unadilla mX drives family vision forward

BY: ALLISON COLLINS, FOR INSIDE MOTORSPORTS

brother-sister duo Jill and Greg Robinson, lifelong Edmeston, New York, residents, are keeping their parents’ dream on track. The pair owns Unadilla MX, the pro and amateur motorsports facility at 5986 State Highway 8, New Berlin, New York, started by their dad, Ward Robinson, in 1969.

track infO All-natural, dirt tracks Amateur track: 1.25 miles Pro track: 1.5 miles lOcatiOn 5986 State Highway 8, New Berlin, New York premiere events June 4-6: MX Rewind Vintage MX Weekend June 18-20: Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Regional July 16-18: Northeastern ATV National Aug. 14: Unadilla Pro National MX cOntact 607-965-8450 www.unadillamx.com

“We are second-generation owners,” Jill Robinson said. “It started with my father back in 1967 or ’68. He went to a scrambles event, which is somewhat similar to motorcross, in New Hampshire. He came home and said to my mother, ‘This is what I want to do, I want to build one of those tracks.’ She said something along the lines of ‘over her dead body,’ but that didn’t really work.

“He set out to find land and there was a dairy farm and the farmer was looking to retire … and looking at selling,” she continued. “It was just a confluence of the perfect events: my father made an offer and purchased the farm in 1968 and ran his first race in ’69. It all just fell together and the stars aligned.”

Ward and the late Margaret Robinson operated the track through 2010, Jill Robinson noted, though she said she and Greg “basically grew up doing it.” a reputation For racing

In the intervening decades, Robinson said, the all-dirt, two-track facility has distinguished itself at local, national and international levels.

“Over the past 52 years, Unadilla has earned a reputation as one of the best tracks in the United States, if not the world,” unadillamx.com states. “In addition to being the first track in the U.S. to host the MX des Nations, Unadilla has also been home to the 250 USGO and the fall Trans-AMA and Trans-USA series.”

Though the 2021 season remains tentative because of the pandemic caused by the spread of COvID-19, Robinson said in January, Unadilla MX typically hosts competitive dirt bike and all-terrain vehicle events from May through September.

Events, Robinson said, run the gamut.

“It just depends on our event — some are dirt bike only and they’re open to kids as young as 5, right on through adults,” she said. “We’ve had people in their 80s race, so it’s all ages and all ability levels.”

“We do not race every weekend,” Robinson continued. “We offer organized races only, so there are not times where people can just come in and practice. We usually host a round of the ATV national series … and that’s broken down by individual races, ages, ability level and quad size. The races themselves are broken down by age or ability or both, so that people who are racers every now and then and maybe aren’t that comfortable aren’t out there with people who are serious, and this is what they do.”

Chad Wienen, front, and Jeffrey Rastrelli climb a hill during the second pro qualifying session July 11, 2015, at Unadilla MX.

an action-packeD SeaSon

Excepting the 2020 and 2021 seasons, Robinson said, Unadilla MX events have been on the rise. “For the most part, we’ve been doing larger (American Motorcyclist Association) events with a larger draw,” she said. “If we do a small, local race, it’s generally only one a year. “We’re on schedule to do the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Regional,” Robinson

continued. “It’s the largest AmA event in the country. It starts at Lorretta Lynn’s ranch in Tennessee and (competitors) have to qualify to go, so the top AMA riders compete to go. There’s a two-stage qualifying process and in the final stage for amateurs — typically kids 16 and over are what’s called AmA regionals — we’d have about 800 racers and their families here and they’ll be from all over New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West virginia, virginia, Ohio, North Carolina and we’ve even had riders from Florida for that one.”

Unadilla MX also hosts an annual vintage event, Robinson noted, wherein bikes can’t be any newer than 1999. That race, she said, draws racers “from about 35 states, Canada and Ireland,” bringing roughly “1,100 racers and their families” to New Berlin.

And, each July, Unadilla MX hosts a round of the ATv nationals, Robinson said, attracting “about 500 racers (from) about 22 states and Canada and Argentina.”

At the time of writing, the Unadilla Pro National MX weekend was scheduled for Aug. 14. Hosting a round of the pro nationals, Robinson said, is an annual highlight.

“The Pro National Motorsports Series is generally a 12-race series and, in traditional times, it starts in midMay in California and then it starts working its way east,” Robinson said. Other host states, she said, include Florida, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota and Washington.

“There are 12 tracks in the country that hold a pro national, and we’re one of them,” she continued. “It’s a bear of a weekend. But generally, we’re lucky enough that we host one of the NBC rounds, so part of that round goes out on the NBC network and their affiliates and goes worldwide. That’s pretty cool for the area. The camera guys are pretty good about going out in the area and finding something cool they can shoot — they’ve done the Northeast Classic Car Museum in Norwich and the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown — so it just highlights the area even more. It’s an interesting experience.”

The influx of that weekend, Robinson said, shifts Unadilla MX into high gear.

“That is always a rock-solid event,” she said. “During Pro National weekend, the amateurs stay on the amateur track and the pro track stays just for the pros. That pro track doesn’t lend itself well to putting about 1,200 amateurs on it on Friday then trying to get it ready for a pro race on Saturday, so we have to separate them. “They’re dirt tracks, all natural, and they take advantage of the hills and elevations and there are some straight pieces in there,” she continued. “The amateur track is about one and a quarter mile long, so it’s a close course. The pro track is about a mile and a half of all-natural terrain and our top-level pros will probably sustain speeds pushing 30 to 45 miles per hour if conditions are prime; if we get a mud race, all bets are off.”

The nature of such tracks, Robinson noted, means particular upkeep. “We’re pretty careful about how many events we do,” she said. “We’ve got a lot of rock in our soil, so after events we have to go screen it out and find someplace to replace the topsoil with. It’s not as nice as some of our pro national friends that have sand. We’re pretty careful with how much we’re doing, because we need repair time and, if you don’t take that time, you end up making an even bigger mess than if you’d put the brakes on.”

In non-pandemic years, Robinson noted, the Pro National weekend typically attracts racers from “35 states and around 20 foreign countries.” tracking the impact

Such events, Robinson said, rev things up on and off the track.

“(Competitors) are not local, for the most part,” she said. “In terms of tourism, those are the events our area really depends on. The tourism events of most value … are events that bring people from 75 miles away or more. (visitors) will get food and groceries and gas and buy sundry items, so it’s of great value to our local area and it ripples out.

“When we do those kinds of events, businesses bring in additional staff, those employees work more hours, they’re buying more products and … all of a sudden, a local worker has a bigger paycheck,” Robinson continued. “It has a greater circulatory value and, for our businesses in New Berlin, they love those events. They want to know when they are, when they’ve got to make their staffing increase and it makes a huge difference to their bottom line.”

A recent study, Robinson noted, estimated that the Pro National weekend brings “$18 million to New Berlin and surrounding 40-mile area.”

Ken Roczen of Germany celebrates after winning the first moto in the 450 class Saturday, Aug. 10, 2019, at Unadilla Motocross in New Berlin.

Living a Legacy

Robinson said, despite the challenges, she’s happy to be steering Unadilla MX toward its future.

“My brother and I grew up in the sport and I think once it gets in your blood, it doesn’t leave,” she said. “It’s a unique business to run. There aren’t many brother-sister combinations out there doing it; out of 12 tracks, three of us run on brother-sister combinations. It’s an exciting sport and we enjoy the people. For us, even though it’s a national sport, there’s a lot of family to it. Some of the people in the industry my brother and I have known since we were kids, so it’s like a family reunion for us.

“We just want to keep it going,” Robinson continued. “My mom and dad were trailblazers; when they did this, there wasn’t much known about motocross and people were like, ‘You want to do what?’ but over the years, it became pretty obvious that they had something. I can go to a motocross place anywhere in Europe and they know the name unadilla and that’s pretty cool. We’re so used to it and comfortable with it, sometimes I say to my brother, ‘Step back and realize what got created and what we’re caretaking.’ It’s in the blood.”

For more information and event dates, visit unadillamx.com, find “Unadilla Motocross” on Facebook or call 607-965-8450.