but I' ve 'since grown to be on e of the sport's biggest fans. " O kay, maybe I shou ld gi ve desert racing a cha nce too, " I though t. a nd fi nall y agreed whe n Ki t asked me to co m p e te in a Nation al Hare & Hou n d. Besides, the condi tions were perfect and it had a reputa tion as being one of the best races of the year. according to Kit. It rained for weeks before the race, and the traditionall y-tigh t course would be better sui ted for a "motocrosser" like me. The minutes before the start seemed like hours. As I sat there, po ised to kickstan my machine, I could hear the wind blow in g throu gh my helm et and I wondered how I had gotte n myself into this. I was a nervous novice and wished tha t I was home in bed. The bomb run was horrifying. Along with 157 other riders, I raced towards a flickering ligh t in the distance. But wait, I was actua lly starting to have fun! Then I went over the bars. After hitting a little weed that was anchored to the center of the earth, I did ·my best Superman impression . But it wasn't so bad; I got up , finished the bomb ru n and began to work back through , the field. Kit was right, I did like the tight sections. I laughed as I blasted pas t riders in the canyons, but I cringed at the sight of the wide-open, whoop-fill ed valleys. .A little over two ho urs and 100 miles later, I cruised across the finish line in _ one piece and unscathed. I made it, and I even though t I did well! For the next few weeks, Kit rnus t've got ten tired of hearing me ask, " Hey, whe n 's the next desert race? When are you going to take me to an enduro? Isn't there a cross country race this weekend ?" . Then. they came . The official results. Seventlt in a class of 30 and 28th overall. Not bad, especially when you consider tha t I crashed on the bomb run and still beat 130 riders, right? But hey," wait! I got beat by not one, but two girl s! Tha t' sit - desert racing is no fun and it's too dangerous. For my ego, that is. (;N 19 92 MOTORCYCLE MADNESS ON PRIME NETWORK (W GPdenotes World Grond Prix; AMA denotesAMA No tionol Road Race Series) Air Da te April30 May 7 .May 14 May 21 May2B June 4 June 11 June 14" June lB June2S July 2 July 9 EventN e nue W GP- Japan WG P- Austrolia W GP-Malaysia W GP- Spain AMA - Laguna Seca W GP- Italy AMA - Laguna Seca W GP- Germany WGP-Europe AMA - Charlotte AMA - Charlotte W GP- Gel7!'any Air Date July 16 July 19" July 23 July 30 Aug. 2 " Aug. 6 Aug. 13 Aug. 20 Aug. 27 Sept. 3 Sept. 10 Sept. 17 EventNenue AMA - Brainard, MN WGP -Fronce W GP-Holland AMA - Broinard. MN W GP- UnitedKingdom AMA - Louden, NH W GP- Hungary AMA - Louden, NH W GP-Fronce . AMA-RoadA merica AMA - Road America AMA - Mid Ohio Air Date Sept. 24 Oct. 1 Od . B Od .1S Od . 22 Od .29 Nav. S Nov. 12 EventNenue WG PAMA WG PW GPW GPAMA AMA WG P- United Kingdom Mid Ohio Brozil TBA South Africa T exas World T exas World Season Review • Thisevent is broad ca st some day delayed. O ther events are broadc ast time delayed . Check loca l listings fOf" event times a nd date, in yovr o rea. ~HONDA Come ride with US. Prime Network Isdistributed to regional sport;networks: Home Sports Entertainment . SunshineNetwork.Prime Sport; Network IPSN) ' RockyMoun PSN·Midwest. toin. PSN·UpperMidwest.PSN.Intermountain IM9st.Prime fdet Network. KBt Sport; Network, . Prime Sport; Northwest.SportSouth. Madison Square Garden. Home Team Sports. ProAm Sport; System.New England SportsNetwork.Empire Sport; Network MaximaTops NMA World Mini Grand Prix . Las Vegas, NV April 24-26, 1992 CRAIG DECKER 1st 125cc Stk Int 1st 125cc Mod Int 1st 250cc Mod Int DENNIS DAHLIN 2nd 125cc Open - 16 3rd 250cc Stk Int 4th 250cc Stk Int KEVIN YEAGER 2nd 500cc Non Pro KEVIN WINDHAM 1st 80cc Stk 14-16 1st 500cc Non Pro TOMMY CLOWERS 1st Su per Mini - 16 3rd 125cc St k Pro 4th 250cc Mod Pro 13