BID TO BREAK INTO “BIG TIME” Wylie to race in U.S. at end of N.Z. season

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33045, 12 October 1972, Page 30

BID TO BREAK INTO “BIG TIME” Wylie to race in U.S. at end of N.Z. season

(By

R. O. DEW)

An attempt to break into the highly-competitive American scene is to be made by the former New Zealand motor-cycle road racing champion, Dale Wylie, of Christchurch.

Aged 23, and one of a few New Zealanders who earn their living almost entirely from the proceeds of racing, he considers that the financial rewards in America are such that he cannot afford to disregard them.

Wylie plans to contest the Asian circuit early next year and arrive in America towards the end of March. This means that he will miss the Daytona 200 classic which is now regarded as the world’s foremost long distance race—but there are other big-money events. He is particularly interested in the final round of the American championship series at Ontario, California. Equal on points This year's race was held earlier this month, and the Auckland international, G. Perry (750 Suzuki), finished first equal on points over the

two heats with the Englishman, P. Smart (750 Kawasaki). However, the first prize money of more than $30,000 went to Smart after he had beaten Perry by 11.8 sec in the second leg. At the end of the 1973 American racing season, Wylie intends to return to New Zealand via Asia and contest the national Christmas circuit Then he will decide whether to return to America permanently. "The idea of going to America has been with me for a long time,” Wylie said yesterday. "There is the choice of going to Europe for the world championship series or to America where racing is more financially rewarding. I think L am more suited to the American style of riding.”

Wylie recently returned from his first competitive trip to England. "It was a real struggle to get placings. You had to ride so hard and it was not worthwhile financially—which was to be expected. I know now that I don’t want to go back.” It was very difficult to get even a small sponsorship in England. "It was too hard to make a living. The good guys are good, just as our good guys are. But there are a lot more of them.” Nevertheless, he regards the trip as a "useful experience.” It started badly for him when he crashed in his first meeting, dislocated his shoulder, and broke a collarbone. But he made full use of his convalescence. He took the motor out of his 500 c.c. Suzuki racer and asked the prominent specials builder, Rob North, to build a light-weight frame around it. Wylie is now hard at work putting the new machine together. Bridging gap He has high hopes that it will help him bridge the gap opened up last season by Perry. North was largely responsible for the design and construction of the frames used for the racing Triumph Tridents and Wylie’s one is similar. It will have disc brakes. Wylie’s next competitive outing will be in the Onekawa grand prix at Napier on

October 21. His new 500 c.c. machine might not be ready in time and he will use instead a machine with a 500 c.c. Suzuki engine fitted to a frame intended for a 250 c.c. power unit.

He plans to use the "Guy Fawkes” meeting at Ruapuna Park on November 5 for testing purposes before embarking on a brief trip overseas to a meeting in Djakarta. Racing Agostini Before returning once again to New Zealand for the Christmas circuit, he will contest the international meetings in Australia in December which will be featuring the multiple Italian world champion, G. Agostini. Wylie’s long-term aim is to win a place in a works racing team. "To know you had a set wage before the year started would be great,” he said.

When it was suggested to him that racing motor-cycles was a rather perilous way to earn a living, he said: “An office worker could fall down the stairs and hurt himself. It is all in the luck of the game. I know I am going to have the occasional spill, I just hope that they will not be too serious."