Back in the beginning of the sport outdoor was the only way. Before supercross it was man and machine against the elements. To the true hardcore motocross fans outdoors is motocross. With the advent of supercross and it's customer friendly environment motocross/supercross was brought to the masses. But was this growth good or bad for the sport? Sure millions of people now know Jeremy Mc Grath and Bubba Stewart but has supercross killed the outdoors? First it was Mc Grath with the supercross only contract, then LaRocco, and Hansen and Preston and the Cernics Kawasaki team and WWR etc. Who can blame them? The people that pay the bills (sponsors) don't want to walk around some farmers field out in the middle of no wheer miles from the nearest airport or nice hotel when they can fly into a major city, catch a race in teh luxury box and fly home all in the period of a day. And who can blame the riders? I read that Travis Preston's salary this season was the same if he just rode the SX series or the complete supercross and national series combined. Wait a minute, I can get paid to race from December to May and sit at the beach the rest of the summer or fly out and beat myself up in high temperatures and high humidity on less than prepared tracks and not make a dime more? Seems like a no brainer to me.
This is where the problem lies with the outdoor nationals. To the hardcore motocross fan and racer outdoors is where it's at. I mean how many of us mortals have even ridden a supercross track? But the people paying the salaries and putting the semi on the road aren't riders or racers (most of the time) the are business people and the only reason to sponsor a race team is to see a return in the investment. Something that they don't feel like they get with outdoor motocross. The trickle down effect of this situation can be felt all the way to the local level. Top name riders sit home during the summer=less TV coverage=less sponsorship dollars=fewer factory riders=fewer bikes sold and eventually the demise of the sport as we now it.
So how do we (as fans) save outdoor motocross? What can be done? I'd like to hear your ideas on what motocross is missing and what can be done. Email me at scott@njmotocross.com
No comments:
Post a Comment