Letters
LETTERS
THE SPEED ISSUE
While I normally try to stay out of arguments between men because, being a woman, I usually end up in the middle, I would like to comment on the letter from the highway patrolman and the rebuttal from you re: the speed on a residential street and a ticket received by a cyclist for speeding.
In California, the speed on a residential street is 25 mph unless otherwise posted. True, we have some residential streets that are more heavily traveled than commercial streets, but that does not change the fact that they are residential and many children live there. True, radar checks have found that the average driver is going 35 or 40 on these residential streets. But all of them are breaking the law and if they hit my child I would see them prosecuted. We have had several children hit and killed here in Carson because each driver feels, “What the heck, everyone else is hitting 35, so I’ll go 40.”
Esther Wood Carson, Calif.
A BALANCED VIEW
Re: “A Policeman’s Comment, May ’72 Letters,” I believe that both you and Ed Collins have valid points-your’s being that the Vehicle Code needs a long, hard look; and Ed’s being that most bike accidents are not the fault of the rider.
Due to personal experience, I have completely sworn off riding in the street, and gone head over heels into the dirt. But my main point is this: you are showing two sides of the question, and are presenting divergent views with intelligence. You are also showing that you are knowledgeable on the subject, plus the fact that when it gets down to saving a few lives, you’re not worried about using a few lines to express your ideas! All that I hope is that the people reading this magazine don’t pass over this “Letters” column as a lot of “BS.” There is a lot to be learned, on both sides.
R. G. Ingram San Francisco, Calif.
FRA TERNITY A MYTH?
In the May issue of CYCLE WORLD on page 34, you published a letter written by Jeffrey Dean of Madison, Wis. In this letter, Mr. Dean vigorously attacks the restyling of the BMW motorcycle, and expresses his opinion that this would cause “considerable unrest and dissatisfaction amongst members of the BMW fraternity.” The premise from which Mr. Dean starts, namely that there is such a thing as a motorcycle “fraternity,” is a false one. Since Mr. Dean delves back into history, it seems that one must also delve into recent history to establish when the “motorcycle fraternity” died. The date cannot be fixed exactly, but it died when motorcycling emerged from 500,000 owners of the 1950s into millions. It died with the old Indians, the old Laconia track, and with the arrival of Honda on the scene. The epitaph on the gravestone reads “You meet the nicest people on a Honda,” and the pallbearers included the Hells Angels.
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Our wives, daughters and girl friends have changed their mode of dress, and our sons and male friends do not sport crew cuts anymore. Would Mr. Dean return to the unsprung or, at best, plunger-type frames of yore? Would he be satisfied with a peak performance of 75 mph from a Twin?
BMW riders are still criss-crossing the continents at record speeds, or at a slow touring pace, whatever their choice may be. BMW sales have jumped to record numbers. So, the pin-striped tank is gone, and a couple of colors are available for those who want them. If that does not fit the image of some “old timer”...too bad. This is not to say that the BMW company does not appreciate the brand loyalty and devotion of the more conservative BMW owners, but does GM still build 1950 Cadillacs to please the old Cadillac owners?
There are always those who think and speak of the good old days, and ungratefully forget the myriad of improvements that modern technology has given them. To be specific, BMW has learned much from the technology of its automobile manufacture, and has diligently applied modern materials technology without disturbing its basic horizontal Twin engine design. At that, it probably has remained the most conservative of all the manufacturers of motorcycles. Modern styling has come with modern times, and the opinion of some “fraternity” members notwithstanding, the quality is still there.
Richard L. Kahn
Butler & Smith, Inc.
Norwood, New Jersey
ON H-D RACING
Being a spectator at the Daytona races last March, I, too, was speculating about the absence of the HarleyDavidson racing team at that event. So your “Scene” article about this on page 50 of the May 1972 CYCLE WORLD was very interesting reading.
This is not too serious an error, but in the first paragraph you mention “This is the first time since 1911 that the factory Harley-Davidson entry has not appeared for the AMA National Championship race. This could hardly be true because the AMA didn’t come into existence until 1924. Before that date sanctioned professional motorcycle racing was in a rather chaotic condition and I will testify that Wm. S. Harley and Walter Davidson were probably the two most responsible for the formation of the AMA in 1924. Their purpose, of course, was to not only eliminate the chaos but also to instill honesty in all the events and all that knew these two men will also testify that no one ever questioned their integrity. While on the question of integrity I certainly can’t forget the likable “Bill” Ottoway, who I know would be content to never win a race if he was requested to do anything that could be called shady. Bill, of course, was the team manager for many years.
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The “stigma” that Harley-Davidson controls the AMA I know was very prevalent, but even if it was true it should not have been classed as such because what would you have expected of them after being its guiding genius? That they should drop it and let it fall back to the condition that prevailed before that time? I don’t know Dick O’Brien or John Harley, but it was refreshing to read that they, too, are trying to keep up the tradition of Walter Davidson and Bill Harley.
Next year the large band of Daytona regulars that go there to see the Milwaukee Bad Guys get beat I hope will be more disappointed than last March—HaHa.
Alfred H. Feldmann Detroit, Mich.
LEGAL JUNK
I sure hope you can help us. Our state laws have gotten to where we can’t even have a chopper. The state laws make us put so much junk on our bikes.
My husband has a beautiful Harley 74. After he has put the required stuff on it, it looks like a pile of junk.
Please send us some help. We need to get our laws changed.
Mrs. Freddie Williams Abilene, Texas
UNGROOVY GROOVERS
An appeal to concerned street bikers of Southern California. Before the groove machines cut up each and every lane of all our freeways, let’s send letters to the State of California Division of Highways and suggest that they at least leave a small strip—perhaps three to four feet—uncut in the center. This would not affect cars, as their tires would straddle the “clear strip,” and the thousands of cycle riders would not have to endure the extra vibration and uneasy steering caused by the grooves. Any bike riders wishing to ride in the rain or on wet freeways can move off the center strip. Let’s get with it before it is too late!
Chuck Dellinger Seal Beach, Calif.
MISSING LINK FOUND
In reference to the letter (May ’72 CW) about page 23 of the February issue. The dude on the Benelli clad with Pirellis has indeed a drive chain. It’s attached to a smaller sprocket. The chain is 5/16 in. from the intersection of the top of the swinging arm and the rear of his right shoe.
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Tom Aldrich Lake Almanor, Calif.
MICHIGAN ALERT!
Please make your readers aware of the following: the Michigan state legislature is currently considering a bill—H.B. 5615—that would require motorcycles to have lights on at all times. This I really can’t complain about, as bikes are relatively hard to see and should be more visible. What prompted this letter are the provisions in the bill for driving without lights.
A violation would be a ticketable offense, with points awarded. A ticket maybe, but points!? Worse, the bill automatically assigns guilt to the cycle in the event of a collision with an automobile, if it can be proven that the bike was without lights. In other words, if some goober runs a light and nails you at noon, it’s your fault if your lights weren’t on!
All Michigan motorcyclists, please write to your state senator and representative and urge defeat, or at least modifications eliminating the point award and guilt-assignment provisions, of H.B. 5615. And those in other states, watch out for similar moves from your duly elected “servants” in the state capitol.
John D. Crossley Ann Arbor, Mich.
VIRGIN EARTH
Being a motorcycle enthusiast and feeling that we must project a good public image, I experienced real anger and disgust when I saw a commercial advertising Kawasaki motorcycles shown on TV here in Phoenix. It depicted a motorcyclist “plowing” out across virgin territory. A close-up of the rear wheel was shown digging and spraying dirt not once, but three separate times.
Kawasaki, of course, is in the business of selling motorcycles, one of which I have, and to that end it may be a good ad. However, at a time when all over the country various anti-motorcycling legislation is pending, we as people who are interested in motorcycling have a much greater common goal. This is to sell the enjoyments and advantages of motorcycling to the general public, not their ability to destroy. The Kawasaki ad presents a very bad image of motorcycling, the last thing needed.
It could be argued that the cycle is shown being ridden over desert hills, resulting in no real damage. But whether real damage results is beside the point. The concern is that motorcycling can be seriously affected by the image the film conveys. Advertising people are in the business of creating images. More than anyone they should understand that whether real damage results in irrelevant.
I certainly hope that the ad has not been shown nationally. I also hope that manufacturers and their advertising, particularly in mediums which are seen by millions of non-motorcyclists, such as TV, will not only consider selling, but also the image of the sport and its participants. Honda has done this over the years, and we know what it has done for them and how much it has promoted the sport as a whole.
Chester D. Shupe Scottsdale, Ariz.
UNDERSTANDING MOTORCYCLES
Can you recommend one (or several) books that will get me started in understanding the workings of four-stroke engines* Ted Benttener Westport, Mass.
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We would recommend beginning with Irving’s “Motorcycle Engineering, ” available from The Dirt Rider, Box 14422, Albuquerque, N.M. We were dismayed to learn from our Book Department that CW’s Tech Manual is now out of print. Also try “Transistor Ignition Systems, ” by Brice Ward, available in many electronics parts stores, published by Howard W. Sams & Co., Inc., Indianapolis, Ind.
Write Carbooks Inc. for a list of books on motorcycle engineering, tuning tips, troubleshooting, etc. They are at 2628 Atlantic Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11207.
And please, don’t forget the folks at CYCLE WORLD Books at 1499 Monrovia Ave., Newport Beach, CA 92663. They have 4-stroke and 2-stroke service manuals on popular models of machines, Graham Forsdyke’s “Motorcycle Maintenance Manual,” Roy Bacon’s “Two-Stroke Carburetion and Ignition, and Draper’s “The Two-stroke Engine,” which is a basic education from the bottom up.— Ed.
DON’S DAYTONA
As I sit writing this, you people out there can now sit back, relax, and mutter under your breath until next March. Yamaha has done what people said it couldn’t do—stomped all over the field of North America’s biggest bike race.
But there has to be a prelude. First came Road Atlanta ’71, Kel Carruthers upset the apple cart on a Yam and nearly repeated the feat at Ontario. The people who were responsible for the complete domination of the open class by big bore machines were starting to fidget. After all, Yamaha is undisputed 250 king, but they’re not supposed to win open class events (not enough top end, unreliable, etc.).
Those last two sentences were the general opinion of assorted journalists. Well, Daytona has come and gone, seen a record display of equipment, (gee, even water-cooling!) and everything busted except for something that was supposed to have but didn’t. Sure, eveyone will be screaming that the race was a fluke because, after all, almost every machine was new and (ah) untried. But their oaths won’t show up in the record books, nor will they change the results.
Hearty congratulations to Don Emde, and many thanks to him and Kel and all those who ride a Better Machine.
Dawne Deeley [Ô] W. Vancouver, Can.
