Letters
LETTERS
125 MPH BSA
I'm a little confused. In your November issue the road test of the BSA Spitfire Hornet stated that it had a top speed of only 102 mph. I read a previous road test on the same bike stating the top speed as being 125 mph. Being a BSA man for several years, would you please explain the difference?
DOUGLAS KERR Zion, Illinois The "road test" you read, in Hot Rod magazine quoted speedometer readings, "various readings taken between 125 and 130 mph," and described the Lighting Rocket, street version of the Spitfire Hornet. BS A's Spitfire Hornet, as we tested it, was geared for 7500 rpm at about 100 mph; electronically timed it achieved 102 mph. It did not mount a speedometer; had it, we would have been too busy at that speed to even notice what the notoriously inaccurate instrument had to say.—Ed.
OVER OPTIMISM
In your December issue you stated that the Bridgestone 175 test would be contained in the following issue, along with Part 2 of the "Ducati For Racing." It would seem to me that you would try harder to get these articles in the printing than you would others that were not reported to be. Would you please give me your reasons for such actions.
JOHN A. EVANS Pittsburg, Kansas Our "reasons for such actions" are quite simple: the Bridgestone was late arriving, though it was promised faithfully; the Ducati took far longer than we realized to prepare properly for publication. We do not take such things lightly and wanted to make certain, with thorough testing, that it was ready—Ed.
DISGUSTED HONDA READER
I found your Honda 305 scrambler road test disgusting. I have one, and it seems like every time you test a Honda you complain about .it. You clocked it at 79 mph in the quarter, and a Honda 250 scrambler is supposed to do 80 mph in the quarter.
I had my Honda 305 clocked in the quarter and it did 84 mph, and you said it would not help any to take the baffles out. Ha, I beat just about every 250 on the market, but as for performance I got 30 mph in 2.0 seconds, so put that in your pipe and smoke it.
GREG RONDONE Norwalk, Calif.
Puff, puff; boy, what are you smoking in your pipe. Either that or we should have had your machine to test—Ed.
TRUE APPRECIATION
Regarding my subscription refund, do not trouble to refund to me, now or at any other time, small discrepancies that may occur in your favor. But, rather, apply them to strengthen the coffers of a publication, the likes of which constitute a veritable island-refuge in the sea of profit-motivated illiteracy that engulfs the medium.
JUAN RAELO Montreal, Canada
ODE TO A SINGLE
Will you consider my work of literary genius (?) for your fine magazine? This is an exclusive work for CW, as my dog ate the other copy. In the event of a rejection, could you please send a rejection slip so that I may show my friends how boss I are?
MY VELO I own a thumper, a jumper, a romper, a pumper
A smoker, a stroker, no joker, hate to
choke'er She's a real oiler, a bad boiler Her beauty is exceeded only by the physical fluidity she contains in flight The beauty of this physical geometric fluidity is nearly equal to her sensitive spiritual class of pure bossness The clearness of her heart is contrasted by
her brazen song She is too unique, for what has more oneness than a single Awareness of her technical correctness with
the crack of her pulses never quits What is more unique than the courage of a single?
CRAIG FERICH Lancaster, Penna.
450, X-6, AD INFINITUM
Your October issue, on page 7, contains an advertisement on the Suzuki X-6 Hustler. In this they say the puny 250 can outrun a Honda 450 in a quarter mile. Are they real? I own a 450 and I challenge any 250 Suzuki to back up what they say. I had a Honda 305 Super Hawk which was stock except for a close ratio transmission. It would turn the quarter in 15 seconds flat! I know for a fact that my 450 would clean 305's greens. I've already outrun a Triumph 650 and intend to outrun more after I get some megaphones.
I wish you could run another 450 test so you could see my point. Or better yet, get another X-6 and a 450 and drag them. I must point out another mistake. On page 34 of the same issue you show a 305 scrambler, look again; a 305 has a wider and longer back fender, N'est-ce pas? If you try to worm your way out of saying that it's not a 250, look again! On the back cover the engine in the Honda ad clearly reads 247cc. I believe this is an error on the part of Honda and not yours. If you are afraid to print this letter please answer me at the enclosed address.
JIM THOMPSON Birmingham, Ala.
If you read CYCLE WORLD often, you would realize we are afraid of very little. First of all, the Suzuki advertisement lists the speed attained during our road test, but achieved by a non-CW staff rider weighing about 120 pounds, as we mentioned in passing. Yoshio Itoh reached almost 87 mph, in 14.82 seconds, and if you would care to try to beat that, maybe U.S. Suzuki would arrange it. We ran two 450 tests; it simply will not go any faster! Perhaps one of our readers will be happy to meet you on the field of battle and settle it. Our 305 scrambler was indeed a 305; because the advertisement showed another number is irrelevant. There really is more than one 305 scrambler, truly!—Ed.
(Continued on page 34)
... in your October issue, page 7 shows an advertisement saying that the Suzuki X-6 is .09 seconds faster than the Honda 450 tested the month before. This is not your fault, you print what the advertisers want, they pay the bills! Isn't there something that can be done about using tricks such as 95-pound riders and hop-up fuels, to keep the prospective buyer from getting something he really doesn't want?
I didn't like the test on the Honda 450 Japanese version. It is not your fault that all you can get out of it is 102 mph, but why do other companies downgrade it? PFC. KURT SLEE APO 96571, San Francisco, Calif.
DON'T GIVE UP
When your magazine came out it was like a fresh breath of spring. Your closest competitor is so far behind in every respect that he might as well pack up his 74 and trundle off into the sunset, or where -ever it is that narrow-minded editors trundle off to. I enjoy CW, if you don't mind the comparison, just as much as I do my Playboy. The road tests are superb, and, I believe, unbiased. You don't have nearly enough pages; it takes me about two hours to completely devour it and then I spend another hour going back, reading the advertisements. After that I've got another 30 days to wait. I am with you 100% concerning your views of the AMA. All I can say is, don't give up.
Please allow me to thank you for the kind treatment you gave Jim Enz in your November issue. He deserves all of the recognition he can get.
LEONARD W. OCHS Maple Shade, N.J.
SAFETY BELTS AGAIN
The letter from a group of engineers from Dearborn (December CW "Letters"), reminds of an old saying: "The world's greatest motorcycle safety experts are always the ones who have never ridden one in their lives." Boy, I've heard it all now! Safety belts on motorcycles! I wonder how one of these guys would feel if someone strapped him securely to a motorcycle and turned him loose in the traffic?
C. W. BRAZILLE Fort Worth, Texas
NIGERIAN SWAPPER
I shall be very happy if you could lend me the hospitality of your columns to publish my request for a trader in your widely read journal. I have been hearing that you are meticulous in publishing letters from people in foreign lands in order that people of your own land may know what he or she wants from them.
These are the articles I want to trade; handbags, slippers, belts and wallets made from crocodile or snake skins, etc. Ebony carvings in the shape of human heads. Elephant daggers, knives and wall plaques. Cow, leopard, crocodile and ram skins. Also African spoons, dolls, combs, etc. Letters must be answered air mail and I would like to see a picture. I send my greetings to you all and a happy Christmas in advance (amen), lots of luck to you.
E. A. OYEGBOLA 6 Akijufe St.
Otto Via Iddd.
Lagos, Nigeria
... AND FROM ENGLAND
I am secretary of the Maico owners club. We have 45 members owning Maicoletta scooters, also one Blizzard and two 400cc Taifuns. We issue newsletters and magazines to our members, attend field rallies, and compete in various road trials. As yet we have no members from abroad, but nothing is impossible. Latest craze is scooter sprinting (dragging), lowest e.t. is 17.6 seconds for the quarter with a stripped 247cc machine. We would like to correspond with Maico owners in the U.S., we'll reply to all letters.
MALCOLM STEVENS 20 Effra Road London SW 19, England
UNCOVERING A SPECIAL
I thought you might be interested in a shot of an early attempt by one American manufacturer at building a drag bike. Note the extra wide slick on the rear and the heavy front end to keep the wheelies down to a minimum. I wonder why this model never made the market? Seriously, this piece of nonsense was found while nosing around a highway construction site.
VICTOR CORBO Somerville, N.J.
CHAMPION SUGGESTION
I have one suggestion: in picking the National Champion let them be selected by the money they win. Like the cowboys are selected. Then, have one big race of the top 30 money winners at the end of the season.
LLOYD NIXON Bethany, Oklahoma PS: Gary Nixon, National No. 9, is my son.
Race horses are often rated the same way; for them it's okay as that is their single purpose in life; to win money. We would rather see the National Championship standings be awarded in various categories; road racing, flattrack, short track, TT, scrambles, trials, etc., much the same as in Europe. This would allow the best riders in all categories to achieve national fame, rather than narrow the field down to only those who are fairly good at all forms of com petition hut amass points in areas where the most points are given. To be a high ranking rider these days a man need mainly to finish high in several long distance road races and a few other events. -Ed.
(Continued on page 36)
THE SAME OLD STORY
Before you again test one of the H-D Sportsters, please be sure the machine is adequately broken in as these machines are noted for a much larger proportional change in performance than the English vertical twins. This, added to the fact that these motors, like the BMW, have a long life expectancy, if ridden sanely, and a required break-in period of a duration more like a smaller car than the British twins, has caused a group of your fans to wonder if the smoky XLH was at least adequately, if not completely, run in.
JOHN A. WAKEFIELD
Big Ames, Iowa As we described in our June issue, in answer to the letter of Carl Weis, the HarleyDavidson XLH, as all of the Harley-Davidsons we have tested before, was fully prepared and broken-in at the factory. We go to great lengths to make certain the machines we test are broken in and tuned as well as possible—Ed.
WANT TO JOIN A CLUB?
We, the members of the Pensacola Cycle Club, are in the process of soliciting new members. We would like to become the largest club in the U.S.; we are now the most active and largest in our part of the country. We have 48 active members and will top 50 soon.
On the left in the picture is Miss Pat Pierce who is presently Miss Pensacola, at the right is Mrs. Nancee Biersma, secretary of our club, wife of our VP, a former Miss Minnesota and also a winner of the Miss America bathing suit contest in 1962. How's that for old married folks?
We meet at Sam's Cycle Shop, 4011 Navy Blvd., every Friday, and, weather permitting, ride somewhere. We would like to invite all riders across the country to drop in and visit. We are on the way if you drive to Daytona.
POLLY ANN MUNNERLEY Pensacola, Florida
BONNEVILLE CRITIC
It was interesting to note the "complete" Bonneville coverage in your November issue. You show pictures of nearly every bike that competed this year. Many of those shown are record breakers and some are not, all of which are worth mention for we both know how much work and expense is involved to run at Bonneville.
The interesting part of your report was the lack of any coverage of two bikes from the Eastern part of the country, one of which was the fastest gas bike on the salt this year and brought two records back East, competing in the 3000cc fuel class while running on gas. The other bike, although not a record breaker, does hold the present record in its class and did manage to run over 166 mph one way, which would make it the fastest to run on the salt, unstreamlined, this year.
Not fast for the machines but very quick for H-Ds on the terribly wet salt. It makes one wonder if there isn't some truth to some of the letters you receive. But then we don't have eight-valve twins, or bump off to the delight of onlookers.
DON MARSHALL Barrington, R.I.
Nor do the eight-valve or other machines have dirty phrases lettered on their fairings, reason enough for us to "slightly" overlook them.—Ed.
WORTHY PROJECT
Thank you for publishing a magazine that every enthusiast can enjoy. I am starting a cycle club at our church and need all the help I can get in the way of program ideas and reference material. Working on a budget of zero makes this exceptionally difficult so I am writing to ask if any of your readers could send me appropriate material in the form of catalogs, brochures, books, manuals, charts, etc. Any help the church can receive for the support of the club would be greatly appreciated.
BILL STONER 2205 Magnolia Ave. Manhattan Beach, Calif.
COMPREHENSIVE COMMENTS
Despite the precedent set by the world's best known historical work in noting a reversal of common practice and contrary to what seems to be your readers' M.O. of tossing a few darts at the leather-covered rump before the olive branch is tendered; I should like to, at the outset of this communication, make known my feelings about CYCLE WORLD.
The most striking feature of your magazine, to my mind, is its comprehensive coverage of the entire cycling scene. Your ability to assess the events and developments on the Continent and in Great Britain, and to present only items of significance in their proper perspective, not only speaks highly of your judgment and scope, but also places you laps ahead of your elderly competitor who shall remain nameless. (Elderly "Cycle" magazine is only about 11! —Ed.)
The various aspects of motorcycling are presented in a readable style and serve to inform the motorcyclist of important sport happenings and recent technical advances, as well as the new products being offered to him to enable: him to make his time in the saddle more safe, productive, or exciting.
(Please don't let this go to your head, my comments on the road tests are coming!)
(Continued on page 38)
Your coverage of European race meetings is excellent, but a more systematic approach to race reporting is needed. Although the present reports, in the usual narrative form are interesting to read, the actual physical aspects of the race could be greatly enhanced by the addition of a lap chart and a chart of the starting positions complete with practice times. I realize a multi-lap chart on a short track would be a real space eater, but perhaps one could be presented on occasion for an event like the Isle of Man or another race on a long circuit.
On the subject of road tests, two items I would like to see included in the data panel are: fuel consumption, and the angle a machine can be leaned over before some part thereof touches the ground. A substitute could be: range of the machine on one tank of gasoline.
Rather than present my thesis on what types of machines you should road test, and then defend them, I'd prefer to take the short route (like the late Harry Schell at Sebring), and make a few nominations.
1. Norton ES-400 (my present bike).
2. Greeves East Coaster.
3. Ariel Leader.
4. Dunstall Dominator 88 or 99.
5. Enfield, any new 250.
6. Cotton Cobra or Conquest.
I have no complaints about your photography, a great relief I'm sure, and your covers are excellent. Needless to say I would be grateful if any action, other than civil, was taken because of any or all of my suggestions, which are offered purely as constructive criticism, but if none is forthcoming I shall continue to buy and read your very good magazine.
PATRICK J. DOHERTY
Halifax, Nova Scotia Rarely do we receive such well thoughtout comments, so we will begin by thanking reader Doherty profoundly. We have thought about several elements of his criticisms before and we are indeed working on a major revision of our race reporting for the forthcoming season. Lap charts are extremely difficult to obtain under any condition, due to the almost impossible task of keeping the lengthy and involved record during the race. This is especially hard in races run in Europe where we cannot supply a full staff (as much as they would like going over to make them). Fuel consumption is another facet we would like to list in our tests, but in this instance the hard-to-come-by commodity is time. We will continue to chew on the problems and their solutions. Your favorite bikes are a little hard to come by also; the Norton is no longer available in the U.S., Greeves does not stock the East Coaster out here where we can get at it (and probably wouldn't let us have it if they did), Ariel is not distributed in the U.S. any more, we have requested the Dunstall Dominator and will have more to tell on this later, Enfield is not bringing anything new in lately, and the Cotton is on the way.—Ed.
MOTORCYCLE MYSTIQUE
Why do we all ride motorcycles? Is it the distinction we acquire from the herd? The speed, the ease of moving and parking in crowded cities? The mythical man-andsteed? Certainly these and many more. Yet all of us, whatever our reasons, do not ride perfectly silently. On the contrary, to varying degrees, all of us spend time and effort creating a particular sound for our mounts, or pay attention to the sound of prospective purchases. The YDS-3 with its popping-cum-scream; the Sportster with its strangled roar; the Trumpet (sic) with its crisp snarl; even the BMW — its hoarse hum punctuated by the crunch of gearchanges . . . all, however they might differ in other respects, are identical in one — the importance we attach to their sound.
Personally, and for everyday use, I prefer the sound of a four-stroke single. My own favorite is 125cc with open-ended Silentium — a combination which I have found to create maximum tonal sensitivity to rpm. A strong second would be a large single, preferably the largest — namely the 650cc Panther, with its twin Burgess mufflers. There is nothing quite like the incredibly slow thumping of these rare machines as they pull ponderously away from a stoplight.
Perhaps my thought might be of interest to your readers, some of whom, I'm sure, may be in danger of succumbing to the lures of high-revving, multi-cylinder mills emitting constant-pitch tinny whines.
DAVID FAIRCHILD
Cambridge, Mass. —
