Reason For Being

When Dylan Ferrandis emerged victorious (somewhat surprisingly) at the season-opening Dirt Bike Kidz Fox Raceway 1 National at Pala, it ended a very long dry spell in the sport. By winning the opener, Monster Energy/Star Yamaha Racing’s Ferrandis became the first Yamaha rider in nearly 15 years to lead the points in the 450 Class of Lucas Oil Pro Motocross. The last Yamaha rider to do it? NBC Sports color analyst and 2007 AMA 450 MX Champion Grant Langston. Ferrandis’ win meant that his #14 blue Yamaha would carry red plates at the next round, Thunder Valley in Lakewood, Colorado. How and why it took Yamaha so long to get back up front is a long story, but for this column I want to address a simpler question: where did those red plates come from anyway?