Posts
24
Joined
4/1/2008
Location
USA
Edited Date/Time
1/25/2012 2:43am
I was in Dallas last week for business and decided to stay over and attend the Lake Whitney Spring Classic. I wanted to get a view of the Amateur Scene and since I don't have any kids I joined up with a buddy of mine who's son was racing. My friend is a fairly wealthy guy, big Motorhome, awesome bikes for his son and all of the latest gear etc. etc. etc. What shocked the hell out of me is that there is nothing AMATEUR about this amateur racing. First of all I spent a great deal of time walking the pits and talking to the various teams, mechanics and parents just because I was so freaking floored by the spectacle.
I am sure most of you know this but what I found out is a lot of these "Amateurs" get paid big money, have their own mechanics, are pampered beyond belief and are basically factory riders are a slightly smaller scale. They don't wash bikes, they don't fix their own meals, they do nothing but ride. I know they train hard and are very dedicated but if you are a true amateur in this sport you have to compete with some pretty big budgets in order to get noticed. GOOD LUCK.
Check the Top 5 in every class and you will more than likely find a "Factory Amateur" in the top 3 of each class.
Kawasaki had 2 Big Rigs, Mechanics, Managers, staff etc all over the place
KTM had 1 Big Rig, and 3 smaller rigs etc...
Honda/Honda of Houston had 2 big Rigs...
Yamaha had 2 big rigs etc...
Suzuki was the only Manufacturer without a big rig, but their riders did very well. (I might have missed their rig)
I miss the Ford Econoline Van days when the sport was pure and the playing field was fairly level.
I am sure most of you know this but what I found out is a lot of these "Amateurs" get paid big money, have their own mechanics, are pampered beyond belief and are basically factory riders are a slightly smaller scale. They don't wash bikes, they don't fix their own meals, they do nothing but ride. I know they train hard and are very dedicated but if you are a true amateur in this sport you have to compete with some pretty big budgets in order to get noticed. GOOD LUCK.
Check the Top 5 in every class and you will more than likely find a "Factory Amateur" in the top 3 of each class.
Kawasaki had 2 Big Rigs, Mechanics, Managers, staff etc all over the place
KTM had 1 Big Rig, and 3 smaller rigs etc...
Honda/Honda of Houston had 2 big Rigs...
Yamaha had 2 big rigs etc...
Suzuki was the only Manufacturer without a big rig, but their riders did very well. (I might have missed their rig)
I miss the Ford Econoline Van days when the sport was pure and the playing field was fairly level.
You need the factory backing cause we sure as hell know that the Pro Purse isn't there right ?? I spoke to Rick Mace the other day, Kyle Mace's dad, he just turned 50 and he said that he just can't afford to pay for Kyle to drive all over the US to race the nationals, he has to think of him and his wife's retirement. Breaks my heart Kyle is good and fast and needs help, but looks like he will go back to racing local and get a job, shame with someone who has talent and can make the show at both SX and Outdoor.
S
My Dad was there and is at Oakhill this week helping out the kid my brother wrenches for because my brother couldn't get a full month of work off. My dad is a great wrench himself and retired so he enjoys helping out. They have a huge toyhauller with everything including a welder. Took down i believe 5 bikes. Two 112 supermini's, A 125 and two CRF 250's. In Order to run that life you have to make big $$$ to start then find a way to make it a tax write off.
Years ago they said to make a big bank account small was to get a cocaine habbit. Now its have a kid with potential to be a top motocrosser. Mortage the piss outta the house and chase the dream.
And remember all that stuff won't help you twist the throttle harder. There will always be the kid that shows up on a two year old bike in a pickup and smokes everybody, but I guess that is becoming a dying breed.
It's interesting to me to be parked in the pits at a local race and have a 60 foot motorhome roll in and a nine year old kid step out in brand new gear and walk up to his line of gleaming new bikes. The kid's pit bikes cost more than my two year old two stroke motocrosser. They deploy more gear than a Ranger special unit descending into Baghdad.
Even worse is seeing a kid sitting there crying after his moto because of all the pressure.
I don't have anything against it. But the perspective can get lost when a kid has all that stuff. It just seems like it would take the fun out of it, but looking at some fast local kids, it's not about fun. For others, it is about fun still, and they are the ones that are really winning.
Josh Hill said in TWMX that his parents were $400k in debt from racing. That's hitting on half a million to get where Josh got. Something is weird about that.
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S[/quote:2tkw2kzl]
Perhaps if the Factory Amateur teams didn't exist they could afford to provide support for the Pro's on the bubble like Mace when they get to the bigs.
But there in is the quandry. Do you support a kid like Kyle Mace, who in all honestly, is very unlikely to ever win a championship or do you plan for the future and give that money and resources to a kid like Bagget, Wharton, Barcia, insert your fast AM here.....
I personally hate to see guys with 2 digit numbers struggle with bikes and support when AM kids who have never even won a title get more support. However, Dungey, Canard, Hill, Villipoto, Stroupe and Izzi, alt ect. are making a great case for supporting the STUD amateurs as the way to go. It has become the "farm system" for the factories. Unfortuantely the biproduct is a lot of disappointed and sometimes bankrupt families.
much better system could be in place but the OEM's have to do it, since no rules will make it happen.
this whole part of the mx world has gotten out of hand. Maybe you should have to be 18 to be pro with a high school diploma?
much better system could be in place but the OEM's have to do it, since no rules will make it happen.
this whole part of the mx world has gotten out of hand. Maybe you should have to be 18 to be pro with a high school diploma?[/quote:3vm7gxq5]
Yamaha doesn't pay the beginner class and rightly so, much better to make them move up quicker. I also only offer one class for them to race in, when you move up you can ride 2,3 or more classes, they bitch but I tell them it makes them move up quicker so they can race more classes and not sit around all day.
S
Wardy maybe you and I should sit down one day and discuss all the things which would make things more fair and ultimately better for mx ?? then we can go to O HI O and tell them boys at the top how it needs to be ?? 1st thing on my agenda ?? change the bloody names lol no more lites and mx or sx.
S
Demand bank statements and proof of deposits from every competitor at sign up?
Seriously, how could you take the money out of it?
KTM had 1 Big Rig, and 3 smaller rigs etc...
Honda/Honda of Houston had 2 big Rigs...
Yamaha had 2 big rigs etc...
Suzuki was the only Manufacturer without a big rig, but their riders did very well. (I might have missed their rig)
I miss the Ford Econoline Van days when the sport was pure and the playing field was fairly level.[/quote:13fkx35t]
Of course there's more money in amateur racing these days. There are more amateur racers and the factories and sponsors realize the marketing value in the grass roots of the sport. Plus, the amateur ranks is where tomorrows Pro's come from--they are just investing in the future of the sport.
However, very few amateur racers are actually making any money. Just like at the Pro level, the most successful riders make the most money--in contingency and bonuses. If there wasn't any help from sponsors and the factories, a lot of people wouldn't be able to make it. The sport would dry up and the Pro ranks would eventually suffer.
Most of the rigs you see in the pits aren't funded by the factories or sponsors—except, of course, the ones the factories brought there themselves. And those are usually there to help anyone riding that particualr brand, not just their factory riders. The rest of the rigs, motorhomes, fun movers, or whatever, are privately funded by the families. And, yes, like Sondra said, some families go into deep hock to get their kids to the races. But who is anybody to judge them for doing so. If it's how they want to spend time together as a family, who are they hurting?
As far as regulating amateur racing like college sports...just because college athletes don't get paid, they are still being compensated, with scholarships. Last I checked, a year at college can cost upwards of $80,000.
Amateur racing has evolved with the times. There are currently more rides available in the Pro ranks than there were 10 or 15 years ago. Attendance has been steady in Supercross and grown in the Outdoors. There are more people involved in motocross now. The sport as a whole has grown, and with it, amateur racing has grown. It's all just natural progression.
But when all is said and done, money doesn't buy championships. It's still going to be the kid with the most drive, talent and determination who will do all the winning.
Just my .02 cents.
CH
How come everybody picks on the C class so much when the B class seems to be the problem right know, I am sure there are plenty of C riders that would love to move up to B if it wasn't for all the Factory riders in the B class, my son is 13 and I would love for him to move up to B but we just don't have the bikes or the money for him to be competetive in the B class, I actually think riders in the C class should get more recognition than they do especially the young ones who are running at the top, maybe if they got a little more help it would be easier for them to move up.
Ummmmm, that's a little high.
Just saying.
P
Ummmmm, that's a little high.
Just saying.
P[/quote:3cnfxsb8]
That would depend on the college, no?
Pit Row
Ummmmm, that's a little high.
Just saying.
P[/quote:gaqwmjo1]
That would depend on the college, no?[/quote:gaqwmjo1]
Search on "Most expensive colleges." Everything is under $38,000 per year.
P
P
What was your major???
P
That would depend on the college, no?[/quote]
Search on "Most expensive colleges." Everything is under $38,000 per year.
P[/quote]
You're right, my bad. My son has been looking into schools, and with books and living expenses, I have a lot of numbers floating around in my head.
CH
AMEN!! Motocross has become Ski racing!! If you cant afford the academys, training camps/coaches, travel etc... it doesnt matter how good or determined you are. You most likely will not make it.
S[/quote:2s8knl6s]
LOL hey dear they don't listen to me so maybe thats the needed input. We have so many "insiders" that there is no clue how the "OTHER" places run! Hell right now we are paying way to much for insurance and can't use what you guys do because it's not good enough? Oh well maybe some day. Lets get the advancement problem fixed, and then work on what is an Amateur?
The new "pro" DMG group I hope works with the Amatuer side of things we just got done with a whole placement process that took about 15 years of work, bitching, and head banging to be put in place. I think the pros should have a different license then the "pro Am's? if they do already cool, but i dont know.
i'm surprised at the lack of comments on this statement.
i pitted next to a b rider at branson a couple of years ago. they had a toy hauler, a large four-door truck, two bikes, a van full of parts, and a mechanic. the parents stayed at a motel in town while the mechanic and rider stayed in the toy hauler. they complained that they didn't have enough money to be competitive.
I realized when I jacked my wrist up that I'd never get rich racing so I got a job selling bikes FULLTime @ a mutliline dealership that I'd rode for over the years, go to COLLEGE FULLtime, and RACE on the weekends; when I feel like it and/or can afford to go.
I love selling bikes, College is a grind, LOVE racing. It makes for a long day.
i'm surprised at the lack of comments on this statement.
i pitted next to a b rider at branson a couple of years ago. they had a toy hauler, a large four-door truck, two bikes, a van full of parts, and a mechanic. the parents stayed at a motel in town while the mechanic and rider stayed in the toy hauler. they complained that they didn't have enough money to be competitive.[/quote:31qnjufy]I bet the kid was much older than 13, my son is going to move up soon, he will be an intermediate at the age of 14 but I was just saying that the problem is with the B class, so the C class shouldn't be punished by taking away their contingency money.
I realized when I jacked my wrist up that I'd never get rich racing so I got a job selling bikes FULLTime @ a mutliline dealership that I'd rode for over the years, go to COLLEGE FULLtime, and RACE on the weekends; when I feel like it and/or can afford to go.
I love selling bikes, College is a grind, LOVE racing. It makes for a long day.[/quote:1l6uzock]
i know people refinancing their houses and wasting the money for more dumb reasons than that.
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