Brett Downey Safety Foundation Welcomes Ricky Rickords

Riverside, CA (March 25, 2011) – First and foremost a must give a
big thank you to the McWilliams and staff at Millcreek. Although the
weather was a little rough the beginning of the week, when it did turn
around, it was worth the wait. As the sun came out, the track
conditions were close to perfect mostly in part due to the hard work by
the track maintenance crew. There was constant attention to ensure
track safety and which we feel was a big part of having minimal track
injuries.

Just as important for the riders to rest and
hydrate between motos, the track needs to be prepped regularly. If the
track becomes fatigued itself, it is important to take the time to make
those necessary adjustments. One thing that will all need to be aware
of is it’s NEVER okay for a parent (NON-TRACK officials) to jump onto a
track to yell, curse or harass a flagger. There was an incident at
Millcreek that could have been avoided if spectators would understand
the roles and responsibilities of the flaggers. If there is an issue,
we encourage everyone, to bring any questions concerns, or complaints
to the representative of the foundation. We understand many families
have been in the sport for many years and are quite knowledgeable. Just
like everything else, we must evolve our knowledge for safety and
educate ourselves and riders of what each flag means and what to do
when they are displayed. If the riders on the track don’t obey the
flags then why are the flaggers even there? The flaggers are a great
asset to the riders and are there to ensure safety if or when there is
an accident. In a situation where YOU may go down on the track, you
HOPE that the racers behind you obey the flags to prevent a pile up or
further injure a downed rider. We completely understand that everyone
comes to RACE, but it is critical to keep the races safe, so we can
keep racing and keep seeing the future of the sport at the races. Once
again, we encourage everyone to please ask questions if they have.
Please make sure your rider understands all flags and track rules
before entering the gate, because once he’s off the line and a flag
maybe displayed, the time he takes as he delays to try and remember
what each flag means, is more time he’s delaying slowing down or
focusing his attention to avoiding the caution.

On a
lighter note, there were only compliments about the flaggers, which we
love to hear! The Flaggers are commonly over looked and if you take a
step back and really see the work the flaggers do throughout the week
you’ll find a new respect. These guys and gals are at the track
normally before many folks are even awake. They endure a long day in
the different weather conditions, standing at a flagging position only
to get relief for bathroom breaks. From first moto to the last, those
flaggers are out there. Try to remember they are there only to help and
do their best to keep the sport and riders safe. Not every track is
fortunate enough to have flagger present, it’s a great asset that we
can’t take for granted. I feel that many parents see the importance of
the Brett Downey Safety Foundation and what we are about, but the next
step is to educate the younger riders. They are the future and we have
to do our best to keep them safe so they can continue to do great and
awesome things in the sport. We look forward to working at Millcreek
again and hope while we’re away, they continue to strive to keep their
facility safe.

This is Ricky Rickords with the Brett Downey Safety Foundation helping build safety awareness!

For
more information on supporting the Brett Downey Safety Foundation
programs, please feel free to visit our website, www.mxsafety38.org, or
give us a call at 951-824-9494. You can also find us on Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/brettdowneysafetyfoundation.

About the Brett Downey Safety Foundation:

Established
in 2004, The Brett Downey Safety Foundation is a non-profit
organization lead by a volunteer staff. Its mission is to supplement
the motocross community by increasing safety awareness of riders,
parents, track owners and promoters to help make the sport of motocross
as safe as possible by minimizing injuries and helping to preserve all
motocross tracks.