2012 Dallas Supercross: Championship Style

Check out Ryan Villopoto's perfect form in this Dallas corner.  Tonight's win makes three in a row for the defending champion, and 4 out of 7 on the season.  Villo's back in kick butt mode.

Photo by Steve Cox/Vital MX

2012 Dallas Supercross: unsportsmanlike conduct

Saturday night in Texas.  Geico Honda's Justin Bogle hit JDR KTM's Malcolm Stewart in the back of his helmet after the two collided in the East region 250 main.   Stewart went on to finish 6th: Bogle finished 14th.  Should Stewart still get checked for a possible concussion?

A day in the life of Ken Roczen... revisited

Even though it's from last year, this is still a really cool video.  You can't help by like Ken Roczen after seeing his stunts in this thing.

2012 San Diego Supercross: It's Not About The Bike

The San Diego monster whoops bit Eli Tomac hard, putting him out of the 250 main while running third.  Hope he's okay.  Photo by GuyB/Vital MX

American motocross fans are the strangest breed.  They seem to love to hate even more than they love to love, if that makes any sense at all, and honestly it shouldn't.  Ryan Villopoto won his second race in a row, but was almost beaten by Chad Reed, and Ryan Dungey got back on the podium with a well-deserved third place... yet the moto-internet is all abuzz about James Stewart's crash-caused 15th place finish.

The James-haters are saying it's just his nature, he's a crashing machine, and he should probably retire before he hurts himself or others.  This despite the fact that the San Diego whoops caught some other top riders, such as former points leader for the West 250 class, Eli Tomac, and perennial crowd favorite and normally smooth operator Kevin Windham.  Both went down in the same whoops that claimed Stewart, yet no one seems to bring that up.  No matter, these haters want to claim that Stewart's lack of outdoor motocross seat time has somehow affected his ability to focus on supercross, an absurd argument on the face of it.

The Yamaha/Pirelli/JGR-haters are saying it's the bike, the tires, and/or the team to blame, and some of them are preparing a "greatest hits" reel of James spinning out or washing out or otherwise crashing on the blue meanie.  Yet these folks turn a blind eye to the fact that despite being "handicapped" by the "horrible" equipment, Stewart has managed to win 4 our of 6 heat races and usually sets the first or second fastest qualifying lap of the night.  Is it not the same bike/tires/team all night long?

The way I see it, it's not about the bike at all.   Motocross bikes do not crash themselves.  If you put a bike on a stand, barring an earthquake or some other force of nature, it will sit there until you move it.   Crashes are 99% rider error.  Yes, James has had some equipment-caused crashes, no doubt about that... but not that we've seen so far this year.  In San Diego, it is entirely possible that he would have finished much higher than 15th had he not gotten his pants tangled up in his bike and lost half a lap on the field... although there is still an unanswered question about why he wasn't able to mount a Villopoto-like charge and at least crack the top ten.

But all of the other crashes this year, and most from years before, were either caused by James or someone riding near him.  Sometimes it's just bad luck, sometimes it's just bad riding at the wrong moment.  Yet I'm not willing to label the man a crashing machine.  I recognize that riding as fast as he does means riding on the ragged edge.  That's what makes him so exciting to watch:  he appears to be fearless.  I hope that never changes.

I am also not willing to pin the blame on the machine.  It is the responsibility of the rider to optimize his racebike for the conditions, and if there is any place that I might dole out some blame, that would be it.  However, I also recognize that this is a first-year situation for both JGR and James, and I am willing to give them time to blend together as a team to figure this all out.  Clearly, not all motocross "fans" are as generous.

So to all those "concern trolls" who are worried that the James Stewart of 2012 is no longer capable of winning races, I say "patience, fools."  And I expect them not to listen one bit.

2012 Oakland Supercross: so THIS is what if feels like to win...

Once again, Go Pro comes through with the stunning visuals:  ride along with James Stewart as he clocks his first supercross win of the year in Oakland.

2012 Oakland Supercross: Memorable Win for Joe Gibbs Racing

Photo by GuyB/Vital MX

James Stewart, shown here embracing his team's owner, legendary NFL football coach Joe Gibbs, as they celebrate JGRMX's second supercross victory, Stewart's second win at the Oakland stadium and his first win of the season.  Check out the race summary at Vital MX.


Stewart and his team dedicated this win to the memory of Mark "Tex" Adams, a mechanic for the JGR team who was killed last week in an unfortunate traffic accident as he was assisting a motorist on the side of a road.

From Motocross Action: Rest in Peace Luther Jefferson

Motocross Action Magazine online has this wonderful tribute to Luther Jefferson, the father of Andy Jefferson, who is "...the first black motocross racer to crack the color barrier in motocross by making making main events in the AMA Supercross series." Here is the headline and first paragraph:


THE AMERICAN HERO FATHER OF MOTOCROSS HERO ANDY JEFFERSON PASSES AWAY

The Tuskeegee Airmen in 1943.

The passing of a father is always painful for the family and MXA wants to take the time to acknowledge the passing of Husqvarna North America's Andy Jefferson’s father Luther Jefferson this past week. As most motocross fans know, Andy Jefferson was the first black motocross racer to crack the color barrier in motocross by making making main events in the AMA Supercross series. Andy raced for Mitch Payton's Pro Circuit team and his exploits are well known. But, what few people in motocross know is that Andy’s father also broke the color barrier 69 years ago as a member of the fabled Tuskeegee Airmen.



Read the rest of the article here.

My condolences to the Jefferson family.

2012 Los Angeles Supercross: Ground pounders

Photo by GuyB/Vital MX

There was a whole lot of crashing at the Los Angeles Supercross at Dodger Stadium yesterday.  James Stewart crashed hard in the whoops, shortly after setting a very fast lap in qualifying.  Fortunately, he was able to get up, but he decided to sit out the rest of qualifying, and his time was beaten by Ryan Villopoto.

During the racing program, Chad Reed crashed in his heat race.  He too, was uninjured, remounted and was able to qualify for the main... which he won!  Stewart fell again in the main, but was able to finish in 3rd.

Reigning champ Villopoto crashed on the first lap of the re-started 450 main event, but the speedy Kawasaki rider was able to blast his way back up to 4th place by the checkers.

But the biggest crash is the one that caused the re-start: a horrendous accident involving Nick Wey, Ryan Morais and Trey Canard.  Wey was the only one not seriously injured.   Get well wishes go out to both Morais and Canard.

2012 Phoenix Supercross: On Board with James Stewart

While Ryan Dungey deserves congratulations for winning the Phoenix round of the Monster Energy Supercross Series, giving KTM its first ever Supercross win, James Stewart struggled and could only manage an 8th place finish.  Still, the footage provide by his GoPro camera is exciting and revealing.

Phoenix Supercross: Monster Girls

Photo by GuyB/Vital MX

If the racing isn't exciting enough for you, Monster has some other good reasons for you to go see a supercross. The Monster Energy Supercross Series is off the hook with talent. All types of talent.

2012 Anaheim 1 Supercross: On Board with James Stewart

Welcome to the 21st Century, motocross fans!  GoPro HD brings you all the supercross action you can handle, during the main event!  Check it out:

Anaheim the first, Supercross 2012

Photo by Paul Willis.

Chad Reed's butt patch summed up a lot of fans feelings:  finally, it's time for Supercross! 

DREAM RIDE: Malcolm Stewart goes off

Team JDR Motorsports pulled out the stops with this helicopter- and seaplane-assisted motocross vid I found on Vital MX

Two Two = Chad Reed dubstep mix for 2012

Chad Reed teamed up with Bshipman Films for this rocking video on Vital MX

Show 'em how it's done: James Stewart at 1000 frames per second

Another great Redbull production.  The high-speed camera really leverages high def, resulting in highly detailed super-slow motion footage of James Stewart throwing a killer, one-handed "Bubba scrub." 

But even better than the groovy pictures is Stewart's insightful narration.  This video is a motocross gem.

Ryno kills Red Bull: Hughes wins Coup de Grace at A Day in the Dirt 2011

Photo by Paul Willis

One of my favorite riders of all time, Ryan "Ryno" Hughes, raced to a strong victory in the Coup de Grace, the final race of the Red Bull Day in the Dirt motocross grand prix.  This is Hughes' second CdG win in the popular post-Thanksgiving event, which has been put on by key members of the Hollywood stunt community for 14 years now.

Photo by Paul Willis

That ear belongs to Steve "GuyB" Giberson of Vital MX, who has generously allowed this blog to run his fantastic photos over the years.  Check out his great gallery of Sunday's racing:  That left hand belongs to Troy Lee,one of the founders of the event, and an even larger legend than race winner Hughes.

Photo by Paul Willis

Here Ryno rounds the barnhouse turn, a traditional part of every Day in the Dirt layout since the beginning. 

The Big Story

2011 was a big year for Motocross.

Photo courtesy Kawasaki.com

Ryan Villopoto fully lived up to the promise he has always shown by winning the whole enchilada, taking home both indoor and outdoor 450 titles.  Prior to this year, RV had already firmly established himself as one of the world's premier riders with his many 250cc titles.  Green to the bone, Villo earned all of his titles on Kawasaki motorcycles.

Photo by GuyB at VitalMX.com

Speaking of green, Villopoto ended the year making history by being the first man to win a $1 million purse for a single motocross event, the inaugural Monster Cup.

Photo by GuyB at VitalMX.com

Ryan Dungey may have failed to defend his 2010 450 titles, but he scored his biggest points in the post-season, by making a jump to the team managed by the Man who "discovered" him, Red Bull/KTM, just before team Rockstar Makita Suzuki folded.  By picking up Dungey, KTM is now a very serious threat to win at least one of the 450cc American titles, a feat that has to this date eluded the Austrian manufacturer.  Dungey will now have to adapt to an different motorcycle, the first time in his career that he has faced this challenge.

Photo courtesy JS7.com

Yet the biggest news of the year occurred even later, when it was announced that Joe Gibbs Racing had signed James Stewart, Jr. to a multi-year contract to campaign their Toyota-backed Yamahas.  It was a deal that has been quietly forming since the day that Jeremy Albrecht, Stewart's former mechanic, left Kawasaki to form the and manage the team for Cody Gibbs, son of the legendary NFL coach/NASCAR team owner.  This is one of those rare deals that has significant ramifications for industries outside of the insular motocross world.  Look at the sponsor decals on the YZ above:  Both Toyota and SportsClips are heavily involved in NASCAR marketing to draw buyers to their products and services; that they're willing to take a chance a comparatively small sport like indoor and outdoor motocross says a ton about the trust they have in the Gibbs organization's ability to deliver value.  With Stewart's star power bringing sport drink giant Red Bull and athletic apparel juggernaut Nike to the mix, this team will probably be the most well-documented and publicized of all, whether they win the 2012 championship or not.  Clearly, there's a lot riding on 7 to win.

This Guy: Seven Motocross of Nations wins in a row

Photo by Jeffrey Beersden

This guy, shown here hoisting the Peter Chamberlain trophy his team has just won, is Roger DeCoster.   DeCoster is directly responsible for Team USA's dynastic reign over the Motocross of Nations, having managed this country's entry since the 80's.  Roger DeCoster IS modern motocross.

Congratulations Roger D!

Monster World: 2011 Motocross of Nations

The best of the best.  Photo by Jeffrey Beersden.

Team USA topped team France to take the 2011 Motocross of Nations, the seventh consecutive win for the American teams.  Team Australia finished third, the highest MXoN finish ever for an Aussie squad.  Check out the full report on Racer X.

Congratulations to all of the teams!

Dungey's second moto at Southwick: Ride of the Year

Even though Ryan Dungey led all 17 laps of the first moto of the 2011 Southwick National, it was his second moto performance that will probably be known as the Ride of the Year.   Check out this great footage of the moments before his bike arrived (late) to the starting area.