POG bios

[don howard]

Hi .I don,t feel to bad and reading some of these injuries. My starting riding motorcycle at 14 years old on a whizzer motor bike, thats all it took to get me hooked. Did lots of road riding while in the Navy stationed in Norfolk Va. Rode 12 hrs. to New Hampshire on week-ends. crazy huh? But thats home to me. Always went to Laconia for bike week back in the crazy days at Gunstock area. Scrambled a 125 cc Parilla ran on a 6 volt lantern battery = one broken collarbone at Monson Mass. After that went to the woods on a Greeves had no serious injurys.Lots of riding off road with bikes can,t even remember. In 73 went to the ISDT in Becket Mass. Left me with a strong desire for a Penton Steeltanker got lots of info from that weekend. Impressed by a lot of our own POG,ers. One day was in a junk-yard in Maine and low an behold was a steeltanker on top of a pile off junk heading for the crusher was my dream come true, told the owner i wanted that bike, he said $100.00 climb up and get it. So i dragged that 71 tanker off that pile. All it needed was a flywheel, side cover, cleaned the tank, fresh gas and that,s all. Still runs good replaced fenders covered the seat, My dream came true. My Son and myself went to the reunion ride in Mass just like we did in 73 ,had Mr John Penton sign my freshly painted tank, also had everybody sign it that i could get to sign it. Had the time of my life. Iam 71 years old still ride the woods, you could call me a life long rider.I was the guy with the tank in the Dale Earnhardt bag asking for autographs but everybody was nice about it, sorry had to interrupt J Penton while he was eating a delicious peach, but he was so nice about it. Great guy, got some pictures while shaking hands with him, made my day. Well thats it in brief.   Don Howard

[Mick Milakovic]

Don, your experience in "dragging" your steel tanker  back to life is one we all wish we had!

[thrownchain]

Hey guys don't slack off on me now. Theres lots of members we haven't heard from. Step up and tell us about yourselves. Say as much as or as little as you want.[][8D][^]

[socalmx]

My family moved from Illinois to California when I was 11. My older brother got interested in motorcycles and my younger brother and I followed along. First bike was a Honda CM91 step thru 90. Learning to ride meant riding up and down the alley. First real dirt bike was a '71 Honda SL100 that I got for Christmas. My dad always felt that motocross was too dangerous so he decided that we could race in the desert if we wanted. First desert races were the Ponderosa Hare Scrambles that were held monthly outside Lancaster, Ca. I learned early on that the Honda lacked power (course had a lot of deep sand) and due to the short wheelbase, swapped ends very easily (I still remember my first "over the bars" crash). I also started racing the AMA District 37 races about the same time. Senior year in High School found me looking for a new bike. Penton Berkshires were too expensive so I purchased a new-used '73 DKW 100 (Betor front end). During '74 I started to win my class and progessed from Novice to Amateur. I DNF'd Check Chase that year but did finish Barstow to Vegas. In early '75 I had to quit racing due to family financial problems but started racing again in '76 on a Suzuki RM100. Late 70's into 80's found me racing a RM125 and then a PE175. A "B" type movie called Desert Racers filmed in '81 gave me my fifteen minutes (seconds) of fame. During a D37 desert race segment,they showed different people trying to climb this difficult hill. They filmed me because I was riding up the hill shaking my head. Truth be known, I was cursing the race organizers for having such a rotten hill so early in the race. In '87 I raced Barstow to Vegas on a Husky 500XC which was the worse mistake I ever made. I ended up looping the bike at speed dislocating my shoulder in the process. After getting rid of the Husky, I purchased a '87 YZ250 which I play rode a couple times a year until I purchased my latest bike. I picked an old man's bike - a '97 Honda XR400. These days I play ride with my brother and nephews.
Penton wise, purchased my '72 125 in 1984 for $50. I decided early on that I wanted it restored to race conditions (vs showroom). I have restored it a couple of times and currently race it twice a year at the Adelanto and Elsinore Grand Prixs just for fun.