Arenacross!
ARENACROSS!
RACE WATCH
All the show and go of supercross wrapped in a smaller package
JIMMY LEWIS
A SHRILL, ENERGETIC VOICE STARTLED ME FROM MY EARLY-morning office stupor. "Hey Jimmy, Lance Bryson with Mike Kidd Promotions here..." It was the pitch of a marketing guy moving in for the kill.
He spoke in a rapid-fire succession of multi-syllabic words. “The arenacross season is just about to get underway and we’d like to have Cycle World there...packed arenas...screaming fans...Man, I’m telling you this is the most in-your-face, up-close racing on the planet. Hey, we’ve got Jimmy Gaddis; who needs Jeremy McGrath? It’s so close, you’ll feel like you’re right there on the starting line. Hey, that’s it. Why don’t you come on out and race?”
Next thing I know, I’m in Des Moines, Iowa, walking down a dark corridor toward bright lights. Once past the hazy threshold, I find a rink. '• sized micro-supercross track.
“Simple,” I say to myself. “Four corners connecting four straights-no' problem.” But then I notice the nastiest whoops I’ve ever seen. And thf jumps-steep, launch-pad-like masses of clay with ungodly distances between them. Oh, Jeez. “This will make for a great show,” I mumble to nobody in particular, “sort of like the lions versus the Christians.”
What was I thinking when I decided to race arenacross? Launched in 1984, this supercross-in-a-shoebox series is experiencing a tremendous growth spurt, just like any 13-year-old. Mike Kidd, a former Grand National Champion and Texas-based entrepreneur, is the man behind the series. His small tracks make for tight racing, the aim being to pack the seats each night with a slam-bam, action-packed program. But the sport really came of age when Kidd hooked up with the AMA and kicked off the National Arenacross Series in 1989. Now, the series has risen to the next level with a 13race schedule for 1997, sponsored by PJ1 Oils and bolstered by vision coverage. The series visits cities left off the AMA Supercross circuit, and the timing couldn’t be > better, as arenacross plays mostly in the frigid Northeast and Midwest when riding outdoors is nearly impossible. Friday and Saturday nights are reserved for the Pros, but on Sunday the track is open to local Amateurs.
I’d race with the Pros. For this oneshot guest appearance, I was adopted by the Thor/Kawasaki Team Green/ Neilson Motorsports squad to ride the 125 and 250cc classes, just like the arena-x regulars do. I was in good company; my teammates were 1995 champion Jimmy Gaddis, and Shawn Morgan and Brad Woolsey, two up-and-coming riders from Colorado and Texas, respectively. My 125cc mount was Gaddis’ 1995 title-winning KX125 and my 250cc ride was a stock KX250 that Team Manager Jim McGrath (no relation to Jeremy) had borrowed from a local rider-just add numbers and go.
With the unnerving challenge of a 70-foot double-jump ahead of me, I lined up for practice. Apprehension was my companion for the first few circuits of the 30-second-per-lap track. The short start straight was followed by a sweeping first turn into a long set of bike-eating whoops. A litum at the end of the whoops gave me about 50 feet to gain momentum for the monster double. After getting stopped, another quick U-turn brought me to a pair of triple-jumps-or was that a triplet of doubles?
Five laps of practice were just enough for me to get the courage to fly the big double-well, once-and after three more sessions I’d put together what I thought was a good rhythm through the other sections. Riding the tight, technical track was mentally exhausting, but at least I wasn’t going to get overly tired in the seven-lap heat races.
Frozen fans started pouring into Veterans Memorial Stadium Friday at 6 p.m. Tonight, arenacross was up against two championship high school football games, but close to 6000 people half-filled the stands as I rolled out on the floor for my first heat.
There’s not a bad seat in the house, and Kidd makes sure the show gets off to a rousing start with a dimmed arena and spotlighted intros of the riders. Even though Gaddis, Cliff Palmer and Iowa native Chad Pederson may not top the list of supercross superstars, they have a following among arenacross fans. And with PJ1 posting a $100,000 points fund, more and more top riders are joining the series. Denny Stephenson, Todd DeHoop and Buddy Antunez, riders on the bubble of factory rides, are getting their chance in the spotlight at arenacross races.
All of which means that as the gate drops for my first 125cc heat race, I’m swapping stickers with some of the best bar-banging specialists in the business. And I thought supercross racing was tight! On the floor of a basketball/hockey arena, there is less room, less time and way more energy floating around. In the stands, arenacross spectators can feel the action as we whip by them, handlebar to handlebar. My biggest problem, besides timing all the jumps properly and not making a fool of myself, is just remembering to breathe-there’s just no time to inhale and exhale properly. Arenacross is quick and dirty, lap after lap of finding just the right hole to slam past the guy in front, all the while fending off attacks from behind.
How’d I do? Well, I didn’t finish last, but I was close.
In 10 minutes, hardly enough time to visit the porta-can, I was out on the 250. I did better this time, but was still way off the pace to score a direct transfer into the main event. I would get other chances, though; the semis were up next, followed by the last-chance qualifier. Yes, it was going to be a long night. This kind of rapid-fire racing keeps fans on the edge of their seats. There’s always plenty to watch at an arenacross.
If there isn’t a race at the front of the pack, there’s one at the back. Halfway through, it’s hard to tell who’s in the lead anyway. There are spectacular crashes (more on that later), Pee-Wee exhibitions, the SBS Brakes Dash-forCash and the ever-popular, almostbanned Jump-Off Contest that leaves AMA officials squirming in their seats.
Cliff Palmer came away as Friday’s big winner, taking wins in both the 125 and 250cc main events-apparently, the arenacross track he built in his backyard has paid off. As for me, I survived my first night of arenacross > like a ...well, like a backmarker, but I made it through unscathed, improved with every moto and felt pretty good about my chances for the next day.
On Saturday night, we played to a bigger audience. There were fewer football games, and tons of locals riding in Sunday’s Amateur event packed the stands looking for a close-up view of the Pros’ lines. I was watching to see how they did it, too.
In my first 125 heat race, I finished just two positions from qualifying. Hmmm, maybe I would make a main after all. I’ve never claimed to be a good jumper, and never imagined I’d ride in a real supercross, but right then and there I was livin’ large. Oh so quickly, though, I learned the downside of such vanity. First lap of the second heat, the whoops rose up and bit my ass but good, throwing me to the floor-and clay can be very unforgiving on top of cold, hard cement. Bruised, I decided to pass on the 250class LCQ to concentrate on the 125.
The plan was working, too. Halfway through the 125cc semi, I was on the edge, just one place shy of qualifying. Then, I was alongside the rider who stood between me and the final transfer spot. I made a clean inside pass and got ready to catapult myself over the huge double. Unfortunately, the guy decided it was time for a super-hero repass. As we both powered up the face of the jump, he slid out and ran into the side of my KX. Tangled, we flew through the air together. Weighing my options, none of which seemed too good, I punched the “eject” button and kicked away from the bike. I tried to cushion my fall by aiming for a haybale, but missed, ringing my bell and severely bruising both ankles. Bye-bye main event, hello ice packs.
As the rest of the races went off, I sat on the side of the track trying to convince paramedics that I knew my own name and really could count past three-and not doing a very good job at either. Meanwhile, Suzuki-mounted Palmer repeated his performance in the 125cc main, and local favorite Pederson stormed to the 250cc win on his Yamaha. I’m told it was a very good show.
So, if an arenacross comes to your town, do yourself a favor and buy a ticket; it’s a non-stop adrenaline rush from national anthem to champagne spray. Better yet, be part of the show. Ride Sunday’s Amateur program. Maybe I’ll see you there. □
