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/128151
Well, I've been at it since the inception of the sport in the late 1960s. Now, I'm a 58-year-old who has been at the sport since I was in my 20s. Today, I operate Competition Park in Southern California. I'II jump right into this with the most important question: Just how did you end up with the responsibility of producing and promoting the 2002 Motocross des Nations? I have a longtime friend named Jim Berry who used to own a Yamaha dealership in the 1970s. Ten years ago, he moved to Belgium and started to produce race fuel for his company, Howard Fuels. Through his business, he travels all over Europe and does a number of different things involved with all types of motor racing. About a year and a half ago - about the time Dorna got involved in Grand Prix motocross - he called me to see if I would be interested in producing a World Championship Grand Prix. We had Competition Park up and running at that point, and even though we were putting 20,000 riders and spectators a month through the facility, I knew it was too small for an event such as a Grand Prix. At that same time, we were negotiating with the city about expanding the park and, concurrently, Dorna was working on getting the GPs organized, so we kind of dropped the subject. About two and a half months ago, I received another call asking me if I would be interested in doing the Motocross des Nations in 2002. I said yes. Then, Jordi Pons [a director of Dorna's marketing department] called me and we talked about the proposed event, and he liked the whole program I was working on. Soon after, Jordi and three other people flew out to California, and we spent three days going over everything. I showed them the full-color illustrations I had done and how the event would look. While proven venues such as Budds Creek and Glen Helen ostensibly passed on going after the Motocross des Nations in 2002, you were tapped by Dorna to produce and promote the most prolific motocross race in the world. Why? Q Q I honestly don't know. I'm a long-time veteran in the sport and was able to sell them on my program. You know, there are doomsayers out there that say Dorna can be "tough" to deal with. However, the experience I've had with them thus far has been nothing but positive. I mean, the people from Dorna got on a plane at their own expense to fly out here and see me, feel me and touch me. Since word broke that the even would be at or near - Competition Park, there's been a lot of talk about just what type of track will be created for the event. Do you have the land and terrain available to make a world-class motocross track? well, there have been a number of people out there that have taken a negative approach to all of this from the moment they heard about it. That's why I wanted to talk to you. The track we will build will not be a traditional, hillside race track. I raced on that stuff and love it to this day. However, much like supercross, Dorna wants high spectator visibility for this event. They believe that creating a track that the fans and TV cameras have full visibility of will make it successful. One hundred and 12 countries will see this event on television! We're not sure who will carry it here yet, but Dorna has a relationship with Clear Channel Entertainment, who has a relationship with ABC and ESPN. Dorna wants people - both at the race and on TV to be able to see every corner. They know what they're doing: The MotoGP [road race] series has been a huge success. The races in Spain get upwards of 200,000 fans, while the races in Italy and Holland and Germany draw nearly 70,000. And, in some cases, the crowd counts at MotoGP events are bigger than those of Formula One. I've been told that there is the potential that half a billion people will see the Motocross des Nations on TV. It will be a phenomenal challenge, and we will have to work our tails off to make it successful, but we think we can do it. So it's official - you do have the contract to produce the Motocross des Nations? Yes. The FIM officially announced it last week. Basically, my partner Jim Facciuto and myself A had a contract in our hands about one and a half months ago. However, there were a number of addendums that had to be addressed. Having said that, the world should know that Dorna bent over backwards to get this event in the United States. They approached all of this the right way. I mean, they got on a plane to come and meet with a complete stranger. They were able to see that it was not a farce. We worked hard on the presentation and plenty of information to present to them. Who is your partner, Jim Facciuto? Q He is a longtime friend of mine, and I actually got him riding a few years ago. At one point, he said, "Let's do a motocross track." That's how Competition Park began. Is it true that you will be moving Competition Park for the Motocross des Nations? Yes. As you well know, cities like to get rid of motocross tracks. We have a year-to-year C.U.P. [City Use Permit] lease with the city of San Jacinto. Lake Elsinore is in the same boat. BasicalIy, one day we could get a 24-hour notice to shut down if we had some kind of violation. Through working with a few members of the San Jacinto Police Department, we were introduced to the family of the Seboba Indian Nation. One of the brothers is the Chief, and the guy oversees 13 tribes. We signed a 20-year deal to build Competition Park on their land. In fact, I've been paying rent on the land since September of last year. We've built a 60-acre facility, and for the Motocross des Nations, the Seboba Indian Reservation will put up an additional 400 to 500 acres for parking. A 60-acre facility is big enough to hold a big CMC Golden State race, but we are going to need room for thousands of spectators, VIP areas, event personnel, 90 motorhome spaces and actual spectator parking. Is the newly relocated Competition Park now open for business? It will open on June 1, 2002. The facility will also have a large go-kart course - like the one outside of Las Vegas everyone talks about. We'll have six tracks under the lights, three of which will A cue' e n .. _ S • APRIL 24, 2002 23