Last night, a little bit before midnight, my cell phone started buzzing with a text message. I was in bed, and I figured it was some of the gang urging me to come out or to see if I was in Vancouver. I was in bed, so I turned it off and went back to sleep.
At 6:20 this morning, I read the message. It was from Cameron Steele, asking me if I’d heard the terrible news: Marty Moates had shot himself. Then I saw another message on it, this time from Jeff Emig. Then another one and another one….
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In the time since, he worked throughout the industry, helping build both No Fear and FMF into the huge successes they are.
He committed suicide just a few days after his 50th birthday. He had long been in pain from the injuries he took over the years, but his smile was ever-present, and he was headed for Cabo on a vacation this weekend. Obviously, there’s more to this than we’ll ever know.
What I do know is that Marty was a really, really great guy who always had time for you, whether you were a kid seeking an autograph or a rider looking for help or an aspiring publisher looking for a $75 newspaper ad, or just wanted to talk motocross. I can’t believe he’s gone, and I hope our sport remembers Marty Moates for how lived, not how he died.
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French motocross journalist Xavier Auduoard, who wrote The Great History of Motocross and The Great History of Supercross, wrote, “A true hero is gone… Hero as a natural being, hero as a racer. His performance at the USGP was one of the greatest days in the history of this sport. But today is a very, very sad day. Godspeed, Marty.”
Don Emde, the 1972 Daytona 200 winner, wrote, “Marty and I were both racers from San Diego, but I was in Class C and Marty in motocross, so I didn’t ever talk much with him until just a few years ago when we both started being invited to Yamaha’s Weekend of Champions events. My parents were motorcycle dealers in the area in the 1970s and Marty told me at one of Yamaha’s events that he bought his first bike, a Bultaco, from my parents’ shop out by San Diego State College. He said there wasn’t a truck at the shop at the time that could deliver the bike, so Marty just bought it and pushed it home rather than wait for the truck to get there. He reminded me of the same story a couple of times after that. It was, in a way I guess, his way of helping two guys from different parts of the motorcycle world connect. And he was successful and I always searched him out at those events to see how he was doing. I don’t know what else I can add to the others in this post that are absolutely stunned right now. Godspeed Marty. We’ll all miss you.”
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And finally, this from Frank Eisler, a fan from back east who just followed Marty’s career from afar: “Anyone who grew up with motocross in the late ‘70s will never forget the impact of his win on the Carlsbad USGP course that day. Beating the world’s best on a privateer LOP Yamaha just made it more legendary. It was fitting that he was the rider chosen to take the last lap on that famous track… Heaven has a new entry for the ‘07 motocross nationals. I bet Pomeroy thought he'd have a cakewalk!”
Motocross life goes on.…
With apologies to the two top dogs in Toronto—L&M Yamaha’s Chad Reed and Suzuki’s Ricky Carmichael—I want to talk about the man who was missing from the podium. James Stewart finished third, but he was not up on the box with #22 and #4. Instead, he was being carried off the track by friends and family with a terrible look of anguish on his face.
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Stewart himself was apologetic, to some extent—check out his letter to the fans—and yet also a little defiant, like when Erin Bates interviewed him on Speed TV after the Tedesco crash, and in an interview later on with the Los Angeles Times.
And in case you missed it, here’s a fan’s angle posted on YouTube.
I said it on DMXS and I will say it again here: I feel bad for James. He can’t win for losing, and when he makes a mistake, it piles up on him in a hurry. The Tedesco thing sucked, but there’s no way he meant to hurt the man he just rode alongside at the Motocross des Nations back in September. Stewart has a history of being aggressive in practice and heat races, and this time it bit him … but it broke Ivan’s hand.
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James was 100 percent at fault for pulling out in front of Preston. There was no yellow flag waving before Preston launched, and the quick glance James did seem to give offered no time to see #11 Honda coming down on him. Was Stewart going straight across the track like that to either try to block, blast, or re-pass Reed? Of course he was—that’s why they are out there: to win.
Back in the day, this was on any Saturday night for Bob “Hurricane” Hannah and people loved him for it. Danny “Magoo” Chandler was a bona fide wild man, taking big chances and breaking bikes and bones everywhere, but the fans loved him for that. Damon Bradshaw was called the Beast from the East for good reason. And Ricky Carmichael’s wild rides through the late nineties are something I will always remember fondly, because no matter how bad things got, he tried harder and harder.…
And then he got it all figured out. Well, that day is still coming for Stewart. Sure, it’s taken longer than it did for RC—and Damon and Danny Chandler never did figure it out in time to claim some big titles—but I still believe it’s going to happen. But right now he just seems snakebitten or something. Is he trying too hard? Is he riding too fast for the tracks he’s on or the traffic he’s around?
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Stewart is at the point where Travis Pastrana was back in ’02 or so: he has no fear, he has incredible talent, and he wants to win so badly that he just can’t stand it, and his bike and body—and sometimes other riders—pay the price for his impatience. The price Pastrana paid is that his dirt bike racing career is over; Stewart’s price is the wrath of fans everywhere. I truly think him falling off his bike after the finish had as much to do with the mental anguish brought on by the whole day as it did Travis Preston broadsiding him. He may not have known Travis was coming, but by the end of the race, he knew the haters would be all over him.
Now everyone I know is saying, “Six grand? That’s it?” But that’s not it. The thing is the probation—that’s going to be the hard part. That’s something that seemed to slow Mike Alessi last year. He rode on eggshells whenever he got around others because he knew Mr. Whitelock was watching. Now James is under the glare of the officials, and every time he gets near someone, someone is going to protest. That’s got to be uncomfortable for a rider as aggressive and super-talented as Stewart.
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Back to that can’t-win-for-losing thing. Think back to the MXdN. Stewart went there to lead Team USA after RC went down, and he and his teammates brought back the Peter Chamberlain Trophy. Yet because he wisely slowed down after cartwheeling in the first moto and didn’t challenge the extraordinary Stefan Everts for the personal win, he’s taken a lot of crap—especially from the British moto media. David Villalpando forwarded me this from Doc Wobbly’s British magazine, MOTO. It’s a cruel-to-be-kind video of the race focusing on Stefan’s individual win over James, plus shots of Tedesco getting passed and Tony Cairoli celebrating. It’s well done, though very subjective, just as I’m sure U.S. moto media is viewed in their eyes. Regardless, it’s an interesting film.
Great music, by the way. And I can’t wait to hear about the reception Doc Wobbly gets next time he steps under the Team Kawasaki tent.…
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And then there’s Carmichael, who blew just about everyone’s minds with the way he rode. He clipped that Tuff Block and lost his shot at the win, but I can’t remember ever seeing him so happy about getting second place. He took off his helmet, showed a huge smile, and rode a lap around the Rogers Centre to thank the fans and enjoy his come-from-behind ride. Tomorrow night, I expect RC to go all-out in a bid to beat Reed—and Stewart.
You can listen to the Vancouver Supercross and the soothing voices of Jason Weigandt and Jim Holley on www.supercrossonline.com, starting at around 10 p.m. in the East and 7 p.m. out west. The Speed TV coverage airs at 6 p.m. EST (3 out west) with Ralph “Speed” Sheheen, Jeff “Fro” Emig and Erin “Master” Bates on the job (sorry, I thought we could all use a joke just now).
So with Ivan out and RC obviously, speed-wise, still right there, would he consider staying on the bike for longer than his planned departure on “probably after Phoenix?” He’s happier with the bike than he’s ever been, especially after Suzuki worked on the brakes and suspension for him and seems to have done everything he asked.
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And as if things weren’t already complicated in the Kawasaki camp, word comes that there’s trouble brewing on the horizon in the form of an energy-drink battle. Kawasaki as a team is said to be negotiating with Monster Energy Drink for a team sponsorship, but James Stewart, of course, has a personal Red Bull relationship. He owns his helmet, which means he can run any personal sponsors he wants there, but Kawasaki likely owns the rest of his personal signage space on the racetrack and all of the motorcycle.
Now Monster is already all over motocross, but with their main man Carmichael stepping away, and a relationship already there with Kawasaki via the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki team, it seems like a natural fit. (Chad Reed is Unbound Energy all the way, and Kevin Windham is powered by SoBe.) This could get really interesting come Anaheim.
Here’s a note on how to get faster over Christmas: Former National MX & AMA Supercross Champion Donnie Hansen will be conducting motocross schools in California during the holidays. Scheduled classes will be on 12/27 (minis only), 1/15 (big bikes only) and 2/19 (Vets & +25 only) at Elsinore MX at Lake Elsinore, CA ; 12/29 at I-5 MX, Gorman, CA; and 1/3-1/4 at L.A.C.R., Palmdale, CA. Call 951-609-2709 or email Donnie@DHMA.com for information and registration. Enrollment is limited. www.DHMA.com.
As you probably know, Honda rider Nick DePalo suffered a dislocated hip and shoulder and severe spinal-cord injury while racing at the Gatorback Winter Olympics on November 24. A CAT scan revealed a shifting of his sixth and seventh cervical vertebrae and an almost complete severing of his spinal cord. There will be a Benefit Ride/Auction on December 17 at Seminole Tribe MX Park (www.seminoletribemotocross.com). Also visit www.nickdepalo.com.
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This is as good a place as any to turn it over to Ping:
This Monday, Alpinestars held a ride day at Starwest Motocross Park for all of their athletes. The first annual Motocross-Over included A-Stars moto athletes as well as their skate, surf, and other action-sports athletes. And some big names showed up!
If you follow skateboarding, you know who Ryan Sheckler is. The skating phenom did some hot laps on a Honda 100 and looked like he knew what he was doing. Jeremy McGrath was also hanging out. MC is still not back on a bike yet. His doctors advised him to wait until January before riding again. He says his neck doesn’t hurt but it does feel like his spine is jammed. Jeremy said a trip to his chiropractor will fix the problem, but he can’t be adjusted until January either.
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The Metal Mullisha was well represented as Brian Deegan, Jeremy Stenberg and Josh Hansen did a little riding as well. Hansen fractured a small bone in his thumb last week, but the KTM rider was back on the bike already and looking good.
The day started with open riding on the main track but at around noon, things got a little less serious. Honda brought out some CRF50s and 70s and a team minibike race was held. The first heat race ran smoothly, but in the second qualifier, which featured Deegan, Twitch, Ox Kargola, and Cameron Steele, among others, debauchery won going away. Riders waiting for their turn to ride started tackling other riders that were on the bikes. It wasn’t the most professional race I’ve ever seen, but it was fun.
After the qualifying rounds, A-Stars front man Malcolm McCassy decided to skip the main event and head straight into lunch. It was a good call. Wahoo’s catered the event, and after fueling up, everyone got back on the main track for more laps. Thanks to Malcolm and Alpinestars for putting on such a cool event.
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Thanks, Ping.
The latest issue of Pit Racer just hit the streets, and it features Pit Girl Jennifer on the cover with Red Baron’s 20th Anniversary Z50 Chrome Special Replica – a really cool, complete bike that Alex and LeAnn are offering for this Christmas. You can subscribe to Pit Racer at www.pitracermag.com. Pit Racer would also like to wish everyone a safe, and Happy Holiday Season!
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People in this part of the country have known about Tyler Bowers for several years, but the big 15-year-old really lit it up last weekend at the BooKoo Arenacross Series in Columbus, Ohio. Bowers swept the weekend in 450 and 250 racing, serving notice that he’s a force to be reckoned with sooner than later. Tyler has battled injuries the past couple of years, but believe me, he flat-out flies.
Cool news from Works Connection’s Eric Phipps on one of our favorite readers in Iraq, motocross legend/mystery man Johnny O’Hannah: “We have been staying in touch with Johnny O’Hannah via e-mail for a while now, and he just sent us some recent photos from Iraq. We sent him a care package for Thanksgiving (cookies/candy etc.) and he fired these photos back for us to check out!”
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