Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

25TH ANNUAL WINTER AM SERIES before. But I realize tha t it wasn't that bad, compar ed to the stu ff I have seen si nce then! At th at time I was simply nowhere, my riding just wasn 't up to the righ t standard." Dou g's lea rn ing curve, thou gh , wa s like nothin g ev er see n on the World Championship circuit. It wasn't so much a curve as a sheer vertical line. His European Championship Series results wen t sixth, fourth, first. Just like that. Doug was sure going for the gold in the Euro series, but his stru gg le on the World Championship circuit continued through the opening seven rounds. Doug failed to produce a good result, though he was learning plenty . And then in July, in the moun tains of Andorra, it suddenly all clicked and Doug collected his first World Championship point ever with a hardearned 15th-place finish. The last psycholo gical barrier had been smashed and from that point on Doug's riding showed a new line in confidence. The high point of the Lampkin yea r was undoubtedly when Doug sewed up • the European Championship at the finaI round in France. "1 knew that he was definitely in the big-time when he won in France," sa id Martin. "He was under pressure, as he had to win , and he was absolutely brilliant." As good as '93 had been, better than anyone. had fores een, the ' 94 season would prove to be the biggest yet. Doug claimed a shocking victory in the British round, only th e se cond round o f the series. From tha t moment on, he was slap-bang in the limelight. And so was his dad! Some commentators have been very critical of Martin's style of supporting his son. Martin is a big personality with a big voice to match. "When I'm out there, I'm out there to . , win," Martin declares. Nevertheless, he was deeply upset by 'several comments printed in the motorcyd ing press. These remarks originated in the American press, and stated that Marlin was like a typical "little league dad," and that his actions in the observed sections distracted, rather than aided his son. These remarks were later reprinted in the English specialist press. Th is bothered Martin to the extent that he asked Doug if he was an embarrassment to him and if he wanted him to even continue on as his assistan t. Doug told him not to be so daft, and to get on with the job that was brin ging a lot of s uccess. What many d on 't realize is that Doug is very much his own man. His brain rapidly filters everything tha t'Martin baw ls at him and instantly rejects the unnecessary. He only actually h ears the bit that he wan ts to help him crack a given obstacle. "No way does my dad put me off in the sections," insists Doug. This isn't to say that they don't ha ve the ir di sagreem ents - they ha ve some p retty colorful exchanges, but thankfully, usually after the lriaI is either won or lost. Finishing the year ranked sixth in the world has really set Doug up for '95, and he intends to make the most of it, but still enjoys himself along the way. Enjoy himself? This got us wondering if Doug was partial to a few ales in the evening. "He's tried a couple of times, but he's not very good at it!" laughs Martin, who was a fierce beer-shifter in his time. Howev er , beer or no beer, Doug's bandwagon is certainly on a roll and Jordi Tarres' World Championship looms large in h is sights. To date, Doug has only moved in one d irection, and tha t is forward. He has yet to take a backwards step, and as no one is more hungry for success than this lean young man, there is no reason on earth why this state of affairs should not continue unabated. ~ FLORIDA W INTER AM MOTOCROSS SERIES FACTORY CONnN6ENCIES PAID $6,000 PER EVENT PRO PLJRSE YAMAHA ~HONDA. $ SUZUKI. Kawasaki ;K fliC ~~ p ~ ..... ~ .Koh.ln ~\ 1f:DU~ , ;;;:;; S=:OTTU~ o z Q) 25

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