UN-SUNG HEROS OF MOTORCYCLE RACING

[Joe Joiner]

Through the years, everybody has always known who the fastest guys were. Their names were household words among the families that raced motorcycles. Everybody knew who they were. They received their hard earned praise from all their peers anywhere and everywhere they went. And rightfully so. But what about all the other riders that so faithfully showed up at the race tracks week after week, loading their motorcycles into their vans, pickups and trailers, sometimes in the wee morning hours. Some driving many miles to the races, knowing full well they had no chance whatsoever of running up front with the top riders at the races that day. The mid pack riders. The guys that never even made it to mid pack. The riders that finished dead last, or close to it, week after week. If truth be known, these riders made up the bulk of the racers at any race track on any given weekend. These were the riders that paid their gate fees, their entry fees, and bought hot dogs and cokes for themselves and their family and friends that came to see them race. These were the guys that helped the promoters and track owners turn some sort of profit so they could continue to operate. These were the guys that bought new motocross bikes to race from the local dealers. Bought riding gear, helmets, boots, knobby tires, fork oil and chain lube, helping them stay in business. We all know who many of them were. The riders that soldiered on, week after week, never winning anything, but were still there faithfully every week all the same. This discussion is for them. Some were very likable, funny characters we all remember, but never got their due recognition. I know of many, but will let you guys start the discussion. Please understand that this is not meant to distract in any way from the top riders of days gone by. They rode hard to get to the top and that's what we all tried to do. This is for the guys that never made it to the top but were out there week after week trying their best. Bear in mind also that most, if not all, of these riders had no sponsorship of any kind. No free bikes given to them to race. Their contribution to the sport was from the earnest and simple love of racing motorcycles. I feel honored to have known many of these guys,hung out with them, raced with them, bumped handlebars with them, only to laugh and visit after the races and tell our stories of our victories, near victories, mis-haps, crashes (yeah, there were lots of stories of those) and the like. These guys and the friendships formed while we were doing what we loved to do is what makes racing motorcycles so grand. It was grand back then, and it is still grand today to look back at those marvelous times we were having when we were in our prime,youthful, and seemingly bulletproof. Take a minute to look back,....... remember,....... and come up with some names. I know there must be many that we all remember that made racing fun.

[Bill Davis]

Me !!!!

[Joe Joiner]

Bill, if you strapped your boots on, got on the start line, charged off into the first turn and battled with your buddies to try to come to the front, your name deserves to be on the list. Thanks Bill.

[Paul Burnett]

Phil Oliver, held back in the Int. class for work reasons. Frank Johnson & TC Carter we alway fun & helpfull. Hance was always good but didn't mind sacraficing a placing for some entertainment value. # 1 for years has to be Lynn Nickerson, I don't know if they compensated him any or much but he was always a great supporter of most of us during the time. I know he gave me more credit for doing nothing than I ever deserved, probalbly to incite me to wick it up so he could announce the inevitable crash.

[Jack Jeter]

Here you go........I fixed it so I could read it without going crosseyed.

Through the years, everybody has always known who the fastest guys were. Their names were household words among the families that raced motorcycles. Everybody knew who they were. They received their hard earned praise from all their peers anywhere and everywhere they went. And rightfully so. But what about all the other riders that so faithfully showed up at the race tracks week after week, loading their motorcycles into their vans, pickups and trailers, sometimes in the wee morning hours. Some driving many miles to the races, knowing full well they had no chance whatsoever of running up front with the top riders at the races that day. The mid pack riders.

The guys that never even made it to mid pack. The riders that finished dead last, or close to it, week after week. If truth be known, these riders made up the bulk of the racers at any race track on any given weekend. These were the riders that paid their gate fees, their entry fees, and bought hot dogs and cokes for themselves and their family and friends that came to see them race. These were the guys that helped the promoters and track owners turn some sort of profit so they could continue to operate. These were the guys that bought new motocross bikes to race from the local dealers. Bought riding gear, helmets, boots, knobby tires, fork oil and chain lube, helping them stay in business. We all know who many of them were. The riders that soldiered on, week after week, never winning anything, but were still there faithfully every week all the same.

This discussion is for them. Some were very likable, funny characters we all remember, but never got their due recognition. I know of many, but will let you guys start the discussion. Please understand that this is not meant to distract in any way from the top riders of days gone by. They rode hard to get to the top and that's what we all tried to do. This is for the guys that never made it to the top but were out there week after week trying their best. Bear in mind also that most, if not all, of these riders had no sponsorship of any kind.

No free bikes given to them to race. Their contribution to the sport was from the earnest and simple love of racing motorcycles. I feel honored to have known many of these guys,hung out with them, raced with them, bumped handlebars with them, only to laugh and visit after the races and tell our stories of our victories, near victories, mis-haps, crashes (yeah, there were lots of stories of those) and the like.

These guys and the friendships formed while we were doing what we loved to do is what makes racing motorcycles so grand. It was grand back then, and it is still grand today to look back at those marvelous times we were having when we were in our prime,youthful, and seemingly bulletproff. Take a minute to look back,....... remember,....... and come up with some names. I know there must be many that we all remember that made racing fun.

[Jack Jeter]

Me too Bill. I was one of those guys. Always in the Int class for the most part,from 71 till 78 or so?I won a few,finished in the top five in a bunch of em,and some I just plain crashed! I think that was about the time frame,some of those days are sort of foggy for some reason!

Bill Davis said:

Me !!!!

[Bill Davis]

Jack !!! Well said !!!
Sure I won a few races & trophies as a Novice & Intermediate & placed a few times as an Expert or Pro.I was just fast enough to not be dangerous to the fast guys.I was very consistent and probably was going faster at the end than the first few laps.My equiptment usually held together so in the results I was usually Mid pack.But on the track the opening laps I probably had people wondering why I was out there.But motorcycles were my life and still are.They put me through College working at shops and have provided me with lifelong friends

[jack thompson]

I was actually a Pro but nobody knew. Kind of a Forest Gump kind of guy. mostly i stood in for guys like Hanna when he wanted to lay around the hotel room with local foxes he picked up saturday night. Also i once stood in for Steve Tyler when he got to wasted on a saturday evening. I would call this a unsung hero. I was on stand by for nascar this weekend and was not called. Basically ive done it all. JT

[Paul Burnett]

Jack,
Your luck may have just changed, they say Tyler just quit Aerosmith and Sambora is looking for a new lead singer. Can you get hold of some Collagen ?

[jack thompson]

sure thing bermshot bring on the groupies

[Joe Joiner]

I just posted a picture of Jerry Hawkins on his Bonneville bike yesterday. Jerry to me is one of the unsung heroes of motorcycle racing. I met Jerry in late 71 at a cross country race at Nolan River. He was on a 360 Husky. We formed a friendship that only other motorcycle racers understand. Jerry went to Barstow To Vegas with us 3 years in a row,72-73-74.He was the first to finish of our group in 72, ahead of the usually faster local riders Gayle Bradley and Charlie Pelton. I broke that year, breaking a rod and slinging it thru the cases of my SL125 Honda coming into gas check 1, just 48 miles into the race. Jerry rode cross countries until about 73 when he turned his attention to raising his 2 sons. Jerry returned to race motocross in 80 thru 83 in the over 30 intermediate class riding a 400AW Maico. Jerry is a motorcycle enthusiast to the core. Jerry built a twin engined H1 Kawasaki drag bike in 69, complete with 6 George Banke pipes on it. Just try and think of trying to ride that tire smoking monster thru the quarter mile!! Jerry has of late built and campaigned a 400+ horsepower Bonneville bike. Don't be fooled. These bikes are not easy to ride. At around 180-185, the air (wind if you will) is so difficult to pass thru at those speeds that it is like trying to push the front wheel through a brick wall. From that speed on, It is a game (?) of nursing the throttle and hunting for traction. They say it is like riding on ice on a 400 horsepower motorcycle. No easy task, I don't care who you are, and to be doing this sort of motorcycle racing at the age of 64-65 years old...........my hat is off to him.

[Paul Burnett]

My nomination for the week is Mike Shellby. He may have missed his calling in life by not having a smoke house.
I think we should invest our TVRC profits into opening the TexasVintageRoadhouseBBQClub with Mike as the grill master.
It could have the bar set up to look like Moseley's shop, Val could be the Hotess with the Mostest. Craig as the mixmaster with MotoRita's and Cosmotopoliton's. It will have to be a dog friendly bar so Stella,TJ and what ever alias JT's dog is going by this week. With Jack's expertise in BS I guess that put's him in charge of the clean up duty (dooty?).
Skip's in charge of the Humidor and the Cigar Room.
We'll have to set up a Bench Racing room with game stations because pretty soon that's all most of us will be able to do as our thumbs will be the only functioning parts left.
I'm sure there are other great hidden talents we all can pitch in with. Can we table this at the Banquet?

[Bill Davis]

Count me in !!!!