Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

--- - .. Namur Circuit MOTOCROSS T here have been many great motocross champions, some w inning on style alone, others having the sheer work ethic to sh ine under the bright lights of grand prix motocross. At the recent Grand Prix of Wallonie, held at the Namur Circuit in Belgium, a special " legends" ride was organized to commemorate the long history of the famous venue. Included in the lineup were some of GP racing's most legendary racers , such as Dave Thorpe, Brad Lackey, Roger DeCoster, Eric Geboers , Hakan Andersson, Graham Noyce, Hakan CarIqvist, and many more. Former World Motocross Champion Noyce remembered his times at Namur, and he had many reasons not to forget them . Having led the 1979 championship on his works Honda, the brilliant Brit then went to Namur to finish business. "Obviously, crossing the line and winning the championship in 1979, all those people screaming approval ," he said of his greatest Namur memory. "Namur is Namur; it's all about atmosphere. You have to come back here time and time again. It is not a good spectator track. but for a rider, it's the best. You don't have to ride it hard ; in fact, the harder you ride it. the slower you go." Noyce knew if you didn't treat Namur with respect, then forget winningthere. It is a track that requires complete dedication. "Stefan Everts. he will just be smooth and clock quick times; he knows how to race around here ," Noyce said. "Brad Lackey, Roger DeCoster, Eric Geboers, Hakan Carlqvist, Gerrit Wolsink,everyone has been fantastic around here, all the great champions. Dave Thorpe, another great champion around here. We had a great party last night; the hangover is fine." Another British legend was, as Noyce mentioned, Thorpe. The three-time World Champion was stuck right in the middle of that amazing Honda era, when riders such as Geboers and Malherbe ruled the world. For Thorpe, there was no better feeling than joining his Honda teammates around the citadel. "Passing Eric Geboers on the last lap of both motos in 1989," Thorpe claimed as one of his fondest memories. "Jeff Leisk won the first rnoto here. I finished second and Eric third. Then, in the second race, I passed him with a lap and a half to go to win the overall; that was really a special moment for me. "The crowd is amazing here," Thorpe continued. "In the early days against Andrea Malherbe, that was great because the crowd was obviously fanatic Belgian followers; they wanted him to win so bad, and I wanted to beat him even more. I have not been back since the early '90s . I ran around the track with my girlfriend on 30 ' ~ Legends of Motocross RacE Friday morning. If you're in the first five out of the gate, then you have as good a chance as anyone. You don't see guys coming from the back of the pack here. You have to ride with good speed, but keep it under your hat. you can't ride I 10 percent here - you'll end up in the trees. People don't realize [that] coming from the trees, then into the sun, and back again, it makes vision a big problem. It's not dangerous, but a little scary - that is SEPTEMBER 8, 2004 • CYCLE NEWS why we love it so much." And the winningest rider of all time around Namur is, of course, The Man Roger DeCoster. Seven times DeCoster stood atop the GP podium in Namur. "I had a lot of favorite races around here; this place was good to me," he said. "My home was in Brussels. but this was my home GP. I came here when I was a kid. in 1958, when Rene Baeten won the championship. They have raced here since 40th Anm" r ry 1947 or something like that. I came to watch and was really impressed with the place and the riders. and that was one of the reasons Igot so hooked on the place." DeCoster rode Namur from an early age and never quite learned how to be beaten . "I rode here in the Beginner class, then won the Junior SOOcc here and then won so many times in the 500cc GP races," DeCoster said. "You had to really work hard here, but it was an amazing

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