Diamond Don and Gary Semics
the girl with the bourbon. A heartwarming story told on the tour was that of Buddy Burns of the Texas Vintage Racing club who Hodaka aces Bruce (L) and Gary Capps, Vintage 100cc class collects many jackets for the homeless. (These stories of generosity and kindness seemed to be repeated as the tour went on). It is not unlike the evenings in the roadrace paddock I'm familiar with. There are not too many places you can go and meander with every group of people attending and feel welcome like fantastic stories about rattlesnakes family. This is AHRMA. I really enjoyed everything about warming Diamond Don's racetrack. He and his themselves in wife, Francene, work very, very, hard to the road at night put this event on and it shows with all and the crazy the details and extras you find around times they had the facility. The food was exceptional; at previous races, after a long day in the sun it was great including Val,
to sit down to a hot meal every night and socialize with all the people who had been working and/or racing so hard all day. Sometimes the best memories are made before and after the races. It was here that we were able to meet some of the Legends attending the races for the weekend. More stories of factory racing were heard, and incredible legacies were shared. We felt truly blessed to be able to listen to these incredible tales of yesteryear. To say this was a learning experience is a complete understatement. I enjoyed myself more than I can say in words. From the host and hostess, to all the racers, and volunteers (especially Sharon Bean, the MEGA VOLUNTEER), I'd like to thank the off-road community for their warm welcome and for sharing your time and knowledge. I'll definitely be back. • Sincerely, Amy Jacques •
Diamond Don’s Riverport National, through the Eyes of Two-Time World Champion, Trampas Parker I showed up at double D's and low and behold, my first encounter was impressive. Wes Willis, Johnny Mac and Chicago Jerry were already out there working like an army of ants. Don was doing what he does best, BS-ing. All jokes aside, this was the best I have seen the event in my 10 years coming here. As we pulled into the park on Wednesday, things were looking great and I was praying that we would have the biggest race ever, even with all the crazy things happening in the world. As Cross Country kicked off on Friday, the numbers weren't the biggest ever, but each row that took off was full, making racing fun! The trails were the best they have been in years! With the water level down, it allowed us to ride sections we haven't raced in quite some time, adding length to the course and using more of the levy, which added to the excitement! I hope everyone had as much fun as I did; I felt like a kid in a candy store. As we were awakened by the sound
of vintage motorcycles Saturday morning, I knew that the rest of the weekend was gonna be awesome!! After walking the MX track, I saw there were some new and welcomed changes that were going to make racing better. It had a better flow and made passing easier. Not only did they have The Battle on the Bayou 100cc race, but they also added the Texas Thumper Throwdown XR200 race. The only question is, "Did someone race both classes, back-to-back motos, and walk away with both wins?" For me, Saturday did not disappoint, sitting on the fence, watching just how fast racers could go on vintage motorcycles over 50 years old! Racers arose early Sunday morning to hear Steve Wise and myself talk about the most important thing in my life, and no it's not racing, it's God. What an amazing way to start the day. Post Vintage MX kicked off with the best track conditions ever at Diamond Don’s. The track held up all day with some of the best racing seen here in a long time.
Kent Hanson Mike Harlan Jerry Harris Roger Harris Becky Hayes Craig Hayes Gerard Hayes Brandon Hedge Bill Hester Robert Hicks Leigh Hightower
Kelly Jones Nick Jones Parker Jones Pat Jones Trey Jorski Brian Jull Blake Keller Jere Kellough Skip Kennedy Scott Kirn Keith Klump
NOVEMBER 2020
Bob Hodge James Holton Gene Horstman Mark Hosbach Randy Howell Sam Huggins Chris Ingram Denis Jeffries Kenneth Jeter Bryan Johnson William Johnston
Randall Kohl Bobby Kyle Jack Kyzer Bert Lane Buddy Lavin Eddie Lee Richard Light Colton Lightfoot Zahn Lewis John London Devon Long
AMERICAN HISTORIC RACING MOTORCYCLE ASSOCIATION
Trampas Parker on his way to a win in the 100cc Battle of the Bayou Photo by: Bobby Hedge
I think moving the race later in the year helped since there was no springtime water to deal with and this resulted in great racing. And by the way, to answer that question about someone winning both support classes, yes by yours truly! One thing I've learned through the years as a racer, when you pull into a National, you expect it to look and feel like a National! Don & Francene have accomplished this. Lloyd Loux Lawrence Lucia Bruce MacFarlane Bill Malec Chet Malito Jim Marchbank Christopher Martin Josh Martin Joshua Martin Ruben Martin Jim Masterson
Charles Matheny Rodney McAlpin Stuart McAvoy Steve McCharta John McCullough Ray McFarland Bob McNamara Bobby Meche Larry Meeker Larry Melton Brian Miller
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