1972 US Cup Motocross Series - Brad Lackey - 6-Page Vintage Motorcycle Article

Description

1972 US Cup Motocross Series - Brad Lackey - 6-Page Vintage Motorcycle Article
Original, vintage magazine article
Page Size: Approx. 8" x 11" (21 cm x 28 cm) each page
Condition: Good
■ Kawasaki was the last brand anyone expected to wind
up on the result sheets of the U.S. Cup Motocross Series,
much less walk off with the whole ball of wax. But, that’s
exactly what happened at each one of the series’ three
events, held at Sacramento’s Cal Expo in Northern
California, and Saddleback Park and Carlsbad in
Southern California.
It was a young, long-haired California rider that did the
deed on a special prototype works Kawasaki, and he did it
with a style that few could match. Brad Lackey was the
rider, and the bike was a piston-port model that was at
first rumored to be 490cc, but later was reputed to be
more in the neighborhood of401cc. Whatever the size, the
bike was a jet and handled besides, and the series
belonged to it.
The jumping Super Joe started the weekend off at Sac-
ramento with a leap of 148 feet, but with a bad fall at the
same time. Needless to say, Super Joe wasn’t up to jump-
ing on Sunday, since he had suffered a broken wrist, a
few broken ribs, and a broken collarbone in the fall. Even
though the fans didn’t get to see Super Joe on Sunday,
they didn’t go home disappointed. The thrilling moto-
cross they saw that afternoon more than made up for his
non appearance. They had come for some excitement and
that’s what they got. Just a look at the names in the
program had them all buzzing.
Entries in the 250 class consisted of top stars like John
DeSoto on a new CZ, Yamaha factory rider DeWayne
Jones, Daytona and Snake River Motocross winner Jim
Weinert, Gunnar Lindstrom, Peter Lamppu, even Grand
National Champion Dick Mann was riding, much to the
delight of many. They were all out for a share of the
,000 purse.
DeSoto grabbed the lead only to break down on the
second lap of the first moto with his new machine and was
out for the rest of the day. Lamppu took over and held
only for a short time when Lindstrom and Weinert
sneaked past, and they finished the first moto in that
order.
It was Weinert’s turn to lead during the second moto
but he spilled and allowed Lamppu to win with
Lindstrom second. Lindstrom scored a runaway in the
third and final moto to get the overall win with Lamppu
and Weinert taking second and third respectively for the
day. Lindstrom was on a Husky, Lamppu on a Montesa,
and Weinert rode a Yamaha.
The open class promised to be a scorcher with Brad
Lackey and Gary Jones both mounted on factory bikes.
Lackey’s experimental Kawasaki looked promising but
no one knew how it would do against Jones* rapid
Yamaha. Gary got his usual quick start and led for about
half the race with Lackey right on his tail. Then he overdid
it and crashed, but was up and running immediately. He
was catching the Kawasaki, now in the lead, when it...
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