Erik,

Thanks for sending this over. These are the days when Unadilla was epic. Back in the early 1980s, they used to leave the track after the race and let the grass grow. As you can see in this photo, they didn't even mow it! All that grass acted as mulch and kept the racing surface wet longer, producing the bumps, berms, and ruts that looked so amazing back then. As the years went on they began holding more races throughout the year and holding amateur races on the pro track the day before and then ripping the track before the pro races. That paved the way for adding supercross-style sections and really changing the feel of the venue. I'm not saying it isn't a good track, because it is. It just isn't the same as it was. I raced there for the first time in 1994, so I got to race it when it was still grass, but it was mowed down. Back then they still had the Corkscrew and the fast, right-hand, uphill sweeper that separated the men from the boys. Screw U and Gravity Cavity are still there, thankfully. One year—I think it was 1995—I went to the line an hour early for Friday practice to make sure I was the first guy on the track. Pinning it around those grassy hills on my Pro Circuit 125 is something I'll never forget. For me, this photo represents the heyday for Unadilla motocross. I don't think they'll ever bring back the deep grass, but it would be amazing. Can you imagine pulling in there next year and seeing nothing but two feet of grass and some corner markers? What do you guys think is better: then or now?

PING

Hey ping,

I was curious how come aging pros never do motocross-only contracts instead of supercross only? Do they make more money in SX than MX? In my limited (okay, local fairground AX/SX) experience it seemed like the ambulance was used a lot more than when it was at the local mx races.... Granted, when the rubber band start would get caught from some jackass trying to jump the gate or forgetting how to run a clutch, mass chaos would ensue, but overall it seemed as if less guys got hurt racing mx. I can't help but think that LaRocco or Windham, for example, would've been competitive longer if they would've sat out SX and rocked it during the summer. Thoughts?

Old guy from Nebraska

Old guy,

That makes a lot of sense from the outside looking in. However, there are a few major reasons that doesn't happen. First of all, supercross is where the money is. Teams and manufacturers want to get results in supercross above all else, and the payout for stadium racing is larger than the outdoor series. The workload is also significantly less in supercross. That doesn't mean it's easy; the amount of prep is the same and the risks are even greater than in motocross. But you only ride a short heat race and one main event every weekend that lasts less than twenty minutes. On top of that, the travel schedule is much easier. When riders can fly directly into the cities they are racing in and stay in a nice hotel in a metropolitan area it makes the travel less of a grind. Unadilla, for example, includes a four-hour flight from SoCal to Chicago, an hour layover, an hour flight to Syracuse and then an hour-and-a-half drive in a smelly, miled-out rental car to Binghamton or Utica. In case you were wondering, there are no five-star hotels in Utica. In fact, I don't think any establishment there is even on the star rating system. And there is still an hour drive to the track in the morning! It makes for a much longer weekend and a draining travel process. Guys who excel in outdoor motocross (Ben Townley comes to mind) could probably make a living on a motocross-only contract because he could jump in and be competitive. That option is very rare though.

PING 

Ping,

Studying NCLEX for my BSN-RN. Why they gotta stereotype the MXers? And yeah, good luck getting them to open up with the feelings. LOL. 

Doug