Attendance seriously lacking at Navy Moto X?

SAN DIEGO ---- Ronnie Faisst was clearly caught off guard. The Temecula resident and freestyle motocross star surveyed a barren landscape of empty seats and was shocked to hear that the riders on the track before him were racing for keeps.

"Wow," Faisst said on Saturday afternoon. "To be honest, I thought practice was still going on."

It was an understandable mistake. The Moto X World Championships were run by X Games organizers and broadcast live on ESPN, a pair of factors that normally attract big-name riders and big-time crowds.

The brightest stars in freestyle motocross came to Qualcomm Stadium for the inaugural event, but the fans didn't. A combined 21,700 attended the two-day event, an underwhelming number for a major contest in the capital of action sports. The stadium's vastness seemed to swallow those who did attend, sucking life from a high-octane sport that's typically a major draw.

Scott Murray became just the second rider to land a double backflip on dirt. Nate Adams won two events in dramatic fashion. Travis Pastrana and Ricky Carmichael were in the building and competing well.

Everything, however, was overshadowed by the sight of so many empty seats.

"Quite a bit went right this weekend," said Chris Stiepock, general manager of the X Games. "We had a great track, a great venue, all the right riders and produced quality television. The main thing we clearly have to work on is getting people out to the event."

There were explanations galore to excuse such a disappointing turnout. It was a new event. It was the same weekend as the Masters. Oh, and it was hot ---- really hot.

There's truth to each train of thought, especially considering San Diego's fickle sports fans.

Try as they might to tow the company line, the riders were disappointed by the poor turnout.

"Next time they should do a little advertising and get some fans out there," Winchester resident and Santee native Jeremy Stenberg said. "All my friends from Southern California were shocked when I told them I was riding in San Diego this week, which is crazy because they all live right here. They watch anything that has to do with motorcycles and sports, and they didn't hear about it. That's not a good sign."

The low turnout didn't help prospects for a return engagement, but Stiepock seemed committed to staying the course here.

"I won't rule out a change in location, (but) we would like the event to remain in San Diego," Stiepock said. "It's a moto-savvy market with a big action sports fan base. We were happy with the venue itself and feel comfortable coming back here."

In an interview Sunday, Stiepock focused not on excuses but on solutions for turning this fledgling enterprise into a major component of the action sports schedule.

A few of his ideas should make those turnstiles click. The best was to move the event to the evening, which would eliminate weather as a variable and make it more appealing for local fans.

Stiepock also pointed out that the X Games empire wasn't built in a day. Repetition and legitimacy should help the Moto X event gain strength, as it did for the X Games more than a decade ago.

And while $10 is a reasonable price for such a showcase, giving away extra tickets would entice those on the fence to give freestyle motocross a try. At worst, a packed house would enhance the atmosphere, which was in need of an adrenaline shot all weekend. At best, it would expand the sport's fan base and ensure larger crowds in the future.

"I believe we put out a quality product," Stiepock said. "Hopefully, those who came out had a good experience and will tell others about it and come out again next year."