Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

.. J ',:' - bike Series are as follows: September 9 Assert, Holland; September 25 - Mugel10, Italy; October 2 - Jerez, Spain; October 30 - Phillip Island, Australia. A plan to protect California's Off-H ighway Vehicle (OHV) Fund from further budgetary ra ids has been passed b y both house of the state legislature and is now awaiting the signatu re of Governor Pe te Wilson, according' to the AMA . The OHV fund, popularly known as the Green Sticker Fund in tend ed to su p port motorized recreation opportunities in the state. It is funded by money collected in gasoline taxes and reg istration fees from more than one-half million off-highway vehicles in the state. Since 1982, the Californian Legis lature has diverted more than $50 million of that money for use in offsetting deficits in programs unrela te d to OHV recreation, the AMA says. Asse mbly Bill 3717 would establish a trust fund to protect the Gr een Sticker dollars from further diversions . The bill was introduced at the request of the Ca li fornia Off-Road Vehicle Association (CORVA), the Californ ia Association of Four-Wheel Drive Clubs, AMA D-36 and D-37 .a n d the AMA national o ffice . AB 3717 has passed both the Senate and the Assembly and now needs only the governor's signature to become law. Edmondson announces new road race series To kick off the GFI Fall Series, promoter Goat Breker has lowered the gate fee to $1 for the Sunday, September 11 GFI Fall Series warm-up race. In addition, GFI has modified its SOcc program for the fall se ries and 50s will no w ride the ma in track in either the 7-8 Stock or 4-6 Stock class. Also, GFI will race on October 16 at Hungry Valley in Gorman, California. For more information call 909/ 371-3434. ha mpionship Cup Series president Roger Edmondson will run his own superbike road racing series in 1995, titled the North American Superbike Series, with the first round scheduled to run at Daytona International Speed wa y on March 5, 1995 - just one week prior to the Daytona 200. The superbike class - wh ich will be run in a two- leg format much like the World . Superbike Series - will be the featured event in a series established by a new racing organization being put together by Edmondson and former AMA marketing and public relations manager Pat Murphy. Although it was originally thought that Edmondson, 52, who has served as the AMA's road racing manager, had inked what was effectively a buy-out deal with the AMA, that apparently isn't the case. "There is no agreement with the AMA," Edmondson said on Tuesd ay, September 6. "There was an agreement, but now there is no deal- that's only changed in the last few da ys." Edmondson's contract with the AMA runs through the final round of the 1994 AMA U.S. Superbike National Championship rou nd at Road Atlanta on September 18, a race Edmondson is also co-promoting. In addition to the North American Superbike Series, Ed mondson plans to run 600cc SuperSport, Open SuperSport and TwinSports at his races, beginning with the March 5 race at Daytona and ending in October at the same facility. Edmondson is confident of having four or more races in the series, but says the new series will be run independ ently of his Championship Cup Series races which will continue to run throughout the country in 1995. Edmondson did say , however, that the CCS races will be run as a support program at the two Daytona events. • "Absolutely," Edmondson answered when asked if CCS would continue. "The only th ing that will be different is tha t we will no longer require an AMA membership card." The announcement of the North American Superbike Series comes hot on the heels of the formation of American/International Racing, a sanctioning bod y formedby the . three supercross promoters, and also the news that the AMA has formed Paradarna, a for-p rofit organization that will allow the AMA to promote events rather than just sanction them. . . "We feel that the team s and sp onsors will find that what we have to offer will be attractive to them," Edm ondson said. "We are in daily contact with AIR - they are do ing in superc ross wha t we are do ing in road racing," Edmondson said wh en asked if he'd spoken to AIR. "There is one difference - they are the supe rcross promoters. We are organizers. We've always ha d to rely on our promoters and we 're still looking to that marketp lace, althoug h we're not ru ling out the rental of facilities to run our own races." . Smokin' Joe's Racing team own er Martin Ad ams said that his team would consider racing in a second series, but only if it were a profitable venture: " If it was going racing just for the sake of going racing, I would say no," Ad ams said. "If it were something tha t mad e sense long-term, I'd say yes. There would have to be some kind of profit for the teams or at least a substantial expense reduction incentive." Edmondson said he and Murp hy are curren tly wo rking on marketing and promotiona l pr ograms, including a televison package, for the new ser ies. "Right now there are more ques tions than we have answers," Edm ondson said. When queried on the sub ject of Edmondson's new series , AMA vice preside nt of sports marke ting Tom Mueller said: "We' d hea rd that Roger had met wit h the AMRT (America n Motorcycle Racing Teams) folks at Sears Point, but it was all pretty ambiguous . What I've heard toda y solid ified the inform a tion we'd heard in the field. "We 're going to run our p rogram as planned and we have a promoters' meeting scheduled for September 22. Our road racing plan is in place. Last week we had a conference call with Larry Balewski (the d irector of public relations for Daytona Intern ational Speedway) and Jim France (p reside nt of the International Speedway Corporation). It was a grea t meeting and we got together on every important issue rega rdin g our Speed Week sched ule. It was a grea t conve rsation'." As far as the issue of Edmondso n's contract, Mueller said: "We had a deal on the table. Roger refuse d a couple of the deals, and the AMA has now remov ed its offer from the table as of the August 26 board meeting ." C Cycle News will again sp onsor California Trail Rides' Fifth Annual Cycle News Dual Sport Jamboree on Sunday, October 2. Cycle News will se rve up a free chili feast at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 1 with the ride taking place on Sunday, Oc tober 2. The event will be held in the East FIat area of Barton Flats in the San Bernadino National Forest. For more information call 714/992-9291. AUT OGRAPH SIGNING: At Roswell Fun Machines in Roswell, Georgia, on September 16 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Vance & Hines Yamaha 's Colin Edwards II and Jamie James are schedul ed to appear. For more inform a tion _ call 404/ 442-8460 . CORRECTI ON: An advertisement in last week's issue incorrect1y claimed that the September 18 Pro Hillcl imb in Goshen, Indiana was a District 15 pointspaying event. This is not the case. D Albertyn crowned,si9ns with American Suzuki A lth ough officials at Suzuki wo n't confi rm or deny it, reliable sou rces say that Sou th African Greg Albertyn (rig h t) has signed a two-year deal with Ame rica n Suzuki to campaign the 1995 and '96 AMA 250cc Na tional Champ ionshi p MX and Supercross Series. Word also has it tha t fivetime 500cc MX World Champi on Roger DeCoster . will be joinin g Albertyn on the Suzuki sq ua d. Although it is not clear wha t title DeCoster woul d hold, his position will most likely be simila r to his "consultant" job with Team Hond a a few years ago. Albertyn celebrated the move by sewing up his second -straigh t 250cc World Championship with a fourth -overall finish at the series finale in Gaildorf, Germ any, September 4. Brit Kurt Nicoll scored the overall win via 2-2 mo to scores, whi le French sensation Yves Demaria went 5-1 fo r second . Former champ Stefan Everts, the series runner-up , finished third with 1-6 moto placings. Albertyn will be joined on Suzu ki by 12Scc Eastern Regional Supercross Champion Ezra Lusk and Western Regional cham p Damon Huffman , though it is unlikely that Brian Swink, Jimmy Button or Phil Lawrence will be re-signed. r---------------- - - - ---------------------------------------------, (I1ill ~ SUBSCRIPTION ORDER FORM •.SUbscribe Now Name _ Address City _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ State _ _ Zip Order Date _ Please start my subscription to Cycle News: o Every week fo r one year (50 issues) for $35.00 (can be billed 3 monthly payments) o Every week for two yea rs (100 issues) for $65.00 o Six months second class (25 issues) for $18.00 One yea r (50 issues), 2nd class Canada or Mexico an d all other foreign countries 2 L. ~:~(~:.~~):":~~~s..:~ ::r:a~r::a:::.a:~e.:p.:n.:e~:t~ ~ _ and SaVe! o This is a 0 New Subscription SUbscription increase o Renewal effective OctOber 1. o Please bill me o Bill 3 payments of $11.67 o Enclosed is my check or money order Charge my 0 Visa 0 Mastercard Signature MC/Visa# _ Expiration Date ~ ~, Send to: Inc. 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