Letters

LETTERS

YAMAHA/HONDA COMPARISON

While I thoroughly enjoyed your Yamaha/Honda 250 motocross comparison and marveled at the thoroughness and detail of the feature article, I do take issue with the last paragraph, and the headline conclusion, "...A Bit More... At A Price."

The Yamaha did win 24 to 23, in a scoring procedure that included the price difference. If you had wanted to editorialize about the price difference you should have neglected Category 1.

The score would have been: Yamaha 22, Honda 14. The Yamaha would have a 57% higher score than the Honda. Is this worth an extra $691?

Noel Armstrong El Paso, Texas

I have just finished reading your comparison article of the CR250 Honda and the YZ250 Yamaha. On the whole, I must say that I was favorably im-

pressed with the accuracy of the article as well as with its readability.

Having ridden both of the machines and having come away with the same impressions that your comparison conveyed reassured me that I had not lost my objectivity despite my present employment.

However (and you knew this was coming), my sense of fair play was bruised somewhat by the final paragraph of the article, in which you stated, if I may paraphrase, that the Yamaha was only one point better than the Honda and if that was worth $600 or so dollars then so be it.

Gentlemen, since the comparison already included the price difference then by your criteria the Yamaha is worth the price difference. As I see it, the only other logical approach would have been to throw out the points associated with the cost comparison, and then say at the end of the article the Yamaha whipped the Honda 22 to 14, if you think this is worth an extra $691 then that’s up to you.

Hasty M. Horn Field Service Technician Yamaha International

Good point!—Ed.

Just read your December issue, really decent! I especially thought your com-

parison was done in good taste and fairness. It was very up to date. I have one question—on Page 53 of this article you show the YZ and the Elsinore. 1^^ that the Elsinore has its shocks ^Pr upside down? Now every other picture in the article has them shown in the conventional upright position. Did you do anything seriously with them inverted. You didn’t mention thing one about the change? There must be 1,000,000 other letters like this one. I guess I get an attention award or something like that for noticing you guys... and your tricks! Keep up the hard work for a fine magazine.

Dan Finazzo Appleton, Wis.

You don’t miss a trick, do you Daniel?—Ed.

I recently got my first issue of CYCLE WORLD (December 1973). In it there was a comparison between the Honda 250 Elsinore and the Yamaha YZ. In the comparison you listed titt maximum horsepower of the Honda 22.4.

I borrowed a friend’s June issue of MotorCyclist and in it the 250 Honda Elsinore’s maximum horsepower is listed as 28.8.

Now my question is who’s correct?

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Also how did you and MotorCyclist get such a gap between you? Please clarify for me.

Mark Ahlstrand Lincoln, Neb.

As with all machines we dyno test, the Honda CR was run on the Webco dyno in a representative state of tune when tested. The machine was supplied by American Honda. We don’t know why the differences in bhp figures, but we do know the Webco dyno doesn’t lie, and our Honda put out a maximum of 22.4 bhp. That’s all she wrote!—Ed.

In fairness to the Elsinore you should have tested it with the factory hop-up cylinder installed. In your test, the only significant YZ advantage was in the drag race to the turn. The optional cylinder makes a big difference in the Elsino^^ drag performance. With the optiol^P cylinder installed, the Elsinore still costs far less than the YZ.

Mel Sudow Ft. Wayne, Ind.

The optional CR kit was not yet available when we conducted our comparison. Also, the only significant advantage of the YZ was not simply the race to the first turn, but lap times as well. A second or less a lap might not sound like much, but when you do it lap after lap and go for 20 minutes, all of a sudden you discover that the Elsinore is 40 seconds behind. A little means a lot, Mel. —Ed.

TRAILER A TRIALER

Last Tuesday I traded my tough old Triumph tourer in on a tiny little trials bike with a trailer. Two types of trials tires with two different tread ty^^ came with the trialer. I tied the tri^CT to the trailer and towed it to the trials trails to test the two types of trials tires. Type one tire tended to make the handling tricky and tired this tyro trials rider, but the type two tread took the trail test tidily.

Trying to test the two types of trials tires on trials trails tended to become tiresome. It took more time to change tires on the trails than it took to test the tire treads. Today I’m tired from tying the trialer to the trailer, then towing the trailer to the trials trails, taking the trialer off the trailer, tuning and tire testing. Tomorrow, Tuesday, I’m taking time to try to trade the trialer and trailer for another tourer.

Dick Duncan Cold Spring, N.Y. We’ve tried touring and true, it2s. trick. Too, trailing or trialers can t one’s temper if one’s trailer has given trouble. We can understand why your temperment has had a tendency to terminate trialing after such a terse tenure, but we would like to tempt you into another try.— Ed.

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BOOSTING THE AMA

Just have to congratulate Ivan Wagar on his editorial in “The Scene,” Nov. ’73. AMA needs more editorials from people of reliability such as yourself. Other than Bob Greene, I am unaware of anyone with guts enough to lay it on the line.

As a good friend of Ed Youngblood, I feel your speaking out will be taken as a vote of confidence in his efforts to get the kinks out of the situation he has inherited. I have been doing my best to boost membership in the AMA, spoke to many groups along the way this summer. On a 16,000 mile jaunt one gets the opportunity to meet all kinds, seems most I met were gripers and complainers. Always you hear, “What has AMA done for me”? Am proud of Kawasaki and Suzuki for tucking membership applications in with the warranty papers, but this is still not enough. Dealers will be the big losers if legislation keeps taking away our rights. Why can’t they spend a little effort enlisting new members when they peddle their goods? The MIC could exert a little stronger effort along this line.

AÍ Henning Chatsworth, Calif.

RIGHT LEFT RIGHT

Your column “The Scene,” Oct. ’73, contained brief reference to the most fundamental and important facet of handling a two-wheeled vehicle—the oft-misunderstood and incredibly disbelieved fact of steer right to begin a left turn, and vice-versa.

Although you should be applauded for bringing this news to your readers, you dropped the ball completely when the print said “forward pressure on the right handlebar turns the machine to the left.” Unbelievably, you got it wrong! You’re not alone in the marbles, though.

Even the YAMAHA learn-to-ride foiks to whom I spoke were confused on this point, but their literature was accurate, if spotty. I hope you will make an effort to correct the misinformation for your readers.

Carmen D’Agostino San Jose, Calif.

Would you believe a proof reader thought I was wrong and changed the

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copy? It should have read: forward pressure on the right bar will cause the machine to steer to the left (slightly), then bank to the right. -Ed.

SPEED WA Y FAN

I would like to tell you how much I enjoyed Randy Riggs’ article “Speedway: Once Is Not Enough” in the Oct. ’73 issue of CYCLE WORLD. After reading the article not once, but four times, I find his descriptions of the bike, the riding, the fans and all the other sights and sounds were very well captured. I think he has done a marvelous job of shedding light on a sport that so far all we’ve been able to do is talk about because no one would believe all our tales and the feeling of excitement that goes with it.

Randy’s points to others who want to try Speedway were very concise and well explained. My son is riding a % mini speedway bike at Costa Mesa during intermission. We bought the bike from one of the up-and-coming “greats,” Bruce Penhall. I got the bike for my boy first because he wants to ride speedway, but is too young; and second, because when he tried the bike out at Orange County International, a number of speedway’s finest said he had good form and possibilities as a speedway rider.

Riggs talked about the camaraderie among the riders and everyone involved with speedway. These wonderful and talented riders are also willing to help the young riders who hope to one day become as great as their idols.

Randy’s descriptions of his feelings and talents and tricks of the trade needed to ride a bike have been a big help to my son. A father can talk until he’s blue in the face about ways to ride, but the way Riggs presented the information is a tremendous help to a young rider—in an easy, straightforward way, and in a magazine he considers tops. Thank you for a fine article.

I5l Myron G. Bloom