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/128373
letters 10 the editor should be sent 10 Voices, Cycle News, PO Box 5084, Costa Mesa, CA 92628-5084; foxed 10 714·751-6685 or emailed 10 edilor@cydenews.cam. Published letters do nol necessarily reflect the position of Cycle News, Inc. letters should nol exceed 200 words, and all ore subject to editing_ Anonymous letters will not be considered for publication. All letters should contain the writer's name, address and daytime phone number... Editor. "If the AMA were using the I I O-percent rule, only 63 riders would have started the race." Burning Ben More Off-Road I hung the Captured photo of Ben Bostrom on my wall, and after looking at it awhile (and reading the caption), it wasn't so "cool" anymore. What would the hapless corner marshals, with their fire-fighting equipment locked up, have done if Ben was trapped under the bike with fuel allover him? It's time the sanctioning bodies made safety more of a priority. It was probably an expensive motorcycle as well. Terry Denemark Monticello, IA When it comes to motorcycle coverage, there is no other authority, and for this I want to thank you. Recognizing that supercross/motocross is the bread and butter of the dirt side of riding, I, like probably many others, would still like to see more coverage of the meat and potato guys who make our sport so thrilling to be involved with. That it is why I would like to see more indepth coverage, interviews, real-life stories of the guys like Ty Davis, Kurt Casselli, Lance Smail (the list goes on and on) who are grinding out a living, racing the true backbone of off-road sports. Events like WORCS out west and other events in the middle and eastern parts of this country give us wannabes hope that we might be able, if only for a short time, to have the chance to rub elbows with and even get in the way of these greats on the racecourse. In my mind, these guys are the real role models for the great sport of off-road racing. It's time they got their props with some in-depth coverage. In any case, keep up the coverage - it's what keeps this amateur's dream alive. R, Wells Lacey, WA Vesco Correction Concerning your Classic Captured article on Speed King (Don Vesco) as being the first man to break the 200-mph barrier at Bonneville, I may be wrong, but I think the first man to break the 200-mph barrier was Bill Johnson on a 6S0 Triumph tuned by Joe Dudek on August 24, 1962. And if my mind is not completely gone, I think they still hold the gas record of 230 mph. I knew Don Vesco as a friend and I feel he still is the Speed King of Bonneville, but I want to set the record straight. Don Dudek via the Internet Another Opinion I think the AMA should run five road racing classes: I) Superbike - 1000cc inline fours with Supersport tuning; 2) 600cc Supersport; 3) a Buell class with spec tires; 4) 4S0cc singles with aftermarket frames; S) an endurance class. I was wondering if the AMA still has the one-year "works" rule for the 4S0cc fourstrokes, which allowed prototype bikes to be used for one year, and if they do, why hasn't any manufacturer except Yamaha taken advantage of it? Daniel jendre Eastman, WI Johnson Fan I was very disappointed that you failed to even mention Chad Johnson in your coverage of the Daytona Supercross. In the guy's third supercross ever, in one of the toughest events, one that claimed several premier riders, he finished fourth. To me, it's pretty amazing that he's made the main in four out of four events he's run so far - and he's poised to break the top 10 in points, even after missing the first event because that conflicted with the last arenacross of the season. You did mention him the week before, but give the man his due! I think you need to do a feature on this guy - he's defintely the type of individual our sport can use. Dennis Squires Rhinelander, WI 6 The Show Goes On I was one of probably many listening to the Supercross on SX Live from Orlando when Jim Holley came on and said that Chad Reed was having troubles with his Yamaha on the starting line for the 2S0cc main. Jim said that the AMA rule is clear - that Chad would have only two minutes to get the problem corrected or the gate would drop without him. Well, as we all know now, this never occurred. Mr. Reed and Team Yamaha were given in excess of seven minutes to get the problem corrected. Is this just another case of the AMA showing favoritism for the factory riders? Let me just say that if this had been a privateer having troubles, and not a factory rider who is in the points chase, the gate would of dropped on time. I would like to tell everyone out there that the rules are the same for everyone (privateer and factory riders), but the AMA has proven time and time again that this is not the case. I have been around our great sport for many years, having been a mechanic for a rookie of the year in the mid-19BOs and later working for a 12Scc support team for both Honda and Suzuki. So I can tell you that only certain rules apply for certain people. It is a sad, sad day when the AMA can't figure out that our sport only exists because of the privateers. The AMA needs to make the purse money more respectful and treat everyone the same. Until this occurs, many pros who are over the hype of the AMA will continue APRIL 13, 2005 • CYCLE NEWS to go elsewhere so they can receive equal treatment and make a decent living. Douglas Smith Kansas City, MO There is no longer a two-minute hold rule in Supercross... Editor Percentages After all the adulation (''Abrams for President") in the letters to the editor section of Issue 12, I decided that I would definitely have to read Henny Ray Abrams' "Chicanery: A Farce" column in Issue I I. I'll have to say that I enjoyed the column immensely. Still, Mr. Abrams should do his homework rather than just taking AMA propaganda as God-given. I refer to Mr. Abrams comment that the AMA:s qualifying requirement is a "ridiculous I 10 percent." Forget what the AMA tells you, Mr. Abrams. The AMA:s qualifying requirement is I I I percent or, equivalently, I I 1/1 I = 10.1 laps to be lapped. James Kerker, number 7SI, qualified 70th for the Formula Xtreme race at Daytona. Kerker qualified by achieving I 10.74-percent of Miguel Duhamel's qualifying time. The next-fastest rider, number B3, Lance Yeager, was disallowed at 111.06 percent of Duhamel's time. (Somehow number 27, Heath A. Small, started 71 st but didn't qualify at all. Perhaps he is Scott Hollingsworth's brother-in-law.) I am appending the Daytona Formula Xtreme qualifying percentages for your curiosity, Mr Abrams. If the AMA were using the I 10-percent rule, only 63 riders would have started the race (plus Mr. Small, perhaps). If the AMA had whittled the field down to your lOB-percent recommendation, 49 bikes would have started. Vic Norton via the Internet Reply to Bernardo Jerry Bernardo makes me laugh. He actually believes that the fans who religiously folIowan AMA Pro Racing series like Supercross should give their respect to Cameron Steele because he can announce a freestyle contest? Are you serious, Jerry? We aren't watching the race to hear some loudmouth, unprofessional freestyle announcer try to add his brand of "hype" to legitimate racing. We tune in to watch the racing and hopefully listen to some competent play-by-play from the announcing crew. ESPN's choices for filling the shoes of Art Eckman, David Bailey and Davey Combs have fallen way short. I don't remember people writing into magazines bitching about those three announcers, do you? I wonder why... Mark Spare Wayland, MI Actually, we hod people writing in and complaining about the announcers back then as well... Editor