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The phrase one step forward and two steps back come to mind.
Being here in TX, we got to see come down from OK., and race all the time. A lot of great memories of him kicking everyone's ass here in TX..... In August of 1993 there was a race at Oak Hill called the Back-to-School Shoot-Out. It was 105 degrees out, and it was the old style Oak Hill - really sandy and really rough. All of the TX bad boys were there....Dennis Hawthorne, Clint Latham, Roy Schellenberger, Terry Tinney a slew of others and even Trey Clingfost with Swan MX came out of retirement for this race. The gates were packed, Hawthorne and Clingfost grabbed holeshots in separate motos.... but Reynard made quick work of them and blew everyone away.......a Factory caliber rider!
GUYB IS MY JESUS
His injuries were saddening more than any. You just knew what talent was hidden behind all those casts.
trey has said, not too long ago in fact, quote "when I practice with robbie, he ruins me"
Robbie, and Travis, imo and others share this view, would have benifited ALOT by the rule saying you had to be 18 to race.... not because of school, not because of insurance liability.... but because at 16 years of age, their bodies werent mature enough to be able to withstand what those two could do on a bike at full race speed! No wrecks, just flat out cant handle the g-forces endured at that speed!! They could go that fast 2 or 4 times a month, but to do it weekend after weekend... just couldnt physically cope. And im NOT saying they werent in shape!!!!!! Im talking about the physical bone and muscle structure you can have at 16 vs have at 18 or have at 20.
Some consider Robbie 'naturally talented, smooth, goes fast, but looks slow, good technique" All those maybe true, but to get that way it takes PRACTICE....Robbie would practice as an amatuer every single day. If he struggled in an area on a track....he did it over and over and over again until it was second nature.
Steve Cox once said to me, that people talk about how your brother and Kevin Windham are naturally talented...he said, WHAT the hell is that. He said to be that smooth on a bike you have to work your ass off..he said anyone can just twist a throttle...they have worked to be that way!! I think he said it best! That is so true! He worked to be the way he was on a bike no doubt!!
As an amatuer, Robbie was one of the most amazing riders to watch on a track. That Unadilla race was the Robbie we knew as an amatuer. He flowed around a track and his cornering is unreal. He could pass anywhere. He fought every single lap, if he was in 1st place lapping someone or chasing the leaders. He never gave up!!! I think that is what carried Robbie through his career. He never gave up when most said he should, when most said how much more can your body take? He loves this sport with a passion I think few understand. Robbie is a quiet guy. He is humble about his achievements, because he felt he could of done more!!!! Most agree, but what he has accomplished isn't really anything to be ashamed of. Many race their whole lives and NEVER win a moto or a race. Robbie has, BUT he always wanted more.
Unfortantely, INJURIES more numerous than anyone could ever count and some sooo severe that I don't know how he got back on a bike, but he did with shear determination. Some call it bad luck, but it is what it is. As an amateur, you can count Robbie's injuries on one hand...a broken collar bone at 5, a broken tib/fib at 14...that is it!!!! Until he turned pro. His 1st pro sx San Jose in June (sx and mx overlapped back then) he cased a triple and snapped his lower arm and never crashed. He simply rolled to the next jump pulled to the side and held his wrist. Everyone was heart broken, but none more than Robbie. He healed and came back flying...he won his 1st outdoor that same summer at Steelcity and became the youngest rider to ever win an outdoor national.
He went to Paris for the Bercy SX in Nov and after flight issues arrived right before the night program, sleep deprived the promoter wanted him to race. So he raced and came up short on a jump and dislocated his shoulder for the 1st time. Sadly this injury continued. No matter the rehab program he did it never stayed in. He had surgery and it never came out again, until the 1st US Open SX in 1999 (?). Robbie won night one and was feeling great! He went into night two ready to take the big prize home. In the Man event, he was on the inside of the 1st turn and slapped his shoulder against a pole. It popped out and slammed back into joint. resulting in NO movement of his upper arm muscles, he couldn't do a bicep curl or raise his arm over his head....he had nerve damage. The neurologist did all the needle testing and said the nerves were dead and that he had NO muscle fiber response and would never have full use of that arm. Don't ever tell Robbie NEVER....he worked his butt off and went back to that doctor a month later and could scratch his back, do a bicep curl, raise his arm over his head. The doc said I have no idea HOW you are doing that, but you must be using your back muscles to compensate. He still has a numb spot on the outside of his upper arm, but he proved that Doctor wrong. During and after this time the other shoulder began it's looooong run of constant dislocations. He would have it come out, duct tape it and go race moto two. No injections or Doc Bonard back then. He was detemined to not quit!! He had 3 surgeries on that shoulder and numerous treatments to shrink ligaments and tighten it. Nothing worked until he found someone to do the same surgery as done on the other one....bolt it into place!!!!
Robbie also had ACL tears...his 1st time having one tear was at Pontiac. He was told he hyper-extended it. He raced the rest of SX with it and had an MRI and found out his ACL was gone. He decided to race the outdoors without it. He did well, but with 2 races left in the season he crashed and tore the other one. He went home and told the doctor to fix them both. He said we will do one now and one in 6 weeks...Robbie said I don't have 6 weeks. They BOTH need to be done now. 8 hours of surgery he had both knees repaired at the same time. He rehabed and came back in 6 weeks...way too fast as we all know, but Robbie wanted to be back on the bike doing what he loved. YOUNG and stupid...YES!!!!
In Jan 1996, Robbie rode a local AX race to warm up for the season opener the following weekend in Orlando. He crashed hard in the whoop section while leading and dislocated his shoulder and was taken to the hospital on a back board. They cleared him of any spinal injuries and sent him home. He raced the SX opener and complained of a stiff sore neck. The following Monday went to the doctor to have an MRI done and found out he broke his C-2 vert in his neck. (and the c-spine he had at the ER the week before showed it but they missed it!) This was Robbie's worst injury ever! He was in a neck brace and isolated to little movement for the next 12 weeks. I am sooooo glad I was away at college during that time! Once released he rehabed hard, bulked up with lots of muscle to strengthen everything around his neck. He looked like a football player to me. At 18, he didn't know how to train and he was following what some pro's were telling him to do. It didn't work for Robbie. He later learned!
Robbie's injuries continue, with a shattered leg in Minneapolis with just dabbing it on the ground landing on a jump. The doctore wanted to amputate it, but instead he spent a week in the hosptial for compartment syndrome. A broken arm at High Point, a dislocated wrist during practice, another dislocated wrist, broken bones in hand and shredded ligaments in AX this year, and a broken hand at Washogual. He just tore his ACL in his good knee (the other knee has been without one for many yrs) and he had it repaired today. His artrthis it worse then most 70-80 year old men, but I can tell you he loves this sport more than anything!!! And you will continue to see Robbie throw a leg over a bike and race. I was thrilled to see him race this year at LL's and win.
His injury list is long...his race wins as an amateur and pro is what I wish people could remember. His generous spirit and his determination is what I am most proud of. Robbie never quit. He didn't want a big retirement send off last year..(I tried talking him into it..he doesn't like the attention)...even though I knew watching him race Steelcity would be the LAST pro race I saw him race. I have picture of his last lap as #17 and as a Pro. I was emotional. He has moved on in his life and is happy. He is a track owner, holding mx schools, trainer and good friend to many riders (amateur and pro), and will always be a racer!!! If you are ever in the Oklahoma area and need a place to ride...go check out Robbie's track. www.reynardraceway.com You never know who you will see there, but you can bet there is a Reynard out there working his butt off! STAY TUNED FOR SOMETHING EXCITING COMING TO HIS TRACK NEXT MONTH ON OCT 22-23 FOR HIS FINAL ROUND OF HIS FALL SERIES!!!!!
Yep, I am a very proud sister and wish you could all know him and have seen him race the way I did. It was something special! Sorry for the length I am always long winded. I only went through the injuries because I don't think people realized what he overcame...what he went through. Most would of quit long, long ago, but NOT Robbie!!
Thank you for the kind comments and I told him to go check this post out...lots of great video while he recoops from his surgery today! Get well Bro and I love you!!!!! You have to admit you have the BEST sister ever!!!!!!!!
you always hear the words, you make your own luck.
And I agree.
Robbie is the exception to that rule. Want proof? You go out in practice for a nat. a trackworker has a fourwheeler ON the track! guess who, over a blind 4th gear pinned jump, tbones it. You dont make or unmake that kind of luck. the list goes on. If there was a right place at the right time, its polar opposite is what robbie got dealt ALOT and thru no fault of his own. Liken it to being struck by lightning.... 10 times. Thats robbie.
Pit Row
It seemed every time Robbie would get everything together and start to 'come back' something...and some very bizzarre like a rabbit or a quad or a pole....it happened to him at that point when his confidence and speed was coming back. It was so heart breaking for our family, but once again in true Reynard fashion he did NOT give up!! He looked forward and worked harder!
Any of you guys that think it's too long to read... Think again. Read it because Robbie deserves it.
At Hangtown I have always wondered about the outcomes of two riders and their careers had they not hurt themselves.
First was Roncada, he was racing RC that year until he pulled off with an injury...
Second was Robbie Reynard. As mentioned in an earlier thread he had the bad luck to hit a Dirt Diggers ATV.
One can wonder how things could have been different with just a little more luck.
With everything he has been through, it has shaped him into the person he is today. :-)
People like you are what make the internet a joke. I don't recall reading anything here that claimed RR was better than_______(insert rider here). The topic of RC came up because that one specific race/moto gives a lot of insight to RR's potential. Moto enthusiasts are quick to point out, but an average or casual fan might not be able to gauge RR's speed/ability.
How many people can say they even led a lap against RC in an AMA MX or SX race? That number would maybe fit into a small bedroom. Better yet, how many people can say they ran down RC... leading, in an AMA MX or SX race? That number would maybe fit into a phonebooth. There is no doubt that RC "won the war" so to speak and had a career like no other, that wasn't the topic.
This post was filled with positive comments about a true talent that really could have been "that guy", but it wasn't meant to be for whatever reason, but of course, you have to chime in with your BS. If RR and his posse were on here or giving interviews saying "poor us" or "what if", that would be a different story, but that is not the case. You are a complete tool and a clueless one at that. I vote for a VitalMX.Ca where all you "canerdians" can sit around and gossip about JSR or Klatt and not steal bandwidth from real mx fans at this place. Speaking of "average", how is Canada gonna fair this weekend?
Come Saturday I will be at Reynard Raceway practicing with my 8 yr old boy on his kx65 and I can't wait!
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