eh, youse kids dunno wut “old” is.....
I moved to SJ in ‘71 from Ohio, towing a U-Haul trailer containing the 1st brand-spanking new CB500-4 to be delivered back there - the very 1st person I met socially here was Bob Jones @ Emery’s Honda (US dealer #2), an AFMer who directed me to their upcoming race @ Vacaville Raceway (an unbelievably bad pave circuit with Willow Springs-level lethality off-course)
I rode up on the freeway (with new wife driving her 351 Cougar XR7 behind, carrying my meager toolbox, front # plate, & mail-order leathers) & competed successfully (whew!) in Prod, then rode home - this is how some of us did it back then.....
within 2 yrs, wife & I were both officers in AFM North Chapter - 1 day I got a call that some PanAm pilot/impresario seeked a Board meeting/audience to introduce a too-young racer with mebbe 800(!) trophies from Lodi, etc. - the kid needed shelter/experience/guidance til he matured, & we had AMA insurance, so @ this meeting Jim Doyle introduced us to......
Randy Mamola (whom I described as a smiling freckle with legs)
AFM North opened up both Sears Point & Laguna Seca as Cotati & Vacaville disappeared, plus South had Riverside, Orange County Raceway, & then Ontario (total Indy clone) going, so there was a LOT of AFM racing to be had throughout the ‘70s
during that time, I won exactly 2 races:
1975 - Ontario 6-Hr 250cc class (therez always a story @ an endurance event.....)
1979 - Sears Point 500cc Prod (XT500 single against UJM-4s !)
before & after those successes, the comraderie of the racetrack defined my non-work existence for a decade+
that said, another AFM opportunity became available mid-‘70s - track announcer, a role for which I was MUCH more capable than competing - that wonderful gig lasted thru ‘80, soon growing into getting paid(!) for AMA Pro, IndyCar, IMSA, etc., events @ a wide variety of venues north & south
others followed me on the AFM mike, including (eventually) Ralph Shaheen, John (can’t remember), & Vik “Eek” Anderson
I’ll close by reprising my claim that AFM was (& still is) the basis for most of my enduring friendships, so be a pal to everyone
)
