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/126300
ctioning bod y or who? His intentions are good, b ut the saying goes 'the road to hell is paved with good intentions.' DiPrete could very well be gone in six months, but we're (the promoters) going to still be doing business. "Doug Mockett, as director of Professional racing, is in a position to really do us some good. From outward appearances he is doing what he was hired for . I don't like some of the things he is doing, but then there are a lot of people who don't. I guess it's not so much what he's doing as the way he's doing it . ••• "The AMA is still engaging in the operation of pitting the promoter against the rider with them in the mi ddle as good guys . That is not their function . They should be there as a catalyst, as points keepers, as administrators. But no t as politicians. The AMA's job should be to tie the rider, the spectator an d the promoter together and make it profitable to each. "I really get d isa ppointed with the riders. They don't re alize what is there for them if they'll just grab hold. Very few of the riders understand what exposu re in the m ed ia ca n d o. T he riders come into town and hide from the promoter . I think that is a failu re on the AM A's part in a sense. The Class C riders a ren't like that. T hey are more into the show business asp ect and understand what is going on. "A promoter pays the National Cham pion $200 if he j ust shows up at the track (The rule requires the rider to pre-enter 30 d ays or more before the event.) I ca n't believe that in orde r to collect that money he doesn't have to m ake himself avai lable to the p romo te r for at least a press conference or something. "There are lots of things th e AMA could do to help the promoter. They could pu t toget her some rea lly good racing footage for T V commercials and make u p newspaper slicks for adv ertising. Rem em ber, th at you're . d ealing with a lot of part time promoters and they need help . They need somebody to come in there and give them a boost. The AMA is selling the prom ot er a package and tliey assume that they have guys st anding in line for them. They are right in a way, but we have nearly a 50% tum-over rate in National promoters. That rate ste ms from guys losing their butts on a promotion. "If I sell you a new car I think it is my ob ligation to see that it runs good and that you're satisfied with it . If I infer, insinua te or lead you to believe that if you bu y a sanction you are going to make money then I should make som e' effort to m ake sure you do . You can 't j ust sa y 'Here it is, you're on your own. ' ••• " Ou r Florida (W inter-AMA) Series has been suc cessful for seven years. It was something the AMA cou ld have used . but didn't - as an exa m ple to other promoters who thought they couldn't have a succ~ssful event and pay the AMA back gate monies . Now all that work is in jeopa rdy because the AMA decided they needed a Supercross in Seattle, Washington on February 19. I think we've been treated really shabby. "In my mind the AMA is pla ying with dynamite and doesn't even know it . I guess they feel that they don't need a grass roots operation to give the riders an opportunity to get their feet wet ; to find out what being a p rofessional is all about. Every organization that is strong has a minor leagu e and a training period; someplace to bring the new guys in and give them a taste of the action and a little recognition. . "I can't believe there couldn't have been a little bit better selection and placement of the Seattle date rather than right in the middle of our series . It doesn't make sense . Everyone that I've talked to is denying who picked the'date. . "What is really frustrating is that I was told by Mike DiPrere last year that the AMA might put a stadium event against the Florida Series and I began fighting that idea. I lost , of course. It was almost as if they work on the idea of 'Don't confuse me with the facts , my mind is already made up.' "The AMA was totally deaf to all our pleas. We sent them a letter with a tall y from last year's referee reports which showed we sent over $17 ,000 from insurance, back gate, sanction fees and other monies to the AMA . We had over 200 pro riders at every event and 200 plus mechanics. We also averaged 400 riders per event from our ·amateur portion of the series . We signed up over 200 new members and a number of new professional licen ses. "That is what the AMA needs. - a grass roots operation that brings in both money and new members. Yet all our work was for nothing since it didn't seem to make any d ifference to the AMA . It would have been easy to run the series without an AMA sanction. But the problem is that to split off would not accomplish our goals. There are people in this who have worked seven years to make the series what it is today . Going non -sanctioned might have been the route to the quickest dollar, but I th ink in the long run the whole sport would have suffered. "What is really bad is that people who make decisions about things like this don't even have a piece of the long range action. They've been at the AMA for maybe two or three years . Maybe they won 't be there lomorrow or the next day - - but we will. . "Another thing to understand is that by sanctioning the Sea ttle event, the AMA gave the CMC (Continental Mote-sports Club) our stars gift wrapped for their winter ser ies. We d rew our strength from being abl e to lead into a major event. Now the CMC got one du m ped in their la ps and took advantage of it . Hell, the AMA gave them a present and won't get a dime in return. "You know something? When I told DiPrete about this he said he didn't blame the riders at all, that he would do the same as they are doing. ' Da mn, we're missing the boa t somewhere. ••• ''I'll tell you what separates the kindling from the firewood. They can sit up there in Westerville all day long and tell the promoters how to put on a race, but until you put your $50,000 on the line you don't really know what is happening. You've got five hours on race day from about 10 a.m, until 2 p .m . to get the people through the gate, get the cars parked, get the spectators around the track and get the program going so you can get back your $50 ,000 investment plus make a little profit. Until you've done that , all those theories and talking about what you'd do with other people's money aren't worth a damn." • f1AR.IJ·18 8=00PM ASTRODOME SAND PITS... WHOOP-DE-DOOS AND SPECTACULAR JUMPS... THE BEST MOTOCROSS RIDERS IN THE " WORLD BATTLING EACH OTHER AND THE COURSE ";., FOR $32,000 IN PRIZE MONEY. TICKETS: SS, $6, $7, & $8: CHILDREN 12 & UNDER HALF-PRICE AT ALL 7 FOLEY'S TOP TICKET CENTERS, GREENWAY PLAZA UNDERGROUND, THE ASTRODOME . . .iIl AND AREA HONDA DEALERS. A PACE PRODUCTION PRESENTED BY THE HOUSTON CHRONICLE _:Ilfj ? GOOD;!YEAR SCOTT --,......,. : := .".. 17