Willow Springs April 2, 1999
CLASSIC BIKE Magazine
AHRMA Flat Track National

Super Senior +60 winner Marshall Jenning's Yamaha leads Honda mounted Sam Coray

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The Michigan traveler's truck made it this year.......................................The Arial is just as pretty!......

 

600 Sportsman and Seventies Single winner Brad Spencer.

A cold Rick Hocking from wet Bellingham, raced Butch Cockran's Triumph Twin

Brad Holt and Tom Horton on Sportsman 600 machines

Three Amigos from San Diego, with their 1998 AHRMA Western hardware.
Jeff Apple - Brad Holt - Maurice Ortega

A large field of Seventy Singles led by #32y, Mike Gonzalez

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Seniors Duane Spence and Warren Adams....................Tom Horton and Allen McBee on Dino Triumphs

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............Determination!                                ......         MXer Jim Holley with sons

You can't see it this picture, but I'll bet they have smiles on those faces!

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Allen McBee................................................Rick Hocking

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Check out Brian Coakley's new leathers..........................................Rotary valve Kawie

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Randy Bereman - Support Class Rotex............Ron Brown - Support Class Yamaha.....

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Rod Lake - Seventies Single - Yamaha.............Mike Gilkey - Seventies Single BSA.....

 

 

Classic Bike Magazine AHRMA National Flat Track Race.

       The forth annual American Historical Racing Motorcycle Association  National Flat Track race was held at Willow Springs Raceway on Friday night, April 2nd. The cold and windy night saw over 120 entries participate on the 1/2 mile decomposed granite oval.
       The Classic 500/750 race on 1967 and earlier brakeless machines was the race of the night. Former National rider, Rick Hocking of Bellingham, Washington, and Allen McBee held a side by side dual for most of the eight lap race. McBee jumped to an early lead on a beautiful black Arial single, but Hocking, riding high up against the hay bales on Butch Cockran's Triumph twin, took the lead for good on the 6th lap. McBee came back to win the Dino class for pre 1951 machines over Michigan's Craig Brecken and AHRMAs dirt track coordinator Gary Davis, all on Triumphs. Dave DuVarney and Tom Hensley rode Indians too forth and fifth spots.
     Wisconsin's Mike Gilkey on a BSA, hole shotted a  large field of XRs and TTs  in the new National Seventies Singles class. The BSA unfortunately broke on the second lap, handing the race to Yamaha mounted Brad Spencer. Ron Hinton passed Paul Herman for second on the fifth lap, while Mike Gonzalez finished forth. Spencer, fresh off of two big Sportsman 600 wins in National races during Speed Week in Florida, also won this class at Willow. Paul Herman led from the green, with Tom Horton in second.  But Hermans Yamaha quit on the third lap as Spencer drove from the forth position to take the lead. Dominic Demario also passed Horton to finish second at the flag.
      Marshall Jennings and Larry Harness swapped the lead  in AHRMAs other new National class, Super Senior or plus 60. Jennings went on to win as Harness's ailing Triumph dropped him to forth behind the Hondas of Sam Coray and Wayne Rantz. Marty Lewis came from deep in the field to win the plus 50 Senior race over Tom Booth on a 750 Yamaha and Triumph rider Warren Adams. Plus 35 Vet winner Tom Horton led from wire to wire, but Bultaco mounted Jeff Lessley gave Hortons big Yamaha a good race.
     Brad Holt grabbed the Sportsman 250 lead, but Jeff Lessley motored by on the second lap never to be caught. Nick Nazzisi passed Holt on the forth go round, and Tom Horton also passed Holt on the last lap for third. Horton did lead the twelve lap Sportsman 750 race from start to finish, while Brian Coakey and Bob Cobb fought over second  from the forth lap on. Coakey  made the final pass on the last lap. The first three places were all Yamaha mounted. Steve Hensley on a Trackmaster BSA was forth and Marty Lewis, in his first Sportsman race, finished fifth.
     The Classic 250 class saw Maurice Ortega ride to the early lead, but Tom Horton pushed his OSSA to the front. Horton and Bultaco rider Jeff Lessley then proceeded to show the fans a classic dual. Lessly's pass on the sixth lap was the last pass, but Horton was right there to the checker. Gary Davis won the Classic Open race from the line. Dave Harness moved into second on the third lap and Chris Apple, in his first big bore race, finished third. All rode Triumphs.
     Ron Brown, who we usually find on a vintage Indian or H-D at an AHRMA race, was Yamaha mounted for the Support class race. Brown was never headed, but Randy Bereman and Danny Ritchie contested second spot for twelve laps. Bereman finished second, with Richie third. Wayne Warrington mixed it up with Beremam and Richie form laps seven to ten, but dropped back to forth at the finish.