Mini Grand Prix
MINI GRAND PRIX
West Coast Riders Lead The Way In Mini Racing
Brick Price
WHAT IS believed to be the largest racing event for mini riders, the Mini Grand Prix, was held recently at Indian Dunes near Castaic Junction, Calif. Some 540 entries raced everything from three-horse industrial-engined mini-bikes to heavily modified Yamaha-powered mini-cycles. Equipment ranged from rudimentary machines of the old mini-bike type through sophisticated miniaturizations of the real thing. The level of competition and organization would have been a credit to any AMA event.
The machines running in this Little League of racing have radically changed in the past year or two. Most of the mini-bike classes (those with small frames and lawnmower engines) had only four or five entries and raced on an abbreviated track. On the other hand, the mini-cycle classes (those with motorcycle-type engines and gearboxes in frames up to 70 in. overall) had to be split into several divisions. One class had three divisions, with more than 20 riders in each. It wasn’t so long ago that mini-bikes were the only machines available to be modified and raced.
Because of the high level of “professionalism,” those watching the Mini Grand Prix could have been lulled into believing nothing extraordinary was happening. After all, you can see the big guys tearing it up in just the same way, every Sunday, almost anywhere. But, when it is remembered that three or four years ago there was virtually no mini racing anywhere, then the Mini Grand Prix becomes something of a minor miracle.
The West Coast has led the way in mini racing and the clubs in the area have faced the problem of devising rules that will be fair to the new machines being introduced from month to month. It is not unusual for riders to turn up for racing only to find the rules switched around from the last event so that they are either more, but usually less, competitive. It is a snowballing situation not unlike that which existed in the motorcycle field after World War II.
It has been further confused by the absence of a national organizing body. Each track or club runs its own rules although most are, more or less, based on those of the Southern California Mini-Bike and Kart Association. SCMBKA is the granddaddy of minibike racing organizations and it has had nearly four years of racing experience at Saddleback Park to sort out its rule book. Nevertheless, their board of directors still indulges in fast footwork as the new machines become more numerous.
Perhaps the biggest development in mini racing is the entry of the AMA into the field. After a year of preparation, the AMA opened its new Youth Division, called YAMA for short. YAMA will be run independently of the adult activities and will have its own events. However, the thinking among AMA officials is away from “professional” racing and more toward “fun” events. They don’t want to deplete the entry lists of AMA clubs that already have large numbers of under-16-year-olds racing. The rather simplistic rules for YAMA reflect this thinking and do not take into consideration the realities of the situation.
Still, AMA officials stress that the YAMA rule book is provisional. After a year of experience they will review it and make whatever changes are deemed necessary. Undoubtedly, they will have to accommodate the fiercely competitive youngsters now riding around on hot mini-cycles, otherwise YAMA will never achieve its potential. It is a fact of life that youngsters scorn “kids’ stuff.”
To those of us who are somewhat removed from the mini scene, keeping only a cursory eye on it, the rapidity of change is staggering. It seems only a few months ago when we were criticizing evil handling “toys” with too much power. We’ve blinked our eyes and nearly all of the toys have disappeared. In their place are scaled down motorcycles with hydraulic suspension and 15-in. wire wheels.
Yamaha was the trail blazer in this trend with its Mini-Enduro, now in its third year. It took manufacturers a few months to realize what was happening. But, as the sales of the Mini-Enduro soared, they all rushed to the drawing boards. Now there are literally dozens of mini-cycles based on the same formula. The introduction of the Fuji 80cc two-stroke may open a Pandora’s box of domestically-produced mini-cycles.
The lack of a competitively priced, well-designed, easily available engine has been the main hang-up for U.S. manufacturers. They have the necessary know-how in frame construction, learned by mistakes in making minibikes, and now they have the engine. Who knows, this could be the re-birth of the American motorcycle industry.
All this is incidental to what is happening on the mini tracks. Any youngster worth his salt, as soon as he begs, borrows, or steals a mini-cycle, is going to modify it and then nag until he’s allowed to race it. And race it he will. First time out, he’ll learn that the level of competition makes him look sick. But youngsters are nothing if not dogged, and he’ll keep practicing until he runs somewhere near the leaders.
It is constant practice that produces those leaders. Youngsters like 11-yearold Jeff Ward, 14-year-old Davy Carlson, 15-year-old Jackie Irons, and 14year-old Gene Woods (brother of the Speedway star) seldom spend a weekend at home. They are off racing somewhere. There is even some long-distance traveling between California and Michigan and North Carolina (another hotbed of mini racing) to compete in the bigger events. However, the lack of a national organization puts a crimp in this activity. If there were a national racing program, top riders in each region would travel to the ends of the earth to have a crack at a national title that would mean something.
A point that is often missed by adults (and AMA officials) is the psychological and sociological importance of mini racing. Besides providing a safety valve for youthful energies and a goal to improve the riders’ riding, it also gives the youngsters heros of their own age. They don’t have to borrow from the adult world any more. One observer even heard some kids in the pits at the Indian Dunes Mini Grand Prix singing a song about Davy Carlson. We wonder if there was ever a song written about Gary Nixon.
And what about the effect of heroworship on the heros? Most of them seem to handle it a lot better than many adults in the same position. It is a revelation to watch some young novice walk up to a hot-shoe, gravely introduce himself, then stand around talking about racing and equipment. The thing is, there is very little pretense or isolation. When you talk to the parents of these heros, you’ll find that their school grades are usually better than pre-racing and their attitudes invariably improve. They just have no time to get mixed up in trouble. It’s difficult to relate these things with racing but it’s all part of their lives.
The Mini Grand Prix at Indian Dunes, organized by the National?) Mini-Bike Racing Association, was only the most visible tip of the iceberg. Throughout the country, smaller, though no less competitive, events are held every weekend with a total of thousands of entries. From this mass of young racers must spring a new generation of motorcycle champions that will give the Europeans a run for their money. With ten years of racing experience before they reach the rip old age of 18, how could it be otherwise? |5]
