by Davey Coombs
Racerhead #10
Friday, March 8, 2013 | 3:00 PMHonda is the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles, and the undisputed leader in motorcycle technology. More motocross riders have won titles on Hondas than on any other bike. When you’re serious about winning, Honda is the machine for you.
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PrintWelcome to Racerhead and Bike Week at Daytona, where tomorrow night the 2013 Monster Energy Supercross season visits the World Center of Speed. This is the oldest of all supercross races, going back to 1971, when Gary Bailey first put a shovel into the sand and dug his first “gator pits” for the motocross race Daytona International Speedway decided to have. How far has this race come since? Check out this rare footage from 1971.
This weekend is also a big one for American Honda. Forty years ago, Team Honda made its debut as a motocross program at the Daytona race. Gary Jones and his brother Dewayne showed up on brand new Honda Elsinore race bikes, sending the entire pit area into an immediate buzz. But the bikes weighed only 177 pounds, well below the minimum weight requirement of 190 back then. So Honda's mechanics and engineers, working out of rental trucks, set to work welding heavier pieces on the bikes in order to make the weight. The handling suffered, and Gary Jones, then the 250 National Motocross Champion, did not finish in the top twenty, but Dewayne finished fifth overall.
Gary Jones (1) about to start the first motocross race for Team Honda, Daytona '73.
Racer X Archives photo
With all of that in mind, Honda will celebrate the birth of their motocross team forty years ago with a big bash under the Honda tent in front of the speedway. Gary Jones will be there, as well as other legends like Jeremy McGrath, Jeff Stanton, Kevin Windham, Ricky Carmichael, and more. Happy birthday, Red Riders!
Unfortunately, it won't all be a celebration here. This will be the first Daytona in who knows how long that Henny Ray Abrams is not here. As I mentioned last week, the prolific and talented Henny Ray died suddenly at his computer in Brooklyn last week, sending shockwaves through the motorcycle industry and the media in particular. Henny was a straight shooter, telling the tales of motorcycle racing good and bad. He was the AMA Pro Racing people's biggest critic, as well as the AMA itself. His passing leaves big shoes to fill, both as a writer and a photographer. In fact, as I write this in the Daytona International Speedway press room, it seems really, really empty without Henny here holding court, discussing the state of motorcycle racing. As Roy Janson just said, they should rename this media center the Henny Ray Room for the next week.
Jeremy McGrath is one of the stars that will celebrate Honda's 40th birthday in American motocross tonight at Daytona.
Moto Verte photo
Yesterday, on the way south, I took a detour to Wilmington, Delaware, for Henny's funeral service. It was very cool to see old friends like Paul Carruthers, Tom Riles, Larry Lawrence, Jim Allen, and Wendy Black all there to pay their respects. He had a profound influence on all of us, and he's sadly missed.
Okay, let's get into the week's news.
HOW TO WATCH (Chase Stallo)
Round 10 of Monster Energy Supercross from Daytona International Speedway will be broadcast live on Speed beginning at 7:30 Eastern. According to Weather.com, the high for the day will be right around 70, with zero chance of rain. As always, the Racer X crew will be in Daytona with coverage of practice, qualifying, and play-by-play of the nights action. Be sure to follow us on Twitter and Instagram (@racerxonline) as well as Racer X Online for wire-to-wire coverage of action from Daytona.
And for a cool preview, check out this video LeBig put together of the calm before the Bike Week storm here at Daytona.
It will be interesting to see how quickly Rockstar Racing's Davi Millsaps can recover from his first subpar night of the season in St. Louis, as well as how fast RV will be in what will effectively be his first “outdoor” race since last year's Daytona SX, which was a mudder.
COVER ME (DC)
With Kevin Windham having called it quits on his racing career, we wanted to do something special for one of the most talented and popular riders of all time. So we came up with twelve pages of K-Dub photos and memories in the May 2013 issue of Racer X Illustrated, plus two entirely different covers—one shot by Simon Cudby this season and one from a classic Kevin Windham moto at Budds Creek back in 2005, snapped by Paul Buckley.
Yes, that's a mid-race bar-drag by Windham!
BAD NEWS via Austin Stroupe on Twitter: “our house burnt down lost everything it was terrible we are all safe tho just upsetting”
What a terrible break for a rider who's been down on his luck a lot lately—not to mention his entire family. Our best wishes go out to all the Stroupes.
More times than not, the powerhouse Monster Energy/Pro Circuit team is used to standing atop the podium, but for the first time in ten years, the Mitch Payton-owned team only has one win through the first nine SX races. Dean Wilson has the team's lone win, in Dallas two weeks ago at the start of the East Region. The crew was shut out in the West, and most nights Payton looked like he wanted to be anywhere else. An injury to Blake Baggett and some slumps by Martin Davalos and Tyla Rattray contributed to that o-fer out West.
Things were supposed to turn around, as Wilson was the favorite to win the Eastern series while the team's other active rider, Justin Hill, is a complete rookie and just getting his feet wet. Hill’s not expected to bring home a win just yet, but there’s no doubt the team would like to see him closer to the podium than he’s been so far. For Deano, on the other hand, this is expected to be his series to win-unless his bad starts continue to haunt him. GEICO Honda’s Wil Hahn has won two races in a row, and that thing called confidence is all over him right now. Many a favorite has been dethroned by someone who simply catches fire and takes off. You can lose your confidence or get it in an instant, and right now it’s all on Hahn’s side. Now it’s Wilson’s job to go out there this weekend and make sure he reestablishes himself as the guy.
Dean Wilson's win in Dallas has marked the only one for Monster Energy/Pro Circuit in 2013.
Simon Cudby photo
Going back ten years, in 2003 there were no wins for PC through nine races, but the team did win the tenth race with Mike Brown, which was, like this weekend, in Daytona. Certainly the Pro Circuit guys are hoping history repeats itself with either Wilson or Hill. It’s got to happen for Pro Circuit sooner or later—they’ve been too quiet so far this year.
YOUR TAKE:
"He bruises easily for someone who punches hard." VitalMX.com poster FTE, referring to Barcia's take on Stewart's aggressive riding.
THE NUMBER – 406 (Aaron Hansel)
Actually, this week’s number is the sum of 5, 98, and 303—with not a single one of those stats being generated by Justin Barcia. It was the Muscle Milk Honda-backed Bam Bam who provided the inspiration for this piece when he clipped a Tuff Block while running second in last Saturday night’s main event in St. Louis. Before the small mistake, Barcia was having himself quite a night – pressuring, and eventually passing, James Stewart to take over second place. If this was last year, Barcia probably wouldn’t have had much trouble quickly recovering and regaining the positions he’d lost, if any. But that was his life in the Eastern Regional 250SX class, far removed from his current premier-class reality.
Justin Barcia's one mistake last weekend was costly.
Simon Cudby photo
So when Justin made his little misstep, it allowed Stewart, Chad Reed, and Ryan Dungey to go whizzing past, hauling their combined total of five premier-class championships (two each Stewart and Reed, one for Dungey), 98 premier-class SX wins (Stewart has 45, Reed has 41, Dungey has 12) and an incredible 303 main event starts! Stewart (97) Reed (157) and Dungey (49) are as fast and talented a pack of men that you will ever see go past you in the blink of an eye, which is what happened to Barcia in St. Louis.
“It was definitely crazy,” Barcia told our own Jason Weigandt after the race. “I was feeling good and battling it up, having five, six, so many fast guys, one mistake puts you from top three to off the box like that. Definitely a bummer. I went in the corner pretty good and clipped my front brake. Tuff Block stood me up a little, and I couldn’t do a triple.”
That’s just the natural order of things in the pressure cooker that is the 450SX class these days. If you’re running up front, you’ve probably got a swarm of championship-caliber riders who are loaded with wins and experience breathing down your neck. Any mistake, however small, is almost certain to translate into a loss of positions.
PRO PERSPECTIVE – FLAGE GATE (David Pingree and Jason Thomas)
David Pingree: Everybody has an opinion on the RV pass for the lead in St. Louis, so I might as well throw mine out there. I think the AMA whiffed on this one. Here’s why: The top priority during a red-cross flag situation has to be safety of the downed rider and staff who are helping him. Everything else needs to be secondary. While the lead duo may have been past the flags and across the track from the downed rider, there were still personnel on the track and in harm’s way. It could have gone either way at that point, but what tips the scales for me is that this was Villopoto’s second infraction in that race. He had already shown some level of disregard for the caution lights when he doubled out of the triple. Yes, he was docked for that, but typically a second infraction is judged more harshly. If Jason Lawrence, for instance, had done the same thing I feel like they would have penalized him for making the pass where he did.
This is the confusion of last weekend, from Stewart's GoPro point of view
Jason Thomas: While I agree with Ping on the safety issue, I believe the real problem is the vagueness of the rule. The official ruling came down that the pass was made under yellow and not the red cross flag. This was argued by both sides for hours after the race, and it literally came down to a matter of a few feet of the track. Had he been considered still in the red cross zone, he would have been penalized accordingly. Luckily for Ryan, the yellow zone is open for passing and the case was closed. Sorta.
These rules need to be clarified and etched in stone so that there is no "interpretation" of the rulebook. Conspiracy theories abound when rules have to be explained and applied. I do not feel that anyone influenced the decision—I feel it was more of a reluctance to take a victory away from the clear winner. I can't think of a time when victory was actually taken from a rider, and this would be a serious precedent to start. I hope the rules will be explained ad nauseam at the riders’ meeting this weekend. If the rules are stated publicly and EVERYONE is crystal clear on it, I think penalties will be more viable. No one wants the races to be decided by the officials, but making sure riders and medics are safe is the first priority.
"This was a[s] mad a race as I have ever witnessed. The first corner and opening laps was like a wild-fire crashing through a forest. It had all the mechanics and team managers on their feed (sic) and screaming. It even made the combined MXoN motos seem a little average and that isn't an overstatement." MX Large's Geoff Meyer always paints a very rosy picture when it comes to the GPs (even if it is finger-painting).
STRANGE MOMENT (DC)
Did you catch the confusing moment at last weekend Qatar Grand Prix that followed the first Superfinal? Moto winner Tony Cairoli took the top step, alongside seventh-place finisher/MX2 winner Jeffrey Herlings, and then listened to the Italian national anthem being played, all while the actual overall winner and series points leader, Clement Desalle, stood on the lower step with a look of WTF on his face. Surely this will get sorted by this weekend's second round in Thailand.
And speaking of Thailand, here's a shot of the new track they've built for this weekend's race, shot by Lebigusa.com's Xavier LePorcher.
EVERTS III? (Chase Stallo)
Liam Everts, the son of ten-time world champion Stefan Everts and the grandson of four-time world champion Harry Everts, will be lining up next weekend in the KTM Junior Supercross Challenge at Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium. That will make Everts the third offspring of a very successful rider to participate in the reborn program, following Brian Deegan's son, who raced Anaheim, and Tim Ferry's boy, who won the Atlanta race.
WAIT, THERE'S MORE... (DC)
Yesterday, my esteemed young colleague Aaron Hansel’s Bench Racing Ammo compiled a list of all of the past winners of the Daytona SX in the premier class. The problem is, the list does not go further back than 1974, nor does it include the 500cc class, which was considered equal (for the most part) to the 250cc class in the early years of what was called the Yamaha Super Series. For instance, in 1975 the 500cc class was won by Maico factory rider Steve Stackable, followed by Gary Chaplain (CZ) and the ill-fated Jim West (Maico). But the results have mostly been lost to time, and they are not in The Vault. Yet.
Roger DeCoster won the 1974 Daytona Supercross in the 500cc class.
Racer X Archives photo
The year before, the Daytona race was a part of the AMA National Motocross Championship Series, and Pierre Karsmakers won the 500cc class over Suzuki-mounted Mike Runyard and defending 500cc AMA #1 Brad Lackey, who was on a Kawasaki. There was also a 250cc Daytona round, and the winner was Bob Grossi on a Husqvarna.
The 1972 Daytona race was more of exhibition than anything, as it was not part of the inaugural AMA National Motocross Championship Series or Edison Dye's then-important Inter-Am Series. And as you saw in the video up top, 1971 is when it all began here at the world's center of speed.
Steve Stackable takes the win at the 1975 Daytona 500cc Supercross on his Maico.
Racer X Archives photo
HEAD-SCRATCHING HEADLINE OF THE WEEK
“Michael Thompson, who finished last in his previous start, battled blustery conditions to win the Honda Classic by two strokes.”
That headline came from the New York Times, discussing a golf tournament sponsored by Honda, and not a certain premixer.... The motocross tie-in is that Rickie Fowler was in the running, but then things didn't go well in the end and he tied for thirteenth.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK (Chase Stallo)
Controversy in St. Louis: Ryan Villopoto’s win in St. Louis last Saturday was saturated in controversy following a late pass on leader James Stewart, which took place right near a bunch of waving red cross and yellow flags. Jason Weigandt spoke with the AMA’s Kevin Crowther on why the win was eventually upheld.
Resurgence: Points leader Davi Millsaps’ career resurgence during the 2013 season has been unprecedented. Steve Matthes spoke with various members of the industry to get their take on how Millsaps has turned it all around.
Roczen Debuts: 250SX West Region points leader Ken Roczen will make his 2013 450SX debut in Daytona aboard a 350 SX-F. Our crew of editors gave their thoughts on the decision in Racer X Rapid ReaXtion.
IN THE MAG – TEAM OF RIVALS
An iconic racing brand slips into bankruptcy protection and is torn between supporting its own and helping others-all while juggling energy-drink sponsors. In today's hyper-competitive sport, we're seeing fewer traditional factory-supported racing programs than at any time since the early seventies. Today's cash-strapped teams are mostly mash-ups of limited factory and sponsor driven private racing programs. This is the story of American Suzuki in 2013. Read more about Suzuki's efforts in Supercross starting on page 148 in the April issue of Racer X Illustrated.
Click photo to subscribe now!
HEY, WATCH IT!
Daytona Animated Track Map
James Stewart GoPro from St. Louis
Beyond the Finish Line: The Magic Continues
2013 GDR Team Tryout
1997 World Championships at Chateu D'Oex in Switzerland (Go to 6:00 and it's John Tomac winning the 1997 World Downhill Mountain Bike Championships)
RANDOM NOTES (Staff)
Here's wishing our longtime friend Peggy Plummer-Menapace best wishes and a speedy recovery after surgery on her back. Peggy has been on the comeback trail for a while after a road bike crash, and hopefully she just got through her toughest challenge yet. Good luck, Peggy!
MXPTV is going live for the first time from the infield of Daytona International Speedway for this weekend's Ricky Carmichael Daytona Amateur Supercross Championship. MXPTV is producing a special live race show including interviews with Ricky Carmichael and the top amateur riders at the event as well as highlights from the first day of racing action from Daytona. The live race show will air on MXPTV.com through YouTube this Sunday night at 8pm ET. Check out the preview video to see what's coming up for this weekend's event at Daytona!
Only at Bike Week!
DC photo
After the amateurs are done with SX, it's time to head over to Westgate River Ranch to kick off round one of the 2013 Amsoil Grand National Cross Country series. Reigning champ Paul Whibley looks to defend his title, and if you remember River Ranch last year, it went down to the final corner of the three-hour race with Whibley inching out Charlie Mullins for the win. The XC1 and XC2 bike classes begin at 1 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday March 12, and you can catch it all streaming live on RacerTV.com.
Great stroll through the old school here, guided by Steve Matthes and his ball TBlazier over on Pulpmx.
That's it for now—see you at either the Cabbage Patch Coleslaw Wrestling Match or the annual Blessing of the Bikes. Daytona has something for everyone!
Thanks for reading Racerhead, see you at the races.
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Anyone that doesn't think that wasn't a punk move on RV after watching James helmet cam.. must never have been in that position before. When James passed RV before that, I have LOOKED AND LOOKED and could NOT see any red flashing lights when james passed him or flags. After James made the stuff in the corner and looked up, I saw the lights.
Ping is never wrong, gotta go with him on this one.
Meyer must of been watching a different race to me then..
Agree RV should have been penalized since it was a the 2nd infraction of the night for the same issue. But what is appropriate? 2 places, 10 points, a lap, DQ?
I guess that's the issue. Nobody really can clarify what the consequences are.. It's odd they did what they did.. Lets say there was no restart, should they have black flagged him? If the race didn't stop, how do you possibly relegate him back 3 positions DURING a race?
I guess they did what they thought was right and I'm fine with that. I feel bad for MILLSAPS though.. And I can't believe Dungey did the same thing. He should have been docked too.
Like I said, just like dirt track, you break the rules you get sent to the back. I love watching RV come thru traffic anyway, so it's win win.
What's that, an Everts with the chutzpah to race on U.S. soil?
Of course he should have been penalized and it's a bunch of crap that he wasn't.....period!! Totally agree with Pingree on this!! All the people saying "get over it" need to shut it, if you are saying that you must be a Villotard. It was definitely a chicken-s--t move by RV, regardless.....wouldn't you rather have passed the guy at speed instead of weaseling by him under caution flags?? This sport is getting big enough and has been around long enough that indecisive, butt-kissing bull crap like this shouldn't be happening.......rules are rules....enforce them appropriately!!!!
The rare footage from 1971 was awesome! The front wheel high landing style was in full display over jumps that today would be smaller than some whoops...This sport has progressed farther than any of those guys sitting on the line could have imagined..
Daytona is just about everyone's favorite Supercross race of the year. What's not to like, it always features the great racing and the longest lap times on the toughest track the riders will encounter and now we are back to live coverage for those of us who could not attend..It is all good!!!
Here is a little something to go along with Daytona speed week, Its not a motocross bike, I think all of you will get a enjoy this short clip...http://www.wimp.com/motorcrossbike/
Everyone have a great weekend!!!
endoman = unadilla 97 - go check it out on youtube
The biggest flub of the night and it's not mentioned?
It's not the pass by RV past JS..... it's the accessing of the 3 position penalty MID RACE!
How silly of a decision and everyone wants to sweep it under the rug.
@BD25 - the picture at the top of this week's Racerhead is awesome too. Takes me right back to being a kid again. I can still hear the crackle of those Elsinores.
......and to anybody saying JS made an "illegal" pass in the corner coming in to that section....watch the go-pro video, didn't happen!!!!
@jbomx - I get your point, but a restart is a whole different scenario than a race in progress. A restart is an opportunity to enforce a penalty, especially when the the infraction happened right before the restart.
I agree "jbomx363".......docking him 3 positions on the restart was essentially no penalty at all.......he was still right there within 1 second of the leader!! It is interesting how that part of this whole thing just has not been mentioned at all in these stories, and it was a huge flub!!
@cr500...uhh...not. What kind of penalty is 3 positions when it's only 15'?
I've never seen a mid-race penalty given, restart or no restart. It just doesn't make common sense, let alone racing sense.
Anyway.. it is what it is.
RV has a history with these types of things....unsportsmanlike to me.
And.. I believe he probably would of "won" anyway...but then assess the 3 position penalty.
@JT$ so from now on lets just hand the trophy to the clear winner. Who cares about the sport, structure, competitve integrity or rules. The next time someone clearly is the fastest in practice just end it there. I can name rider after rider after rider that was clearly faster on the track but for whatever reason didn't win. Even if the officials do their jobs perfectly they will NEVER decide the outcome. The riders, on the track, making concsious decisions, decide the out come period!!! Unfrickingbelievable!!!! JT$_you are yellow, Kudos to Ping for calling it like it was!!
@CR500AF, you should make a petition about K-Dub testing a CR500AF at Glen Helen or Red Bud, seriously :)
and Go Villo, Barcia, Tomac, Canard, Wharton and Hahn for the DAYTONA SUPERCROSS!
Just throwing this out there...I wonder how easy it is to process being in a race mode with a block pass from JS, red flashing lights to single a set of triple jumps, followed by red cross flags waving in your face, Barcia pushing closer in, then ending with yellow flags, all in one section of track taking place within like 10 seconds or less it seemed watching at normal speed? None of them were being unsafe, so I didnt see any passing until right at the end. Its way too close a call to side on taking a win away, not to mention there were plenty of laps so JS was right there to come back if he had the speed. I was more concerned on the ruling of RV getting docked mid race at restart rather than at end of race. Ama discretion is way too gray if that is the rule.
For Gods sake, the flag deal is over. i beg you please...
Why people are making such a "Big" deal over Villopotto passing Stewart on the flag Red or Yellow is beyond me. Does anyone actually believe that Stewart would have held RV off the rest of the race? Pleeeeeeeeease. RV "owned" Stewart in that race. The only way Stewart was beating RV was if RV went down. Stewart was incredibly lucky Barcia hit the haybay or he would have never gotten 2nd place. Just suck it up and admit it. The conversation is a lost cause and a waste of time.
I agree. A 3 position penalty would have been meaningful of it had been applied when it should have been...when the race was finished. To apply it on the restart was just ridiculous. It amounted to just a few feet. And then to assess NO penalty when he did it a second time reeks of favoritism. It's a little suspicious when you consider RV's main sponsor is the same company that sponsors the series. And to those who say RV was faster and would have won anyway? You completely miss the point. He WAS faster. But the issue is the safety of downed riders. If heavy penalties aren't assessed when someone ignores the red cross flag, a downed rider could be seriously hurt further by the offending rider. Villopoto is one of the biggest offenders. Twice in one night in St. Louis and last year, he jumped on the red lights and almost landed on the downed rider. I hope the AMA quits their ass-kissing ways a takes a firm stance next time before someone gets seriously hurt.
cool vids. my take on "the pass" adrendalin is running very high on both, however james was cooler in holding back until it was safe. RV was handed a freebie. The docking of 3 positions is really a joke, he would have passed JS anyways but the safety factor is paramount in this picture. What will we have next? I still think they need some updating regarding the points system and perhaps a test when you actually get your pro license to prove you know the rules..just sayin
I think everyone's missing the bigger picture. If Davi MILLSAPS loses the title by 3 pts to RV, it will be because of a rules infraction. That will send a signal to every rider next year "I'm sure as hell not slowing down for a red, it cost Davi a title". At that point, rules are meaningless.
Both RV and Dungey kinda cheated, similar to cutting track. They were being safe, they were not endangering anyone, they are the best in the world. However, the point is they broke the rules and Davi followed them.. Now Davi is the one being penalized in a sense, because RV and Dungey got away with it.
I agree, it's over, lets just try to learn from it and hope its smooth sailing now.
One more thing, it was brilliant for RV to ask for the penalty real-time. It probably won him the title again.. Very quick thinking on RVs part, nobody can call him a dumby.
TOTALLY disagree with ping on this one as there was no 2nd infraction- he passed AFTER TWO YELLOW FLAGS and it is legal to pass in a yellow flag area.
Also neither JS or RV were a danger to the medics,
Rickamatuzo, please watch JS go pro one more time and BEFORE they get to the corner there is a blinking red light to the left at the beginning of the tuff blocks just blinking away. I have seen it by rematching at least ten times. Coming down the straight before the turn its right there clear as day, just pause the frame and look to the left before they get to the corner
Guys, ping did this just to light the boards up again !!!!
TRUTH is RV DID pass JS at speed and JS passed him back in a red blinking light zone and I will seriously bet anyone disagreeing with this statement a cool $1000 payable at Houston SX.
COME ON guys I want takers on this
MY challenge includes you to Ping !!!
I still think it was BS when it was RV's second issue of the race. Clearly. I think the real injustice was on the first penalty. I talked to 2 people on the floor, and both said that RV threatened to go home when they said they were docking him 3 spots AFTER the race (as the rule book states). He was irate about it, and only agreed to finish the race when they said they would dock him the 3 spots for the restart. THAT'S the real BS of this whole thing. Now they're changing the rules for one rider. Would they do THAT for J Law????? Or anyone else? Guess they've done it before, huh.
WOW I liked that pic of Jones on the Honda at the start, never mind DeCoster at his best, and never forget the Stack could win at anytime, Time Machines!
Now I have to read the article....BBL....
Honda731 yeah your story sounds real believable lol he'd just throw away the season for getting docked what 5 points? Please
Ping, my respect for you has increased 100 fold. Not because I think you're right (we'll never know that) - but because you have the guts to say what you really think, as opposed to some other folks around here who seem to go whichever way the wind blows them. And by "wind", I mean "the money". And by "blows them" I mean, well - I think that part is obvious.
It's amazing how some people are so blinded by hate for RV that they would do anything to hold him back if there was someone they could pay off for him to lose they would pay. You guys act like that was some kind of highway robbery like he was in tenth and passed everyone under a redcross flag on the last lap and won the race.......get real!
And the first mishap was an honest mistake if he so blatantly disregarded the safety of the downed rider he would have just done the triple do you guys not realize that everyone else only rolled one I repeat 1 more single than RV did go back and watch so technically they got away with breaking the rules as well
But seriously get over it already RV is the best guy out there right now he trains the hardest and try's the hardest what is there to hate about that? It's not like he's winning these things with no competition
first off if what honda731 said is true about rv then let him go home, I was never a big fan of him anyway(don't know why for sure)but I lost a whole lot more respect for him after watching his cbs special..as far as outside sponsership I've been a so called machinist for for the past 20 yrs doing work on everything from indycar to top fuel cars to F35 fighter jets.Has anybody tried getting sponsership from any of the top machine manufacturers..just a thought
All I am gonna say is to all of the old farts like me I liked that old footage and try to tell the young un's that that was still a Piston Port Honda Gary Jones was racing? If I remember Dewane had the reed valve to test it? I still remember the first Honda 250 that I saw racing was at Peoria ILL in 1973 being rode by Rick O Bryan. Then I was all confused cause I thought he was in my class and I missed my Moto cause that thing was pure poetry in motion with Ricky riding it to the fist win! Even though I am deaf know I still remember how it went braaaap, Braaaaaaaap..... and yes he was on a Piston port model also!
I think RV has summoned the demons of hell. If they both get good starts I see a certain someone riding on the edge, which he hasn't done all year. Bring on Daytona!!!!!!!
@ DC,,,,, Keep us old timers in the loop, thanks. I have some pretty good stories from the early days! I will try to post some pics?
PS: I need to check on "The Vault" and see who was on that Nbr 75 Yamaha 400 ya know with the yellow stripe. MX next to Jones? Yes I raced one of those also!
It amazes me that so many current and former pro riders don't understand the rules. I know why stupid fanboys don't understand the rules when it hurts their guy but seriously. Why does there need to be further clarification? If racing motorcycles was my livelihood I would make a point of learning the rules inside and out.
Hey Davey, why no mention of the rebranding/relaunching of SpeedTV and FuelTV and any potential impact on the future of Supercross and Motocross being shown on TV?
Assessing RV's penalty mid-race was a joke. Henny Ray Abrams wouldn't have hesitated to put in his two cents and call the AMA out. Why is Pingree the only one definitively saying the AMA was wrong? Where's the outrage?
PING: The AMA doesn't have them but I appreciate you having the balls too say that!
To Davidl or anyone else....get off RD case, he did nothing wrong. If he did so did CR and Kiniry. Watch the go pro and you'll see them doing the little double before the triple like RD did to DM. The red lights blinking means a warning to no jumping of triple or where the Red Cross flag is waving. So JS did no wrong, RD, CR and Kiniry did no wrong. You been whining about this all week, maybe you'll go to bed now.
That is a sick bar drag by Windham.
It says alot for the piece of crap Tony Cairoli to even take that top step nowing he didn't deserve it. Kind of fitting since his "World Champion" title is a complete joke also.
"he trains the hardest and tries the hardest and it was an honest mistake and there were only yellow flags out and Dungey did it too and...blah, blah, blah" It doesn't make any difference if he trains harder, tries harder, goes faster, if someone else did it, etc., etc. It doesn't matter if it was an honest mistake either. Using that logic, if you run a red light in your car unintentionally, putting others at risk, the cop shouldn't write you a ticket because it was "an honest mistake". And for the guy that keeps saying only yellow flags were out and you can pass on a yellow flag, did you even LOOK at the pictures in the article? Ha ha. I'll send you my address so you can send me my thousand bucks. And as far as what anyone might think in the future about doing the same thing? Why WOULDN'T someone try to gain an unfair advantage now by passing on the red cross flag since RV got away with it. The whole thing sucks because there really was no penalty for two different infractions on the same night. Of the to pros that have weighed in on the issue, James Stewart, Chad Reed, Ricky Carmichael, Jeff Emig, David Vuilleman and Grant Langston all agree that a) it was an illegal pass, and b) that the penalty (and lack thereof) was bullshit.
The rule is unclear under red lights it sais roll triple don't jump but it doesn't say when it ends and when it's okay to start jumping again, so he rolled the triple rolled a single and doubled everyone else rolled the triple rolled two singles and than doubled so why was RV more wrong than they were? The AMA told him that the red light applys to the whole section so which is it, was RV discriminated against? Because he was punished but nobody else was .
You see it can be spun any direction you want lets just agree it was racing a lot of things happened that night that were "questionable"
I think the fastest guy won the race in St. Louis, and that is the way it should be.. I dont think anybody with integrity wants to win a race on a technicality... Rv gapped him after the pass, he was clearly faster and he won, period.. Now lets let it go..
Well said mgwest949!! RV got away with way more than he should have and the RVtards are whining because they all think that the only reason anybody is complaining is because of JS losing a position....and that is not the case.....it's about rules and integrity. But villotards (who also seem to be extremely anti-JS) just can't seem to look at it with an unbiased perspective!! It was a cluster f--k!!
BLACK FLAG the f'in flag deal..and see who pulls into the pits........geeeeeezus. get a grip. KDUBs bar drag is the stuff of legend...........Hey Thailand ..how much for enough dirt to build a SX track.?....signed EVERYONE....time to throw down ...show the neckcar fans how we do.......
Hey "jeramey"....it lasts the whole straightaway, just like RV said himself.....and don't even try to say that everybody else ignored it too, that's B.S.!
Coupla comments here:
1)absolutely agree with Ping on the RV pass...if hes so fast why take the cheap shot? And, it was his 2nd of the night. IF he takes the title it had better be by more than 3 pts.
2)KDub is pure style.
3)My elder bro owned and raced one of those Elsinores, then tried laying down some Gas Girlings to hang with the "75 RM's...he had a Mugen cylinder and that thing was a holeshot machine, until the 1st corner! I bought a brand new '77 CR125 when I was 13.....good ol days.
4) Roll on Daytona!!
Just a thought on the whole penalty thing. How about black flaging the rider during the race, holding them for 5 seconds at a safe part of the track (say, the mechanic's area) and then let them go. Give them a lap or two to figure out the flag is for them. If they ignore the flag, disqualify them. If the infraction happens a lap or two from the end of the race and they don't pull in, penalize them the 5 seconds after the race, and if they happen to have built up a 5 second gap over the rider behind them, great, if not, they lose the respective position(s). Seems simple and straight forward. And yes, the races are short and hectic, but what the AMA is saving in paying the riders for prize money, they could hire a couple more staff to watch for infractions and deal with it. If, after reviewing the video evidence, it was determined there was no infraction, then give them their 5 seconds back. This type of penalty leaves no room for interpretation, at least on what the actual penalty is or should be.
2013 rule book QUOTE, red flashing lights, "riders must roll each jump individually with no passing"
Tired of people saying JS didn't break the rules on second incident when RV COMPLETELY went by the rules and passed carefully with NO danger to medics or riders in the yellow flag zone.
THERE WAS NO SECOND INCIDENT on RV's part, it was JS who unquestionably broke the rules
RV is smart, he used the rules to his advantage. Stewart was day-dreaming or something.... I believe, if it was not for Barcia sneaking in on the inside, he would go inside out on Stewart just to take him out, after James's take out attempt in the corner before. I know I would... That would make all the room for Barcia to capitalize though.
Now... If RV wins the title by more than 8 pts, will you all stop crying???? I guess not.... You'll find something else to moan about.
Don't mind Ping. He's the journalist. Always looks to stir something up. It's in his job description. Lol
Villo passed Stew on the red because Villo cannot pass Stew on the green ....
Very basic to anyone who knows racing. Some of you do, most of you do not.
Lost all respect for RV,,cheap move,hope it comes back to bite him,,I liked the kid but now its anyone but Villo!!!!
Way to go Ping and DC, stirred the pot bringing up the old news that has been ragged on for almost a week! Hey let's wait until Monday and start it again so all the Fanboys can whine another week!
JUST STOP for the love of God!! It's not like it is affecting Stewarts title hopes! I am sure all the haters would love to see Milsaps win the title by a point if RV had been docked back to 5th that night. What would that do to the season??? The AMA did what was best for the integrity of the season, they let the guy who was clearly the best on the night win. He ran at the front and they lived with it!!! Why can't the rest of the moot world?
Some you guys need to read what your writing stupid &?$/-@ u lost respect , he cheats , it was at race speed honest mistake come on not a one of you could've or would've done any different racing against peewee riders but the biggest BS was the guy who said I can't believe guys riding don't know all the rules come on dude u ever raced or play any sports u going tell us u had the rule book memorized if u have job guess u have employee hand book memorized Get Real!
Oh and very funny how the guys that praise the ground James walks on are now saying its not about Stewart it's about the rules and blah blah blah! When is the last time the AMA actually got anything right? Until last Saturday not that is. Roll on RV, put it to me tomorrow and if you don't I hope RD, Canard or Millsaps does!
Supposed to say put it to " em " but hopefully you all figured it out. I'm sure all the JS7 fans that are crying foul needed an explanation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGKqy3sfdmc&sns=em
That's fun
Just a little correction to the article...it's Gary Chaplin, not Chaplain.
I can't believe there are so many still hanging on to this flag fiasco! No matter what your opinion is, the fact that there were 2 yellow flags waiving at the end of that straight created confusion. That why the AMA decided what they did. So if it's a Red Cross Flag section from here on, they need to get 4 or 5 Red Cross flags out there waiving....and no yellow flags.
There was one thing very evident in the confusion...RV thinking was much faster than JS.
Enough said
Can't wait for Daytona!!!!!
RacerX will never let this bullshi** story die To many page clicks from Stewtards.
RacerX just loves controversy.
What's Jeeremy Stenbergs sponsor? Controversy sells? Sounds about right.
@mikeo
Who are yout trying to fool? You've been a Stewtard ever since i have been commenting on this site. RV don't need you anyways, he has tons of fans. And will have a more successful career then Bubbles. You mad?
"davidl".......you are HIGH!!!! @persona........you are a Villotard calling somebody else a Stewtard......I guess it's a wash then!!
Its hilarious to hear Stewtards saying RV fans are whining.. Really?? Why would any RV fan be whining?? RV won the race.. ALL THE WHINING is from Stewtards.. This whoile thread is Stewtards whining because they want their guy to get a win, even if he didnt earn it.. Its a desperate move.. I dont know whe any RV fan would have any complaint, he got the win he earned, he passed several riders and then passed the leader and gapped him and got the win, no reason to complain.. But some one-rider Stewart fans have CRIED all week long.... Embaressing too... very embarressing....
I just watched Stewart's GoPro. I think the controversy would have been avoided if the Red Cross flag was closer to the downed rider...... As it should have been!
Since I was a teenager in that era, I think that's Gary Champlain, not Chaplain. And thanks for the photo of Stackable, who I actually saw racing locally (along w/Howerton!) in the early 70's before they both went on to National successes.
The flag deal dosnt matter..... is there anyone who thinks Stewart is actually faster then RV, seriously?
Steve Stackable was one of a kind and will always be remembered for his helmet with the big pot leaf on top and marrying a Playboy model..oh yeah he was darn fast on his dirt bike too...
To anyone worried if RV wins the title by so many points, is there any wondering going on in your heads about Dungey passing Millsaps in the no pass zone? That actually cost Davi points. If there never was any RV controversy, that would still exist and further the Rockstar team was protesting THAT Dungey move, not what RV did. It's all fueled by RV hate though. Don't worry, doubt it will come down to a few points.
The whole "losing respect" deal is laughable anyway. We all put these guys on such a pedestal and expect them to be perfect citizens and racers at all times. We'd all lose a lot of respect for all the legends if we only knew some of their actions. I bet there are rental car stories from yesteryear by all the top names that would make J-Law blush. I know of a certain legend who allegedly did a #2 in a hotel lobby flower pot. Just as in all sports, with HiDef DVR video, and Internet access, the fan is more "in the know" than ever. It wasn't that long ago that actually SEEING the race was only done if you were there. If we only knew, we'd lose respect for every last one of them......unless they were our fave......then we'd just yank out the excuse book.
Hey pizzacorner ... because of your ignorance and arrogance people like the US less and less ... I feel sorry for you
The 2 medic flags was totally uncalled for, 1 yellow was enough. RV did not pass, his wheels was on the ground, till he passed the red flag zone, and into the yellow. He timed a perfect pass, and Barcia seen it too. JBS got caught sleeping. The AMA ref has full discretion to do what he wants and when. If they were going to penalize 1 racer in the first incident, many more violated on that entire section, and the whoops until they passed the down rider.