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/128409
Briefly... Neil Hodgson Sam told me she was pregnant with Kelisa. I don't think any of the family were expecting that announcement in their Christmas stocking! What was the worst, and why? The worst Christmas present ever has to be the wasp sting I encountered in Christmas 200 I. My hand was the size of a football. First stop: hospital. What was the best present you ever gave someone else My part is easy. I only have to buy for one person - Sam. She takes care of all the rest! Last year's present was one I could enjoy, too - an awesome recliner chair! Colin Edwards around lost, frozen and disoriented for a few hours, we finally admitted that we might be better off back at the truck - if we could find it. That was the coldest I have ever been. What was your best-ever Christmas present, and why? My best present was a mountain bike in 1989. They had just come out in England, and it was the coolest thing to have. My brother and I got these all-white Diamondback bikes, but we didn't get them until late on Christmas Day. So we opened what we thought was everything In the morning,S a.m... Then, at around 2 p.m., my dad asked me and my bro to get something out of the back of the van, and there was the bikes. That was cool. What was the worst, and why? I can't think of a bad present, as I'm always pleased to be opening stuff on Christmas Morning. Having said that, I'm sick of all the underpants my mum keeps buying. They look like they come from Costco. What was the best present you ever gave someone else? The best present I've bought... anything with diamonds nonnnally does the trick. Troy Corser What was the best present you ever gave someone else? Of course, the best gift I have ever given was that same day, when I got us back to the truck! Dude, that was the most miserable I have ever been. Sometimes I wonder why I do stuff like that, but when you get the chance to share the experience with others, it all makes sense. J.R. Schnabel What was your best...,ver Christmas present, and why? The best was when I was 3. Santa brought me a Suzuki JRSO. It was my first bike, and even though I was only 3, I still remember that moming, walking to the tree with the 50 under it. What was the worst, and why? The worst... I can't remember getting a bad present. We go big around Texas, so crappy gifts aren't given. What was the best present you ever gave someone? The best I've ever given... Well, I bought my wife a Mercedes SL55 for her 30th birthday! That was the best - no one can top that. Yeah, yeah, I know it wasn't Christmas, but it was only a month before, so let's call it an early Christmas/birthday present. What was your best-ever Christmas present, and why? All my Christmas presents have been great. It'd be hard to pick a favorite. I don't try to find out what I'm having, so they are always cool surprises. Last year's Christmas was definitely memorable; that was when Johnny Murphree What was your best-ever Christmas present, and why? My best Christmas present ever would have to be almost every year, a few of my die-hard trail-riding buddies and I make a Christmas Day ride at the Clear Creek Management Area in Northern California. I'm all about good friends and dirt bikes! What was the worst, and why? My worst Christmas gift ever would have to be our Christmas Day ride two years ago! It was raining in the lower parts and snowing up high. We had this big plan to go all the way to the back and eat the great Christmas Day lunch we had packed. I always seem to find my way around out there, but after wandering American Honda has hired Ron Heben to manage its AMA road-racing program, with the Californian making his debut in the role at the Dunlop tire test at Daytona on December 9. Heben most recently worked as the off-road racing team manager for KTM, as well as running the company's supermoto racing program. Heben formerly served as a race technician with American Honda for several years in the early 19905, specializing in suspension setup for the motocross and road-racing teams. ':American Honda's Motorsports Department has been enjoying a recent period of rapid growth," said American Honda senior manager Gary Christopher. "Ron's return to the Honda family enhances the cuttingedge combination of racing machinery, technology, and people we have on the road-racing side. We've maintained a great relationship with Ron over the years, and when the opportunity arose to bring him back on board, we jumped at the chance." "It's great to be back working with Honda," said Heben. ':American Honda always makes a huge commitment to winning, and I'm ready to make my contributions to supporting the team's efforts." Heben will be reporting to Honda's Motorsports Department manager, Chuck Miller. Mexico's Gerardo Rojas (Hon) won his second straight SCORE Desert Series overall motorcycle title and Class 30 title. Among the motorcycle classes, Rojas and teammate Arturo Salas successfully defended their overall and Class 30 titles by winning two of three races and earning 243 points. The factory Honda team of Steve Hengeveld of Oak Hills, California, and johnny Campbell of San Clemente, California, won Class 22, amassing 232 points on the year. Veteran Jim O'Neal (Hon) of Chatsworth, California, led two teams to season championships, winning both Class 40 (riders over 40) and Class 50 (riders over 50). In Class 40, O'Neal - who now has won seven SCORE class championships, including six in the last fIVe years - was second in overall motorcycle points and won What was your best-ever Christmas present, and why? In 1989, my dad and mom put a brandnew Kawasaki 10<80 under the Christmas tree. It is hard to beat a new bike for Christmas. What was your worst, and why? One Christmas, my dad gave me and my two cousins a doll. We all had the same all three races in the class this season. Third overall among the motorcycle classes was Tim Morton (Hon) of Escondido, California, who earned the Class 21 crown on a Honda CRF250X, going undefeated with three race wins. The motorcycle champions as well as all of SCORE's off-road class champions were honored at the SCORE awards night at the Primm Valley Resort in Primm, Nevada, on December 10. size present under the tree. I know that we were all thinking the same thing: radiocontrolled cars! He made us open them all at the same time, adding to the excitement - and then promptly the disappointment. The dolls did not last long, but the memory Is still with us. What was the best gift you ever gave someone else? I gave my wife a remote car starter. If you live in Wisconsin, you understand. By her being able to start her car and defroster from in the house, it saves me having to go out earty in the morning and scrape her windows. Official, limited-edition 2006 Hayden Brotihers wall calendars are now available for purchase through Tommy Hayden's website. The calendars feature images of all three brothers - Tommy, Nicky, and Roger Lee. To order the calendars, visit www.tommyhayden.com. KTM will field two teams in next year's 125cc World Championships - the official team of 2005 championship runner-up Mika Kallio and Julian Simon and a second team of Stefan Bradl, the son of former Gennnan 250cc GP star Helmut Bradl, and Michael Continued on poge 9 CYCLE NEWS • JANUARY 4,2006 7