Ping,
So I can't be the only guy who noticed the friction in the booth between Shaheen Fro and RC over the question, “Why don't top supercross guys disclose their injuries in interviews.”
Shaheen was getting repetitively mouthy about why moto guys didn't talk about it when asked and Fro was about to go all Fresno Smooth on him. At one point Fro said. "Cause that’s the NFL and this is Supercross; we do it our way"
I'm all for the friction and thought it made the show even more interesting but clearly the boys in the booth weren't getting along too well in Phoenix.
I was hoping one of our ex moto heads would bring up the fact that very often in the NFL once the other team knows you have a weak point they will key on that injury and run right at you.
Or maybe when J Grant rammed Mike Alessi in the knee because he knew Mike had a bad wheel. Can we admit that one now? What’s the statute of limitations on ramming ones bike into an opponent’s weak joint?
Just saying!
Love your show.
Rapid Rod #5
Rod,
James finally came out and said what a lot of us had a suspicion of already… his ACL is torn. Why do riders and teams try to hide injury? I guess I understand trying to hide an injury if it is something that happens away from the races and only your team knows about it. You don’t want to let your competitors know you have a weakness. But in James’ case we all knew he hurt his knee. Why not just issue a statement after you’ve been to your doctor and tell everyone what happened? I don’t get that. Stewart says he was trying to avoid the backlash from people who would say he is just making excuses. I guess I get that. He is judged harshly by those who are not fans of his. I’m glad it’s out there and everyone can stop speculating now.
Honestly, if you know someone has a sore knee you aren’t going to line them up in a certain turn and try to slam into it. Motocross is way different from football in that aspect. In football it would be a defensive lineman’s job to try to aggravate a quarterback’s shoulder injury if they could get to him. In motocross that just doesn’t happen.
I don’t know if there is actual tension in the booth but I have heard from several different people that RC and Fro seems to butt heads. Those guys are friends. I think RC just likes to bust Jeff’s balls.
PING
Dear Ping,
So A1 came around and I found myself sitting next to motocross legend Doug Henry watching the race. It was such an awesome feeling knowing I was sitting next to one of the best in the sport and one of my biggest idols still to this day. I couldn't help but notice the look in his eye as he watched. It was as if he wanted to be out there banging bars with the rest of them. Do you or any of your fellow retired racers find yourself daydreaming about the past and wish you were still out there?
J5
Dear J5,
Well, I can’t speak for anyone but myself but I don’t miss the racing one bit. I have great memories of the good times but I also remember how gnarly it is and how much it hurts when you hit the ground. Professional racing is a young man’s game and I’m absolutely content to watch from a climate controlled suite with catering, bathrooms and live surround-sound feed from the announcer’s booth. Don’t judge me … you’d sit there too if you could.
Doug may feel differently. His racing career was cut a little short with injuries so maybe he feels cheated or maybe he just really misses the competition. Doug was always an animal that way. I do miss the big checks, two-strokes and being able to just hang out on the couch if I wanted to. Of course too many couch days had a negative effect on the rate at which the big checks came in. But that beats small checks and no couch days at all.
PING
Dear Ping,
I believe that I have a caught a very serious disease that I am going to call 'Fantard Addiction'. The symptoms of this life altering disease are that I am unable to stop myself from wasting large parts of my day reading the endless stream of bullsh!t comments and ridiculous threads that are posted on the motocross websites and forums by Fantards. I feel that I may actually be reducing my own intelligence just by reading them and was wondering if you knew of a cure for the disease?
On a side note I do think that the industry may be missing a trick as there are a few very special Fantards out there that are actually capable telling exactly what is wrong with a rider’s bike setup or technique simply from watching the races on TV! Imagine what these people could do if they were actually at the races! Team managers should be reading the forums and rushing to sign them up as Stewart, Villopoto and Dungey etc could all really do with their advice!
Thanks for your time
Don
Dear Don,
Frankly, I’m shocked that you can even piece together a coherent sentence after spending so much time consuming the uninformed propaganda of the Fantard brain trust. Back away from the computer, Don. Cigarettes, crack, Starbucks, reality television … all baby poop compared to the addictive properties of moto chat forums. The only sure way to kick the habit is to go outside -- I know that’s a shocking concept and your brain may have burst out of your skull upon reading that] and actually do something. Start with just getting the mail. Work up to a brisk walk and maybe, just maybe, you can eventually load up your bike and go ride it instead of just talking about it with a bunch of keyboard know-it-alls. I wish you well on your recovery. And I’ll pass along your suggestion to Mitch and Roger about getting some setup tips from the boards. Great idea.
PING
Have a question for Ping? Email him at ping@racerxonline.com.
