Ryan Hughes: Steel City 1995. The untold story

Openwheel racer wrote:

Thanks Brett for the really cool article. I was in the pits wrenching that weekend and had a front row seat. As I recall the following...

Thanks Brett for the really cool article. I was in the pits wrenching that weekend and had a front row seat.

As I recall the following year, Brett (author) made his pro debut at the very same Steel City National.

Brett Smith wrote:

Wow, there might be 5 people in the world that actually know/remember that I raced exactly one AMA Pro Motocross race. You're right, it was Steel...

Wow, there might be 5 people in the world that actually know/remember that I raced exactly one AMA Pro Motocross race. You're right, it was Steel City, but in 1997. I qualified out of the Saturday program on a bone stock CR125. I always rode stock bikes growing up, aside from the occasional pipe here and there.

I was with a friend from Michigan named Chris Leuth and a guy named Joe. They brought along Leuth's CR125 as well, just to have a bike to rob parts from if we needed it.

For some reason, we collectively came up with the grand plan of switching bikes for the Sunday qualifying program (which, I'm sure isn't legal. We had already gone through tech). The spare bike was heavily modified. We were worried about getting destroyed on the start on my stocker.

So I went from riding a bike I was perfectly comfortable on to one that I had never ridden before. That thing was so fast that I couldn't keep the front end down so I and I ended up getting a terrible start anyway.

I think I missed qualifying for the afternoon program by a couple of spots. But, hey, I got to run practice with Steve Lamson and Ricky Carmichael, et al. Life's ok, right? I can't believe that was 21 years ago....

Openwheel racer wrote:

Brett, your memory is very sharp. This is "guy named Joe". I moved this spring from MI to NC. It was my bike Chris was riding...

Brett, your memory is very sharp. This is "guy named Joe". I moved this spring from MI to NC. It was my bike Chris was riding 95, as I recall yours was a stock 96. We took your suspension and plastic and stuck it on my bike. My 95 had some PC bits and always seemed to run real well. You had a great gate pick, but rode a wheelie down the start. You were on the gate next to RC or Sellards, can't remember who. It was a fun weekend, I don't know what we would've done if you had qualified. :-) We probably didn't have enough gas...

Keep up the awesome articles, take care Joe

TDeath21 wrote:

I guess I had grown up with lies. 95 was barely before my time as far as watching every race. I was only 4. But I...

I guess I had grown up with lies. 95 was barely before my time as far as watching every race. I was only 4. But I had always assumed the broken chain cost him a championship and that’s why it was so iconic. The broken chain cost him and he pushed the bike up the hill anyway. This makes me feel much better for him knowing that the chain essentially only cost him two points and not the championship.