Membership feedback on our ISDE champion ladies and helmet laws
20 MALCOLM’S MOMENTS
Malcolm Smith’s earliest days — with his resourceful parents — in British Columbia, Canada
22 COVER STORY: NAVIGATING NEPAL
One AMA member’s quest — with friends — to explore the top of the world
36 PORSCHE TAYLOR
2021 AMA Hazel Kolb Brighter Image award winner
40 MAMA TRIED…AGAIN!
Not even a global pandemic could stop the Mama Tried bike show
Discovering, restoring and celebrating Don Kudalski’s factory Harley-Davidson MX250
66 EVENT CALENDAR
AMA-sanctioned rides, races and events
72 AMA GARAGE
Tips, tweaks, fixes and facts: The motorcycle ownership experience, explained
74 LAST PAGE
OAS’s BMX kids rediscovered
by the
ON THE COVER:
When longtime AMA member Bear Haughton of Old Bike
Barn fame got the itch to really explore the world, he did it in typically grand, Bear-Haughton style: He took a bunch of fellow bikers to Nepal, twice, exploring the top of the world on two wheels. Luckily, master lensman Michael Lichter was on hand to record the treks.
Association
COMMUNICATIONS AND EDITORIAL
Mitch Boehm Editorial Director
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Steve Gotoski Director of Industry Relations and Business Memberships (951) 491-1910, sgotoski@ama-cycle.org
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American Motorcyclist magazine (ISSN 0277-9358) is published monthly (12 issues) by the American Motorcyclist Association, 13515 Yarmouth Drive, Pickerington, OH 43147. Copyright by the American Motorcyclist Association/American Motorcyclist 2021. Printed in USA. Subscription rate: Magazine subscription fee of $19.95 covered in membership dues.
Postmaster: Mail form 3579 to 13515 Yarmouth Drive, Pickerington, OH 43147. Periodical postage paid at Pickerington, Ohio, and at additional mailing offices.
rowing up in Ohio we had a narrow, one-car garage, but for me it was a seriously formative place. It had no shelving or storage and was cluttered with boxes, lawn mowers and Sting Rays, but it was where I cut my teeth (and my fingers and knees) working on motorcycles, first doing chain-adjust/oil-change basics on my SL70 and XR75 and, later, top-end rebuilds and such on my two-stroke Yamaha race bikes.
One experience stands out. On a Saturday evening in 1976 (and just hours before a Sunday race meeting, probably, and don’t ask me why) I was out there sitting on a milk crate beside my YZ100 using both hands to reinstall a freshly honed cylinder over the fresh piston and rings I’d just slid onto the con-rod.
Those of you who’ve done this yourself know there’s that point where you have one hand holding the piston (and using your fingers to squeeze the rings together) and the other guiding the cylinder down onto the piston. I was having the usual trouble managing this (it’s tricky) and was losing my patience (as always), so like most obnoxious, know-it-all 14-year-olds I yelled for my dad to come help me.
He did, but it didn’t help much, as we very quickly pinched my fingers and drew blood doing the deed, which made me yell again and had him saying “screw it, you do it yourself!” as he walked back into the house grumbling to my mom. The “Why the hell did you wait until the last minute?” I heard a few seconds later didn’t help my mood, but Big Al had a point.
Anyway, garages — and all the
PERSPECTIVES GARAGE LOVE
BY MITCH BOEHM
motorcycle stuff we do in them — figure into my two-wheeled psyche pretty strongly, just as they probably figure into yours. And that formed a lot of the impetus for the new AMA Garage section you’ll find on page 72. Our plan going forward is to fill it each month with service-, modification-, technique- and aftermarket-oriented tips, tweaks, fixes and facts on the motorcycleownership experience — stuff many of you would do (or want to do) yourselves, in your garages, but without the bloody fingers and profanity. Take a look and let us know what you think.
My LA-based garage is pretty well sorted, but now that I’m up in Salt Lake City most of the time I’m basically back to square one. I recently got some storage shelving in place, but I still need a proper workbench, better lighting and a lot more tool storage, which my contractor friend Michael has promised to help me with.
This doesn’t mean my Utah garage — which until last year was simply an attached car port — is a stranger to motorcycle hi-jinks, though. In college I did a lot of work on my various two-
My garage is a cluttered mess right now, but it’s better than it was a year ago and there is a plan to make it a proper place to work on bikes, store my ever-growing motorcycle magazine collection and hook up some way-cool vintage audio…
wheelers under its roof. I fettled my KX250 and CR480 motocrossers in it as well as my GS1000S, GPz550 and 500 Interceptor streetbikes. When my buddy Nick Ienatsch convinced me to paint the Interceptor’s frame red I remember hanging it from the opening with wire so our buddy Walt — a fine painter — could spray it. Which he did, magnificently.
Of course, I’m also gonna need a place to finish my GS1000S project bike, which the recent loss of Wes Cooley has back on my front burner. My goal is to make it a real Wes Cooley replica, with the blackedout engine/wheel aesthetic Wes’s Yoshimura racer had during 1981, a year after the blue-and-white production S-model was last built and sold.
I just wish my dad, who’s been gone 13 years now, was around to help. I’d gladly put up with some bloodied fingers to have the chance to twist wrenches and talk some things over with Big Al.
Mitch Boehm is the Editorial Director of the
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SWEEPSTAKES
Ihit the side of the car with a horrible sound. I can still hear it, even 50 years later. And part of that sound was my leg being nearly torn off.
I had just fallen prey to that alltoo-common motorcycle accident, the left-turning driver who pays no attention. The guy walked over to me lying beside the road and said, “You son-of-a-bitch, look what you did to my car!” If I could have gotten back on my feet, I would have killed him.
These days, when I ride in Los Angeles, the same scenario plays out almost every day — but now I’m ready, and for 50 years no other driver has been able to take me out. How did I do that?
We all want the same thing: to ride our motorcycles without getting hurt or killed. I’ve just gone 50 years, in Los Angeles traffic and riding almost every day, without another street bike accident. Even if I die tomorrow, you have to agree that that’s a long, long time without an incident. I want to tell you how I did it — so you can do it, too.
It’s very intentional. It’s not luck or good fortune. I work hard at it. After that horrendous accident back in 1970, I decided I shouldn’t ride anymore. I had a wife and kid, after all. Well, after about two years of that, I thought, “Hell, life just isn’t worth living without motorcycles.” All of you reading this will get that. So I figured if I’m going to ride again, I need to learn everything I can to make sure I never get caught by an idiot driver again.
Over the years I’ve taken many riding and racing courses, read everything I could about riding techniques and accident statistics,
Survive the Ride
BY PERRY KING MEGAPHONE
and talked to anyone who impressed me with their skills. I practice all the time, going into empty parking lots and working on countersteering and threshold braking, or engaging ABS hard to make sure I know just what it feels like, and sounds like.
I’ve ridden off-road a lot, too, and for decades, and all those skills are invaluable. Riding off road teaches you that when you skid or slide, the story’s not over, not by a long shot. You’ve got to not give up.
But here is the thing: it really comes down to a mindset, and it’s one you can adopt right now. Just quit telling yourself the lies of Right of Way and Be Defensive and Make Eye Contact…all that namby-pamby stuff. Who really cares who has the right of way when you’re the one laying on the ground with a crushed leg — or worse?
Just tell yourself the truth: ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS IS YOUR FAULT! You have to take responsibility for everything. That thought can keep you alive. And when you do, you end up being, not defensive, but aggressive. I like to call it aggressively defensive. Quit the crap that can interfere with that. Don’t talk on the phone, don’t listen to music, and do not have that beer, even one. Don’t do anything but ride your motorcycle.
The editor of this magazine said it maybe better than anyone else. Years ago I heard him say: Don’t ride faster than you can stop. Parse that and, technically, it doesn’t make sense — but it’s poetry for how to live to ride another day. You’re in charge. BE in charge.
The late, great Dan Gurney had a word for it, one he used constantly: Anticipation. Be just even half a
The author, circa 1970
second ahead of everyone else, so that you know what they’re going to do before they do. It can be done, and it can be practiced. I’ve been practicing it for years now, and sometimes it’s amazing how far into the future I can see. Another wonderful thing Dan used to say is: “Learn from the cheap lessons, the ones that make you say, ‘Whoa, that was close.’ Don’t wait for the expensive ones, the ones that put you in traction.”
One last thing: The instant you think to yourself, “Man, I’m good today!” — Slow down! That is the last thought you’ll have right before a crash. Never be confident. I was confident back in 1970.
That was the last time.
Perry King is a former AMA and AMHF Board Member
YOU GO, GIRLS!
BACKFIRES
I just read the article in the December issue of American Motorcyclist titled “Girl Power” by Joy Burgess, and wow! I am impressed with and extremely proud of the achievement of our young ladies, and specifically Brandy Richards for her ability to win all her tests in the ISDE in Italy for the first time in the competition’s history. I explained to my wife the tests each rider must endure to compete at this level, and the gravity of Brandy’s achievement. She was completely unaware of this level of competition on a global scale, and then asked the tough question: Will our team, and specifically Brandy, be recognized nationally the same as the U.S. Olympic team would be at the White House? It’s a good question. These young ladies should be household names by the end of this year for what they’ve done on foreign soil, and anything less would be, well, disappointing. Please pass on our congratulations for a job well done!
Ron Porteous Elverta, Calif., AMA #1087197
GIRL POWER POWER
Looking at the great photos in the ISDE article, I notice that one young lady is riding a 2-stroke motorcycle. Does that mean each rider in the renowned event can choose whatever bike suits them best? No rules as to displacement?
Brian Halton, San Francisco
The lady riding a 2-stroke on page 21 of the December issue was Jane Daniels from Great Britain, not Brandy Richards as we stated in the caption, so please excuse the error. As to your question, there are no bike restrictions in Women’s World Trophy Team competition, and the ladies are free to choose the engine type and displacement that fits their riding style best. —Ed.
HELMETS: LIVE FREE OR DIE!
I want to applaud the AMA’s position on helmet laws as so eloquently stated by Rob Dingman and Mike Sayre in the December 2021 Up To Speed interview. In it, Dingman stated; “If we just focus
LETTER OF THE MONTH
APPALACHIA, HERE WE COME ongratulations on another fine issue of American Motorcyclist (December 2021), and in particular the article “Appalachian Ingenuity.” We expect to see articles about motorcycling and destinations, but this one is
different. As one who has spent years writing about small towns and rural economic development, I can tell you that Erin Reda and Peter Stockus gave us a glimpse of how motorcycling can make a difference in an area, and how the locals and AMA came together to create a worthy destination. It’s not just about motorcycling. It’s about how communities rallied to build businesses and accommodations for those of us who look for places to travel to. I will be headed that way next year. I also hope the AMA will find similar stories to tell about how motorcycling is contributing to local economics through tourism.
D. Brent Miller
Letters to the editor are the opinions of the AMA members who write them. Inclusion here does not imply they reflect the positions of the AMA, its staff or board. Agree? Disagree? Let us know. Send letters to submissions@ama-cycle.org or mail to American Motorcyclist Association, 13515 Yarmouth Drive, Pickerington, OH 43147. Letters may be edited for clarity and brevity.
on requiring helmets and not on crash prevention, then we all lose.” At the end of the interview he reiterates “… the most effective way to reduce motorcyclist injuries and fatalities is to prevent crashes from occurring. Helmets and helmet laws do not prevent crashes.”
In 1976 the Wisconsin Dept. of Transportation commissioned a study on the causes of motorcycle accidents, injuries and fatalities. And like the AMA, concluded that helmets and helmet use laws did not prevent motorcycle crashes. The study showed that: 1) the motorcyclist not being seen by other drivers was the majority cause of cycle/ auto collisions; 2) alcohol use was a significant factor; and 3) motorcycle riders with less than three years riding experience were over-represented in accidents and fatalities — they lacked the skills to identify an unsafe situation or react to it.
The WDOT went on to state that a focus on helmet laws had detracted attention away from motorcycle accident prevention and recommended repealing the then-in-place mandatory helmet use laws for all riders (which
WI legislators acted on 1977). They concurrently began a largescale public service program to make other riders more aware of motorcyclists and discourage alcohol use by motorcycle riders; mandated motorcycle headlight use at all times; and began requiring that all applicants for a motorcycle driver’s license attend and pass a rider’s skills training course. Not surprisingly motorcycle injuries and fatalities experienced dramatic decreases in the years following this, even as motorcycle registrations increased. A helmet will help protect you, but it’s what’s between your ears that will keep you safe.
Al Lankford, AEMT/CycleClassics
MANDATES ’R’ US
The December issue’s Q&A with Rob Dingman and Michael Sayre advocates personal choice over helmet mandates. Their entire argument is centered around “Prevention” of motorcyclist crashes
and how helmet mandates alone do nothing to that end. While that’s true, Mr. Dingman and the Board have collectively failed to speak to other truths, such as how a DOT-rated helmet can prevent a serious head injury versus not wearing one at all. If one goes along with their line of thinking, seatbelt mandates for riding in cars should not exist, either, yet I’m willing to bet that each of them buckle up when getting behind the wheel. So stop talking about helmet laws not preventing crashes to begin with as sufficient reason to argue against such laws. That’s just weak. You can’t have it both ways…carrying on about freedom and personal choice, while “strongly encouraging” the use of a helmet. Give me one good reason, other than government and “regulators” being the bad guys and trying to tell us what to do, that a mandate such as a helmet law — the sole purpose of which is to protect the brain in event of a crash — is something to rail against, especially when you consider mandates such as wearing a seatbelt in a car.
James Ford
THE RIGHT TOOLS
up to speed Training Champions: The Next Step
News, notes, insight and more from the motorcycling universe
The AMA and the USMCA have partnered to expand competition-based coaching
BY KALI KOTOSKI PHOTOS COURTESY OF USMCA
Think about this: nearly every organized sport has a recognized coachingcertification organization to go along with it. These organizations provide standards coaches must meet to train student, collegiate and professional athletes and certifications to keep training consistent.
But motorcycling hasn’t had that… until now.
Nationally recognized certification for coaches seems like a given, but unfortunately for motorcycle athletes across different disciplines and at various skill levels, it has long been treated as an afterthought. The United States Motorcycle Coaching Association (USMCA)
stepped in to change that back in 2016 by establishing a curriculum, certification, and code of conduct, and creating an organization with the mission of “building a nationwide network of coaches, certifying and empowering coaches to represent the best the industry has to offer, and collaborating with key industry partners to accelerate [their] impact.”
And now, the AMA and USMCA have partnered to help grow competition-oriented training. By utilizing each other’s nationwide network, industry ties and grassroots support, the agreement lays the foundation for increasing the availability of competition-based riding training using certified coaches to meet the growing demand of
athletes and to inspire new ones.
“This effort will foster the development of competitive racers across numerous AMA-sanctioned disciplines, while giving them a resource to continually master new skills,” said AMA Director of Racing Mike Pelletier. “The result will be more competitors, and more confident competitors, enjoying the motorcycle lifestyle.”
Under the agreement, all current AMA-sanctioned competition schools will need to have a USMCA certified coach starting in 2022, while current USMCA coaches are given the opportunity to become AMA sanctioned while also encouraging and supporting AMA membership growth.
While the AMA has a long legacy as a sanctioning body for competitive racing, the USMCA is relatively new on the scene and was formed out of a clear necessity to attract budding athletes or those that want to hone their skills, according to USMCA President Christy LaCurelle.
The genesis of the organization dates to the mid-2010s when she spearheaded an effort at KTM to introduce motocross back into the high school offerings of club sports. After finding a high school in Riverside, Calif., that had a motocross club, KTM approached the school to develop a partnership that would set up a recognized sport program. But the effort hit a
wall when the school board failed to approve it because there was no coaching certification body that could validate a coach’s credentials.
“When they told us they couldn’t proceed because one of the most basic national accreditation components was missing, we asked ourselves, ‘How come our industry doesn’t have [coaching certification]?’ It really was a failure of the sport to not have a way to tell parents or riders that coaches have passed some sort of safety check, a background check, have CPR training, first aid skills and
have proven their motorcycling competency,” LaCurelle told American Motorcyclist
At about the same time the program sputtered, then head of KTM North America Jon-Erik Burleson was running into his own frustrations trying to find coaching for his kids. Sure, there were plenty of elite coaches, but he struggled to find
the resources the average parent would need.
“The two things just came together at the right moment,” said LaCurelle, “and we started working on a curriculum and how to establish a certification system and code of conduct by seeking the advice of the ski and snowboard industry. We needed to learn from them, otherwise like them it would have taken 20 years to get it all worked out and have a recognized organization.”
In 2016, USMCA was formerly launched by founding board members Burleson, AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer — and ex-Victory Motorcycle CEO — Mark Blackwell and former Supercross champion and AMA Hall of Famer Jeff Emig. Fast-forward to 2022 and the non-profit, membershipbased organization has 300 active certified coaches across 43 states and Puerto Rico.
Besides the AMA, it also has longstanding support from manufacturers and dealers such as Husqvarna, Kawasaki, KTM, Honda, Yamaha, Mountain Motorsports, FOX Racing, Motosport.com, Ryno Power, National Powersports Auctions (NPA) and Wells Fargo.
“After the COVID pandemic started we definitely increased our exposure,” said LaCurelle. “We have had hundreds and hundreds of training requests throughout
up to speed
The value of the partnership can’t be understated, LaCurelle added, especially seeing the recent surge in motorcycle sales as adults and parents have sought out alternative ways to recreate as pandemicrelated restrictions lingered.
“With the boom in sales,” she said, “we are seeing it as a way to help retain riders — and make sure they don’t have bad experiences [so they] become lifelong motorcyclists — which also is a primary AMA mission.”
learned non-riding skills essential to handling potential emergencies.
“Dirt bike racing is one of the few sports that people don’t have easy access to coaches and equipment,” Benaroya said. “Besides their curriculum, the emergency skills I’ve learned through USMCA, such as CPR, are a huge benefit.”
Dylan Code of the renowned California SuperBike School is one of longest-certified USMCA coaches, as he signed up shortly after the organization launched.
Kalyn Benaroya, owner of Oregonbased DIRTastic, has been a USMCA certified coach since 2018 and appreciates the benefits of attracting clients. Through USMCA she’s also
“Nobody gets rich off coaching,” he said. “We do it because good people like to help good people, and sharing the excitement is the most rewarding aspect for coaches. That payoff is 2021, and with the AMA partnership we can help our coaches get their competition schools AMA sanctioned to attract more athletes.”
what helps promote the health of the industry and keeps athletes attracted to our sport.”
To learn more visit usmca.org and to connect with coaches nationwide, visit motorcyclecoaching.org and download their new mobile app, available on iOS and Google Play. Also look for the launch of the AMA’s dedicated website page to help link AMA members with USMCA coaches.
Ride the Alps With Us In 2022!
BY MITCH BOEHM
If you’re lucky, a decent number of the lifechanging events in your personal journey will be positive and memorable ones. And if you’re a motorcyclist who’s ridden the Alps, you’re almost certainly in that group.
Ask anyone who’s ridden there: The Alps are epic! The roads, the geography, the culture, the food and the history are absolutely top-notch, and you can go again and again and never be bored.
And that explains why, on the heels of the inaugural 2021 AMA Alps Challenge Tour in late August (see
our November 2021 issue for a report), we’re doing it again in 2022, but this time with two tours: A re-creation of the Alps Challenge I summiting more than a dozen passes, and an Alps Challenge II trek focusing on Italy, Switzerland and France — and a dozen or so more passes.
So come ride with us in 2022. Either of these is sure to be life-changing, and you can’t have enough epic experiences in your life bucket, right?
For more info contact Edelweiss Bike Travel at edelweissbike.com
up to speed
BSA is Back
Formerly defunct — and now Mahindra-owned — BSA re-creates a classic
BY JOY BURGESS
BSA motorcycles. That name and those three letters are truly legendary, though the BSA name and brand have pretty much flown under the radar these last several decades.
All of which made the tweet on November 24, 2021, especially interesting: “Return of a Legend. #BSAisBack. We’ve evolved, but our DNA remains unaltered.”
Whoa.
The DNA referred to traces all the way back to 1863, when the Birmingham Small Arms (BSA) Company was created, although the bike division didn’t launch until 1880. The company’s first engine-powered bicycle was released in 1905. While continuing to produce motorcycles, BSA had 67 factories in place by World War II, where it produced large quantities of firearms. Still, motorcycles were in demand, as BSA supplied more than 126,000
M20 bikes to the armed forces from 1937 on. At that point, BSA was the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world.
Success followed, for a time. But by the middle 1960s, the Japanese manufacturers began to seriously erode BSA’s market share, and things began a downhill slide that ultimately ended in bankruptcy in the early 1970s.
For years, all was quiet after the brand went defunct. But in October 2016, Mahindra & Mahindra — a tractor giant in India, who also purchased legendary Jawa — bought the BSA brand, paying $5.4 million. BSA lovers rejoiced, but then all went quiet…for years.
Until that November tweet, that is, which lead to an announcement that BSA’s new motorcycle would be showcased at the Motorcycle Live 2021 show in Birmingham, UK, on December 4. There, the company un-
veiled the 2022 Gold Star, an obvious throwback to the Gold Stars BSA was known for in the past. Look at the new bike and you’ll feel like you’ve time-traveled back to the glory days of BSA, though the all-new 652cc, single-cylinder Gold Star features plenty of modern technology.
Mahindra engineers have not reinvented the wheel with this tribute to the original, though there’s plenty of emotion there. “For us,” said a company Director, “the new BSA Gold Star is not just a motorcycle, but an emotion, and we pursued the journey to bring BSA back with the utmost passion.”
“The next chapter in the brand’s history is going to be an exciting ride,” added Anand Mahindra, Chairman of the Mahindra Group.
To celebrate the return of BSA and its rich history, the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame just unveiled a brandnew BSA exhibit. Don’t miss it!
PHOTO: BSA
Two-Wheel News
Stark Future’s Electric Motocrosser
December brought big news from Barcelona, Spain, as new electric motorcycle company Stark Future announced its very first offering — the Varg. It’s an electric motocrosser, and a
fast one at that. Estimated to hit the market in December 2022, it features some pretty impressive specs, including a whopping 80 horsepower.
Stark Future CEO Anton Wass notes that these bikes should be available to the public by the end of 2022, and he hopes to get this bike racing in 2023. With seriously legit and raceable e-motocrossers like the Varg becoming available, the next question is: What does the future of e-bikes hold within FIM and AMA racing class structures. Stay tuned.
MotoAmerica and Roland Sands Designs have announced that the road racing part of the 2022 Super Hooligan National Championship (SHNC) Road Race Series — held in a four-race, three-round schedule in conjunction with the MotoAmerica Series — will kick off with a doubleheader at Daytona International Speedway March 10-12, 2022. The Super Hooligan National Championship’s four-round 2021 series included three flat track races and a lone road race last year, but for 2022 the newlyintroduced road race-focused series includes not only the doubleheader at Daytona, but a round at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta and one at the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Should be fun!
Hooligans Hit the Pavement
Left: Even after we moved south to San Bernardino, Calif., we continued to visit our old Salt Spring Island home in British Columbia, Canada, which was a marine paradise for a youngster like myself; I fished, crabbed, hiked and explored every hour of every day, it seemed. Above: That’s my Dad standing by our Buick-powered camper during our move. He’d lost the use of one eye in Alaska (far right, skiing across a frozen lake) years before, so my Mom did most of the driving. Right: The three of us, right about the time we made the move to Southern California. To get a copy of my autobiography, just visit www.themalcolmbook.com.
My Earliest Days
From Canada to California with my rugged and resourceful parents, growing up was nothing less than a grand adventure
BY MALCOLM SMITH
f you’ve read my autobiography (and you should —Ed.) you know a bit about my parents and my early years growing up in British Columbia, Canada, and, later, San Bernardino, Calif.
II was born in March of 1941, an interesting year for sure, with Hitler running rampant in Europe and the country just months from entering the war officially after Pearl Harbor. My mother nearly died from the C-section (a rare thing in ’41) that brought me into the world, with a new medical treatment called “antibiotics” saving her from the infection that followed.
I grew up on a sheep ranch on Salt Spring Island, which lies just off the eastern edge of Vancouver Island. It was a marine haven, so my early days were filled with what you’d expect — fishing, boating, hiking, hunting, sheep ranching, harvesting apples from our orchards, and dealing with the often-harsh weather. None of that bothered my parents of course, as Elizabeth and Alexander Smith were as rugged and resourceful as they come.
My mom, Elizabeth Ann “Betty” Beesley, was born in Provo, Utah, in December 1907, the second youngest of nine children. She was raised with a decent amount of Mormon influence — family, church, personal responsibility, compassion for others, etc. — and had an intense desire to be educated, becoming a teacher after graduating from the University of Utah. She loved teaching.
My father, Alexander Malcolm “Sandy” Smith, was born in 1858 in Inverness, Scotland. (Yes, 1858. That’s Civil War times.) Dad was a troublemaker growing up, and at age 17 was given an ultimatum: Attend reform school or go to work for the Hudson’s Bay Company in Northern Canada’s Yukon Territory. He chose the latter, and worked the Yukon for three years, learning much about living and surviving in that beautiful but severe wilderness.
In the late 1800s he and a partner prospected for gold, which they had considerable success finding. They’d spend winters in Seattle, then head back to Alaska and the Yukon for more gold mining when the money ran out. My father spent a lot of time in Alaska, once dog-sledding the Bering Strait to Siberia to search for gold. He was arrested, briefly put in front of a firing squad, and held in jail for a year before convincing the Russians he had no knowledge of mineral deposits there. (He did.)
My father met my mother in Alaska (where she was vacationing), and just a day later they married. He was nearly 80, but in such good shape he easily passed for 50, which is about how old my 30-something mother thought he was until she learned his real age months later — about the time she found out she was pregnant with me. So my father was 80 — basically my age now — when I was born. Think of that for a moment!
Despite the risks of the rugged ocean environment, life on the island for me as a kid was all adventure, all the time. I played with Native American kids who visited, explored natural springs, dug for clams, fished like crazy, canoed, hiked, and trekked by myself to the other side of the island where some other kids lived despite the presence of cougars, which occasionally preyed on our sheep.
Even after we moved to San Bernardino post-war we’d visit Salt Spring Island and the cabin my dad had kept for us — and the adventures just kept on coming…just as they would once I dug my heels into Southern California and, eventually, got my first motorcycle. But that’s for next month! AMA
HIGHWAY
AMA member Bear Haughton overcame his demons in the jaw-dropping
mountains
of Nepal, and now he leads others on that same life-changing ride
BY KALI KOTOSKI, WITH MICHAEL LICHTER PHOTOS BY MICHAEL LICHTER
ome people say, ‘Hey Bear, I just want to ride motorcycles all day and drink 10 beers at night. All this Nepal cultural stuff? I don’t need that,’” said Bear Haughton (pictured right), an AMA member and cofounder of Motorcycle Sherpa, an adventure tourism company that offers thrill-seeking rides in India, Nepal, Bhutan and Mongolia.
S“That very same guy or gal is a different person by the end of the trip,” he said. “It’s something about the people and the size and magnificence of the mountains. Really, you’re just an ant on this giant landscape, and when they realize that their minds really start to open up.”
TO HEAVEN
Being hands-on and straight with the riders serves as a humbling reminder that people are half a world away from home, riding through mountains that 100 years ago would have only been accessible to explorers
When Bear started organizing tours in 2016 he wanted to do something different from most tour companies, and by 2018 had launched Motorcycle Sherpa, a company that focuses on dialing the adventure level up to the extreme, all while providing an affordable tour for the everyman. And, in the presence of the Himalayas and their ancient culture and way of life, one that’s pretty sure to be life changing. The company’s 13-day Ride to the Heavens tour in Nepal has some of the most difficult (and rewarding) riding through the Himalayas, and largely follows the famed Annapurna Circuit. Both mind and body are tested as riders cruise up to an
austere elevation of nearly 18,000 feet, dive into lush green valleys, hightail it through clean, glacial-fed rivers, and even cross a 384-foot-high suspension bridge that’s nearly a quarter of a mile long.
On this trip you’ll pass careening elephants (not to mention their fourwheel-drive metal cousins), navigate the frenzied streets of the Nepalese capital Kathmandu, and visit shrines, temples and pagodas that have been active pilgrimage sites for Hindus and Buddhists for over 2,000 years.
“When I say it is a unique company,” Bear says, “that’s because I really set out to put the adventure in adventure riding…like riding mountain
passes on six-foot-wide roads on the edge of a cliff with a 4,000-foot drop! While it isn’t for everybody, it is an experience of being fully alive.”
When Bear started the company with partner Buddhi Singh, he had numerous goals in mind. As a “serial entrepreneur” who also owns Old Bike Barn and WhiteKnuckler Brand, Bear first and foremost wanted to provide riders with a highly personalized tour. It was all about the thrill and the shared experience, which in Nepal never gets old when you are in the snow-crested shadows of the highest mountain range in the world, witnessing a way of life so vastly different and simple from that on the
American continent.
“There are a lot of companies [in Asia] that act more like travel agents, earning a couple grand per booking, and using guides they have never met in person,” Bear said. “For me, it is about riding handlebarto-handlebar and never selling our customers short. We are uncompromising.”
While extreme, the tour aims to avoid the pitfalls of group riding dynamics, like not always considering an individual rider’s comfort or skill level. For Bear, when scrambling up loose rocky inclines or single-track gravel roads, safety cannot be compromised.
“Some tours I think are incredibly dangerous, especially when group dynamics take over for
the worse,” Bear said.
“Besides a few parts of the Nepal tour, like in Kathmandu, you ride at your own pace. Whether it takes you four hours to do 70 kilometers, or you want to roost it in two, it doesn’t matter. It surprises people to learn that from tip to tail, riders can be two-and-ahalf hours apart.”
Bear is a former NATO and UN soldier who’s participated in four peacekeeping missions. He utilizes leadership skills honed in military service,
fostering comradery and using that no-nonsense focus towards completing the mission during long days in the saddle. Those leadership skills naturally come in handy, helping him keep a pulse on the group to steer riders away from confrontation, especially when the going gets tough and nerves are frayed.
“This is work. This is tough. It is cold. It is hard hours of riding and today is the day where Paul punches John in the face. And I want you
to remember why we are doing this together and embrace the teamwork that is required to get through this,” Bear said, recounting one of the early morning speeches he gives when he can tell the pot is ready to boil.
Being hands-on and straight with the riders serves as a humbling reminder that people are half a world away from home, riding through mountains that 100 years ago would have only been accessible to explorers,
“The density and bustle make NYC look like a walk in the park. Still, somehow there’s a sense of cooperation and give and take that makes it work, as if by some invisible force.”
MICHAEL LICHTER
daredevil mountain climbers or the largesse of aristocrats and nobility.
But for Bear, there is also a profoundly deep reason to lead a group of riders out into the wilderness for a trip of a lifetime. Some years back, he found himself drifting into the more hardcore aspects of the biker lifestyle. The partying, the booze, the drugs, etc.
“In my experience, it is
fairly common for those with military backgrounds to kind of find themselves on that path, but when I realized ‘Oh man, I am that guy,’ I decided to get totally sober,” he said. “Six years now, no alcohol or drugs.”
What he ended up finding in Nepal before he launched his tourism company was something far more rewarding and satisfying, especially for motorcyclists that
feed on freedom and independence.
“I found a new way to get high,” Bear said, which in this case is both figurative and literal. “I had such a great time I knew I had to share it with people. I like to say: ‘We don’t sell trips, we sell catharsis.’”
It’s not just the scenery that supplies catharsis, despite how wildly intense it is to visit the home of
Mount Everest, but also the Nepalese culture, which is comprised of a largely harmonious balance between the dominant Hindu religion, followed by Buddhism (and Tibetan Buddhism to be exact, with numbers largely supported by generations of refugees exiled after China finished taking over Tibet in 1951), Islam and a small Christian minority.
“I get some people
asking as if we are going to cartel-run parts of Mexico,” Bear said with a laugh. “I have to tell them that these are Buddhists and Hindus and honestly some of the most welcoming people you will ever meet.”
The cultural experience starts on day one when riders land in Kathmandu and are given a “Temple Day” to overcome jet lag. The sightseeing preparation for the next day’s ride
“For me, it is about riding handlebar-to-handlebar and never selling our customers short. We are uncompromising.”
BEAR HAUGHTON
includes visiting the Swayambhunath Stupa, known more commonly as The Monkey Temple and then a walk-through Durbar Square, an UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its stunning architecture and royal palaces.
The next day, the engines are fired up and the escape from a city with a population of slightly over one million begins.
“Navigating out of Kathmandu can be intimidating to the most
seasoned riders,” famed motorsports photographer Michael Lichter wrote for this piece (Lichter accompanied Bear on two Nepal trips over the last few years). “The density and bustle make NYC look like a walk in the park. Still, somehow there’s a sense of cooperation and give and take that makes it work, as if by some invisible force.”
Once out of the capital, the sheer enormity of nature starts to dig in hard,
with pristine views of the snowcapped peaks of the Himalayas. And, of course, that marks the point when the real work that goes into an adventure begins. By the time the adventure ends, riders will have covered nearly 1,000 kilometers and multiple times that in elevation.
For Lichter, navigating around the Annapurna Circuit brought back memories of when he hiked through the Himalayas in 1975, when
many roads had yet to exist and seeing a car was a novelty. And of course, almost zero hotels, no phones or internet and no pollution.
While some things have undoubtedly changed in the country over the last 40 years or so, Bear said the Nepalese way of life is astounding in its comforting simplicity,
free of the typical Western travails.
“I enjoy showing people that have possibly never traveled to Asia that there is more than one way to live,” said Bear. “I am often envious of the simplicity of their lives, especially when I come back to taxes and bills and material possessions. On the trip you will witness some of
the happiest kids you have ever seen, and they have less than anyone here in America.”
One of Bear’s favorite stops of the adventure is at Muktinath, an ancient temple that sits at an elevation of 13,000 feet, which makes it one of the highest temples in the world. It is a sacred pilgrimage site for both
Hindus and Buddhists.
“People have been worshipping here for thousands of years, with three prayers a day every day,” said Bear. “Whenever I get there, I experience something I can’t explain. I don’t believe in ghosts or the supernatural, but you can feel the energy and the emotions are so powerful.”
Numerous times Bear
On this trip you’ll pass careening elephants (not to mention their four-wheel-drive metal cousins), and visit shrines, temples and pagodas that have been active pilgrimage sites for Hindus and Buddhists for over 2,000 years.
has crossed the threshold of the temple with his group of riders, giving them little knowledge of its spiritual and historic importance, and some of the riders just fall to their knees and start crying.
“When that happens, you have to ask yourself what makes this place and this adventure so magical,” Bear said. “And it is also why people come back to me
once it is all over and tell me how the trip changed their life and how they wished that they would have done something like this sooner.”
For Motorcycle Sherpa, the ethos of the adventure riding tourism company revolves around a single core belief: A rejection of the typical lifedeferred program that puts dreams of adventure out of reach until retirement.
“I kind of preach this ‘live now because we don’t know what the future holds’ belief,” Bear said. “For my generation, investing in experiences has become more important than hopefully someday owning a mansion with a fancy car in the garage. And I am happy to be there for those experiences.” AMA
“I found a new way to get high,” Bear said, which in this case is both figurative and literal. “I had such a great time I knew I had to share it with people. I like to say: ‘We don’t sell trips, we sell catharsis.’”
She purchased her own bike and started learning to ride. “Eventually, I joined an AMA-sanctioned motorcycle club in Los Angeles — the Steel Horses Motorcycle Club — and they were so instrumental in making me the rider I am today,” she mentioned. “I owe a lot to them… they were influential in teaching me the skill sets I needed to ride.”
After leaving corporate America, Taylor was looking for the next step in her life. “I loved motorcycling and riding,” she told us. “I have a degree in history from UCLA, and I had this idea to work for a motorcycle magazine. But I started researching and there weren’t many magazines to choose from. I also noticed there wasn’t much representation for women of color in motorsports, so instead of complaining I thought I’d just create my own magazine — I have a graphic design and marketing background — and be the change I wanted to see.”
She created Black Girls Ride magazine on Jan. 1, 2011, and celebrated the 10-year anniversary of her successful endeavor in 2021.
“My goal was to showcase women of color who ride in a positive light,”
Taylor said, “but Black Girls Ride covers women of all colors…women who want to celebrate the ride. We include women of all different backgrounds, different rides…I like to show that women ride everything! And it’s always been free, offering free information: rider features, product features, reviews, club features, event recaps, and more.”
Over the past 10 years, Taylor’s gone on to create the Beautiful Bikers Conference (the next one will be Nov. 18-21, 2022), featuring educational panels that help women learn to ride outside of their comfort
zone, whether that’s long-distance preparation workshops, panels on riding abroad, or do-it-yourself bike maintenance. Taylor also spearheads the Black Girls Ride to Essence Festival every July, their biggest event that works to bring women together.
And after 10 years, Taylor isn’t done with her mission. “I see us continuing to shine a light on women in the sport that are positive images,” she mentioned, “and I think we’re going to start reaching out into other countries. I knew we had a great base in the U.S., but I had no idea how many women in other countries identify with our brand. I think we’re on a good course. I’ve hit the marks I wanted to in the last 10 years, but I can’t wait to see where the road takes us moving forward.”
“I really think my journey’s come full circle,” Taylor said when she found out she was being presented with the AMA Hazel Kolb Brighter Image Award. “I’m very honored to even be considered by the AMA for this award. The AMA is such a prestigious riding organization. Some of my heroes like Bessie Stringfield and Erin Sills have been recognized by the AMA in the past, and to be among these great women is such a huge honor.” AMA
BY JOY BURGESS PHOTOS: CHRISTOPHER DAVID PHOTOGRAPHY
ost people don’t think of a 25,000 squarefoot ballroom with a stunning wraparound balcony, elegant domed ceiling and elaborately trimmed pillars when they think of a “bike show”…but Mama Tried isn’t just any bike show.
MNot even a global pandemic could dampen the spirit behind the Mama Tried bike show — a show that’s more about the people than the bikes
Held at The Rave — a seven-level concert venue featuring multiple bars and clubs and the spectacular Eagles Ballroom, where more than 100 bikes are displayed during the show — the three-day event, which includes the Flat Out Friday races (pg. 52), attracts some 10,000 people to Milwaukee, Wis., each year. And plenty of the city’s bars, music venues and restaurants get
Mama Tried
in on the fun with their own biker bashes, some official and, well, some not so official.
Mama Tried was born out of the friendship of founders Scott Johnson and Warren Heir Jr., and while Johnson has a motorcycle racing background, Heir comes from the Harley-Davidson and chopper/custom side of the industry. Despite completely different backgrounds, the two became fast friends — but when Johnson brought up the idea of starting their own indoor invitational bike show, Heir wanted nothing to do with it.
“I grew up going to motorcycle shows,” Heir Jr., told American Motorcyclist, “and I was just jaded and tired of it and over it. But Scott kept asking, saying we could make it our own, make it fun and invite our friends. We sat down and he explained his vison, the idea of curating a show to be what we thought a show really should be. His vision made me jump on board, and we held the very first Mama Tried show in 2013. Then three years later we partnered with Jeremy Prach in the Flat Out Friday race (which is AMA-sanctioned —Ed).”
What they had in mind was something a bit more refined and artistic than the typical Midwestern bike show.
…Again!
“[At] a lot of open motorcycle shows you go to in the Midwest,” Heir told us, “anyone can just bring what they want. Sometimes it gets too big…not focused enough. The quality of the motorcycles is often subpar. We wanted to refine it a bit and let people see all different types of motorcycles. By making it an invitational, we make sure it’s a well-rounded group of bikes that people can look at and enjoy, realizing there’s not just one type of motorcycle.”
According to Heir, they have an email submission
process for builders, and about 25 percent of the bikes come from those submissions. Another 25 percent are repeat builders that get invited back every year, while the last 50 percent are completely random bikes they invite — bikes they see on the internet, some from recommendations, or just a random cool bike they see on the street.
What they end up with is 100-plus bikes that encompass nearly the entire spectrum of the industry. Featuring builders of all different
“I tell everyone that Mama Tried is not just about motorcycles, It’s a social experiment. It’s about relationships, growing and having fun. the motorcycles Are the glue.”
WARREN HEIR JR.
calibers, the show is always a feast for the eyes, with hill climbers, bar hoppers, choppers, flat trackers, café racers — and this year, even a wacky motorcycle jet ski by Marko Lazarevic — to take in.
But the bikes — and there’s plenty of twowheel eye candy — well, they’re only a part of this three-day shindig.
“I tell everyone that Mama Tried is not just about motorcycles,” Heir said. “It’s a social experiment. It’s about relationships, growing and having fun. Yes, the motorcycles are the glue, and it’s exciting and cool and creative. But once you get a bunch of folks in a room like that, you can stimulate the mind, communicate, and create memories…that’s way better than just looking at a motorcycle.”
“We don’t even give away trophies,” he continued. “That’s one thing that had me jaded on shows in the past, and it just changes the dynamic. Who feels like
they can really tell someone their motorcycle is better than someone else’s? We have way better things to do than nitpick motorcycles and give away trophies. That’s not the way we think — and nothing against shows that do give trophies. But we just want everyone to feel welcome, to be inclusive, and we don’t want to do anything that ruins the magic of this show.”
And this year’s event — which took place Dec. 3-5, 2021 — was arguably more magical than ever after COVID-19 shut down the 2020 event. Hundreds — if not thousands — of people had already arrived in town or
thousands — were on their way to Flat Out Friday and Mama Tried in mid-March 2020. Then everything in the country began to shut down, and the show was canceled just 36 hours before it was scheduled to start.
“It was a traumatic experience,” Flat Out Friday co-organizer Jeremy Prach told us, “to instantly lose a fortune with the cancellation of the event. There was nothing I could do about it, and we had no answers for all the people flying in, the ticket holders, the racers that drove in. It was a powerful thing
STORK
Warren Heir Jr. (left) and Scott Johnson (right), co-founders and organizers of Mama Tried.
in my life.”
“We did try to make the best of what was going on at the time,” Heir said. “We were respectful and social distanced, but we went and did some outdoor stuff to give people who were in town something to do. They’d spent their money and their time, and we met people around town, still had some fun and a lot of people loved it, even though the show didn’t actually happen in 2020.”
“We had contracts with companies,” Heir continued, “and they stood by us and honored them moving forward. Our ticket buyers mostly stayed with us. The entire community stuck together and supported us. We made it through, and it was great coming back in 2021. To be able to close the book on a very stressful couple of
years was great, and we hope we get to keep doing this for a long time!”
It’s no surprise the community stuck by the show. Mama Tried spent the last almost-nine years doing something very different, something that’s resonated with tons of people. From the very first show thousands of people showed up, and the reach of the show has continually grown.
These guys have found something that’s been missing, perhaps, from motorcycle show culture…and that’s heart. The idea that motorcycles matter because of the people behind them.
“Sometimes the bike isn’t the most important part” cofounder and co-organizer Scott Johnson says in a video telling the show’s story. “Sometimes it’s the story behind it or the relationships.”
“We just want to keep reaching more folks,” Heir told us. “We’re going to keep showing bikes, having fun, building relationships and spreading the motorcycle gospel.”
After all, Mama Tried isn’t just any ol’ motorcycle show.
The 2022 Flat Out Friday and Mama Tried events will take place March 4-6, 2022. For more information visit www.mamatriedshow.com AMA
ED SUBIAS
IT’S NO SURPRISE THE COMMUNITY STUCK BY THE SHOW. MAMA TRIED SPENT THE LAST ALMOST-NINE YEARS DOING SOMETHING VERY DIFFERENT, SOMETHING THAT’S RESONATED WITH TONS OF PEOPLE.
BY JOY BURGESS PHOTOS BY CLINT BLAKE
A sticky, Coke-syrup racing surface is just part of the allure
F FLAT OUT
lat Out Friday, an indoor flat track race run on — literally — a Coke-syrup surface, has opened the Mama Tried event on Friday night since 2016. But as you might guess by the aforementioned (and sticky) description, it’s not your typical flat track race.
The AMA-sanctioned event somehow brings together a race, rock show and circus into an actionpacked night of entertainment, with a wide range of race classes — including a JV Hooligan class, Brakeless division and even a Goofball class, which requires riders to wear a costume.
“Scott [Johnson] and Warren [Heir Jr.] asked me to help them with their show,” co-organizer Jeremy Prach told American Motorcyclist, “so I asked if I could do an indoor motorcycle race.”
“They say 11 seconds is all you have to hold someone’s attention,” he continued, “so my goal was to
create an action-packed show that held people hostage.”
Held at the Fiserv Forum — a multi-use arena located in downtown Milwaukee — there’s never a dull moment.
“It’s curated from the time you walk in,” Prach said. “I have something going on every 11 seconds, no down time. And really, it’s not about the motorcycles or the racing, but the people. I think we really have keyed into something authentic that people crave…a community.”
The next Flat Out Friday race is
…on Friday!
scheduled for March 4, 2022, and Prach encourages new people to give it a try.
“We’ll have signups open soon, and I hope new people try it,” he told us. “I proudly support the AMA, and I know they have my back. When I sanction with the AMA, I can expect a higher level of behavior from participants, and they expect a higher level of service from me, which I try to provide.”
Learn more at www.flatoutfriday. com. AMA
BY KEITH GEISNER PHOTOS COURTESY OF KEITH GEISNER COLLECTION
Barn find. It’s one of those dream scenarios a lot of motorcycle enthusiasts think about, especially those into vintage bikes. Most have their special list of desirable — and probably rare and expensive-to-buy — two-wheelers, and the thought of finding one for sale for not a ton of money in someone’s barn or garage is always there.
Of course, it never really happens, right? Those are just stories you read about, eh?
As the guy who devours every book or magazine on motorcycles he can find, I dreamed the same dreams…and never thought I’d find myself on the lucky end of the classic “barn find” situation. It just doesn’t happen.
FINDING #49
Discovering, buying, restoring and celebrating a piece of American MX history — Don Kudalski’s factory Harley-Davidson MX250
Don “Killer” Kudalski busting a sandy berm during the 1978 Florida Winter-AMA Series aboard his factory HarleyDavidson MX250. Kudalski would score a historic win there for the Motor Co. that season.
The most intriguing part was its number plate: 49. I found that #49 belonged to Don “Killer” Kudalski, the last rider to race for the Harley-Davidson MX team, and the only rider to win a major AMA race for the team.
But as it turns out, it does happen on that very rare occasion, just as it happened to me back in September of 2016. My barn find? A classic dirt bike, but not just any dirt bike. It was a rare piece of Harley-Davidson history — a real-deal HarleyDavidson MX250 motocrosser. And a very special example, too.
There’s some rich history here because, between 1975 and 1978, something unheard-of happened in the sport of motocross, professional and amateur alike: Harley-Davidson, America’s number one manufacturer of heavyweight, air-cooled street bikes, entered the off-road racing scene with a motocross bike of its own, the MX250. At the time, the Motor Company was looking for new riders and buyers for its unique style of products, and a
promotional boost in an area it’d barely ventured into before.
I’d been into motorcycles forever, riding dirtbikes on the family farm as a kid and, later, doing some buying, fixing and selling on my own. I wanted to attend a motorcycle tech school but my parents insisted on a four-year degree, so during college I used my extra time to restore Honda Z50s and CT70s. I ended up selling the entire collection (over 100 bikes) to a collector after graduating with an engineering degree, but the motorcycle bug was as strong as ever. I kept collecting and restoring once I started working in the automotive and aviation industries, and even did
some hare scrambles and vintage motocross racing. The joy I got (and get) from bringing a vintage bike back to life is hard to explain, but it continues to thrill me. Which is why I wanted to share this particular story…
It all started on a Friday evening in September of 2016. It was getting late, and before bed I checked Craigslist to see what was out there. When I first saw the Harley-Davidson MX250 ad, I thought, “There’s a rare bike you don’t see every day.” I knew very little about the 1978 MX250, only that around 1,000 were sold to the public and that restored ones were selling for anywhere between $6,000 and $10,000. I emailed the seller a reasonable offer and then texted my buddy Jeff Allison, a fellow vintage bike enthusiast, and asked if he had seen the same ad.
Then I did something I rarely did: I double-checked the email I’d sent to the seller and realized I’d mistyped my cell number, so I re-sent the correct one. (I often think of what might have happened, or not have happened, if I hadn’t double-checked!)
The next morning I got a call from the seller accepting my offer. He’d done his research and knew what the bike was worth restored and was tired of all the lowball offers he’d been getting, and we made plans to meet the following day. I was excited, as I’d never owned an MX250 and was looking forward to the discovery and restoration process.
Meanwhile, Jeff called and told me someone
Far left: The factory-spec MX250 “barn find” in Geisner’s driveway, just after purchase. Before the painstaking preservation could begin, Geisner disassembled the entire motorcycle to see what was what, then got busy with research. The process took the better part of two years, but the results are, in his words, “totally worth it.”
had posted the Craigslist ad on a Facebook page that identified and appraised motocross bikes… and that the bike I was interested in buying might actually be a factory team bike, as it had parts and traits that looked much more factory/works-spec than production-spec. Whoa. The most intriguing part was its number plate: 49. I found that #49 belonged to Don “Killer” Kudalski, the last rider to race for the HarleyDavidson MX team, and the only rider to win a major AMA race for the team.
To think I could possibly be the owner of a factory team bike was unimaginable. I couldn’t wait to see the bike up close, and Jeff was as excited as I was.
I had a vintage race the following day and my plan was to meet the seller and pick up the bike later that afternoon. Jeff came with me and soon we were headed to a commuter parking lot off the interstate in central Missouri. As I approached the seller’s truck he climbed out and introduced himself — holding a pistol. “A precaution when dealing with strangers on Craigslist,” he said. I told him I didn’t blame him and that we didn’t want any trouble.
I asked why he was selling. He told me he didn’t ride motorcycles, and the bike, which his father had given him, had been sitting in his father’s barn — a real barn find! — since the mid 1980s. They’d tried to
When I started naming off a few of #49’s features, however, his tune changed, and he said it sounded like I did indeed have a factory racer.
get it running at one point, but parts were hard to find. When Jeff and I inquired about the number 49 on the number plates, he said he wasn’t sure, and had always assumed his dad had put them on. When I mentioned the bike appeared to have parts from the HarleyDavidson factory race team, he didn’t seem interested in the least. He didn’t ride and was married with young children.
All the way home Jeff and I discussed the bike’s possible history. When we arrived I put the number plates on correctly, took some photos and then
began thinking seriously about the upcoming research, much of which would include online sites that focused on vintage motocross and HarleyDavidson’s MX250 in particular — but also on Aermacchi and Cagiva machines. Aermacchi was the Italian company AMF/Harley owned and which had actually spawned the MX250 before eventually becoming Cagiva after H-D sold it off in 1978. That evening I revisited the Vintage Motocross Buyers & Sellers Price Guide page, letting everyone know I ended up with the bike in the Craigslist
ad, and that my goal was to research its origin and decide its fate — total restoration or a really thorough preservation. The owner of the page was Joe Abbate, who also ran a restoration business called Cycle Therapy. We chatted a lot during the following months, and with Joe’s feedback I decided on the “preservation” route. He told me to rub on that bike “until my fingers bled,” get all the documentation I could and take care preserving the paint. I owe Joe a great debt of gratitude for his direction and assistance.
I also discovered a website that featured H-D
Far left: Don Kudalski at speed during the 1978 Florida Winter-AMA Series. “After years of trying,” wrote Cycle News in its March 1, 1978, edition, “Harley-Davidson finally recorded its name at the top of a score sheet in National caliber motocross. The rider that put them there was none other than Don ‘Killer’ Kudalski.” Below: That’s teammate “Rocket Rex” Staten crossing up the MX250 during that same season.
motocrossers, parts and info on Harley MX team members. The site’s owner was Menalco Solis III, who helped identify the engine in #49 and verify that what I had could very likely be a real factory racer fitted with a bunch of production parts after its racing days were over. He’d posted a story about the H-D team bike he owned and where it had come from and did a great job capturing the history of it and the team. Over the next year Menalco and I would assist one another in our restorations and would also solve a few mysteries surrounding the short-lived Harley-
Davidson MX team.
Those months were a blur of internet research, phone calls to dealers, people I thought were previous owners of #49, people who actually were, factory team mechanics and riders, team managers and other knowledgeable motocross folks from that era.
One particularly valuable site was Tom Fox’s Harley-Davidson MX Owners Facebook Group, which introduced me to a Florida racer named Mason Boyd, who knew Don “Killer” Kudalski. Kudalski was Harley’s last factory pilot and the guy I was pretty sure raced my motorcycle in the 1978 Florida Winter Series, where he grabbed the Harley factory’s first and only National win in round three of the Series. Mason and I talked frequently, and he got Don and I together, as well. We communicated a lot during the following months, and it was through this collaboration — along with some photos Mason and Don had — that we became more certain than ever that what I had was indeed a factory race bike from 1977-78.
Above: Kudalski graciously signed the items Geisner brought to their very first face-to-face meeting in October 2019. “Don isn’t a limelight sort of guy,” says Geisner, “but during dinner he opened up, and I was honored to hear stories from his racing career.”
Team mechanic Tom Volin, who’d been Kudalski’s crew chief during that final run, helped confirm it. When we first spoke, Volin seemed certain I had a production bike, mainly because he’d been instructed to destroy some factory bikes at the end of the season. He’d urged Harley-Davidson to put the bikes in the museum, but his pleas had fallen on deaf ears. When I started naming off a few of #49’s features, however, his tune changed, and he said it sounded
Those months were a blur of internet research, phone calls to dealers, people I thought were previous owners of #49, people who actually were, factory mechanics and riders, team managers and other knowledgeable motocross folks from that era.
like I did indeed have a factory racer. I asked if he had any photos, and the ones his wife Kathy sent were the clearest shots of Kudalski on his bike I’d ever seen. They were black and white and in sharp detail, and I could see many bits and pieces that were on my bike.
In between all this talking, researching and assembling of the puzzle that was this motorcycle, I disassembled the entire machine, engine included, and began inspecting and identifying parts, figuring out which ones were from the original race bike and which were standard production pieces. My bike already had a factory C&J frame, of which fewer than 10 were ever built according to C&J’s Jeff Cole. Over time I was able
at the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee. And it happened, too, back in 2018 thanks to a letter my wife Sara and I sent to Bill Davidson, son of Willie G. Davidson. Bill got the letter, left me a voicemail inviting us to the Museum, and had his very capable assistant Dara help organize things on their end.
On my end I contacted everyone who’d been involved in the restoration project and invited them to come along. Not everyone could, of course, and those that couldn’t sent their best wishes. But on the big day, myself, Bill Davidson, Tom Volin, Don Habermehl, Peter Zylstra, Brent Thompson and the late (and longtime Harley man) Clyde Denzer met
to identify and purchase from select individuals the other special parts the bike had used in 1977 and ’78, which included Fox Airshox and the alloy Cross-Up swingarm utilized by the factory when Kudalski won his Winter Series race.
Aside from finishing #49 and getting it as close as possible to the spec it’d been in back in 1977 and ’78, I wanted to gather as many of the team players as possible and meet up — and briefly display the bike —
at the Museum, checked out the bike, had lunch and traded stories about the bikes, the team, Harley’s efforts back in the late 1970s and how much fun everyone had despite the fact that the team wasn’t really around all that long. It was a fantastic gettogether, and a day I’ll never forget.
I followed it up a few weeks later with a showing of the bike at the Mungenast Automobile and Motorcycle Museum (where I met motocross champion Broc
Glover) and at the following night’s St. Louis Supercross, where #49 was displayed in Alex Moroz’s Legends and Heroes movable museum. I even got to meet Rex Staten the following year when he was inducted into the Trailblazers Hall of Fame at the group’s annual get-together in Carson, Calif. While there I also met Marty Tripes, Bob Hannah and Tommy Croft. Wow.
Finally, in October of 2019, I got a chance to meet with Kudalski, in person, which was a treat. I flew to Florida and stayed at his place for a day to discuss the book, his history, and have him sign some items. Mason Boyd came for dinner, and we had a great time. Don really opened up, and I was honored to hear his stories of his racing career.
There’s more in store for #49, too. Not only are we planning to reunite Kudalski with #49 at Daytona this March (look for coverage in American Motorcyclist and on the AMA’s social media channels), but the bike is also scheduled for a year-long appearance at the AMA Hall of Fame Museum later this year. Seeing it in the flesh is a visceral, time-machine look into the history of American motocross and Harley-Davidson’s brief efforts there, so don’t miss it if you’re in the area.
Thanks to all the Harley-Davidson motocross team members, photographers, and everyone else here who helped me tell this story — including my wife Sara, who supported me during this journey.
Isn’t it amazing what a quick check of Craigslist can turn into? AMA
Geisner’s book Finding #49 and America’s Forgotten Motocross Team earned national recognition in 2020 from the National Indie Excellence Awards. For a copy of the upgraded second edition (more photos and info), find Geisner on Facebook or check ArchwayPublishing.com.
The highlight of the #49 project for Geisner had to be his invitation and subsequent visit to the
Museum in Milwaukee to display the bike and meet with many of the men involved with the team at the time.
to
and the
Harley-Davidson
Left
right: Tom Volin, Keith Geisner, Don Habermehl, Peter Zylstra, Brent Thompson, Bill Davidson (great grandson of an H-D co-founder)
late Clyde Denzer.
MAKE IT YOURS
The AMA offers a variety of card types and designs for members. In addition to our standard card, we offer a number of themed cards that identify you as belonging to a specific group or speak to your passion as a motorcyclist.
Call (800) AMA-JOIN (2625646) to request an affinity card at any time, at no additional cost.
DEALS AND DISCOUNTS
THE ESSENTIALS
Lodging
Save 15% at participating Choice Hotels Properties.
Up to 10% off at Motel 6. Use code: M64AMA
20% discount off available rates, call (800) REDROOF and use the code VP+ 503343. To make reservations online use code: VP+ 503343 in the field labeled “VP+/ID#”
PRODUCT DISCOUNTS
ADVMoto 20% discount. Use code AMADV20
AMA Motorcycle Hall Of Fame Free admission to the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in Pickerington, Ohio.
AMA Supercross Tickets
10% discount on tickets at supercrosslive.com Use code 5AMASX
Anthony’s Leatherworks 10% discount. Use code AMADISCOUNT
Blendzall
AMA members can save 20% at blendzall.com. Use code AMA20 at checkout.
Bohn Body Armor
10% AMA Member Exclusive Discount. Visit bohnarmor. com and use code AMA18 at checkout.
Butler Maps
AMA members receive a 20% discount at butlermaps.com. Use code AMAMEMBER
Cardo Systems
20% discount online with valid AMA membership card.
Colorado Motorcycle Adventures 10% discount with valid AMA membership card.
The Dirt Bike Academy 10% exclusive discount on instruction. Learn more at thedirtbikeacademy.com
Dowco Powersports
20% discount. Use code AMA20
EagleRider For Club EagleRider AMA members receive 2 free rental credits
AMA Roadside Assistance Roadside assistance coverage for eligible members.
Car Rentals
Up to 25% off at any Avis or Budget. Avis Code: D388100 Budget Code: Z942000
AMA Gear Find patches, pins, T-shirts, hats and more.
Edelweiss
AMA members save on standard bike tour. Use code 21AMA-EBT03 at checkout.
Evans Cooling System
25% discount on Evans Coolants and Prep Fluid. Use code AMAFUN at evanscoolant.com.
EVS Sports 10% discount and free shipping on all orders. Use code AMAEVS20
Haynes Save an additional 15% on all Haynes & Clymer print and online repair manuals. Use code AMA15
Heli Bars
Use code AMAM2020 for a 10% AMA Member Exclusive Discount at helibars.com.
Helite Moto AMA members get 15% off every order at helitemoto.com. Use code HELITEAMA
International Motorcycle Shows
Save on advanced adult oneday general admission. Use code AMA20
Legacy Track Dayz 15% discount on Legacy Track Dayz events. Use code AMARideLTD
Liberty Sport Eyewear 30% discount on all “motorcycle collection” frames. Discount code AMA30.
MAD Maps
Save 15%. Use code AMA15
® Medjet
Air medical transport and travel security protection – visit Medjet.com/AMACycle or call 1.800.527.7478, referring to American Motorcyclist Association.Annual rates are reduced by 20% and start at $235.
MotoAmerica 20% off 2-day and 3-day passes at select MotoAmerica events. See AMA website for more detail.
Motool AMA members can save 10% at motool.co. Use code AMAVIP at checkout.
MX Boot Repair 10% discount. Use code AMADISCOUNT
MYLAPS 20% discount off MSRP or current sales price on weborders or orders coordinated by the AMA. Use code AMA-789HJK
Nelson Rigg 20% AMA Member Exclusive Discount on all products! Use promo code AMA-NR20
Third Eye Design $25 discount on inView, a wireless brake
Matrix Concepts AMA members receive a 25% discount on most products for shop, garage & track necessities at matrixracingproducts.com Use code AMA25
Design Helmets
ARIZIONA
COMING EVENTS
Be sure to check the event website or call the organizer for the latest information, including postponements or cancellations.
Motocross: Feb. 5. Glendale, Ariz. Supercross Futures Premier Qualifier, Feld Entertainment, Inc. State Farm Stadium, supercrossfutures.com
CALIFORNIA
Grand Prix: Feb. 11-13. Taft. Dirt Diggers MC, Big 6, NGPC, Southern California Dirt Diggers, Honolulu Hills Raceway, 310-502-993, dirtdiggersmc.com
Enduro: Feb.19. Lucerne Valley. 100s MC Spring Enduro, Johnson Valley OHV Area Cougar Buttes, 100smc.org
Hare Scrambles/Cross Country: Feb.19-20. Pacines. Picacho Creek HS, Salinas Ramblers M/C, 831-710-0632, salinasramblersmc.org
Hare and Hound: Feb. 26-27. Ridgecrest Calif. Moose Run, Four Aces MC, Spangler Hills OHV, 805-795-6708, www.fouraces.org
Round 9: Feb. 11. Denver, Colo. National Western Event Center.
Round 10: Feb. 12. Denver, Colo. National Western Event Center.
National Championship: AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship, mxsports.com
Aug. 1-6. Hurricane Mills, Tenn. Loretta Lynn Ranch
Northeast Area Qualifiers
March 12-13. Mechanicsville, Md. Budds Creek. March 19-20. Sutherlin, Va. Birch Creek Motorsports Park.
March 26-27. Hedgesville, W. Va. Tomahawk MX.
April 16-17. Southwick, Mass. The Wick 338.
April 23-24. Birdsboro, Pa. Pagoda MX.
April 30-May 1. Wallkill, N.Y. Walden Motocross.
May 7-8. Englishtown, N.J. Englishtown.
May 14-15. Sugar Grove, Pa. Maple Shade MX.
Northeast Regionals
Amateur: May 27-29. Mount Morris, Pa. High Point Raceway.
Youth: June 3-5. Shippensburg, Pa. Doublin Gap MX.
Vet: June 10-12. Seward, Pa. Pleasure Valley Raceway.
Southeast Area Qualifiers
Feb. 26-27. Alachua, Fla. Gatorback Cycle Park. March 19-20. Washington, Ga. Aonia Pass MX. April 2-3. Pell City, Ala. Mill Creek MX.
April 9-10. Blountville, Tenn. Muddy Creek.
April 23-24. Hamer, S.C. South of the Border MX. April 30-May 1. Henderson, N.C. North Carolina Motorsports Park.
May 7-8. Dalton, Ga. Lazy River MX.
May 14-15. Wytheville, Va. Pro Sport Motocross.
Southeast Regionals
Youth: May 27-29. Jacksonville, Fla. WW Ranch Motocross Park.
Amateur: June 10-12. Reynolds, Ga. Silver Dollar Raceway.
Vet: June 17-19. Axton, Va. Lake Sugar Tree Motorsports Park.
Mid-East Area Qualifiers
March 26-27. Livingston, Tenn. Thunder Valley MX.
April 2-3. Rossville, Ind. Wildcat Creek MX. April 9-10. Bronson, Mich. Log Road MX.
April 23-24. Buchanan, Mich. RedBud MX.
April 30-May 1. Bloomingdale, Mich. Dutch Sport Park
May 7-8. Millington, Mich. Baja Acres. May 14-15. Waynesburg, Ohio. Malvern MX.
May 21-22. Sebree, Ky. Echo Valley MX. Mid-East Regionals
Amateur: June 3-5. Rossville, Ind. Wildcat Creek MX.
Youth: June 10-12. Chillicothe, Ohio. ChilliTown MX.
Vet: June 24-26. Nashport, Ohio. Briarcliff MX. North Central Area Qualifiers
March 26-27. Casey, Ill. Lincoln Trail Motosports. April 2-3. Washington Park, Ill. Archview MX Park. April 16-17. Maize, Kan. Bar 2 Bar MX. April 23-24. Winterset, Iowa. Riverside Raceway. April 30-May 1. Mountain, Wis. Motosplat.
May 7-8. Byron, Ill. Byron Motorsports Park. May 14-15. Walnut, Ill. Sunset Ridge MX. May 21-22. Little Falls, Minn. Little Falls Raceway.
North Central Regionals
Vet: June 10-12. Garwin, Iowa. Oak Ridge MX.
Youth: June 17-19. Tigerton, Wis. Motozone.
Amateur: June 24-26. Mount Carroll, Ill. MC Moto Park.
South Central Area Qualifiers
Feb. 19-20. Centreville, Miss. Farm 14. Feb. 26-27. Wortham, Texas. Freestone Raceway. March 5-6. Yantis, Texas. Johnsonville MX Farm. March 26-27. Lakewood, Colo. Thunder Valley Motocross Park.
April 2-3. Kemp, Texas. Underground MX. April 9-10. Grand Cane, La. Desoto Motorsports Park.
April 23-24. Ponca City, Okla. Ponca City. May 14-15. Wellston, Okla. Reynard Raceway.
South Central Regionals
Amateur: June 3-5. Conroe, Texas. 3 Palms Action Sports Park.
Vet: June 17-19. Alvord, Texas. Oak Hill Raceway. Youth: June 24-26. Tyler, Texas. Swan MX Raceway Park.
Northwest Area Qualifiers
Feb. 26-27. Marysville, Calif. Riverfront MX Park. April 9-10. Delta, Utah. Bunker Hill. April 9-10. West Richland, Wash. Horn Rapids Motorsports Complex.
May 7-8. Washougal, Wash. Washougal MX Park. Northwest Regional
Youth/Amateur/Vet: May 27-29. Washougal, Wash. Washougal MX Park.
Spring A Ding Ding: March 16-19. Kemp, Texas. Underground MX. (816) 582-4113. springadingding.com
PRO-AM EVENTS
2022 AMA Pro-Am Schedule
AMA Texas Winter Series – Round 4: Feb. 5-6. Alvord, Texas. Oak Hill Raceway. (940) 5772225. oakhillmx.com
AMA Texas Winter Series – Round 5: Feb. 19-20. Wortham, Texas. Freestone County Raceway. (713) 962-3386. freestonemx.com James Stewart Freestone Spring Championship: March 9-13. Wortham, Texas. Freestone County Raceway. (713) 962-3386. freestonemx.com Spring A Ding Ding: March 16-19. Kemp,
Sept. 17-18. Yosemite Dual Sport Adventure. Groveland, Calif. Family Off-Road Adventures. (209) 993-7306. familyoffroadadventures.com
Sept. 24-25. Show Me 200. Bixby, Mo. Midwest Trail Riders Association. (314) 434-5095 ridemtra. com
Sept. 24-25. Big Woods 200. Wabeno, Wis. Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders. (920) 350-2030 widualsportriders.org
Oct. 1-2. Perry Mountain Tower Run. Stanton, Ala. Perry Mountain Motorcycle Club. (334) 327-5086 perrymountainmotorcycleclub.com
Oct. 1-2. Shenandoah 500. Natural Chimneys, Va. Washington Area Trail Riders. watr.us
Nov. 5-6. The Hammer Run. Port Elizabeth, N.J. Tri-County Sportsmen M.C. Inc. teamhammer.org
Nov. 5-6. Howlin’ at the Moon. Payson, Ariz. Arizona Trail Riders. (602) 692-9382 arizonatrailriders.org
Nov. 25-26. L.A. – Barstow to Vegas. Palmdale, Calif. District 37 Dual Sport. (626) 446-7386 labarstowbegas.com
AMA National Gypsy Tour. americanmotorcyclist.com/gypsytour Laconia Motorcycle Week. June 11-19. Laconia, New Hampshire
AMA Vintage Motorcyle Days americanmotorcyclist.com/gypsytour
AMA Vintage Motorcyle Days July 22-24. Lexington, Ohio
American Motorcyclist Association® Arenacross® • ATV Hare Scrambles National Championship Series® • ATV Motocross National Championship Series® Flat Track Grand Championships™ • Grand National Enduro Championship® • Gypsy Tour® Hare & Hound National Championship Series® • Hare Scrambles Championship Series® Hare Scrambles National Championship Series® • Kids Just Want To Ride® • Motorcycle Hall of Fame® • Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum® • Motorcyclist of the Year® • Motostars® • National Adventure Riding Series® • National Dual-Sport Series® National Enduro Championship Series®
Tips,Tweaks, Fixes
and
Garage
Facts:
The two-wheeled ownership experience, explained
Staff Rides
The original retro Superbike done up in fire engine GPz red is, for me,
Just Exactly Perfect
Retro-styled street bikes are all the rage right now, but the trend isn’t all that new. Back in the 1990s came Honda’s CB1000 Big One and Kawasaki’s ZRX1100, which became the ZRX1200R a few years later. The CB1000 was underpowered and missed the mark on styling (even with those awesome-looking CB900F-based AMA Superbikes to crib from) and failed in the market. But the ZRXs, which offered 100-plus horsepower and earlyGPz/Eddie Lawson Replica styling, sold well and have become bona fide cult classics since being retired in the mid 2000s.
I rode a Z-Rex for a full year back in the early 2000s and have lusted after one ever since — until last summer, when I bought a low-mileage — and GPz red — ZRX to replace the red (but boring) CB1000 I’d bought the previous year.
It had brittle, squared-off and mismatched tires, a leaky fork leg, a worn chain and original hydraulic fluid, but it was fast and fun and reminded me of the two GPzs I’d owned years before…an ’83 550 monoshocker and a twin-shock ’82 750, both red, both entertaining, and both emotionally inspiring.
So into the shop it went (Salt Lake City’s Moto Station) while I was
sampling H-D’s new Pan America 1250 adventure bike during last year’s AMA Alps Challenge tour. There it got some serious care, including synthetic Maxima oil, a brand-new DID 520 chain, new fork seals, 15-weight fork oil (and a little more than stock) and, most importantly, a fresh set of dual-compound Dunlop Roadsmart IV tires, which offer more mileage than the already excellent Roadsmart IIIs (which I ran on my CB1000) and tons of dry grip and wet-weather performance.
Once back on the road the thing was mostly brilliant, offering lots of smooth power (even at 10,000 feet) and soft but supple (and mostly controllable) chassis behavior, even at big speeds. The Dunlops proved superb, even in colder (and sometimes wet) conditions, and with their dual-compound construction they grip like full-on sport tires when speeds and lean angle get juicy. Could I run these at a track day? I absolutely could.
Next up is a full detail (the paint’s a bit hazy and there’s some corrosion left over from the previous owner’s oceanair location) and improved — and slightly firmer — suspension: firmer fork springs and Emulators from Race Tech and some quality aftermarket shocks. Otherwise, my Z-Rex is a fast blast, and a helluva goodlooking one, too.
Staff Rides
Burgess: 2013 Yamaha XT250
The perfect dual-purpose ride for newbies and/or the inseam-challenged — aka Joy
Winter Pickling 101
I’m newer to this motorcycle thing, and like a lot of rookies I made what Mitch calls a “bad purchase decision” a couple years ago when I bought my first motorcycle…a used — and messed-with — Honda XR80. (I’ve called the whole thing a “learning experience” but he and I argue a lot anyway, so it’s not surprising.) Inherently, the XR is wonderful, but not the particular example I bought. In the beginning it ran okay, but soon became hard to start, and then it would quit — and not start again — far from home, which had me pushing. Ugh.
But I’ve learned a lot, and in December bought a low-mileage and totally stock 2013 Yamaha XT250 that starts instantly at the push of a button, runs all day and, with its low seat height and light weight, will be easy to handle. It’s being shipped via the good folks at Federal Motorcycle Transport (funtransport.com) from the western U.S. to my home in Florida, and I’ll be reporting back as soon as it arrives. Stay tuned!
What to do if you forgot to do the winter-storage deed back in November
t’s February, so cold and nasty weather is still with a lot of us. If you didn’t store your bike properly before the holidays (and you’re not lucky enough to live in the lower tier), not to worry; there’s still time. Maybe.
FUEL SYSTEM
The biggie here, for carbureted bikes, at least, is fuel-system contamination and degradation caused by ethanol-laced gasoline. The stuff gums up quickly in a carburetor’s many small jets and orifices, so if your bike is carbureted, drain those carbs immediately, either via the float-bowl bleeds or by turning off the petcock and letting the bike idle for a few minutes until it conks out.
If your bike won’t start, you’re probably sunk, and are most likely looking at a carb clean, which
can be difficult and almost always expensive. If your bike runs rough or maybe only on fewer cylinders than the engine has, you might be able to salvage the situation by using a fuel system cleaner like BG’s 44K, which this author has used successfully in the past. Just pour it into the tank per instructions, let the bike run, and see how it goes.
By the way, in an ideal world, just before putting your bike away for the winter, you would have filled your tank with fuel and added a fuel preservative, and then drained the carbs.
BATTERY CARE
This is pretty easy, really, and usually only involves hooking your motorcycle’s battery to a battery tender or trickle charger, which, if it’s one of the better ones, will not
only charge your battery but maintain that charge all winter long. There are plenty on the market, but Battery Tender and CTEK are two top brands to look at. Do your homework.
TIRE CARE
It sounds weird given all the use and abuse your tires can take, but leaving them sitting in one place all winter while holding up 400 or 500 (or more) pounds can deform the carcass or worse, especially if not inflated properly. So put your bike on its centerstand if you can, or a pair of work or track stands. And if you don’t have either of those, at least inflate them to 40 or 50 pounds each and try to roll the bike around a bit during the winter months.
Green Goo…see why carbs hate enthanol-laced fuel?
LAST PAGE
The On Any Sunday “Wheelie Kid,” 50 years later
BY MITCH BOEHM
ver wonder about the identity of the shirtless kid that wheelied his green Schwinn Sting Ray about a quarter mile up the hill in the beginning of Bruce Brown’s epic moto-documentary On Any Sunday? Probably a lot of you have. Well, noted moto filmmaker Todd Huffman wondered, too, and to find out about the wheelier — and the rest of the “BMX Kids” showcased in OAS’s opening scenes — he created a Facebook page called On Any Sunday Film “BMX Kids” Search…which has, in just a handful of months, identified all of the kids involved — and even established contact with some of them. And the Wheelie Kid? That’d be
EMark Mandeville, who Huffman met with and interviewed for an upcoming feature on the nowlegendary Schwinn Kids. And where did Huffman meet with Mandeville? On that sacred wheelie street, of course, named Vista Del Mar in Dana Point, Calif., just north of Mandeville’s home base of San Clemente.
Interestingly, Mandeville — who owns a drywall company — was the first of the seven “BMX Kids” Huffman came into contact with, three of which are no longer with us, including Mandeville’s brother Mike. Huffman says Mandeville told him on the phone during their initial conversation that, until that day, no one had ever talked to him about On
Any Sunday and that wheelie. “It was awesome to speak with him,” Huffman told me, “and when I told Mark he was like the ‘Lost Arc for BMX’ he just laughed!”
If you check out the Facebook page — and you should — you’ll see a pair of then-and-now photos of that famous street, both shot and explained by noted motorsports artist Tom Fritz. Although more than 50 years have gone by since Bruce Brown shot those scenes, you can still see a tree, fire hydrant and telephone pole that are in both images. Also, the vacant lot where the seven kids did the flagman start and jumped into the air, doing crossups for Brown’s camera at the start of the movie? It’s now a Trader Joe’s market. Trippy stuff.
in the AMA’s Hall Of Fame Retro Raf e!
$5 per Ticket $20 for Five
Such a deal on such a classic motorcycle! Raffle tickets not only give you chances to win this restored, retro-classic Monza-blue Boxer, it benefits the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame and Museum – where motorcycle legends live! A winner will be drawn next July at AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days 2022 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Don’t miss your chance!
