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Muddy Mayhem!
K E AT O N M A I S A N O
G
o watch a hillclimb event, and the focus is usually on what’s going up the hill. But at the AMA Hillclimb Grand Championship in August at Michigan’s historic Mount Garfield, the concern was what was coming down! “We got to the 450 class,” said first-time event promoter John Radke, “and as the bikes were going out, the hill was coming down faster
than the bikes! Every time they went over one of the breakers, the water would pour out from behind it, so there were times where more of the mud was coming down than bikes were going up.” While a heavy rain had 16
turned Mount Garfield — a sand dune that has been tied to hillclimb and the Muskegon Motorcycle Club for more than a century — into a muddy version of itself, it was up to Radke and those working the event to adapt and try to salvage the weekend. Deciding to postpone the event until the next day, the competition was limited to a single round, tie breakers and the King
of the Hill competition, for the more than 170 riders due to limited time and hill conditions. With any tough decision, Radke said the altered format was met with mixed emotions. “We took our lumps. Some people were happy, though there were some that were very definitely not,” Radke said. “But at the end of the event, and in days following, I received numerous texts and phone calls from some of those people that were upset at the time. Cooler heads had prevailed, and they seemed
AMERICAN MOTORCYCLIST • NOVEMBER 2022
to appreciate what we did and knew that we did the best we could with the situation we were given.” Despite difficult conditions and hard decisions, Radke said there were fortunately no major injuries sustained by any of the riders during the event. While Radke promoted and ran the event, he was quick to point out that the success of the event was not thanks to his efforts alone. “It takes a village to
PHOTOS: LUKE CIPALA
The AMA Hillclimb Grand Championship overcame adverse weather to crown its champions
Dan D. Raymond organized the Muskegon Motorcycle Club in 1920, and Mount Garfield (main) was leased for a hillclimb a year later in 1921. Jason Vanberg (right) was named AMA Hillclimb ATV Racer of the Year. The AMA Senior Hillclimb Racer of the Year went to Jason Braun (far right).
