February 7, 2012
What happened to me? Well, I'm back sorry to say for all of you. The dinner by the way had 194 people attend, and if you were there you know what a great time everybody had. Only one incident of somebody throwing up in the bathroom, that I heard of. Both Gordy Ochs and Randy Skiver and their families were having a great time and will have more memories to store into their heads.
At the dinner I had a sore elbow which quickly turned into a ruptured bursitis sack that looked like 2/3rd of a tennis ball had attached itself to the elbow. Some pain and strength loss happened. Had it drained three times and it kept coming back. The Doctor then said I also had triceps tendinitis which combined with the bursitis made it extremely hard to transfer anywhere out of my chair. Also had two bouts of the flu while this was going on. Took a two week vacation to see my parents in Palm Desert, CA. that didn't help the elbow. So now after more than a month of stretching, ice, ibuprofen and pain pills I am almost whole. or at least 1/3rd. Not sure if the dinner will be on October 21st or the 28th this year. We will be having the same food as last year as in Caesar salad, Rosemary/Garlic Chicken, Sausage Lasagna with veges and rolls. Minimal lessons learned this year was to open the bar earlier and to a short biography of each racer and do away with the personal introductions by friends. For me not to read everything off of a sheet of paper and more ad lib. Dangerous thinking there. As you see we will have two new inductees this year in Bruce Lind and Pat Jacobson. Amazingly only 15 years apart in age.
As this moment I am calling more people to be involved with the idea of starting up the Startup Motocross track once again. So far everybody is very excited about it. I will convene a meeting under the WSMCHOF to discuss plans on how we all do this.
Big changes in the northwest vintage motocross world as Hammer & Tongs racing series is out and the Pacific Northwest Vintage Motocross is in. I have talked with the President Fritz for a little while and I agree with him on the direction and organization of the club. Although not too hot on the idea of bikes from 1983 to 1989 being involved. Especially since bikes in 1989 had USD forks, disc brakes front and rear. water cooling and long travel suspension. Almost the same as today except they went from 2 strokes to 4 strokes. The vintage and post vintage bikes heralded in new technologies in a time of innovation. Plus I don't see many people who are enthused as near as much as the real vintage crowd. Just my thought though.
What happened to me? Well, I'm back sorry to say for all of you. The dinner by the way had 194 people attend, and if you were there you know what a great time everybody had. Only one incident of somebody throwing up in the bathroom, that I heard of. Both Gordy Ochs and Randy Skiver and their families were having a great time and will have more memories to store into their heads.
At the dinner I had a sore elbow which quickly turned into a ruptured bursitis sack that looked like 2/3rd of a tennis ball had attached itself to the elbow. Some pain and strength loss happened. Had it drained three times and it kept coming back. The Doctor then said I also had triceps tendinitis which combined with the bursitis made it extremely hard to transfer anywhere out of my chair. Also had two bouts of the flu while this was going on. Took a two week vacation to see my parents in Palm Desert, CA. that didn't help the elbow. So now after more than a month of stretching, ice, ibuprofen and pain pills I am almost whole. or at least 1/3rd. Not sure if the dinner will be on October 21st or the 28th this year. We will be having the same food as last year as in Caesar salad, Rosemary/Garlic Chicken, Sausage Lasagna with veges and rolls. Minimal lessons learned this year was to open the bar earlier and to a short biography of each racer and do away with the personal introductions by friends. For me not to read everything off of a sheet of paper and more ad lib. Dangerous thinking there. As you see we will have two new inductees this year in Bruce Lind and Pat Jacobson. Amazingly only 15 years apart in age.
As this moment I am calling more people to be involved with the idea of starting up the Startup Motocross track once again. So far everybody is very excited about it. I will convene a meeting under the WSMCHOF to discuss plans on how we all do this.
Big changes in the northwest vintage motocross world as Hammer & Tongs racing series is out and the Pacific Northwest Vintage Motocross is in. I have talked with the President Fritz for a little while and I agree with him on the direction and organization of the club. Although not too hot on the idea of bikes from 1983 to 1989 being involved. Especially since bikes in 1989 had USD forks, disc brakes front and rear. water cooling and long travel suspension. Almost the same as today except they went from 2 strokes to 4 strokes. The vintage and post vintage bikes heralded in new technologies in a time of innovation. Plus I don't see many people who are enthused as near as much as the real vintage crowd. Just my thought though.
October 21, 2011
Talked to my friend today Randy McAllister who is the owner and manager of the long held motorcycle store Aurora Suzuki. Randy called to tell me that he wouldn't be able to make the dinner because he had a small minor stroke this past Monday. The stroke just now affects his left hand which means his guitar playing is on a temporary hold for the moment
Talked to my friend today Randy McAllister who is the owner and manager of the long held motorcycle store Aurora Suzuki. Randy called to tell me that he wouldn't be able to make the dinner because he had a small minor stroke this past Monday. The stroke just now affects his left hand which means his guitar playing is on a temporary hold for the moment
October 11, 2011
12 days left until the dinner, and 9 days left to pre enter for the dinner without having to pay for post entry fees of $8 per person. It's not like I didn't warn you. As of today we have 100 people through Pre-Entry.
Just heard, and saw, that Eastside Motorsports are closing down to be re-invented as Bellevue Ducati. Bellevue Suzuki was first started in 1970 in the old Metro Bus Barn, which is now Bellevue BMW Auto. I got my 2nd bike there a 1971 blue Suzuki TS 125 Duster with I think about 13 HP. It took a lot of pull on the handlebars to get it to wheelie. Over many, many changes of hands of ownership and two location changes it no longer serves it's original purpose of spreading the word of motorcycles for everyone in the community. Now it's just for the rich who can afford expensive bikes and who can't ride them. Almost like Eastside Harley Davidson just up the street. If you live in that area you will have to go to down the street to the smallish Bellevue Kawasaki, I-90 Motorsports in Issaquah, or to Ride Motorsports in Woodinville, or drive to Renton or Lynnwood for help. Bellevue is no longer the town where I grew up. Is any town? Suzuki may be limiting the amount of brands they offer in the future, while trying to sell off there huge backlog. It's not the 70's anymore, and it is not good at all to be a motorcycle dealer, or a race organization. Ask them. I'm glad I got out of the motorcycle industry in 1978 working for Aurora Cycle, and continued in college at Seattle University where I moved into the corporate world, which was no better though.
12 days left until the dinner, and 9 days left to pre enter for the dinner without having to pay for post entry fees of $8 per person. It's not like I didn't warn you. As of today we have 100 people through Pre-Entry.
Just heard, and saw, that Eastside Motorsports are closing down to be re-invented as Bellevue Ducati. Bellevue Suzuki was first started in 1970 in the old Metro Bus Barn, which is now Bellevue BMW Auto. I got my 2nd bike there a 1971 blue Suzuki TS 125 Duster with I think about 13 HP. It took a lot of pull on the handlebars to get it to wheelie. Over many, many changes of hands of ownership and two location changes it no longer serves it's original purpose of spreading the word of motorcycles for everyone in the community. Now it's just for the rich who can afford expensive bikes and who can't ride them. Almost like Eastside Harley Davidson just up the street. If you live in that area you will have to go to down the street to the smallish Bellevue Kawasaki, I-90 Motorsports in Issaquah, or to Ride Motorsports in Woodinville, or drive to Renton or Lynnwood for help. Bellevue is no longer the town where I grew up. Is any town? Suzuki may be limiting the amount of brands they offer in the future, while trying to sell off there huge backlog. It's not the 70's anymore, and it is not good at all to be a motorcycle dealer, or a race organization. Ask them. I'm glad I got out of the motorcycle industry in 1978 working for Aurora Cycle, and continued in college at Seattle University where I moved into the corporate world, which was no better though.
September 28, 2011
Just chatted with Steve Baker (1st year WSMCHOH Member) and he is getting to ride/race in the vintage race there on a late 70's 500 or 750, plus he is getting a chance to handle a new Yamaha M1 Moto GP bike for the first time. He is also planning on coming by the way.
Just chatted with Steve Baker (1st year WSMCHOH Member) and he is getting to ride/race in the vintage race there on a late 70's 500 or 750, plus he is getting a chance to handle a new Yamaha M1 Moto GP bike for the first time. He is also planning on coming by the way.
September 20, 2011
Hallelujah, hallelujah! Not to get religious sounding here but we have finally arrived. I of course am speaking about the finalization of our application to be a United States of America Internal Revenue Service as been accepted and we are a tax exempt 501 C4 Social Welfare organization as of September 30, 2010. We are also a Non-Profit corporation from the Washington State which all means in essence that we do not have to pay taxes on whatever very little money we take in. Without this we would not be able to survive as the taxes would sink us into a hole that we would never be able to climb out f. And we are truly a non profit organization as our only goal is to have an annual dinner celebrating past motorcycle racers from this area and also if things go our way to donate money to various causes that support the medical needs of racers in research development.
All of this would have not been able to be done without the constant help, training, consulting and actually doing the application of Edith Bowler our Attorney for the WSMCHOF. Edie also did this for the Washington Motorcycle Road Racing Association in the early 70's and is a lawyer of the utmost quality. Edie is a prime mover in Dane Outreach for placements of Great Dane dogs in the area. I could make jokes that she deals with big slobbery dogs all day including her husband Bruce Lind, but Edie said she would sue me. Whoops!
You are all now members of the association when you sign up for dinner. Congratulations to you also.
Shawn McDonald
President, WSMCHOF
Hallelujah, hallelujah! Not to get religious sounding here but we have finally arrived. I of course am speaking about the finalization of our application to be a United States of America Internal Revenue Service as been accepted and we are a tax exempt 501 C4 Social Welfare organization as of September 30, 2010. We are also a Non-Profit corporation from the Washington State which all means in essence that we do not have to pay taxes on whatever very little money we take in. Without this we would not be able to survive as the taxes would sink us into a hole that we would never be able to climb out f. And we are truly a non profit organization as our only goal is to have an annual dinner celebrating past motorcycle racers from this area and also if things go our way to donate money to various causes that support the medical needs of racers in research development.
All of this would have not been able to be done without the constant help, training, consulting and actually doing the application of Edith Bowler our Attorney for the WSMCHOF. Edie also did this for the Washington Motorcycle Road Racing Association in the early 70's and is a lawyer of the utmost quality. Edie is a prime mover in Dane Outreach for placements of Great Dane dogs in the area. I could make jokes that she deals with big slobbery dogs all day including her husband Bruce Lind, but Edie said she would sue me. Whoops!
You are all now members of the association when you sign up for dinner. Congratulations to you also.
Shawn McDonald
President, WSMCHOF
September 19, 2011
We have a total of 50 people so far which is the minimum number to hold a dinner at Emerald Downs. So the 1st milestone has been completed. There are no more communication releases as they have all been completed. All we can do now is to have you start calling your friends and getting them to come to the dinner. Trust me, they will have a great time. You can't buy memories.
By Thursday October 23rd I have to give Emerald Downs the final count for dinner. That means I have to take the actual orders and GUESS how many will show up. Last year we guessed too many as most people promised they would come, and didn't. I should have known better listening to racers tell me their truth's. That is why the post Entry fee of $8 for you ordering after the firm order date. I could just give a solid number and turn away anybody who had not pre entered and save me money angst, but that would be wrong, wouldn't it? You usually guess at 15% - 25% over firm orders for dinner's like these, but I am very hesitant on doing so.
My nephew Logan who turns 16 in October was over this past weekend and just as we were to leave to bring him back to his mother's house he stole my keys in my wheelchair pouch and started up my 2011 Camaro in the garage. It was in the driveway by the time I got out and was yelling at him to turn it off. Too late as he hit my motorcycle trailer behind the right front tire and left a 5" big scratch where the trailer tongue hit it. Needless to say after I discovered what had happened many a swear word came out of my mouth. Only a few at my nephew thought. My 14 month, 8,500 mile beauty was no longer a virgin new car. It had been tainted. Logan was actually feeling worse than I was so I tried to be funny and lighten the mood as his depression was depressing me.
We have a total of 50 people so far which is the minimum number to hold a dinner at Emerald Downs. So the 1st milestone has been completed. There are no more communication releases as they have all been completed. All we can do now is to have you start calling your friends and getting them to come to the dinner. Trust me, they will have a great time. You can't buy memories.
By Thursday October 23rd I have to give Emerald Downs the final count for dinner. That means I have to take the actual orders and GUESS how many will show up. Last year we guessed too many as most people promised they would come, and didn't. I should have known better listening to racers tell me their truth's. That is why the post Entry fee of $8 for you ordering after the firm order date. I could just give a solid number and turn away anybody who had not pre entered and save me money angst, but that would be wrong, wouldn't it? You usually guess at 15% - 25% over firm orders for dinner's like these, but I am very hesitant on doing so.
My nephew Logan who turns 16 in October was over this past weekend and just as we were to leave to bring him back to his mother's house he stole my keys in my wheelchair pouch and started up my 2011 Camaro in the garage. It was in the driveway by the time I got out and was yelling at him to turn it off. Too late as he hit my motorcycle trailer behind the right front tire and left a 5" big scratch where the trailer tongue hit it. Needless to say after I discovered what had happened many a swear word came out of my mouth. Only a few at my nephew thought. My 14 month, 8,500 mile beauty was no longer a virgin new car. It had been tainted. Logan was actually feeling worse than I was so I tried to be funny and lighten the mood as his depression was depressing me.
September 12, 2011
Just Googled and BING'd "Motorcycle Hall of Fame and except for the AMA and a Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame we are the only individual state to have such an event. Wow, we must be important!
I checked and at this time last year we had 22 people signed up and now we have 40, and yet I still worry that no one is signing up. Daily Tums at night to calm my sensitive stomach. Help calm my stomach and sign up early, and don't sign up past Thursday or just show up and avoid the post entry extra fee of $8 per person.
Just think that this November will see the last of two stroke racing in the World Road Racing Championships as the 125cc class will be supplanted by the Moto 3 class comprised of single cylinder 250cc four strokes. The two strokes will come back as direct injection into the cylinder that will literally clean up all of the toxic fumes and the HP to weight and size scenario will weigh in favor of the beloved 2 strokes once again.
Put a 1/2 page ad into the September issue of American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association monthly "Vintage Views" magazine/newsletter, and judging by the daily hits that I see for the WSMCHOF website their was no change. Thereby telling me the advertising was a complete waste. It may be a reminder to racers who are members of AHRMA to sign up, but it did not create any new viewers.So another lesson learned that the best advertising for the dollar is this site and especially word of mouth.
This year when you sign up at the dinner it will be required that you give us your email. I don't send out more than 4 emails a year and all about talking about the next dinner. The cost of sending out letters with printing and postage drains about $75 from our very small pool of money. I cannot believe that no one in today's world does not have an email. If you actually don't then I will leave it in Karen Ofstad's judgement. Karen will be running the signup at the day's event and she is fantastic about these things and I will have no worries on how it is going up front. It will be fantastic.
Just Googled and BING'd "Motorcycle Hall of Fame and except for the AMA and a Canadian Motorcycle Hall of Fame we are the only individual state to have such an event. Wow, we must be important!
I checked and at this time last year we had 22 people signed up and now we have 40, and yet I still worry that no one is signing up. Daily Tums at night to calm my sensitive stomach. Help calm my stomach and sign up early, and don't sign up past Thursday or just show up and avoid the post entry extra fee of $8 per person.
Just think that this November will see the last of two stroke racing in the World Road Racing Championships as the 125cc class will be supplanted by the Moto 3 class comprised of single cylinder 250cc four strokes. The two strokes will come back as direct injection into the cylinder that will literally clean up all of the toxic fumes and the HP to weight and size scenario will weigh in favor of the beloved 2 strokes once again.
Put a 1/2 page ad into the September issue of American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association monthly "Vintage Views" magazine/newsletter, and judging by the daily hits that I see for the WSMCHOF website their was no change. Thereby telling me the advertising was a complete waste. It may be a reminder to racers who are members of AHRMA to sign up, but it did not create any new viewers.So another lesson learned that the best advertising for the dollar is this site and especially word of mouth.
This year when you sign up at the dinner it will be required that you give us your email. I don't send out more than 4 emails a year and all about talking about the next dinner. The cost of sending out letters with printing and postage drains about $75 from our very small pool of money. I cannot believe that no one in today's world does not have an email. If you actually don't then I will leave it in Karen Ofstad's judgement. Karen will be running the signup at the day's event and she is fantastic about these things and I will have no worries on how it is going up front. It will be fantastic.
September 1, 2011
Met with 1st VP Ron Orr at his company Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store in Auburn, WA. just a few minutes away from the Emerald Downs facility. We are flowing smoothly on all fronts. For those poor unfortunate ones it looks like I will be the Master of Ceremonies which could be actually fun. And no I will not be drinking before or during the event no matter how weird I sound. It's just me. We have also decided on the 2012 honorees which will be announced at the end of this years dinner. Can't wait to find out! I already know of course. We have enough information due to your inputs on who should be selected that will last use for many years. That is why we took down the the voting column on the site.
We will be charging a $8 additional charge for post-entry starting on Thursday October 20th staring at 12 PM.That is much longer than other events which close pre sales more than a week before. So you have no excuse for not joining right now, and no complaining if you have to pay. We are gambling with how many dinners for people showing up will be, A pure ass guess where we could lose a lot of money judging if you were going to show or not.
The facility at Emerald Downs is fantastic. I see in the future of having a Concurs de Elegance motorcycle show there in accompaniment to the Hall of Fame Dinner. You will all be blown away on how great this place is. They also have about 30 TV's inside so we can be watching some "On Any Sunday" and "The World's Fastest Indian" movies before hand and sone ancient films I also have.
August 23. 2011
63 year old Legend and future Hall of Fame honoree posted this about his win at the Miller Motorsports race track in Toele, Utah just outside Salt Lake City. I was just seven years old when he started road racing. So then why do I feel older than Bruce does. Granted he has to hit a hot tub each morning for many years to loosen up the joints. I always heard that you hit the joints to be loose in the hot tub, but what do I know. Can't think of a more massive statistic. When they say in the movie "Le Mans" that racing is life they were thinking of Bruce. Or there is no racing without Bruce, and there is no Bruce without racing. I just thought of something that he was just doing track days that accidentally coincided with a 250 GP class at the same moment in time. Apparently that day was not a track day. Congratulations.
"I crossed the line ahead of Don Roberts in the 250GP class at Miller Motorsports park this past Sunday. That gives me a race win in six decades. 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, 00's, 11's. Really looking foreward to the full 23 turn 4.4 mile course at Miller on October 1/2. This will complete my 48th season "on the pavement"!"
63 year old Legend and future Hall of Fame honoree posted this about his win at the Miller Motorsports race track in Toele, Utah just outside Salt Lake City. I was just seven years old when he started road racing. So then why do I feel older than Bruce does. Granted he has to hit a hot tub each morning for many years to loosen up the joints. I always heard that you hit the joints to be loose in the hot tub, but what do I know. Can't think of a more massive statistic. When they say in the movie "Le Mans" that racing is life they were thinking of Bruce. Or there is no racing without Bruce, and there is no Bruce without racing. I just thought of something that he was just doing track days that accidentally coincided with a 250 GP class at the same moment in time. Apparently that day was not a track day. Congratulations.
"I crossed the line ahead of Don Roberts in the 250GP class at Miller Motorsports park this past Sunday. That gives me a race win in six decades. 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, 00's, 11's. Really looking foreward to the full 23 turn 4.4 mile course at Miller on October 1/2. This will complete my 48th season "on the pavement"!"
August 15, 2011
AHRMA National Vintage MX race at Grays' Farm in Chehalis, WA. It has been at least 4 years since I have gone to the farm. Not because I didn't want to. It was just way too hot for me with Temps in the mid 90's. And since I lack the ability to sweat because of my paralysis that makes it fairly uncomfortable to dangerous of being over 75 F outside. Today was perfect with a temp in the high 60's and overcast skies. It even had a little heavy mist that formed small rain drops for a few minutes. The track was the best that I have seen it in years with thanks to Dick Mann and our new Hall of Fame member Randy Skiver who laid out the course. It was pretty fast with no jumps. Everyone agrees that it is a scrambles track and not a MX track. Of course with 4" of travel in the back and a mighty 7" in the front with old men at speed with brittle bones you don't need any jumps to make life exciting once again. There were a ton of good races. We were up in the 1st corner where Buck Murphy and Dallas Nyblod were parked. It is always the happening place to be. I had been trying to get Pat Jacobson for years to come to a vintage event and he finally did. About time Pat. He brought his factory Suzuki jersey with the #20 on the back along with his Bellevue Suzuki "Racing Research" jersey to the raceday. Dallas wore the Suzuki jersey in the 125 Expert class with good distinction. A Yamaha 125 hopped up to the gills by tuner Jimmy Nation yarded poor Dallas down the straight by 20 yards each time. In the 2nd moto Dallas and the Yammy rider were like flys on shit on how close they were. Dallas had a higher corner speed that he carried through the corners to make up for his lack of horsepower. It was great and Dallas was sweaty afterwards. Dallas had 4 bikes there in the pits. A 1974 Yamaha YZ 250. 1974 1/2 Maico 440, 196? Jawa, and his 1974 Husky 125. He was riding the 125 Husky and after finishing the race stepped on the Maico for a back to back race. After hole shottiing his class and leading he stopped at the 1/3rd mark on the 1st lap. He was being smart because he was too tired to continue competing. Pat had a great time and was making comments about what the racers were doing. And he was right on. There was a big crash in the 250 Expert races on the 2nd corner. Painfully fast top past Washington racer Jim Anderson got tangled up in the second corner where he was slightly ahead and on the inside of a sweeping right hand corner. The outer two riders tangled when their bikes had a disagreement with Anderson's bike and did a nice flying crash. One of the riders was ex fast MX racer Rick Weidman's son. He was unhurt. The other racer had his foot caught between the shock and swingarm. About 15 people swarmed the area with tools taking the shock apart and shaving the racer's boot until after 10 long minutes it was freed. No broken bones. First thing I saw was this racer sprinting in full gear (no helmet) sprinting like an Olympic champion in the 100 meter dash running apparently to find Mr. Anderson for some heated discussion speaking the Italian language of using hands to communicate. Don't think he found him and Mr. Anderson can well take care of himself and a few others. Looked like racing to me, and Jim is certainly a racer. There were no big name stars as in previous years and no Pomeroy's at all. And it was maybe even better because of it. After all these years I hardly watch races that aren't on TV because of the travel, time and money involved to watch locals do what you have seen for the last 40 years. And today I watched some very good racing where I actually was cheering for Dallas and the Murphy's of Buck and Dirk. They were in our pit group though. A good day except for the trip home that took an extra hour because of traffic on Interstate 5.
AHRMA National Vintage MX race at Grays' Farm in Chehalis, WA. It has been at least 4 years since I have gone to the farm. Not because I didn't want to. It was just way too hot for me with Temps in the mid 90's. And since I lack the ability to sweat because of my paralysis that makes it fairly uncomfortable to dangerous of being over 75 F outside. Today was perfect with a temp in the high 60's and overcast skies. It even had a little heavy mist that formed small rain drops for a few minutes. The track was the best that I have seen it in years with thanks to Dick Mann and our new Hall of Fame member Randy Skiver who laid out the course. It was pretty fast with no jumps. Everyone agrees that it is a scrambles track and not a MX track. Of course with 4" of travel in the back and a mighty 7" in the front with old men at speed with brittle bones you don't need any jumps to make life exciting once again. There were a ton of good races. We were up in the 1st corner where Buck Murphy and Dallas Nyblod were parked. It is always the happening place to be. I had been trying to get Pat Jacobson for years to come to a vintage event and he finally did. About time Pat. He brought his factory Suzuki jersey with the #20 on the back along with his Bellevue Suzuki "Racing Research" jersey to the raceday. Dallas wore the Suzuki jersey in the 125 Expert class with good distinction. A Yamaha 125 hopped up to the gills by tuner Jimmy Nation yarded poor Dallas down the straight by 20 yards each time. In the 2nd moto Dallas and the Yammy rider were like flys on shit on how close they were. Dallas had a higher corner speed that he carried through the corners to make up for his lack of horsepower. It was great and Dallas was sweaty afterwards. Dallas had 4 bikes there in the pits. A 1974 Yamaha YZ 250. 1974 1/2 Maico 440, 196? Jawa, and his 1974 Husky 125. He was riding the 125 Husky and after finishing the race stepped on the Maico for a back to back race. After hole shottiing his class and leading he stopped at the 1/3rd mark on the 1st lap. He was being smart because he was too tired to continue competing. Pat had a great time and was making comments about what the racers were doing. And he was right on. There was a big crash in the 250 Expert races on the 2nd corner. Painfully fast top past Washington racer Jim Anderson got tangled up in the second corner where he was slightly ahead and on the inside of a sweeping right hand corner. The outer two riders tangled when their bikes had a disagreement with Anderson's bike and did a nice flying crash. One of the riders was ex fast MX racer Rick Weidman's son. He was unhurt. The other racer had his foot caught between the shock and swingarm. About 15 people swarmed the area with tools taking the shock apart and shaving the racer's boot until after 10 long minutes it was freed. No broken bones. First thing I saw was this racer sprinting in full gear (no helmet) sprinting like an Olympic champion in the 100 meter dash running apparently to find Mr. Anderson for some heated discussion speaking the Italian language of using hands to communicate. Don't think he found him and Mr. Anderson can well take care of himself and a few others. Looked like racing to me, and Jim is certainly a racer. There were no big name stars as in previous years and no Pomeroy's at all. And it was maybe even better because of it. After all these years I hardly watch races that aren't on TV because of the travel, time and money involved to watch locals do what you have seen for the last 40 years. And today I watched some very good racing where I actually was cheering for Dallas and the Murphy's of Buck and Dirk. They were in our pit group though. A good day except for the trip home that took an extra hour because of traffic on Interstate 5.
August 2, 2011
A huge thanks to Edith Bowler-Lind for all the help and assistance she has worked for in her lawyer's representative role for the Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame. Edie has just finished our application to the United States Treasury for our approval for a 501 C4 non profit corporation in the United States. Edie also handled our application and approval for a Washington State non profit corporation. We will be all set for today and the future, None of this could have been done without Edie. Edie also handled the Washington Motorcycle Road Racing Association application for their non profit status many years ago. If you hadn't noticed Edie is a lawyer and married to some guy named Bruce Lind.
A huge thanks to Edith Bowler-Lind for all the help and assistance she has worked for in her lawyer's representative role for the Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame. Edie has just finished our application to the United States Treasury for our approval for a 501 C4 non profit corporation in the United States. Edie also handled our application and approval for a Washington State non profit corporation. We will be all set for today and the future, None of this could have been done without Edie. Edie also handled the Washington Motorcycle Road Racing Association application for their non profit status many years ago. If you hadn't noticed Edie is a lawyer and married to some guy named Bruce Lind.
July 6, 2011
Went to the annual Pacific Northwest Historic races this past weekend at Pacific Raceways (SIR) to see all the ancient race cars of mostly the 1960's in open wheel Formula Ford, F2 cars with 4 cylinders. There were a few Ford Gt 40's there as well. Lots of car corrals of Ferraris, Aston Martin's, BMW's, Porsche and Jaguars. Did a tour of the pits twice, watched two races I think and talked to a few vendors selling their books, artwork, polishes, tires and raffles. Well I now had seen it all twice and it was time to go. I looked at my watch and I had been there an hour. It cost me $25, but it was for a great cause as it supported the Children's Hospital in Seattle. I have been to maybe 4 or 5 of these events before, even selling my own racing prints of F1 and LeMans racing in the 60's. It was a beautiful day, and a little too warm for me, and they had a great crowd showing up. Think of it as a vintage motorcycle races multiplied by 1,600. I was going to take my 2011 Camaro 2SS/RS down to the drivers school at Pacific Raceways to test it out in a safe environment and get trained in how to properly handle 426 HP. Better on the track than on the street. Then I remember why PR is such a terrible track. Originally built in 1962 by the Fiorito family (which still own and manage the track) the track remains placed back in time. Since they really only care about the National Drag race they have never come through on their promises over ten years ago to update or rebuild the road course. From what I have heard from present day motorcycle road racers and what I saw the track still remains narrow, extremely bumpy, holes in the track and very dangerous if you make a mistake. I crashed there 11 years ago racing my Super Kart (like Eddie Lawson and Wayne Rainey race) with a 250cc engine in it. I hit a speed curb at 100 mph in turn 5 and flew 200 feet in the air until I touched down and rolled three times in twisted metal frame that they had to cut me out of. I just broke some ribs, but most people thought I was dead. Last day of racing for me forever. Back to the point though was that there is a new track Ridge Motorsports Park opening this September in Shelton, Washington that will have a separate drag strip and road course that was developed by all forms of users. You can see their website at www.ridgemotorsportspark.com.
I think that I will skip the class this year and wait a year and go to the new Shelton track where it will be challenging, safe and I can learn something.
Went to the annual Pacific Northwest Historic races this past weekend at Pacific Raceways (SIR) to see all the ancient race cars of mostly the 1960's in open wheel Formula Ford, F2 cars with 4 cylinders. There were a few Ford Gt 40's there as well. Lots of car corrals of Ferraris, Aston Martin's, BMW's, Porsche and Jaguars. Did a tour of the pits twice, watched two races I think and talked to a few vendors selling their books, artwork, polishes, tires and raffles. Well I now had seen it all twice and it was time to go. I looked at my watch and I had been there an hour. It cost me $25, but it was for a great cause as it supported the Children's Hospital in Seattle. I have been to maybe 4 or 5 of these events before, even selling my own racing prints of F1 and LeMans racing in the 60's. It was a beautiful day, and a little too warm for me, and they had a great crowd showing up. Think of it as a vintage motorcycle races multiplied by 1,600. I was going to take my 2011 Camaro 2SS/RS down to the drivers school at Pacific Raceways to test it out in a safe environment and get trained in how to properly handle 426 HP. Better on the track than on the street. Then I remember why PR is such a terrible track. Originally built in 1962 by the Fiorito family (which still own and manage the track) the track remains placed back in time. Since they really only care about the National Drag race they have never come through on their promises over ten years ago to update or rebuild the road course. From what I have heard from present day motorcycle road racers and what I saw the track still remains narrow, extremely bumpy, holes in the track and very dangerous if you make a mistake. I crashed there 11 years ago racing my Super Kart (like Eddie Lawson and Wayne Rainey race) with a 250cc engine in it. I hit a speed curb at 100 mph in turn 5 and flew 200 feet in the air until I touched down and rolled three times in twisted metal frame that they had to cut me out of. I just broke some ribs, but most people thought I was dead. Last day of racing for me forever. Back to the point though was that there is a new track Ridge Motorsports Park opening this September in Shelton, Washington that will have a separate drag strip and road course that was developed by all forms of users. You can see their website at www.ridgemotorsportspark.com.
I think that I will skip the class this year and wait a year and go to the new Shelton track where it will be challenging, safe and I can learn something.
June 21, 2011
My neighbor kid Byron Hoefer who cuts my lawn over the last 8 years and is now going to Cal-Poly in San Luis Obispo and studying aeronautical engineering took apart my 1973 Yamaha 360 Bech Racer bike that is currently being raced by an old racing friend of mine Hugh Walter. The bike was apparently not shifting down from 3rd to 2nd gear. The bike needed a looking after in the engine department after being raced by Rick Poulin, Doug Raines, Phil Larson Jr, Tony Fox, Mark Kaestner and my nephew Ryan McDonald. Russ Roberts who definitely knows Yamaha's invited Hugh out for a track day on his secret track. He also said the same thing about the shifting and thought the horsepower would be much more as when Tony Fox raced him and beat him. I was always wondering if the bike neede new rings and even a new piston with a bore job. Byron, who has taken apart and rebuilt all three of my bikes from the ground up, took the clutch case off and looked to where Mr. Buck Murphy told us to look as it was a common Yamaha MX problem back then being a geared shift shaft. Now we didn't have to split the cases and look at the gearbox. We put a compression tester on the bike and it came out to 150 PSI on a cold engine which is excellent. Ordered some new parts to also replace a leaky fork seal and new brake shoes and we are good to go for now.
My neighbor kid Byron Hoefer who cuts my lawn over the last 8 years and is now going to Cal-Poly in San Luis Obispo and studying aeronautical engineering took apart my 1973 Yamaha 360 Bech Racer bike that is currently being raced by an old racing friend of mine Hugh Walter. The bike was apparently not shifting down from 3rd to 2nd gear. The bike needed a looking after in the engine department after being raced by Rick Poulin, Doug Raines, Phil Larson Jr, Tony Fox, Mark Kaestner and my nephew Ryan McDonald. Russ Roberts who definitely knows Yamaha's invited Hugh out for a track day on his secret track. He also said the same thing about the shifting and thought the horsepower would be much more as when Tony Fox raced him and beat him. I was always wondering if the bike neede new rings and even a new piston with a bore job. Byron, who has taken apart and rebuilt all three of my bikes from the ground up, took the clutch case off and looked to where Mr. Buck Murphy told us to look as it was a common Yamaha MX problem back then being a geared shift shaft. Now we didn't have to split the cases and look at the gearbox. We put a compression tester on the bike and it came out to 150 PSI on a cold engine which is excellent. Ordered some new parts to also replace a leaky fork seal and new brake shoes and we are good to go for now.
June 18, 2011
The big news is that last weekend at the Aurora Suzuki motorcycle Open House my 1972 AJS 250 Stormer came in 2nd place in the motorcycle show against about 35 other contestants. The winners were determined by a popular vote with each attendee given a voting slip. 34 out of the 35 bikes were vintage MX bikes except one person who brought in a 1935 Harley Davidson. And that stupid bike won the title and $150. Not even a race bike. Not fair at all, but I did get $100 I wasn't expecting at all. I thought that Dallas Nyblod's 1963 Jawa ultimately tricked out MX bike would have won, or Tom McAllister's 1976 DG 125 factory bike both of which took mountainous amounts of time and inventiveness to construct. They really deserved it more. The day went off very well as many past MX stars showed up including Buck Murphy, Dallas Nyblod, Rich Binkley, Blaine Elledge and more turned up. Sort of like a very small hall of Fame get together. There were also prizes given out by raffle ticket where I won two things, but gave them away to friends as I have enough t-shirts that I don't wear already. So I spent my $100 on groceries. A $100 payback for some $3,800 invested. Good deal!
This year because of economic reasons we were turned by accessories distributors Tucker Rocky and Parts Unlimited as sponsors of this years dinners. It doesn't look good in the near future for sponsorship from the industry, except for our own WSMDA (Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association). A huge thanks to them and all the motorcycle dealers in the state for hanging in there in these bad economic days. I would have thought there would have been a few handfulls of stores closing and there have only been less than a very few. Actually from talking to the dealers they see an upswing in the market that will build gradually. Summer is there busy time so lets hold out for sunny weather for them and us.
The big news is that last weekend at the Aurora Suzuki motorcycle Open House my 1972 AJS 250 Stormer came in 2nd place in the motorcycle show against about 35 other contestants. The winners were determined by a popular vote with each attendee given a voting slip. 34 out of the 35 bikes were vintage MX bikes except one person who brought in a 1935 Harley Davidson. And that stupid bike won the title and $150. Not even a race bike. Not fair at all, but I did get $100 I wasn't expecting at all. I thought that Dallas Nyblod's 1963 Jawa ultimately tricked out MX bike would have won, or Tom McAllister's 1976 DG 125 factory bike both of which took mountainous amounts of time and inventiveness to construct. They really deserved it more. The day went off very well as many past MX stars showed up including Buck Murphy, Dallas Nyblod, Rich Binkley, Blaine Elledge and more turned up. Sort of like a very small hall of Fame get together. There were also prizes given out by raffle ticket where I won two things, but gave them away to friends as I have enough t-shirts that I don't wear already. So I spent my $100 on groceries. A $100 payback for some $3,800 invested. Good deal!
This year because of economic reasons we were turned by accessories distributors Tucker Rocky and Parts Unlimited as sponsors of this years dinners. It doesn't look good in the near future for sponsorship from the industry, except for our own WSMDA (Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association). A huge thanks to them and all the motorcycle dealers in the state for hanging in there in these bad economic days. I would have thought there would have been a few handfulls of stores closing and there have only been less than a very few. Actually from talking to the dealers they see an upswing in the market that will build gradually. Summer is there busy time so lets hold out for sunny weather for them and us.
2011 Dinosaur Daze Race
June 5, 2011
The was the first time that the Tacoma Motorcycle Club has changed the day of Motocross to Sunday vs the previous Saturdays. From a scrambles/dirt track scoring system with heats and mains to a 2 moto scoring system. The 1st time without an AMA license required to race, and the first time at the Riverdale MX track in the shadow of Mt Saint Helens. The change of days went over very well as the MX is the big event of the weekend, and the dirt track isn't. Should have happened years ago. Motocross has run on a moto system in the US since at least 1968. More people were able to come and have good time because they didn't have to shell out an additional $50 plus dollars for a one time event. And there were more people this time. First time for me at Riverdale. A very nice track that was watered very well. Before I forget a thumbs up to the Tacoma Motorcycle Club for having a pretty well timed race day. In previous years it was a long running joke and pain in the ass that at Dino Daze you may have the first race at! PM. Many racers avoided coming just because of that year after year. They did well this year. The problem for me with the track was that it is all based on volcanic ash from Mt Saint Helens. I know it must drive the air filters nuts. I'm in a wheelchair and while sand is not something a chair goes through well as it sinks because of the skinny tires. You need big, fat, knobby tire front and rear to float on top. That is for sand. Volcanic ash is much worse because it is so fine in size as compared to sand. I not only sank in my chair but had to aggressively push my self out. All day long and I'm more tired that the racers were. A very good day for the Dino Daze.
Spent some time chatting with Russ Roberts, Tony Fox, Tom McAllister, Randy McAllister, Ron and Gary Pomeroy. Russ, Tony and Buck Murphy gave me some great info on fixing a downshifting problem on my Yamaha 360 MX. Jim Anderson on his 1974 Yamaha yZ 250 absolutely was on fire that day in the 250 Expert class. 5 out of the top 6 bikes were YZ 250's with Dallas Nyblod in 4th and Russ Roberts in 6th. I don't think that we actually went that fast racing those bikes back in the 1970's. We didn't have that many YZ's racing. Hats off to all those old farts. I sometimes imagine if I was still able to race how I would do vintage racing. Watching those guys gave me a real reality check. You suck Shawn.
The was the first time that the Tacoma Motorcycle Club has changed the day of Motocross to Sunday vs the previous Saturdays. From a scrambles/dirt track scoring system with heats and mains to a 2 moto scoring system. The 1st time without an AMA license required to race, and the first time at the Riverdale MX track in the shadow of Mt Saint Helens. The change of days went over very well as the MX is the big event of the weekend, and the dirt track isn't. Should have happened years ago. Motocross has run on a moto system in the US since at least 1968. More people were able to come and have good time because they didn't have to shell out an additional $50 plus dollars for a one time event. And there were more people this time. First time for me at Riverdale. A very nice track that was watered very well. Before I forget a thumbs up to the Tacoma Motorcycle Club for having a pretty well timed race day. In previous years it was a long running joke and pain in the ass that at Dino Daze you may have the first race at! PM. Many racers avoided coming just because of that year after year. They did well this year. The problem for me with the track was that it is all based on volcanic ash from Mt Saint Helens. I know it must drive the air filters nuts. I'm in a wheelchair and while sand is not something a chair goes through well as it sinks because of the skinny tires. You need big, fat, knobby tire front and rear to float on top. That is for sand. Volcanic ash is much worse because it is so fine in size as compared to sand. I not only sank in my chair but had to aggressively push my self out. All day long and I'm more tired that the racers were. A very good day for the Dino Daze.
Spent some time chatting with Russ Roberts, Tony Fox, Tom McAllister, Randy McAllister, Ron and Gary Pomeroy. Russ, Tony and Buck Murphy gave me some great info on fixing a downshifting problem on my Yamaha 360 MX. Jim Anderson on his 1974 Yamaha yZ 250 absolutely was on fire that day in the 250 Expert class. 5 out of the top 6 bikes were YZ 250's with Dallas Nyblod in 4th and Russ Roberts in 6th. I don't think that we actually went that fast racing those bikes back in the 1970's. We didn't have that many YZ's racing. Hats off to all those old farts. I sometimes imagine if I was still able to race how I would do vintage racing. Watching those guys gave me a real reality check. You suck Shawn.
May 25, 2011
The WSMDA (Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association) has once again stepped up in support of the WSMCHOF Dinner as an Associate Sponsor of the dinner. This is important as one potential new sponsor dropped out of participating this year. We continue to work on getting new sponsors.
The WSMDA (Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association) has once again stepped up in support of the WSMCHOF Dinner as an Associate Sponsor of the dinner. This is important as one potential new sponsor dropped out of participating this year. We continue to work on getting new sponsors.
May 13, 2011
The WSMCHOF parade will be at the Skagit Powersports Spring Open on Saturday May 21st in Burlington, WA. One of the best open house events you can go to. I love being there year after year. The next event is Tacoma Dino Daze on Sunday June 5th at Riverdale MX Track. One of the oldest vintage MX races in the United States. This year no AMA license is required and the MX will be held on Sunday instead of their usual Saturday and it will have the traditional moto format of two races counting for overall scoring instead of the scrambles type scoring with heats and mains. Thank God they finally changed. Then on Saturday June 11th Aurora Suzuki a Vintage Show & Shine event and Open House with music and pretty girls handing things out to people. Lots of vintage bikes and racers.
Also new on the attendees are a table of 12 for Fast Freddie Wright, Dick and Annette Wascher and a table of 8 for Ron Orr from Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store.
The WSMCHOF parade will be at the Skagit Powersports Spring Open on Saturday May 21st in Burlington, WA. One of the best open house events you can go to. I love being there year after year. The next event is Tacoma Dino Daze on Sunday June 5th at Riverdale MX Track. One of the oldest vintage MX races in the United States. This year no AMA license is required and the MX will be held on Sunday instead of their usual Saturday and it will have the traditional moto format of two races counting for overall scoring instead of the scrambles type scoring with heats and mains. Thank God they finally changed. Then on Saturday June 11th Aurora Suzuki a Vintage Show & Shine event and Open House with music and pretty girls handing things out to people. Lots of vintage bikes and racers.
Also new on the attendees are a table of 12 for Fast Freddie Wright, Dick and Annette Wascher and a table of 8 for Ron Orr from Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store.
May 7, 2011
The first people to sign up for dinner and a table is ultra fast guy Russ Roberts. You can see some of Russ's pictures in "Pictures" segment. An email was sent to all the people who provided us with their's announcing the opening of ticket sales to the dinner.
The first people to sign up for dinner and a table is ultra fast guy Russ Roberts. You can see some of Russ's pictures in "Pictures" segment. An email was sent to all the people who provided us with their's announcing the opening of ticket sales to the dinner.
May 3, 2011
As you may have seen on the cover page we now have a date and place for the 2nd annual WSMCHOF dinner. We are still having it on a Sunday for allowing people in the motorcycle industry who normally work on Saturdays to attend. It is also less dining costs t have it on a Sunday vs. a Saturday. A big difference.The event will be at the Emerald Downs horse race track which should be fantastic. I'm looking forward to it being there. The third weekend is still the same because when ever you throw a party it always conflicts with something. This does fall in between two AHRMA MX races which is good because randy and Gordy are or have been AHRMA racers. So sign up now as we have a limitation of 200 people for seating and last year we had 194 people attending.
As you may have seen on the cover page we now have a date and place for the 2nd annual WSMCHOF dinner. We are still having it on a Sunday for allowing people in the motorcycle industry who normally work on Saturdays to attend. It is also less dining costs t have it on a Sunday vs. a Saturday. A big difference.The event will be at the Emerald Downs horse race track which should be fantastic. I'm looking forward to it being there. The third weekend is still the same because when ever you throw a party it always conflicts with something. This does fall in between two AHRMA MX races which is good because randy and Gordy are or have been AHRMA racers. So sign up now as we have a limitation of 200 people for seating and last year we had 194 people attending.
Thanks to Kevin Parker for sharing this photo of Rick Burgett at the 1976 Puyallup Trans-Am. This was of course before the semi trailors. This was high living back then with a box van.
April 19, 2011
I did miss the Supercross. I was able to stay up that night till 2 AM to watch the Chinese F1 race live though. I got a phone call before the Supercross that popped up on my TV screen from a Richard Burgett. It was indeed him as he had my number on his cell phone. Apparently Blaine Elledge wanted to know where I was and Rick provided the number. Also there was some other wanker named Chuck Sun. It looked like the place was sold out which is good in these economic recessed days. By the way Rick is completely bald these days and wears it proud. Chuck still has all his hair. I would have liked to had a beer with those two and possibly Buck Murphy. Of course I would have woken in the morning with lipstick on, and a sore arse. Hangover Part 2.
I did miss the Supercross. I was able to stay up that night till 2 AM to watch the Chinese F1 race live though. I got a phone call before the Supercross that popped up on my TV screen from a Richard Burgett. It was indeed him as he had my number on his cell phone. Apparently Blaine Elledge wanted to know where I was and Rick provided the number. Also there was some other wanker named Chuck Sun. It looked like the place was sold out which is good in these economic recessed days. By the way Rick is completely bald these days and wears it proud. Chuck still has all his hair. I would have liked to had a beer with those two and possibly Buck Murphy. Of course I would have woken in the morning with lipstick on, and a sore arse. Hangover Part 2.
March/26/2011
Just conducted our 1st Board meeting for 2011 of the WSMCHOF. I attendance were the President Shawn McDonald (me!), Vice-President Ron Orr, Treasurer Buck Murphy and Secretary Terry Saxlund and was held at Ron's business Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store in Auburn. As previously stated in Editorials for lessons learned we have decided to have the 2011 dinner in a hotel/conference center that will solve multiple problems. The first in having an onsite bar at the dinner. Yeah! We would also eliminate 5 sub contractors, and just have one being the hotel. It would also have the audio visual equipment we would need.The ticket price will have to raise to $40 per person for many reasons to have a great event and not go bankrupt. We are still waiting for more voters to cast their ballot. The two winners will be announced the first of July. There will be a new "Lifetime Achievement Award". It will be for people who have contributed greatly to the sport of motorcycle racing over their lifetime. There is a new area for you to nominate a Lifetime winner under the current nominations form. The dinner will also be at the same weekend of the 4th weekend of October July 23rd or 24th. Still a question of whether to have it on a Saturday or Sunday night. Originally was held on Sunday so that the motorcycle industry people could come as they were co sponsoring the event. Almost everybody who came to the dinner was in the Seattle/Tacoma/Everett area so the travel time and hours don't make such an impact anymore. Limited amount of advertising, as we found out that the best promotion was word of mouth. And people who were there are telling their friends who weren't there what a great time they had. As I previously stated we had 194 people show up, and we should have more this year just by word of mouth. The membership donations has decreased my deficit to just $200 now. We will need to put up front money for a Hotel/Conference room ahead of time so w will still need your money coming in. You will also see on the website a Founding Member donation of $100. That is the top of the heap and we greatly thank those people who believe in what we are doing.
Just conducted our 1st Board meeting for 2011 of the WSMCHOF. I attendance were the President Shawn McDonald (me!), Vice-President Ron Orr, Treasurer Buck Murphy and Secretary Terry Saxlund and was held at Ron's business Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store in Auburn. As previously stated in Editorials for lessons learned we have decided to have the 2011 dinner in a hotel/conference center that will solve multiple problems. The first in having an onsite bar at the dinner. Yeah! We would also eliminate 5 sub contractors, and just have one being the hotel. It would also have the audio visual equipment we would need.The ticket price will have to raise to $40 per person for many reasons to have a great event and not go bankrupt. We are still waiting for more voters to cast their ballot. The two winners will be announced the first of July. There will be a new "Lifetime Achievement Award". It will be for people who have contributed greatly to the sport of motorcycle racing over their lifetime. There is a new area for you to nominate a Lifetime winner under the current nominations form. The dinner will also be at the same weekend of the 4th weekend of October July 23rd or 24th. Still a question of whether to have it on a Saturday or Sunday night. Originally was held on Sunday so that the motorcycle industry people could come as they were co sponsoring the event. Almost everybody who came to the dinner was in the Seattle/Tacoma/Everett area so the travel time and hours don't make such an impact anymore. Limited amount of advertising, as we found out that the best promotion was word of mouth. And people who were there are telling their friends who weren't there what a great time they had. As I previously stated we had 194 people show up, and we should have more this year just by word of mouth. The membership donations has decreased my deficit to just $200 now. We will need to put up front money for a Hotel/Conference room ahead of time so w will still need your money coming in. You will also see on the website a Founding Member donation of $100. That is the top of the heap and we greatly thank those people who believe in what we are doing.
2/8/2011
Long time with no word from me. Sorry. I have been busy. Spent two and a half weeks in New Zealand over Christmas celebrating my 20th anniversary of falling down there. Really I just wanted to go there to visit my best friend Jacqui and her partner Dave. My third trip there actually. My 7 year old Dell computer crunched a mother board that I was able to recover, barely. People say that is a long time for a computer to survive these days. Modern obsolescence. So now I am typing on a new Mac Book Pro that is really sweet and gorgeous! Speaking of which I am getting a new wheelchair from Ti that is made out of Titanium and weighs 10 pounds without wheels. My current Kuschall chair is 18 years old, and well worn. The Kuschall USA company went out of business 10 years ago, and there are no parts to be found if something breaks, and wheelchairs do break. In the past I have had metal artisan Dick Wascher handcraft seat back metal tubes, and had new plastic clothing guards made stronger and redesigned because once again no parts. Great chair though. I found out that chairs are only supposed to last 5 years though. I am one cheap bastard I tell you. I deserve a new chair!
New to this site will be quarterly updates with new interviews, stories and motorcycles. Sort of like the old Bench Racer magazine, but without advertisement. So now you can check it for new features every quarter. People have been missing the magazine and wanted to see it again. So here it is. First up is the Don Jones Story for you to read. A new bike from the Tom White MX Museum in California in a one of 2 dirt bikes with a twin cylinder Husky 500 motor. This bike actually won the Baja 500 in 1969. I will try to get an interview that I did with Joe Leonard the only American to win championships on two and four wheels.
Long time with no word from me. Sorry. I have been busy. Spent two and a half weeks in New Zealand over Christmas celebrating my 20th anniversary of falling down there. Really I just wanted to go there to visit my best friend Jacqui and her partner Dave. My third trip there actually. My 7 year old Dell computer crunched a mother board that I was able to recover, barely. People say that is a long time for a computer to survive these days. Modern obsolescence. So now I am typing on a new Mac Book Pro that is really sweet and gorgeous! Speaking of which I am getting a new wheelchair from Ti that is made out of Titanium and weighs 10 pounds without wheels. My current Kuschall chair is 18 years old, and well worn. The Kuschall USA company went out of business 10 years ago, and there are no parts to be found if something breaks, and wheelchairs do break. In the past I have had metal artisan Dick Wascher handcraft seat back metal tubes, and had new plastic clothing guards made stronger and redesigned because once again no parts. Great chair though. I found out that chairs are only supposed to last 5 years though. I am one cheap bastard I tell you. I deserve a new chair!
New to this site will be quarterly updates with new interviews, stories and motorcycles. Sort of like the old Bench Racer magazine, but without advertisement. So now you can check it for new features every quarter. People have been missing the magazine and wanted to see it again. So here it is. First up is the Don Jones Story for you to read. A new bike from the Tom White MX Museum in California in a one of 2 dirt bikes with a twin cylinder Husky 500 motor. This bike actually won the Baja 500 in 1969. I will try to get an interview that I did with Joe Leonard the only American to win championships on two and four wheels.
10/17/2010We now have over 3,000 hits on the website so a new record. As of this morning we have an actual 119 people who sent me checks or paid by credit card from the website. 46 more have actual firm commitments to reserve tables or we know will be there for sure. That adds up to 165 people so far. I have to put in the order for food on Tuesday as well as for linens. By Thursday the order for tables and chairs. With the amount of local buzz and how much people wait for the last secong and show up at the door I am planning for 300 people to be there.
10/13/2010On Wednesday morning we are up to 119 people with 10 tables sold. We will get a lot of individual seats sold that day which is going to drive me crazy because I have to estimate the walk up sales and last minute orders one week before the dinner for food. We now have 2,900 hits on the website. 100 new hits in one day. We will be having my neighbor 19 year old Andy with his girlfriend Julia doing the sign up when you register for the dinner. Andy has a KX 250 that he rides.
10/13/2010Brand new article in the Bellingham Herald newspaper on Steve Baker and the Hall of Fame written By Michelle Nolan. Read below.
These are touching times for Bellingham's Steve Baker, more than three decades after he became the first American to win a World Motorcycle Road Racing series championship.Two weeks ago, the 58-year-old salesman rode to the cheers of thousands in Italy during his final exhibition of the classic events season in Europe as a member of the Yamaha Classic Racing Team.On Sunday, Oct. 24, he'll be one of the first two racers to be inducted into the recently established Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame at a dinner in Renton. "I just wish my buddy could be there with me. He was a character," said Baker, fondly referring to the other inductee, Yakima's Jim Pomeroy, who was the first American to win a World MX Grand Prix in 1973 before he died in 2006 in a jeep accident. "I'll sure be giving a tribute to Jim and talking (about) what a good guy and great racer he was."Baker, who now works in sales for Mt. Baker Moto-Sports, LLC, founded the company in 1980 as Steve Baker Kawasaki-Suzuki and sold it in 2002.
Baker, a soft-spoken, life-long motorcycle enthusiast, has been thrilled to hear cheers once again over the past three years while participating at more than 150 miles per hour in classic events half-hour exhibition runs in seven western European nations. But he isn't a glory seeker - in fact, when he was inducted into the American Motorcycle Association Hall of Fame in 1999, he honored other commitments and didn't attend the ceremony."What I especially love in the classic events series in Europe is seeing people I haven't seen in more than 30 years," Baker said. "These are people who saw me race when they were young and enjoy seeing all the guys who raced on the circuit back in the day. People go to relive the past."Baker says it's especially cool to see middle-aged fans that bring their children and grandchildren, much the same way older baseball fans do at old-timers' games in America."It's pretty flattering to be one of the first two in the Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame. I'm really looking forward to this evening in Renton," Baker said. "There will be people I haven't seen in a long time. It really is pretty special."Baker, a 1970 graduate of Sehome High School, sometimes mentors young motorcycle racers, thinking back to the days of his earliest races at the Hannegan Speedway. He particularly stresses safety and proper handling of the machines, with memories of three fractured legs and two broken arms, even though he was known as a steady, safe racer.Baker looks back on the Hannegan race course fondly."My first race was at the Hannegan in 1967, the year I turned 15. I remember winning that on a Yamaha 100cc bike," he said. "My father introduced me to racing, and I had my first dirt bike, a Yamaha 55cc, when I was 12."Racing for Yamaha, which earlier bolstered his career on Northwest and Canadian tracks, Baker won the F750cc world title in 1977 during a series of about a dozen races on three continents. That same year, he won the Daytona 200 and 250 races and finished second in the 500cc series behind the legendary British rider Barry Sheene."I owe Yamaha a lot," said Baker, who won a 1975 U.S. Road Racing championship and three Canadian titles. "They've done so much for me."Baker sustained a shattered leg and a broken arm in his final major race in 1978 at Brands Hatch, England. He soon retired in order to go into business in Bellingham, the beloved hometown to which he said he always wanted to return.But then Yamaha offered Baker an opportunity to run in the classic events series. After participating in one event in 2007 and 2008, he did five in 2009 and seven this year. He has run in Belgium, Spain, Germany, Finland, France, Italy and the Netherlands."I'd like to keep running in these," Baker said. "It really feels good. They're a lot of fun. Yamaha supplies and maintains the bike (a 750cc) and pays my travel expenses. The bike I ride has 150 horsepower and weighs about 300 pounds."In the final event of his season two weeks ago, Baker had the chance to see Kenny Roberts, a Californian who eventually became an iconic racer in both Europe and America."Motorcycle racers are so much better known in Europe," said Baker. "The classic events series draws crowds of 10,000 to 20,000. What really makes a difference is my Yamaha team. It's really special."Although Baker frequently bumps into old friends on the local racing scene, he'd like to see a good crowd at the Renton dinner. He'll always love to talk racing and motorcycles. FOR MORE INFORMATIONTo learn more about the Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame dinner on Sunday, Oct. 24, go to WSMCHOF.com or call Shawn McDonald at (425) 481-9876. Tickets are $35 in advance or $42 walk-up for the dinner, which starts at 5:30 p.m. at Renton Motorcycles, 3701 E. Valley Road, Renton.
10/10/2010
Sorry about not updating the Latest POOP. I have been busy, and I will get busier in the next three weeks. Here goes a long ramble. Just talked to Garret DeVol and the trophies have been designed and just need to get into the machine shop. Those 5 axis CNC computer milling machines. It will look like it should be a one of a kind trophy for one of a kind people. Dan and Dale Zlock from Zlock racing put in an order for themselves. Dan and I had a chat about the current state of road racing in the NW as Zlock Racing has built two United States F-USA championship bikes for the late Keith Pinkstaff and Mike Sullivan. Both the Zlocks excelled at MX and later roadracing. There are very few of us who went from top MX to top roadracing. I personally sucked at both. The Pomeroy’s signed up for two tables. Bruce and Edie Lind signed up also. A ramble here as we are now and incorporated 501C4 non profit agency for health and human services. Sweet! I am the President, Ron Orr is the Vice President, Buck Murphy is the Secretary and Terry Saxlund is the Treasurer. Drager’s Classic just signed up for a table as I am writing this. Terry Saxlund has another table coming. Buck Murphy has two tables signed up up his past MX friends. We now have 2,800 hits on the www.WSMCHOF.com website so people are looking at it. The post entry fee is $40 for people that just show up at the dinner. Mike Kenyon and Russ Roberts from Bellevue Honda signed up for a table. Mike being from the road racing side of the house and Russ with his pictures form Startup and Puyallup on the website for the motocross side. Mike Sullivan and wife Val are on board as well as other Team America teammates in Bruce and Edie Lind and Steve Dahlstrom. Tom Mehern from Sound Rider is coming. Pete Bangs and Pete Janette from Skagit Powersports are in and still awaiting Bill Cameron as he has been away at Suzuki and Ducati launches. So far an actual 81 people have signed up with money sent to me. Tons more who haven’t sent in yet or plan to show up the day of the dinner. For those you lose getting a priority with a table and you pay $5 more.
I got my Camaro up to 122 mph on the Blewitt Pass before shutting down just because I didn’t want a ticket for anything more. Traveled from Skykomish to Stevens Pass from 100 to 110 and then down to Leavenworth from 90 to 100. Blewitt was about 100 and I’m talking corner speed here. Felt great to get into a racer zone and block out everything. Will bring it to the track next summer to really feel the limits as I was driving far below the edge of the envelope on the Cascade Loop drive.
10/13/2010Brand new article in the Bellingham Herald newspaper on Steve Baker and the Hall of Fame written By Michelle Nolan. Read below.
These are touching times for Bellingham's Steve Baker, more than three decades after he became the first American to win a World Motorcycle Road Racing series championship.Two weeks ago, the 58-year-old salesman rode to the cheers of thousands in Italy during his final exhibition of the classic events season in Europe as a member of the Yamaha Classic Racing Team.On Sunday, Oct. 24, he'll be one of the first two racers to be inducted into the recently established Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame at a dinner in Renton. "I just wish my buddy could be there with me. He was a character," said Baker, fondly referring to the other inductee, Yakima's Jim Pomeroy, who was the first American to win a World MX Grand Prix in 1973 before he died in 2006 in a jeep accident. "I'll sure be giving a tribute to Jim and talking (about) what a good guy and great racer he was."Baker, who now works in sales for Mt. Baker Moto-Sports, LLC, founded the company in 1980 as Steve Baker Kawasaki-Suzuki and sold it in 2002.
Baker, a soft-spoken, life-long motorcycle enthusiast, has been thrilled to hear cheers once again over the past three years while participating at more than 150 miles per hour in classic events half-hour exhibition runs in seven western European nations. But he isn't a glory seeker - in fact, when he was inducted into the American Motorcycle Association Hall of Fame in 1999, he honored other commitments and didn't attend the ceremony."What I especially love in the classic events series in Europe is seeing people I haven't seen in more than 30 years," Baker said. "These are people who saw me race when they were young and enjoy seeing all the guys who raced on the circuit back in the day. People go to relive the past."Baker says it's especially cool to see middle-aged fans that bring their children and grandchildren, much the same way older baseball fans do at old-timers' games in America."It's pretty flattering to be one of the first two in the Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame. I'm really looking forward to this evening in Renton," Baker said. "There will be people I haven't seen in a long time. It really is pretty special."Baker, a 1970 graduate of Sehome High School, sometimes mentors young motorcycle racers, thinking back to the days of his earliest races at the Hannegan Speedway. He particularly stresses safety and proper handling of the machines, with memories of three fractured legs and two broken arms, even though he was known as a steady, safe racer.Baker looks back on the Hannegan race course fondly."My first race was at the Hannegan in 1967, the year I turned 15. I remember winning that on a Yamaha 100cc bike," he said. "My father introduced me to racing, and I had my first dirt bike, a Yamaha 55cc, when I was 12."Racing for Yamaha, which earlier bolstered his career on Northwest and Canadian tracks, Baker won the F750cc world title in 1977 during a series of about a dozen races on three continents. That same year, he won the Daytona 200 and 250 races and finished second in the 500cc series behind the legendary British rider Barry Sheene."I owe Yamaha a lot," said Baker, who won a 1975 U.S. Road Racing championship and three Canadian titles. "They've done so much for me."Baker sustained a shattered leg and a broken arm in his final major race in 1978 at Brands Hatch, England. He soon retired in order to go into business in Bellingham, the beloved hometown to which he said he always wanted to return.But then Yamaha offered Baker an opportunity to run in the classic events series. After participating in one event in 2007 and 2008, he did five in 2009 and seven this year. He has run in Belgium, Spain, Germany, Finland, France, Italy and the Netherlands."I'd like to keep running in these," Baker said. "It really feels good. They're a lot of fun. Yamaha supplies and maintains the bike (a 750cc) and pays my travel expenses. The bike I ride has 150 horsepower and weighs about 300 pounds."In the final event of his season two weeks ago, Baker had the chance to see Kenny Roberts, a Californian who eventually became an iconic racer in both Europe and America."Motorcycle racers are so much better known in Europe," said Baker. "The classic events series draws crowds of 10,000 to 20,000. What really makes a difference is my Yamaha team. It's really special."Although Baker frequently bumps into old friends on the local racing scene, he'd like to see a good crowd at the Renton dinner. He'll always love to talk racing and motorcycles. FOR MORE INFORMATIONTo learn more about the Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame dinner on Sunday, Oct. 24, go to WSMCHOF.com or call Shawn McDonald at (425) 481-9876. Tickets are $35 in advance or $42 walk-up for the dinner, which starts at 5:30 p.m. at Renton Motorcycles, 3701 E. Valley Road, Renton.
10/10/2010
Sorry about not updating the Latest POOP. I have been busy, and I will get busier in the next three weeks. Here goes a long ramble. Just talked to Garret DeVol and the trophies have been designed and just need to get into the machine shop. Those 5 axis CNC computer milling machines. It will look like it should be a one of a kind trophy for one of a kind people. Dan and Dale Zlock from Zlock racing put in an order for themselves. Dan and I had a chat about the current state of road racing in the NW as Zlock Racing has built two United States F-USA championship bikes for the late Keith Pinkstaff and Mike Sullivan. Both the Zlocks excelled at MX and later roadracing. There are very few of us who went from top MX to top roadracing. I personally sucked at both. The Pomeroy’s signed up for two tables. Bruce and Edie Lind signed up also. A ramble here as we are now and incorporated 501C4 non profit agency for health and human services. Sweet! I am the President, Ron Orr is the Vice President, Buck Murphy is the Secretary and Terry Saxlund is the Treasurer. Drager’s Classic just signed up for a table as I am writing this. Terry Saxlund has another table coming. Buck Murphy has two tables signed up up his past MX friends. We now have 2,800 hits on the www.WSMCHOF.com website so people are looking at it. The post entry fee is $40 for people that just show up at the dinner. Mike Kenyon and Russ Roberts from Bellevue Honda signed up for a table. Mike being from the road racing side of the house and Russ with his pictures form Startup and Puyallup on the website for the motocross side. Mike Sullivan and wife Val are on board as well as other Team America teammates in Bruce and Edie Lind and Steve Dahlstrom. Tom Mehern from Sound Rider is coming. Pete Bangs and Pete Janette from Skagit Powersports are in and still awaiting Bill Cameron as he has been away at Suzuki and Ducati launches. So far an actual 81 people have signed up with money sent to me. Tons more who haven’t sent in yet or plan to show up the day of the dinner. For those you lose getting a priority with a table and you pay $5 more.
I got my Camaro up to 122 mph on the Blewitt Pass before shutting down just because I didn’t want a ticket for anything more. Traveled from Skykomish to Stevens Pass from 100 to 110 and then down to Leavenworth from 90 to 100. Blewitt was about 100 and I’m talking corner speed here. Felt great to get into a racer zone and block out everything. Will bring it to the track next summer to really feel the limits as I was driving far below the edge of the envelope on the Cascade Loop drive.
8/24/2010Sorry for not having posted anything for awhile. In rambling order here we go. Posted on the site that people who show up at the dinner without making a pre order will be charged $42 instead of $35. Just the way things are in any business. So save some money now and order your dinners now and avoid a $7 extra charge. I warned you. My car now has 1,400 miles on it, and no traffic tickets yet. Took a drive around Mt Rainer going to Paradise and then to my favorite place Sunrise. The road between those two is not a place to go fast. A winter road with tons of asphalt patching made the car go air bourne in a few places with cliffs as your runoff area made me slow down. Very tight suspension makes you feel every bump. Needs to be on a track. The extremely twisty road from White River campground to Sunrise is always a huge challenge on a bike or a car. No room for error as the dropoffs are a few thousand feet and there is no creeping to the other lane as you can only see at most two corners ahead and usually one as it wraps around the steep mountain side. The speed is 25 mph and I got up to 45 mph which I consider pretty good considering all. If it was an open road with no traffic and a little practice time and yes I could have gone faster.
Over 2,100 hits on the website so far which I consider pretty good. Russ Roberts who has pictures shown here may be taking out the Yamaha 360 for some races in the 50+ Expert class or just the vintage Expert class. Hugh Walters who is currently racing it is going to Albany, Oregon this weekend tp gather up more points in the H&T series.
All press releases are now out to Road Racing World, Cycle News, The Bellingham Herald and the Yakima Herald announcing the dinner. Looks like Tucker Rocky, Parts Unlimited and Helmet House will not be coming through on a sponsorship for the dinner. Don't know why at the moment. So the finalization of the poster is now complete and can be seen on the front page. Now has the logos of RMC and the Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association on the bottom as co-sponsors. Also took out the Vintage motorcycle display as it is extra to the main event and there is a MX race the day before, and I don't have the time to run it with everything else going on. Maybe next year. The Hammer & Tongs group organized by Siege did put on a nice show earlier this year at RMC at the Harley store.
So now we await the final listing of dealers in the state so we can print the posters and send them off. A big promotion is there will be eight dealers where we will having a 27" by 22" poster mounted on foamcore with a vintage bike next to it at major high volume motorcycle stores. That is the best promotion that anybody can ask for. The stores are Lynnwood Motoplex, Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store, Skagit Powersports, South Sound Honda, Aurora Suzuki, Mt Baker Powersports, Renton Motorcycle Company and Brother's Powersports.
Over 2,100 hits on the website so far which I consider pretty good. Russ Roberts who has pictures shown here may be taking out the Yamaha 360 for some races in the 50+ Expert class or just the vintage Expert class. Hugh Walters who is currently racing it is going to Albany, Oregon this weekend tp gather up more points in the H&T series.
All press releases are now out to Road Racing World, Cycle News, The Bellingham Herald and the Yakima Herald announcing the dinner. Looks like Tucker Rocky, Parts Unlimited and Helmet House will not be coming through on a sponsorship for the dinner. Don't know why at the moment. So the finalization of the poster is now complete and can be seen on the front page. Now has the logos of RMC and the Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association on the bottom as co-sponsors. Also took out the Vintage motorcycle display as it is extra to the main event and there is a MX race the day before, and I don't have the time to run it with everything else going on. Maybe next year. The Hammer & Tongs group organized by Siege did put on a nice show earlier this year at RMC at the Harley store.
So now we await the final listing of dealers in the state so we can print the posters and send them off. A big promotion is there will be eight dealers where we will having a 27" by 22" poster mounted on foamcore with a vintage bike next to it at major high volume motorcycle stores. That is the best promotion that anybody can ask for. The stores are Lynnwood Motoplex, Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store, Skagit Powersports, South Sound Honda, Aurora Suzuki, Mt Baker Powersports, Renton Motorcycle Company and Brother's Powersports.
7/18/2010
Pictures of my NEW 2011 2SS RS Camaro. Lets see if I can remember everything. It has the 6.1 Liter Corvette engine under the hood with 405 HP and over 400 lbs of torque. It has trip tronic paddle shifting behind the steering wheel just like in Formula One cars. A manual in an automatic car. Brembo Italian brakes all around. Heads Up Display so your can see in your front windshield the speed and RPM gauge. 20" wheels in Aluminum.
Pictures of my NEW 2011 2SS RS Camaro. Lets see if I can remember everything. It has the 6.1 Liter Corvette engine under the hood with 405 HP and over 400 lbs of torque. It has trip tronic paddle shifting behind the steering wheel just like in Formula One cars. A manual in an automatic car. Brembo Italian brakes all around. Heads Up Display so your can see in your front windshield the speed and RPM gauge. 20" wheels in Aluminum.
7/3/2010For the 4th of July I should go and say some rude things to my British AJS motorcycle. Like maybe the Irish taunt of "Up the long ladder and down the short rope. To hell with King Billy and God bless the Pope. If that doesn't do we'll tear them in two and send them to Hell with their red, white and blue." I just like saying that once and a while.
Got a call from Chuck Sun the other morning as I was watching the Dutch beat Brazil at the World Cup. As usual Chuck had a few things to say. I should update his interview as I did with Steve Baker. Chuck has a house in Las Vegas that he rarely spends time in. At the moment he is in Denver enjoying the mountains and riding and racing. He just got back from racing at the Baja 500 and finished 11th in class with his teammates. He was asking about the possibilities of the Seattle area being interested in showing the new movie "The Carlsbad USGP 1980" that the late Marty Moates won and became the first American to win the overall USGP. Jim Pomeroy was the first American in 1978 to win a moto at the USGP. The DVD of the movie will be released in a few weeks. So it looks very doubtful that the movie will be shown here and people will just have to wait for the release of the DVD and watch it on their 50" HD flat screen TV with surround sound. Why do we need to go the movie theaters anymore?
I am worried about that we have only two orders in for tables so far and no individual orders. OK it's still four months away and I worry. We will have seats for 360 people. And the tables also. Need to find a suitable charity to help out disabled Gulf War veterans with sports equipment in the sports that they choose. The dinner can always be cancelled or adjusted one week prior. That is my deadline for ordering food and confirming tables and stuff. Of course everybody would get a full refund. I need some support to help pull this off. I need your support to see we are doing the right thing by ordering now.
It was very sad to hear about Danny "Magoo" Chandler passing on a few weeks ago. Although nobody came out and said what he died from. From what I have heard he died in his chair fairly suddenly. Being that Magoo was a quadriplegic with only one hand useable I will guess that it was blood clot that went to his heart, brain or lungs. The two highest causes for spinal cord injured deaths are blood clots followed up by pressure sore infections. Christopher Reeve (Superman) didn't take care of his infected pressure sore and died because of it. David Baily the multi time MX champ became deathly ill because of a pressure sore, but survived. I very barely survived a blood clot to the lungs or a Pulmonary Embolism. None of the Doctors or nurses thought that I would live the first few days. Took two weeks of ICU and another week still on morphine to escape the hospital where I also got SARS in the lungs which for my age and ability is about a 50% death rate. Non treatable by anti biotic. Plus I can't use my lungs fully because of my paralysis. Sweet! If I wasn't already in the hospital as part of my intestine had died and I couldn't feel it I would have surely died within a hour or two. I barely survived being in a hospital. Still have some post tramatic moments from all what happened there. Sad to see Danny go, and just as they had raised enough money to buy him a special van for his disabilities.
Sorry to see Valentio Rossi get tossed for distance like a olympic javelin and compound fracture his leg. I heard the bone was sticking through his leathers. Ooohhh! Now it looks like his team mate and main competitior Jorge Lorenzo from Spain now has a firm grip on the championship. In the beginning I didn't like Rossi very much with his flaming hair and rock star antics. Now he is older and a just slightly more tamed. And I will admit that he is the best motorcycle grand prix racer of all time ahead of Hailwood and Agostini. There can alway be an argument with Agostini winning more titles and in different classes, and Hailwood for racing in multiple classes in one day and winning. And yet there is Rossi standing tall. He would have been right there with them if he was against them back in the day on the same bikes. Ben Spies is pretty fabulous in his first year smacking down his team mate and fellow American Colin Edwards. Ben got a podium in the last race on the last lap over another American Nicky Hayden who has been very impressive in out qualifying and finishing above his Ducati team mate and past champ Casey Stoner.
Got a call from Chuck Sun the other morning as I was watching the Dutch beat Brazil at the World Cup. As usual Chuck had a few things to say. I should update his interview as I did with Steve Baker. Chuck has a house in Las Vegas that he rarely spends time in. At the moment he is in Denver enjoying the mountains and riding and racing. He just got back from racing at the Baja 500 and finished 11th in class with his teammates. He was asking about the possibilities of the Seattle area being interested in showing the new movie "The Carlsbad USGP 1980" that the late Marty Moates won and became the first American to win the overall USGP. Jim Pomeroy was the first American in 1978 to win a moto at the USGP. The DVD of the movie will be released in a few weeks. So it looks very doubtful that the movie will be shown here and people will just have to wait for the release of the DVD and watch it on their 50" HD flat screen TV with surround sound. Why do we need to go the movie theaters anymore?
I am worried about that we have only two orders in for tables so far and no individual orders. OK it's still four months away and I worry. We will have seats for 360 people. And the tables also. Need to find a suitable charity to help out disabled Gulf War veterans with sports equipment in the sports that they choose. The dinner can always be cancelled or adjusted one week prior. That is my deadline for ordering food and confirming tables and stuff. Of course everybody would get a full refund. I need some support to help pull this off. I need your support to see we are doing the right thing by ordering now.
It was very sad to hear about Danny "Magoo" Chandler passing on a few weeks ago. Although nobody came out and said what he died from. From what I have heard he died in his chair fairly suddenly. Being that Magoo was a quadriplegic with only one hand useable I will guess that it was blood clot that went to his heart, brain or lungs. The two highest causes for spinal cord injured deaths are blood clots followed up by pressure sore infections. Christopher Reeve (Superman) didn't take care of his infected pressure sore and died because of it. David Baily the multi time MX champ became deathly ill because of a pressure sore, but survived. I very barely survived a blood clot to the lungs or a Pulmonary Embolism. None of the Doctors or nurses thought that I would live the first few days. Took two weeks of ICU and another week still on morphine to escape the hospital where I also got SARS in the lungs which for my age and ability is about a 50% death rate. Non treatable by anti biotic. Plus I can't use my lungs fully because of my paralysis. Sweet! If I wasn't already in the hospital as part of my intestine had died and I couldn't feel it I would have surely died within a hour or two. I barely survived being in a hospital. Still have some post tramatic moments from all what happened there. Sad to see Danny go, and just as they had raised enough money to buy him a special van for his disabilities.
Sorry to see Valentio Rossi get tossed for distance like a olympic javelin and compound fracture his leg. I heard the bone was sticking through his leathers. Ooohhh! Now it looks like his team mate and main competitior Jorge Lorenzo from Spain now has a firm grip on the championship. In the beginning I didn't like Rossi very much with his flaming hair and rock star antics. Now he is older and a just slightly more tamed. And I will admit that he is the best motorcycle grand prix racer of all time ahead of Hailwood and Agostini. There can alway be an argument with Agostini winning more titles and in different classes, and Hailwood for racing in multiple classes in one day and winning. And yet there is Rossi standing tall. He would have been right there with them if he was against them back in the day on the same bikes. Ben Spies is pretty fabulous in his first year smacking down his team mate and fellow American Colin Edwards. Ben got a podium in the last race on the last lap over another American Nicky Hayden who has been very impressive in out qualifying and finishing above his Ducati team mate and past champ Casey Stoner.
6/10/2010
18 year old neighbor Byron Hoefer graduated from Inglemoor High School in Kenmore last night at the UW. Byron has torn apart every one of my bikes and built it up again. Especially the Montesa and Yamaha. He will be going to Cal-Poly in San Luis Opisbo, CA where he will be majoring in Aerospace Engineering. A big step up from trying to set the ignition on a Motoplat ignition. I coached Lacrosse there one year when I was working for Boeing at Vandenberg AFB on the Peacekeeper missile installations. And my nephew Ryan will graduate from Mt Si High School tomorrow night. Ryan was one of the first to race the Yamaha 360 as a 13 year old at the Woodland MX track and then later at Goldendale. Doug Raines always asks how Ryan is doing. I didn't get married and apparently have no children. Unfortunately none of my nephews continued on in motorcycle racing. At least Ryan tried it and might again if I once again provide everything. Of course I will. Congrats to both kids as they graduate. Couldn't be more proud.
18 year old neighbor Byron Hoefer graduated from Inglemoor High School in Kenmore last night at the UW. Byron has torn apart every one of my bikes and built it up again. Especially the Montesa and Yamaha. He will be going to Cal-Poly in San Luis Opisbo, CA where he will be majoring in Aerospace Engineering. A big step up from trying to set the ignition on a Motoplat ignition. I coached Lacrosse there one year when I was working for Boeing at Vandenberg AFB on the Peacekeeper missile installations. And my nephew Ryan will graduate from Mt Si High School tomorrow night. Ryan was one of the first to race the Yamaha 360 as a 13 year old at the Woodland MX track and then later at Goldendale. Doug Raines always asks how Ryan is doing. I didn't get married and apparently have no children. Unfortunately none of my nephews continued on in motorcycle racing. At least Ryan tried it and might again if I once again provide everything. Of course I will. Congrats to both kids as they graduate. Couldn't be more proud.
6/9/2010
Just in the mail from Cliff Hanger in Seattle, Wa. is this original University Honda/Bultaco/CZ Jim Pomeroy jersey. It was given as a gift from Jim to Cliff and now Cliff has donated it to the WSMCHOF to be shared to all viewers. And it will be. It will be shown along with other Jimmy memorbilia at the dinner in October. The jersey is a size Large and is of the finest tight knit material. There is a Bultaco logo on the front of the jersey above the U Honda logo that is faded out. An update from Terry Saxlund in that they wouldn't have washed out the Bultaco logo. It was just that their silk screening was better that the Spanish version. Jim's friend Chuck Akin said he never saw Jim in such a clean shirt.
Just in the mail from Cliff Hanger in Seattle, Wa. is this original University Honda/Bultaco/CZ Jim Pomeroy jersey. It was given as a gift from Jim to Cliff and now Cliff has donated it to the WSMCHOF to be shared to all viewers. And it will be. It will be shown along with other Jimmy memorbilia at the dinner in October. The jersey is a size Large and is of the finest tight knit material. There is a Bultaco logo on the front of the jersey above the U Honda logo that is faded out. An update from Terry Saxlund in that they wouldn't have washed out the Bultaco logo. It was just that their silk screening was better that the Spanish version. Jim's friend Chuck Akin said he never saw Jim in such a clean shirt.
6/6/2010
Dinosaur Daze at Straddle Line ORV Park in McLearly, Washington.
Pitted with the Full Circle Racing team of Tom McAllister and Chris Gray. The previous few days it had rained and there were a few drops on the drive down but it stayed dry for the rest of the day. The temps started out about 50 F and went up to a sunny 72 F at the end of the day. What that provided was a muddy track at the beginning of the day and a dry and a little dusty at the end of the day. Because of the mud they didn't race the track closest to the grandstands which meant the spectators could only see a distant race going on of about 200 yards away. And as usual they run the MX as a Scrambles where there are heats and main events. And as typical of every Dino Daze race the main events didn't get started until 2:45 PM. That is a time that the AHRMA and Hammer & Tong vintage MX races finish the day. That is why many people refuse to come to this race anymore. And they didn't run my 1/2 page ad for the Hall of Fame dinner in the race day program or a 1/2 page ad from Steve McQueen Racing because of failed communication. So I had to spend my day passing out flyers and business cards to racers. Saved money I guess. Sore by the end of the day from pulling wheelies with my wheelchair over all the rocks. Lots of people stopped by the EZ Up tent and looked at the 1972 AJS 250 Stormer and the 1973 Montesa 250 VR. The AJS finally got started the previous night and ran. We started it up again on race day. Sounds real good, although it is a cold blooded bastard and takes a few minutes to warm up. The job Tom McAllister did on adapting a 32mm Mikuni carb to the infold and airbox is a piece of art and functional too.
I should also add that Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store is the 2nd company to reserve a table. Of course Ron Orr the owner is Vice-Chairman so i would hope he would buy a ticket. Old friend of mine and 1st racing mentor Chuck Akin is once again the Team Manager of the Costa Rican Motocross Des Nations team that will be competing in Colorado this year. Best of success to Chuck and the team.
Dinosaur Daze at Straddle Line ORV Park in McLearly, Washington.
Pitted with the Full Circle Racing team of Tom McAllister and Chris Gray. The previous few days it had rained and there were a few drops on the drive down but it stayed dry for the rest of the day. The temps started out about 50 F and went up to a sunny 72 F at the end of the day. What that provided was a muddy track at the beginning of the day and a dry and a little dusty at the end of the day. Because of the mud they didn't race the track closest to the grandstands which meant the spectators could only see a distant race going on of about 200 yards away. And as usual they run the MX as a Scrambles where there are heats and main events. And as typical of every Dino Daze race the main events didn't get started until 2:45 PM. That is a time that the AHRMA and Hammer & Tong vintage MX races finish the day. That is why many people refuse to come to this race anymore. And they didn't run my 1/2 page ad for the Hall of Fame dinner in the race day program or a 1/2 page ad from Steve McQueen Racing because of failed communication. So I had to spend my day passing out flyers and business cards to racers. Saved money I guess. Sore by the end of the day from pulling wheelies with my wheelchair over all the rocks. Lots of people stopped by the EZ Up tent and looked at the 1972 AJS 250 Stormer and the 1973 Montesa 250 VR. The AJS finally got started the previous night and ran. We started it up again on race day. Sounds real good, although it is a cold blooded bastard and takes a few minutes to warm up. The job Tom McAllister did on adapting a 32mm Mikuni carb to the infold and airbox is a piece of art and functional too.
I should also add that Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store is the 2nd company to reserve a table. Of course Ron Orr the owner is Vice-Chairman so i would hope he would buy a ticket. Old friend of mine and 1st racing mentor Chuck Akin is once again the Team Manager of the Costa Rican Motocross Des Nations team that will be competing in Colorado this year. Best of success to Chuck and the team.
5/26/2010
Made a trip down to Renton Motorcycles to hook up with Joe Jones their Marketing manager to discuss plans for the Hall of Fame Dinner. Before we forget a monster size thank you to the Lanphere family for allowing us to use the Renton Motorcycles as a place to have the dinner. We found a great place in the NE corner of the main floor. There is a one story balcony that can be seen from the floor area from all sides. There will be enough area for all the tables. There is also an enclosed area right outside the door that we can have a vintage motorcycle show at. And it is heated. Joe really liked the WSMCHOF web site and suggested adding a Face Book tab to it. Joe also suggested the Washougal MX track announcer and Marketing Manager Brian Barnes to be our announcer for the dinner. Called up Brian and he is very glad to be a part of it. Thank you Brian! Went back into the parts area to order a petcock for the Yamaha 360 as the old one had dried up from last summer and was pouring gas out of it onto the garage floor.. Speaking to my buddy Troy Rose, who is also an alumni of the motorcycle racer fall down and break your spine club. We meet on the 3rd Tuesday of the month. Troy is most certainly coming to the dinner. There was a customer there who asked me why don’t I get a motor for my wheelchair. I get this asked a few times and my answers is always "I wouldn’t have these fabulous arms if I didn’t manually push. And an electric chair won’t fit into my sports car." And then up at the Skagit Powersports Open House a very nice person after loading up my bike was surprised when he said "I didn’t think you would be driving a normal car." As I always tell people that I give speeches to that it’s not their responsibility to know about me, but my responsibility to tell you about me. It’s not that people are stupid, OK some are real stupid, it’s just that they didn’t know the answer or were afraid to ask. So I just added a story I wrote a while back because where I worked people would always ask me these questions after a very long time because they were afraid to ask the questions. So here I answer the questions for you. It is called "A Paralyzing Situation" and it is NEW under Stories in the menu. Please read it. Many of my fellow wheelchair using friends used this story to tell people about themselves.
Made a trip down to Renton Motorcycles to hook up with Joe Jones their Marketing manager to discuss plans for the Hall of Fame Dinner. Before we forget a monster size thank you to the Lanphere family for allowing us to use the Renton Motorcycles as a place to have the dinner. We found a great place in the NE corner of the main floor. There is a one story balcony that can be seen from the floor area from all sides. There will be enough area for all the tables. There is also an enclosed area right outside the door that we can have a vintage motorcycle show at. And it is heated. Joe really liked the WSMCHOF web site and suggested adding a Face Book tab to it. Joe also suggested the Washougal MX track announcer and Marketing Manager Brian Barnes to be our announcer for the dinner. Called up Brian and he is very glad to be a part of it. Thank you Brian! Went back into the parts area to order a petcock for the Yamaha 360 as the old one had dried up from last summer and was pouring gas out of it onto the garage floor.. Speaking to my buddy Troy Rose, who is also an alumni of the motorcycle racer fall down and break your spine club. We meet on the 3rd Tuesday of the month. Troy is most certainly coming to the dinner. There was a customer there who asked me why don’t I get a motor for my wheelchair. I get this asked a few times and my answers is always "I wouldn’t have these fabulous arms if I didn’t manually push. And an electric chair won’t fit into my sports car." And then up at the Skagit Powersports Open House a very nice person after loading up my bike was surprised when he said "I didn’t think you would be driving a normal car." As I always tell people that I give speeches to that it’s not their responsibility to know about me, but my responsibility to tell you about me. It’s not that people are stupid, OK some are real stupid, it’s just that they didn’t know the answer or were afraid to ask. So I just added a story I wrote a while back because where I worked people would always ask me these questions after a very long time because they were afraid to ask the questions. So here I answer the questions for you. It is called "A Paralyzing Situation" and it is NEW under Stories in the menu. Please read it. Many of my fellow wheelchair using friends used this story to tell people about themselves.
5/24/2010
Skagit Powersports had their annual open house this past Saturday. Well attended as every year. This year there were no big name stars as the economy is down for everyone. Seemed to me that everyone had just as good of a time though.
Skagit Powersports had their annual open house this past Saturday. Well attended as every year. This year there were no big name stars as the economy is down for everyone. Seemed to me that everyone had just as good of a time though.
5/14/2010
There will be a new racer on the Yamaha 360 MX bike this year in Hugh Walter. First planned race is the Dinosaur Daze race on June 5th at Straddle Line ORV Park. You can see Hugh on his 400 Penton in the Puyallup MX track pictures from the 1970's. Hugh is very excited about getting on the bike and racing once again. When I told Buck Murphy about him riding the bike he said where does Hugh want his ashes spread when he dies. The bike creates some serious horsepower. We will take it for a dry run to get the kinks of the bike and more importantly Hugh to Straddle Line in the next weeks.
Speaking of next week I am going to meet with Joe Jones the Marketing Director of Renton Motorcycles to discuss the Hall of Fame dinner face to face. Joe has already given me some very good ideas about how to make the dinner better including using the current Washougal MX track announcer as our Master of Ceremony for the dinner. He also suggested I create a Face Book page for the WSMCHOF. Looking into that one. At the same time will be meeting with Lorraine who is in charge of catering for the dinner from Mick Kelly's restaurant.
On Wednesday will be taking a drive up North to visit Steve Baker to get some pictures from him for scanning and to update the interview I did with him almost 10 years ago for the website. So look forward to that coming up.
5/9/2010
First of all a wonderful Mother’s Day to all those fantastic people that patched us up after crashing and healed our wounds physically and emotionally. I saw on Pat Jacobson’s Facebook page these comments:
"When I was injured almost 31 years ago, The whole time I was in the hospital and in rehab Mom was the only one that stayed by my side, every day, even through my darkest times, she stayed by my side. She is my hero. So to all you Mom's out there...have a great day! and thank you for being you. Dang I forgot to get Mom something!"
I mirror those thoughts to my mother who thankfully is a nurse and has bandaged me up after crashing for my 54 years ( on May 26th I will be). All of us have loaded our mom’s brains and hearts with a ton of worry about how their sons might not come home from a day of racing. They would much rather have us sitting at home watching TV on a Sunday than putting our lives on the line for a little adrenaline rush. And yet they love us so much that they allowed us to be who we were and race. For that we cannot thank them ever so much.
Once again the 26th annual running of the Tacoma Motorcycle Club’s Dinosaur Daze race will be held the first full weekend of June this next month on Saturday and Sunday June 5th and 6th. Traditionally the motocross/scrambles is held on Saturday and the dirt track is on the following day Sunday. As in the past few years the race will be at the Straddle Line ORV Park off of Hiway 8 near McCleary, WA. Congratulations to Tacoma Motorcycle Club as they celebrate their 100th anniversary this year as one of the oldest AMA clubs ever. By the way to race at the Dino Daze you will need a an AMA card which can be purchased at the track. The WSMCHOF will have a ½ page ad in the race day program as the Dino Daze always has a big turnout of racers and spectators. More than any other event in the northwest the Dino Daze will pull bikes and riders out of the cobwebs for a once a year race and bullshit session. The Saturday dinner with a live band and dancing is legendary. Jim Pomeroy used to have a grand time with some late night shenanigans there. Maybe you can too.
Stopped by Lynnwood Motoplex and chatted with Fred Taft and Bob Ryan. Bob is actually only turning 50 this year! I know! He was just a young thing back then. His brother was a co-owner of Mid Valley Cycle in Monroe that dealt in Bultaco’s and was on the way to the Startup MX track. You could always stop off there on the way to the race. Your last stop for race day salvation. I even wrote about them with a different name for my article in the "Stories" section under "Startup and Never Stop":
"Driving through the town, the abandoned 200-foot tall smokestack of a long forgotten mill pierced the sky above the one story skyline like some ancient phallic symbol. Steve remembered that Bill’s Bultaco motorcycle shop used to be right next door to the smokestack, located in one of the remaining mill buildings. Bill’s had now been renovated and a lawyer’s office. It had been the last motorcycle shop on the way to the track and the last place to grab some Oury grips, a Champion spark plug or that spare inner tube for a flat tire."
In the "Pictures" section under Washougal you can see #27 Ron Pomeroy who was riding for them in 1975 locally. One of the most stand up guys you could ever meet and has better and truer stories than I do. Bob definitely lived the life back then and is now Parts Manager at Lynnwood Motoplex.
Now when I refer to "living the life", I got the quote from the Masters and Commanders" movie starring Russell Crowe in 2003. Crowe as Captain Jack Aubrey is explaining to his ship’s physician Dr. Maturin the reaction that a teenage officer’s parents will have when they hear and see of their son Blakeney having his arm amputated after a naval battle. He tells the Dr. That his father "lived the life" while his mother would not understand. Emphasizing that unless you were there it is very hard to understand no matter how much explanation is given what has happened. And as you read this you know you cannot tell a non racer what it is like to be on a motorcycle and stretch it to it’s limits as well as yours and to finish where you finish. So if you are reading this and my stories and understand what I am talking about then you have indeed lived the life. It is something that no one can give you, nor can they take it away from you.
Another visit to Adventure Motorsports in Monroe, Wa. Where they sell Yamaha’s and Suzuki’s. Hooked up with an old racing friend Scott McMillan who I raced against in the late 80's on Honda Hurricanes. Scott physically fitted in with the fireplug set of the short stocky road racer in the fast family of racers as Joe Pittman, Steve Littlejohn, Doug Renfrow. God those boys were fast. For road racers you were either the fire plugs or the Elves. The Elves were the very slender and strong racers no taller than 5'8" tall and under 140 lbs. The perfect size to hold onto a monstrous beast. A modern day jockey. The smaller the better. Look at the Moto GP riders of today with Dani Pedrosa at 5'2" and 112 lbs. Then there were the few ex motocross racers and occasional dirt track racers who towered above the competition in physical size at 6"1" and 175 lbs. We didn’t have a chance going into and coming out of turns because of the weight difference. A little bit above the normal height of Americans at 5"8" doesn’t cut it in the world of motorcycle racing. Not even at motocross when you see Ricky Carmichael at 5"6" and 150 lbs. One of the staff joked not to ask Scott about 1988 because apparently the conversation would not stop for a while. By the way the store is very nice with an excellent diner located inside where I got a hamburger dip with BBQ sauce and fries. Very nice. You can see it just off of Hiway 2 when you enter Monroe. They are on the "Links" page now.
5/3/2010
So much has happened lately. First of all Karl Landrus has a You Tube site set up showing all his metal artistry that you can actually use on your vintage bikes. Been having some nice chats with an old friend of mine in Hugh Walters although he forgot who I was. Hugh as I remember was #195H racing a Suzuki TM 250 in the 250 B class and then moved up to a Penton 400 in the "A" class in 1974. You can see pictures of him on his Penton under the Puyallup MX track pictures. I was trying to convince him that we knew each other by saying we used to play tennis down in Renton where he was from. Hugh said he played tennis with a few people back then, but he did remember a marathon tennis match with one guy. Hugh! I was that guy and we played for 6 - 7 hours until are feet started to bleed because neither of us wanted to lose. Now he remembers. I forgot who won the game though. Hugh is now getting very anxious to come back and do some vintage racing and may get stuck on my 1973 Yamaha 360 MX bike.
I went to the Supercross on April 24th in Seattle at the QWest Stadium. I hadn't been for six or seven years. The traffic getting there and getting out. The price. The lack of any real racing. Domination by one or two racers. Better use of my money. All those things kept me away. But since I need to promote this Hall of Fame dinner I went down to the track about 4 PM. They have a new exit ramps from both I-5 and I-90 freeways that dump you right at the parking for both the football and baseball stadiums. That is indeed a new and improved addition. Then for parking. Since I am in a wheelchair I'm not going to park a few miles away going over train tracks and in the dark when I leave so I parked at the stadium for $30. Ouch!!! I went to the pits and there was the AHRMA booth right up front and set up with about 10-15 vintage MX bikes and a bunch of the racers still racing them today. Mr. Buck Murphy was there still holding a slim figure and looking real good even though he has a new follicle facial agenda going on with a Colonel Sanders beard. The world would be a much poorer place with out the personalities of guys like Buck. They interviewed Buck in front of his factory 1975 Can-Am 250 bike at the main stage at about 5:45 PM and Buck did a great job and promoted the Hall of Fame dinner. Buck did a great job as usual. I went up to the Washington State Motorsports Dealers Association booth which was above the starting line to schmooze with all the dealers and families. I knew most of the dealers already, but got to meet some of their family though. Ron Orr's wife and son were very nice to talk with. Jeff Nilsen from Brother's Powersports in Bremerton as lively as ever. Of course the man Jim Boltz. Dale and Vicki Gray from South Sound Honda. John Glys from Motorsports of Olympia who bought the first table for the Hall of Fame dinner. Sandy Smith from Tucker Rocky was there and I was trying to get him to co sponsor the dinner but talking to him for more than 10 seconds is like trying to corral kittens. Can't be done.
What a terrible track! My God! All that light, frothy beach sand. It's certainally not Washington dirt, or even from our beaches. We need some clay and rocks to prove we are from Washington. Those ruts were pure nasty. If it had only rained it would have been the nastiest course. Might have been excting also. I cheer for old man Kevin Windham, but without Ryan Villopoto and Ryan Dungey just cruising to win his championship that night there was no race to watch. I watched the 250 support race and before the main race started I took to my wheels and got the hell out of there. Left a little after 10 PM from the booth and got home in Kenmore at 10:45 PM. My friends who watched the final got home at 12:30 AM. I watched the final on TV the next day well rested. I must say that the crowd was very big considering the smaller crowds across the country for Super Cross and all forms of racing. I guesstimate a little over 40,000.
4/19/2010
Just got done chatting with Larl Landrus who was previously the fabricator of all those aluminum one-offs for vintage MX bikes specializing in swingarms for Novation Racing. Karl built for me a special aliminum swingarm for my 1973 Yamaha 360 MX bike and we added 1 1/2" to the length, as did Al Baker in the early 70's with his kits to lengthen said stock swingarms. That cured the back end from swapping and made it so sweet for going through whoops without praying for your life every time you hit them. You can see the swingarm in this website under "Motorcycles" and go down to see the Yamaha 360. Now Karl has his own company called "KLP Racing" at 509-315-8425. Once again he will be making aluminum tanks, swingarms and all sorts of cool things, He doesn't have a web site yet but there is a You Tube videos of some of his work which I will link you up to later. Karl was telling me that Jim Pomeroy asked him about a week before his death to recreate the Bultaco factory aluminum tank he had back in the day. Needless to say that it never got started, until now. Karl would like to build it and auction it off at the Hall of Fame dinner in October to a good charity. I'm thinking of the Danny Magoo fund raiser to buy him a new van.
4/18/2010
Made a little trip down to the last race of the Spring "Hammer & Tongs" races at the Woodland MX Track outside of Vancouver, Washington yesterday. Apparently I had not been there in four years as all the big trees had been cut down when they were going to build a bunch of houses there. And as all things recently the money dried up for the housing and the track continues to race, just not without any trees. A billion tons of sand though. A couple of people who told me they every one of my Bench Racer magazines that they re-read. I am a cult leader. And then a few people who had never heard of me. One moment you're up, and the next moment reality hits. The event was a little overcast with just a few raindrops which was better than the big rainstorms on the way down. Passed out a bunch of flyers and business cards for the Hall of Fame dinner and everybody was excited about it. Bultaco Bill will be bringing his 1973 Bultaco that was signed by Jim Pomeroy and is a copy of the bike that Jim raced and won on in the 1973 Spanish GP. It will have the #57 on the plates. It will even have the green number plates that they used for the 250 Grnad Prix season. Sweet!
I was hanging out with the "Full Circle" race team which consisted for Tom McAllister, Chris Gray and Norm Enders. Very nice matching jerseys and Chris and Norm looked very smooth and fast. Nice! Chris's girlfriend's son who is 16 was competing in his first MX race and was nervous. He stands 6'1" and is skinny. I gave him some advice about the race. The first was to let the gate drop and let everybody charge ahead about two to three car lengths so not to get tangled up with other racers. Then just to ride the track like a practice and concentrate on standing up and not getting arm pumped. Guess what? A 16 year old didn't listen to an old man and what happened? He was on the concrete launch pad with a backward falling gate and was revving up his 1979 Honda CR 125 and when the green flag dropped he also dropped the clutch and hit the gate and got stuck as the rest of the racers took off on the course. For a few seconds it looked like he was going to quit until a bunch of people yelled at him to start up the bike and get going. Still looked nervous and used the clutch to upshift and was over revving the motor. Got stuck in a couple of sandy corners as he went outside of the groove and got stuck in the fluffy sand. Welcome to the brother hood young learner. Listen to old men from now on!
4/14/2010
Wow! First of all the Moto GP series got kicked off in a night race in Quatar, sand desert. Explain to me a motorcycle race in a country where it is basically illegal to ride a bike. Or was that Saudi Arabia? No spectators but that doesn't count in today's world. It's what you charge the promoters who are in many cases countries promoting their nation as civilized to the world. Has nothing to do with racers being spectators. Anyways the racing was Fucking Brilliant to use an English term. First Stoner goes out in a crash after it looked like he would walk away, and then the master Rossi did what he does best in using his mind over matter and controlled the race not by a mile, but by a few feet. Wisely too as he ran out of gas on the cool off lap. Even though our boy Nicky Hayden finished in fourth place he was up in 2nd behind Rossi for a while and was battling every inch of the track. Very surprisingly the Ducati was being beaten down the straight by a Honda. In the past the Ducks have been the fastest by far in a straight line. The Yamaha's fit Rossi and an injured Lorenzo, who put on a fantastic charge from 5th to 2nd at the end. The Honda's of a quick starting and fast losing Pedrosa, and fast Dovizioso who looks to be a real challenger also were comfortable fittings for these modern little jockeys. The Ducati didn't fit Hayden at all, but he was making it work as best that he has in the last two years. It was brilliant of his riding skills. I had my fingernails in my palms the last two laps as Hayden went under Dovi only to get passed back on that straight do a lack of horsepower. I'm exhausted.
The new Moto 2 race was also very interesting with lots of drafting and using different lines. They all use Honda 600 engines that have been tagged as all being the same so they have equal HP and the racing is left to the racers and the chassis maker. So far so good although the chassi on some of them got a little out of shape exiting mid corner for a little bronco riding. Worth watching in the future as the replacement to the 250 two strokes.
Talked with Russ Roberts who works at Honda of Bellevue, Washington (automobiles) and it was great catching up with him. Russ will be scanning some photos of his past racing that we can post. There is a picture I took of him racing at Puyallup on his Pro-Fab framed Yamaha YZ 250 back in 1975 I think. Check it out. Russ was recently in the last few years tearing up the local vintage scene. Also was chatting with Blaine Elledge who told me after selling his two 1976 Husky 250 CR's he put that money into finishing up his 1981 Husky 390 and he just went and finished the desert race Mattawa with it and it ran great. Now to get him a short course called MX. He will be bringing me pictures of his great past. Also yakking on the phone with another great racer in Dave Bunker who has for a long while lived in Utah with his guitar company called Bunker Guitars. Dave has also done some vintage racing to really good success. Dave has his own track down there and during the Spring time gets as much riding as he can.Dave just turned 54 as I will in May. 1956 absolutely ROCKED! Three guys that I used to race with that regularly beat me on 250's. Come to think about it everybody beat me on 250's and that's why I moved up to Open bikes for a new group of racers to beat me.
4/6/2010
Very bad news on Easter Sunday April 3rd in practice when when of our brothers Claud Jinks lost his life at Pacific Raceways in Kent, WA. Claud was a WMRRA Board of Trustee member and head of race tech inspections. From what I know, which isn't clear at this point that he ran off in turn two and made no corrections in braking or steering. Once again it was said that Claud, age 62, had blood clot and heart problems, and who knows. Having seen the last two roadracers die at that track in Alex Anderson and Bailey in turn 8 and turn 10, I know the hurt that the racers there felt, and how it will affect them. Racers have a short memory though, and will put themselves back on the track at the next race and ride as hard as they can, because that's what racers do. It will never happen to me. And if you start thinking on the race track that you could be hurt, then you need to ride back to the pits and park the bike until you get over that feeling or just quit. You would be a danger to yourself and the other racers on the track.
I keep getting these books from Whitehorse Press to review and the latest one is called "How to Set Up Your MOTORCYCLE WORKSHOP." Very long title I know. 200 pages and in color and it could have been shortened down to 50 pages with bigger pictures. Still it is in it's third edition which means somebody is buying a lot of copies. It is really set up for a Harley Davidson small fix it up shop that you see in small towns across the U.S. And anybody with 1/2 a brain can think out there own floor plan for their garage. All common sense thinking. But the book sells. A book called "Garage Workshop for Dummies" would be more helpful and instuctive than this book. Still some of the books that Whitehorse sends me on motorcycle camping and touring the U.S. are outstanding. Keep sending me the books.
4/2/2010
Had a very nice lunch with ex racer and hardcore motorcyclist George Ledwith at the Three Lions Pub in Redmond co-owned by ex road racer Neville Redman. I was supposed to give a class that day on Single Malt Scotch's at the Pub but I got a little sick and will have to postpone that. Bangers and Mash was my meal with a couple of Guinness thrown back for lunch. Anyways George and I were talking about how awesome the AMA Superbike race in Fontana was this past weekend. Very surprising considering how everybody, including myself, thought how lame this would be without real factories and just be a glorified club race. And it was fantastic to see our Washington good friend Jake Holden on his privately sponsored Honda 1000 qualify in 7th and move up to third at the beginning of the race. Don't know what wrong but I am told it is a very easy place to run off the course. I really hope that Jake gets some sponsorship to get him out to more races. I also don't see why that after Team Jordan rider Aaron Yates broke his leg in practice they have not signed up Jake as he was a past team mate. Instead they are trying out a Canadian teenager. And the announcers were congratulating racer Chris Ulrich on his riding skill when he ran over Yates and broke his leg. Independently both George and I rewinded our tapes and watched in slow motion and all we both saw was him ride the bike straight. He was so close that was all he could do. If Yates head was there he would have run over that. Had nothing to do with riding talent at all.
The Supercross was also great with Ryan Villopoto walking away with it. Unfortunately Ryan Dungey moved up from5th to finish in 2nd and keep his big points lead. All Ryan has to do is finish 2nd the rest of the season and he will win the title. Don't get me wrong I really like Dungey and actually do hope he wins it. Isn't it amazing when you take out a Ben Spies and Matt Maladin out of road racing and a whole bunch of real racing happens, and when you take out Stewart and Reed out of MX the same thing happens? I forget what racing has looked like the past few years.
And the F-1 race in Australia was brilliant for once. Throw in some rain right before the race and a few crashes on the first lap and voila passing happens. Jenson Button made a brave strategy by pitting very early for slicks and then made them last for the entire race. Somebody is thinking out there.
3/31/2010
I just added an interview I did with Rick Poulin that I forgot about who was Jim Pomeroy's arch nemesis and backyard friend in Yakima racing handlebar to handlebar before he got injured. Check it out. Stopped by Eastside Harley Davidson and had a quick chat with my friend Scott Moon who has moved from the used bike department back to the main showroom as head of the Sales Department. He's excited about the dinner and marked it on his computer calendar so that he won't miss it. Already has his young daughter age nine starting to dirt track race up at Monroe. Only person I know to race a MX bike and a road race bike on the same day at the now Pacific Raceway, or what we used to call SIR.
3/30/2010
Had a nice chat with master photographer Glen Freudenberger who will be digging up some fantastic shots of Steve Baker at Laguna Seca and he says he has some of the muddy 1975 Trans-Am race at Puyallup of Pomeroy that he will have to find. I will be going to the Hammer & Tongs race this Saturday in Woodland, WA to pass out some flyers and business cards and talk to people about the dinner. And chill with my pal Tom McAllister and tell him how bad he sucks. Just to keep his head from swelling of course.
Just got done talking to Steve Baker to update him on what is happening for the dinner. Steve will try to get the 1977 Daytona 250 Yamaha TZ 250 that he won the support race with from a collector to display at the show. Later this year I will update the almost ten year old Baker interview when I make a trip up to Bellingham.
3/26/2010
Took a trip up to Everett Powersports yesterday and had a nice chat with the Liebold brothers and they are going to see how many people at their store would like to go. Ed was the only one that when I brought my Bench Racer magazine to the shop he would get all excited because the new edition was in. He told me he still reads them. Dick Wascher or better known as WASCO, the master manipulator of metal will be designing one of a kind trophies to be given away at the dinner.
Tell me what you think of this idea about giving away motorcycle stuff faway at the dinner via ticket number drawing? Personally to me it takes up time that we could use to talk with people and the stuff you get never fits, or is for the wrong sex or is for a kid, or is for the type of riding you don't do. Think I answered my own question, but still tell me what you think.
Don't confuse the Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame with the Pacific Northwest Museum of Motorcycling. I know it sounds very familiar, but it is very different and we don't do anything the same. We are racers honoring fellow racers in out time frame and memories. Because to me the racers are the one's who tell the stories that people remember and the bikes are just vehicles. I was never a Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Husqvarna, Maico, CZ, Bultaco fanatic even though I raced all those brands because I just chose bikes depending if they were the best bikes that year that I could afford.
3/20/2010
The first party goers are the people of Motorsports of Olympia who have reserved the first table for eight at the dinner and therefore get the closest table to the proceedings. The Glys family opened their store in 2002 with the Yamaha brand and in 2007 added another line with KTM. Thanks to the team of John Glys and his happy campers of Dale, Alex, Nate and Danny from down South, depending on which way your head is screwed on. Looking forward to meeting you all. They all look very young. Goes to prove that enthusiasts revere history no matter what the age. They are now in the "Links" page.
3/18/2010
Check out the "Links" page and see our supporters so far. Hammer & Tongs along with AHRMA Northwest. And the main sponsors in all the participating members of the Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association. You know the people you buy motorcycles, parts/accessories and service from in your local area. You know those people who have no heart and are only in it for themselves. I will pleasantly disagree with that statement as they have supported not only motorcycle causes, but non motorcycle events in their areas because they are good people. You can find out how nice when you come to the Hall of Fame dinner as they will be amongst you. And you won't be able to even tell them by sight.
3/13/2010
We are about to announce a co-sponsorship with the WSMDA (Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association) in official terms. Chairman of the Association Jim Boltz from Lynnwood Cycle Barn was the first person I contacted with the idea. With his support the idea flourished. Ron Orr from Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store is the representative from WSMDA and Terry Saxlund a previous co-owner of University Honda and supporter of Jim Pomeroy and the infamous Buck Murphy as well as myself Shawn McDonald are the current Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame members. I suppose that I am the ringleader of the circus. We are also looking forward to other sponsors in the motorcycle business even in this extremely difficult time. As many dealers have told me that they really need a break from the business side of the equation and to have some fun.
There will be a new racer on the Yamaha 360 MX bike this year in Hugh Walter. First planned race is the Dinosaur Daze race on June 5th at Straddle Line ORV Park. You can see Hugh on his 400 Penton in the Puyallup MX track pictures from the 1970's. Hugh is very excited about getting on the bike and racing once again. When I told Buck Murphy about him riding the bike he said where does Hugh want his ashes spread when he dies. The bike creates some serious horsepower. We will take it for a dry run to get the kinks of the bike and more importantly Hugh to Straddle Line in the next weeks.
Speaking of next week I am going to meet with Joe Jones the Marketing Director of Renton Motorcycles to discuss the Hall of Fame dinner face to face. Joe has already given me some very good ideas about how to make the dinner better including using the current Washougal MX track announcer as our Master of Ceremony for the dinner. He also suggested I create a Face Book page for the WSMCHOF. Looking into that one. At the same time will be meeting with Lorraine who is in charge of catering for the dinner from Mick Kelly's restaurant.
On Wednesday will be taking a drive up North to visit Steve Baker to get some pictures from him for scanning and to update the interview I did with him almost 10 years ago for the website. So look forward to that coming up.
5/9/2010
First of all a wonderful Mother’s Day to all those fantastic people that patched us up after crashing and healed our wounds physically and emotionally. I saw on Pat Jacobson’s Facebook page these comments:
"When I was injured almost 31 years ago, The whole time I was in the hospital and in rehab Mom was the only one that stayed by my side, every day, even through my darkest times, she stayed by my side. She is my hero. So to all you Mom's out there...have a great day! and thank you for being you. Dang I forgot to get Mom something!"
I mirror those thoughts to my mother who thankfully is a nurse and has bandaged me up after crashing for my 54 years ( on May 26th I will be). All of us have loaded our mom’s brains and hearts with a ton of worry about how their sons might not come home from a day of racing. They would much rather have us sitting at home watching TV on a Sunday than putting our lives on the line for a little adrenaline rush. And yet they love us so much that they allowed us to be who we were and race. For that we cannot thank them ever so much.
Once again the 26th annual running of the Tacoma Motorcycle Club’s Dinosaur Daze race will be held the first full weekend of June this next month on Saturday and Sunday June 5th and 6th. Traditionally the motocross/scrambles is held on Saturday and the dirt track is on the following day Sunday. As in the past few years the race will be at the Straddle Line ORV Park off of Hiway 8 near McCleary, WA. Congratulations to Tacoma Motorcycle Club as they celebrate their 100th anniversary this year as one of the oldest AMA clubs ever. By the way to race at the Dino Daze you will need a an AMA card which can be purchased at the track. The WSMCHOF will have a ½ page ad in the race day program as the Dino Daze always has a big turnout of racers and spectators. More than any other event in the northwest the Dino Daze will pull bikes and riders out of the cobwebs for a once a year race and bullshit session. The Saturday dinner with a live band and dancing is legendary. Jim Pomeroy used to have a grand time with some late night shenanigans there. Maybe you can too.
Stopped by Lynnwood Motoplex and chatted with Fred Taft and Bob Ryan. Bob is actually only turning 50 this year! I know! He was just a young thing back then. His brother was a co-owner of Mid Valley Cycle in Monroe that dealt in Bultaco’s and was on the way to the Startup MX track. You could always stop off there on the way to the race. Your last stop for race day salvation. I even wrote about them with a different name for my article in the "Stories" section under "Startup and Never Stop":
"Driving through the town, the abandoned 200-foot tall smokestack of a long forgotten mill pierced the sky above the one story skyline like some ancient phallic symbol. Steve remembered that Bill’s Bultaco motorcycle shop used to be right next door to the smokestack, located in one of the remaining mill buildings. Bill’s had now been renovated and a lawyer’s office. It had been the last motorcycle shop on the way to the track and the last place to grab some Oury grips, a Champion spark plug or that spare inner tube for a flat tire."
In the "Pictures" section under Washougal you can see #27 Ron Pomeroy who was riding for them in 1975 locally. One of the most stand up guys you could ever meet and has better and truer stories than I do. Bob definitely lived the life back then and is now Parts Manager at Lynnwood Motoplex.
Now when I refer to "living the life", I got the quote from the Masters and Commanders" movie starring Russell Crowe in 2003. Crowe as Captain Jack Aubrey is explaining to his ship’s physician Dr. Maturin the reaction that a teenage officer’s parents will have when they hear and see of their son Blakeney having his arm amputated after a naval battle. He tells the Dr. That his father "lived the life" while his mother would not understand. Emphasizing that unless you were there it is very hard to understand no matter how much explanation is given what has happened. And as you read this you know you cannot tell a non racer what it is like to be on a motorcycle and stretch it to it’s limits as well as yours and to finish where you finish. So if you are reading this and my stories and understand what I am talking about then you have indeed lived the life. It is something that no one can give you, nor can they take it away from you.
Another visit to Adventure Motorsports in Monroe, Wa. Where they sell Yamaha’s and Suzuki’s. Hooked up with an old racing friend Scott McMillan who I raced against in the late 80's on Honda Hurricanes. Scott physically fitted in with the fireplug set of the short stocky road racer in the fast family of racers as Joe Pittman, Steve Littlejohn, Doug Renfrow. God those boys were fast. For road racers you were either the fire plugs or the Elves. The Elves were the very slender and strong racers no taller than 5'8" tall and under 140 lbs. The perfect size to hold onto a monstrous beast. A modern day jockey. The smaller the better. Look at the Moto GP riders of today with Dani Pedrosa at 5'2" and 112 lbs. Then there were the few ex motocross racers and occasional dirt track racers who towered above the competition in physical size at 6"1" and 175 lbs. We didn’t have a chance going into and coming out of turns because of the weight difference. A little bit above the normal height of Americans at 5"8" doesn’t cut it in the world of motorcycle racing. Not even at motocross when you see Ricky Carmichael at 5"6" and 150 lbs. One of the staff joked not to ask Scott about 1988 because apparently the conversation would not stop for a while. By the way the store is very nice with an excellent diner located inside where I got a hamburger dip with BBQ sauce and fries. Very nice. You can see it just off of Hiway 2 when you enter Monroe. They are on the "Links" page now.
5/3/2010
So much has happened lately. First of all Karl Landrus has a You Tube site set up showing all his metal artistry that you can actually use on your vintage bikes. Been having some nice chats with an old friend of mine in Hugh Walters although he forgot who I was. Hugh as I remember was #195H racing a Suzuki TM 250 in the 250 B class and then moved up to a Penton 400 in the "A" class in 1974. You can see pictures of him on his Penton under the Puyallup MX track pictures. I was trying to convince him that we knew each other by saying we used to play tennis down in Renton where he was from. Hugh said he played tennis with a few people back then, but he did remember a marathon tennis match with one guy. Hugh! I was that guy and we played for 6 - 7 hours until are feet started to bleed because neither of us wanted to lose. Now he remembers. I forgot who won the game though. Hugh is now getting very anxious to come back and do some vintage racing and may get stuck on my 1973 Yamaha 360 MX bike.
I went to the Supercross on April 24th in Seattle at the QWest Stadium. I hadn't been for six or seven years. The traffic getting there and getting out. The price. The lack of any real racing. Domination by one or two racers. Better use of my money. All those things kept me away. But since I need to promote this Hall of Fame dinner I went down to the track about 4 PM. They have a new exit ramps from both I-5 and I-90 freeways that dump you right at the parking for both the football and baseball stadiums. That is indeed a new and improved addition. Then for parking. Since I am in a wheelchair I'm not going to park a few miles away going over train tracks and in the dark when I leave so I parked at the stadium for $30. Ouch!!! I went to the pits and there was the AHRMA booth right up front and set up with about 10-15 vintage MX bikes and a bunch of the racers still racing them today. Mr. Buck Murphy was there still holding a slim figure and looking real good even though he has a new follicle facial agenda going on with a Colonel Sanders beard. The world would be a much poorer place with out the personalities of guys like Buck. They interviewed Buck in front of his factory 1975 Can-Am 250 bike at the main stage at about 5:45 PM and Buck did a great job and promoted the Hall of Fame dinner. Buck did a great job as usual. I went up to the Washington State Motorsports Dealers Association booth which was above the starting line to schmooze with all the dealers and families. I knew most of the dealers already, but got to meet some of their family though. Ron Orr's wife and son were very nice to talk with. Jeff Nilsen from Brother's Powersports in Bremerton as lively as ever. Of course the man Jim Boltz. Dale and Vicki Gray from South Sound Honda. John Glys from Motorsports of Olympia who bought the first table for the Hall of Fame dinner. Sandy Smith from Tucker Rocky was there and I was trying to get him to co sponsor the dinner but talking to him for more than 10 seconds is like trying to corral kittens. Can't be done.
What a terrible track! My God! All that light, frothy beach sand. It's certainally not Washington dirt, or even from our beaches. We need some clay and rocks to prove we are from Washington. Those ruts were pure nasty. If it had only rained it would have been the nastiest course. Might have been excting also. I cheer for old man Kevin Windham, but without Ryan Villopoto and Ryan Dungey just cruising to win his championship that night there was no race to watch. I watched the 250 support race and before the main race started I took to my wheels and got the hell out of there. Left a little after 10 PM from the booth and got home in Kenmore at 10:45 PM. My friends who watched the final got home at 12:30 AM. I watched the final on TV the next day well rested. I must say that the crowd was very big considering the smaller crowds across the country for Super Cross and all forms of racing. I guesstimate a little over 40,000.
4/19/2010
Just got done chatting with Larl Landrus who was previously the fabricator of all those aluminum one-offs for vintage MX bikes specializing in swingarms for Novation Racing. Karl built for me a special aliminum swingarm for my 1973 Yamaha 360 MX bike and we added 1 1/2" to the length, as did Al Baker in the early 70's with his kits to lengthen said stock swingarms. That cured the back end from swapping and made it so sweet for going through whoops without praying for your life every time you hit them. You can see the swingarm in this website under "Motorcycles" and go down to see the Yamaha 360. Now Karl has his own company called "KLP Racing" at 509-315-8425. Once again he will be making aluminum tanks, swingarms and all sorts of cool things, He doesn't have a web site yet but there is a You Tube videos of some of his work which I will link you up to later. Karl was telling me that Jim Pomeroy asked him about a week before his death to recreate the Bultaco factory aluminum tank he had back in the day. Needless to say that it never got started, until now. Karl would like to build it and auction it off at the Hall of Fame dinner in October to a good charity. I'm thinking of the Danny Magoo fund raiser to buy him a new van.
4/18/2010
Made a little trip down to the last race of the Spring "Hammer & Tongs" races at the Woodland MX Track outside of Vancouver, Washington yesterday. Apparently I had not been there in four years as all the big trees had been cut down when they were going to build a bunch of houses there. And as all things recently the money dried up for the housing and the track continues to race, just not without any trees. A billion tons of sand though. A couple of people who told me they every one of my Bench Racer magazines that they re-read. I am a cult leader. And then a few people who had never heard of me. One moment you're up, and the next moment reality hits. The event was a little overcast with just a few raindrops which was better than the big rainstorms on the way down. Passed out a bunch of flyers and business cards for the Hall of Fame dinner and everybody was excited about it. Bultaco Bill will be bringing his 1973 Bultaco that was signed by Jim Pomeroy and is a copy of the bike that Jim raced and won on in the 1973 Spanish GP. It will have the #57 on the plates. It will even have the green number plates that they used for the 250 Grnad Prix season. Sweet!
I was hanging out with the "Full Circle" race team which consisted for Tom McAllister, Chris Gray and Norm Enders. Very nice matching jerseys and Chris and Norm looked very smooth and fast. Nice! Chris's girlfriend's son who is 16 was competing in his first MX race and was nervous. He stands 6'1" and is skinny. I gave him some advice about the race. The first was to let the gate drop and let everybody charge ahead about two to three car lengths so not to get tangled up with other racers. Then just to ride the track like a practice and concentrate on standing up and not getting arm pumped. Guess what? A 16 year old didn't listen to an old man and what happened? He was on the concrete launch pad with a backward falling gate and was revving up his 1979 Honda CR 125 and when the green flag dropped he also dropped the clutch and hit the gate and got stuck as the rest of the racers took off on the course. For a few seconds it looked like he was going to quit until a bunch of people yelled at him to start up the bike and get going. Still looked nervous and used the clutch to upshift and was over revving the motor. Got stuck in a couple of sandy corners as he went outside of the groove and got stuck in the fluffy sand. Welcome to the brother hood young learner. Listen to old men from now on!
4/14/2010
Wow! First of all the Moto GP series got kicked off in a night race in Quatar, sand desert. Explain to me a motorcycle race in a country where it is basically illegal to ride a bike. Or was that Saudi Arabia? No spectators but that doesn't count in today's world. It's what you charge the promoters who are in many cases countries promoting their nation as civilized to the world. Has nothing to do with racers being spectators. Anyways the racing was Fucking Brilliant to use an English term. First Stoner goes out in a crash after it looked like he would walk away, and then the master Rossi did what he does best in using his mind over matter and controlled the race not by a mile, but by a few feet. Wisely too as he ran out of gas on the cool off lap. Even though our boy Nicky Hayden finished in fourth place he was up in 2nd behind Rossi for a while and was battling every inch of the track. Very surprisingly the Ducati was being beaten down the straight by a Honda. In the past the Ducks have been the fastest by far in a straight line. The Yamaha's fit Rossi and an injured Lorenzo, who put on a fantastic charge from 5th to 2nd at the end. The Honda's of a quick starting and fast losing Pedrosa, and fast Dovizioso who looks to be a real challenger also were comfortable fittings for these modern little jockeys. The Ducati didn't fit Hayden at all, but he was making it work as best that he has in the last two years. It was brilliant of his riding skills. I had my fingernails in my palms the last two laps as Hayden went under Dovi only to get passed back on that straight do a lack of horsepower. I'm exhausted.
The new Moto 2 race was also very interesting with lots of drafting and using different lines. They all use Honda 600 engines that have been tagged as all being the same so they have equal HP and the racing is left to the racers and the chassis maker. So far so good although the chassi on some of them got a little out of shape exiting mid corner for a little bronco riding. Worth watching in the future as the replacement to the 250 two strokes.
Talked with Russ Roberts who works at Honda of Bellevue, Washington (automobiles) and it was great catching up with him. Russ will be scanning some photos of his past racing that we can post. There is a picture I took of him racing at Puyallup on his Pro-Fab framed Yamaha YZ 250 back in 1975 I think. Check it out. Russ was recently in the last few years tearing up the local vintage scene. Also was chatting with Blaine Elledge who told me after selling his two 1976 Husky 250 CR's he put that money into finishing up his 1981 Husky 390 and he just went and finished the desert race Mattawa with it and it ran great. Now to get him a short course called MX. He will be bringing me pictures of his great past. Also yakking on the phone with another great racer in Dave Bunker who has for a long while lived in Utah with his guitar company called Bunker Guitars. Dave has also done some vintage racing to really good success. Dave has his own track down there and during the Spring time gets as much riding as he can.Dave just turned 54 as I will in May. 1956 absolutely ROCKED! Three guys that I used to race with that regularly beat me on 250's. Come to think about it everybody beat me on 250's and that's why I moved up to Open bikes for a new group of racers to beat me.
4/6/2010
Very bad news on Easter Sunday April 3rd in practice when when of our brothers Claud Jinks lost his life at Pacific Raceways in Kent, WA. Claud was a WMRRA Board of Trustee member and head of race tech inspections. From what I know, which isn't clear at this point that he ran off in turn two and made no corrections in braking or steering. Once again it was said that Claud, age 62, had blood clot and heart problems, and who knows. Having seen the last two roadracers die at that track in Alex Anderson and Bailey in turn 8 and turn 10, I know the hurt that the racers there felt, and how it will affect them. Racers have a short memory though, and will put themselves back on the track at the next race and ride as hard as they can, because that's what racers do. It will never happen to me. And if you start thinking on the race track that you could be hurt, then you need to ride back to the pits and park the bike until you get over that feeling or just quit. You would be a danger to yourself and the other racers on the track.
I keep getting these books from Whitehorse Press to review and the latest one is called "How to Set Up Your MOTORCYCLE WORKSHOP." Very long title I know. 200 pages and in color and it could have been shortened down to 50 pages with bigger pictures. Still it is in it's third edition which means somebody is buying a lot of copies. It is really set up for a Harley Davidson small fix it up shop that you see in small towns across the U.S. And anybody with 1/2 a brain can think out there own floor plan for their garage. All common sense thinking. But the book sells. A book called "Garage Workshop for Dummies" would be more helpful and instuctive than this book. Still some of the books that Whitehorse sends me on motorcycle camping and touring the U.S. are outstanding. Keep sending me the books.
4/2/2010
Had a very nice lunch with ex racer and hardcore motorcyclist George Ledwith at the Three Lions Pub in Redmond co-owned by ex road racer Neville Redman. I was supposed to give a class that day on Single Malt Scotch's at the Pub but I got a little sick and will have to postpone that. Bangers and Mash was my meal with a couple of Guinness thrown back for lunch. Anyways George and I were talking about how awesome the AMA Superbike race in Fontana was this past weekend. Very surprising considering how everybody, including myself, thought how lame this would be without real factories and just be a glorified club race. And it was fantastic to see our Washington good friend Jake Holden on his privately sponsored Honda 1000 qualify in 7th and move up to third at the beginning of the race. Don't know what wrong but I am told it is a very easy place to run off the course. I really hope that Jake gets some sponsorship to get him out to more races. I also don't see why that after Team Jordan rider Aaron Yates broke his leg in practice they have not signed up Jake as he was a past team mate. Instead they are trying out a Canadian teenager. And the announcers were congratulating racer Chris Ulrich on his riding skill when he ran over Yates and broke his leg. Independently both George and I rewinded our tapes and watched in slow motion and all we both saw was him ride the bike straight. He was so close that was all he could do. If Yates head was there he would have run over that. Had nothing to do with riding talent at all.
The Supercross was also great with Ryan Villopoto walking away with it. Unfortunately Ryan Dungey moved up from5th to finish in 2nd and keep his big points lead. All Ryan has to do is finish 2nd the rest of the season and he will win the title. Don't get me wrong I really like Dungey and actually do hope he wins it. Isn't it amazing when you take out a Ben Spies and Matt Maladin out of road racing and a whole bunch of real racing happens, and when you take out Stewart and Reed out of MX the same thing happens? I forget what racing has looked like the past few years.
And the F-1 race in Australia was brilliant for once. Throw in some rain right before the race and a few crashes on the first lap and voila passing happens. Jenson Button made a brave strategy by pitting very early for slicks and then made them last for the entire race. Somebody is thinking out there.
3/31/2010
I just added an interview I did with Rick Poulin that I forgot about who was Jim Pomeroy's arch nemesis and backyard friend in Yakima racing handlebar to handlebar before he got injured. Check it out. Stopped by Eastside Harley Davidson and had a quick chat with my friend Scott Moon who has moved from the used bike department back to the main showroom as head of the Sales Department. He's excited about the dinner and marked it on his computer calendar so that he won't miss it. Already has his young daughter age nine starting to dirt track race up at Monroe. Only person I know to race a MX bike and a road race bike on the same day at the now Pacific Raceway, or what we used to call SIR.
3/30/2010
Had a nice chat with master photographer Glen Freudenberger who will be digging up some fantastic shots of Steve Baker at Laguna Seca and he says he has some of the muddy 1975 Trans-Am race at Puyallup of Pomeroy that he will have to find. I will be going to the Hammer & Tongs race this Saturday in Woodland, WA to pass out some flyers and business cards and talk to people about the dinner. And chill with my pal Tom McAllister and tell him how bad he sucks. Just to keep his head from swelling of course.
Just got done talking to Steve Baker to update him on what is happening for the dinner. Steve will try to get the 1977 Daytona 250 Yamaha TZ 250 that he won the support race with from a collector to display at the show. Later this year I will update the almost ten year old Baker interview when I make a trip up to Bellingham.
3/26/2010
Took a trip up to Everett Powersports yesterday and had a nice chat with the Liebold brothers and they are going to see how many people at their store would like to go. Ed was the only one that when I brought my Bench Racer magazine to the shop he would get all excited because the new edition was in. He told me he still reads them. Dick Wascher or better known as WASCO, the master manipulator of metal will be designing one of a kind trophies to be given away at the dinner.
Tell me what you think of this idea about giving away motorcycle stuff faway at the dinner via ticket number drawing? Personally to me it takes up time that we could use to talk with people and the stuff you get never fits, or is for the wrong sex or is for a kid, or is for the type of riding you don't do. Think I answered my own question, but still tell me what you think.
Don't confuse the Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame with the Pacific Northwest Museum of Motorcycling. I know it sounds very familiar, but it is very different and we don't do anything the same. We are racers honoring fellow racers in out time frame and memories. Because to me the racers are the one's who tell the stories that people remember and the bikes are just vehicles. I was never a Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Husqvarna, Maico, CZ, Bultaco fanatic even though I raced all those brands because I just chose bikes depending if they were the best bikes that year that I could afford.
3/20/2010
The first party goers are the people of Motorsports of Olympia who have reserved the first table for eight at the dinner and therefore get the closest table to the proceedings. The Glys family opened their store in 2002 with the Yamaha brand and in 2007 added another line with KTM. Thanks to the team of John Glys and his happy campers of Dale, Alex, Nate and Danny from down South, depending on which way your head is screwed on. Looking forward to meeting you all. They all look very young. Goes to prove that enthusiasts revere history no matter what the age. They are now in the "Links" page.
3/18/2010
Check out the "Links" page and see our supporters so far. Hammer & Tongs along with AHRMA Northwest. And the main sponsors in all the participating members of the Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association. You know the people you buy motorcycles, parts/accessories and service from in your local area. You know those people who have no heart and are only in it for themselves. I will pleasantly disagree with that statement as they have supported not only motorcycle causes, but non motorcycle events in their areas because they are good people. You can find out how nice when you come to the Hall of Fame dinner as they will be amongst you. And you won't be able to even tell them by sight.
3/13/2010
We are about to announce a co-sponsorship with the WSMDA (Washington State Motorsports Dealer Association) in official terms. Chairman of the Association Jim Boltz from Lynnwood Cycle Barn was the first person I contacted with the idea. With his support the idea flourished. Ron Orr from Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store is the representative from WSMDA and Terry Saxlund a previous co-owner of University Honda and supporter of Jim Pomeroy and the infamous Buck Murphy as well as myself Shawn McDonald are the current Washington State Motorcycle Hall of Fame members. I suppose that I am the ringleader of the circus. We are also looking forward to other sponsors in the motorcycle business even in this extremely difficult time. As many dealers have told me that they really need a break from the business side of the equation and to have some fun.
