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/1542342
I I E ffiEEFJ - bnv D. 'Do or die!' a AReHTvES Tony D.ts Daytona I t has been 30 yearc since Tony DiStefano won the ! Daytona Supercross, He has seen the sport come a ! long way since then .-. I "k doesn't seem like that long ago until you think I about it," Distefano. now 49 and living in Yardley. Pennsylvania, says. ln fact, Distefano, who won three successive AMA National Motocross titler, says that back then he didn't even think much of the sport of Supercross. "Supercross didn't really mafter," Distefano says. "The emphasis was motocross. The priorities were the Nationals. My goal was to win four National titles and then go to Europe. Gary Jones was one of my heroes, and he had won three National titles." Distefano would turn out to become Jones' succes- sor, winning the AMA 250cc National l"lotocross Championship with Team Suzuki in 1975,'76and'77. "l almost won the [Supercross] championship a cou- ple times," Distefano says- "1 would have liked to. I had it in the bag in '74, but then my bake broke. ln '75 I had a bike problem at Daytona. I had won two of the three motos, and then a backing plate broke. ln Dallas the transmission locked up. I still pushed it across the line and got eighth. Then in'76 the front ends were breaking off the Suzukis. I had the points lead, but then Suzukitold us that we couldn't ride. They pulled us from two races. It iust was not a priority that the Florida Series and the Nationals were, Now lfeel like I kind of passed it over because I would never have belieyed that Supercross would gain prominence over outdoor Nationals." His win at the '76 Daytona Supercross is something that Distefano holds in high regard. "Daytona was always a special place, iust as it is today but especially back then," DiStefano says. "We weren't in too many venues like that, and there weren't that many [Supercrocs] evens back then. Plus, my dad started tak- ing me to Dapona from when I was in second grade. We used to always say that my grandpa died iust so that I could take the time off from school to go down there." Winning at Daytona back then was also somethinS dif- ferent than it is today, as the riders went head to head in a three-moto format. Distefano grabbed the holeshot in the flrst moto, followed by factory Honda-mounted Don Kudalski, who quickly took the lead away from Distefano and aftempted to set a torrid pace. "Don was the kind of guy that you never really wor- ried about too much," Distefano says. "You would have the main front-runners who shined, like [.lim] Ellis and [.Jimmy] Weinen, but I didn't have to worry about Don. It would be like today if Kyle Lewis had gotten out front. You didn't really sweat it until yqu were at the end and you knew he was a contender." Speaking of Weinert, Kawasaki's main man soon became a factor working his wa), up from loth place to pass Distefano ,or the lead after Kudalski had crashed out on lap frve. Weinert went to win, while Distefano, in what he described then as a "a do-or-die thing," whiskey-throt- tled his way into the hay bales. Distelano still managed to get up and flnish second, ahead qf Pierre Karsmakers. "l don't even remember that. but if it was Weinert ahead of me, then I must hrve had to push it," Distefano says. Distefano went on to win the second moto, over Weinert, who crashed, then charged, then crashed again. The all-imponant third moto promised to be a clash between Weinert and Distefano, but a first-turn crash Ieft Weinen playing catch-up a8ain, and Distehno was afford- ed the luxury of cruising in second place, behind '75 Supercross Champion Ellis, before Ellis unloaded in lront ofthe mechanic's area and handed the lead to Distefano, who went on to win the moto and the event title. 'Actually, I think Ellis was leading me, and I knew that ldidn't have to win to take the overall," Distefano says. "That's the beauty of the new [single main event] for- mat, It makes Euys race, Back then, if the guy ahead of you had nothing to lose and you had the race to lose, you strategized accordingly. Now it's all ar nothing in the Supercross mains, and I think that it would be good for the outdoors as well, but I know I'm in the minority there. lfyou iust have one iace, yau know who won, and the qualiffing system seems to be more interestinS. But Supercross has done a lot of good for the sport because it has made the American ride6 the best in the world." Through I9Z Distefano stayed on track to reach his goal of winning four tittes and then leaving for Europe, but the Tony D. train was derailed in 1978, and he really never was the same after that. "l hun my knee right before the Nationals in '78, and that's right when [Bob] Hannah came on strong, so he was kind oI my successor," Distefano says. "Then in '79 I had an accident where I stuck a screwdriver in my eye right after the Superbikers race, so I missed that season. By the time '81 came around, that was about it for me." But Dastefano never realty quit the sport, opting I I Bv Scorr Roussrlu h it I , \ n U t--J \\ instead to start what grew into a rewarding business, the Tony D. I.lotocross Schools- "l was popular and was a known guy, and my sponsors iust went with me on it," Distefano says. "\y'y'ho could have known how well it would work out?" Especially after a paratyzing crash ended his riding days. "That came in'88," Distefano says. "The Kawasaki Race of Champions was coming up at Englishtown, and I just went out the Thursday before it to warm up. lt was at this sand place that I had been riding at since I was a kid. There was no jump involved. lt was just a freak acci- dent. l'd crashed l0 times worse than that before. I iust hit the whoops the wrong way and landed head first, My own body did the damage after that," His body may hrve been permanently akered, but Distefano's spirit wa5 unbroken, and he har continued to man the helm at the Tony D. l'lotocross Schools to this da),. "We're in our 25th year this year, and we've been with Suzuki for 20 yearc, lwert from being a one-man show to having more of a staff lt has been great. "When I retired from motocross, I was already ful- filled," DiStelano adds. "EveD,thing that happened after that has just been a bonus. When I think about it, it seems like I've lived two lives," It has been 30 years since Tony DiStefano won the Dapona Supercross. He has seen the sport come a long way since then ,., and wheelchair or no, he has matched it every step of the way, Gll I 06 MARCH r, 2006 . CYCLE NEWS