Dick "Ritchey" Dorresteyne at Ascot Park, 1962
At 16, Dorresteyn began racing
scrambles, TT and short-track races around the Bay Area with good success. By
the late 1950s, Dorresteyn was known as one of the top TT and short-track
racers in California. He became a regular winner during the popular Friday-night
races at Ascot Park in Gardena. During these early years, Dorresteyn supported
his racing by working in a steel mill and later as a crane operator in his
hometown.
While he raced primarily on
the West Coast, he began to make occasional trips east. On one trip, he
traveled to Peoria, Illinois, in 1958, and shocked the Midwestern racing fans
by winning the national for 80-cubic-inch bikes and finishing second to George
Everett in the 45-inch class. Dorresteyn’s reputation as a top-level TT racer was
now nationwide. Based solely on his two finishes at Peoria, Dorresteyn finished
seventh in the final 1958 AMA Grand National point standings.
Young Dick on a McAfee built Triumph, his first Belmont machine!
Image courtesy McAfee collection, 2005
No comments:
Post a Comment