FEATURE
40
TH
ANNIVERSARY OF WOMEN'S MOTOCROSS CELEBRATION
P96
way at the 40
th
Anniversary of
Women's Motocross event. Lai-
er, who made the long trek from
Germany to be a part of the his-
toric event, squared off against
former factory Honda rider and
WMX star Sayaka Kaneshiro in
the Women's Pro class.
The two started a battle in
the first moto when they im-
mediately pulled away from
the pack, but it was short lived
as Kaneshiro went down in a
sandy turn on the first lap. Laier
went on to take the first moto
win ahead of Kaneshiro, with
Honda-mounted Lauren Woods
in third.
It looked as though Laier was
headed toward the overall win,
but Kaneshiro soon reminded
everyone that Glen Helen is her
home turf. Sayaka battled Laier
– and the excruciating late af-
ternoon heat – in the second
moto, coming away with the
overall win. The German World
Champion had a good ride, but
admitted that the near 100-de-
gree temperatures were a bit
much for her.
Birgit Schelkle traded in a
5-4 score to capture the final
podium position, followed by Ti-
ana Falls (4-5) and Shelby Ward
(7-3).
HONORS
At the reception following the
races, the "Flying Fish" was the
honored speaker, giving a quick
rundown of her career, includ-
ing some amusing highlights.
She spoke of a brief "free-
style" opportunity she enjoyed
in Australia at the invite of Evel
Kneivel, and recalled a story of
Evel slapping his son, Robby, in
the face for being "too close"
to Fish in the air during their
jumps.
Fish also talked about her life
post-motocross, and earning a
silver medal in World Champi-
onship downhill mountain bik-
ing. The "Flying Fish" ended
her speech and summed up the
day by remarking that, "It still
has the same fire that we all had
back then. The athlete inside of
us never goes away." CN
(Left) Honored guest Sue Fish gives
a speech at the award ceremony.
The "Flying Fish" talked about
her career in women's racing,
competing against the men and
being a pioneer of motocross.
(Below) Womens motocross
champions Tania Satchwell (left),
Dee Wood (center) and Kristy
Shealy (right).
