RACES & EVENTS

13th Annual Leroy Winters Memorial

ISDT

REUNION RIDE

October 2-4, 2009   McArthur, Ohio

sponsored by

Enduro Riders Association   www.enduroriders.com

Leroy Winters and Dick “Bugs” Mann conceived and held the first ISDT Reunion Ride in 1997 in Cass, Arkansas.  From a humble 30-rider beginning, the ISDTRR has grown into one of America’s premier vintage off-road weekends combining vintage enduro riding, bench racing, scores of vintage enduro bikes and an awards banquet to honor the many great riders who represented the U.S.A. at home and abroad in the “Olympics of Motorcycling”, the International Six Days Trial and Enduro.

Southern Ohio is a little slice of enduro heaven and home to many of America’s best off-road talent.  The Enduro Riders Association has years of experience running enduros and Six Days Qualifier events.  You’ve ridden there before, you know you want to ride there again with your pals….so what are you waiting for?

For information please contact:

Steve Barber, Enduro Riders Association event coordinator at sbarber1@att.net

Ron Ribolzi, ISDTRR Steering Committee chair at ronribolzi@davemungenast.com

Jeff DeBell at jeffdebell@aol.com, 913-686-2384 or 913-634-0732 cell

MARCH 15th & 16th 2008

AHRMA vintage national at the Sand Hill Ranch in Brentwood California. We hope everyone in the West and beyond will attend this great event. Kelly McKiernan will be representing the Hodaka Club at the event also. So bring out your 100's and whatever else you have for a great weekend of riding and bench racing . Presented by our good friends
Brad and Lori Lackey ~ click here for more details

ARIZONA - The official first 100cc class! Feb 9th 2008

Thank you Rick Sieman {Super Hunky} for many of these great photo's

ISDT REUNION RIDE OCT 27,28 & 29 2007

"Classic Dirt 4 AUSTRALIA "April 2007

Whitman Arizona

Feb. 2007

Thank for the photos below from Brian Bellman

Whitman Arizona

 

2006 ISDT Reunion Ride
Oct. 27-29  2006 in Park Hills MO

Left to right; BoJo ( Bobby Stults), Dave Rozier, Paul, Dwight Rudder, Allen Brown, Johnny Friedli, Gary Copeland, Bob Canfield and Greg Holder. Missing are Patrick Canfield, Leo Stinnett and Larry Volenec.

The View From Between The Handlebars

by Bob Canfield

Leroy Winters ISDT RR 2006, Farmington, Missouri, October 27, 28, 29

It has been said that the going and the coming is half the trip.  I think the going and coming to the LW ISDT RR this year from our home in Vancouver, WA was the high point of the trip!  The drive up the beautiful Columbia River Gorge and the kaleidoscope of Fall colors across the Heartland of the U.S. was a rare treat for my wife and me.  As we crossed the mighty Missouri River there were clouds on the horizon to the east.  The man on the radio said to expect a few showers Wednesday and Thursday, with sunshine for the weekend.  Oh, good, a little rain to settle the dust.  Ha-ha-ha…you know how those weather people lie to us.  A little rain…! What was the name again of that hurricane that dumped 2 to 4 inches of rain on the Farmington area Thursday and Friday?  I guess I shouldn’t be too hard on the weatherman, he was half right.  We did have blue skies and sunshine for the weekend; it’s just that we started the weekend on Friday and the sun started on Saturday.

We arrived at the race site a couple days early planning to do the final tuning on the bikes and get in some riding before the event.  Those plans changed as we watched the land turn to a sea of mud.  Now, I live on the coastal side of the Cascade Mountains in Washington State and to put it mildly, am no stranger to what we call liquid sunshine.  Somehow the rain in Missouri seems different; it seems, well…, wetter and colder, and there was so much more of it!  There were compensations though, as we had lots of time to BS with old friends and make new ones.  And, oh yes, there would be no dust!

It was a pretty dejected-looking bunch that showed up for tech inspection and sign in on Friday, and I am sorry to say that quite a few decided not to ride. They missed one of the most fun rides of the year.  It my humble opinion, without the rain it would have been miserably dusty and no challenge as far as the terrain was concerned.  I know some of you reading this are thinking that Old Canfield fell on his head one too many times.  I can’t speak for anyone else, but for me I had a lot of fun and enjoyed the challenge of the “après rain” mud bogs.  Now don’t get me wrong.  I’m not saying I would intentionally put myself and my trusty old steed through that again, but…ya gotta take what you’re given and make it fun or it ain’t worth doing.

With that said, I think the riders who decided not to ride made a proper decision for themselves, and those who quit after a few miles were the smart ones.  For myself, I made lots of bad decisions both days; mainly I didn’t have sense enough to quite when it was hopeless that I could finish, let alone finish with a medal.  I am sure everyone who rode the event has a story to tell; and I listened to a lot of them.  My story probably isn’t unique, it’s just my story.  So, go grab yourself a cold one or a hot one and get ready for some good laughs!  I now consider myself an expert on Missouri Mud as I took a crash course in it last week and survived to tell the tale.

On Friday the rain was coming down so hard at times that you couldn’t see 20 yards.  Never-the-less I had to try to jet the two bikes I brought, one for me and one for my cousin.  I name all my vehicles; sometimes they name themselves, like “Starting Line 125” and “Bad Rock 125.”  Starting Line is for an engine that was worked on by Starting Line Products of Idaho (per Harry Taylor directions) and Bad Rock 125 is the bike I rode in the last Bad Rock 2-day ISDT qualifier in the 70’s.  My cousin Patrick Canfield from West Virginia is a 25 year old Cross Country champion whom I predict will one day carry the Canfield banner to the ISDT.  Anyway, back to my story….my efforts to make Patrick’s bike run proved fruitless and we decided to switch bikes for the race.  I would ride the bike that wouldn’t run on top end and Patrick would ride the trusty old Bad Rock 125.  The B.R. bike was running pretty good and I thought I could get the Starting Line 125 to run for me if it got dried out a little.  I would re-jet as the event allowed.

Saturday morning and what a difference a day makes:  blue sky and sunshine.  Everyone is in high spirits and there are smiles all around.  There is just one little problem that keeps nagging at me:  for whatever reason, I am starting on the last starting minute.  There will be about 200 motorcycles ahead of me when I start the race.  My worst fears are about to be realized.  To start with, I foul a spark plug on the starting line.  By the time I get a new one installed and get on my way I am the last rider in this event.  Well at least I won’t have to worry about being passed all day!  I’m finally off and running and the course is a sea of mud.  I don’t have to worry about finding the course as it looks like the Burma Road in the rainy season.  I’m doing okay; I make it to the first Special Test and have only fallen down twice.  Not bad, I think, all things considered.  I get counted down to start the Special Test and take off as fast as I can go.  I’m sure I must be going at least 10 mph when I come to a mud hole with five or six bikes in it. (Seven now!)  I sink in the mud so deep I can’t move the bike.  Mud over both wheels.  The bike won’t move.  I sweat; I cuss; I did a war dance. (I am American Indian I think) Here’s how I got it out of the mud hole:  I pried the front wheel up out of the mud with a long pole.  Then I stood the bike up on the rear wheel with the front wheel straight up in the air, tipped it over sideways, and then dragged it up into the brush on the side of the trail.  The wheels were so full of mud that they look like solid wheels; I’m covered with mud; the bike is covered with mud; my hands and gloves are slimy with mud.  Here is the crazy part:  I kick the old Hodaka and it starts on the first kick!  I work my way through the woods and find a road of sorts that parallels the course and follow it until the course turns away from the road and I get back on course.  Special Test time to go 3 miles is 45 minutes.  Not bad; I think I made up some time on the road.  At this point I know I’m out of the race, so I’ll just ride for the heck of it.  The rest of the day is a constant struggle just to get through the mud holes.  I have three extra clutch and brake levers and use them all up.  My throttle cable is bent and kinked so I can only get about half throttle if I really twist on it hard, and then it won’t shut off.  Dwight Rudder helps me work on it at one of the checks and somehow I finish the day.  I’m in pretty good shape.  I’m not really hurt, just beat up a little.  My wife helps me clean about 30 lbs of mud off the Hodaka and we do a little first aid on it.  The bike is in surprisingly good shape considering the beating I gave it.  It’s running better now than when I started.  I think the air cleaner was wet and dried out during the course of the day.  The bikes go to impound and we head for the motel, a hot shower, and the banquet. 

The banquet was well done; the food was excellent and the service very good.  Many legends of our Sport were on hand and their stories are always entertaining.  Two of my heroes, Jeff Smith and Dick Mann, were notables; it always gives me a thrill to see these guys keeping on keeping on.

The day took its toll on men and machines.  My cousin threw a chain, locked up the counter shaft sprocket and wiped out the gear box; Greg Holder cooked a piston; my sponsor Paul Stannard of Strictly Hodaka had shifter problems and really had to work at just making it to the finish.  Lots of guys simply said the heck with it and called it a day.  Here’s a word in defense of those who called it quits.  Some of those bikes are worth a small fortune and some are irreplaceable.  The amount of time and money that goes into some of these motorcycles is huge.  Some of those guys love their old bikes and don’t want to destroy them.  The other side of the coin is that for some this is the only event they ride all year and they simply weren’t prepared for this kind of exertion.  I’ve been there, done that.

On Sunday the sun is up with blue skies and lots of smiles all around.  There is almost a carnival atmosphere before the start this morning; lots of joking and ribbing going on.  No cry babies in this group.  These guys are all old pros and have a lot of years behind them.  They’re having fun or they wouldn’t be here.  I’m having flashbacks to another time, another era; back to the 60’s and 70’s.  One year ago I didn’t know any of these people.  I had been out of motorcycling for more than 30 years; now I know about 40 or 50 of these guys by name.  I feel a kinship with them.  The road back for me has been a tough one and I wonder if I can survive another day like yesterday.  My wife is a little worried about me; I keep muttering to myself!  My secret is that I have little mantras to keep me going.  Things like “When the going gets tough the tough get going,” and a quote from Sir Winston Churchill to the people of England during WWII: “Never, never, never, never give up.”  Little things like that to keep me focused.

It’s time to go and the race is on.  I get to the starting area and an old gentleman introduces himself to me.  His name is Ted and he’s riding on my minute.  This guy is 78 years old and is about to become my guardian angel.  I’m not sure how this all came about; for unknown reasons, I now have a 78 year old guarding angel looking after me and I am about to be very grateful. You might think that’s funny, but wait until you hear what happens.

We are the last to get started and I motion for Ted to go first; he shakes his head and motions me on.  I head out and find the traction much improved from yesterday.  The sloppy mud of yesterday has started to dry out and now is clinging gumbo.  Missouri Mud is quite unique I think; in its liquid state it is very slippery, but let it dry a little and it gets very sticky; dry it out completely and it turns to cement.  We are riding the same course as yesterday and after 300 or so motorcycles have run this course the ruts cut into the earth are half a wheel deep and the mud holes are bottomless.  I’m not taking any chances on the mud holes and go around as many as possible even if I have to make my way through the brush or woods.  I’m falling down a lot more today than yesterday.  The gumbo mud sticks to the tires so they look like big donuts.  The only way to get the mud off is to spin the rear wheel or go fast enough to sling the mud off.  Here’s the problem:  I can spin the rear wheel to clean it and get some traction, but have no steerage with the front wheel.  It’s like riding on ice.  The ruts are so deep that my side cases are rubbing and my shifter is digging into the sides of the ruts.  Riding the ruts gets kinda tricky.  You have your front wheel in one rut and your rear wheel in a different rut.  You guessed it!  When they get far enough apart you go down.  I fall down a lot!  One time I’m on a hillside and fall over the high side and the bike lands upside down.  I can’t pick it up as it’s lying on its side, lodged against a big tree on the steep hillside with the wheels pointed up the hill.  I crawl up the hill and try to move the bike but can’t budge it!  I look up and there’s Ted getting off his bike and coming down to help me get the bike back up and on the trail.  While the bike was lying upside down gas was spurting out the vent hole in the gas cap so I shut off the gas.  When we got the bike back on the trail, it started right up and I took off.  I had gone about 20 yards when the trail crossed a creek and went up the other side.  I cross the creek, start up the other side and the bike quits.  I had forgotten to turn the gas back on!  I grab the front brake and the clutch at the same time.  When I pull the clutch in I shoot down the hill backwards and land in a heap in the creek.  There sits Ted back up the trail watching me.  He doesn’t laugh or smile or anything; he just watches.  I pick up the bike and turn on the gas; it starts right up and I’m up and on the way again.

There’s one more spectacular get-off that is worthy of mention.  I’m trying to ride a deep rut standing on the pegs.  The foot brake lever goes into a root in the side of the rut and stops the bike so suddenly that I am pitched forward over the handle bars and do a complete forward roll landing on my butt in the mud.  It takes me a few seconds to figure out what happened and where I am.  I look up the bank and there sits a guy just staring at me.  I’m sitting there in the mud with my back to my motorcycle; I hear it running.  I look around and there it sits.  The ruts are so deep it can’t fall over.  The shifter had hit the side of the rut and gone into neutral; the darn bike was just looking at me with its one big eye.  All of a sudden I start laughing; I can’t help it.  It is either laugh or cry.  I think I’m a little hysterical.  As I look past the bike there sits Ted, just looking at me.  He doesn’t laugh or smile or anything; he just looks at me.  I get up and am okay; nothing broken, just mud from head to toe.  I go back and the bike is still running.  In fact it sounds like its laughing.  I say to the bike “You little demon, I think you did that on purpose!”  I pull it away from the root, kick the brake lever in a little and start out again.  I stop in front of the guy on the bank who is still giving me the thousand yard stare.  I ask if he’s okay.  He just nods his head.  I would like to hear that guy tell his buddies about what he saw this day!

At the last check Ted and I have some time to wait, and we have time to talk a little.  Ted tells me he’s from the Chicago area and his last name is Delsolar.  He shook my hand and said he really liked riding with me because I was fun to watch!  Ted is the real deal and has a subtle sense of humor.  That man can flat ride a motorcycle!  I watched him in the Special Test and at the Motocross; when he wants to, he can go fast.  He rides a Penton, a 250, I think.  I hope that when I’m 78 I can ride as good as Ted.  Heck, I wish I could ride like Ted now!

On Sunday after the Trial was over there was a mandatory 4-lap Motocross race.  The Motos were separated by classes.  They proved to be very entertaining and gave the spectators a chance to watch their favorites in action.  Helmut Classen and Burchard Lenz gave us a wheel-to-wheel duel like they did last year.  Paul Stannard finally got his shifter adjusted and roared past the competition to win his Moto going away.  Bojo Stults pulled off an exciting win by passing the two front riders on the very last corner.  My victory was not falling down during my Moto.

Well folks, my tale is told and this one is in the record books.  I finished with a gold medal, not because I beat anyone but because I was the only one who finished in my class of +70 Expert.  In closing I want to say a few words about the quality of people we met at this event.  One thing quite noticeable was the absence of complaining from anyone.  Lots of riders went out of the race with mechanical problems on Saturday and stayed through Sunday.  Johnny Friedli fought mechanical problems all day both days making it to within a few miles of the final finish.  When I talked to Johnny after the race you would never guess he had ever had a problem.  Greg Holder became a volunteer and helped with the event after his bike gave out.  I’m proud of my cousin Patrick and the maturity he showed after he went out with bike problems in the first Special Test; he stayed and helped the team in any way he could.  Other Team Hodaka riders had mechanical problems and continued to support their teammates.  We lost about half the team, and still brought home 3 golds and 3 silvers.  Woo-hoo Hodaka!

And last but never least we give a giant THANK YOU to the Missouri Mudders and the AHRMA volunteers for doing such a good job to make it all happen.  Leroy would be so proud!

Dinner Friday night at Ryan's. Left side of table ;Debbie Rozier, Dave Rozier and Patrick Canfield. Right Side of table; Judy Canfield, Bob Canfield , Paul and Johnny Friedli	Bob and Patrick Canfield in the front and Dave and Deb Rozier in the backround . New 3 wheel HODAKA	Judy Canfield cleaning Bob's bike before the start of the MX	Paul getting his bike ready for the MX special test
Paul leading the Sportsman 200 class MX special test on a 125cc Combat Wombat	Bojo giving them hell on 250 Thunderdog in the MX special test	Johnny Friedli in between John Greenrose  ( on bike) and Buchard Lenz	Impound for bikes

Here is the Hodaka Team Results:

Name                  Checks         Time             Points                  Medal/Class Finish

Gary Copeland         10            33:21             2001                   Gold      1st

Dwight Rudder          10            33:27             2007                   Gold      3rd

Bojo Stults               10           35:39             2149                    Silver     2nd

Paul Stannard          10            42:04             2524                    Silver     2nd

Dave Rozier             10            51:05              3065                   Silver     3rd

Bob Canfield            10            66:38              4058                   Gold      1st

Larry Volenec            9           188:04                                         Bronze

Johnny Friedli            8            54:52                                          DNF

Leo Stinnet               5            26:10                                           DNF

Greg Holder              1            35:34                                          DNF

Allen Brown              1            39:54                                          DNF

Patrick Canfield         0           00:00                                           DNF

2006 ISDT Reunion Ride
Oct. 27-29 in Park Hills, MO Hosted by the Missouri Mudders.

Last year ... OCT. 2005

TEAM HODAKA ISDT REUNION RIDE , ARKANSAS

Medal Count:  5 Golds, 2 Silver, and 1 Bronze. 

Strictly Hodaka™ Motorcycles | Contact: Paul Stannard | PO Box 130 Sandgate,Vermont 05250-9537
Phone 802-375-0212 | 24 Hour FAX 802-375-0215
paul@strictlyhodaka.com | pricequote@strictlyhodaka.com | patti@strictlyhodaka.com