At the age of 6 I started to ride dirt bikes and that’s when I knew I would love riding dirt bikes for the rest of my life.The first time I rode a dirt bike I thought It was scary and a bit nerve racking but once I got the hang of it wasn’t so bad, but what I didn’t like the most was riding in the woods. The other thing that I remember was that my grandparents’ house at the time wasn’t that far away from this farm field and so my Papa had asked if it was okay if we could ride them on his land, and there was this really big tractor tire root in the back corner and by then I was riding the 50 and before my Papa let me go ride by myself, he said to look out for the tractor tire root, I said “okay” and drove right into it. I have so many more crash stories to share. Let’s find out more and see why people love this sport.
What is the sport Motocross?
The goal of Motocross is to complete the course in the fastest time possible.
There is the thing called Motos and that word is a keyword for races and there are usually two motos in each class.The classes for in each motos are 250s and 450s.What I mean by this is that 250s and 450s are the main classes that get raced the most and the 450 class is considered the premier class in professional motocross and it features the most powerful and is mainly for the experienced riders. The 250 class is often used as a stepping stone for riders to develop their skills and experience before moving up to the 450 class. These are the bigger bikes and they are the main classes in Motocross. These bikes also have a lot of horsepower and 250cc dirt bikes weigh around 220-230 pounds, while 450cc dirt bikes tend to be 10-20 pounds heavier due to their larger engine and sometimes more robust frame. There are some many more classes in Motocross and they are Youth, Women,Men, and those with various skill levels.
Let’s see why people love Motocross
For me the reason that I fell in love with the sport was because I loved the feeling and I also love the feeling of adrenaline when I go over the jumps and try to send it over a table top(that is the name of a jump) Riders love this sport because they like the feeling of freedom. When the next season comes and they were working on improvement on the off season then they come back to the next season they love to see skill development and progress that they made on the off season.
Safety precautions
For protections when riding you will need the basics and they are Boots, goggles (riding goggles, not swim goggles), riding gloves, a helmet, jerseys (you can get jerseys with elbow padding in them), and riding pants.(you can ride the dirt bikes in jeans but just around the yard on your own property, and you can also wear work boots or cowboy boots,but you will still need the helmet, gloves and goggles). When racing , what you will wear under your riding stuff is a Chest protector, you can buy knee pads/knee braces(What the knee pads/knee braces will do is they will restrict knee movement to prevent or reduce damage to ligaments and joints.), and protection shorts. A way to know that your helmet fits you good, you put the helmet on your head, someone will grab the front of your helmet and you will shake your head back and forth. If your head doesn’t move then your helmet fits you perfectly. Some common injuries in Motocross are ankle sprains, ACL tears, broken collarbones, broken or sprained wrists, and your shoulder can get dislocated, and rotator cuff tears.
The top motocross riders throughout history:
- Ricky Carmichael: He is known for his incredible success and dominance. Carmichael often rode for the Yamaha racing team.
- Bob Hannah: “The Hurricane” (that was his nickname) was known for his aggressive style and often rode for Yamaha.
- Ricky Johnson: A multiple-time champion, Johnson is often associated with Honda.
- James Stewart: Known as “Bubba”, Stewart was a dominant force in the 450 class and he would often ride for Kawasaki.
These 4 riders are from eras of the 1970s- 80s and the 2000s, which would include Ricky Johnson and Bob Hannah from the 1970s- 80s, the 2 riders that are from the modern era of Supercross and Motocross these people are Ricky Carmichael and James Stewart.
The top motocross riders today:
The 450 class:
- Jett Lawrence: Returning to the 450SX class with the #1 plate, defending his 450SX title and the number one plate in the 450MX class. He also races for team Honda.
- Chase Sexton: He also has the #1 plate in the 450MX class, after winning the 2023 Pro Motocross. He also races for Red Bull, his bike is a KTM
- Cooper Webb: He finished second in the 2024 Supercross points standing, Webb is with Monster Energy, he is a Yamaha Star Racing and he wears #2
- Eli Tomac: Returning for what is said to be his final professional season, Tomac is with Honda HRC and running his career #3.
- Hunter Lawrence: Hunter and Jett are brothers and they are from Australia. Hunter entering his sophomore year in the 450 class, Hunter is with Honda HRC and he wears #96.
The 250 class
- Haiden Deegan: The 2024 Pro Motocross and 250 SMX champion, Deegan is with Monster Energy Yamaha Star racing and will be wearing his permanent #38 in Supercross.
- Tom Vialle: Vialle is with Red Bull KTM and is vying for the 25oSX title.
- Jo Shimoda : Shimoda is back with Honda HRC and is racing the 250SX West division
- Chance Hymas: Hymas is back with Honda HRC and has a new number, #10
- Julien Beaumer: Beaumer is a key contender in the 250SX West class.
The interview from me and my Papa
- How old were you when you started riding dirt bikes and when you started racing?
Papa: “I was 13 when I bought my first motorcycle (mom’s rules). It was a 1973 JCPenney Duster.I rode it for a year and then bought a 1971 Honda SL100. I also rode that one for a year and then took all of my money from babysitting and
working at the grocery store and bought a real race bike, a 1976 Honda CR125
Elsinore!
I only raced it a couple times when I was 16, but I rode the wheels off of that bike.
Nobody I knew could beat me. ;’
As you can see, bikes then were way different than they are now. Not as much
suspension, drum brakes instead of discs, down pipes for exhaust instead of the current up pipes. They were much shorter and had wider handlebars.”
2.What were dirt bikes like when you started riding?
“Those bikes were so much fun to ride! You just held the throttle wide open and held on!”
3.Do you prefer the older style bikes or the newer style bikes?
“The new bikes ride so much nicer, better suspension, amazing brakes, and so much power! I don’t really have a favorite.”
4.What were dirt bike race tracks like when you started racing?
“Tracks in the early 70’s were a lot different. Supercross didn’t exist yet, so the tracks were much faster and the jumps weren’t as big. As Supercross began to take off, the tracks got more technical and the jumps got bigger.”
5.Where did you go to ride dirt bikes for fun?
“Where I grew up, there were motorcycle trails all over. I could leave from my house and ride for miles through the woods and along the railroad tracks. There were so many empty fields, you could ride what seemed like forever.”
6.What are a few of your favorite memories about riding and racing dirt bikes?
“Favorite memories of riding would be beating the best guy in the district on his home practice track. Every day riding them was just fun. A bunch of us would meet up and just ride to wherever. Current favorites are watching all of the Littles learn how much fun it is!”
Some more tips
Some other tips I have are when you are coming up to a corner, shift down, pull the clutch in, lean with the bike, then when you go through the corner, let the clutch out, shift up, and give it some gas. The clutch is a bit tricky to learn at first but once you get the hang of it, it’s pretty easy.
In conclusion, Motocross has been a big part of my life because of my Papa. He influenced my love for Motocross by talking about it and showing me old movies and showing me and my sister who were the popular riders back in the late 90’s. Now that you’ve read the article, would you try riding a dirt bike or try racing.
