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/127606
on tlte h ighway th at o ne of h is eyes refused to blink. Other rid ers reported tears in th eir eyes, fr ozen noses , and numb fingers despite hand guards and three layers of gloves. "The early start is worth it because if you leave late, yo u m iss the sunrise," sa id Wes Ferson. "It's incredibly beautiful ou t there when the sun starts to com e up." Day two's trail headed eas t to a gas stop at Ludlow and then turned northeast on sandy jeep trails and pow erline roads to the Honda /Suzuki/Yamaha / Kawasaki-sponsored lunch s top at an iso la ted telephone booth se ve n miles so u th o f Inters tate 15 n e ar Hall oran Summit. "It' s so remot e - it ' s th e mi d dle of no w he re, an d th ey pu t in a telephone booth so you ca n h ave some privacy w hile yo u 're "talking," said KTM's Scot Harden, who wa s testing a 620cc dual sp ort b ike the company plans to introd uce in Ap ril. . "We wanted to take it ou t a n d let people know we are going to ha ve a dual sport line starting in the Spring," said Harden. "It's what everybody said they want ed - a barely street-legal d irt bike wi th <\11 the top-notch components right off the sho wroom floor." Harden said KTM's RXC, which will be available in 620cc and 400cc models, has been approved in 49 states but still needs the nod in California. The afte r-lunch trail continued northeast through the desert. It followed a 30mile-an-hour road through a to r toise area until it crossed the Nevada state line near Nipton, and then headed into th e hills above Jean. Da y tw o's desert received mixed reviews. All of the riders welcomed the lack of pavement, but d ie: hard off-readers like John Peterson said the cou rse lacked challenge. "It had too many fast roads an d not e nough w h oo ps," s aid the Honda XR600R rider. Others, like Bob Bailey, sa id the length of the 23Q-mile rid e gave it all the challenge it needed. "The d istance is an impo rtant factor . . That's a lot of riding and you don't want to make it so hard that you annoy people," said Bailey, who may have set an all- time expense record with his first LAB-to-Vattem pt. " We decid ed to ri d e this about a week ago a nd I d idn't h a ve anythin g here," said Bailey, whose gear was back in Virginia, wher e he owns a racetrac k. "I sa id, ' Com e on, w e're going sh op ping.:" Bailey's shopping spree netted him a Ch evy cre w -c ab d uali e, two H on d a XR650Ls and new gear from head to toe. "It was wo rth it. We had a good time and we'd do it again - and again, and again an d again," said Bailey. The first rid ers to clear the hills and hit the end-of-the-ride pavement near Pahrump we re Richard Jackson and Ron . Christner, who had teamed up on the tra il. The early-bird duo had set a fast pace all the way that put them at the lunch stop before the food arrived and left them bumming gas in Nipton when they arrived ahead of the gas truck. They reached the glitter and glitz of the Las Vegas strip shortly after 11:30 a.m, more than th ree hours before check-in The LA-to-B-toV, li ke the infamous hare & hound th at inspired it, featured a long and challenging course. Close to 400 riders signed up for the adventure. ... LC) ~ H Q) ~ opened at e ve nt hea d quar te rs in t h e Hacienda Hotel. "I th ought I wa s 'g o in g to b e able to sit here and brag abo ut all the probl ems I h ad but the biggest one was ke eping m y mirror s adjusted," sai d Jackson, who s to pped just long enough to put on ano ther la y er of clothing befor e he po inted his b ik e back down the freeway to w a r d s Los Angeles . "We're in the middl e of moving. My wife is at home packing and I promised I'd go back and help her." a Q) U Q) o Forget Garth Brooks.The real King of Country is Fred Andrews. He is, you see, the new AMA Grand National Cross Country champion. And it was only his rookie year. Fred did it with one finely-tuned instrument: his Spo rt Cycles Racingbacked YZ250. With winning performances at Dayto na, the prestigious Blackwater 100 and Laurel Ridge. He ended at High Point with his fourth victory-even thoUgh he'd already been crowned king. Teammate Jan Hrehor put on a stellar performance, too, with a third place overall fin ish. All of which makes Team Yamaha the hottest show on the country circuit. Now just wait til l '94, when Fred and Jan take to th e woods on Yamaha's totally revamped WR250. Guess the competition will just have to face the music. 13