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Show SALT FLAT NEWS, MAY, 1972 Sports Smh Expert Jach y-- ) 11 tan Stalks 'Olyapk Crami by Richard Menzies For several winters now young Jack Bean has struggled against the odds to win his heart's desire, a gold medal at the winter Olympics in the event at which he excels snow shovel racing. And for as many winters he has met head on with frustrations at every pass. For one thing, it rarely snows in his home town of Las Vegas, so he has to drive long miles to compete. Secondly, hardly ever does anyone show up to challenge Bean's superiority, and still fewer spectators find the sport exciting. Ski lift operators are reluctant to sell passes to a man carrying a scoop shovel, and skiiers heap abuse upon his head for wrecking the slopes, i Shingle nails, shingle nails, hammers, tacks, and screws; Oh, what fun H is to ride in Grandpa's overshoes. Finally, and perhaps most discouraging of all, there is no such Olympic event. Not yet, anyway. But Bean is confident that a growing number of sportsmen will turn to the snow shovel as the latest in a growing list of recreation vehicles. It doesn't help, explains the champion, that in past years the snow shovel has acquired a bad reputation a symbol, in fact, of all that's wrong with winter. Yet snow shovel racing is really not that much of a novelty on the winter scene. . old folksong jKfftop-f- Wheels l byFloKelley Great-grandfath- er It looked as if a range fire had spread along the gully as the smoke bomb signalling the start of the race was eclipsed in the larger cloud of dust stirred by the knobby tires of more than a hundred motorcycles. For. a minute, the staccato tjurst of manifold exhausts rippled the desert air, then faded into the distance, leaving us to ponder this strange phenomenon called What were we going to do for three hours? What were the wives and children, the girls and friends of the riders going to do until cross-countr- they returned? It wasn't long until the first casualties staggered back to the friendly circle of pickup trucks and aluminum campers. football star Jim Place returned carrying a crippled Yamaha. "I was going tod fast," he remarked, wiping a spot of blood from his nose. He said that this was just a "warm up" for the bigger races later on this year good practice. His. damaged bike had been sold already, and a new one bought for the next race. Three wives sitting outside their camper were obviously proud of the devotion their husbands showered on their machines, saying that the week before., the race the men had been working on the bikes nightly. When asked if they wished they could ride behind them or alongside them, one said no. "If my man spilled, I'd want to stop and see if he was hurt." She explained that you can't let anything distract you from winning, if you want to get the prize. Lovely ladies gave us hotdogs, hamburgers, and drinks. It was Ex-Agg- probably scooted down hills on a scoop long before our time and long before he could afford to buy a real sled. As far as expense goes, snow shoveling is such cheap fun it's almost Like many another competitor, young Bean got his start while working at a winter resort as a slope maintenance man. Day after day Bean trudged the hills with his trusty shovel, filling in sitzmarks and pot holes, smoothing the way for the pleasure ski-ie- r. Then one day Bean got an idea. Worn out from a hard shift, he decided to ride his shovel back to the toolshed. Using the handle and plenty of snow-covere- racing. y ie d body english, the primitive sled can be steered after a fashion and develops considerable speed on the downhill run As with the European luge, the rider's feet are extended forward as the rider lies back to reduce wind resistance. Once in motion, the arms are extended like stabilizing wings. At this year's final competition held at Brian Head ski resort near Cedar City, Bean met with stiff competition from his two team mates, also of Las Vegas, but managed to keep his title by averaging the best time through three heats. A late season crowd variously estimated at five and eight watched as Bean zoomed efficiently down the mountainside, even taking a small mogul jump in style. . But for Jack, it was a hollow victory. Since so few aspirants showed up to challenge his right to the title, Jack worries that he may be wasting his prime competing with amateurs. Asked what could be done to elevate shovelling to a proper place among winter sports, Bean expressed a hope that maybe some enterpriz-in-g businessman can find a way to make a snow shovel that costs a hundred and fifty dollars. NEWS photo by R. Mtnzwi Snow shovel champion Jack Bean: IVs lonely at the top. . like a reunion for awhile, with mini-bik- e dogs barking, younger riders buzzing around like gnats at a picnic. For the infants, there was dirt enough for all. Suddenly, after what hadn't seemed like more than an entire afternoon, heads began to turn. On the horizon a white tornado identified the front runners three men in red shirts against the gray of the desert floor. The Yamaha team from Plaza Cycle Don Fuller, Jerry Davis, and Steve Burgess all in their early twenties, were the first across the finish line. Dusty and worn, they were quick to lay the credit for their success on a great crew. They said they had played ball together earlier in their association, and now on pit weekends they ride their bikes to Jerico, Ibapah, and the Lark sand dunes. "I had to jump an eight foot wash through sagebrush," one grinning winner volunteered. "Sadistic," mused another, wiping a patina of dirt from his eyes. Almost unanimously, the "worst half of the race was declared the last leg, where washes and gullies kept popping up unannounced and unmarked. Each bike is equipped with around three or four hundred dollars worth of "extras" and tuned to do at least ninety in top gear. What advice did the winners offer to the youngster with his first bike and eager to follow in your dusty wake? "Just pop CONVENTION HEADQUARTERS BOX 919 PARK CITY, UTAH 84060 1 PHONE OR 649-968- 1 521-213- a wheelie!" der RATSKELLER PIZZA SIIOPPE PIZZA - V ...DOWNTOWN Family Dining nui 3jS9 7 SANDWICHES SALADS BEVERAGES TAKE OUT SERVICE OPEN 7 DAYS 11.00 A.M. to 1:00 A.M. HUM 7 V 250 1' '. -- r c . .i ? ' ' . ' ' " : NEWS photo by R. (joMborgir n ;f 'a SOUTJ 3RD EAST |