Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

Interview: 1987 250cc MX World Champion ~ Erik Geboers ~ m"I had everything to lose" ......c o-r By Alex Hodgkinson l-< ] Erik Geboers is small In stature, but big .9 in heart. Despite the pressures which any top rider must face, he remains one of the most approachable of all riders and his will- a ingness to speak openly and frankly on any aspect of the sport makes him a much respected rider amongst his col- 12 leagues, while his spectacular, style endears him to spectators everywhere. After a week of receptions and a long hard season, the new 250cc World Champion found time to speak to us at the big Belgian International in his home town of Mol. After three years of being so close yet so far from the title in the prestigious 500cc class. did you feel under a lot of pressure contesting the 250cc GPs this year? Yes, a lot. In the Belgian press they wrote in terms of me going backwards in my career to the 250s as though it was a backward step in my career and I had to win. For them it was a step down, and if I were to lose, then it would be a disaster. Anything can happen in motocross - a stupid crash or something. It wouldn't have been my.fault. But it was impossible to get that out of my mind. I rode the whole season .under a lot of stress and I rode the whole GP season under my best form. I was very tense. The first round was at Wuustwezel in your Belgian homeland. Did that make these problems even worse there? Strangely enough, that was not the case, though I obviously was particularly keen to win that one. I felt it was worth taking a few risks there and I did. But that wasn't why I crashed there. When I crashed in the second race there, a lapped rider went down in . front of me off a jump. I was so keen to win that I took a lot of risks after that as I tried to get back to the front, and I crashed again but I didn't get hurt, so it was okay. Apart from the obvious fact that the bikes are a different capacity. how do the 250 and 501lcc classes differ? I think there are more riders going fast in the 250s. In the 500s there are less riders who are capable of riding the bikes to their optimum speed. Is there a less professional approach amongst the riders. Apart from yourself. Pekka Vehkonen and Jorgen Nilsson. most riders do not seem to appreciate the importance of promoting their sponsors. I think the 250 riders are generally less experienced. But most of the riders are not getting so much support. There are some guys who expect to be called "sponsors" just because they have given a rider a few dollars. I can understand that the big sponsors are looking for riders who can show that they appreciate the importance of acknowledging their help, but most of the riders in the 250cc class probably haven't reached that level yet. It is only when you reach the level like Pekka and myself that most people start to realize this sort of thing. Did you find the atmosphere amongst the riders more friendly and open in the 250s? I didn't find it any friendlier, but, of course, as someone inside the sport, I think I'm someone who tries , to be friendly anyway - I know a lot of people everywhere. And , of course, after three years in the 500cc class, I know so many people there so it is no problem to walk into anybody's tent for a chat. I don't think I have too many enemies, but there were a lot of strangers in the 2S0cc class at the beginning of the year. The trip to South America made us really like a family though, because we were of necessity all together for the whole trip. And there were no personal problems between the riders on the whole trip. Maybe that could have been a little different in the SOOcc class because of the rivalry. You said earlier that you felt there were more riders going fast in the 250s, but apart from the occasional very good rides by Jorgen Nilsson or Rob Herring, it was basically a direct confrontation for the title between Pekka and yourself. Did that dictate a difference in tactics to the 500cc class where you could afford one bad race in the knowledge that your other rivals for the title would take points from each other? Yes. It -was playing on my mind all year before the start that I must be somewhere near the front at the start. If I made a fourth or fifth placed start I felt I had to be so careful in the opening laps to make sure I didn't get involved in a collision with someone else. I was often being too careful in the G Ps; in .fact I think I was going much faster in Belgian Internationals and being much more aggressive at the start because I had nothing to lose there. In the GPs I had everything to lose. Winning the motos was not always the most important, but I had to make sure that I at least equalled Pekka on the day and didn't lose anything. You havejustgotten back from South America. The other riders who were there tell me that Brazil was great. but there were problems in Argentina. Yes. Brazil was great. Pedro Faus, the organizer, did everything to help us in every way , but then we went to Argentina! Pedro joined us on that trip. It was not his duty to do so, but he travelled with us and he gave us more support there than the Argentinians. He was there as a friend. He took the same bus. He took the same hotel - and if you will excuse my language - in so doing he took the same crap. He lived through the same as we did. Let me tell you what that trip was like. We arrived at II o 'clock m the night at a hotel in Buenos Aires and we had to wait until one o'clock to get our room keys. Then we had to find something to eat because the Argentinians didn't provide us with anything on the flight there or after we arrived. Then we had to get 'u p, at five in the morning to catch the flight to Salta. There was a petition by the riders complaining about the treatment in Ar~entina. What were the main pomts of grievance. Just the whole thing. Tne organization there was so bad. But if I personally had to choose something that was bad, then I would like your readers to understand the health problems. You know, we are sportsmen. We are healthy people, but we were about 70 people from Europe and the day after we arrived SO of lis were sick. And the medical facilities availablel I don't have anything personally against the doctors, they were friendly and they tried their best, but some of us got the wrong medicine. People were sweating and shaking with fever and they needed injections; many of us had a throat infection, but they didn't have any medicine. I don't think we should have to put up with this sort of thing. When we got to Salta, there was just nothing for us to do . When we eventually found a tennis court, it was such a relief. We were so happy that at least those who were not too sick could play tennis. We couldn't even call ' home there because there are no international telephone lines up there. One of the things we have requested of the FIM before we would consider going there again would be two doctors from Europe, one to deal with broken bones and another to look after the general health of the riders. But that is if there is another tripl There were so many other problems. The bikes didn't arrive until Friday. Another of our requests is that those people who sent us there the CMS (motocross commission of the FIM) - have to be with us. They have got to come and endure the same conditions as the riders, and if they don't stay with the riders, then we do not carry on. After two years when the 125 riders have just accepted the problems, the 250cc teams have made their feelings known. How do you think the 500cc riders would have reacted? Do you think the factories would have insisted that they put up with it? What I really think is that the young guys in the 12Ss just accept everything, the 2S0cc riders, a bit older, turned around and said. "Hey, let's get this organized." The SOOs - they won't even go . Why should the factories put pressure on them to go there. Not now that they are aware of what happened there this year. The factories don't need to go to Argentina for publicity. There is a Honda importer there, and he hasn't been able to import one single motorcycle in the last four years. So what interest have the factories? There are clearly problems for the communication .between the riders , and the FIM. There is currently only one rider representative at the FlM although there is provision for two. 1£ you were asked to take on the job as the second representative would you be willing to accept? Let me put it this way. Motocross in many ways is improving, just like every other aspect of life. The FIM, I believe, also wants to see motocross improve, but let everything get better. Now if you look at the approach of the teams. Every . year there are improvements to the equipment we bring with us; everybody is fitted with generators, pressure washers, our own water tanks and so on. We went to Argentina and it was like stepping back 30 years in time. The teams are doing their part in improving the image by adding color, professionalism and so on to their approach. If I were to be asked to represent the riders at the FIM, then I would go, under certain conditions. I would not be prepared to go unless they are willing to listen. I would go with a list of questions, and I would want them to be answered. I think we need to ge} a relationship where the FIM

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