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/126030
lOp 1:1 Pro MX: Which way to the big time? e The stadium.. Or country club... ~ A lo t o f fellow scribes are taking a hard look at wh at is happening to motocross. AMA p ro fessional mo toc ro ss peaked and is back sliding, sadl y to say fo r reasons so well detailed in Jim Gianatsis' recent article. Now we are facing th at still gro wing spec ta cle, stad ium motocr oss. Americans have a way with cha nging things to li t th eir conce~ t o f life. It 's usually bigger , better (?) an d more flambo yant than what it was origin ally . The growth o f Detroit behemo th cars is a good case in point. In sp orts look how the difference shows in what Americans call football and what th e rest of the world does; so ccer. Watching an NFL football ga me is a go u rme t dinner, watching a good soccer ga me is bangers and mash and a good cup of tea. We can now st art to do the co mp ar iso ns in motocross. As an English observer of th e American scene with only a pinch of the expertise of Alistair Cook I think st adium motocross is where it will all end if the sport is to move in to th e big money. You will always have th e hard core enthusiast who will willingly su ffer and enjoy the o u tdoo r hardships o f dust, he at or whatever Mother Nature hands you that d ay to wat ch th e ra ce . But th e big money for th e top riders comes fro m th e folk wh o arri ve in th ose big lead sleds, ho ld tail ga te parties in the p a rki n g l ot s b e f o re k i ck off . .. er . . . gate drop and who ye t enjoy th e slam ba ng excite men t of , motocross, but don 't want to stand wi th th eir brains frying. I sus pe ct t hat Empero r Nero wo uld have had o nly sm all cro wds to watch (Continu ed nex t page) Ah, Maureen , M'l ove ' - whil e arguin g th at stadium moto cross is the way th e sport must go to hit the big tim e, you did men tion golf in passing (observers of Arni e's swin g at Pebble . .. ) It seem s the proponen ts o f stadium l\lX have skip ped a point. Yes, if Arnie's Ar my will end ure wha tever , while trudg ing miles in pursuit of their hero d uring a long tournament weekend, ho w co me hordes of fans won't endure p rivatio n to watch Roger , Marty , Bim bo and the rest of the top-flight motocross circus? Methinks i f the motorcycle ha d ever been a plaything of th e rich, we 'd alre ady have our answer . The answer is lurking in J eff Smith 's ten year old motocross book. Remember the photos o f his favorite , the Hawkestone circ u it? The broad vistas of grass, the care fu lly manicured shade trees , the sparkling trackside structures that blended art fu lly into t he lan dscap e - th e place was like a co un try club. And the re's the alternat ive direction for motocross in this co un try , one in wh ich Ameri cans h ave traditionally bent other sports. We have co un t ry clubs for golfers, hunters, horsemen ; we have marin a co m m unities for boaters ; there's even a private pi lo t ' 5 co mm unity so me where out in the desert with a runway for Main Street and a Tvhangar o n every house. But when it co m es to bikes, we've always been a day late and a do llar sh ort. It should have been different, of course. - I thin k Saddle ba ck originally started out to b e a dirt rider s' co un try club but t urn ed in to an en viro nmen tal heat, wind, rai n, ....-4 .... . . .fContinued next page) INTERSHOWS PRESENTS ANOTHER INDOOR mo[orcycle swap mee[ (and related items) ," " TIRES , HELMETS, ENGINES, SILENCERS, SPARK ARRESTORS , LEATHERS , BOOTS, TOO LS, OIL, SHOCKS, AND EVEN COMPLETE MOTORCYCLES ! ALL NEW & USED PARTS & ACCESSORIES ! CLEAN OUT YOUR GARAGE AND BRING YOUR PARTS AND BASKET CASES, A NYONE CA N BE A SELLER ALL SPACES , RESERVED IN ADVA NCE . FRIDAY - FEBRUARY 27th 6:00 P.M. till 11:00 P.M. Buyers: $1.50 (over twelve) Under twelve: 7st (' ~ Special seller's space price: Just ten cents per square fool! 10 X 10 fool .....$10.00 Set-up begins at 2 P.M. , Friday FOR INFORMATION AND TO RESERVE YOUR SPACE, CALL: Tim Fisher (714) 639-7440 ORANGE COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS-COSTA MESA 25 ~ I