Race Watch
RACE WATCH
Yoshimura Wins AFM Six-Hour; Lackey Leads Points; Kenny Wins Again; Hannah Ties Up Another Title
ALDANA, EMDE WIN AFM SIX-HOUR
Dave Aldana and David Emde won the AFM On Any Sunday II Six-hour endurance race, riding the 1099cc Yoshimura R&D of America Suzuki GS1000 to a three-lap margin of victory.
Yoshimura team riders Wes Cooley and Ron Pierce were competing at the 24 hours of Le Mans in France on the same day as the AFM race at Ontario Motor Speedway in Southern California. Thus Aldana was recruited to ride with Emde on a bike chief Yoshimura racing mechanic Suehiro Watanabe completed at 2:30 a.m. the morning of qualifying.
Emde started the race and traded the lead back and forth with Steve McLaughlin (Racecrafters K.Z1000, partner Harry Klinzmann) and Reg Pridmore (Vetter KZ1000. partner Keith Code) for three laps. On the third lap McLaughlin's Kaw'asaki blew up. Pridmore passed Emde. and the two ran in close formation turning 2:09 and 2:10 lap times until the seventh lap. when Emde again took the lead and pulled out a slight cushion. Less than a half-hour into the race. Pridmore pitted with an engine oil leak, and Emde was safely in first, ahead of a dice for second going on between Rich Schlacter (860 Ducati. partner Richard Chambers), David Langford (Yoshimura Speed Center I099cc GSIOOO, partner Rudy Galindo), Steve Mallonee (Warland Engineering KZ1000. partner Roberto Pietri) and John Bettencourt (Kawasaki Motors Corp. KZ 1000. partner Martin Carney).
The race was red flagged on the 17th lap. Mallonee was leading Langford and Bettencourt in a drafting train down the straight, all three coming up fast on a slow RD350. Mallonee and Langford pulled out at the last moment, but Bettencourt suddenly found himself faced with the taillight of a slow' Yamaha and no place to go. The impact broke the Kawasaki Superbike in half and turned the Yamaha’s rear wheel into an oval. Luckily both riders escaped in relatively good condition, but the race was delayed for 20 minutes to allow debris removal.
Bettencourt was to have ridden with Mike Baldwin, but Baldwin did not return from Europe in time for the race, so 1976 six-hour winner Martin Carney substituted.
Aldana took over from Emde for the restart, turned 2:09-2:10 laps and led until he pitted for gas and a rider change 20 laps later. Two more laps and Emde was back in the pits with a flat rear slick, a Goodyear D1705. The wheel change put the Yoshimura R&D Suzuki back in 10th overall, but Emde had moved up into fifth within an additional 30 laps. When Aldana took over again and began turning laps in the 2:09. 2:08, and finally 2:07 range, it didn't take long to regain first. The Yoshimura machine in fact controlled the last 50 laps of the race, doing nothing but running fast, pitting fast and building up time on second place.
Aldana’s best lap wxts a 2:07.5, Emde’s a 2:08.9. The bike was set up for distance with a 9000 rpm redline and a mid-range torque exhaust system. Both riders said they were cruising.
Second overall was the private Z-l Superbike of Chuck Parme and Gil Martin finishing one lap ahead of the R.C. Engineering 1013cc GSIOOO ridden by Willi Scheffer and Wendall Phillips in the company's first endurance road race.
Kevin Burke and Ken Greene (the passenger on Reg Pridmore’s AMA sidecar) finished fourth overall on Burke’s 845cc GS750. with Steve Sowden and Kevin Stafford fifth overall on Sowden’s KZ1000 Superbike. Mallonee and Pietri were sixth after two flat tires, Pridmore and Code seventh after several lengthy pit stops.
Roger Hagie, CW contributor Robert Runyard and Frans Vandenbroek won the> 750cc class on a KZ650 fitted with a Kerker exhaust system. Hagie may be the most consistent rider in AFM Six-hour history. ^He won overall in 1976. riding a stock KZ1000 with Martin Carney; led his class with a modified KZ650 in 1977 until the bike broke: finished third overall, first 750 "on a stock KZ650 with co-rider Gil Martin in 1978; and teamed with Runvard and Vandenbroek to out-last the competition this vear on the same bike he rode last year. The team went from third in class to first in
less than one hour. John Fuchs and Dan Sorenson were fastest on a 750 during the
race, turning 2:14 and 2: 19 lap times with a 738cc KZ650 running on Michelin slicks, and they led the elass for 1 10 laps until the bike started throwing the chain. That put
the Cycle World GS750 ridden by Pat Eagan and John Ulrich first in class, with times ranging upward from Eagan’s best of a 2:17 to Ulrich’s best 2:19. The bike was equipped with wide rims, 29mm Mikuni ^smoothbore carbs, a hand-bent Yoshimura racing exhaust system, a Racer One cafe fairing. MX Fox shocks, and an 8 gal. gas tank fabricated by welding together two stock tanks. The alternator was removed, a cut-down cover installed and total loss ignition used.
The Cycle World team was hampered by several problems immediately. The experimental Metzeler slick chosen for the rear overheated and started sliding less than 10 laps into the race, forcing the riders to slow down. The quick-fill borrowed for pit stops broke at the first stop, and the pit crew ^refueled the bike using a funnel and gas cans. Fortunately, the large tank allowed the riders to stay on the track 1 '/2-hours between stops.
Ulrich had the class lead with a four-lap margin and was about to hand over to Eagan when the Dunlop KR83 front tire K>went flat at 5 hours. 15 minutes. The pit crew changed the front wheel assembly.
but Eagan was forced to pit for a rear wheel change three laps later the rear slick had worn through three layers of cord from constantly sliding and spinning.
At the end of six hours. Hagie. who had turned a best time of 2:19.8 and who finished turning 2:25s on his Dunlop K8 1 -equipped Kawasaki, was being reeled in by Eagan—turning 2:18s on the stock Suzuki wheels and IRC tires. But Hagie finished one lap. five seconds ahead of Eagan. During the race. Runvard's best lap time was 2:25. Vandenbroek’s 2:28.
Race fans may recognize Vandenbroek as one of Pat Hennen’s mechanics during the 2Vi years before Hennen’s tragic Isle of Man crash in 1978. Vandenbroek worked on Hennen's private and works Suzukis during 1976, 1977 (when Hennen became the first American to win a 500cc GP) and 1978. and finished the year working on Wíl Hartog’s Suzuki RG500 before returning to the United States. Now, Vandenbroek works for Kawasaki Motors Corp. in R&D. Runyard is a technical writer for Kawasaki. while Hagie is a legislative liaison man for the firm.
The Ontario Moto Tech Suzuki GS550 ridden by Art Friedman and Jeff Karr controlled their class after the two-hour point. The same bike and same riders won the 550cc class in 1978 as well.
Doug Draper, Glen Shopher and John
Williams rode Williams' RD400 Yamaha to victory in the 410cc class, taking and holding first in class after 2Vi hours.
Mike Baeder won the 250cc GP race held on Saturday before Sunday's Sixhour. Baeder turned 2:07 and 2:08 lap times and led the entire race. Among those in Baeder’s wake was Gennedy Luibimsky, who finished fifth in the Daytona 250cc race.
30-HOUR ENDURANCE ROAD RACE
nybody not satisfied with the abundant opportunity to blow up or crash their motorcycle during six-, eightor 24-hour endurance road races won’t want to miss the WERA 30 Hours of Rockingham. The purse for the event, scheduled for September 28, 29 and 30. is
S 10.000. the same amount offered at the AFM 6-Hour won by David Emde and David Aldana at Ontario in April. Interested teams and spectators should contact the promoters. International Racing Associates. Inc., 1130 E. Third St.. #450. Charlotte. NC 28204. or call (704) 372-1599.
LACKEY STILL LEADS 500 MX POINTS
Bad Brad Lackey won the first moto in the Swedish GP and retired from the second when his Kawasaki Uni-Trak's frame broke behind the steering head. Lackey’s performance in the third round of -the World Championship series kept him on top of the points standings with 61. followed by Honda's Graham Noyce (57 ^pts.) and Suzuki's Gerritt Wolsink (50 pts.). Defending Champion Heikki Mikkola (Yamaha) was fourth with 40 points.
MAMOLA SECOND IN 250cc POINTS
While King Kenny Roberts proceeded to tear up the competition in his defense of his 500cc road racing World Championship. 19-year-old Randy Mamola was chasing his own title in the 250cc class. Mamola finished fifth in the first Grand Prix, in Venezuela. The second GP didn’t run a 250cc class, but in the next 250cc race, in West Germany. Mamola was .second behind reigning World Champion Kork Ballington (Kawasaki). Mamola was
second to Ballington again in Italy. After three rounds. Mamola had 40 points to Ballington’s 42. with third-place and former champion Walter Villa far behind with 23 points.
Confounding Mamola’s title bid was his split-up with Italian sponsors Bimota and Adriatica after the fourth GP. Throughout the series Mamola, although his bike is advertised as running an Adriatica rotaryvalve two-stroke Twin, actually was fitted
with a TZ250 powerplant because Mamola felt that the new Adriatica engine wasn’t yet competitive. That irked the Italians for obvious reasons and Mamola was looking for a ride before the Spanish GP. possibly on Belgium sponsor Serge Zago’s TZ250 Yamaha. If he lines up his rides. Mamola could be America’s first 250cc World Champion.
ROBERTS WINS AGAIN
Defending 500ce road racing World Champion Kenny Roberts took sec-, ond place at the third round of the 12round Grand Prix circuit in West Germany. Rain hampered Roberts' efforts to test suspension and tires on his YamahiT YZR500 during practice, but in spite of limited testing time and rain during official time trials. Roberts qualified fifth fastest. Roberts held second behind Wil Hartog (Suzuki) from start to finish, but closed from 13 seconds behind to only three seconds behind in the last three laps. * Roberts won the fourth round, at Imola, Italy, defeating Suzuki’s Virginio Ferrari (who was third in West Germany). The win in Italy gave Roberts 42 World Championship points to Ferrari’s 46. Hartog has 25 points.
OTHER GUYS ENJOY VICTORY UNTIL HANNAH COMES UP TO SPEED
Following his second place finish at the Oakland Supercross behind Jimmy Weinert, Bob Hannah finished fourth behin d Mike Bell (Ya maha). Danny LaPorte (Suzuki) and Warren Reid (Honda) in the first race of a two-night double-header at Seattle’s Kingdome. Hannah’s relatively poor finish (compared to his usual placings) came as a result of a first-lap collision with Weinert caused when, according to witness and winner Bell. “Weinert came over the jump too fast and took Hannah right with him.”
But Hannah made up for the indignity of finishing fourth by winning the second night's main event, working up from a sixth place start to beat Tommy Croft (Kawasaki) and Marty Smith (Honda).
Hannah won again in a massive mudbath at Atlanta, beating Suzuki's Darrell Shultz and Yamaha’s Rick Burgett. That put the points standings after four races at Hannah 98. Weinert 70. Shultz 63.
HANNAH HEADS FOR ANOTHER
POMEROY'S BETTER BULTACO
American Jim Pomeroy is back on a factory Bultaco for the 1979 250cc Motocross World Championship. His machine, as debuted in the first round of thé250cc series, features reed valve induction and a gear primary drive, radical departures from previous Bultaco practice. In a repeat of the problems faced by Pomeroy' when he rode for Bultaco several years ago.^ the bike’s rear wheel came apart in the first moto. Pomeroy was the first American to< win a motocross Grand Prix in any displacement category, doing it four years ago in Spain.
UPERCROSS TITLE
Team Yamaha's Bob Hannah began the season a little off pace as usual, but quickie set off on a new winning streak in the AMA Toyota Supereross. Hannah is v-4ye 11 on his way to taking his third consecutive Supereross Championship. After an embarrassing last-lap pass bv Team Kawasaki's Jimmy Weinert cost Hannah the 'Cvin in the Daytona Supereross. Hannah ^ came back with a vengeance to sweep two double-header weekend events inside the ouston Astrodome and the Pontiac Silverdome.
The only rider who could get close to Hannah in the Astrodome was Texan Steve '>AVise, who placed second behind Hannah both evenings. Wise was riding Team Honda's new long-stroke RC works bike, ^but was handicapped bv mediocre starts and bv the time Wise broke tree of the pack. Hannah, who took both feature event holeshots. alreadv had the checkered ».Hags in sight. In Michigan's Silverdome it was almost another story as Hannah suf► fered mid-pack starts and had to work up to battle Kawasaki's Tommy Croft for the K>win one night, and Su/.uki's Mark Barnett the next. Hannah beat them both. Croft was riding Kawasaki's KX250 Uni-Irak, which seemed to work as well as Hannah's highlv developed OW40 works Yamaha monoshocker.
Barnett impressed evervone in his first >Supereross race. Suzuki had not allowed him to ride in earlier events for fear he "Cnight injure himself and jeopardize chances of success in the outdoor 125cc Nationals.
With three Supereross series races left. Hannah held a huge 235 to 158 points - advantage over earlv series leader Jimmy Weinert. Jim Giunatsis
WRITE TO PAT HENNEN
Race fans interested in writing to Pat Hennen can address their cards and letters to 139 Lake Shore Dr.. San Mateo. ¿Calif. 94402. Hennen, the man Kenny Roberts said would have won the 1978 500cc World Championship, crashed heavily at the June. 1978 Isle of Man shortly after setting a new lap record. The accident left Hennen in a coma for 1 1 weeks. He has made remarkable progress but is still working on a full recovery.
