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I posted this in a thread a few days ago and basically got called a fucking idiot.
"I have to agree here. Look at the amount of riders the USA has to choose from. Most European countries are the size of a lot of our states. So what if the USA had to pick 3 riders born in the same state? Would we Still Win, and who would the teams be?
Cali- Alessi, Grant and ?
Washington RV, hill and ?
Florida Stewart, chisholm, goerke?
A fair comparison really is USA vs the european continent, sorry to say."
Maybe it should be the Motocross of Continents! I think North America would still win more than we lose.
Also, a theory is not fact. It is just an explanation of something supported by facts. It cannot be proved, or disproved, only "supported" or "not supported" - by the facts.
Belgium will win every year.
Then someone will come up with some cockamamie theory that Belgian waffles are the key to their dominance.
You have to be very carefull though. Having a large population ofcourse helps. But the population/square mile should not be to high because in that case you won't have any mx tracks. That is a problem we are facing in Belgium these days. To many inhabitants and tracks are closing down one after another. Why ? Noise pollution ofcourse. So having a big country sizewise, helps.
Lots of people wonder why Belgium, such a small country has produced so many top riders. I think there is a perfectly good explanation. Soil. Belgium is very small, and still we have all sorts of soil. In the north of Belgium there is sand, and lots of it. Lommel is famous. And 60 miles south you have the hardest tracks you can imagine.
South of Belgium is France, all hard packed tracks. North of Belgium is Holland, all sand tracks. French riders can't ride in the sand, and dutch riders can't ride on hard packed tracks. That is why belgian riders always were so good. And even now, almost every rider that rides the GP series (Cairoli, Phillipaerts, Roczen,... lives in Belgium. Because you have all sorts of tracks very close to eachother.
But the future is not looking bright. Belgium is getting to crowded. Tracks are closing down one after another. My guess is that in 10 years time Belgium won't be a top mx country any more.
I'm saddened to hear about the tracks getting shut down in Belgium due to noise pollution
"South of Belgium is France, all hard packed tracks. North of Belgium is Holland, all sand tracks. French riders can't ride in the sand, and dutch riders can't ride on hard packed tracks. That is why belgian riders always were so good. And even now, almost every rider that rides the GP series (Cairoli, Phillipaerts, Roczen,... lives in Belgium. Because you have all sorts of tracks very close to each other."
^^^^ That is very fascinating, and a great point!
I would guess Belgium or France would win if the States of the US had to send their own team based on where each rider was born...
That is why I took the top 10 European born riders from each class and matched them with the top 10 from America... it would be pretty even and produce some great racing.
I think the Golf format is pretty good, I would love to see a MXDN one week and a ryder cup style race the next... that would be two weekends of motocross to look forward too!
and my one word response to your rambling is....
wait for it....
China....
What’s your take on the never-ending debates of fans about which series is better, who’s tracks are better and all that?
I think the tracks in America, they do a good job. I think the main thing in Europe is that before the races start, they put so much water on the track, it’s so slick and that’s where we get the guys cruising at the beginning of a moto and then after fifteen minutes the tracks getting better and you can start pushing from there. Here they put just enough water on the track to make it tacky all moto and you can push the whole way from lap one and on. In America, the depth is a lot deeper than what it is over there. Over there I think there are two or three guys that can go and win a GP but over here there are six or seven guys that are capable of winning a national. And the guys that are just outside of winning are still real solid over here.
And then you have the amateurs over here that are ready to go right out of the junior ranks. Those four lap races that they do, they bring that intensity over here for the whole moto. So I think the depth and the intensity are much more over here.
OK. Let's take a look at the olympic games 2008 in Bejing. USA won 110 medals. 36 gold, 38 silver and 36 bronze medals. Belgium won 2 medals. 1 gold, 1 silver.
Why did the USA won so many more ? Determination and hard work ? Or are Belgians just plain lazy ? Or maybe there were more american athletes there, so the pool is bigger ?
Let's assume that every single athlete can only win 1 medal (Phelps won a lot more, but let's just assume this) and let's assume that every country is only allowed to send 3 athletes to the olympic games.
How many medals would America have won and how many would Belgium have won ? Simple. America would have won 3 gold medals because America would send their 3 best athletes. And if 1 of those 3 was injured, America would have sent their 4th best, who would've won a gold medal as well. And if that 4th one was injured America would've sent it's 5th best athlete, who would've won a gold one as well.
How many medals would Belgium have won ? Simple... 2, 1 gold and 1 silver. The 3rd best athlete in this country is not good enough to win a medal. And if one of those 3 athletes would be injured, then we really would be in trouble.
I hope this example makes you understand. The belgian and european riders also work hard, and also have a lot of interest and determination. The pool is just not as big.
Pit Row
"As I stated earlier, my initial post is not the final and absolute truth on the matter. What you typed about "social interest" doesn't put a hole in the theory, it just adds to it: social interest in the activity is likely a big contributing element as to what societies produce the best motocrossers - I fully agree.
Determination and hard work are more psychological characterists of an individual though, not sociological elements. Of course, you could measure the work ethic and determination of a country. In that case, America's obesity rate and immigrant labor force for jobs that require "manual labor / hard work" would probably put us near the bottom of that list.
And finally, using Ernesto Fonseca as example coming from a poorer country does not debunk the theory. Though it does add merit to his motocross achievements as an individual (coming from an extremely underprivileged country), it only supports the theory. With a country like Costa Rica (and others similar) you wouldn't expect much of a dent in the Motocross Des Nation's record books, and that's exactly what you see. They haven't won a title as a country, and this year they didn't even finish in the top twenty at Des Nations; though I am sure their racers were the most hardworking, talented, and determined motocross athletes the country produced.
Judging by their hourly wadges, I doubt very many people of their 4.5 million population own off-road motorcycles. Not to say that it's impossible for a great racer to come from such a country - Ernesto Fonseca being a great example - but when you look at the statistics, it is very unlikely. What Ernesto pulled off is amazing!"
WHAT ABOUT YOUR SUPERCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP WHICH STARTS IN JANUARY ??...
People keep talking about how rich Americancs are compared to citizens of other countries by merely comparing how much $$ one makes in a year, but what about cost of living where one lives? It is much more expensive to live in San Diego, and LA for example.
Unless you do a proper study, this post is just lame.
oh hell ya they do .
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