by Davey Coombs
Racerhead #38
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In this article…
Riders
- Tyla Rattray
- Chris Pourcel
- Mike Alessi
- Chris Pourcel
- Chad Reed
- Dean Wilson
- Ivan Tedesco
- Trey Canard
- Ryan Dungey
Races
Welcome to Racerhead. Let's start with the end of the Pala National—at least the end for many fans who could not get in. The crowd was overwhelming in size, but that's no excuse. The traffic problems out front were simply unacceptable, and spectator parking was something of a mess. There was a good plan in place, but for some reason it was scrapped without anyone inside the park knowing. And when the CHP decided to start turning people away who actually held tickets, it was never communicated to the people inside. It was a bad deal and an unfortunate mark on an otherwise exceptional first-time event. I can assure you that this whole past week has been spent meeting with local authorities, casino officials (they were also blown away by the turnout but not happy because of the traffic), and the Pala Raceway crew, as well as MX Sports' John Ayers, who stayed out there until Wednesday night helping Ryan Oulette and Kirk Chandler come up with plans for new entrances, new parking lots, and a bigger, more qualified staff to get traffic to and from the 15. They will also move to a system like you have at a football stadium or concert, where fans park first and then pay at the turnstile, which gets everyone off the roads quickly.
Here is a statement and an apology from Pala Raceway about the traffic problem and make-goods: LINK.
Quite a few people showed up at Pala Raceway last weekend to check out the action.
Photo: Simon Cudby.
My wife, Shannon, and I actually walked back to the casino maybe three hours after the race—traffic wasn't bad by then, but it was an adventure—and I told her I could only remember two worse traffic jams in my life: the 2006 Motocross of Nations at Matterley Basin in England, and the first Red Bull U.S. MotoGP at Laguna Seca, where we ended up hitching a ride with Malcolm McCassy and Vern "Mini Me" Troyer (I am not making that up). Not sure about England, but Laguna Seca fixed their traffic woes in a hurry, and so will Pala. It's the #1 priority of the off-season for Pala as well as MX Sports, and we started on it on Sunday morning.
Turns out Pala wasn't the only event that got a much larger crowd than local authorities expected. Check this out: LINK.
Beyond that, I have never seen a crowd so massive for a first-time national. The fans came out in droves, and they were treated to a spectacular motocross track that wasn't as "billboard-table smooth" as some made it out to be in the lead-up to the race. Nor was it smooth by any measure—the riders were blown away by how rough the place got. Chase the track builder and Ryan and Kirk and crew deserve a lot of credit for shaping a world-class track out there in just a few short weeks, for building a motocross city out of nothing, with grandstands, swimming pools, carnival rides, Toyota demo area, RC car tracks, beer tents.... It was a really cool event. But the traffic is what people are talking about right now, and that's why it's getting fixed right now.
Beyond that, you know what happened in the races: Dungey won again, Christophe Pourcel got hurt and gave away the championship to Trey Canard, and Dean Wilson and Tyla Rattray made believers out of a lot of fans. Also, congratulations to Jessica Patterson on getting her crown back from Ashley Fiolek. To read more, check out Weege's Redux, right here: LINK.
The rest of the gang will have much more on Pala down below, but I want to look ahead first to the Red Bull Motocross of Nations, which is coming up at Thunder Valley next weekend. The MXoN is always an amazing event, where most of the best riders in the world show up to do battle together for the only time of the year. (I say most because South Africa and Holland are sitting out, Canada is not sending their very best, and injuries just knocked out Christophe Pourcel for France and David Philippaerts for Italy.) If you missed Budds Creek in '07, stop what you're doing right now and make a plan with friends to go to Thunder Valley next weekend and be ready to see some very fast racing.
Notice I mentioned the Italian team above. So how did the Italian Federation and the two riders at the heart of the controversy - Tony Cairoli and David Philippaerts - sort out their differences? According to our man in Europe, Adam Wheeler, "There were rumors that Federation staff would be heckled and ‘egged’ at Fermo (the last GP) along with other forms of protest from angry fans. One has to feel a degree of sympathy for the selected Davide Guarneri and Manuel Monni but the former indicated around the time of the press release by the FIM at the Czech GP that he would totally expect to be replaced by the riders who could feasibly take first and second in the MX1 World Championship....."
Sounds reasonable. But then Philippaerts, the 2008 MX1 world champ and the man in the black hat at the '09 MXoN (at least if you were a fan of Team USA or specifically Ivan Tedesco) hurt his knee and will miss the race anyway. That puts Guarneri back on the team.
Of course the French are now without Pourcel, which means Gautier Paulin, winner of the second moto last year in Italy in his own 450 debut, has been called up to race alongside Marvin Musquin and Xavier Boog.
I guess I'm not the only one who found Tony Cairoli's take on Ryan Dungey to be something of an insult, as Ping took umbrage with Cairoli's odd words in Ask Ping: LINK.
So what did Cairoli say about our new AMA Supercross and AMA Motocross champion? "I think he is one of the fastest guys, but for sure I don’t think he is THE fastest, in MX2 there are a lot of guys better than him I think." MX2? Seriously? Tony can beat his own chest all he wants, but saying that the guys in the MX2 class are better than Dungey is something I just can't see Stefan Everts saying about an AMA champ, or even an AMA champ saying about Tony Cairoli. Maybe something got lost in the translation.
Tony Cairoli had some words for Dungey...
Photo: Simon Cudby
But nothing got lost in the translation with what the FIM's Wolfgang Srb said about schedules for 2011 and the possibility of the USGP running on top of Pala (September 10, 2011):
MXlarge: There was talk of the USGP running on the same weekend of the last round of the AMA Nationals, on September 11. Will this happen?
Srb: I tell you one example and I use the example of Formula One. Mr. Ecclestone makes the calendar, and only then everybody else moves. In Motocross we (FIM) make the calendar and then everybody moves. Do you really think we wait for a National championship, the answer is no. I don’t know the 2011 calendar of any National Championship, but it works like this, World Championship, then continental Championship and then National Championship, we mustn’t forget that. We make the calendar and then they see it and everybody can look at the calendar and act accordingly.
Who knew that NASCAR scheduled around Bernie Ecclestone? That's all news to me, and also apparently the AMA. But schedules apparently get changed all the time over there....
Okay, let's get back to Pala, and we'll start with Steve Cox:
I know I’ve talked a bunch about it this week, but even though the AMA National season ended poorly for Chris Pourcel, leaving him with a dislocated shoulder, I can’t stop talking about the sportsmanship shown after the race. Maybe it’s more common than I think, but I don’t know the last time I’ve seen someone who had just lost a hard-fought championship go up to the person who beat them and ask for memorabilia marking the occasion with a smile on his face. Check it out if you missed it in my 5 Minutes With Chris Pourcel interview: LINK
I noticed that a lot of people were denying that Pourcel was getting treated poorly by the fans at the podiums, but I have to say, having stood at every one of them this summer, he definitely was. It may not have been the majority of people or anything like that, but it was a very vocal minority yelling, "Go home" and things like that. And at Washougal, I even heard someone scream out, "F&#$ the French!" I know it was loud enough for Pourcel to hear, because when I’m shooting the podium with the other photographers, I’m probably six feet from him, and I can hear it loud and clear.
I don’t get the whole "nationalism" thing at an AMA Motocross race. I highly doubt that people are screaming anti-Russian or anti-Czech things at hockey games in the NHL very often. Why? Because it’s not a game between countries. At the Olympics, I can understand it more, and I can understand it more at the Motocross of Nations next weekend in Colorado, too. But the thing is, even though I understand it more, it still doesn’t really make sense. Why? Because why isn’t it enough to cheer loudly for your own country (or favorite rider)? Why must you also yell hurtful things at the competing countries (or riders)?
Like him or not (and I admit, I like him), Pourcel has overcome a lot to entertain American motocross fans. He set a goal to race in the USA and came to do so after recovering from paralysis. He left his home country, traveled across an ocean, learned a new language and a new culture, and did it all just to race against the best here in the USA, and people somehow hate him for that? That just seems incredibly stupid. And before anyone responds by saying that it’s not because he was French that they didn’t like him, that’s fine, but the people who were specifically yelling anti-French stuff at Pourcel, such as what I pointed out above, his being French is a definite point of contention for them. And it simply doesn’t matter.
And for all of those Americans who hate the French just because it’s the in thing to do (like back when people started renaming foods "Freedom Fries" and other complete idiocy), remember that if not for the French, we very well may still be a part of the UK. Remember the name General Lafayette? Kind of a funny name for an American of British descent, no? That’s because he was French. He was a very key figure, among many key French figures, in defeating the British here in the Colonies. Even the treaty that ended the American Revolution was called the Treaty of Paris because it was negotiated and signed in Paris.
What I’m saying is we’re lucky to have so many racers from foreign nations not only racing here, but even more key, WANTING to race here. It makes our series stronger. If you want a reason to hate the French, go to Paris yourself. You’ll hate them in no time. Parisians are something else. But my guess is almost no one who was chanting the anti-French stuff has been to France, or perhaps to Europe at all. Hey, what colors are the French flag again?
At the awards banquet Sunday night, things went well. It was a very nice event, held at the Pala Casino, and perhaps the two funniest moments of the night were Trey Canard’s victory speech, which went forever as he thanked everyone, and Tarah Gieger’s slightly inebriated antics on the podium. For Canard, he was talking so long up on the stage (flanked by the other members of the 250cc top ten in points) that Dean Wilson began to bend over and lean on his knees, and the Rockstar girl that was holding his giant trophy had to be relieved by another Rockstar girl to take over the trophy-holding duties.
The room got a bit restless after a while, and at one point I saw Ryan Dungey turn around and sort of scowl at the people who were being inconsiderate to the new champ. It was pretty cool.
One other funny moment came when Dean Wilson collected the Rookie of the Year honors, and when he began speaking, he did so with a very low voice – well, low for him, anyway. People tend to make fun of how high-pitched his voice is, and the people who got the joke laughed. Then he went back to his real voice—that of an English choirboy singing falsetto.
And finally, according to Twitter, Pourcel will be off the bike for two months after arthroscopic shoulder surgery, and Chad Reed was out in California testing some Pro Circuit suspension for racing back in his racing series in Australia coming up, since he’s a man without a team at the moment. The strongest rumor is still that he’ll be on a Honda in some capacity, but with Roger DeCoster heading to KTM, that’s a possibility as well. It’s also possible that, if no one meets his asking amount, he will just retire. That would suck for everyone who is a fan of the sport, so hopefully he doesn’t do that.
Here's Ping:
I’m going to start by saying that I was wrong. In last week’s Racerhead I suggested that you should attend the Pala National despite inaccurate rumors that the traffic would be horrendous. Turns out those rumors were quite accurate. I guess when you try to cram that many people—and there were a LOT of people—into a relatively confined area, things are going to move slowly. It was a great race … if you got there in time to see it.
If you live in southern California, there is a great event coming up at Cahuilla Creek Motocross Park. The Ride for TC will raise funds for the cause and give you a chance to reintroduce yourself to the facility. There is a new owner, and if you haven’t been there in a while, you wouldn’t even recognize the place. I had a chance to go there this week for the first time in months and I was blown away with the improvements made to the track and the facility. Anyone who has ridden there knows that the track is potentially the best in the state, but the prep either makes it or breaks it. Well, they’ve got some things figured out and it was the best I’ve seen it in a long time. They are open Tuesdays and Wednesdays for practice and again on the weekends.
And now... The Weege:
The season is over and now we look for things to do—namely, bench race about the latest silly season ever. Seriously, last year things were happening crazy late, but this year seems even later, and we're probably about a month away from where late signings could have a serious impact on testing and preparing for 2011. But at least we know teams and riders are still going to the races at all. There are other motorsports series that just hope to stay afloat in this economy, and many of them are just relieved when one major OEM participates with a team and support. In that sense, this industry is lucky.
The only other thing to discuss is some good old-fashioned bench racing about the season that was. Yesterday I spoke with Tyla Rattray, who ended up second in the 250 MX class due to Christophe Pourcel's zero-point score at Pala. Rattray was not mathematically eliminated from the championship heading into the finale. If Trey Canard had gotten hurt on his crash into a hay bale in moto one, Rattray would have won the championship in the most improbable manner ever! And don't think this was lost on Tyla. He can run down every bad moto he had over the summer, how many points it cost him, and where he could have ended up if those mistakes had not happened - like crashes in the second moto at Hangtown and RedBud. These dudes obsess over their results, which is cool to hear, really.
Tyla Rattray secured second overall in the championship.
Photo: Steve Cox
Then I talked to Ben Townley, who narrowly edged Mike Alessi for fourth in the series when Alessi carded twenty-first in the final moto of the year. I asked Townley if moving from fifth to fourth meant anything to him. "I don't care at all," he said. "I wanted to win. I should have won at least two motos. If I had finished second in points, that would have felt like a win to me, but anything after that, I don't care."
He doesn't, but Ben was able to run down at least 80 points he lost along the way, including crashing out at Washougal, breaking his bike in the first moto at Southwick, and breaking his nose and missing the second moto at Steel City in a first-turn crash. He figures he could have gotten somewhere around third in those four motos, which is 80 points. Again, these guys care!
Also, this week we realized a crazy stat on Rattray: he won two overalls and finished second in the series but only led one single lap all year—and that was the "gift" on the last lap of Texas! Tyla was well aware of this too. He was really, really pushing to just lead some darned laps at Steel City or Pala, just for the stats. Unfortunately, he grabbed the holeshot at Steel City and yielded to Pourcel on the first lap, not wanting to race too close with a teammate battling for the title. And he couldn't quite catch Dean Wilson at Pala. So Rattray ends the year with only a lap led. And trust me, he knows this.
Rattray is heading to South Africa to see some family now. He's not racing the MXdN because South Africa is not fielding a team. Last year Tyla spent several thousand dollars of his own money to race the event in Italy, hoping the federation would pay him back, but it never happened. So this year, no RSA at MXdN.
I covered most everything I could from Pala in ReduX presented by Renthal this week. But I think we should give Dean Wilson another pat on the back for winning the race. His 1-1 score was overshadowed by the Canard/Pourcel title fight, but winning a race is still is big deal. And clearly the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki team didn't have any team tactics up their sleeve, as they let Wilson and Rattray loose even before Pourcel was out. Much respect to Mitch Payton and the boys for letting everyone race it out.
Bryar Perry #118 did his bike up for the race on 9-11. Check out those twin towers and fire fighters!
Photo: Steve Cox
Now some Racer X news:
If you haven't voted on the first round of the SHIFT/Racer X Amateur Film Festival, you still have a couple days. Luke Duncan and Kyle Galbraith are going toe-to-toe this week, and only one will advance to the finals. These guys put a lot of time into their videos, and they did a great job. You can watch both videos at filmfestival.racerxonline.com, and you can vote once per day on your favorite video. Voting for Week 1 of the semifinals goes until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, September 19. New videos will be posted for voting on Monday.
Speaking of films, you have to check out the trailer for the upcoming movie MOTO2, presented by Racer X. Taylor Congdon and his crew at The Assignment are deep into post-production, and everything we've seen so far has been incredible. We're proud to be a part of MOTO2, as we think it's going to be the best motorcycle film we've seen in a long time. You can preorder it now at www.motoxcinema.com. For a limited time you'll get a free poster with your order.
That’s it—thanks for reading Racerhead, and thanks for a great season. See you next week at the Motocross of Nations.
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"Ryan Dungey turn around and sort of scowl"...........HAHAHAHA thats funny!!!
Wow, the FIM dudes are a bunch of jack arses. To think that they hold a higher esteem over the nationals, especially right in their own back yard is a joke. Hope Glen Helen likes record low attendance 2 years in a row. And for all those that got stuck in traffic-bring a bike. I parked off the 15 and rode all the way on a 15 dollar goodwill bike and still made good time.
nice thumbs up at chisholms knee
oh that just i want to do with me and my 3 kids AMR126. ride our bicycles... thats your answer.. nice one.never had to do that at GH. just wish DC would tell the truth, that there was no plan for traffic in place AT ALL!! To think that the CHP looks at event calendars and try's to come up with a plan is a bunch of BS. The CHP turned people around because it was a traffic nitemare plane and simple. The CHP has no responsibility to do traffic control for the national. they are not event staff, they are public safety. hey COX not a bad word in your story about traffic, people who couldn't get in, not a thing. NICE reach around big guy, low attendance, and a banner blows over and your up glen helen's arse. i can tell you one thing, i know MXA will give the national in their mag, unlike the coverage you guys gave the coverage of the USGP in your RAG!!! if the USGP and the national are on the same date i will be attending the USGP.
jenericn951..........what time did you go? When I go I make sure I'm there 8:30 to 9:00 or I don't go cuz of traffic. Mt. Morris has a cow trail and can get real bad late morning.
Davey, are you really going with "billboard-table smooth?" Please tell me that's a typo. I'm also hoping Srb's comments are out of context because if he thinks the FIM can hold a successful USGP @ GH the same weekend as a national @ Pala he is delusional.
I thought the track was awful....very dangerous. Look at all the crashes and injuries that happened because the track fell apart. Have yet to see a comment from mx sports or whoever about that.
I'm from 1/2 hr north of Steel City Raceway. I attended Pala this year. I'm glad I went, but I wouldn't go back. Traffic can be fixed. Most all else was good, but this is the WORST spectator track next to maybe Troy, OH. Pick out maybe 2 or 3 corners you can see, and that's it. Even TV missed Pourcel's crash. Metcalfe wadded up big time right in front of us on the last downhill, and no one saw it. Poor choice for a national track. Also, if the FIM can't get attendance at a USGP when nothing else is going on, how are they going to get anyone there at a race that pays no purse, while an AMA national is going on 1-1/2 hours away?
Do you want some cheese with that whine? Wah wah wah, Y'all sound like a bunch of little girls complaining, suck it up.
That bicycle thing is a great idea. I'm into that. If more people did this, they could pull over & park away from the track which would reduce the congestion for seniors and people with kids etc. Would it work at Pala? Maybe not, I wasn't there to see the fiasco so I'm pullin that out of me arse.
Settle down with the politics Cox. You’re name is Cox.
ifyouknowhatimsayin' !
It's great racing when the Euros come over and we should encourage their participation. The early days of MX when we had the trans AMA, inter AMA, they would all come over and it was great racing. I really admire Pourcel who fought back from such a serious injury and is out there taking the same risks again. Doubtless very few of you could or would do it. You don't have to like him, but you should admire his riding and competitive drive, just as much as Canard's drive and perseverence. Congrats Trey!
OMG ..... Is that Roger sportin the "homey G dawg" look? rofl classic
uhhh... ricky d & the trails dude r friggin"tearin" it up ! and a special note to BOB [ spell it forward spell it backwards - its still BOB] get off the halo brotha...i am almost done with all the national tracks for mod nation racers for the ps3 ! search under [ theOriginalB ] ifyouknowhatimsayin"
I used the bicycle method at Broome Tioga a couple of times. Nobody suggested you do it with your kids, but the more people who do it, the better for traffic. And jenericn951, you're pretty quick to call someone (DC) a liar. Seriously, you don't believe it's possible that they underestimated the crowd and the plan they had just couldn't cut it? Let us know when you make it back from Utopia. Davey's correct that the same thing happened with Laguna. **** happens, especially with a first time event. (But I still want to know how the Hay Days Grass Drags got 50K people!) ... I agree that Wolfgang Srb sounds pretty arrogant concerning MX scheduling, as does Cairoli regarding the Dunge (although Ping's response in "Ask Ping" was a little over the top - yes, his guy Townley beat him in the second moto at GH, but your whole reasoning there isn't much more reasonable than "Tonino's") ... I have to side with Cox on the booing. But then, I've gone to MLB games where people in the crowd boo their OWN teams. I don't get it. And he's right about the French; had they not stepped in with MAJOR support (at the urging of good ol' Ben Franklin), we might still be ruled by the queen.... MXdN in one week ... GO USA!
Oh, and isn't it interesting that people have been complaining about how "smooth" the National tracks have become, but when one gets rough, it's "awful....very dangerous"?
Yeah I don't get the Anti-French thing either. And it doesn't seem limited to Pourcel. Why just this week there's been a lot of rhetoric about the Frenchies pickin' a Boog.
Right on Cox. The anti-French rhetoric is stupid, to say the least. Pourcel deserves utmost respect, no matter where he came from.
Is everyone forgetting all the **** that Pourcel had to say about Americans in the past. This is why he gets the bad treatment from some fans. I respect Pourcel due to the fact that he has realized this and is now going out of his way to earn respect.
Finally that Cox said something interesting......
CAIROLI vs DUNGEY. Cairoli is right. Dungey is ONE of the fastest in the world. But to argue, like the American press does, that Dungey is BEST, is like arguing that Stewart was riding for the team instead of the individual in MXoN 2006. There are too many good riders (C Pourcel (even S Pourcel when he is healthy), Villopoto, Cairoli, Roczen, Canard, Musquin, Stewart...) to state that Dungey is THE BEST. Also, I think many in Europe think it's getting ridiculous when American commentators ”constantly” says that the AMA-riders are "the fastest riders in the world", it sounds like a desperate statement. It is clear that Dungey has succeeded in the past two years. It is also clear that Dungey is very good, both on the bike and off. (But do not forget that Dungey in the 2009 250-outdoors just as easily could have been second. The same in 450 supercross in 2010. And if Reed and Villopoto had been healthy, Dungey would perhaps "only" finished third in the 450-outdoors championships 2010...) By the way Pingree wrote "... Tony could not beat Ben Townley at the USGP. BT waxed everyone soundly in the second moto. And, yet, Ben has only been able to run with Dungey at one race (RedBud) this summer... " I would like to add that Desalle could keep up with Dungey in Unadilla, and then we also have to remember that Cairoli waxed Desalle soundly all year long in Europe! What do you say about that comparison, Pingree :-) ?
U gotta love all this bench racing that goes on before the des nations. Its only once a year, so we should really enjoy it to the max. I dont know of any other sport where two "worlds" go head to head like this, other than Rugby Union (Southern Hemisphere v Northern Hemisphere). Its so cool cause..well we love this sport, and this is what its all about. The even better thing is, everything is left of the race track (when proper sportsmanship is practiced). So I expect whoever loses to take it and swallow it. Here's to a dam good race, all the top shooters get a good start, Cairolli comes from behind, passes, and drops all of them!!! :D For me this has always been about GP v AMA. The whole country comparison, in my opinion, is not a fare one.
Cox - Every time you write something, you force me to dislike you even more. People dislike Pourcel because of home territory pride. Just as highschools, colleges, and states have rivalries, nations will too. Common sense? What grade of elementary school did you drop out of? I read in a paper today that the Florida Gators' fans [rivals of the Arkansas Razorbacks] rented a U-Haul, loaded it with baby 'gators, and drove over 1300 miles just to put the 'gators in the public water system. Now there is a public warning [Fayetteville area] to close your toilet seat and put a 5 lb. weight on top of it. What proud fan of the U.S.A. would want some Frenchy winning in their home country? Pourcel has proven himself as a winner, but really... think about what you write... or did you not learn that in the 5th grade?
JonasAMG- when you list all the reasons that could of happend and Dungey wouldn't have won any of his champoinships, are you kidding me? They didn't happen and he won his last 4 straight titles. At A-1 2010 all of the top guys were on the starting line healthy and fit with the same chance as RD5. People usally get hurt when they ride over their head at a pace that is not comfortable.If RD5 is not the best in the world it won't be long because he is getter better everytime he gets on the bike.
Can people stop talking about "if" a healthy Reed was out there in outdoors? He was, and he won the first moto of the year. Didn't win anything after that and he was plenty healthy. A mere two weeks later he got run down and passed by Regal, so please already.
Hey bhfox, are you saying that because high school students and drunk college kids have rivalries that its okay for everyone else to be ignorant like you? Or have we not grown up and become a little smarter than that. I was born and raised in amereica and I wanted Pourcel to win over canard, does that make me less of an Amereican? And if so,,,,So be it...
Langston_Fan, you always have an excuse. If it was AMA/GP, then does all the former GP guys who race here now race for the AMA?? Your logic makes no sense. But its the only way you think you can get a win. How is it not fair? Are the Olympic games not fair either?? No excuses, whoever wins earned it period and its all done fairly. Pourcel did talk badly about the American riders when he first came here. He was arrogant and he caught alot of grief for it. He is changing and if he keeps it up, people will back off. Fans dont forget that stuff really quickly.
Oh Jonas... Sie Euros sind lustig! Everyone says 'oh if so-and-so wasn't hurt...' blah blah blah. Guys are getting hurt trying to run with Dungey, but whatever. Good luck at mile high with the 350. Dungey over Cairolli by 15 seconds. Canard and Musquin will be a great race.
That would be Billiard table smooth, and FIM and NASCAR have nothing to do with each other to my Knowledge so World then Continent and National championship seems appropriate for planning. The world championships deserve some respect. America certainly celebrates the champions years Later .... Lackey, Laporte, DeCoster and Everts, (old and New) are all MX heros .
Moto2 movie looks like a keeper huh? those desert shots got me hankerin for a road trip!!!!
"We make the calender and everyone moves from there" What an arrogant statement from a guy who has no clue. Does he really believe that the AMA or MXSports waits intill they release thier schedule before they schedule the Nationals?? HA HA HA!!. Thats hilarious. If anyone believes that, I have a bridge I would love to sell you. What an AS#.
Will never attend Pala National again. What a joke, Will attend USGP over Pala anytime
Its not dungey's fault that everyone got hurt and the press is forced to hype him. Don't blame him but also don't believe the hype. If your best competition is andrew short you can't claim too much. When stewart (or reed indoors) are healthy they can generaly lap guys like that. We'll find out next year and I could care less who the winner is as long as the racing is exciting. Turbo trey is still the coolest though.
Jonas and Langston_fan....eh, nevermind, I'm done wasting my time with the idiocy on these boards, but I do remember a certain someone traveling to the MXoN in Europe last year for his FIRST EVER race on a 450 and going 1-1 on the day, I think it was some 19 year old KID named....ummm, who was it?....oh yeah, Ryan Dungey I think.
Strange I'm having trouble posting comments regarding the Glen Helen v. Pala situation. Does RXI have "Yahooitis"?????????
Make that 3-1, robj118. In the first moto, he was well behind Cairoli/Reed. Your "FIRST EVER race on a 450" comment is correct, however, and, combined with the "Cairoli's home country" factor (along with Cairoli's DNF in the second MX1 moto), not a lot can be taken from that race. Dungey has obviously blossomed since then and all the "many riders faster than Dungey" people will get a wake-up call in the coming years, IMO.... As for the scheduling of GP/AMA races, what is it that Srb is trying to accomplish? Growing the GP brand in America? By running in competition with an AMA National? Good luck. For folks like mpstrunk, you're in luck; you'll have small crowds and light traffic going to GH, especially if it runs on the same weekend as Pala. By virtue of traveling to various countries, the GPs can call themselves a "world" championship, but unlike MotoGP and WSB, the superiority of GPs vs. AMA in MX is highly doubtful. (Ask Pourcel, Rattray, Searle, Reed, etc.) It's arrogant for the FIM to think they can usurp an AMA MX National with a U.S. MXGP.
Tell it like it is Cox...Atta' boy. Nevermind the redneck dirt people. Deano "Flying Squirrel" Wilson takes MX 2. Dungey takes the big bikes. Shorty and The Duck both finish top 3. GO USA!
"We make the calender then"--well- then nobody moves nuthin', because, well, nobody cares about the FIM. Funny how they add a couple races to the AMA Supercross series and call it a FIM World title. What a joke.
Carlsbad, maybe we are being edited, my similar subject post suporting the FIM is missing too
Yup, Sef154 your right. Dungey 3-1 for the individual overall, first turn mayhem that took just about everyone out including Cairoli and Reed. Gotta admit I'm an example of my own pet peeve on these boards with not doing my research before posting.
I have grown to dislike most of Cox's opinons in his articles,however, I totally agree(for what its worth) with him on the anti French(or an other nationality)at an AMA National. Once i done that then I had to cringe when he brung politics(especially ones I disagree with,I ordered a few orders of "freedom fries") into the article. I must admit, I now read almost everything Cox writes on here because i usually disagree. I support anyone who stands up for this sport. Id love to see a couple of "Ask Ping" features where Ping and Cox both answer the same questions and compare them. I love this sport. Mr. Wolfgang Srb, it might not be called the "World Championships," but the AMA Nationals is where the true "World" champion rides. Its been that way for years! USA USA USA USA USA USA USA USA USA
I am glad DC fessed up to the problems with traffic and that it will be fixed for the national next year! I might go again!
Bd200 I see you didnt take your medecine this morning...but hey the forum tantrums comes as no surprise. The AMA GP thing is no excuse by any means, but a way of measuring the performance of the two continents. How is that an excuse? Or are u unhappy with looking at it like that? Come to think of it...what are you happy about bd200? Given most of your bitter comments, I doubt there is much. I think u need to eat a slice of humble pie and realise that there is no such thing as an incorrect opinion. As far as this Pourcel thing goes, I couldnt care less, and most fans for that matter, on the popularity ratings of Pourcel based solely on his comments for the stars and stripes. He has more important things to worry about, namely what goes on, on the race track. The same goes for Cairolli. The guy merely gives an opinion and look at the outrage on the other side of the pond. Hilarious! Its quite obviously a poke intended to provoke and look at how many played right into it. He is obviously taking a big risk in that if he doesnt beat Dungey he will look rather stupid. But hey, you didnt hear him say he is the best rider in the world either..did you?
Tantrums?? Huh? Well look at it any way you want. Your hatred/jealousy towards the US is obvious. Never anything good to say at all. And you say the AMA/GP thing is a way of measuring the performance of the two continents? The USA isnt a continent, it is one country. And there is no country named Europe. But I dont have anything to be bitter about and I am not. I just defend my country from your obvious jealousy and bitter attitude towards it. I think the only reason you get onto this site is to find a reason to talk up the Euro riders and talk down to the AMA riders. And Cairoli didnt give an opinion. He through out an isult towards Dungey and the whole AMA 450 class. Saying there are guys in MX2 faster, thats an isult. And an unprovoked one that was very unprofessional and low. He showed me what kind of person he is. He seems a little jealous of Dungey, and he seems bitter.
I'de like to see your credentials clowns!?!
hehehehehe motoclown, im totally certifiable, otherwise i wouldnt be getting this much amusement ;-) Bring on the des nations!!