New Year's Morning: Marty Moates Memorial Ride

A toast to Marty's memory. Click the following link for a 23-photo gallery of photos from the Marty Moates Memorial Ride .

New Year's Day is always a time for reflection, and our friend bGw=
">Steve Emter reports on how a group of friends got together to remember Marty Moates.

The dawn of the New Year's morning brought about a memorial race for one-time USGP winner Marty Moates. The passing of the motocross legend was a shock to everyone in the sport, but a group of friends got together on what is left of Carlsbad Raceway to celebrate Marty’s life by having a somewhat-less-than-legal mini bike race at the famed location. Little is left of the original raceway, as it is slowly overtaken by the surrounding construction, but some of the few features left are the concrete starting pad, the first turn, and the famous Devil’s Drop. The racers lined up on the start among the bushes that obscured parts of the pad. A flag wave started the race, and a five-lap moto ensued. At the end of the moto, the riders gathered near Devil’s Drop to bench race and laugh about the race, followed by a toast to Marty before round two. The second moto was much like the first as they dodged the bushes on the overgrown trails for another five laps. Who won? Everyone that was there was a winner, spectators and racers alike, remembering a friend, competitor, and a legend.

Steve also mentioned that by the time it was over, there were no less than three police cars "interested" in the activity at the former track, but everyone went home unticketed, and with some cool memories.

For about Marty (including photos and tales from the people who knew him best), check out www.martymoates.com