D
oug Domokos was a one-of-
a kind stunt rider. A one-
trick pony if you will. Domokos'
claim to fame was his ability to
wheelie a motorcycle, practically
any motorcycle, and ride that
bike on one wheel, even over
the craziest of obstacles. While
"The Wheelie King" was one of
the pioneers of motorcycle stunt
riding, what made Domokos
unique was that his routines were
simply fun. Unlike the death-
defying stunts of Evel or others
of that breed, Domokos' stunts
would leave you with a smile
on your face. You could take
children to watch him with no
fear of the kids being exposed
to a terrifying, bone-crunching
crash. Non-motorcyclists even
enjoyed Domokos' routines. He
appeared on numerous national
television shows and was fea-
tured in hundreds of newspaper
and magazine articles during his
heyday in the 1980s. The ever-
smiling Domokos presented a
friendly side of motorcycling to
the general public.
Domokos was born in Niles,
Michigan, on December 31,
1955. Like many kids of his era,
he started riding dirt bikes at a
young age. Doug acquired his
first bike at about age 15 and af-
ter school and on weekends, he
would pack peanut-butter-and-
jelly sandwiches, some water,
and head for an abandoned
railroad roundhouse terminal
grounds near his home and ride
for hours. He became a solid
motocross racer.
Domokos' first job out of
school was working as a me-
chanic in a motorcycle shop
owned by Gene Ritchie, who
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DOUG DOMOKOS: THE
BY LARRY LAWRENCE
