by Davey Coombs
Racerhead #36
Friday, September 3, 2010 | 5:01 PMHonda is the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles, and the undisputed leader in motorcycle technology. More motocross riders have won titles on Hondas than on any other bike. When you’re serious about winning, Honda is the machine for you.
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In this article…
Riders
- Tim Ferry
- Wil Hahn
- Shane Durham
- Ryan Dungey
- Trey Canard
- Travis Pastrana
- Tim Ferry
- Andrew Short
- Michael Sleeter
- Grant Langston
- Brett Metcalfe
- Broc Hepler
- Travis Baker
- Ricky Carmichael
Races
Welcome to Racerhead, coming from a very busy Steel City Raceway, site of tomorrow's FMF Steel City National, round 11 of the 2010 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship. I've been out here trying to help pull everything together, and if the weather holds, tomorrow should be a fantastic race. If you’re not able to make it out to Steel City tomorrow, you can check it out on SPEED Saturday night starting at 8:00 p.m. Eastern with the 250 Class, followed by the 450 Class at 9:00. Remember to check your local listings. And remember, you can watch the opening motos beginning just before 1 p.m. ET on www.allisports.com.
The week was an extraordinary one. A couple of the true pillars of the industry were shaken, one to the point of crumbling. First came the announcement of the retirement of Grant Lansgton, one of the most likable, charismatic, and popular riders in the motocross universe. Langston has struggled the last couple of years with health issues, and he even went the privateer route more or less this year. But the former champion—of AMA Motocross, AMA Supercross, and FIM Grand Prix racing—felt it was time to call it a career and move on to the next phase of his life. I truly hope that future includes work in the sport, and I hope it includes some television work.
Then came the announcement that Cycle News, the weekly bible of American motorcycle racing, had shut down its presses. The publication launched more motocross journalism careers that Team Green has launched pro racing careers, and the lineup includes several Racer Xers, including myself and Eric Johnson and Jason Weigandt, all as many of our senior contributors. Cycle News became the victim of a tough time for both the motorcycle industry and the print industry. A weekly paper is in a tough race with instant internet reporting, and while Cycle News had an exceptional website—they were out front early with their Virtual Grandstand reporting—it wasn't enough to pay for the ink, the paper, the postage, the staff, and more.... I'm sure pretty much every person who was a racing fan in the seventies, eighties, and nineties has fond memories of opening Cycle News each week and immediately scanning In The Wind to find out just what has happened in the last week.
And then there was the news that Roger DeCoster had left Team Suzuki after nearly fifteen years, likely to take a managerial role with KTM, which is ramping up its presence in the U.S. market. DeCoster's work as manager there includes championships with everyone from Ricky Carmichael and Ryan Dungey to Travis Pastrana and Branden Jesseman. Again, times are tough, and there are constant reminders of how difficult it’s been for the OEMs to keep racing at the levels we’re all accustomed to. But with KTM, apparently, Roger will be able to really go to work, and chances are we will soon see an even stronger lineup of talent—likely a mix of U.S. and incoming young international riders—for the Austrian marque. By adding DeCoster's name to an already star-powered staff—Kinigadner, Beirer, and Everts run racing in Europe, and well-liked guys like Casey Lytle and Michael Sleeter are on the job here—KTM has never been better poised to compete on the AMA circuit. The next couple of years should be extremely interesting!
Roger DeCoster will leave Team Suzuki after nearly fifteen years.
Photo: Suzuki
Okay, I have to get back out on the track. With more about Cycle News, let me turn this over to yet another CN graduate, Steve Cox:
Last week, longtime Cycle News editor Paul Carruthers quit the company for reasons that are his to tell, and on Tuesday of this week, the decision was handed down from Sharon Clayton to shut the newspaper down after some forty-five years. This is a loss for the motorcycle community worldwide, but it's quite surreal for me, too, as I got my start (as did what seems like 90 percent of the motojournalist community) at Cycle News when I was 22.
People frequently ask me how I got into my profession, usually speaking of photography. "How did you get into motocross photography?" What they’re searching for is a path that I could tell them about that might give them a direction in which to head to end up where I have. But the reality is, there is no such path. My path will likely never be anyone else’s path, and it’s probably the same for anyone in a position similar to mine.
I was sick of working jobs that I hated, including various types of construction, sales, and desk jobs. I had gone to EMT school and graduated from the Mt. SAC fire academy, but couldn’t figure out why 4,000 people were lining up for like ten job openings that paid $25,000 a year, so I gave that up quickly. One day, I just called Cycle News, because I was an avid reader since I was a little kid. I asked if they had job openings and they said they had one in sales and one in editorial. I was sick of sales, so I asked for the editorial department, and I made an appointment to come in and try out for a proofreader position with Chris Jonnum, who is now at our sister publication, Road Racer X. I passed, apparently, and soon I was a proofreader at Cycle News. Down the road, the guys were going riding one day, and I said that I wanted to go, and one of them said something like, "Well, it’s not like you can just get on a dirt bike and ride it...." I showed them my results in the archives of Cycle News, and then they let me go ride.
Proof that I (Steve Cox) actually ride motorcycles.
Photo: David Langran
That led to writing a few columns, then eventually being set loose on the motocross and supercross series. Then, eventually I was canned for writing for the premiere issue of Mini Moto Magazine without permission.
Still, in the five and a half years that I was at Cycle News, I learned a ton. I had purchased a camera from Brian J. Nelson a few months before I was let go, just to use to supplement my stories, and once I was fired, I set out as a freelancer and, after losing a ton of money the first year in travel expenses and whatnot, eventually made it work. It would’ve been impossible to "make work" if not for the education I received at CN University.
More than ten years after my first day at Cycle News, I can honestly say that I love my profession and I feel lucky nearly every day to be doing what I do – mainly because I am. I got lucky. It’s not to say that I didn’t work hard, because I did and do, but the series of events can probably never be replicated. However, the main thing I’m lucky for is that I was able to work under a group of guys that included Paul Carruthers, Scott Rousseau, Kit Palmer, Chris Jonnum, and eventually Blake Conner. It was like going to college that you get paid for.
Thanks again, guys, and hopefully something bigger and better comes out of this for everyone involved.
The new National Arenacross schedule was announced earlier this week, and the entire series is taking place simultaneously with supercross. That’s interesting, isn’t it? It looks like the days of racing AX and then hopping into the Lites East or whatever are over. The hope is going to have to be to prove yourself in AX so that you can get a ride in SX the following year.
Now let’s turn it over to David Pingree:
Southwick always delivers the drama, doesn’t it? Someone’s bike always melts down or someone yard-sales down a whooped-out section and hurts a shoulder or something. Ryan Hughes actually duct taped his broken leg back together there once. This year was no exception, though I think there was a distinct lack of creativity when it came to duct tape usage. Metcalfe should have won that first moto but he ran out of gas. Short had bike problems and missed qualifying, then crashed in the opening laps and then ran out of gas. That’s a bad day. Townley was flying but got impatient and crashed trying to run up the inside of Metty. Then he flew off the track with Short later that same lap. Then he has a rock break his water-pump cover. There are exactly nine rocks on the entire track at Southwick and somehow one found its way to BT’s motor.
Meanwhile, up at the front of the pack, Ryan Dungey was Forrest Gumping his way to another win. I’m not saying he doesn’t deserve it, because he has been amazing all year, but he always seems to be in the right place at the right time, doesn’t he? Good for him.
Side note on the fuel shortages: Southwick has always been a tough race that way. When I rode for Mitch, we used to mount the oil canisters from a KDX200 underneath the rear fender as a reserve. These guys have been racing all year and measuring fuel carefully to see how much is left at the end of a moto. They obviously thought the tanks they were using (which are not production, by the way) would get them through the moto. They were wrong. But literally the only other option would have been to run a huge desert tank on the bike, and some guys just can’t (or won’t) ride with those things.
My wish for the 250 Class is coming true. Canard made up more points on Pourcel and the title is going to come down to the last moto of the year at Pala. I can’t wait. I’m going to be up in the bleachers with a funnel cake and a lemonade, screaming like a Justin Bieber fan. They are going to have funnel cake at Pala, right? Right?
How about those Wil Hahn holeshots? The little guy has got it figured out, and it turned them into his best outdoor finish, a fourth.
Travis Baker had a bad weekend. After starting inside the top ten in the first moto, he smashed his ankle and pulled off. He did break a bone and will be in a cast for the next four weeks.
I was totally blown away by the news of Roger DeCoster leaving Suzuki. I’ve been asked by lots of people if KTM will ever be a race-winning team here in the U.S. like they are everywhere else in the world. Well, if they have Roger running things and Stefan Everts working with riders like Pourcel and Reed, that would certainly make a difference.
Honda introduced their 2011 CRF450R today at Jeremy McGrath’s Thing Valley Ranch. The bike features some updates to the suspension and chassis as well as the throttle body. If you missed it, you can check the video out right HERE. The technical report will be along shortly.
We rode the new bike and listened to a presentation from some of Honda’s technical staff in the morning. When we were wrapping up, they brought out a bunch of Team Associated RC10 cars that were designed with our names and magazine logos on them. They were pretty amazing. My driving skills, however, were horrendous. I was swerving all over the track like Lindsay Lohan racing down Mulholland Drive. My apologies go out to the Team Associated folks for crashing my car within the first six seconds.
Now lets hand this off to The Weege:
Yesterday, a few of the top riders and teams visited the University of Pittsburgh Medial Center for Sports Medicine. UPMC has a first-rate facility for athlete performance and injury recovery that is used by many top NFL and NHL players, and the center has put a lot of focus into concussion studies over the last few years. In fact, UPMC is now the official medical research center for concussion studies in the NFL, NHL, and Izod Indycar Series. That's big, and the good thing is that these doctors are motocross fans--Pittsburgh-area athletes Branden Jesseman and Broc Hepler have worked at UPMC in the past, and one of their heads of research, Dr. Brian Hagan, actually used to race local races at Steel City back in the day.
The press conference was helt at UPMC in Pittsburgh, PA.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
The point is, through their work with the NFL, NHL, and Indycar, UPMC has developed a baseline study to determine if an athlete has really recovered from a concussion, and they'd like to bring that to motocross. Their primary doctor for this study, Mark Lovell, will be attending the Motocross of Nations at the end of the month to conduct more research and talk to more riders and teams. This is a relatively simple baseline test that does not require an athlete to actually go to the UPMC building, so essentially, any racer in the world could take it. Then, after a hard hit to the head, the racer could take the test again, and those results would be compared to the baseline to determine the presence of (or the severity of) the concussion. This could be a game changer in the future. Good work by the folks at UPMC to reach out to the sport and think about the riders.
The UPMC visit served as press day for the national, which is cool because the local Pittsburgh media had a nice additional angle on the race besides just saying the races are in town. And well done by the riders who attended and spoke about this weekend's race, including Andrew Short, Ashley Fiolek, Sarah Whitmore, local boy Shane Durham, and Honda 150 Cup racer Cooper Webb.
Yes, sad news on Grant Langston deciding to step away from racing, but with Grant's personality, you know he'll end up doing some great things in this sport even off of the bike. Few have been better to work from a media perspective.
And like everyone else in this industry, I must weigh in on the passing of Cycle News, which, like Cox, served as a launch pad for my moto journalism career. When I first moved here to Morgantown, DC told me to go cover a GNCC for Cycle News and his mom might like it and give me a job. So I did, I got a job, and now I've been here for ten seasons of racing. Much respect to the off-road editors at CN back then, Kit Palmer and our own Chris Jonnum, for taking that first story from the John Penton GNCC. Getting published got me in!
The pits are pretty quiet here at Steel City right now—amateur racing is going off on the track, so you won't see any of the pros walking the facility yet. Ryan Dungey is already here and and looking relaxed after icing that championship last week. I'm off to find our master of ceremonies for the weekend, Tim Ferry, who will help on today's Racer X Motocross Pre-Show--or since Red Dog is the emcee this weekend, I guess I'm helping him out.
Anyway, check out the pre-show on allisports.com, where we'll have Ferry give us some deep analysis of the racetrack here in Delmont.
And now for some random info:
Craziest photographer ever? Watch this video...
While you're checking out videos, make sure to watch THIS one of Mercedes Terrel (miss SX) from our friends at Moto Verte.
While you're checking out videos, make sure to watch THIS one of Mercedes Terrel (miss SX) from our friends at Moto Verte.
Also, congratulations to Racer X contributor Jim Kimball for being named Western Powersports Rookie of the Year for his work in West Michigan.
Nick McCabe sat down with legendary mechanic Brian Lunniss for the latest installment of our revitalized "Where Are They Now" presented by Bob’s Cycle Supply. Lunnis had an amazing wrenching career that spanned from the early 1970’s all the way through the late ‘90’s. He won races and championships with riders like Donnie Hanson, Bob Hannah, Rick Johnson, Damon Bradshaw, Mike Craig, Mike Kiedrowski and Damon Huffman. Today, the always outspoken man is now one of the guys now behind Mechanix Wear, and his interview is worth a read. Take a look right HERE.
We also posted our first, in a series of 4 "Matrix Concepts MXoN Trivia" challenges today. Take a look HERE. You could win a very cool Team USA mat and stand.
We also posted our first, in a series of 4 "Matrix Concepts MXoN Trivia" challenges today. Take a look HERE. You could win a very cool Team USA mat and stand.
Here’s a note from DMXS Radio’s David Izer:
Roger DeCoster called DMXS Radio just minutes after the PR outlining his shocking departure from Suzuki was released. The motocross legend was understandably somber, but was forthright about his decision to walk away from the successful dynasty he helped create.
"I never thought this would happen, but it did happen," he said. "I’m really disappointed that, you know, that I always thought I would end my career with them." The trying economic times and uncertain future appear to have played a part in the contract negotiations. "I wanted to be able to have a long-term agreement, like a multi-year agreement, and probably because of the economic situation today, they could only commit to a one-year deal. I felt I needed a multi-year, or two or three years, and they could not make that commitment. So I had to make a choice and decided that I didn’t want that and I want to go where I can get a multi-year agreement and plan for more long-term."
Roger has always been a class act and is still appreciative of Suzuki’s role in his career: "I’m thankful to Suzuki because they gave me the opportunity when I was a racer, and we won many championships together and they gave me an opportunity after as a race team manager. I’m thankful they gave me many years. This will be twenty-five years that I’ve worked with Suzuki—nine as a rider, and this is the sixteenth as team manger."
Someone of Roger’s caliber wouldn’t be left on the market for long, and he addressed rumors that he would be going to KTM. "I have been talking to them—not for long, but they seem to be eager, and I feel they want to move quick and would like to know by the weekend," explained The Man. When pressed on the likelihood that it would be KTM, he added, "I think there is a good chance it’s going to happen," although he mentioned there are other interested parties.
DeCoster has built successful racing programs from the ground up before, and he sounded confident that he could find that magic one more time. "If I end up there, it will be a challenge to get them to where I’d like to end up, which is a serious contender in supercross and outdoors in the U.S.," he said. "They’ve had a good year in Europe with their first main-class world championship in motocross, and I believe they have the capability to do it. I feel from talking to them these last couple of days that they are eager to do it and they want to move forward."
"I definitely believe it’s possible to succeed," DeCoster said. "Otherwise, I wouldn’t have considered it."
Here’s a note we received from Troy Lee Design’s Shawn Norfolk:
I’ve had numerous requests for a "video tour" of Troy Lee Designs. There are so many buildings, departments, and employees on the campus that I was struggling to find a creative way to show everything and everybody in a video tour. We’ve got the Museum, the paint department, the race shop, the warehouse, the design studio and so much to show. Well, here you go…the Troy Lee Designs tour. (the two minute version). Enjoy!
Here’s a note we received from Troy Lee Design’s Shawn Norfolk:
I’ve had numerous requests for a "video tour" of Troy Lee Designs. There are so many buildings, departments, and employees on the campus that I was struggling to find a creative way to show everything and everybody in a video tour. We’ve got the Museum, the paint department, the race shop, the warehouse, the design studio and so much to show. Well, here you go…the Troy Lee Designs tour. (the two minute version). Enjoy!
If you're on Facebook and still haven't "liked" the official Racer X Online Facebook page, please head over to http://www.facebook.com/racerxonline and hit that little button. We update our profile multiple times a day, many of which have content that's exclusive to our Facebook page. Case in point: the Old-School Moto Photo of the Day. We're at nearly 126,000 fans and counting, and we hope you'll join us there.
The Old School Moto Photo of the Day feature we've been running on our Facebook Page has been a hit! We love it too!
While you're at it, also check out the Facebook page for the upcoming film Moto 2, which will be presented by Racer X. Taylor Congdon is getting crazy footage for this film, and it's going to be incredible. "Like" the official page to keep up with the film as it develops. We really think it's going to be something special.
The Old School Moto Photo of the Day feature we've been running on our Facebook Page has been a hit! We love it too!
While you're at it, also check out the Facebook page for the upcoming film Moto 2, which will be presented by Racer X. Taylor Congdon is getting crazy footage for this film, and it's going to be incredible. "Like" the official page to keep up with the film as it develops. We really think it's going to be something special.
Finally, racer Eric Saunders suffered a broken back and is recovering in an Indianapolis hospital after crashing at his home track while practicing for the Steel City pro national. Eric’s spine was initially thought to be severed, but his father, Irish Saunders, confirmed that it was in fact only stretched. Eric was initially taken to Memorial Hospital in South Bend and was airlifted shortly after to Indianapolis so he could receive the best possible care. He underwent surgery Sunday night, with doctors placing rods along his spine. Since that time, Eric has also had surgery to repair a bleeding spleen and is getting additional treatment for other injuries. Family and friends are seeking donations to help with the insurmountable medical bills and aftercare for Eric. For more information on Eric’s condition, and to see how you can help, please visit www.ericsaunders.net.
That’s it for this week. See you at Steel City!
Did you like this article?
Check out TEAM HONDA AT DAWN
in our Latest issue of Racer X available now.
Forty years ago, Team Honda arrived on the American motocross circuit with a brand new motorcycle: the game-changing Elsinore CR250. Page 170.
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Impulse Studios
Just read the CyclNews headline, hope the below isn't redundant... For those too young to know: Back in the day there were two versions of Cycle News each week, Cycle News West and CN East. Both editions covered the national scene, but regional and local coverage was East or West. Despite that, it did seem to us out East that everything was California California. So out East at the races (any kind), it was kinda insider-cool to wear one of the tee-shirts Cycle News East sold, saying, "CycleNews East: We don't give a DAMN how they do it in California." Good times.
Ping-I hope you get paid well to make up excuses for Honda. Last weekend was a bad one for "big" red.
Yamaha dumping a factory team and now the departure of DeCoster for economic reasons are a direct result of the economy but I also feel the era of over expensive 4-stroke has and will continue to kill our sport.I own a race shop. I can't count the number or riders/families that have quit MX because of the costs associated with maintaining or repairing the modern 4 stroke. Everybody thinks they NEED a 4 stroke to be competitive. Newbies used to buy a used 2 stroke for $1500.00--throw in a top end themselves for $120.00 and fall in love with the sport. Later on they would buy themselves a new bike. Not anymore. Now the new blood buys used 4 strokes and once they find out they need 2 grand to freshen up their motors they quit. Used 4 strokes are nothing but a time bomb and money pit. Sadly I don't see an end to this anytime soon. I would also suspect other teams will continue to trim back expenses and the local racing scene will continue to diminish.
OK... did I read this right...Chad Reed will be on a KTM next year? I like Reed allot, and he's great for our sport, but why not go after a younger rider to work with? Hopefully Decoster will get rid of Mike A. and his Daddy.
Ping should be fired. As a "journalist" and as a "team manager".
Suzuki should hire Carmichael as the replacement for DeCoster, or better yet, The "Hurricane" Bob Hannah
If they can't afford DeCoster I doubt they can afford guys like RC or Hannah. As long as they keep Dungey's mechanic Mike Gosselaar around they will be fine. I think he is the real hero at Team Suzuki. He should be the team manager as well as Dungey's mechanic.
Dude RC is on a busy schedule racing cars. Being a manager is more demanding. How is RC gonna be a manager the same weekend he has to go race?
Hey Ca207 and Trip, if you ever see David Pingree standing over you in your moment of need* please tell him your name and how much you admire him...
There are exactly nine rocks on the entire track at Southwick and somehow one found its way to BT’s motor. Haha that was a good one. When its not ur season, things happen.
That's the second time today you've had a case of the "negatives" posting on here T. Carlyle. First bagging on Trey for mentioning his personal saviour and all around great guy, J.H. Christ, and now on Ping. You don't see anyone on here complaining how you mop out the restrooms or drop the fries in the thing at your chosen career do you? I don't see D.P. needing rescue from the likes of you. As far as T.C. is concerned, I hope you like warmer climates, you godless heathen.
Now I've heard this a couple of times. RD, KTM, Reed, Pourcel. This is could be awesome. Will this team be called a juggernaut or Jagernaut?
jmpnbob, I was just giving Ping a hard time, didn't mean to disrespect. Lighten up. I grew up in a Suzuki dealership and never stopped hearing how superior Hondas are. I must say I got a little giggle out of seeing the Hondas up against the fences and on the ground. Too bad for Metcalfe, Short and Townley tho- all great guys. I hope we(Suzuki) get Metty next year
"Steve Cox" I also went to the Mt SAC Fire Academy and I was wondering what Fire Dept in Ca. is paying firefighters 25 grand a year. Sounds like an excuse to me. No one goes into a fire academy not knowing how competitive it is ..ask Ping. speaking of which," Ping", instead of saying Dungey seems to be in the right place at the right time how about saying he always manages to stay out of the wrong place all the time.
JDubya, amen on the modern cost of racing, largely driven by 4-strokes. Basic economics tells us that if you raise the price of X, the demand drops. As the total cost of racing rises, there will be less of it. Not arguable. As you point out, in our case most participants begin young when they also, unfortunately, have the least resources. In the past, a used 2-stroke was both affordable financially (purchase/ renewal/ maintenance) and a viable race bike. In the age of the 4-stroke, there is no inexpensive viable point of entry. At the very least, the AMA, promoters, track owners, etc should have insisted on preserving a 125 2stroke class in the pros and/or made sale of a production 125 a requirement to ****gulate a 450 for Pro racing. Looked at another way, how many 18 year-olds would be driving a car if all potential new drivers were required to buy a no-more than 2 year premium automobile or not drive at all? The dirty little secret is that total amateur MX participation has been shrinking for years, and is a fraction (yes, a fraction) of what it was in the late 70s and early 80s. Part of the decline has been demographic, but that reasoning doesn't explain the last decade+. Racers start as kids. We have passed some line where the average kid, on his own initiative, can go race competitively on the local level with the resources typically available to him. This is the core of the sport and we have priced it out of existence. There will be consequences. There already are.
So let's tell 'em they need to come out with a 150 and 350+ 2stroke, cheaper lighter and maybe as fast as what we have now. Mmmm, I can smell it now, ring da ding ding.
Ok, before this heads down the wrong path here.....2-strokes have gotten expensive as well. The days of a $1,500 used 2-stroke were when brand-new ones cost $3,000. Everything is more expensive....(except computers and VCRs) and it isn't all because of 4-strokes. How about how much gas costs to get to the races? Entry fees? Yes, I agree 4-strokes are more complicated and more costly to maintain than a 2-stroke, but that isn't THE factor that is causing sales and participation to drop. Just so we're clear, 2 years ago 1 million motorcycles were sold in the U.S. This year the number will be somewhere around 500,000. That isn't due to 4-stroke dirt bikes. In the 60's you could go out and buy a stock car off the lot and go bracket race it at the drag strip for $3,000. My father worked at a gas station all year and did just that at 18 years old ('66 Chevelle with a 396). MX was in that realm awhile back, but now it is going the way of that grassroots drag racing scene. There is no design, displacement, or scheme that will produce affordable, competitive MX bikes these days....not 125's, 2-strokes or 1-strokes. I just found a used 2005 TTR 230 listed for $2,300. Even that can't be considered inexpensive, and obviously no one is going to race that.
I have to disagree with you BKR. I can buy 2 strokes all day long for between $1200-$2000. I can buy 4 Strokes for $1500-$2500. Still cheap starter bikes but one costs a small fortune and a mechanic to fix and the other needs $200 and a guy that can put the intake side of the piston in right. I'm telling you from the front lines what is going on. I've been working in the industry since the mid-eighties and an enthusiast for much longer. Our sport is on life support and something needs to be done.
JDubya is right. My son just bought an '06 YZ125 for $1800, and no it's not beat. It's compleatly stock. Chain , sprockets and rotors are hardly wore, all bearings are tight, not a dent in the pipe, and it runs perfect.
Four-strokes cost more, granted, but BKR is not wrong that the overall cost of racing - and life(!) - has gotten more and more expensive. My reason for writing today, though, is to express my sense of loss for Cycle News. As a huge MX fan, but also a big fan of motorcycle competition in general, it's the ONE publication that gave it all, that could be taken anywhere, and that I've looked forward to in my mailbox very week since the '70s. It's the one publication that brought it all together, and did so weekly, with news and opinions from the entire industry, from the American stadiums to the world's historic road-race courses to the middle-of-nowhere trials events to the coverage of America's oldest form of racing, flat track, to speedway and Pike's Peak and Dakar and on and on. I feel like I lost an old and dear friend.
I decided 25 years ago that I would always live within my means, and I've been lucky because I've always worked. So I honestly can't relate to being restricted by cash flow. I've owned very few brand new bikes and I've never had the big toy haulers and motorhomes. I have 5 late model bikes in my shop that I own free and clear, (all bought off of craigslist) a '99 gas pick-up and a 20 year old camper. All on one income. I saw all of this coming a long time ago. Remember when a dealership was a hole in the wall? Now they can take up half a city block. Scary, I wouldn't want to have to be responsable for keeping the doors opened.
The cost of everything (almost everything) has out pased income.That is the main problem. Also I diagree BKR, know matter how you slice it, it will cost more to race a 4 stroke so maybe some people don't even try. But u are right the sales are down because so many people don't have jobs( and it don't look good for a wile) not just because of the 4 stroke.
Obviously everything costs more. Nobody is arguing that fact. Milk, gas, and participation fees cost more for everyone. The golfer, the gardener, and the motocrosser. A good helmet and riding gear is cheaper then ever. The basic maintenance items have not gone up that much. Four stokes don't just cost more. They cost way more and again most people cannot work on their own machine. If you can you are one of the few. A four stoke slip on is the same price as a whole 2 stroke exhaust system. Pistons are 50%-100% more. Compare the price of a FCR carb and a PJ or PWK. I see it all day every day.
I think another issue is that the youth of today have a very short attention span and if things are too complicated, difficult, or expensive--MX--they move on to other things. They are also not very mechanical. I swear alot of young men think a screwdriver is a thin, metal handled pounding device. Really kind sad that people don't know how to, or don't want to do mechanical things anymore.
Everything cost more, and it wont change. The factories are even jumping up the prices of the 2-strokes that are still being built to make them comparable to the 4-strokes prices. It doesnt cost over 6 grand to build a Yamaha YZ 250 2-stroke. They just want the price to be somewhat close to the 4-strokes. The cost of racing is driving our sport to the rich and privledged. And it sucks, its turning into a yuppie sport.
Well, whatever the reasons why participation is down, I'm not sure what people are expecting to be done. The original thought was that 4-strokes are too expensive to purchase and maintain, which is driving people out as they can't afford it. The real problem I see is that people want it all. They want Yamaha to redesign a bike every three years and absorb all of the development costs by not raising prices. When a bike remains unchanged and "stagnant" no one buys them, even at a lesser price. So what does the manufacturer do? The manufacturers that don't have 2-strokes anymore don't because they weren't selling. If everyone had bought the 2-strokes, they'd still be around. But bd200 is right as well in that 2-strokes were going up and up and up before the YZ400 ever was developed. Prices have been increasing steadily over the past 30 years, I'm not sure how that can be avoided. Should a 2010 YZ 250 sell for $4,000? In another ten years I think we can expect bike prices to go up about another $2,000. That's only about 2% a year, probably around the current rate of inflation.
Maybe the issue is where I live. I'm looking in the local sale paper and I'm finding a 2007 CRF150 selling for $2,700, a 2007 KX 100 for $2,000, a 2004 CR 85 Expert for $1,650. When you say you find 2-strokes all day long for $1,200-$2,000, what year are we talking about here? I thought we were talking about racing these. If I buy a 12 year old 2-stroke for $1,200, how much will that cost to get race ready. That would have to be a pretty clapped out bike.
In 1977, at or near the peak of the sport, the minmum wage wage was $2.30 and you could buy a competitive new 125 or a good used 250 for $1200. Parts were cheaper in inflation-adjusted terms and, more importantly, you and your teenage buds could do the upkeep with the tools and knowledge at hand. Forgetting taxes, a guy (kid) could buy a bike with 500 hours of labor. Racing for 600. NOW... In 2006 minimum wage, itself an adjustment for inflation was $5.85. So for a new 250F, we are talking well over 1000 hours of labor, forget gear, forget 4-stroke parts, forget paying a shop $40/hr to fix it or machine-shop costs if you somehow do it yourself. Adjusted for inflation, it costs much more, approaching twice as much, as when the sport most flourished. How can we be surprised at the pre-recession downturn? 99% of mx racers do it for fun and choices are made against OTHER ways to have fun. Double the price, people do other things. It's as basic as gravity. Other motor-sports have run into this and solved it with spec-classes or price-caps on eligible bikes. Someone needs to take stewardship of interests the WHOLE SPORT (not exclusively the 1% Pro tip that lives off the other 99%), not the manufacturers, and push for an affordable entry path to the sport.
Another thing that seems odd, why are people on a strict budget worrying about silencers or complete exhaust systems? I've raced for over 20 years and have never had to replace a carb, 2 or 4 stroke. Those aren't maintenance items. Why bring those up involving the increased costs of 4-strokes? I also don't see finding a $1,200 2-stroke, putting $200 into it and going racing on it. It just seems I have seen 4-strokes be blamed for everything from increased injuries to lower participation in amateur racing now. Believe me I love 2-strokes and will probably make one my next bike purchase, but I'm not going to blame any issues the industry is having on 4-strokes. Some of the posts seem to put the majority of participation issues on increased costs of 4-strokes which seems to be putting blame all in one spot when there are a multitude of reasons. If $4,000 2-strokes appeared tomorrow, we'd then have to figure out how to get all the other issues in line to increase participation. Elsinore the one place you are wrong is that other motorsports have not resolved this issue and they never will. Try racing ANY type of car, regardless of class, etc. and it will cost a small fortune, much much more than racing motocross on brand new machinery. I agree with the rest of your post, although if 4-strokes didn't exist we'd still be complaining about the costs and participation still would be down.
Why do I bring it up? Because I have sold every one of those items including carbs to people that either have a defective unit or have damaged it in one form or another. 2 stroke head $150.00.4 stroke head $700.00 bare-no valves. I can go on all day. I work at a race shop. I raced for too many years. And yes there are guys that buy clapped out bikes and someone's used gear to get their start in our sport. I guess I just don't know what I'm talking about even though I have made my living at it for 20+ years.
Just because you've never had a root canal doesn't mean the dentist doesn't do one every day.
You win. 4-strokes are indeed the ruination of the sport. I admit it. I still don't accept replacing carbs or exhaust systems as maintenance items in comparing costs to maintain 2 vs. 4. Clearly other items that a 4-stroke will generally require are much more expensive, but how many carbs do you sell a year? So now that we have proven that MX is doomed at the hands of the 4-stroke, producing nothing but 2-strokes will solve it all? That was the point all along. The original point to this is that 2-strokes would not have MX flourishing either as everything else is still too damn expensive for most people, and that includes 2-strokes. As for the root canal analogy, I didn't say that no one has ever had to replace a carburetor. I said that it is not a maintenance item suitable for the 2-stroke vs. 4-stroke expense comparison. In keeping with the analogy though, a root canal also is not regular, scheduled maintenance on your teeth.
You still never answered the question as to what year bikes your talking about that are between $1,200-$2,000. Since your point is that used 4-strokes are much more expensive it is necessary to compare similar years.
Nowhere did I say it was the only reason--nowhere. But it is in my opinion the number one reason. I also never stated a carb or exhaust was a maintenance item. I am comparing apples to apples. I sell several carbs a year. Mainly to the quad guys that build up their motors.I clearly stated the maintenance items haven't gone up that much-tires, sprockets, ect. The bikes I am talking about in the price range stated are all model 2000 or newer. Perfectly good starter machines. I can take a worn out 2 stroke motor without transmission issues and make it new for $1200.00 including labor. A worn out 4 stroke-same job-minimum $2500.00. I am telling you we are no longer getting the newbies and I watch countless families drop out once they move out of the 85 class and buy their first used 250. They get a couple rides on it and it becomes hard to start and dump it once they find out what it is going to take to fix it. I do think going back to 2 strokes would help but that will never happen. Simpler, cheaper, and backyard mechanic friendly.
The first time I saw this was about 05. I had a newbie bring in his used 03 450. Wouldn't start. Gave him a estimate and he said he can buy another whole bike for that price. I said yea and you will probably be in the same boat you are in right now. I was right and he quit the sport after 3 months, broke and with a real bad taste in his mouth. I have since seen this countless times although not everyone bought the 2nd bike.These bikes get parted out rather than bring a new guy into our sport. I haven't seen a YZ400/426 in forever. Nobody has them although we stocked parts for them like they would be around for a while. I still sell all kinds of parts for 90's 2 strokes.
Back in the mid 70's in southern Ca. a kid could race 5 days a week if he wanted and if he and dad could afford. Plenty of day tracks and plenty of night tracks not to mention places to ride like saddleback, indian dunes and escape country. Also the tracks were difficult but easy enough for beginners to race and not be intimidated. Today's tracks are a little more specialized with large jumps and I think a large portion of the riders this sport once had ie beginners/novice, are content to become spectators. When the pool of riders that could have been pro's shrinks the competition and the sport in general will eventually suffer.
Here in the Midwest (Ohio, KY, IN, in my case) from the early '70s to early '80s, there were at least 2 and sometimes 4 races running every Sunday within 60 minutes of Cincinnati. This is besides night racing (about half the choices each week). It tapered off to about half that by the early '90s and now if you want to race each week you have to be prepared to drive 2-3(x2) hours every other week. Back then, each week you checked CycleNews or the AMA mag. Looking at a week in District 11 or 12, you went down the list and picked. Now... you are lucky if there is more than one in your district and often have to go to another. That's events... then there is turnout. I can hardly bear to go on... It used to be routine at the more popular tracks to have qualifier motos in the 125 classes so you could have a final with everyone fitting a 40-50 rider gate. Or they ran 2-3 separate 125 classes and just scored them separate. Now? Please. How many new adult MX bikes does the industry sell today? In 1972, just Hodaka (out of many more manufacturers then), sold 10,000 Hodaka Super Rats (100cc MX bike, good in it's day). They were maybe 1/3 of the bikes on the in the 100 class. Mine cost me $450, which was about 220 times the minimum wage (not a perfect benchmark, but pretty good, esp if we are talking, as we are, about very young people). If our sport does not have a lowest rung within reach of a 14-20 yr old without a rich Dad, it will continue to shrink into a tiny rich-folks club.
Elsinore, more good points. I think that gas prices and travel distance required to race is one of the big factors. And Smokin makes another good point about the tracks. There really aren't many MX tracks that are newbie friendly. Imagine getting into the sport and immediately being in a race against a hungry pack of beginners that are all doing the big double. That is about as demoralizing and intimidating as anything. Offroad is much more newbie friendly, but that doesn't help MX participation. I think it gets chalked up to being a sign of the times. I'll point this out concerning all the inexpensive bikes of yesteryear.....they all went out of business, because the public scrambled to the higher tech, promise of MX glory that came with the Japanese bikes. That still continues today as the bikes lagging in change drop down the sales chart. That is exactly why the public didn't keep the 2-stroke alive, because they all clamored to 4-strokes in search of keeping up with the pack.
Smokin', I graduated from Mt. SAC's 22nd BFA. The example I gave was from the first test I went to after graduation, which was a Central Valley composition of fire departments who were hiring, and it was well over 10 years ago. There were 4000 applicants. If you want to know why the government is fat, one example is seeing 4000 people line up for a job paying $25,000/year to start because they know they'll get full benefits, overtime at ridiculous rates, etc. When government jobs are significantly better for the workers than private-sector jobs, the pyramid is upside-down, and it can't be sustained - which we are seeing evidence of right now. Someone has to pay the taxes to pay the wages and benefits of government workers, and they have to be in the private sector. Yes, government workers pay taxes, but they're paid FROM taxes, so it's like taking a bushel of apples, then putting 5 apples back and saying you contributed to the overall amount of apples. You didn't. You withdrew. But I digress... I love my job.
"cox" I think most people myself included would rather have my taxes go to police and fire/ems protection than some of the other bs. I'm really happy to hear that I never had to pay taxes because as you said government workers only withdrew...are you kidding me! So the money I had to pay over the years doesnt count because I was goverment paid. Hey maybe you're right come to think about it. I payed taxes and the goverment paid me so I paid part of my own salary lol. I am sure you like your job but it appears that 10 years ago you had a dream of becoming a firefighter and it didnt work out so you are a little angry. Overtime pay is time and 1/2. What does the private sector pay for ot. In this day and age who wouldnt want to get full benefits. I feel sorry for people that work and dont have medical insurance or the self employed who pay outragious amounts of money for it but please don't slam someone who has worked hard to get a career that does provide it. I apologize to the people on this comment section because this is for motocross but I felt I had to say something.
Ben Townley is the pre-1999 Greg Albertyn of today. One of my favorite titles was indeed seeing Albee win the Nats in '99. A good guy that seemed to have more bad luck than any 3 Ryan Hughes' put together. My second favorite would be the first title that RC won for them. Reed to KTM? Well, that Kawi certainly didnt seem to agree with him. And yes, I can see Alessi get either bumped over to Europe (which would be good for him since he has no shot of ever winning a title here) or dropped completely with Roger taking over. And finally, I was always a big Langston fan, and am sorry to see him retiring. But, Grant has accomplished a lot, and has nothing to be ashamed of whatsoever. One more round of applause for the "Zulu Warrior."