Several years back I wrote this article in hopes of improving the quality of our racers. It worked for many and now that there are new faces everywhere, so I thought it would be a good idea to resurrect it. Read it! If you race, it pertains to you....

You’re sitting home looking at your recently crashed motorcycle wondering where you are going to find the money to put it back together. The bank account is long depleted, the house has three mortgages on it, all of your charge cards are ready to self destruct. What’s next? A serious evaluation of life in general and how to get out of “this fine mess.”

Let’s see what our options are: Leave town; change your name; get plastic surgery (use your girlfriends credit card); file for bankruptcy; or look for a sponsor. (Pretty narrow choices.. or are they?)

“Hmmm, now there’s one that I should have thought of right away,” our hero muses. “Maybe that guy who owns that fast Yamahkawahonsuzduc, and just retired, would like to let me race it for him.”

You call the guy up and find out that he is interested in sponsoring you and will “take care of everything.” Wow, what a deal (or as we say in New York, “such a deal, made from gold.”) You head to the track the next weekend and there his is with his bike, a motor home, big trailer with refrigerator and bed. Just like the “factory riders.” You see a mechanic putting up an awning and he is struggling with it. You go right past him to look in the trailer, not even bothering to help, after all, he is the hired help and you are the racer. You don’t have to help anyone now that you are “big time.” You go into the trailer, throw your leathers and boots in a corner and sit in the first chair you see.

Your sponsor is working on the bike and you reach over and take a soda out of the refrigerator then grab a handful of grapes to munch on. You put your feet up on the tail section of the bike and relax waiting for your first practice session. The mechanic comes in sweating and holding his hand which is bleeding. He has to climb over you to get to the first aid kit on the wall. Then he has to climb over you again to get out of the trailer. The sponsors’ wife has just arrived and starts to polish the bike. You decided to take a walk and visit with your buddies. As you stroll out of the trailer, your sponsor mentions that the tires need to be mounted, but you think he is talking to the mechanic, after all that’s not your job. You no longer have to walk down to the tire guys with the rims and wait in line.

You return after an hour or so, put on your leathers and boots. As you slip on your helmet you notice that the face shield is dirty, so you tell the bosses wife to use some cleaner and wipe the dirt off. You of course did not say “please.” When she is done, you also forgot to say “thank you.” You pull out onto the track and wick the throttle to the stops without warming up the tires, so as you approach the turn at the end of the back straight, you blip the throttle to downshift and lean over at near full speed.

The rear end comes around and passed you as you sail into the air. The crash is bad, the bike is in a million pieces and you have ripped your already worn leathers to shreds. Your helmet is ruined as are your boots.

You hitch a ride back to the pits and your sponsor is asking how your are? What about the bike? You don’t know or act like you care. You mention that the suspension must have been off, that’s why you crashed. Or maybe there was oil on the track. You head for your truck and go home writing the day off.

The next morning, Sunday, your sponsor calls from the track and wants to know what you are doing at home. The bike is back together and ready to go. You tell him that maybe you’ll ride the bike next month. You’re not in the mood right now. Your leg is a little sore, and you just don’t feel like getting out of bed. He figures you might be hurt so he doesn't push the issue. (The fact that your new girlfriend is over is the main reason you are not getting out of bed.)

Your hang up the phone and figure as long as you are up, a trip to the beach for a little waterskiing, volleyball and softball with some buddies is the way to go. After skiing all day you get home to find a message on your answer machine. It’s one of the guys in your Superbike class calling to tell you what a great day they had at the track.

So, you call him back and he tells you about the bike you crashed and how another rider (one who you always beat) is now riding the bike. He also goes on to tell you that the new kid won 4 classes on it and cleaned up in the Shootout. You get pissed and immediately call the owner and ask what the deal is. He tells you that things just didn’t work out, and he has a new rider who is more of a team player. What you didn’t know was, your sponsors partner was passing the beach with his kids on the way to the track and saw you hanging out. When he got to the track he asked why you were not riding. Caught!

You can’t figure out why the guy would take on a new kid who is not as good as you are. You have all those championships and the guy dumps you. Makes no sense. He must be a jerk. You are convinced that you can beat the new kid next month.

The next race weekend comes around and thanks to the new girlfriend and her credit card, you have your bike back together again. You are pitted across from your former sponsor and his new rider. You watch as the kid helps set up the pit, cleans the bike and gets gas on the mini bike. He is all over the place. Later in practice you both pull out onto the track, you quickly wick up your bike but not too fast this time. As you cruise around in practice you come up behind the new guy. His is just out turning times that most amateurs would blow away. You figure he must have been lucky the month before as you blow by him in the sweeper. You smile thinking that he will be now problem in the race.

During the lunch break you notice that the kid is again all over the paddock. He is showing a visitor the bike and talking about his sponsor. The afternoon sprints start and your first race is coming up. At the third call you mount up and head for pit out. You are side by side with the new kid on the warm up lap heading for the grid.

The green flag drops and you’re off. As you head into the corner you look up just as the new kid comes under you taking the lead. You figure he got lucky, and will pass him later in the lap. About half way through the first lap, it becomes apparent that the kid is very fast as he pulls away from you by 3 seconds crossing the stripe for the first time. At the checkers you find yourself in second, he is out of sight. He has won by over 20 seconds.

Your return to the pits as your buddies want to know what happened? You never lose. You attribute it to the bike former sponsors new bike. You know that it is fast to start with.

The next race the kid is on a 600, so you figure you’ll smoke him with your 750 for sure. The bike he’s riding looks brand new, you wonder where he got the money for it. At the start you holeshot the field. By the third lap of seven, you feel like someone is close to you in turn five, then you see a front wheel on the outside, you move over to do a little creative blocking, then realize the rider (the new kid) just suckered you and passed underneath you again. You pull up on his rear wheel heading into a tight corner as he takes a very low line. You think you have room to pass outside. All of a sudden the corner falls away and you are looking at a “big field of tall grass.” You manage to keep the bike upright and pull back on the track, noting the grass was dry and tall, are you ever lucky. You lost 20 places and are now playing catch up.

At the checkers you find yourself in 12th place, not a position you are used too. The new kid won the race by 18 seconds against the bigger displacement bikes. It seems like it makes no difference what his is riding. As you put your bike up on the stand it becomes apparent that a crowd is forming over across pit road. Everyone is talking about how close the kid came to breaking the track record. This is only his second weekend as an expert and you’ve been one for years. It just makes no sense that the guy’s sponsors would rather have him ride for the team and not you.

The Shootout comes and you are ready, there is nothing that is going to stop you from winning. You have focused all your attention and are positive about the face. With the green flag, you again pull the holeshot but is short lived as the youngster passes you again on the outside of the corner then slides right in front of you, chopping your front wheel. You push your bike to the limits and them some, hanging on to the speedy kid for two laps. He then starts to pull away. You know you are near the track record, the corners are a blur. You have lost touch as the white flag comes out. The kid is 300 yards ahead already and still pulling away. At the checkers, he has broken the track record leaving you in second place (or first loser as your buddies say). Dejected you return to your pit to load you bike up on the open trailer. The real slap in the face comes when you find out he was on the 600 again!

As you are finishing up, the sponsor comes over and offers some advice. “I really like the way ride, but you need some work on being a team player. Just coming to the track and riding is only a small part of the total package. This kid shows up, works his butt off, then goes out and beats the competition. That’s a team player! I hope you turn yourself around the next year or so. You may just get left behind if you don’t. There are faster guys coming up through the ranks who know how to behave when someone else is footing the bill.”

As I drove out the gate, a lot of what he told me made sense, you are a butthead. Who do you think you are? Some kind of a star? You are just a local club racer, not a famous pro racer. You were the king in a very small way, but today, you got knocked off your throne and kicked into the moat (used at many castles as the personal waste storage area). Bigtime!!!

The point of the above:

Labels stick to racers like glue. Many of them have been to the pinnacle of our sport (a factory ride) and blew it with just such activities as above. Don’t’ believe me? Think again! I’ve been through it with riders many times over the last 23 years. Don’t’ think a sponsor can just walk up and offer you a ride, even on the club level? Think again... I know of two rider’s who benefited in the last three months from sponsorship deals. Good ones’ too! For you folks who race in the National Series. Television can do wonders for you and your team. Comb your hair.

Hurt or slightly wounded, come to the track and cheer on your buddies, talk up your sponsor. Wear your team colors and be proud.

For the rest of you. Think before you engage your attitude and your mouth. Maybe you need some advice or a little guidance, run me down at the track and I’ll be glad to sit down for a awhile. I usually need the rest. Look what the successful guys and girls are doing. Marketing! The buzz word.

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