San Jose: 14 - Mile National
SAN JOSE: 14 - Mile National
COMPETITION
Battling Bart Markel Shows the Way
DAN HUNT
IN MOTORCYCLE racing, practice and qualifying often are more fascinating than the race itself. Racing is all contingencies...other riders...changing track conditions...topsy turvy officials...unclear rulings. But practice is a personal battle.
Bart Markel is perhaps the best personal battler in AMA history. In a way, he may be compared to British motocross ace Jeff Smith, who insists that a rider who doesn't know at least three lines through a turn, is not ready to race.
Such a frame of mind is important at a track like the San Jose half mile. Even promoter Bob Barkhimer's 100,000 gallons of water failed to help the surface. Last year a top rider could lap the Fairground course in 27 sec. This year, the machinery is faster, but the best times were up in the 29s. An excess of bumps and a lack of traction produced the additional seconds.
So, as usual in practice, Bart looked hairy and unsteady. But his technique was all science. Like other riders of big bore machinery accustomed to county fairground horse tracks with narrow turns, he is adept at "squaring off "the corners. He pulls the apex outward, kicks the back wheel out early. Thus "squared off," he can straighten the bike earlier and get the power to the ground sooner than the guy who, more conservatively, sticks to the hard-packed line that usually develops next to the inside fence. The result, especially with a high torque 750-cc Harley-Davidson flathead (or even an occasional 500-cc ohv Twin), is a faster drive onto what is, in effect, a longer straight.
But track conditions at San Jose tended to queer the classic square-off technique. There was virtually no traction off the rubberstreaked inside rail. Meanwhile, Bart wallowed his H-D all over the place, searching for alternative grooves. It looked like hell, but somehow he wound up with the fastest qualifying time: 29.21 sec. This was hardly faster than Gary Nixon's 29.22, but Bart had a few aces up his sleeve.
Markel's solution was to pull the apex out to the track center (as usual) and then rearward, almost to the entrance of the corner (highly unusual). This allowed him, on entering the straight, to catch the inside of the turn for that extra bit of traction, while simultaneously avoiding traffic.
H-D teammate Mert Lawwill tried a similar approach, but failed to pull the apex back far enough. This got him sideways, and stole power from his drive. Time: 29.27.
Not much slower were a trio of Triumph riders. Gene Romero posted 29.32, Bob Bailey, 29.38, and Chuck Palmgren, 29.72. Even H-D star Cal Rayborn, who used to miss more half-mile mains than not, turned in a respectable 29.98, undoubtedly motivated by his narrow 13-point lead over Nixon in the season-long points battle.
Significantly, all factory backed H-D riders—Markel, Lawwill, Fred Nix, Rayborn and Dan Haaby—were running machines with swinging arm frames, twin carburetor Daytona-type engines, and stiffened Ceriani road racing forks. This is the first year of the wholesale switch to the modern rigs, which began earlier this spring at San Jose when Haaby, on a Sportster framed model, ran away with the season opener. Even earlier, Lawwill last year rode four Nationals on his own experimental swinging arm frame H-D flattracker.
In the Expert heats, the top places were split evenly between H-D and Triumph. The evergreen BSA Gold Star Singles were hard put to score well. This year they have been somewhat outclassed by the improvements to the other two brands in power and handling.
Markel won the first heat after starting slowly, but quickly worked up to 3rd behind Romero and Rayborn. After a few attempts that slid out, he made his strange line work and passed both men on the outside, instead of playing follow-the-leader through the turns.
Gary Nixon, on his Sonic Weld framed Triumph with Ceriani forks, won the second heat after passing early leader Roger Reiman. This heat was a heartbreaker for Dick Mann, who worked his Gold Star, equipped with swinging arm rear suspension, up to 3rd, only to retire with engine troubles.
Chuck Palmgren passed Ralph White and Mert Lawwill to win the third heat. White kept fading and relinquished transfer spots to Fred Nix and Jimmy Odom.
In the Expert semimain, Dan Haaby made it clear that he wanted to make the main, and pulled a quarter-lap lead over his opposition. Transferring with him were Dusty Coppage and Ralph White. Luck ran out for Jimmy Odom, who held 2nd until his chain broke.
Notably absent from the main were the usually competitive Dick Keim Gold Stars, ridden by Shorty Seabourne and Dewayne Keeter, as well as the H-D of Eddie Mulder, who, in the semi, missed transfer by one spot.
In the 28-lap main, everything went according to Markel's plan. Roger Reiman beat the pack to the first turn, while Bart was buried behind Palmgren and Nixon. At turn 3 after the back straight, Markel thundered through high and sideways, while the "conservatives" ahead of him lined up for the inside groove, slowing in the process. At turn 4, he had abandoned all semblance of a line, as he cranked the H-D sideways and shot way around the outside into the lead. The move was a masterpiece of guts and brains all crammed into one lap.
Once ahead, he resumed his original tactic of going in high and coming out low, leaving the others to squabble among themselves for the rest of the race.
Meanwhile, Palmgren lost 2nd spot and spent the rest of the race riding rear guard for Nixon. Reiman faded badly and was passed by Romero, Lawwill, Haaby, and Rayborn. In the wake of the leaders rode Fred Nix, Art Barda, Coppage, and White, whose Gold Star just didn't possess enough steam.
By Lap 20, Markel had forged a quarter-lap lead on the field, and soon lapped White. A few laps later, Nixon also lapped White. Romero lost his place to Haaby and Lawwill, the latter two also changing places.
At the finish, it was Markel, Nixon, Palmgren, Haaby, Lawwill, Romero, Rayborn, Reiman, Nix, Coppage, Barda and White.
The win was worth 53 points to Markel. But Nixon, the dreaded shadow of the H-D team, collected 43 points for his 2nd place. So Gary marched back into the lead of the points table, with a total of 527. Apart from Nixon's victories in the Houston, Tex., indoor short track and the Columbus, Ohio, half mile, H-D machinery has won every AMA National this year. Yet the lack of a true all-arounder in the Milwaukee camp allows consistent Nixon to place his Triumph in the running for another No. 1 plate.
However, after San Jose, the reigning champion was chased by Rayborn, with 505 points, Markel, with 500, and Nix, on the 456 mark. Could any motorcycle championship, anywhere in the world, hold more tension and unpredictability?
AMATEUR FIASCO
More than a few riders, officials and fans were put off by the conduct of the Amateur program.
The controversy centered around BSA rider Jim Rice, who last year won the Amateur national at San Jose. Rice, while running in a transfer position in close formation with Bob Self and Mark Breisford, lost his steel skid shoe. The shoe dangled and bounced from his left ankle, but did not appear to slow him. The officials, however, felt it was dangerous.
The starter ineffectually waved the black flag, and failed to communicate his intentions to Rice, although he managed to confuse the whole field. He again waved the flag, but Rice kept going.
Such disregard for the black flag is considered grounds for withdrawing a rider's license. But Rice instead was fined $20 and allowed to transfer to the main. Jack Wilkinson, who had slowed at the sight of the black flag and dropped back from 4th, also was allowed to transfer. No Amateur semi was run.
Rice went on to win the main, followed by Bob Self and Dave Smith.
While Rice could be condemned for his action, it should be noted that the flagman's first signal was ambiguous. More important is the fact that riders rarely are black flagged for dangling hot shoes. Two instances come to mind where Experts were allowed to continue racing in National events while dangling shoes—Mert Lawwill this year, and Fred Nix last year.
The effectiveness of the decision to black flag in such a marginal situation hes in the universal application of the rule—which up to now has been nonexistent.
