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We all love the sport or we wouldn't be spending time on this forum.
I was there Saturday and the 450 race was boring as hell. The riders were mailing it in. Again, not bashing them because there wasn't much to race for. I'd like to see the races towards the end of the year have more relevance if possible.
I'm not saying we have to go to a NASCAR style chase. Just saying it should be discussed along with other ideas to improve the product.
And for the guys who say the chase didn't work, you're full of crap! I watch NASCAR every week and the racing has never been better. Did you watch yesterday? Guys were racing their asses off to get a spot in the chase. And crew chiefs were trying all kinds of different strategies.
It makes the all the races important. Playoffs work!
I have no clue why that is. Any thoughts?
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Hard pack is not the devil.
Lack of diversity in track composition and preparation might be.
Remember when Red Bud was basically dirt, and not trucked-in sand?
Gatorback is gone. Binghamton is gone. Steel City is literally gone.
Southwick's return was welcomed by all.
At the other end of the spectrum, quit trying to turn every hard track soft, quit shoveling sand and mulch and wood chips into the soil at locations where the dirt naturally wants to pack, quit turning every track into never ending ruts and axle deep grooves that are entire corners and straightaways long, and maybe there'd be more races where more passing takes place.
Not a big fan of the turn, drag race over large jump, then repeat on the MX tracks. I personally prefer more natural, challenging terrain. Then there is the preparation... Somebody has made a conscious decision to till the tracks a foot deep or more, soak them completely, and then let them turn into what amounts to a slot car track. WTH?! I would really like to hear an explanation for that. Why? What is the intent? I almost turned off Unadilla. I didn't think it was possible to ruin that track. They did. Riders have no ability to cut across the track, make moves outside to inside or vice versa. They just get in a rut and go with it. I don't even like watching it.
MX Sports: DO YOU ACTUALLY WATCH THE RACING ON THESE TRACKS AND THINK, "YES, THIS IS WHAT WE INTENDED?"
I am a diehard fan, and I am dismayed at what is being done to these tracks.
The injuries are another big thing detracting from the racing, but I really don't know what to do about that. I don't think the heavier 4t 450s with 60++ HP and all that engine inertia is helping, but I doubt it will change anytime soon. It would be worthwhile to do a study on injuries over the last 20 years or so and see if any major causes or circumstances stand out.
I am not a fan of manufactured entertainment a la NASCAR. I don't mind if Roczen runs away with it. I watched him every lap at Budds, his body position, braking, cornering, throttle transitions and so on. He was so smooth, so balanced, it was masterful! I'd rather not see the equivalent of full course cautions to regroup the field, or starting over in points along the way. I'm ok with each race counting equally to a championship.
If you are looking to some how have 30 minutes of back and forth passing between the leaders that isn't going to happen.
You can definitely go back a few spots and see some great racing though.
I was looking at the lap times at Unadila and I believe Dean Wilson was dropping almost 10 seconds a lap to the leaders and Dean is a top ten rider. I'm not sure making a bunch of track changes to get that gap down to 5 seconds a lap is going to at all improve the racing or have any impact on the results. Just using that as an example.
There were a lot of injuries this year (seems that way every year) and I think that impacts the racing more then anything. Looking at the list of injured riders above and there is a lot of talent that was out this year. That has a huge impact on the quality of the racing more then anything.
The Promoters, AMA, MX Sports, and DMG have left the tracks I attended get rougher this year in my opinion and I like it. When the tracks are smooth and easy, everyone goes about the same speed.
They DID groom Unadilla AND Budds Creek even after practice, see attached.
I want to see excellence in achievement. If one person is heads and shoulders above their competition, I want to see that. I don't want to see their talent hidden in the interest of entertaining TV audiences. That motocross highlights the talent of the riders above other factors is something that we should embrace. That is sometimes results in complete domination is not a bad thing at all.
We could demand that they groom the tracks better, get rid of big jumps, and put the riders on much less powerful machines. We would almost certainly get closer racing. But we will have achieved closer racing by squashing the talent of the best riders. And that would cheapen the victories, having chosen luck over talent as the primary means by which our victors are decided. No thank you.
But aside from all that I don't understand the whole debate. When Most of the best riders aren't at the line, them it is something different.
• Heavy, over sized motorcycles - The AMA classes have always been 125cc and 250cc, we got rid of the Open Class in 1994, partly because of boring racing !!
• Many rider injuries – at least 10 top riders are hurt ( THIS probably should be # 1 )
• Timed Practice – I feel it causes a one-lined race track. How hard would it be to try morning qualifiers again early in the season, say Tennessee, and see if the track develops better?
Other forms of auto and motorcycle racing alter the displacement almost yearly in an effort to get “evenly matched equipment” between v-twins, triples and 4 cylinder engines. I’m not saying it's needed to equal out manufacturers like Kawasaki, Suzuki, Honda and KTM, but rather to keep the four-strokes in check with the 125cc and 250cc AMA Professional Displacement Classes.
Heck, the Pirelli World Challenge auto series has drivers and teams add different amounts of weight based on the last weekend results to insure even competition between the various auto brands !!!! They’ll even set RPM restrictions on the faster cars. Instead of doing nothing, MX Sports and the AMA should proactively investigate what 4 stroke displacement works with the 125cc and 250cc National Class structure.
Doing away with the severely outdated “Double-Displacement” rule to make 125cc and 250cc dirt bikes competitive again MIGHT even influence diminishing turn-out at the local level and the high costs of racing.
Rutocross. LOL
Pit Row
I also kept a fresh M22 on a spare rear wheel for a couple of years when I raced Friday night Ascot. It was twenty minutes max from my Hermosa Beach place. I'd out the wheel on before the first moto just as the marine layer was moving in.
Let me give you some direct equivalency examples here:
After 3 quarters of play in an NFL game, reset the scores to 0.
After 8 innings of an MLB game, reset the scores to 0.
After 85 minutes of a soccer game, reset the score to 0.
With 5 minutes left in an NBA game, reset the score to 0.
After 25 miles of a marathon, take the top 10 and reset them for the final 1 mile.
I could go on and on if you want me to. NASCAR even takes it a step further in stupidity and has it all come down to one race, every single time, no matter what. I could win all but one race in NASCAR, take 2nd in the other one, and LOSE the championship. How fucking stupid is that?
Re reducing HP(cc's). All that will do is give high dollar teams an insurmountable advantage... remember 125 class?
Give em all the HP they want so no one can say "it's not fair because I don't have the resources"$ blah blah.
Now no one is out horse powered.. So that is off the table.
Rick Mears once said.. Take away aerodynamics, give them 1000 HP and turn em loose.
An observation.. As a enthusiast in early 70s, I experienced the suspension revolution. Every year LTR improved.
But along with that, the whoops got bigger, the braking bumps got bigger, the jumps got bigger. You get the idea.
Proposition: reduce wheel travel to 10 inches. See what happens. If it doesn't work reduce it some more until moral improves.
All I want is a good race, and not watch ambulances(helicopters)racing each other to the hospital.
AND I do have a Maico itch as well as a back scratching Bultaco itch.
Cheers
No air shocks
No telemetry
No GPS
No spotters/radio. Pit board only
Onlyreal variable is electronics
Any nerd can modify electronics, ie Power Commander and such....
Oh.. and a claiming rule
let the fun begin
ask Rodger
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