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Will our sport ever take The big "leap"?
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Boggles mind.
It could have happened in the Mid 2000s if Pastrana would have stayed healthy and stayed in Supercross. The drama of Pastrana/Carmichael/Reed/Stewart would have pushed it over the top. 4 guys with star power all trying to win because they hated losing.
The era of the Ryans has not had the drama/unpredictable results at the top that would keep the casual fans tuned in every Saturday. These guys now a days are all friendly and dont have the win or crash trying excitement that the casual fan wants to see.
I've been a fan for a long as I can remember and will remain so, but it wouldn't surprise me if, in 15 years, the sport is basically the same in reach. Of course, I hope it reaches more people because I think MX/SX is some of the most exciting shit out there and I'd like to see riders, much deeper in the field, to be able to make a better living as world-class athletes.
Not a single class that ran today had a full gate. 250A had 6, 250B had 6. That's not going to keep the sport thriving.
However, as it stands now, its inevitable that LL's will be impacted, from the bottom up, if area and regional turnouts continue on the steep decline. The champion of getting local racing to improve has to be DC et al. They have a lot at stake that is based at the grass roots level of participation. To me, we currently reside in the most pinnacle of times as to whether our sport will make it, or not. So far, its not looking good, and time is of the essence. If its not too far gone already.
While it is kids that go on to be pros, it is the young employed men that choose to spend their money and time on the sport that make it.
Kids whose parents are pushing them generally end up leaving the sport between the time girls and financial realities come around. Additionally the ever growing numbers of kids classes, although not participants, take up more and more of the day, leaving the seniors with less riding time. Add to the mix Moto Dads, and the beat thing that could happen is that the juniors seperate from the Seniors.
Kids riding is great but it isnt the future.
Just my opinion though.
Pit Row
For any sport the fans have to appreciate the skill involved....no one is impressed by something they can easily imagine themselves doing (how many times have you heard, "all you have to do is twist the throttle the bike does the work".
It's not easy buying a bike, kit, transportation then getting to the track, bike prep and maintenance. Add to that the costs and lack of tracks, most people would prefer to go for a kick about on a Sunday morning then down the pub for a few.
When you used to see McGrath, Emig and Pastrana looking like they were just having fun and not taking everything so seriously it made the sport look fun. Now all we hear from Dungey and Tomac is how much prep and training they do, I think Roczen was trying to bring the fun back before he got hurt so hopefully he heals up and makes it look fun again.
As far as the industry goes...yes, it's in a decline. The modest gains that we realized in the last 5 years were erased last year...and then some. We also have a serious revenue problem in the industry...10 years ago the Honda Goldwing, a $18,000 model that routinely left with $2500 accessories was one of the top selling motorcycles...today it's been replaced by the Honda Grom.
Due to the aging out of the baby-boomers, followed by a relatively small group of generation X riders, means the industry will be riding the struggle bus until the tail end of millennials and digital learners hit their buying age. When that happens i believe we experience a similar renaissance that we experienced after the industries decline in the late 70's/early 80's.
If i was on the board at an oem right now i would take my budget and trucks that i have allocated for professional SX and MX and begin a comprehensive training program to get kids engaged with safely riding motorcycles. Pull up in a parking lot, set up an easy to learn on course, train a few hundred local kids how to ride safely and suddenly you have a lot more people in a community championing for riding areas. I love racing, i grew up racing but, it costs us more new riders than it gains us...imagine spending millions of dollars on a sport that scares new riders from ever getting a bike.
As someone said earlier until you ride a dirt bike you can't fully appreciate what these guys are doing.
One way forward could be a stock electric bike class for kids. All parts could be spec. Less maintenance, less wrenching, and more time riding.
Also I know around here parents have their kids in all kinds of summer camps all summer long and are paying big bucks for their kids to play lego all week. Manufacturers could step up and supply bikes to local tracks and cover the costs of camp for new kids.
Personally it's tough I tried my kid in it, I never did it myself. He crashed pretty good and got spooked, now we trail ride and he races karts. He will use same chassis from 10 to 16 yr old. Motors are sealed only have to change oil and can last several years and are $700 new. Same briggs engine for all classes and ages just change slider as they go up. I can't say karting is booming either though.
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