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/1533625
VOLUME ISSUE MARCH , P127 The author's son was not interested in making big money from the young sport, which was a good thing because there was no money to be made. "I won a Trans-AMA support class in 1971 and AJS sent me a bonus check for $50. But I made enough to pay for gas and living expenses to get to the next show. What else could a 19-year-old want? They didn't have to pay me—I would've been doing it anyway!" He was making a name for himself, and the folks at AJS (Albert John Stevens) decided to bring him over to Great Britain to test a punchy new AJS 500cc MX machine. Although he was still healing from a race injury, Doug headed to Europe. Unfortunately, another crash resulted in serious internal injuries, including the loss of four pints of blood. Injured too many times in too few races, he decided that was enough, and he pulled the plug on his MX career. At least, he thought he had. "I told AJS that I didn't want to race anymore," Grant recalls. "So, I quit. I built my own house— and then it hit me: I had no job! I needed to do something, and I real - ized there was one thing I was good at." Grant called on his old friend Tom Rapp, who helped him find a ride at Bultaco. He and his good friend Butch Johnson headed out for the National circuit. Butch was "an enthu - siastic guy, a friend, a companion, somebody to share the driving from race to race. He loved racing and for the price of dinner, he would change a plug and clean my goggles." When he returned to the MX scene in 1973, Doug found that the sport had changed. American Honda was now involved in a very big way. Yamaha had countered by bringing over Grand Prix veteran Pierre Karsmakers to remind the Americans that the Europeans were still the masters of the sport. "The fun was starting to go away," Grant said. "I just wanted to ride, and now guys wanted to make a living." On that crazy night at Philadel - phia's JFK Stadium, Grant had crashed hard during his race, snapping off the right handlebar on his Bultaco racer. But he had persevered, tucking the bar under his leg so that he could some - how twist the throttle and get to the checkered flag. Even the raucous Philadelphia fans took a moment to recognize a fighter. "Look at the crowd, Doug," Butch shouted. "Man, they're cheering for you!" Exhausted from the evening, Doug and Butch loaded their bro- ken Bul into their van and headed out with Butch at the wheel. Doug had fallen asleep. And then, while driving down the Pennsylvania Turnpike, Butch fell asleep, too. "I remember the race. I remem- ber the crowd and then I remem- ber getting into the van. After that, there's nothing." He spent one month in a coma, having undergone exten- sive surgery for a brain contu- sion. The van was totaled. His friend Butch Johnson was gone. "My mind was pretty much blown away by everything that hap- pened," he told Cycle News. "It was too much to think about for a 21-year-old guy." It would be two decades before Doug Grant would return to the racetrack. In the mid-'90s, he was bitten by the bug of vintage mo- tocross, and he found an AJS to ride. Racing against some of his old friends, like Tom Rapp, brought back the fun one more time. "I loved racing. I didn't do it for any other reason. My inquisitive mind was put to work, trying one more gadget to make the bike go faster. If I ever thought I could do it for money or to become famous and do any of the things that I ever ultimately did, it prob- ably would've sabotaged every- thing." CN Subscribe to nearly 60 years of Cycle News Archive issues: www.CycleNews.com/Archives Too many injuries prevented Grant from pursuing a career in racing.