Dear Ping!
Do you think it’s cool when pro riders win races and dump their bike on the ground before throwing their arms up in the air like they just caught a t-shirt from the cannon at a Supercross race? Do the mechanics care? They could bust a lever, throttle tube, headpipe, etc. and just cause more work for somebody. I suppose it doesn’t really matter much if it is the last race of the event. Anyways, to me it just kind of looks like a little bit of a lack of respect for the people that bust their ass to get that machine perfect before every race. Or, maybe it is all just part of putting on a show. Just wanted to get your colorful feedback on that one,
thanks
AGB
AGB,
The answer depends entirely on the situation. Josh Grant hadn't won anything in a long time so when he opened the summer with a wire-to-wire victory in the opening moto I didn't see anything wrong with him dropping his bike and going nuts. He earned it and I'm sure his mechanic didn't care at that point. If I had just won that race I would've ghost-ridden my bike into the stands, hopped off the back and shot it with finger guns as it maimed folks in the lower section of bleachers. And that would just be the start of the party. If, on the other hand, Jeffrey Herlings wins a GP this weekend and then dumps his KTM on the ground it starts to look like he's a dick. I mean, come on … you've won, like, a thousand 250 GPs already how about just leaning it up against something?
Look, when genuine emotion drives something like that you have to just sit back and appreciate it. When it's the bad attitude of a rider who needs his front teeth knocked out I don't approve of dropping the machine. It all depends.
PING
Dear Ping,
Is there any doubt that James Stewart has ADHD or some other type of concentration problem?
How many times have we seen him throw it away towards the end of a 20 lap SX main? If anybody needs medication for this, it is him. I would hate to see him hurt himself or another rider because of brain fade. If he has a prescription for it, then all charges should be dropped, even if he did not have a therapeutic usage exemption. The FIM is the one who should be suspended. We don't need a European sanctioning body telling us how to do things here. It is like someone in the USA having power and control over the world cup. Whatever that is.
Sincerely,
Big Al
PS. 2 strokes is all it takes!
Al,
According to James he's been on this medication for a couple years. If you look back beyond that you can see a pattern of James having strange lapses in concentration and crashing. Anyone remember his big one in Daytona? Or what about all the supercross races he was leading on his Yamaha that he would throw away with a silly tip-over or crash? James has always been a bit of a crasher but a medication like Adderall would certainly help increase concentration and help eliminate those mistakes. If he needs it and he has a prescription for it there isn't a problem … except that he didn't tell anyone he was using it, even after multiple opportunities to come clean. Now he'll have to lie in the bed he's made. Don't blame the FIM here, either. Drug testing needs to be implemented. Stewart would be in the news for his riding instead of his medication needs if he had just followed the rules and told WADA and USADA what he was taking. Two-strokes is all it takes? I'm not even sure what that means.
PING
Ping,
It seems like KTM is taking over the sport. Do I keep my Yamaha or would it be safer to just surrender now and find an orange bike that suits me?
Scared in Reno
Reno,
The KTM brass told us at a press function a couple years ago that they were working on building an "orange village" in the professional racing scene in America, similar to what they have on the GP scene. Some balked at the idea but there is no denying they are inserting themselves into American motocross. They are going to have a new 250 team starting in 2015 [press release should be coming soon on that] and their factory effort is second to none. But I wouldn't sell that YZ just yet. Next year Roczen is joining the RCH program and there just won't be as many KTM wins as there are now. Unless you've had your head in the sand you can see that Kenny is poised to be the next champion, indoors and out, so expect to see RC, Cary Hart and Kenny spraying lots of champagne in 2015.
PING
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