JS 7's influence, where are the young black guys in mx/sx?

tttrailhunter
Edited Date/Time 10/14/2019 2:38pm
Warning, i may not have worded my thread title or this post properly.

BUT..

its a pertinant topic.

We all know how insanely good he was.

BUT

Where is the next gen js17?

Somethings wrong when we have had NO one come thru the ranks to even make it to a main...correct?

Gentlemen, please be gentlemen and post with that in mind.
A touchy topic it is..

(exclude mookie thanks)
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Bramlett321
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Bramlett321 10/13/2019 9:14am
10/13/2019 9:14am
There have been guys around, just like there are any of the other local pro's that don't quite get noticed. I think we all forget what an amazing talent that man was and how he, just like Jeremy changed our sport. I know you said to exclude mookie but his personality is way different than James' was and that might be what makes the next JS kid look at and say hey that's what I want to be like.
BobbyM
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BobbyM 10/13/2019 9:15am
10/13/2019 9:15am
I don't know how many black kids got into moto because of James but I do know one white kid that got out of moto.
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TallonT911
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TallonT911 10/13/2019 9:24am
10/13/2019 9:24am
Jalek Swoll
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C.Worthy
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C.Worthy 10/13/2019 9:42am
10/13/2019 9:42am
Sean Hackley and Alex Frye
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xrmark
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xrmark 10/13/2019 9:45am
10/13/2019 9:45am
C.Worthy wrote:
Sean Hackley and Alex Frye
David Pulley as well
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Boomslang 10/13/2019 10:04am
10/13/2019 10:04am Edited Date/Time 10/13/2019 10:05am
This is the guy who paved the way. Andy would come and do some racing in South Africa in the early 1980's

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snackfedbear
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snackfedbear 10/13/2019 10:10am
10/13/2019 10:10am
I think calling the post racist is more ignorant than anything. Dude was just asking a question and it is something that I’m sure other people have wondered.
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Motodave15
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Motodave15 10/13/2019 10:31am
10/13/2019 10:31am
Well by my count yesterday, there was about 6 of us at milestone... But remember we all look the same with our gear on.
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Goon126
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Goon126 10/13/2019 10:41am
10/13/2019 10:41am
I think most of us are into moto because it has been passed down to us by our fathers. I don't think most black men were into moto back in the day. I think its that simple.
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bvm111
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bvm111 10/13/2019 10:49am
10/13/2019 10:49am
Come on A1... when will you ever arrive?!
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TeamGreen
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TeamGreen 10/13/2019 10:51am
10/13/2019 10:51am
I think it's a viable question and hopefully it'll be a "non-question" soon.

As others have pointed out, Andy Jefferson was one of if not "the" front-man. There's was a Flyin' Hawaiian by the name of John DeSoto that I remember some folks thinking he was "black". He was one of the original "jumpers". The dude would jump anything that he could...even where others didn't see it...he'd double over stuff that the other guys couldn't imagine. Bye the way, DeSoto was a bad ass athlete too. Went to Europe and paved the way for guys like Lackey. Raced brands that young folks probably haven't read of...

So, yes, back in the day a dark-skinned rider was a somewhat rare sight.

Nowadays? It's a regular thing out here in California. Is that due, in-part, to James and the Stewart family?
I think so.
They deserve a lot of credit for their accomplishments.
In-fact, it's getting to the point where there's such a mix of different kinds of folks at the track that I don't even notice anymore.
That seems like a good thing, to me.

They, the Stewarts, and those that came before them...paved the way. That seems pretty obvious to me. While we're here...I think James is responsible for taking our "riding" to the next level: from his hi-speed/low-altitude scrubs to his running away from EVERYONE on his 125 & again on his KX450...he took the speed and style to the next level.
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KHI Guy
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KHI Guy 10/13/2019 11:08am
10/13/2019 11:08am
They are playing other sports....Moto does't have the mass public appeal that people on Vital think it does.
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mikec265
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mikec265 10/13/2019 11:09am
10/13/2019 11:09am
There's a couple half black kids at my local race track. Nice kids with their grampa. My son and I spent some time on the bleachers talking with them. No daddy around, and I apologize in advance to the snowflakes who can't handle the truth.
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Johnny Depp
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Johnny Depp 10/13/2019 11:17am
10/13/2019 11:17am
TeamGreen wrote:
I think it's a viable question and hopefully it'll be a "non-question" soon. As others have pointed out, Andy Jefferson was one of if not "the"...
I think it's a viable question and hopefully it'll be a "non-question" soon.

As others have pointed out, Andy Jefferson was one of if not "the" front-man. There's was a Flyin' Hawaiian by the name of John DeSoto that I remember some folks thinking he was "black". He was one of the original "jumpers". The dude would jump anything that he could...even where others didn't see it...he'd double over stuff that the other guys couldn't imagine. Bye the way, DeSoto was a bad ass athlete too. Went to Europe and paved the way for guys like Lackey. Raced brands that young folks probably haven't read of...

So, yes, back in the day a dark-skinned rider was a somewhat rare sight.

Nowadays? It's a regular thing out here in California. Is that due, in-part, to James and the Stewart family?
I think so.
They deserve a lot of credit for their accomplishments.
In-fact, it's getting to the point where there's such a mix of different kinds of folks at the track that I don't even notice anymore.
That seems like a good thing, to me.

They, the Stewarts, and those that came before them...paved the way. That seems pretty obvious to me. While we're here...I think James is responsible for taking our "riding" to the next level: from his hi-speed/low-altitude scrubs to his running away from EVERYONE on his 125 & again on his KX450...he took the speed and style to the next level.
David McLain from Houston earned national numbers a few years around the same time as Andy.
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mark293
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mark293 10/13/2019 11:28am
10/13/2019 11:28am Edited Date/Time 10/13/2019 12:04pm
I loved motocross growing up and even raced Davey Coombs back in the late 70’s at the High Point Mini Bike Nats. Afterwards, my dad said, do you want a car or two 125’s? You can’t have both. I caved to peer pressure as my neighborhood friends never understood the attraction.






My kid was better than I ever was, but he couldn’t be pushed or he would fold. It was very frustrating for someone with my competitive nature. Motocross is hard whether you are black, white, purple or from Mars. Not sure I’ll buy the grandchild a PW when that time comes. In fact, I think MX will be extinct in 15 years, Millennials are just too damn lazy. On a side note, I could have paid for an undergraduate degree from Rice University for him for what I spent in Motorhomes and over 30 bikes in our ten year stretch.
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TeamGreen
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TeamGreen 10/13/2019 11:32am
10/13/2019 11:32am
mark293 wrote:
I loved motocross growing up and even raced Davey Coombs back in the late 70’s at the High Point Mini Bike Nats. Afterwards, my dad said...
I loved motocross growing up and even raced Davey Coombs back in the late 70’s at the High Point Mini Bike Nats. Afterwards, my dad said, do you want a car or two 125’s? You can’t have both. I caved to peer pressure as my neighborhood friends never understood the attraction.






My kid was better than I ever was, but he couldn’t be pushed or he would fold. It was very frustrating for someone with my competitive nature. Motocross is hard whether you are black, white, purple or from Mars. Not sure I’ll buy the grandchild a PW when that time comes. In fact, I think MX will be extinct in 15 years, Millennials are just too damn lazy. On a side note, I could have paid for an undergraduate degree from Rice University for him for what I spent in Motorhomes and over 30 bikes in our ten year stretch.
Dude, you are the Moto-Trophy Shark!
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Tarz483
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Tarz483 10/13/2019 11:54am
10/13/2019 11:54am
The sport is down overall as far as new people entering
As in people that didnt have a dad that used go race and got them into it.
So not 2nd generation riders,l but new 1st generation
Riders.
#1 reason is money.
Even if you think it looks fun and like something you would want to try are you willing to go buy a bike and gear, and Truck or trailer to try it.
In the 70's 80's and into the 90's
You tried someone else's bike in the field down the street from wherever you lived.
2. Lack of being able to ride close to where you live.
Ties into the end of #1. Not only could you find a vacant field owned by who knows who and make a turn track.
But if you weren't into it, you would see others doing that
Sometimes and just seeing others do stuff sometimes sparks an interest.
Now days you never see that (at least where I live)unless you go to a Motocross track.
So as Far as the James Stewart Question
I do think that if the numbers were higher over all
There would have been more kids that got into it because they saw him doing it.
And there probably were kids that saw him on TV and thought about it, but because they didnt see others doing it , and even know where the tracks are , they probably just let the though come and go in my opinion.

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Mixer up
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Mixer up 10/13/2019 12:07pm
10/13/2019 12:07pm
mark293 wrote:
I loved motocross growing up and even raced Davey Coombs back in the late 70’s at the High Point Mini Bike Nats. Afterwards, my dad said...
I loved motocross growing up and even raced Davey Coombs back in the late 70’s at the High Point Mini Bike Nats. Afterwards, my dad said, do you want a car or two 125’s? You can’t have both. I caved to peer pressure as my neighborhood friends never understood the attraction.






My kid was better than I ever was, but he couldn’t be pushed or he would fold. It was very frustrating for someone with my competitive nature. Motocross is hard whether you are black, white, purple or from Mars. Not sure I’ll buy the grandchild a PW when that time comes. In fact, I think MX will be extinct in 15 years, Millennials are just too damn lazy. On a side note, I could have paid for an undergraduate degree from Rice University for him for what I spent in Motorhomes and over 30 bikes in our ten year stretch.
I remember you guys in the early 2000’s. What an era in Houston for great tracks, and great racing. Lots of local young talent coming up in those days.
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mark293
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mark293 10/13/2019 12:17pm
10/13/2019 12:17pm
I pushed my YZ 80D almost half a mile to ride it in a field at the end of our street. When I was done riding, I had to push it back home. My dad said if the police caught me riding on a public street, the Yamaha would be sold. You think today’s 10 year old is gonna push a bike a mile in full gear? Me thinks not, and I’m not exaggerating the distance.
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hillbilly
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hillbilly 10/13/2019 12:27pm
10/13/2019 12:27pm
Can't a white guy identify as a black guy nowadays?

Or a woman

Or a tree

Or a tomato?I

Or a lesbian tree tomato ?
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TeamGreen
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TeamGreen 10/13/2019 12:32pm
10/13/2019 12:32pm
hillbilly wrote:
Can't a white guy identify as a black guy nowadays?

Or a woman

Or a tree

Or a tomato?I

Or a lesbian tree tomato ?
Sure. But, this is Moto...
We keep it real.
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whateversclever69 10/13/2019 12:35pm
10/13/2019 12:35pm
Just as I thought. Lots of well thought out responses that are reasonable and make sense, then a few ignorant responses by people who are like “racism ain’t real”.
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hillbilly
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hillbilly 10/13/2019 1:05pm
10/13/2019 1:05pm
whateversclever69 wrote:
Just as I thought. Lots of well thought out responses that are reasonable and make sense, then a few ignorant responses by people who are like...
Just as I thought. Lots of well thought out responses that are reasonable and make sense, then a few ignorant responses by people who are like “racism ain’t real”.
Man,

There has been racism forever and always will

Just like starving dogs,poaching elephants ,burning rainforest since I was a kid 50yrs ago

I don't give a shit anymore about nothing but living my life

But carry on,I'm sure it will change soon,lol
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Bnagazina 10/13/2019 1:06pm
10/13/2019 1:06pm
mark293 wrote:
I loved motocross growing up and even raced Davey Coombs back in the late 70’s at the High Point Mini Bike Nats. Afterwards, my dad said...
I loved motocross growing up and even raced Davey Coombs back in the late 70’s at the High Point Mini Bike Nats. Afterwards, my dad said, do you want a car or two 125’s? You can’t have both. I caved to peer pressure as my neighborhood friends never understood the attraction.






My kid was better than I ever was, but he couldn’t be pushed or he would fold. It was very frustrating for someone with my competitive nature. Motocross is hard whether you are black, white, purple or from Mars. Not sure I’ll buy the grandchild a PW when that time comes. In fact, I think MX will be extinct in 15 years, Millennials are just too damn lazy. On a side note, I could have paid for an undergraduate degree from Rice University for him for what I spent in Motorhomes and over 30 bikes in our ten year stretch.
Mark,

So how did you get into mx? Was it through an family influence (family) or outside influence (school buddies, js7, mx mags). Personally, my parents hated motorcycles, but my brother bought one and I got hooked on the mx mags he bought. I am always interested in how anyone gets involved.

Unfortunately, I agree about mx disappearing in the future. Culture has changed too much, Too few ‘informal riding areas’ (sand pits, gravel pits, grazing land) and too much enforcement. Don’t think I could even get my son on a bike, due to a fear of injury and helicopter mom. It’s is too bad as it is a great sport with great people.
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Alex.434
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Alex.434 10/13/2019 1:19pm
10/13/2019 1:19pm Edited Date/Time 10/13/2019 1:22pm
Saw Mr. Andy Jefferson out at Cahuilla a few weekends ago. He's the head PR man at Husqvarna. Great guy!

I always get pumped when I see POC (in the USA) in motorsports. Same with seeing the numbers of women riders continue to grow. Fuck yeah!

How about this badass https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJJKyDt9ArM

To answer OP (drawing upon my extensive consumer marketing background): Questions like that are pretty hard to answer without doing an actual consumer survey and asking POC a question like 'what inspired you to get into bikes' or 'what factors influenced your decision'. But my gut tells me James did have a big effect on many young POC who otherwise didn't have a (massively successful) relatable figure in mx/motorsports.

At the end of the day we're all just people doing what we love. Keep on ripping.
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motoxxx599 10/13/2019 1:30pm
10/13/2019 1:30pm
Hugo Basaula from Portugal. He is a Monster athlete and win the B final at MXON.



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cousinskeet
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cousinskeet 10/13/2019 1:52pm
10/13/2019 1:52pm
Love this thread
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jeffro503
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jeffro503 10/13/2019 2:24pm
10/13/2019 2:24pm
I think it's pretty damn awesome see all colors of people , men and women alike in our sport! I truly wish every breed of person out there to experience this sport. You can meet awesome people and it can be super family oriented. I have met and rode with quite a few black dudes that ride over the years , and it's always been a cool experience for myself , because I love seeing it. I don't see many Latino's or Asian's out there , but hope one day we will. Anything to help this sport grow , is all good with me.

Btw....Andy Jefferson was a badass!! One of my hero's as a kid!
mark293
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mark293 10/13/2019 2:25pm
10/13/2019 2:25pm Edited Date/Time 10/13/2019 2:28pm
Mark,

So how did you get into mx? Was it through an family influence (family) or outside influence (school buddies, js7, mx mags). Personally, my parents hated motorcycles, but my brother bought one and I got hooked on the mx mags he bought. I am always interested in how anyone gets involved.

Unfortunately, I agree about mx disappearing in the future. Culture has changed too much, Too few ‘informal riding areas’ (sand pits, gravel pits, grazing land) and too much enforcement. Don’t think I could even get my son on a bike, due to a fear of injury and helicopter mom. It’s is too bad as it is a great sport with great people.

I got a Sears B&S minibike for Christmas and rode the wheels off of that thing. My dad had a Cushman and we walked into a Kawasaki dealer and bought a KDX80 (or equivalent, God it was SLOW). I never got time to practice, because Pops was too busy working. Tried a couple of races and got roasted by Scooter Stafford, Bryan Abernathy and Ben Theriot. I told the old man if I had a real bike, I would be competitive. He called my bluff, drove me to Ennis Yamaha and there was a brand new YZ80D with my name on it along with a "sold" sign. That is still my greatest father/son moment. Was I faster? Yes, by a long shot. Someone told the old man about a national that was being hosted in Pennsylvania. I guess he thought since I started collecting a few trophies, that I was ready for the big time. My entire family piled in our Coupe de Ville that pulled a homemade trailer and headed for Morgantown, WV.

Remember the scene in from Talladega Nights?
https://youtu.be/10BediUjeiY

That was me pretty much at High Point.

I've been a police officer now for almost 30 years, and I will continue to say, "If the world was like the people at a motocross track, it would be a much better place to live in".
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