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/128405
Todd Jendro SIGHT "'-~':::.~C;-;l'~ ~'-~~':- ':' , • > • _.'. - J-r_ ' . By .PAT ' . '._ .' " HOTOS BY TEVE ' • • RUHN l • ehind the curtains at stadiums across the country, hands are poised over the levers that will blast Metallica and shoot lasers into the stratosphere, over the switches that will ignite fire pots and MBOs to go off during the national anthem's "and bombs bursting in air" ... Those hands belong to Supercross' equivalent of "the man behind the curtain," the Wizard of Oz Clear Channel Motor Sports' senior director of operations, Todd Jendro. On January 7, 2006, at Anaheim's Angel Stadium, Jendro will kick off his 10th year with Clear Channel Entertainment. A former pro motocross racer who still manages to make the time several weekends out of the year to ride with the industry heavies representing Parts Unlimited, as well as hitting some of the local racetracks he grew up at, in and around CCE's headquarters in Aurora, Illinois, Jendro is "living the dream," as they say - a lifelong dirt-bike enthusiast in charge of the white-hot Amp'd Mobile World Supercross GP/Amp'd Mobile AMA Supercross Series. The upcoming Supercross season, as always, has people buzzing about rumors as to who's riding what, and bench-racing as to who's gonna win. And while the racing itself won't start until the gate drops in several weeks in Toronto, Canada, there's no person in the industry more connected with the hallowed "insider information" than Jendro. We tracked down the hyperbusy Jendro and conducted this modern-day interview over the air- B SCHUTIE waves throughout the course of a couple days via laptops and BlackBerries. Yes, he's that busy. Todd, there is a lot of anticipation starting to build on the upcoming Supercross season. Talk a bit about what Clear Channel's done during the off season to get ready for these upcoming series - both the Amp'd Mobile World Supercross GP and Amp'd Mobile/AMA Supercross Series. Clear Channel's Supercross team has been working hard all summer, preparing the operational aspects, the front-of-house details, its marketingand-ticket campaign, merchandise preparation, sales- and sponsorship-implementation details, press functions, our live Internet broadcast - as well as working on the massive logistics it takes to move a tour this size from city to city each week without failure. We are definitely ready for the opening round of the Amp'd Mobile World Supercross Gp, which kicks off in Toronto at the Rogers Centre on December 3. With Ricky Carmichael racing Toronto and Vancouver this past year - and winning the World SX GP title • can we expect to see other racers follow RC's lead this year, like Chad Reed and James "Bubba" Stewart? It does not seem to be an option anymore. Ricky Carmichael definitely proved that last year with the qUick start he had. I know that the setup of his bike changed dozens of times during the practice ses- Not only can Jendro direct, but he's also a competent motocrosler.