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/127977
In the Wind Stevens calls it g_ul_·ts _ _ F ormer AMA Superbike National Champion Thomas Stevens announced his retirement from the sport on Monday, January 18. "I've been racing professionally since 1988," Stevens said. "It's time for me to move on. There were no superbike rides available, and to do anything else wouldn't excite me. I've achieved the goals I set out to achieve and I've had eight great years of superbike racing. I .wanted to retire at the top of my game and I didn't just want to keep holding on. It's tough to leave this sport and it'sbeen a tough decision for me, but it's time for me to make that decision." Thomas Stevens en route to winning the AMA Stevens, who will turn 35 in Septem- Superbike crown in 1991 on his Vance & ber, burst onto the AMA road racing Hines Yamaha. scene when he beat Dou& Polen in the 600cc Supersport final at Road Atlanta in 1987. In 1998 and 1989, he rode in the AMA 250cc Grand Prix class for Kenny Roberts, finishing second and fifth in the series in those two years. In 1990, Stevens was named the AMA Superbike Rookie of the Year for finishing fourth in the series point standings on his 'Vance & Hines Yamaha. In 1991, Stevens won the Superbike National Championship on the Vance & Hines Yamaha. The following season saw Stevens switch to the Muzzy Kawasaki squad, and he ended the series as the second-ranked rider behind Scott Russell. For the 1993, '94 and '95 seasons, Stevens raced for Yoshimura Suzuki, finishing eighth, ninth and 10th, respectively, in those years. In 1996, he raced in the 600cc Supersport class for Kinko's Kawasaki and ended the series in second place behind champion Miguel DuHamel. In 1997 and 1998, Stevens was reunited with team owner Terry Vance on the Vallee & Hines Ducati team. He finished 14th in his abbreviated '97 campaign and ended 1998 ranked 13th in the AMA Superbike National Championship. In his retirement, Stevens said he will concentrate on running his Florida-based trucking company and will also do some work for Speedvision. He did leave an opening for a return to racing, however, when he stated, "If a superbike ride opens up, I will come back and ride for a team." Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, California, will feature a new course layou t, according to Glen Helen. The new course will run out in the hills behind Glen Helen, adding asphalt and anotller 2.5 miles of riding. For more information, call 909/880-3090. The second round of the Sunstar CMC Golden State Motocross Nationals was held on January 16 at Competition Park in San Jacinto, California. Justin Buckelew (Yam) recorded his first-ever Proclass win in the 125cc Pro division, sweeping both motos. Nick Wey (Kaw) finished second, followed by Jimmy Varis (Suz). In 250cc Pro action, Wey took the win over Ted Campbell (Suz) and Billy Joe Mercier (Yam). Former T~am Green off-roader Paul Krause has signed a deal with Montclair Yamaha for 1999. The multi-time Baja 500 and 1000 winner wjl1 con.test the National Hare & Hound series, the Best in the Desert Silver State Series, selected National Reliability Trials, and the District 37 Desert Racing series aboard YZ400s. In addition, the Krause box van will serve as an FMF support truck at all events the new Yamaha pilot attends. .Longtime dirt track racing supporter David Manko, 59, died of a heart attack at his home in Hayden Lake, Idallo, on January 13. Manko formed LOPKO Racing with Denny Lopp several years ago and sponsored the likes of Joe Kopp, Dan Stanley, Don Wilson, Greg Triber, Steve Aseltine, Mickey Fay and Rex Fisher. Memorial contributions can be made to the Clayton Foundation at 35.05-M Cadillac Ave., Costa Mesa, CA 92626. 2 To celebrate the 20th anniversary of his first of two victories in. ti,e Daytona 200, the Yamaha TZ750 ridden. by the late Dale Singleton will be put on display in the Daytona USA building on Febmary 26. The display will feature the bike and a mallllequin dressed in Singleton's leathers, boots, helmet, gloves and his two Daytona 200 trophies. Singleton won the Daytona 200 in 1979 and 1981. Moto Radio has an.nounced that it has reached an agreement with the National Promoters Group to supply local radio broadcast services for each of the 12 rounds of the AMA/Mazda Truck National Motocross Series. The format will include live race coverage, in terviews, news, entertainment features and music. For more in.formation, see Moto Radio's horne page on the World Wide Web at http://www.mbtoradio.com. Rick Berg of Apple Valley, California, is the gra nd-prize winner in the Cycle News/TravelCraft Daytona Sweepstakes. Berg will receive the TravelCraft Bike Week travel package and tickets to all the major events taking place in Daytona Beach, Florida, during Bike Week '99. Scott ScJ;mettler takes home the second-place prize of two Arai Regent helmets and a one-year subscription to Cycle News; Cody Lewis earned the third-place prize of an Aerostitch Darien Jacket and Pant set and a one-year subscription. The Gary Bailey MX School will visit Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada, for the first time, in a session scheduled for January 29-Febru-. ary 1. For more information, call 540/650-1759. Worfd Sport Imports, formerly run by ro·ad racer Rodney Fee, is now under the ownership of Ben Solis and James Siddal. World Sports now has HRC parts in stock for RS125 and RS250 road raoers, plus a selection ot' new and used race bikes. For more informa tion, call 323 / 466-8680. New York's Department of Motor Vehicles has announced the availability of custom license plates for members of the Harley Owners Group (HOG) - tile first custom plate any state has offered for use on motorcycles as well as other passenger and commercial vehicles. "The colorful new license plate gives Harley-Davidson motorcycle owners a new way to show pride in their bikes, and their membership is one of the most well-known motorcycle groups in the country:' DMV commissioner Richard E. Jackson Jr. said. "This new license plate also breaks new ground in the motorcycle world, offering riders a firstever chance to display a custom license plate." The HOG plates feature the fullcolor HOG insignia, and the line at the bottom of the tag reads: "Harley Owners Group." The plates are available for $38, with a renewal rate of $30 - in addition to the normal registration fees billed yearly. Italian road racer Marcellino Lucchi, the 41-year-old win.ner of the 1998 250cc Italian Grand Prix, has come to terms with the Docshop Racing Aprilia team . and will finally have the opportunity to compete in a full season of GP racing. Lucchi, however, will also continue in his role as the factory Aprilia test rider. Lake Elsinore Championship Motocross (LECM) broke ground on its proposed motocross and training facility in Lake Elsinore, California, on January 15 and is hoping for an opening on January 24. The Karl Scanlan-built tracks are currently being constructed on 95 acres and will include three outdoors.tyle tracks, a supercross track and a pee wee track. Practices are scheduled for Tuesday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to dusk, and night sessions are scheduled to begin some three weeks after the initial opening of the facility. For more information, call 909/544-3671. So Cal Racing Concepts has entered into a joint venture with ake Elsinore Championship Motocross to build and maintain a world-class motocross training center that will cater to both beginners and professionals. Mike Fedornow will hand Ie all promotions, with former Team Honda rider Jim Gibson slated to run the training center. For more information, call 909/544-3585. Off-road vehicle public hearings have been scheduled for Massachusetts for February 16-18. The meeting on February 16 will be held at Fall River Heritage State Park in Fall River, the meeting on the 17th is scheduled for Taconic High School in Pittsfield, and the Febmary 18 meeting will be held at Lawrence Heritage State Park in Lawrence. All three. meetings will begin at 7 p.m. There's a good chance that former factory Honda road racer and dirt tracker Jeff Haney will be working with Miguel DuHamel to help get the injured road racer back to full fitness prior to Daytona. Haney, who has been a trainer to such riders as Kevin Schwantz, Bubba Shobert and Scott Russell, consulted with DuHamel at the recent Laguna Seca Raceway test and. took DuHamel to the Gold's Gym in Monterey that he co-owns with baseball Hall of Farner Reggie Jackson. CORRECTION: Round four of the GFI Series will be held at Perris Raceway in Perris, California, on February 7; round five will take place at Competition Park in San Jacinto, California, on February 21; and the North-South Showdown will be held at Glen Helen in San Bernardino, California, on March 21. ' OPENED: Lost Coast Motorcycle Expedition's home page on the World Wide Web. The site can be found at the following address: http://www. lostcoastmotorcycle.com. HIRED: Dale Spangler, as motocross promotions manager for Smith Sport Optics, effective February 1. Spangler formerly worked for Alpinestars. BORN: Allison Nicole Moore, on January 11 in Lancaster, California, to District 37 racer and president of Boyz MC, Mark Moore, and his wife, Kirstin. RESCHEDULED: Round two of the CMC Northern California round at Hollister Hills, to Saturday, January 30 at Hollister Hills. Open practice will be held on Friday, January 29. For more information, call Motowest Racing at 415/578-8578. OPENED: Montclair Yamaha 1-877TY-DAVIS' home page on the World Wide Web. The site can be found at the following address: http:/ / www.montclairyamaha.com. HIRED: Pat Dun.n, as general manager of Barnett Tool & Engineering, effective inunediately. OPENED: Barnett Tool & Engineering's new facility in Ventura, California. The new address is as follows: 2238 Palma Dr., Ven·tura, CA 93003-5733. AUTOGRAPH SIGNING: At Renton Moto.rcycle Co., in Ren ton, Washington, on January 29 from 7 to 8 p.m. Team Kawasaki's Jeff Emig, Ricky Carmichael and Damon Huffman and Team SplitFire's Billy Payne, Nathan Ramsey and Scott Sheak are scheduled to appear. For more information, call 425/226-4320. AUTOGRAPH SIGNING: At Town & Country Motorsports in Chandler, Arizona, on January 22 from 6 to 7 p.m. Team Suzuki's motocross squad is scheduled to appear. For more in.formation, call 602/539-2431: AUTOGRAPH SIGNING: At Aurora Suzuki in Seattle, Washington, on January 30 from 6 to 7 p.m. Team Suzuki's motocross team is sched uled to appear. For more information, call 206/783-2323. MOVED: Carbon Tech, to 7925 Butte Ave., Sacramento, CA 95826, 800/7764089,916/387-5482 (fax). MOVED: Beach House Engineering Inc., to 1625 50th Avenue Drive East, Bradenton, FL, 34264 (shipping only); P.O. Box 79, Oneca, FL, 34264 (mailing); 800/760-1151 (order), 941/727-4488 (info), 941/727-4499 (fax). OPENED: Aerostitch Rider Wear's home page on the World Wide Web. The site can be found at the folloWing address: http://www.aerostitch.com. CORRECTION: The South City Motorcycles' home page address on the World Wide Web is as follows: http://home.mho.net/sccyles. STOLEN: A 1997 KTM 250SX from the back of racer Sean Fries' pickup truck during the CMC Golden State Series in Marysville, California, on January 10. The. KTM's VIN number is VBKMXJ200VM31332, For more information, Fries can be reached at his eeN mail address: friessea@otn.net.