No disrespect, but.. That does not sound simple. That sounds like the blue print for the hole DMG is in right now.
really sad to see.. it makes ya wonder if AMA Pro is deliberately sinking the ship for possible take over, fire sale, megre or something else.. no tin foil hat.. just can't believe the EPICCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC disaster they have spiraled into last few years.. I hate that i have no less than 5 TOP west coast "kids" that are not doing AMA in 2014 for various reasons. Guess WERA and AFM just got a bit better... lets hope these two can drum up some sponsors for extra purse to lure the riders to the grids and really make a decent NATIONAL (not just east of Mississippi AMA!) series..
I get it, I was there from the sidelines but I was there working in a bike shop that sold AJS, Guzzi, and Yamaha. I was 15 years old and earned 1.86 an hour at that job. Best job I ever had. One small shop with a three man race team. We never missed a weekend. I lived from one issue of Cycle News to the next. We ate, slept, and raced out of an ancient converted International bread delivery van with at least six inches of steering slop at the wheel. Still doing it a generation later, trying to sleep in the back of a Ford Excursion with a lanky, growing, thrashing, little furnace of a passionate racing kid. Would never trade it for the world. Lets grid.
From my experience in this industry there is always a tug and pull relationship between those who are devoted to the passion and those devoted to the bottom line. The most successful and happy people I know in this industry have always had a fair and equal balance of both.
Does anybody know if anyone from DMG watches this board ? If they do they would have to be aware of the disgust in the race community with what they've done / are doing.
Buy it to kill it it then re brand it-reboot. Basically lock DMG out of the room. Now lets talk positive about fund raising. Someone in here must have pro experience that area. I live in a small north Georgia motorcycling destination town. There will be a WERA flyer in every shop window. Road Atlanta is only about 40 miles from here. Change your mindset from what are they going to do to what can I do! Grass roots people... plant, feed, water, care, and grow. Harvest, repeat. I hope some of you get tried of my positive minded rants and others jump on the train. Weeds. Thinking this part over hard but I might even link a local well liked kid the town can get behind and cheer on at the track. Next year along the pit wall if you want to approach me to complain about something, save it. I`m busy. Bring me a positive suggestion with your issue and I'm all ears. At the end of the day we all vote and voice with how and where we spend our money whether it peaches or tires and whether we realize it or not.
Ok thanks, I didn't take it personally. And yes I am sure I am not the first guy to offer AMA/DMG some help only to get blown off. I just happen to love all of motorcycle racing and having followed AMA racing my whole life I just want to see it get back on the right track.
That's my fault then, when I hear "sprint" cars I think of dirt track. How can you say you don't care how they do it somewhere else? That mindset holds us back...
This thread alone has given me cancer. No disrespect, but MANY of you commenting here are either completely delusional or simply retarded.
This is not going to be a popular view and I'm just throwing this out there. Maybe money is what ruined the sport. Instead of hoping for a rich benefactor(s) to come in and save the day and dump money at the sport, maybe the rules should be changed to allow less than wealthy people to field a competitive bike. My thinking is that you can have a highly competitive racing series that allows the best riders to be seen and noticed or you can have a series that allows anyone with enough resources/money to field a bike that outclasses the rest, but you can’t have both. DMG/AMA tried the latter, maybe it’s time for a change. Heck even MotoGP has spec or at least semi-spec classes. Some might argue that the more spec the class the closer and better the racing. Most people here are anti-NASCAR, but it sure does attract the masses and my guess is it’s because of the close racing, not the technology, or lack thereof. If AMA races were closer, I’m betting the show would be better and attract more casual viewers. We have all been so desensitized to “AMA racing” that when a couple bikes put on a decent show, we go crazy about how great of a race it was. Go watch a Moto3 race if you want to see truly close racing. Now imagine if you actually knew the riders in that class how great it would be and how it might actually attract some outside viewers. It might not be a bad thing if DMG/AMA went away for a little bit to get that series in order and allow for a reboot. It would probably hurt US representation on the world stage in the short term, but it might strengthen the club levels and rebuild the base for which a national Pro series needs to pull from as an added bonus. Not that I’m planning a career change but after I ordered some Jimmy Johns online, I looked at the franchise/real estate info. They list everything they are looking for in a location to open a franchise. Things like daytime/business/residential populations within a 3 and 5 minute drive and median income. Maybe AMA/DMG should take a year to FIRST determine what it would take to attract a decent grid. I know every thinks more purse money, but what is the difference between that and not having to spend as much money in the first place. Then select race locations in selected areas that fall within a certain population, income level and interest in motorcycling. Then market the heck out of it. I don’t think they need to reinvent the wheel, learn from NASCAR and hell even AMA Supercross. First things first though, fix the racing product. If that means highly limiting the rules, then do what it takes to bring more competitive teams to the grid. Without a product how can you sell anything?
Doubt they would care. The tiny percentage of the American population that actually races motorcycles pales in comparison to the much larger audience they are trying to cater to for TV broadcasts and to a lesser degree pay gate fees to sit and watch the actual races live.
Unless he's dancing outside her window wearing only a gold lame banana hammock, he ain't gonna do spit.
The numbers don't add up. This board has something like 50,000 registered members and maybe 100 active posters and like 10 hyperactive posters responsible for the majority of the "content". The numbers say that the vast majority of the registered members don't race motorcycles or watch motorcycle racing on TV or go to live motorcycle races. If they did, a lot of this discussion would be moot. The round attendance numbers are low. The TV ratings are low. Like, really low.
