Upstarts At Laguna Seca

Upstarts at Laguna Seca

LAGUNA SECA

The King Can Always Come Home Again, But Even Kenny Roberts Can’t Always Win

John Ulrich

"I hope he beats me,” said Kenny Roberts, bitterly. “I hope the s.o.b. beats me". It was Laguna Seca, in the pits, and the three-time World Champion was not happy. He

had just lost to Freddie Spencer and the four-stroke Honda NR500 in a five-lap race for Formula One grid position. Last year, Roberts came home from Europe, won handily, and returned to the GP wars, just as he had the year before. Now, his GP season a shambles and the World Championship out of reach, Roberts returned to Laguna Seca and faced the prospect of being beaten.

Not just the prospect of being beaten, but of being beaten by Spencer (“Fm surprised Freddie didn’t go faster,” said Roberts after winning in 1980) on a motorcycle which hadn’t been able to finish in the top 10 at a Grand Prix in two years of well-financed attempts by the Honda factory.

“Kenny Roberts made a mistake bringing his last year’s model,” said Soichiro Irimajiri, designer of the NR500, after the heat race. “We have made many improvements to the NR500, and Freddie is a very fast rider.”

No doubt that very thought also crossed Roberts’ mind. As usual, he had arrived from Europe with two mechanics—crew chief Kel Carruthers and Knobby Clark— and an obsolete inline, piston-port YZR500 Four that had been superseded in Grand Prix competition by a new square Four with rotary valves.

“I was having a lot of trouble with traction,” said Roberts later. “Freddie’s using Michelins, and they were just working better. He was getting more traction riding around out in the dirt than I was. Plus Fm just not clicking. Fm just not into it. I haven’t ridden this kind of bike for awhile and Fm not used to it.”

A reporter asked if he still felt the aftereffects of suffering food poisoning in Italy a week earlier. Roberts sighed, looked into the distance, and spoke.

“It could very well be. I don’t know. I don’t know what’s wrong. I can’t put my finger on it. It may be that I’m not . . . my equilibrium’s off just a little bit. Because Fm definitely not scuffin' the thing in.”

He shrugged. Then, more confidently, added, “It will be different tomorrow. The tire Freddie used will only go five laps. I just have to run some different compounds and try that. I have to get used to it, that’s all.”

* * *

Randy Mamola, second in the World Championship last year and leading Roberts in points this year, appeared at Laguna with an obsolete Suzuki RG500, mechanic George Vukmonovich, a Dunlop tire technician and several bundles of Dunlop slicks. Before his heat race, which he won handily, Mamola talked about the situation.

“This is last year’s bike,” said Mamola. “It’s hard to get used to riding it, and it feels slow. The one I’m racing now in the GPs is probably 25-30 lb. lighter, so this one feels heavy in steering and heavy in throwing around. I’m not gonna worry about it. I know that Kenny’s probably got just a little bit of horsepower on me, but I should be able to outride that.”

Mamola wasn’t worried enough to even mention Spencer, who, in turn, was confident following the heat races. Spencer’s heat victory was faster than un-pressed Mamola’s. Thus, Spencer had the pole, with Mamola second and Roberts third fastest.

“I always feel I have a good chance of winning any race I enter,” said Spencer. “Everybody should watch the final race, because they’re liable to be surprised.”

* * *

But when the first 60 mi. segment of the final event flagged off, it was Wes Cooley and the Yoshimura four-stroke out front, Mamola second and Roberts third. Spencer was fifth, behind John Bettencourt’s own TZ750 and David Aldana’s Bob Work/Don Vesco/Wasco TZ.

Roberts pitted on the third lap with Mamola first, and Spencer pitted a lap later, the NR not running right, the crowd crying out “No, no!”

Which left Cooley and Mamola in front, running nose-to-tail, Cooley passing in traffic, holding first for a handful of laps, Mamola repassing, the top positions set.

Roberts complained about his bike’s tires. The mechanics changed wheels, and Roberts went out again. Then he was in again, complained about carburetion, and was sent out again with another set of wheels installed, to scuff in tires for the second segment of the race. The tires scuffed, Roberts pitted for good.

Bettencourt slowly faded back. Aldana raced U.S. Road Racing Champion Rich Schlachter (Bob MacLean TZ750) and Team Honda’s Mike Spencer (RSI000) for third, Schlachter up from a first-lap 20th, Spencer up from a first-lap 10th. Aldana pulled away, and Harry Klinzmann moved his TZ750 up to race with Bettencourt.

At the finish of the first segment, Mamola—turning l :08 and 1:09 laps— had almost 5 sec. on Cooley—turning 1:09 laps—who had twice as much time on Aldana. Schlachter and Mike Spencer were another 14 sec. back, Klinzmann 7 sec. down on Spencer and 10 sec. up on Bettencourt. Mamola lapped Bettencourt.

Between segments Carruthers and Clark checked Roberts’ bike, pulled the cylinder heads, made the carburetion richer, and put it all back together. A swarm of Honda mechanics changed engines in Spencer’s NR500. Cooley sat in the back of the Yoshimura truck, concentrating on the second segment, mentally looking for time here, time there, a way to get around Mamola.

“The bike worked perfect,” said Mamola, looking calm. “Slow, but perfect. It had the same top speed, but less acceleration than the four-stroke. My problem is in passing backmarkers. I can’t pass ’em on the straightaway so I have to pass ’em in the corners. The backmarkers aren’t even looking around. I’m coming up so fast on them, they don’t understand. They’re riding at a pace where they can ride any line, and I’m riding at a pace where I have to take one line. So if they screw me up I tend to be not so smooth.

“Cooley’s bike comes off the corner ‘Vrrrooom’ and mine just kind of goes ‘baaaahhh.’ ”

There were no surprises in the second segment. Roberts started at the back of the grid, as did Freddie Spencer. Spencer’s NR smoked on the grid and he pitted after two laps, finished. Cooley led off the line again, and Mamola took the lead on the second lap. Aldana’s bike’s shift lever fell off, and he pitted, rejoined the fray, and pitted again. Roberts sliced up into fifth position, had his bike’s clutch fail, and retired.

Bettencourt fought Schlachter for third, and made it stick. After a season in Europe on a TZ250, Schlachter was surprised he could still ride his “dinosaur” 750 at all. Nick Richichi (TZ750) came out on top of a four-way battle for fifth with Roberto Pietri (Honda RSI000), Mike Spencer and Klinzmann.

“I figured on a little more competition,” said Cooley, afterwards. “When Randy came by me in the first leg I was expecting more pressure from Kenny and Freddie. Then after three or four laps it didn’t materialize and I started getting pit signs and they weren’t in the hunt. It shocked me a little bit. Here these guys are running for the 500cc World Championship. I guess that's racing. It worked out really good.

“The Suzuki four-stroke had a little horsepower on Mamola’s RG coming off turns two and three, but not so much going up the back of the hill, which surprised me. But he could outbrake me so easily, I guess due to the weight difference. And coming out of the corkscrew he could put a couple of lengths on me, I don’t know if it was because the suspension hooked up or the tire was better or what. I couldn’t get out of there as quickly as he could. But hey. I’m pumped up. I’m happy.”