Penton Wins Little Burr

PENTON WINS LITTLE BURR

JERRY WEST

FIRST MAN to credit himself with thirty points in the AMA National Enduro ratings was John Penton of Lorain, Ohio, when he scooted home with the high point trophy in the Fifth Annual Little Burr Enduro.

The event, sanctioned by the AMA as the 250-Mile National, took 227 riders south of Columbus through scenic southern Ohio.

The sponsoring Enduro Riders Association did a fine job in preparing for the run. Everything seemed in tiptop shape for spectators and contestants alike until ’¿he final markers were placed, and finishing touches completed. Then the skies opened up, inundating the area with 1 !4 inches of rain. This made the well-marked course slippery, wet and rough, but possible to ride. And ride they did, all 227 of the contestants who came from sixteen states and Canada. Roughness of the course is best defined by the fact that only 27 riders finished the trek within their hour.

John Penton, the nation's most consistent enduro winner, rode a 250cc R-27 BMW and dropped only 58 points, coming up with a score of 942 that won him his fourth Little Burr title in its five year history. Penton's success is due to a combination of fine time-keeping knowledge, extensive enduro experience, and exceptional riding ability.

As the riders wheeled in, or trailered their machines back to the Capitol City clubhouse, one could sense the overall feeling of a rough, but fine, run. All of them detested the rain, but it did make for a donnybrook of a mud run, the term so many riders use in referring to the Little Burr Enduro. •