VOLUME ISSUE DECEMBER , P119
move that he would later regret.
"I was stupid," he said, "to try and
pass there." Kessler wound up
stuffing only himself—straight
into the ground! He was quick to
remount but not quickly enough
to stay with Theiss, who motored
to his first-ever AMA National
moto victory.
The second moto did not go
as well for the Nebraskan with
an eventual 12th-place finish, but
still good enough to net him a
second overall behind Team Ya
-
maha's Mike Bell. Theiss would
finish the 500cc series with a
solid 10th place in the 1979
500c points.
In the fall of '79, Theiss
topped the field in the Support
class of the Trans USA series at
the opening round at
Mid-Ohio. He would
continue his winning
streak when the se
-
ries moved to Red-
Bud in Buchanan,
Michigan. Though
his results slipped
over the remain
-
ing rounds, he still
finished the series in
fourth place, mak
-
ing 1979 a success.
Surely, a factory
team was going to
come calling this time?
Silence. And once again,
Theiss, with some help from LOP
Yamaha, hit the road as privateer
in 1980.
That summer, Theiss suffered
one of his first major injuries,
breaking his foot at a local track
in Nebraska. On a summer week
-
end when he should've been try-
ing to qualify at the Los Angeles
Coliseum for the Superbowl of
Motocross, Theiss was instead
attending a wedding in Iowa.
That evening, Greg and three of
his friends were involved in a
tragic automobile accident. Two
close friends were killed. The
injuries he suffered that night
would keep him out of racing for
the rest of the season and he
would never be the same.
He returned in 1981 but
struggled to get back to his pre-
accident speed. He also found
himself without any support,
and after a couple of races on a
Honda CR450R, Theiss hung it
up for good.
"I had started to make a little
money from racing before the
accident," he recalls, "and now,
I was going to have to spend it
all if I wanted to keep racing."
Though he would continue to
ride locally in Nebraska, his pro
career and the pursuit of the
fabled factory ride were over.
Today, Theiss is retired and
still living in Omaha. "I worked
very hard in real estate and
with other investments while I
was in my 20s and 30s, so that
I wouldn't have to do anything
when I was in my 60s. And I've
made it happen!"
CN
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the opening round at
continue his winning
streak when the se
over the remain
finished the series in
fourth place, mak
Surely, a factory
team was going to
Theiss had dreams
of being a factory
motocrosser and was
that close, but the
phone call never came.
After suffering injuries in an
automobile accident, Theiss,
pictured here letting Broc Glover
pass him at Southwick, attempted a
comeback but ended up calling it a
career not long after.
