Growing our Sport ?

dmx153 said:
Fantastic for Unique and Monique! What's the deal with Austin wearing green nail polish?
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Ask Nana, its her dealio.


ck1racerx said:
That's his thing. Now he will have to do it his whole racing career. He is a trend setter. Now get the boy a KTM you tight arse. Better make it two...
Great pictures
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DD has one in staging for me, going to pick it up soon! I really want to give him more time to get comfy on the bike before giving him too much power and scaring him. He was over jumping a big rounded takeoff and landing at the bottom about 6' below. The PW suspension isnt going to cut it much longer!
 
Thanks guys. Dave I have been wanting to respond to this for a while but I'm not that great at (or pumped on)typing and been kinda busy to put in the effort, for what feels to me like a book report. lol
Anyway, I'm not sure the sport is growing but it may be maintaining. That may have to be good enough in these times of sensory overload. I mean there are so many other things to do that making a bunch of work and expense for yourself by taking on racing seems to be getting less inviting to people. And who could blame anyone. A parent can put an ipad in a kids hand and do work around the house all day vs getting up early to spend a bunch of money taking him racing and changing air filters and listening to him talk about how bad the roost hurt. But the memories will be different, so hopefully that's what will keep the mx train rolling. It did get expensive over the last decade due to 4 strokes and the overall price of fuel. So we're up against that.
I made my place because the spots that I used to ride at as a kid disappeared. So I've been continuously building and creating a moto playground that is inspired by having fun on your bike and just enjoying riding.
It is a work in progress though and there are many things to improve on around here. I only get part of it right, sometimes.
I'm glad you came up and gave my place a shot and I'm pumped your family had a good time and enjoyed my facility.
Hopefully the fun of TV Land can help "grow the sport".
 
trevor145 said:
Thanks guys. Dave I have been wanting to respond to this for a while but I'm not that great at (or pumped on)typing and been kinda busy to put in the effort, for what feels to me like a book report. lol
Anyway, I'm not sure the sport is growing but it may be maintaining. That may have to be good enough in these times of sensory overload. I mean there are so many other things to do that making a bunch of work and expense for yourself by taking on racing seems to be getting less inviting to people. And who could blame anyone. A parent can put an ipad in a kids hand and do work around the house all day vs getting up early to spend a bunch of money taking him racing and changing air filters and listening to him talk about how bad the roost hurt. But the memories will be different, so hopefully that's what will keep the mx train rolling. It did get expensive over the last decade due to 4 strokes and the overall price of fuel. So we're up against that.
I made my place because the spots that I used to ride at as a kid disappeared. So I've been continuously building and creating a moto playground that is inspired by having fun on your bike and just enjoying riding.
It is a work in progress though and there are many things to improve on around here. I only get part of it right, sometimes.
I'm glad you came up and gave my place a shot and I'm pumped your family had a good time and enjoyed my facility.
Hopefully the fun of TV Land can help "grow the sport".
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Man...that's just awesome. Your perspective I mean. I have always heard about how much fun folks have at your place and I knew why...but now I really get it.

Trevor...I hope Knox is better at keeping his word than me...when he says he will show up to your place.

Keep it up Dude! Brap!
 
I think that the biggest reason the sport doesnt grow is the amount of turn over and people that dont stick with it for whatever reason. I sat here the other day thinking about all the people I knew that dont ride anymore. The reason everyone feels like we need to keep adding new people is because the bucket is leaking, maybe not gushing, but leaking enough to where I think we are just maintaining the population of riders. So instead of JUST focusing new blood (we still need to focus on it), what do we do to retain the people we have now? And can we keep them riding? Meaning are they just simply leaving for reasons out of our control (nature of the beast)?
 
J.O. you are exactly right. But this may be an even more difficult issue to figure out and correct. I know we are going to hear the same old reasons: Cost too much, went to school, Married, hurt and so on. I bet there are common reasons outside those if you dig deep enough. I think we need to find-out what the average "career" length is for a racer. Then break it down by age at the start of their racing life. Once we understand the "career expectancy" then we can work on keeping those racers.
Personally, I don't get the "cost too much" issue. Unless you lost your job, the financials for racing does not change week to week, month to month, year to year. It changes over long periods of time. If you cant afford to race every week, then it is ok to cut back to every other week or once a month. If someone goes racing one week and says. "I cant afford this" sells everything and walks away. Then there is nothing we as a racing community do to prevent that. They are just not committed. If someone that has raced for years (Longer then the unknown average.) just walks away, those are the people we need to ask: Why did you quit?

And yes Jarrett, I will keep my word and hit Trevor's track. It may not be this month, but we will get there. Guess I need to schedule a northern tour. The Vern, TV and any event put on by the Hand fam.
 
When thinking about the people that leave the sport though, I go back to the exact reasons. Many leave in their early 20s after graduation. They go to college, mom and dad stop paying for the racing, so then it cost too much. I know MANY like that. Once the parents were not paying for the racing, they were gone. Then there are the ones that leave after injury, and the ones that thought they were going big time, and once they don't make Lorettas, they leave. I can think of about 3 kids that Matthew raced, that were HARD core for 3 or 4 years. The practice every week, race every weekend type people. 3 or 4 years of that, still don't make Lorettas, and have not seen from them again, boom.....gone.

I've been around forever. But I have never been one of those ride every week, race every weekend racers. Me personally, I believe that keeps you from the burn out. It is a lot of work to go ride and race (at least for me). I get home, the trucks cleaned, the trailers are cleaned, the bikes are maintained, all to turn around and do it again and again! So riding and racing like I do, keeps the burn out down. Matthew and I raced 4 out of 5 weeks. He had no idea why I did not want to go ride last week! Needed a break.
 
One thing that helps retaining riders. You hav e to keep momma happy. Once she makes a scene and older sister that does not ride start to pout. It is always a fight for time.
So when CTMX makes it a party the whole family has fun.

I know it is moto and what does the rest of the family matter , you either moto or not But i am sitting at universal studios now miseriable to keep the balance of the force!

It does change things
 
One other reason. I am sitting by the pool people watching.
I have never seen more of out of shape fat lazey m fers ever. 10 year old kids round like a beach ball. I have a gut but im 48 No excuse but when i get a little chubby i do something about it.
 
Double D said:
One other reason. I am sitting by the pool people watching.
I have never seen more of out of shape fat lazey m fers ever. 10 year old kids round like a beach ball. I have a gut but im 48 No excuse but when i get a little chubby i do something about it.
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Totally agree. Picked my daughter up at high school a few weeks ago. Man, I can not believe how many LARGE boys and girls there are. And wait till they get in their 30s and 40s. If its like that at 16-18, I can only imagine 20 and 30 years from now.

Go to the water park at Kings Island. There are more train wrecks there to look at than you can imagine.
 
If I didn't have student loan debt I would race more

But if I didn't get screwed into college I wouldn't have a job doing what I do now. To make debt payments.

So I dunno what the answer is. But I know people my age or in their 20s. Are paying their race money to the student loan shark. Back when Knox was 20 the student loan shark wasn't so big and hungry.


Can We can blame the large kids on parents giving their kids an iPad ? Maybe! Thank god Internet wasn't in my house until I turned 14. How technology has boomed. I'm 28. Who could imagine an iphone6 14 years ago?!
 
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Talk about a great way to grow the sport!!! Kudos A51!
 
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