Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

The victorious American riders and crew gather for a group shot. They produced some of the finest-ever U.S. MX history. 14 forwa rd, bu t still got out OK ." " T he rea r tir e wen t fla t a nd I just Back in the Honda pits O 'M ar a sta rt ed dropping back. We would held a n ice pack on hi s hand whi le have been 1-2-3 if I hadn ' t had th a t th e o the r riders went off to th e show flat ," Gibson ex p lai ned . At th e halfway mark Vromans took ers to cool down . It was exp ected tha t th e rac e would be this close because, the lead for th e first time with " M agoo" still holding second and lik e the Belgians , onl y Chand ler Baileymoving Lacquayeout ofthird. among the Americans was a 500cc O 'Mara passed Gibson on their trips class rider. O 'Mara hadn't ridden one in opposite directions and was up to for a year and Gibson rides th e 125cc eighth. Chandler was playing a wait" class while Bailey is a 250cc rider. ing game and reading the pit signals "He must have liked the 500 r" being sent by team manager Dave Brian Lunnis, who was maintaining Arnold. Bailey's bike said, "Because he burned "I didn 't want him to push me, " up a clutch on it in practice." Chandler stated, " I knew he was The second mota start was disascoming and I let him by. I didn 't trous for the leading Belgian team want to wear myself out." and a shot in the arm for the AmeriAlthough they passed and re-passed cans. Once again Chandler flew into the lead, this time with Lacquaye, each other, Vromans only led th e G errit Wolsink , Bailey, Gibson , ninth lap on the score sheets. With Jeremy Whatley, Italy's Franco Picco their third best score being Everts and Massimo Contini in to w. Vroaround 20th th e team was without mans was ninth, O 'Mara twelfth , hope. Jobe had pulled out earlier Jobe Zl st , and Everts away dead last after th e most co urageo us ride of th e after crash in g at the backof the dusty da Y.i stopped when finall y I couldn 't pack . Things looked good for the move my foot to shift," he said. "But USA . I had to tr y to ride the second moto G ibson moved quickly into third for the team. My season is finished." with Bailey fourth making Lacquaye " Ma goo" took the lead for good feel surrounded by the red CR480 soon after th e halfway mark with Hondas. Vromans was fifth , but with Bailey third and O'Mara seventh. J abe and Everts well back the Belgians were in trouble. The Brits weren't • • Britain was five and six, but their faringso well either with Neil Hudth ird man was just inside the top 20. son in 16th and Thorpe in tenth. " I made my move at the halfway Only catastrophe could stop the mark to pick up my pace. All of a Americans from a certain victory, but sudden they told me to get him," said it almost struck at the .ten -rnin u te Chandler. " I was wearing him out for..Day,·d. "•. ,~~ ",..... mar·k.· ~ - - - - - • • - - - - -. 1 And wear him out he d id with Ba iley ta ki ng over second three laps from the end with Vromans holding onto third ah ead of a surprising Lacqua ye. an d it was O 'Mara who was smiling despite- the obvious pain. After th e cerem o ny he got th e ride of his lif e when th e unpredictable Chandler ga ve him a piggyback ride ba ck to th e pi ts. " We couldn 't win. We only had two finishers. George was hurt and , Harry crashed and hurt his hand," said Jobe. Everts ' was riding with a hand that had to be numbed by injection before the race and once the painkiller wore off it was a cho re just to hold onto the handlebars . Chandler lifted the front wheel as he crossed the finish line and rode right into the history books. Bailey wa s second and O'Mara finished a pa inful da y in seventh. " I crush ed my big toe on the last , lap," O 'Mara explained as th e toe swe lled up. " It ma y be broken." He had to be ca rried from th e p are ferm e back to th e pits where ISDE team doctor " Doc" Ma yer gave it a look. " We won th e 250 (T ro p hee des Nations ) ten times in a row and in that time won th e 500 (Mo tocro ss des J Nations ) four tim es," Honda's Roger DeCoster said, in response to a ques; tion of the.dominance of the earlier) Belgian teams. " But there are threei! new riders this yea r so next year they'll be strong again ." " I wa s very impressed wi th th ese ri ders," Bai ley sta ted. "They dese rve a lot o f credi t. You had to us e yo ur head o u t th ere. It was rough , but the re were good lines if yo u were th in kin g." The podium ceremon y, like th e previ ous four motos, belonged to Chandler. He sp rayed his and every o ne else' s cha m pa gn e on a ny thi n g in sig h t, emptying a t least four bottl es in th e process. The team representing Am erica had only one me m ber of th e pre\1ipJJs y.~a '~CPSl 91.r:! ·on h ill .teams The most common question ask ed by journalists was when the Ameri cans would come to race in Europe. Gibson was noncommittal, although it is rumored that he'll contest the 125's, in 1983, for .Yamaha, Bailey said he 's waiting least a year as did O'Mara, and Chandler will remain in the States, for the time bei ng, also. But with the way that they dominate it's a sure bet the rest of the world is just as happy that they stay away. • Results - 1st M OTO: 1. Danny Chand ler (Hon); 2. A ndre -Vrom ans (Suz); 3 . David Thorpe (Kaw); 4 . David Bailey (Hon); 5. Harry Everts (Suz); 6. Jean-Cla ude lacq uave (Hon); 7. Jere my Wha tl ey ISuzl; 8. Neil Hud son (Yam); 9. Jim Gibson (Hon) : 10 .' Heinz Kinigadn er (Yam), 2nd M OTO: 1. Danny Chandler (Hon); 2. David Bailey (Hon); 3. Andre Vrom ans (Suz); 4 . JeanClaude Lacquay e (Hon ); 5, Neil Hudson (Yam); 6 . Heinz Kinigadner (Yaml ; 7 . Jo hnny O'Mara (Hon); 8. Kees van der ven (KTM); 9. Je remy Wha tley (Suz); 10. Franco Picco (Yam), OVERALL TEAMS : 1. U.S.A. (24); 2. Belgium (40); 3. England (5 1); 4 . Italy (86); 5, Austria (10 1); 6. Holl and 110 2); . . Fral\l=e (1 07);~. Sw:'~en . j 7

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