AHRMA Legends of MX National Series Race

Round 19 of 21

Barber Motorsports Park Vintage Festival

Story & Photos by Roy Jenkins

www.2wheelcommunications.com

Birmingham, AL – October 18, 2008

Alex Moroz, Fred Guidi, Jason Holifield and the rest of the AHRMA crew took a flat patch of ground (where Barber’s new MX track was supposed to be) and turned it into a 70’s style motocross track like you would find anywhere across the country where flat-landers raced. The setting was right in the middle of a big bowl, where campers and spectators lined the hills for great viewing. All this on the grounds of the 6^th annual Barber Vintage Festival that featured vintage road-racing, cross-country, observed trials, swap meet, vendor show, entertainment and the finest motorcycle museum in the world.

The first class off the gate was the 50+ Experts with the Intermediates gated right behind them. Rhett Smith took his ’73 CZ through the first turn ahead of Elmar Kruza’s ’74 CZ, Tom Bellamy’s ’74 Yamaha and Doug Kadrovich’s Elsinore. Newly experted Rick Lange, who won this race last year in the Intermediate class got his ’74 Maico off the gate late. The first three immediately launched a battle all their own, as they slid around the slippery track. Bellamy held fourth while Lange and Bobby Lucas went at it like two spoiled brothers fighting over the same toy. Joe Kelley moved his Can-Am up behind them. As the drama unfolded, Smith earned a victory over Kruza – this time. Bellamy moved up into third, Kadrovich fourth with Jay Stuiso and his BSA rounding out the top five.

Race three, the 40+ Expert/Intermediate lost 3 riders in the first turn, while Roger Harris’s ’75 Kawasaki and Mac Edmonston’s ’71 Yamaha diced for the lead five turns into the race. Rick Owens spurred his ’73 Maico up behind them, followed by Doug Steele and Glen Romero. By the next lap Edmonston had the lead and was beginning to slip away while Harris motored in second. Owens was running like a rabbit in third, chased by the tenacious Romero, who was keeping Steele and Doc Tollett behind him. Eventually Owens and Romero moved up past Harris. Mike Ealer brought his ’74 Bultaco up into the mix with Steele in tow as Harris continued to fade while Tollett had some minor trouble with his CZ. The bottom line of the first moto was: Owens, Romero, Ealer and Harris.

In the Sportsman 500 class, Rhett Smith and Elmar Kruza renewed their rivalry, with Dave Smeal watching closely on his ‘74 CZ. Kruza cruised by Smith to take the lead. Richard Huffman throttled his ’74 Husky up behind Lange’s Maico and Matt Leblanc’s ’73 XL 350 Honda. At the white flag it was Kruza and Smeal together with Smeal trying to sneak around on the inside and Smith watching intently right behind them. By the time the checkers came out it was Kruza, Smith, Lange and Smeal.

In race 11, the 60+ Expert/Intermediate/Novice combined classes Max Videto, listed as a novice rider, surprised everyone with a spirited ride on his ’74 Husky; while another Husky pilot, William Click, jumped out past George Singler for the first time on the day. After a couple turns it was, Click, Singler, Videto, Teddy Landers, Bob Adams, James Ealer, Sr. and Wayne Clukey. By lap two the 72 year old Singler had earned the lead, while Click, Videto, Landers, Adams, Ealer and Clukey trailed. Click and Intermediate rider Lloyd Stahlman tangled up and went down right in front of the scorekeepers and it took help from bystanders before they could get remounted, giving the expert race to Singler.

In the Intermediate class, Wayne Clukey was knocking off over 38 years of dust and rust (except for the day before on his 60’s era Yamaha road racer, which is a story for another day). He began to move the Orazio Elsinore up and by the finish line finished in fourth behind Landers, Videto and Adams. The ageless Landers continues to ride his ’74 Penton to victory in motocross and cross-country when he’s not managing an event or leading a worship service with wife Rosemary.

Kirby Dodd won the 125 Expert Sportsman class on an Elsinore that Billy Orazio pieced together from an old carcass, scraps and spare parts the night before, while Roy Jenkins and his little "G2G" Honda had no answer for Doc Tollett’s Elsinore in either moto of the Intermediate class; even though Tollett had to stay up late himself patching a leaking manifold.

In the second moto of the 50+ Expert class Kruza led Kelley, Kadrovich, Stuiso, Bellamy and Lucas, with Rick Lange getting off the gate late again on his Maico, but not as late as Rhett Smith. Ernie Leblanc charged off in front of the Intermediates on gate two, with Rickie Pollock’s Husky in pursuit. Lap two had experts Kruza holding off a pesky Bellamy who was all over him. Then Lange, Smith passing Kelley, Lucas, Kadrovich, then Intermediates Mike Taylor, Leblanc, Pollock and Harvey Hayden. The next lap Kruza and Bellamy were still side by side. On the last turn Bellamy tried to make a last-ditch pass on the inside but Kruza held his position for the win; so they shook on it after an exciting race. Lange, Smith and Hayden finished closely at the finish. It was LA G2G team member Harvey Hayden’s first race in 34 years on an Orazio 250 Elsinore. Hayden raced in the battle of New Orleans back in ’74 and finished top 15 as a 16 year old on a CZ his late Dad tuned for him.

Two wars were waging on the track at the same time in the Premier class. The first was George Singler’s ’63 BSA and Graham Foster’s ’58 AJS which raced within inches for much of the second moto in the Premier Expert class, with Singler winning again. At the awards ceremony riders decided to change his nickname from "Ironman" to "Rocket man!" The other war was Dan Beher on his ’60 BSA holding off the relentless pursuit of David Kaufman on his ’60 Matchless with precision and cunning.

In the second moto of the 40+ Expert/Intermediate classes Roger Harris and Glen Romero led Mike Ealer, Rick Owens, Doc Tollett and Mark Brown, with Mac Edmonston getting a bad start (possibly because he, like Mike Parker, had been running back and forth road-racing and motocrossing and had just had the battle of his life on the road coarse minutes earlier). Romero went down yielding four spots, then returning behind his LA G2G teammate Edmonston. At that point it was: Harris, Ealer, Owens, Tollett, Brown, Edmonston and Romero. At the white flag it was Harris by five bike lengths, over Owens, Ealer right on his rear fender, then Edmonston who led Brown by three. The last lap Ealer went out of control on a jump, taking out Edmonston behind him, who popped back up and re-engaged the race. Owens won the race with a wheelie, tailed by Harris, Brown, Romero, Edmonston and Tollett.

The +60 class had to survive a nasty crash in turn one that took out several riders, with "Rocket man" George Singler leading the way out and Teddy Landers right on his tailpipe. Max Videto and William Click elbowed for leftovers. Singler began to check out while Landers held off the challenge of Videto and Ted Fields. Click clicked in another gear and moved up into second, with Videto third, Landers fourth and Clukey fifth. The Rocket man lapped a few more riders before he was waved off by the checkered flag.

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Prem Lwt--Exp: 1. Dempsey Elders, BSA (1,1); 2 Mike Parker, (2,2).