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/126997
" Kids will dr aw the ir par ents in," says Bryant. "They will see the show, then get their parents to take them to the motocross races. It will create a new generation of consumers." Bryant went to work a nd develo ped some characters a nd story lines. He came up with Team America , a group of intelligent, young racers whose participation in international Ultracross events, which are cross-country co m pe ti tio ns with no lim itations on th e type of motorcycle , provides a convenient and plausi ble cover for th eir work on behalf of U.L.T. R.A. (Un iversa l Liberty Through Respo nsib le Action ), a worldwide crime-fighting organization. Jeffrey SCOtt, three-time Emmy Award winner for Writer of Outstanding Animated P rograms, was later added as a writer a nd Executive Producer of th e series. Nex t Bryant needed animation but ha d to overcome som e roadblocks. First, people said th a t mo torcycles and racing required too much detail a nd th a t the movement wo uld be difficu lt to a nimate. Bryant kn ew th at computer animation would be the way around this, but it was also much mo re expensive. A special or a movie was possible, but a cartoon series wou ld go way over the typical .$250,000 budget for most animated programs. So he started looking for a wa y in , beginning right at the top. Through co ntac ts he had made in th e film ind ustry Bryant was able to meet with Bill Kro yer , a com p uter animation spe cia list whose credi ts included the films T ron and Labyrinth. The two eventua lly formed a joint venture and began to work together to present Ultracross to vario us studios. They didn 't want to sell Ultracross in syndica tio n to th e maj or networks because, accor ding to' Bryan t, th at would require a minimum of 26 episodes and if th e show was cancelled before a ll 26 were run, they wouldn 't ge t th em ba ck. They also . couldn't go out a nd get a to y compan y to he lp promote th e program before it even appeared on television, so they decided to sell independently. Before going to any studios, Bryant went looking for a toy com pan y. He was su ccessfu l. T we nty-th ree companies made bids before th e contract was awa rded to LJN Toys, which will in trod uce th e Ultracross toy line at th e International T oy Fai r in New York in February, 1988. With toy company ba cking, " we were able to walk in a n ywhere," said Bryan t, Brya nt approached abou t four studios, all of which wanted Ultracross, and decided to go with Stephen J. Ca n nell Prod uctions, In c. " We went with Cannell because th ey didn 't have a cart oon, " Bryant sai d. "It was a first for them and a first for us." Because of the inertia created by the backing of a toy company, Bryant and Kroyer were ab le to get their p rice for the series while maintaining ownership of a share of the p rogra m . Lexing ton Bro adcasting System (L BS) Co m munications, a leading di stributor o f children's syndicated progra ms, has ordered 13 episodes o f Ultracross, so far, and will mak e it a part of LBS' weekend bl ock o f an im a ted program ming. As far as co mpeti tio n goes, Bryant is not concerne d since there are no othe r cartoons in volving mo torcycles on tele visio n. If the series succeeds, both in the ra tin gs and Bryant' s p roj ection of bringing more riders into the sport, could we see starting lines across Ame ri ca fill ing with young riders and stadiums swelling with fans? We'll just have to wait and wa tch.• 9 Husqvarna $2.095. 00 Husqvarna WRK 125 Enduro 1 Cyl inder. 2 Stroke. Exhaust Power Valve Dellorto PHSB 36 CARBURATOR: 124.6 cc DISPLACEMENT: 56x 50.6mm BORE/STROKE: (2 .2 x 2 .0 in ) Motoplat CO l IGNmON: 6 - Speed GEAR BOX: 2 145mm (84.4 in) LENGTH: 1440mm (5 6 .7 in) WHEELBASE: GROUND Cl.EAJWICE: 355mm (13 .9 in) 925mm (36 .4 in) SEAT HEIGIfT: Front 300 m m (1 1. 8 in) WHEEL TRAVEL: Rear - 310mm (12 .2 in) SUSPENSION: Front - Marzocchi M 1R ENGINE: The lightest, fastest 125 Husky ever made, priced to make competition more affordable. TIRES: BRAKES: FUEL TANK CAPACITY: WEIGIfT: Fork. 42mm Rear - Cagiva Soft Damp W I Oh lins Piggyback Sing le Shock Front - 3 .00 x 2 1 Rear - 4 .25 x 18 Front - Brembo D isc W I Flo ating D isc Diam eter 230mm (9 in) Rear - Drum D iame t er 1 3 0m m (5 in) 8 Utre (2 .1 gal) 91 Kg (200.6 Ib) Available at These Participating Husqvarna Dealers Escondido RON BISHOP MOTDRCYClES e0 2·A West Wa sh ington Avenu e Escondido. 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