2011 – A year in review

As 2011 winds up and we look forward to 2012, I thought I would share some of my observations of 2011.  Like any year, we have had highs and lows.  Motocross isn’t a cheap sport to be involved in.  Motocross is down in attendance, no two ways about it.  Tracks are feeling the crunch, race promoters are struggling, track owners are hurting, and shops are barely afloat.  Even Norcalmotocross.com is way down and it costs nothing for people to use it.  Why would you want to spend any time on a Motocross website, when you are not riding or racing?  Motocross is down to its core, the people riding these days are the nucleus of the sport.  Is 2012 the year of rebirth for our sport?  Maybe, maybe not, the global economy still seems to be struggling, Motocross is still going to be a luxury that many people simply can’t afford so I am leaning towards the notion that Motocross, although it won’t grow much, isn’t going to shrink much either.  Like I said the people that are riding now are the nucleus of the sport.  They will keep a light on for everyone and look forward to the return of friends and family who were not able to ride much in 2011. … Continue Reading

Sit down with Dillon Alexander

You finished up the outdoor season back at Pala, how do you feel your season went?
It went good, I definitely had a lot of issues with the one lap fast kind of thing, at Pala I was having some good laps, I ran into a some little problems in my second qualifier but, I am going to keep working on it for next year. Getting the one lap fast and just going from there.

Did you do as well as you expected overall for the year?
No, I honestly came into Hangtown with my expectations a lot higher, I trained a lot before coming into Hangtown and the lap times weren’t there. I was 42nd, 43rd at Hangtown and not where I wanted to be.

Were you surprised at how fast the rest of the field of was?

I was, I was surprised at that and how everything played a factor, not getting out in front, riding behind people who didn’t jump anything, that was a big factor in not making it into the main and the pace was higher than I expected.
… Continue Reading

Hangtown 2011 Images

I had the privilege of attending the 40th annual Hangtown Motocross Classic recently.  This was the best Hangtown event I can remember.  The weather was awesome and the racing was even better.  Some of the other photographers and I had our picks for the first set of motos.  I would like to brag that I went 3 for 3 picking Dungey Wilson, and Patterson.  We didn’t pick for the second motos or the overall, but suffice it to say, I would not have had such great picks in the 2nd moto or the overall.

Where was Tickle this weekend? People expected a bit more after winning the West Coast title.

I dont think many people picked Chad for the overall, and even less people would have thought he was going to outlast and pull away from Dungey.  Baggett has always been fast, but he was on unstoppable this weekend and was under most peoples radar. … Continue Reading

Racing Through History: The Virginia City Grand Prix

Photo: Joey Washburn

If you’ve never been to the Virginia City Grand Prix, you might think it’s just like any other off-road race, but you’d be wrong. The minute you drive into Nevada’s Virginia City, you get the feeling that the VCGP is a unique event. The old-west streets feature wooden sidewalks and contain businesses with names like, The Bucket of Blood Saloon, and, The Comstock Bandito. There’s even a famous, “Suicide Table” inside the Delta Saloon, where it’s rumored that on separate occasions, three poor souls killed themselves where they sat after incurring heavy losses at the table. Mark Twain even lived in Virginia City while writing for the Territorial Enterprise, and the old mining town was featured repeatedly from 1959 through 1973 in the popular television series, Bonanza. … Continue Reading

Dirt Report: MMX, April 10

The riders of Norcal that made it out to the track this past weekend experienced prime conditions. The weather was amazing! It was warm enough that it wasn’t chilly when you were off the bike, yet it wasn’t so hot that you were roasting while you were riding. For those of you who didn’t make it out, shame on you; you missed what will probably prove to be one of the best weekends of 2011.

I myself met up with some buddies at MMX, in Marysville, Calif. Due to a serious knee injury (people who know me are starting to wonder how long I’m going to milk that injury) and subsequent surgery, I hadn’t experienced MMX yet, and I found myself feeling pretty impressed right out of (or should I say, right in?) the gate. When I pulled up to the entrance, I saw Jerrad Fisher, MMX’s owner/operator, greeting people personally. I even saw him spin a few laps later on in the day. I thought that was pretty cool. … Continue Reading