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/128215
IIO ur sport has flourished not because oftelevision coverage or the promoters or the AMA, but in spite ofthemr l Stunt Riding I was glad to see that Infineon Raceway gave a street stunt group a chance to show their stuff after the AMA Superbike races - since the city streets and highways are no place for riding wheelies, performing stop pies and so forth. I think this sport will grow into what freestyle motocross has in the past few years, and we will soon see it on the X-Games. Riders do need a controlled environment to show their stuff, and more and more racetracks are giving it to them. Here is the problem, however: no leathers! Infineon Raceway and the AMA, if they had a part in it, let these guys do their stunts in jeans, tennis shoes and a few of the riders even had T-shirts on! The crowd loved what they were doing, but what message did this send to the younger kids/riders in the crowd? That it is okay to ride without full gear? I heard a lot of comments in the crowd how they couldn't believe they were allowed to ride without full gear. Give the stunt guys the venues to perform. But make them wear full protective gear. 6regColyer vfa the InfrHnet 'Patience A Virtue? Whatever happened to the much-heralded and talented Mr. Nicky Hayden? One wonders what John Hopkins or Colin Edwards would do with the world's fastest team and bike. But, of course, they didn't get that ride - for various reasons. Bjomlnge via ftle InfrHnet I'll clip and save this leller, and we'll see how it holds up in the future. Remember, Hayden has only taken part in three MotoGPs. [think it's a bit early to write him off, don't you?... Editor Complaining About Complaining Column My Cycle News finally arrived, and I just glanced at Paul Carruthers' column in the back on everyone complaining about the current level of television coverage. You seem to be of the opinion that just because we didn't used to have coverage, we should just shut up and be happy we have it at all. Just because we didn't used to have it doesn't mean we shouldn't have it, and just because we have some now doesn't mean it shouldn't be better. If you compare the coverage motorcycle racing gets to all the incredibly boring and moronic ball games, what we're getting is a drop in the bucket. Not everyone has TiVo, which can find pre-empted 4 a.m. coverage of week-old supercross or motocross. I can't complain about Speed Channel because they are pretty good, but ESPN is a ball channel, and all motorcycle racing should be taken from them and placed on Speed. On a side note, the logic of television coverage being the life blood of our sport as the promoters and the idiots at the AMA have always tried to sell us on is nonsense. I've been at Anaheim Stadium back in the glory days when it was completely sold out and there were still thousands waiting to get in, and that's before the corporate rip-offs at Disney decided to half the stadium size. Our sport has flourished not because of television coverage or the promoters or the AMA, but in spite of them! [ would have bet my life that if anyone would have complained about the column about people complaining, it would have come from perennial complainer Lewis Greer. Comparing the amount of television coverage that stick and ball sports get in this country with what motorcycle racing gets is in your word moronic. You then follow your comments about there not being enough (and good enough) motorcycle coverage on television with a statement that basically says we don't need television coverage... Editor Hayden And The DO Straight from the pages of NASCAR we now have "If you can't beat them on the track, whine to the officials that they have an advantage, and you'll get your way." Pretty soon we'll see wind tunnel testing. I'll set the "likely" scenario: It's Sunday, late afternoon, after the race in Fontana. Someone whispers into an AMA official's ear, "Psssssst, pssssst, hey come on, who sponsors the class, man? You know we can't have those green bikes spankin' us like that. They're 600s for god's sake - can't you guys find something (pause) anything?" Fast forward to post-race tech: "Hey, hey, lookie here, does that look like machine work to you? Yeah, yeah, de-burring is an infraction, isn't it? Oh, yeah, you're right. Yeah, see those marks, those aren't de-burring marks, that's damn-straight illegal machining." We knew it was coming, didn't we? Sounds like the good old days when Harley was "protected" by the AMA. And why was Tony Miering's bike torn down? How far back do they perform post-race teardowns these days? The good news is that Tommy Hayden and the 636 won another hard-fought race at lnfinion Raceway. Most likely parts were bagged there, too, probably de-burring the inside of each chain roller this time! Mike Preston and the Kawasaki team are a class act - no whining, just take it to the next round and line them up for another spanking. This Hayden is on a mission! M. Norton Campbel'CA Honey Lake Fan Last weekend our family packed up the motorhome and made the 12hour journey to Northern California to the Honey Lake Area Qualifier. The track owner Larry Wosick and his staff were very helpful in giving us all the information we needed ahead of time over the phone. We knew that there wouldn't be a practice day and that we would be able to race the series race on Saturday instead and that the qualifier would be held on Sunday. What none of us knew was that instead of the 100 racers who they were told to expect by AMA representatives, 600 racers showed up for the qualifier - plus 400 racers for the regular Honey Lake series race. Since the AMA led Honey Lake to believe they would not be getting many entries, the regular series races were held at the same time. Honey Lake was also designated by the AMA as a double region qualifier for their first time also. Under the circumstances, the event staff ran this event in what I feel was a professional and pleasant manner. Yes, there were problems with waiting in line, filling out the right forms, getting the right information, but all in all they worked through it and took care of all of us. On Saturday night the office stayed open until 3 a.m. to accommodate the line of people trying to register, and they opened up at 6 a.m. to continue. Altogether 1018 people were registered throughout the weekend. I also had my complaints, but what I feel is important is that Wosick and his staff pulled it off. All the races were completed, all of the questions have been answered with personal telephone calls returned promptly, and trophies are being mailed, since we all had a cue I e long drive ahead. I just wanted to thank the people at Honey Lake for their awareness of the problems and consideration of so many people. I have traveled the country racing with our son for almost four years now and have met many track owners. There are a lot of unpleasant people out there. I wish more track promoters were as considerate as the Honey Lake staff. I also wish more people would stop spreading bad news and find the glass half full more often. AndfflO LeIb Cres1tlne, CA Honey Lake Thanks Honey Lake MX would like to thank the competitors and their families at last week's Loretta Lynn's Qualifier for their patience and courtesy while our team was trying to organize the race program for Sunday's 1018 entries! The AMA anticipated our turnout based on previous qualifiers in our region and advised we prepare for approximately 150 AMA riders. After keeping sign-up open until 2:30 a.m. and back open at 6 a.m., our tally was over 600 AMA qualifier entries and total entries for the day of 10 18! Needless to say Sunday morning appeared to be chaotic. I'm extremely proud of our crew: After pushing the program forward for 90 minutes, they processed all entries into the system, and we pulled off a very successful AMA qualifier. The miscalculations from this event won't be repeated. We've received numerous e-mails of "well done" from many of the 1018 entries, and we sincerely appreciated the respect and acknowledgment for what we were able to overcome. Larry A Woslck Wosick is the owner of Honey Lake MX. .. Editor n e _ os • MAY 21,20035