Upgrade to enjoy this feature!
Vital MX fantasy is free to play, but Premium users receive great benefits. Premium benefits include:
- View and download rider stats
- Pick trends
- Create a private league
- And more!
Only $10 for all 2026 SX, MX, and SMX series.
Mike is a friend of mine. I work with him on a regular basis. We argue some too lol.!
He and I disagree on how this all is being handled and he knows my opinion.
The difference between the 4 stroke and 2 stroke days is simple it was forced on the ridership through rules.
Today rules are keeping another type of bike out.
I will argue that racing a 2 stroke against a 4 stroke has had the same issues being "quiet" and not hearing it.
We currently are allowed to "race" an E bike in woods racing...................... So a rider can be on the course at the same time but not in the SAME class..................... that's a rules process not safety.
Moto "might" be different but until the stark came out we ran bikes with rmz frames and e motors with no issues. and did it in "open" classes. but since they weren't even legal at the time I guess we can't use that for information but it worked and that was indoors on a very much smaller track. did it for 2 winters actually.
Fast Forward to today,
People took notice because the Stark actually does what they claim and it's competitive if not better then most current bikes with the battery time being the issue.
How ever do you think for one second that current OEM's like all the starks that have been sold? oF course not, the handwriting is on the wall.
Now before you think for a second i am "big" E bike guy (yes we have four) but it's not for racing. Surrons have a very excellent bike called the Ultra Bee which we use for work. They last, they work, and would be PERFECT for women's classes with smaller stature riders. (the bike is a super mini size)
All I know is how Alta happened and it seems like a rerun of how that went down, like it or not the electric bike will matter eventually. Along with that comes a a whole new ridership, and last i looked our sport needs to grow and it's not growing on it's own merit like it would be nice to see. Electric could be that help we need.
anyway I believe there should be a bit more input, and process to this decision making.
And i am old and still race my 2 BUILT A/F 500's. And still kick start them.
Just want to see this sport grow and work for a long time like i was able to ride/race.
We run an electric class in our HS events and plan a Ebike class at our Sept night event.
His last ride until he bought a new kawi 450 -24 was about a month ago, he brings both bikes to the track now instead.
Weather around here from may to september vary from 15-30 degrees celslus, usually around 22 when the tracks are open.
The "revving" speaker could solve both the safety concerns and the fans concerns. Everybody wins!!
Ride your bike on silent mode at your home track so your neighbors don't get you shut down. Turn on the speaker when riding on practice/race days for safety. If you are a professional, your speaker must be set to "4-stroke" only so the fans can hear what they would like.
100% agree. I told Mike on the phone:
If we can figure this out for both Starks and Surrons, we could have a resurgence in the motocross world. Kids could get off school, go home and grab their Surrons (Starks for older kids). Take it to the local, in town track, and ride it until dark. Just like I did as a kid in Idaho on a farm and like Mike did in the 70s. Hell, even through up some lights and let them ride after dark.
Right now, the only place for kids to ride Surrons is on the street. They end up causing traffic issues, running from police, etc, and generally giving motorcycles a bad name. Build them tracks and let them race!!! Anything to get them out of the house and off of TikTok!!
The Shop
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
I genuinely never understood why this isn't the standard (across all Electric Motorsports)?
This. MotoAmerica is sanctioned by the AMA and FIM and has been allowing electric and ICE bikes to compete side by side. This is not new.
The owner of the race can dictate if electric is allowed. It's not a sanctioning body issue. Most moto in my area isn't AMA sanctioned anyway.
Will they need a separate battery to run it? 😄
I would challenge the powers that be that track design is MUCH more of a constant safety issue than the Stark. That's why insurance costs and lawsuits have shut down so many of our tracks.
I want mine to be fart noises.
Imagine having a bike that had a battery on it just to get the engine started. Sounds crazy huh? Who would want to add all that extra weight just so they did not have to kick a lever a couple times each ride?
I think the speaker idea sounds cheesy. But if it allows safe racing of ICE and electric together, go for it.
I always laugh when I'm walking through a parking lot and hear a jetsons like sound coming from an electric car as I walk by it.
I think that having BOTH Ice and electric options is great for the sport. They both have a place and I hope that ice bikes never go away .
Do you see a solution?
I've raced against some electric bikes in our Hare Scramble series (Florida Trail Riders) and we are going into the next season with a special class for them. They can startle you when they come up on you but in reality and leaving all of the greenie stuff out of it most riders would and will go faster on an electric bike. When racing a dirt bike there is tons of things we have to worry about. An electric moto bike takes shifting and clutching out of the mix as well as being in the right gear etc. Us weekend warriors need all the help we can get. Here's a video of a Sportsman class win in my clubs Hare Scrambles on an electric bike.
I really want and may get a Stark.
But Fuck having a speaker on it that makes brass noises. You can poke that idea up your arse. No way in the world will one of those be fitted to mine.
The noise/safety aspect is bullcrap. Even if the problem does exist, It’s something we’ll all have to get over by being more aware.
To those who say they have had incidents with a stark already- how do you know that very same thing wouldn’t have happened anyway with an ICE bike?
It’s not like nobody ever turned down on an unsuspecting bike before…
My kid is ripping around the yard right now on his surron, neighbors got mad when he did it on his 110.
He is faster in the woods on it then he is on his 85. On the moto track its opposite.
Makes me want a stark
Noise is a bullshit argument, loud bikes don't make it safer...
When will they make riding with ear plugs against the rules?? If You are unable to hear other racers bikes are You not a liability Yourself to a degree? There may not be a large number of racers that are totally deaf. But a lot of guys race with ear plugs. Along with the sound deadening provided by helmets. Will they start to soundcheck helmets to make sure that You can hear well enough?
While I disagree about noise being a legit safety concern to the degree that some say it could be. If putting a noise make on the bikes will allow them to race together, go for it. I would love to have mine sound like a baby crying.
I do somewhat agree on the getting the rules right as far as what power levels to set the limit or however they figure that out. I don't want to see something like what happened with 4 strokes happen. Who knows what they are thinking of restricting . Yes if it is just a peak HP or torque number. That can be done with 0 cost and a few seconds. No retooling. But who knows exactly how they will restrict or classify them. Hopefully it will be something that can be done with software so that it could keep the cost down and allow for more fluid rules that could help provide for closer racing. And not be something like limiting the hardware side of things. That could make the bikes cost more.
Peak power is not always the winner of a motocross race anyway. If it was, You would never see the 250 class ever come close to the same lap times. Everybody should be faster on the 450 than the 250 if it was that simple.
I think that there are many times that a gas bike will be able to sneak in unheard as well. Do Desert racers use sirens because they can not hear other vehicles approaching them over the sound of their own engine ?
In a practice environment maybe the concern might be more valid. But on a racetrack in race, I always expect somebody to be close to me.
You think earplugs make it so you can't hear eanything?
If 4 strokes were quieter, there would be less hearing lose amongst riders, that's a health and safety issue that should have been addressed 20 years ago.
If they are worried about the quietness of a bike behind a rider way do they allow the riders to wear earplugs?
How did they allow Ashley Fiolek race against other competitors when it’s not safe?
The AMA is not allowing Stark to race because they haven’t paid their bribe money.
Let them race will bring in more spectators, people rooting for e-bike riders like they do with two stroke riders.
Arena cross would be more enjoyable with all electric bikes.
Pit Row
Whose logic?
Your faulty logic?
Creating "A" sound is what they are saying will be safer not that safety increases proportionally WITH sound....good grief.
While my initial reaction to Mr Burkeen's thoughts on noise was that it seemed like a convenient, suit-the-moment argument more than a real one, I too had a fright with a Stark cutting underneath me in a high-speed corner, fair near shit myself with no idea he was there or closing on me and can easily see what he says as being an issue in, on or around jumps and other situations.
One this is electric bikes aren't exactly silent. Anyone who's ridden one will know there is a ton of clatter and wine from the motor. I think it's more of an issue of riders adding those more pronounced sounds to what they are listening for behind them than a fact that they are totally silent.
Isn’t there a full AX season with several Stark Vargs competing we could pull data from? What’s the problem? Let them race, riders will adapt.
Sound issue or lack thereof is kind of dumb.
I will add to the can't hear them not safe. I've had it happen a few ttimes now. Either an alta now stark. Go to turn down and boom they are right there. I'm not a 4 stroke on a 2 stroke.
Every time I haven't noticed they were there until right beside me and I can see them put of the corner of my eye. That's when I can finally hear them slightly too.
I'm pretty sure last weekend guy on a stark scared some guy caught him off guard. And they went flying off a berm. Guy on the stark was cherry picking and was zipping through and past people. He caught me by surprise once.
Yeah it’s not silent, but it’s also silent enough to where a guy on a gas bike can’t hear it.
Are you saying you've never had anybody on a 2 stroke or four stroke cut inside you and catch you off guard?
I can usually hear them it's different with the E bIke. It's more like getting blind sided. I can tell you've not experienced it yet.
Who's to say your incident with the Stark wouldnt have happened with another bike anyway?
My enduro silencer on my 250 two stroke (Which I ride low RPMs) might be considerably quieter than your open pipe, 104db 250F?
Shall we put lower noise restrictions on all bikes now??
The noise argument is total bullshit. If it wasnt, the governing bodies would make us run horns on the handlebars. BEEP BEEP, Im here!!
So you have experienced a 2 stroke or four stroke cutting inside you and catching you off guard!
They must have been quiet, was it a kid on an 85?
You just don’t get it, sorry. It’s happened to me multiple times also..: not many people ride lower rpm’s than me, and those e bikes still have almost gotten me into multiple wrecks. Turn down , square up a corner to miss bumps, only to nearly collide mid corner with an e bike.
I see a whole new market for "loud pipes save lives" T-shirts.
what a BS saying.
Okay, yeah, maybe if they were pointed forward like the speakers on the mad max guitar rig....so people would hear you coming.
Otherwise it is just an excuse to have an obnoxiously loud machine.
Now 4 stroke motocrossers are whinning they can't hear a quiet bike coming up inside them.....LMAO
We are a sport of open spoke wheels, razor sharp footpegs, and criss crossing rutted lines full of potholes and braking bumps, jumping big gap jumps with 40 riders on the track at the same time and suddenly quiet bikes are the most dangerous thing ever?
I know what the 2 to 4 transition did to am moto.
It took a certain skill level to clear obstacles on a 125 2 stroke. 250F's made it a lot easier for riders to get in over their heads.
What is an 80 hp electric bike with unreal torque and a program to cut wheelspin going to let them do?
I am glad the AMA is not making the same mistakes they made with 2 to 4, and I am glad Mr. Burkeen is involved in the process. I just disagree on sound being such a pressing issue.
Starks are coming with rear camera on screen option with motion detect so you always know when someone is around you.
Proximity sensors. 😉
Post a reply to: Re: Stark-My conversation with Mike Burkeen, AMA Deputy Director of Racing