VOL. 56 ISSUE 5 FEBRUARY 5, 2019 P85
A
merican road racing is a skeleton of what it
once was. The world does not look to the U.S.
for the next world champion and, if we're brutal-
ly honest with ourselves, it hasn't for quite some time.
That's because Europe hasn't just overtaken
America in developing rising talent; it's lapped us. The
Europeans have known something we either haven't or
simply choose to ignore—that if you want to be world
champion, you need to start young. Really young.
We've known this in motocross. We have the fastest
motocross and supercross riders in the world because
these guys started riding when they were barely out of
diapers, honing their fine motor skills while growing up in
an industry that's backed them 100 percent.
In road racing, we've been lazy. Dirt track has long
been the gateway to road racing and provides the
necessary skill set for delicate throttle and bike control
at high speed, but often riders don't see any black top
until their early-to-mid teens, by which time the Europe-
ans have been racing on the stuff for a decade.
Make no mistake,
the Ohvale GP-0
190 is no toy. This
is a serious track
weapon.
