blue ridge pathfinder

Carolinas White Lightning Cross Country Classic Prayers answered. Promises kept.

Max Richardson Triumph TR5T Trophy Trail

Tony Powers photo. www.rsp.exposuremanager.com

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The Blue Ridge Pathfinder

The Blue Ridge Pathfinder is published by the Blue Ridge Pathfinders Motorcycle Club, Inc. Subscriptions are free to all club members, corporate members, and sport/industry leaders who have an active interest in OHV clubs. Materials may be reprinted without permission; credit would be appreciated. Submissions of articles and information are welcome.

The Blue Ridge Pathfinder 3224 Sparrow Springs Road Gastonia, NC 28052-9233

Officers

President & Newsletter Editor Al Roof (704) 228-7210 E-mail: [email protected] Vice President Darrell Garrison (704) 822-0248 E-Mail: [email protected] Secretary/Treasurer Stacey Wakefield (704) 549-0920 E-Mail: [email protected]

Blue Ridge Pathfinder – Summer 2010

The sixth annual Armenia Dual Sport Ride, benefiting the Armenia United Methodist Church, near Lowrys, South Carolina, took place on Sunday, May 16, 2010. Staging from the rural home of organizer Marvin Grant near Lowrys, South Carolina, the Armenia Dual Sport Ride is one of the very favorite events of dual sport enthusiast in the Carolinas. More like an enduro without scor-ing and timekeeping, this ride treats riders to 80 miles of diverse terrain ranging from slick clay hills, sandy bottoms, tight trails in hardwood groves, and even tighter trails laid out on countless acres of planted pine trees. Backcountry roads and woods roads connect the woods section. This is one ride street legal knob-bies are the order of the day. All profits from the ride go to benefit the Church, which is just up the road from Marvin’s place. The first Armenia Church was built in 1843 and consisted of one room with shutters which could be opened to let the cool breezes in dur-

ing the summer. The present struc-ture was built during the Great De-pression and took almost 8 years to build out of donated materials. Raft-ers and joists are rough sawn lumber

bolted together to form the roof. Average worship attendance at the church is 69 people, most of those elderly. Needless to say, the fiscal boost from the annual dual sport event is very welcomed. According to Grant “We in this community have really been blessed with donations pouring in for our renovations.” After last year’s dual sport ride the total towards the church’s Building Fund reached over $38,000, with not only the profits from the Dual Sport ride being the biggest source, but news of the ride and it’s cause generated additional donations from the motorcycling community to combine bolster traditional funding from memorials, honorariums, etcet-eras. Funded renovations to date in-clude the addition of a front porch, more gently rising steps, and, most importantly, an elevator for the handi-capped. Ever humble Marvin recently told this reporter “I was recently surprised on a Sunday with a plaque and stand-ing ovation for the work I've been do-

ing for my church. It was all I could do to hold back the tears. I was deeply humbled to say the least. “ Continued on Page 9

Sixth Annual Armenia Dual Sport Ride…..The best ever! By Al Roof

Armenia United Methodist Church prior to renovations.

Armenia United Methodist Church following renovations , funded, in large part, by the ride, including a elevator for the handi-capped.

and I are still waiting for our bonus checks from South Carolina’s Depart-ment of Agriculture and Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism. So, for the past fifteen months we had been fervently praying for dry Continued on Page 4

Carolinas White Lightning Cross Country Classic Prayers answered. Promises kept. By Al Roof


Over the weekend of June 26 and 28, riders from as far south as Port St. Lucie, Florida, as far north as Wausau, Wisconsin, and as far west as Combs, Arkansas made the trek to Brushy Mountain Motor Sports Park to attend the second annual Carolinas White Lightning Cross Country Classic, rounds ten and eleven of the American Historic Rac-i n g M o t o r c yc l e A s s oc ia t i on (AHRMA) / Penton Owners’ Group National Cross Country Champion-ship Series. Established in the Spring of 2002 by developer Richard Mull, Brushy Mountain Motor Sports Park is North Carolinas premiere privately-owned commercial off-highway vehicle park. The park consists of over 1,700 acres with over 50 miles of trails nestled in the the beautiful Brushy Mountains of North Carolina, in Alexander County, near Taylorsville. Trails range from intermediate to expert with elevations ranging from 1300-2500’ above sea level. All the trails are heavily wooded and offer challenges for all levels of rider ex-pertise. There's also a youth trail, a beau-tiful natural terrain motocross practice track and a challenging ArenaCross area.

Last March, the inaugural Caroli-nas White Lighting Cross Country Classic, held at K & S Kartway near Fountain Inn, South Carolina, single handily brought a miraculous end to worst drought Upstate South Carolina had seen in 800 years1. Greg Holder

Tony Powers photo. www.rsp.exposuremanager.com

Vintage +60 Intermediate winner Dwight Gill of Randallstown, Maryland on his beautifully prepared 1975 Penton Hare Scrambler 250. Luana Kirby photo

1964 & 1965 500cc World Motocross Champion Jeff Smith (Vintage +70 Expert) on the outstand-ing creek crossing created by Blue Ridge Pathfinders Ray Lewis and Blair Young.

Tony Powers photo ~ www.rsp.exposuremanager.com

weather. Praise be and hallelujah!…. our prayers were answered, and mud was never an issue at this year‘s event! Unfortunately, we were remiss in praying for cooler temperatures than the normal average high of 86° when AHRMA scheduled our race for late June. So, it was HOT and dry. Ironically, Brushy Mountain Motor Sports Park was my and Greg Holder’s first choice of sites for our inaugural event last year, but after an a unfortunate and lengthy series of miscommunications, on December 10, 2008, both Brushy Mountain Mo-tor Sports Park, LLC and my Blue Ridge Pathfinders Motorcycle Club declined their previous offer to host an AHRMA event. So, Greg, having promised his fellow AHRMA competi-tors an event in the Carolinas, had to take it upon himself to find another venue. Thus, K & S Kartway. So, holding our second annual event at BMMS Park was one prom-ise, from almost two years ago, finally kept. Also last year, Greg and I had planned from the inception to use quart sized “White Lightning” jars with

specially produced labels as trophies. Again, another unfortunate miscom-munication led to that idea being scrapped, along with our promise of unique trophies. This year, although the AHRMA Executive Director had already placed an order for the afore-mentioned award plaques, just three week prior to our event, the Cross Country Coordinator implored his now famous skills of influence to see that our original “White Lightning” jars, promised last year, were used. So, with frantic effort, I took on the chal-lenge of producing the unique tro-phies, another one of our promises from last year was kept. ISDT veteran Holder laid out one heck of a six-and-a-half mile race course on Section C of the park. Rid-ers were treated to a variety of terrain from sand, to hard packed clay, loamy Laurel groves, and sections of loose, round rocks. Elevation changes were breathtaking, and spe-cial consideration of forty year old drum brakes was employed when de-termining the particular direction trav-eled on the steep hills littered with challenging switchbacks. Blue Ridge Pathfinders Ray Lewis and Blair Young did us proud by constructing one of the most sce-

nic, fun, and environmentally respon-sible creek crossings I have ever seen. Racers, spectators, and pho-tographers alike were enamoured with this wonderful and photogenic section of the course. Seven time ISDT/ISDE medalist, and eight time class champion in the AMA National Enduro Series Dwight Rudder shared a particularly funny story with me: “I was talking to Tommy Veator after the race Sunday and he stated that he was amazed. I asked about what and he said that old guys and old bikes went so fast.’ I laughed!” Tommy is a Southern En-duro & Trail Riders Association (SE&TRA) AA +40 racer. Tommy got second in Saturday’s Post Vintage 200 Expert race on a Honda XR200 and won Sunday’s race in the same class. Dwight got third overall in Sat-urday’s Sportsman Open Expert on his Penton Jackpiner and Post Vin-tage 200 Expert races on his Honda XR200, and won Sunday’s Sports-man Open Expert race and vintage overall for the day. Cool Bike Awards, constructed from one gallon glass jugs, complete with thumb-grip pour control and stoppers marked “XXX“, were Continued on Page 5


Carolinas White Lightning Cross Country Classic Continued from Page 3

Bill Schaefer and his lovely daughter Holly worked tirelessly and diligently all weekend to insure that all guest were properly greeted, made welcome, and informed. I’m not sure how I will ever repay them.

Photo by Dana Rucker

awarded each day. Fred Ziglar’s beautiful Blue 1978 Bultaco 370 Fron-tera won Saturday’s Cool Bike Award, while Bill Ryburn’s wonderful steel tanked Penton 125 took home the prize on Sunday. Bill’s bike was be-queathed to him by his late brother, who was the original owner of the bike and competed on it in many an enduro “back in the day.” Financially the second annual Carolina White Lightning Cross Country Classic was an exercise in

futility, but the joy it gave many friends, new and old alike, made the months of effort, injury and illness worthwhile. However, considering the overall lack of participation by AHRMA cross country races and lack of fiscal justification, this was proba-bly the last AHRMA event Brushy Mountain Motor Sports Park and I will ever be involved with. However, we are considering an American version of Australia’s premier vintage and classic dirt bike event “Suzuki Classic

Dirt” held at this very site sometime in the Fall of 2011. I hope you all will make plans to attend.

1 http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/south-carolina-drought-47022505

2 ht tp: / /www.dir top ia.com/wik i/Brushy_Mountain

Results – Round 10 – Saturday

Classic Expert 1. Max Richardson, Triumph

Classic Intermediate 1. Johnny Deans Jr., Triumph 2. Chuck Reuben Penton

Classic Novice 1. William Ryburn, Penton 2. Charles Goman, Ossa

Sportsman 200 Expert 1. Brian Kirby, Penton

Sportsman 200 Intermediate 1. Lee Stebleton, Can-Am

Sportsman Open Expert 1. Wesley Miller, Ossa 2. Matt Ev-ans, Honda 3. Dwight Rudder, Pen-ton

Vintage +60 Expert 1. Teddy Landers, Penton

Vintage +60 Intermediate 1. Dwight Gill, Penton

Vintage +70 Expert 1. Zahn Lewis, Suzuki 2. Jeff Smith, Can-Am

Historic 200 Novice 1. Arthur Hart, Husqvarna

Historic Open Expert 1. Wesley Miller, Penton 2. Eric Rigby , Yamaha 3. Brian Kirby, Pen-ton

Post Vintage 200 Expert 1. Darin Zaremba, Yamaha 2. Tommy Veator, Honda 3. Dwight Rudder, Honda 4. Bob Morris, Ya-maha

Post Vintage 200 Intermediate 1. Matthew Terry, Yamaha

Post Vintage Open Expert 1. Matt Evans, Suzuki

Continued on Page 6


Carolinas White Lightning Cross Country Classic Continued from Page 4

Pathfinders Dana Rucker, Jr. (on Al Roof’s 1981 Honda XL500SXR) and Andrew Lineberger did an outstanding job as sweep and assistance riders, as did Andrew‘s Dad David. Dana took four days vacation from the Union Country Sheriff’s Department in order to provide me priceless assis-tance the entire weekend. Tony Powers photo ~ www.rsp.exposuremanager.com

Carolinas White Lightning Cross Country Classic


Post Vintage 200 Expert 1. Tommy Veator, Honda 2. Darin Zaremba, Yamaha 3. Bob Morris, Yamaha

Post Vintage 200 Intermediate 1. Matthew Terry, Yamaha

Post Vintage Open Expert 1. Matt Evans, Suzuki

Post Vintage Open Intermediate 1. Ed Kinney, Yamaha 2. Jim Kuhns, Maico

Post Vintage +50 Expert 1. Mike MacEachern, Husqvarna

Post Vintage +50 Intermediate 1. James Radcliff, Honda 2. Roger Ford, Honda 3. Lee Stebleton, Husqvarna 4. Kenny Haynes, Honda

Post Vintage +60 Novice 1. Fred Ziglar, Bultaco

Post Vintage +60 Expert 1. Teddy Landers, KTM

Post Vintage +60 Intermediate 1. Fred Veator, Honda 2. Lee Clark, Husqvarna 3. Gary Travis, Honda 4. Lynn Burton, Yamaha

Post Vintage +70 Expert 1. Zahn Lewis, Honda

Post Vintage +70 Intermediate 1. Joe Terry, Honda 2. Paul Busick, Suzuki.

The Kickstand’s Lee Clark, of Jackson, Mississippi, rides to a second place finish in Sunday’s Post Vintage +60 Intermediate race. Tony Powers photo ~ www.rsp.exposuremanager.com

Post Vintage Open Intermediate 1. Ed Kinney, Yamaha 2. Jim Kuhns, Maico

Post Vintage +50 Expert 1. Mike MacEachern, Husqvarna

Post Vintage +50 Intermediate 1. James Radcliff, Honda 2. Roger Ford, Honda 3. Charles Mayfield, Bultaco 4. Lee Stebleton, Husqvarna 5. Kenny Haynes, Honda

Post Vintage +50 Novice 1. John Slivka, Can-Am

Post Vintage +60 Expert 1. Teddy Landers, KTM

Post Vintage +60 Intermediate 1. Fred Veator, Honda 2. Lee Clark, Husqvarna 3. Bill Goldsby, Husqvarna 4. Lynn Burton, Yamaha 5. Gary Travis, Honda

Post Vintage +60 Novice 1. Fred Ziglar, Bultaco

Post Vintage +70 Expert 1. Zahn Lewis, Honda

Post Vintage +70 Intermediate 1. Joe Terry, Honda 2. Paul Busick, Suzuki.

Results – Round 11 – Sunday

Classic Expert 1. Max Richardson, Triumph

Classic Intermediate 1. Scott Thompson, Triumph 2. Johnny Deans Jr., Triumph

Classic Novice 1. William Ryburn, Penton 2. Charles Goman, Ossa

Sportsman 200 Expert 1. Brian Kirby, Penton

Sportsman 200 Intermediate 1. Lee Stebleton, Can-Am

Sportsman Open Expert 1. Dwight Rudder, Penton 2. Matt Ev-ans, Honda

Vintage +50 Novice 1. Dale Van DeVen, Yamaha

Vintage +60 Expert 1. Teddy Landers, Penton

Vintage +60 Intermediate 1. Dwight Gill, Penton

Vintage +70 Expert 1. Jeff Smith, Can-Am 2. Zahn Lewis, Suzuki

Historic 200 Novice 1. Arthur Hart, Husqvarna

Historic Open Expert 1. Eric Rigby

Johnson City Tennessee’s Wesley Miller was the fastest vintage rider on Saturday, winning the Historic Open Expert class on his well prepared Ossa 250 Phantom.

Tony Powers photo ~ www.rsp.exposuremanager.com

Samuel "Sammy" Garrison Samuel "Sammy" Garrison, 81, of Belmont, passed away June 11, 2010, at Gaston Memorial Hospital. A Gaston County native, Mr. Gar-rison was born May 23, 1929, son of the late Edward and Ella Mae Reep Garrison. Sammy was a US Army veteran of World War II and was awarded the World War II Victory Medal. He was a member of First Baptist Church of Cramerton, a member of Belmont Masonic Lodge #627, and a member of the Oasis Shriners where he was in the clown unit. Mr. Garrison was formerly em-ployed with Reece Hardware in Cramerton and had retired from Westinghouse of Charlotte. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his sisters, Ruth Brandon, Margaret Gaddis, Bertha "Bert" Bridges, Bobbie Green, and Sarah Garrison. He is survived by his loving wife of 54 years, Ruth Sarvis Garrison of the home; son, Darrell Garrison and wife Phyllis of Mount Holly; daughter, Sandra Green and husband Clint of Suffolk, Virginia; sister, Mary Young and husband Roy of Cramerton; grandchildren, Amy Green of Suffolk, Virginia, T.C. Green of Columbus, Georgia, Joshua Garrison and wife Jenna of Mount Holly. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Shriners Children's Hos-pital c/o Oasis Shrine Temple, 604 Doug Mayes Place, Charlotte NC 28262 or The Masonic Home for Chil-dren at Oxford, 600 College St., Ox-ford, NC 27565.

Lori Ann Watters Kahn Born June 26, 1966, in Catawba County, she was a daughter of Brenda Frye Spears and the late James Donald Watters. Mrs. Kahn was a 1984 graduate of Fred T. Foard High School. She was very artistic and her hobbies in-cluded art, music and writing poetry. A woman who was always smiling and soft-hearted, she loved life even through the fight with her illness. She is survived by husband, Scott Kahn; sons, Alex Moose and

fiancee Nichole Atwell, both of New-ton, and Daniel Kahn of Charlestown, W.Va.. Memorials may be made to Tri-City Baptist Church, Benevolence's Fund, P.O. Box 40, Conover, N.C. 28613.

Thomas DuBose Roof

USAF Senior Master Sergeant (Ret.) Thomas DuBose Roof, 79, died at home on Friday, July 2, 2010 follow-ing a lengthy illness. Mr. Roof was preceded in death by his wife Evelyn Hayes Roof, who passed away in 1993. Mr. Roof is survived by three daughters: Deborah Sue Roof Fer-rara; Kathi Anne Roof; and Patsy Lynn Roof Eichmeier, their spouses, and numerous grandchildren. Mr. Roof retired from the Air Force many years ago as a Senior Master Sergeant, having served all around the world, including on Air Force One, and in Germany and Ja-pan. Upon retiring from the Air Force, Mr. Roof worked for the South Caro-lina Department of Corrections at Sumter State Prison, retiring from that position some years ago. Memorials may be made to Winyah Community Hospice, 2555-B Lin do Court, Sumter, SC 29150.

Thomas Malcolm Carmichael, Jr. Thomas Malcolm Carmichael, Jr. of Greer, SC, beloved husband, fa-ther and son, 52, passed away on July 2, 2010 at his home. He fought a

valiant battle against brain cancer. Thomas was born in Mullins, SC on March 3, 1958 and graduated from St. Andrews High School in 1977. He attended multiple vocational schools, Greenville Technical College and was employed by Cryovac/Sealed Air in Simpsonville, SC for 15 years. Thomas was married to his wife, Clinta for 26 years and they have two children, Hannah, 20 and Trey, 19 of the home. Thomas was a member of New Spring Community Church and was a devoted Christian. He was a dirt bike enthusiast who loved riding in the woods and restor-ing vintage motorcycles. He has been flat track racing since he was a young boy, successfully placing in many races. He was an active member of the Penton Owners Group and en-joyed competing in vintage motorcy-cle racing. Thomas is survived by his wife Clinta, daughter Hannah, son Trey, of Greer, his parents, Malcolm and Shelby Carmichael of Marion, SC, and his brother Terence and his wife Melissa of Summerville, SC. Memorials may be made to Joshua's Way, P.O. Box 1605, Greer, SC 29652.

Old friends gone, but not forgotten



My daughter Holly suggested to me in early July that the best chance for rain, and a bit of cooling for this parched Earth in the Carolinas, would be for Daddy to sign up and ride in an off-road motorcycle event…...Smart girl! The week of 6 July to 12 July saw the Tacoma and trailer on a much more enjoyable journey. A trip I have tried to do for years finally happened; the American Motorcyclist Association Vintage Motorcycle Days: http://www.vintagemotorcycledays.com/ What a blast! And in this blast furnace of a summer (you might call this an Australian New Year,) the Ohio plains were not immune to the scorching heat, high humidity, and dry, dusty conditions prevalent in a normally hot but wet USA East of the Mississippi River ( again, my apologies for complaining; this still ain’t no walkabout in the Outback.) PREAMBLE: Bill Schaefer and his 1977 PE250B have man-aged to receive some significant (and completely unwarranted) attention by the AMA in recent months. A Letter to the Editor of Continued on Page 13

A Pathfinder at AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days Schaefer perseveres to 3rd Place in a mud race of attrition

Priceless! No, this isn’t a MasterCard ad By Al Roof

Fulmer V2 Easy Rider Vintage Style Open Face Helmet….$89.95 Jofa Mouth guard from eBay…$18.00 Viking Duckbill Visor…………..$15.00 Your 9-year old son preferring to ride his Wheels-4-Tots EZ Trainer equipped '09 Kawasaki KLX110 wearing a vintage style helmet……PRICELESS!

About one-third of the Blue Ridge Pathfinder Motorcycle Club members in attendance at this year‘s Armenia Dual Sport Ride and some friends. ( Kneeling) Andrew Lineberger, Rick Stroupe, Stacey Wakefield. (Stanting) Mike Ward, Al Roof, Darrell Garrison, Ray Lewis, Matt Smart, Mark Price, and Stan Barrett. Rich Lubbers photo

Sixth Annual Armenia Dual Sport Ride Continued from Page 2


One small group of the 100+ riders in attendance line up for the start of a day long adventure. Al Roof photo

For the second consecutive year The Blue Ridge Pathfinders Motorcy-cle Club provided the riders’ lunches, prepared by South Carolina barbecue legend Larry Heron. A generous fam-ily within the Club’s membership has anonymously chosen this as part of their annual tithing. In addition, the club has set aside funds to insure their continued support in future years. Learning of the Club’s contin-ued commitment in funding the riders’ lunches Grant replied “To the Path-finders, my deepest appreciation again for their sponsorship.” In addition to the profits from the ride, profits from breakfast, prepared by church members also benefit the church. At $4.00 a plate, the hearty breakfast of scrambled or fried eggs, country ham, grits, sausage gravy, biscuits, milk, juice and/or coffee is one heck of a delicious bargain! Trail Boss Grant is a 67 year old retired Civil Service Production Su-perintendent who worked many years in the shipyards of Charleston, South Carolina. Marvin has been involved in the off-road motorcycle community and the Family Riders Motorcycle Club for over 37 years, working such

Ride, the Broxton Bridge Enduro, the Broxton Bridge Dual Sport Ride, and even as a volunteer course worker at the 1994 ISDE at Zink Ranch near Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1994. Marvin presently work part time as a trail consultant specializing in single track trail layout. Marvin, his nephew Ellis, and his daughter Katelyn do all of the trail lay-out, arrowing and flyers for the event. The good people of the Church do all the rest of the work. A large contin-gent from the Family Riders Motorcy-cle Club come for the weekend to help pre-ride the sections, man the water stops and ride trail to help any-one that needs help. This year’s event saw more Blue Ridge Pathfinders turn out than any other event in many, many years. I tried my best to get everyone gath-ered up for a group photo after lunch, but the task was something much akin to herding cats, so only about a third of those Pathfinders in atten-dance ended up in the photos taken. If you are smart, you will start making plans now for next year’s ride.

great events as the Swamp Fox En-duro, the Swamp Fox Dual Sport

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Photos from race weekends will be posted by Wednesday night. The event photos will be online at a big discount for two weeks. After that the images are subject to removal or price increases.

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the American Motorcyclist, followed by a bio of sorts in an article on vintage off-road participants for the AMA VMD, oc-curred last Spring. Completely random. NOTE: After a publicized break with the 20 year old American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association, the 85 year old AMA wanted to re-energize its off-road knobby print (motocross, trials, and en-duro/cross country/hare scrambles.) Thus, the call for off-road riders to con-tact the AMA, which I answered. I arrived at the VMD location Wednesday two days early, was permit-ted to set up camp in the pits, and picked the highest ground, next to a fence, and opposite the MX track finish line. Perfect. Ground was grassy, and just a bit rocky. Perfect again. I do not camp; a commitment I made to myself on 23 January 1972, as I walked out of the Mekong River jungle for the last time. So my trailer and Al Roof Edition pop-ups were arranged in a pro-tective perimeter around the PE and the 1999 Honda XR 100. More perfect. Thursday, after a night in town with a steak dinner and turndown service, was more heat, more dust, and WAY more people. A small city was beginning to grow on the huge property surrounding the world class sports car course. I spent the day traversing the swap meet area on the XR 100; also the accessible infield vendors fields and the mall size demo ride area of all major motorcycle manu-facturers. Heaven perfect. I ended my day by walking (permissible) the four plus mile cross country trail that I would ride at noon the next day. This was to be a most tiring and worthwhile expenditure of energy. Overnight, severe winds and thun-derstorms drenched the entire complex. Knocked down one of my pop-ups, and soaked most of the pits. Except for those that pitted in the high, rocky area. Nice. And no dust. Also overnight, two different groups of PE riders pulled in, saw the PEmotorcycles banner (see photo), and unloaded nearby. Beyond perfect. WEATHER: Another Friday morning storm just before the 1st one hour race (I was in the 2nd of the 3 races) assured that the dusty trails and dry creek beds would be brimming with H²O. And they were. Vintage bikes, those manufactured in 1974 and older, dug an eight inch rut in the middle of every dirt trail, exposed every root, threw up mud so that every overhanging limb was goggle level, and made every up/down hill an adventure.

a PE 250 in 1979, Germany; 1980, France, and 1981, Italy. This was my motivation to finish a lap, and I said so, in the podium inter-view, when they presented the third place award. To me. Honestly, I owe it all to attrition. INTERVIEW: Now here is where it gets downright surreal. As I sat on the staring line, out of the rain and fog came an AMA official, asking me if I was Char-les Schaefer. Busted, I thought. But no, the fellow wanted to meet after the race, at my pit, to talk about the PE. Whoa; OK. Meanwhile, back at my pit, after a few previous phone calls, Craig Hamrick, a longtime member of this Group, called to say he was in the camping area, and wanted to stop by. Super perfect. So Craig and I were meeting in per-son for the first time when three golf carts full of AMA staff and contractors pull up, looking for Charles. Wired for sound, camcorder running, they sat me next to the B and talked vintage (me and the bike) for 25 minutes. Then came the photo shoot. Why, I felt almost like a supermodel. Too much. The word was, streaming video on the AMA website and a story in the September issue of American Motor-cyclist. SATURDAY: More motorcycles, and more types of motorcycles, than I have ever seen in my life. A Rune and a CL90, in showroom condition, riding side by side in the middle of Triumphs and Husqvarnas and Moto Guzzis, enduros and motocross racers and Indian side-cars, I mean EVERY type and make of motorcycle ever made. This was a true sensory overload. Which is why I proba-bly pulled up to a pedestrian crosswalk on the XR 100, came to a complete stop, and fell over with my knees still hugging the gastank. All the way to the ground, with my cleated boot stuck in the cleated foot peg. Thanks to Barkbusters, not a scratch, on either me or the bike. Hilari-ous. Remember the tricycle rider on Rowan & Martin‘s Laugh In? Saturday was also the appearance of past off-road greats at the motocross track. Those stories will appear else-where, but the experience was a genuine thrill. Good times!

Oh, and another downpour sealed the deal at eleven oclock. RACE: My race, about 100+ riders, 15 in my classification, lined up at 11:30. At 11:45, the skies opened up again. As I sat in the fourth and final row, waiting to go, my goggles fogged up, my boots filled up, my glasses fogged up, and then the rain got heavy. And through it all, the 250B just purred, idling like a contented minivan. Such a nice machine. AND THEY ARE OFF: I made a point to leave the line last; and a commit-ment that, no matter what, I was going to finish one lap. The race started on a mo-tocross course; one lap, then into the woods. I passed four guys, two in my class, before I arrived in the trees. Hey, this could work. First fall happened almost as soon as I got in the woods. Trail had a stream in the middle, and the 45 degree roots were submerged. Off came the goggles, watched the leaders go by, and back on the trail. I have a unique method of racing cross country; attack up the hills, coast down the hills, cruise through the thick-ets, pull over for everyone, and stop at the clearings. Get a drink, check out the flora and fauna, fire up the beast, and go again. Works for me. ISDE Hero: Probably the most en-during Six Day USA rider was the official scorer. Jeff Fredette has started 29 IS-DEs; he has finished all 29. Took Gold on


A Pathfinder at AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days Continued from Page 10

Schaefer perseveres to 3rd Place in a mud race of attrition

Blue Ridge Pathfinder and Pemotorcycles Ya-hoo! Group founder Bill Schaefer (far left) stands proudly on the podium with his Third Place trophy plaque.

A Unique Tie Down Strap Storage Solution Strap Sack by Jon Rhodig - http://atvmagblog.com

Once in a while a product comes along that is so simple yet so practi-cal, it makes you wonder why it took so long for someone to develop it and bring it to market. The product I am talking about is the Tie Down Strap Sack. Over the course of a month I have had a chance to use and live with the product, below are details and a review. What it is: A simple yet effective way to eliminate tangles straps in storage. It also doubles as a secure storage area for the unused “tail” of the strap while it is in use. Pros: Easy to use and install on your existing straps. Semi-permanent installation-as in you can remove it and install it on another strap should that strap break. Dura-ble, the sack is made of UV resistant


and tear resistant nylon (similar to tent material only thicker) drawstring is made of parachute cord. In my testing I dragged it across the ground at 30 mph simulating accelerated abrasion from normal use and the sack did not tear or fail. Universal, with the two different sizes of sacks these can be installed on nearly every type of strap (ratcheting or friction type). Price that can not be beat for eliminating headaches storing and using your straps. Cons: No wide distribution (yet). Currently the only place to purchase these is on their website and Ama-zon. Don’t expect to find this product in nation wide distributors like Tucker Rocky, Parts Unlimited, Dennis Kirk, Rocky Mountain ATV/MC, Northern

The strap sack installs in minutes and keeps the "tails" of the straps from blow-ing in the wind.

Just insert the "wad" of excess strap into the bag

Pull the drawstring tight to close the loose tail in the bag.

Tool, etc.. Conclusion: As simple as this product is, it works as advertised and exceeded my expectations. I plan on buying enough for all my straps to save the headaches associated with storage and where to tie the loose ends when strapping down my stuff. The video from their website explains it pretty effectively. Now if the major distributors of ATV and Motorcycle related accessories would pickup the product line more people could try this simple yet ingenious product. Price: 1″ Strap Width Tie Down Storage Bags 2 Pack $6.99 – 2-2.5″ Strap Width Tie Down Storage Bags 2 pack $12.99 Your choice of colors: Black, Red, Orange, Blue.

Contacts & Investments

Joe Persons 801 SW Seminole Terrace Lake City, FL 32024-0535

http://www.mooseracing.com/

Upstate Cycle

904 Laurens Rd. Greenville, SC 29607 (864) 232-RACE

Husqvarna ● Gas Gas Kymco ● Tomos

www.powersportsrider.com


We Ride, We Wrench, We RACE! http://www.motionpro.com/

McKenneyMcKenneyMcKenney---SalinasSalinasSalinas

POWERSPORTSPOWERSPORTSPOWERSPORTS

www.mshondapowersports.comwww.mshondapowersports.comwww.mshondapowersports.com 4804 Wilkinson Boulevard Gastonia NC 28056 (704) 824-2787 (877) 403-0858 WorksPerformance.com

3224 Sparrow Springs ● Gastonia, NC 28052-9233 704▪228▪7210 704▪860▪3075 Mobile [email protected]

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