Posts
1364
Joined
4/17/2008
Location
Seattle, WA
US
Edited Date/Time
1/25/2012 3:59pm
I just want to get everyone's thoughts on this. What will it take to get motocross into the mainstream and help the growth of the sport?
Answers that can't be used (because they always are); be like NASCAR, better television contracts, and more non-endemic sponsors (companies not moto related for you home-schooled types out there). More parity can be used as an answer but you need to propose a way for it to happen.
Or, and maybe this is the most important question, do we even want it to go mainstream?
Answers that can't be used (because they always are); be like NASCAR, better television contracts, and more non-endemic sponsors (companies not moto related for you home-schooled types out there). More parity can be used as an answer but you need to propose a way for it to happen.
Or, and maybe this is the most important question, do we even want it to go mainstream?
I think most would argue mainstream is better.
I feel that we don't need to be big and mainstream. Kind of defeats the whole reason most of us love to ride.
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I don't want it to go mainstream. Don't really see how I benefit if it becomes mainstream.
An advantage of going mainstream could be more people coming into the sport, which will support more tracks, more people fighting for land use... there are some positives.
NASCAR didn't suffer much when Earnhardt was killed though...and football seems to be doing okay despite the injuries.
You have to find a way to connect with John Doe on a level he understands and is interested in. To me that means focus the presentation on the extreme fitness requirements of the sport. The workout regimens, funding "that" study that proves how tough these guys are compared to other sports, outfit the riders with real-time HRM and G-force telemetry (as well as the basic stuff) that gets pasted on-screen like they do with the four-wheeled races, etc. Then you start to connect with fitness buffs, pedalers, etc. Make the scoring simple to understand. Dumb it all down.
They'd need to understand that riding a motocross bike is actually an athletic endeavor, not just, "Sitting on the seat and twisting the throttle."
TV and on-track announcers would need to do a better job at letting the general fan know who the riders are, what makes them tick, and about their personalities.
There needs to be better racing at the front, and less predictability. Currently, everyone at the AMA truck (except James Stewart and Ryan Villopoto) could ask, "Where do I sign up for second place?"
Get off the teams backs and let them earn a decent living, promoters need to stop competing with them.
The TV situation is out of reach of the current promoters. They blew it with ESPN.
DMG may fix it, or they may be the next DORNA.
Bring back the PW and crf 50 for the 4-6 year olds.
Quiet the damn four strokes down or we will NOT have anyplace left to ride. Tracks that have been open for 30 years are fighting to stay open. Case law is being set that is taking away grandfathered exemptions for noise. It is happening in car racing and Motcross tracks are not far behind.
Pit Row
When Elite XC did their broadcast on CBS, they went through and showed different moves to help educate the general public and show the fighters as athletes and not just barroom brawlers. We need to do something to show these riders are serious athletes that put their bodies through so much (no JLaw comments please!). How often do you hear "It's not work, you just sit and twist the throttle."?
It is cost prohibitive to get into the sport and its getting more difficult all the time. I think that is really the key. Not everyone out there needs the new EFI RMZ450. What if lower cost options were offered? What kind of money can the factories shave off the price if they went back to shocks with just pre-load, compression and rebound damping, leaving off the high and low speed dials? What beginner knows what those are even for much less how to set them properly? What if instead of using the newest aluminum perimeter frame, they ran a steel single tube like in the early 90's?
Basically, the factories could produce bikes that are 5 years or older technologically speaking. They already have the tooling so that would cut down on production costs. They would still produce the "latest and greatest" for those that want to buy it but would have a more affordable option for the entry level. How many of you guys can say you are any faster on your new 450 than you were on your old 250 two smoker from 10 years ago? I am not arguing that the bikes aren't better, I'm just saying the costs keep going up and I will never use the new technology to its capacity.
Safety, I don't think that is the biggest issue. I mean, look at football, popwarner through the pros. Those guys are hurt all the time with similar injuries. It hasn't hurt that sport and adds a certain machismo to it.
I think the keys to healthy growth are keeping costs low and riding areas open. We are a grassroots sport and we can't lose sight of that.
I agree that some areas (a few) of our country need to be left pristine, but there needs to be other areas where yahoos like us can rip and tear and roost and slide and gouge at will.
I'm hoping that DMG has what it takes to make this happen.
The first time I started up my '06 YZ-450F, I shut it down imediately and ordered an FMF Q muffler. I didn't start it back up until it arrived and was installed.
The bikes have got to be quieter.
Crusty Demons of Dirt actually pushed MX up a little bit with the whole freestyle deal. I think Freestyle is more mainstream than racing.
I really thought Stewart would do more...but his appeal has softened. Shoot...Tom Cruise wanted to make a movie at one point. But the cool thing about James is he just doesn't care. He enjoys the racing--he's core and not into the PR shit.
Not everyone wants to walk around at a dirt track that is either dusty or muddy, and for the most part stand around all day. Just sayin
Surf?
Ski?
Ride Bicycles?
Race Indycars?
Play Football or baseball as an adult?
Ride horses?
Compete in an Olympic sport?
Hasn't stopped these sports from succeeding commercially. MX racing is there, we just need more competition at the front now.
I think the mainstream selling point of motocross is the youngest of the racers. A one hour show would consist of 40 minutes of interviews w/ the riders and their families, 19 minutes of commercials, and one minute of an actual race of the little guys.
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