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While it's great Tony is buying bikes, motors and getting sponsors, he wouldn't have to do anything if he would just let his son do his thing.
I'm sure Tony works for Mike...
But I dont believe he takes advantage of him financially.
But yeah,maybe I took the term "dipping into his sons pockets" the wrong way.
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Not saying this explains everything, but I think it is a piece of the puzzle in his program.
Anyone who talks shit about the Alessi's have never gotten the chance to hang around with them.
If Tony would just stay out of the way, the teams would take care of Mike!!
Nobody wants to deal with Mike, because of Tony.
Aldon baker makes far more than Tony....
Dungey pays his parents and I bet RV s dad can't afford to be on the road for 29 races and still work.
and as far as getting 'too involved'...I would too if my sons happiness/career were on the line. Mike is an adult, he can tell his dad to back it down, but apples don't fall far from trees so maybe mikey likes it(life cereal reference)
the thing I noticed from 'inside the outdoors' is that Tony and Mike both spend too much time focusing on what is going right or wrong for other riders instead of worrying about themselves...half of an episode was spent last season with Tony watching dungey and comparing motors, team owners, and mechanics...not where they should be focused...
Who knows....
Tony stayed away for some SX races at the beginning of the season last year,but I think Mike wanted him back in his corner after not having him there for a while.I dont really remember when he came back into the picture though.
But I do know Mike didn't make the main in Phoenix or Oakland....so maybe Tony came back into the picture after that.
Big fan of Jeff and Mike both.
If you guys want to feel bad for someone, it shouldn't be mike. What about the local kids at the track without a father figure in their life? Maybe a moto-mom doing her best to allow their child to race even though they probably have no idea what's going on.
Jon Tomac seems humble when he talks about how it can get weird when moto parents drive themselves into endless debt trying to get their kid to that top level, and then the parents expect something in return to help repay their debts when their kid starts making some money. I see no shame in that. As a young adult, I would feel I owed my parents some financial help for their support and years of hard work if they made ME a succesful and famed racer.
Tomac explains how his family was fortunate enough to use Jon's finances without raising huge debts to get Eli through the am ranks and into a good pro ride without.
I can only imagine the mental difference in a racing family who have the finances to support their kid and the family who has a double mortgage, maxed out credit cards, huge parts bills, bike loans, etc and they rely on the child to perform and make enough money to cover the months bills.
Once Barcia and Wilson move up Mike is going to have a tough time getting in the top 7 or 8. IMO Mike missed his window to win a National title.
Needs to get his fintness to their level, no doubt.
Many of the top riders are set up similar to Alessi Racing Inc. Racing is a business, and like most businesses, people get paid to work in them. You need employees to run the tracks, practice bike mechanics, fitness program instructors, transport drivers, agents, managers, etc. As with many other racing programs, family members sometimes work in these supporting positions, and they get paid to do so since its usually a full time job most of theyear..
The team you sign for generally only provides you access to their test track, a practice bike, and engineering and race bike support. Thats usually about it. The rest of the riders support (practice and training facilities, programs, logistics, etc) is usually up to the rider, on his own dime.
When you hear any of these young pilots' parents making a comment like "there goes the championship", they are never saying it for themselves, they are saying it because they know how hard their kids have worked and how much presure these kids are under to win. Disappointed? Sure, but because they feel their kids heartbreak, like any of us parents would.
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I'd take a great personality, compassion, work ethic, creativity, etc... over proper grammar any day when judging a human being.
Again, I say this in no ill way to the Alessis - there's no parenting hand-book out there and there's no doubt that Tony is trying his very best. That being said, Tony is doing no favors, mentally, for Mike.
I have a good friend who is a structural Engineer with degrees from MIT etc...
He cant spell worth a shit either.
Half of the time I get an email from him I dont know what the heck he is trying to say,I have to read it twice to make it out.
Tony seems to have no empathy whatsoever for his kids. On the show last night when Mike crashed while practicing at Osbornes, he crashed, and Tony says something like "he crashed already, are you kidding me?" like he's an idiot for crashing. He didn't ask him if he was ok until later.
First thing I would have asked my son is if he was ok. Tony seems to treat his kids like robots, not people.
And, I wouldn't say he has raised the best kids. Have you read some of Jeff's posts? The guy can't even write nor spell. The ONLY thing those 2 boys can do is moto. I feel sorry for them.
Again, don't belive a TV shows edititing to form an opinion about anyone on a reality show.
I have seen Mike and Jeff give trophies away, pull over on practice days to make sure a kid who fell is ok, sign autographs, take pics from anyone who has asked, you can say what you like about the family from a TV show, but thats not who they are as a family. Maybe you should go to a track and meet them, then form an opinion? No matter what you think about Tony, the boys have been raised very well.
Post a reply to: Mike Alessi's biggest problem is clear