L
ooking back on the history
of professional motorcycle
racing in America, the 1971
season stands out for many
reasons. At that very moment,
motorcycling, like the country
itself, was going through major
upheavals and transitions. Old
traditions and ways of doing
things were being questioned on
a grand scale. That year would
produce new forms of technology
and geopolitical maneuvers that
would have effects that continue
to influence the world to this day.
1971 marked a turning point in
the Vietnam war. The Pentagon
Papers were published, show-
ing that the American public was
lied to about the war. The largest
ever anti-war demonstration took
place in Washington D.C. in April,
with a half-million participants,
showing America's tolerance for
the war was growing thin. Ping-
Pong diplomacy opened relations
between China and the U.S.
Soon after that, the United States
eased trade and travel restric-
tions with China. The world's first
microprocessor was released by
Intel, which helped usher in the
age of computers. And the first
e-mail was also sent in 1971.
Similar turning points were
happening in American motor-
cycle racing. For decades AMA
Grand National racing ruled the
roost, to the point that there really
was only one recognized Ameri-
can motorcycle racing cham-
pion at that time, and it was the
rider who won the AMA Grand
National Championship. But
now, motocross was sweeping
America through the Trans-AMA
and Inter-AMA Championships,
which brought many of Europe's
motocross stars to compete with
Americans. In 1971 things were
still developing in American mo-
tocross. U.S. Champions were
crowned, but they were simply
the top scoring Americans in the
Trans-AMA and Inter-AMA Series
and normally well down the list
in the overall rankings. That, too,
was about to change a year later
when the AMA launched its own
National Motocross Champion-
ship.
P126
WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE:
BY LARRY LAWRENCE
CN
III ARCHIVES
Dick Mann was 37 in 1971, but he was
still very competitive, especially on
the road course. He won that year's
AMA Grand National Championship.
THE 1971
AMA
NATIONAL
ROAD RACE
SEASON
