Windham Retirement Announcement
Sunday, January 20, 2013 | 12:20 AM
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Popular veteran rider Windham announces retirement
ANAHEIM, Calif. (Jan. 19) - The storied Monster Energy AMA Supercross racing career of GEICO Honda's Kevin Windham has come to a close.
Windham, 34, ended his 19-year pro career on Saturday night at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. The veteran wrapped up his career with 19 wins, more than 200 Supercross starts (second on the career list), two Supercross Lites titles, and three runner-up Supercross points finishes.
"I would love nothing more than to ride forever," Windham said before making it official at rider introductions on Saturday night. "The choice (to retire) was going to be hard no matter when I did it."
Windham had wanted to stretch his career through the 2014 Supercross season, but he said after a crash in Houston that ended his 2012 season and a spill and concussion at the Monster Energy Cup last October that the dangers of the sport weighed too heavy on his mind.
"I would love nothing more than to ride forever," Windham said. "To the fans of Supercross, this might seem to be a hasty decision, but I've been talking to a lot of people for a lot of months. I thought I would be able to come into the season and ride myself out of that funk and that mental hurdle I was having to overcome. With every passing lap - be it at the test track, my home track, or the stadium - it became more and more difficult to ride with the clarity I needed to be safe, fast, and successful.
"The common comment from the people I've spoken to was that if you aren't riding with clarity, you are asking your fears to come upon you. It wasn't the storyline I wanted to write or the final chapter I envisioned, but it became obvious, and we'll try and figure out what's next."
GEICO Honda team manager Mike LaRocco, who is first in Supercross career starts, said he saw the first signs of Windham seriously mulling retirement starting at the first race of the season.
"He was kind of coming to the races stressing about things that guys don't normally stress about," LaRocco said. "I knew at that time that when you think that way, it's the beginning of the end. He was worrying about things he shouldn't be worrying about, especially considering his experience and talent.
"Having been there (myself), you just can't get it out of your head. So when you are comfortable with what you've done and what you have, it's hard taking that risk."
Windham's last win came in Salt Lake City in 2010, the second of back-to-back victories he had for GEICO Honda that season.
"The whole GEICO Honda program along with sponsors MSR and DVS, their support has been great," Windham said. "I'm in a good place with a good team. My team and sponsors are behind me with this decision, and I hope the 40,000 people in the stands tonight will be, too."
The veteran rider, who had become a universal fan favorite over the last few years, said that connection with the sport's loyal following will be what he misses the most about racing.
"The fans of Supercross have been amazing to me," Windham said. "Those trophies aren't made of anything, and they'll just sit there and collect dust. When you have people who come up and share their favorite moments that you gave them, it's a huge part of why I stuck around as long as I did. It means something to them, and in turn those memories mean something to me."
Windham said he plans on spending time with his wife, Dottie, and children, Madelyn, Annabelle, Elizabeth, and Kevin Jr. However, he doesn't plan to wander too far from the sport that's been such a large part of his life.
"I've been racing motorcycles for 31 years now, and I expect I'll keep riding on some level," Windham said. "I'll ride with my son, who wants to start to ride right now. I want to help all my kids do everything they want to do. I don't know what I'm going to do next. My Planet Fitness clubs are doing great, and I've got a great family.
"When I was 16 years old, I felt like I was losing my weekends because of racing. It didn't take me long to realize that my weekends were already being spent with my family - my racing family. We'll find that next chapter, and I don't think it will be too far away from where I'm at right now."
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He's a Class act. Best wishes to Kevin and his Family. Kudos on a career and life that every rider envies.
Best to you Kevin. You leave a huge void.
Good luck with the next chapter Kevin, it's been an awesome ride!
And so goes the final link to 'the good old days'. Cheers Kev, even Ricky knows that you da man!
No second guessing K Dub, your Fans love you, the Industry loves you, hell EVERYONE loves you! You were and always will be a Fan favorite, some riders will never experience that. Cheers to a stellar career and even better retirement. See yah at the races #14.
No second guessing K Dub, your Fans love you, the Industry loves you, hell EVERYONE loves you! You were and always will be a Fan favorite, some riders will never experience that. Cheers to a stellar career and even better retirement. See yah at the race #14.
Roost on into the sunset, Kevin. Once vacation is over, you gotta fill in for RC in the booth with Emig and Ralph. There are 7 events, that RC won't be there.
Salute! K-Dub. You will be on "the lists" for many different categories for MANY years to come. Thank you for being a great rider and a class act. You brought a special energy to our sport that will will be difficult to be repeated ( Trey Canard has the best chance). Enjoy your next chapter!! You deserve it!!
Glad he is out healthy, thanks k-dub!
Thank you Mr. Dub. Having watched you as a 16 year old busting onto the Pro scene and leading Henry for almost the entire moto, to your final rides these last few races....it has been one hell of a career, and like the others that have stepped down before you, you will be missed. Good luck in whatever you decide to do in the future.
Really cool guy, and he was always there for the fans and made everyone feel welcomed... will definitley miss the K-Dub! Have fun in your second career as a race Dad... the K-Dub saga will live on with the next generation of the K-Dub crew! Much respect!
The reason: http://www.racerxonline.com/2013/01/15/450-words-phoenix
"...The respect for K-Dub is there with these younger guys, but the patience is not, and he seems unable to respond to the aggro style of younger contenders like Justin Barcia and Trey Canard..."
All good things must come to end. Maybe/hopefully he'll do a few guest commentations down the road.
Best wishes Kevin.
Way to know when to say when. We'll miss your smooth, effortless style Kevin.
I sure will miss not seeing the guy next week in Oakland. It has been awesome seeing KW race bikes. Hope KW stays in the Industry and maybe help train a few guys. Thank you KW it has been a blast having you on my TV screen and will miss you.
Kevin,
Your worldwide fans will miss you , your incredible longevity in the sport, titles, MXDN success's, but most of all your great personality!
I'm sure we will see you still within the sport but enjoy the family and the future!
http://www.robkinsey.com
Thanks for the ride Kevin.
Thanks kdub. True legend...
Fly.....fly........fly like the wind, then ride off in the sunset with your motorcycle. Your fans love you, hope to see you around the races.
On Sunday mornings, I usually rush immediately to the race results. Not today. Wow. Kevin Windham has retired. That news gave pause to reflect on all he has done in and for the sport we love. A seemingly effortless style like Kevin’s is very rare, as are the results he’s earned, but as Rob Kinsey states, it’s who and how Kevin is that made him so special to everyone fortunate enough to have met him, known him or even known of him. A fan favorite at the highest level of the sport for nearly two decades, the down-to-earth people’s champion has finally entered the pantheon of motocross history. Role model…icon…legend. Thanks K-Dub.
I was 10 years old and ever since his heels clicked on the cover of unadilla's event program he has been my favorite rider. My friends and I named a corner after him at one of favorite spots to ride--"KDUB KORNER". I am a grown man now with a family of my own now. I can pop in any of my "VHS" videos with and be transported back to my childhood thanks to him.
THANKS KDUB it truly was a great ride
Kevin always has the loudest cheers during riders intro. His retirement is well deserved. We will all miss his crazy transfer jumps as well as his front wheel brake wheelie!!! Hope to still see him in the pit area with the rest of the Geico squad at Anaheim 3 and San Diego. Congrats Kevin!!! Hope your back is OK!!!
One of the great one's for sure, thanks for the memories.
I wonder if they kept that tracks more old school, less technical and dangerous if it would have kept Kevin around longer?
Easier tracks would have kept him competitive and he may have felt more safe. I guess everyone has their time and he feels it now, everybody struggles with this feeling in their life. It's battle inside, do I quit?
I am sad. If k dub could have conquered his head games he would have 30+ wins and a championship right now. His tallant and courage and charactor will set the bar for the next 20 years. His fears have told him his health and family are more important and who could blame him- his popularity is SO justified. If he wasn't worried about last years he would have turned in top 5s all this year and probably not gotten hurt.
I am sad - but this guy can do what he wants with my blessing- Kevin- YOU GO MAN ! and thanks
Congrats K-DUB enjoy your retirement from moto. ..
Man, hate to not see him not out there, been a regular for so long! He will be missed and has nothing left to prove. True class act as still fast as ever. Hopefully we'll see him in another role, too valuable to the sport for him to go away entirely. Been a long run for the Ragin Cajun!!
Best of luck to you KDUB!
Hopefully he stays riding and keeps involved with the sport!
from across the pond, best wishes to a classy racer and classy individual.thanks Kevin Windham.
from across the pond, best wishes to a classy racer and classy individual.thanks Kevin Windham.
End of the Windham era...sad day. Would love to see him race some offroad stuff, ala Mike Brown.
Gonna miss 'ya KDub. It was always a good feeling knowing year after year you were still racing. As a fan of yours I hoped it would never end and last forever but it can't be that way. Congrats on a great career and thanks for the memories. This announcement makes me want to listen to the old AC/DC song "Ride On" Keep on "Ridin' On" Kevin
With Windham's exit from racing and the the Geico team, will that spot (ride) be filled?
Will Kdub quit bikes altogether or feed the need by transitioning to the off-road scene?
Alot of national enduro's in the southeast.
Just saying
Glad to see KDub walk away healthy. He had a GREAT run. Now I want to see Tomac on that 450 in some of the east coast rounds.
Just my uneducated guess, but Eli on a 450 East coast is a longshot if Trey is still in the thick of the points, and Barcia will work back up but it will take a few weeks, Eli would be a player for sure and I'm sure Big Red wont want their toes stepped on and Geico would not want to risk another championship if he has the red plate when the series switches. Now with Kevin retired all bets are off for outdoors.
thank you k dub for the good times and for signing my daughters shirt at dilla.
This a shame, but I'm glad to see him do this before he had another big wreck. I could completely see him having another great career racing off-road, but I'm not sure that's what he would want to do. It will be interesting to see what he does next. Seems like he'd be a natural at Team Manager as well.
What a quitter!!! Just kid'n....K' Dub is one of the best people our sport has had the pleasure of watching through a long and exciting career. I hope he finds a solid place in the industry because he deserves it.
Even during these last couple of years, when the odds weren't in favor of a K-Dub victory, I always pulled for him to win, but also to be safe, and to keep racing. I have no doubt it was a difficult decision, but one that is to be respected. Thanks for everything, Kevin, and hopefully we'll still see you around the races. (You'd make an excellent commentator.) Enjoy the next phase of your life, whatever it may bring.
I remember when you 1st came on the seen and wrapped a lites class title ,you were soo smooth, you made it look so easy... if you could now move in and bounce RALPIE boy out and you slid right in as a commentator, what ever you do i wish you well...
Our industry, like all that race, puts an insane amount of weight on winning. In the truest sense, Kevin won the hearts of more fans than any other in history!
In every race he's been in, I've rooted for him to win. Though many times he didn't win, I had a great time cheering! Watching him destroy the whoops (and his competition) back in his 125 days, or in '03 when he checked out, blistering Glen Helen on his new CRF (and tipped over and gave the lead to RC) or in freezing sleet at the SLC supercross in 2010, I will remember his style, speed, talent just as much as I will remember his graciousness, kindness, and love for our sport and his fans.
I believe when it comes to the true meaning of winning, Kevin Windham in the undisputed all time champion.
Thank you Kevin for the Awesome ride!!!!!
Kdub will be missed FOR SURE! I'm going to the Houston race and hope to maybe have a brewski with the guy..(LOL) Speaking of Plantet Fitness, I need to get my lazy azzzzz over there for my weekly workout.....but yeah, Kevin is a first rate, top class, smooth hombre (that means MAN in Spanish) and we will see him in some industry related capacity, and if not, I wish him total happiness with his family and "new life".
Dont drink to many of those redneck energy drinks now that you are retired K-Dub...get a gut on ya right quick...
I truely love Kevin, but am I the only person that feels somewhat shorted? I pay 300 buck every year to see supercross in Atlanta just to see this guy. We don't even get a warning? He just up and calls it quits? He spoke about us fans giving him his best trophy. How about letting us a chance to see him out.
Gotta say I didn't it coming this year. KDub congrats on a great career!
Best of luck KDub. My fan favorite for sure.
Damn you air forks.
Thanks KDub. We all have many memories that will last for years to come.
What happens to the Gieco 450? Will ET run the 450 on the East Coast and the Nationals? Time to speculate.
Good times Kevin!!!!!!!
Thanks for the memories, And go try to win a GNCC race or two. Throttle control and smoothness. Skills that are right up your alley.
And make Sturgis look like a high school dance with your festival!!!!!!!!!!
Effortless talent on the track with the heart of a champion, thanks for the memories. Good luck KW!