Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Cycle News 1997 03 12

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

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ing pit service to any Kawasaki team entering the Tonopah 300 on March 28 for a fee of $180. The pit service includes all six pit stops, fuel and oil, and emergency spare wheels, or parts. For more information, call 714/770-0400, ext. 2226 or 2223, prior to March 7. .. District 36 Expert dirt tracker Gary Milewski is recovering at home after a one-week stay in the hospital. Milewski suffered a broken back while practicing on a motocross track. Race Tech will be offering its Technical Edge Suspension Seminar, conducted by owner Paul Thede, on April 11-13 in Pomona, California. The three-day course teaches state-of-the-art suspension theory and tuning techniques. The course costs $495 and there is a $50 early signup discount. For more information, contact Joe Meyers at 909/594-7755. Th.e European debut of the Yamaha YZM400F took place a week before Doug Henry made his eighth-place debut on the American version at the Gatorback National MX in Gainesville, Florida, on March 2. At the Beaucaire Oassic warmup race in France, on February 23, Sweden's Peter Johansson and Italian Andrea Bartolini competed on the red-and-white YZM400Fs. Both riders were optimistic of their chances with the bike which features a compact liquid-cooled 397cc motor with double overhead camshafts and a five-valve head mated to a fourspeed transmission in a slightly modified YZ250 frame. "The horsepower-perpound ratio is more important than the· ultima te horsepower figure:' Johansson said of the new Yamaha. "The pickup of power out of the gate is much better than on the Husqvarna I rode last year, and I think we can match the KTMs out of the gate." Bartolini said, "The bike is so easy to ride. The power is strong, but at the same time does not put the strain on your arms like the 250." Husaberg unveiled its own small-bore four-stroke at Beaucaire with a 440cc machine for former SOOcc World Champion Joel Smets to ride. "For sure I will use the 600cc bike at Lommel for the first GP:' Smets said. "But we are trying to get this bike (the 440) ready for the races on the hard tracks. The bike is much easier to turn and you can get the power on the ground more like a two-stroke." The motor, which fits in a normal 600cc Husaberg frame, has been made by mounting a 600cc top end on a 350cc bottom end with a modified '95 piston. The Husaberg Smets rode has a three-speed transmission. There is also an innovation in the Husaberg's fuel feed system, which uses a Dutch-built VHM carburetor. Chief mechanic Ludo Van der Veken said: "Whereas the needle rises in a normal carb, the needle (in the 440 Husaberg) has a falling movement." Honda's chief engineer Mr. Yamazaki has been in Europe for the last two weeks, testing in Belgium with defending 250cc MX World Champion Stefan Everts and in southern France with Jocke Karlsson. Everts says he is very satisfied both With the bike and his new team in which he is his own boss. "You won't see our fuI] image (sponsors) until the first GP in Spain:' Everts said of his new team. "We will announce our main sponsor there." Yamazaki was an interested observer at the Yamaha four-stroke launch at Beaucaire. 'We do have fourstroke projects:' Yamazaki said. "But there are no immediate .plans to race them." Honda claims to have two-stroke competition engines which can meet the stringent new California emission laws which will take effect on January 1, 1998. KTM Holding AG, the parent company of both KTM Motorcycles and Husaberg, have bought a controlling interest in White Power, the Dutch-based suspension specialists. This presumably ends any doubt as to which suspension will be fitted on the Austrian and Swedish bikes in the future, particularly as the Dutch firm has already produced its own PDS (Progressive Damping System) shock system, in which the rear shock is mounted directly onto the swinging arm withou t linkage. Kurt Nicoll and Rupert Walkner, however, will continue to use the Ohlins shock on the PDS bikes at present. 500cc World Champion Shayne King has yet to decide whether to use the PDS or conventional (linkage) rear suspension system and is currently carrying out comparison tests in New Zealand. The Kiwi will also have new internal engine modifications which are top secret and will probably remain so as there is no external evidence connected with the mods. The factory Yamahas in the 125 and 250cc classes in the World Championship MX Series will use Kayaba suspension front and rear this year. Ohlins, a division of Yamaha, will now only supply the new 500cc GP squad. Dutchman Pedro Tragter will race the 250cc GPs for Honda of Troy. The Dayton, Ohio-based dealership does a lot of mail-order business in Europe and was looking for a GP presence, thus hiring Tragter. There could be a U.S. round of the 250cc GP MX Series at Budds Creek MX Park in Budds Creek, Maryland, next year, according to the FIM's Giuseppe Luongo. He also confirmed that the 1998 series will start at Kyalarni in South Africa.. Sou them Sports Promotions has announced its five-event Gulf Coast Arenacross Series, scheduled to get under way in Gulfport, Missouri, on April 1820. The AMA-sanctioned series will include Youth, Amateur and Semi-Pro classes. For more information, call 601/255-8110. The Pomona, California-based suspension company Race Tech will sponsor Team Yamaha's Scott Russell in the 1997 World Superbike Series. Race Tech has announced that it soon will be introducing Scott Russell Signature suspension kits for various applications of Yamaha FZR and YZF motorcycles. First Place Racing, Inc., a non-profi t organization, will be holding riding schools specifically tailored for kids aged 5-11 years old who race or ride Pee Wee or 60cc bikes. The schools are designed to give younger kids undivided attention, teaching and track time away from the bigger bikes. The first class will be held in Inman, Kansas, on March 29. For more information about additional schools, registration or further details, call 417/335-3283. PACE Motor Sports, promoter of the ThorlParts Unlimited AMA Supercross Series, released the official attendance figures after the first six supercross races. of the 1997 season. In total, 312,669 fans attended those first six rounds. In comparison, last year's figure after six rounds was 297,492, marking a 15,177 improvement. LEM R&D will be at Mosier Valley GNC Finals to support LEM riders, on March 13-14. If you need parts at the race for LEM, KTM and Action motorcycles, contact Jack Cotten. For more information, call 713/472-3694. The AMA has announced that a hali-day of activity will be added to the Women and Motorcycling National Conference scheduled to open July 13 at Otterbein College, near- AM;A headquarters in Westerville, Ohio. Originally planned to close on the evening of July 15, the conference will be extended through noon, July 16, based on the high demand for activities and workshops on additional topics. Workshop topics will include marketing and product planning; women and retailing; rider education and safety; women in racing; government relations; troubleshooting and motorcycle maintenance; how to select riding apparel; how to deal with people who don't take women seriously, and outdoor riding demonstrations, weather permitting. Plans are under way to .create a video documentary of the conference. Registration for the conference. is $95 per person and includes a reception; six meals, including a banquet; 11 educational sessions, and all conference materials. Lowcost dormitory housing on the Otterbein College campus is available to registered participants. Participation, which is open to women and men, will be limited to 500 individuals. The conference will operate on a non-profit basis, donating all proceeds to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. For more information, call Tracey Powell at 614/891-2425. The AMA Board of Trustees elected a new slate of officers at its February meeting in Cincinnati. Elected as chairman was Carl Reynolds, a 19-year member of the AMA from Danville, Virginia. Reynolds was previously vice-cJlairman, and has served terms on the AMA Congress, the Finance and Property Development committees of the AMA Board, and the AMA Pro Racing Board. Reynolds replaces Paul Dean, from Hachette Fillpacchi Magazines, as chairman. Dean will serve another year as a board member, and will also replace Reynolds on the Pro Racing Board. Dal Smilie was elected as vice chairman; Patty Mills was re-elected as secretary; Lamar Williams was re-elected as treasurer; and Rick Gray was elected assistant treasurer. Corporate board members re-elected to another term were: John Hoover of Kawasaki; Mike Keefe of Harley-Davidson; Mel Harris of American Suzuki; Ray Blank of American Honda, and Williams of the American Motorcycle Institute. Rick "Super Hunky" Sieman will be holding an intensive three-day class on "moto-journalism" in Baja California, Mexico, on April 18-20. "Gasses will be limited to six people, and will concentrate on how to get in the business, how to make money right away and how to submit a package that's accepted on the first shot," Sieman says. Sieman's school is located 20 minutes south of the border in San Antonio Del Mar, and the cost for three "brutal" days of learning is $300. Subjects covered will be: how to put together tech articles; feature pieces; writing styles, techniques; short-cuts; static and action photography; and inside the industry tips. The requirements are: Students must be over 18, have basic typing skills, be at least "semi-intelligent" and be willing to suffer through three 10- to 12-hour days of concentrated learning. For more information, call Sieman at 01152-661-33480. Dirt tracker Kevin Varnes and the USC Racing team have firmed up a deal that will see the Pennsylvania rider aboard Lancaster Harley-Davidson-owned XR750s instead of Hondas during the 1997 AMA Grand National Championship racing season. The equipment will once again be prepared by 1993 Grand National Championship-winning tuner Johnny Goad. Remember that Varnes will miss Camel Motorcycle' Week as· he is still on the mend from the badly broken leg that he suffered at the 1996 Eldora Half Mile. Motocross professor Gary Bailey will release his new book - "Professor Bailey Riding Techniques Handbook with Training Calendar" - during Camel Motorcycle Week in Daytona. The book will be on sale at Daytona International . Speedway. Former World Champions Kevin Schwantz and Wayne Gardner will square off for the first time since the 1992 South African Grand Prix when they take part in an Australian Touring Car support race for the Australian Formula One car GP at Albert Park on March 8-9. 'Del Monte Ducati? Del Monte Foods Co., the nation's biggest brand name in canned fruits and vegetables, is being. purchased by Texas Pacific Group (TPG), the group which recently purchased a large portion of Ducati. Del Monte had revenues of $1.2 billion in 1996 and employs 2100 regular employees with seasonal high employment of 12,000. RESCHEDULED: Round nine of the AMA Mid-South Winter Hare Scrambles Series in Reelfoot, Tennessee. Originally to be held on March 2, the event was rained out and has been rescheduled for April 13 at the same location. RESCHEDULED: The date of the Haydenville, Ohio, round of the 1997 AMA National Championship Hillclimb Series. The event has been rescheduled to August 30. AUTOGRAPH SIGNING: At Daytona, International Speedway at the Daytona USA site, on March 8, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Yoshimura Suzuki riders Pascal Picotte, Aaron Yates and Larry Pegram are scheduled to appear. OPEN HOUSE: CJ:311e Cams will hold its annual "Bike Week Open House" on Friday, March 7, from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., at its facility at 530 Fentress Blvd., Daytona Beach, Florida. The open house will feature a free barbecue lunch, plant facility tours, race team autograph signings' and more. For more information, contact Crane Cams at 904/252-1151. OPENED: San Diego Flat Track Association's home page on the Word Wide Web. The site can be found at the following address: http://www.flattrack.com. AUTOGRAPH SIGNING: At Houston Yamaha Motorsports in Houston, Texas, on Friday, March 21, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Team Yamaha riders Doug Henry, Kevin Windham, Ezra Lusk and Jolm Dowd are scheduled to appear. For more information, call 281/890-2020. AUTOGRAPH SIGNING: At Southmetro Motorsports, in Burnsville, Minnesota, on Friday, March 14, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Team Yamaha's Ezra Lusk, John Dowd, Doug Henry and Kevin Windham are sched,uled to appear. For more information, call 612/882-1020. DI r:---.. 0\ ~

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