Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

this excuses the two mistakes the reviewer noted, but perhaps the errors are somewhat mitigated by the sheer volume of material reviewed. For the convenience of your readers, I hope you can repeat how to obtain both A merican Racing M otorcycles by Hatfield. and American Racer by Wright. A.merican Racing Motorcycles is a.vaIlab1e from Motorcycle Specialties Co., P.O. Box 1I80, Artesia. CA 90701 ($22.95 plus 2 shipping. California residents add 6\2% sales tax). and from Motorsport, 6115 Gravois, St. Louis, MO 631I6 ($22.95 plus I postage and handling). A merican Racers is available from Megden Publishing Co., P.O. Box 217. Huntington Beach, CA 92648, $.22.95 plus $2.50 postage and handhng. California residents add 6\2% sales tax. JERRY H. HATFIELD Lancaster, CA I I . WIST America's weekly motorcycle newspaper Sharon Clayton. Publisher Caroline Gendry. Executive Secretary to the Publisher Lisa Schorr. Advertising/Editorial Assistant. Editorial Dale Br~wn. Senior Editor. Lance Bryson. Editor. Karel Kramer. Editor. Jim Bowman. Editor. . Thanks to... I would like to thank the following companies for providing the best products and allowing me to win the A~A D-37 250cc Enduro ChampionShIp for the third consecutive year: Maico West, KRW Helmets, ND Spark Plugs, Spectro Oils,'SuperSeer Goggles :'lnd Terrycable. The h~lp you proVided was greatly appreciated. I would also like to thank my wife Becky, for her understanding and encouragement. GARNER PALENSKE Long Beach, CA Advertising Skip Johnson. National Sales Manager. Terry Pratt. Sales Manager. Duane Johnson. Sales Ma.nager. Steve Wilson. Sales Manager. Linda Brown Advervising Coordinator. Nancy Danger Advertising Assistant. • Graphics and Production Kristin Cooper. Graphic Artist. Rona Kramer. Assistant. Marion Hatashita Typography. Dennis Greene. Labor: atory. Accounting/Data Processing Mike Klinger. ~troller. Donna BryalJ. Accounts Receivable Coordinator. Geneva Repass. Assistant. Terry Dailey emiit Manager. • Circulation Rheba Smith. Manager. Michelle Hanna. Sarah Taylor. Debbie Walker Lyna Hood. Assistants. • Want Ads Gayle Wheeler. Wani Ad Sales. Dealer Sales and Service Nancy Emde Brogger. Dealer Sales Manager. Service and Support Chris Aiteheson. Receptionist, Gregory Hanson. S&:S. West 2201 Cherry Ave.• Long Beach. CA P.O. Box 498. Long Beach CA 908010498 • (215) 427-7455; L.A. Line 636-8844. East 4190 First Ave.• Tucker. GA. P.O. Box 805. Tucker, GA 50084-0805. (404) 954-7850. Cycl~ NewslWest (USPS 141-540) is pubbshed weekly except the first and last week of the calendar year for $20 per year by Cycle News, Inc.• 2201 Cherry Avenue. Long Beach. CA 90806. Second class postage (l3id at Long Beach CA POSTMASTER: Send fonn 3679 Cycle News. P.O. Box 498. Long Buc:h. CA 90801 -0488. Subscription rates: One year second cla~s mail, $20; two years. sec~d class mali. $35; three years. second class mail, $55; 25 weeks. $11. Foreign rates available on request. Cycle News welcomes unsolicited editorial material including stories. cartoons. photos. etc. Such material if published. becomes the exclusive p~p ~ty ~f Cy<;le News. Such accepted mate~Ialls subject to revision as is necessary In the sole discretion of Cycle News. Unsolicited material which is not used will be returned if accompanied by a self a~~ s~ped envelope. All unsohclted material will be handled with reasonable care. however. Cycle News assumes no responsibility for the safety. loss or damage to such material. Repr~nt.ing in whole or part only by perm1sslon~ the ~ubli.sher. Advertising rates and orculauon mformation will be sent ul:; request. See S.R.D.S. Copyrig Cycle News. Inc. 1982. Trademerk Cycle News regiatered U.S. P.-nt OffIce. AI rights..-wd. to ON THE FRONT PAGE: Daw Hollis. Trans-USA Champ and now factory KTM rider speaks on page 6. Photo by Mark Kariya. - Ride sharing What I am about to do is not new (coast to coast trip) but why and how I am planning this trip may be of some interest. I am calling this "a motorcycle fun and safety trip." I am not asking any rider or riders to go the full distance (L.A. to Boston and back) with me unless they so choose. My purpos~ for making such a trip are these: Fust of all, I am getting tired of being pushed from lane to lane by some of the four wheelers. Now I know that I cannot change this, but that does not mean that I cannot try. I am only asking of those who wish to make this trip with me to ride at I east. a mile with me. I do not expect all nders to come to L.A. to start this t rip but to meet me on the road. My route numbers are (to Boston) N-405 to E:-IO to N-15 to E-70 to N-79 to E-80 to N-95 into Boston. The return t rip will be S-95 to W-80 to S-81 to W-40 and onto S-15 and home. It'~ going to be a nice trip, and I am I ooki~g forward to meeting a lot of new ~lends. I on.ly know "one" thing. Barnng anythmg unfortunate to eith~r myself o~ any member of my famIly, there wIll be one biker maki ng this trip. Me. But that does not mean that I cannot hope. I am hopi ng for a convoy of 5-10,000 to ride at I east a I!lile with m~. I am placing a p oster 10 all the bIke shops in the L.A. area that I can, but I cannot . reach. across the country. By planning for this trip now, this will give. the riders who wish to ride mor~ than a mile. the opportunity of p utung away a httle money for this - tr ip. I am looking foward to hearing fr om you. Until then, safe driving a nd riding to all. I PAUL M. COTE 2900 Sunset Place Apt. #105 Los Angeles, CA 90005 213/384-3495 R eview review I. was generally pleased with the. re VIew of my book! Ame!ican Racing M o~orcycles pubhshed 10 your' Nov. 17 !ssue. It was gratifying that the re VIewer called the book "a valuable contribution," a "welcome addition t? any !?ngtime racing enthusiast's hbrary, and' a must for those who think our grand sport Was born yesterday." The reviewer evidently read the book very thoroughly in order to. catch ".lY, mIstake on the timing of ~red NIX s death in 1969. Doubtless it took less diligence to note m; misspelling of Loudon! However, the reviewer is wrong on o~e o!.his .. ~orrections.'· Mr. Mangus saId, HatfIeld repeats an oft printed error by stat~ng only six pushrod OHV ExcelSIOrs were built. Most Excelsior enthusiasts know of 15 existing bikes....... The only OHV Excelsiors to which I refer on page 43 of my book were built around 1916. To the. best of I!ly k~owledge, only one photo of thIS senes has survived the era, that being the photo on page 106 ?fStephen Wright's great book A merlcan Racer. The number "six" was furnished to Steve by the late Floyd Clymer, who at one time owned four of these machines which he converted to dirt trackers by removing one of the cylinders. It is doubtful whether most Excelsior "experts" have even heard of the circa 1916 bikes, unless they have read Wright's book for th~se ma~hines represented a 'very bne~ project _which Excelsior engineenng abandoned to pursue development of their overhead cam'design. ~s for the 15 bikes referred to by the reVIewer, I believe these are the 15 OHV h.illclimbers built in 1929, and I men tlon these 15 motorcycles on page 49 of American Racing Motorcycles. Any brief discussion with l?ngtime Excelsior fans on the ExcellOr overhead valve jobs would naturally call to their mind the memory of the famous 1929 hillclimbers, rather than the obscure 1916 board trackers. I w

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