Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/1528606
Guy Cooper Guy Cooper In 2004, Rin Tanaka and Sean Kelly penned a book tled "40 Summers Ago" that chronicled the ad- ventures of Steve McQueen and Bud Ekins at the 1964 ISDT in Communist East Germany. This was the same year that McQueen starred in the movie "The Great Escape," in which Ekins stunt doubled McQueen for the infamous motorcycle leap over tall, barbed wire border fencing. 30 Summers Ago, for me, didn't involve movie making or motorcycle stunts, but I did find myself spending a week at the John Zink Ranch near Tul- sa, OK, working as a medic rider for the 1994 ISDE. I was in hog heaven all week being in the middle of off-road's best. When I found out that the Tulsa Trail Riders were planning a 94 Six Days 30-year anniversary celebra on in conjunc on with the Zink Ranch round of the NEPG series, I put on my adver ser and promoter hat to try to get the word out to as many 94 vets as I could find. About half of the field in 94 was comprised of US riders who dropped everything for the chance to ride "The Big Show," which was making its appearance in America for the first me since 1973. The US sends about 40 riders to the Six Days fol- lowing an arduous selec on process, with the total of Trophy and club riders from all na ons num- bering around 300. The host country, however, is tradi onally allowed to let a lot of its own talented riders join in the fun, so in 94, the US had a couple hundred addi onal riders compe ng just for the once-in-a-life me experience. As an example, you can expect to see a couple hundred Spanish riders listed in this year's ISDE and there will be a couple hundred extra Italians next year in Bergamo. My job in 94 was pre y darned easy. I was given a backpack full of bandages, wraps, and splints, hand- ed a walkie-talkie talkie, and directed to one of the several team service areas where riders would be ge ng fuel, making repairs, and hydra ng. If some- one got banged up or if I got radio traffic about a rider down on the course, I was supposed to patch them up as best I could and call for an ambulance if the injury required a trip to the hospital. I wound up with zero customers (a good thing) and thus had plenty of me to wander the service area, watching the various pit crews a end to their riders. 30 Summers Ago: The 1994 ISDE 30 Summers Ago: The 1994 ISDE By Jeff DeBell By Jeff DeBell Photos By DirtBike Dream Photos Photos By DirtBike Dream Photos 34 Trail Rider www.TrailRider.com