Letters
LETTERS
SHOULD SHE
I am a 28-year-old housewife and mother of three adorable girls. My problem is that I love to ride my husband's bike (a 225-cc Sears). However, he feels this is not ladylike. I have seen several women on bikes and thought maybe if you had some statistics on female drivers you would print them. You might help some other women who have the same problem. I don't like driving, just riding.
MRS. ROBERT PARKER Houston, Tex.
There's nothing unladylike about riding a motorcycle. But maybe that isn't the real reason your husband doesn't want you to ride.— Ed.
BOYCOTT URGED
The helmet law in the state of Michigan is back in effect. The cyclists of that
state have been badly betrayed by the Establishment.
Five thousand members of the Illinois State Motorcycle Association are being urged to boycott Michigan products, especially to abstain from buying automobiles manufactured by the Detroit Three. We have to hurt them in their own pockets until the helmet law is gone.
JOHN L. WITTNER Area Representative Illinois State Motorcycle Assn.
Bridgeport, 111.
RE: RACING & TESTING
I would like to commend you for your answer to Mr. Kurst in the November issue of CW. I feel he got just what he deserved. Anyone who would expect other human beings to put on a show for him, in such a dangerous way as motorcycle racing on wet pavement, must have a small regard for other humans.
Also, I would like to commend you on your excellent road tests. I made a comparison of CYCLE WORLD and another leading motorcycle magazine and, believe me, CYCLE WORLD outranked the other by at least five times. Keep up the good work.
CONNIE M. ROBINSON Minden, La.
YAWN...
Regarding your January issue and the Inter-Am: I am tired of hearing about Pepperell! I am an interested wife who saw the races at LaRue, Ohio, with her husband. I would like to hear a few good words about the great races that took place here.
The entire track could be seen, except for a very small stretch that went into the woods. I understand the riders preferred LaRue's track—to say the least it was safer. No one was injured by flying rocks!
In closing I would like to ask that you please correct your statement concerning the attendance at LaRue. There were much closer to 15,000 people there as opposed to the 7000 reported in your story.
MRS. GARY L. STEVENS Kingsville, Ohio
... And Géorgie Jessel is really the Pope.—Ed.
THOUGHTS OF THE FUTURE
I just finished David Bond's "Story of Joseph Wald" (CW, Jan. '70). I often wonder with a little envy why I wasn't born in the time of Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett when they made their way in the wilds of Ohio and Kentucky, or even with Lewis and Clark in the West.
And the 21st and 22nd Centuries will be exciting with space travel and all.
But after I read the Joseph Wald Story, I thought of the AnasT's of the future and maybe (just maybe) the Boones and Crocketts of the past. If they were able to straddle my Beezer, wind her up and zap down the asphalt, I think they would look on this span of time with a little envy.
ED BIZA Centerville, Ohio
SHARED OUR QUALMS
Even though my husband and I are very new to the sport of motorcycling, we love it and have zealously attended many of the major tours during the past years. However, I must admit that after two or three tours we lost some of our zeal and began to ask ourselves, "Is that all there is?"
We decided that perhaps a weekend of motorcycling with a few friends might be the way to go.
And then came Roger Hull's article, "29 Qualms" (CW, Nov. '69). We were present at that tour, too, and shared many of the qualms Mr. Hull mentioned. We agree 100 percent with him and hope that this article will open a few eyes and start some wheels turning in the right direction. Thanks, CYCLE WORLD, and a special thanks to Roger Hull.
MRS. ARLENE MEZESKE Las Vegas, Nev.
HOWDY, ED!
I just read Ed Hinkle's letter (Dec. '69) and flashed on him and Ed Kretz and Crashwall Gibson and Floyd Emde and Cordy Milne and all those fine riders who raced when I was in high school in the late '40s. I had an unquenchable thirst for a bike then, any kind of a bike.
My dad introduced me to Ed Hinkle at Lincoln Park on a Friday night (they both worked for Hughes Aircraft), and I still think it was an honor to meet him—a professional speedway rider and (as I recall) an engineer. Howdy, Mr. Hinkle!
NICK STORY Berkeley, Calif.
GOOD NEWS FROM N.J.
As suggested in a recent issue of CYCLE WORLD, I wrote to the New Jersey Attorney General regarding the elimination of the front license plate on motorcycles. A photocopy of the reply is attached.
Attorney General Arthur J. Sills has referred your recent letter regarding the elimination of the front license plate for motorcycles to me for reply.
The regulation referred to in your letter has already been filed with the Secretary of State and will go into effect with the new registration year, March 1, 1970.
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You will receive instructions with your renewal application of the procedure that is to be followed in order that we may properly implement this new regulation.
A. James Sherwood
for June Strelecki, Director
I still can't believe it! New Jersey actually is making the rider's life easier for a most welcome change.
This will rid us of the problem of improvising a front plate mount which no motorcycle can gracefully accommodate.
D. JEFFERY HARDINGHAM North Plainfield, N.J.
TAKING ON THE TIMES
In its Oct. 22 edition, Air Force Times printed the following statement: "Cycles involved in mishaps usually result in serious injury or death." My edited protest to this false statement appeared in the Nov. 5 edition and expressed only one opinion, "I am all for cycle safety, but biased and distorted views have no place in an effective safety program." AF Times replied, "We suspect AF's security police and traffic managers could furnish you statistical evidence which would change your mind."
Their reply brings several questions to mind including the following: What do they want to change my mind about? Do they feel that biased and distorted views are essential to effective safety programs? Do they think AF statistics will prove that honesty is not the best policy? Why did they use the word "suspect"? Does this mean that the "authorities" they quoted don't have the facts to support their statement?
The statements published by Air Force Times demean motorcycle enthusiasts by implying that they are foolish to use a mode of transportation in which the slightest error will probably result in serious injury or death. All cyclists, of course, know that most personal injuries are treated with band aids and/or liniment and never become part of the so-called statistics. But the non-cycling public knows only what it reads and false statements such as those printed by AF Times serve to alienate the general public (which includes many of our bosses) against cyclists by leaving the impression that cyclists are mentally inferior.
I have written several letters to Air Force Times trying to get them to clarify their statements but to no avail. I urge all military and civilian cyclists, dealers, importers, distributors, publishers, etc., to protest this unfair demeaning of motorcyclists by writing Air Force Times, 475 School St. SW, Washington, DC 20024.
SMSgt BENNIE W. WORSHAM Ocean Springs, Miss.
ON RECREATIONAL LAND
I'm writing concerning the diminishing amount of recreational land available to Southern Californians. I have been a desert lover since before I became a motorcycle enthusiast. If you've spent any time at all in our California desert, you're aware of the vast amounts of land claimed by our military for bombing ranges and training areas. From both observation and personal experience (five years USMC) I believe that all military agencies could do handily with 5 to 10 percent of the land now occupied.
No matter how hard I try, I can't imagine the navy alone needing almost 20 percent of the Mojave Desert as an ordnance test station. As for Fort Irwin or the Marine Corps training facility southeast of Barstow, I know from personal experience (believe me!) that they could suffice with 10 percent of their existing area. (Continued on page 28) The Chocolate Mountains used to provide some of the best rock hunting in the world. The Chocolate Mountains, in their entirety, now are an impact area.
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Even with the thousands of square miles available to them, they have difficulty staying within their borders. After camping on the northeast half of Lavic Lake on weekends for almost 10 years, I arrived to find my old campsite (on civilian land, mind you) pot-holed with craters and littered with live ordnance and shrapnel. In an area less than a mile square there were more than 30 105-mm and 155-mm rounds, two pods of 3.5-in. rockets (jettisoned) and hundreds of 20-mm common shells, all unexploded\ I reported this to the provost marshall at the Marine Corps depot at Barstow and he said he'd take care of it. It was taken care of, too. The boundary signs were pulled up from the middle of the lake and moved about two miles to encompass the entire lake and another 15 square miles of desert. The Bureau of Land Management wasn't interested, so where do you turn?
ROBERT B. WILLIAMS South Gate, Calif.
"WRITE ABC"
Really enjoy your magazine very much. Maybe you could give motorcycling a plug by suggesting to the public that if they enjoyed ABC's "Wide World of Sports" film of the Pepperell Motocross they let ABC know it. It's nice to see the sport becoming more popular.
D. CULVER Toms River, N.J.
BEER CHEER
To the Editor and the rest at CYCLE WORLD headquarters: Merry Christ-
mas! Easy Riding! From a Thruxton Budweiser man (even though the two don't mix). (Page 12, CW, Jan. '70).
DAVE JANECEK Riverside, Calif.
And our thanks (burruuup!) for the two cases of Busch which accompanied this note. You are, most definitely, an enthusiast. —Ed.
BATED BREATH DEPT.
In the January issue of CW, page 15, there is a picture of Sammy Miller on his way over a cliff. I and probably thousands of other cycle fans would like to know how all this came out. So would you so kindly tell us what happened? Just for us trials riders, OK?
MARK DARDA Sand Springs, Okla.
It came out just fine, Mark. More amazing is that Miller rode up the cliff, too, which possessed a barely perceptible slope. —Ed.
MORE STATIC ON BAILEY
It would seem from the tone of your answer to the letter from Byrne and Wright (CW, Jan. '70) that it is CYCLE WORLD who is jumping to conclusions. Barry Higgins was the best placed American rider at the Pepperell InterAm event. Also, according to results found in Cycle Sport magazine, Barry Higgins again was first American home at the Ohio event. These, however, were unofficial results, as CYCLE WORLD'S results in "Racing Review" were "provisional." However, CYCLE WORLD did not list Higgins at all. Again, according to Cycle Sport, Barry Higgins was the top placing American rider at Elkhorn, Wis.
Nowhere in the letter from Byrne and Wright was Barry Higgins' name mentioned; however, CYCLE WORLD was quick to imply that even on the basis of his good showing, he was nowhere near the caliber of Robert and Aberg.
This is not at issue. All that we of the East Coast are saying is that Gary Bailey didn't show us much at Pepperell. Last year no one made excuses for Higgins' 12th place finishing at Pepperell. Certainly a magazine of CYCLE WORLD'S stature should not make it a policy to publish excuses for riders who do not do well at major events. If one dug deep enough, one could come up with a tale of woe from most riders, but that's racing.
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CYCLE WORLD arbitrarily crowned Bailey the best in the country. We don't wish to detract from his fine talent, but with the likes of Barry Higgins and other top flight American riders pressing hard, could it not have been a premature move?
RICHARD DUGAN GERARD DUGAN Paterson, N.J.
We did not "crown" Bailey. He won a motocross series for which he was given a racing trip overseas. Our comment regarding Higgins and Aberg, etc., was not an aspersion on Higgins; it was a proper example of the art of debate, used to demonstrate to the letter writer that it was futile to declare Higgins the fastest American in the Inter-Am series after only one meeting of the series had been run. Higgins ultimately vindicated that writer's faith, or local pride, showing the greatest overall form and versatility on a wide variety of American circuits. He won the series. He was indeed the fastest American. To you, Mr. Higgins, our most warm and sincere congratulations. To you, Dugan and Dugan, our suggestion that you don't read between the lines so much. But it doesn't really matter what you do; we're delighted that you care enough to write. — Ed.
THE DISAPPEARING TRAILS
I would like to do some opinionated projecting regarding the future of offroad bike activities. All types of cycling functions are really up in the Southeast, but the enthusiasts are found woods riding, motocrossing and enduro riding. We've had 300-400 riders for every enduro this fall at $3 a head.
It's been great, but the pinch is coming just as in other parts of the country. Posted signs, urban sprawl, the emotional conservation groups, Lassie and the U.S. Forest Service, numerous state agencies, and a hostile general public are going to end it if we don't do something soon. Bikes are already subjected to prohibitive restrictions in our state game management areas, state parks and, probably in the future, national forests.
I think that instead of using the receipts from the enduros for a yearly club beer bust and barbeque or whatever it's presently going for, the money should be used to provide places for future events. Most woods users, like hunting clubs, campers, and other recreation groups, pay for their usage, and I think we can compete for our share of it. The old days of "Do what you please, they won't say anything" are rapidly coming to an end.
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I am a forester with a government agency and I enjoy hunting, fishing, canoeing, and back packing in addition to trail riding. Most hiking groups despise bikes and don't want them anywhere around, legally muffled or not. But I feel the same way toward horses; I can't stand walking in fresh horse manure and stepping aside for the beasts. But they are "in," bikes are "out." This isn't quite right. Bike riders in Georgia are taxed unfairly and discriminated against in court (the attitude of "He got what he deserves" prevails in most accident cases) and the ever increasing restrictions of off-road use are just beginning to be seen.
I think that large clubs, or area sports committees, should look into leasing large acreages of forest land for bike use, and talk intelligently with timber companies regarding our needs. Foresters in management positions in private industry and public agencies are, in addition to being individualists like most bike enthusiasts, quite capable of understanding our problems. They are catching hell from all sides themselves. By maintaining good relations on the local level with forest managers, we can eliminate much of the hard feeling, restrictive legislation, and having to deal with politicians and high level bureaucrats who, I can assure you, don't give a damn about motorcyclists. The problems of forest managers are mainly legal liability, protection of their investment from fire (which is largely caused by man), trash dumping, and vandalism. I feel that a trail rider causes much less of a problem to the land manager than does the average hunter or picnicker. The job is to convince him of this. We need to show them we are responsible people, not another disruptive force to be dealt with, and that we will cooperate with them and pay for the use of their property.
A "Saddleback" type park would be a good thing. But I think we should get together on this sometime before Ranger Cory and the guys do a "bad trail bike" propaganda program like they did to the snowmobile folks. If you don't think that won't hurt us, you are not being realistic. When you're up against Smokey the Bear, Lassie and Gentle Ben you've had it. They influence public opinion, and our only counterparts are the Hell's Angels and Bronson.
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It's going to be bad when you're dressed up on your big new Husky, with your Belstaff suit, Joel gloves, Big John boots and ain't got no place to go. The thought of being a street rider terrifies me, personally.
H. LELAND MOORE
Macon, Ga.
You make some excellent points, particularly about motorcycle clubs now in existence; they would do well to start lobbying to preserve existing rights to ride the trails and keep them open. What seems so ridiculous in this whole "conservation" business is that such clubs are composed of hikers, hunters and horsemen, who can travel into the backwoods by foot only 25 to 30 miles a day. Yet, their hysteria and vociferous action nets them the majority of the trails available. By contrast, the motorcycle trail rider can cover 10 to 35 miles per hour, and generally leaves less of a mess behind (because he has no room to carry it with him). Yet the bike rider gets the short deal on trail mileage. It seems to us that logic, need and the priorities resulting from restrictive trail bike legislation have become reversed. —Ed.
OH, WHAT A RIDE!
Last spring I wrote to you asking for information about Alaska. You referred me to a CW article about a rider who went to Prince Rupert, but he didn't go to Alaska. Well, I went to Alaska, all the way, from Kelsey Bay to Prince Rupert, then on to Juneau for three days, and to Skagway. I took the narrow gauge to Whitehorse, then the Alcan Highway to Tetlin Junction. From there I rode, on gravel, 360 miles to Dawson City in the Yukon Territory and back to Tetlin Junction and on to Fairbanks. Then all pavement riding into Anchorage. What a ride and, oh, what a trip.
If any of your readers are planning a trip to Alaska to do a little man riding, I will gladly give them some "do's and don't's." Your magazine did not cover any of this information. I rode a Honda Benly, 160 cc; no troubles with the bike, it always had "plenty" when I needed it. I am 59 years old.
F. OSWALT 603 N. Wilson St. Royal Oak, Mich.
YECCH DEPT.
Wow, and I thought Hogs were gross. (Page 75, CW, Dec. '69, the "PE 6." It's an ad.)
B.F. TILLSON Ramsey, N.J.
