Dave,

There have always been riders who didn't like the restrictive feeling of a chest protector. Bradshaw, Bailey, Barnett, and others rarely donned a plastic front/back protector. Like any other trend or fad, whatever seems cool or is made cool by the top riders in the sport is what begins to trend all the way down to grass-roots amateur racing. While guys like Kevin Windham and Trey Canard wear chest protectors regularly, they are definitely the exception and not the rule. Riders just want to feel more mobile on the bike, and they'll tell you they can move better and feel more relaxed without one. I doubt they feel more relaxed, however, when they are sitting in the back of the Asterisk Mobile Medical Center broken into pieces because all they had to buffer the impact between them and the ground was a thin cotton/polyester-blend jersey that was made in China—not that the country of manufacture has anything to do with it; that is just more of a commentary on the dismal state of commerce here in the States. I look at it like this: If you ask a 5-year-old what he wants for breakfast, he probably isn't going to make good decisions. Maybe he picks Cap’n Crunch or a Pop-Tart, or maybe he just really pushes the limits and orders up some chocolate cake. It has eggs and milk in it, right? But you would be a horrible parent if you fed your child chocolate cake for breakfast, and CPS would be beating on your door like a short-changed Chinese food delivery guy. So you feed them eggs and some fruit and maybe an English muffin if you haven't been sucked into the gluten-free phenomenon. Likewise, if team managers tell their riders they can wear whatever protective gear they want (or don't want to), they are likely to make bad decisions. Let's face it; these are very young, minimally educated riders who are jacked up on testosterone and brimming with confidence to the point they feel like they are invincible. A good team manager would be protecting his investment and helping to find protective gear that works for them. There are many more options now then there were a decade or two ago, and some of the stuff is so comfortable that you can barely tell you’re wearing it. My advice to you, Dave, is to wear the protection and live to ride another day.

PING

 

David,

Que Pasa Amigo? - Hope all is well my man - Quick question for you off the MX/SX grid here.....

You were around when SuperMoto had its brief time in the Sun and cats like The Boz Bros, Mickey D, Wardy and many others made a run at it and really seemed to enjoy it - I even remember seeing Stewie suit up and run it. Was it just too much for the big names to dedicate time and energy? Was the exposure too small for Sponsors to see a positive ROI? Not a fit 'tween the tiny off season of MX and SX?

When as a weekend warrior, I traded my knobbies for slicks and hit the kart tracks, I had a friggin BLAST and my MX Background made the transition to SM very easy and when I watch the Euros Run, the crowds there rival Moto GP (at some circuits of course) and WSBK venues. From your perspective, why did us Yanks kill a great thing here in the good old US and A?  

Signed, Old & Broken Down

Edward Shuman

Chicago, IL

Ed,

Supermoto had everything it needed to grow and become a successful discipline in the United States. Red Bull was backing it all the way, elite riders from every type of motorcycle racing were trying their hand and loving it, and promoters were stepping up and taking risks to help the sport grow. Three things killed it in my opinion: First, mismanagement of sponsorship funds. Money that Red Bull was paying in to the event organizers was not being properly distributed. I don't know all the details, but there was shady business going on and it soured Red Bull to the point that they pulled they support. That was bad. Second, riders who specialized in the sport continued to excel, and it chased away the big names. Early on everyone from Jeremy McGrath to Reed, Pastrana, Hayden, Bostrom, Metzger… You name it, they were begging to get into the X Games event. And they were competitive. Once riders like Mark Burkhart, Chris Filmore, Jurgen Kunzel and Cassidy Anderson started focusing on Supermoto, they were too fast for those riders to compete with. Ward and Henry became the only real superstars that motocross fans recognized. The economy tanked, and that put the sport on life support. It was an expensive project to convert a bike to Supermoto form and when the bubble burst that was it. The coup de grace was ESPN pulling Supermoto X from the X Games. That was the sport's Superbowl, and without it the sport slipped into obscurity once again. Hopefully it will return down the road someday. On the right track it was amazing to watch and even more fun to do.

PING

 

Ping,

I am planning a trip down to Southern California and I know that is where many of the pro riders do their training for supercross. My question is, where should I go to have the best chances to see my favorite riders up close?

Mike