House Town: Houston Supercross

You wanna know what's going down in House Town?  GuyB has the pre-race pics up at VitalMX.

At 71,000 seats, Houston's Reliant is the biggest stadium the MESS has visited so far this year.  There are definitely enough motocross fans in the area to fill the house; hope they turn out because it's looking to be one hot show!

Chad Reed qualified in 9th, turning a 49.831. 

James Stewart "won" qualifying again, after laying down a 48.568 in second practice.  Look at all those empty seats.  Where is everybody?  Partying in the pits?

This 6th round of the series marks the beginning of the East region championship for 250cc motorcycles, featuring a new cast of characters, er, racers contesting the title.

Monster Pro Circuit's Dean Wilson sits in 3rd place in the 250 class, with a lap of 49.996.

Ryan Sipes put his DNA Shred Stix Yamaha on top of the little bike leaderboard by setting a fast lap of 49.583.

Another one who wants to win: Anaheim 2 Supercross

Stewart made it two in a row.  Can the competition counter next weekend in Houston?

James Stewart stormed to his 40th career supercross win and his 8th win at Anaheim stadium.  Was there more to the story?  Not really. 

Photo by GuyB.

Hansen has Heart: Anaheim 2 Supercross

Hot 100 grabbed the holeshot and held off challenges from Ken Roczen (194) and Eli Tomac (19), who would both end up on the podium with him.  Hansen swept Anaheim in 2011, winning both A1 and A2.

It was Josh Hansen's turn to have a tough night of racing.  After he set fastest lap in 250 practice, he crashed hard in the whoops, breaking bones and fingers in his left hand.  Lesser men would have called it a night (and maybe a championship), but Hansen gutted it out and pushed his bike to the starting line for his heat (which he won) and the 250 main (which he also won, after dispatching a challenge from Eli Tomac).  Hansen WANTS IT.

Great photos from A2 by GuyB.

Pink in the Pits: Anaheim 2 Supercross

The fifth round of the Monster Energy Supercross Series is dedicated to breast cancer awareness, so the bikes and the pits are decked out with all manner of pink.  We like pink.

So THAT'S where she stashes her iPhone... and her, uh, bullets.

Blame GuyB for these pics.

Second Fastest in Practice: Anaheim 2 Supercross

After setting fastest lap in the first 450 practice, James Stewart sat out P2, where his time was beaten by Ryan Dungey.

Eli Tomac clocked the second fastest time in the 250 class, behind Josh Hansen.  Then Hansen reportedly broke a finger in the second practice... will this be Tomac's night to win?

It's showtime in Anaheim!  These two were second fastest in their respective classes, but they both have extremely good chances at getting the win tonight.

Photos by GuyB at Vital MX.

7 has 7, wants 8: Anaheim 2 Supercross

Stewart finished third at the season-opening Anaheim 1 event.

James celebrated a milestone win last week in Oakland; can he make it two in a row at Anaheim 2?

Over the course of his career, James Stewart has won 7 main events in Anaheim Stadium, according to the Monster Energy Supercross Notes package over at Supercrossonline.com, While that stat is incredible, the fact that Chad Reed has 6 Anaheim wins makes this weekend's race even more interesting.  Speedy Reedy's last lap pass for second at Oakland was a reminder to everyone that the two-time champion and owner/operator of Two Two Motorsports is still one of the fastest supercross racers in history.

Photos from JS7.com.

Third of All Time: Oakland Supercross

Stewart captured a key victory under difficult conditions, and took over the points lead as a result.

James Stewart's win at the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum was his 39th career supercross victory, placing him in third on the all-time win list, behind (The King) Jeremy McGrath and ... guess who?

While yer chewing on that, here's another trivia question:  how many gallons of flame thrower juice does the Monster Energy Supercross Series burn up over the course of a year?   Still, another cool pic by GuyB.

J-style: Oakland Supercross

Josh Hansen is on it this season.  He can handle the young'uns; the question is, can he handle his team mate Tickle, Broc?

Photo from GuyB's great coverage of the Oakland Supercross last Saturday.

Who's Reporting Things: Oakland Supercross

Transworld Motocross gets the best post-race interviews with their "How Was Your Weekend?" series.  Here's the lastest from Oakland, straight from the riders' mouths.

I prefer these interviews to the ones that Feld Motorsports does with their Supercross Live team, mainly because they give the riders time to finish their racing day before putting them in front of a camera.  Swapmoto at TWMX lets the riders be who they are, so they're much more relaxed and candid during the interviews.  Supercross Live gets them just minutes after the checkered flag, which is okay for the most part, but sometimes these young men could use more time to gather their thoughts (and speak with their teams).  But what I find particularly annoying is the way the Supercross Live reporters still use an old TV style of "wrapping up" or summarizing what the rider just said, as if the audience needs help understanding what they just heard.  

Who's Running Things: Oakland Supercross

Kyle Cunningham flying in practice.  Photo by GuyB/Vital MX.

As title sponsor of our national indoor motocross championship series, Monster Energy is large and in charge of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross an FIM World Championship series.  Tonight's round in Oakland, California is just getting started, and the only media available in real time are a bajillion texts and tweets, all focused on deciphering a sporadic timing feed from the AMA. 

Tomorrow will be a different story, media-wise, as the 450 half of the show will first air on the CBS network, and Supercross will get it's time in front of a national broadcast audience.  CBS Sports is using the excitement of stadium motocross (combined no doubt with the sexy Monster and Rockstar girls) to build a strong lead-in audience for the Duke vs. St. John's basketball game that will immediately follow the broadcast. 

The 250 class portion of tonight's race will be shown out-of-sequence to a pay cable limited audience. presumably because it is only a regional championship.  Sure you're right.

A slightly different angle on the Los Angeles Supercross

From this viewpoint from the cheap(er) seats, it looks as if Brett Metcalfe (24), Austin Stroupe (74), Kevin Windham (14) and Ryan Dungey (1) all have a shot at crossing the holeshot line first.  But it was Metty's outside momentum that took him over the line first.   

Here's the lead pack jamming into turn two.  This is racing!

Motorcycles naturally attracts photographers, racing motorcycles even more so.   These are the first in a series of cool photos taken by Rodd Lindstrom at the Los Angeles Supercross.  Rodd's a long-time motorcyclist, an accomplished skateboarder and a very talented commercial photographer, as well as a big-time supercross fan.  Thanks for the pics, Rodd!

The good, the bad and the ugly: 2011 Los Angeles Supercross

Trey Canard (41) chasing Austin Stroupe (74) and Chad Reed (22) during their 450 heat race.  I'll let you decide who's good and who's bad, but Trey definitely gets the ugly for the horrendous get-off he suffered.  Fortunately, Canard wasn't seriously injured and went on to win the LCQ and finish a strong 4th in the main.  Photo by GuyB.

One word that decribes last night's Monster Energy Supercross Series (MESS) at Dodger stadium in Los Angeles?  Exciting!  Of course, there was much more to it than that, so more words are needed.

What was good about the Dodger stadium supercross? 

• THE RACING.  It was off the chain in both classes.  These riders are all on it.  They are putting on a heckuva show, giving it their all, blood sweat and tears, the whole nine.  GuyB has the story at Vital MX.
• THE PEOPLE.  The stadium staff were all pretty cool, despite the fact that they were actually in a bit over their heads (see "the bad"); the fans were cool if a little irreverent; the place was packed major and minor moto-celebrities, and even more hot chicks than A1.  Nice vibe, considering...
• THE VENUE.  Maybe it's not as nice as some of the newer ballparks, but Dodger stadium has enough charm of its own, if you take the time to look around.  The view of L.A. from the parking lot is downright amazing.

The bad?  Oh man...

• THE PARKING.  Yes, it's a funky parking lot, but it doesn't have to be as bad as it was on Saturday night.  It took 15 minutes just to get in the lot, and we arrived fairly early between 3:30-4pm.  The parking gate personnel were pleasant enough, but they only took cash (what year is this again?), and were just slow dealing with the traffic.  Getting out was complete bedlam, and I didn't see a single police officer directing traffic.  At Anaheim, the police actively direct departing traffic (and it's still crazy, I must admit).
• THE PUNKS.  No, not the MX hooligans; at least they showed up.  But the SoCal motocross fans that chose not to go the the L.A. supercross for whatever reason they dreamed up.  Sure, SX is expensive and stadium races are usually a pain in the ass to attend, but c'mon now... THIS season you do NOT want to miss.    Donn Maeda at Transworld Motocross reports that 41,107 people attended the race; with a capacity of 56,000 that means 14,893 supposed California motocross fans punked out and missed an awesome race.
• THE PRESS.  Because the television coverage was delayed until Sunday morning, the motocross press seemed to follow the lead of the traditional press and "hold" race reports until the race was broadcast on CBS.  The only real-time stream of information permitted to leave Dodger stadium during the race was the AMA lap timer.  The promoters completely shut down the news.  A travesty.

And the ugly...

• THE MASSIVE LINES.   For EVERYTHING.  To get in, to buy food, to get out, to get back in, to even get in the rest rooms.  Everything had a long line  For such a big stadium, it has a really congested flow, made even worse by closing off sections, locking doors that have signs that say "door must be unlocked", not opening all available snack bars and more.  I give credit to the stadium management conducting what seemed to be an incident-free event, but they really failed on the traffic management aspect.   Some of their decisions on routing fans from the stadium to the "pit party" resulted in a massive jam of people squeezing into a narrow row of escalators.  It was fortunate no one was hurt in the crush.  Some people gave up and never made it to the pits, which is a shame because there is so much to see and do there. 
• (The way some fans treated) THE POLICE.  Unfortunately, there was some booing when the LAPD motorcyclists made there way onto the stadium floor early in the opening ceremonies, and it's unusual because the Air Force and the LA Sheriffs department both had displays and personnel in the pits and were as well received as they are at other stadiums.  I'm not saying the LAPD is perfect, but doing that to those motorcycle officers was definitely uncalled for.   Of course, it didn't help when a couple of the officers got stuck in the deep dirt on the start straight and struggled to get their motorcycles off the track.

All of that to say... overall, it was AWESOME because the racing was so great.   All of the good far outweighed the bad and the ugly, no question about it.  The MESS went to Dodger stadium and motocross fans all over southern California came out the winner.

Two gets Second, Seven gets second

Ryan Villopoto took his second win of the season at the Los Angeles supercross.  What a race! More to come after "the embargo"...

Two and Two-Time

Two races in, too early to tell.  National number 2 versus two-time Supercross Champ.  GuyB has the Big Picture from Phoenix.

Down in the Dirt: Phoenix 2011

I am so glad this crash wasn't worse.  James Stewart lost his front end while leading his heat race at the Phoenix round of the MESS, and GuyB was on hand to catch the shot (and more).  If you look close, it seems like James is doing his best to protect his right arm from damage.   And check out the reaction on some of those faces in the crowd!

Fortunately, it was his only miscue on the entire evening.  Stewart recovered to finish second in the heat, and then went on to a strong performance in the main event, grabbing the holeshot and leading all 20 laps.

Made up for lost/last time:  last year in Phoenix, Stewart effectively crashed out of the series.  Winning this year has gotta feel good.

Two Fifty Deuce: Phoenix 2011

Josh "Top Step" Hansen smiles for GuyB's camera after winning the 250cc race in Phoenix.   Hansen got handed a bit of luck when his Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki team mate Broc Tickle bobbled away the lead, but make no mistake about it, Josh put himself in place to win his second in a row.  That's a big deal, dude.

Speaking of dudes, who's the one in non-green?  It's Ryan Morais, after riding his Rockstar Suzuki to third place.

What happened at Phoenix 2011? Transworld Motocross has the answer

Check out "How was your weekend?" by Brendan Lutes, who interviewed Stewart, Hansen, Villopoto, Tickle, Canard, Reed and many more.   It's the story of Phoenix straight from the racers, no fluff, no filler.

Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing, baby: Anaheim 2011

When I rolled into the Anaheim parking lot for the first race of the Monster Energy Supercross Series (MESS), pumping old Led Zeppelin tunes in my old Mustang, I only had two objectives in mind. First, I wanted to meet Geico Honda's supercross rookie Eli Tomac and ask him to sign a jersey acquired at a benefit auction for Ross Maeda. I'm still stoked about Tomac winning his very first pro race at the season motocross opener at Hangtown last year!

Second, I just wanted to have a good time. And it's really hard not to have a good time at any sort of motocross race. In fact, I think you have to sort of work at it - at not having a good time, that is - because the sport is naturally enjoyable. Supercross® has certainly had it's ups and downs over the past 35 years, but the people managing the product have managed to make their brand of indoor motocross consistently entertaining, even in the cases when the actual racing fails to bring the necessary drama. Racing motorcycles on dirt... what's not to like?

So I had two goals, and I knew from years of attending these races that proper preparation would be necessary for success. So my plan was to arrive as early as possible, have a pocket full of disposable entertainment dollars and be willing to stand in as many lines as it was going to take to achieve my aims.

Of course, with Anaheim, the biggest lines are to simply leave and re-enter the stadium, which is required to go the the “party in the pits.” There must be a method to their madness, because it has never changed. At least the autograph line for the Geico team moved well, and Kevin Windham and Eli Tomac were friendly and I accomplished the first goal.

And by that point, I was already having a good time, so it was all looking pretty good. Sure, it was kind of expensive: $20 bucks to park. $50 ticket plus $9.15 for “Trans Conv. Chrg.” and $5 for order processing. $10 for the program and another $10 because I was too stupid to drink Monster and redeem the can for a free pit pass (and stand in that long line). All told, $100 and change to park my butt in a plastic bleacher one aisle away from the industry seating section and in the very last row, mere steps from a beer station and the men's room. Pretty decent seat, actually. I just wanted to sit on the end of a row, and it worked out pretty good.

As you probably know by now, the on-track action didn't disappoint. Kawasaki made it a Monster night, winning both classes while sweeping the 250cc podium. I'm not going to deliver a full-on race report; you can get the professional grade stuff from Transworld MX, Vital MX and of course Racer X Online. But I will tell you what I saw.

In the 250cc class, I saw Josh Hansen has decided to win a championship this year. He ain't playing around; he just might sweep the series. He's going to face some stiff competition from his own team mates, and I fully expect the “youth brigade” (Tomac and German sensation Ken Roczen of the Red Bull KTM team) to give him fits once they find a level of comfort in their rookie seasons, but Hansen is clearly on a mission, and his Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki is more than up to the task of taking him to the title.

In the 450cc class, I saw the return of supercross superiority during the very first qualifying session, when before anyone else was able to break the 1 minute mark, James Stewart clicked off a 58 second lap. The best of the rest would get closer, but no one else got into the 58s, not even in the second session. So when the 450 main finally got underway, and it was apparent that Stewart would have to spend his evening battling through traffic, I felt my face break out into a big smile. I was really enjoying myself, watching these guys ride!

Mission accomplished.

A podium full of champions.  From left to right:  The 2009 Supercross Champion, San Manuel/Red Bull/Yamaha's James Stewart (3rd), 2007 West Region Supercross Champion, Monster Energy Kawasaki's Ryan Villopoto (1st) and 2010 Supercross Champion, Rockstar/Makita/Suzuik's Ryan Dungey (2nd).   Photo by GuyB/Vital MX

On Sunday I was able to catch some of the TV coverage of the race, and I have to say I felt kind of sad for those motocross fans who were not able to see this race in person. This sport has become far too complex for our standard broadcast practices to accurately capture; there's just too much going on at one time. Fans in the stadium have the luxury of being able to switch their attention to what interests them most at the moment; maybe it's the guy running off with the lead, maybe it's the guy fighting his way back from a bad start, maybe it's the gorgeous girl that keeps looking over her shoulder... all of that is missed by TV. The internet was supposed to fulfill a promise of multiple streams of sports information, multiple camera angles, diverse coverage, but the Supercross powers-that-be haven't figured that out yet. Trust me when I say this: the ONLY way to truly enjoy a supercross is by actually attending an event. Luckily, there are 16 more to go.

Don't sleep on this supercross season. Even if you have to drive for hours to get to the nearest race, go see at least one... it will be well worth your time!

Anaheim Rockstars

They say the camera puts on 5 pounds.  Where?

GuyB back at work.

Anaheim Royalty

Now this won't happen at most supercrosses, and it's one of the reasons why the Anaheim rounds are so special:  I ran into 4-time and current World Motocross Champion Antonio Cairoli just cruising around hooded up in the Anaheim pits.   He doesn't know me from Adam and he was just walking around alone, so I called out "Tony!" and he stopped long enough for this shot.  Cool guy and one fassssst mofo on a bike.

Photo by Paul Willis

Anaheim from behind

Looking back on a good day at the A.  It may not be Formula 1, but it sure is fun!

Former supercross champion Chad Reed sported the funniest "butt patch" in practice, seen above.  Not sure what it means, but it may have something to do with his new status as fastest privateer in the series.

Photos by Paul Willis

Anaheim Won: Heaven '11

Getting to the races early enough to catch practice is a MUST.   At Anaheim, the lower level seating is open during qualifying, so there are some great opportunities for fans to get close enough to get some decent photos of their favorites.   I was lucky enough to catch Josh Hansen here, getting his game face on before his first session.  That's his father, former Supercross champion Donnie, standing on the other side of Casey Hinson.

Hansen, who won the Australian Super X championship late last year, was fast all evening and went on to score an extremely popular win.

Photo by Paul Willis

Anaheim Visionaries

This is one of those totally lucky shots.  I was trying capture a shot of Ken Roczen's factory KTM as the mechanics were pushing the bikes out for the first timed qualifying sessions, and I saw orange, aimed, fired and got this:  Red Bull KTM manager (and living motocross legend) Roger DeCoster walking past Vital MX's head honcho Steve "GuyB" Giberson (appropriately immersed in his iPhone).

Visionaries?  Sure.  No one can argue the significant impact Roger DeCoster has had on modern motocross racing design and development, and GuyB's commitment to digital online technology has led Vital MX to be the most popular online forum in the business.

Photo by Paul Willis

Anaheim Foxes

The first supercross of the season brings 'em out by the thousands.

Both of these cuties are running Fox Racing gear, and if the one on the bottom isn't sponsored by Fox, she should be!

Photos by Paul Willis

Don't Believe the Hype

Showtime is less than 24 hours away, and there is a lot of excitement about the sheer entertainment potential of the 2011 Supercross series because EVERYONE IS HEALTHY so by all rights we should see AT LEAST SIX men race for the win EVERY NIGHT of this tour.  Dungey, Stewart, Villopoto, Reed, Canard, Grant, Short, Tedesco, Windham, Millsaps, Hill and even the guy that took the phrase from Public Enemy (and made a mockery of it) Mike Alessi (healthy and backed by the powerhouse Red Bull KTM squad) are all capable of winning mains this year.  Wouldn't it be just magical to have 17 different winners by season's end?

C'mon now.

I'm really looking forward to seeing these guys race tomorrow night in Anaheim!

Simon Cudby rocks so hard: Dodge Motorsports Hart & Huntington

Hart & Huntington step up the look. Blose, Hill and Tedesco don game face. And moviemaster Cudby drops an another masterpiece of motocinema.

Enjoy: Racer X Films: Hart & Huntington Photo Shoot

"(T)he most complete broadcast schedule in the history of the sport"

Hyperbole?  Maybe that would sound better announced by the "voice of god" dude, rather than read as the latest press release from Feld Motorsports, Inc.   Either way, I still wonder if  by "most complete"  they actually mean "incomplete."   Because clearly they are NOT complete on the issue of airing race broadcasts as they happen in real-time (or "Live" as the TV folk like to call it), as only 7 of 16 Feld races will be broadcast in this manner. 

And they certainly could not be claiming the schedule is complete in terms of showing all of the races in the series, live or not, because Daytona is not on this schedule because Feld doesn't promote that race.  So what are they talking about?   From the Supercross Online press release:

"This is a huge step in the growth of Monster Energy Supercross," said Todd Jendro, senior director of operations, Feld Motor Sports.

Okay then.  Let's see some Supercross and see how they do.  It all starts the day after Christmas, December 26, 5pm Eastern on CBS, with a very special preview show featuring former Supercross Champions Ricky Carmichael, Jeremy McGrath, Jeff Stanton and Jeff Emig!

Dodge signs Carey Hart to a 3-year Supercross deal

In a positive but strange development, American car manufacturer Dodge has finally decided to get into supercross racing... and they turned to Carey Hart, the former racer and freestyler most well-known for being the first to huck and (sorta) land a backflip in televised competition, to bring them to the big dance.   According to this weirdly-worded PR blurb (thanks Racer X!), Dodge is committing to support the Hart and Huntington team for the next three years, leaning on Hart to bring "...his vast riding skills and marketing prowess to Chrysler Group’s performance vehicle brand."   


Oh really?  So where's the beef?  For 2011, Hart and Huntington have hired national number 9 and two-time regional supercross champion Ivan Tedesco, as well as one guy who was briefly tied for the lead in the 2010 Supercross series, Josh Hill.  They also have Chris Blose, who has shown some promise on the 250cc machines but has yet to make any noise on the 450cc bikes that H&H will campaign next year.   The team will compete on Kawasaki motorcycles. [Correction:  Blose finished 13th overall in 450cc Supercross in 2010, finishing as high as 6th place (Indy).  My bad, Chris!]


So let's see... in the past, MX and SX have seen Toyota, Mazda and Chevy Trucks pump in big sponsorship dollars in order to parade their wares in front of the race-going and -watching public, usually jumping in the deep end by either sponsoring the whole series (Toyota), or the series champion (Chevy, Mazda).  I'm glad that Chrysler Group has decided to pay our sport a little homage with a little fromage (excusez-moi), but I am curious why they decided to go with H&H instead of bigger names with better podium potential.  In truth, the way the press release reads, it seems Dodge is not particularly interested in winning, but simply seeking "...a significant at-track presence at major Supercross events throughout 2011. Dodge logos will appear on all team assets including haulers, motorcycles, tents, team personnel uniforms, athlete’s equipment and riding apparel, and all Hart and Huntington custom branded team vehicles, including the all-new 2011 Dodge Durango, all-new Dodge Charger and the new Dodge Challenger."

In any case, considering the competition this lineup will face, I do not expect them to be a factor in the title race, but I will be disappointed if they don't use the H&H logo with the word "Hemi" somehow.

From Subaru to Toyota: Travis Pastrana is going NASCAR racing in 2011

Only Travis could pull this off. (h/t to bturman at Vital MX)

The latter part of 2010 has been full of big announcements, and this one is the biggest yet: Travis Pastrana announced today that he is joining forces with Michael Waltrip Racing to campaign a Toyota stock car in selected Nationwide Series races next year.  From the press release on the new Pastrana Waltrip Racing website,

"Travis has built an enormous and unique following all over the world," said Waltrip, a two-time Daytona 500 champion. "As a race team owner, we are always looking for ways to deliver to our partners and engage our fans better. This is an opportunity to showcase our company and our sport to a new generation of young fans. We're also looking for that next big star. Travis already is one and action sports is full of talented athletes. Having Travis as a part of our program adds another great dimension to our team and NASCAR."

How big is the upside for Travis?  From the wiki on NASCAR's current TV deal:

On December 7, 2005, NASCAR signed a new eight-year, $4.48 billion deal^[3] with the Fox Broadcasting Company and Speed Channel. Also included in the new contract are Disney-owned ABC, ESPN and ESPN2, along with TNT. The contract came into effect in 2007. The rights were split up as such:

• Fox would become the exclusive home to the Daytona 500 and own the rights to the twelve points races after that. In addition, they will carry the Budweiser Shootout and two Craftsman Truck Series races. (In 2007, they were the Martinsville spring race, and the race in Mansfield, Ohio the Saturday before Memorial Day. In 2008 and '09, Fox aired the Kroger 250 from Martinsville, as well as the San Bernardino County 200 at California Speedway, instead of Mansfield. In 2010, Fox will not air any races in what is now the Camping World Truck Series; all 25 races will be shown on Speed^[4].
• TNT will carry the next six Sprint Cup races including the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway.
• ESPN and ABC (through the ESPN on ABC arrangement) carried the final seventeen Sprint Cup races, with the ten races comprising the Chase for the Sprint Cup airing on ABC (Beginning in 2010, ESPN will take over most of the coverage, leaving ABC with three Saturday night races in August and October). ESPN will begin the coverage with the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. The entire Nationwide Series season will be aired primarily on ESPN2 and ESPN, with selected races on ABC.
• Speed will carry the Gatorade Duel races and the Sprint All-Star Challenge, as well as the entire Craftsman Truck Series season, except for the two races each year carried by Fox from 2007–09.

That's serious exposure for Pastrana, already one of the most recognizable motor sport champion on this planet.  Now he's about to step onto his biggest stage ever, taking sponsors Red Bull and DC Shoes with him.  NASCAR will never be the same!

Ryan Dungey, the super Rockstar at Austin Livestrong Challenge

What did you do last weekend?  Ryan Dungey took in a training ride with Lance Armstrong and 3,000 fellow cyclists at the Austin Livestrong Challenge.  By the way, this film was produced by Dungey's own production company, RD Films.  Good stuff, Ryan!

Video courtesy OCScottie at Vital MX.

Supercross 2011 is going to L.A.'s Dodger Stadium!

Now, as a resident of Southern California, I am really looking forward to this event.  The 2011 MESS (Monster Energy Supercross Series) will visit Dodger Stadium in downtown Los Angeles for the first time ever!   And to demonstrate how cool this actually, Feld Motorsports took the media on a special tour of the Big Blue House.  Check out GuyB's great report at Vital MX.

What's really cool about this new Supercross venue is how close it is to Hollywood and the Los Angeles media centers.  The crowd should be off-the-hook with celebrities! 

Goodbye Ben: Townley Takes Off

Townley absolutely killing it at the U.S.G.P. at Glen Helen this year - photo by Guy B/Vital MX.

Former World Champion Ben Townley of New Zealand announced that he's leaving the U.S. to contest the World Championship in 2011. You can read the official PR here at Vital MX or for a slightly different feel, check out Motocross Action's take on it.

Townley signed a one-year deal to campaign a Pro Circuit-prepped, Monster Energy drink-backed Kawasaki for the CLS team. 

Good luck Ben!

Step Up or Drop Off? Bubba's World Season 2 trailer

I'd like to see a version of this without the drama music. Either way, this is a masterfully edited statement and is sure to create some heat for the new episodes and the upcoming supercross season. But it still smells like a reality show to me. Perhaps I shouldn't judge it based on one short trailer (instead, I'll judge it by season one), but I just don't like that smell.

From JS7.com

Red Bull drops American Honda, keeps Andrew Short

Okay, that may not be entirely true, but it sounds funny so I went with it.  Here's the actual KTM press release, courtesy Vital MX.  Suddenly, KTM appears to be flexing for 2011:

Andrew (Shorty) Short will ride for KTM in the SX and MX Open class competition in the USA and will be a factory teammate to KTM’s Mike Alessi and MX2 World Champion Marvin Musquin in the National MX competition. In addition, Ken Roczen, also new to the Red Bull KTM factory team in 2011, will, like Musquin, compete in the AMA Supercross Lites class. After the SX, the young German rider will return to Europe to ride for the KTM factory team in the World Championship GP series.

 Andrew Short is a great motocross racer, a legitimate fast guy indoors and out.  He has not yet managed to win any national championships, but he has come damn close for the past 4 seasons.  He has scored a lot of podiums while earning valuable air time and visibility for his sponsors. No wonder Red Bull likes him.

Now he's on a team featuring the two fastest 250cc racers from Europe, managed by living legend and man-on-a-new-mission Roger DeCoster.  Red Bull KTM is looking pretty strong; Musquin and Roczen could conceivably win every 250 motocross title on the planet next year, and Short and Alessi will represent well on the 450s.  Well played, gentlemen!

2010 MXoN: Dungey Doubles

Even the fastest racers in the world (that were well enough to qualify for their country's MXoN team, that is) couldn't stop the Dungey from scoring double moto wins this weekend.  What year is this again?  Dungey's year!

GuyB with the goods for Vital MX.

Team USA wins the 2010 Red Bull Motocross of Nations!

Congratulations to Trey Canard, Ryan Dungey and Andrew Short for winning the 2010 Motocross of Nations at the Thunder Valley raceway in Colorado this weekend!  This makes six in a row for Team USA!  Good job!

More Visual Splendor: Red Bull represent

Lady Gaga working it at the Motocross of Nations?  Maybe not, but it does seem that Red Bull gets the hot ones. 
Thanks, GuyB!

Visual Splendor: TWMX at the MXoN

Transworld Motocross has some great coverage of today's qualifiers!

Red Bull Motocross of Nations in Colorado, USA

Yeah, we're feeling it.   Check out GuyB's excellent coverage of Saturday qualifying at Vital MX.

National Champion Trey Canard

I would bet Trey Canard believes in miracles.  Now he's a National Motocross Champion, for American Honda no less.  Following along in the tire tracks of the many great motocross champions that won titles with Big Red (Marty Smith, David Bailey, Jeremy McGrath, Ricky Carmichael to name a few), TC is still special in his own right.

Pala podium pic by GuyB.

Pala Performance: National Champion Canard

Wow.   Trey Canard had a tremendous second half of the 2010 season, winning 5 of the last six Nationals (Red Bud, Spring Creek, Washougal, Unadilla and Steel City).  And in the one race he didn't win (sandy Southwick) he still finished on the podium in 3rd. 

Canard and the GEICO Powersports Honda team carried a lot of momentum coming into Pala, putting themselves in serious contention for a title that many (myself included) had already conceded to Christophe Pourcel and the powerhouse Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki squad.  Still, at the final round, Canard needed Pourcel to have a bad day order to have a shot at the title.  Pourcel, unfortunately, delivered. 

It was a pleasure to watch them ride yesterday, and my hat is off to the two champions.  Both riders rode as fast as they could and both of them made mistakes.  But Trey Canard kept it on two wheels and scored more points than his rival.  That's racing.

Trey Canard is the 2010 National Motocross Champion!   Congratulations to Trey, his team and his family!

Great shot by GuyB/Vital MX.

Roger DeCoster and Tony Alessi

Chatting at the end of the season. I imagine these guys will be talking a lot in the coming months.  Soon, they'll even be wearing the same shirts.

Photo credit: Paul Willis

Pala Shocker: Pourcel Crashes Out

The red plate on the #377 bike, seen here alone in the pits during the second 250cc moto at Pala, signifies the championship points leader.  Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki racer Christophe Pourcel carried this plate through most of the 12 race season, and came to Southern California with a seven-point lead over GEICO Powersports Honda's Trey Canard.  But complete disaster befell Pourcel in the first moto, as he crashed and dislocated his shoulder.   Allisports interviewed Christophe and got the full story . 

My heart was broken for Pourcel, I assumed all seasson long that he would win this title.

Photo credit:  Paul Willis

Steel City Slicker: Windham Wins One

Everyone's favorite, normally supercross-only vet racer (!) Kevin Windham repaid Team Honda Red Bull's kindness by winning the overall at the Steel City National on Saturday.   Ryan Dungey cut Kdub some slack by crashing out of the first moto on the first lap, but Geico Honda's Brett Metcalfe made Windham work for it in moto two.  As always, GuyB gets the girls, um, goods.  Same difference, I suppose!

The other shoe droppeth: KTM picks up DeCoster

The man who guided Team USA to almost all of its Motocross of Nations victories, the man who managed nearly all of Team Honda's iconic motocross champions, the man who brought American Suzuki's motocross team back from the dead, The Man himself has agreed to a presumably multi-year deal to manage KTM's "new" factory team in the United States, according to this press release at Racer X Online.

Glad to see Roger quickly found a home, but I hope that he made the best deal possible.  As he himself mentioned in his recent (and revealing) interview on DMXS, he just turned 66 but downturns in his real estate investments make it impossible for him to retire at this time.  I wish Roger the best of luck with his new venture!

Jawdropper: Roger DeCoster out at Suzuki

Some things happen in ways you would never expect.  This news is one of those things:  "The Man", 5-time motocross world champion and iconic Suzuki star is leaving the company after 15 years of taking the yellow team from the bottom to the top (news courtesy of Vital MX).

Now we wait for the other shoe to drop, I suppose, since the press release makes no mention of DeCoster's future plans.   The dude has done so much for so long, he certainly deserves to ride off into the sunset of a well-financed retirement, but for some reason, I'm thinking he's not finished with racing yet.  In any case, this is a tremendous loss for Team Suzuki, which has been rumored to be suffering a major budget crisis in 2010.

Southwick Sandmaster: Dungey gets down

2010 is the Year of Ryan Dungey.  First year on the 450cc machines and he cleans house, winning indoors and out.  Managed by the Man, supported by the GOAT and on bikes built by Goose, Flyin' Ryan won it all in a magnificently dominant style, winning both motos at the Southwick National.  GuyB has the story at Vital MX.

Congratulations to Ryan Dungey and the entire Rockstar Makita Suzuki racing team!

Breaking News: James Stewart gave me a tummy ache

And it was all my fault, I'm man enough to now admit.  Being a big time fan (BTF) of any professional sportsman or sportswoman has its own special risks, and whenever we BTFs ascribe the status of "superhuman" to any person, no matter how magnificent their achievements may have been, we flirt with the inevitable, crushing disappointment that comes when our heroes prove to be merely human.

So what's this prattle all about?  Team James announced they're through with the Nationals for 2010.  Kaput.  Why?  According to the press release, James and the team are not ready to "...compete in the series at the level they are accustomed to," and James doesn't want to "...put my entire career at risk by getting injured again."   Stewart even apologized to the fans, the series and the sponsors.

Cue BTF tummy ache:  "Dammit, I wanted to see him ride at Pala!  How could he DO this to me?  He's so selfish, all he cares about is his career and making a profit for his sponsors and team!  What about MY needs??"

Damned if it didn't take me a few days to get over myself.  Maybe it helped that I avoided the Vital MX online forum since the news broke; maybe not.  In any case, once I got over my emotional reaction to the news, I realized it was a smart move. 

Of course, every professional motocross racer faces the risk of injury every time they line up behind a starting gate.  But how many of them willingly gas it while wondering if they are about to crash their brains out because their bike and/or body is "not ready?"   Going for it when one is not ready is what some amateurs unfortunately do.  And maybe desperate pros struggling to establish themselves.  But top tier pros and the multi-million dollar teams that enable them have too much at stake to do something so foolish.

So while the news disappointed me so deeply it made my stomach churn, I admit it makes sense.  Team L&M/San Manuel Band of Mission Indians/Yamaha/James Stewart Entertainment, in its current configuration, is a supercross-focused team.  Racing the last four Nationals knowing that there are problems with the bike and the rider that could lead to crashes and injury would be counter-productive.  After missing most of the 2010 supercross series and after failing to defend their supercross title, this team really needs to focus on being healthy and ready to race in January 2011.

Apology accepted, James.

James Stewart: Face meet Palm

Honestly, I feel blessed that I have had the opportunity to see James Stewart Jr. race a motocross motorcycle. Numerous opportunities, in fact, and each time it was well worth the cost of admission... from the high and lows of his debut supercross race way back when (at Anaheim, California on a 125cc two-stroke), to the laid back fun at his free public ride day in Southern California. And I honestly feel sorry for those MX fans that have not seen the man ride yet. There are a lot of them out there, and I can understand why they would be upset if they had paid money to see him do his thing... and he just decided not to do it.

And according to Stewart himself, that's exactly what he did at Unadilla. Today, he broke his media silence by dropping, if not a bombshell then at least a small concussion grenade of insight in his "An Open Letter From James Regarding Unadilla and MXoN" (posted by Garth Milan at JS7.com) He "straight up" said:

"...I just decided to pull off, lick my wounds, and learn from the weekend."

Learning is a good thing, but sometimes the lessons are hard. I have a good friend that drove 5 hours to Unadilla to see James race the year that Stewart got injured in practice. He never got to see the man ride (no, television doesn't count), so he actually balked at the opportunity to make the trip this year to upstate New York. In fact, he did not go, because he was afraid he would be disappointed again by his motocross hero. What did my friend learn this weekend?

Last year, I truly felt sorry for the motocross fans in Italy and Australia, who had waited all year for their first ever opportunity to see James race in person, and whose hopes were dashed when James fell ill after the Bercy Supercross and canceled his remaining international race schedule. It wasn't James' fault by any stretch, but the result was unhappy fans nonetheless.

But this time in New York, James admits plainly that he believed he had "nothing to gain" by completing the moto.

Rather than submitting to an interview with his friends and enemies in the moto press, he once again chose to directly address his followers and foes. In my opinion, he took his time to prepare and present his thoughts, and I respect that. But after reading this open letter, it pains me to think that he misses the significance of some of his own words.

I haven't even commented on what he wrote about not being selected for the 2010 Motocross of Nations team. Read it for yourself.

Meanwhile, I will go back to looking forward to seeing Stewart ride at the season finale National at Pala in SoCal. But I might start a new habit of not looking forward to hearing or reading what he has to say.

So... what happened to James at Unadilla?

Apparently, he was too tired to race the second moto. That's according to his team manager, Larry Brooks, from this podcast interview with Steve Matthes. Brooks said James left it all on the track in moto one, and that after setting fast times in both practice sessions and running well and finishing third in the first moto, it was still a good day for the team.

As far as I can tell, James has not said a word to the moto media yet. I wonder when this silence will end? Actually, I wonder why it started in the first place?

Unadilla Undone: Mystery in New York

So, after spending nearly all of the 2010 Supercross season and most of the 2010 Motocross series on the injured reserve list, so to speak, James Stewart Jr. returned to professional racing at the challenging Unadilla circuit in upstate New York. He finished 3rd in the first moto, behind series points leader Ryan Dungey and visiting World Championship contender Clement DeSalle, but according to this lap chart for the second moto, Stewart finished the first lap in 15th place and moved up as high as 11th before dropping out of the race. James was credited with 35th place in the moto, giving him 11th overall for the event.

So what happened? It's Sunday night, and there's no news on Vital MX or Racer X Online or even JS7.com. This is not good. Stewart and his team need to tell everyone what's up, otherwise there will be nothing but rampant speculation about Stewart's motivation, and much of this speculation will turn into ugly talk on internet chat boards.

I thought the team had their PR act together.

Racerhead of the Year: Tennessee Stomp

Jeff Emig knows something about starting gates. Go read and enjoy Racerhead #32 at Racer X Online. It's food for the moto mind.

XGameX: Grant Gets Gold

Check out GuyB's X coverage at Vital MX.

Killer D

Ya know, in January I thought this man would have to go a long way to top his killer 2009 double championship performance on the half-size bikes. Well, he's going the distance on the full-size ones. 2010 is the Year of Ryan Dungey.

This pic by Guy was taken shortly after RD slaughtered the field at Washougal. He looks like he is not finished kicking ass. Yikes.

Bad News from Chad Reed

The Epstein Barr virus claims another professional motocross racer.

"It just got to a point where it was dangerous for me to be out there. My doctor, team and I have decided that I need to be off the bike for a while to try get this handled."

Chad Reed, the defending National Motocross champion, announced today (in a strikingly well-written letter to his fans) that he is too ill to continue with his title defense.

No question about it, 2010 has been a tough year for Reed. And for us fans, it sucks that one of the fastest racers is sidelined indefinitely. But now Chad gets to take his wife and newborn son back to Australia and spend time with his family earlier than expected, and that's got to be a good thing.

Get well soon, Chad.

James Stewart had a great conversation with Steve Matthes of Transworld MX

And the BTOSPorts.com TWMX Podcast scores with another big James Stewart interview. It is always cool to hear it directly from the man, and he clearly feels at ease with Matthes. Soon he'll be racing and then he will really have something to talk about. I hope he keeps up the "fireside" podcasts with the moto press.

News - James Stewart #7 | Official Site | JS7.com

Millville Mashup: Crowd Pleaser

"When the horn blows, you better be ready to go."
- George Clinton

Kdub knows what's up. All eyes on him. National number 14. On a factory Honda. When the gate drops, he better be ready to rock. Kevin Windham rocked it.

In his first race back since the Supercross season, Windham grabbed the holeshot and led the first 450 moto at Millville for 7 laps, thrilling the Spring Creek crowd with his speed and style. But points leader Ryan Dungey (above in full attack mode) was the fastest man that Saturday on a Minnesota motocross track. GuyB has the goods at Vital MX.

Millville Modern: Excitement in the air

Here's a really cool GuyB photo from 450 moto 2 at Millville: Ryan Dungey leading Tommy Hahn, the newly-returned Kevin Windham and Mike Alessi, and the lead pack is so tight they're sharing airspace over this double jump.

Red Bud Fireworks: 450 Moto 1

This is the best 450 moto of the year, by far. Thanks to Allisports incredible archive!

Look Who's Riding: JS7

From James Stewart's twitpic thing.

Wow. That's a nice backyard.