Some think the series needs change, some think given time Honda and others will begin to get competitive again. This however is hardly significant in most peoples opinions, I believe.

What most are expressing distaste about is the extent to which DMG is proposing changes and how they are going about expressing those changes. Some main examples of this are the extreme proposed changes in class structures, one being eliminating American Superbike racing as we know it; and the almost offensive manner in which these changes and others, namely racing in the rain have been communicated to the public. All of this has turned off a significant number of core fans and prompted responses from fans in motorcycle forums, the press and riders. This is all clearly evidenced by the level of coverage this story is getting.

Essentially the core road racing fans/ enthusiasts are pissed.

THE KICKER: DMG seems to think it's ok to piss off the existing core road racing fans because all the changes will attract more new fans and new and better sponsorship(I'm assuming this is true, why else would they act in this almost combative manner). BUT who are those fans? And who is that sponsorship. And why will the changes attract new fans? I cannot figure out who these fans are and why they would like the new series more if we wouldn't? I think the current small fan base are the only people who care about road racing, period. I don't believe their is any significant segment of the population, by any measure, that has not already been reached by AMA racing.

This is not like NASCAR or Grand Am racing, anyone can take a casual interest in that because almost anyone can relate to driving a car. Cars and car racing in America are mainstream. Motorcycles and motorcycle racing are NOT and they won't be unless Harley Davidson start producing road racing machines. So if you piss off the existing core you are really left with nothing. unless DMG thinks the core will get over it and just continue watching anyway, but then what is the point of any changes in the first place?

Quite honestly I will probably watch the new series, I just won't be paying any money or making any effort to attend the races (Infineon, Laguna and Fontana).

You're right. The fan base is so small as it is that I suspect they are going to kill off the series. It reminds me of Indy Car. I used to be a huge fan and followed the series religiously. When they made the split, started changing the rules, etc, I lost interest completely and have never watched it since.

There are other choices out there; MotoGP and World Superbike. Both are great series and I've kind of lost interest in AMA now because the results are always the same, Spies and Maladin, or vice versa. Why are the other bikes so far off? I'd say it has a lot to do with the riders as much as the bikes. If Spies was on a Yamaha he'd likely be competitive.

Maybe the racing will be really great. I lost interest in the Daytona 200 when they changed the class structure. The new proposals by DMG are killing any interest I have left in the series. FYI, I started following roadracing in '79 so I guess I could be considered the core group to which you refer.

kamoto - 17 June 2008 10:44 PM

I cannot figure out who these fans are and why they would like the new series more if we wouldn't? I think the current small fan base are the only people who care about road racing, period.

quite honestly i think a lot of the current "fan" base doesn't have a clue what they really want and i think they'll enjoy good racing if they're smart enough to see it. until it happens, nobody likes the prospect of unproven change and everybody likes to have something to complain about... go see the "where will nicky go" thread if you don't believe me

Some will - is the audience big enough that you can kill part of it?

currently not so much

No, DMG doesn't care. Someone or some group of them has decided what they want and that is the end of it. If they damage the sport it's not a big deal to them, see Tony George.

hey, you've still got WSB with the rules you like. what's a 3rd option?

Unfortunately the third (BEST) option wasn't the one that was taken. Live Nation has proven it can successfully promote motorcycle racing with the exact issues road racing faces. Although WSB is going to be even better next year when there will be American riders and teams.

kamoto - 17 June 2008 10:44 PM

Some think the series needs change, some think given time Honda and others will begin to get competitive again. This however is hardly significant in most peoples opinions, I believe.

What most are expressing distaste about is the extent to which DMG is proposing changes and how they are going about expressing those changes. Some main examples of this are the extreme proposed changes in class structures, one being eliminating American Superbike racing as we know it; and the almost offensive manner in which these changes and others, namely racing in the rain have been communicated to the public. All of this has turned off a significant number of core fans and prompted responses from fans in motorcycle forums, the press and riders. This is all clearly evidenced by the level of coverage this story is getting.

Essentially the core road racing fans/ enthusiasts are pissed.

THE KICKER: DMG seems to think it's ok to piss off the existing core road racing fans because all the changes will attract more new fans and new and better sponsorship(I'm assuming this is true, why else would they act in this almost combative manner). BUT who are those fans? And who is that sponsorship. And why will the changes attract new fans? I cannot figure out who these fans are and why they would like the new series more if we wouldn't? I think the current small fan base are the only people who care about road racing, period. I don't believe their is any significant segment of the population, by any measure, that has not already been reached by AMA racing.

This is not like NASCAR or Grand Am racing, anyone can take a casual interest in that because almost anyone can relate to driving a car. Cars and car racing in America are mainstream. Motorcycles and motorcycle racing are NOT and they won't be unless Harley Davidson start producing road racing machines. So if you piss off the existing core you are really left with nothing. unless DMG thinks the core will get over it and just continue watching anyway, but then what is the point of any changes in the first place?

Quite honestly I will probably watch the new series, I just won't be paying any money or making any effort to attend the races (Infineon, Laguna and Fontana).

I think you hit it right on the money. When you look at our population, almost everyone drives a car. But not everyone rides a motorcycle and actually, the numbers are not even close. And while Live Nation has been able to make supercross a money making entity, there are several advantages supercross has over road racing. For one, dirt bike riding is something the whole family can get involved in. The big 4 all make dirtbikes small enough that even your 5 year old kid can ride, and when their interest in dirt bikes is sparked, they're gonna want to go to the supercross. And so when that happens, someone has to take them and the whole family goes. Where as, if your 5 year old kid wanted to go road racing, what are their options? Outside of pocket bikes, there really are none. And two, supercross is something that fits in a stadium and is such that your seat can view all of the action, unlike road racing, and even SX's counterpart, motocross. This means the casual fan can pay for a ticket to go to a supercross and have a fun time. How many of those fans are going to want to pay to go to a national, stand around in the blistering heat, and if you're at glen helen, climb a mountain or two?

A big part of supercross, imo, is directly related to the stadium. Stadiums are in population centers, an easy drive or generally can be accessed via public transportation. Most race tracks require a little more commitment.

Before the new Superbike format was announced I assumed Supercross had advantages too. But after digging around I've been told that's not the case. The thing the kids want to see is Freestyle or whatever it's called this week. I should have already realized that though. My niece wants to marry Travis Pastrana and thinks Ricky Carmichael and Bubba Stewart stay racing because they "couldn't cut it doing tricks".

One of my coworkers had two sons who were pretty good motocross riders before they decided girls were better than bikes. He got a little help from one a the manufactures and still talks to a rep that now works in the ad department. The stadiums are an advantage but apparently not as big as I thought. The main plus in a stadium is the logos on the bikes and riders are a lot easier for fans since they are usually closer. That automatically increases the value of a sponsorship. And getting people to the race is not the biggest goal anyway. The main exposure is getting people to watch on TV. Getting butts in the seats is important but it's second after getting their butts on the sofa to watch the rest of the season.

By the way I wish she worked in the racing department so I could get info about what's going to on. Right now she just has the same bunch of rumors as we have on the outside. Either that or my former buddy is holding out on me and I'm going to have to kill him when I find out.

I don't know if Live Nation even submitted a proposal but if they did it doesn't matter now. Anyway I've come up with a new theory. I think AMA saw the proposal, knew it was a disaster and couldn't wait until us fans started reminiscing about the good ole days when they were running things.