No More Caden Hadleys?

Racer X (the magazine, not the shred metal band) ran a press release from KTM that sadly announces the demise of the KTM Junior Supercross Challenge. I think this is too bad; I personally have quite enjoyed watching these little kids race the tracks that would kill me if I tried to ride them. I even quickly forgave them for deluding me into thinking that I, too, could jump a double. The logic went, "Sheesh, if a 9 year old can do this on a KTM 50, I should be able to do this on my KX 250 no problem!" And seconds later, my collarbone was broken.

But those guys were nothing compared to Caden Hadley (pictured), the guy I was reminded of when I read the press release. Back in 2003, Caden Hadley from Bountiful, UT, raced in the KJSC at the Salt Lake Supercross. I was there when Caden doubled the first part of one of the triple jumps, every single lap. That's about 35 feet in the air. That may not seem like much, unless you actually get out there and give it a shot yourself, especially on one of those little 50cc motorcycles. It sure impressed Steve Bruhn (photo source - motonews.com) and Jamie Little. I'll never forget that - it was awesome.

2008 US Open

Greg and I took our boys to the 2008 Rockstar US Open of Supercross at the MGM Grand a couple of weeks ago. Of course, I could not blog much about it then, because I would spoil the fun for the one person who reads this blog and also watches the races on TV, and of course it takes an entire week to edit the show, so we had to wait. Then I forgot.

Anyway, the US Open is a great time, there really isn't a bad seat and you can see two nights of racing for about $30/night which is not bad at all. Since Rockstar sponsors it they also bring their Rockstar Girls, which I don't personally care about, but some might, and if it gets you supporting the sport, then hey.

We stayed at the Travelodge on Koval street.
It has the advantage of being within easy walking distance of MGM Grand. But other than that, it was a complete dive. I would also say it had the advantage of being cheap, but they actually hit me with $40 of hidden "additional occupancy" charges that they didn't tell me about beforehand, making it so it wasn't even a better value than some other more upscale places. Avoid.
Also you'll note the Badda Bing girl on the billboard in the background, pixelated. Yes, they really have a new gentleman's club in Vegas called Badda Bing, of all the dumb names. The girl on the billboard has clothes on, but she is not wearing them, if that makes any sense.

At the start of the race the Rockstar girl (lower right) would hold up the 30-second board and do the requisite booty-shake. You might not be able to tell in this picture, but trust me, she's shaking that thing.

Here's a shot of the start of a race. Yes, there are actually guys racing in this photo. See that blur in the first corner? That's them. I realize now that my camera phone is just not cut out for this kind of stuff.

On the way home, in compliance with custom, we stopped at Applebee's to eat, in Cedar City, near the lighthouse. Because of the extensive rocky coastline and high sea traffic around Cedar City, it is a good thing they have this lighthouse.

It was a great time. I got to meet Supercross Lites and Motocross champion Grant Langston, and he is really cool. Chad Reed sported Grant's number 8 for the weekend. We saw Reed on his new Suzuki and Stewart on his new Yamaha. Stewart mostly dominated the weekend, but Reed holeshot the main event on Saturday, spoiling Stewart's run at the trifecta in awesome fashion. Then those two ran an awesome race for 16 laps before Reed made a mistake and crashed. It bodes well for the upcoming Supercross season, and I can hardly wait.




By the way, Greg said I should mention that, other than spending money on gasoline, tickets, hotel, and food, we gave a lot of money to Charity while we were down there. Faith and Hope were also options, but Charity is the greatest of them all and never faileth. So we gave loads of money to Charity. Besides, she was the hottest by far.

Just kidding. Her name wasn't Charity.

Motocross Guys Are Awesome

This guy is a stud.  No, not the old, gray, wrinkly fellow on the right; the guy on the left, wearing the Team Yamaha shirt.  That is none other than 2007 AMA Motocross champion Grant Langston, who I ran into at the US Open of Supercross last night.

Without attempting to spread rumors about Grant, as I understand he's found that the vision problem he's been experiencing this year is a melanoma in his eye and has been trying to get that taken care of.  It was pretty awesome to hear the crowd applauding in support of Grant when he explained the situation at the opening ceremonies last night.

I wanted to get a picture of him with my son, but he's so camera shy that he refused to take the picture before I could explain who would be in it with him.  So I snapped it myself instead.  Sorry to bring you down Grant.

Here's wishing you the best of luck.  I've missed seeing you out racing this year; you are a great competitor and a great ambassador to the sport, a true half-bad-boy of the type this blog espouses.  I hope you're able to overcome this scary eye problem and get back in the saddle soon.

Chad Reed Changes Bike Colors

See More Motocross Photos at VitalMX.com

Well, let's see here. That is definitely the current AMA and World Supercross champion, Chad Reed, throwing down a pretty sweet whip there. If the red #1 plate and the Thor gear didn't give it away, the word "Reed" across the back of the jersey ought to do it. And that is definitely a bright yellow factory Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z 450 he's riding.

Now I learned to add in first grade, and so it isn't too tough to deduce that Chad Reed has signed a contract to ride for Rockstar Makita Suzuki for the 2009 season. Whether he was going to get a ride really wasn't much of an issue; the question was more about who would he be riding for. At least now my brother has a reason to keep his Suzuki RM 250. He thought he might have to sell it when Ricky Carmichael signed with Suzuki, and having Mike Alessi hasn't helped matters much. But now that Chad Reed's a Suzuki guy life will be good for us, since we are generally Suzuki folk.

Which doesn't explain much why I have a Kawasaki KX 250, although I can assure you most definitely that it isn't because James Stewart rides Team Green.

I do have to say that ChaCha really blew it on this one. Some weeks ago I asked ChaCha who Chad was going to ride for. ChaCha said JGR MX, which seemed reasonable at the time, but ultimately ChaCha was wrong, and quite simply I expect ChaCha to give the the straight dope 100% of the time, or more.

By the way, thanks to VitalMX.com for the photos and hosting the press release.

Belgium vs. Australia

The other day I was talking with my dad on the phone about the recently concluded AMA Supercross championship, and my pleasure that the Australian Chad Reed had managed to claim the championship (if you read this blog you already know that I'm a big Chad Reed fan).

Dad was trying to be supportive but he just wasn't really showing the love. Finally I asked him about it, and he said, "Well, I know you really like Reed, but I was kinda hoping that Windham would win it. You know, since he's an American. I just think since you are an American you should cheer for Windham over Reed."

Well, Dad's entitled to his opinion. So I thought about this for a while. Then I realized: This is the same man who had posters of Roger DeCoster on his workshop wall when I was little.

Roger DeCoster. The Man. The legend. The Belgian.

Chad Reed - AMA Supercross Champion

Embarrassingly, I have neglected to blog about the awesome fact that Chad Reed is the 2008 AMA Supercross Champion. Sincerest apologies, readers.

2008 will be one of those Supercross seasons to remember, unless your name is Kevin Windham. Don't get me wrong, I'm not dogging on K-Dub. He rode a great season and shouldn't be at all upset with his effort. But I'm betting that this one hurts enough that he would like to forget it.
Maybe he'll remember it just enough to compete the 2008 Nationals and win that title. I'm all in favor of that.

But this post is not about K-Dub, it's about Chad Reed. Chad had an uncharacteristically inconsistent season, with some rather distant finishes in a number of races due to minor things like a blown engine or a broken shoulder. This season, it was Windham who was consistently top-5 or better every race, not Chad. What Chad did do that was very Chad-Reed-ish was to fight like a dog for every point possible, against conditions and obstacles that would sideline practically any athlete of any sport you want to name.

I'm a big fan of both Windham and Reed. What made the difference this season was that Reed went out and got that championship. At the start of the season, when Stewart dropped out, everyone thought we might as well just hand the championship to Reed. Well, it wasn't handed to him - he went out there and earned it, every point of it. Both Windham and Reed had opportunities to seize the championship; the difference was that Reed seized it when it really mattered, and Windham didn't. When Reed faltered, when Windham had those opportunities to take points and really make it hurt, he didn't always grab those opportunities.

That, my friends, is the difference between winning and just having a really great season.

Ralph Sheheen Should Watch Supercross

I'd like to invite Ralph Sheheen of Speed TV to watch supercross. At least, I think he should watch it if he is going to announce it professionally.

I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt and assuming he doesn't actually watch it. Otherwise, his statement from Seattle's race of "Chad Reed is one of the luckiest riders there is" makes him look like an idiot.

However, in case he really did mean to say that, and in case he really does think that Chad is one of the luckiest riders, let's recap:

• He gets sick on the day of the Minneapolis race and ends up only able to race to 7th place.
• He completely dominates the Daytona supercross only to have his bike quit on him three turns away from the finish line on the last lap, when he was over one minute ahead of second place.
• He breaks his shoulder blade and separates his shoulder in Detroit and manages to only place 12th.

Gosh, Ralph. Does that sound lucky to you?

On Doing Whatever It Takes

I just finished listening to the awesome webcast of the Seattle Supercross on supercross.cc.com (you guys do an awesome job). If you haven't heard or seen the race, Honda riders were supposedly trying to help Kevin Windham win his championship by holding off Chad Reed as he tried to come through the field. When Chad passed got inside Andrew Short (cleanly, I might add) and passed him, Short grabbed a handful of throttle and T-boned Chad, almost taking both of them out. After the race, they interviewed Shorty, who said something to the effect of, "Hey, Chad doesn't pay my salary. Honda pays my salary, and I'm just doing my job. I'm supposed to do whatever it takes to help Honda win a championship."

Let's clear something up right now. Intentionally trying to wreck into someone to take them out of the race is only acceptable in a demolition derby. In any other form of racing, it is a dirty, disrespectful tactic, shows poor sportsmanship, and is dangerous. Bumping and rubbing are acceptable in some racing forms, and supercross is definitely one of them. Intentional takeout attempts, successful or not, are a different thing altogether.

So at this point I don't know who to not be a fan of anymore - Andrew Short, or Honda. Maybe I'll choose both. When Chad passed Davi Millsaps just a lap or so earlier, Millsaps raced Chad fair, but didn't try any kamikaze takeout moves. Davi and Shorty are both factory Honda riders. If Short is telling the truth, then Davi failed to follow team orders by not trying to take Chad out of the race, which means that Honda is a dirty team. But if Davi was racing the way he had been instructed, then Shorty took it too far by attempting a desperate takeout move when Reed passed him, in which case Short is a dirty rider.

I've seen it from Short a number of times, so here's to betting it is Short deciding to be dirty, since he can't be as good as Reed is. Maybe he's trying to compensate for never having hit puberty. Or maybe he secretly wishes that he was with Ellie instead of Chad. Whatever the reason, I've thought it through - Andrew Short has officially lost a fan. I doubt he cares, but nonetheless, I'm rooting against him from this point on. And Honda too. He's a factory rider. Whether it was team orders or not, he represents Honda when he rides and when he speaks.

Hey, Andrew Short! Hey Honda! Check this - Chad Reed came from dead last - 21st place - and beat your factory rider, who led almost the whole race but couldn't hold on to win it, who could not keep from being beaten by Chad Reed even when he tried to wreck him. With a broken shoulder. Choke on that, Honda. Choke on that, Andrew Short.

The Perils of Motocross to the Young Mind

Anyone who reads my blog at all knows that I have a real thing for Motocross and Supercross, the world's greatest sports, alongside football. But I have to admit, I'm worried a bit about the effect of motocross on the minds of young professionals.

Take Trey Canard for example. He is doing absolutely fabulous so far in his rookie season, having won the first three pro Supercrosses he raced in so far. But perhaps his avid involvement in racing is having an effect on his brain; perhaps the home schooling is not going quite so well as one would hope.

Apparently, this is at least true somewhat in math. Trey has, in repeated interviews, indicated his plans this year to give "200%" to his racing effort.

Oh. I see. Trey is planning to give even more than people who are only going to give 110%, 120%, or even 150%, although apparently he doesn't plan to be as committed as anyone who is going to give 1000%.

Well, Trey, I've got news for you. You cannot give more than 100%. This is a mathematical fact. Perhaps if you went to school instead of racing so much you would already know this.

I will translate Trey's statements, in order to make them easier to understand: "This year I plan to give twice as much as possible. I plan to be two times more dedicated than is possible. I plan to perform in the races two times better than I possibly can."

Maybe I'll try this at work. I'll give 200%, and bill my employer for two times the amount of work than I can possibly do.

James "The Spoiled Baby" Stewart Drops Out of 2008 AMA Supercross

Last Saturday, James Stewart announced that he was dropping out of the 2008 AMA Supercross season because he hurt his knee again last December 20.

This is a bunch of baloney. I mean, I believe James when he says he hurt his knee again. But he is dropping out of the season because he is afraid that if he doesn't, he will lose the title straight-up to Chad Reed.

Consider:

1. Chad and James were tied for the points lead going into last Saturday's Anaheim II round.
2. Each had won one race, and in each race they were running very similar lap times.
3. James won the last race - he WON THE RACE with a "hurt" knee!

James knows there is a very good chance he will lose the title to Chad, hurt knee or not. He also knows that he is stronger outdoors than everyone else. Racing the rest of the supercross season puts his outdoor season in jeopardy, whereas the supercross season is already in jeopardy because Chad is sufficiently competitive. He also knows that by dropping out, everyone will speculate that, had James raced the whole season, he would have beaten Chad, which we all know is not necessarily true (and also just as dumb a thing to say as "If James hadn't crashed he would have won").

One thing we do know - Chad Reed wouldn't have dropped out. He raced an entire second half of a season with a third degree shoulder separation. He would suck it up and race, because he is a tough dude. That is something James is not familiar with.

James Stewart: "I am a spoiled prissy baby mama's boy."

2007 Supercross Series Half Bad Boy Race Report - Toronto

The Half Bad Boy Race Report - the decidedly biased, not-necessarily-true, fun-to-read supercross race report


Well, the 2007 Supercross series got off to a rip-roaring start this past weekend in Toronto, Canada. So far the season is looking like a good one; Chad Reed won the first main event of the season, forcing the television announcers to pull out their programs to figure out who this guy is as they learned that James Stewart and Ricky Carmichael are not the only two people racing.

Stewart caught Reed about halfway through the main and they diced back and forth for several laps. Completing lap 18, Stewart was barely ahead of Reed when he pulled in front of Reed and brake-checked him going up the face of the finish line jump. Reed ran into the back of Stewart, causing Reed to roll the jump while Stewart jumped off the track completely.

Reed then took over the lead, while Stewart, in a very James-Stewart-esque move, pulled directly into oncoming traffic without looking. Travis Preston landed from the double and had nowhere to go - he T-boned Stewart directly, causing both to crash. Stewart was able to remount and continue, while Preston was out of the race.

After the race, Stewart dropped his bike to the ground and then fell to the ground himself, grabbing his ankle and rolling around on the ground like a European soccer star. Travis Preston walked over to tactfully explain to Stewart that Stewart is an idiot, but before he could make his case, he was escorted off the floor by official JC Waterhouse and the rest of the James Stewart entourage.

After the race, Erin Bates interviewed Jeremy Albrecht, Stewart's mechanic, who summarized the incident thus: Stewart went off the track. Since Stewart is better than everyone else, every other rider is expected to accomodate him and avoid crashing into him at all costs. So Stewart naturally expected Travis Preston to turn his bike in mid-air and not crash into him. They were both very disappointed in Preston, as well as all the other riders who could have had anything to do with his failure to win.

Albrecht and Stewart then filed three unsafe riding complaints:

1. Against Ivan Tedesco, for "riding underneath the place where James wanted to land."
2. Against Travis Preston, for "landing from a jump in the place where James wanted to drive sideways."
3. And against Chad Reed, for "winning the race when James wanted to win instead."

I'll let you know how this all plays out.


(Some or all of this may not be true. In fact, it may be a complete lie. For example, James Stewart might not actually be a big baby.)

Pastrana Flips Twice - At The Same Time

In case you hadn't heard, Travis Pastrana made history at the 2006 Summer X-Games when he pulled of the first-ever double back flip in freestyle MX competition.

He also made history by riding his motorcycle without injuring himself, although he apparently did blow his knee out later by walking on it.

You can't help but like Travis, but at the same time he has been a pretty big disappointment. The 2000 125cc AMA National Champion and 2001 125cc AMA Supercross Champion could have had a huge impact in Supercross. He could have continued what McGrath started, taking the popularity of Supercross to a new level, because of his great personality and riding skill. Instead, he is so distracted by so many other things, like freestyle MX, that we'll never know what could have been.

Still, if you haven't seen this video, you'd better give it a look. It's pretty awesome.

(Head on over to expn.go.com for more X-Games videos.)

A Supercross Season for the Ages

My son and I just got back from maybe the best sporting event I will ever attend - the 2006 Las Vegas Supercross.


Now this is no small thing. I was in the audience in Logan, Utah when Utah State University upset Brigham Young by the score of 58-56 in football. It was against the rules in that game to play defense. Oh yes, that game rocked.

I should say, it rocked, unless you have the sorry lot of being a BYU fan - but then, if you were, you wouldn't be reading this blog. This blog is for half bad boys, not sissy pansy-waists. As anyone knows, if you wish to attend BYU, you must agree to adhere to the code of conduct, part of which reads, "I vow to consider myself superior to everyone else," and another part which reads, "I disavow myself from ever being a half bad boy; rather, I vow to be a sissy pansy-waist."
If you ARE a BYU fan and happened to arrive here by accident, I apologize. I recommend you try http://self-righteous-sissy-pansy-waists.blogspot.com/. That is probably where you meant to go anyway.


Another great sporting event right after BYU's guard tandem of Randy and Robby Reid were featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. No, they were actually featured for their supposed basketball prowess, not for being sissy pansy-waists. Although it was later said of them, "The two biggest boobs in this year's SI Swimsuit Issue are Randy and Robby Reid."

Anyway, BYU came to Logan where a complete unknown point guard named Roddie Anderson completely schooled the Reids for 40 minutes as USU routed BYU by like 20 points.


Amazingly, many of my great sporting moments revolve around USU upsetting BYU.


But I digress. As I said, I took my son to the 2006 Las Vegas Supercross, where Chad Reed and Ricky Carmichael came into the event tied for the lead in points with James Stewart only 5 points back. The buildup was awesome and so was the racing. In the Supercross class main event, it all came down to the start. Chad was the fastest of the night, but it was only by tenths. By the end of lap two, Stewart had a 3 second lead on Carmichael, who had a 3 second lead on Reed, and that is how it ended.

I was disappointed, sure, because Chad didn't pull it off. But in true Chad Reed style, he was gracious, appreciative of the opportunity, respectful of the other two champions, a good sport, and above all, he remembered to thank his wife Ellie.


And I got to experience it all with my son. Nope, I'll never forget that one for sure.

The Rock is Rolling On

That to-be-expected but nonetheless-saddening day arrived - Mike LaRocco has retired from professional racing.

I actually have Mike LaRocco's autograph. Don't laugh. I had to wait in line a long time to get it.

I don't want to wax poetic about Mike LaRocco. Something about LaRocco and poetry don't seem to mix, anyway. Let's just say, this guy is a true half bad boy. Supercross racer, hard worker, good father, and married to a babe - what all us half bad boys aspire to (and, at least the being married to a babe part, some of us have accomplished - like me).

Mike's had some great moments, but his last win at Indianapolis in front of his home crowd was one of the best in all of Supercross history. You'll be missed, Mike.

Chad Reed is the Man - Again

Ok, I know that RC won Daytona, pretty handily in fact. But the Half Bad Boy award has to go to Chad Reed. He took second place - with a separated shoulder?! This guy is one tough mother.

Hats off to Chad for a gutty performance at the toughest track of the year to stay right in the thick of the points battle.

Oh, and for those of you that say, "Well, Stewart would have beaten Chad if he hadn't crashed." I got news for you - Stewart crashed. Crashing is a part of the sport. The winner is whoever can get through 20 laps the quickest, not whoever can post the fastest lap time. You might as well say, "Stewart would have beaten Chad, if he could have completed the race before Chad." In other words, it is a dumb thing to say, so don't say it.

Way to go, Chad. You rock. Keep toting the banner for us half bad boys.

Half Bad Boy Hero - Chad Reed Wins St. Louis

Let me be the first to congratulate Chad Reed on his awesome victory in the St. Louis Supercross. What's that you say? He's already been congratulated? Well, then I guess I won't be the first to congratulate him. I want to do it anyway.

Chad Reed is a true half bad boy hero. He participates in one of the most bad-boy sports on the planet, and does so at a top level. He expects nothing less than the best of himself, but he truly loves the competition. And who was the first person he thanked on the podium this week? His wife Ellie.

Oh yeah. That's what a half bad boy is all about.

Eating Humble Pie (but just a nibble)

After my last post, I have to give some credit to Krista Voda, who, in her podium interview with Jeremy McGrath last Saturday, said, "He definitely is the king of Supercross."

Of course, we already knew that. Until someone at least ties his record of seven Supercross titles, he will always be the king. But it was nice hear Krista say it; it means either she started learning about Supercross, or someone is telling her what to say so she doesn't say something stupid. Either way, it is an improvement.

How To Be A Supercross Announcer

I hear that Supercross is the fastest growing action sport in the US today. If you are a Supercross racer, or if you are a spectator, whether live or on TV, or if you ride or support their sponsors, congratulations: You are helping Supercross to grow.
Unfortunately, if you are Supercross TV announcer for Speed or CBS, I'm sorry: You are not helping Supercross to grow. You are helping position Supercross as a sport for stupid people.

I don't mean "stupid" as in, "You'd have to be stupid to try to blitz those whoops." I mean "stupid" as in, "I wonder if these people passed elementary school?"

I know there are some good Supercross announcers, but this is only because I am a long-time fan. Any new person watching Supercross on TV would have to assume that it is a sport for stupid people. They would arrive at this conclusion the moment they heard these people speak; they would remark to themselves, "I've never even seen a real motocross motorcycle in person, and I know more about this sport than they do." Where are you, Jamie Little??? Where are you, David Bailey???

Alas, we are stuck with Ralph "I Wish I Could Go Through Puberty" Sheheen, Denny "It Is So Hard To Construct A Sentence" Stephenson, and Krista "I Am Blonde For A Reason" Voda.

Krista is by far the worst. A typical Krista moment was at San Francisco this year, amidst the rain and mud. Broc Glover was explaining to Krista how the mud tires are self-cleaning, designed to cause the mud to remove itself from the tires. Krista turned to the camera and said, "Self-cleaning tires? I wish I had that in my oven." At which point my wife and I looked at each other, and I said, "She wants self-cleaning tires in her oven??"


I shouldn't complain too loudly. Speed and CBS, we Supercross fans do appreciate you broadcasting Supercross on TV and we continue to support you by watching. But do you think you could do something about the announcers? That's really all we're asking.

Where is Chad Reed?

It was easy to dismiss the Toronto Supercross, but after watching the Vancouver Supercross, I'm starting to wonder what is going on with Chad Reed. It isn't reasonable to expect a win every race, but I must admit I was pretty surprised to see him so finishing so far off the pace of Stewart and RC.

I don't think Chad cares too much about the World Supercross GP; I expect he's using these two rounds as warmup rounds to get the kinks worked out of the new bike and to learn to ride the 450 in Supercross. Last year it took him six races to get a win. Hopefully he'll be ready for Anaheim 1 on January 7.