by Aaron Hansel
Rewind with John Dowd
Wednesday, August 29, 2012 | 1:25 PM
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John Dowd has been racing dirt bikes at the highest level since before many of today’s pros were even born. With a career this long, we knew Dowd had to have some funny stories waiting in the staging area, so for this edition of Racer X Rewind, we decided to give him a call and let the gate drop on some hilarious moto tales from our sport’s past.
Driving with Kevin Windham
Back in my days with Yamaha, Kevin Windham and I used to hang out all the time. One time we were leaving the test track, and our mechanics had left a little earlier. We were trying to catch them, so we were doing 85 to 90mph on the 15 in Corona with me driving. We came flying up next to them, and Kevin tried to give them a little scare by grabbing the e-brake and making the tires screech a little. That was fine, but the e-brake stuck on! He put the lever down, but the thing was still locked on. It was actually pretty hairy, but afterwards it was kind of funny. Anyway, I’ve got a death grip on the wheel and I’m screaming, 'Get that thing off!' There was all sorts of traffic around and we’re zigzagging down the road, and he just couldn’t shut the thing off. The back and was completely locked up. It was sketchy at the time. Picture us flying through traffic with cars all around, and the e-brake would not turn off. I was just trying to keep the car in control! I was screaming, 'Shut it off! Shut it off!' He was yelling, “I am! I am!” We were screaming at each other and I had white knuckles on the steering wheel. We finally skidded all the way to a complete stop in the middle lane. We both just about crapped our pants. Later our mechanics were just like, “What the hell were you guys doing?”
Paul Buckley photo
Motocross Videos
Those things were always kind of funny for me. They were hard because I was surrounded by guys like Jeremy McGrath, Windham, Mike Metzger and guys like that. Everyone was always trying to do big whips and crazy tricks and stuff, and I never had anything! In one of the videos I got a little squirrely flying around a corner and hit a car. I was never really the cool part of the video [laughs].
Pileups
I was at Binghampton one year and Bryan Manley had crashed on this downhill triple thing, and Damon Bradshaw came over and landed on him. Then Mike Kiedrowski came in and piled into them. I was the last one, and I came over and piled into all them! It was a blind jump and I remember coming through the air and seeing Damon on his hands and knees. He looked up at me and just started scooting off the track on his hands and knees. It was kind of funny, he just shifted into high gear! I never saw anyone move so fast on their hands and knees! It ended up on one of those crash reels for quite a while.
RedBud
I won the overall there in 1997, and I had to go through Jeff Emig to do it, who was pretty much unbeatable at RedBud in those days. He was Mr. RedBud! He flat out spanked me in the first moto, but in the second moto I got the holeshot and he was right on my butt. We went into one of those lower corners with all the ruts, and he tried to go to the outside. I could see that our ruts were going to come together, and I thought, 'Well, it’s either just go for it and see what happens, or back off and hand it to him.' Well, we came together, I slammed him pretty good, he went down and I ended up winning that moto because he never caught me. That’s probably my favorite RedBud story, although I’m sure it’s not Emig’s favorite one [laughs].
Andrew Fredrickson photo
I also remember trying to do a heel-clicker over LaRocco’s Leap one time. It was back when some of the guys were doing the heel-clicker; it was kind of the cool new move. Being the old man that I always was, I was never flexible enough to get my heels together. I would try, but all I could do was get my feet over the bars, so my friends started making fun of me calling it, “The Horseshoe.”
David Vuillemin
In 1998 I beat David Vuillemin to win the 125 Western Regional Supercross title. The one thing I remember about him, and I don’t know if it was because he was a French guy or what, and I don’t even know if I should say this, but he stunk. He had bad BO! I could smell him on the starting line! But we never really had any major run-ins or anything. He beat me in some races, I beat him in some races and the championship came down to the wire that year. Maybe he wasn’t going to shower until he won a championship or something, I don’t know.
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You read it here, The French Stink!! LOL
BillC said it first!!!...lol
Good stuff from Dowd!!! He has been around for so long, I bet he has a million good stories, covering just about every one over the last 20 years....Thanks for sharing!!..
Great read! The Junk Yard Dog. And he said DV stunk! Can hardly believe he said that. I have heard other people say that the French have an oder, but I have no idea, myself. Prolly a normal thing to them and they think we stink. Sort of like the whole accent thing. Still can't believe he said that!
Dowdy is a GOD!!!!!!!!!
Active site, Like three people beat me to posting while I was typing!
Impossible to say anything but positive things about Dowd. Of special note, I have always liked his high level of sportsmanship and class exhibited toward other riders and fans.
When he retired from full time pro racing I asked him if he was going to race NESC or anything and he said Oh Yeah, I'll still be racing. It's awsome what he has done!
JYD hey my wife sister helped to rebuilt your ankle when you destroyed it at Red Bud had to be around 94 or so. I remember Jill telling me about you...of course the doctor said you would never race again. I think they always say that to MX Guys to scare them or to get more money out of us. Thanks for the great rides and memories. It was cool to announce at Red Bud this year your son racing on the
Pro Track Friday and Sunday.
Maybe DV's nickname should be changed to "The B.O.bra"
New England always produced the toughest riders...Its inspiring that John still races at such a high level...gives all us old guys who still ride motivation...I would like to see John get points at a National when he is 50...At Southwick it could happen.
Ahhhh! Pepe LePew srikes again! Dowd had to make a choice, up wind or down wind! Holding your breath for 30 minutes plus 2 laps was not going to cut it! lol Good write up on Dowdy!
Great article. Dowd seems like a solid dude!
Gotta love Dowdy! A regular guy ... except for the whole "top-20 guy at 47" thing! Euros aren't so big on deodorant. I once filled in teaching an English class to a group of eastern European adults in a room with no window. I didn't know if I was going to make it!
hahaha legend! awesome read!
I still have that Terra Firma video where he hit that car. He yelled " Who put this car here".
@self154, totally get it. I had a boss from France come over, looked clean, stank to the core...What is that? Don't they know? Thought it was a guy thing. Listen, wash yourself! People will understand. there is a great limerick...If it smells like fish it's a deli dish, if it smells like cologne leave it alone.
Keep doing features with Dowd..........he is the Man!
@LarryWitmer are you from Kentucky? You said my wife sister.Hahahaha!
@Fred...LOL. I guess should have said my sister in law. That wouldn't make it
so creepy...She works at the emergency room at St Joe where we send all the
bad casualties of Red Bud...She gives me an ear full about the dangers....
You haven't smell stink until you've smelled a Afghani. You could tell the local ones because they smell soooo bad. No running water. It would make your eyes water.
@ lisaoutriding You must be a man !
That thing you ride doesnt smell like a rose either
I remember Villamins teamates saying that when they rode behind him on the yamaha supercross test track that they could smell him.
In 1978 I was in France (Paris) on the subway on a really hot day in August. There was a bomb scare, so they stopped the train underground for over 45 minutes, in the dark, in the heat, with all those French people with their arms up holding on to the overhead handles. I just remember trying to fight the dry heaves the whole time....it was just absolutely horrible....you could literally taste the BO.
Living in Germany rt now....ride the trains and bus alot.....there is a lot of Muslims in Germany now. It is obvious the Germans don't like them. They say they are overwhelming the welfare system. Well, like Expeditionary Citizen said about the Afghanis, when they are seated around you on the bus or train, your eyes literally burn from the stink (and these people have running water). Yesterday a group of very young Muslim men, all dressed up on their way out to meet girls probably, were seated in front, behind, and standing next to me on the bus. Two German girls seated next to me had their hands over their faces the whole time, as did I. I turned to look behind me, and the smell was so bad that I started to dry heave. When I was getting off at the next stop, I told the young man behind me, "you need to go back home and take a shower before you go out"...."and your friends too"....I figured they needed to know....lol
Oh, in case we have any muslim MX'ers out there, let me state that all Muslims don't smell. I have worked with and know a few who shower, wear deodorant, and smell just fine.....alot better than some French people I've known anyway.....lol
COME ON REALLY!
@griffter- I know what you are talking about. Sitting in a cafe in Belguim having breakfast one day and kept smelling this nasty a$$ smell. The smell would come and go, then I realized it was the waitress. All I can say is that the twinky was beyound stinky! lol
@fred- with ol cousin tons of fun, I was going to ask you the same. Like they say" True love doesn't fall far from the mobile home"! yuk yuk yuk
There should be a documentary or something on this guy....and Henry! always a class act at the local seen too.
Love Dowd> I have the sidw plates from his bike that day at RedBud. I also saw that gettogether with Emig It happend just as he said. Emig was getting a little to greedy early in the race and went down otherwise he would have ran away with the thing. MC was on a SuZuk that would not get over the Leap