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/127607
EDITOR'S MEGAPHONE By Donn M a eda y first memory of Ricky Graham M dates back to 1985. Still an avid A TV racer, I had yet to realize tha t two wheels was the way to go and stoo d whole-heartedly behi nd my three-wheeled machine. "Three wheelin' is a good feelin' ," I used to say, and I scoffed at most forms of two- wheeled mo torcycle competition. Then came Mr. Graham. One night wht le waiting for the ATV coverage on an early episode of MotoWorld, I opted to delay my trip to the refri gerator when coverage of the Houston IT came on . "Those are those flat track guys," I thought to myself. "They're pretty goofy, but, hey, look they jump at this race. I have to see this!" As Grand National Champion Graham wa s intr od uced to th e crowd, he snapped aw ay at his chewing gu m and waved to the crowd with a smile. Right th en , I noticed a certa in air of confidence and friendliness about Graham that I liked . "Man, hedoesn't look like some biker guy," I thought. "He's pretty cool." It was inthat race that Graham collided, mid-air, with Honda teammate Bubba Shob ert and suffered multiple injuries, effectively en ding his chances of succes s fu ll y d efen d in g his ti tle. "Maybe he 's not that great," I thought, and mad e my trip to the refrigerator. In 1986, I was one year older, and mo re im p ortantly - one year wiser. After being constantly ha rassed by my old er broth er, I had finally ditched my ATV for a motocross bike and began to show an interest in motocross racing. Once again, Grah a m came to my attention while watching MotoWorld . This time, h e had wo n the Springfield Mile, posting his first N ati on al , win after being drop pe d by Team Honda. "Hey, that's tha t Ricky G guy," I though t. "A privateer winni ng a National? That's really coo!." After that, Graham and his b ig number three st uck in m y mind. Though I really knew nothing about dirt tra ck, I di d sc an the race reports in Cy cle News each week before flipping to the supercross and motocross articles. Fo r a while, Graham's name con tin u ed to be near the top, but as th e years wore on I began to see it slip lo wer and lower down the results column . Pretty soon, I didn't see his name at all. In 1991, I was hired on as Associate Editor here at Cycle News, but was let down when I foun d that my job wou ld be to cov er the AMA Grand Na tional Champ ionship Series . Deep down I had been hop ing to be as sign ed to motocross bu t, nonetheless, I began to study the sport. Springst een? Parker? Carr? They wer e all new names to me. "You'd better study hard," wa rne d one of my fellow editors, "dirt track is the boss' baby." Old race re p or ts, flash cards an d words of wisdom from th e boss himself helped prepare me fo r my fi r s t Na tional. " But what about Ricky Graham?" I asked. The re ply was jus t as I had expected; Graham was not one of the riders w hom I would spend much time ' talking t o, for he was rarel y a top finisher anymore. N ever th eless, I approached Grah a m with great expectations at the Sa cr am ento Mile - he was the on e familia r face in the crowd of strangers. To my dis may, I was not greeted with the same enthusiasm. "You're from Cycle News?" said Graha m with a h int of s a rcas m in h is voice. "You gu ys never write anything good about me." As Cycle News' newest staff member, I had no answer for Graham, and walked away with my tail between my As Grand National Champion Graham was introduced to th e crowd, he snapped away at his chewing gum and waved to th e crowd with a smile. • On[=tdC ' • ccveraae from Motoworld CYcle News KnobbY News Holeshot News AND _ Promotions PRfSENTS ARENA CROSS In the Knoxville Civic Coliseum Saturday and SundaY9 FebruarY 5th It: srh, 1994 * $5,000 Pro Purse * $1 ,050 25+ A Vet Pro Purse * AII RegUlar Amateur Classes * Cha mpionship Awards 5 places in all Classes E A,I... only, prlCtico frl4.y 6:00 PM orly f.r N elftrt! '. Pro PUrt. Payhck pet clUJ per nlglft h I $375 6th $65 2.4 $275 7th $S5 3r4 $175 IIh $50 4th $tOO 9th $45 5th $75 10th $40 v.t P" P.yio,k ($.t,,4.y ••Iy) Classes offered Sa t& Sun. 50cc 250cc C 6Sec 7-11 250cc B 85cc: 0 Early s1gn-up, friday &pm to 9pm at the Hyatt. ' Saturday s1gn-up 7am to lOam at the Coliseum. OpenlUnim AM 65cc 7-11 25+ 6Scc 12·15 30+ School boy Non Current 1= 0 ATV 1= C +25 AVetPro 125cc B 125A Pro 250cc 0 250A Pro Qualifying Starts at 10 AM, Saturday morning Amateur Main Events start at 7 PM. 1st Pro Qualmer leaves the Gate at 8 PM. Early Autograph Signing at 6 PM and Interviews with the Pros. '. , 72 For morelnforrnanOll • call: Scott Sexton at 615/573-5425 .. bobcat VlKlNG~ CO. EQUIPMENT legs. The confide nt, friendly gu y that I had seen on television six years earlier had become a grumpy old man. Graham missed the ne xt race - th e Pomona Half Mile - and to tell you the truth, I d idn' t m iss h im muc h . The Monday after that race, news reached the edi tor that Grah am had missed the r ace be ca use of an alcohol-relate d arrest and I was assigned to get to the bottom of the situation. Because of my lack of connections, however, I wa s un able to uncove r any details and the edi tor took over. Graham arrested, fired, read the headline. "Great, he 'll really like me now," I thought. Sure enough, Graham avoided me with the skills of a ninja at the following roun d , but after rep eated efforts to corner him, we finally came to terms, just as he had come to terms with his sponsor. Two races later, Graham sh ow ed the speed and determination tha t had carried him to his two previous championships and sh ocked the crowd by winning the Springfiel d Mile and breaking a five-year dry spell. I had fun wri ting tha t article - for the first time in years, Cycle Ne ws was able to print something positi ve about Graham. Later that yea r, Graham again had con tact with the law . He was arrested fordriving under the influence of alcoho!. This time, his sponsor wasn 't as u n d ers tan d in g and Gra ham was re le ased fr om the team for good. , Though he returned to the series aboard Johnny Goad 's machines, I never felt as if Graham was as enthusiastic in '91. ht $325 2. 4 $225 3r4 $t50 4th $100 ' 51h $ 75 6th $50 7th $45 8th $35 9th $25 lO $20 th Indoor pitswtth ovemight security, AlIA S ANC TI ONE D WO'I' II ~ " 'o, ' ., ' " I!lI ~ j ., .J Ii.ii ii ' HI ' l ui ~ - - - ---- money ent_ pay_1Mto ONT RACPfe:wnotiora. Ridef & I AT CIVIC ~j ( y •••• r u s c o r rs Hyatt will serve as race headquarters with special discount rooms available to riders and spectators. Just mention the Arena Cross, Forreservations call 1-800/233 -1234 or 615/637-1234. ~ MIl 1500 Cherry St. 1 -40 Exit 390 Rese rvations 1-800-22 8-5151 Phone . 1-6 15-5 46-7110 111'11 1-/4'·' OURV S4500 fat Pro $35.00 Vet Pro Pr. Enlfy de.tline 7 days belOfelhe llY n MOTUl MOrOIIOtl UNIFILTED' S If5Rhlfi3J @l ~ 0~ ~~s~:::n~~::~, St4>Port Crew P ll Pa u .. 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