I don’t like to boast, but I once rode around a motocross circuit in front of 7,000 people and the world’s top riders, including Dakar legend Neil Hawker, to raise money for a children’s charity.
For those of you unversed in such matters, this is the modern offspring of what British chaps used to call scrambling, which involved riding ancient Nortons, BSAs and Rudges around muddy tracks in the rain while wearing even more ancient Belstaff jackets which they’d bought for two shillings and sixpence from the local Army and Navy stores.
As opposed to Belstaff jackets today, which are produced by Italians, modelled by David Beckham and Kate Moss, and cost four and a half billion quid.
Today, the world’s top riders are all aged about 12, ride around at just below the speed of sound, and spend more time in the air than on the ground.
As opposed to me, who rode around so slowly that when I got to the finish line, Neil said: “Well done, chum. You’ve just set a new lap record,” he said.
Sadly, he was holding a calendar rather than a stopwatch, and when I looked around, the crowd had gone home and the roadies were setting up the stage for an Abba tribute band.
Thankfully, you won’t have to see me doing it again, but you’ll have the chance to see the world’s top riders in action at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on October 8, when the UK hosts the first ever World Supercross Grand Prix.
Not familiar with supercross? Think motocross, but, well, better. And there are plenty of reasons to witness this landmark event, whether you’re a diehard fan or are simply looking for a family evening out.
Historically, the sport’s taken place almost solely in the USA, and in true American fashion, after 17 rounds across the country they declared a world champion. As in the baseball World Series, some Americans can be a bit, er, xenophobic.
Now the FIM, the actual world motorcycle racing body, has sanctioned a new World Supercross Championship, designed to take the sport global, and the whole thing is starting right here in the UK.
So why should you go? I’ll start with my favourite reason. In traditional motocross, you stand in a wet, muddy field to watch bikes come by once every minute and a half, grappling with your umbrella against driving rain, but in supercross, you get to enjoy the whole event from a warm, dry seat in a stadium.
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So you can see every corner, every jump and every overtake. It’s also easy to grab a beer or a hot dog, and the toilets aren’t wobbly Portaloos that have suffered years of abuse.
It’s also more than just a race meeting - it’s a family event, with live music, including AJ Tracey, pyrotechnics and freestyle stunts.
And if you don’t have a family, get some mates together instead.
If you are a motorsport nut, though, it’s for you. Thanks to an event format that prioritises non-stop action, there are no lulls, with multiple heat races, superpole and three main events per class.
And it’s a world championship, so you are seeing the best of the best, with big money teams and big money sponsors. Red Bull-backed Ken Roczen is in, the German having won motocross titles and supercross events in the US, plus 2020 world champion Eli Tomac.
If you’re looking for a home hero to get behind, Max Anstie and Dean Wilson - both plying their trade in the US in recent years - will be flying the flag for the Brits.
Sorted. Get your tickets at www.livenation.co.uk, or search ‘Cardiff supercross’.
