Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

[) fj[j) G'lJ::K9 o r "\ Continued [ram page 3 c o o Officials at Action Sports Team and Thor/Parts Unlimited have announced an exclusive agreement that will have Jeremy McGrath wearing the A:::T/Thor Signature Une of race clothing for Supercross during the next three years, according to a press release issued by the companies, "Jeremy is the biggest name in the sport, the most successful athlete of all time and was instrumental in delivering the sport of Supercross to where it is today," AST's Chris Camicella said. "He deserves a deal like this." Terms of the deal were undisclosed, but Part's Unlimited president Jeff Fox and Thor's Bob Maynard said they were pleased to have McGrath aboard. "I've followed Jeremy for his entire career, and I can't tell you how excited we are to finally have him associated with the Thor/Parts Unlimited family," Fox said. "We'd definitely like to welcome Jeremy to the Thor team," Maynard said. McGrath said that this opportunity comes at a time in his career when he is looking at the bigger picture. "This type of endeavor should allow me to stay involved with the sport of Supercross for years to come," McGrath said. "Although this type of business model has never been seen in our sport, the concept of making more product available to more fans seemed like a concept that I wanted to be part of. This type of wide-spread marketing and merchandising is great for the athletes, great for the fans and ultimately great for the sport of Supercross." The AST/Thor Signature Une of gear will be distributed exclusively through Parts Unlimited's vast network of dealers only. "This is a prime example of AST helping its athletes further their marketability through our trackside distribution rights and mass marketing capabilities," Carnicella said. "AST, in association with Clear Channel Entertainment, is the exclusive distributor of officially licensed rider merchandise at the EA SPORTS Supercross Series and recently announced a three-year retail licensing agreement with CCE." Of course, the new deal means that McGrath is no longer a No Fear rider, and McGrath and No Fear partner Jeff Surwall have amicably agreed to dissolve their partnership, "Initially, AST wanted No Fear to produce replica jerseys that would be made available in places such as K-Mar!," Surwall said. "I did not want the No Fear motocross brand to be made available in mass-market retail outlets, as this is not the vision that' have for the company. I feel it is important for No Fear to be a brand available only at core, motocross-oriented motorcycle dealerships. "AST offered Jeremy significant incentives to become involved in their project," Surwall said. "Not only is there the large financial incentive, but also the massive distribution that AST could offer him, When it came time for Jeremy to decide what to do, Jeremy made the decision to go with AST because it corresponds with his business objectives. "It was not an easy decision for either of us," Surwall said. "Basically, I had to make a decision between keeping Jeremy or doing what was best for the No Fear Motocross brand, It was a very hard decision to make because he is one of my best friends; in fact, he was the best man in my wedding. In any case, it is the right decision for both of us because now, we are each pursuing our different goals. No Fear Motocross is doing very well with our new 2002 line, and I'm looking forward to a successful year with [Travis) Pastrana and [Kevin] Windham." "I have thoroughly enjoyed doing business with No Fear for more than 10 years now and it was only after much thought and consideration that I have chosen to become part of this new venture," McGrath said in his own press release, "' have worked with many, many wonderful and talented people at No Fear and look forward to keeping personal relationships in place with many of those same individuals. According to McGrath's release, the change "represents an opportunity to become involved with a mass merchandising effort that will expand beyond his race career. " According to Surwall, he and McGrath will continue to work together on other business ventures, which include Spy and various outside the motocross industry projects. t'I sions. Shortening the qualifying sessions would negate part of this problem, although there are no plans to start racing (CSC) motorcycle training program. Upon Fassnacht's time at CSC. During the his graduation in 1977, he became the decade between 1974-1984, over 70,000 CSC's Supervising Chief Instructor for Canadian motorcyclists were trained. earlier in the day. The talk about changing the World Superbike format to a Single race per weekend has been qUietly ush- Motorcycle Safety Training Programs and DUring Fassnacht's college years, he also crisscrossed Canada "training the train- co-founded Simtech, a business devoted ers" - professionals responsible for train- Simtech developed motorcycle skills test- tors. The program flourished during Peter John Fassnacht, 46, the manager of rider education for American Honda, died on November 24 of complications resulting from bacterial meningitis. Fassnacht, bom and raised in Ottawa, Canada, was a passionate motorcyclist and a dedicated advocate of motorcycle rider education. "It was in the fall of 1970 that he drove my 1966 red Honda 90 in Brantwood Park and he was hooked," recalled lifelong friend John Sparks. "His first bike was a Honda 175, I believe." While eaming a bachelor's degree in biology with honors from Carleton University in Ottawa, Fassnacht was an active volunteer in the Canada Safety Council's to motorcycle accident prevention. ing Canada's motorcycle safety instruc- ered out of the way for the time being. ing equipment under contract to the !J!J@ WDDCfj [JfJD!JiJD D@~ Clear Channel Entertainment has announced plans for a 2003 season-ending point fund of at least $500,000. The 2002 series points fund is currently set at $325,000, according to Clear Channel. Under the current sanction agreement between Clear Channel and the AMA. Clear Channel had agreed to pay $133,100 in points fund money in 2002, according to Clear Channel. However, in 2002, Clear Channel will actually pay 144-percent more than the agreement stipulates, bringing the total to $325,000, again - according to the press release issued by Clear Channel today. Clear Channel says cyclenews.com reader poll question of the week I 80 DECEMBER 12, 2001 • eye COl1tinued on page 83 g)[J[][f)@[?@[f@~~g fiJD[[} fiJ[J[]@[f{~D that amount will increase by at least another $175,000 when they produce their own series in 2003 - a series without AMA sanction. "We are pleased again to demonstrate our commitment to the riders," said Roy Janson, vice president of operations for Clear Channel Entertainment's motor sports division. "The half-million dollar mark is a major milestone in Supercross history, and this is something we definitely set out to do five years ago." Clear Channel says it will continue to pay privateer points funds in addition to the series points fund that is paid to the top 20 riders. To cast your vote, log on to http://www.cyclenews.com. [ [ Canadian government. Fassnacht furthered his motorcycle passion as a road racer, entering the Simtech Racing team in a 24-hour endurance race in 1979. Though the team did not finish. the next year Fassnacht was back and finished fifth with the Racing Ottawa team. Fassnacht's pioneering work in the motorcycle safety movement caught the attention of the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSf) in Irvine, California. Fassnacht moved to the U.S and joined the MSF in 1984 as a consultant in Curriculum Development. He was subsequently appointed vice president in July 1985, a position he held until August 1995. Fassnacht presided over the MSF as the organization saw substantial 9rowth in the number of motorcyclists trained. Fassnacht continued his formal education after movin9 to California, eaming certificates in marketing and communications from the University of Califomia, Irvine. Fassnacht joined American Honda's Motorcycle Division in 1995. At Honda, Fassnacht was immersed in an engineering environment well suited to his innate technical and analytical skills. He qUickly became a significant contributor to the Motorcycle Division's dealer technical support effort and was soon developing curriculum for Honda's dealer technician training programs. Fassnacht's background in rider education made him a natural choice in June, 2001 to head Honda's Rider Education Department overseeing the company's four Rider Education Centers located in California, Texas, Ohio and Georgia. He was actively directing the effort to broaden the centers' training programs and was developing plans to further expand Honda's environmental commit- • e neVIl's

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