Cycle News

VOL. 51 ISSUE 15 APRIL 15, 2014 P131 not uncommon for WERA, AFM and CCS races of the day to have 70 or 80 riders in a single class. It almost sounds insane these days to think about that many riders launching from a starting grid. One of the reasons for record participation was demographics. The largest generation in American history - the Baby Boomers - came of age in the 1980s and motorcycles and racing were still rela- tively cheap. And the production bikes of that era finally began to be track worthy starting with semi- nal machines like Yamaha's RZ350, the Kawasaki GPz550, Honda's 600 Hurricane and of course the most popular of all, the Suzuki GSXR series. Former AMA Superbike rider Doug Gere echoed the sentiments of many riders on the 1980s Face- book page when he said: "I think it is both [the Boomers looking back and the champions of the era]. We are at the age where we are nostalgic about that time in our lives. Also, this was the era of tremendous growth in road racing. With the move to Superbikes and the substantial technological gains the factories put into production bikes [think CB vs Interceptor] it truly was a magical time. And affordable!" Maybe the very fact that big salaries and a dearth of factory rides was a reason the top tal- ent in America was forced to move to GP, and to a lesser extent World Superbike, if they wanted to make a decent living in the sport. Contrast that to the '90s when the money was so good here that riders might actually have had to take a pay cut to race on the world stage. That's a point made by another 1980s-era racer Mark Homchick. "The talent that was active in that time period: Roberts, Spencer, Lawson, Mamola, Rainey, Bald- win, Schwantz… They all went on to compete suc- cessfully on the world stage and in most cases become World Champions. What did the majority of factory riders in the '90s accomplish in compari- son? Fancy car collections? There were the stand- outs like Mladin, Russell and Chandler, but in most cases, while being good, in terms of the ul- timate test in our sport, the others never reached the zenith of the riders of the '80s, which while a harsh judgment, is reality." Another ex-racer Christopher Nugent points to the relaxed atmosphere of racing 30 years ago, when riders were more accessible to fans and the sport was still more about fun. "There was factory support but not control," he said. "As it grew up and got more successful and expensive they [the factories] became more hands on and serious business-wise." Texas racer Gary Spears agrees: "I think it's because everybody wasn't caught up in all the commercialization of the sport... you could talk to the guy you race and I think there was more pas- sion for the sport." Dan Staples made another great point on Face- book about the cost. "Of course it's obvious to point out that what it costs to spectate now could cover the cost of a racing weekend back then." Racer and race official Gordon Lunde perhaps captured the spirit of 1980s road racing best when he said, "The personalities for sure. The great riders that came into road racing from the dirt-track backgrounds. The box trucks and vans that the pros showed up in rather than the multi semi trade show set ups that came in the '90s. It was a tighter, friendlier, close-knit group of peo- ple. The pros hung out rather than sitting in their motorhomes. And the bikes, oh my, the bikes that were being BUILT by everyone, not just the pros. These were creations out of small shops across the country. Even the pro shops were small af- fairs. Superbikes, not showroom pieces with gobs of electronics. It was metal and rubber and race gas that melted both... They were pieces of art built by strong hands, blood, sweat and gears." CN THE GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICAN ROAD RACING Subscribe to nearly 50 years of Cycle News Archive issues: www.CycleNews.com/Archives PHOTOGRAPHY BY LARRY LAWRENCE

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