September 2019
Racer X Illustrated
September 2019
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Davey Coombs
Reason For Being
By Davey Coombs
Davey Coombs
Reason For Being
By Davey Coombs
W

hen Junior Scarborough’s WW Motocross Ranch on the edge of Jacksonville, Florida, made its Lucas Oil Pro Motocross debut in June, it marked the first time in 22 years that the Sunshine State had been a part of the series. The last outdoor national held in Florida took place at Gatorback Cycle Park, and it marked the opening round of that year’s AMA 125/250 National Motocross Championship. Obviously, a great deal has changed in the nearly two dozen years in between Gatorback ’97 and WW Ranch ’19.

Gatorback Cycle Park '97
This was the first brushstroke on the masterpiece that would be his professional motocross career
Back in March ’97, motocross actually overlapped with the supercross calendar, as the race marked the kickoff of dirt bikes as part of Daytona’s Bike Week. Bill West was the promoter back then, and he was constantly having to make the argument that an outdoor race in Florida could only work at the beginning of March, because it would be too hot to draw a crowd otherwise. Bill would know—he was also the promoter of the old St. Petersburg National, which Gatorback would replace in ’83. St. Pete was a couple hours south of Gatorback and last ran on May 2, 1982. The day was smoking hot and didn’t draw many spectators, though the ones who did go saw a moment of motocross history as Brooksville’s Kenny Keylon, a Honda support rider, became the first Floridian to ever win an outdoor national.
In the early 1960’s Jim O’Neal was a young teenager living in the foothills outside of Los Angeles, California. Jim’s early passion for riding motorcycles quickly became an obsession and in 1961 the 15 year old borrowed a friends ’57 Frances Barnett to race Rough Scrambles in Acton, California. Soon enough, the young man was hooked on racing, taking his bike out across the golden state.

A few years later the Europeans traveled to the US to race against the Top TT American racers at the famed Corriganville Movie Ranch (Hopetown) near Jim’s home. As racing progressed Jim realized the need for better parts, apparel and accessories to withstand the demands of what would become American Motocross. Soon thereafter, an American Company was born.

It’s now 50 years later. The office is just a few miles from the old Hopetown track. Today you can still find the same passion in every single product O’NEAL produces. You can also find Jim racing and riding around Southern California every chance he gets. Jim still races Baja and his drive, grit, and determination has led him to the most class Baja wins in history. Jim’s obsession pioneered a brand that will forever be embedded in the history of American Motocross.

Founder
(Jim O’Neal)
O'Neal 50 Years Faster
O'Neal 50 Years Faster
In the early 1960’s Jim O’Neal was a young teenager living in the foothills outside of Los Angeles, California. Jim’s early passion for riding motorcycles quickly became an obsession and in 1961 the 15 year old borrowed a friends ’57 Frances Barnett to race Rough Scrambles in Acton, California. Soon enough, the young man was hooked on racing, taking his bike out across the golden state.

A few years later the Europeans traveled to the US to race against the Top TT American racers at the famed Corriganville Movie Ranch (Hopetown) near Jim’s home. As racing progressed Jim realized the need for better parts, apparel and accessories to withstand the demands of what would become American Motocross. Soon thereafter, an American Company was born.

It’s now 50 years later. The office is just a few miles from the old Hopetown track. Today you can still find the same passion in every single product O’NEAL produces. You can also find Jim racing and riding around Southern California every chance he gets. Jim still races Baja and his drive, grit, and determination has led him to the most class Baja wins in history. Jim’s obsession pioneered a brand that will forever be embedded in the history of American Motocross.

Founder
(Jim O’Neal)
David Pingree
Electronic Ping
By David Pingree   Racer X Instagram   @DAVIDPINGREE101
David Pingree
Electronic Ping
By David Pingree   Racer X Instagram   @DAVIDPINGREE101
T

he two-stroke resurgence in our sport is noticeable any time you hit a local track or watch a pro national. I’ve been on my soapbox for years screaming to anybody who will listen that we need to reintroduce the 125 if we want to foster future generations of motocross riders. Simply put, that bike is affordable, easy to ride, and easy to work on. There is also a public demand for the 250 two-stroke, but it’s more from the off-road crowd. Weekend warriors don’t want a heavy four-stroke when they’re navigating local trees and trails.

David Pingree riding a BMX bike
The gates may be small at first, but once people realize there is a fun, affordable class they can race on a local level, you’ll see more of these bikes showing up.
So, what’s the best way to get these bikes back on the radar of the manufacturers and available at dealers? Honestly, I don’t know if it will happen either way. Suzuki seems to be asleep at the wheel over in Japan, Honda has said they’ll never return to two-cycle engines, and Kawasaki hasn’t said a word. While it would be great to have more options, there are still great bikes to be had from Yamaha, KTM, Husqvarna, and others.
Jason Weigandt
Voice Box

By JASON WEIGANDT   Racer X Twitter  @JASONWEIGANDT

Jason Weigandt
Voice Box

By JASON WEIGANDT   Racer X Twitter  @JASONWEIGANDT

E

arvin “Magic” Johnson once tried coaching in the NBA, and it went terribly. His stint with the Lakers in 1994 ended with a 5-11 record and Magic quitting early while muttering about young kids who didn’t have respect for the veterans of the game.

In 1997, Magic’s old rival Larry Bird was named coach of the Indiana Pacers, so the league braced for similar problems. How would Larry deal with these young, cocky, disrespectful players? Bird provided one of my favorite explanations in the history of sports, saying, essentially, that he wanted his young players to be disrespectful to the vets. The goal isn’t to respect other players, it’s to beat them.

Byrne Anaheim 2006
You don’t expect to hear this stuff from Byrne, never known as a mercenary on the track. But old pros know where the line is drawn, and if someone crosses it, you have to pay them back.
“I remember when I first played [veteran] George McGinnis. I wanted to beat his ass,” Bird said to Sports Illustrated. “I killed him, too.”

On Friday night before the Florida National, my NBCSN broadcast partner Grant Langston and I attended a dinner party with members of the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC-KTM-WPS team. Team manager Michael Byrne started telling some stories, then Langston joined in. That’s when the good stuff started to come out—the hidden battles you’d never hear about in the press or on the podium. In NBA circles, it’s well-known that Larry Bird seemed like a nice guy off the court but was a trash-talking assassin on it. You only get the good stuff from athletes who have been between the lines.

Racing in the 250 Class has been rock-solid good. Behind the scenes, there’s even more moving and shaking
WORDS: JASON WEIGANDT
PHOTOS: JEFF KARDAS & RICH SHEPHERD
FOLLOWING HIS FIRST CAREER podium finish as a professional, at the double-stacked-with-talent Dave Coombs Sr. East-West Showdown in Las Vegas, Cameron McAdoo finally got a job. As a bus driver. For Christian Craig. McAdoo was out of work as a racer, his GEICO Honda deal expiring after supercross. The team let McAdoo keep a bike so he could continue riding during the week and do training motos with Craig. They were essentially helping him prepare to race against them, because surely McAdoo would get a replacement call from someone else. The beleaguered Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull KTM team made that call, put him on a bike for High Point, and he delivered seventh overall.

The next week, the heat got the best of McAdoo in Florida, Craig was embroiled in anti-doping test drama, TLD moved an amateur up to the pros early while watching its top riders gaze longingly at other teams, and one of the few riders with a multi-year deal was racing through the Epstein-Barr virus to keep his job secure.

Welcome to the 250s.

Racing in the 250 Class has been rock-solid good. Behind the scenes, there’s even more moving and shaking
WORDS: JASON WEIGANDT
PHOTOS: JEFF KARDAS & RICH SHEPHERD
FOLLOWING HIS FIRST CAREER podium finish as a professional, at the double-stacked-with-talent Dave Coombs Sr. East-West Showdown in Las Vegas, Cameron McAdoo finally got a job. As a bus driver. For Christian Craig. McAdoo was out of work as a racer, his GEICO Honda deal expiring after supercross. The team let McAdoo keep a bike so he could continue riding during the week and do training motos with Craig. They were essentially helping him prepare to race against them, because surely McAdoo would get a replacement call from someone else. The beleaguered Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull KTM team made that call, put him on a bike for High Point, and he delivered seventh overall.

The next week, the heat got the best of McAdoo in Florida, Craig was embroiled in anti-doping test drama, TLD moved an amateur up to the pros early while watching its top riders gaze longingly at other teams, and one of the few riders with a multi-year deal was racing through the Epstein-Barr virus to keep his job secure.

Welcome to the 250s.

Celebrating 50 years of world-class motocross at Unadilla
The International Years
WORDS: DAVEY COOMBS
FOR 50 YEARS NOW, UNADILLA HAS been synonymous with motocross in America. Set in upstate New York in the lush farmland of the Shenango River Valley, the Robinson family’s racetrack has been hosting international and national motocross events since 1969. As a result, every top rider from Roger De Coster to Rick Johnson, Bob Hannah, and Ricky Carmichael has raced upon this iconic course. As one of America’s oldest motocross tracks celebrates its golden anniversary, we wanted to look back at the origins of one of the most celebrated motocross tracks the sport has ever known.
Celebrating 50 years of world-class motocross at Unadilla
The International Years
WORDS: DAVEY COOMBS
FOR 50 YEARS NOW, UNADILLA HAS been synonymous with motocross in America. Set in upstate New York in the lush farmland of the Shenango River Valley, the Robinson family’s racetrack has been hosting international and national motocross events since 1969. As a result, every top rider from Roger De Coster to Rick Johnson, Bob Hannah, and Ricky Carmichael has raced upon this iconic course. As one of America’s oldest motocross tracks celebrates its golden anniversary, we wanted to look back at the origins of one of the most celebrated motocross tracks the sport has ever known.
Let the
songbirds
sing
For the collective cult following of two-stroke die-hards, the premix-burning 125cc platform is often referenced as the most beautiful two-wheeled songbird, and also the most missed class in professional competition. Fans of our sport can only bench race and reminisce about the years past where racers like Ricky Carmichael, James Stewart, or any other countless up-and-coming phenom would show their speed in a more separating fashion as they entered the pro ranks aboard the lightweight and (by today’s standards) underpowered machines.
WORDS: MIKE EMERY
PHOTOS: JEFF KARDAS, RICH SHEPHERD, & ANDREW FREDRICKSON
Let the songbirds sing
For the collective cult following of two-stroke die-hards, the premix-burning 125cc platform is often referenced as the most beautiful two-wheeled songbird, and also the most missed class in professional competition. Fans of our sport can only bench race and reminisce about the years past where racers like Ricky Carmichael, James Stewart, or any other countless up-and-coming phenom would show their speed in a more separating fashion as they entered the pro ranks aboard the lightweight and (by today’s standards) underpowered machines.
WORDS: MIKE EMERY
PHOTOS: JEFF KARDAS, RICH SHEPHERD, & ANDREW FREDRICKSON

Our art director takes his first voyage into the world of off-road riding

WORDS: DAVID LANGRAN
PHOTOS: CASEY CONTE

“YOU’RE JUST GOING to have to go for it, man,” Casey shouted through his helmet.

Sage words from our trail guide for the day, Casey Conte, about how to tackle the huge, almost vertical boulder about 10 feet ahead of me on the trail. My bike was already pointed up at what seemed like a 40-degree angle as I glanced over at Casey’s brother, Jesse, who was off to the side of the trail looking for another way around said boulder. He gave me a slow shake of the head. I knew the longer I hesitated, the worse it would be, so I eased out the clutch on my borrowed bike, put my trust in the bib tubes, and gassed it up the face of the big rock.

Our art director takes his first voyage into the world of off-road riding

WORDS: DAVID LANGRAN
PHOTOS: CASEY CONTE

“YOU’RE JUST GOING to have to go for it, man,” Casey shouted through his helmet.

Sage words from our trail guide for the day, Casey Conte, about how to tackle the huge, almost vertical boulder about 10 feet ahead of me on the trail. My bike was already pointed up at what seemed like a 40-degree angle as I glanced over at Casey’s brother, Jesse, who was off to the side of the trail looking for another way around said boulder. He gave me a slow shake of the head. I knew the longer I hesitated, the worse it would be, so I eased out the clutch on my borrowed bike, put my trust in the bib tubes, and gassed it up the face of the big rock.

TEN MINUTES WITH
BY AARON HANSEL
TEN MINUTES WITH
BY AARON HANSEL
NICK
WEY
In case you haven’t noticed, Adam Cianciarulo has been tearing it up this summer. The reasons are many, but one of the biggest is Nick Wey, who’s been helping Cianciarulo a great deal. We caught up with Wey to learn more about their relationship and how he balances his very busy family and moto life.
Nick Wey
Racer X Illustrated
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