A Look Back in Time

Here is a short video made available by Tony Foale. Some of this video is from the Isle of Mann. This gives you a look at road racing forty years ago.

A Classic Race on a Classic Track!

Glen Helen Raceway announces the
28th Annual MTA World Vet Championship - Nov. 3rd & 4th
San Bernardino, CA - September 12, 2012: Motocross Enthusiasts: Watch, Race and Learn at the 28th Annual MTA World Vet Championships!

Amateur and pro motocross racers get a chance to be in the motocross spotlight at the MTA World Vet Championship hosted by the famous Glen Helen Raceway. Most people would not view a race as an educational event, but the Glen Helen’s 28th Annual MTA World Vet Championship serves as a great learning platform for motocross enthusiasts of all ages.

The amateurs get the opportunity to race in front of a well-established audience, and compete in a high-pressure desert arena. Spectators will see top motocross professionals navigate woops, bowl turns and the largest elevations changes at any track in the world. This will be invaluable experience for the audience and amateur and pro riders who wish to broaden the set of skills they utilize for their dirt biking experiences.

When you watch professionals in person you can see how they utilize mechanics and specific riding techniques to give them the edge above other competitors. Each specific race has different racing conditions due to track conditions and weather. Last year, it rained all weekend at the track, making the track treacherous and highlighting the riders’ fantastic skills.

Besides the race itself, the event offers lessons from a professional motocross racer for anyone who wants to join in. In addition to lessons, racers and can check out demos of different products related to the hobby. The track, specially designed by famous moto-journalist Jody Weisel of MXA fame, gives riders a plethora of opportunities to test their skills and determine how they measure up to the competition.

Even if you have no experience in actually riding a dirt bike, because you are in such close proximity to the race it is impossible not to get excited. Seeing the mud splatter as the bikers take air after a jump while hearing the cheers of a crowd and the roar of bike engines are definitive of the experience.

This event has both international flair as well as tradition. Riders from more than twenty countries throughout the world converge on Glen Helen to vie for the coveted title of champion in each age group. Famous AMA Pro riders such as Ryan Hughes, Doug Dubach, Gary Jones, Ron Lechien, and Chuck Sun, among others, compete in this truly international event.

In addition to great racing, the event features a vendor’s row, where spectators can peruse the latest and greatest in motocross accessories. To top off the weekend, the annual Edison Dye Lifetime Achievement Award is also presented. This year the recipient will be former Honda factory star Marty Smith—the first 125cc AMA motocross champion. Marty won a total of 18 AMA nationals, including wins in 125, 250, and 500 divisions. He won the United States Grand Prix, 125 class, in both 1965 and 1976. His style, class, and demeanor made him the first “rock star” of motocross—extremely popular with the teenage ladies!

For additional information, including online entry for competitors and spectator ticket information, visit www.glenhelen.com!

You Never Know What Will Show UP

Our friend Dave Wood dug deep into the archives to find this film his dad shot at Hopetown around 67/68. This gives you a good look at racing in the early days. Thanks to Dave for coming up with this video.

Hopetown....aka Corriganville

To all of you who do not know Hopetown it was one of the biggest races in the United States back in the 60’s and 70’s.  Bob Hope’s movie Ranch aka Corriganville was the place to be.  In the early years we rode Honda 4 strokes, Triumphs, Harley Davidsons and BSA’s  stripped of their lights and street tires.  In 1967 Edison Dye , Ted Lapadakis and Andy De LaTorre brought over Europe’s best and introduced us to MOTOCROSS.  The rest is History.  It caught on like wildfire.  By 1970 through 1975 1500 to 2000 racers would race on that historic track in front of tens of thousands spectators.  It was filmed by Bruce Brown (Endless Summer and On Any Sunday) and aired on Wide World of Sports.  This was the race we all trained the whole year to race.  Being in my back yard I always tried to excel there, but the course and the famous mud-hole and track itself took its toll a couple of times.   If you look at my extremesportspioneer.com website you will see a riders demand to bring back this event…..well…

This year there was a reunion of the racers and the public.   Heroes such as John Rice and Preston Petty (the inventor of the unbreakable plastic fender) were there as well as John DeSoto (the flyin’ Hawaiian)  Brad Lackey (first American to win a championship in Europe) . Also there, the legendary Marty Tripes winner of the first two Super-bowl of MOTOCROSS at the LA Coliseum along with Greeves great Jim Wilson.  Keith Mashburn, who put on this event with the Zimmermans,  was a motocross racer turned flat-tracker when Yamaha offered him a ride.  Dave Ekins won 2 Gold and 1 bronze at the prestigious ISDT’s in Europe.  Eddie Mulder ,Mike Runyard John Hateley as well as Ekins took their Flat-track / MOTOCROSS skills to the big screen in hundreds of movies ;

In the parking lot there was at least a thousand feet of high tenting providing shade for all of the bikes and memorabilia people brought to share. I heard 2700 people had signed up for the lunch but there were many more who knew nothing of the signing in process.  I would guess that 4000 people showed up. Chuck Daly brought the Sachs DKW he let Preston race at the Catalina GP back in 2010 as well as an original 3ft. x 4 ft poster.  We also did a memorial display for the late Gene Cannady.  He won many races at Hopetown as well as all of the tracks around So Cal.  He was probably the first cop to be able to catch us riding at the various unapproved tracks we had around the valley.  He discarded the HD for a Kawasaki.  RIP Gene!!! 

The entire day was non-stop moto talk. The event was to wrap up by 4 but as you can imagine it took a while to get everyone gathered up and out of there.  There is a rumor that there will be another event next year but we will have to see what happens.  When Hopetown quit hosting the event after 1975 it went to several other racing facilities but it never drew the same racers and crowds that it did in Simi.  It would be awesome if by some miracle they could revive this event.  Most or all of the track is still there.  It is now a park with houses around the perimeter.   We’ll see if the stars can align.  Keep the fingers crossed !!!!

Dick Mann was the speaker Saturday night, which was very interesting. Walt Fulton had some really good questions for Dick during the Question/Answer session.

I love going to these get-togethers to see people I have not seen for perhaps 40 or so years, and even longer. I am still thinking about the Hopeton/Mashburn production. It was beyond fabulous. I had no idea it was going to be so Big, have so many people, with so many things going on. I met the Zimmerman's at the event to Honor Dave Ekins, but no one told me about their motorcycle collection or that we would be seeing these wonderful Vintage motorcycles. I couold not believe that I saw so many old friends and so many old bikes. Boggles the imagination! I am having a hard time waiting for the next event, no matter what the size or where it is.

Go to the Gallery for more photos.

Photos and edited text sent by Chris Brook

2012 World Vet Championship - Coming To Glen Helen

Marty Smith to Receive Edison Dye Award

Bud Feldkamp, Tom White, and the Glen Helen Staff announced this week that Marty Smith, the AMA’s first 125cc motocross champion, will receive the 16th Annual Edison Dye Motocross Lifetime Achievement Award.

In addition to being the first 125cc AMA motocross champion, Smith also won 18 AMA national events, ultimately giving him the 125cc national championships in 1974 and 1975, as well as the AMA 500cc national championship in1977. He is one of a very few riders who won national championship races in 125cc, 250cc, and 500cc categories. In addition, during his stellar career Marty won Trans AMA races as well as the US Grand Prix of Motocross, 125cc, in 1975 and 1976.

Marty won all his championships as part of the Honda Factory Team. Marty was known for his great looks, his flowing locks, and his “rock star” status with the masses of young motocross fans throughout the world! Marty was indeed a teen icon, very much responsible for the tremendous increase in popularity of the sport of motocross in the 1970s!

A full biography of Marty will be included in the 28th Annual MTA World Veteran Motocross Championships program, available at the World Veteran Motocross Champions at Glen Helen, November 3-4. The presentation of the award, along with Marty’s induction into the Walk of Fame, will be on Sunday, November 4th, around 12:30 pm, just before the 30+ pro race.

Tom White will MC the presentation, and many previous recipients of the Edison Dye award will be in attendance to honor Marty. Tom will introduce many celebrities who will reminisce those glorious motocross days of the 70s and early 80s when Marty was at the peak of his career! The event will feature an autograph session where fans can see their heroes of yesteryear, talk with them, and get an autographed poster!

For additional information, including online entry for competitors and spectator ticket information, visit the Glen Helen Raceway website at: www.glenhelen.com.

Read more: Dirt Rider Online

24Hrs at Glen Helen!

Classic Road Racer

Sometimes we get so focused on motocross racing we overlook other aspects of motorcycling. #33 does a good job of showing us all things dirt but there is even more forms of riding. I recently ran into my old racing buddy Mike Bungay and he brought me up to speed on his new project. Mike and I have raced against each other many times but I have to concede victory to him when it comes to Vintage Road Racing. Listen to what he has to say……

Sierra Dual Sport Ride

2012 RUTS Dual Sport ride

In my last article on the WR450 I mentioned I was going to ride in the upcoming RUTS (Racers Under The Sun) fundraiser Dual Sport ride, well I did.  At last year’s ride it was the three Amigos (Eric #33, Dale and me) this year we were a six pack. (Eric #33, Dale, Cration, Kerry, me and another Eric who asked at the start if he could tag along) We again started at Sopiago Springs Resort off Hwy 88 but ended up in Minden NV this year.

The start was very dusty, we tried to space ourselves out to keep the dust down but there were a lot of riders who treated this like a race not a dual sport event. They would fly past creating huge dust clouds only to be stopped a few miles down the road no doubt trying to figure out where they were, and then pass us again, that went on for most of the first day and was very annoying.

As I did last year I just followed, otherwise I’d have to pull out my glasses every few mile to read the roll chart or GPS. It’s good to have younger eyes on these rides. Fortunately I’m far sighted and have been lucky enough in my life to see some of the world but you’d be hard pressed to find more beautiful country than the high Sierras. Saturdays ride was a mixture of dirt roads trails and highway. The most difficult section of the day was a 4X4 trail with 4X4’s scattered here and there, I left some skin behind on that section. Oh wait, then there was Poison Creek a very tight technical section that ran up along the side of the creek, oh and then there was another creek (Don’t know the name of it) we rode down and then in and out of what seemed like twenty or thirty times. Kerry and I took a bath in that (no name) creek that also helped wash some of the dust off our bikes. (We used a hair dryer in the hotel room that night to dry out our boots) After the creek we wound our way down to the Carson Valley and finished the day riding through some of the Pine Nuts OHV area. I think we started around 8:30AM and pulled into the Carson Valley Inn some 163 miles later around 5:30PM.

 Our bags just like last year were waiting for us at the hotel and after cleaning up we had dinner together. Six guys with six different personalities and one common bond, we started out the day not all knowing each other but by the end of the day and dinner we had good feel for each other’s sense of humor. I don’t know about your rides but mine always seem to be filled with a lot of good natured joking around, if you can’t take it I guess you’d end up riding alone.

Sunday morning each guy checked out his bike and had his own version of breakfast, Kerry and I went back to the restaurant and had a repeat of dinner which was two eggs, hash browns and a slab of ham the diameter of a soccer ball all for $5.99. 

We left around 8:30AM again winding our way up and out of the valley hitting some nice trails on the way we eventually ended up riding through state line in South Lake Tahoe. After more beautiful roads and some more neat trails we ended up in Markleyville for gas. There’s literally only one gas pump in town it’s alongside the road, a large white storage tank with one pump and hose. Its 87 octane takes debit/credit cards only and was I think $4.99 a gallon. I say I think it was $4.99 a gallon because I talked Kerry into using his card to fill up all our bikes with the promise we’d all pay him back of course.

After gas we ended up again riding through spectacular country. I don’t know why but it seems sometimes I have to remind myself how privileged and lucky I am just to be riding through this beautiful country, maybe we all do it at times. We had a nice lunch again this year along side Silver Lake provided by the club and my odometer showed we’d traveled a total of 250 miles. After lunch we rode a little more highway but spent most of it ridding on some great trails ending at Sopaigo Springs and 293 total miles.

Sunday’s ride was much more enjoyable, don’t know if most of the riders left way before us or most took the bailouts instead of the more challenging trails, but the dust created was of our own making. Dale had led most of the time on Saturday and Sunday but after lunch Eric #33 took off ahead of us to take some dust free video for Dirt Bike Magazine’s web site. By the time we caught up with Eric about an hour or so later Dale had bitten it on a third gear trail and had detuned himself to the point he was now more willing to follow. Eric now took the lead and I jumped in behind him, he got out in front me far enough I now had a sweet dust free ride. 

A quick report on the 2012 Yamaha WR450, the bike handled and ran great riding a FI bike especially at altitude is a wonderful thing. Kerry and I had a couple of drag races and the WR dusted his carburetor equipped KTM in the thin air. Starting was still an inconsistent issue and was a pain, so we still have work to do in that area. I’m still confident we’ll figure it out. I like the stock suspension and don’t feel the need to have it revalved. I do have Air Cells on the forks and those help a lot in dampening the first part of the travel and really help keep the bike stable in rocks. The stock seat for long rides was too short and stiff for me, Guts doesn’t have the tall soft foam for the new WR yet so I had to create my own taller softer seat.

Ending our ride around 4:30PM we checked in, picked up our bags, loaded up and left. Seemed anticlimactic somehow, we spend two great days together and in the end just pack up and leave. But we left with a pocket full of memories and we’ll no doubt re live those memories numerous times in the future.

Thanks to all the members and family of the RUTS for your efforts they were greatly appreciated.

Doug 21J

All Purpose Yamaha

2012 Yamaha WR450F Conversion

When I was invited to ride on the Class 60 Pro team for the first Baja race of the year the San Felipe 250 I didn’t want to ride my KTM 350 as a pre runner bike, quite frankly I didn’t think it had enough power for the sand. So I bought a “08” Yamaha WR450F that was all set up for desert riding. My thought was to use it to pre ride on then sell it when I got back. But after three days of pre running I really liked the bike and decided to sell my licensed Suzuki DRZ 400E and try to Dual Sport the WR.

Well I had no problem selling the Suzuki and was getting ready to order a Dual Sport kit for the WR when the new 2012 Yamaha WR 450F’s showed up at my local dealer. I shouldn’t have looked at one but did and I promised myself I wouldn’t buy the 2012 bike until I sold the “08” WR, well that didn’t take long either. Interesting to note the WR is going to be shipped to Mongolia in China.

As you probably already know the new WR is made of a mixture of Yamaha products. A 2012 YZ250F frame, a WR swing arm, YZ 450 suspension internal components, and the motor is as I understand it basically a “09” YZ 450F with wide ratio gearing,  is fuel injected and been used in their ATV’s for a few years now. Another interesting thing is the motor is tilted back, no it’s not the backwards YZ motor but the motor is mounted in the YZ frame so that it is actually tilted back a little. Something to do with positioning the cams more centrally, I’m sure it also has something to with weight distribution and handling as well. It’s interesting to note the bikes handling is very sensitive to the fork tube height small changes make a difference.

One of the main reasons I bought the bike (Besides the fact it was new and fuel injected) was to try and Dual Sport it and to use it for desert riding.(One of my latest new passions) But my first ride on it was on the MX sand track at E street, and the second on the sand track at MMX. The bike worked so well in that environment I decided to ride it at an upcoming Old Timer International MX event, which I did. I had a couple friends ride the bike on the MX track to see what they thought of it, all were impressed, including Eric #33. (Eric had ridden one in So Cal as part of a team of test riders who had ridden the new 450 off road models from KTM, Beta, Husky, TM, and Yamaha for an upcoming magazine article) All the riders who rode it are capable of clearing the biggest jumps on those two tracks and did so with no problems, even with stock suspension set up for me. The bike is stable and doesn’t doing anything scary, accept for being a little twitchy. This WR does do something WR’s aren’t really noted for; it turns very well.

I put a GYTR/FMF muffler spark arrestor on it, changed the ECU and had the mapping set to FMF’s specs. Put a Scotts Steering Stabilizer on it because it turns so well it’s a little twitchy, and changed the gearing slightly from 13/50 to 13/51 but also purchased a 14 tooth counter shaft sprocket for desert and dual Sport riding.

I’ve ridden two motocross events, actually seven motos on it so far and would say without a doubt the bike works very well on sand tracks. Only in the last two motos of the last race I could say the bikes weight started to bother me and that’s because I’m old and the track had gotten extremely rough.

The next thing on my list is to install a Rekluse and go trail riding. As you know I’m old, lazy and a big Rekluse fan. I’m not a big Core EXP fan, and don’t mind the soft feel of the clutch lever and just prefer the Z-Pro Start. The Dual Sport kit from Baja Designs is now available so I’ve ordered one and IMS has just made available a 3.0 gallon fuel tank.

A couple of issues have shown up on the new WR, one is starting, cold or hot. It’s not consistent, sometimes it starts right up and sometimes it doesn’t. Roseville Yamaha has been able to help if not almost cure the starting issues by using a diagnostic tool to change the initial fuel delivery.  Another minor issue is the clutch cable on mine at least appears to be a tad short after I installed taller bars, so that when you turn the bars all the way to the right it pulls on the clutch cable I was able to lengthen it with adjustments, but when I installed the Rekluse you need a lot of slack and I couldn’t get enough adjustment, so I ended up rerouting the cable and using a Works Connection clutch lever assembly.  I installed the Baja Kit without any big issues; it just takes a lot of time, but everything worked the first time. After a few trials and a few errors I now have a CA licensed 2012 WR450f Dual Sport bike. I’m thinking about creating a list of what I had to do in order to license it in CA and make it available to anyone would wants it through this website. 

I’ve now put a few hundred miles of Dual Sport and trail riding on the bike and can say the bike works very well in that environment as well, as of this date I still haven’t ridden it in the desert, but I’m confident it will work well.

I’m going to ride the annual RUTS (Racers Under The Sun), fund raising Dual Sport Ride the middle of August on that ride I will get to test the bike on all manner of trails. The “A” loops on this ride are usually very technical and challenging. I’ll know doubt write an article about this ride and will give you my impressions of the bike in that environment.

Incidentally Roseville Yamaha has taken a new WR450 and basically set it up as a motocross bike, it works extremely well although it is still a tad heavier than a YZ the only time you really notice it is when you half to pick it up or put it on a stand. (You can actually remove the starter and battery to save weight if you want to Roseville shaved 13.5 lbs off the bike.) The handling and power are a little friendlier to us mortals.

Doug 21J

Vernon A Wood ...RIP

Backpacker, Runner, USMC fighter pilot, Husband, Father, Airline pilot, Dirtbike rider, Activist, Grandfather...Vernon lived life to it's fullest. His vitality will be missed by all who knew him.

More pictures of Vernon can be found in the gallery.

In Remembrance of Vernon Albert Wood

Vernon Albert Wood was born in Seattle, Washington on November 19, 1928. Vernon passed away on July 22, 2012, due to injuries sustained in a automobile accident on July 11, 2012. Vernon's family moved to Los Angeles, Ca soon after his birth. The family lived in Kingman, Az for a short period during his youth. He participated in Track and Field, at Belmont High School and was part of the team that won the All City Track and Field championship. Vernon had many odd jobs as a boy mowing lawns, shoe shining... Vernon attended LA City College. Before joining the Marine Corps he worked for California State Parks, at Redwood State Park.  Vernon served in the USMC as a fighter pilot  in Korea in 1955. When he returned home Vernon worked at Big Basin Redwoods State park. Then he spent a summer working a Fire Lookout in Washington State, Siouxon Peak. Vernon attended forestry school at UC Berkeley and the UC Berkeley Field training camp near Quincy, Ca. Vernon's Navy flight training instructor told him American Airlines was hiring pilots. He applied and was hired in 1958. Then he was laid-off for nearly a year before being recalled, Vernon worked as a ticket agent, for American Airlines, in the interim. He flew out of LAX until 1970 when he transferred to San Francisco (SFO).

Vernon married Lucile Martin on May 17, 1958. Vernon's son, David, was born on February 25, 1959, followed by his daughter, Susan on January 23, 1960. The family lived in Lynwood, Ca. in 1960 the family moved to Granada Hills, Ca. before moving to Thousand Oaks, Ca. In 1964 the family built a vacation cabin at the Ponderosa, Sequoia NF. December 1970 the family moved to Vacaville, CA. Vernon and Lucile moved to El Dorado Hills, Ca. in 1989, following his retirement with American Airlines. Vernon's wife began to show signs of Alzheimer’s at this time. Vernon moved to Chicago Park in 1999 to be closer to his daughter and grandchildren. 

Vernon retired from american Airlines in 1988. He enjoyed fishing, backpacking, snow skiing, dirt biking, running, water skiing, jet skiing, mountain biking and maintaining his property. He participated in the Old Timers National MX series as an Intermediate rider. He was a member of the Sacramento Jammers MC in the 70's, the Sierra Old Timers MC in the 80's and a life member of AMA/D36. When Vernon turned fifty, he finished the Hawaiian Marathon in under four hours.

Vernon and his wife Lucile enjoyed traveling before her illness. They had trips to Hawaii, Boston, New York, Fiji, Lucile’s Family home in Jamesville, NC. Costa Rica, New Zealand, Yugoslavia. Took the Motorhome to Idaho, Yellowstone, Banff and Vancouver, Canada. Cruises to Alaska, the Caribbean , Hawaii and many Off Road motorcycle races.

The funeral will be on August 4, 2012, at 10:00 am. The location is the Colfax Cemetery, I-80, at N. Canyon and Cemetery Road, Colfax, Ca 95713. Followed by a reception at the family's home.

In lieu of Flowers, a donation to the Pacific Legal Foundation, in memory of Vernon Wood.