Rick Doughty's Top Ten - Volume 3
Is It Just Me…?
by Rick Doughty/VINTAGE IRON
1 - Is it just me or is there a serious lack of “Pit Tootsies” at the vintage races? If we are trying to recreate the glory days of motocross from the 70’s and 80’s, where the hell did all the eye candy go? Now I am not saying that we should have a bunch of 17-year-old girls in halter-top and hot pants running around the pits, even though I know some of you ol’ pervs would love that. I would be happy with some well-preserved 40 or 50 year old, post soccer moms strutting their stuff around the pits. Instead the only cleavage we get to see is Fast Freddie’s plumber crack sticking out of the top of 40 year old leathers, while he is bent over adjusting his chain and that is just plain wrong and it needs fixin’.
2 - Is it just me or is there something F’ed up when the pre-entry line takes thirty seven times longer to get through than the post entry line? I thought the whole point of pre-entry was to make it more convenient and expeditious on race day. It is almost worth paying the post entry price to avoid the line.
3 - Is it just me or is there too many damn rules in vintage racing today? Lets face it, the more rules you have the more cheaters you’ll have. If you had no rules there could be no cheating right? When you break it all down aren’t we all just a bunch of middle-aged guys trying to have fun on obsolete motorcycles on a patch of land? How many rules and regulations do you need for that? Don’t we go racing to escape the world of rules and regulations for however brief a time? Look at the clubs that don’t even have a rulebook. They are healthy, the members are happy and the racing is good. Enough said.
4 - Is it just me or is ebay the best and the worst thing that ever happened to vintage racing? Ebay is great when you sell a set of Fox forx for more than a ’67 Corvette cost new but it is sad what has happened to the swap meet circuit. Mid-Ohio is a perfect example. There used to be plenty of treasures to be found amongst the 40 acres of junk heaps at Mid-Ohio’s swap meet in the early years but with the advent of ebay, the Mid-O swap meet has turned into an ocean of rusty crap for the most part. All the good stuff is thrown up on ebay and gobbled up by frantic bidders at prices that would make a crack ho blush. Kind of like what has happened to the Mom and Pop businesses in today’s Wal Mart world.
5 - Is it just me or is there something wrong with the fact that it is now more expensive to buy five gallons of race gas than it used to be to buy a parts bike? Let’s not get into the cost of filling up a motor home. I think the next war we should declare is one on the oil companies. They are the enemy within.
6 - Is it just me or is there something really irritating about going to a National where they run so many different clases/motos that they typically cut the second motos short? In some parts of the country they may only have one National a year. Wait 364 days for a race and then cut it short? It is not just the promoters either. I have heard plenty of racer types wanting to get the day over asap and we haven’t even had practice. Relax fellas. Enjoy the day to its fullest.
7 - Is it just me or should it be legal to castrate these bastards that claim that because the engine in the bike they are selling has no serial number it MUST be a works bike. Please. Anyone that has ever brought a new set of center cases knows that they come blank (without numbers) otherwise the title/pink slip would have to be changed. Many dealers were also issued number stamps so they could re-stamp the cases to match. Those stamps are still out there and at times used to re-create more desirable engine and frame numbers so beware.
8 - Is it just me or is there a bunch of Dads out there that wish AHRMA stop doing a visual prostate examine (head up the arse) on the subject of kids racing. If Dad and son/daughter both want to go to the races, Mom is out numbered. If kid has to go just to watch a bunch of old guys on broke dick bikes circulate in a mild paced parade, kid is going to want to do something different. Now Dad is out numbered and he stays home. How can that be good for an organization trying to claw its way out of bankruptcy?
9 - Is it just me or does anyone else find it odd that the word motocross comes from the French, yet they are one of the only countries that haven’t produced a motocross bike.
10 - Is it just me or does it seem asinine that local track operators build tracks that only 5% of the customers are capable of riding? Why have jumps that 95% of your clientele can’t do with risking serious bodily injury? Don’t they want repeat customers? When are they going to wake up and smell the natural terrain coffee? It takes less work to maintain and is fun for a wider audience? The veteran riders have the most time and the most money and get the least consideration. Go figure.
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