Cycle Round Up
CYCLE ROUND UP
JOSEPH C. PARKHURST
CYCLE WORLD'S CIRCULATION
We have been claiming for some time to be publishing America’s largest selling motorcycle magazine; the gentleman seated on the sparkling BMW recently visited our offices for a week of proving that statement. He is Larry Kemmer, and he is a field auditor for the best known circulation auditing firm in the United States, ABC, or Audit Bureau of Circulations. Larry is a confirmed motorcyclist, and no one could have been more surprised than the staff at CYCLE WORLD when the ABC auditor arrived mounted on a motorcycle.
Our circulation has been the subject of much discussion within the motorcycle industry; hardly anyone could believe that we could achieve the number one position in only one year. We knew it all of the time, as we have been from our first issue, but it had to be verified by an outside, professional, independent, circulation auditing firm. The acceptance of CYCLE WORLD by ABC was a gratifying step forward in our efforts to become the leading representative of the finest sport in the world, but of course, it would mean nothing if you, our readers, hadn’t accepted us.
If it sounds like we are going to stop here, that is precisely the opposite of what we plan upon doing. We are happy that confirmation of the fact that we are America’s largest selling magazine, and the only one with an audited circulation, occured with our first anniversary issue; within the next year we will make CYCLE WORLD even larger and continue to concentrate on publishing the best possible magazine for the growing number of motorcycle enthusiasts in America.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY. . . TO US
This issue marks our first birthday. Actually our last issue, December, was the 12th volume of CYCLE WORLD and we have been publishing the magazine for over one year, but we chose the January issue to serve as our anniversary because we began last year with that issue. I realize that this occasion, though seemingly momentous to the staff, contains little of joyful significanse to our readers.
We are particularly proud of our achievement, and I say that as humbly as possible, because a few people said we could not do it and have been predicting our doom as regularly as the arrival of the next issue in the mails. I have steadfastly refused to use this column as a background for the personal and petty battles usually associated within the realms of competing magazines and businesses. It is
only vital for me to say that the criers of finis for CW have used judgment jaded by reasoning that must be as transparent as their motives and by what would be gained in the event this were to come about.
Our reasons for being proud are simple and obvious. Prior to the arrival of CYCLE WORLD on the scene it was said that a magazine of this concept could not find an audience and that the range of enthusiasm was not wide enough to support such an effort. We felt differently for many years; CYCLE WORLD offered us the opportunity to prove our belief. Our acceptance has supported and verified all of our determinations, and no one could be happier about it than we are. This, the 13th issue, or Volume Two, Number One, marks the beginning of our second year, and we plan upon making it the most exciting ever. Plans are laid, and work is in progress on many new features, some so unique and different we would rather wait until they can be seen to comment. Plans include a dissertation on the relative merits of the various types of handlebars being used, the story of sidecar racing in Europe, an extensive survey of motorcycle drag racing, technical analyses of spark plugs and tires, features on modifying different engines, and much more. Of course we will continue to publish the most complete, fair and unbiased road tests, road impressions, scooter tests, trail tests and track tests of the most popular and leading makes of cycles, scooters, motorbikes, trail scooters, etc., that we can manage.
The primary goal for the future is to make CYCLE WORLD bigger, more interesting, more entertaining, and as valuable to the sport and industry as we possibly can. We thank our almost 40,000 readers for the faithful support and encouragement you have given us in our first year; we sincerely hope we will con-
tinue to earn such devotion. I can assure all of our readers that we are going to make CYCLE WORLD even bigger and better, as the soap salesmen say.
SPEED IS RELATIVE
Motorcyclists who are nurturing the notion that the machines they are riding, or the ones we are road testing for that matter, are really fast, take note; a florist in France, named Jose Meiffret, who is also a bicycle racer, using an old racing car as a windbreak, rode a bicycle for one kilometer (5/8 mile) at an average speed of 109.6 mph. The feat was accomplished near Lahr, Germany, on a then-unopened stretch of road, and is a world record. In setting it he broke his own record of 109.5 mph.
The record bicycle was a thick and bulky two-wheeler with a front wheel slightly smaller than the rear, and a drive sprocket nearly half the size of the front wheel. Meiffret nearly lost his life in two previous attempts and was finally ruled off the roads in France so took his strange rig to Germany for the attempt.
Most of this is not hot news — it happened in 1961 — but we could not resist telling the tale in the face of some of the comments we have heard regarding speeds achieved by a few of the motorcycles we have tested. In truth we deplore the extorted values placed upon top speeds as they have no practical application to machines in use in normal, every-day employment, as most are. Granted it is sweet stimulation to dwell upon the speculation of what one’s machine might achieve given the chance, but it imparts a false sense of value and even in the cases of unusually high speeds cannot possibly be justified or reasoned.
We have ridden 125 cubic centimeter bikes at over 100 mph, and 750cc ma-
chines at over 120 mph, all of which proves little more than that speed is a relative and elusive thing. One might ask why we do not simply discontinue record ing the performance of our test machines, but it is not quite that simple. We are certain the same questions have been asked of the automobile magazines in this country, and the motorcycle magazines in England, and we don't know what kind of an answer they gave, but we do know this - our readers demand it, as our overwhelming success indicates. That's good enough for us.
SPEEDOMETER ERROR
Not dwelling upon the many facets of scientific and accurate road tests data
gathering, but there exists yet another element in our test procedure that stimulates a great deal of interest; speedometer error. The costs of manufacturing a speed recording instrument within extreme degrees of accuracy are prohibitive. Regardless, the modern day speedometer is a marvel of mass production skill and
though most all contain a certain percentage of error, are nonetheless amazingly faithful.
Our point is simply that too many of our readers write saying that their speedometers are either lying to them or the machines we are testing were not in good tune, or were worn out and that their machines would go faster. The first instance is in fact the truth. That little needle often positions itself with a disgusting and total disregard for the truth. We say this because with each machine we test one of the first operations performed is to determine the speedometer error. This is accomplished in the most —i~ manner time the interval required
that the current surge of interest and enthusiasm for two-wheeled vehicles is due in part to the increasingly improved dealer structure and advertising interest being shown by distributors and dealers of the better motorcycles and scooters, such as the Lambretta.
The gentlemen in the photograph are, left to right; Carroll Mann, Clarence Johnson, Bob Harris, William Gold, Burt Heimlich, Larry Fauber, Guy Cicchini (kneeling), Bruno Gabbrielli, Ray Cotton, Bill Stedman, Andrew Rocco and Ben Olken. Collectively they are distributors of Lambretta machines and executives of the firm.
MATCHLESS IN THE WEST
At a recent meeting in Los Angeles it was announced by Mr. Joseph Berliner, Director of the J. B. Matchless Co., newly appointed distributors of Matchless motorcycles in the United States, that Mr. H. A. Nelson is now the Western field representative of the J. B. Matchless Co., and that Mr. John McLaughlin, of McLaughlin Mtrs. in Duarte, Calif., will be representing the Berliner racing interests for Matchless, Norton and AJS in 1 1 Western states.
Attending the meeting were Mr. Berliner, Mr. Nelson, Mr. McLaughlin, Bob Blair of ZDS Mtrs., Western Distributors of Norton, Ducati and Zundapp for Berliner Mtrs., Bill Bagnall, Editor of The Motorcyclist magazine, Floyd Clymer, Publisher of Cycle magazine, and myself.
We are extremely pleased with Mr. Berliner’s choice of personnel for the new Matchless operation in the West; we anticipate great things for one of the most interesting line of machines on the market. John McLaughlin will be the man to see regarding sales, service and parts for the racing machines represented by the Berliner Mtr. Corp., (Norton Manx 350 and 500), and the J. B. Matchless Co. (Matchless G-50, G-50 CSR, and AJS 7-R). For those who might not know of John's prowess with machines of this type, he is the number one rider in the AFM (American Federation of Motorcyclists) on the west coast and a racing participant in almost every phase of the sport for many years. Mr. Nelson was the General Mgr. of the Western division of the Matchless/ Indian Company before distribution of Matchless was assumed by the J. B. Matchless Company.
NORTON FOR 1963
Recently the 1963 Norton Atlas was given a trial run by Jack Fullwood, Ad vertising Manager of CYCLE WORLD, at the Berliner Motor Corp. in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey. Looking on while
Jack gets the feel of things are three of the “bigs” in the motorcycle industry; Mr. W. J. Smith, Managing Director of Matchless Motorcycles Ltd., Mr. J. Berliner, President of the Berliner Mtr. Corp., Norton Distributors, and President of the newly formed JB Matchless Corp., Distributors of Matchless motorcycles, and Mr. A. A. Sugar, Managing Director of Associated Motor Cycles of London, England.
CYCLE DEALER’S SERVICE
One of the cleverest innovations in dealer service is now underway in Los Angeles and other parts of California, run by Doug Woodward; it is called the D & D Motorcycle Service. The service consists of picking up machines from distributors, uncrating, assembling, polishing, servicing and delivering the bike to the dealer. The quite nominal fee is in most cases far less than the combined costs of freight delivery and the dealer’s set-up costs and the machine is delivered “showroom ready.”
At present D & D is servicing over ten dealers in the Los Angeles area and is seeking business out of the immediate area, although it becomes a problem for a dealer too distant from Los Angeles be-
cause the freight costs increase in a nor mal manner when D & D has to deliver beyond a certain range. An example of the costs would be the delivery of a Honda CB-77 to a dealer of approximately 25 miles distance for $15.00. The rate for freight alone by public car rier for this distance is $9.00 so D & D's services appear to be quite advantageous. Woodward is selling the service on the grounds that the effort involved, to say nothing of the labor and mess that it makes of the average cycle shop, in pre paring a machine for display on the floor or delivery to a customer makes the serv ice well worth the nominal costs. Incidentally, the cost varies somewhat and is based on which machine, how the dealer wishes it prepared and the distance to be delivered. Dealers who might be interested can contact Woodward at 2804 Gilroy St., Los Angeles 29, California.
AMA NATIONAL POINT STANDINGS
A total of 32 riders earned National points in the motorcycle season that ended at the National TI' at Ascot in Gardena, California (see full report in this issue), according to the American Motorcycle Association in Columbus, Ohio. The sea son was significant in several ways - for one, the name of Carroll Resweber was not at the top of the list at the end of the year. Also, the amazing Dick Mann rode the Matchless 500cc G-50 and lead the season only to break his hand in a
fall, dropping him to a creditable third overall regardless.
Resweber, who led with 44 points several weeks ago, was thwarted in his attempt to make it five crowns in a row when he was seriously injured in an unthinkable incident at the Five Mile National at Lincoln, 111. Resweber is recuperating in a Milwaukee, Wisconsin, hospital from a leg broken in three places.
Winner in 1962, and new National No. 1, is 27 year old Bart Markel, riding for the Harley-Davidson factory. He won six races, tying Joe Leonard, San Jose, Calif., veteran, for the most national wins in one season. Ronnie Rail, youngster from Mansfield, Ohio, finished a surprising fourth with 27 points, aided by three seconds. Fifth place went to Ralph White of El Cajon, Calif., with 20 points. The following is a summary of the 1962 season.
FINAL 1962 AMA POINT STANDINGS
1 — Bart Markel, Flint, Mich. 58
2 — Carroll Resweber, Cedarburg, Wis. 44
3 — Dick Mann, El Sobrante, Calif. 31
4 — Ronnie Rail, Mansfield, Ohio 27
5 — Ralph White, El Cajon, Calif. 20
6 — Tony Murguia, Key West, Fla. 18
7 — Roger Reiman, Kewanee, III. 17
8 — Richard Hammer, Lakewood, Calif. 17
9 — Don Burnett, Danvers, Mass. 16
10 — Albert Gunter, Alhambra, Calif. 16
11—Jack O’Brien, Santa Monica, Calif. 12
12 — Tom Clark, Knoxville, Tenn. 12
13 — Darrell Dovel, Rosamond, Calif. 11
14 — Dick Dorresteyn, San Pablo, Calif. 9
15 — Larry Schaefer, Clearwater, Fla. 8
16 — Skip Van Leeuwen, Bellflower, Calif. 7
17 — Sid Payne, Bakersfield, Calif. 7
18 — Larry Williamson, Peoria, III. 6
19 — Art Barda, Chicago, III. 6
20 — George Roeder, Monroeville, Ohio 6
21—Jody Nicholas, Nashville, Tenn. 5
22 — Dick Klamfoth, Groveport, Ohio 5
23 — Neil Keen, Pasadena, Calif. 5
24 — Dave Bostrom, Daly City, Calif. 3
25 — Jerry Runge, St. Charles, III. 2
26 — Roland Hedgecock, Alexandria, Va. 2
27 — Stuart Morley, Topanga, Calif. 2
28 — Sammy Tanner, Bellflower, Calif. 2
29 — Ed Kretz, Jr., Monterey Park, Calif. 1
30 — Jim Koplinski, Milwaukee, Wis. 1
31 — Gary Nixon, Ft. Worth, Texas 1
32 — John Platchek, Pottstown, Penn. 1
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HAP'S SCRAMBLE
Distributor promotions vary as much as the weather; some are brassy, overstated and so colorful they hurt your eyes. One extreme exception is Hap's Scramble, pub lished by Hap Jones of the Distributing Company of the same name, in San Fran cisco. He is the impressario of Tohatsu cycles, Avon tires, NGK spark plugs and a number of other products, and Hap's Scramble is his unique way of keeping his dealers informed of activities pertinent to their interest. We especially appreciate the light heart ed, often humorous, approach to an other wise pretty dry subject. The Scramble contains information on victories achieved by users of their products, new products being offered, new models of the line of Japanese motorcycles they handle, and other such items. Dealers not handling products of the Hap Jones Distributing Company are missing something.
JAWA FIELD REPRESENTATIVE Javco Motorcycle Corp., 555 Graham
Ave., Brooklyn 22, New York, Eastern Distributor for Jawa, CZ and Eso cycles, have announced the appointment of Walter E. Dietz as field representative. Mr. Dietz will serve Jawa dealers in the Northern section of the U.S. from mid-Pennsylvania westward to Wisconsin.
Mr. Dietz, well known and respected in motorcycling circles around the country, has been active in his favorite sport since the age of 11. During World War II he was head instructor of motorcycle training at Camp Lee, Virginia and has been connected with just about every phase of the cycle business over his long and distinguished career in cycling.
HARLEY-DAVIDSON TRAIL SCAT
Harley-Davidson has entered the trail scooter (or trail vehicle if you will) field with their new Scat Trail model. Based upon their new Scat 175cc two-stroke motorcycle, the new machine avails itself of several features known heretofore to motorcycles only and a very few trail scooters. Details include; single cylinder, loop scavenged, two-stroke engine of 175cc and 10 hp @ 5,200 rpm with an alloy cylinder; 220 lb. dry weight, 1% gallon tank capacity, 18" tires, three-speed transmission and the new “Glide-Ride” swingarm rear suspension employing coil springs. Its light weight, coupled with the fairly high torque (55 pounds feet) engine
and trail gearing should make it an interesting challenge. We are planning a trail test soon; could be a lot of fun.
THE FIRST 1963 H-D's
Bob Laidlaw of Laidlaw’s Harley-David-
son Sales in South San Gabriel, Calif., sent us the photograph of Elwyn and
Jerry Metzker (Jerry is the Mrs.) of Covina, Calif., purchasers of the first two 1963 FL’s. Laidlaw sent us a rather complete resume of the motorcycling history of Mr. and Mrs. Metzker, starting in 1947 when Elwyn bought his first Harley, a 45 cubic inch machine. The Metzkers ride many of the road runs in California and are ardent cycle fans.
You might wonder why this occasion seems significant enough to mention in these columns . . . well, Mr. Laidlaw felt that there had been too much racing in CYCLE WORLD and that the light-hearted tale of the Metzkers would relieve the situation somewhat. We could not find space for the entire tale, but enjoyed the idea immensely.
BSA RIDER VICTORIES
Three gentlemen are among the many, we are told, who have contributed to the success of BSA’s this season. They are:
Ron Williams of Davison, Michigan, who won the Michigan State Champion ship TT at Bridgeton, Mich. The event was promoted by the Muskegon Motor cycle Club. Williams also won the Expert final event as well as his heat and the Semi in a very fast program;
Jim Collins of Arlington Heights, Illi nois, midwest short track star who is high
point novice rider for the 1962 racing season at the Santa Fe Speedway near Chicago, and well known hotshoe in short track racing in the midwest. According to our reports this rider consistently made the finals at Santa Fe, the only novice rider to achieve this feat as all the other finalists were experts;
Dennis Haven of Ft. Lauderdale, Flor ida, who won the 500cc class in the Florida State Championship road races held at Samsula Airport, Daytona Beach. Dennis, who was formerly a well-known racing star in Florida has come out of temporary retirement and is again making a good name for himself in southern racing.
NATIONAL PARKS OF THE U.S.
Cyclists interested in touring will find interest in the announcement that Alfred A. Knopf, Publisher, will offer a new book titled “The National Parks of the United States,” by Louis A. Bolin, Vice-Chairman of the European Travel Commission and Information Counselor of the Spanish Embassy in Washington, D.C. The book has been translated from the Spanish by Herbert Weinstock, and is illustrated with 17 full-page photographs and a map of the National Park system.
“The National Parks of the United States” is a succinct and detailed account by a Spaniard of our National Park Service, its policies, services, and functions. Mr. Bolin, a noted conservationalist in Spain as well as this country, has visited each one of our 30 National Parks, including those in the new states, Alaska and Hawaii, and the present study includes a description of each individual park as well as many national monuments, historical parks, battlefield sites, and other points of interest. Originally published as “Parques Nacionales Nortemericanos,” Mr. Bolin’s book served first to acquaint his countrymen with our National Park system, and to introduce proposals that Spain organize its own park system after our model, in order to improve the conservation of wildlife and natural resources in that country.
Mr. Bolin’s appreciation for our parks is infectious, and most valuable for Americans in revealing to us through the objective eyes of a European the quality and importance of an institution in our country which we tend to take for granted.#
