Kaley Johnson scores at the AMA Ice Race Grand Championship EVENTS CALENDAR 54
What to do, and when
FLASHBACK 62
Malcolm and Baja: The Early Years
ON THE COVER:
MALCOLM SMITH, BY FRAN KUHN
For those of us from the On Any Sunday generation, the idea of Malcolm Smith turning 80 is a crazy thing. But despite Parkinson’s and a host of other degenerative injuries, America’s favorite motorcycling son just keeps on keepin’ on. You go, Malcolm.
COMMUNICATIONS
Mitch Boehm Editorial Director
Mark Lapid Creative Services Director
Joy Burgess Managing Editor
Dustin Goebel Senior Designer
Gina Gaston Web Developer
Kali Kotoski Editor-at-Large submissions@ama-cycle.org
Steve Gotoski Director of Industry Relations and Business Memberships (951) 491-1910, sgotoski@ama-cycle.org
Danielle Smith Human Resources Manager/Assistant to COO
RACING
Mike Pelletier Director of Racing
Bill Cumbow Director of International Competition
Michael Burkeen Motocross Manager
Erek Kudla Off-Road Racing Manager
Ken Saillant Track Racing Manager
Alexandria Kovacs Program Manager
Connie Fleming Supercross/FIM Coordinator
Lakota Ashworth Racing Coordinator
Olivia Davis Racing Coordinator
MEMBER ACTIVITY
Heather Wilson Director of Member Activity
Joe Bromley Program Development Manager
Serena Van Dyke Recreational Riding Coordinator
Jennifer Finn Member Activity Coordinator
ACCOUNTING
Karen Esposito Accounting Manager
Deb D’Andrea Data Entry Representative
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
AMA
Contact any member of the AMA Board of Directors at americanmotorcyclist.com/ama-board-of-directors
Russ Ehnes Chair
Great Falls, Mont.
Gary Pontius Vice Chair
Westfield, Ind.
Byron Snider Assistant Treasurer
Newbury Park, Calif.
Jerry Abboud Executive Committee Member
Thornton, Colo.
Paul Vitrano Executive Committee Member
Medina, Minn.
Brad Baumert
Louisville, Ky.
Hub Brennan E. Greenwhich, R.I.
Christopher Cox
Florence, S.C.
Mark Hosbach Franklin, Tenn.
OPERATIONS
Robert Pearce Amherst, Ohio
Jeff Skeen
San Diego, Calif.
Faisel Zaman Dallas, Texas
(800) AMA-JOIN (262-5646) (614) 856-1900
AmericanMotorcyclist.com
@AmericanMotorcyclist @ama_riding
Steve Austin Director of Operations
John Bricker Mailroom Manager
Rob Baughman Operations Specialist
Ed Madden System Support Specialist
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Michael Sayre Director of Government Relations
Nick Haris Western States Representative
Tiffany Cipoletti Government Relations Manager, On-Highway
Peter Stockus Government Relations Manager, Off-Highway
Erin Reda Grassroots Coordinator
MUSEUM
Daniel Clepper Collections Manager
Paula Schremser Program Specialist
Ricky Shultz Clerk
Von Kieber Clerk
MARKETING AND MEMBER SERVICES
Amanda Donchess Director of Membership
Marketing and Services
Tiffany Pound Member Services Manager
Stephanie McCormick Member Services Representative
Vickie Park Member Services Representative
Ellen Wenning Member Services Representative
American Motorcyclist magazine (ISSN 0277-9358) is published monthly (12 issues) by the American Motorcyclist Association, 13515 Yarmouth Drive, Pickerington, OH 43147. Copyright by the American Motorcyclist Association/American Motorcyclist 2021. Printed in USA. Subscription rate: Magazine subscription fee of $19.95 covered in membership dues.
Postmaster: Mail form 3579 to 13515 Yarmouth Drive, Pickerington, OH 43147. Periodical postage paid at Pickerington, Ohio, and at additional mailing offices.
BACK TO BASICS
M“I’m convinced that classic storytelling about the people and the machines and the travel and the history and the racing and the out-of-this-world thrills of motorcycling is what all of you – our esteemed members – are craving. ”
By Mitch Boehm
aybe it’s been a while, but remember waiting for your favorite motorcycle magazines to appear in the mailbox each month, or watching the local newsstand for the latest edition? Remember tacking pages from those magazines on your bedroom walls as a kid? You know, those oh-so-cool images of Marty Smith or Kenny Roberts or Gene Romero or Malcolm Smith?
Yeah, me too. My walls were plastered with those pages, right along with a billion holes from the stick-pins – which my Mom just loved. Copies of Cycle and Dirt Bike and Popular Cycling and others weren’t just scattered all over my room, but tucked into my middle school binder, too, so I could sneak peeks during Math or English class.
For this then-12-year-old growing up in Northern Ohio and just getting into motocross racing, magazines were a literal portkey to a very special world. Editors such as Cook Neilson, Gordon Jennings, Paul “The Bazzer” Boudreau, Rick “Super Hunky” Seimen and others made motorcycling an almost religious experience, just as On Any Sunday had done in 1971.
And when I’d go to Mid-Ohio Moto Park with my Dad to watch a TransAMA or USGP race, there my heroes would be, in the flesh, just over the snow fences I’d be hanging onto — Smith and Roger DeCoster and Jim Pomeroy and all the rest. Epic doesn’t even come close.
Sadly, and for a whole bunch of reasons, that experience is quickly disappearing from our two-wheeled world. We’ve lost a lot of inkand-paper, for sure, and from a conservation standpoint that’s not a bad thing. But along the way in this whole digital/website movement we’ve lost a lot of the great storytelling that came with all that paper.
“Neuroeconomist Paul Zak,” writes
author and PhD Brené Brown, “has found that hearing [or reading] a story — a narrative with a beginning, middle, and end — causes our brains to release cortisol and oxytocin. These chemicals trigger the uniquely human abilities to connect, empathize, and make meaning. Story is literally in our DNA.”
I think author Brown and Zak have it absolutely right. It’s more than simply inspiring words creating vivid images in our brains; there’s actually a chemical component, which is one more reason I believe what I call the Traditional Magazine Experience was so powerful for so many for so long.
And that, I think, pretty well explains why the magazine you now hold in your hands is what it is — and why we featured 80-year-old Malcolm Smith on the cover. Having grown up with this experience, and having done it professionally for more than three decades now, I’m convinced that classic storytelling about the people and the machines and the travel and the history and the racing and the outof-this-world thrills of motorcycling is what all of you — our esteemed members — are craving.
And whether it’s done on paper or digitally, it’s gotta be good, gotta be real, gotta be compelling, and gotta be memorable. And starting now, it will be, on every page and in every single issue, and on our website. Please let us know what you think at Letters@ ama-cycle.org.
We have a new editorial team and a fresh outlook, and we’re hoping you enjoy the Malcolm Smith piece along with the rest of the content. It’s a look at where we’re going with American Motorcyclist. And maybe, just maybe, you’ll feel the need to stick-pin some of it on your walls.
Mitch Boehm is the Editorial Director of the AMA.
MEETING MALCOLM
T“Malcolm has not let his notoriety go to waste, and has used it to further motorcycling at every turn. ”
By Rob Dingman
he first time I met Malcolm Smith was in the early 1990s at the annual motorcycle industry trade show that used to be held every February in Cincinnati, Ohio. I was relatively new to the industry at the time, working as a government relations specialist focusing on land use issues for the Motorcycle Industry Council, and I was there to work the MIC booth.
As with most trade shows, all attendees had name tags, primarily to let everyone know who they were dealing with, as attendees were a mix of aftermarket vendors, allied trade companies, powersports dealers and media.
Malcolm’s nametag was a bit different, though, and it stuck out to me. While the tags of most attendees identified their name, organizational affiliation and location of residence, the only identifier on Malcolm’s name tag in addition to his name was a single word: motorcyclist.
And that was totally appropriate, given how much Malcolm had done in and for the motorcycle industry.
Malcolm has not let his notoriety go to waste, and has used it to further motorcycling at every turn. One of the best examples was when the government imposed a ban on the sale of youth-model motorcycles and ATVs in 2009 due to the lead content in items such as frame paint— as if kids would be chewing on their frames. Malcolm sold bikes in defiance of the ban at his Riverside, Calif., dealership. It was risky, as he could have been fined (or worse), but his action turned the tide and aided in getting the ban repealed, saving the potential loss of a generation of motorcyclists.
He’s also supremely gracious. At a AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days event several years ago where he was Grand Marshal, he signed autographs for far longer than the scheduled time. As long as someone was in line, he signed. He’s that sort of guy.
Malcolm is best known, of course, for his starring role in the 1971 motodocumentary On Any Sunday, which celebrates its 50th Anniversary this year. Malcolm and OAS introduced an entire generation to the world of motorcycling, and literally thousands upon thousands of motorcyclists credit Malcolm and that movie with getting them interested in motorcycling.
On Any Sunday’s great appeal is its showcasing of people we can all relate to as they enjoy motorcycling in virtually all of its forms. And that is what we hope to achieve through the pages of American Motorcyclist magazine, as well. We endeavor to shine the spotlight on the many faces and stories of motorcyclists who make up the membership of the American Motorcyclist Association — and beyond.
To amplify this effort we’ve brought new talent to the editorial side of the magazine. Longtime motorsports journalist and motorcycle industry veteran Mitch Boehm has been named Editorial Director of the magazine (and website), and he is supported by new Managing Editor Joy Burgess.
American Motorcyclist is the journal of the American Motorcyclist Association. The AMA is about the people of motorcycling, so it’s only fitting that our flagship publication focuses on telling their stories in a compelling way.
With this issue we are rededicating the focus of the magazine to telling wonderful stories about the people of motorcycling. So it seemed only fitting to begin this refresh with a feature story about Malcolm Smith as he celebrates his 80th birthday.
Thank you, Malcolm, for all you have done for motorcycling, and Happy Birthday!
Rob Dingman, a Charter Life Member, is president and CEO of the AMA.
LETTER OF THE MONTH
Bowlby Is A Hillclimb Artist
Ijust wanted to say “thanks” for your [AMA Motorcycle] Hall of Fame article on AMA Pro hillclimber Earl Bowlby. He certainly deserves the recognition.
From the late 1970s until his retirement, I had the pleasure of watching Mr. Bowlby race at the Devil’s Staircase Pro Hillclimb in Oregonia, Ohio, hosted by the Dayton Motorcycle club.
On one occasion, I had the chance to meet and speak with Mr. Bowlby. He was “walking the hill,” checking the terrain, feeling for hard and soft spots, picking his line.
This was back before they put up safety fences, and fans could walk out on the hill.
I can’t remember what we discussed. The usual banter, “Hello, Mr. Bowlby, how are you? What you looking at here? Good luck today.”
I remember him as being very friendly, soft spoken and polite. We talked for quite a long time actually. He was a true gentleman.
To this day, he is the best I have ever seen go up the Devil’s Staircase hill.
I always told my friends, “Make sure you watch when Earl Bowlby runs. He is an ‘artiste.’ He doesn’t attack the hill, he goes up it with surgical precision.”
He sure was fun to watch.
I was sure proud to see his bike in the AMA Hall of Fame museum when I visited many years ago. Think I’ll visit again, just to look at his bike.
Robert Sizemore | Lebanon, Ohio
Another Fast Old Guy Heard From
I have never had the urge to reply to any articles in American Motorcyclist, but this month [December 2020] is different. I thoroughly enjoyed every article, particularly Arthur Ranney’s “Time Traveling At Speed.” The similarities were abundant. I started racing motocross in the mid-1970s on a Suzuki RM250 and progressed to road racing in the early 1980s on a Kawasaki GPz550.
Every Sunday, weather permitting, I meet for breakfast and a spirited ride through the twisties of the Brooksville, Fla., area with others in my age group. I am far from the oldest at 71. There isn’t a better way to restore youth than arriving at the local meet-up location of a hundred or so bikes and removing my helmet and watching the jaws drop when the youngsters realize they just got smoked by a gray hair.
I believe it gives them hope and a challenge for the future. Arthur, it was
indeed a treat to read your story, and I welcome you and others into what I call the FOGGY Club (Fast Old Guys Getting Younger).
Jerry Munsell | Trinity, Fla.
An Idea About Distracted Drivers
Legislation to limit use of handsheld devices while driving is great. But it occurred to me that cars today drive themselves, park themselves, stop themselves, etc., so it seems it would be a simple, inexpensive thing to jam and block cell phones in the vehicle when it is put into gear.
That is, except 911, of course. And, of course, hands-free devices would not be included.
I’m sure the technology for it must exist. John Fish | Mechanicsville, Va.
Reviewing The “Non-Review”
I just had to write after receiving the
latest issue [January 2021]. You guys are geniuses with the way you did not review a motorcycle [“Boxer Brigade”].
Give it to seven people and report on their thoughts/comments.
I remember when Motorcycle Consumer News used to review a bike, and, at the end, they offered a sidebar from a couple guys who did not write the review, which I thought was a good idea.
What you guys did should be the standard for commenting on a bike, because all of us out in the real world are likely to be not as skilled as many of the testers/reviewers.
It was a nice change to read the many opinions revealed. Keep up the great work.
George Gridley | Syracuse, N.Y.
Ride One Bike, Display The Other
I went to my parents’ house for Thanksgiving and, before I even got a “Hi, Sara!” my Dad had to show me his December 2020 issue of American Motorcyclist. He reads it every month, but was especially excited about this issue, because he is the proud owner of both the cover bike, the [Yamaha] PW50, and the centerfold bike, the BMW R27.
He taught my sister, brother and me— along with countless nieces and nephews, friends and, now, grandchildren—to ride and love motorcycles, with our PW50.
His 1967 BMW R27 doesn’t get ridden as much as the PW50, because it is hung from the wall above my parent’s pool table.
My dad bought the mint-condition R27 at an auction in the late 1980s and decided it wasn’t fast enough to be kept in the garage with the rest of his bikes. So, when an addition was put on our home the summer before I was born, the BMW was lifted to its resting spot before the final walls were closed in.
My mom has always joked that, if it ever falls, my dad had better be under it. It’s been up there for 30 years now, so he thinks his chances of survival are strong.
Sara Grout | Croswell, Mich.
Correction:
Making an Ash of Myself
In the February 2021 issue, I wrote a guest column titled “Riding From the Ashes” in which I made a significant error. The story recounted my participation in a twoday ISDT qualifier in McMinnville, Ore., not far from Mount St. Helens, on May 18, 1980, the very day that volcano erupted.
After the issue’s publication, I received an email from a longtime AMA member in Oregon who insisted that the qualifier that year was held not on May 18 but rather on the Memorial Day weekend, one week later. He also stated that it was a three-day event, not a two-day, and that my name was nowhere on the list of competitors.
That letter caused me to think long and hard about an adventure that took place four decades ago—as I should have done before writing the article. Only after an entire night of racking my brain did I finally realize what had happened: I inadvertently merged two different events into one. The event I rode in McMinnville on May 18 was actually a one-day enduro; the other was a two-day ISDT qualifier held shortly thereafter farther north near Mount Baker in Washington state.
The Pacific Northwest locations of those two events, combined with my having ridden the same bike – a Kawasaki KDX175 – in both, were befogged by the 40 years that have passed, allowing my brain to recall them as a single event. Everything that I claimed I experienced in those two competitions actually occurred exactly as I wrote, but only a couple were during the enduro; the others were in the qualifier.
I sincerely apologize to the AMA and to everyone who read that story. I hope you will forgive my dereliction of duty, though as a former journalist, I cannot forgive myself.
Paul Dean | Fallbrook, Calif.
GET READY TO RIDE!!! GET READY TO
MONTANA EMBRACES LANE FILTERING
The ‘Big Sky’ state joins California and Utah in adopting lane-sharing legislation
By Kali Kotoski
Montana has become the third state after California and Utah to adopt lane-filtering legislation, a technique that is widely practiced around the world to limit traffic congestion and increase rider safety.
Signed into law by Gov. Greg Gianforte on March 2, the legislation allows motorcyclists to overtake stopped or slow-moving vehicles by filtering between lanes at reasonable speeds not in excess of 20 mph and as conditions permit.
The legislation, which goes into effect Oct. 1, is the culmination of nearly four years of advocacy by the bill’s sponsors, state Sen. Russ Tempel (R-SD14) and state Rep. Barry Usher (R-HD40), as well as stakeholders such as the AMA.
“We applaud the efforts of Montana’s motorcycling community and the state’s legislators, and thank Gov. Gianforte for
signing this legislation into law,” said Russ Ehnes, chair of the AMA Board of Directors, who attended the signing ceremony.
The AMA endorses lane splitting, often referred to as lane filtering or lane sharing, given the long track record of success in California and bolstered by research from the University of California-Berkeley that shows that the practice enhances motorcycle safety.
Motorcyclists are at a greater risk of front- and rear-end collisions during heavy periods of stop-and-go traffic, and lane splitting eliminates much of that hazard for motorcyclists who pass between lanes, the study found. Additionally, lane splitting was found to mitigate the severity of injuries when done in traffic moving at 50 mph or less, and if motorcyclists do not exceed the
speed of traffic by more than 15 mph.
Lane-splitting legislation is widely popular with riders in states with dense urban populations and chronically congested roadways, and the benefits of the practice are slowly starting to make their way into government discussions regarding how to reduce traffic fatalities.
Since Utah’s common-sense legislation came into effect in early 2019, motorcycle fatalities on such roads have continued to decline from 28 in 2018, to 18 in 2019 and only eight in 2020, according to the Utah Department of Transportation.
While the majority of European Union countries have long allowed legal lane splitting, it is also common in South America, the Gulf States and many parts of Asia. In other Asian countries, in particular, lane spitting serves as the de facto rules of the road
Kevin Wing
L to R: Sen. Terry Gauthier, Gov. Greg Gianforte, Sen. Russ Tempel. AMA Board Chair Russ Ehnes in back. Garrett Turner
despite a lack of codified legislation, especially in developing nations where two-wheeled transportation is the dominate form of travel.
Despite America being an outlier in adopting lane-splitting laws to reduce traffic fatalities and injuries, states like Oregon, Washington and Massachusetts have lane-splitting bills being considered during this year’s legislative sessions. Proponents of the bills in those states, which include active AMA participation, claim there is growing momentum across party lines that prudently adopted lane-splitting laws can be beneficial for all road users.
ON THE RADAR
“As lane splitting support continues to gain traction across the country, I am eager to help more motorcyclists engage their state legislatures on this issue,” said Tiffany Cipoletti, on-highway government relations manager for the AMA. The AMA assists groups, individuals and grassroots organizations in introducing legal lanesplitting bills to their states.
Utilizing studies produced by California, statistics in Utah and longestablished European habits for lane splitting, there is growing academic and anecdotal evidence regarding the benefits of lane splitting increasing rider safety and reducing overall traffic congestion.
Massive Wilderness Package Clears House; More Scenic Byways Gain Federal Designation
• The U.S. House of Representatives on Feb. 26 passed a massive public lands bill to preserve nearly 3 million acres of federal lands in Colorado, California, Arizona and Washington. The Protecting America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act – a package of eight bills – was passed along party lines. The package includes the Colorado Outdoor Recreation and Economy (CORE) Act and the Colorado Wilderness Act. The bill would create 1.5 million acres of new Wilderness, the most restrictive federal land use designation, and add 1,000 miles of waterways to the Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Under a Wilderness designation, motorized access to some Colorado trails such as the Bangs Canyon OHV Trail System and Dolores Canyon could be restricted. Supporters of the package see it as a strict, hard to rollback, conservation measure. Opponents claim it threatens local control over public land, hinders employment in extractive industry, and threatens recreational access for motorized users.
• The U.S. Department of Transportation has given 49 more roads the America’s Byways Designation, bringing the total number of protected scenic byways to 184 across 48 states. The Byways program was originally created in 1991 with support from the AMA to preserve and enhance certain roads based on cultural, recreational and natural significance. The AMA was part of a coalition that revived the program in 2019. The program has designated roads such as the Blue Ridge Parkway and Hells Canyon as National Scenic Byways, and many more of the country’s favorite motorcycling roads. The program provides resources that help communities along these byways benefit from the tourism and economic growth they generate. The AMA is currently working with stakeholders to achieve designation status.
SUZUKI AND SAMPEY, BACK WITH VANCE & HINES FOR 2021
Three-time Pro Stock champ to ride allnew Suzuki-powered dragracer
By Mitch Boehm
Change is the name of the game in racing, but the legendary Vance & Hines team has experienced a bit more than usual in the last few months as longtime partner HarleyDavidson got out of the official factory dirt track and drag racing games altogether.
Of course, Vance & Hines has been building and selling Suzukibased Pro Stock engines for other riders and teams for years, and once the deal was done at H-D the team wasted no time reestablishing itself on the drag racing side of the ledger with Suzuki power – and re-signing three-time Pro Stock champion Angelle Sampey to ride the firm’s all-new, 400-horsepower, 1850cc four-
valve Suzuki-powered drag bike during the 2021 season. (Sampey was a V&H Harley team rider during 2019 and 2020.)
Sampey, who’s the NHRA’s winningest female ever with 43 Pro Stock Motorcycle wins to her credit, has a long history with Suzukis, starting out on an RM50 at age six and racing Suzukis from 1996 to 2007.
“I’m so excited to be given the opportunity by Vance & Hines to continue my career once again,” she told American Motorcyclist. “It’s even better this time around because we are bringing a new face to the NHRA with Mission Foods on board my motorcycle. I’ll be running the new V&H 4-valve Suzuki engine and will have my former rivals Andrew Hines and Eddie Krawiec as my co-crew chiefs. It all seems like a crazy dream but it’s real, and I couldn’t be more ready for it! I am literally on a MISSION!”
“We’re happy to be working with Angelle once again,” said Vance & Hines President and CEO Mike Kennedy. “Vance & Hines is in a wonderful position right now. We’ve got one of the top riders in the sport aboard our outstanding new equipment and we have Mission Foods as our new team partner. I couldn’t have hoped for anything better as we go into the 2021 season.”
Get more info on Sampey, the V&H team and its new motorcycle at vanceandhines.com, and check out the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle schedule at NHRA.com.
Joe Bonello
Malcolm at 80
Fifty years after the release of On Any Sunday, AMA Hall of Fame
Legend Malcolm Smith just keeps on chugging along, longstanding injuries and Parkinson’s Disease be damned
By Mitch Boehm
“Poppy! What you doin’, Poppy?”
Malcolm Smith is sitting on a stool at a workbench in his garage workshop at his Riverside, Calif., home with various mechanical objects in various states of repair and disrepair scattered on the scarred surface.
Beside him on a smaller stool is his two-yearold granddaughter Amelie, who’s poking her screwdriver into an old (unplugged) radio while Malcolm messes with a carburetor from one of his Matchless restorations. Amelie’s checking out Grandpa’s carburetor more than she’s looking at her radio, and is clearly interested in what the legendary Hall of Famer is up to.
“Poppy! What you doin’, Poppy?”
Malcolm just smiles, and says, “Turning the screw, Ami, turning the screw.”
“Eighty sneaks up on you really quick,” Malcolm told me recently. “When I think back on all the crazy stuff I did as a kid, and while growing up, and even as an adult, I never figured I’d live this long.”
Few of us who grew up on a diet of dirt bikes and On Any Sunday VCR showings would have imagined our off-road hero, ISDT Gold Medalist and do-everything motorcyclist with the ear-to-ear grin being called Poppy, but these days it’s a shoe that fits. Because as hard as it may be to imagine, Malcolm Smith turned 80 years of age on March 9, 2021.
In so many ways, eighty years old just doesn’t compute when it comes to Malcolm Smith. Wasn’t it just yesterday we watched him, Mert Lawwill and Steve McQueen cavorting on the beach on front of Camp Pendleton? Or read about him winning at Baja, or one of his eight gold ISDT medals? Or launching his MSR off-road aftermarket business? He’s that 20-something kid with the big ears and the even bigger smile, right?
They say time flies when you’re having fun. And in Malcolm Smith’s case, and in most of our cases, too, the saying rings totally true. He – and we – have had fun in the 50 years since On Any Sunday debuted in American theaters, and time has flown by.
Of course, you want to be able to say you had fun – and had a good ride – when you get older, and Malcolm’s happy to admit as much when you ask him. But it’s still a bit sad when we stop and realize that, for many of us, it’s maybe later than it seems, to quote the great Jackson Browne.
“Eighty sneaks up on you really quick,” Malcolm told me recently. “When I think back on all the crazy stuff I did as a kid, and while growing up, and even as an adult, I never figured I’d live this long.”
Ol’ Malcolm (left), hanging with Steve McQueen (middle) and Mert Lawwill during On Any Sunday filming.
Malcolm with parents
“Betty” and “Sandy” Smith sometime in the mid-1940s.
Of course, we might be getting a little ahead of ourselves here, as the Smith DNA is dang strong stuff. How strong, you ask? Well, consider this: Malcolm’s father, Alexander Malcolm “Sandy” Smith, not only lived to be 99, and spent many of those years as a precious metals miner and expedition leader in Alaska and Northern Canada’s Yukon Territories, he conceived Malcolm with Malcolm’s mother Elizabeth Anne “Betty” Beesley, who was then in her 30s, when he was 80 years old. (Let that sink in for a moment. We’ll wait.)
The guy was so active and in such great shape that Betty thought he was in his early 50s when they married, and didn’t find out the truth until she was pregnant with little Malcolm. Sandy Smith was nothing if not a tough old Scotsman, and Malcolm seems to have inherited a lot of the very same grit and gumption.
“I’m not sure if longevity and grit translate via DNA,” Malcolm told me once, “but I seem to have gotten a decent amount of it from my capable and outdoors-savvy parents.”
Still, the last decade has been very difficult for Malcolm in terms of his health. And health issues aren’t a new thing for him, either. There was the horrific shattered femur and lower leg when he was 17 when a buddy centerpunched him while riding his Matchless on a San Bernardino trail, the impact of which hurled him into a tree. He almost lost the leg and spent two years recuperating, part of that time in a body cast. He broke that same femur again years later in Baja, bending the rod that had been placed in it earlier, and there have been a long list of broken bones and other serious injuries over the years – most of them from riding and racing.
But the last ten or fifteen years have been especially challenging. Aside from all the broken bones, twisted joints and herniated discs, all of which have degenerated over the years, Malcolm was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in the early 2000s. And despite the latest advances in medicine and treatments, the disease has inexorably taken its toll, year after year, and contributed to him having to walk with a cane and stop riding motorcycles altogether.
“Medications can help,” he told me a while back, “but they work inconsistently, which leaves patients – me included – often chasing the right blend of medicines. One minute I’m ok, the next my muscle control and coordination go off. It’s very frustrating.”
If all that wasn’t enough, Malcolm had a run-in – literally – with a golf cart back in early 2019 during a charity golf outing in Death Valley, Calif. A buddy jumped in a cart Malcolm was standing behind, and when the friend stomped on the accelerator the thing lurched backward and ran Malcolm over, breaking his hip badly and causing him to be taken to Las Vegas for emergency surgery.
And in a completely crazy twist of fate, Malcolm and wife Joyce’s son Alexander was injured badly a couple of days later during an organized ride in Baja, Mexico. “While searching for a lost member of the group,” Malcolm remembers, “Alexander hit a cow head-on at high speed, badly breaking his femur, arm and hand, all of which required multiple surgeries to fix. What’s crazy is that we both ended up at the same rehabilitation center, and in rooms right next to one another!”
If all that wasn’t enough, Malcolm had a run-in – literally – with a golf cart back in early 2019 during a charity golf outing in Death Valley, Calif.
COVID has only added to the angst. Many of Malcolm’s immediate family got the virus, and while all have recovered nicely, keeping him from getting sick has been a full-time and anxiety-filled job.
“Like a lot of folks,” says Joyce, “we’ve been pretty much totally shutin here, all while trying to protect him. He just got his first vaccine shot, but it’s been a huge thing over the last year or so shielding him. We’ve all been paranoid; no one wants to be the person that got him sick, you know? It would be funny if it weren’t so serious! Christmas was especially tough for us, as COVID was rampaging here in Southern California.”
Still, there are plenty of positive things happening in Malcolm Smith’s world these days despite all the health- and COVID-inspired craziness. Two that are near and dear to his heart are right outside the door of his Riverside home, in fact. One is his garage/workshop, where he and son Alexander (and others in the extended Smith clan) have motorcycles, buggies, tools and workbenches galore. It’s also where he and Amelie do their thing.
COVID has only added to the angst. Many of Malcolm’s immediate family got the virus, and while all have recovered nicely, keeping him from getting sick has been a full-time and anxiety-filled job.
The other is his old Range Rover ‘collection,’ which might also be called a Range Rover ‘boneyard’ to some in the family, Joyce included. There are four or five early-’90s Rovers out there, all in various states of disrepair. Malcolm keeps collecting them and says he wants to build one or two good ones out of the carcasses spread out among the trees, but the claim seems to generate more good-natured eye rolls than nods of agreement among family.
“I have soft spot for old Range Rovers,” Malcolm told me recently, “mostly because I raced one in the Dakar Rally in ’88, and got a brandnew production one for Joyce as payment for my driving during the Rally, where we finished fourth. Joyce drove it for a few years, then gave it to our daughter Ashley during college. It still runs, and we keep it at our home in Colorado. Anyway, I bought three long-wheelbase models a few years ago, and then a few more non-runners as parts vehicles. Joyce doesn’t like the Range Rover wrecking yard in the orange grove, so I am trying to get one running and sell the rest.”
Joyce is less sanguine about it all. “They’re all full of rat poop,” she says of the old Rovers with a laugh. “I keep telling Malcolm, ‘let’s just sell them and get on the list for one of those new Ford Broncos’ – but he’s a little stubborn!”
Left: Malcolm and wife Joyce (who’s an experienced pilot), hanging out. Bottom right: Malcolm with the AMA’s Rob Dingman and Mert Lawwill at The Quail in 2019.
Joe Bonello
Books and movies are other high points. Malcolm’s acclaimed autobiography, titled Malcolm! The Autobiography, which he and I arranged, co-wrote and published back in 2015, continues to sell well. It’s 400 pages, 450 images and more than 100,000 words covering Malcolm’s entire life. Also, Bruce Brown’s epic moto-documentary On Any Sunday, which Malcolm starred in alongside Mert Lawwill and Steve McQueen, and which celebrates its 50th Anniversary this year, is more popular than ever. “We sell the heck out of those DVDs at our store,” Malcolm says of what’s arguably our sport’s finest cinematic effort. You can get both at malcolmsmith.com.
Sales, service, parts and accessories are doing brisk business at the family’s Riverside, Calif., motorcycle store, too, especially with COVID pushing Americans to rediscover the joys of powersports, camping and the great outdoors. The current Malcolm Smith Motorsports location is a mammoth establishment designed and built in the early 2000s and first opening for business in 2006, complete with a Malcolm Smith museum of sorts spread out along the upper deck. Malcolm and Joyce ran things for a handful of years, but began handing off the management reins to son Alexander and daughter Ashley six or seven years ago, and the two are fully in charge nowadays.
“Things are really hopping at the store,” Malcolm told me, “but supply is an issue. We can’t get enough product, and many bikes and UTVs are sold before they even arrive at the store. The COVID thing really took manufacturers by surprise.”
Right: Modern side-by-sides have been a blessing for Malcolm and allow him to continue exploring. The Malcolm Smith Motorsports showroom from the upper balcony.
“Things have definitely changed out there,” echoes Joyce. “Now it’s not so much about going to Disneyland or to the movies, but in many cases enjoying the outdoors with family and friends in RVs or toy haulers on motorcycles or UTVs. COVID has slowed everyone down. Folks have stopped hurrying quite so much, and seem to be taking a fresh look at what’s important.”
Spend any time with Malcolm or Joyce and you get the feeling pretty quickly that what’s important is family and family time. Despite all the hunkering down COVID has encouraged, the Smith family still does a lot together, at home in Riverside but also at their second home in Colorado and at their small beach house on the Baja Peninsula, where watersports, relaxing and SeaDoo exploring seem to rule just about every day.
Up until a couple of years ago, Malcolm was still riding a modified KTM cross-country bike, though the Parkinson’s has now limited him to watercraft and UTVs.
“Joyce has been my life partner in every sense of the word,” Malcolm says. “She’s been an amazing wife, businesswoman, decision-maker, friend and mother for nearly four decades, and I shiver to think where I’d be without her.”
“The Parkinson’s didn’t hit me too severely until about two years ago,” Malcolm told me. “It affected my balance so much that I had to stop riding my off-road motorcycle. My left knee is basically bone-on-bone, my lower back is a mess, and the golf cart incident didn’t help, either. I switched to a side-by-side to get my thrills and be able to get into the back country and explore. Baja has lots of primitive trails and roads, and today’s side-bysides work surprisingly well off road.” And as a Baja winner on two and four wheels, Malcolm Smith knows a little about that.
“He’s been slowing down every year,” says Joyce, “this past year more than usual. But what’s been a godsend for him and for us are these modern UTVs, and we’re all so grateful to the industry for having introduced them during these last several years. He can’t do motorcycles anymore, but on these side-by-sides he’s having a really good time, and doing a lot of exploring, which he loves, especially in Baja. And he doesn’t have to jump into them from a hole in the roof, as he did on those Baja buggies he raced! [Laughs] He can still ride an ATV, but without these wonderful UTVs he wouldn’t be able to do much, and that would be pretty bad for someone like Malcolm.”
The Smith clan at their Colorado retreat. Below: Malcolm in Baja, with UTV (left) and with Joyce.
“At times it’s a little difficult to accept how things have changed for me,” Malcolm told me. “Leaving the business world, a culture I existed in and enjoyed for so many years, hasn’t been easy. Not being able to ride motorcycles has been very difficult, though the UTVs are a wonderful alternative. I have some regrets, for sure. But I’m an optimist at heart, and as I look around at my family, my friends and my life, I’m shocked at how fortunate I’ve been.”
“I have some regrets, for sure. But I’m an optimist at heart, and as I look around at my family, my friends and my life, I’m shocked at how fortunate I’ve been.”
And then there’s the latest round of grandkids, two from daughter Ashley and husband Ryan (Amelie, 2, and sister Adeline, 4) and a newborn girl named Miley from son Alexander and his wife Lauren. (Malcolm’s older son Joel and wife Carrie have two kids of their own, Ethan and Evie.)
“The grandkids have been a blessing for Malcolm,” says Joyce, “and especially two-year-old Amelie. She’s adopted him, and is very much a tomboy. She spends hours with him in the garage, climbing up on her stool, taking stuff apart, turning screws and handling tools while he does his thing. She even goes in there when he’s not around. It’s so satisfying for Malcolm, and so good for him mentally.”
Just as he did 50 years ago in On Any Sunday, Malcolm Smith –American motorcycling’s favorite son – is still inspiring people, still making them happy, even at 80 years of age. You go, Poppy.
Joe Bonello
Malcolm, In Color
The famous Ed Horne image of Malcolm Smith flying across a dry lake (“probably Lake Chapala, but I’m not sure,” according to Malcolm) as painted by noted motorsports artist Tom Fritz. “Troy Lee called me,” Fritz told us, “asked if I’d do it, I said yes, he sent me the image, and the rest is history. Malcolm was incredibly helpful with the details I couldn’t see and also with colors, as the photo is black and white.”
“My Dad took me to see On Any Sunday when it came out and I was about 12. Malcolm’s been a hero ever since, so doing this painting was an amazing experience for me.” Prints of the original (which Troy Lee graciously gave to the Smith family) are available at Fritzart.com
Illustration by Tom Fritz
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The Pan Am is significant for a number of reasons, most notably the fact that it’s arguably the first non-cruiser-category motorcycle to come from Milwaukee in decades – Buells, LiveWires and VR1000 homologation specials notwithstanding. So this is totally new territory for Harley-Davidson…although if you’re historically oriented you realize it’s really not, as all motorcycles produced from the beginning of the 20th century through WWII were very much offroad, adventure-style motorcycles by nature and by need. And of course Harley-Davidson was a dominant player there from the very beginning. So, characterizing the Pan America 1250 as a ‘return to Harley-Davidson’s roots’ makes a lot of sense, and it’s a theme you’re going to hear a lot during the next few months as the bikes debut in the
Powering the Pan Am party is Milwaukee’s all-new Revolution Max 1250 engine, a liquid-cooled, 60-degree, DOHC V-twin with four-valve heads, fuel injection, variable valve timing and a claimed 150 crankshaft horsepower. This totally new engine – which will be used in other, non-adventure motorcycles in the coming years – is a stressed member of the chassis, with engineers and designers stressing that the Pan Am was designed from the engine out – meaning they weren’t hamstrung by any previous engine designs in the company’s portfolio and, most importantly, were free to develop whichever design meshed best with their adventure-tourer concept.
Instead of a traditional frame the Pan America uses three separate frame units, front, mid and tail, along with an alloy swingarm, all of which bolt directly to
weight and claims a wet weight of 534 pounds. Other features include Brembo triple discs with radial calipers up front, Showa suspension front and rear, a 6.8inch touchscreen display, ABS, linked brakes and traction control, selectable ride modes and much more. The Special model adds active suspension, tirepressure monitoring, a centerstand, heated grips, optional Adaptive Ride Height technology and other top-shelf accoutrements.
Harley-Davidson will also offer a complete line of accessories for the Pan Am, including three different luggage systems and a full line of technical riding gear for men and women designed in collaboration with high-end Euro apparel specialist REV’IT!
Like Honda and its late-to-the-party Africa Twin, Harley-Davidson is entering a crowded category that’s stacked with
super-capable motorcycles. But the company has clearly done its homework here, and from what folks who’ve ridden the bike are saying, the Pan Am’s functionality puts it right in the thick of the fight, and in some areas it’s got a bit of an edge. And given the competition in this category, that’s saying a lot. Pricing, which ranges from $17,400 (std. model) to $19,999 (Special), is right in line with the competition.
In its video rollout to the world in late February, Harley-Davidson said something like this about adventure motorcycling: This is our game. We’ve always played here. It’s how our founders used motorcycles. It’s part of us. It’s in our DNA. All true, and all signs point to the Pan America punching up in the category. Bikes will be arriving in dealers shortly, so we shall know how the Pan Am stacks up very soon.
“This is our game. We’ve always played here. It’s how our founders used motorcycles. It’s part of us. It’s in our DNA.”
When I took the leap and learned how to ride a motorcycle, I remember being told, “If you know how to ride a bicycle and can balance, you’ll have no problem.” Luckily, I’d learned to ride a bike really young, so the transition to a motorized two-wheeler was pretty seamless. But what happens when kids or adults don’t know how or are unable to experience bicycling?
Biking is an excellent pathway to riding motorcycles, especially among youth, but it’s been on the decline. Sports & Fitness Industry Association data from 2018 shows that only 16 percent of kids between the ages of 6 and 12 cycle regularly, a drastic decrease compared to numbers in the ’70s and ’80s. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has fueled bicycle sales in a way not seen in several decades, but this downward trend over the last few decades is a scary one for the motorcycle industry.
Back when I learned to ride a bicycle in the mid-1980s, all the neighborhood kids rode bikes. You could find the action by looking for the yard with most bikes tossed carelessly on the grass. We’d ride for hours in the summer until our moms shouted us home for dinner.
But today, far too many kids spend hours gaming, watching TV or scrolling social media. Many have never swung a leg over a bicycle, which makes it difficult indeed for OEs with floundering sales numbers to attract a new generation of younger riders.
Still, there are Sting-Ray- and Huffytinged rays of hope on the horizon.
But let’s rewind a bit, first. Balance is one of the fundamental skills needed to ride a bicycle (and, later, a motorcycle), and Ryan McFarland, the founder of Strider Bikes, found himself obsessed with finding a way to help his two-year-old son develop balance so they could share a love of riding together. After examining a myriad of learn-to-ride vehicles, from tricycles to ride-on toys to training-wheelequipped motorcycles, McFarland knew he had to build something better.
In 2007, McFarland built the very first 12-inch Strider Bike for his son Bode in his garage, not knowing his creation would change the path to riding for kids across
the country…and the world. “One day,” he says, “I bought the smallest, cheapest, lightest bike I could find and started modifying from there,” all of which led to the creation of the very first customwelded, custom-painted balance bike.
“When [my son] started riding that prototype bike,” McFarland remembers, “everything changed. He was mobile, and we were trying to keep up with him. It was dramatic how our life changed…” But McFarland quickly realized that it wasn’t just his son that could benefit; kids across the world could experience the freedom and joy of two wheels.
As Strider began selling these so-called balance bikes, its next step was to create community, and it did so by creating Strider Events where kids could come together to show off their skills and share the excitement of riding together to grow their appetite for riding. Events grew quickly, and the very first Strider World Championship was held in 2007 in Sarasota, Fla.
“We were getting calls early on from parents desperate to get their kids to
ride,” said McFarland, “and many times these were older kids, and we found out some had some special needs that kept them from learning or made them afraid to try. So we worked on designing a special bike for them.”
“We started with a 16-inch wheel,” continued Strider Bikes Marketing Manager Susie Marcks, “and we saw that suddenly instead of just going up to five years old teaching kids to ride, we could go up to kids that were 10 years old and they could learn to ride. But there were teenagers and there were adults that still didn’t have the opportunity; they were past the point of having the Strider when they were little to start out on … We really truly believe that everyone should have the opportunity to ride. So that’s when we developed the 20-inch bike for adults.”
By 2018, over 2 million Strider bikes had been sold, very likely positioning some (and maybe more) to become motorcyclists down the road. Meanwhile, I was struggling to teach my son how to ride a bicycle. While I’m not Ty’s birth mother – I didn’t come into his life
Left: Ryan McFarland, founder of Strider Bikes. Right: The author’s son, Ty, who finally got the chance to take off on two wheels with a Strider.
The author in the ‘80s aboard her first, bananaseat bicycle.
Strider Bikes
Joy Burgess
Joy Burgess
The children of spectators and racers alike get in on the Strider Bikes racing action during intermission at the American Flat Track races.
until he was 12 years old – he’s the son of my heart. Ty was born with Down syndrome and a congenital heart defect that required eight hours of openheart surgery at the age of two. He also has pituitary dwarfism and was later diagnosed with autism.
Like many children with Down syndrome, Ty struggled with balance and motor skill development, and there were no Strider Bikes when he was small to help him learn to ride. After I came into his life and fell in love with two wheels myself, he wanted to learn to ride so badly ...and I tried so hard to teach him. I tried on a regular bike with pedals and training wheels, and it was a disaster. Larger trikes seemed out of reach price-wise for me as a single mom. All I wanted was for my son to enjoy the magic of movement on two wheels, and no matter how hard we tried we only met frustration.
By 2018, over 2 million Strider bikes had been sold, very likely positioning some (and maybe more) to become motorcyclists down the road.
And then I heard about Strider Bikes. Ryan McFarland gave a presentation at the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame in 2019, and my boss and colleagues happened to be there. In his presentation he’d spoken about another young man with Down syndrome who learned to ride bicycles and later dirt bikes by starting with a Strider. There was hope!
After contacting and chatting with McFarland about my son’s situation, Strider graciously sent me a 16-inch Strider early in 2020, and with the aid of their helpful instruction videos, I built the bike and got it ready for Ty to try out.
He donned his motorcycle helmet – he’s always got one handy – and we were ready to ride.
Ty learns best visually, so I gave him a demonstration on the bike myself, and then he threw a leg over it for the very first time. Both scared and excited, I wondered, ‘Could this finally be the solution, or would it end in frustration for both of us?’
In just minutes he took off on the bike, a bit shaky, getting used to learning to balance the bike while creating forward motion with his legs. And he was grinning and I was crying because, finally, my kid
Strider Bikes
The entire crew of amazing, big-hearted people behind Strider Bikes at Strider Sports International headquarters in Rapid City, S.D.
Strider Bikes
Ice Queen
Kaley Johnson wins big at the 2021 High Voltage AMA Ice Race Grand Championship, where nearly 240 racers banged bars on ice and raised money for cancer research
By Joy Burgess with Kaley Johnson
Kaley Johnson (67J) won the Women’s class (right) and then raced against the boys in the 450, Open and Kold Kutter classes.
“Kaley Johnson,” mused AMA Grand Championship race promoter Ron Brefka, “wow! That girl surprised everyone at the 2021 High Voltage AMA Ice Race Grand Championship. She was so fast! She won the Women's class, and when they finished up she went over to beat the boys, too.”
On Miller’s Bay in Oshkosh, Wis. – the site of the longest running ice races in the state – the high temperature on Feb. 6, 2021, was just 8 degrees Fahrenheit, but that didn’t
stop nearly 240 racers and plenty of fans from turning out for the AMA Ice Race Grand Championship. “Not one racer mentioned the cold,” Brefka told us, and for Kaley, dealing with the cold is just part of riding on the ice.
“Every year we seem to battle the cold,” Kaley said. “I remember going to ice nationals back in 2015 in Edgerton, Wis., and starting the day out getting frostbite on my cheeks after the first practice. My parents worried I wouldn’t make it through the day, but I ended up earning three national championships and
Jen Muecke
Jen Muecke
Close to 240 racers lined up to go racing at the 2021 High Voltage AMA Ice Race Grand Championship.
Ron Brefka
claiming the Ice Racer Of The Year award that day. So, from experience I’ve learned how to fight the cold while racing with improved equipment to keep me warm. I have heated handlebars, so cold hands weren’t a worry. Although aside from the cold temperatures, snow dust was a huge battle all day. I used heated goggles to be sure my goggles didn’t fog up with all the dust.”
Snow dust wasn’t the only obstacle she faced.
“I started the day rough,” Kaley said. “Just before my first heat race, my bike wouldn’t stay running due to a wonky kill switch. My older brother Kyle raced in the first heat race of the 450 class [which he went on to win later that day – Ed.], then came back to the trailer and swapped out my kill switch just in time for me to make it out for the fifth heat race of the 450 class.”
“Aside from the cold temperatures, snow dust was a huge battle all day. I used heated goggles to be sure my goggles didn’t fog up with all the dust.” — K.J.
“It was a busy day for both of us,” she continued, “with my brother racing in three classes and me racing in four. But he still managed to provide me with the best bike setup for the track conditions by changing my gearing, swapping tires and adjusting my suspension. He’s always looking out for his little sister, even when I’m also his competition.”
“The highlight of the day was battling with him in the last chance qualifier of the Kold Kutter class after he crashed in his heat race while leading,” she added. “We
“Racing is a family thing for us, and I can say that I am the rider I am today due to the many, many hours my brother spent riding with me and critiquing me to be faster.” — K.J.
Kaley Johnson (67J) mixing it up with the boys.
Little Levi Leddy took the checkered flag for a spin around the ice after winning both the PW50 and 50cc Open classes.
Gordon Halsey (4) finally won in the Senior class after chasing a championship win for 15 years.
finished first and second to both transfer to the main. Racing is a family thing for us, and I can say that I am the rider I am today due to the many, many hours my brother spent riding with me and critiquing me to be faster.”
In the Women's class, Kaley found herself battling with last year’s class winner Andrea Walsdorf, as well as Megan Funk, Hannah Lange, Julie
Hanson and a handful of other female racers. Kaley won the class back in 2018 and was stoked to win again in 2021. “It was exciting to get the win again,” she said, “and so good to see the number of women riders participating this year!”
Along with racing in the Women’s class, Kaley raced in the 450, Open and Kold Kutter classes, managing to earn a spot in all of those 12-rider Main events.
“In all those classes,” she told us, “I had my work cut out for me, lining up on the back row in all three, but I managed to pull off sixth-place finishes in the 450 and Open classes, and an eighth in Kold Kutter. Back home in Michigan, all of the boys are used to me ‘beating up on them,’ but it is always interesting when I line up with new competition to see how shocked they all are to see me battling with them.”
Ron Brefka
AMA race promoter Ron Brefka raced in the High Voltage Hooligan class aboard his Shovelhead to “show people that there’s life after cancer.” Below: David Kilkenny’s S&S 883 Sportster that got him to a win in the High Voltage Hooligan class.
Kayley wasn’t the only one to deal with adversity before pulling off a win out on the ice. Dave Kilkenny competed in the High Voltage Hooligan division, a class that ran for the first time in the AMA Ice Race Grand Championship in 2020, and right before the main event had a flat tire. A bit of frantic work on the bike and he fixed the flat just in time to race…and won!
“There’s nothing my S&S Cycle Sportster can’t do,” Kilkenny told us about his win, “and Ron and the AMA ran a flawless program in challenging conditions.”
Persistence paid off for Gordey Halsey, too, who’d been chasing a championship win for years. “After trying for 15 years,” promoter Brefka told us, “Gordey finally won his first National Championship on his Honda ice racer in the Senior Class. He told me he screamed in his helmet as he crossed the finish line.”
Handling the many race promoter duties didn’t stop Brefka from getting out on the ice aboard his Shovelhead in the High Voltage Hooligan class. “I
Jen Muecke
Jen Muecke
wanted to show people that there’s life after cancer,” Brefka said. “When you’re a cancer survivor, you can still get out and enjoy life and ride…live your dream!”
As a cancer survivor, supporting cancer research is a cause close to Brefka’s heart. “We took an Indian FTR Jr., added AMA and High Voltage logos to the front plate, and raffled it off with proceeds going to cancer research.” All proceeds from the races went to the WeCare Fund, benefitting world-class cancer research at the Medical College of Wisconsin.
At the end of that chilly day on the ice, Brefka’s heart was bursting. “I’d like to say a special ‘thank you’ to all the racers, spectators, track officials, sponsors and volunteers that made this happen,” he said.
And Brefka’s not done racing for a cause. This summer, the High Voltage Half-Mile races debut on June 6, 2021, at the historic Elkhorn, Wis., half-mile cushion track during the Rustic Road Rally to benefit the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. Visit Highvoltage414.com to find out how you can get involved.
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STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
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Sam Swope: Motorcycles that represent the generous, charitable giving of motorcyclist and philanthropist Sam Swope.
Lords of the Board Track: Board-track racing was one of the earliest formal motorcycleracing disciplines. It featured man and machine speeding around a simple wooden track while huge crowds cheered them on. Learn why this form of racing dropped from sight almost as quickly as it emerged. Learn about the racers who dared to compete in this exhilarating sport and watch a video of actual racing from 1921.
MALCOLM AND BAJA: THE EARLY YEARS
By Mitch Boehm
This photograph, the lead image of chapter seven of Malcolm Smith’s acclaimed autobiography Malcolm! The Autobiography, is a doozie in composition, lighting and focus, and gives us a glimpse of just how demanding and difficult racing in Baja – the chapter’s title – really is.
“Baja is really tough on bodies and equipment,” Malcolm told me recently as we looked at this this image together in his home. “I rode 200 miles with a flat tire and broken spokes,
stopping often to tighten the spokes enough to keep the wheel together. That’s Bill Ydiando (in the vest) and Doug Douglas with me here.”
The shot and situation also show how inventive and intelligent Malcolm was as a rider, traits that would serve him well in his off-road racing exploits and in ISDT competition, where he won eight gold medals.
