Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

IIHe wasl as they say nOWI an icon. 11 emembering Barry rom the moment I arrived in Europe, raced against Barry Sheene. When e Brits and the Yanks duked it out the now legendary Transatlantic rophy series in '77 and '78, Barry as the reigning 500cc World Chamion. He was fast, and he was tough. But that's not really what struck e about him. What I really noticed, hat fascinated me, were these huge dvertising billboards showing Barry his leathers, smiling or looking oody, telling us to use Brut, an ftershave. I'm not sure that I shaved t the time, but I took the point - the ritish public was willing to buy perme for men because, of all things, a otorcycle racer was telling them hat great stuff it was. A motorcycle racer. A thug, like e. I mean, I came from the suburbs f San Jose, and I was already a prety good motorcycle racer. In the U.S. hat meant something seriously bad, nd believe me, nobody would have ought anything from or for us, nless it was the police department hopping for handcuffs. Now, money's money, and Brut idn't use Barry because they liked im. No doubt they did, but the reaon it was his face up there was ecause he already had brought bout a huge change in the way peoIe saw his sport, and mine, and ours. The British public loved him. e was, as they say now, an icon. nd it wasn't because he said or did II the right things. As far as I emember, he never did either. It was ecause it was him - just Barry, just s he was, take it or leave it. What a wild double tribute that as, and is. They loved him, and they oved him for being himself. What ore could anyone ask, let alone a otorcycle racer? Barry was a great motorcycle acer and a kind of public relations enius. You know, the truth is, he was pretty smart guy. He was quick-wited and articulate and somehow able o influence people far beyond his mmediate circle. I learned as I went long from a lot of people. And just s I learned from, say, watching enny Roberts, I learned from looking t those Brut ads. I learned that we on't have to be prisoners of prejuice, that we don't have to be satisJed with what people think they think f us. We can change everything. We an change the way people think bout us as individuals and they way hey think about the things we do ur beloved sport, for example. I ope the fact that Riders for Health, tarted in this very sport and now known worldwide for saving lives throughout Africa, continues the vital public relations work that Barry started. So I want to dedicate all of the work Riders does in this sad year to Barry - for showing us the way and for being himself. And thank you, Barry, for being the extraordinary man you were - and are. You will always be in our hearts, and you will always be center stage in the sport you transformed. Has anybody got any Brut? Put it on. Today and every Barry Sheene Day. Randy Mamola via ftJe Intemet Suzuki and Kawasaki renting the track for pre-Bike Week testing and allowing the public free access. I was sitting at the start/finish line when Barry came by, just shifting into top gear when, I believe, his rear tire chunked and locked his rear wheel, sending him wildly out of control. By the time his bike and body had come to rest, his bike was on fire, and he was all the way down by the entrance into the infield (turn 1). My friends and I ran all the way down to where he had come to rest, a distance which took us minutes to cover but which had only taken seconds for Barry to travel. I remember seeing him sit up briefly and then lay back down before the ambulance got there. One of his legs was bent backward 180 degrees about midfemur. It was a grizzly sight. I thought he was going to die, and the concern on everyone's faces as they attended to him seemed to echo the same feeling. I remember Gary Nixon was at Barry's side while they loaded him into the ambulance. It is ironic that some time later, Gary would suffer his own horrific accident while testing in Japan, also going down at over 170 mph (and surviving!). Barry didn't die. He didn't give up racing. He recovered and came back to claim two 500cc GP titles and narrowly lose a third to Kenny Roberts. I can't remember the year, but I do remember Barry being involved in another horrific crash where he struck another bike and went down, and then he himself was struck by another rider while laying on the track causing severe injuries. Once again he didn't die. Once again he didn't quit racing. He was a fighter! I will always remember him for his cockiness and his "never say die" attitude. He was the true definition of a World Champion. God speed, Barry. You will be missed. pliment Suzuki and the Tony D. MX School. I recently purchased my son a new RM85, partly for the opportunity to attend the Tony D. MX School and to participate in Suzuki's good scholarship program. We recently attended the Tony D. School at Swan Cycle Park in Tyler, Texas. Tony and his instructors were a class act at a first-class facility. The weather tried to ruin this day, but couldn't. I was a Tony DiStefano fan in the 1970s, watching him win Inter-AMAs at Delta, Ohio, and National Championships at HighPoint Raceway. My son and I are both fans now. This working-class dad wants to thank Suzuki for these two fine programs. Doug Dlerdorf Denton. TX It's A Start Will Mansfield via ftJe Internet Man, what a start to the AMA Superbike seasonl The rain delay was driving me nuts as a fan, but it was worth it. Sorry NASCAR fans - it's apples and oranges when it comes to drafting, and AMA Superbike has the best racing when it comes to Daytona. Thanks, Speed Channel, for your live coverage. Hope you can keep up with the good coverage that you have started for the rest of the season. Also, thanks to Cycle News online for the timely updates of info to let me know what was going on. I also love all the color you have been putting in your pages with the newspaper as well. AMA Superbike... this is the true World Superb ike this year. God speed, Barry Sheene. Honda Cup? Remembering Barry II It was with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Barry Sheene. After reading about his diagnosis of cancer in Cycle News, and his comments that he was going to fight it and prevail, I never doubted that he would beat it. Sadly, I was wrong. I truly believed that he would beat his cancer and that this was just one of those adversities that he would overcome. Adversities like his crashing at over 174 mph on the tri-oval at Daytona in 1975. I was a 15-year-old kid sitting in the grandstands on that day, allowed to be there through the generosity of I guess the people who are thrilled about the Ducati/World Superbike Series must be equally excited about the two Honda series, better known as AMA Superbike and MotoGP. While there may be more participation from other factories in those series, we all know who the overwhelming favorite is at each race. That Ducati is the only factory that sees World Superbike as being relevant is no fault of theirs. Mam Johnson Houston. TX Thanking Tony D. While Roger DeCoster and the Suzuki race team have been having a tough, injury-plagued season, I want to comcycle AndySmHh Longmont CO n eVIl's MARCH 26, 2003 5

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