Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

was in last year's French GP. "In motocross and supercross it's always your physical conditioning that is your limit. In road racing, your condition is much less important." Bayle qualified the Chesterfield Team de Radigues Apri1ia 29th in a field of 36 rick!rs, and finished 19th after a bad start and near crash in turn one on the second lap. 'The front slid a long way and I had to put my foot on the ground to save it. I ended up on the grass at high speed and by the time I'd got back on the track I'd lost five places," Bayle said. Two immaculately prepared blue Yamaha Motor France Yamaha YZRSOOs bearing the number "19" sat on pit row awaiting their rider on the first day of !RTA's three-day test the weekend prior to the Australian GP, but they would not be fired up because their rider, Freddie Spencer, was asleep in his hotel. Spencer had arrived in Sydney on Friday morning, later than scheduled, because he'd failed to apply for a visa for Australia and had been delayed in Paris after going there for a one-day press conference. Former World Champion Wayne Gardner couldn't attend his home GP because he was in Europe working on his fledgling car racing career. After scoring his first victory in the Australian Touring Car Championship at the previous weekend's race at Syrnmons Plains in Tasmania, Gardner returned to his home in· Monaco before visiting Lotus and speaking with Tom Walkinshaw, the owner of the Holden Racing Team that he races for in Australia. There's a chance that Walkinshaw, who's had a long association with Jagu.ar, will field at least two cars in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Gardner is hoping for a ride. He had explored entering the Indy Lights series in the U.S., but couldn't come up with a sponsor to put up the $450,000 needed to field a car. Though he's a rookie car driver in Australia, he's the highest paid driver, pulling in a salary of $250,000, plus endorsement money from Coca-Cola and Castrol. Applying the new Grand Prix road race points system, which rewards wins more than consistency, to last year's 500cc World Championship would produce a new World Champion. Mick Doohan would have earned 176 points and Wayne Rainey would have ended up with 166. Third and fourth would stay the same, John Kocinski, third with 139, six better than Kevin Schwantz. Kevin Magee was spectating at the Australian GP after he failed to secure sponsorship to contest the round as a wild card. He may have had some diffi-. culty riding, however, after breaking the little finger on his left hand during qualifying for the opening round of the AllJapan Championships at Suzuka. The finger was pinned and a skin graft was performed so that he'll be ready for the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka on April 18. Previously, he's done similar damage to the little finger on his right hand. In the Japanese championship Magee is sponsored by 0088 Telecom, the Japanese telephone company. Fellow All-Japan competitor and Aussie Peter Goddard was the only wild card in Australia, qualiy.ing his Lucky Strike Suzuki ninth and crashing on the penultimate lap after getting balked by Marlboro Honda Pons' Alex Criville. In the "A good deed never goes unpunished department" comes this tale of woe from the Lucky Strike Suzuki camp. At the end of qj§ Australian GP victory lap, Kevin Schwantz stopped in the last corner to pick up teammate Peter Goddard and give him a ride back to the pits. Unfortunately for the team, carrying passengers is illegal and carries a $2500 fine, which is assessed to the team. Marlboro Team Roberts Yamaha incurred a similar fine after Wayne Rainey gave a team member a ride during his victory lap following his clinching of the World Championship at Kyalami last year. Schwantz was also eager to meet his namesake "Schwantz," a thoroughbred racehorse competing in Australia. The four-legged Schwantz's owner is a fan of the Lucky Strike Suzuki racer and went so far as to brand the number "34" into the horse's hide. The horse ran in a race in January at odds of 25-1 and won. Kevin Schwantz made no secret of his intentions should current Lucky Strike 250cc rider John Kocinski be moved up to join him on the 500 team next year. "As far as I'm concerned, he'll be his own teammate. I'd rather be a rancher back home in Texas. He's a great 250 rider, and we've tested together a lot in the winter. But we are such completely different people that I would not want to be on the same team with him." Here's a list of items that are presently available in the silent auction that is being presented by Cycle News and Laguna Seca Raceway to raise funds for the family of the late Jimmy Adamo. All proceeds from the auction, which will close at the end the AMA National Championship Road Race Series meet at Laguna Seca on April 18, will go directly to the late Adamo's family via the Jimmy Adamo Benefit Fund. All the items will be on display at Laguna Seca during the April 16-18 National weekend. The items and their auction num. bers are: 1. Wayne Rainey Team Marlboro Roberts Yamaha leathers, worn during the '92 GP season. 2. Wayne Rainey Team Honda leathers (both sets of leathers donated by Rainey). 3. Eddie Lawson Bell helmet, autographed by Lawson and worn by him during the 1984 GP season. 4. Eddie Lawson Dainese gloves, autographed, worn by Lawson during '84 season. 5. Eddie Lawson illustration by Hector Catamatori, signed by Lawson. 6. Randy Mamola HB International Suzuki leathers, circa 1983-84. 7. Randy Mamola AGV helmet, circa 1983-84. (Items 3 through 7 donated from the Pro Rider Benefit Fund by Dain Gingerelli.) 8. Two Brothers exhaust system for Honda CBR600 F-2, donated by Kevin and Craig Erion. 9. The Ducati Story, a softcover book in Italian by Bruno Ducati, autographed by Ducati. To place a bid on any or all of these items, call Bill Spencer of Mountain View Distributing at 408/436-8228 or Mary Wright at Laguna Seca at 408/648-5116 (Fax 408/373-0533). Randy Mamola will be spending the year testing Dunlop tires for the Team Marlboro Roberts Yamaha team, according to Jeremy Ferguson, Dunlop's manager for European motorsports. Mamola tested at Laguna Seca as well as the Dunlop testing ground in Huntsville, Alabama, where he tested rain tires under controlled conditions. His next test is expected to be in Jerez in midApril and further testing will be determined on im as-needed basis. "At the moment, there's a huge amount of changing with the bikes. Quite rightly Kenny (Roberts) says, and I agree, that you have to be testing when you're racing and you can't tie up the race team to test. It's like Formula One at this point. You can't waste the time of the guys on race weeekends. As things get more and more sophisticated with telemetry and computers we'll have to have the facility to test." Since Mamola doesn't have an entry in the GPs, he can only enter as a wild card, which he may do for the U.S. GP at Laguna Seca in September. The biggest cheer of GP week in Australia erupted during the post-race press conference for the 500cc class. Asked what could be done to make the Grand Prix better at Eastern Creek, second place finisher Wayne Rainey said: "Go back to Phillip Island." That won't happen any time soon, though, because of tobacco restrictions in the state of Victoria. Also, Eastern Creek has a fiveyear contract to host the Grand Prix. A bill is being readied by the Australian government to outlaw smoking in all indoor public places, including hotel rooms, a move that some think may huyt Sydney'S chances of hosting the 2000 Summer Olympics. American Suzuki has announced they'll back the Suzuki Cup Can-Am Challenge, a road race which will pit the top five 750cc Suzuki Cup racers from the U.S. against the top five 750cc Suzuki Cup racers from Canada in a head-to-head race which will take place at the conclusion of the regular Suzuki Cup Final races at Road Atlanta on October 31. A total of $16,750 will go to riders who qualify for the event, with the winner pocketing $5000. Just as we were going to press, James Bagley of the California Desert Coalition, called to inform us that the County of San Bernardino had passed a resolution in .opposition to 521, the socalled California Desert Protection Act. The resolution, which was passed on Monday, March 29, means that the county is officially going on record as being opposed to the bill. In addition, the League of California Cities' Mountain and Desert Division, which includes the cities of Mammoth, Lancaster, Bishop, Apple Valley and Big Bear, passed a similar resolution on Friday, March 26. Several cities have also gone on record individually as being opposed to the bill. This is good news, but it is now more important than ever that readers who are opposed to the bill make their feelings known by sending letters to Senators Dianne Fienstein and Barbara Boxer. Rice Stadium in Salt Lake City has become the newest venue for the Mickey Thompson Stadium Off-Road Racing Series. The facility in Utah will host round six of the series on June 26. The announcement of the additional race date, brings to nine the number of series events. MTEG officials announced last week that the Stadium Off-Road Racing Series- round originaUy slated for the Los Angeles Coliseum will instead take place in the Rose Bowl in nearby Pasadena on May 8. The entire Road Atlanta road race course has been repaved, reports Missing Lenk Video's Bob Lenk. "They've widened the course in several areas and it's as smooth as a baby's bottom," Lenk told Papa. The track which is located near Braselton, Georgia, the town that movie actress Kim Basinger bought several years ago, will host an AMA National Championship Road Race Series round over the July 17-1-8 weekend. STOLEN: A 1987 Ford E350 box van (VIN #IFDKE307XHHA96640) that contained a 1991 Suzuki GSXR1100 (VIN #JS1GV73A4M2100278) and a 1992 Honda CBR600F2 (VIN # not known at time of theft) belonging to road racer Kevin Rentzell, from the parking lot at the Comfort Inn in West Palm Beach, Florida, between 10:30 p.m. Friday, March 19, and 5:30 a.m. Saturday, March 20. Rentzell, who was in town to compete in the WERA meet at Moroso that weekend, says the van also contained an assortment of spare parts including two sets of spare Suzuki wheels (one set mounted with new Dunlop tires), a large Craftsman roll-around tool box filled with tools, and numerous other race-related items. A reward is being offered for any informa tion leading to the arrest and conviction of the persbn(s} responsible for the theft; contact RK Motorsports Racing at 404/955-8326 or the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department at 407/622-2111. Needless to say, Rentzell is "desperately seeking sponsorship or anyone interested in providing assistance" so that he can get back into competition. STOLEN: 1993 Honda XR600 (VIN #JH2PE040XPM800163, engine #5800170) from a hotel parking lot in Delaware off Interstate 95, the week before Daytona Bike Week; contact Jeff Walker 413/245-7417. MOVED: Color Crazy Racing, the custom-paint operation run by Larry Broyles and Gus Perkins, to 402 Princeland #2, Corona, CA 91719; 909 /278-2280. . RESIG.NED: Dori Silverman, from Turnstyle ad agency, a division of SuperSports of St. Petersburg, Florida, to join Coca-Cola in Tampa. Bret Hart, Supersport's director of sales and marketing,. will be handling media placement and purchasing for Turnstyle until a replacement for Silverman is found. NAMED: Ed Netterberg, as executive director of the Na tiona I Motorcycle Museum in Sturgis, South Dakota. CORRECTION: The captions for two photos that ran as part of the spread devoted to the AHRMA Awards Banquet were flopped. That's Beno Rodi and Dick Klarnfoth in the photo on the bottom left hand comer of page 20 arid Jerry Wood and Jeff Smith in the photo on the right. DIED: Former WERA road racer Danny Hyatt, of a heart attack at his home in Palm Bay, Florida on March 12. For the past five years, Hyatt worked as a development technician/engine specialist for Bombardier Sea-Doo. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Danny's son Jimmy Hyatt, at 11523 Floyd Dr., Apt. #4107, Overland Park, KS66210. RESIGNED: Robin Christensen, as publisher of American Roadracing Magazine, a monthly road racing tabloid published in Carefree, Arizona, effective April 30. "I'm tired, I'm beat and I'm burned out," Christensen said. "It's just time to do something else. Right now I don't know what that is, but I'd like to stay in racing if possible." CORRECTION: One of the dates that appeared in the Ricky Johnson Track Techniques Clinics article in our March 24 issue was incorrect. The clinics at Steel City USA in Delmont, Pennsylvania, will take place on May 31 and June 1. FORMED: Don't Let Up/Intense Sports, a sportswear company owned and operated by longtime motorcycle enthusiast Mark McPerry, at 2925 E. Barnwell St., Oceanside, CA 92054, 619/967-9852, FAX 619/757-4358. tN 3

• Cover