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/128383
"[Bostrom] is one of the nicest young men associated with racing that we have ever met." letters to the editor should be sent to Voices, Cr.c1e News, PO Box 508.4, Costa Meso, CA 92628-5084; faxed 10 714-751-6685 or emai ed 10 edilQl@cydenews.cam. Published leMers do not necessarily reRect the position of Cycle News, Inc. letters should nol exceed 200 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _...........-_..... words, and all ore subject to editing. Anonymous leiters will not be considered for publication. AU letters should contain the writer's name, address and daytime phone number... Editor. Pridmore's the Man On Friday afternoon, June 3, while returning from lunch in Plymouth, Wisconsin, to the Road America racetrack, my wife, Carrie, punctured her spleen in an accident riding her SV650. Before the accident, Carrie was looking forward to watching continued Mat Mladin domination (she's a huge Suzuki fan, I can't help it), and we were both looking forward to seeing the return of Jason Pridmore to racing. Jason's fast recovery from his surgery had been inspiring to us even before, but especially after, Carrie's injury. On Saturday morning, I rode from the hospital to the track to pick up our belongings from the campground and to drop off a letter to Jason. In the letter, I asked if he could send a signed poster or call Carrie at the hospital. You can imagine our surprise when he showed up at the hospital on Saturday night! Carrie was having a really bad day Saturday, and when she saw him, she smiled for the first time since Friday morning. The injury to his foot on Thursday is unfortunate, but this guy continues to impress even when he isn't on the racetrack. Jason, we wish you a quick recovery, and can't wait to see you kicking butt again. You have made both of us very happy. Thank you. Thanks also to the Michael Jordan Motorsports crew; everybody at St. Nicholas hospital in Sheboygan, Wisconsin; Deputy S. Tennessen and everyone else who offered help. Carrie is expected to be transferred out of the ICU on Tuesday, and we can't wait to be sitting on the couch at home, reading the race results in Cycle News. Kevin Thorn Caledonia, IL Wanting Better Dual Sport Offerings of niche bikes and off-highway racing bikes have never been better, but the industry is missing an important market segment - dual purpose. A dual-purpose bike should be the ultimate recreation vehicle, at home on pavement and competent on two tracks and single tracks. As a member of the Dust Devils Motorcycle Club in Reno, I see many older riders who are just starting or returning to the sport after a long layoff, and the current offerings fall short. Here are the facts. We do not race. We want fun - not technology. We come in different sizes and weights. We would rather ride than wrench. Our rides include city streets, short hops on freeway, dirt roads, single tracks, hillclimbs and sections of sand and rocks. We need bikes with license plates with enough power to keep up with traffic on the highway, but tall, heavy bikes with mega horsepower at high rpm intimi- date us in the dirt. The following specifications are offered as minimums of acceptability. Dual-purpose bikes should come from dealers with licenses plates. They should have engines and transmission ratios enabling them to pull smoothly from 5 mph to 80 mph, have allday-comfortable seats, quiet exhausts, low vibration and require minimum maintenance. They should have options of frames, seat heights and suspensions for riders of different sizes (thiS does not mean that small adults will be happy with small engines.) They should be easy to start, have good brakes and competent off-road handling tuned for riders who sit most of the time. They should have good skid plates, handguards and bars. They should go about 150 miles on a 3-gallon tank and have a ready-to-ride weight of 260 pounds or less. Imagine a Suzuki DRZ 400S that is 50 pounds lighter, has lower and more comfortable seats for those who want them and much better off-road handling. The simple truth is that most riders want to ride - not spend their time converting a racer or trying to make a so-called dual-purpose actually work in the dirt. Carl A. Adams Reno, NV On Any Sunday Fan Wanted to let Scott Rousseau know that I very much appreciate his catching the "magic" in his Archives article in the June I issue [#21] covering the reunion showing of the movie On Any Sunday in Newport Beach, California. This movie, and more importantly the spirit of it, which Bruce Brown did such a great job of capturing, has represented motorcycling at its essence so well for the generations that followed. It has been said that it was timeless, and it is. A masterpiece. Hats off to Larry Langley and the Orange County Dualies for bringing this together, and to benefit such a great cause as the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. Hats off to Bruce Brown (again), Mert lawwill, Malcolm Smith, [Gene] Romero, [David] Aldana, Uim] Rice, [Gary] Nixon, [Keith] Mashbum, the pig farmer, the prescription-glasses tosser, and all the rest of the "cast" who spoke so well for all the rest of us. We felt the magic, too. David Aldana is a settled, mature and responsible man now, and I have spoken to him on occasion. But don't let him grow too many halos. He may have not been hassled by the policeman in the movie as he came into town, but there are vehicles of various descriptions buried in salvage yards across this great country attributable to this man in his youth. Rumor has it that there is one somewhere around these east Tennessee hills. Joe Scalzo - you need to write another book. Well, to quote others from about the same generation as those honored, ')\nd the beat goes on." I've got a movie I need to go watch and a bike to prep - another Sunday is just around the corner. Cliff Cook via the Internet In Defense of E Boz I don't usually take the time to comment on the items and articles I read in Cycle News, but the recent Voices (Issue #22) has prompted me to contact you. This is in response to a letter headed "Bostrom Hype." First, shame on you for printing such drivel. I know that you want to give people an outlet to express their opinions, but this was pure derogatory trash. You must have received other more interesting letters besides this garbage. I have been an avid participant in many different forms of motorcycle racing, including road racing, and know firsthand what it takes to attain the level of expertise that even the last place finishers must have in order to participate in an AMA Superbike Series race. Can Mr. Bell say the same? Yes, I am an Eric Bostrom fan. My wife and I have been watching him race since he was around I2 or I3 years of age at Lodi Cycle Bowl and have followed his career very closely. And we have watched him learn and grow along the way. He is one of the nicest young men associated with racing that we have ever met. But, as avid fans of this sport, we admire and watch many other riders. If you truly love this sport, you have to admire and appreciate the hard work and sacrifices that each participant must deal with just to have a chance of making it to the podium. Is it hype that Eric has won Pikes Peak six times in his road-racing career? I don't think so. What it is, is a lot of hard work and determination, and a huge effort for every member of his team, with a lot of luck and some prayers thrown in for good measure. In closing, I would like to ask Mr. Bell what his experience with motorcycle racing is? Just prior to starting this letter, I did a broad search on the Web of names that I am familiar with who participate in any form of motorcycle racing. Pages upon pages were available for not only Eric, but from Mat Mladin all the way down to Eric Haugo l All riders I checked had from toomany-to-count to at least one or two pages of race results. But I came up empty with the same search for David Bell. As Mr. Bell stated in his letter - not very impressive. Bud Riddle via the Internet CYCLE NEWS • JUNE 22, 2005 5