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/128211
"If the ghost of McGrath lives in Reed, the soul of Bob Hannah runs in Ricky." California Dreamin' 60 Easy I attended the recent AMA weekend at California Speedway, and the racing was fantastic. My experience as a fan, however, was pretty frustrating. In addition to being a season ticket holder at California Speedway, I've attended a wide variety of two- and four-wheel racing events in the last 20-plus years. Based on my experiences, California Speedway has some work to do in the areas of organization and interaction with the fans. The first problem encountered was the aggravating practice of the staff repeatedly requesting fans to produce their tickets within the general admission area of the infield. Come on, guys, if we're already in the general admission area, why do we need to keep digging in our pockets for ticket stubs? I have no problem with this request if a person is attempting to enter the pit area or luxury suites, but there is no need for it once you've gained entrance to the general admission areas. The second problem was the mystery "off limits" areas on the exits of turn nine and turn 13. The areas in question were in the normal walking path along the fence, but for some reason the staff booted people out of these locations. No signs were posted, nor were the areas roped off. No explanation was given by the staff, just a simple, "You can't stand here." If an area is unsafe for spectators, it should be blocked off by the speedway staff. Strangely, it was okay to stand just to the left or right of these mystery areas. The third problem was with the listing of riders in the slick, glossy, overpriced program. Note to California Speedway: If you want to charge S10 for a program that is full of information race fans read in Cycle News long ago, have the courtesy to include an up-to-date list of riders and their numbers. It was very frustrating not to be able to identify riders because they were included in the program. Lastly, each time we asked a staff member for directions within the infield, we were greeted with a blank stare, deer-in-the-headlights, nonresponse. The Speedway staff should receive some kind of basic training/orientation so they can respond in a helpful manner. I am very thankful that the AMA, California Speedway and Yamaha have brought AMA road racing back to Southern California, and I will gladly attend next year's event. However, the fans who pay dearly for attending this event deserve better treatment by the California Speedway. I would like to thank the Cycle News staff for producing a great publication. Although my copy sometimes arrives in my mailbox looking like it was run over with a lawnmower, I always look forward to receiving it. It is always fun to learn more about the different types of motorcycle racing of which I had previously not been exposed to. Many subscribers have written in with their comments regarding the racing coverage on Speed Channel and ESPN2. As an avid viewer of the Supercross/National Motocross programs, as well as all the road racing programs, I have a few comments of my own. First, I believe that, in terms of the coverage, the positive far outweighs the negative. With the growth of these sports, there will always be new viewers. It is apparent that there is quite an effort to supply plenty of racing history and background information, which helps new fans gain interest and appreciation for these sports. My personal favorite is the speed shot that shows the AMA road racers blazing past the low-mounted camera. The on-board camera work is also spectacular. Add surround sound with the volume turned way up, and it's even more fun. In terms of the negative commentary I've read in Voices, I believe there is an obvious common denominator which Speed Channel and ESPN2 need to address. Every fan I know is disappointed when these programs do not visually cover second, third, fourth, etc., place finishers. Sometimes the programs end with the viewers not knowing who these finishers are. Instead, they cover the first place finisher on the victory lap, team celebration, etc. As far as I'm concerned, this is when sports coverage becomes nothing more than an entertainment show. It's puzzling because this type of coverage is not always the case. Speed's coverage of the Daytona Supercross only showed Ricky Carmichael cross the finish line. This particular segment of the coverage was incomplete, to say the least. Additionally, we would all have liked to see Troy Bayliss cross the finish line, as well as the final events leading up to the sixth- and seventhplace finishes by Colin Edwards and Nicky Hayden in MotoGP. As last year's champions, Edwards and Hayden deserved a much closer look from the cameramen. With finishes only a handful of seconds apart, why not focus the camera on the finish line for just a moment longer to collect footage of at least the top 10 fino, ishers? Tom Coleman via the Intwnet Speed Channel and ESPN2 are doing far more right than wrong. Viewers who are writing to Voices in a scathing, negative tone could probably do a lot more to positively influence the individuals in charge of programming these broadcasts by constructing messages of more positive criticism. Scott Erickson Bloomneld Hills, MJ Reed Vs. RC Well, we've always wondered what would happen if Jeremy McGrath and Ricky Carmichael met in their respective primes. The last month of the supercross racing season has answered the question for me, at least. Chad Reed, who is a carbon-copy clone of McGrath if ever there was one, has shown us that technical finesse and surgical precision are one-tenth of a second faster per lap than good oldfashioned grit and gumption. That's not much, just about the length of time it takes to say "huh." But in the world of stopwatches and nanoseconds, 20 huhs in a row can create a gap of two seconds - an insurmountable gulf of victory. It remains to be seen, however, if the effects of finesse and precision can survive the rough operating table of the outdoor series. Here is an amphitheater that rewards the grits and gumptions of yesteryear - the more the better. If the ghost of McGrath lives in Reed, the soul of Bob Hannah runs in Ricky. In my mind, I can already see the starting gate at Glen Helen disappear in a cloud of boiling earth. It will be a good series. 6er7y C Wagoner Piqua. OH Kato's Crash I remember the crash that Anthony Gobert had when he was racing the Bimota in Japan several years ago. As an American board-certified ER physician, there is a certain protocol that exists to stabilize and transport a patient after trauma. This protocol is observed by every EMS practitioner in the U.S.A. I was absolutely amazed at how any type of stabilization protocol was ignored by the Japanese at trackside, thinking to myself, if Anthony has had a spinal injury, they just made it worse by how they handled him. They just picked him up and dumped him on a stretcher, more interested in clearing the track than worrying about the condition of the racer. I thought to myself that surely, someone is going to criticize this activity and advise the trackside medical team of the proper way to stabilize a trauma victim and left it at that. e U e I e Now, fast forward a few years, and to my amazement this happens again to Daijiro Kato. As he lays on the track, his unconscious body is lifted up without any spinal stabilization onto to a stretcher so they can clear the track. Then I read they started CPR in the ambulance. Did anyone bother to check his pulse and see if he was breathing while he was laying on the track? How long of a delay was there, before someone noticed he wasn't breathing or had a pulse? Now I read he has a first cervical neck fracture that had to be made worse by the way he was placed on the stretcher. If there are any future races in Japan, then the governing body will have to first see if the track is safe and then, most importantly, see if the trackside medical personnel are even capable of doing their jobs (and this should apply to any track). You will have a hard time convincing me that the way Kato was treated while he as laying there on the track did not contribute to his critical condition, when even the basics of airway, breathing and circulation, followed by spinal immobilization were not observed. If this is the standard of the Japanese medical protocols at trackside, any rider racing there is really risking his life as the trackside medical personnel could be the ones to kill him. The governing body can look at the video tape of Kato's crash and determine whether the track caused his accident, but for heaven's sake, please have someone instruct the medics there in what is proper protocol in a trauma situation, before someone else is seriously injured or killed, despite the fact they may have survived the crash. Dr. Kevin R SchmIdt D.O. via the Intwnet Daijiro Kato died on April 20 from the injuries sustained in his crash in the Japanese Grand Prix... Editor n e _ s • APRIL 30, 2003 5