JODY'S TRUE STORY OF "LET BROCK BYE"

Many of today's vet riders grew up reading MXA and columnist Jody Weisel. Over the past few decades Jody has written thousands of words about our sport. Like most writers some of his stuff is good, some not so good and some exceptionally good. We are fortunate to have someone who brings a historical perspective to our sport. Below is a reprint from MXA's website and a sample of Jody's very best. Our sport marches on but sometimes it pays to look back.

The Last Day Of Innocence; What Really Happened & How Many Words Were Spelled Wrong

By Jody Weisel

Thirty-six years ago, American motocross’s hippie years were about to end. I remember it like it was yesterday. Oh, air-cooled engines, twin-shocks, 428 chains and my long locks would hang on for a few more years, but the camaraderie of the formative years (1968-1976), a time that I like to think of as innocent and spiritual, was about to hit the bridge abutment of commercial prostitution. The head-on impact was so sudden that the old era’s epitaph could be written in just three words—"Let Brock Bye."

The central character of motocross’s change of life was Bob Hannah. Hannah, who would go on to become the biggest name in American motocross history, was an unlikely hero. Yet, he became grander than everyone who came before or after. The shaggy-haired 20-year-old wandered the pits with a slouching manner, but a powerful presence. He wasn’t all business; he didn’t ride dirty; he wasn’t poetry in motion. In truth, he worshiped at the altar of John Wayne more than Roger DeCoster. He reveled in practical jokes, was quick to laugh, and would do anything for a friend. Yet he was a juggernaught on the track. He rode with an inner anger that oozed to the surface and was fueled by personal insecurities. Bob Hannah was both a paradox and a palindrome. Rough around the edges in language and manners, he was blessed with sharp business acumen—sharp enough to change the balance of power in motocross from the factory to the rider.

When Hannah went out in practice, the other riders would gather to watch him ride. His style was more eclectic than polished, but the kid had a grip of steel. Half the time he was flapping along behind his bike like a flag in a stiff breeze. His greatest strength as a rider, apart from his tremendous desire to go fast, was his unwillingness to let go of the handlebars no matter how dire the situation.

 

In 1977, Hannah wasn’t a veteran of the National circuit. He had pocketed only one complete season in 1976 (and two exploratory 125 Nationals in 1975). But, his star had risen quickly, built on the ashes of the former boy wonder of the 125 class, Marty Smith. In 1976, Hannah had focused his fury on Smith in the way that a cat paws at catnip. The Hurricane, as Hannah was nicknamed, had won five of eight 125 Nationals in 1976 to take the title by 87 points over San Diego surfer Marty Smith, the 1974 and 1975 Champion. For Hannah, the 1976 victory was more than just a trophy for his mantle: it was class warfare. Bob saw Marty Smith as the squeaky clean, middle-class teen idol and himself as the scruffy, working-class desert rat. Hannah viewed the world as a battle between the haves and the have-nots.

For the 1977 season, it is often said that Hannah had bitten off more than he could chew. Instead of the Hurricane just trying to back up his 1976 AMA 125 National Championship, Yamaha had him contesting all four title chases. Hannah split his time between the 125 Nationals, 250 Nationals, 500 Nationals and 250 Supercross series. Believe it or not, if it hadn’t been for scheduling conflicts, Hannah might well have pulled off the quadruple. In the end, the AMA feared a Hannah sweep of every Championship so much that they stopped holding single class Nationals—choosing to combine them on the same day. It was a blatant anti-Hannah move by the AMA, but perhaps the greatest compliment that a sanctioning body could pay a rider.

In the 1977 250 Supercross Championship, Bob won six of ten events and clinched the title in late November at Anaheim Stadium. In the 1977 AMA 250 National Championships, Tony DiStefano won his third straight 250 title, but Hannah did manage to win the Herman, Nebraska, round (and finish seventh overall in the standings). In the 1977 AMA 500 National Championships, Hannah won the Charlotte, North Carolina, round and finished second overall behind archenemy Marty Smith for the title.

Bob had set out to race ten Supercrosses, seven 250 Nationals, six 500 Nationals and six 125 Nationals in a single year. There was only one date conflict (Hangtown was a combined 125/250 National), but all the rest of the races were single displacement Nationals with support classes. Eventually, the stress of trying to win all the classes was brought to a halt by the reality of the enormity of the task at hand. And while Hannah did manage to pull off winning a 125, 250 and 500 National, plus a 250 Supercross in the same season, Team Yamaha finally chose to have Bob focus on the 125 chase for 1977. And what a 125 National Championship series it turned out to be. There were three distinct battle plans at work during the 1977 series —each manned by riders who would go on to greater things in the coming years.

 First there was Bob Hannah. Hannah was riding with more than his usual derring-do. Next came Broc Glover, Hannah’s Yamaha teammate, but by no means his friend. Broc was in his first year at Team Yamaha. He couldn’t afford to ride with Hannah’s blitzkrieg style. He wanted to keep his job, and failure to finish would be the kiss of death. Finally, Team Suzuki’s Danny LaPorte had Championship speed, but was paradoxically hampered in the title chase by the fact that he had a decent points lead by the end of the first two rounds. From race three on, Danny tried to ride cautiously—willing to give up points as long as he had them to give. But not willing to crash in defense of points.

The 1977 AMA 125 National Championship series was six races long. Here is how it played out.

PLYMOUTH, CALIFORNIA: Bob Hannah had a do-or-die approach to every race he entered, and his maniacal riding style was made all the more furious by the fact that he only earned three points at the opening round in Plymouth, California (the original Hangtown track). Yamaha had been scared out of running their water-cooled engines (by the claiming rule) and chose to go with a non-water-cooled version of the OW27 works bike. In moto one, Hannah was leading when his muffler fell off and wedged into his rear tire. The drag predictably led to a seized engine that Bob miraculously nursed home to 17th. In moto two, Bob’s chain guide broke and he threw his chain.

Danny LaPorte went 1-1 at Plymouth, and privateers Pat Richter, Gary Ogden and Steve Wise kept all the other factory riders at bay. Hangtown gave LaPorte a massive lead over Glover (8th) and Hannah (17th).

KEITHSBURG, ILLINOIS: The Keithsburg race was held at Sandy Oaks Raceway; a sand track that proved to be one of the roughest and toughest tracks of the year. On the whooped-out track, Bob Hannah owned the day. LaPorte would go 2-4 for second, while Broc Glover went 8-2 for third. Danny’s second place in the first moto came at the expense of 500cc rider Jimmy Weinert, who was racing his first-ever 125 National at Keithsburg. The Jammer was running second until his experimental KX125 ran out of gas. Weinert didn’t start the second moto because Kawasaki didn’t have a big enough gas tank capacity to get him to the checkered flag. LaPorte stretched his lead on Glover at round two, and while he lost ten points to Hannah, Danny still had 37 points in hand over the Hurricane.

MIDLAND, MICHIGAN: Midland was another sand track, and it was also a coup for the Yamaha duo of Hannah (1-2) and Glover (5-1). Jimmy Weinert was back with a bigger gas tank and took his KX125 to third overall (2-4) in front of Danny LaPorte’s 4-3. LaPorte’s results may seem decent, but in fact he had a devastating day. It was a day that would haunt him by season’s end. In the second moto, Danny was running second behind Broc Glover when a spectator darted across the track and hooked Danny ’s brake cable. Danny kept his bike upright, but his drum brake cable was bowed out. Hannah quickly caught up to Danny and a battle royale ensued. Unfortunately for Danny, at the very end of the moto, the brake cable flexed inward, caught on the front knobs and threw Danny over the bars. Hannah was gone and so was second place. Danny remounted in time to keep third, but those two lost points would be telling in San Antonio.

 

 RIO BRAVO, TEXAS: Shocker! Hannah didn’t win. Broc Glover was perfect in the Houston suburbs and easily won both motos. Local Texas hero Steve Wise was equally good with a 2-2 day. Danny LaPorte was a safe and sane third overall with a 4-4. As for the Hurricane, he struggled to a 5-5 day. Why? Bob had engine trouble in the morning and completely missed practice. He spent all of practice watching his engine being rebuilt. Bob went to the starting line of the first moto without a clear picture in his head of where the track went. In the end, Bob went right when the track went left and he collided with another rider. He remounted in tenth and worked his way back to fifth by moto’s end.

Glover’s easy day was aided in the second moto when Danny LaPorte and Japanese Suzuki teammate Koji Masuda crashed into each other off the start. LaPorte charged through the pack to get back to fourth (he even passed Bob Hannah). Hannah wasn’t as lucky. He fell down after an altercation with Jimmy Weinert and ended up tailing Glover, Wise, Weinert and LaPorte home.

ST. JOSEPH, MISSOURI: LaPorte’s conservative strategy was failing him, as was Bob Hannah’s total war approach to the series. At St. Joe’s Hannah took both moto wins (he raced like he had no choice but to win), while Glover went 3-2 for second in front of Warren Reid (5-3), Danny LaPorte (4-4) and a new kid, Mark Barnett (2-8). With one round left, LaPorte’s massive early lead had been whittled down to ten points over Glover and 17 points in front of Hannah. Bob had won three of the five 125 Nationals to this point, but mechanical issues had cost him any chance of winning the title with only San Antonio left on the calendar.

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS: For me, getting to fly from SoCal to San Antonio was a homecoming. I had graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio and my parents still lived in the Alamo City. I got to sleep in my old bedroom and get up and go to the races just like when I was a kid. I’m not going to lie to you, I had my favorites going into the San Antonio race. I had been buddies with Texan Steve Wise since the early days at Lockhart, Lake Whitney, Mosier Valley and Forest Glades. During the 1977 season I had hung with Pat Richter throughout the 125 Nationals and always liked Danny LaPorte as a person (and still do).

It should be noted that at this point in his career, Broc Glover wasn’t the pompous horse’s patoot he would become once he achieved stardom. Broc was still a naive San Diego kid, happy to be on a works bike and enjoying life. He wasn’t snide, overtly smug or egotistical...yet. I say those terrible things about Broc because that is what he became in the ’80s. Today, at 53 years old, Broc’s personality is now closer to the 17-year-old Broc than the 24-year old “Golden Boy” that he believed himself to be at the height of his Yamaha stardom. In short, I was rooting for Danny LaPorte. There was no need to root for Bob Hannah — he didn’t need my support or anyone else. He was a force of nature.

San Antonio’s Cyclerama track was a pile on the day of the National. The pits were located in what looked like an abandoned quarter-mile oval track and it was a very muggy and hot August 14th. Typical weather for South Texas in late summer. There was, to quote Sherlock Holmes, “foul play afoot” in San Antonio. Instead of the normal two factory Yamaha riders in the 125 class, Yamaha team manager Kenny Clark had drafted Pierre Karsmakers, Rick Burgett and Mike Bell to get in the way of Danny LaPorte. AMA referee Mike DiPrete took one look at the entry list, flew to San Antonio and called a riders meeting to admonish the riders about interfering with others riders on the track...and as he spoke he looked directly at Karsmakers, Bell and Burgett.

Big-bike specialists Karsmakers and Burgett didn’t want to be there. Pierre left no doubt when he pulled me aside after the riders meeting and said, “I’m not here to block for anyone, least of all Hannah and Glover. I plan to stay as far away from the front as possible.” Mike Bell was in a more ticklish situation. San Antonio was his first real chance to show Team Yamaha what he could do. He wanted to try to win, but he knew that wasn’t in the cards. He had to walk a delicate line between serious racer and Snidely Whiplash.

The racing in San Antonio wasn’t especially noteworthy. The Moto-X Fox team of Steve Wise and Pat Richter holeshot the first moto, but the AMA decided that both orange-and-yellow riders had jumped the gate. Richter, Ryan Villopoto ’s uncle, crashed out and Wise was penalized ten places (from fifth to 15th).

Broc Glover won moto one with Bob Hannah in second and Danny LaPorte in third. With one moto to go in the season, the points difference was now five points between LaPorte and Glover (the difference between first and third).

Before we move on to the controversial outcome of the second moto, let me say a few words about historical precedent. Sporting scandals and rigged events have been the bane of professional sports since the first bookie took a bet on Pheidippides at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC. In more modern times, ever since Shoeless Joe Jackson and his 1919 Chicago White Sox teammates threw the World Series at the request of gamblers (earning them the Black Sox name), the idea of rigging the outcome of an event has been considered a criminal offense against the fans. In the 1960s, NFL players Alex Karras, later a TV sitcom star, and Paul Hornung were suspended from football for one year for betting on the outcome of games. In the ’70s Pete Rose was racking up baseball records, but before his career was over he would be barred from entering Cooperstown for betting on sports games (games that the Commissioner of Baseball believed he had some control over).

And, in 1974, the Russians sent out a series of hitmen to make sure that Czech rider Jaroslav Falta did not win the 250 World Championship. Russian Guennady Moisseev won the crown, but there were enough incidents between Falta and Moisseev’s red star teammates to cause the title to be tainted. Now in 1977, the AMA faced its first serious issue about fixing the outcome of a pro race. Not only had Yamaha packed the field with potential blockers, whose reason for being there could only be construed as trying to interfere with Danny LaPorte’s progress, but they eventually altered the outcome of the race by ordering Bob Hannah to take a dive.

As the second moto wore on, with Bob Hannah a good 25 seconds ahead of Broc Glover and a distant Danny LaPorte in third, it was obvious to anyone who could do the math that LaPorte was going to be the 1977 AMA 125 National Champion. As the laps counted down, I wandered back towards the pits, stopping to talk to my buddy Jim “The Greek” Gianatsis just across the track from the mechanic’s area. There were no photos left to shoot, as the race had taken on the monotony of a Shriner’s Parade. As the Greek and I chatted about where we would go to dinner, our cameras hung harmlessly by our sides. The Greek scribbled in his notebook for the story he was working on for MXA and I watched the mechanics across the way. I could see Bevo Forti, Dave Osterman, Keith McCarty and ERG ’s Leon Wolek standing inside the orange nylon fence.

Neither the Greek nor I have any idea why we suddenly snapped to attention and shouldered our Nikons. We just reacted instantly as Bob’s mechanic, Keith McCarty, held out a pit board that had “Let Brock Bye” written on it. I fired my shutter and turned to the Greek and said, “Did you see that?”

The pit board, rife with misspellings, had disappeared as rapidly as it had appeared. By the time I looked back over, McCarty was furiously erasing what he had written. What happened next could only have been written by Rod Serling as an episode of The Twilight Zone. Bob Hannah slowed to a crawl and Broc Glover caught and passed him in one lap. That pass gave Broc Glover three more points and suddenly Broc and Danny LaPorte were tied for the National Championship...and based on moto finishes throughout the series, Broc was going to be the Champion.

I hustled across the track to get back to the Yamaha pits before Broc and Bob. The only problem was that Bob Hannah didn’t stop in the pits. He rode straight through the quarter-mile dirt oval and kept right on going out into the woods. And he didn’t come back.

Broc rolled into the pits and was embraced by mechanic Jim Felt. Broc was happy, smiling and oblivious to what had just occurred. Broc was thrilled to have won the 125 National Championship. Later Broc would say, “I vividly remember going by a bike on the last lap and asking myself, ‘Did that bike have a number one on it?’ I would have liked to have had a moment to go up to Bob and thank him for what he did, but I didn’t get the chance because Bob was nowhere to be found. It was a bittersweet victory and I still hear about that day 36 years later.”

Broc was ecstatic, but no one else at Team Yamaha was happy. They all looked guilty, confused and apprehensive. The mood was strange. It was a melancholy mix of suppressed anger and subdued happiness. The vibe was all wrong. And I must admit that I wasn’t aware of the ramifications of what had taken place. Caught up in the moment I hadn’t put the pit board, Hannah’s weird exit and the gloomy atmosphere together. Like everyone else in the pits, I just assumed that it was the culmination of a long day.

It wasn’t until later that I realized that of all the people at Cyclerama that day only Keith McCarty, Bob Hannah, Jim Gianatsis and I had seen the pit board. The vast majority of fans in San Antonio believed that Broc Glover had legitimately won the second moto, the overall and the Championship. In truth, they had been duped by racing politics.

I ran into Yamaha team manager Kenny Clark immediately after talking to Broc. I asked Kenny, “How does it feel to win the 125 National Championship for the second straight year?”

He looked at me suspiciously, as he always did, and said, “I have nothing to say.”

I was taken aback. That is not the normal response of a team manager that has just clinched the title — especially not an opinionated one like Ken Clark. So, pressing further I asked, “Are you giving me a ‘no comment’ to that question?”

I was pressing and Kenny looked at me and firmly said, “No comment!

 I was stunned by Clark’s comments, but not for long. Clark’s weird answer triggered my thought processes into overdrive. And the longer I waited for Bob Hannah the more incredulous I got about what was going on. When Bob came riding back to the pits almost an hour after the race was over, he locked himself in the front of the Yamaha box van and wouldn’t come out. It was obvious to me that he had been crying.

Suddenly, all of the pieces of the puzzle began to fit. I felt like I had deciphered the Dead Sea Scrolls. Something was rotten in Denmark (or at the very least in San Antonio). When I got back to SoCal the next day, I developed the San Antonio film in my own darkroom. When I saw the “Let Brock Bye” photo, I called the AMA and said that I was pretty sure that what Team Yamaha had done in San Antonio was a violation of rules 3(b), 3(h) and 3(j) of Chapter 13 of the 1977 AMA rule book. By arranging for the outcome of the race to be altered, Team Yamaha had conspired to rig the results. Yamaha had forced Hannah, in boxing jargon, to take a dive. AMA rules stated that “abetting or knowingly engaging in any meet in which the result is fixed” is illegal. And so is “engaging in any unfair practice, misbehavior or action detrimental to the sport of motorcycling in general.” At first the AMA told me that no such rules existed, but when I insisted that it was written in black and white, they told me that it was “a stupid rule and shouldn’t be in the book.”

When I told the AMA that I had a photo proving that Team Yamaha ordered Bob Hannah to throw the race (and in effect fix the outcome of the event and the Championship), they begrudgingly told me that they would look into it. But, they didn’t. According to the AMA, they called Yamaha team manager Kenny Clark to discuss the issue, but he didn’t return any of their calls.

Yamaha’s initial reaction to the fact that they were being investigated for possible violation of rules 3(b), 3(h) and 3(j) was that they had done nothing “new” and that fixing the outcome of races was standard operating procedure. The only difference in this case was that the public had become aware of the team orders because of the photo. Public pressure and the light of day was not something that Yamaha wanted. And they held off on any advertising touting their victory to await the outcome of the investigation. They feared backlash.

As for Team Suzuki, they did not pursue the matter with a vengeance. Suzuki did eventually send a letter to the AMA contending that Yamaha did in fact violate the rules. And, more pertinently, pointed out that the public trust in racing and the racers was at stake in this issue. Future precedent was being set and if the rules were not enforced in this case, then how could the fans or racers ever believe that the rules would be enforced by the AMA in the future? Suzuki ’s contention is almost eery, in light of the fact that the AMA rule book has never been enforced with any consistency from that day forward—unless privateers were the culprits.

The AMA for their part could not claim ignorance. AMA referee Mike DiPrete came to the race on a special trip. He read the rule book at the riders meeting for the first time in AMA history. And he obliquely warned Team Yamaha not to engage in any funny business. Amazingly, after the race, the AMA played dumb and contended that they had no reason to suspect any foul play in San Antonio.


Almost one month after the San Antonio race, with the 1977 AMA 125 National Championship still in limbo, AMA Commissioner of Racing Douglas A.J. Mockett handed down his decision on the violation of rule 3(b), 3(h) and 3(j). It read: “We have concluded there was no AMA rule violation. Both Bob Hannah and Broc Glover were ahead of the other riders. Broc’s passing of Hannah did not impede any other rider or affect the other rider’s finishing position. Instructions from the pits to riders or drivers is a common practice in all motorsports. In this instance we do not find this particular pit instruction to Hannah a violation of Articles 3(b), (h) or (j). ”

For the AMA, the San Antonio affair was over. They claimed that motocross was a team sport and that the teams were free to do as they pleased with the outcome of a race—which came as a surprise to the 30 privateers on the line who weren’t part of any team.

For Broc Glover, Danny LaPorte and Bob Hannah, the incident has never ended. Later Bob would say, “Danny LaPorte was a guy that I couldn’t dislike if I tried and here I was riding against him for the 1977 AMA 125 Championship. And I had to let a guy that I don’t like, and never have, Glover, by to beat my buddy. I knew that I had to let him by, but I’ll tell you this, on Monday morning I went to Yamaha and told them that they had to pay me the Championship bonus for letting Broc by. They cut me a check. ”

The events of that day are still a sore subject three decades later—especially with Broc. I consider Broc to be an innocent victim of the big business of professional racing, but I am not sympathetic to his plaintive requests over the decades that I burn the negative to my “Let Brock Bye” photograph.

Yamaha won the 125 Championship that day, but with all the negative publicity they probably wish that they hadn’t. All five of the Yamaha riders that were in San Antonio that day would end up in the AMA record books — for much more than their contributions to that single day in Texas. Maybe by the standards of today’s jaded racing public the events of August 14, 1977, don’t seem so sinister, but their frame of reference has been skewed by three decades of AMA ineptness, factory team manipulations and the weaker morals of modern times.

Back in 1977, motocrossers believed that they were living by the code of sportsmanship. Riders respected each other, the fans venerated (instead of eviscerated) them and the ethos of the time was one of brotherhood. Maybe my vision has been blurred by the passing of 36 years, but to me, the original values of the sport were destroyed by that pit board. And it is the writing on the pit board that matters—not what actually occurred on the track. If Yamaha had developed a code and had written “Plan Nine From Outer Space” on the pit board, there would have been no issue. Why not? Because the evil hand of the corporate executives would not have been so evident. The true issue has always been about the alleged conspiracy to cheat the public out of a fair race and the specter of corporate interference in the honesty of the sport.

That was the last day of innocence for the sport of motocross. It was no longer purely a mano y mano endeavor, but a corporation against corporation shell game (in which the peas of the strongest team could be shuffled to alter the outcome at the will of the board of directors). Today, the sport likes to think of itself as developing rapidly, supporting a huge industry in its wake and as being a major motorsports player. We are constantly pitched the concept that modern motocross is in its golden era, but greedy agents, cheating teams, callous executives and inept administrators do not a better sport make.

The real trick, for those interested in racing, is to forget about today and remember that 36 years ago, one day before August 14, 1977, motocross was a very different sport.

The John Penton Story

John Penton was one of the pioneers of our sport. I'm sure many of you started out riding Penton models like the Jackpiner. My first real race bike was a 250 Penton that I raced in all types of races. There has been a movement going for quite some time to bring the John Penton story to film and it looks like it will happen soon. Below is history of the Penton journey.

Now a full-length documentary of Penton’s achievements will bring his story to an even wider audience.

“The John Penton Story” will begin filming this spring with many interviews and footage to be shot in Lorain County, said producer/director Todd Huffman of Pipeline Digital Media.

The film will detail how Penton’s passion for off-road motorcycles led to the creation of the Penton brand of bikes, which had a tremendous effect on the sport, Huffman said. The film was inspired by “John Penton and the Off-Road Revolution,” a book by motorcycle writer Ed Youngblood, which details Penton’s transformation from small-town boy to motorcycle mogul.

“Here’s an American motor pioneer who decided to take on the worldwide industrial complex to make something better, to be more competitive, and offer a better experience for the consumer,” Hoffman said from California. “He’s kind of a rebel, kind of a renegade.”

The film will be narrated by four-time Grammy-winner Lyle Lovett, who got his first Penton at 13.

“I talked the owner of the Cycle Shack (a Penton dealer) in Houston, Texas, into letting me work there. I got my first job at 14, so I tell you I was just as happy as a clam,” Lovett said in a phone interview. “I was in awe of John Penton as a person and as a motorcyclist from those days. He was just an innovator. Modern off-road motorcycling would not be what it is today without him.”

ABOVE RIGHT: John Penton John Penton holds the Alligator Enduro trophy in 1961. (Photo courtesy of the Penton family and Ed Youngblood.)

Penton first met his match tooling around the Amherst farm on an ancient Harley-Davidson that his father had stored in the barn. Penton’s older brother, Ike, got it started but eventually all the Penton sons took an interest, said Jack Penton, John’s son.

Their mother kept their passion in perspective, he said.

“At that point in time, boys went off to war, so motorcycles weren’t that frightening,” Jack Penton said.

John Penton got serious about racing bikes when he returned from serving in the U.S. Navy and the Merchant Marines in World War II. He started racing in the late 1940s and around the same time he and his four brothers were expanding the “little machine shop” his dad had on the farm to supplement the farm income.

“I added a little chicken coop next to it, and I thought I’d start selling motorcycles, little British ones,” he said.

The Penton Brothers motorcycle shop was started there on the family farm on North Ridge Road in Amherst in 1950.

“And then after that somebody told me about riding this off-road bike, riding in the woods. I’d take the British bikes and put different tires on it and ride around in the woods,” he said.

By the early 1950s, he was traveling to Michigan for the Jack Pine Enduro, the biggest off-road event east of the Rocky Mountains, which he didn’t win — at first. His passion for the sport led him to found the Amherst Meadowlarks Motorcycle Club with other enthusiasts in 1954.

Then came 1958. John’s wife, Katherine, died, leaving him with three young sons. The boys’ aunts and uncles cared for them while John sought relief from his grief on the road.

“It was a very difficult time for him,” said his son. “He challenged himself as much to find some relief as to win. He did a lot of things, drove himself very hard.”

That year he won the Ohio State Enduro, the Stone Mountain Enduro in Georgia, the Alligator Enduro in Florida and several others around the Midwest. He then took a solo ride to Mexico, and on his way home, drove nonstop from California to Ohio, according to information from the American Motorcycle Association. He also won the first of his four Jack Pine trophies.

The next year, he broke the world speed record from New York City to Los Angeles, making the trip in a little over 52 hours — a vast majority of that ridden on two-lane highways, Jack said.

In an interview for the documentary, John Penton said he left on a BMW from New York City one June morning in 1959, and “nobody was supposed to know.”

He traveled interstate turnpikes, collecting toll booth signatures or stamps on a sheet of paper with his letterhead to document his journey. He was heading into congested St. Louis when he was surrounded by motorcycles and flashing lights, stopping him. After driving two-lane roads winding through towns across the country, “stopping only for petrol,” John said he thought “that’s it, it’s over.”

Turns out, his New York importer had called ahead to the St. Louis motorcycle club, which included a cop, and they escorted him through the city in record time.

“I think that was quite a physical achievement, I was proud of that cross-country,” he said. “I did it without sleep, and we didn’t have all these funny little pills they’ve got today to stay awake or go to bed.”

In the 1960s, he represented the United States in the International Six Days Trial Enduro, held in Europe and considered the “Olympics” of the sport. He came home with gold medals.

“He was very competitive, his whole life, in business or any endeavor he tried,” his son said.

And all along the way, he was taking note of what kind of bike worked best for the particular challenges of off-road motorcycling. He quickly realized traditional American bikes, like Harley or Triumph, were too big and too unwieldly to perform the nimble-by-comparison jumps and maneuvers of the sport.

“Dad began racing on a Harley but it was too heavy so he switched to a BSA, a British bike, which was lighter — then an NSU, a German bike that was even lighter — and then a BMW, which was the lightest,” Jack Penton said. “He had lots of wins on the BMWs.”

The Penton brothers, all mechanically-minded and skilled machinists, tinkered with the bikes to match the machines with their vision.

“That is all part of becoming a champion — realizing what it would take and working to make it better,” his son said. “He was the spark plug. He was the guy who was the quarterback of the football team, captain of the baseball team, the leader of everything he wanted to do. That has carried on throughout his whole life.”

In 1968, John Penton approached KTM, a moped manufacturer in Austria, with his ideas for a smaller, lighter, sport motorcycle. He soon received one hand-built motorcycle; then the first production run of 10 arrived. Within a week, the family had all of them at motorcycle races.

Then the first full shipment came — a 40-foot container of 105 bikes, Jack Penton recalled. They all went into the barn that now houses the Penton Farm Market on North Ridge Road.

“My dad, he was like ‘Oh geez, here comes the bikes. Let’s throw them in the barn and get to selling them,’ ” Jack Penton said. “He’d travel around to friends, dealerships — he’d been around the country since the early ’50s, he knew everybody — and he’d say, ‘Here you go, here’s five of them, now you’re a dealer.’ ”

Pentons quickly became the bike for off-road racing. There were four sizes of Penton bikes, each named for major races; the 100cc Berkshire was red; the 125cc Six-Day was emerald green; the 175-cc Jackpiner was light blue; and the 250cc Hare Scrambler was also red. The company also made a 125cc silver Mudlark, and the Mint, a 400cc white bike, but neither of them was meant for typical off-roading, Jack Penton said.

The original cost was “about $695 — the equivalent of a Porsche,” Jack Penton said.

That first shipment of bikes came the summer he turned 14. By 16, he was riding Pentons on championship levels. His favorite was the Hare Scrambler.

The Penton race bikes brought in a new generation of riders, younger kids who were able to handle the smaller, lighterweight bikes. Jack Penton’s brothers and cousins learned to race from his legendary father, and local racers were known for their exceptional skill.

“It wasn’t just our family. If you won on a local level, you had to beat not only us but champions from around the state,” Jack Penton said. “If you could win here, you could win nearly anywhere.”

The Pentons spawned a dynasty of champions; John, Jack and another son, Tom, were inducted into the American Motorcycle Association Hall of Fame and all three have gold medals from the International Six Days Enduro.

Another son, Jeff, and a nephew, Dane Leimbach, also hold several titles for championship racing.

Leimbach, who died in 2011, was the son of Pat Leimbach, the noted speaker and author who wrote The Country Wife column for The Chronicle-Telegram. Pat, who died earlier this week, was John Penton’s sister.

Huffman, who produces and directs “The Motorcross Files” for Speed TV, traveled to Amherst in 2007 to record interviews with John Penton, his son Jack Penton, and Leimbach. Hoffman said his crew will be back in Amherst at the beginning of March.

The film is expected to go into post-production by fall, and completed by June 2014.

Hoffman said he expects there will be three premieres, in Hollywood, Texas and Amherst. He said he is working with a major theater chain to secure limited showings and with local motorcycle dealers and bike shops nationwide to sponsor showings.

The Pentons long ago sold the rights to the Penton name to KTM, which now is the second-largest producer of motorcycles in the world behind Japan. John Penton also created the Hi-Point line of off-road motorcycle boots, accessories and trailers; that was sold in 1988.

A friend of Lovett’s in Texas ordered a Hi-Point trailer years ago and was waiting for its delivery when it rolled up — with John Penton behind the wheel.

“He’s there at home, waiting for the trailer, and he looked out and there he was. John Penton drove it down himself from Ohio. He got out and thanked him for buying the trailer and pulled off,” Lovett said Friday. “What a great example of how to be as a person, how to live a sense of personal dedication and action in life.”

The local dealership was sold in the 1980s. Original Penton bikes, manufactured from 1968 to 1977, are now considered highly collectible, Jack Penton said.

John Penton’s influence was key to bringing the sport of motocross to America.

“I’m really proud of how we developed that motorcycle, the power, the suspension-to-weight ratio for the motocross. You’ve seen those riders fly through the air in motocross? Originally I started the development of that,” John Penton said.

Jack Penton said his dad still “wakes up with a mission.”

Married for 53 years to second wife, Donna, with whom he had another son and three step-children, he starts every day with a two-mile walk and still maintains a small farm just a few hundred yards down the road from his childhood home.

He spoke of his glory days from the old machine shop on the family farm, which now houses Penton Racing Products, an electrical company that caters to — of course — motorcycles. It’s run by his step-daughter, Barbara.

“She’s one of my sweeties, she’s a sharp one,” he said. “Me, I’m just an old farmer.”

Documentary getting Kickstarter help

The documentary about John Penton’s remarkable career as a motorcycle racer, designer and innovator will be funded through Kickstarter, an Internet campaign that raises money through “crowd-funding.”

The project — which allows donors to pledge money and receive benefits in exchange — surpassed its funding goal of $150,000 as of Friday, said Todd Huffman, who will oversee the production. About $153,000 was pledged.

“This project is such a niche thing,” said Huffman. “It’s not something Hollywood or big sponsors would fund.”

Based on the amount pledged, donors can receive DVDs, signed posters, movie credits, premiere tickets and more. Top donors can be given personal tours of Penton landmark sites, with Jack Penton as their guide.

Huffman said the project will cost a minimum of $275,000; a Kickstarter campaign for $75,000 was raised last summer. However, that estimate is only for production, not post-production costs and more is needed, he said.

“Every little bit helps, and the entire community can be part of it for as little as $1,” he said.

To donate or find out more, go to www.kickstarter.com and type in “John Penton.”

Contact Rini Jeffers at 329-7155 or ctnews@chroniclet.com

2013 Prarie City GP

2012 in the Rearview Mirror

Eric and I are not much for looking back but a little never hurts. 2012 completes the second year of this website.  Many thanks to Joe Fortes for handling all our technical stuff and teaching us more about websites. One of us (Eric) managed to ride often and everywhere, on a variety of bikes. We met some new friends and added some new affilates. The boys at Matrix Concepts/Atlas Brace and Ryno Power Gym have been great to work with and we look forward to the new year with them. We continue to enjoy working with FLY, Works Connection and Roseville Yamaha. Dirt DNA took care of our graphics this year and they do a great job. Liquid Image also helped us with some fun video from their Impact Series goggles. We encourage you to support these companies as they represent the good guys of our sport. Reflecting back on all we wrote and stories told this past year one stands out as best representing what we are all about here at MX43.com.  Please enjoy a second look at this video. These boys have it right.

Here's hoping you have great riding in 2013!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Birth of a Classic.... The PCGP

1978

Back in the Day, many, many years ago a few members of the Polka Dots MC would meet most afternoons in a small motorcycle accessory shop (MPC) in Citrus Heights, CA. They would get into discussions about all things motorcycle. They would solve all sorts of problems concerning dirt riding/racing. Actually, mostly they just drank beer. One afternoon the subject was the boring state of D36 Cross Country races. Most of the Cross Country races were tight woods courses or desert races with little spectator viewing, even the club’s premiere event Wilseyville was mostly out of sight of spectators. This was prior to WORCs or GNCC style races. The guys wanted more intense racing, more open to spectators to see. They wanted to attract some of the fastest, best known riders in N. CA.

After many weeks of intense discussions they finally decided to seek an outside perspective and they needed someone new to buy the beer so they contacted the boys at Hi-Point. Dave Duarte and Bruce Young encouraged the boys to keep working on their idea and offered Hi-Points help if they ever settled on a format. Bruce even bought more beer. After several more weeks of debate a general format was agreed upon. The race would encompass a variety of terrain, something to appeal to all types of riders. There would be some tight trails for the enduro riders, some open plains for the cross country guys, a real motocross section and even a quarter mile section of pavement.  The Polka Dots wanted a real test of strength, endurance and riding skills so the decision was made to make this a three hour race. Thus, thirty five years ago the “Prairie City Grand Prix” was born.

The first race development was hectic and of course there was some controversy. Some District officials were less than enthused about the PDMC offering prize money and bringing motocrossers to the event. True to his word Bruce from Hi-Point was very helpful. Hi-Point supplied a bundle of contingency prizes and Bruce introduced the Polka Dots to a money sponsor (Capital Coors). Hi-Point even brought famed Team Honda off road rider Bruce Ogilivie to the race. Personal invitations were sent to the top five D36 riders in Enduro, Cross Country and MX. Almost all showed up for the first PCGP. There was of course a little pre race trash talk… moto guys would never last and CC guys couldn’t jump. The turn out was huge and the racing intense. All the trash talk proved to be wrong, the CC guys could jump and the moto guys did last. Spectators loved the event, they could see lots of action and the racing was close. No one had ever seen a rider lay on the tank of a 440 Maico in 5^th gear down a quarter mile of pavement. The real surprise was the strength of the moto cross riders in finishing a three hour race. Take a look at the names on the perpetual trophy and you will find names like Donnie Cantaloupi, Eric McKenna, Danny “Magoo” Chandler and Jerome Heiburger. In fact motocross riders won for the first ten years of the PCGP with seven of those victories going to Eric McKenna!

 Over the years the format of the event has evolved and today the Polka Dots MC promote one of the most popular cross country events in CA. The 2013 event has a very special sponsor, Motorcycle Performance Center.  Since the birth of the PCGP thirty five years ago in the back of that tiny shop MPC has grown into one of the premiere KTM shops in the country and they have returned to sponsor what they helped start all those years ago.

Eric & RJ

One of the great things about our sport is the people you meet and the bonds you form. You can be thousands of miles from home, waiting in the start area for your time to start at one of the most famous off road races in the world. Through the hundreds of spectators standing around you spot a familiar face, someone you have not seen in twenty years. Two old warriors meeting again to race. A differnent circumstance from back in the day but a race is a race. They swap stories, laughs, good feelings and then it is off into the desert to compete for their teams in the Baja 1000. The dirt riding community is special!

 

2012 Baja 1000 - short video

When you hear the words Baja 1000 what do you think about. I used to get this mental picture of guys ridng 100 mph thru open desert or racing along the beach. I've come to understand a thousand miles of Baja gets you a little of everything. Here is a short video of an early section of the course, around the 65 mile point. If you look closely at about the 3:30 mark you will see #33 blast by on the Class 50 wining CRF450 (#501x).

JCR/Honda Wins Baja 1x

FLY Congratulates JCR/Honda: Baja 1x Champions

 

FLY Racing would like to congratulate JCR/Honda team riders Colton Udall, David Kamo, Timmy Weigand, Johnny Campbell and the rest of their crew for taking a hard fought Baja 1,000 win; and along with it, the SCORE Baja 1X motorcycle title—for the 16th consecutive year! FLY Racing couldn’t be more proud to be a part of the Johnny Campbell Baja effort. Great job, team, from all of your friends and supporters at FLY Racing!

2012 World Vet Championship