Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

·V IC S·:· .O E lmerica's weekly motorcyclenewspaper Letters to the edHor: l oIu m e XXXI Sharon Clayton, President Michael Klinger Publisher , Editorial Paul Carruthers, Editor Kit Palmer, Associate Editor Donn Maeda, Associate Editor Chris jonnum, Associate Editor Scott Rousseau, Assistant Editor Graphics and Production Ree johnson, Production Superoisor Mandy Loa, ProductionManager Dennis Greene, lAb. Tech. Stacey Guest, Graphic Artist Amy Faught, Graphic Artist Administration judy Klinger, Coordinator Peggy Rivera, Secretary to the Publisher Advertising Terry Pratt, NationalAccounts Manager Mark Mitchell, Eastern Accounts Manager Mark Thome, Western Sales Manager ThomasGonter, Western Sales Manager Forrest Hayashi, Western Sales Manager Greg Mitchell, Eastern Sales Mana ger Rick Matheny, Eastern Sales Manager Rhonda Crawford, WesternAd Coordinator Carla Allen, East rn Ad Coordinator e Want Ads LaurieSnow, Want Ad Sales Marketing & Promotion Mark Thome, Manager Dealer Sales Kelly Branscome, Dealer Sales Representaiite AccountinglData Processing Donna Bryan-Diamond, AIR Coordinator Geneva Repass, Assistant HerJane Lewis, Credit Circulation Rheba Smith, Manager Alma Anguiano, Processing Coordinator Pam Klein, Billing Coordinator Carol Begovic, Deal r Coordinator e Kim Mazenko, Data Entry Coordinator Service and Support Chris Aitcheso n, Headquarters Receptionist Leonard Herring, Service and Support National Headquarters 2201 Cherry Ave., Long Beac CA 90806, h, P.O. Box 498, Long Be ach, CA 90801-0498 (310) 427-7433; (213) 636-8844. FAX (310)427-6685 Eastern Office 4188 First Ave., Tucker, GA, 30084; mailingaddress P.O. Box 805, Tucker, GA30085-0805. (404) 934-7850. FAX (404) 934-3112 The old-fashioned way... I am one of the few who actually qualified for the Uni ted States In ternationa l Six Days Endu ro team.Without the help of Team Green , it wouldn't have happen ed . In the Nevad a Qualifier I hit a rock that broke my rear brake caliper. Team Green came u p with the partsto keep m e going fo r Da y Two. A t th e Qualifiers where I d idn't have any help in the p its, Team Gr een go t m y gas to the gas stops, and pitted for me. This is the firs t yea r I've tr av el ed around to N ational ra ces, and it's ni ce to have someone there I can rely on. lowe my spot on the U.S. team to Team Green. P.S. Go USA, at the Six Days! David Froman Santa Rosa, CA- m ost American s v ery likeable, and alw ays willing to giv e yo u a chance if you fall and pick yourself back up. Albee appears to be made up of the same stuff a s these goo d folk, and ha s ac hieved greatness through co nfi dence, treme ndous determination, blatant honesty and intelligent respect for his competition. Unfo rtu nately, we also have a few p rimadonnas ("wankers, " in Europe), but we certainly do n't thr ow rocks an d beer bottles at re ma r ka ble a th le tes th a t soundly beat ou r finest. This cowardly behavior is very uri-Am erican. . I feel Albee is in for a very pleasa nt surprise w he n he comes to th e Stat es p ermanently . I h a ve found th e great m a jo r it y of Am ericans -t o b e g oodnatured, fun , caring, good sportspe rsons that don't snivel or complain. They get on with life and always cu t you so me slack. Welcome to the USA, Albee. You will fin d it th e same as I h a ve, and I hope you 'll stay for good! Val Horton San Cle mente, CA Albee, seein' ya Upon rea ding Davey Coombs' interview (Issue #33, August 24) with m y fellow South African Greg Albertyn, I was left wi th many good feelings and a great respect for both he and my new home in America . Davey cond ucted a fair a nd accurate interview in a very professional manner. There were no out -of-con tex t remarks, and the length given was very gene rous . I w as in v olved in South African mot ocross, riding th e nationals in the 500cc class from 1972-'76. I did my military training in Kimberly, which is just adjacent to the Kalahari Desert in Sout h Africa . Although I was of English d escent, all my army buddies were of Afrik aans (Dutch/German) descent, just like Albee . I preferred to be a ro u n d them because they were tough, deter mined, never complained, rarely spo ke bad abo u t others an d we re bluntly honest. They we re great people wit h a great sense of humor and a positive winning altitude, w ho made the best out of a rotten si tu a tio n . We always co ve red fo r each other and ach ieve d goa ls through individ ual talen t, team effor t and valued camaraderie. We always lau ghed at our ow n mistakes and never took ourselves too seriously. Albee's relentless spirit reminds me a great deal of those same cha racters, and is also typical of the attitude of m ost Americans I have had the good for tune to have met over the years. I ha ve found Thanks, Race Tech Special th an ks to Pa ul Thede at Ra ce Tech . In February, Craig Breiha n, a good friend to many, passed away. Craig ran a suspension mod ification sho p on the side called Porky's Racing. Craig used Race Tech com pone n ts a nd flui d s for the mo difica tions. He maintain ed a n ample inven tory of supplies, and finding a buye r cou ld ha ve been difficult. This was no t the case. The buyer 's name was Paul Thed e. All it took was a couple minutes on the phone. Thede sa id, "just pack it up, send it to me and I'll tak e ca re of it ." Paul im med iately tallied up the worth of the bo x's con tents and cut a check for a generous amount to Cra ig 's wife . Craig's family and friends would like to wish Paul and Race Tech all the best. Jeff Rouse Lak esid e, CA Thanks,butnothanks I w ould like to take this opportunity to thank the Hudson Valley Off Road Riders for such a wonderful weekend at its Parksville Hare Scrambles. I arrived on Saturday aftern oon and was charged $10 per person to pitch my tent in a swamp. After getting settled in fo r the n ight, w e were treated wi th m usic and fireworks until 4:00 a.m . At 6:00 a.m . we were awakened for breakfast by tw o motorcycles. The bikes were ridden up and d own the camping area to m a k e s u re everyone w as awake. When I got ou t of my tent, I found ou t th at the entertainme n t came fro m the Hudson Valley Off Road Riders and the mo to rcycles were pre-running for the race tha t started at 12:00 p.m. The race itself wa s the worst mudhole I have ever raced in during my 25 years of r id in g . Thanks agai n to th e most incons iderat e club in New York state. Je rry Harris Hannibal, NY Wanna dance? You p rinted a letter in th e August 10 (issue #31) issue from Connie Fiest from Colum bia City, India na , regardi ng sportsmanship in the wake of the lam e fine s on Mike LaRocco a n d Mik e Kiedrowski at the Red Bud National MX. Conn ie is a former Amat eur N at ional number one , winning thar titl e at Red Bud. He continues to be and always was a true sportsman in every sense of the word . He takes the time to talk to kids, an d ironically one of those kids from that era wa s none other than Mike laRocco. Connie was thra shing all co me rs for years while Mike was learning the ropes in th e mini class in No rt he rn Indiana. Wha t the sport needs is more people like Connie and those who - regardless of le vel - d isp lay a fu n p ersona lit y and sportsmanship. As for laRocco, I kno w he is 8 decent kid inside, having seen his roots a nd th e general kindness of his famil y. The sport at th e profess ional level, however, has gotten out of control when it takes "nice guys" and turns them into win -at-all-eosts mania cs. I join Connie in the plea for the AMA to quit ballroom dancing around these acts and sta rt leading a standard of con d uc t tha t we can be prou d of. Please don 't let me hear a professional motocrosser lower himself to the point where he says, "I am not a role model." Brian He nnessy Appl eton, WI Letkrs to th e edi ter s ho uld be se nt to VoiU'l . Cycl e Ne ws. P.O . Bo x 498, Lon g Bu c h, CA 90806-0498 or {ned to 310 /427.-6 685. Publish ed lelt en d o nol Drees ,ari l, refl ect the positio n of Cycle News, Inc. uUerl sho uld n ol exceed 200 words and ,l,I ldteB are s ub ject 10 ~iting. Ano nym ous l letters w ill not be consi de red for pub llca ti oll. All lriten s h o uld cont.ain th e writ e r' s nam e, .lddre lls .and d aytimf phone n um be-r ••• Editor. Cycle News (USPS 141-3<0) is published weeklyexcept the last two weeks of the calendar year (or 550.00per year by Cycle News Inc. 2201 Cherry Avenue Long Beach, CA 90806. . . Second class postage paid at LongBeach. CA Canada P051 InternatiorWPublicationsMail 1546615. POSTMASTER:Smd address clwtg.. 10 Cycle Newe, P.O. Box 498, LonS Buch. CA 90801~ To ddmnine the expintion cUte of your subscripti on..check the four num~n on the first line of your addreu label, TM first two digits indicate the lut issue numb1ft' you'll receive and thr bit two char.tetcrs indicate the ffU of the I~st issue. 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Ad vertising rates and circulation infonnat ion willbe sent upon request. SeeS.R.O.5. WftP.8 &~g~noN Pri n ted in U.S.A. COfyrigh" Cycle News, Inc. 1994 Trademark Cycle News . registeredUS. PatentOfficr. All rights reserved'. RIDING IMPRESSION 1994 Kawasaki Con cou rs FEATURES • ROAD RACE Edwards rolis on at Sears Point Na tional MOTOCROSS Windha m blow s through AMA Am ateu r Nati ona l MX at Loretta Lynn's.; 5 28 DEPARTMENTS .5 LEADERBOARD EVENTS 18 .30 CALENDAR .39 INTERVIEW Steve Schiebe - The man behind the Harley-Davidson VR1000 22 RESULTS PRODUCT EVALUATIONS 58 HOP-UP Breathing new life into the Kawasaki KXl25 via FMF , 26 DAY SIX .59 LOOKING BACK : 44 , : .5 9 .ON THE FRONT COVER (Top) Team Va nce & H ines Yam aha 's Co li n Ed w a rd s record ed yet a no ther Nation a l Road Race win , this time at Sea rs Po in t Raceway in Sonoma, California. It was his third win in as many even ts. (Bottom) Rich Oliver clin che d the 250cc title at Sears Poin t. Check ou t p ag e 6 for our Sea rs Poi nt co verage. Photos by Henny Ray Abrams.

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