Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1151987
VOLUME 56 ISSUE 31 AUGUST 6, 2019 P125 of knowledge and for a top team to believe in him, so he could start believing in himself. In his first year with TLD, he grabbed a podium—second place at the San Diego Supercross—and then in year two, he rocketed up to title contention for the first time, winning his first-ever 250cc main event (at Dodger Stadium). He was third in points after that win, only seven points out of the cham- pionship lead. But he landed on Tuff Blocks at the start of the main event a week later in Oakland, which caused him to lose his rear brake, and he dropped out on lap one. Still, he won a second race that year in Seattle and finished fourth in points. His rise, in many ways, was meteoric. He won two races in his second year with the TLD Honda team, then he won Anaheim 1 the following year (he later dropped out of the series due to injury), and then after a so-so year in 2013, he gave it one last shot at a 250cc title in 2014, winning two more main events, scoring three second-place finishes and three fourth-place finishes, but he came up just five points short of the title behind Jason Anderson, who was less consistent but won four rounds that year. He pointed out of the 250cc class without a title and didn't really seem to mind, because he got to step right up to the factory Honda squad to make his 450cc debut. And he did it wearing TLD gear. He's a loyal man, that Cole Seely. And, just as in his 250cc TLD Honda days, he immediately started gaining more and more attention. He grabbed his first podium before the series left Cal- ifornia, won his first 450cc main event in Houston, and ended the series with one win, five total po- diums, and 11 top-fives (including the last eight races in a row). He finished third in points that year. But, unfortunately for Cole, that season was the best one he'd ever manage to complete. In the four years since, he scored quite a few podiums but never grabbed another win, and never managed to complete another AMA Supercross series without missing a round due to injury. In 2018, Seely was putting to- gether another very solid season, and he sat second in points after seven rounds of racing in a deep field of talent, but a big crash at the Tampa Supercross ended the entire year for him. As he hit the ground that night, some- how his own motorcycle's front wheel managed to tag him right between the legs and smash his pelvis between it and the ground, breaking his pelvis in multiple places. It took him weeks before he could even travel back home to California, much less walk, train or ride. Always one of the smarter, more analytical racers on the track, Cole pondered his future and considered retiring then, but he thought he had enough in the tank to give it another shot, and his team and sponsors were happy to oblige, rewarding his loyalty with theirs. His best finish of 2019 came at the same stadium where he won his only 450cc main event four years earlier—Houston. He was fifth place. During the outdoor series, Cole (who was always more of a super- cross guy than a motocross guy) injured his shoulder while practic- ing. The injury needed surgery, and he was out for the season. But instead of continuing to in- sist that he could regain his prior form, Seely took the hints that his body and his results were giving him and decided, last week, to hang up his boots for good at 29 years of age. Cole Seely flew in rare air, having won races in both AMA Supercross classes, and having finished top three in points in both championships, too. And he did it with class, style, loyalty, humility and smarts, which form a rare combination in any sport. Cole loves his girlfriend, Danielle, and his dogs. Perhaps there's a wedding and/or kids in the near future, now that he's closing this book. Profession- ally, it's uncertain what the future looks like for Cole—he loves drift- ing, so that may become a new career path—but whatever it is he decides to do, it's a safe bet he'll end up way better at it than any of the "experts" anticipate. CN