Hi all CZ Riders and Friends
on behalf of The Old S’Cool CZ Forum on Yahoo!
I have to set some things straight
about me first before we get started.
- Can’t spell worth nothing,
even the spell checker on my computer laughs at me.
- My Nubs are big
(finger tips), so I hit the wrong buttons all the time on top of number 1.
Get the picture? L
- I’m old, too many miss
shift’s on that Swedish Meatball that they call a bike. So I might miss
the date, place or even the year that it happened, but it happened. Too DAMN
many witnesses!
- I am also dyslexic.
- Whatever I forgot to
write about above and below.
- I will try to answer
all your questions.
- My saying in life is, “the
grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, until you get the
water bill”.
Date,
don’t know, Year, I think about 1970 / 1971
Ok, here we go. Imagine being about 14 / 15
years old and you get a CZ Factory ride. Wow the world can’t get better than
this. Let’s back date just a little. We have a 1969 CZ 250. We work on this
bike a lot as it is our race and practice bike, can’t afford two bikes. Lucky
for us and others that took care of their bikes, CZ’s were bullet proof if you
took good care of them, IE: washed bike, air filters, checked all nuts and
bolts, change transmission oil every week, chain well lubed. We used to take
them off after the race and soak them in motor oil until the day before
practice, take the chain out of the oil tub and hang it on the wall and let
drain over night, works great even today. Once you learned about the
transmission with the longer shift, its brake shoes front and rear, I cleaned
them on a wire wheel and sanded the steel brake hub every week, my CZ always
had great brakes. I would let people ride my bike and they would always say
your brakes work so well. I didn’t say a thing. If you want to go fast you need
to know everything about your bike, inside and out. They would also say, Marty,
your bike runs with no effort, runs like there is no drag on the motor. We didn’t
tell them that we ran automatic transmission fluid just up to the bottom of the
gears. Like Electric.
Back to the Factory CZ ride. We arrive at
the Bay Mare race in north Los Angles. Check in, then you see the other riders
and think, hey they all put on they’re pants and shoes the same as me, I can
race against these guys. Then you see Hawaii
I know, you didn’t see that cartoon. Gee
Whiz, Look at this guy/man/monster of a human being, he must eat Buick’s for
breakfast. So that was enough to make anyone with a brain not wanting to rub
handle bars with this animal, let alone look at him the wrong way. Now practice
starts. I think that I will watch a little before going out myself. So as all
of us do, we’re standing there at the fence watching the competition go by,
some riders taking high lines and some low. Joe Holt a best friend is next to
me at the fence and says, “Here comes John Desoto”. John is in at least a gear
higher than any one else and is wide open. Please understand when I say wide
open, I mean scary wide open! Joe is Japanese with not so round eyes, but let
me tell you that Joe’s eyes were as round as dinner plates without the left
over’s! I remember grabbing Joe’s arm
for comfort as I watched John come at us and tank slapping as I never seen
before, not letting off the gas at all, making it with out taking out the
fence, Ford truck and trailer. Bob Hannah couldn’t have lived through one like
that, and he’s the best in the world at it. I remember telling Joe to tell my
parents that I didn’t feel very well and wanted to go home as soon as possible.
Talk about stepping up to the plate, practice
went well, the bike was not nearly as good and we were making changes, when I
hear my MOM say that John Desoto is a nice man, I like him a lot. Marty you go
get him and bring him back, I want to feed him, he must be hungry and thirsty.
I’m thinking, no MOM he’s a killer and he‘s going to hurt me on the track, no
MOM don’t make me do this, I want to live to see another day. Marty Hun did you
hear me? Yes MOM I heard you. It was like walking to your grave. Joe wouldn’t
go with me, some best friend he turned out to be. Next thing you know there he
is, a mad man, rips bikes apart for fun. Mr. DeSoto, aw, Hmm Mr. DeSoto. Yes
I’m John, what can I do for you? Aw, hmm awe my MOM wants you to come over to
our pit. Mom wants to feed you and meet you. Can’t remember what he said but he
was following me back to our pit, people were eyeing me as if it was the last
supper or something. Mom and John talked about Hawaii
You know I still have my Barum bus from the
first road trips in the early 70’s. She still runs. Anyone want to help with
sponsorship to rebuild the bus in trade for ad placement on the bus or teaching
lessons, or other? It would be cool to travel in it again to Vintage races with
John and others.
Ok,
that’s it. Hope you all liked my meeting The DeSoto’s story, you will not find
a nicer pair of people on this planet. Thanks for reading as I am not a writer,
nor did I finish high school, I was racing MOTOCROSS, the greatest sport on our
planet.
Marty
Tripes
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