Sanjose National

SANJOSE NATIONAL

Jim Rice Wins The Battle, But Mert Lawwill Is Winning The War.

DAN HUNT

THE DASH for national points on the AMA circuit is maddening this year. The lead changes nearly every week, sometimes due to mishap, sometimes due to the new 750 rule obtaining for flat track competition, not to forget road racer Rayborn’s intrusions. One thing sure: the top 10 places are not dominated by Harley-Davidson, as they were last year (with Gary Nixon the sole interloper).

The 20-mile Expert national at San Jose went to Northern Californian Jim Rice (BSA), who practically owned the proper groove on this track a year ago when he was an Amateur. Gary Nixon’s right hand, injured at Loudon, is still too weak to cope with his infamous two-piece hand exerciser, but it had healed well enough to gas him to 2nd place. Mert Lawwill, thoroughly accustomed to the San Jose piste, took a strategic 3rd place in the final, which bounced him into the lead for national points (332).

Rice and Fred Nix were tied for third fastest qualifier. The fastest was firstyear Expert Dave Smith, who had recently surprised the Ascot regulars with a pair of wins on his 750 Norton. Smith fared poorly in his heat at San Jose, however. The track, in spite of surface chipping, was yielding fairly fast times. Smith turned a 27.61, and the next four riders, Nixon, Rice, Nix and Dick Mann, were less than a quarter of a second away from him. Rather interesting it is that the horsepower brigade composed itself predominately of vertical 750 and 650 Twins, rather than the H-Ds, which heretofore have had a good time of it powering out of San Jose’s narrow turns.

Bart Markel, riding his “Twingle” (a traditional 750 flathead V-twin which sounds like an overstuffed G-50, because it’s specially timed to fire 45 degrees apart and then wheeze to clean things out), turned in a so-so 28.13. But, as he put it while clomping around the track for a look-see with Bugsy, there are two ways to ride—on the groove with everybody else or “speculative.” What better place to speculate than in qualifying?

“Looks like we gotta do it,” said Bugsy, who also was in a speculative mood.

The first Expert heat went to Fred Nix, whose H-D was going fast and handling extremely well. Jimmy Odom, who cut low 28s on his Triumph, pulled off a 2nd. Markel speculated his way backwards at first, then forwards past Gene Romero and Dallas Baker to win 3rd place —the remaining transfer position.

Gary Nixon won Heat 2 handily after jostling back and forth with Mark Brelsford. Harley rider Brelsford is a continual amazement, not merely because he is fast, but because he is extremely businesslike and smooth for a first-year Expert. Order: Nixon, Mann, Brelsford.

The third heat was interupted briefly by a crash, which littered Shorty Seabourne cum Gold Star and another rider all over the track. Shorty was carted away for a look at possible leg injuries. Then, on the rerun, Mert Lawwill resumed where he left off and won the heat, followed by Rice and Romero.

The Expert Semi looked like a walkaway for Eddie Wirth, tight grooving ahead of Chuck Palmgren, Paul Bostrom and Cal Rayborn. Then, in a freak moment, his drifting BSA caught a hair too much traction and he bounced his hand and shoulder off one of the inside rail posts, at which point he retired to the pits in extreme agony and self-recrimination. So “Pomegranate,” Bostrom and Rayborn took the last available spots on the main event starting grid.

Rice was an instant success in the 20-mile feature. He grabbed the lead and strung it out further and further ahead of Nixon, Rayborn, Lawwill, Romero, Palmgren, Brelsford, etc. What happened to Odom, Nix and Markel? Bummer, mainly. They were at the back trying to figure out why, after the pains were taken at the rider’s meeting to say that the starter had to be in the appropriate white box to commence the proceedings, the starter didn’t get in the box as announced.

Meanwhile, Rayborn, appearing to bounce a lot over the bumps, was slowly knifing his way backwards. Bugsy Mann worked steadily forward, as did Markel; neither had to depend exclusively on the groove, because of their previous ground work. Nix, seemingly set up for the groove, could make no headway after the disheartening start, and being a dusty last-out of the money and out of the points range—threw in the towel rather than waste his motor.

At the finish, Rice led by a quarter followed by Nixon, Lawwill, Mann, Romero, Palmgren, Markel, Brelsford, Rayborn, Odom and Bostrom. Nix rightfully paid his $20 to protest the start; he didn’t care so much about the purse, which he figured should be paid, since the race had been run. He was more concerned that national points should not be awarded on the basis of the starter’s violation of an explicitly declared rule. As could be expected, his protest was refused by the referee. So he appealed. Undoubtedly the appeal will be dealt with in the same manner as was Dick Mann’s appeal at Loudon,

which is to say zilch.

EXPERT FINAL

1. JIM RICE .....................BSA

2. GARY NIXON ............. Triumph

3. MERT LAWWILL ...............H-D

4. DICK MANN...................BSA

5. GENE ROMERO............ Triumph

6. CHUCK PALMG REN ........ Triumph

7. BART MARKEL ................H-D

8. MARK BRELSFORD ............H-D

9. CAL RAYBORN ................H-D

AMA TEUR FINAL

1. DON CASTRO ............. Triumph

2. DAVE ALDANA................BSA

3. NICK THEREUX .............Honda

4. KEN BOYER .............. Triumph

5. BOB HAYNES .................H-D

6. KEITH MASHBURN..........Yamaha